Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
It was 5:50 and I had told Cooper that I would be at the Hockey House at 6:00. I grabbed my bag that held my laptop, my phone, and my keys off of the counter and I made my way out of the apartment.
Cooper had sent me the location of the Hockey House and I used the Maps app on my phone to get there. I followed the instructions and I ended seven minutes later in front of a large sorority looking house. I had walked the entire way. I know that I had brought my keys, but that was mainly for the pepper spray and the alarm connected to it. It had a dark wood door and a path leading to the front. It was so much more than my apartment that I almost felt intimidated when I knocked on the front door.
I heard footsteps from inside and the door swung open. I recognized the guy who opened the door as Danny Fisher. I recognized him because he and I had taken some of the same classes during our freshman year. He was nice, but I barely knew him.All I knew was that he was on the hockey team and that he was pre-med.
"Hey," he said as he opened the door. "Lili, right?"
"Yeah," I said. "And you're Danny."
"Yep," he smiled. Upon further inspection I noticed that he had a stain on his left shoulder from something white. He had bags under his eyes and he looked tired. "Can I help you Lili?"
"I'm here for Cooper," I said. Danny closed his eyes and sighed. Then I realized what that sounded like and I rushed to say, "we were supposed to write something together for English class.
He smiled at me and opened the door wider for me to come in, "I'll get him if you can just wait a second."
"Of course," I said as I stepped inside. I waited awkwardly near the door as Danny closed it and walked past me and towards a staircase. I expected him to walk up the stairs. Instead he leaned his head back and shouted. "COOP! GET YOUR DAIRIER DOWN HERE!"
I hadn't heard anyone use the word dairier since I was in kindergarten. There were adult men who lived here, and they were using that word. It registered in my brain as bizarre, but I heard footsteps coming down the stairs.
"LEAVE IT UPSTAIRS WE HAVE A GUEST!" Danny shouted again.
Leave what upstairs? If Danny noticed my confusion, he didn't comment on it. Instead he offered me half of a smile.
"THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN HELPFUL INFO A SECOND AGO!" Cooper said exasperatedly. I heard his footsteps climb back up the stairs and moments later I heard the footsteps descend the stairs once again.
"Who is it?" Cooper asked Danny as he reached the bottom of the stairs.
"Lili," Danny answered. Danny nodded toward where I was standing and Cooper's head snapped to me.
"Hey," he said. He checked his phone, "You're... on time."
"I don't like being late," I told him with an honest shrug.
