Not All Hockey Boys Are Bad

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Rosie... C'mon. Please do this for me." Georgia pleaded as we left the classroom and headed out of the school. It was the end of the school day which meant time to go home and relax. However, Georgia had other plans.

"Please, please, pleaseee... Nolan needs us there." She whined. I scoffed.

"More like he needs you there, he could care less about me." I stated. Nolan and Georgia had been a thing ever since I can remember but neither of them ever officially declared their relationship. Even without the titles everyone knew they were each other's. Guys left Georgia alone, and girls left Nolan alone. It mutually agreed by every one of our piers that they both were off limits to anyone but each other.

"Not true, Nolan likes to have you around."

"He tolerates me, at the least." I said hiking my backpack further on my back. Georgia rolled her eyes then huffed.

"You make things so difficult." She mumbled. Her shoulders dropped as she began to try to guilt trip me. It never worked but she always gave it a shot. "I thought we were best friends, best friends would join best friends at basketball games."

I sighed, typical. "We are best friends, but that does not entitle me to sit with you as you ogle Nolan from the stands as we watch a game I don't even like." We reached the parking lot and I spotted my car a few feet away. "If this is about..." She started to say but then my eyes wondered to the other side of me, where I saw Talon Beckett's car with the hockey players surrounding it. It didn't take me long to recognize Jack, who was wearing his hockey letterman jacket. I watched as they talked for a bit before climbing into Talon's car and driving off.

"Are you even listening to me? I'm trying to persuade you here!" Georgia exclaimed waving her hands in front of my face.

"Hey, you head to Nolan's game. I'm just going to head to the rink to skate a little bit. Let me know how the game goes!" I called back at her already walking to my car. I didn't hear her reply, but as I tore out of the parking lot I saw her wave bye to me. I waved back, and she nodded. She may have wanted me to join her but she'd understand why I couldn't.

* * * *

The rink's parking lot was close to empty other than a couple of cars belonging to the custodians and such. I parked, climbed out of the car, and grabbed the skates I kept in the back.
When I walked by the front desk I noticed Phil. He was brewing him a cup of coffee while straightening up some stacks of papers. Noticing my presence he looked up. "Rosie, good to see you." He smiled widely. "How's your mother?" He asked. My mom had gone to high school with Phil and even though they hardly talked anymore Phil always asked about her.

"She's good, but busy with work. As always." My voice faded at the end as I tried to maintain a friendly smile. Phil smiled and motioned to the coffee machine. "Want a cup?"

I shook my head, "Maybe, later. I was hoping I could skate for a bit?" I suggested. Phil picked up a stack of papers and put them in another pile to his right. "Of course, the rink's open. But remember hockey practice starts up in an hour."

I nodded, thanked him, and walked towards the rink. It looked the same as it did Friday night, only instead of fans and the players filling the rink there was only cold air. Settling down on the bench near the opening of the rink I slipped off my shoes and began to put on my skates.

It wasn't long until I stepped onto the ice. It was comforting. The feeling of the ice carving underneath my blades, and the cold air around me gave me excitement. Pushing of my left foot I began to glide on the ice. I lapped the rink over and over again letting my legs decide where they wanted to go. It came effortlessly to me and soon my mind was cleared and I began to relax.

* * * *

"Hey you need to get off the ice! We have practice." A voice yelled at me bringing me out of my trance. I was too caught up in skating to even hear the group of boys walk in. They were all in hockey gear and stood at the edge of the rink. I recognized Cole as the one who yelled at me and I noticed Talon, Kane, and Jack standing behind him.

Jack was looking at me. His expression was neutral, I couldn't read his thoughts. I had come to a stop in front of them prepared to get off the ice. "Today, would be nice." Talon snapped at me.

I scowled ready to bite back but Jack stepped forward. "Leave it, Talon. We have practice to start." He glanced at me quickly before he skated into the rink. The rest of the team soon followed. I exited the rink and began to take my skates off. I walked towards the desk. "I'll have that coffee now."

* * * *

I debated on whether to stay and watch the practice, but I decided
against it when I saw Talon look over to me and glare. Not wanting to wind up permanently on Talon's bad list I left the rink and headed over to Toasties.

When I got there, Toasties was close to empty. Hardly anyone came here during this time of the day and if they did they grabbed a coffee to go. "Welcome to toasties how may I help you?" The lady at the counter greeted me. Since I had practically downed the small cup of coffee Phil made me, I ordered another cup of coffee and a cinnamon bagel to go with it.

I was in no hurry to leave. My mom was probably home by now, working in her office while Addie played in her room and rather than be stuck in my room for the rest of the night I opted to chill here.

With my coffee in one hand and my bagel in the other the lady from the counter headed over to me. "Here you go sweetie." She smiled and handed them to me. I thanked her, but before she could walk away I stopped her.
"Miss, would it be okay if I read one of those books on the wall while I'm here?" I asked, thinking I might as well do something to pass the time.

The lady took a glance at the wall of books and then looked back to me. "Sure, dear. Just remember to put them back. Those are the owner's personal books."

She walked back to the counter leaving me to myself. I looked at the bookshelf. It was full with classic novels, ranging from Charles Dickens to Harper Lee. I ran my fingers over the bindings unsure of which book to pull out. I reached for Great Expectations and was about to pull it from the shelf when a voice spoke.

"That's one of my grandson's favorites." I turned back to look at an old man standing behind me. His back was arched and he had to lean on a cane to keep him up right. He looked strikingly familiar but I couldn't place his face. I stood there studying him before I realized he had spoken to me. I smiled politely. I knew enough to figure this man was the owner of Toasties.

"Are these your books?" I asked. The old man was silent as he walked over to me using his cane. He stood in front of me and motioned to the book I held in my hands.

"Open the cover." I did as he said. Inside the cover was a name written in ink, Matthew Rovotia. "These were my father's, but I guess now they belong to me or I should say the café." He winked and placed both hands on his cane.

I smiled. And gently flipped through the pages of the worn book. "Whose ever it belongs to, I love the collection."

The man grinned, "You'd like my grandson. He loves these books too much, used to spend hours and hours reading these books front to back. Now, though, he is busy with hockey."
At the mention of hockey the gears in my brain worked to connect this old man to someone I knew from the team, but I was drawing blanks. None of those boys seemed to fit into what this man has told me. Maybe, his grandson plays for a different team-

"Oh, look, there he is now." The old man pointed to the front of the café interrupting my thoughts. I glanced up just in time to see Jack Vella walking through the doors.

-Or maybe he doesn't.