CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Have fun on your date
VANESSA
This week has thrown me a curveball.
Since school started, I’ve had minimal contact with my parents. I got one phone call the first day of classes—only so my mom could find out if I was taking any law courses this year. She was not happy to find out that I dropped my minor in political science only to swap to film and photography.After that, they only called one other time—a few days before my birthday to let me know that they wouldn’t be visiting and probably wouldn’t have any service on their vacation.
My parents have money, so not having service in Europe was just a lie they told me so I wouldn’t bother them.
I hadn’t heard anything since their trip until two days ago. I was leaving campus after my Wednesday classes had finished when my dad’s caller ID lit up my screen. Immediately I went into panic mode because my dad rarely calls me, so I automatically assumed someone died.
Someone did.
But not anyone important, as bad as that is to say.
My mom’s aunt passed away over the weekend, so my dad called to let me know they were heading back early from their vacation. I didn’t know why my dad felt the need to update me, that is until we got to the actual reason for the call. My parents expected me to come home this weekend for the funeral so we would look good in front of my mother’s relatives.I hate that side of my family so much.
Okay, maybe hate is a strong word. But I strongly dislike them.
Mom knows why. That side comes from generations of wealth. Somewhere down the line, an ancestor founded a bagel company in New York that’s been around for decades. Since then, my family has produced businessmen, lawyers, and housewives. They expect nothing less than perfection.
I grew up spending my summers in the Hamptons with my cousins. We had catered dinners for every holiday, and birthdays always consisted of very expensive gifts. It made me want to puke. It still does.Most of my cousins have followed in their parents’ footsteps, either holding shares in the family business or becoming a doctor or a lawyer.
I’m the only outlier.
Maybe that’s where my resentment comes from. They believe that everyone needs to be financially successful in order to have happiness. But I don’t think anyone on that side knows what happiness truly is.My family believes that you should find a partner who is on the same social status. Meaning we should look for companions who attend ivy league schools, wear designer clothes, and know which fork to use during each course.
I think the moment I knew I would never be like my family occurred a few summers ago. We were staying at my aunt Helen’s house in the Hamptons and I overheard my mom’s siblings talking about my dad.My dad is a successful man, but he wasn’t always. When my parents first started dating he was doing his residency, and he was almost broke and drowning in student debts.
Dad’s family comes from Brooklyn and is lower class, and that did not sit well with my mother’s side. They thought that he was just coasting through college and would eventually drop out once my mom passed the bar. They didn’t approve of her dating anyone they deemed less than them.
A.k.a. anyone without money.
My aunt Helen is one of the most judgmental people in our family. She believes that she and my uncle Richard have the poster perfect family and none of us will be able to compare to them. She’s a realtor and her husband owns a string of restaurants along the East Coast.
My mom’s younger sister, my aunt Amy, is a housewife, but she likes it that way. Her husband, Vince, works in medicine with my dad, and their son, Theo, is only a couple of years older than me. The one thing they all have in common is that they believe they’re better than everyone else because they were born with money and didn’t have to earn it, like my father—which is why they still treat him like an outsider, even though he’s made a name for himself.
I never told my parents that I overheard that conversation. I’m sure my dad has lived through enough of my family slandering him.That could be why I resent my parents’ money so much. Who needs therapy when self-reflection basically explains all my problems to me.
I ended up telling my dad that the team has an away game that I need to cover so I can’t make the funeral. He wasn’t pleased, but I overheard my mom telling him it was useless to try to convince me otherwise.
The team doesn’t have an away game this weekend, just the one game on campus today that I’m currently filming.My parents have never paid attention to a single school email or asked me about anything photography related, so really, there’s no way they would find out.
To add to my weird week, Jake has barely spoken to me since we got back last weekend.
Usually I see him before practice starts, we share a small conversation, he normally makes a joke and I pretend it’s funny, and he even surprised me a once or twice with a hazelnut latte. This week he’s barely muttered a hello.
I guess I could always do the adult thing and actually talk to him. I said hello to all the guys this morning when they walked into the arena, and Jake seemed to be in higher spirits than this entire week. Maybe that’s a good omen for me to talk to him once the game is over.
The arena feels colder than it usually does in October.
Normally the stands have heaters, but they only turn them on in the colder months. Next time I’ll plan better attire besides a long sleeve and jeans. I decided to wear the cardigan that Sydney got me for my birthday because normally it’s cozy. But I’ve realized that being cozy in my home with the heat turned on is much different from the temperature in the arena. The small gaps in the woven material allow a chill to dance across my skin.
At least the game is almost done so I can go home and snuggle under some blankets for the rest of the night while I edit my footage from today and update the team’s socials.I’ve restructured the layout of the team’s website so it’s more user friendly. Whoever was responsible for the maintenance of the website before clearly didn’t know what the hell they were doing. There was no drop-down menu for people to navigate, and the link for the live streams was expired. It took me almost a week to get everything organized.
It’s near the end of the third period and we’re currently winning 3–1 against Northeastern University.
The opposing team is really good. I can tell by the way that they play that their captain is quick on his feet and can change a play within a second. If he notices Nate make a gesture or give Jake or Eli a look, he’s already switching his own game plan. It’s made for quite an enjoyable game and some great content.
Having a home game has its perks. Maddie and Sydney keep me company whenever the boys play on campus. They get to sit and relax, watching the game and sipping hot chocolate while I walk up and down the aisles, trying to get good shots of the team. My hot chocolate has probably turned to ice by now, which is why I normally opt for an iced drink when I come here.
I turn my attention to the scoreboard and watch the time tick down. There’s only two minutes left, and Northeastern has the puck. Their left wing passes it to their center who is skating past the center line. I’ve seen the guys during practice skate so fast that if you blink, they’re suddenly on the other side of the ice—but this guy, he makes them seem like snails. It’s like there’s a gust of wind pushing him toward our net. He swipes by Eli, shifting his weight onto one skate. Jake skates fast, desperately trying to get to him before he can shoot.
At the same moment Northeastern’s player sends the puck flying at the net, their right wing slams into Jake, knocking him into the boards. Hard.
Kieran’s attention is so focused on his best friend that he misses the puck that flies right past his head. I turn back to where Jake lies crumpled on the ice, gripping his left shoulder.
Crap, he’s not getting up —which means the hit was worse than I thought.
My heart beats erratically. I always knew sports could be dangerous—hockey being one of the worst. The number of times I’ve watched fights break out or someone accidentally getting checked too hard into the boards makes a shiver run down my spine.
Please let him be okay.
Everyone in the stands gets up to see the commotion. The ref waves his arm in the air as he blows his whistle and skates over to Jake, waving over Coach Wilson.Silence falls on the crowd as Coach makes his way over to Jake, and the rest of his teammates, who are surrounding him on the ice, blocking the audience’s view. After a few moments, Nate and Eli help Jake stand up and gain his footing back. He’s still gripping his shoulder as Coach guides him back to the bench. Jake disappears into the locker rooms, most likely going to see the team doctor. Coach puts in Dawson McNeil, the second-string defenseman, to finish the remainder of the game.
I shove my camera back into my tote bag and rush through the crowd. Hopefully I can get into the locker room.
The lobby is almost empty, everyone still in their seats as the game dwindles down. I make my way through the double doors that lead to the locker rooms. As I’m about to enter, the buzzer goes off, indicating the end of the game.The doors at the end of the hallway swing open and Coach Wilson walks quickly, headed straight toward me.
I stop in my tracks, taking my hand off the door and slowly backing away toward the exit doors. Behind Coach, like a row of ducks, the team follows him into the locker room.
It’s probably best to wait in the lobby with everyone else until Jake comes out. What was I going to do anyway? I’m not a doctor. I wouldn’t know the first thing about sports injuries.
Maddie and Sydney are patiently waiting for me in the lobby, near the concession stand.
Maddie is the first to see me. “Is Jake okay?”
“I don’t know, I was going to check on him, but the whole team just showed up.”
Sydney touches my arm, sensing my unease. “Their team doctor is great. Last season Nate twisted his ankle and was out for a few games, but they have a great physiotherapist on campus. I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
Sydney tries to relieve my anxiety, but I can’t help but be concerned. Even though we’ve barely spoken this week, that doesn’t mean I’m not going to worry about him when he gets hurt. Jake is still my friend, even if we’re not speaking.
It also doesn’t help that I haven’t been able to get him off my mind since Vermont.
I take my camera out and scroll through the footage from the game, desperately trying to occupy my mind until we get an update or the boys come out, whichever happens first.
It feels like forever, but finally the players start filing out, one by one.
Kieran pushes the door open with a powerful force, smacking it off the empty wall behind it. He looks pissed. His nostrils are flared, and he has his headphones jammed in his ears. His posture gives it all away, he’s mad because he let that last shot in.I’m sure Coach Wilson gave him an earful after the game.
Maddie grabs my arm, pulling my attention away from the double doors. “I’m gonna head out, I have a paper for biology due on Monday. Let me know how Jake is. I’ll see you guys at home.”
Maddie gives me a hug before taking off. I turn my focus back to the doors that lead to the locker room. Jake is one of the last guys out, followed by Nate and Eli.
Nate spots us immediately, directing the other two to follow him.
“Well boys, that was an entertaining game.” Sydney laughs, trying to break the awkward silence that immediately falls upon the group. “Jake, you should really check Vanessa’s footage after.”
Nate drags his hand down his face and sighs in response to his sister, not admiring her puns.
Jake laughs, though.He runs his free hand through his hair, which is still wet from his post-game shower. “I think I might pass on that one, Syd. Don’t feel like watching myself get plowed into the boards.”
My eyes trail across his body, scanning for any visible injuries. None .
He doesn’t seem to be in any discomfort. But he’s also wearing an all-black suit that constricts most of his movement. He has his hockey bag slung over his right shoulder, keeping any weight off his left side.
I try to push the concern out of my mind. I need to talk to him. It’s been over a week and I want to know why he’s ignoring me.
“Jake, can we talk for a sec?” Without thinking, I take hold of his arm. I don’t grab it too tight, remembering that he was just hurled into the boards less than twenty minutes ago. He winces at my touch, so I pull my hand away, not wanting to injure him any further.
I head toward the front of the lobby and Jake follows my lead away from our friends for some privacy.
Our friends?
It feels weird for me to call Nate and Eli my friends, but I mean, technically we are friends. They threw me a damn surprise party, so if that’s not what friends do, then teammates sure are generous. I’ve also known Nate basically as long as I’ve known Sydney, so that makes us friends by proxy.
We stop next to the entrance doors of the arena. Almost everyone has left by now, just a few friends and family straggling behind.
“That was a hard hit, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” His voice is sharp as he plops his equipment bag onto the ground next to us, encasing us into the corner near the front doors. “What’s up?”
This feels like déj à vu.
“Is everything okay? Like between me and you?”
His eyes widen in shock at my words, as if I just asked a dumb rhetorical question. “Of course it is, Ness. What makes you think we aren’t?”
I don’t know, maybe the lack of conversation between us this week or responding to my texts with one word.
“I feel like things have gotten awkward between us, and I wanted to double-check that we’re good.”
The side of his mouth lifts into a half smile. “Don’t worry, angel girl, we’re good. You asked me to not bring it up again, so I haven’t. I’ve kept it up here with all my other secret hookups.” He points his finger to his head. “I’ve just had a lot going on this week.”
“A lot, meaning?”
Call me nosey, I just want to know where the disconnect was between us.
“I had a few assignments due this week and I had to get an extension on my environmental ethics paper, my mind was a little preoccupied.” He tightens his jaw. “Don’t worry, Nichols, we’re good.”
I guess I’m going to have to take his word on this one, even though my gut is screaming at me that there’s something I’m missing.
Jake lifts his bag off the floor and pulls the strap over his shoulder. The bag has to weigh easily fifty pounds with all of his gear. I think if I tried to lift it, I’d fall over and probably get crushed by it.
“I have to watch Good Will Hunting for my film class if you want to come by and watch it later? I’ll make sure to get good snacks, even though I still firmly believe salt and vinegar chips are superior.”
Jake fiddles with the strap on his shoulder. “I’m hanging with some of the guys on the football team. They’re having a party after their game tonight.”
He rotates his left shoulder in small, strained circles, like he’s trying to gauge how much movement he has. That last hit of the game definitely did some damage and I feel like Jake is the type of person who will just ignore it until it becomes a bigger problem.
“Do you think it’s smart to go out and party when you’re clearly hurt?”
My question makes him stop his movements, and his eyes flash to mine, full of angst.
“Like I said earlier, I’m fine. And I already told Kieran that I would go with him to the party tonight, he set up a double date.”
Right. I almost forgot for two seconds who I was talking to.
I can feel my eyes widen at his words. “Okay. Well, remember, no glove, no love.”
What the hell did I just say? There is something seriously wrong with me.
“You are so weird, Ness.” Jake laughs and wraps his somewhat injured arm around my shoulder as we make our way back to our group of friends, everything feeling like it’s somewhat back to normal.
I thought that after the game I would spend the rest of my Friday night in bed watching Good Will Hunting , cozying up in my pajamas and a pint of ice cream, but my plans never seem to go the way I originally planned them to.
Maddie’s been working on an assignment since the end of the game and Sydney went out for dinner with her brother and her parents, who decided to visit this weekend. But somehow instead of being with my own company, my night ended up with Levi sitting on my couch, watching the movie with me.
I was fully prepared to have an evening all to myself, until I got a text from Levi asking if I wanted to hang out.His text caught me off guard, mainly because I’m not used to being friends with so many people. My list of friends used to consist of two people: Sydney and Maddie. But now it seems that I’ve added a few more names to that list.
Levi told me that most of the guys were going to a frat party and he didn’t feel like drinking, since they have another game tomorrow afternoon. I don’t blame him. Playing hockey with a hangover is probably the worst thing you could do.That, or listening to Coach Wilson’s whistle. Hearing that high-pitched noise after you’ve spent a night drinking is like hearing nails scraping a chalkboard. A shiver runs down my spine just thinking of it.
Since I’ve started working with the team, I’ve gotten to know a few of the players on a more personal level—Levi being one of them. I think we can get along so easily because we have a lot in common. Both of us were isolated from our families at one point in our lives, we’re both only children, we both love photography, and we also share the same love of salt and vinegar chips.
So take that, Jake! Someone else is just as weird as me.
For our movie night, I grabbed a few blankets and threw them onto the sectional in the living room.Levi was nice enough to bring snacks with him. I may have requested the chocolate fudge brownie ice cream, but he also showed up with a handful of other treats, including pretzels, sour peaches, and salt and vinegar chips.The perfect combo for a movie night.
“I’m gonna grab a Diet Coke from the fridge, do you want something to drink?” I ask as Levi gets the movie queued up on the TV.
“Just water, thanks.”
I walk into the kitchen and grab our drinks and two spoons before I settle back onto the couch. I grab a blanket and offer one to Levi, who politely takes it from me.
“Hey, I forgot to thank you for helping me with the portrait assignment this week. I was nervous our prof wouldn’t deem the shots as portraits, but he loved them.”
He smiles sweetly at me. “No problem, it’s nice to have someone I can talk to about photography. Sometimes Kieran will talk to me about it, since he likes to draw and stuff, but they don’t understand all the technical terms.”
I understand that all too well. Anytime I try to explain anything about photography to Sydney or Maddie they just smile and nod. They’re my friends and they are more supportive than anyone in my family about my passion, but I don’t always want to bore them talking about different lenses or editing software.
I grab the remote off the couch and start the movie. Levi grabs his bag full of snacks and empties the contents in front of us. He readjusts himself so he’s sitting in the corner of the couch with the fuzzy pink blanket laid across his lap.
This is hilarious to me because Levi is the type of guy who wears khaki slacks and cream sweaters, but today he’s sporting black sweatpants and his BCU hoodie.Seeing him like this is so out of character, but it’s also adorable.
I lean forward and grab the package of sour peaches and snuggle back into the couch, resting my legs on the cream-colored ottoman.We sit and watch the movie, mainly in silence—but it’s comfortable.
Robin Williams’s character gets introduced to Matt Damon, and their first interaction has me reeling. I think if someone ever talked to me the way Matt Damon’s character does, I would slap them. That’s why I could never be a therapist.
The movie is cut off by three loud knocks at my front door.
Levi grabs the remote to pause the movie, and gives me a look that asks Are you expecting someone?
I swing my legs off the couch and walk over to the front door. Through the small peephole, I see Jake standing on the other side, clad in light jeans and a plaid shirt that’s unbuttoned showing a white tee underneath.
“How did you get up here?” I swing open the door but keep it half closed, unsure why Jake suddenly showed up here.
“Your security guy loves me.” He peers into the living room, his eyes stopping when he sees Levi. “What’s Brody doing here?”Jake’s jaw flexes as he keeps his stare locked over my shoulder, eyeing Levi, who’s currently lounging on the couch in the mess of blankets I left.
“Who, Levi?” I point behind me, where the man in question is aimlessly scrolling on his phone. “He asked if I was free tonight, so I invited him over to watch a movie. I thought you were going to a party.”
Jake takes a step into the foyer, his tall frame makes the hallway feel so small.
“I was.” He narrows his eyes on Levi before turning his attention back to me. “I mean, I still am. I was going to see if you wanted to come.”
His eyes linger on me, swallowing me in his gaze. I really wish I wasn’t in sweatpants right about now.Why wouldn’t he have asked me earlier when we were literally talking about our plans? That makes no sense.
“I thought you were going on a double date.”
“Kieran canceled our plans.”
“And you decided to just show up at my house rather than text or call me?”
He’s quick and sharp with his response. “I was on my way to the party and was passing by your building.”
An awkward silence falls upon us. I hear Levi hit Play on the movie. Most likely so he can pretend he’s not eavesdropping on our conversation.But he definitely is.
“So, do you want to come?”
“And what, ditch Levi?”
Jake shrugs. “He wouldn’t even care, he would probably come with us anyway.”
“No.” I need to watch this movie and write my reflection paper before tomorrow’s game so I can submit it before our next class. If I wanted to go out, I would’ve. “I’m in the middle of something. If you wanted to hang out, you could’ve said yes when I asked you earlier. I’m not going to cancel my plans just because you changed your mind.”
Jake rolls his eyes. I think that’s the first time he’s ever rolled them at me. Normally it’s me who gives him the sassy attitude.
“I’ll see you tomorrow. Have fun on your date.”
Before I can respond, he turns around and heads out the door, shutting it behind him.
What the hell?
I want to run down the hall and yell at him for assuming that just because I’m hanging out with a guy, it means it’s romantic.Why does it even matter? He was about to go on a double date tonight, it’s not my fault his plans fell through.
Levi turns the volume down on the movie as I join him on the couch.
“Well that was a little awkward.” He breaks the silence.
I raise an eyebrow at him. “What was?”
“That whole interaction. Jake’s face was as red as your fire extinguisher.”
“He’s just annoyed that I wouldn’t ditch you to go to a party with him.”
“No, I think he was mad jealous, Nichols. You should’ve seen the look he gave me when he walked in here. I think he might kill me tomorrow before our game.”
Levi’s being dramatic. Jake wasn’t jealous, he’s just used to getting what he wants.
“He’s definitely not jealous. He’s mad that things aren’t going his way.” I wave off Levi’s comment. “Anyway, I’m sure he’ll find a girl at the party who will take his mind off me rejecting his offer.”
I snuggle back into the couch, suffocating myself with blankets. Thinking about Jake at that party tonight, flirting and talking to another girl, it makes that little green monster come out. I wish Jake would’ve accepted my invite earlier, but I’m a fool to think that he would choose me over some party.
I’m sure he values our friendship, but sometimes it stings, always being peoples second choice.