Sidelined Love: A Hockey Romance (The Crestwood University Series Book 1)

With a deep sigh, I unlock the door to the small on-campus apartment I share with Jade. The quietness that greets me is surprising, but I know it won’t last too long because I have no doubt in my mind that Jade is home.

Our small living area is a mixture of both of our tastes. Jade has a love for color whereas I love keeping things simple and minimalistic to a certain extent. The thought of sinking into our gray couch filled with a bunch of different colored cushions is calling to me, but I know as soon as Jade sees me, that pipe dream will be over.

Instead, I walk over to Jade’s room and find her door slightly open. I push it further and am greeted with a burst of color and energy as I find her sitting in a pile of clothes. She tucks a piece of her hair behind her ear and looks up at me. I shake my head at the big grin she gives me.

“About time you got home. You need to start getting ready!”

I bite back the sigh I know is coming. I wish I could forget about the party, but Jade has been reminding me nonstop about it through text messages for the last couple of hours, making it impossible for it to not be at the front of my mind. “I guess I do.”

“It’s gonna be epic!” Jade continues, rifling through the clothes on the floor. “We can drink, dance, and who knows who’s going to be out there tonight. Hell, maybe you’ll get some dick.”

I narrow my gaze at her but don’t say a word.

A sly grin forms on Jade’s lips. “I’m kidding… unless that’s something you actually want to do. I hope you’re excited.”

“Thrilled,” I deadpan, making sure my tone reflects how I feel.

Jade rolls her eyes dramatically. “Oh, lighten up, Hailey. We’re gonna have a blast, I promise.” When I don’t reply again, I watch as her eyes scan my face in an attempt to read it. She knows parties aren’t my thing, and I wonder if she’s starting to feel guilty about pushing me to go.

“You’re not going to flake on me, are you?” she finally asks. The excitement in her voice is tamer.

I hesitate before answering. Jade’s enthusiasm is hard to resist, but having her shift gears and sound disappointed in me hits a different button. Parties aren’t my scene. They’re Jade’s domain. But I made a promise, and I intend to keep it. It is a great opportunity for my best friend and me to hang out together.

“No, I’m not.”

“Tell you what,” she says. “If you get overwhelmed and want to leave early, just say the word and we’ll come back home. Deal?”

Having an easy out makes the idea less dreadful. “Deal. Let me go change,” I concede, managing a small smile.

Jade beams at me before looking down at the mess she’s made. “If you need something to wear, I probably have something in this pile of… stuff.” She gestures to the things on the floor.

“I’ll let you know,” I say as I head out of her room and into my own.

My room is the complete opposite of hers. Everything is in its rightful place, organized in such a way that it makes it easy for me to start with a clear mind each day and to end the day with a sense of calm. Well, most of the time anyway.

As I’m taking my phone out of my pocket, my eyes land on a text notification I should have been expecting, but yet I hadn’t been.

Levi: Hey, Hailey. Here are the blocks of time I’m free for chess lessons. Do any of these times work for you?

I must be in denial. I truly didn’t anticipate him reaching out to me, but here we are. For some reason, I can’t think of what to say back to him even though it should be an easy response.

No. I’m not going to worry about this now. I need to focus on going out with Jade.

As I put my phone down, I decide it won’t hurt to take a quick shower. I hurry into the bathroom and turn on the showerhead. While I wait for the water to warm up, I strip out of the clothes I wore to Brewed Beginnings and redo the messy bun I’d thrown my hair into. I don’t have any time to wash my hair, and to be honest, it is the last thing I want to do.

Once I step into the shower and pull the shower curtain to stop any water from getting out, I close my eyes and just breathe. The stress of the day slips away as I try to silence my thoughts.

The warm water falls down my body, soothing my tired muscles. I stretch my limbs as the steam fills the bathroom. This is the best idea I’ve had all day. I reach over to grab a bottle sitting on a small shelf in the shower. The familiar scent of my body wash fills the room as I pour the liquid onto my loofah.Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.

In the back of my mind, I know I can’t spend as much time as I want to in here because Jade is waiting for me. With that thought, I start the dreaded process of wrapping up my shower and soon I find myself wrapping a towel around my body as I stare into a mirror that is more than just a little fogged. I lean back to turn on the fan to help clear out the steam in case Jade wants to use this mirror to do her hair and makeup.

I dry myself off and throw my robe on before walking back into my room. There I find Jade waiting on me.

“You know, I was just going to tell you I have no idea what in the hell to wear tonight.”

“And I could sense that, which is why I’m here. I have several options. Would you prefer to wear a dress or jeans?”

“Jeans,” I say without a second thought. Having to put on a dress in addition to partying tonight isn’t the vibe I want at all.

“So I’m thinking a sparkly top would work, but I need to find a pair of dark-colored jeans.” She tosses the shirt at me and walks over to my closet. While she is looking through my pants, I stare at the top in my hands.

I’m watching the way the shirt’s silver material shimmers in my hands when Jade gasps. I look up and see her holding up a little black dress. “Why have I never seen you wear this before?”

I shrug, taking the dress from her. “Never had the opportunity. Plus, it shows more skin than I’m usually comfortable with.”

“Damn, because you’ll look stunning in it.” Jade grabs the fabric, forcing me to hold the dress against my body. “See? All the guys will be drooling over you.”

I make a face. “Drooling guys is not my goal here.”

“I know… I know,” Jade says as she goes back to searching through my things. I let out a deep breath when she finds the pants she wants and gives them to me.

I quickly get dressed before walking over to my mirror. The outfit looks great, and I have to admit the top shows that I’ve put some effort into this look. I tell myself I’m going to wear my leather jacket with this to tone it down a bit.

“Are you going to wear your hair down tonight?”

I turn my head to look at Jade before I say, “No. I don’t want it getting in the way of anything.”

Jade nods. “Then maybe we can find some earrings that won’t clash too much with what you have on. I’ll grab something from my room.”

I touch my earlobes. “Or I can just wear the earrings I have on.”

“That works too.”

I don’t want to cause a big fuss over this adventure that I hope is short-lived. We sit in silence as I redo my hair, deciding that instead of a messy bun, something a little different would be nice. I put it in a low bun and make sure that my stray hairs lay flat. I add a light coating of makeup, including a more natural colored lip because of the busyness of the shirt.

I watch Jade approach the mirror out of the corner of my eye, and she says, “You look amazing. We’re going to have a great time tonight. To be honest, we’ll probably be laughing at some of the things people are going to do because they are too drunk to think straight.”

I raise an eyebrow. “Are you sure you’re not going to be one of those drunk people?”

“Me? Never!” Jade laughs.

We both know she’s full of shit. Jade has had some wild nights, and I’ve witnessed several of them. One night in particular pops up in my mind because I made her a quick sandwich before tucking her into bed so she could sleep off the alcohol she’d consumed.

“Whatever you’re thinking, we don’t need to bring it up again,” she says before looking down at her own clothes. “Anyway, I need to change. I’ll meet you in the living room?”

“Yeah. I’ll be there in a minute.”

Jade exits the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts. I glance at myself in the mirror one last time and pull down the shirt. The motion is about giving my hands something to do versus fixing the placement of the shirt. After telling myself for the millionth time that tonight is about stepping out of my comfort zone, I snatch my crossbody bag off my desk and head to the living room.

My stomach growls as I flop down on the couch. Getting something in my system takes priority over drinking. I debate whether it makes sense to fix something quickly I can snack on or convince Jade to stop somewhere to eat before we go to the party. Before I can reach a decision, Jade walks out of the room in a sparkly blue dress that, given what I’m also wearing, fits with her personality and closet.

“So, what’s the plan for tonight?” I ask, as I sit up and move my purse from my lap. “Are we going straight to the party or grabbing something to eat first?”

Jade flips her hair over her shoulder to get it off her neck. “I was thinking we could grab something to eat at Marco’s.”

I’m glad we are on the same page. “Sounds good to me.”

Marco’s is a place I’ve been to quite a few times, and I can’t help but picture it in my mind. A burger from there is calling my name, plus, I just got paid so treating myself isn’t a crime.

“Ready to head out?” Jade asks.

I walk over to our front door and open it. “After you.”

Once we are outside, the evening air whips across my face, but it isn’t too bad. I look over at Jade because she left our apartment without a coat or jacket and has on a short dress. “Are you cold?”

“Nope.”

I can’t help but wonder if we develop a second skin when it comes to wearing cute outfits when it’s chilly outside. Maybe that’s something that can be someone else’s senior thesis.

We chat quietly as we make our way through the streets of Crestwood until we see the sign indicating that Marco’s is only a couple of buildings away.

Jade holds the door open for me as we enter the space. We are greeted by the sound of people chatting mixed with the aroma of delicious food. At Marco’s, you are allowed to seat yourself, so we find a table in the corner and settle in.

“So, what are you getting?” Jade asks, flipping through the menu even though she knows it by heart.

“Their burger. I knew what I wanted as soon as you mentioned coming here,” I answer. For the life of me, I’m unable to resist the thought of the juicy, flavor-packed meal that Marco’s is known for. “What about you?”

“Same,” she says with a grin. “Can’t go wrong with a classic.”

Once we place our orders, we talk about the latest things that have happened to us. I wonder if I should fill Jade in about Levi’s text message, but there isn’t much of a point. Plus, the last thing I want is for someone to overhear us talking and suspect that there’s something going on when there isn’t.

The burgers arrive, perfectly cooked, and we waste no time before we dig in. Our conversation ceases to exist because the only thing we can focus on is the delicious food in front of us.

As we finish our meal, the door to Marco’s swings open, drawing my attention away from my dinner plate. In walks Wilder, and after running into him at the scavenger hunt a while ago, I’m beginning to wonder if he’s following us.

“Hey, Jade!” Wilder greets her before waving at me. I am not sure if he remembers my name or not, and I’m not offended about it. I prefer it this way because it draws less attention to me.

He turns his attention back to Jade, whose face lights up. “Wilder! I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“I decided to do takeout and came here.”

All three of us chat for a couple of minutes, and when the discussion shifts to hockey, it takes everything in me not to squirm. For obvious reasons, whenever hockey is mentioned, I think of Levi.

Abruptly, Wilder’s attention shifts to his phone, which I hear vibrating in his pocket. He glances at the screen, and then nods.

“I should go grab my food. It has been good seeing both of you.”

“Likewise,” I reply.

He and Jade share a smile before he nods at both of us and walks up to the front counter. Jade and I remain silent as we watch Wilder grab his food and walk out of Marco’s.

I get ready to say something about their interaction before Jade interrupts me.

“You’re done right?” She claps her hands together. “Let’s get the check so that we can go party!”