Page 4 of Crush
“Yes.”
“And you left them alone?”
“He seems like a nice boy. They weren't up to anything bad,” Estel said. Then she asked uncertainly, “Er,werethey up to anything bad?”
I sighed. “I don't know. I found them in the living room with the lights off. I don't know what they were up to—my mind won't evenbegintolet me go there—but I can't imagine it was good.”
Estel waved her hand at me as if all this were no big deal. “Oh, Shea. You know how teens are these days.”
“Ugh.” I didn't knowwhatEstel was trying to imply about what that twerp was trying to do with my daughter, but my insides revolted at the mere suggestion of something inappropriate. “No, Estel, I don't.”
She gave a shrug.
“Where are the boys?” I asked Estel, even though I figured I knew the answer.
“Downstairs, I'd imagine.”
I left Estel and made my way downstairs. Sure enough, my ten-year-old twins, Cameron and Nicholas, were embroiled in a fierce game of one-on-one inside the soundproofed confines of their indoor rink.
Years ago, when it became obvious that the boys loved hockey as much as their dad—and were destroying lamps and breaking windows with their indoor roughhousing—I paid a pretty penny to have this modern marvel built. The floor was made of synthetic ice, so they could skate on it with real ice skates. It's not the same feeling as skating on realice, but it's as close as you can get to the real thing. The rink alsohad a net, boards, glass, a scoreboard, and even a little penalty box to sit in. Best of all, the entire thing was soundproof and virtually indestructible, so the boys can shoot and hit in there all day long and not break anything or make a huge ruckus.
I slipped on my skates, opened the door to the rink, and entered the boys' world. The air in their rink was hot and humid and hard to breathe. Thankfully, they didn't trulystinkyet … that would still be in the years to come.
“Hey, boys! Really worked up a sweat in here, eh?”
They were both red faced and their shirts were soaked through. “Hey, Dad!” they said at the same time, but neither turned to look—their game was too heated. Cam was intent on trying to deke and dangle his way around Nick, but Nick's defense was rock-solid.
I glided over and helped Nick out, lifting Cam's stick into the air so Nick could snatch the unprotected puck away.
“DAD!” Cam shrieked.
And when Nick raced away with the puck and roofed it into the empty net and threw his arms into the air to celebrate his victory, Camreallylet me have it.
“Great! Thanks alot, Dad! That was game point! What'd you have to do that for?!”
With a frown, I ruffled his hair. “Aw, I'm sorry, bud. I didn't know your game was so serious. I was just messing around. But itisyour bedtime, anyway.” I scooped up the loose puck and tried to get back on his good side. “Hey, Cam. One last shot. Lemme see that one-timer.”
With a fire in his eyes, Cam set up, stick cocked and ready to release.
“Call it first,” I said.
“Crossbar,” he said with determination.
I feathered a pass right into Cam's wheelhouse. He channeled that fury into his release and blasted the puck off his blade. A cannon of a shot caromed right off his target, the crossbar, with a loud ironclang.
I gave my son a clap on the back. “Niceshot there, buddy.” He certainly didn't get it from me—his shot might be harder than mine already.
“Yeah, yeah,” Cam mumbled, still a little incensed at his dad.
“How was the game, Dad?” Nick asked.
“We lost.” I paused. “You boys didn't watch, eh?”
“Nope,” they said at the same time.
I wasn't surprised. These days, my sons weren't even fans of my team. It sucks, but I guess it's just a part of watching your kids grow up. They were Chicago fans instead. Their favorite players? Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, of course. Last time we played Chicago, I met with Kaner and Toewser after the game and asked them to autograph a stick for my boys.
Yeah, it's a little embarrassing for a vet like me to tell some younger guy thathe'smy sons' favorite player. But whatever. They were both classy about it. And when I gave those sticks to the twins, the look in their eyes made it all worth it.
