Full Strength

Dean

After opening presents at the Browns’ house, Scottie, Derrick, and I were chilling on the sofas looking at the things we got, and chatting.

                  “Thanks again for the necklace. It’s so pretty.” Scottie said. I was walking down the sidewalk downtown when I saw the necklace in a window. It was a silver accessory, and there was a single amethyst gem. It is Scottie’s birthstone, and the simplicity of it was perfect for her. I also got Derrick his own Ping-Pong paddle for when we finally get the table into the locker. It was more of a joke than anything, but the kicker is that he also got me my very own paddle.

                  “You’re welcome. I saw it and immediately though of you. And thank you for my gift.” Scottie got me a pastel purple bow tie. I told her how I don’t own any, and I would like too. Purple is Scottie’s favorite color, and she said it looks good against my skin tone and hair color, so it’s no surprise she got me a bow tie in purple.

                  Scottie already gave out her presents to the team and staff, so we had the whole day to just hang out, and relax. The three of us sat in the family room, and watched Elf. I had only seen the movie once when I was younger, but apparently it’s a tradition in the Brown household, where Scottie and Derrick watch the movie every Christmas day after opening presents. Mrs. Brown had made us cinnamon rolls, so we were eating those one after another as we enjoyed the movie.

                  After the movie, I was let in on another tradition of Christmas day. One by one, my teammates started showing up the Brown’s house with their families in tow. When I questioned Scottie, she said it was the beginning of their pond hockey game. That’s when I realized that they all had their sticks and helmets with them.

                  “Hey Goldie! How’s it hanging? You joining us for the game?” Bryan asked.

                  “I guess so. I was just made aware of this, so I don’t think I’m fully prepared.” I laughed.

                  “Eh, don’t worry about it. Just grab a stick and helmet and come on.” Jon replied.

                  We all made out way the short distance to the frozen pond. Teams were picked, and coach told us the rules. No hits, no fights, no checks, clean and easy. Scottie was playing too, however the two of us were on separate teams.

                  “This ought to be fun, eh Dean?” Scottie smiled mischievously at me.

                  I laughed and replied, “Oh, you’re going down Glasgow!” We both laughed and skated to our respective sides.

                  “Did you just call Scottie ‘Glasgow’?” Andrew asked me, completely confused.

                  “Yeah. Her name is Scotland. Glasgow is a big city is Scotland. It’s an inside joke.” I laughed and explained to him.

                  “Man, you two are so strange.” He laughed at us.

                  I laughed and we all got set up to play a nice, fun game of pond hockey.

                  It started off hot, when Scottie scored off a slapshot that went right passed me. As a joke, Scottie pointed at me, just like how I would point at her when I score goals. The team joked around with me, and congratulated her. In the end, Scottie’s team won six to five. It was a lot of fun to get to play a relaxed game like that with my teammates. You get to see them in their element, but without any pressure. We all were throwing in crazy tricks, and trying new things. We didn’t play with whom we normally do, so it was almost like a completely new experience. This was probably the best Christmas I have ever had.