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She brushes by me. “Like I’m the snack.”
Lately I live for these moments, when all the uncertainty and awkwardness disappear and Aurora is her saucy, beguiling self.
Then she turns back, and her expression shifts. She looks worried. “I’m sorry. I just…don’t know where the lines are anymore. They keep moving, and I feel like I’m always two steps behind.”
“You’re not alone, Princess. I keep trying to stay inside them. It’s pretty fucking impossible.”
“Because I’m pushing your buttons,” she whispers.
“Yeah.” She doesn’t realize she doesn’t need to try to get my attention. She always has it. I grip my crutches, so I don’t reach out and tuck her hair behind her ear. “But I like it when you do.”
Her eyes lift, with hope I shouldn’t want lurking in them.
“Let’s just hang out and watch a movie and not pick apart whatever this is,” I suggest.
“Okay. That sounds good.”
Aurora pours a bowl of chips and fills another with gummy worms. Then she peers in the fridge, surveying my beverage options.
“There’s a bottle of riesling in there,” I say.
“Oh! My favorite.” She retrieves it. “Do you want a glass?”
“I’ll have a beer.” I prefer red to white, but again, I usually keep a bottle on hand for Aurora.
“Are you completely off the pain meds?” she asks as she retrieves a wineglass and uncaps a bottle of beer.
“Yeah. Just the occasional anti-inflammatory when I’ve been on my feet too long.” My knee is achy and sore, but I’d rather use cold compresses to manage the worst of it.
“That’s good. You started physical therapy this week, right?”
“Yeah. I’ll be hitting the pool a lot.” Low-impact workouts are the best way to get my range of motion back and strengthen the muscles around the injury.
“Do you want me to avoid the pool, then?”
“I should.”
She eyes me from the side. “Sounds like there’s a but attached to that.”
“I don’t want you to avoid me.” I miss my time with her. I miss her. She’s become one of the most important people in my life.
“I don’t want to avoid you, either.” She picks up the tray of snacks and carries it to the living room.
Last year when I couldn’t travel, she’d come over and watch the games. She’d tell me how excited she was to work with Hemi and the team, and how I’d be back on the ice by then, playing like the injury had never happened. For a while, she was right about all of it.
I lean my crutches against the back of the couch and take a seat. Aurora steps in with a pillow and tucks it under my injured leg.
“Would you like a cold compress?” Her hand rests on my shin.
The touch burns through my joggers, awareness waking up the rest of my body. “I’m good for now.” I pat the cushion beside me.
Aurora leaves a foot of space between us, crossing her bare legs. The shorts disappear under the hem of my hoodie.
I force my eyes away and grab the remote, scrolling to the movie channel. “What are you in the mood for?”
She runs her hands over her thighs, fingers curling over her bare knees. “Um…action would probably be safest. Or maybe horror.”
“You can’t stand horror movies. They give you nightmares.”
