“Sure.”
“Bye.”
I’m about to hang up when he speaks again. “One more thing.”
“What’s that?”
“I love you, even when you make a fool of yourself and our family legacy.”
His words make me smile, and I tell him, “I love you too, Pappa.”
Hanging up, I notice the messages from my other family members.
Äiti (mom)
Jasper, know that your pappa only sent those messages as he cares
We’re both proud of you, no matter what happens with your career
Linnea
Way to go, brother. I haven’t seen pappa this upset in years
You better get him a bottle of that fancy whiskey he loves
Never mind, he doesn’t drink alcohol since the accident
Emil
Fuck, cuz, that right hook was awesome
I read The Puck News and it said you’re coming home for the holidays. Let’s meet up whenever you’ve got time to see me!
Let’s hit the nightlife in Helsinki and show everyone how the Åkermans party
Elise
You fucking idiot, giving our legacy a bad name like that. No wonder pappa isn’t too happy with you…*frowning emoji*
As I keep reading the messages, I see the links to various news articles my family has shared. The previews only show the headlines that make me want to toss my phone away.
Jasper Åkerman JÄLLEEN tappelussa jäällä
Jasper Åkerman fights on ice AGAIN
Suomalainen jääkiekkotähti sai viiden pelin pelikiellon
The Finnish hockey star got a five-game suspension
Woodpeckersin Jasper Åkerman pelikiellossa
Jasper Åkerman of The Woodpeckers suspended
Slamming my phone down on my nightstand, I feel a sense of dread in the pit of my stomach. It makes me want to curl up on the floor and be there for the next few days.
Being the son of the country’s favorite athletes is hard sometimes. My entire life has been spent in the limelight. It doesn’t help that I got the Best Player in the League award last season after I started breaking Pappa’s old records. That, combined with my upbringing and family legacy, makes me social media’s favorite hockey player.
I knew the media storm would be bigger than usual after my stupid decisions during last night’s game against the Lynx, but damn, it indeed looks like the Finnish media has had a field day with my five-game suspension. I have been in and out of the media since I can remember, but this latest fight seems to have caught the public’s interest the way I wasn’t expecting.
