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Prologue
Henrik
Life hasa funny way of throwing you a curveball, at the most unexpected times.
The irony is that I despise baseball. Maybe I should say that for me, life put me in the bleachers and I don’t see a way to get the fuck out.
Will my time here ever end? I’m beginning to think that I’ll be stuck in this box forever.
You might be wondering, ‘Who the fuck is this guy throwing out sports analogies on life?’
Well . . . My name is Henrik. Henrik Tremblay.
Yep, that Henrik, the captain of the Boston Blizzards, considered one of the best hockey players in the National Hockey League. Now, I’m simply known as grumpy Henrik, the guy living in a secluded cabin in Kentbury, Vermont. I’m far from the roar of the crowd and the thrill of the game. Far from the city where I was born and the luxury life I was accustomed to.
Two years ago, my world turned upside down. It was during a crucial playoff match; a devastating knee injury brought me crashing down like a ton of bricks. One second, I was on top of the world, leading my team to victory. The next, I was sitting on the bench, watching my career flowing through my fingers like the sands of time.
Before, I was a hero on the ice.
A fucking god.
People were shouting my name.
Now, who am I?
A nobody.
My luxurious Boston brownstone has been swapped for a rustic cabin. This is a drastic change from the fast-paced life I led in Boston. I’m not complaining about my current situation. Just trying to figure out how the fuck I’m supposed to continue—where I’m supposed to go from here.
Some people think this is just a stage in my life and I’ll be back to my old one in no time. Me . . . I’ve got no fucking idea what will happen the day after tomorrow. One thing is certain, I’ll be staying in Kentbury for the foreseeable future.
Though I’m trying to appreciate my new life, it’s hard to understand my situation and adjust to it. It’s impossible to root for this new man. The Henrik who helps his best friend with a charity, gives ski and ice-skating lessons to tourists and will coach the high school hockey team this upcoming summer.
Mom’s concerned I’ll never settle down. Father is worried he’ll never retire because I’m not there to take over his company. But, as always, neither one of them is here to help me through my own shit. Nope. They’re too busy pretending to have their lives together.
This is probably the most pathetic part of my situation. Most of the people who were supposed to love me, be there for me at my worst, disappeared seemingly overnight. My live-in girlfriend broke up with me because I didn’t hold much value to her as an ex-NHL player. Her rejection stung, but as time passed, I came to the realization that my love for her was just an illusion. She was convenient, but dispensable. My heart wasn’t broken, just my ego—and my knee.
All I miss from my old life are my teammates, the rink, and the adrenaline-inducing moments I’ll never get to experience again.
My childhood friend Paul has been the one looking after my pathetic ass. Once he saw I was sinking into a cycle of depression he suggested I move here. Kentbury changed his life and he hoped the town would make an impact on me too.
Paul thinks I’ll find everything I want and more. He keeps saying that life is unpredictable, messy, and, sometimes, just ironic. But it’s also full of surprises, I just need to have faith and let go of the old.
If only I could get used to my new life. Some mornings I wake up feeling like I can see myself settling here permanently. Other days I believe Kentbury is some kind of purgatory. I keep waiting for something, anything, to happen that’ll show me I’m in the right place. But maybe I’m wrong and taking over Tremblay Industries is the most sensible thing to do in my situation.
My therapist will disagree though. He insists I’m the one who has to set up the goals, search for a dream—start a new chapter. And, hopefully, there’s a twist in my story that I didn’t see coming.
After all, isn’t that what makes a good book? Well, in this case, a good life—the plot twist.
Is there even a plot here? Has my story even begun?
I feel like I’m a character who was plucked out of a story and became a side character. Yep, I’m probably on the sidelines of a small-town drama with no chance of getting out of here. After all, no one gives a fuck about the grumpy hermit.
ChapterOne
Louanne
I always imaginedI’d have an elegant brownstone and a jet-setting lifestyle at this point in my life. Not downgraded to a shoebox studio that makes me yearn for my old walk-in closet.
