Cheap Shot by Brittney Mulliner
Reid
Walking nextto Haley as we crossed the street toward the block of restaurants and shops felt like a prison break. I kept glancing over my shoulders, waiting for Ethan to pop up and catch us.
We weren’t doing anything wrong. I was just taking her to dinner to give her a break and some space to think about what she wanted to do next with her friends. I was watching out for her. Just like Ethan asked me to do.
But wanting to reach out and take her hand? Not something I did with my friends.
“Is Italian okay?” I asked, breaking the silence.
“Sure.” She shot me a smile, and I led her under the red and white striped awning of the only Italian restaurant in the area. It was decent enough to satisfy the college crowd, but nothing to get too excited over.
“How many in your party?” the hostess asked as soon as we entered. She looked about our age and was dressed in all black like she could have also been a waiter.
“Just two,” I answered.
She pulled out menus. “Great, follow me.” She sat us in a booth toward the back of the room, granting us plenty of privacy. If this was a real date, I would have really appreciated it, but now I just felt awkward.
“Have you been here?” I asked as soon as we were seated.
Haley shook her head. “No, I’ve only been to the pizza place and got to-go from the Indian restaurant so far.”
“Well, I want to say you’re in for a treat, but honestly it’s pretty average.”
She laughed, sounding lighter than she had in my room. “It’s kind of hard to mess up spaghetti.”
“You would think that, but I’ve had some pretty bad attempts while traveling.” That was part of the adventure with away games, finding local restaurants and gambling on whether or not the meal would be edible.
“What was the worst?” she asked, not even looking at her menu.
“Not Italian, but we found a Mexican food restaurant in Maine that was pretty terrible. It was like they heard about it from someone whose cousin once tried a burrito. The ingredients were there, but the execution was just so far off.”
She laughed, letting her head drop back, and it was the most perfect sound in the world. I wanted to see her like this all the time.
“That sounds terrible.”
“It was.”
“Hi, can I get you guys something to drink?” The same girl who seated us stood next to our table with an order pad. I was right about her doubling up on duties.
“Just water please,” Haley said.
“Same.” I smiled, and she turned and headed to the back.
“So, what was the best place you ever went to?”
That one was harder to decide on. “It’s either New York pizza, which tasted like something sent from heaven after a double-overtime game, so I can’t say for certain if it was the pizza or if I was just desperate for food.”
She giggled. “Or?”
“Or this little hole in the wall, mom and pop run place in Michigan we found purely on accident. They had the best meatloaf I’ve ever had in my life. It’s really upsetting though because none of the guys I was with can remember what it was called or where it was, so we’ve never been able to go back. It’s turned into a legend on that team now.”
“Really? It lives on?”
“Oh yeah, the same coach is there and he tells them about it every year when they go to play that team, but it’s never been found again. I have a feeling it shut down.”
“Here are those waters.” Our waitress set two glasses in front of us. “Are you ready to order?”
Haley cringed. “Sorry, I haven’t even looked yet. Do you have any recommendations?”
She cocked her head and tapped her pen on the small notepad in her other hand. “Most people order the spaghetti and meatballs or the chicken parm.”
Haley nodded. “I think I’ll go with the spaghetti and meatballs.”
“I’ll get the baked ziti with meatballs.” I handed our untouched menus back to the waitress, and she gave us a smile.
“I’ll get those right out.”
I leaned forward, feeling the need to be quiet even if we were basically alone. “I’m really sorry about what happened with your friends. As the older brother, I’ve never had to worry about being known as someone’s little brother, but I worry about Jake going through that.”
She took a sip of water before meeting my eyes. “How does he handle it?”
I laughed. “He doesn’t have to worry about it. He’s better than I was at his age, and if anyone compares him to me, it’s usually to prove that point.”
She laughed. “Good for him.”
“I know. He deserves all the praise and attention he gets. He’s got more natural talent than anyone I’ve met. Combine that with his work ethic, and I’m pretty sure he’s going to be unstoppable once he’s in college or the NHL. Once he has the chance to be with other players that are at his level to push him.”
Her eyes softened. “I really like how you talk about him.”
I shrugged. “He’s a punk and makes some stupid decisions, like flying out here without telling anyone, but he’s a good kid.”
“The last time I spoke to Ethan, he called me stupid and said I was an embarrassment to him and our family. Oh, and myself of course.”
My jaw clenched. What was wrong with him? I knew something was going on and he was acting differently lately, but that was no excuse to talk to anyone, let alone his sister, like that.
“I can’t believe that. Haley, I’m so sorry.”
She waved me off like it didn’t matter, but I could clearly see the pain in her eyes. “It’s fine. It wasn’t anything I haven’t heard before.”
“From who?” How could anyone else say something so hurtful to her?
Her chest rose and fell slowly. “My parents.”
They were really that cruel to her? I couldn’t believe it. I’d seen her parents around Ethan plenty of times over the years and they were nothing but doting and supportive. Did that not extend to Haley too?
“They’ve always preferred him. He’s the golden child, while I’m the disappointment.”
Never in a million years would I ever have thought that about her. I might not know her backstory or her grades, but they couldn’t be that terrible.
“My parents are hard on me, and even with Jake outperforming me, I don’t think they would ever consider me a disappointment.” I shook my head. “No one should ever be made to feel like that.”
She nodded, staring down at her water like it had all the answers she needed.
“Oh,” I said.
Her eyes flicked up to mine. “Oh?”
“I just realized how much this situation must suck for you. When I heard you were transferring here, it made sense. Ethan was here, so of course you wanted to be closer. But you’re not like me and Jake. You didn’t come here to be near him.
Her shoulders slumped. “It was the lesser of two evils. I’d rather deal with him than living under the same roof as my parents.”
What a terrible position to be in, and by her own family. I wanted to jump over the table or shove it out of the way and pull her into my arms.
I never thought about this side of my best friend. I knew his relationship with his parents was the opposite of mine, but hearing Haley talk about them made me realize we had strained relationships in common.
“I’m sorry. I know I don’t have control over Ethan or what he says or does, but I really am sorry he said those things to you and hurt you.” She opened her mouth, but I kept going. “It feels like there are two sides to him. The one I see as his teammate and friend, then the one you see, and I hate that. He can be the most loyal and unwavering person. He’s funny and goes out of his way to remember details about the guys. He makes everyone feel included. I wish that was the version you knew. But lately, he’s been so distant. Something’s wrong, but he won’t talk to me. I have a feeling whatever he’s dealing with is also why he’s been lashing out at you so much.”
She rolled her bottom lip between her teeth. “You think it’s not just me being around?”
I shook my head. “No.”
She sighed. “I should probably try to talk to him and see if I can figure out what’s going on.”
The fact that she would even consider talking to him again was incredible. After the terrible, hurtful things he’d said, I wouldn’t blame her if she never wanted to see him again, but at the first mention of something being wrong, her reaction was to go to him. She was more than he deserved, especially right now.
“He might need that. I’ve tried, but I can’t get him to open up. The only thing he’s talking to me about lately is making sure the guys on the team stay away from you.”
“Including you?” she asked.
I nodded.
“Does he know about the kiss?”
“No,” I admitted.
“What would he think if he knew we were together right now?”
I sighed. “Well, you were upset, and I’m trying to make you feel better. Watching out for you.”
“Like your own sister?” The corner of her lips tugged into the smallest smile.
“Yeah.” Just the thought of that made me nauseous. The last thing I wanted was to see her like that.
She let out a humorless laugh and pushed her glass a few inches across the table. “Just another way for him to try to control me.”
I clenched my fist under the table. I couldn’t let her think I was listening to him. “Haley, I’ve been trying to be a good friend and teammate. I would never want to hurt or betray him, but you’re making that very hard.”
“What?” The word came out in a breath. The desire in her eyes mirrored my own, and it was all I needed to keep going.
“Since the first moment I saw you, I’ve been attracted to you.” She smiled, and I returned it. “We both know that at least. I’ve wanted to ask you out, but I didn’t want to go behind his back. Not that I’ve done a great job at staying away. I can’t help but be drawn to you.”
She licked her lips. “I wanted to stay far away from Ethan and the team too. I’ve had more than enough hockey in my life, but I couldn’t stay away from you either.”
“I want to tell him.” I rushed the words out.
“About us?”
“If there is an us, yes.”
I waited for her to speak, and it felt like hours passed. “I want there to be. I don’t want the only times I see you to be when I'm upset or in trouble.”
I reached across the table, offering my hand, and she slowly lifted hers until our palms met and I interlaced our fingers.
She nodded once then met my gaze. “Can we stop talking about him now?”
I chuckled and grinned. “Of course. I want to know more about you.”
“Like what?” Her smile lit up her whole face, and I wanted to memorize this moment.
“Beach or mountains?” I asked.
“Oh, definitely the beach.”
“Same.” I tried to think of another question when our waitress arrived with our meals and set the steaming plates in front of us. “Thank you.”
She nodded and disappeared again.
“Okay, would you rather read a book or watch a movie?”
“Book, they’re always better.”
I laughed. “But if you just watch the movie, you don’t know the difference.”
She scrunched her nose. “But you’re missing so much!”
“Fair.” I lifted my glass and took another sip. “Favorite childhood movie?”
“Beauty and the Beast,” she replied confidently.
“Really?”
She nodded. “Have you seen the beast’s library? That’s all I wanted as a kid.”
I rolled my eyes. “Of course. I should have thought of that.”
“What’s yours?” she asked while cutting up a meatball.
“I loved Toy Story. When I was little, I’d try to sneak into my room to see if my toys were alive.”
She chuckled. “How’d that work out for you?”
“They were sneaky.”
Her eyes twinkled in the dim light, and I couldn’t stop staring. I took my first bite then swallowed. It was the first time I could actually taste the flavor since we sat down. Now that I wasn’t wrapped up in nerves.
This night was going better than I could have dreamed, but I still felt like there was something huge standing between us. “Haley? What made you transfer to West Penn?”
Just like that, her face dropped, and she pulled away, curling her shoulders into herself. I hated seeing her shrink away like she was hiding. I never wanted her to feel like she had to do that around me.
“I’m not ready to tell you about that.” Her voice was barely a whisper, but it told me more than her words did. She was hurt. Recovering. And I needed to be there for her. More than I ever could have imagined.
“Okay.” I picked up my glass and took a drink, trying to act normal and make her comfortable enough to come back to me.
She stared down at her lap, and after a few seconds she scooted back and sat up a bit straighter. “Thank you.”
I felt like we were making so much progress, running forward together, only to slap into a brick wall.
Would she ever let me in?