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Summer’s calmed down a bit, but there’s no way not to feel the worry and tension radiating from her. It fucking eats me up knowing she’s feeling that way, and I’m going to breathe the biggest sigh of relief in my life when we finally find the bracelet. At least her having something to do, participating in the search, seems to help.
But I still hear her sniffle now and then, and each time the sound is like a stab through my chest.
The sun’s slid below the horizon by now, and it’s pitch black except for the splotches of artificial light thrown onto the ground. The air teems with the sound of rustling leaves and bushes as broad-bodied hockey players stalk up and down the trial, mixed with the hoots and calls of nocturnal wildlife.
Summer and I are walking next to each other, bending down to examine the ground our flashlights sweep over, inching forward a half-step at a time. But suddenly, she stops and draws herself up to full height.
“I can’t keep your teammates out here all night,” she says on a sigh. “Tell them to go back home.”
“With all due respect, darlin’, fuck that.” Tuck surprises both of us by being closer than we thought he was, close enough to overhear her words. “We’re a team. On and off the field. Ain’t that right, Sebastian?”
Sebastian’s a couple paces behind us on the trail. “Definitely,” he answers.
“And I still need you to put in a good word with that roommate of yours,” Tuck adds to Summer with a wink.
Summer laughs. It’s a tiny, thin laugh, but it’s the first joyful sound I’ve heard from her since she realized her bracelet fell off. The sound makes my heart jump in my chest and fills me with enough energy to stay out here combing up and down this trail for an entire week if I have to.
“Guys! Over here!” Jamie’s voice booms from far down the trail. It’s impossible to miss the excited note in his voice even across the distance, and Summer’s bolting in his direction before I can even turn around.
I call out to everyone else to stay where they are, so we don’t all come rushing to Jamie and lose track of our own places on the trail in case Jamie doesn’t actually have what we all hope he has. But I follow hot on Summer’s heels as she rushes towards him.
She makes it to Jamie before I do, and the loud shriek of pure happiness tells me everything I need to know. When I round a bend in the trail to where Jamie and Summer are, she’s got his arms wrapped tight around his neck and is hugging him with every ounce of strength she has. Jamie has an awkward smile on his face and even in the dark I can see that the tips of his ears are red.
Once she unleashes her grip on his neck, his cheeks are still so red that they’re almost glowing as much as the flashlight that hangs limply in his hand.
Summer’s bouncing up and down in front of him, looking down at something she holds in her hands. I sidle next to her and sure enough, it’s the bracelet.
“Jamie, I love you!” she squeals, wrapping her arms around his neck again and this time planting a big kiss on his cheek.
This makes the kid’s face look like a giant tomato.
Even though I’ve caught myself feeling irrationally possessive of Summer lately, practically scowling every time a guy looks at her with a hint of lust in his eyes, which is pretty often because she’s drop-dead gorgeous, I don’t feel even a pinch of jealousy this time. I know how innocent and naïve Jamie is, and besides, I can understand context. Summer’s overflowing with happiness, and I’m not going to feel an ounce of negativity about how she expresses it.
“We got it, everyone!” I call out. I’m met with cheers and expressions of relief as all the guys stampede towards us.
Summer wipes a tear from her eyes looking around at my teammates. “Thank you so much, everyone. I really don’t know how to …” she just shakes her head and takes a deep breath, overwhelmed by emotion.
I’m overwhelmed, too. Most of the time I’ve been an anti-social jerk, blowing my teammates off when they invite me to hang out at the bar or play videogames with them in the living room, but they dropped what they were doing to come out here and look for a lost bracelet practically on their hands and knees for almost two hours.
“You guys hungry?” I ask.
The affirmative response is unanimous and overwhelming.
“Let’s order from Marco’s when we get back,” I say. “On me, whatever you guys want. Jamie and Carter, join us, too. Unless you’ve got somewhere else to be.”
The response to that is just as positive. My bank account is still hurting after that impromptu flight to New York City, but this is the least I can do for the guys.
My dad might be loaded as a retired pro hockey player, but long ago he told me that he’s not going to see any son of his blow his NHL money and be left with nothing like so many guys he played with. My dad was insistent that I learn the value of a dollar, which means taking out student loans to have spending money during the school year and working over the summers.
Summer holds her bracelet tight in her hands as we walk back to the car. It’s only when she’s safe in the passenger seat that she slides it back onto her wrist.
She turns to me and beams the brightest, happiest, most genuine smile I’ve ever seen.
I wonder if there’s anything I wouldn’t do to see her smile like that.
35
HUDSON
