Anyway, I came across a scene that I'd forgotten about and thought I'd post part of it here. Part of what I love about writing these hockey books is the opportunity to show guys being their lovable guy selves. I enjoy reading that stuff in other people's books, and so it's not surprising to find it showing up in mine. The scenes with the Barracuda teammates are especially fun to write.
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Years
ago, his mom had picked him and his brother up from a hockey game. For some
reason he couldn’t remember, her trunk had been full of heavy boxes. Hart
managed to stuff his in, but Calder had to put his in the backseat. As a
result, the smell crept out and invaded the car like an olfactory bioweapon.
Hart,
sixteen at the time to Calder’s fourteen, had lost the “shotgun” battle, so he
was sitting in the back. “Something died in your bag, CS,” he said.
“Whatever,
DB.”
Their
mom thought that CS stood for Calder’s first two initials and DB meant “dumb
brother.” But to the boys it was shorthand for cocksucker and douche bag.
“Mom,”
Hart said, “We’re studying about the human body in science class, and I think
Calder is constipated and when he sweats, crap comes out of his pores.”
“Hart
Griffin, that’s disgusting,” Jenny said.
“I
agree,” Hart said. “Let’s open the windows.”
His
mom shook her head. “It’s eight degrees outside.”
“I
don’t care. I swear I’m gonna puke.”
“Here,
I’ll turn the fan on.”
It
didn’t help. Even Calder had to admit it. At times, he envied other athletes
like basketball players whose protective equipment consisted of one item—a
jock. Hockey players, on the other hand, had that and much more, all of it
soaked in sweat from each wearing. The odors seemed to build on each other even
after washing because sometimes the stuff never dried out between the morning
skate and a same-day game.
The
noise from the fan provided cover for what Hart said in Calder’s ear. “I swear
to God, Satan’s shit smells like fucking flowers compared to your bag.”
Laughing
in spite of himself, Calder turned around to sock his brother.
Jenny
twisted her head to nail them both with a glare. “What did you say?”
“Shit”
wasn’t a word Jenny approved of but would sometimes let go. “Fuck” or any of
its permutations constituted a loss of dinner.
“I
was saying what’s coming out of Calder’s bag is probably what hell smells
like.”
She
eyed Hart in the rear view mirror. Calder knew his brother’s expression was now
more heavily guarded than the President. He must have passed inspection because
their mom said, “It is pretty bad,
Calder.”
From
that day on in their family, hockey bag smell was referred to as hell stink.
Photo by Mary_Thompson
