Back to Me

by Lindsay Paige

  Shortly afterwards, we’re done, ending up in the same position as before we started with my head on his chest. Since sleep isn’t coming so easily tonight, all I can think about is my earlier conversation with Marc.

  “Mere?” Noah sifts his fingers through my hair. “What’s on your mind?”

  I hesitate before deciding to ask. “Do you know anything about Marc’s family?”

  His hand pauses. “Not really, why?”

  “Just wondering.” That’s odd, isn’t it? Marc is obviously familiar with Noah’s family based on how he interacted with his parents when they came to visit. Why wouldn’t Noah know about Marc’s family? They’ve been friends for a long time, and Noah doesn’t know anything about them? Definitely odd.

  “Whatever you’re thinking about, stop before I call you Sylvia for meddling.”

  I prop up onto my elbow. “I wasn’t going to meddle, Noah.” I wasn’t, either. Marc is our favorite third wheel, and there’s nothing wrong with wanting to know more about him than what we see on the surface.

  “Good.” He kisses me softly. “Don’t worry about Marco. Just go to sleep, yeah?”

  “Yeah.” I lay my head on his chest, close my eyes, and soon, I do just that.

  THE THIRD PERIOD begins with the Rebels down by one in a 2-1 game. Coach Mike spoke heavily about us coming out here and tying the game up. Each of us knows what we need to do. Now, we need to make sure we do it. Especially since there seems to be more fans here tonight. That, or they’re louder than normal. Either way, it’s good to hear and see.

  I pump my legs faster to chase a white jersey down the ice. We hit the boards together and I push out my stick to nudge the puck away from him and the boards. Marco is right there with me and he helps me clear it. Unfortunately, it goes to the wrong player and Captain Hook has to go and earn himself a hooking penalty. There’s a reason Brayden was graced with that nickname.

  “Fuckin’ hooker,” Marc grumbles.

  No use in complaining. No harm, no foul. The most important thing is their power play unit sucks. We spend more time in their own zone than they do in ours. They’re able to regain control and lead us back across the ice. They put themselves into their formation, but it doesn’t do them a lot of good. A guy is about to pass the puck to his teammate, but he misses. It slides across the ice between who it was meant for and EJ. He reaches his stick out to snag it a second before he misses the opportunity.

  He quickly skates down the ice for a breakaway, not wanting anyone to catch up and mess with his chance. He holds onto it until he deems it the perfect moment to rear his stick back and makes the most of his killer slap shot. It’s as if everyone in the arena holds their breath for one brief moment before it erupts at the sound of the horn. A “Let’s Go Rebels” chant quickly follows.

  Tie game, baby.

  Though we do our part to prevent the Minnesota team from scoring, they do the same to send us into overtime. This will be Meredith’s first time seeing a game go into overtime. That’s the random thought I have before Coach sends me onto the ice. He also puts Thing One and Thing Two out there with me. Collin and Cal Kessy are twin brothers. Their numbers happen to coincide with their nicknames.

  Those two are ridiculously sick together. Watching them play together almost makes you want to sit back and watch. It’s almost always best to let them do their thing. They can read each other better than any other pairing in the league. They’re insane. They can somehow simultaneously come up with plays on the fly. Sometimes, all you can do is be nearby in case their plan ends up including you.

  This time, it doesn’t. The young twins dominate the ice to forge a path around the opposing players, weaving in and out of the traffic around them, to crash the net. The goalie is waiting and appears ready. I’d hate to be him. You never know what kind of play the twins will make until they make it. Collin shoots, quickly passes his rebound to his brother, and his shot manages to squeeze between the goalie’s arm and chest.

  Our fans go insane, and I’m pretty sure all of us are smiling. The twins hug it out before coming over to join the rest of us for a hockey hug. Eventually, we make our way off the ice and to the locker room. I feel bad for Kellan Hellberg. He’s a center who was honored with the gloves at the end of the last game. His job now is to figure out which of those two deserves the pair of boxing gloves. Do you give it to the guy who set up the play or the one who sealed the W for us?

  He picks them up and glances back and forth between the twins. “You both were awesome for us in overtime, but I think the playmaker should get it tonight.”

  Hells hands the gloves to Collin. There’s a social media posting person, I don’t know what her official title is, waiting to take a picture of him. He leans toward his brother and makes sure the gloves hang from both of their necks for the photo. That picture will be on all the social media sites soon, not that I’m going to see it. That’s just what I know happens because one time when I got the gloves, Meredith had to show me.

  Everyone is in a good mood from the win, and someone mentions heading to a bar. When it comes time to leave, I check my phone to see a message from Meredith. The girls had an away game and she said she wouldn’t make it to the game. She didn’t get to see her first overtime game after all. I text her to see if she wants to go to the bar. Her answer may decide whether I go or not. Things have been really good with us lately since she officially retired and reassured me when I was worried she wouldn’t be happy with her new life. If she says she doesn’t want to go, I’m probably heading home to see her.

  It comes as no surprise to anyone that Ian is the first to leave. EJ says he’s in and mutters something about being ignored by his chick, which is a good thing. Probably. Marc told me once that he thought she was a drug addict, and he didn’t think EJ knew it. I asked him why he even thought she was because she looked like a normal person when we saw her at the Halloween party. Then again, I don’t think you can look at someone and tell if they’re a drug user, but Marc swears he can spot one when he sees one.

  Speaking of the devil, Marco is going, too. I check my phone because it’s time to make a decision about whether I’m going to the bar or not, but I still haven’t heard from Meredith. That’s unusual.

  “You coming, Rams?” Marc asks me as we begin walking outside to the parking lot. “Or is the ball and chain demanding you come home?”

  “Shut the hell up, Marco. I was waiting to see if she wanted to go, but haven’t heard back is all.”

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to skip this time and go check on Mere.”

  Marc rolls his eyes. “She’s probably sleeping.”

  “It’s just unusual that she didn’t even text when she got home. She normally does, and she hasn’t. Something might be wrong. I’ll check on her and then meet you at the bar. I know you only want me to come because you don’t know how to be social and function without me around,” I tease.

  Marc laughs as we reach our vehicles. “If you aren’t there in an hour, then I don’t have to take you and Meredith out to dinner.”

  “Done,” I agree.

  “I’ll be calling you anyway to find out what happened.” He pauses. “And to make sure she’s okay. I am her favorite Rebel; she might need me to stop by and cheer her up because we all know you just aren’t going to cut it for her.”

  I flip him off before getting into my SUV. The ride home is quiet as the high of the win slowly dissolves. The parking space where my other car should be is empty. Odd. When I walk into the apartment, I see Leo’s crate is open and a lamp is on. So, she has to be here. But where’s my car?

  “Mere?” I call out.

  Only silence greets me. I walk down the hallway to our room, but it’s empty. As is the bathroom and guest bedroom. Meredith and Leo are nowhere to be found. Surely she isn’t walking him this late; it’s after midnight now. I head back outside to where she normally walks him, but I don’t see her.

  Would she have taken
Leo with her somewhere? She never has before. Where would she even take him? She has to be here somewhere.

  But where is she?

  And where is my car?

  I call her cell, but it just rings and rings. I try again and again. Five unanswered calls. My heart picks up pace as I glance around. This doesn’t make any sense. She has to be here. But my car isn’t here and Leo isn’t in the house. Where the fuck is Mere, the dog, and my car? Where would they be at this time of night?

  She wouldn’t have picked up and left.

  Not with everything finally going right with us. Not out of the blue. Not when she’s going to marry me. Not when she’s chosen me. She has to be somewhere around here, but I can’t think of a single place she would go at this time of night. She wouldn’t have left to meet me at the bar. I mean, I told her which one, but she wouldn’t have left without telling me and she wouldn’t have taken Leo.

  So, where in the hell is she?

  This doesn’t make any sense.

  Something must be wrong.

  That’s the only explanation.

  My heart aches from its ridiculously fast beating as I realize that’s the only answer. Something is wrong.

  “Mere?” I call out, hoping I’m just somehow missing her and that my car is parked in another space.

  Nothing.

  Desperate, I call Erica. Maybe they’re running extremely late, but that still doesn’t explain where Leo is.

  “Noah?” she answers with hesitance. Can’t say I blame her. I was a little on the hateful side the last time we spoke when Meredith and I went to confront her about giving our address to Vance.

  “Yeah. Have you seen Meredith?”

  “Um, no,” she starts. “Not since she left once we got back from the game.” She pauses. “Is everything okay?”

  “No!” I shout, my anxiety officially taking over. “She’s not here. The dog isn’t here. My car isn’t here. Her phone is going to voicemail. I can’t fucking find her. Did she say anything to you about where she was going?”

  “Not really.”

  “Fuck,” I mutter. She’s no help at all!

  “Wait. She did say something about wanting a milkshake. Maybe she’s just out to get one. I’m sure everything is fine, Noah.” If I wasn’t stressed and freaked the hell out, I would think about how odd it is that my ex-girlfriend is reassuring me about my fiancée.

  “No,” I say with a shake of my head even though she can’t see me. “Something is wrong.” I can feel it in my gut. If she was just out for a milkshake, then why isn’t she answering the phone? “I gotta go.” I don’t know what I’m going to do now, or how I’m going to find her, but talking to Erica isn’t getting anything accomplished.

  I’m about to hang up when I hear, “Ah, Noah?”

  “What?” I snap, annoyed that she’s wanting to continue the conversation when she obviously doesn’t have any helpful information.

  “Try the hospital,” she says quietly. I immediately feel lightheaded and weak. Why the fuck would she say that? Does she actually know what happened to Meredith? Did she do something to Meredith? “The news just came on, and there’s been a ten-car pile-up. I can see the cars behind the reporter. One of them looks like yours.”

  “Are you sure?” I rasp.

  “It might not be, but it might be.” She goes on to say which hospital the reporter is saying the people involved are going to.

  I hang up as soon as she’s finished saying it and try calling Meredith again. I keep calling while I head to the hospital. It can’t be her. But she wouldn’t have left either. All of her things are still at the apartment, too. I’m pulling into the parking lot when someone answers.

  “Hello?” a man answers.

  “Where’s Meredith?” I demand.

  “Who is this?”

  “I’m her fiancé; now where the fuck is she?” Who has time for any fucking question other than where is she?

  “Sir, please calm down. My name is John Graham, and I’m a nurse.” He keeps talking but I don’t hear anything. Erica did see my car. Oh my god.

  Mere. Please be okay. Please be okay.

  “I’m here at the hospital; where is she?” I interrupt.

  “Go to the nurses’ desk in the ER and they’ll direct you to her.”

  “Is she okay?”

  “She’ll be fine,” he assures me.

  I pull into the first parking space I see and rush inside. My phone starts ringing with a call from Marc, and I answer.

  “I don’t have time for your shit, Marco.”

  “What the hell, man?”

  “Meredith’s been in a car accident and I’m at the hospital. Is this important?”

  “She okay?” I’ve never heard him be as serious as he sounds right now.

  “I’m about to find out.” I hang up as I walk to the nurses’ desk. “I need to see Meredith Quick. John Graham said you could take me back to see her.”

  She opens her mouth to object when I hear, “I’ll take him myself.” I turn around to see a nurse. “I’m John. You can follow me.” I follow him through a wide door.

  “Can you tell me what her injuries are?”

  “She mostly suffered from bumps and bruises. She’s one of the lucky ones from the accident. She did have some cuts on her face that’ll need stitches. Her phone was in her pocket and we took it before we sent her to get some scans run.” He opens the door to a room. A nurse is holding Leo, but Meredith isn’t in here. “We almost had to pry the dog from her for the scans. The officer said she wouldn’t leave the scene without him, so here he is. You can wait here for her.”

  The other nurse hands me a trembling Leo. His white fur is tainted red. He whimpers in my hands, but I gently rub his head. The nurses leave me alone in the room. I take a seat and carefully move my hands over his body to see if he whines. Leo could be injured, too. He doesn’t whine, so I’m assuming he’s most likely okay. He snuggles closer to my chest and slowly stops trembling. I’ve checked the dog out; now, if I could only check Meredith out and make sure she’s okay, too.

  I bolt from my seat when the door opens. A bed is wheeled in and finally. Finally, I see her. Bandages are taped to two different places on her face and her clothes are covered in dried blood. I swallow hard at the sight. That seems to be a lot of blood for a person who is supposedly fine and only needs a few stitches.

  “Noah!”

  “What the fuck are you doing, Mere?” My voice is thick with emotion and harsher than I meant. She reaches her hand out, and I take it, stepping closer to her.

  “I’m okay,” she says softly. At least she realizes I’m not actually upset with her, but the circumstances instead.

  “The doctor will be in shortly for your stitches,” another nurse says before stepping out of the room and leaving us alone.

  My eyes roam over her body over and over, looking for another injury. It takes a lot of self-control not to strip her naked, run my hands over her body, and reassure myself that all I see is all the harm she received. Mostly, she only has those two cuts. How did all that blood come from just two cuts on her head? She squeezes my hand hard. My eyes fly to hers.

  “I’m okay,” she repeats.

  “You scared me to death, Meredith. I came home, you weren’t there, and you weren’t answering your phone. I couldn’t figure out where the hell you were. I called Erica to make sure you left and then she tells me she can see my car in a pile-up on the damn news. I didn’t know what I was walking into here. I didn’t—”

  “Noah, I’m okay. I’m right here.” She squeezes my hand again as if it could remind me.

  I lean forward and kiss her softly on the lips just once. “What happened?”

  “I don’t really know. I went home, got Leo, and I couldn’t stop thinking about a milkshake, so we left to go get me one. I was on the way back, and next thing I know, there’s nothing but brake lights. I couldn’t stop in time. I hit the car in front of me, and I know one hit the back of me. I think I was at
the end of it. I’m not sure. I was kind of out if it,” she points to her head, “and I just wanted to make sure they didn’t leave Leo behind.” Some fire appears within her now. “I wanted to punch one of the officers because he kept trying to say he’d hold onto him for me, but I didn’t want to leave him with anyone else. He was terrified.”

  “I was terrified, Mere.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Excuse me.” We look over at the entrance to the room to see John. “There’s a Marc here saying he would like to see you, Meredith. Is it okay if he comes back?”

  “Absolutely,” she answers with a smile.

  John leaves and I look at Meredith again. “I’m glad I decided to come home when I didn’t hear from you. The guys were headed to the bar.”

  “Did the team win?”

  “In overtime, yeah.”

  “Aw, I missed it. I haven’t seen a game go into overtime yet.”

  “You’ll have your chances. Are you sure you’re okay? Nothing hurts? Nothing is broken?”

  “They said I’ll just need the stitches. I’ll probably have to go back to PT for a little bit. My shoulder hurts, so I might have hurt it again. Overall, I’m okay. Promise.”

  “Meredith!” Marc rushes to the other side of her and gives her a little kiss on her cheek. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine, Marco. Nothing a few stitches won’t fix.”

  Marc looks at me for confirmation. I nod. “That’s good to hear. Rams hung up on me so I didn’t know anything other than that you were here. Do you need me to do anything for you?” he asks.

  “Yeah,” I answer for her. “You can take Leo home and give him a bath.”

  “You do not,” Meredith quickly tells him. She narrows her eyes and holds the dog close to her chest. “Leo isn’t going anywhere. We need to call the vet and get him checked out. He fell into the floor. He might be hurt.”