Several hours had gone by since Maya had agreed to meet Ryan.By the time the sun had started to set, the university’s hockey arena had already been filled with the sound of another afternoon practice.Screams of skates sliding across the ice echoed in the room,while pucks smacked into boards and whistles blew every few minutes.
Coach Daniels was shouting instructions from the stands as players scrambled around,doubling their efforts for each drill.
Carter dropped onto the players’ bench for a short break, taking a deep breath to clear his lungs of the cold air.The water bottle on his side glistened as he leaned forward with his elbows resting on his knees, rolling it back and forth in his gloved hands.While his teammates chattered around him, telling jokes and teasing eachother about their past drills, their words drowned away into the sounds of the arena.His mind wandered off,somewhere else or rather, somebody else.
Ethan sat on the edge of the bench, catching his breath from the last drill, and gave Carter a small nudge with his shoulder.”You’ve been pretty quiet today,” he noted while unscrewing the cap to his water bottle.” Kind of a bad sign, you know.”
Carter didn’t give him an answer, just a small shrug of his shoulders.
“I’m fine.”
Ethan snorted.
“Come on, man. You haven’t said anything else other than that the entire hour.”
“I’m consistent.”
“You’re lying.”
Before Ethan could think of something else to say, Coach Daniels’ whistle blew loudly through the arena.”Ethan!
Dexter!
Change!”
“Coming, Coach!” Ethan yelled as he climbed over the boards and skated out onto the ice, while another boy glided smoothly towards the entrance.
Dexter Hayes took a seat next to Carter and gave a weary sigh, raising both his hands and taking off his helmet,which in turn caused his long blond hair to fall loose around his shoulders.He laughed lightly as he took another stretchy band from around his wrist and pulled his hair up into a tight bun at the top of his head, fastening it with another black elastic from his other hand
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you this quiet before,” Dexter said while he tied his hair up.”
Carter rolled his eyes as he took another sip from his bottle.”I’m good.”
“You sure?”
“Yup.”
“You don’t wanna talk about it?”
Carter stared off at the rest of the team who skated back and forth across the arena.”…Actually..”
Dexter looked surprised.”Oh?”
“Can I ask you something?”
Dexter blinked a few times before letting out a small smile.”Oh, damn.”
He nudged Carter’s shoulder with his own.”I always knew this day would come.”
“What day?”
“The day Captain Carter Vance finally asked me for advice.”
“I’m not asking for me.”
“I’m serious.”
Dexter laughed.”Okayfine.”
He crossed his arms over his chest in a relaxed manner.”Let me hear it.”
Carter watched the rest of the team skate past.”So..”
He hesitated for a moment before speaking.”I’ve got a friend.”
Dexter immediately smirked.”Of course you do.This friend happened to start dating someone recently.”
“Mhm.”
“And..”
Carter rubbed the back of his neck.”His girlfriend is going to meet another guy tonight to help her with something.”
Dexter nodded.”So?”
“My friend says he feels a little uneasy about that.”
Dexter studied Carter’s face for a moment before asking “…Do I know this friend of yours?”
Carter answered almost instantly.”No.”
Dexter raised an eyebrow.
” Seriously?”
” Yeah.”
“You swear?”
“I do.”
Dexter leaned back against the bench.Raised an eyebrow as he crossed his arms over his chest.”Right.
I’ll answer as if I know this friend of yours.”
Carter rolled his eyes playfully.”So?”
Dexter rested his forearms on his knees thoughtfully.”Well…
If she’s his girlfriend, I think he needs to start trusting her.”
Carter watched him for a moment as Dexter continued.”A lot of relationships don’t work because the people in it spend too much time together.They work because the people in them trust each other enough to spend time apart.”
Carter frowned slightly.”And if he doesn’t like the situation?”
“Then he needs to talk to her.”
“Just like that?”
Dexter nodded.”Yeah.”
He smiled.”Communication is important in almost everything.”
Carter was silent for a moment more.”But…”
Dexter chuckled.”Then that’s a problem your friend can’t help with.”
Carter stared down at the bottle in his hands.”That doesn’t help much.”
“It actually does.” Dexter leaned a little closer to him.”If your friend spends all his time worrying about someone liking his girlfriend,he’ll eventually push her away himself.”
Carter was quiet.
“If your friend trusts her, then he should let her make her own decisions.”
For a few long minutes, the two sat in silence.
The whistle blew again, this time for Ethan.
” Ethan!” Coach Daniels shouted from the stands.” Switch!”
Ethan skated towards them while Dexter stood up to meet him.
Before crossing the boards back into the arena, Dexter took a small elastic band from around his wrist to secure his ponytail, and put his helmet back on.
He glanced at Carter one more time and gave a small smile.”Oh..
Right.Right.Right.”
Carter raised an eyebrow.
“What?”
“One more thing.”
Carter waited patiently as Dexter tapped two fingers against his helmet.”It’s called a relationship for a reason.”
He chuckled.” It takes two people.”
He grinned.
“Not one.”
With that, Dexter jumped over the boards and skated back out onto the arena.
Carter watched him disappear until he joined the rest of the team again.
He slowly lowered his head, eyes not meeting Dexter’s.
“…Yeah ,” he murmured, enough that no one could hear him, while his fingers tightened around his water bottle
“…but what if it’s fake…”
His voice was barely a whisper.
“…and she likes the other guy?”
The whistle blew again, but for the first time in a long time,
Carter wasn’t thinking about hockey.
He was thinking about a girl who wasn’t supposed to be his girlfriend.
Out of nowhere, his phone started to ring.
He took it out of his pocket, and it was Maya calling him