made zero sense. He barely knew Charli and she wasn’t really his type. So then, why was he finding excuses to make sure his friends didn’t go out with her?
Charli got to the Starbucks a few minutes before four and spotted Miikka immediately. He was sitting at a small table in the back, doing something on his laptop. He looked up as she approached and quickly got to his feet to greet her.
“Hello!”
“Hi.” She smiled and put her bag down. “Let me grab a drink and—”
“I buy. You are teacher.” He walked to the counter with her and she ordered a grande white chocolate latte with whipped cream. Calories be damned, she deserved a treat once in a while. Not that she worried about what she ate that much. She stayed in shape by chasing kids all day and doing yoga on the weekends, but she didn’t buy fancy coffees very often.
“Okay, when are you leaving on your road trip?” she asked him as they settled in.
“Friday.”
“And when do you come back?”
“Next Friday. Then game Saturday.”
“Okay. So I’m giving you homework for while you’re away.”
He frowned.
She pulled up a translation program on her laptop and typed in what she’d said.
He responded by arching a brow at her. So she continued to type:
If you want to learn English well, you have to start at the beginning. I’ve brought some books for little kids, and you’re going to read them over and over while you’re gone. You’re also going to read them to me either on the phone or via video chat.
He seemed skeptical but nodded. “Okay, but is more?”
“I understand you have an appearance coming up?” She met his gaze. “And you want to be able to say more than you can now.”
He nodded. “Yes. I must talk to peoples…”
She typed out another response since it was complicated and essential that he understood the plan.
Today we’ll practice the basics of conversation. I can’t teach you the nuances of English in one lesson, but we’ll start with some greetings and common phrases, and you’ll practice them every time you call me. In addition to your homework.
He grimaced. “Homework—bad.”
She laughed. “No, it’s not. I promise, it’s going to help.”
He waited, watching her.
“Okay. So, where is this appearance?”
“Hospital. With children.”
“The kids won’t want to talk about much except hockey and maybe a few personal questions, but you need to focus on greetings and hockey talk, which also helps if you have to do interviews during or after games.”
“Yes. This.”
“So let’s pretend I’m one of the kids and you’ve just arrived. What do you say?”
“Hello! I-am-Miikka-Laasonen.” He spoke so fast his words ran together and if she hadn’t known what he was saying, she wouldn’t have understood him at all.
“Okay, first of all, slow down. Second, say I’m, not I am. And finally, say hi, not hello. That’s too formal. Try again.”
He hesitated. “Hi. I…’m Miikka. Laasonen.”
She spoke slowly so she could enunciate for him. “Hi. I’m Miikka Lassonen. Repeat that.”
“Hi. I’m Miikka-Laasonen.”
“Once more. A little slower.”
They did it half a dozen more times until it was smoother, more natural. “Very good.” She smiled. “Now, they’ll probably introduce themselves or give you a casual greeting. I’m not sure how the conversation will go, but you might want to say something like, ‘How’s your day been so far?’ Okay? Try it.”
He repeated the phrase a dozen times as she worked with him to speak at a natural rate and pronounce everything correctly. It wasn’t his accent so much as his understanding of the language, which seemed to be nonexistent. For someone who’d been in North America for nearly a decade, he struggled more than she thought he should, but she was determined to get him through it.
After thirty minutes, she decided to test him. “Okay, we’re going to start over. Pretend you just arrived.”
“Hi, I’m Miikka Laasonen.” His accent was still strong but he was much easier to understand now.
“Hi, Miikka. I’m a big fan!”
He grinned. “Thank you. How’s you day been so far?”
“Your,” she corrected gently.
“Paska.” He grumbled out the word in frustration.
“What does that mean?” she laughed.
He grinned. “Paska means shit.”
“How about you teach me to curse in Finnish while I’m teaching you English?”
“Yes. This is good.”
“Okay, let’s keep going. I’m going to answer your question.” She took a breath, as if preparing for a role. “I’ve had a good day, hanging out with my friends. What did you do today?”
“The team had practice this morning, so after this I’ll probably relax the rest