Icing the Rink

First Outing

Chapter 6

Foster’s pov

I do not know what my i***t of a brother said. But clearly, he said something to Amberlynn. Not sure if made her upset or uncomfortable. She keeps looking around, avoiding eye contact. Her cheeks are still a little red. Somehow, he made her blush. I might have to beat it out of him. Maybe I can the truth out of him by bribing him. He loves sweets; maybe that will work. Probably more than he should. But we all have our addictions, I guess.

“So, where would like to go first?”

“Can you help decide, you know, since I am not from around here. Let’s not let the new girl decide. I might make us leave town or something.”

“Well, it is just your lucky day. You have two of the best tour guides at your disposal.” Sawyer winks at her.

“Do you have something in your eye? If you do, you might want someone to check that for you.” I burst out laughing so hard I had tears in my eyes. Amberlynn gives Sawyer big ass grin.

“Brother, I think she just called you out. Amberlynn, I do not think I have ever seen anyone shut up my brother like you just did. He keeps opening and closing his mouth like a damn goldfish.” She lets out this cute, ungirly snort, and I lose it again; that makes her laugh with me. We both are laughing so hard, and poor Sawyer looks like he sucked on a lemon.

“I am sorry, Sawyer. I could not resist the jab. It is payback for waking me up early. Just FYI, I like my beauty sleep. If it happens again, there will be repercussions.”

“Hey now, I was not the only one who made noise this morning. My brother was involved too. FYI, I do not think you need beauty sleep. You are already beautiful.”

“Aww, trying to butter me up? That will not work, sorry. You do not have to worry. Foster will get his turn. I do not forget. But an iced mocha might help lessen the blow.” She gives me a wicked grin. I may have gulped a little after that.

“That is not fair. I did not get offered a deal like that. I think you just like him more than me. How is that fair? Now, it is my mission to make you like me more. What can I do to make that happen?” Sawyer asks her.

“I am just messing with you. You are like a kid who got his toy stolen, or who doesn’t like to share? Which one is it?” Sawyer and I keep glancing at each other. I do not think she knows it is the opposite of what she said. I clear my throat.

“Anyway, how about we go to the sports store? They have an excellent selection, mostly winter stuff, but it is a nice store. Or maybe we could go to the clothing store.” I offer.

“I would like to go to the sports store if that is okay with y’all. Want to make sure I have everything before the tryouts.” I give her a nod.

“Since we are talking about hockey. How long have you been playing for.?” I ask. She gives me a sad smile. I just hope I didn’t mess this up. Now I feel bad.

“It is a hard topic for me. My dad introduced me to hockey when I was around five years old. He did not want to go pro; only played in high school and college. Instead, he enlisted in the army. He taught me everything. His love of hockey is the reason I play. I started skating when I was six. We lived by a pond that would freeze during the winter. Every year, my dad would take me skating on that pond. Sad part we had to move often since he was in the army. The last time I skated on that pond, I was nine. We tried to live by a pond or an ice rink when we had to move. I started getting into hockey in my junior year of high school. The teams were boys and girls. She looks sad replaying these memories. I hate seeing her like that. Looking at Sawyer, I see he feels the same way. My junior year made me tough. The boys did not care if you were a girl or not. What helped me during the summer, my dad signing me up for hockey summer camps. Met some wonderful people there. I met two boys who treated me like any other boy. The funny part was they were twins too. She laughs. I give Sawyer a look. The only other twins we know play on our rival team. They were cool, always including me on adventures. They deployed my dad overseas in the middle of my eight-grade year of junior high. He only worked at the base; being a lieutenant in the army. I do not think I like where this story is going. It was in the middle of my freshman year; hockey tryouts were coming around. I was so excited to tell my dad when he made his weekly call. One day getting home from school, I could tell something was wrong. My mom was on the couch crying. At first, I could not understand what she was saying. I hugged her to calm her down so she could explain what was going on. Only words that had made sense to me was killed in action. It felt like my entire world just stopped. They attacked his convoy. No one survived. I let my dad down that year. When tryouts came around, I could not bring myself to try out for the team. My grades even slipped. One day I realized my dad would not be proud of me. I did what I had to do. Started taking online classes and took college courses. That is how I got head in school. Depression makes you want to isolate yourself. I tried out for hockey in sophomore year. I just wanted to make my dad proud.” She has tears in her eyes. I cannot stand it, so I pull her into a hug, and Sawyer joins in too. I pull back. Making sure I am not overwhelming her.

“Your dad seemed like a great guy and a wonderful dad. Even though I never knew him. He would be very proud of what you have accomplished. I know I would be. I am sorry I made you relive those memories. That was not my intention. How about Sawyer and I help you feel better? How about after the sporting goods store, we go eat our weight in ice cream? I give her what hopes is a bright smile. Just like my brother, I throw in a wink.” That gets a small but genuine smile.

“Y’all are just alike sometimes, and both are incorrigible. But yes, I would like that very much. Also, thank you for listening. It might have been a sad story, but there are plenty of wonderful memories too.”

“You are welcome. Glad you shared that with us. It feels good that you let us in. We will always be there whenever you. need us.” Sawyer says, and I agree. This makes me want to protect her. Even though it already happened. We will protect her from the terrible memories and help make happy memories.