Chapter 6 - Some Kind of Wonderful

Erin crumpled right before our eyes, and I felt awful for her as she stood there, no longer fighting the tears. I glanced up at Sidney before going over to Erin. “Erin he’s just a guy. Trust me sweetie he is not worth it.” I said, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

She shook my hand off. “Fuck you.” She snapped, her eyes blazing angrily as she glared at me. “This is all you’re fucking fault.”

Sidney shook his head. “Erin it’s not Dare’s fault.” He said. “Blaming Dare for the fact that I don’t like you is completely stupid. Since you I’ve slept with over a 100 other girls.” He told her. “Are you going to blame all of them too?”

“Y-y-y-e-ye-ssss.” She almost moaned.

Sidney shook his head again. “Come on Dare let’s go.” He said.

“We can’t just leave her like this!” I said shaking my head as I watched her sob. “I won’t just leave her like this.”

“Just leave both of you!” Erin yelled, her face red with fury. “Just get the fuck out already! I don’t care what you say Sidney, I know this is all her fault!”

I shook my head. “You know I was totally prepared to empathize with you Erin.” I said. “I mean, I’ve honestly been where you are. But if you are just going to be a fucking bitch, I can be a bitch too.”

“Just fuck off.” Erin muttered, wiping her eyes. “And watch your back this summer. You’re new here. I’m not.”

Sidney rolled his eyes. “Like I said Dare, I’m sorry about this.”

I shrugged. “This was so not how I wanted to spend this summer. I thought a well run day camp program would be fun, I’d get to know some of the kids, maybe some of the parents.” I sighed deeply. “I could have spent this summer on EI you know.”

Sidney chuckled. “Sorry.” He said. “I didn’t know she’d go off like that.” He paused. “How about
you let me buy you dinner to make it up to you?”

I sighed. Honestly the thought of going home and cooking disgusted me. I didn’t want to do anything. I was exhausted. “Thanks for the offer.” I said. “But I think I’m just going to go home and crawl onto the couch.”

“Aw come on.” He said with that grin of his as he held open the passenger’s door for me. “I owe you.”

“That I will agree with you on.” I said. “You definitely owe me. But you can pay me back some other time.” I told him with a yawn. “Tonight I just want to go home and watch TV and eat chips or something else that is horribly bad for me.”

“You do know that it’s a Friday night right?” Sidney said. “There’s nothing on TV.”

“There should be, like a football game or baseball or something.” I told him. “Worse comes to worst I just watch a movie.”

Sidney sighed then he pretended to pout. He raised his pant leg slightly. “But you left a bruise on me.” He said his lower lip sticking out. “The way I see it you owe me too. If not a kiss better then at least let me buy you dinner.”

“I am sorry about that.” I told him again as he drove towards my building. “But I am not going to kiss it better and really, all I want is to do is go home. It’s been a long day.”

“Tay I’m going to drop you off at home okay?” Sidney said to his little sister, who was busy talking on his cell phone.

“Can you drop me off at Hayley’s instead?” She asked. “She just invited me for super and a sleepover. Mom can bring my stuff if you ask her.”

“Let me talk to Hayley’s Mom first.” Sidney said, reaching for the phone. “Hey Mrs. Arens, Taylor says she’s been invited to sleepover. Yeah. Uh-huh. Okay I’ll make sure Mom drops off her stuff after super. Yep. Thanks. Oh no problem.” He turned to Taylor. “You’re a brat Tay.” He told he with a grin.

She grinned back at him. “So are you.” She told him. “Leave poor Darryl alone. You act like no girl has ever turned you down before.”

“Well no girl ever has.” Sidney said with a nonchalant shrug, as if I should know this already. “I’m the phenom brat and don’t you forget it.”

Taylor rolled her eyes. “Like anyone is ever going to let anyone forget about it.” She pointed out a little bitterly I noticed.

“Umm so you’re not going to drop me off right now?” I asked.

“If it’s okay.” Sidney said. “The Arens’ eat super at 6, and if I drop you off first Tay is going to be late.”

I shrugged. “I guess.” I said yawning again.

“You really are exhausted aren’t you Dare?” Sidney asked, glancing at me in the mirror.

“I was exhausted last night and sore this morning.” I told him. “Then after dealing with Erin I’m just cranky.”

“I hadn’t noticed.” Sidney replied dryly.

“Sorry I’m not much fun tonight.” I apologized. “I don’t like the rain either. I’m a total prairie girl. I like my sunshine. Two straight days of rain is rare at this time of year. Heck, it usually doesn’t rain all day on the prairies.” I told him. “It will rain for a little bit and then sun comes back out.”

“Not out here.” He informed me as he pulled up in front of a modest suburban home and Taylor got out. “Tay Mom will come with your stuff after super.” He called as she ran up the steps. “It can rain for days on end out here.”

We waited for the door to open and Taylor to run into the house. Sidney turned to me, his eyes big and wide. “Are you sure that you won’t let me buy you dinner?” He asked. “I mean you day from hell was partially my fault.”

“Partially? The way I see it Crosby it was all your fault.” I told him. “You picked up the pace last night to the point where I was in pain the morning, then your Dad let it slip that we’d run together last night and were planning on running tonight, so Erin freaked out about that.” I paused taking a deep breath. “Then I find out you have a hard time keeping your cock to yourself, so she has every reason to freak out, but that doesn’t mean she has to, but she does.”

“Well you bruised my shin.” Sidney replied sticking out his lower lip in a pout.

I couldn’t help but smile. I knew that he was putting on all the charm to try and get me to smile, but I just couldn’t help myself. He was charming. “You are awful.”

“And you keep saying no.” He pouted. “That’s just going to make me chase you even more. I hope you realize that. I am stubborn and I can be relentless.”

I giggled. “Usually when people talk about you being stubborn it’s in the corners and you’re relentless when you’re driving to the net.” I pointed out. “Not about a 22-year-old who teaches your sister dance in the afternoons.”

Sidney shrugged. “One of the many reasons I am glad that the press stays out of the personal lives of professional athletes. Or else most of us would be in a whole hell of a lot of trouble.”

I laughed. “From some of the stories I’ve heard that’s probably true.” I said. “But you can’t say that they stay completely out of your personal life. I believe you were asked a question about a girlfriend during the Memorial Cup.”

Sidney laughed. “Oh yeah, that.” He said. “I probably didn’t have to answer that, I mean, Dad and Pat said I didn’t have to, but whatever.” He shrugged.

“Why did you?” I found myself asking.

He shot me a wicked grin. “There were a couple of girls in Rimouski who needed to get clear about that particular issue.”

“You are awful.” I told him firmly, but with a smile. “I don’t approve of words like slut or skank, but if I did, I might be tempted to call you one.”

He shrugged but had a small grin on his face. “I took advantage of being the phenom.” He said. “Can you blame me?”

“Well technically yes, yes I could.” I told him with a bit of a grin. “Will I? Probably not, but we’ll see how Erin behaves herself on Monday.”

“And I will maintain that it is not my fault if some of the girls I’ve slept with go a little crazy.” He told me with a smile.

“And I will maintain that it is TOTALLY your fault.” I told him. “Because if you weren’t such a nice guy, girls wouldn’t assume that you weren’t just fucking and chucking when they let you have your way with them.”

Sidney burst out laughing. “I can’t believe you just said when I have my way with them!”

I shrugged. “Well its true.” I said laughing. “Though they probably had their way with you too.”

“I don’t kiss and tell.” Sidney informed me as he pulled away from the Arens’ house.

“Nah, you just fuck and brag.” I said with a shrug.

“I do not brag.” He said indignantly. “When have I bragged?”

“Sure you don’t hun.” I said condescendingly. “That’s why you told Erin that there had been 100 girls after her.”

“That was telling the truth.” He said insistently. “Not bragging. If I’d been bragging I would have told her that all of them were far better in bed then she was. Which by the way, is the truth, because she totally turned me off virgin sex.”

I couldn’t help myself. His tone was so indignant it was cute. I giggled. “I could just imagine what would happen to her if you told her that Sid… and it wouldn’t be pretty.” I paused. “Not to mention that telling her that would be down right cruel. Oh and don’t worry, I was long ago turned off to virgin sex.”

“I wouldn’t actually do that to her.” He told me, grinning at my comment about virgin sex. “I just lost my temper a little bit.”

“I noticed.” I said dryly.

He shrugged. “I don’t do it often or anything.” He told me as we pulled up to my apartment complex. “But she shouldn’t blame you for things that aren’t your fault at all, and I just wanted her to see that it wasn’t your fault.”

“Thanks for the effort and the ride hun.” I said smiling at him. “But Erin’s decided that it’s my fault, so my fault it’s going to be. So I am just going to relax and eat crappy food.”

“Are you sure you won’t let me buy you dinner?” He asked, his eyes hopeful as he looked at me.

“Not tonight okay hun?” I said with another yawn. “I’m just wiped.”

“Another time then.” He said.

“You should go to that party tonight Sidney.” I told him gently. “Blow off some steam or get laid or both.”

Sidney smiled. “I’m not sure you’re supposed to be encouraging me to go be promiscuous. Aren’t you a teacher?”

I shrugged and smiled wickedly at him. “Maybe I was just hoping that you’ll find someone new to play with at the party.”

“Not if you aren’t going.” He told me firmly. “You’d be a new face in the crowd. The way it stands its just going to be the same old faces. I need something new.”

“Well you won’t have to wait long there hun.” I said as I got out of the truck. “You’ll be drafted soon and then you’ll have a whole city of new faces and you’ll forget all about me.”