#4| SS 140417
#93| TF 250717
WINNER OF BEST TEEN FICTION & BEST OVERALL STORY IN TFA2017
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❝They will screw over anyone and everyone...
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2|
bruises
"Alright, folks!" Coach McKennedy calls out. "Let's call it an end! Go shower already, you've been playing well today."
I let my skates glide across the already scoured ice one last time before heading to the locker rooms. We may have been playing well today but well isn't anywhere near perfect.
Hockey is a tough game, but it gets ten times harder when you are the only girl on an all guy team. There have been some in the past, even though Emily Nessbaum is the only one I remember well enough, but they all left on account of moving away. I never wished for more girls to join us since then, though. I know being in an all-girl team would be probably better for me, for the school as well, but I'm glad principal Joshi has made the exception and allowed me to play in the first place. Not many schools let girls play with guys, and there's even fewer state competitions that officially allow that sort of thing.
"Aspen!" I hear Bishop call out from behind me just as I'm stepping out of my skates, so I turn around. I wait for him to come a little closer so he doesn't have to shout across the entire rink.
"You played good today." He nudges my shoulder with his, offering me a wide smile as he slides his helmet off.
Tiny beads of sweat cover his forehead, making his usually fluffy hair stick to the pale skin. "Thanks, Bi." I grin at him, reaching my hand out to ruffle his hair playfully because I know how much it agitates him, and well, that alone makes me want to do it even more. "You weren't so bad yourself either."
"You want me to drive you home?" He asks me, completely ignoring the other boy's shouting his name from the guy locker rooms.
"No. It's fine." I shake my head. "You're going to be surprised but my mom actually let me borrow her car today."
"Holy. Shit." Bishop exclaims loudly, subtly mocking me like he always does. "Guess she's finally doing something with her trust issues, eh?"
We both laugh at that. Bishop, and almost every other guy on the team, knows how little does my mom trust me, especially when it involves me driving her car. I'd like to say her concerns are tangible, but unfortunately, they are not. She just tends to blame me for everything that my twin sister Sarah does. Including the little car accident she had few months ago.
"Nah." I wave my hand in front of me, letting my mouth to take over. "I think she was just too out of it to actually give a damn."
It was supposed to be a joke but it has a different effect on him, judging by the way he stops in his tracks and touches my shoulder to comfort me. I know he wants me to look at him, but I can't get myself to do that so I shift my gaze to the glossy linoleum beneath my skates instead.
