False Start (Winter Hills Blaze #1)

Jake

“Hit the showers, boys!” Coach’s voice thunders through the arena. “Practice is over, but we still have a few announcements and final introductions to go over with you all. I don’t want to have the staff holding their noses.”

“You know you love our smell, Coach. It’s part of the charm,” Beckett King, our goalie and resident jokester, teases.

Beckett’s jet black hair is messy, falling into his eyes and giving him a more boyish look, which is the opposite of who he is. His chiseled features and clean shaven face make him a knockout with the ladies. That, and the full sleeve of tattoos on his right arm stand out, even under his full kit.

We all laugh along at his antics as we’re dismissed from the ice.

Coach Davenport rolls his eyes and disappears into the tunnel. We all skate off the ice to the benches, filing behind him and back to the locker room.

It’s been an intense few weeks back from summer break, but we definitely needed the push.

Last season didn’t end the way we wanted.

We couldn’t find our rhythm, and unfortunately, Washington was able to beat us in the fifth game.

To say that we all came back this season with a new fire under our asses is an understatement.

With trades, new players, and new staff starting this season, we’re essentially a new team.

Regardless, I’m ready to see what this season brings.

Our newest player, Maddox Kane, a rookie called up from the minors, has been really showcasing his abilities on the ice.

At 6’2”, he has so much control on the ice.

His speed and focus is unlike anything I’ve ever seen.

He’s been able to help some of the younger players, and his positive spirit in the locker room has brought a new energy to the team.

While younger than me by four years at twenty four, he definitely looks more mature than most guys his age.

He has a muscular build, long brown locks that fall into his face, and a noticeable scar along his jaw that stands out if you’re paying attention.

We also signed a new goalie coach, Gary Sullivan, who’s been focusing hard on game tape and review from last season. He’s definitely helped our goalies see where they can improve, working on better reflexes and coverage of the net.

These past couple weeks have been nonstop with conditioning, drills, practices, watching tape, and everything in between. I haven’t trained this hard in a few seasons, and while my body feels exhausted, I’m feeling energized and more focused.

This team has great potential, and I’m excited to see what we can accomplish this season.

The Winter Hills Blaze, located in Winter Hills, Florida, is one of the newer additions to the league, only having been created eight years ago.

I was drafted to the AHL (the league right before the professionals) at twenty-one, and brought up to the NHL two years later at twenty-three.

Five years later, we haven’t been able to make it past the first round of the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean that we’ve let ourselves be underestimated.

From the moment my dad put me in a pair of skates when I was old enough to walk, I’ve always dreamed of being in the NHL.

I joined a hockey camp when I turned eight and met some of my best friends there.

And we’ve been on the same teams ever since.

The ice is my home, and it’s where I feel like I belong.

All the noise stops when I’m on the ice, and I can breathe.

It calms my anxiety and helps me relax when the world around me seems too chaotic.

Practices have started strong this year, and there’s a difference in the energy.

With all these new changes and a new dynamic in place for the team, the comradery feels better, more refreshing.

We’re joking around more in the locker room, smiling more on the ice, and it feels lighter than it has in previous seasons.

We’re just a few days away from the season opener, and I’m ready to show Winter Hills what we’ve been up to during the off-season.

“So, since we have the weekend off before the season starts, how about we all get together tomorrow and have a night out, like old times?” Brayden Taylor, one of our defensemen, asks as he walks in front of me into the locker room.

Even with sweat lining his face and having worn a helmet most of practice, his dark brown hair is somehow still perfectly styled. He also has tattoos like Beckett, but they’re scattered over his body rather than focused on one arm.

Leave it to Brayden, our star playboy, to be the first one to bring up a night out on the town.

Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great guy. Brayden’s always the life of the party, has a great attitude everywhere we go, and is always respectful of his partners.

He’s also one of the funniest guys I know.

Since the day I met him, we’ve become best friends, along with his twin brother Brandon. I would do anything for those two.

I was raised by a single dad who did the best he could.

He worked two jobs to support us and never complained.

The Taylors are like a second family to me.

After my mother walked out of our lives when I was a baby and never looked back, Brandon and Brayden’s parents helped me get to practices and games when my dad couldn’t make it.

They cheered for me as loudly as they did for their own sons.

Dad did too, when he could until three years ago, when he lost a long fight with cancer.

It still hurts not having him around. It’s especially hard when I achieve something big and the first person I want to share the news with is him.

Not having him here is like a stab to my heart, like my insides are squeezing so tight that I can’t breathe.

My dad was my best friend, and I shared everything with him.

It’s hard not having him in the stands, cheering me on and seeing what his sacrifices led to, but I know he was extremely proud of the man I became.

“I’m down to have a fun night on the town and grab a beer or two with you guys before we’re back in the grind of things,” Maddox sings.

I still don’t know him very well, only glimpses from what I’ve observed these last few weeks of practice and the preseason. So far, it seems like he fits in really well with the team. I’d really like to get to know him, get to know a lot of the team better.

“Count me in. I could use a fun evening before I have to spend my life with you assholes every second of every day,” Beckett grumbles.

“You do know that you’re going to be with us tonight, too, right? So that makes your statement invalid, Becks,” Brandon Taylor, one of our forwards states, rolling his eyes.

If somebody weren’t paying attention, they’d easily mix Brayden and Brandon up, with their dark brown hair and brown eyes.

That’s where the similarities end, though and they become their own person.

Unlike his twin, Brandon doesn’t have many tattoos that are visible, usually hidden under his clothes or gear.

Everyone laughs as Beckett mumbles the word ‘asshole’ under his breath with a smile painted on his face.

He shoves Brandon’s shoulder with his, and then pulls him in closely, playfully ruffling his hair.

Brandon curls in on himself and moves away, smacking Beckett on his bicep and continuing to his stall as the rest of us follow suit.

Our locker room is a pretty big space compared to some of the locker rooms I’ve been in throughout my years.

It has an open, spacious floor plan as well as stalls for each player outlining the room, with benches for seating and extra storage right in front of them.

The entire room is decked out in our signature colors-teal, white and black-and in the center of the floor is our team's logo standing proud and reminding us of who we are. To the right is the entrance to the showers and bathrooms that are much nicer than the ones you see on TV, given it’s not as cramped and we have more privacy.

We all start changing out of our gear, skipping out on the showers as we wait for announcements from the coaching staff. There’s been a lot of changes to the leadership this past summer. It’s honestly helped make a difference in the culture of the team.

Normally, when we’re finished with practice, most of us will shower off here, not wanting to sit in our own sweat and filth for too long.

I know I’m a sweaty mess right now, my hair sticking to my forehead and temples, and I smell like crap, but today, I’d rather go home and take a nice hot shower in the comfort of my own bathroom where I can take my time and relax.

As I put all of my stuff away, I can’t help but look around the locker room, seeing the smiles on the guy’s faces and the joy that radiates off of everyone, making me proud to be part of this team.

These guys are crazy and weird, but I love every single one of them.

“What about you, Jake? You finally gonna let loose for once and find someone to take home for a night?” Brayden teases as I roll my eyes at him.

“You know that I’m always down to hang with you guys, but I’m not looking for anything more than that.”

I haven’t been able to look at another girl since her. Since she left me broken-hearted and picking up the scattered pieces of my heart, wondering what I did to make her leave.

Kailyn.

The only girl that I’ve ever loved, and the only girl I think I’m ever going to love.

She stole my heart the moment I met her when we were eight.

She sat next to me in math class with those beautiful hazel eyes, that cute-as-hell smile, and those dimples poking out, and helped me with my homework.

I’ve never been the smartest guy when it comes to school, but Kailyn never made me feel dumb.

She walked me through the assignments, giggling at my jokes and giving me grace when I felt completely lost. Her demeanor exuded warmth and sunshine, and she pulled me in from that first look.