PUCKING HATE YOU!

*****Anna The first thing that I noticed and have learned about Northbrook University is that their rules only matter when they are broken by the right people. It was during my freshman year that I learnt that when a certain student lost his scholarship just because he missed too many classes. And do you know what happened that same week? There was one of the hockey players that skipped nearly the entire semester, but still, he got a standing ovation when he returned from an away tournament. Funny how that worked right? I shifted my backpack higher on top of my shoulders and hurried my pace towards the campus, weaving between groups of students who were enjoying the warm September afternoon. My next class will be starting in the next twelve minutes. Trust me, it wasn't that I was counting it. Oops, I was actually always counting. Classes. Scholarship requirements. Exam dates. And work shifts. You know, every hour really mattered when losing a scholarship wasn't an option. When I got to the next corner, a group of students rushed past me all of a sudden, almost knocking off the coffee in between my fingers. “Sorry!” One of them laughed out without slowing down a bit. Their eyes were fixed directly on something ahead, or rather, someone ahead. I followed their gaze, and it led to a giant poster that had been placed outside the student's center. The image covered nearly the entire wall. It was a hockey player that stood in his full uniform, and he held his helmet under one of his arms. His hair was dark, jawline was sharp and his expression looked confident. That kind of face is the type people probably spent too much time thinking about. And below the image was a large bold letters— XAVIER THORNE. —Captain. Future NHL speaker. Keynote speaker. Leadership summit. Tonight! I rolled my eyes at all the words. Of course! The so-called campus golden boy. I've never really spoken to him before and I never wanted to. But yet, his face was impossible to avoid but to challenge. Posters. Social media. University advertisements. The administration practically worshipped him. “Are you gonna be going tonight?” My friend Lily appeared beside me out of nowhere as I didn't hear her footsteps. I knitted my brows at her. “Going where?” She pointed dramatically towards the poster. “The leadership summit of course.” I laughed so hard at that. “Hell not!” “I am sure you're unaware that there'll be extra academic credits,” Lily added. Oh gosh! That made my steps slow down a bit. And Lily? She grinned at me. “Thats more like I've thought.” I seriously hated it when she was right. “Just one hour and I'm out of there I swear.” She moved closer and linked her arm against mine, “sure you are.” But we both knew I wasn't, because extra credit was surely extra credit and students in scholarship like me wouldn't dare to turn that down. Especially those students that are trying to get into medical school. The hockey arena came into view as we walked further. The sight of it alone made something tightened inside my chest. The entire arena looked ordinary enough. From the glass walls to the large banners. The crowd came and went. There's only one thought that dances inside my head all the time I see it—my cousin Ethan. My hero growing up. The person who made me believe that those things that seemed impossible could be achieved if you work hard enough. But that was until Northbrook destroyed all of him. The memory resurfaced suddenly. Painfully. A news article. Accusations. Scandal. Then silence. His future was gone just like overnight. And the university? They moved on. Everyone moved on except those that were left behind. I turned my head away from the arena as Lily's voice brought me back. “Anna? Are you okay?” She raised a brow at me. I just forced a small smile looking at her. “Yeah,” a lie that tasted bitter in my mouth. Lily didn't push and I was very grateful for that. It was already evening and the whole school’s auditorium was packed with students. Apparently, more than half of the student population are eager to hear Xavier Thorne’s speech on leadership. A low growl escaped my mouth at the sight before me because personally I would have preferred to stay back home and just review my anatomy notes to this. But yet, here I was, basically trapped between rows of excited students. From my side, Lily waved enthusiastically towards the stage. “I can actually see him,” she screamed with excitement. “And congratulations to you for that,” I rolled my eyes at her. Lily just ignored my sarcasm and was focused on that excitement of hers. The lights suddenly dimmed and the crowd erupted with jumps and screams as a spotlight illuminated the stage. Then Xavier Thorne walked out. The entire reaction of the crowd was totally ridiculous to me for real. Cheering. Whistling. You literally would have thought that it's a big celebrity who was in the building. Well, he looked exactly like his posters—tall, energetic, confident and most importantly athletic. He raised his hands to the crowd and was thanking everyone before he began his speech. I actually tried so hard not to be impressed for like the first fifteen minutes, but unfortunately, Xavier Thorne was somehow annoyingly good at speaking publicly. He spoke clearly, with confidence, and without any notes. The entire audience hung on every one of his words. Leadership. Responsibility. Accountability. Gosh! I nearly laughed at one. Oh? Accountability? The hockey captain was talking about accountability! The irony was really incredible and the longer he spoke, the more irritation grew inside of me. It wasn't because he was terrible, no, it's because he's good at it… people believed every word, and nobody questioned any of it. The crowd was already in love with him by the time his speech ended. Then the time for Q&A arrived almost immediately and many students lined up behind the microphones placed just throughout the auditorium. When I heard the first question, I furiously wanted to leave immediately. Because what the hell is— “What is your workout routine?” The second question wasn't much better either. It was— “What is it like to be famous on campus?” And Xavier? He answered politely with a smile as if he was enjoying the time and had done this a hundred times before now. Then came another tons of questions I found horrible. Another. And then another. None of them were questions that mattered. Not really, because nobody was asking anything real, no one was challenging him, and no one was willing to disrupt that perfect image of his. I felt as frustration build inside of me. Maybe it was the scholarship stress or maybe it was about my cousin or maybe it was because of hearing the word ‘accountability’ too many times. Whatever the reason was… I don't know. But I found myself standing up anyways. Lily grabbed my hands immediately. “Oh no,” she said and just stared at me. “Oh yes,” I said and was pulling our hands apart. I adjusted my skirt and stepped towards the nearest microphone, several students immediately glanced at me and that made Xavier's attention to shift too towards my direction. For the first time all evening, our eyes really met and his expression remained calm and professional… just waiting. I swallowed the lump in my throat then reached for the microphone and started speaking. “You talked a lot about accountability.” The whole crowd quieted instantly and Xavier nodded. “Yes I did.” I cleared my throat. “Then maybe you can explain something.” A few students turned to each other and exchanged looks but I continued. “If you're sure that responsibility and accountability matter a lot, then why do athletes seem to get treated differently from everyone else?” A hushed silence fell within the entire space. Complete silence. Even Lily looked very horrified, but I pressed further anyway. “Students lose scholarships,” I tightened my hold on the microphone. “Stundents get suspended,” my voice came out calm. “But athletes miss class, break school rules, and yet they receive special treatment.” It seems like the entire room went still. Frozen. And every eye now turned towards Xavier, and for the first time since this evening his smile really disappeared. Not entirely but it was enough that I noticed it. Finally! A reaction! Xavier adjusted the microphone before him but his expression remained composed. “Well I think assumptions can be dangerous.” That made a few students beside me nod immediately. Of course they did. “Most people don't really see the amount of work athletes put behind the scenes,” he added, which made murmurs of agreement spread too quickly. “And being an athlete doesn't place anyone above university policy.” More nodding of approval erupted again. The perfect answer right? The way they loved it! But me? I didn't! Because all of it felt rehearsed and polished, just like a response designed not to affect anyone. Xavier's eyes remained locked on mine and something flickered across his face for a second. Maybe curiosity and maybe it's annoyance or maybe it can even be both and neither of it really mattered to me anyway. Then the moderator quickly moved to the next question and that moment passed making the audience feel relaxed. All conversation resumed and the whole event ended twenty minutes later. Students poured towards the exit the same way they got here. Lily finally appeared beside me. “Anna, what was that?” “Lily, what was what?” I raised an eyebrow at her. “You literally challenged Xavier Thorne in front of almost five hundred people,” Lily’s voice held nothing but surprise. “Closer to six hundred I think,” I looked at her with a crooked smile. She groaned. “You're so impossible.” I couldn't help but smile at her. “Thank you.” We moved out with the crowd of students towards the door. People whispered as we passed, some were approving while some weren't and any of which I didn't care. Because at least someone had stood up and asked a question. The evening air felt cooler and lighter as students dispersed across campus outside the auditorium. I was halfway down the stairs when a voice suddenly stopped me. “Hey,” the voice came and I turned. It was a member of the event staff who was approaching me. “The med scholarship student right?” I knitted my brows together. “Yes?” He turned a bit and pointed behind me. “Someone wants to speak with you.” Already confused, I followed towards his gesture and my breath suddenly caught because standing near the entrance was Xavier Thorne. The crowd just continued moving around him but he still somehow stood completely unmoved. Watching. Waiting. His eyes locked into mine instantly then he took a step forward, another, and then another until it was only a few feet that separated us. Neither of us said anything for a moment before he just slightly lifted one corner of his mouth. It wasn't quiet a smile and wasn't quite a challenge but something in between. “What,” he started gently. “Is your name?”