Hat Trick 3: Penalty Shot (21 page)

Coach took his usual spot in the middle of the room, facing the team that was spread around the perimeter. He grabbed Alex, not letting him get to his locker. Even as captains we didn’t usually stand here, choosing to address the team from our locker spaces. It was what the captains before us did. To talk to the guys from Coach’s spot was weird, but this was a different sort of announcement, too.

“Good morning, everyone,” Coach said as some people were putting the last of their gear on. “Thanks for waiting here. As you can see, Alex is back. He’s continuing on IR but he and I thought it best you hear about what’s happening from him. So listen up and hold questions until he’s done.”

Coach Rapp stepped out of the center and sat in front of Alex’s locker, which just added to the surrealness. Alex took a step forward. I felt like I should sit, but I was also providing support so I stayed put.

“I’m glad to be back in this room. You’ve no idea. I know many of you were at the hospital at various times and I can’t thank you enough for that.” He took a deep breath as he dove into the major news. “I was told yesterday by the doctors that I have multiple sclerosis.” There were gasps in the room. “As Coach said, I’m on IR until further notice. I go in today to start a series of tests and begin physical therapy, which will help determine if and when I can play. There are many pro athletes who play with MS, so it’s very likely I’ll return. At the same time, it’s important to ensure there’s not a repeat of what happened Saturday. In the interim, I’ll be here for practices and games to support you guys while doing what I need to do to get back on the ice. At this point, that’s all there is to know so if anyone’s got questions.”

“What can we do to help?” asked Ivan.

“I really don’t know yet,” Alex said. “If there’s anything I’ll let you know. And, thanks for asking.”

“I imagine,” Coach Rapp said, moving back towards the center when no one else spoke up. “That any of us would help any way we can.” The room was full of nodding heads and affirmative sounds. “For now, guys, I ask that you keep this to yourselves. Alex wanted to make sure you heard this from him because you’re family. I heard just a few minutes ago, so I need to take care of some administrative things. Alright, get yourselves ready and be on the ice in five minutes.”

Coach clapped both Alex and I on the back as he left. We moved towards our lockers and I got busy changing. I didn’t want to be any later than I had to. After all, I had to be captain for both of us now. As the guys headed out, most came over to Alex and offered some encouragement, help or just said hello.

“That went well,” he said after everyone left.

“Yeah,” I said without breaking the rhythm of getting dressed. “You were very confident up there talking. It was sexy.”

“Oh, you liked that did you?”

“I did, yeah.”

“Can I use that to get in your pants tonight?”

“I don’t think you’ll need to do much persuading.”

“We’re long overdue.”

“Totally. Of course, the doctor has to clear you for strenuous activity.”

I was fully dressed in less than ten minutes, and we headed out towards the ice.

“I’ll make sure that’s one of my first questions,” Alex said. “Forget about the hockey, I need to fuck my boyfriend.”

We kissed before I put on my helmet.

“Walk me out to the bench?” Alex asked. “I might as well watch from ice level. Then we can clean up, grab breakfast, and hit the doctors.”

I put out my elbow and he looped his arm around it, like we were entering a formal gathering. “Gonna be weird having you just watch.”

“Make sure you don’t screw up out there or I’ll never let you live it down,” he said, giving me a wink.

I hadn’t planned to spend the majority of time at the doctor’s office hanging in the waiting room. Luckily I had stuff with me to stay occupied. While I was allowed to be with Alex during the initial consultations, I couldn’t be with him in the therapy room. The reasoning was sound. If the patient was in discomfort, as a family member I might try to step in and make the therapist stop. I respected the request and didn’t make a fuss. It’s not unlike when I ask parents to give me time so a young person will speak candidly.

I was surprised that Alex looked so sad when I left him alone with the therapist. He reminded me of a small child who’d been told he had to give up a prized possession. He was nervous about this morning, but at least he was letting the therapist do their work.

Forty-five minutes later, the receptionist called my name and told me I could go back to the office. Dr. Wilcox and Alex were in the same positions they were in when I’d excused myself with the doctor behind his stainless steel desk and Alex in one of the chairs. The only difference was Alex was now in shorts and there was sweat on his forehead and T-shirt.

“Hi,” I said, taking my seat.

“Hey.” Alex sounded pained. “You remember those things Kirk had me do? The stretches he just put me through are worse. I used to think I was flexible, but it’s crazy how much I’m not.”

“Don’t make it sound worse than it was,” Dr. Wilcox said, smiling. “Your flexibility’s fine, we’re just pushing it a little further. We’ll do other exercises in the coming days that should help prevent the numbness, and help you battle it when it shows up. I’ve got a meeting this afternoon with your team’s medical and training staff to understand your practices and workout routines so I know what you’re doing there.”

“How long until I’m back on the ice?”

“At least I won that bet,” Dr. Wilcox said with a laugh.

Alex and I laughed, too. I was glad not everything was completely serious. “What was the bet?” I asked.

“Several doctors and nurses wagered how long it’d be before he asked that. I said he’d at least get through the therapy session. Most people thought it would be within the first fifteen minutes he was here, and there were two that said it’d be the first question out of his mouth.”

“How much does my restraint get you?”

“I think the pot got up to two-ninety.”

“Damn,” I said. “I would’ve gotten in on that action.”

“Seriously?” Alex said, trying to sound annoyed and failing.

“Hell yeah. What’s wrong with some extra cash?” I winked at him. “Although I would’ve lost. Honestly I’m surprised it didn’t come up much earlier.”

“Jerk,” he said, playfully shoving me in the shoulder. “So, Dr. Wilcox? What do you think?”

“I’d like to give it at least two weeks. I want to make sure we understand your baseline, see if you have any flare ups and work from there.”

Alex groaned. He’d said this morning he’d hoped to only miss one weekend of games, but it was more likely to be two or three. There was certainly nothing to worry about with the scholarship or anything, it was just that he enjoyed playing. I knew first hand that every day off the ice sucked.

“So what are the best things we can do?” I asked, trying to divert the topic from missed ice time.

“Rest. I know it’s hard to get eight hours of sleep in college. But get as much as you can, including naps when possible, especially if there are flare ups. It sounds like you’re already eating fairly well, so I don’t think you need to tweak that. You’re already ahead of the curve since you’re in such good shape. Staying hydrated is important, even more so than before.”

He nodded. I thought about pulling out my tablet to take notes, but so far it all seemed straightforward.

“Are there drugs that can help with this?”

He pulled out a folder from his desk. “Understand that I’m your physical therapist, so the drugs aren’t my specialty. Dr. Donaldson will talk with you in detail, and likely have some recommendations in the next few days.” He gave a set of papers to Alex. “This covers the leading drugs, and the side effects for each. You can read up on them so you’ll have some understanding when you have the discussion.”

“I just want to do everything I can to minimize this. I get that I can’t stop it or reverse it, but as slow as possible is my goal.”

“I understand and that’s what we’ll work towards.” Everyone nodded, seemingly satisfied. “Any more questions?”

“Not right now,” I said.

He took two cards out of the holder on his desk and handed them over. “If you have questions, feel free to call or email. And certainly if there’s an emergency, call.”

Everyone stood up, understanding it was time for us to go. He had very much the same technique that Trevor did when it was time to end an appointment without coming out and saying it.

“Thanks, Dr. Wilcox,” Alex said. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Alex nodded and grabbed up his workout bag.

We headed out into the sunny morning. It was almost noon, but there was a nice chill in the air. “How you feeling?”

“I’m okay. It’s all doable. It’s crazy I’m learning a whole bunch of new exercises when I already know so many, but apparently they’ll be good for me. I guess I’ll be super fit, or something.”

“I’m okay if there’s more muscle to hold on to.”

“Horn dog.” He smirked at me and grabbed my ass as we walked to where my truck was parked.

“Hey, it’s not all about sex. I like grabbing on for just hugs, too, you know.”

I got a wink as he unlocked his door and got in, while I climbed in the driver’s side.

“Maybe this isn’t going to be horrible. Some exercises, pay attention to things, adapt over the years.”

“You know we can manage that,” I said, backing out of the parking slot.

“Will you carry me when I can’t walk anymore?”

I looked over at him before I pulled into traffic. He sounded earnest, but I needed to see if he was asking some weird hypothetical, or if he was really worried about that. I couldn’t read the look.

“Yes, of course.” That was truth, whether he was just joking around or not.

“Thanks,” he said, quietly. Then he changed topic by a hundred eighty degrees. “Can we go get lunch? I know we had breakfast, but do we have time before your next class?”

“Absolutely.” I didn’t care if I was late. I couldn’t deny lunch.

I needed to process his remark about carrying him. It was possible that one day MS would zap his ability to walk, or go after something else besides his legs. But the question out of the blue like that was weird.

He took my right hand off the steering wheel and wrapped his around it. Without discussing it, I went to IHOP. We hadn’t been there in a while and it seemed the right place to go. Hopefully he’d talk over food.

After we ordered, he opened up.

“Sorry.”

“For what?” I had no idea what he was talking about.

“For putting this in our lives.” He took my hand again. The pained look in his eyes made me want to hug him and make it all better, even though I knew I couldn’t. “I mean, it’s never going away.”

“But it could be nothing more than a minor annoyance.”

“I hope so.” He sighed. “We’ve got things to do.”

“And we’ll do them. You’ll see.”

“I know you’re freaking out inside.” He looked at me intensely while he spoke. “I appreciate you acting calm. I know I’ve snapped at you about it, but I’m glad you’re able to do it since I can’t stop fixating on horrible outcomes.”

Our food arrived quickly and we separated our handhold so the plates could be put down. As usual, we ordered enough food for a table of four even though we were only two.

“You know, there’s someone you can talk to there about the mental impacts of this, too. The physical stuff is pretty easy because you know how to adapt to a program. You should make some appointments so they can help you get out of your head.”

“Wise, as usual,” he said before taking a bite of pancakes.

“Try to give it all sometime, too. It hasn’t even been a day yet. You’ve got a team of people ready to help. You’ll get a new workout regime, talk through your fears, and maybe make some other tweaks. Who knows, maybe we have to eat fewer pancakes.”

“Nooooooooo.” He looked horrified before we cracked up. “Anything but that.”

“I said maybe, don’t overreact…yet.” I made a goofy face at him, glad to see the mood lift. “Anyway, we’ll make the adjustments we need to and keep going.”

“I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“You’d actually be fine. You’re a tough guy. It’s just easier when you’re part of a tough duo.”

“True.”

We ate, mostly chattering about the next few days and coordinating schedules as best we could since I wanted to attend as many of this week’s sessions as possible. We also decided that, after dinner with the parents tonight, we’d do some research together on MS. So far everything we knew was coming from the docs, it was time to learn on our own, too.

Coming into the third period of Rainbow High’s tenth game, we were in uncharted territory. The game was tied, two-to-two. By the top of the third, we were typically a point or two behind. In this game, we’d always been in the lead, or tied. It was right before the end of the second that the Raiders tied things up again. Alex, Danny, Trent, and I were watching from the bleachers, while Hillary was at her usual position on the bench.

We were tense about this game. The Raiders were the team Walt transferred from and whose team members we’d had some run-ins with. I suspected they were the ones who messed up Walt’s car, too, although no one ever confirmed that. They were playing a clean game so far, which surprised me. Their coach must’ve had them on a short leash.

Between periods, we used FaceTime to join the conversation at the bench.

“Guys, you’re doing amazing. I’ve never seen such determination. It’s really possible to win this. Forty-seven is their threat. He’s scored the two goals they’ve gotten.”

“Yeah,” Walt said, “that’s Lucas, he’s one of the best players in the league.”

“Okay then, get on him. Don’t let him have space. No space to get passes. No space to run with the puck if he gets it. Be smart, don’t double team him, but if he’s out there, it’s the center’s responsibility to be on him like glue.”

“Shut him down,” Danny added, “and score another. This game is yours.”

The scoreboard buzzer sounded and the team huddled up for their cheer. We stayed on the line and yelled “Rainbow High!” with them.