THE PAST
990 Words
CHAPTER ONE
5 Years Ago
Eloise
There were three things in the world my man loved. His family, me, and obviously hockey .
I couldn’t take my eyes off him as I stood in the stands watching as he chased the puck across the ice with an ease that never failed to amaze me each time. This was the season’s championship game which would determine if he got drafted or not and no one deserved it more than he did. I had watched him wake up before sunrise for practice and spend every spare minute working towards his dream.
The whistle blew signaling the end of the second period, and he came skating towards the box where I was seated.
“Hey there, princess, "he said as he tried to kiss me.
“Don’t even dare,” I said, smiling. “You’re all sweaty and yucky. ”
“Oh really? What if I did this?” he said as he tossed his wet hair back and forth.
“Stooo-” I tried saying as I wiped on my clothes before I was cut off by a kiss. “You don’t play fair. They’ve blown the whistle. Get back to your game before I kick your ass.”
“See you later, princess, and I’ll definitely get that kiss when I’m back.”
I rolled my eyes. “We’ll see.”
A gruesome 20 minutes later, Easton’s team, The Wildbackers, finally scored, taking the game to a 2-1 before the final whistle sounded.
I stood outside the locker room with a bouquet I'd almost forgotten I was holding, and then the door burst open with players flooding into the hallway, but my eyes were just trained on one person.
"There she is!" Easton said as he enveloped me in a hug. “I miss you.”
“It’s been just 2 hours,” I laughed. “And besides, you saw me every chance you got.”
“Well, those were the longest two hours of my life.”
“Liar”
“I swear”
I kissed his cheek and brushed a bit of confetti from his hair.
“You were amazing out there. ”
“Oh really?”
“Care to tell me other places where you think I’m amazing?” he asked with a wink.
“Stop being such a p*****t. I’m being really serious here.
“Well does it look like I’m joking?” he asked, smiling.
Before I could answer, the rest of his team mates came into the locker room.
"Our captain's better half!" Hayes, the team's right-winger, said.
"So... when's the wedding?"
Laughter erupted.
I rolled my eyes.
"You all need hobbies."
"We have hockey," one of them answered.
Before I could escape, another player threw an arm around my shoulders.
“Get your hands off my girlfriend.”
“Oh he’s a feisty one,” the player replied, laughing as he removed his hands and stepped away.
He reached for my hand.
"Come on."
"Where?"
"I want five minutes without my teammates pretending they're comedians."
"They're funny."
"They're unemployed comedians."
I laughed as he led me through the quieter corridors beneath the arena as we walked towards his car. For the first time all night, the noise faded behind us.
“I slipped my fingers between his. “I have something to tell you.” I said when we finally got into the car
His eyebrows lifted.
“I got it.”
His forehead creased.
“Got what?”
“My internship.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“Eloise...”
“They called this morning.”
He let out a disbelieving laugh before wrapping me in another hug.
“I knew they’d be stupid not to hire you.”
I buried my face against his chest.
“I was terrified.”
“I wasn’t.”
“You’re biased.”
“I’m your boyfriend. It’s my job.”
I laughed, and he leaned back to look at me.
“I’ve been saying that for years.”
“You belong there.”
Those four words meant more than the internship itself.
Because they came from him.
The boy who’d read every article I’d ever written.
Who stayed awake editing my assignments?
Who sat through interviews I’d practiced in our tiny apartment because he wanted to hear every question.
He believed in me long before anyone else did.
“I’m so proud of you,” he said softly.
I smiled through burning eyes.
“Don’t make me cry”
“Where are we headed to?” I asked in an effort to change the conversation, because I was getting really emotional
“I’ve got reservations because I’ve been planning tonight for weeks.”
“You were that confident you’d win?”
He smirked.
“I was that confident you’d say yes.”
“Yes to what?”
“Dinner.”
I laughed so hard
“You are unbelievable.”
“ So I’ve been told.”
Dinner lasted for hours, and we talked about almost everything under the sun. We spoke of whose furniture we’d keep if we ever moved, of how I wanted kids and a white picket fence when we finally got married.
After dinner, we took a drive round the city because it was still too early for me to go back home and I didn’t want this day to end.
His right hand rested on my lap while the left steered the car. His team had won the championship match, and so he was definitely getting drafted into the NHL, and I’d need to start my internship by next month.
Maybe tomorrow we’d talk about what being drafted meant for us, and we’d figure out a long distance.
But not tonight.
Tonight belonged to us.
I smiled to myself, convinced that our love was enough to survive anything, not knowing that before the next season began, forever would become years of silence.
- Writer
