Promises to Keep

clinched

"So, things are going well with you and Nick, eh?" Katie asked Tayla curiously. Tayla simply blushed, biting her lip and tucking a piece of her hair gently behind her ear. "I'll take that as a yes" she added, and Tayla giggled despite herself. 

"He really is wonderful" she gushed, feeling genuinely happy. Things were going well since her move to Dallas. Her job was going extremely well, her new bosses were amazing and treated her way better than she had ever been treated in the past. Nick was an amazing guy; she found herself hanging out with him more and more. There was just one thing that continued to plague her mind, however. 

"I sense there's a but here?" Katie asked, skeptically. Tayla seemed to hesitate slightly, before responding. 

"Tyler's been acting strangely" Tayla informed her newest friend. 

"What do you mean strangely?" Katie asked, not liking where this conversation was going. 

"I don't know, I mean it's possible it's only my imagination" Tayla bit her lip. "We just don't seem as close as we were when I lived back home. Which seems silly, I know" she added, not sure why she decided to bring up Tyler's strange behaviour moments before puck drop. Katie and Tayla sat together, as they normally did, in their usual seats at the American Airlines Centre. The Stars were one point out of a playoff spot; and with any luck, tonight was going to be the night they would clinch. They both knew how much it would mean to both Jamie and Tyler to make it into the playoffs, especially since experiencing a let down the year before and falling short. 

"It doesn't seem silly" Katie assured her, thinking back to the conversation she and Jamie had with Tyler on the night of Tayla's first date with Nick. It was obvious he had ignored their advice, and just as they said, he was becoming distant from her. "What's he been doing?" she then asked. 

"It doesn't seem like he's interested in hearing about my life" Tayla told her in a whisper. "We used to talk when he was on the road, but now he says he's busy, or he's trying to concentrate so he doesn't have time. He keeps blaming the stress of trying to make the playoffs" Tayla shook her head. "Does he think I'm an idiot? I've known him my entire life; I can sense that there's something else up with him" She paused, looking around to see if anybody could hear her and what she was saying. "He's even started bringing random ass girls home again" she grumbled. 

"I thought he was over that?" Katie asked, pretending to be oblivious. She felt terrible; she felt as if she was keeping secrets from Tayla. She knew the reason why Tyler would be having random hookups again. She knew the reason why he was acting so strangely. But, as much as she wanted to blurt it out, she knew she couldn't; it wasn't her secret to tell. 

"I thought so too. But I think I've seen at least four girls in the last month. I don't even feel comfortable being around the house. I've spent quite a few nights at Nick's when Tyler's been home off the road" she confessed, feeling defeated. "I've tried talking to him, but he's just short tempered with me. He won't talk to me; I'm not sure what I can do" Tayla ended, just as the lights when low in the arena, indicating the game was going to start within the next ten minutes. 

"I'm sorry, I wish I knew what was up his arse" Katie apologized, feeling even more guilty. 

"There's no reason for you to apologize, you didn't do anything" Tayla shrugged. "I'll ride it out; I'm sure I'll get him to talk to me. We've been through worse before" she laughed, thinking back to the few petty fights they had over the years of friendship. They didn't fight long, nor often. Though the both of them were head strong and hated to admit they were wrong, they always managed to forgive each other; though they never really fought about anything overly serious.