Caufield's girl

Chapter Sixteen

"Whatever, but I still love you to death." She wraps her arm around me, and I manage to only smile. "Guys, I have only one question. Was she always this fucking stubborn?" Cole says this in amusement, in an attempt to tease me. "God, totally. But I must admit, there's been some improvement since she started messing around with you. I really have to thank you for that." Maddie jokes. "Haha, very funny, Madison." I shake my head. Maybe this whole double-date wasn't such a bad idea after all. In a few minutes, our food arrives, and we can finally devour what we've all been craving.

"Anyways, Cole, you've buried a nice one in the net during the last game; it was pretty sick for real. And recently, you've been on fire. Great plays, man; you're literally the GOAT." Mark attempts to get into the hockey sphere. "Oh, thanks, man, I appreciate it, but to be honest, sometimes there's just more luck than anything." Cole laughs humbly, dismissing the credit he deserves. "Aw, so humble, girl, I've told you from the start he's the one for you." Maddie remarks proudly. "Yeah, Maddie, you've said a lot of things. It's a pure coincidence that you were right this time." I try to joke.

"Okay girls, please don't start fighting now; I'm really not in the mood for MMA and a trip to the ER right after." Cole tries to ease the dispute as we all laugh. "Speaking of fights, what was your most brutal fight, Cole? Spill the tea; we're all curious." Mark enquires. "I'm not a big of a fighting guy, but I recall one time. Man, it must've been back at Uni in Wisconsin. Some dude from our rival team was talking some pretty messed-up shit about my brother, so I didn't hesitate to throw hands. I ended up with a couple stitches on my forehead and a three-game suspension, however, the other guy wasn't so lucky. His number of teeth rapidly decreased after our encounter, and I bet I still haunt him to this day. But let me tell you, it was worth it. I can't stand when someone talks shit about the people that are close to me." Cole elaborates on his experience. "That's the word of a man, for real." Mark agrees, obviously impressed.

"Shit, man, and what about Arber? He's wild; honestly, I've never seen anyone like him before. He's a real spectacle to watch. Is he that tough off the ice as well?" Man, believe me, he's on another level; neither of us can compare; he's unstoppable when it comes to fights and all the stuff on ice. But believe me or not, as soon as he gets off the ice, he's like the biggest teddy bear. No one really believes it, but man, it's true." Cole shakes his head, as he himself couldn't quite process it. "No way, man, are you kidding?" Mark is completely thrown off. "Yeah, I'm telling you, he's a completely different guy in real life." Cole says. "Yeah, he's right, I have to agree." I decided to support Cole.

"Man, that's hilarious; I wouldn't have expected that at all." Mark shakes his head in disbelief, and we all take a bite of our food in the meantime. "Wait a minute." Maddie suddenly blurts out. "Didn't just Slaf take down some dude recently? I was shocked when I saw that. That boy has some guts. He's a beast." Maddie continues. "Yeah, it was wild; we were in shock too. He isn't that much of a fighting guy, and he's pretty patient, but when his cup overflows, he's unstoppable." Cole admits. "God, but he's funny. That guy has a great sense of humor, he's probably the funniest guy on the whole team." I elaborate. "Uhm, thanks a lot, really. So, I'm not funny enough; good to know." Cole gives me that look, pretending to be offended, but his only intention is to tease me. "I have to be honest; there's still room for some improvement." I tease him back. "Guys, you have to tell her that she's totally wrong here; I mean, c'mon." He turns his gaze to Maddie and Mark, hoping for some sort of support. "Oh, I have a better idea. You're gonna find out for yourselves on Wednesday. What do you say to a nice evening at Bell Centre with VIP tickets and a meet and greet with all the players afterwards? You can be the judges and really see who's funnier. Are you down?" Cole makes a very appealing proposal. "Man, are you serious?" Mark asks in disbelief, and Maddie joins him. "That would be really amazing." Maddie says eagerly, smiling like a child that's just otten a toy she's been raving about forever.

"Well, thanks a lot, man; we appreciate it. We love the Habs." Mark says this as he shakes Cole's hand in appreciation. "No problem, I'll do anything to please my girl and her friends." Cole states generously. God, he's a man with a good heart. "Thank you so much." Maddie gets up and hugs Cole so tightly that he almost loses his balance. "No worries, I'm glad I could make you happy." He responds politely with a slight smile. "Well guys, I've had a blast, but I should really get some rest before the morning practice tomorrow." Cole adds, before he calls on the waiter and pays for the dinner generously, dismissing all of our attempts to pay ourselves.

We all get up, put on our coats, and walk out of the restaurant. Cole gives us a ride back to the campus, where he drops us off. While Maddie and Mark get out of his car, I still remain in the passenger seat. "Thanks for a nice evening, and I'm glad you survived. Not everyone does in the company of my insane friends." I say it in amusement. "As I said, I'd do anything for my girl. And I've had a really good time." He responds. "I've really missed you, you know." I said it out of the blue. "Well, I was able to figure that out when I heard you watch that game." He teases me. "Were you really that googly-eyed, though?" he teases me once again. "Shut up." I cuss at him.

"Well, that's a yes." He makes up his own mind about my answer. I open my mouth in an attempt to defend myself, but I don't have a chance to say a single word before he cuts me off. "Oh, come here." He leans closer to me and kisses me passionately. I've missed that. His lips are on mine, and he is close to me. I missed his cologne and his touch. I really did. I missed everything about him, but right now I'm a coward to admit all of this. After a while, he breaks the kiss. We're both out of breath and, at this point, also out of words. And as much as I'd like to stay close to him, we have to say goodbye. I have to prepare for my lecture, and he has to rest before his practice. We're both busy, so I decided to make a move. "See you on Wednesday, I guess." I say this as I open the passenger door. "I can't wait. See you at the game." He says this back before I close that door and watch his car disappear into the dark. Those are gonna be the longest two days of my life.