Free Ice in My Veins by Kelli Sullivan Page B

home, Moose was playing Xbox. I shook my head and took a seat beside him on the couch.
    “Mind if I do my homework here? Or is it going to interrupt your precious Call of Duty?” I grumbled.
    “Hellsss no, go for it.” He offered. “How was your first day, Miss crabby pants?”
    “Fine!” I said.
    “Fine?” He raised his eyebrow with suspicion. “I know you a little better than that. What exactly was FINE about it?”
    “Joe Sim,” I informed him. ”I swear he has a stick stuck up his ass,” I threatened. “If he doesn’t watch himself with me, I’m going to make sure it’s so far up there that it comes out his nostrils.”
    He burst out laughing. “Chill on violence Chris. Want me to talk to him?”
    “No, don’t you dare.” I said firmly. “I will handle him myself. I don’t want you to go around fighting my battles for me. It’s hard enough trying to fit in without the guys thinking that I whine.” I sneered at him.
    “Alright, but if it gets to be to much you better tell me.” He asserted. He was the team captain, and it was part of his job to make sure all of us tried to get along - for the team’s sake.
    When Cathy got home from work, we went out for dinner. She had wanted to spend some time getting to know me. We talked about what it was like for me growing up in a small town, and playing hockey. She told me that she had one son. He was married and had one kid. She never got to see him, because he lived with his wife’s family on the east coast.
    Apparently, they had the kid when he was fifteen and his girlfriend was sixteen. They married because it was the right thing to do. She wished she could see them more. She told me how excited she was that I was living there and made me promise that her and I would have lots of bonding days, as many as we could. She was a very nice woman, pleasant and kind. I liked her a lot.
    The day felt long to me. I was tired. I couldn’t wait to crawl into bed. Thankfully, I didn’t have any nightmares that woke Moose up that night.

Meet and Greet
    This week we had our first ‘Meet & Greet’. I was told it was for the season ticket holders. It was a way for the fans to meet the new players, and say welcome back to the returning ones. It would be held inside the west end of the arena, after our Wednesday night practice.
    Moose told me it was kind of fun, and not to worry about it. It was nice to sit and sign autographs for the fans. It showed the team that they were appreciated.
    I was still apprehensive for it. I wondered what the fans would think of me. They hadn’t gotten a chance to see me play yet. I hadn’t been able to prove myself to them. I was concerned what they would think when they saw me sitting amongst my teammates, sticking out like a sore thumb. The only girl.
    The newspaper had written an article about me the week of training camp. I felt it didn’t paint the full picture. In the article it said that I was a very skilled player, and worked hard during the training camp. The writer of the article still didn’t feel the OHL was the right place for a girl though. I hoped the fans wouldn’t see it the same way.
     
    After practice that Wednesday, we all showered and changed into our street clothes. We were given our new team jersey’s and put them on. I was lucky enough to get my lucky number 16. Same number Toby Chalke wore when he played for Philadelphia.
    We walked into the room one by one, as the MC for the dinner announced us. Most players received loud claps and cheers. When my name and number was called, the cheers and claps were no where near as loud as they were for the other players. I took my seat at the long table between Josh Fuller and Chris Brantford.
    I was told it was the team booster club that had arranged this dinner. I thought that was a nice thing for them to do for the fans, and for us. The fans were still eating their dinner and watching us closely. I received a few dirty looks from several girls around my age.