Queen II Barzal

Chapter Ten: Tyler

 Ah, high school. The best and worst years of my teenage life. It's been a rollercoaster from the beginning, but I was glad to have my friends by my side.

Zack has been my best friend since I joined the team. He's been so supportive of me playing hockey and has always been there when I needed him. He's really smart and takes all honors classes along with me and Finn. Finn's nickname is "pretty boy" because of his perfect locks of golden blonde hair. All the guys were jealous and I found his hair actually really attractive. Not that I find him attractive, but he is. I don't have a crush on him or anything, but he's literally the most popular kid in school. Taylor is the kinda guy who gets bullied by the whole group. He's what keeps us together because he's such a nice guy, but the other guys tend to hit him a little harder than they should. He can take it, though, he's a hockey player. Then there's Max. He's not the coach's son anymore since we moved up to the higher division. We compete for states now, it's pretty fucking amazing. Back to Max, he's that one friend who is street smart, but when it comes to books, he's clueless. He has C's in every class except for gym. By the way, if lunch was a subject, he'd pass that with an A-plus. The dude never stops eating, just like in middle school.

Freshman year was easier than I expected and it went by quickly. I missed my dad when he was on road trips for hockey. It seemed like he was gone longer than usual. It was fun seeing him on TV, but it wasn't the same as him driving me to hockey practice or saying "Goodnight Princess," to me in person. I missed that. I missed him.

It's still the middle of the hockey season for both of us, so he's on the road. He's probably in Toronto with Uncle Auston right now. Maybe it's fun for him, being on the road, but I just want him to stay at home for longer than a week at a time.

I fell asleep during earth science because I went to bed late last night. Hockey practice ran until 10 pm and I still had to eat, shower, and finish my homework.

Zack poked me with his pencil.

"Tyler," He said. "Ty, wake up,"

I was startled, but I woke up, rubbing my eyes.

"What?" I looked at Zack.

"Two minutes 'till the bell," He said. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I said. "But I probably shouldn't have taken AP American History my freshman year,"

"Damn, is it that tough?" Zack asked.

"It's not too bad, just a lot of work and studying," I said. "Plus, Finn's in that class, so it isn't too bad,"

"And Alex," Zack nudged me with his elbow.

"What's up with that?" I looked at him, dumbfounded.

"It's simple, you like Alex," He said.

"He's a junior, he'd never be into me," I said.

"That's not true," Zack told me. "You're a fucking hockey player for goodness sake,"

"That isn't wrong," I smiled.

The bell rang. Zack walked me to AP American History while he went to his English class next door.

"Have fun with Alex," He told me before I went into the classroom.

I rolled my eyes and went to my seat. I sat towards the back of the classroom and Alex sat in the seat right in front of me.

Finn took a seat next to me and took out his laptop. He noticed me trying to stay awake.

"Ty," He said.

"Yeah?" I blinked a few times to wake myself up.

"You look exhausted," He said.

"Wow, thanks," I rolled my eyes.