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“What if he slept at my house?” The words coming out of his mouth sound like English, but it takes my brain a second to understand them. “I’ll bring him with me in the morning, you can have him all day, he’ll hang out at the bench during practice, then come home with me at night.”
Hope bursts in my heart.
“Really? You would be willing to do that?”
He looks at the pup and nods. “I’m gonna let him sleep on the bed, though.”
“That’s perfect! He’s definitely a bed dog.”
Paul sighs and mutters, “We’re going to need a huge bed.”
“And when we graduate and leave the dorms, we can have him?” I need the clarification because I’m not giving him up.
“Of course. You’ll need to chip in for dog food and that kind of stuff, vet bills. He’s your dog, just sleeping at my house.” Scott reaches out to pet the puppy, and Seymour licks his hand.
“He’s obviously a good judge of character,” I say begrudgingly. “Okay, we can try it.”
Paul puts a hand on my lower back and leans into me a little. “It’s a good option.”
“Doesn’t mean I have to like it,” I grumble.
“Thank you, Scott,” Paul says. “We really appreciate it.”
“Of course. I’ve been thinking about getting a dog but didn’t want it stuck at home all day by itself, so this is a good alternative.” He pets the dog again, and Butts lays his head on my shoulder.
“Okay, let’s get some dinner, celebrate the win with the boys, then get to bed.” Paul leads me out of the locker room and down the hallway.
Something about this moment reminds me of the years I spent jumping at shadows. I almost gave up hockey just to get away from Chad, but if I had, I wouldn’t have Paul. I no longer jump at loud noises or flinch when someone touches me. I’m able to smile and sleep and be me. I’m sure I’ll still have setbacks, things that trigger a memory that I wasn’t expecting and send me spiraling, but I know that Paul will love me through those times. He’ll hold me while I break down and not judge me for it, close the cabinet doors that I leave open, and only grumble a little when he finds the milk warm on the counter.
We get to Rocky’s, and the fans have already gotten the party started. It’s loud and crowded, which is the best way to celebrate. Paul and I aren’t drinking tonight, but we sit around and enjoy the conversation of our teammates and their significant others.
Football Guy sits next to Carp, and if I’m not mistaken, reaches over to put his hand on the captain’s thigh. Carppy’s face turns hungry as he looks at the other man, and I swear I get singed from it.
“Carp and Nick are going to fuck so hard later,” I whisper into Paul’s ear. He turns his head and watches the exchange that’s all eye contact.
“Oh shit, yeah they are,” he chuckles. “I can’t wait to be able to fuck again.”
I take a second to look at Paul, really look at him. He’s sagging in his chair, eyes heavy. He needs to go to bed.
“All right, time for bed. Come on, sleepy pants.” I push back from the table and pick up my pupper.
“What? We just got here. You didn’t even order yet.” Paul turns in his seat to argue.
“You are about to fall asleep. You just had surgery and need to rest.” I kiss his forehead, and there’s a bunch of “Awww” around the room. I flip everyone off and head to Scott. It hurts my heart to give up the pup, but I know I have to. It’s just a few hours before I’ll see him again.
I lean my head down to kiss him, and he jerks back, smacking my nose. My eyes water and white-hot pain shoots through my face.
“Fuck,” I yell and cup my nose. Scott reaches for the dog and takes him from me while I breathe through it. Goddamn, that’s brutal.
Paul stands next to me, rubbing my back. “Do you want ice?”
“Maybe.”
“On it,” Jeremy says.
I check my upper lip, and I’m not bleeding again, thank God, but I sit down since my eyes won’t stop watering. Jeremy appears with a bag of ice and some napkins to wrap around it. I lean my head back and groan when the ice is placed on my nose. It feels so good.
Paul runs his fingers through the long hair on top of my head, then pets the short hairs on the sides.
