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“Wow,” Henry said.
I smiled again at him.
I caught him casually looking at the pictures on the walls in the hallway.
From pregnancy to birth, up to this year’s recent school picture, I kept everything on the walls.
Once we were in the kitchen, Travis tried to sneak away.
“Not so fast,” I said to him. “I want you to meet someone.”
Travis froze and turned. “The cellphone charger guy.”
“The one and only,” Henry said.
“Travis, this is my…” My throat closed. Do not call him an old friend! Do not use the word ‘friend’ to describe Henry! “This is Henry. We grew up together. He knew your great-grandfather very well.”
“He was like a father to me,” Henry said. “Taught me everything about hockey. He’s the reason I went pro.”
“Henry plays for the SOLA Empire.”
Travis nodded. “Cool.” There was a pause. “Can I go up to my room now?”
“Yes,” I said.
“Nice to meet you,” Henry said to Travis.
Travis gave an awkward nod and walked away.
I hugged myself, wanting to apologize to Henry again.
“Seems like a good kid,” Henry said.
“Oh? By his joyful demeanor?”
“Hey. Like I said…”
“I know, Henry. I know.”
“Does he play hockey at all?”
“No. Never had an interest.”
“So that’s why he was looking at me like a total stranger.”
“Yup,” I said with a nod. “He plays football.”
“Football?” Henry asked. “No way. Leon let him play football?”
“I told you already, my grandfather adored Travis. He did try to get him into hockey. But, you know, he was older. It wasn’t like when you were a teenager, you know? In fact, my grandfather couldn’t even get on the ice by the time Travis was born. I really thought he was going to go sooner. Then Travis came along and it was like this extra shot of life hit him.”
“That’s amazing,” Henry said.
“So they played catch all the time. Baseballs. Footballs. Anything like that. I don’t know how football took hold, but it did. They would watch every game on Sundays. Monday. Thursday. Playoffs. Everything. As soon as Travis was old enough to sign up to play, there he was. Out on the field. I hated it. I still hate it. Watching them play and tackle each other. But it made my grandfather happy. That was for sure.”
“I always knew the old man had a heart in there somewhere.”
“That’s what killed him.”
