My skates slide across the ice as I use the power from my legs to move me closer to where the puck is at center ice. August is also staking toward it, but he has one of the other team’s defensemen on him. I get to the puck before both of them, out-skating the guy who was following me, and head in the direction of their net. None of the other guys can keep up with me and it’s practically open ice as I skate down there.
The goalie drops into a butterfly position as I fake him out. Instead of sending the puck toward his legs, I flick my wrist, sending it soaring into the top shelf. It goes just above the goalie’s shoulder and he isn’t able to block the shot as it makes its way into the net.
The horn blares in the arena and I can hear other people shouting as the other players on my team start slapping their sticks against the boards. August and Sterling skate over to me, congratulating me as they both knock their gloves against my helmet. The other guys come up to me, all doing the same before everyone begins to skate back.
As I make my way over to the bench and hop the boards, the guys sitting there all congratulate me, too. Logan and Hayden smile through the cages on their helmets and I drop down onto the bench next to Hayden as a shift change happens. There’s only about two minutes left in the third period and we’re leading with four to one.
Anything can happen in those last few minutes, though.
The game is constantly changing and the more aggressive the players get, it’s harder to tell what is going to really happen. Anyone could easily get injured and the last thing we need is for one of our key players to get fucked up. All that we can do in these last two minutes is hope for the fucking best and play our asses off.
Leaning forward in my seat, I watch as the other guys skate around, fighting for the puck against the other team. Since they’re losing, they’ve grown more aggressive. One slashes at Asher’s arm as he blocks a shot. The refs miss the slashing and don’t call a penalty. Logan jumps to his feet, screaming shift change as he keeps his eyes on the player who hit Asher.
A lot of times, different calls go missed and that’s when Logan comes in to take matters into his own hands. He’s the enforcer of our team and isn’t afraid to throw his gloves and get his hands bloody. Not many of the other guys fight, but they all will if it’s necessary. Logan is a special breed of person, though. He’s always ready to go to war for the people who are important to him.
The tension is thick in the air and one of our defensive players skates off the ice, hopping over the boards. Logan is already on the ice before Simon even sits down and he’s skating toward the center for the face-off. There’s nothing I can do from here but sit back and watch until it’s my turn to get back out there.
Our shifts aren’t very long, since the sport is so fucking physically taxing. I have about ten seconds and then I’ll be back on the ice for the remainder of the game. I watch as Hayden switches out and Logan already has the other player cornered.
One of the refs blow the whistle and the play stops as Logan and the other guy throw their gloves onto the ice, squaring up in front of each other. Jumping onto my skates, I watch with the rest of our team as fists start flying until the other guy ends up lying by Logan’s feet. Logan skates over, grabbing his helmet and gloves as he gets a penalty. He shakes his head as he heads into the box, and the other team gets their power play.
During the power play, we’re cut down to four players on the ice instead of five, so by the time it’s my turn, there’s only fifteen seconds left in the game. The other team doesn’t stand a chance against Asher, who’s even more pissed off than he was before. He blocks their last shot and the buzzer goes off as we reach the end of the game.
Another win in the books and we’re down to a few short weeks left until regionals. Everyone congratulates each other, skating back to the bench before we all head down the tunnel toward the locker room. The guys are in great spirits and it’s the energy I fucking need. I live for this shit and we’re all riding on the adrenaline and the high of our victory.
Dropping down onto the bench in the locker room, I strip out of my gear and take off my skates before shoving everything into my bag. A bunch of the guys head over to get showered, and Logan stands by the mirror as he blots the cut above his eyebrow. Walking past him, I clutch my stuff to head for the shower room and pause behind him for a moment.
“Damn, I didn’t realize that he got you,” I tell him, leaning against the wall as August comes strolling back from the showers. He stops beside me, narrowing his eyes at Logan through the mirror.
“Yeah, he packed a harder punch than I expected,” he responds to me before looking at August through the mirror. “And don’t you even start. I’m already going to get shit from your sister when I get home.”
August chuckles, shaking his head at him. “You would think she’d expect this by now.”
“She’s never going to get used to her pretty boy getting his face fucked up,” Hayden throws in as he strides past the three of us with a smirk. “But seriously. Good fight, Knight. You’re always ready to go to bat for each and every one of us, with no questions asked.”
“Well, if it really came down to it, I would hope you guys would do the same,” Logan retorts.
“If there’s one person that I’m not going to bat for you against, it’s your girl,” Hayden laughs, shaking his head. “That chick scares the shit out of me and she has since we were kids.”
“She’s harmless,” August rolls his eyes. “All bark, no bite.”
“Bullshit,” Hayden argues as he heads back toward his locker. “That girl has fangs and she’s not afraid to use them.”
The three of them keep bullshitting as I head over to the showers and slip into the hot water. As I wash my body and scrub off the sweat and hockey smell, my mind drifts back to Aspen. Her proposition was unexpected, but I would have been a fool to turn down an offer like that. Friends with benefits, I can definitely do.
But she needs to understand that I’m the only friend she’ll be having benefits with.
After finishing up my shower, I head over to my locker, noticing that most of the guys have already left. Hayden lingers as he wraps fresh tape around the blade of his stick. He lifts his gaze to mine, raising an eyebrow, but he doesn’t question me as I pull out my phone.
Instead of texting Aspen, I tap on her name and call her. It rings three times before she picks up and I can barely hear her over the loud music in the background as she answers.
“Hey! Hold on,” she breathes, dropping her voice as she speaks to someone in the background. “I’ll be right back. It’s too loud.”
Shifting my weight on my feet, I hold the phone between my shoulder and ear as I put my dirty clothes in my hockey bag. I listen as the noise in the background grows quieter until Aspen’s voice is clear when she speaks.
“Sorry about that,” she laughs nervously. “Delilah forced me out to this party and it’s pretty loud right now.”
“Oh yeah?” I question her, my voice colder than I intended. “I was calling to see if you were busy tonight and wanted to hang out.”
Hayden snorts and I cut my eyes at him, narrowing them in warning before I continue ignoring him. Clutching my phone in my hand, I listen as Aspen tells me where she’s at. Some asshole named Carter’s house. Supposedly Delilah knows him from volunteering at the hospital, so that’s why I didn’t hear about it on campus.
“You should come by,” she offers quietly. “I honestly don’t really feel like being here. Most of the people here are from Drezel, so I only know Delilah and a few other people she mentioned the party to. It’s fucking crowded as shit too.”
“You want me to?”
“Please,” she breathes softly. “Come save me from this hell.”
“Send me the address and I’m on my way, baby.”
We end the call and I glance over at Hayden as Aspen shares her location with me. I click on the address, having the directions show up. “You wanna go to a party?” I ask Hayden, who is staring at me with curiosity.
His lips curl upward. “When do I ever say no?”
“Get your shit together, so we can go.”
Hayden raises an eyebrow at me. “Are we going to ignore the fact that you called her baby?”
“Yep,” I answer him curtly, as I zip up my bag. “You got five minutes if you’re coming along. I’ll be waiting in my car.”
Leaving Hayden in the locker room, I head out to my car and throw my stuff in the trunk before sliding in behind the wheel. Hayden doesn’t take that long and puts his stuff in his car before striding over to mine. He hops in the passenger seat and it isn’t long before we’re on the road, heading in the direction of where Aspen is.
I don’t know what the hell I’m getting myself into tonight, but hopefully it’s Aspen…
