Page 99 of Pucking Them
Cody’s expression gentles, as he sits back on his stool. “More like being creative with the truth. I wouldn’t survive without that distinction. Don’t tell Mike that.”
“Do you want me to clean up the kitchen now?”
“Leave it. You worked hard enough for me in the physio session. You always do, fucking dedicated. You’re my star pupil.”
“Does that mean I can work out in the gym as well…?”
Cody huffs. “You wish. You’re already pushing too hard. I can turn into a strict professional here. Don’t test me. I have a phone and I’m not afraid to use it to call D’Angelo.”
“You wouldn’t.”
Cody shoots me a dangerous smile. “Break my rules on overexercising, as you have been for the last month, or keep lying about your pain levels, and just see what happens.”
I cross my arms.
“You’remyfriend,” I grumble.
“I am. That’s why I’d make the call.”
I feel strange inside.
I don’t understand.
Cody studies me. “I want Mike to check you over soon. Also, the other consultants at the hospital are setting you up appointments in June.”
Startled, I pull back. “Why?”
Cody hesitates. “I told you that people take a different amount of time to recover from Post-Concussion Syndrome. It’s complex and chronic now. Plus, you…”
We both know what he’s not saying.
The injury wasn’t caused by concussions only from ice hockey, including the one that ended my career, but from the skull fractures that I suffered as a kid in The Room.
I was broken long before I was shattered on the ice.
“I have headaches,” I admit, the words burning my throat. Cody said that it made me his friend because he wanted to know about them. So, I struggle to tell him the truth that I’ve been hiding because my brother, Robyn, and D’Angelo have enough going on without dealing with my shit too. “Most days. Light is too bright and hurts my eyes. Noise is hard to handle too. Sometimes, I’m dizzy, and my brain feels fogged. My hands and feet are often cold and tingling.”
Immediately, Cody stands and lowers the light in the kitchen. He draws the curtains.
I sigh in relief.
“Better?” He asks, quietly.
I nod.
He stands next to me, leaning against the counter. “I’ll make sure that you see a neurologist and a pain consultant too, okay? Thanks for trusting me with this.”
This is why I like being here with Cody. He understands me.
My chest feels warm.
I nod again.
Cody crosses his ankles. “I wish that Mike was here for this conversation, but he’s on shift. He’s promised that he’ll be home in time for our Friday drinks at Merchant’s Inn tonight, but I know you don’t like coming to the bar. I hope that Mike makes it. He tries his best not to break his weekly dates with me, and I have been able to find some time to start to teach him to swim. You know, once I found out that he couldn’t, we talked about it, and it seemed something that we could do together. But I wouldn’t blame him if he missed this week’s drinks. He has been working harder than usual, which is saying something. He’s had this critical patient at the hospital who he’s been focused on. But it’s tough. Sometimes, it’s lonely here, and…”
He looks away.
Concern spikes through me.
