Never Forgotten (Never Forgotten Series) (10 page)

“It’s okay, Mom.” I decided to keep my fear to myself for now. Mom was upset enough.

“It’s not,” she said. “But I hope you’ll forgive me.”

I stood and gave her a hug. She kissed my forehead.

“I love you, Meara.”

“Love you too, Mom.” I hadn’t said I forgive her, but she didn’t push. I wasn’t sure yet. There was too much I didn’t understand.

About an hour after it opened, Evan and I arrived at the museum. I sulked a little after we left my grandparent’s house, stinging from my conversation with Mom. Evan listened to my recount. He didn’t understand my mom’s actions either, agreeing it was strange.

“Can you ask your mom what she remembers about David?” I asked him.

“Sure. I’ll see what I can find out.”

“Thanks.”

We parked in the attached structure and entered the museum through a side door. There were large posters hanging in the hall featuring sharks, whales, and giant squids, as well as mythical creatures such as mermaids and sea serpents.

“Wow, I can see why you like this museum,” I said. They had a huge maritime collection.

Evan nodded. “That’s why I wanted to bring you here today. And this exhibit.” He pointed to a Monsters of the Deep poster featuring a giant squid called a kraken. “I haven’t seen it yet.”

“It’s about sea monsters, and you haven’t seen it? How long has it been here?”

“It just opened.” He took my hand and pulled me forward. “So, do you want to start with my favorite exhibits or should we start with the Monsters of the Deep?”

“To be honest,” I said, “I’ve only visited two museums in my life. I’m a little out of my league here, so I’ll let you pick.”

He grinned. I got the suspicious feeling that he was hoping I would let him pick. “We’ll start with some local history,” he said.

We spent the rest of the morning exploring the museum. Evan’s favorites were the archaeology and marine biology exhibits. He explained everything to me and answered my questions with great patience.

We ate cheeseburgers and fries in the museum cafeteria. He teased me when I went through the museum brochure at lunch, checking off all the exhibits that we had already seen. I didn’t want to miss anything. To my surprise, we had seen almost all the regular exhibits. That left the Monsters of the Deep display.

The special exhibit section of the museum was cavernous; the walls draped in blue fabric. The lighting made the room glow with a bluish tint. It felt like we were underwater. Suspended from the ceiling was a skeleton. The creature was snakelike and easily twenty feet long. The room was divided into vignettes—one side showcased real or extinct creatures, the other featured those that were legendary.

I was drawn to the mythical side, fascinated by the lore surrounding these creatures. The exhibits ranged from the fierce—fire-breathing sea serpents, giant squids, and octopus-like monsters called Kraken, to the beautiful—mermaids, Selkies, and Sirens.

Evan, too, seemed engrossed. We stood side by side, reading the captions and stories interspersed with beautiful pieces of artwork inspired by man’s hopes and fears of these beings. Several monsters were depicted in life-sized statues or in carvings and tapestries. One tapestry caught my eye. It portrayed Odysseus’s encounter with the sirens. The women were beautiful and appeared to be seducing Odysseus. The colors and detail were amazing.

“Did you see this?” I asked Evan, thinking he was next to me. He wasn’t. I spotted him two exhibits over, staring at a mermaid statue. I walked up behind him and placed my hand on my hips in mock anger.

“Leave it to a guy to find the half-naked female in the room.”

He laughed and turned to me with raised eyebrows. “Jealous?”

“Of a fish woman? Never.”

He leaned down and kissed me. “You’re cuter than her anyway.”

“Thank you.”

“What did you want to show me?”

“Just a tapestry. It’s no big deal. I just didn’t realize you weren’t next to me.”

“Are you having a good time?”

I nodded. “It’s great. Thanks for bringing me.”

“I knew you’d like it.” He looked at his watch. “Do you want to stay or are you ready to go?”

I shrugged. “It’s up to you.”

“Let’s look in the gift shop, and then we can get going.”

“Okay.”

The gift shop was filled with unique, fun items. Many were maritime themed. The back corner was filled with limited-edition items from the Monsters’ exhibit. I found a small mermaid statue and bought it for Evan as a joke. He laughed when I gave it him.

“What’s this for?”

“Now you have your own personal mermaid.”

“To remind me that you’re cuter?” he teased.

“Exactly,” I said, surprising myself by giving him a quick kiss. He didn’t seem to mind. He pulled me closer and kissed me again.

“Thank you,” he said.

"This is where he plays?” I glanced in awe at the long building in front of us. Families were pouring in, tickets in hand. My experience with sporting events was limited to the handful of times that Mom took me to Milwaukee for a basketball game. That arena was big, but I’d never been to one like this before.

“Yep,” Katie said. “Hockey’s pretty popular here.”

“That’s an understatement,” said Jen, one of Katie’s best friends, who joined us for the game.

“Is your friend Ula coming, Meara?” Katie asked. “Or should we just get our tickets?”

I frowned at her. “I think she’s coming. Didn’t Evan say he got us the tickets?”

“He did.” She pointed to the ticket windows. “We need to go to Will Call and pick them up.”

“Oh, okay. Well, I guess she’s not coming. Otherwise, she’d be here by now. I asked her to meet me by the ticket counter.”

“We can walk closer and look,” Jen suggested.

As we neared the ticket area, I saw a girl who looked like Ula, although her back was to us. She appeared to be having an intense conversation with a tall man. I couldn’t see his face that clearly, since he was wearing a baseball cap pulled low over his eyes, but his arms and chest were well defined under his snug Mooseheads t-shirt. He raised his head and nodded in our direction, and the girl turned. It was Ula. She smiled and waved before turning back to the guy and giving him a firm push on the chest that clearly said go away. He shook his head and laughed at her. He was easily a foot taller, so her push had no impact on him. He gave a short wave in our direction before turning and walking away. Ula watched him leave and then ran over.

“Meara! Good to see you!”

She gave me quick hug. When she pulled back, I introduced her to Katie and Jen. Katie seemed amused by Ula’s outfit, which today consisted of bell-bottom jeans and a Beetles t-shirt.

“She has great vintage clothes, don’tcha think?” I asked.

“Absolutely!” Jen gushed. “Where did you find that t-shirt?”

Katie and I left Ula and Jen chatting clothes while we went to the Will-Call window to get our tickets. Katie whistled when she saw them.

“What?” I asked.

“Evan got us front row center, near the penalty box.”

“Is that good?”

“It’s great,” she said. “We’ll be able to see everything.”

I hoped the tickets weren’t too expensive. I asked Katie as much on our way back to Jen and Ula.

“It’s fine, Meara,” she said. “Evan can get free tickets to give to family and friends. I’m sure he’s just happy that you’re here.”

We passed through the turnstiles. The smell of freshly popped corn, hot dogs, and pizza assaulted me. My stomach rumbled.

Ula laughed. “Should we get snacks before we find our seats?”

I ordered nachos and a large Diet Coke. Katie got a soft pretzel, and Jen bought cotton candy. Ula didn’t buy anything.

“I ate just before I got here,” she told us.

We walked around the arena until we found the right section. Then we headed down to the front row. By the time we took our seats, I was impressed with how close we were. The guys were on the ice, warming up. I figured out which team was Evan’s, but with all the padding layers and helmets, I had no idea which player he was. Katie nudged me with her elbow and pointed.

“That’s Evan, number 14.”

As she was talking, he skated over and along the glass, winking as he passed. He had a patch on his uniform that set him apart from his teammates.

“Why does Evan’s uniform have a patch?” I asked.

“He’s the captain,” Katie said.

“He’s the captain?” Why didn’t he ever mention it to me?

Jen nodded enthusiastically. “Oh yeah. Evan’s great at hockey.”

Ula was quiet. I looked over and saw her scanning the crowd. Her eyes settled on someone, and she scowled. I followed her gaze.

“Who’s that?” I asked. It looked like it might be the tall guy from earlier. At least, I could make out similar baseball cap and t-shirt, but he was too far away to see any real details.

“Someone annoying,” Ula said. “He’s not important.”

“Is that the guy you were talking to outside? Is he your boyfriend or something?” Jen asked. By now, all of us were staring at him.

“Ex,” she stressed, “but yes. Something like that.”

He waved at us again. He obviously knew we were watching.

“Just ignore him,” Ula muttered. She looked annoyed. I wondered what happened between them.

The buzzer sounded, announcing the start of the first period. Evan squared off against the captain of the other team, the hockey puck dropped, and the game began.

The game was fast paced, and yet, by the first break, I had a good idea of what was going on. The crowd, loud and boisterous, chanted and jeered in a way that seemed almost choreographed. “Sieve, Sieve!” Katie and Jen yelled.

Once we learned the common phrases, Ula and I joined them. At the end of the second period, we all yelled, “How much time is left?”

We cracked up when the announcer replied, “One minute left in the period.”

Evan scored three goals that period and assisted with four others. It was a high-scoring game and, by the middle of the third period, Evan’s team was ahead of the other team by two. He scored again, and I whistled and cheered. My friends joined me.

“He’s really good,” Ula said.

“He’s great!” Jen shouted. “Go Evan!”

Katie put her fingers to her mouth and whistled shrilly. “That’s my brother,” she said and grinned. “I told you, Meara. He’s pretty amazing at hockey.”

I was stunned, proud, and flabbergasted as to why someone as talented as Evan was interested in me.

The buzzer sounded the end of the game, and we jumped up. The teams lined up on the ice and shook hands. Katie gathered our wrappers and stuff.

“C’mon, let’s go,” she said.

“Why the rush?” I asked.

“The team’s signing autographs. I thought you’d like to meet some of the players.”

“Do you know them all?” Ula asked.

“Not all,” Katie said, “but most. Evan’s had a few over to the house for dinner or whatever.” She smiled at Jen and Ula. “They’re pretty cute.”

By the time we reached the lobby, long lines had formed for the signing. I noticed the teenage girls and again wondered why Evan chose me. I must have frowned at them, because Katie patted my arm.

“Don’t you worry, girlfriend,” she said. “Evan only has eyes for you. Trust me.”

Evan signed pictures and interacted with his fans, ruffling little boys’ hair and shaking people’s hands. I noticed the other players doing similar things. Some flirted a bit with the teenage girls, but Evan never did. He smiled politely and moved them on.

It didn’t take too long to reach the front of the line. Evan grinned at me. “What would you like me to write, young lady?”

“Hmm…” I played along, pretending to contemplate. “How about ‘to my biggest fan’?”

“That’s a pretty big role to fill,” he teased.

“I think I’m up for the challenge.”

Evan nudged his teammate next to him. “Phil,” he said, “this is my girlfriend, Meara.”

Phil looked at me and grinned. “Nice to meet cha.”

Katie cleared her throat behind me, so Evan added, “And of course, you’ve already met my sister, Katie, and this is her friend, Jen.” Evan paused when he got to Ula. He hadn’t met her yet.

“This is my friend, Ula,” I told him. “From the clinic?”

“A pleasure to meet you,” Ula said and shook his hand.

“Hello, ladies.” Phil tipped his baseball cap.

“You bringing ‘em to the party later, Mitchell?” This came from the guy sitting on the other side of Phil.

“Do you want to go?” Evan asked us, and I looked at Katie.

“Sure!” she said.

Evan looked pleased. “We’ve got about fifteen more minutes of signing, Coach will want to run through a few things, then we can change and get going.”

“Where should we meet you?” Katie asked. “I don’t want to sit in my car for forty-five minutes.”

“How about The Goal Post?” Evan suggested. I had no idea what it was, but it sounded like a sports bar or restaurant.

“Okay,” Katie said. “We’ll just order an appetizer or something.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Evan promised. “An hour or less.”

“Hey…are you girls almost done yet? My kid wants an autograph.” This came from a grumpy-looking man behind us. His son was a chubby middle schooler who looked more interested in us than the hockey players.

I smiled apologetically. “We’re leaving now. See you soon, Evan.”

***

The Goal Post was a restaurant. One of those sports-themed ones that catered to the fans. It was crowded, but we managed to get a high table in the bar area. We ordered a pitcher of root beer, breaded mushrooms, and poutine, which was starting to grow on me. Sure, it looked disgusting, but the combination of cheese and gravy with the crispy fries—mmmm, yum.

“What did you think of the game?” Jen asked.

“I liked it,” I said. “Seems simple enough to follow.”

“It was a pretty mellow night,” Katie said. “No fights.”

“Right,” Jen said. “Kind of boring actually. So if you liked this one, you’d like one of those.”

“Does Evan get in fights?” I’d seen a few guys slammed up against the Plexiglas during the game. Katie told me it was called checking. It looked painful. At least Evan did more of the checking and got checked less often. He was quick on his skates.

Katie laughed. “What do you think? I’m not sure his opponents like getting slammed into the glass.”

“Does he get hurt?” I couldn’t bear it if he was getting black eyes or losing teeth. Jen told me it was pretty common for hockey players to have fake teeth.

“Nah,” Katie said. “They have all that padding, and he’s a pretty good fighter.”

Ula was picking at the fries. She hadn’t said anything since we got here, and she kept glancing at the door.

“Are you okay?” I asked her.

“Sure,” she said. She gave me a half-hearted smile.

“Is it that guy that was with you at the game? Did he bother you?”

“Him?” She shook her head. “No. I can handle him. It’s nothing. I’m okay. I’m sorry I can’t go with you.”

“It’s okay,” I said. We all called our parents on the way over to the restaurant. Katie suggested I just stay over at her house, and her mom said it was okay. My mom was fine with it if Lydia was, so getting permission was easy. Ula didn’t even try to call home. “Your parents are protective, huh?”

“You could say that.” She looked out the window again, and then hopped off the barstool. “Looks like my ride’s here. Goodnight, ladies.”

I gave her a quick hug. “See you next week?” I asked, referring to the clinic.

“See you then,” she confirmed.

Jen waved, and Katie called, “Nice meeting you!” After Ula was out of earshot, she added. “She seems nice. Dresses a bit odd, but nice.”

“She likes vintage.” It didn’t bother me. I thought her style was kind of cool. Jen echoed my thoughts aloud.

“Her clothes are wicked. Wish I had the courage to wear whatever I wanted.”

“Why don’t you?” I asked.

“Are you kidding? They’d laugh me out of school,” Jen said. She took a sip of her root beer.

“You should’ve seen the Bob Marley shirt she was wearing the first time I met her,” I said. “If I could get my hands on that one, I’d wear it.” Katie and Jen exchanged a look that said “yeah right,” which I chose to ignore. I would wear it. I wasn’t much of a slave to fashion, so I had a tendency to wear what I wanted regardless.

Evan entered the bar. His hair was damp and curling around his ears. He wore dark jeans and a gray, button-down shirt. Three of his teammates followed him. He smiled when he spotted me, crossed the room, and gave me a quick kiss.

“Hi,” I said. “That didn’t take too long.”

“Coach’s lecture was short since we won tonight.” Evan turned to the guys who were with him. “This is Joe, Peter, and Brian.”