In Sequence | H.S.

19.

Harry.

"If you're not dressed in the next ten seconds, that's a you-problem!" A repetition of loud thuds pounded against the locker room door, accompanied by a bubbly voice with a motive.

Ella.

"Patrick, put a leash on that thing." I groan, throwing my damp towel at his head. Miles swiftly catches it with the biggest grin I've ever seen slapped across his face. He's the commitment type of guy, and blondie has him wrapped around her finger so tight, she could tell him to bark, and he'd give in without hesitation.

"She's not supposed to be here." Mitch furrows his brows, looking towards me. "Why's she here?"

"Hell if I know. Mads didn't say shit about an Ella ambush." I shrug, popping the cap of my gatorade water bottle up to chug some water. Madelyn hasn't said much to me since our trip to Madison Square Garden. She's had some sort of stick up her ass and just responds with the bare minimum. Maybe trying to get her back on the ice before she was ready rubbed her the wrong way, but in my defense, I didn't know it was so traumatic to her.

Fuck, I don't even know why she stopped skating in the first place. She's so damn secretive and then acts like I'm the villain for trying to recruit her with her old passion. The way she reacted made me think that she has some injury I don't know about. Maybe a concussion disqualified her from competition season or maybe she has a jacked up shoulder. She was grabbing at it her first day on the job.

Whatever it is, that's her issue to deal with and I need to find better ways to support her.

"Time's up!" Ella flung the door open after giving us a few seconds of overtime. With a clipboard in hand and Madelyn in-tow, she meant business.

Maddy's eyes stayed glued to the stack of papers resting between her forearm and hip, never sneaking a peak at any of the other guys.

Good girl.

"Gather 'round everyone!" She clapped her hands together to demand everyone's attention, as if a five-foot-four blonde girl in a cropped Nike sweatshirt, standing in the center of the men's locker room didn't already reel everyone in.

"This couldn't wait ten more minutes until they were in the rink?" Mads asked her, a red blush coating over her nose as she finally glanced up.

"Oh, relax, they're all decent.." Ella throws an arm around her shoulder, pulling her into her side. "Besides, you rub up on their bodies all day, everyday. Don't get shy now!" Mads' eyes widen like she's never thought of her career that way, and my first clenches at my side. I haven't thought of it like that either.

I exhale through my nose, pushing aside my jealousy as Ella leaves Mads near the doorway and saunters to the center of the room, stopping at the bench in front of Miles. She extends a hand out, and he makes it known that he knows what plan Mastermind Barbie has thought up when he takes her hand and helps steady her as she stands on top of the bench to better meet our heights.

"Hope you've all kept your halloweekend free because you're all officially invited to my sexy spooktacular!" She announces proudly, bouncing in place as she scavengers the room for positive reactions.

"What the hell is a sexy spooktacular?" Mitch crosses his arms, brows cocked up in shock like she just introduced him to a new genre of porn.

I chuckle under my breath, wishing someone would've been recording because the odds of hearing Mitch say sexy spooktacular again in this lifetime are very low. "Harry Styles, don't you laugh!" I'm immediately scolded by the glossiest frown I've ever seen, and it makes me want to laugh harder. "There are no dumb questions here."