Page 58

Brooke

"Have you seen my scarf?" Cami asks, panicking, turning in circles and looking around our hotel room. "I wear it to every game."

I laugh to myself in the bathroom mirror as I touch up my mascara. She's turned the hotel room upside down looking for the scarf that she's wearing around her neck. Since this morning, when we left the apartment, she's been stressed.

I could tell her, but she's yelled at me more times than I can count, so you bet your ass I'm letting her struggle as payback.

We are staying in Boston to watch the team's away game, which will decide if they are heading to the Frozen Four.

The guys arrived yesterday, and we got here late last night after class. Savannah couldn't make it, but she made me promise to Facetime her when they win.

We need to leave any minute, so I chuck my mascara back in my makeup bag and tell Cami her scarf is around her neck. She yells at me as we head downstairs to the lobby to get an Uber to the rink.

Grant says his parents are here on the off chance they make it to celebrate with the boys.

He was in full captain mode this week, and it's been a lot of watching him obsess over the team and making sure they had their heads in the game.

It's been a lot of quick make-out sessions and late-night cuddles, and I can't wait for him to have a couple of nights off when we get back.

We enter the arena and grab drinks and snacks before heading to our seats. I spot the McDonald's sitting next to Mr and Mrs C as we descend the steps of the stands, and we stop to hug and chat quickly.

"Girls." Mrs C squeezes us both, and Bear's mom says from her seat. "I've got to say I have missed having the feminine energy in the house."

We laugh as she's stuck with all her boys.

"We've missed you, too," I say. "How are you not nervous?"

I'm practically vibrating with nerves, and so is Cami. She jogged her leg the whole Uber ride.

"Oh, well, sweetheart, you just learn to hide it better after the hundredth game." They all laugh like it's an inside joke of being a hockey parent, and Cami and I smile.

"Have you said hi to Grant's parents yet?" Mrs C asks, and I blush.

"Oh, um, no." I shift to my feet, biting my lips with nerves. "I haven't even met them yet."

"Oh well, I saw them sitting two rows in front." She winks at me, nodding her head towards their seats, and I smile at her for giving me the heads-up. "We'll see you girls later?"

"Absolutely." We wave as we head down to our seats, which are directly in front of Grant's parents; Cami chuckles.

"You're a really B.I.T.C.H., you know," I whisper at her as we settle in, too nervous to turn and introduce myself.

"I know, but better than being an S.L…" I clap a hand over her mouth, and she pushes me off laughing.

We are close to the ice here, and the boys have come out warming up; Gunnar flies past us, followed by Adam, and they double back when they see us jostling each other to grab our attention. We laugh at them as Bear notices from the goal and joins them.

"That's my scarf," Bear shouts at the glass, and Gunnar pushes him out of the way.

"My jersey," he shouts, and Cami shakes her head at them for being silly right before an important game.

"You better be wearing mine, Brookie," Adam whines, and I point at my hat, which has his number on it; he lifts his stick, hooting as they skate off.

Cami and I try to chat while waiting for the game to start, but I can't help but focus on Grant as he skates around to each player, checking in and chatting with the coaches by the bench.

"They look ready," Cami whispers, and I nod as they skate back out to start the game. They all look locked in, knowing how important this game is. I look around the stands, and it seems like a lot of Huntington U students have travelled to support them, with green dotting the crowd.

The first period is tense, with both teams unable to score and the puck being evenly moved back and forth. However, when the second period begins, Gunnar and Grant take the ice and charge toward the Boston goalie, with Gunnar assisting in Grant's first goal!

The crowd goes wild as Grant celebrates by lifting his stick, and his teammates swarm him in excitement.

Cami and I turn to each other, screaming and hugging while jumping up and down.

Suddenly, I hear a thud against the glass in front of us.

It’s Grant, pointing at me as he skates backwards.

I bite my lip to suppress the huge smile threatening to spread across my face.

“I’ve never seen him do that before!” Cami exclaims, jumping up and down while grabbing my arm. I laugh, shaking my head and still smiling, as we settle back down to watch the game resume.

We continue to cheer on the boys until we break for the third period, and people around us get up to make use of the break.

A phone clatters on the floor next to me, and I bend down to pick it up. I look over my shoulder to see a pretty blonde girl wearing a Huntington U jersey smiling at me.

"Sorry," she says as I lean back and pass her the phone. "I'm so clumsy."

"No problem." I smile, I start to turn around, and she speaks again.

"My boyfriend's family went to grab drinks, and I get so awkward by myself that I just start fiddling with my phone." She makes a face, and feeling a bit sorry for her, I decide to introduce myself.

"I'm Brooke, and this is Cami." Cami waves but quickly goes back to munching her popcorn while looking at her phone. "Are you at Huntington?" I nod toward her jersey, and she shakes her head.

"I'm Grace, and no, I'm not; I travelled with my boyfriend's family to watch him. You're wearing his number."

My heart stops. Wait, I'm wearing Grant's number. As far as I knew, I was still his girlfriend. What is happening? This can't be real. Panic starts to bubble up inside me.

Cami chokes on her popcorn next to me having heard, before turning around.

"Grant Anders is your boyfriend?" she coughs. I hit her on the back distractedly, but my mind races. Should I confront her? Call her a liar? No, must keep cool.

"As in current boyfriend?" Cami’s voice breaks through my thoughts.

"Yeah, my high school boyfriend," Grace says with a smile, glancing at her phone. "Sorry, I have to take this."

We both turn to each other as Grace gets up and walks toward the concession area.

"She's lying," Cami says instantly, shaking her head and grabbing my arm. My mind reels. What if she’s right?

"Why would she lie?" I tug off my beanie, feeling suddenly hot and queasy. I need to think here.

"Anyone with eyes could see he dedicated that goal to you," Cami insists. I can feel the tension in my chest. “She just ‘dropped’ her phone when Grant’s parents left, right?”

"I don’t know," I reply, looking down. I bite my lip a little too hard until it hurts. What if I'm misreading this whole situation?

"I don't know who she is, but she feels threatened, and now she's lying to get you to back off," Cami adds, and her words sink in like stones.

"That's messed up," I mutter, playing with my beanie. I can’t believe it. This isn’t just awkward; it’s complicated.

"That’s crazy for you," she shrugs. "I might be a little crazy, so I would know," she sighs, fiddling with the end of her ponytail. I would reassure her, but she and I both know she has crazy in her for sure.

"I'm going to run to the bathroom quickly." I need a moment to collect my thoughts.

After doing the quickest bathroom break of my life, I sit back down just as the guys hit the ice, my mind still racing. What does all of this mean for me and Grant? "She's Grant's ex," Cami whispers to me as I settle in, repositioning Adam's beanie on my head.

"Cami Logan, how do you know that?"I hiss at her, subtly looking behind me. Luckily, their eyes are firmly on the ice.

"I introduced myself to his sister when she came back on her own." She smiled at me. "Don't worry, Grace and his parents weren't back yet, but she told me she's her friend and that she dated Grant in high school."

"Oh my God, are you high?!" I hiss as the third period starts. "Now they will think I was fishing for information like a creep."

"No, I don't think they will. I didn't say, hey, my best friend is sleeping with…" I clap a hand over her mouth as the buzzer goes off, signalling a goal for the other team, and we both look at each other wide-eyed.

"Pin in it?" I ask.

"Yep," she replies, and we get up and cheer for our boys.

“Quit being mean to him!” I say, hitting Cami's arm as she heckles Adam.

“I’m encouraging him,” she defends herself as Gunnar breaks away with the puck. “Go, Gunnar!” she screams, the loudest I’ve ever heard her, jumping up and down.

He hits the bar, and the puck goes back to our end again.

“I’m going to throw up,” Cami says, putting her hands on her head.

“Same here.”

Grant gets checked hard into the boards by one of their defensemen, and I feel a rush of anger as the referee misses yet another call.

“HEY, number fifty one, touch him again and I’ll come beat your ass in the parking lot!”

“Yeah, and I’ll help her,” Cami adds next to me. “It won’t be too hard; you skate like you’ve got two left feet.”

We high-five each other.

With only thirty seconds left, the whole arena is holding its breath. My heart pounds as Adam pushes forward with the puck. He’s usually the one guarding the team, but not now. Now, he’s charging ahead like nothing else matters.

He slips past one defender, then another. Just when it seems like he’s going to take the shot himself, he passes the puck off backwards in a crazy move.

It’s Gunnar who takes possession, and without hesitating, he shoots, and the puck flies straight into the net.

Goal.

The arena explodes, and the buzzer sounds.

“They’re going to the Frozen Four!” I scream as we hug and jump up and down. “Oh my God, I’m crying. Are you crying?” Cami asks, and I nod. “I’m so freaking proud of them.”

The teams skate around, and we leap up and down, cheering them on.

Our four boys pile against the glass, and we can’t help ourselves. We rush down the stairs and bang against the glass, and our entire section joins us.