Monty After Dark

Chapter 18

"Sorry, am I bothering you?"I asked. Normally, I wouldn't have cared. Then again, normally, Iwouldn't have been outside on the porch at a party.

"No, not at all," she said.She had dark hair in a ponytail and was wearing a beat up bomberjacket. "I'm Mel." I liked her no-nonsense attitude – and hertrucker hat. It said Moe's Garage on it.

"Monty," I said, holding outa hand. "You mind if I sit down?"

"Have at'er," she said,moving over to make room for me. She offered me a cigarette.

"I don't smoke," I said.

"Could always start," sheresponded with a shrug. I considered it. Maybe Monty 2.0 smoked.

"Why aren't you inside?" Iwasn't trying to wheel, I was genuinely curious.

"I think these things arestupid," she said. "I'm just here playing wing-girl to my friend.We usually wouldn't be caught dead at a Midget AAA party, usually,it's the Giants or maybe the odd Junior A party, but I know the guywho lives here, and my one friend is trying to wheel one of theseidiots. Oh. Sorry. I mean one of your teammates."

I laughed. I liked Mel. "Girlscan't wheel," I said.

"Sure they can. It's nodifferent than when you do it."

"Alright, fine, I guess you'vegot a point. But if your friend is good looking, I don't think she'llhave to work very hard. It's not like it's tough to talk a teenageboy out of his pants."

"Not always true. I mean,you're not bad looking, and you're not in there, you're out here. AndI know it's not because you have a girlfriend – that doesn't matterto you guys."

"It matters to me," I said."I would never do that to her." Mel looked at me like I wascompletely full of shit.

"You mean to tell me you'resome sort of mythical nice hockey player who doesn't bang randomgirls?"

"Well," I started. "I usedto. Mostly blow jobs, but I'd bang the odd one. But I'm mostly overit. Shit's different now."

"You reached down to thebottom of a bag of pucks and found some dignity?" I laughed again.Mel was a beauty. "I'm going to take a walk." She got up off theporch.

"Mind if I join you?" Iasked. I figured Chris would be at least a few more minutes.

Mel and I walked down the blockto the corner. I didn't really know the area, but she said she livednot too far from there. Soupy, the guy whose house we were partyingat, went to her school. She was in Grade 12, and told me she hadapplied to UVic for fine arts.

"So who is this mystery womanyou're so smitten with?" she finally asked.

"Ah, you won't see her aroundour games or anything. She works in the evenings," I said. I feltfiercely protective of Chan and didn't want anyone to know anythingthat could wreck our thing we were having.

My phone buzzed. I whipped itout of my pocket thinking it was Chan. But it was just Sean.

"Monty you should probably getback here."

"Why what's going on? Is Mellostill banging that girl? Did you watch?"

"Just get back here."

Fuck. This sounded like a goddamned disaster.

"Mel, I really gotta getback," I said. I could feel my blood starting to race through myveins. Whatever the hell it was, it was too bad for Sean to text me.

We hurried back to the house andI saw a couple other cars in front of the house and a bunch of peoplewere hanging around in the driveway.

"Monty," Chris ran over tome. "Don't fuckin' lose it. We'll figure it out."

"What the hell is going on?"I was starting to panic.

"Aw, look who decided to showup." I knew Sam's voice instantly. I turned around.

"What the fuck did you do?"

"You dumb shit, you haven'tlooked at Insta, have you?" she asked with a laugh.

"Do I look like a white girlto you? I don't have fucking Instagram," I said. She shoved herphone in my face. It was a photo of Chan's car. Covered in eggs,shaving cream, and written in hot pink marker all over the windows "Ifuck teenage boys" and "slut." And a bunch of other stuff Ididn't even bother to read. I had never pictured myself as themurdering type, but I could see myself killing Sam.

I swallowed. "I don't hitwomen. If I did, I'd knock you the fuck out," I said.

Mel grabbed Sam by the collarand clocked her right in the face. Sam stumbled, reeling from theshock. "Maybe you don't, but I do," she said with a laugh. Samwas bleeding.

"Somebody get her out ofhere," Soupy called, pointing at Sam. "I don't care who, somebodyget this bitch out of here."

One of Sam's friends Irecognized from school yanked her by the arm and shoved her into oneof the cars parked on the road.

"Thanks," I said to Mel.What a cool broad. "I gotta get home." A million things racedthrough my mind. For a moment, I thought maybe Chan was asleep andshe hadn't seen it. Or maybe the photo was fake somehow?

Author's note: Super excited to be introducing a new character in this chapter -- let me know what you guys think of Mel.