Hockey Is My Boyfriend: Part Two (16 page)

O
n the way home
, April decided that Karen should come to the club with us. “That way, when you and the Googler are in the corner making out, I’ll have someone to talk to.”

“What about Marc and Ryan?”

She shrugged, “I’m sure there’s a good reason I’ve never dated hockey players. I may remember it at some point tonight.”

“Doesn’t Karen have a boyfriend right now?”

“When does Karen not have a boyfriend? But I believe this one has gone home to Seattle for Christmas.”

“Is he American?”

“Nah, his name is Michael, and he has dual citizenship. He’s into hockey in the winter and baseball in summer, 50% Canadian, 50% American, and 100% boring.”

I laughed. “Sure, bringing Karen is a good idea. It would great to see her. I’ll let Jimmy know.”

The three of us ended up at Karen’s place, getting ready to go out. That is they both got ready and then worked on trying to raise me up to their level. I was fighting off an attack of body glitter when my cell rang.

“Hi, Jimmy.”

“Hey, Kelly, we’re at dinner now. Then we’re going to a private party at a club called Nola, have you heard of it?”

“No, but I’ll ask the girls,” I turned my head from the phone, “Do you guys know a place called Nola?”

“Sure,” said April, “It’s in Crosstown.”

“Where’s Crosstown?”

“It’s new, on the edge of Gastown. Nola’s pretty cool.”

I returned to the phone. “Okay, we know it, apparently even April thinks it’s cool.”

April stuck her tongue out at me. Then she mouthed the words, “Ask him.”

“Oh hey, Jimmy, is the whole team going to be there?”

“Yeah, as far as I know. Why?”

“What about Marc Gagnon and Ryan O’Marra?”

“I think so, do you know them?”

“No, but April thinks they’re cute.” She shot me a death ray stare.

Jimmy chuckled. “Well, I’ll be sure and let them know.” Suddenly I was whacked on the back with a load of body glitter.

“And hey, Jimmy, I’m bringing another friend, Karen Leighton. Can you put her on the list too?”

“Sure, if she’s as cute as you and April, I am going to be one popular guy tonight.”

“Actually Karen’s way prettier, than me anyway.” Karen had been voted best looking in high school, the female equivalent of Phil. Karen rolled her eyes at me.

“I don’t think that’s possible.” Jimmy sounded totally sincere.

“Aren’t you sweet,” I said, smiling. April made a gagging noise.

“Okay, I’ll see you later then. We’re probably getting there around 9:30 or 10:00.”

“See you later.” I folded up the cell.

“What no professions of love?” asked April.

“I didn’t want to depress you, since you’re the only one here without a guy.”

“What’s this Jimmy-guy like anyway?” asked Karen.

“Cute.”

“Meh.”

April and I spoke at the same time.

Karen looked at us. “What’s going on here?”

“We don’t agree. Kelly thinks he’s hot, and I say not. You get to cast the deciding vote.”

“Deciding what?” I asked. “It’s not like I’m going to dump him if you two don’t like him.”

“Whatever happened to ho’s before bro’s?” asked April.

“Well, for starters, I think you’ve got that backwards. And if I think he’s cute, then that’s what should count.”

“Right, because it’s a tough job, but someone has to date those millionaire NHL players,” suggested Karen.

“He’s not a millionaire,” scoffed April, who was now using a curling iron on the bottom of her hair to achieve a perfect bend at the end. Recently she had gone with blond highlights in her light brown hair, which looked amazing. Had I done that, I would probably look like a skunk.

“No, but I was talking to Michael, and he says James Frechette is going to be one of the top rookies next year and a breakout star.” Michael was not a hockey player but apparently a betting man and deeply into the hockey pools and hockey stats. “He was very impressed Kelly is dating him.”

“I think the Googler’s looks would be improved by the addition of several million dollars. Wait, I think I’m finding him more attractive already.” April smirked at me.

“You know, I can’t believe this. None of this stuff matters to me, you know. I like him because he’s a nice guy, and we have a great time together. Well, I also like the way he plays hockey.”

“Is that a euphemism for something? He’s really good at hockey, wink, wink.” April had finished her hair and now was applying false eyelashes. “Karen, I’ve got to tell you, I’ve never seen Kelly have it so bad.”

“What?” Both Karen and I spoke at the same time.

Happy to have our undivided attention, April continued. “Kelly with James, she’s all girly and goofy. Like a lovesick puppy.”

“Seriously?” I exclaimed. There was no way I was like that. “April, you saw us together for all of five minutes.”

“Two minutes was enough. You were all over him, and everything was ‘Yes, Jimmy,’ ‘No, Jimmy.’ So not like you.” April shrugged. “Well, with Phil anyway. I never saw you with the French guy.”

“You’re kidding, right? I am so not that kind of girlfriend.”

The corner of April’s mouth twitched, so I knew she was teasing me. But there was probably a grain of truth in there somewhere.

“Speaking of Phil,” Karen said. “I saw him at Parkgate, and he didn’t even seem to know you were home, Kelly.”

“Ahhh,” I stammered. We seemed to be going from one uncomfortable subject to another. “I haven’t called him or anything.”

I had come home pretty late due to my exam schedule. But everyone was home by Christmas. And I never kept track of who called first during the holidays, but Phil hadn’t tried to get in touch. I tended to avoid problems, and telling Phil I had a boyfriend was something I wasn’t looking forward to. Given the grapevine in the Cove, I figured that Phil would find out from someone else and then I’d be spared that task. But I wouldn’t be spared seeing him at some point and having to talk about it. I could wait.

“Don’t look so guilty, Kelly. I’m sure Phil is out there dating too,” Karen said.

That news failed to cheer me up. I tried to change the subject to something happier.

“Did you know the McGill Martlets are number one in the C.I.S. standings?”

April frowned. “Sometimes it’s like you’re talking in code.”

Karen smiled at me. “Congratulations. Has anyone seen my Sephora eyeliner?”

Obviously, I was going to have to wait until I saw my guy friends to discuss hockey. I sat down on the bed to wait since I was all ready. April and I had hit the after-Christmas sales and managed to find some great bargains. I loved the new top I was wearing. I like to be covered up, but I know some occasions call for a little skin, so this top was all sheer black lace on top with a built-in black cami. Semi-exposed was as close as I was getting to sexy. I was wearing a new pair of black jeans and low boots. I thought I looked good, but the dynamic duo felt I needed a little tweaking.

“She’s definitely getting better at getting dressed,” Karen commented to April. “But I think heels would be better with that outfit.”

“Good luck getting Kelly into heels,” April said. “But we could fluff up her hair a bit.”

“She is in the room, and she likes her hair the way it is,” I said.

Twenty minutes later, my fluffy hair and I unlocked my car, and we headed to the mysterious Crosstown area. The club was visible only by a tiny red sign saying Nola, and a crowd of really young women was waiting outside. Considering the cold rainy night, there was a lot of exposed skin out here.

A big guy with a shaved head looked at us as we walked up. Karen and April smiled at him. He undid the rope and let us in.

“Actually, we are on the list, did you want to know our names?” I asked him.

April grabbed my arm and dragged me through the door. “Don’t you ever go anywhere? We’re already in. You don’t need to show him you’re so lame he should keep you out.”

“But why did he let us in? Isn’t he supposed to check the list?”

“Kelly, what do you think the prime directive of nightclubs is?”

“I don’t know, to make money?”

“Yes, to make money. And that’s by getting more guys in to drink. And you get more guys in by having hot girls there. We are hot girls; therefore, we can get into the club.”

“What about all those girls outside?” I wondered. They looked like the definition of hot to me.

April cast a look back. “Hot, legal girls. Clubs don’t want any trouble. And not everyone wants to date eighteen-year-olds like you.”

Karen was busy looking around. “It’s a cool place,” she said. It was a cool place with a mega bar made out of coloured glass circles and a patterned metal top. I couldn’t see Jimmy around anywhere so we went up to the bar to get a drink.

“Well hello, ladies,” said the stylish-looking bartender. “We’re doing wristbands tonight, so if you want a drink, I’ll have to see some ID.”

“Really?” asked April, as she pulled out her licence. Karen and I followed suit. He stuck plasticized neon wristbands on us, and then April ordered three apple martinis. I pointed out I was driving but she insisted that one would be okay and I could switch to soft drinks.

We walked over to one of those high tables around the dance floor and had a toast.

“To us! And being back out together,” I said. It had been ages since we had done this.

Four young guys surrounded us immediately.

“So, are you ladies hockey fans?” asked one.

“Not at all,” April answered.

“Do you mean floor hockey or field hockey?” Karen asked.

“Well, uh, ice hockey actually. We’re all ice hockey players.”

“Really? Do you play for the Canucks?” I asked, joining in.

“Um no, we’re on Team U.S.A., like the World Juniors. It’s on right now, here in Vancouver. Have you not heard about it?”

“Of course we’ve heard about Vancouver, we live here,” said April indignantly.

Most guys might give up at this point, but these guys were determined to keep going. Probably the rest of the team was watching from somewhere in the room.

“So, are you girls sisters or something?”

“Yes, we are sisters. Most people don’t get that,” I said. Most people with even a basic knowledge of genetics. For starters, I’m half-Asian and Karen’s a blue-eyed blonde.

“And we share...everything,” said Karen, with a sexy emphasis on everything.

“Everything?” said the shortest guy, gulping visibly.

“Yes,” April responded. “For example, we all sleep in one bed. It’s a big bed though, king size.”

Really, it seemed like they might pass out on the spot. Finally the blond one said, “That sounds… hot.”

“No, silly,” said April, “We don’t wear pajamas or anything.”

Inspired by this image, they kept plowing on with introductions.

“I’m Jack.” “Nate.” “Miller.” “Kyle.”

“I’m Sabrina,” said April.

“Jill,” said Karen.

“And I’m Kelly,” said Kelly. Were they going to get this 70’s pop culture reference? 3, 2, 1—no!

Kyle got back to the main topic of interest. “Do you really share everything?”

“Yes, definitely,” said Karen. “Name something.”

Miller, who was the blond and California-looking, dared to say it: “Do you share men?” he asked with a bit of a leer.

“We prefer to chose one guy, and then share him all at once,” April said and then eased the cherry from her drink into her mouth. This simple action prevented them from questioning the logic of her answer.

“One guy?” croaked Jack, who was the tallest. “How do you choose him?”

“It’s actually totally scientific. We keep track of the ones who have been excellent and the fails. And then in the future, we go for the excellent types,” I explained. “For example, we have had good experiences with nuclear physicists. Right, Sabrina?”

April pulled out her BlackBerry and scrolled through. “Oh yes, they are on the list. Are you guys nuclear physicists?”

If they had only paid attention in high school physics, they might have been able to fake it now, but no such luck. They shook their heads.

Jack was hopeful. “How about hockey players? Have you had good times with hockey players?”

“Definitely. I remember that,” I said, before April could say no.

“Well, hello. We’re hockey players, remember Team U.S.A.? We’re like the top players representing our country, so really excellent,” said Nate.

“We have lots of stamina,” added Kyle. “You know, for whatever that’s worth.”

“Really?” asked Karen. “Well, that certainly sounds like a good possibility. How would we choose one of you though?”

“Coin flip?” suggested Kyle. As the shortest one he probably didn’t think he had as much of a chance.

Miller had a better idea. “Hey, you could make out with each one of us, and see who you liked best.”

“Too time consuming,” said Karen, “We prefer to unwrap a new guy slowly and discover his assets together.”

“Oh man,” said Nate, softly.

“Kelly, hi. Sorry I’m late,” said Jimmy. He had walked up behind me and gave me a quick kiss. He looked at the Team U.S.A. guys. They clearly knew each other, and it didn’t look particularly friendly.

“James. You remember my sisters, Sabrina and Jill,” I motioned to each one.

And then April really earned her Oscar.

“Of course I remember James.” She pulled him over by the tie and planted a big wet one on his lips. Was he still looking googly to her? Jimmy was too stunned to say anything, and then Karen did the same thing and he was practically catatonic.

“Was this the hockey player you did before? ’Cause he may be captain of Team Canada, but I can guarantee we can perform better,” said Miller.

“James was fantastic,” I said. “It’s hard to imagine anyone topping his performance.” I caressed his face and put a finger on his lips, motioning him to be quiet, but it didn’t seem like he would be joining the conversation anytime soon.

April continued scrolling through her BlackBerry. “Oh no! You know who is on the fail list?” She paused dramatically. “Americans.”

“And you guys are Team U.S.A.” said Karen. “Sorry, we don’t do Americans.”

“That’s crazy,” said Kyle. “I mean, it’s a huge country, and you can’t paint everyone with the same brush.”