Chapter 16
Kai
We’re screwed.
The second Mikey and I walk into the rink, helmets in hand, the whole team turns to look at us. My skates are undone, and Mikey’s gear is halfway on; both of us are breathing like we sprinted the entire way.
Some smirk, some raise brows, some just shake their heads like they’re watching two idiots walking into their own execution.
And then there is coach…
Coach Whitaker looks like he crawled straight out of hell for the sole purpose of murdering us. He blows the whistle so hard I think a vein popped in his forehead.
“Monroe!” Both of our heads snap up like a reflex.
He stalks towards us with so much anger and force, he looks like a man who has waited his whole life to chew our asses.
“You two think practice starts whenever the hell you feel like rolling out of bed?”
I keep my face blank, and I can see Mikey in my peripheral vision already fighting a smirk.
Fucking Idiot.
“No, Sir,” I say, making sure I sound firm.
Coach steps into my space. “Late.”
“It’s not..” Mikey starts.
Coach raises his hand to stop him. “Don’t. Don’t you dare give me an excuse. I don’t want to hear it from either of you.”
My jaw ticks, and Mikey looks up at the ceiling.
Coach points to the center ice. “Drop your gear. Lines. Both of you. Now.”
Groans echo across the rink from the other players.
Coach turns, blows his whistle again, and shouts.
“THE WHOLE TEAM SKATES UNTIL THEY’RE DONE. MOVE!”
Eighteen sets of blades bite into the ice at once, every guy glaring daggers at us as they take off.
“Great,” Luca mutters. “This is why we don’t let the Monroe twins make decisions.”
Mikey shrugs. “Could be worse. We could be your Captain and your Alter… OHHHH wait! We are!”
I lace up my skates and hit the ice hard. The cold burns straight through me as we both take off.
First set: fine.
Second set: Still fine.
By the tenth set, Mikey is wheezing, and I’m sweating like a whore in church. When we look over at the coach, he hasn’t even blinked once.
“Pick it up, girls!” Coach screams, pacing the boards. “My grandmother skates faster than this!”
I flip him off mid-stride.
Coach blows the whistle again. “Twenty more!”
Mikey shoves my shoulder. “Stop pissing him off.”
“Can’t help it,” I gasp. “Born this way.”
By set… honestly, I’ve lost count… my legs are on fire. But the burning isn’t the problem.
The problem is her… Julia… My Julia…
Every time I blink, I see her from this morning; Warm, flushed, and sandwiched between us like she belonged there. The way her breath felt against my mouth and her voice all soft and wretched when she whispered my name.
Christ.
Focus.
Hockey.
Skating.
Do not get a hard-on during lines.
Mikey elbows me when we turn. “Stop thinking about her.”
“I’m not,” I lie… badly, I might add.
“You are.” He grins like the menace he is. “You look like you’re trying not to combust. Or cum in your pants.”
“Shut up and skate.”
“Can’t. Dying.”
“Good.”
Coach blows the whistle. I swear the man enjoys our suffering.
“Done!” he shouts. “Get back in line! You two, don’t waste another second of my time, or I swear I’ll…” Then coach stops mid-rant, looking over my shoulder. When I turn, I see Julia walking in.
She’s standing at the edge of the rink in one of Mikey’s hoodies… No, actually, my hoodies and leggings that should be fucking illegal. She’s holding a coffee in each hand. Her cheeks are pink from the cold, and she looks like she has no idea the entire team is staring at her.
My lungs forget how to work, and Mikey slams straight into me because apparently, he forgot how to skate.
We both hit the board like idiots.
Coach turns slowly. Looks at her, then to us.
“Ohhh,” he says. “Now it makes sense.”
The team erupts into laughter, and I want to drown all of them.
Julia blinks, confused. “Um… hi?”
I skate over, ripping off my helmet. “You’re not supposed to be walking around without security.”
She smiles at me, “I’m in your rink. I think I’m safe.”
Mikey joins us, leaning over her shoulder. “Is that coffee for us?”
She hands it to him.
Coach claps his hands. “Alright, Romeo and Romeo, quit flirting on my ice!”
Julia’s cheeks flare bright red.
Mikey throws an arm around her shoulders. “Ignore him. He wasn’t loved as a child.”
“I HEARD THAT!”
We both smirk. Julia’s eyes meet mine again, and everything inside of me settles.
Practice, the exhaustion from the lines, Coach screaming… none of that matters right now. Because she’s here.
And for the first time in years, the rink doesn’t feel like the only place I belong.