Miles Dempsey

Our last two games since finally losing our 22 game winning streak have been wins. Coach put us through hell the past couple of days and today was no different. I took a cold shower after practice, one that lasted longer than usual. After that, I get a quick ten-minute massage from the team's masseuse. By the time I get back to the locker room, half of the team has left.

JT sits in his locker on his phone still only in a pair of boxers. I slip into a tight-fit Kings shirt as I watch him. His brows are pulled together and he looks frustrated. To be fair, he's had the same two looks on his face this past week. "Almost ready to go, Jay?" I ask. He looks up at me and nods before looking back down. The silence isn't new either. Coach and the guys who talk to him are the only people he's spoken to since his little kerfuffle with Ember.

I've talked to Nola and she said Ember isn't any different. Neither of us knows the full story of what's happened to them since they won't say anything. We're not taking any sides but so far it feels like we have been. I haven't seen either of the girls for almost a week.

Conversations with Nola have been short just because we're both so busy. Her with figure skating and me with hockey. She's been telling me how her practices are going and they sound good so far. It's an exciting time for her and I like knowing that she hasn't hit a bump in the road yet. We've talked about all the possibilities in her journey and she seems ready for anything that comes her way.

I'll be here for support if she feels like it's too much.

The drive home is unsurprisingly quiet with only the sound of music playing from my speaker. When the gate opens up for me, I notice a familiar car in my parking lot. It catches JT's attention too because he's instantly on edge. I feel the tension floating around us as I pull up to my usual spot, next to Nola's rover. She hops out of the driver's side before we get out of the BMW.

JT lets out a sigh. I don't know if it's from relief or disappointment that Ember isn't with her. I get out of my car before JT, leaving my stuff in the back for now. "Hey, hockey boys," Nola's voice is cheery. She shuts the door to her Rover with her backside as she holds some kind of dessert in her hand. JT gets out of the car and looks at her confused. "What are you doing here?" I ask first.

I haven't talked to her since yesterday afternoon and she never mentioned stopping by today. "I've brought dessert," she says, a huge smile on her face. She shows JT, who's standing right next to her, the box. Bumping her hip with his, I see a small smile try to peak through his lips as he stares at her. "C'mon, I know you guys must be starving after practice cause I damn sure am." Nola starts walking toward my door and I follow quickly behind her to get it open.

Once she sets down the box on the dining table, I see it's carrot cake from Simone's a popular bakery nearby. My stomach rumbles at the sight and I grab three plates and forks. JT takes a seat next to Nola on the barstools as I open up the box. "Hey, how are you?" she asks him, her voice soft. Since the pieces of cake are precut, I just use the fork to move them over to our plates.

"Fine." Came his short reply. His leg bounces up and down anxiously as I set down the plate in front of him. Nola rubs his back with her hand and I see him calm down instantly. "Give her time, she'll come around," Nola whispers to him but it's loud enough for me to hear. He responds with a clipped nod and we all eat our carrot cake in silence.

JT finishes first, washing his dirty dishes quickly. "Thanks for the cake, Nola. I have to go study film for tomorrow so I'll see you around." He pats her back lightly and she gives him a small smile as he turns around to go upstairs. "You were right," she tells me once he's in his room. "That boy is lovesick." I cut a piece of cake with my fork and eat it as I nod my head. "How's he been playing? I haven't had time to watch games."

I shrug, waiting to swallow the food in my mouth before speaking. "He's playing well. I think he's using hockey as a distraction if I'm being honest. I've never seen the kid watch so much tape," I admit. Nola frowns, setting her fork down on top of the glass plate. "Yeah, Ember hasn't been herself. She's trying to pretend like she's okay but I can see through her. Her dads in town for the next two days so I hope that'll cheer her up a bit," she tells me.

After I finish eating, I grab both our plates and set them down in the sink. "Ember close with her folks?" I ask. Nola waits until I return to standing in front of her. "Yeah," she says hesitantly. "If anyone's capable of cheering her up, I think it's her old man, but we'll see. I'm trying to be there for her as much as I can but I'm so busy with practice and when I'm free, she's busy. Or so she says," Nola rants.

"You think she's still mad at you for the whole comforting JT situation?" I question. She lets out a deep sigh and shakes her head. "I quite literally forced her to talk to me about it when we got home. She said she's not mad at me for it and I told her I'd always pick her side first. I think by her silence with me she's made it clear she's still mad," she explains.

I take in her words but don't try to decode them much. Ember sounds like she may still be bothered by the whole situation. Whether she's annoyed at Nola's actions, I can't tell. I don't know the girl enough to figure that one out. The situation is tough for everyone involved so the only thing I hope is that it gets fixed soon.

"The best thing to do now is give them both time. Like you told JT. My boy is in touch with his emotions so I'll let him sort them out on his own. He won't talk to me even if I tried to know how he was feeling. Maybe I'll call his mother," I say. Nola reaches her arm out and grabs my forearm. "Don't call his mother, Miles. Give him time too. He's a sweet boy, he will come around," she replies.

For a second, an unfamiliar feeling passes through me at her words about JT. Trying not to think too much about what that feeling could be, I pull away from her touch and nod. "How have the practices been going, future Olympian?" I change the subject, walking over to the couch. Nola flips around on her barstool and follows me over to the living room. "Not gonna lie, today wasn't too great. I just put on a happy face for JT. Which didn't seem to work anyway," she tells me.

We plop down on the same couch, her turning to face me while my posture stays forward. "What happened?" I ask genuinely. She lets out a sigh. "It's hard, you know? Preparing myself for a competition this big is new to me and the pressure might be getting to me. Also knowing that I compete in two months when there's a lot of work to be done in my routine scares me," she admits. "I'm just trying to stay vigilant with everything."

I take this moment to look at her. She's wearing skin-tight, light pink leggings, a matching long-sleeve shirt, and white tennis shoes. Although covered, I can see her muscles peak through her clothes because of the tightness of them. The girl is petite, yes, but she's strong. I can tell just by looking at her. "You on a diet?" I ask, immediately regretting it. "Fuck, I mean- I didn't mean-"

Nola cuts me off by laughing. "I know you didn't mean it like that. But, yes, I have to be. If I get too heavy, it'll be harder to lift myself higher." As soon as she finishes her sentence, I hear a loud rumble come from her stomach. The piece of cake I had given her was smaller than the one I served myself and JT. Still, I know that growl comes from her newfound diet. Every athlete has experienced that hunger growl before, including myself.

"Want another slice of cake?" I question, raising a brow. Nola shakes her head. "That's enough carbs for me today," she says, placing a hand on her stomach. I look down at her hand before returning my gaze back up to her. Her blue eyes look at me with defeat. Deciding that's my cue to do something, I stand up from the coach. She looks at me confused before I speak. "C'mon, let's go to In-N-Out," I command.

The blonde looks at me like I've grown a hockey stick for arms. I raise my brows back, acting like I didn't just hear her say she's on a strict new diet. One meal won't make her gain ten pounds. It's inching seven in the evening and I'm sure she hasn't had a real meal today. "Miles," she says in a way that sounds like didn't you hear what I just told you.

"I'm a growing man, Scott. I need food so get your ass off my couch and let's go," I say in the nicest way possible. She sighs and stands off the couch. As I turn around, I smile to myself. When we get into my BMW, Nola buckles in and turns to look at me. "Can we stop by SunCafe at least?" she asks. I start pulling out of my driveway, the iron gate opening up for me as I do.

Deciding that dodging her question instead of telling her 'no' will be easier for me, I hand her my phone. "Go to Spotify and put some music, will you?" She looks at me suspiciously as I thrust my phone into her hand. I don't pay her much attention so she complies. "What do you want to hear?" she questions. "Whatever you want to play, Scott," I tell her, hoping she'll get over going to SunCafe.

I'd take her there any other day but I think she'll do better with a burger and fries. An unfamiliar tune and voice come from my speakers and Nola gives me a cheeky smile. I go to the music icon on my dashboard. "Taylor Swift?" I ask. "You're such a girl." She laughs and pushes my arm lightly. "Shut up! She's better than anything else you would listen to," Nola teases. I've never been a Swift fan so whether that's true or not, I don't know.

Nola picks up my phone and scrolls. I try to get a view of what she's looking at without crashing. The LA traffic is like any other day but it's not moving as slow tonight. "Drake, Future, Gunna, Uzi..." her voice fades off for a second, "Selena Gomez?" She laughs out loud, the sound making me smile. "Hey, don't judge. Selena has some good ones," I admit, not being embarrassed by my choice of music.

She laughs for a little longer, a pink flush coming to her cheeks. "Settle down, will ya?" I don't mind hearing the sound of her laugh but I won't say that out loud. "Don't worry, Miles, I won't tell anyone about your love for Selena," she snickers. I roll my eyes. "Yeah, yeah." She skips the current Taylor track and another one takes its place. Nola starts singing the lyrics absentmindedly, forgetting my existence.

I can't help the smile that forms on my face as I hear her voice blend into Swift's. Nola may not have the best voice but I like hearing her sing. It makes me relax thinking she might be getting more comfortable around me. I know I wouldn't just sing T-Swift loudly around someone I'm not comfortable around. As I pull up to traffic, Nola turns her head to me, still singing the song which I can see is called "Daylight".

"Thanks for the concert," I tease her. Her eyes gleam with joy and she doesn't stop her singing. As she turns away again and traffic keeps my foot on the break, I stare at the girl in the passenger seat.

Sometimes when I look at her it still blows my mind that we're here right now. The mere sight of her used to make me stiffen from annoyance and I'm sure she would say the same about me. But in just a couple of weeks, I've gotten to know the girl more than any other girl who's come into my life. Even Allie. It's weird. Ever since I joined the league, no girl has been in my life platonically.

Expect for Kaitlyn, but she's Tate's girl so it's not like we're extremely close or anything. Allie and I, as much time as we spent together, were never really friends. I'd say Nola and I are friends, at this point, it would be weird if we weren't. I have also surprised myself with the fact that I've let her get this close to me this fast. I don't know how long I knew Allie before I actually invited her over to my place or had her in my passenger seat.

It happened naturally with Nola. Maybe that's why her presence just feels so inviting. Thinking about her not being in my life anymore seems uncanny. I still have a lot of learning to do on the girl but she's a good friend to have.

Once the traffic gets moving and I get onto the highway, I'm able to start driving a little faster. Nola doesn't seem to mind as she jams out to the music, tapping her foot against the floor of the car. My stomach rumbles as we near In-N-Out. Since today's practice started a bit later than usual, I used the extra time to sleep in. JT and I ran a couple of errands before practice so I was only able to eat a grilled chicken salad and a protein shake.

Yeah, that's not cutting shit.

After five minutes, I pull into the unsurprisingly packed In-N-Out drive-thru. Nola lowers the music a bit. "I think I'm getting a double-double combo, wanna share animal fries?" I ask, turning to face Nola. She purses her lips out like she's thinking, looking past me. "Hm?" she mumbles, looking at me. "You heard me," I say, knowing she's trying to avoid the question. "What are you getting, Scott? I need to know so I can order for us."

"Everything on this menu has more than three hundred calories a meal and high sodium, fat, and carbs," she basically whispers. She looks at me like she wants to get something but the only thing holding her back is her diet. I look down at her stomach which is flat by the way. Even as she's sat down, her posture not at its best right now. Flat. "I think one good meal won't move you up from your 110 pounds, Scott," I insist.

She tilts her head at me. "I'm 115 actually," she corrects. I roll my eyes. "So what do you want? You're hungry, I heard that stomach of yours earlier." Nola chews on her lower lip for a second before finally surrendering. "Just a regular cheeseburger with zero sugar lemonade and sure... we can share animal fries," she mumbles. I smile triumphantly, pulling up the woman standing outside, ready to take our order.

After I order the nice woman gives us the total. "Oh, that'll be two separate orders. I'm paying for the second one," Nola says, leaning over from the passenger side. I fake smile at the girl. "She's joking," I say, hanging her my card. "Wait, Miles!" she whispers shouts. "Here you go." The girl returns my card and I roll up my window. When I turn, Nola is glaring at me with her big eyes.

"What?" I act stupid, knowing well that she wanted to pay for herself. Not happening. "What?" she mocks me and I can't help but laugh which makes her scowl deeper. "Nola, it was a twelve-dollar meal. You didn't make me go broke," I assure her. "You send me your Venmo right now," she says. I snicker. "Don't be ridiculous." She looks serious about this but I don't bother acknowledging it. I'm not letting her pay me back.

I pull up to the window and I thank the woman who hands us our food and drinks. Nola takes it from me and sets it in her lap. "Mmmm," she moans, smelling the food. It smells fucking amazing to be fair. I'll admit, I haven't eaten something with this much fucking calories since I took Nola and her brothers out to eat that one time. I've also been keeping my diet pretty clean like I always do during the season. "Let's get the hell outta here so we can eat," I say.

It takes about ten minutes to get back home. I only went twenty over the speed limit so our food could still be hot. Once we get back, I get a text from JT.

Jason Tayler: Garrett picked me up. Going over to play video games at Kelz's for a little. Won't be home too late.

I like his message and follow Nola over to my kitchen, sitting down next to her on a stool. She takes the contents out of the bag handing me my double double and sets the animals fries between us. Neither of us takes our time to start putting away our food. Despite being hesitant about the meal at first, Nola starts eating like there's no tomorrow. I hide my smile as I take a forkful of the animal fries in my mouth.

We both finish eating and then plop back down on my couch with full bellies. I decided to eat another piece of carrot cake to sweeten the deal. Nola was too full for that part, so she passed. "That was really good. I won't even lie," she chuckles. I raise my brows and shrug. "Told you. You deserved that, by the way. You can get back to your meal plans tomorrow," I tell her and she smiles.

"What time is your game tomorrow? You play right?" she asks. I nod, "3:30." It's an earlier home game. Typically, I prefer playing at night but since we have an away game on Saturday, we play earlier tomorrow. "Mind if I stop by after practice? I won't be around the whole game, but I'll get to see the end." The sweetest smile forms on her face.

She's asking me to come to my game. Who would have thought? "Yeah, for sure. I'll send over a ticket. Just you?" I ask, trying not to sound too excited that she'll be there again. She nods. "It's going to be a good one. We play Anaheim so we're expecting some fans to make the drive down. It'll be loud in there. Don't forget to cheer for me," I say. Nola rolls her eyes. "Sure. I'll wear your jersey too."

I know she's joking, but the thought of her wearing my jersey makes my heart beat a thousand clicks a minute. In both a good way and a bad one. I shake the thought away and laugh at her words. "I'll ask Tate if Kait is going that way you can have some company. She's a nice girl," I say. Tate's exclusive seats and mine are right next to each other, meaning our families always sit together.

Nola stares at me in confusion. "Who are those people?" Shit. The only person in my life Nola knows is JT. I haven't talked to anyone about her except for Kait and Tate but that was brief. "Tate's my best friend, plays on the same team. Kait is his girlfriend," I tell her. She nods, taking in my words. Her cheeks flush a light pink. "Sure. If she'll be there already and doesn't mind," Nola replies.

We talk about our friends and family some more. Nola tells me about her huge found family which sounds absolutely crazy to me. Now I know why she mentioned how Christmas is never boring. My family isn't too big so I've never known what it's like to have such a huge, tight nip family. Everyone in my family is pretty close but it's not too hard since there's not too many of us.

I've met a couple of people in Nola's family the last time I found myself at her parent's home in Oak Hill. I can't even begin to imagine being surrounded by multiple families. At the same time, it sounds cool. While I told myself that I'd wait to settle down, I always wanted a big family with the person I marry one day. My mom said I should do it since no one else in our family did.

I like the life I'm living right now but a hot wife, four kids, and a dog sounds like a faraway dream. Nola says she also wants a big family but I wouldn't have expected anything differently since she has four siblings herself. "Are you close with all your siblings?" I ask.

"Pretty much. Even though he ticks me off to new extremes, I'm closest to Kayce. I think it's cause we're the closest in age so it's always been the two of us doing most things together. Brooks loves Kayce so I spend a lot of time with him too. My little brother Foster is secretly my favorite because he's so quiet and is the sweetest boy ever. Then there's my little sister who is the sassiest, best person I know. We're the only girls so I adore her the most, it's just kind of hard since she's so much younger than me."

I appreciate anyone who's close to their family. It shows a lot in a person if they are or aren't. Me being so close to mine, I tend to relate to those who are as well. "So how old are they?" I ask another question. "Kayce is 17, Brooks is 15, Foster is 11, and Kiersten is 7. We're a little off in age, Kayce and I are only a bit over a year apart," she says.

I remember both her brothers from that night she brought them to my game. Brooks was easy to get along with. The kid was all talk with me and tried to include his brother in the conversation too. The only thing is, Kayce didn't seem to care about hockey or football. He told me he played baseball and did some swimming too. Those are two sports I know least about but I still tried to talk to him about it. Let's just say, he's a man of a few words.

The vibes I got from him were kind of standoffish but Nola told me he was like that. He didn't try to be people's friend and was never fake. He made it known if he wasn't interested in you or a conversation. I sure did see that the day we met. Nola's made me aware of how he acts even around his family. He's the same Kayce for everyone, were her words.

"What about you? I know you don't have any siblings but did you have any cousins you hung around a lot growing up?" Nola asks me a question now. "Oh, yeah. Sadly, all of my family still lives in Vancouver. I rarely see them now since hockey doesn't stop for the holidays but I'll chat to them almost all the time. We're super close, the lot of us at least. I don't have as huge a family as you do," I tell her.

She smiles at my answer. "When are you planning on visiting? Vancouver, I mean," she questions. "I always take my mom and dad after the season. They're able to travel there more than I am but the three of us go visit during the off-season. I stay there for about two weeks. We still have our old house there, it's just occupied by one of my aunts who lives alone," I say, a little part of me starting to miss home.

"Wow, really? Your parents just bought a whole new house in Los Angeles?" Her blue eyes widen in surprise. I shake my head. "Vancouver is special to me. It was hard moving here alone, I was always homesick. After two years, I bought my parents their house when they offered to come live here. They wanted to sell the house in Vancouver so they could afford it but there are too many special memories there, so I put down a payment for a home for them," I explain.

Her gaze softens. "You bought them a house and then yourself... this one too?" she asks, looking around the room. I chuckle. "It was only a little over 400k and I didn't pay it all upfront. I moved out of my captain's house and moved in with them. It wasn't until two years ago that I got this bad boy. I've also paid off my parent's house," I tell her.

Nola's jaw drops. "What do you mean only a little over 400k? And you paid it off already? How much was this house? Oh God, do I even wanna know? This looks expensive, way too expensive. Wait, you make millions of dollars a year right? Or is that only football players?" she talks quickly, asking so many questions. I can't help but laugh. Yeah, this house's price was not friendly to my pockets. Neither were the two cars I have parked outside but sometimes treating yourself is nice.

"I'm definitely not done paying this house off. It was 1.5." I suck my teeth saying the price. "I'm about 600k from being done paying it," I admit, withholding my yearly salary. Nola's eyes widen even more, her jaw still on the floor. "Are rich people even real?" she exasperates, poking my leg as if to get an answer to her question.

My brows raise at her question. "Aren't you rich?" I question. The car parked outside says so as well as the home she grew up in. My house back home is nowhere near that size. "No. My parents are. I am not financially independent yet," Nola says. I tilt my head. "Yeah, but you know the lifestyle a bit because of them. So are your parents real?" I tease.

She rolls her eyes. "Are you in major debt yet? You know hockey only lasts so long, even less if you get injured. There's a thousand possibilities," she tells me like this is new information. I can guarantee anyone that any athlete who makes a couple million a year is in major debt. "I told you the debt I have on the house... and I have two cars outside that aren't fully paid off either."

Nola slaps her forehead and shakes her head like a disappointed mother. "We need to teach you money management," she demands, poking my chest at the same time she says those last two words. I look down at her finger and then back up at her. "Sure, I'll take advice from the college girl who's never made over a million a year," I retort, not trying to sound cocky at all.

Still, she nods her head as if saying that's right. "We'll start those lessons another day, though," she picks up her phone and looks at the time, "I have to get a decent amount of sleep or else I'll be my coach's worst nightmare tomorrow." I stand at the same she does and walk her out to her car. "Thanks for the cake and attempting to cheer the kid up, I'll talk to him in a bit and try to get him out of his funk," I say.

She nods, tucking a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear. "I'll see him tomorrow, hopefully, he'll be good after the game," Nola answers. Yeah, hopefully. I've only seen the kid mopey once and that was when he first moved here from Vancouver. It's not fun to see him upset. Maybe the boys will put him in a better mood and I'll be able to get him to say more than five words tomorrow morning.

Nola unlocks her car and I open the door for her. She softly thanks me, getting inside the car and letting the window roll down. Her cheeks flush a pink color that I assume comes from the chill. It's still early January and the cold hasn't gone away yet. "Hey, I forgot to ask. Are you busy on Friday?" she asks, starting her Rover up. Fuck. I am busy. My flight to San Jose leaves Friday.

I might not know what she's going to say yet, but I'm sure she's not asking if I'm free for no reason. "Why, what's up?" I dodge her question to get more information. "I wanted to see if you wanted to I don't know...come see me skate on Friday? You'll be the first, besides coach, to see my possible Nationals routine. I also want opinions from someone who doesn't know much about figure skating," she explains.

Disappointment fills my chest. The thought of catching a later flight flashes through my head but I decide against it quickly knowing Coach would not let that slide. The team always travels together no matter the circumstance. "Don't you have practice on Friday?" I question before letting her down.

"I do. That's what I meant though, you come to see me at practice. Other people sit in the stands all the time so it wouldn't be weird for you to just be sitting there. You also don't have to stay for long, just for about an hour before lunch at 12?" she tells me, a hopeful gleam in her blue eyes. Relief suddenly floods through me. My flight isn't until 3 and I don't have to be at the airport until 2.

"Count me in, Scott. I'll give you my raw, honest opinion. Don't cry if I say you suck," I joke. She pushes my arm off her car and we both laugh. "So I'll see you tomorrow then?" she asks. I nod, slapping her car lightly. "Get home safe, alright? Let me know if plans change tomorrow," I tell her. She nods back, "Will do."

We say quick goodbyes and I wait until she's no longer in sight to go back inside. I'd say I'll enjoy the quietness until JT gets home but the kids been the quiet one in this house for the past couple of days. I sit back down on the couch and let out a long sigh. I'll deal with the kid tomorrow.