Unguarded Love

7-On The Ice

"Go ahead Mari."

She smiles and I see she's missing a front tooth. 

"Bat."

"Good job." Kelly says before writing it on the board. "Anyone have another word?"

"mat." A boy calls from the back. 

Kelly writes it down, "Correct but remember to raise our hand next time Tyler."

This goes on for a while before we switch up activities.

At one point I am helping a girl draw different shapes when Tyler points to my scarred knee. 

"What happened to your knee it looks funny with the lines."

I look down to the criss cross jagged scars on my knee. Not only from the accident but from the surgery to repair the damage. 

Usually I stick to pants so I don't have to relive what happened every time someone notices. Still if someone brings it up I just say a car accident, which is true. 

"Tyler we don't point and make fun of people." Kelly says and he frowns, then he says something that has both Kelly and I gasping. 

"Fuck I'm sorry." He says softly. 

"Tyler we don't say bad words like that." Kelly says and he furrows his tiny brows in confusion .

"Well why not? My mommy says it all the time."

I have to hold in my laughter. 

Kelly sighs, "Well we can't say it in class ok?"

He nods before going back to his work. 

"Sorry about that." She laughs awkwardly and I shrug it off. One thing you can always count on when it comes to kids is they don't have a filter when it comes to the wild stuff that will come out of their mouths. 

After a long day of watching kids learn I can't wait to head back to the dorms. Still, it'll only be for a moment because I have somewhere to be. 

It feels like its been years since I've been on the ice, in real time it's only been two weeks.

Luckily my knee is feeling better so I am doing the two hours, which makes up for missing my time last week. 

Peyton is no where to be found when I open the door which is odd since she said she had nothing to do. 

I expected to find her passed out on the bed, hell, if I weren't headed to the rink that is exactly where I would be too. 

I send her a quick text asking where she is as I change and leave to head to the rink. 

When I get there I say a quick 'hi' to Mary before going and lacing up. She smiles at me and I know she still feels a bit bad about last week but it wasn't her fault. I missed it and she can't bend the rules for me, no matter how much I wish she could. 

Once I finish lacing up I open the door that separates me from home. 

There is something so satisfying about the first step onto the ice. 

The feeling of the blade gliding against the ice. 

My mom was my number one fan when it came to my figure skating. I guess it's almost poetic how I lost her and my career on the same day. 

I get warmed up, doing some practice jumps and turns, before starting the song I have queued. 

Then I get lost in the music as I glide along the ice. 

I may still be able to skate and do some of the tricks I used to but it's not the same. 

I'll never be back to where I was at thirteen. Sure they saved my knee but I no longer have the full motion I used too. 

Not only that but I can't work the hours I would need to compete again. If I tried the injury could flare up again. 

I shake my thoughts off of that as I continue the routine. 

The routine that was supposed to help me secure my spot in the big leagues. Some of the skills are watered down of course but it's the same routine from start to finish

I go through it a few more times trying to perfect some of the moves that are still a little shaky. 

Gosh I miss the feeling of competitions. The little flutter of butterflies in your stomach when they call your name. 

The routine that flows from you effortlessly as the music surrounds you drowning out the crowd.

Time is nonexistent on the ice which is why I don't hear my alarm on my phone coming until it's blaring cutting through the music.  

By the time my two hours are up I am more than exhausted. 

I unlace my skates and put the guards back on before shoving them in my bag. I wave to Mary on my way out knowing she already has me down for next Wednesday. 

Once I am back in the dorms I see Peyton sitting on her bed working on something for one of her classes. 

"Where were you earlier?" I ask her as I peel off my sweatshirt. 

She flits her eyes up to me then back down to her spreadsheet. 

"Uh out." Her pitch is high so I know she is keeping something from me. 

I laugh, "Mhm I know that, but where?"

"At the library." She says a little too quickly. 

"With who?" I can't stop myself from asking. 

What? My best friend is acting sketchy as hell and I want to know what has her all twisted up like this. 

"Alone now let me study." She grumbles and I roll my eyes as I put on a t shirt and get into bed to start my own work. 

I wonder what she's hiding from me. 

____

Edited

A/N I have no idea how the whole student teachers things works so whoops. 

There was no Asa this chapter but don't worry the next chapter is focused completely on their first study time together. 

Also fun fact my first word was 'Fuck' yep I remember it like it was yesterday. Not really but my mom tells the story all the time. 

See the screen on the backdoor of our house had broken and my dad was fixing it. He thought he had gotten the sides of the screen snapped in but he didn't and it fell out. Of course he yelled 'fuck' and I laughed and started screaming the word as loud as I could.