by David Skuy
The left defencemen came over again. Pudge did not slow down. About four metres from the crease to the goalie’s right, the two players collided. It was colossal — both players fell, while the puck squirted free near Pudge’s hip. Charlie could not believe his luck. He sneaked in, collected the puck, faked a forehand wrist shot to force the goalie to commit to the short side, and then calmly swung it across to his backhand and stuffed it inside the post on the glove side.
He looked up at the clock. Twenty-two seconds. Unbelievable. Two of the easiest goals he had ever scored — and two of the sweetest. All five Rebels met him in front of the net, and the happy players formed a scrum.
“Rebels are playing tough,” Spencer said. “I’m liking the dark side.”
“Pudge would not be denied,” Charlie said. He gave his buddy a tap on the helmet.
“I’ll be the battering ram; you be the finisher,” Pudge said.
“We got time for two more goals this shift,” Spencer said. “Let’s hustle for the faceoff.” He laughed and began skating backward to their blue line.
Charlie cruised back more slowly this time, to savour the moment. He had wanted to start the game strong. This was over the top. It showed the difference between playing with focus and being distracted.
A somewhat shell-shocked Tigers group set up for the draw. Their coach had called a time out. Charlie could see him talking to his players, pointing at his whiteboard and drawing furiously.
Good luck to him, Charlie thought. The Rebels own this game.
16
… TUMBLING DOWN
The game against the Tigers had ended in a massive 7–1 Rebels victory. Charlie’s line dominated and between them they scored six of the goals, with Charlie getting the hat trick midway through the third period on a breakaway pass from Spencer at the Tigers blue line. Charlie put his foot up on a chair, his chest nearly bursting with pride, watching his friends organize themselves. They had all answered the call, every one of them. The Rainbow Café would be back in business — pronto.
“I told them my contractor, Matt Danko, needed a garbage bin delivered, and no back talk,” Scott was telling the others. “Dalton is obviously learning I’m his go-to guy.”
“This Matt Danko must be awesome,” Nick said.
“He is. He can do anything,” Scott said. “I heard he has x-ray vision.”
“I’d like to meet him some day,” Matt said. He wasn’t laughing, though. “There is one thing you should know. We’re going to have to pay for that bin.”
“How much is it?” Pudge said to Scott.
“That might’ve been a good question to ask,” Scott said.
“I’ll cover it,” Charlie said hurriedly. But he was worried. He maybe had two hundred and fifty dollars saved up in his long board fund.
“So what’s the plan?” Zachary said.
“Pudge and I took the liberty of drafting a work schedule,” Dalton said. He turned his laptop toward them.
“Oh, no. Total disaster,” Scott exclaimed.
“What’s wrong?” Dalton said.
“You don’t have me as the boss. It’s … impossible.”
Dalton looked bewildered.
“You can be boss as long as no one has to listen to you,” Nick said.
“That’s what I meant,” Scott said.
Dalton looked over to Charlie.
“It took me a while to learn, but the best strategy is to ignore them,” Charlie said. “Anyway, it looks like today is cleanup. I assume we’re loading all the garbage into the bin.”
“We have to take down the sections of wall that were charred or damaged by the smoke or burned by the fire,” Dalton said. “We might be able to sand away some of the discoloured sections, which would save time. Some of the ceiling tiles can be washed, but as you can see a number of them must be replaced. A few have even fallen down. Probably got wet when the firemen came in with their hoses. And it would look better if we replaced the discoloured tiles, although that is not critical. We’ll keep a look out for some when we’re salvaging materials; there could be problems with matching up the tiles, however. Unfortunately, some of the dishes will have to be replaced as well. We have some work to do in the dining area, so we should pile the furniture to the side to protect it. I have also taken the liberty of calling a city inspector to tell us whether the electrical system is still intact.”
“And don’t forget the hood company to figure out how the fire system is supposed to work,” Pudge said.
“Excellent reminder,” Dalton said. “I apologize for that oversight.”
Pudge opened his knapsack and began tossing work gloves to everyone. “My dad’s gift to the cause,” he said.
Charlie could have kicked himself. He should have thought of that.
“I did some quick research and learned that it really is advisable to wear masks to reduce the intake of dust and soot,” Dalton said. He pulled out a bunch of masks and handed them out.
The gloves and masks went right on. Dalton closed his laptop. For a moment no one spoke, until Charlie soon twigged that the guys were waiting for him. “I don’t think this is the time for heavy speeches — and I’m sure no one wants to see Scott cry,” he said.
“That’s not necessarily true,” Nick said.
“I think it’s stating the obvious to say that when the Rainbow Café reopens there will be some serious eating awaiting you guys — and thanks for this. I owe ya.”
“Yes you do, Joyce,” Scott said. He pulled his mask over his mouth and held his hands up in the air. “Now, where’s the patient?”
Dalton pointed at two sections of the wall. “Those have to come down, and we must remove that section of ceiling also.” He walked over to the stove. “I’m also concerned about the wood strapping here.”
“The what?” Scott said.
“Strapping is another name for wood that you nail into the outer walls in four-foot intervals to form sections. You stuff insulation into each section and then nail the drywall into the strapping. Strapping is also referred to in the construction industry as studs,” Dalton explained, as only he could.
“Nick, now do you understand?” Scott said. Nick nodded. “Please don’t ask any more silly questions. You’re really annoying today.”
Dalton kept going as if Scott and Nick had not said anything. He’s learning, Charlie thought.
“A lot of the strapping around the range was burnt, in some places quite severely. I think we should replace it. Some of the insulation has also been singed, and over there you can see how it has even melted. That will have to be replaced also. Remind me to ask Matt’s father how to go about it.”
Charlie pulled his mask down. “I’m in the mood to destroy a wall,” he said. “Who’s with me?”
Matt held up his crowbar. “Commence the attack.”
“It is time,” Scott said, in a super low voice.
Matt pounded the wall with the rounded end of the crowbar in several places. A fine mist of white dust fluttered in the air. “Would you like to do the honours?” he said to Charlie.
Charlie slid the thin end of his crowbar into a hole and pulled back. A piece of drywall broke off and fell to the floor by his feet. It was a good feeling, and he let himself enjoy the satisfaction of seeing the section of drywall torn out. Matt and Pudge joined in, and soon they had most of it down. It was hard work, and Charlie’s arms were aching, but he was also totally stoked. How many guys had friends like this? He could hardly wait until they were all back on the ice together. But first things first, he reminded himself, pulling off another hunk of drywall and tossing it over to the ever-growing pile.
* * *
Three wearying hours later, they had made a ton of progress. But what a mess! Taking down the walls had turned out to be a dirty job, with a film of white dust everywhere. The ceiling was even harder, since they had to use a ladder. It was lucky Matt’s dad had an extra one. Charlie’s spirits lifted when his mom walked in. She was carrying a tray, which coul
d only mean only one thing — food!
“Hey, Mom. You won’t believe how much we’ve done.”
She scrunched her nose. “There sure is a lot of … dust.”
“Yeah. We’ll clean it all up, no problem. Taking down the walls was ugly. Before we started we covered what we could with plastic sheets.”
“Where did you get the plastic?”
“Pudge brought it.”
His mom nodded slowly. “And the bin outside?”
“Scott ordered it.”
“Please ask your friends to give me the invoices for the plastic and the bin. I’ll pay for them,” she said firmly.
A chorus of “Hi, Donna,” rang out, followed by one “Hi, Ms Joyce.”
“At least I know Pudge is here,” she said.
Charlie and his mom had long ago given up telling Pudge to use her first name.
“So … what’s on the tray?” Scott drawled.
She arched her eyebrows. “What if I told you there are some snacks?”
“May I take a look?” Scott said.
She put the tray on a table and removed the foil.
“Gentlemen, I will do the taste test. Don’t thank me. I’m that kind of guy.” Scott took a sandwich.
“You might want to wash your hands,” his mom said.
“I didn’t actually do any work,” Scott whispered loudly.
“I was mentioning to Charlie that I’ll pay for the bin outside. Are you okay with the one or do you need another?” she asked Dalton.
Dalton looked up from his laptop. “I believe this one should be sufficient. The debris is almost all cleared. I’m reviewing my calculations for the materials we need. I should be done momentarily.”
“I’ll be done momentarily also,” Scott said, chomping on his sandwich. “Did you make any of your famous spiced turkey?”
“If you’re lucky you should find a couple,” she laughed, and added, “You’re a pleasure to feed, Scott.”
Scott elbowed Nick. “I told you I was her favourite.”
“Our next step is to find the materials for the repairs,” Charlie said to his mom. “We’ll go hunting tomorrow.”
“We have to do it in the morning. We have a practice at three o’clock,” Pudge said.
She ran her eyes around the café, seemingly searching for something. Charlie thought she was acting a little odd, like she was sad. She should be getting stoked; the Rainbow Café was coming back!
“How long will you be here?” she asked.
“As long as it takes to clean up,” Pudge said. “Few more hours, I guess.”
“Matt’s dad should be coming over,” Charlie said, “to tell us what we need to do next.”
“The problem is he’s working on a house a couple of hours out of town. He said he’d try to help as much as he could,” Matt said.
“I’ll give him a call to thank him. It’s very generous,” she said to Matt. “I’ve also made a few calls to some contractors and tradespeople I’ve used in the past. They’re all so busy before Christmas, though. Some of them said they’d try to drop by and give us some advice. We’ll see, I guess.” She ran her hand along the bottom of her purse.
“I’ll see you later, then. Take care, boys,” she called out, “and thank you all so much. It really is a wonderful thing you’re doing, helping us like this.”
“No problem,” and “No big deal,” were the answers.
“Thanks for the food,” Scott added.
She laughed. “Don’t forget to give me the invoice for the bin — and Pudge, I want to pay for that plastic sheeting. Bye.”
Pudge elbowed Charlie. “My dad said I could have it. Tell your mom not to worry.”
Charlie was not so worried about that; it was his mom who concerned him. Lately whenever she laughed or joked around it seemed forced, as if it was a big effort. The sandwiches were nice, but better would have been for her to believe in this. Deep down he knew she did not.
17
ONE OUT OF THREE
“I’m finished, Charlie.”
“Can you put your plate upstairs, D? I’m rushing around — gotta get going when mom comes home.”
“No, probs, big bro.”
Charlie winced as he watched Danielle go upstairs with the cutlery sticking out of a cup balanced precariously in the middle of her plate. “Be careful, Danny.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
He folded the last of the towels and put them into the clothes hamper, and then arched the small of his back until he heard a crack. Strange how tired he was, like the feeling he got when he went shopping with his mom at the mall for clothes. He could play a game of hockey and feel great after, but a couple hours of housework drained his energy, and he still had to empty the dishwasher. He prayed his mom was still up for taking Danielle to drama class. The boys were meeting soon at the café to go look for building materials. It would be very uncool if he was late. He was also getting more worried about his mom. She was always tired — and irritable — just not her normal self. He knew she was totally stressed about her baking business. She was busy, but not enough to make much money, according to her, anyway. He needed to fix the café up, and fast, but it was tough when he was always waiting around for his mom to get back from this place or that. He gripped the hamper with both hands and began to haul it upstairs. With relief he heard the front door close.
“Charlie! Don’t tell me you haven’t finished yet! Danielle has to go soon.” His mom had her eyes closed tightly and she threw her purse on a chair.
“Relax, mom. I’ve done almost everything on the list. I put this away and make Danny a sandwich and we’re good.” They had been arguing a lot lately over this stuff. She never gave him a break no matter how much he did. Like now; working like a demon for hours here, and the first thing she did was criticize. He bet she had more stuff for him to do, which meant he would have to cancel on the guys. He asked the question to get it over with.
“Are you going to be able to take Danny to class?” he said.
Her shoulders slumped. “I’ve been up since three in the morning,” she said.
It was like a punch to the stomach. Not unexpected, though. “It’s just that I was meeting the guys to get stuff to fix the café …”
She pushed a few strands of hair from her face. “Charlie, maybe you should be focusing on getting your homework done instead of —”
“My homework is done,” Charlie broke in. He had stayed up late last night to do it, which was probably another reason he was tired. “I think I should focus on the café … and maybe you should too, a bit,” he added.
“My lawyer told me it will take months to work things out with the insurance company … if ever,” she responded. “And let’s face it, we can’t keep going like this. I’m frazzled and you’re working so hard and dealing with school and Danielle, not to mention hockey. I had another long talk with Theresa this morning, and … I think we will really have to consider Stanville.”
That was the one thing he could not consider, not for a second. “Give it some more time, Mom. We’ll have the café up and running soon. I promise. We got it all worked out. Just a little longer. It’ll be fine.”
She bit her lower lip and looked up at the ceiling. Charlie would have given anything to know what she was really thinking. “I hope so, Charlie. I do. Sometimes a situation is … too difficult. This might be one of them. Why don’t you call your friends and tell them to relax today. It’s beautiful out. We won’t have too many nice days like this left. I can take Danielle. You meet your friends, and have some fun.”
He felt his energy surge back. “Okay, Mom. I’ll put this stuff away and fix Danielle’s lunch and then take off.”
She ruffled his hair. “I can handle the lunch,” she said. “I would appreciate you putting the towels away, though. Thanks.”
Charlie picked up the hamper. “What time is it, anyway?” he said.
“Almost ten-thirty.”
He broke out in a sweat. He should be at
the café. “Thanks, Mom. I’ll see you back here later.” He bounded up the stairs with the hamper in hand.
“Dress warmly,” she called after him.
“Gotcha.” He began to stuff the towels onto the shelves. Hopefully, the guys would be late too.
* * *
Charlie blew on his hands as he rode on his board along the mostly empty streets. A faint dusting of snow covered the ground and the car windshields were opaque with frost. Once again he had ignored his mom’s advice. Then he remembered his construction gloves inside his windbreaker. He slowed down to put them on. Better than nothing, he reasoned — but not by much.
Pudge, Matt and Dalton were in front of the café. He gave a few more pushes and cruised the rest of the way. “Sorry for being late. My mom didn’t get home till now and I had to deal with Danny and …”
His friends were laughing.
“No one expected you to be on time,” Pudge said.
Dalton opened a three-ring binder. “The freecyclers didn't have much for us, unfortunately. I called a few places but nothing developed. On the other hand, we have four potential salvage locations my father sussed out. Two are houses close to here, and also a store. The last is a car dealership on Kingsdale Avenue which is a bit far …” He shrugged. “That’s what I have for today.”
“Awesome,” Charlie said. “Let’s ride.” He shivered and dropped his board down.
They looked at him.
“What?” he said.
“We’re just surprised you’re not wearing shorts,” Matt said.
“Mom told me it was cold, but I’m too cool to listen, apparently.”
Dalton pulled a sweatshirt from his knapsack. “My mother was more insistent. Would you like to borrow it? I should be okay in this.” He held his arms wide. He wore a down-filled winter coat, a balaclava for under his bike helmet, and ski mitts.