3

"All right, all right, alright!" Echoed through the rink just as I slammed my right knee down to block the shot Seb had just ripped at me. All nineteen of the players on the ice stopped what they were doing as I passed the puck back to Seb and skated towards our coach walking out into the center of the ice in his black dress shoes.

Coach Bradley was an average sized man with a brown beard and a bald head that he always wore a bobcats baseball hat on. With the clipboard in his hand and the whistle around his neck, the smile fifty year old looked like he had returned home. Most of us skated to a stop and took a knee in front of him, my movements looking a little more awkward due to my goalie gear and the lingering soreness between my legs. Last night had been something else, like a scene straight out of an erotic novel. Beck was an intoxicating character; it was a shame I had to sneak out of his bed to make it to practice. "Here we are with the first practice of the year! I could play an introduction game or start out with an inspirational speech, but I won't do that."

If there was one thing about Coach that stood out, it was he was hilariously blunt. "Get to know each other and go on dates on your own time. Instead, I like to introduce my incoming players with a few rounds of body checking then we can introduce our new captain and our goalie. Shall we start with a seniority player? Williams. Riley. Get up here."

"You pull this every year, Bradley," Seb groaned while getting up beside me. I didn't know who the captain was; out of the all the new people with helmets on, I couldn't read the back of his jersey to tell. But I had a feeling his eyes were one me because my height made me stand out like a sore thumb; and the fact that it's well known Quinnipiac has a female goalie, even for those that weren't in the hockey world. "And why does it have to be against the goalie of all people?"

"The same reason she plays forward once a week with you; I teach adaptability, that's how you get a long career out of it. Besides, as soon as she leaves the crease it's check central for goalies so let's do this, Williams." Coach spoke loudly with that same enthusiasm in his voice when he dropped a puck from his pocket on the center of the ice. "Start on my whistle."

Seb skated up to the center of the rink while I stood a few feet in front of him, putting my body between him and the goal. I bent my knees a little, feeling the cool air of the arena tickle my skin from under my pads as the whistle rang through my ears. Seb was a big guy and an even faster skater. He had a lot of muscle and a lot of speed that could make him look like the scariest guy on the ice. I skated backwards a little bit so I was more on his left, where the lefty defenseman kept the head of his stick. Just as he was going to deke but before he could finished the move at full speed I slammed my body against his own, my hips digging into his thighs and knocking the right defender onto his ass with a thud that echoed under the dome.

I recovered from the jolt of Seb's body against mine and stole the black puck, making a perfect across rink goal as the vulcanized rubber skidded across the smooth ice with small divots remaining from our skates. "Rule number one," Bradley yelled, his firm voice perfectly clear to probably the whole state. I extended my heavily gloved hand to Seb as he took it in his own, my arm helping pull his heavy body up to a standing position. My best friend didn't say anything because  Coach was talking, but he playfully punched me in the shoulder instead. I made sure to keep my grip on my stick like a vice; the last two demonstrations Seb had gotten me back by checking it out of my hands when Coach was talking, leading to the 'always be prepared' speech. "Never underestimate the smallest guy, because they just took your toughest defender down like a sack of potatoes."

"And if you want an explanation ask a physics major or some shit. All I care about is your lower center of gravity. Your size might make you a threat but in the real world you have to know how to protect against those who use their disadvantages as an asset."

"If you have a lower center of gravity you're hitting them where they're unstable, it basi-"

"Right," Coach snapped his fingers while pointing at me. "I almost forgot. Any of you freshman need help, we got the geek squad. What are we going for? Orthopedic surgeon, Astrophysicist, and lawyers?" Lawyers? Only Axel was studying law but I was too busy rolling my eyes at Coach for volunteering us for tutoring. My feet glided towards Coach from where we were, near one of the goals, only to see the black skate in front of me just a second too late as Seb tripped me back.

Sneaky bastard.