When I reenter the rink, Robbie is skating lazy circles along the boards. His dirty-blond hair ruffles behind him, and I decide he might need a lesson about hair, too—as in, trim the shit out of it before it reaches mullet status, or wave goodbye to any chance of getting laid.
I’m walking down the concrete aisle when a high-pitched voice startles me to a stop.
“Who are you?”
I turn to see a tiny elfin creature sitting at the halfway point in the bleachers. Well, it’s a girl, but holy hell, she might as well be a character from a Pixar movie. Huge blue eyes take up her entire face, her hair is so fair it’s nearly white, and her mouth is a tiny pink rosebud.
“Who are you?” I call back, one eyebrow arched.
“I asked you first.”
Fighting a smile, I climb the steps until I reach her row. A glance at the rink reveals that Robbie is having fun skating aimlessly. Ellis is at the boards keeping an eye on him, so I plop down in the seat next to the cartoon elf and say, “I’m Dean. The new assistant coach of the Hurricanes.”
Those big eyes study my face, as if she’s trying to decide if I’m lying. “I’m Dakota,” she finally says. She points a skinny finger at the ice. “That’s my brother.”
“Ah. You’re Robbie’s little sister.”
“Who says I’m the little one?” she challenges. “Maybe I’m his big sister.”
“Kid, I’d be surprised if you’re not still in diapers.”
“I do not wear diapers!” Her cheeks redden. “I’m ten,” she says haughtily.
I gasp. “Holy sh—sugar. You’re practically an old lady then.”
That makes her giggle. “I am not. How old are you?”
“Twenty-two.”
Her jaw falls open. “That’s old.”
“I know, right? I should probably start planning my funeral. Who do you think I should leave my fortune to in my will—the chick from the Hunger Games or the one from Divergent?”
“They’re not real people,” she says frankly.
I feign innocence. “Are you sure? I swear I saw Katniss walking down the street the other day.”
“You’re lying.”
“Yup, you caught me.” I gesture to the pink spiral notebook in her lap. “Whatcha doing?”
Her bottom lip sticks out. “Homework. Mrs. Klein said to write a whole page about what I’m thankful for on this Thanksgiving.”
“Mrs. Klein sounds like a monster.”
Dakota giggles. “Naw, she’s okay. She ordered pizza for the whole class one time. It was after we got the highest scores on the literary test.”
“Literacy,” I correct.
She waves her hand. “Whatever.”
A grin springs free. “All right, let’s stop wasting time.” I flip her little notebook to a fresh page. “It’s time to figure out what you’re thankful for.”
Pleasure lights up her face. “You’re going to help me with my homework?”
“Sure, why not? We’ve got twenty more minutes to kill until your mom gets here. What else are we gonna do?”
*
Allie
I’m in the passenger seat of Megan’s car when Dean texts me. I’m not surprised to see his name on my phone. I’ve been expecting another “I want to fuck you” from him all day, so it was only a matter time before it happened. But tonight he throws me a curveball.
Him: A bunch of us r at Malone’s 2nite for Fitzy’s bday. Join us if u feel like it.
Megan glances over from the driver’s side. “Who’s texting you? And please don’t say Sean.”
“No, it’s not Sean. It’s one of Garrett’s friends,” I answer vaguely. “A bunch of the hockey guys are at Malone’s for someone’s birthday. He says we’re welcome to join them.”
“Is Hannah there?”
I shake my head. “She’s at rehearsal tonight.” Like me, Hannah is also busy preparing for one of her final projects. As a music major, she’s required to perform an original song for the department’s winter showcase.
I guess Megan doesn’t think it’s odd that I’m getting invited to hockey gatherings without Hannah, because she doesn’t comment on it. Instead, she says, “Let’s do it.”
“Are you serious?” After more than thirty minutes debating a dozen options for our girls’ night out, we finally decided to grab a late bite at the diner in Hastings. Malone’s is the only bar in town, so obviously that suggestion had come up early in the conversation, but Meg had been the one to veto it. “I thought you didn’t want to deal with the whole bar scene tonight.”