Page 12

“Our winningest season in fucking decades!”
“Get your fucking asses in gear!”
“Do you know why we fucking win? Because we’re fucking good.”
A sliver of annoyance digs into me. Not at Coach per se, but at the feelings his words bring to the surface. We’re having a damn good season, yet no one cares. Attendance is down. I don’t need anyone to tell me the actual numbers, I see it every time I skate out onto the ice to an abysmal number of people. The trash talk from the opposing team is fucking embarrassing. Plus, when we go to away games, their arenas are always brimming with spectators.
Warner does not care about hockey. That much is clear.
Football is their obsession. The town flocks to their games in blue and white despite the bad publicity they received last year from their involvement in that prank.
Adam skates next to me, leaning on his outside edges as we practice footwork. “The Fresh say your roommate is, um… How should I say this? Mousy? Boring? Forgettable?”
For the first time in months, I actually slept well. I didn’t want to leave my bed, waiting until the last possible second to get ready for practice. The air smelled normal. There wasn’t some asshole snoring off alcohol. My new place is the picture of peace and tranquility…and this makes me oddly defensive of my roommate. “Len? So?”
“I thought you said her name was something else?”
“It is. Was. She said she prefers Len, so obviously, I’m calling her Len.”
We both stop fast, spraying ice against the boards, then spin around and start again. He chuckles. “I thought a talk with you would be necessary, considering your history together, but the Fresh assured me you’d be fine living with her. Zero temptation.”
“I told you not to worry. Len isn’t Trish, and you know I’m not interested in dating right now.”
“Says every man until a girl traipses around in lace panties and bras and booty shorts and crop tops in a confined, private space. The struggle is real.” He laughs again. “But the guys say she’s more the type to wear Grandma’s nightgown than any of those things.”
Truthfully, I barely looked at Len before. She was always just there. I had eyes for Trish from the beginning. It was a ridiculous way to meet, really—walking around campus, slightly inebriated, and looking up to find a girl dancing on a table. The curtains were wide open, and there she was. I was struck.
Before I even knew what I was doing, I’d picked up a pebble and threw it at the window to get her attention, then my drunk ass gestured to come up. Who opened the door but a freaking bombshell.
My blades cut through the ice, and I don’t even realize I’m going faster than normal until I have to turn quick to avoid hitting the boards, making Adam sprawl so he doesn’t barrel into me. “You dick!” he calls out as he slides into the wall with athunk.
I chuckle under my breath, then circle back around. “My bad, bro. I was distracted.”
“Yeah, I can only imagine what had you unfocused.”
“You’re the one who brought her up.”
I grasp his hand and pull him upright as Coach calls it. The team and I walk into the locker room, energized from the morning skate-around. Adam throws his gloves into his locker. “You should watch out anyway.”
Jesus, are we still talking about this?
“I know, I know, quit bringing it up,” he mimics, still eyeing me. “But you moved in with the wrong girl. She’s going to get attached.”
“She was Trish’s best friend.”
“So? Trish is out of the picture, and this shy girl just got this handsome new roommate.”
“Aww, you think I’m handsome?”
He ignores my banter. “With your luck, you’ll have a stalker next.”
I roll my eyes. “You couldn’t be further off. Len is… What’s that word when you don’t like sex at all. Asexual? It’s possible she’s asexual. I’ve never seen her look at anyone before.”
“Maybe she’s a closet lesbian?”
“If she is, I wouldn’t have to worry, right? I’m telling you, this is the best thing that could’ve happened. She’ll be the perfectsuitemate. She’s clean. She keeps to herself. She went to bed early last night to work on her article, and I didn’t even see her this morning. I’ve stumbled upon gold here.”
“Well—”