Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 129323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 517(@250wpm)___ 431(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 517(@250wpm)___ 431(@300wpm)
I’m about to put it back until I realize it’s not sealed.
Don’t open it. Don’t you dare do this!
My mind screams for me to stop. That I know better. It reminds me how betrayed I’d feel if she did something like this.
She lied to you.
Opening it up, I pull the paper out.
Aiden,
It’s been one month, and it’s official. I’m worried.
I never heard from you. I’m scared.
Placing the card back in the envelope, I pull out another one. This time, it’s months later.
Aiden,
I can’t believe you haven’t reached out. Where are you? I haven’t heard anything. Not one word. I was going to ask your mom, but when I got there, I chickened out. I wish I knew where you were so I could send this.
It feels like the oxygen is being depleted as I go, one by one, through them all. So far, it’s as expected. The truth of the hurt I caused right there in writing. I grab another, and this one is different.
This letter has smudged black writing on the cover. It’s as if someone’s hands were wet and touched it.
I pull it out and read. My stomach drops when I see the words.
It’s all your fault.
Everything. You promised you’d protect me. And you lied. You never came back. You forgot about me, and now I’ll never be the same.
Fuck.
What happened to you, Pip?
46
AIDEN
It’s official. My life is unraveling.
The last game I played, I wasn’t on my A game, but today, I just plain sucked. If I keep playing like this, it’ll seal the deal that my career is over.
It’s practically a joke, and I can tell by how my teammates look at me that they want to call me out.
Coach has given me some leeway after everything that’s happened the last few weeks with my dirty laundry being aired, but even he looks pissed.
Best of seven.
I just keep repeating this to myself.
The loss hurts, but I can redeem myself.
The question is… how?
No matter how hard I try, I can’t get Pip’s letters out of my head, and I’m falling apart at the seams.
I keep thinking if I go back and read more, maybe I can find out what she’s holding back, but there’s been no opportunity.
Hell, I’m lucky I even read as many as I did.
No longer than a second after I put the letters away, I heard the front door to my apartment open. I dashed out of the room and met her in the kitchen, and thankfully, she was none the wiser.
The problem is her words written on that card hang over me like a black cloud.
I try to shake it, but I can’t, and my game is off because of it.
She blames me…
But for what?
As I’m skating off the ice, my stomach feels like it’s filled with rocks. Fuck that, heavy boulders are weighing me down.
“Slate,” my coach yells as I make my way to the locker room. “What the fuck is going on with you?”
“What’s going on with m—” My words cut off, and I shake my head. I’ll get nowhere lashing out at Coach. “Listen—”
“No, you listen,” he snaps. “I gave you the benefit of the doubt after the shit hit the fan that you’d be able to handle your personal bullshit because I feel for you. I can’t even imagine what it’s like to have to deal with a mom like yours, but this shit has to stop. You have to get it together. It’s affecting your game, and in turn, it’s affecting your team.”
My jaw tightens. Nothing he says is wrong, but it still sucks to hear it. Mainly because it’s not as simple as handling my bullshit. This is my life. One that’s been nothing but a fucking travesty. Something he and most on my team will never understand. They didn’t live the life I did. They had loving families handing them everything they needed, and I’m happy for them. I wouldn’t wish my mom on my worst enemy.
“I don’t care what you need to do, Slate. But do it. Get your head back in this game, or I’ll have to make moves.”
His words echo around me like a stampede, but they also give me clarity.
I won’t be able to think, let alone play, if I don’t get to the bottom of what happened all those years ago.
I need to speak with Cass, but how do I say anything without telling her I went through her stuff?
It’s been a bumpy honeymoon period since we officially got together, and this won’t help things. I’m in a precarious situation, unsure how to proceed.
I hate to rock the boat because ultimately, Coach is right. If I don’t handle my shit, every other aspect of my life will come crashing down.
Heading into the locker room, I dunk my head in ice water, which helps clear my brain, and I resolve to see if I can get any more information from her.