Page 212 of Wrong Pucking Player

“Nurse Andrews of Saskatchewan Pincers speaking,” I quickly begin before I notice Kane is running funny. “Sylvester! Take ten and stretch out that calf!”

He’s surprised by my call out, especially with everything in front of me while I’m holding the phone to my ear, but one quick exchange of gazes has him nodding before he slows his run and limps over to the benches farthest to my right.

Diesel ends up running over to him, the two of them talking before Kane’s pointing to his calf. Diesel nods and looks my way, but I’m a step ahead of him as I point to the cooler not too far from where they’re resting.

“Get a cooler pack. Ice it for ten minutes. I’ll come to assess it.”

“Thanks, Nurse Andrews!” Diesel calls back and is off to do the task at hand.

I’m back to staring at my papers before it dawns on me that I’m still on the phone.

“Oh, hello? Nurse And—”

“ALEX! What is the meaning of this?!”

I almost flinch at the high volume shrill that surely could have blown out my eardrums if I hadn’t moved the phone from my ear fast enough.

My stadium work phone was actually an older Android I had in the drawer of my old place.It seemed like the best solution versus giving my new number to my aunt. If she knew I had a new phone, she’d question where I got it from, leading to a discussion questioning where I’m hiding this imaginary money when I know our “family” is suffering.

Her family.

All I’ve been is a piggy bank for her to enjoy all these years.

“Excuse me?” I feign innocence. “Auntie, is that you? Sorry, this phone is pretty old, so it’s hard to distinguish voices.”

“YOU CLOSED YOUR ACCOUNTS!” she accuses straight away. From how she’s screaming from the top of her lungs, she’s obviously furious. “Why wasn’t I informed? A financial advisor called me shortly after you left the bank, worried you were being hacked or blackmailed to withdraw the funds and close your bank!”

Financial advisor—aka her bestie manager in the bank that monitors everything and everyone that enters this bank.

Literally, if you think you’ll be able to keep your banking matters a secret, it’ll never be the case doing business with that bank because Aunt B and her partner in crime will spread it to everyone in this small-ass town.

“I’m not being blackmailed.” I roll my eyes at that one. There are very few things someone could use against me to get me to follow their orders.

“I decided those bank accounts would no longer service me.”

“No longer service YOU?” she shrieks. “Those bank accounts are connected to your government housing and other organizations that provide you with grants, scholarships, weekly food vouchers, and car benefits monthly!”

Food Vouchers and Car benefits?

“That’s intriguing. A shame I never used those vouchers that were given weekly. If I knew about that, I wouldn’t have spent those cold winter years eating Ramen noodles every day since it was all I could afford.” I’m surprised by the bitterness in my voice. It could be the hot sun I’ve been sitting under this entire time that’s making me rather irritated.

Or I’m just pissed off by this bitch who suddenly thinks she still owns me because I’m an orphan.

“As for monthly car benefits, last time I checked, I didn’t have a car.”

“Those benefits were helping your family!”

“If I really was your family, you would have treated me like one instead of some outcast who lives on her own since managing to snag that government housing apartment while you mooched off me for years.”

Guess today is ‘Be Brutally Honest’ day.

“Excuse me?!”

“I closed those accounts. Information that shouldn’t have been shared because it’s a violation of the bank privacy rules, which you and your financial advisor friend enjoy breaking every minute of the hour. As to why I did such is none of your business. I’m twenty-five, and you’re not my legal guardian. Actually, you never really were. More like a conservator, which I saw in the documents when I closed my bank accounts today.”

That was one of the reasons why I’d been so concentrated on my work.

Aunt B didn’t adopt me.

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