Free False Start (Love and Skate) by Lila Felix Page A

Vera work in the back while I worked the front counter, hoping he would show up. By ten that morning, I’d given up.
                  After getting off at noon, I went home, made myself a sandwich, turned on the Sons of Sylvia and bunkered down in my big round chair with a zombie book. Before long I’d fallen asleep and woke up after three. I checked my phone, but he hadn’t called or texted. I got up and forced myself to clean the house and wash clothes before going to practice. I wouldn’t be late again. Nellie had made me do twice as many drills as everyone else. She was tough as nails on the rink.
                  Vera came over right at four and made me spill the details of the date again—she’d already made me tell her at the bakery in the morning. But we were both half dead, so she claimed she didn’t remember. She also told me that Colt, her husband was coming home the next day for a week and she wanted Rex and me to double with her that weekend.
                  “I’ll ask him. I don’t know if he’s available or whatever.”
                  “He better be available. The best friend has to approve the boyfriend. Plus, my mom and your mom are dying to know more. Your mom told me last night that she wants him to come to Sunday dinner at your house.”
                  “Oh no, not with Hazel and Baxter. I’d rather run naked through the Aquarium of the Americas.”
                  “Oh, the aquarium!! Let’s go there.”
                  She missed my point, out of control hyper factory that she was.
                  “I’ll ask, okay? He hasn’t even called or texted.”
                  “It hasn’t even been twenty four hours, don’t get your panties in a twist.”
                  “Don’t you worry about my panties.”
                  “Eeww, I’m not. I’m gonna make coffee, do you want a cup?”
                  “Since we’ve been friends, has my answer ever been no?”
                  “No.”
                  “So just make it and hersh.”
                  “Hersh?”
                  “Yes, it’s my John Wayne version of hush.”
                  “You need to sleep more.”
                  “You need to scoop faster.”
                  Vera and I were both really fast with the comebacks, so most of our conversations were simple insults back and forth. We never really had any in depth conversations. That’s what I loved about her. Even after she found out about doomsday, we didn’t talk about it. I hated to admit it, but that was the main reason I was friends with her. I was safe in her company. She never asked to see the scars. She never tried to get me to remove my bracelets—never asked me why I didn’t wear bathing suits. She knew why and she didn’t push it. But sometimes it felt like I could have the same relationship with a stranger. Sometimes I wanted to talk to someone about it and I had no one who could possibly understand. Even my own sister didn’t want to talk about it. She acted like I had leprosy starting the moment I woke up in the hospital. Not that we’d ever really been close before. She was the kind of sister who was constantly in competition with me in all things.
                  Boy did I show her.
                  Vera and I drank coffee and she showed me her plans to expand the bakery since the space next to hers, a yogurt shop, had gone under and the space was available for purchase. I was excited for her, but also a twinge jealous. It seemed like I was at a standstill while everyone else was constantly progressing in their lives. Except Hazel, marrying Baxter was what I considered a step back. Vera also planned to expand the menu into a line of frozen dough products. She would sell them from a freezer