Page 10 of Ice Me Out

Without dwelling on it too much, I turn around and throw the second dart.

Pop.

“Aww, fuck!” the guys groan in unison.

My smile widens. “Last one, boys.”

Pop.

I turn around, jumping and swaying my hips to Lady Marmalade.

Jamie shakes his head, chuckling. “Well, fuck. You were right. The games are just fine. Connor and I suck.” he hands me a crisp hundred-dollar bill from his wallet.

For a second, I think I shouldn’t take it. But the balance in my bank account has a grand total of a two digit balance. I’ll have to figure out a way to support myself now that I don’t live in the bigPure Shinemansion on Bridgeport campus.

“Here you go, Connor,” I take off my tiara.

The tall defenseman puts it on his sandy blond hair, popping a hand on his hip. “How do I look?”

Hot. The answer is on the tip of my tongue. I don’t think Connor could ever look anything but dashing. I don’t say that out loud, though.

“Sorry for sounding harsh, dude.” Jamie chuckles. “But Bex wore it a lot better than you.”

Connor’s lips quirk up in a smile. “Yeah, I don’t struggle to believe that.”

“Congratulations.” The guy behind the stand says. “You won a prize.”

I approach the stand as he turns around to get my prize.

“What the—What is that?” I gasp when the man hands me a clear plastic bag filled with water. There’s a red goldfish swimming inside.

“The prize for popping all three balloons, ma’am.”

I open and close my mouth a couple of times, probably resembling the fish that’s looking at me through the plastic of his temporary home. At least he or she has a home. The same can’t be said for me. “I don’t want this. I thought I was going to get a plush animal, or a fidget toy. Even a deck of cards would have made more sense than a fish. Besides, is it even legal to give out a living creature as a prize?”

The guy shrugs, clearly not interested in a debate with me. “I have no idea, ma’am. I just work here during the weekends. If you have any concerns, you need to speak to the stand’s owner.”

Deflated, I walk away carrying the plastic bag with my new friend inside it. “What am I gonna do with you?” I ask the pretty goldfish.

The creature swims right to the edge of the bag, looking at me with imploring eyes. If a fish can have imploring eyes, I might be projecting here.

“I guess I’m in charge of your wellbeing, at least for now, huh?”

“I think you should name it,” Jamie suggests, walking next to me.

Connor is on my other side. “True, and maybe find it a better place to live than a plastic bag.”

They’re both right. But neither of those two things is easy.

“What should we call you?” I muse. “I don’t even know if you’re a boy or a girl. What do you guys think?”

Connor shrugs. “What about fish?”

“Dude,” Jamie snorts. “Can you think of anything more unoriginal? Maybe we should call it Connor.”

The defenseman flips off his teammate. “Ha ha. You’re so fucking funny.”

I stop in the middle of the boardwalk. “I think you’re a girl.” I don’t know that, but if I had a pet, I’d choose a girl, so I’m gonna go with it. “Lady Marmalade. I think that’s the perfect name for you.” I decide.