Page 102 of Facing Off
He groans. “Bro, you haven’t even done it yet.”
“Neither have you!” I elbow him lightly. “Also, where’s the support inmydreams? I believe in yours.”
“Yeah, yeah. If that happens, I’ll high-five you.”
“Just a high-five?” I mime a knife going into my chest.
Jesse rolls his eyes, looking exactly like his dad when he did the same gesture earlier. “Fine, you’ll be my hero if you pull that off. Happy?”
I laugh. “That’s more like it.”
We stop inside the school parking lot, and I find my smile slipping a little. Only because I’m reminded there’s only two more years ofthisleft before we graduate, and then Jesse goes off to be great, and I… I don’t know.
I don’t want it to end.
The mornings practicing hockey with him and his dad are like nothing else in my life. Those hours belong to me. I don’t have to share them with my sisters, or think about giving up my room, or giving up most of my mac and cheese because it’s been fucking swiped?—
All I want is a say in my own life. For once.
But that only happens if I make it, right?
That’s why you can’t get left behind.No matter what.
Just imagine it.
Jesse and I winning gold in front of thewholeworld together, because if anyone’s going to do something like that, it’s him.
40
SONYA
Both teams fighthard to penetrate the other’s zones, sweat dripping off foreheads as ice sprays everywhere. The glass reverberates as bodies smash into it and sticks jab around for the puck. As soon as it’s found, it’s a battle to score the next goal and absolute chaos.
The fans love it.
They shriek even harder when the jumbotron finds Adrian Hughes in the crowd.
He doesn’t miss a beat.
Confidence rolls off him as he stands, basking in the attention and cheering on his teammates. Some fan behind us asks for an autograph. He happily obliges and signs plenty, so no one is left out.
“You’re going to make the news,” Kavi predicts.
She has a bag of popcorn in her lap that she got up earlier to grab, effectively reshuffling our seats. Now I’m next to Hughes, and she’s next to me. I tried to resist being in the middle, but Kavi pulled an I-feel-less-claustrophobic-this-way card.
“I’m always on the news,” boasts Hughes.
“Yes, but you showing up here will have everyone asking again why you’re not playing.”
Maybe I was pretending not to listen to their conversation, but now I’m holding my breath. A strange anticipatory pressure crowds my chest.
Is he going to tell her? About Jesse?
Hughes interlaces his fingers behind his head. “All press is good press.”
Before Kavi can respond, a nearby fan yells, “Breakaway!”
Eyes snap back to the rink as a shot is fired on the net, deflected, then shot again. It’s as if the whole crowd is tied together, leaning forward simultaneously. Except?—
