Page 34 of Slap Shot
He stopped to sign an autograph for a young fan who held up a napkin and a pen, and thirty minutes later, we finally get comfortable on a wood bench beneath a large oak tree. Lucy sits in the grass, content and happy with ice cream on her face, and I sigh up at the late afternoon sunshine.
I scoop out a bite of my vanilla ice cream and eat it. “I can’t wait for her to meet your dogs.”
“They’re going to go crazy. I’ll do my best to keep them under control.” Hudson looks at Lucy and smiles. “Was it difficult to learn sign language?”
“It was. I still get tripped up on words from time to time. When she was younger, we did a lot of flashcards and picture books. I relied on resources people in the Deaf community sent my way, but it’s a curve. I can’t do it all. I’m so grateful she gets to go to a school that has students and teachers who communicate like her.”
“I want to ask a question, but I’m not sure if it’s insensitive. She’s the first deaf person I’ve met, and the internet only gave me so many answers.”
“I’ll tell you if something is offensive,” I say, but no part of me believes he’d ever make an inappropriate comment. “You can ask anything you want. We’re going to be living with you, and I want you to feel comfortable.”
“I’d never not feel comfortable with her around.” His eyes flick to me before bouncing back to my daughter. There’s softness there. A hint of tenderness no man has ever shown her. “Was Lucy born deaf? Or did it happen over time?”
“She was born deaf.” I eat another bite of my yogurt and shiver. “She failed her newborn hearing test a few hours after her birth, and she failed it a second time. An audiologist confirmed her hearing loss, so it’s all she’s ever known.”
“When you’re talking with her, you only sign. When I’m around, you sign and speak,” he says, and I like that he’s curious. “Why?”
“It’s called SimCom, which is short for simultaneous communication. It’s to make sure Lucy is an participant in the conversation even though she can’t hear. The last thing I want is for her to feel excluded. When I’m with her or other people who understand sign language, like my parents, Piper, or Lucy’s teachers, I won’t speak. When there are people around who don’t know sign language, I’ll do both so she’s a part of what’s happening around her.”
“Noted.” Hudson nods and tosses his empty cup in the trash can. “Was Lucy’s dad deaf?”
“Nope. No one in either of our families is deaf.”
“Is he still in the picture at all? Your ex?”
“He’s not.”
“Okay.” Hudson nods again, and I prepare myself for the next round of questions. The ones where he asks whathappened? Where did things go wrong? How could I ever leave a man who seemed to love me so much? But they never come. “Got it.”
“You’re not going to ask me about my ex?”
He turns to look at me. “Do you want me to ask about your ex?”
“Everyone else does.”
“If you wanted to tell me, you would tell me. People are allowed to keep things inside without sharing them with the world.”
“Do you do that?” I ask. “Keep things inside?”
“Sometimes. There’s a lot I don’t want the world to know.”
“That must be hard with your job. Don’t you have a microphone in your face after every game?”
“I’ve gotten good at deflecting.” He leans back against the bench. When Lucy glances at him curiously, he sticks out his tongue, and she dissolves into a fit of giggles. “I have morning skate tomorrow, then I’m doing a PT session with Lexi in the afternoon. Y’all can come by the apartment whenever you want and move your stuff in. I’m happy to help with bags too.”
“I’m planning on dropping her off at school then swinging by.” I nod at his leg. “How is your hamstring?”
“It’s all right. I’m surviving.” He smiles again. I swear this man is always smiling. A sunshine boy who’s never sad. “Lexi has magic hands.”
“That’s a cool party trick.”
Mommy?Lucy taps my knee.Can I have my Barbies?I dig in my bag for her dolls and hand them over.Thank you!
I finish my ice cream and lean forward on the bench so I can grab Lucy’s empty bowl. “Do you have any siblings?”
“Nope. I’m an only child. I wanted a sibling when I was growing up, but now I have two dozen teammates who are my brothers. They’re more than enough.”
“Are you all close?”
