On and Off the Rink

Chapter Twelve: Team Bonding

"Sorry." The locker room door slammed behind me and I turned to find the source of the voice. "I just want to say, on behalf of the team, sorry." I saw Parker leaning up against the wall, blocking my path to the exit.

"Thank you, but you shouldn't be apologizing. Next time just shake the damn teams hands, and skate off the ice like men." Parker fell in line next to me as I walked towards the front doors of the arena. "And who in the world was the guy to say that last comment, because I will beat him up in tomorrow's practice."

Parker laughed. "It was Zach, sorry about him. I don't think he has a filter." He laughed at himself a little more, probably remembering a past experience where Zach's big mouth had gotten them in trouble.

"I know the feeling, Cam acts that way sometimes." Then it was my turn to laugh, remembering all the crazy things she had gotten us into.

"I really am sorry though, for everything, the prank, the game, all of it."

"What changed?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, your team treated us like crap. All last week during practice, and ever since we joined your team. You all were being so sexist, asking as though girls couldn't ever learn to play ice hockey. Your coach still thinks that. What changed?"

"The goal. You proved yourself. Rose and Sadie saved some of the hardest shots I've seen taken this year, Cam stepped up for the team taking an awful blow from a defender, and you made an epic shot that was impossible to take, but still managed to get it in. Most of all, we lost the game, but to you girls, the score board didn't faze any of you. All of you stayed out there like real team players, and that was what changed." With those words Parker walked away.

I stood there in the doors like an idiot for a good few minutes. I fished my keys out of my bag and headed to my truck, unable to react to what Parker had just told me.

** ** **

The rest of the week dragged by. Coach killed us in practice because of Mondays game, but there was no more tension on the ice. We all seemed to be moving as more of a unit. In Fridays practice though, I found my revenge.

Zach had the puck down the ice from me, but wasn't being covered and had no one to pass it to. He choose to go on a breakaway but that was a huge mistake. I skated straight towards him, slamming him into the boards with my shoulder, and took the puck. He slammed into the ice, and I bent down and whispered something quick to him. "That was for the little comment you made in the locker room on Monday. Be glad it's illegal to do worse."

With that I skated down the ice and scored for our team. Parker gave me a little wink after my celebration dance of the goal, knowing exactly what I had said to Zach. The scrimmage ended, and everyone started towards the locker rooms. "Hold on team, I need to talk to all of you." Coach Rook brought the whole team back to the center of the rink.

"I know lately you all have been flowing more as a team, but it's still not perfect. I've decided to send all of you on a team retreat. Parker has volunteered his beach house up for the weekend, and I expect all of you to be there, unless of course you give me a legitimate excuse." Coach turned and walked away, leaving us to ask Parker all of our questions.

"Everyone is coming to my beach house tonight for a team retreat. Bring a bathing suit, something to sleep in, something to wear tomorrow, and a surfboard if you own one. I'll text everyone the address. Other than that, just show up." He skated off the ice and walked over to the benches, leaving the rest of the team to follow suit.

Once all the girls were in the locker room, that's when all the chattering began. Predictions on how the night was going to go were flung all around the room. By the end of it, some one was going to end up sleeping together, and someone else wouldn't be there tomorrow morning from an unknown cause, what ever that meant.

"Cam are you ready?" She was planning to come over to my house, so all her stuff was already at my house.

"Yah, but can I borrow a bathing suit? I didn't really pack one for tonight, who knew!" Cam slung her bag over her shoulder and followed be out to the truck.

"You have like three bathing suits at my house, from emergency beach adventures!" We laughed remembering the surprise beach cravings we got some weekends, before ice hockey and school started up a month ago.

"Oh yah.... I'm guessing I also left my surf board in the garage?"

"Where else would it be?" We pulled up to the house laughing like crazy, just like always. We ran up to my room, packed a bag of stuff then headed down to the garage.

"You grab the surf boards and I'll grab the rope." I pointed to the corner off the garage so Cam could find the boards, then I went digging through a huge pile of junk for the cords. It took us about twenty minutes to actually get the boards strapped into the truck's bed.

"I can't wait to go surfing, it's been like over a month since we have made it out to the beach." Cam was jumping up in down in her seat. I might have been the better hockey player out of the two of us, but she could definitely out surf any of us.

Ten minutes later we pulled up to a large salmon colored house right on the edge of the beach. It was a private neighborhood, which meant there would be a private beach with no one on it except for us. The neighboring houses were pitch black inside, so we could be as loud as we damn well wanted.

I parked the truck along the curb in front of Parker's house, and behind a blue jeep. We walked up the front steps with our bags in hand, leaving our surf boards in the truck for later. We knocked on the door, but no one answered. I knocked one more time, and as soon as I did the door burst open.

"Come on in ladies, the party is just beginning!"
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Author's Note:
I know that most California High Schools don't have ice hockey, but I really wanted that on and off the rink idea, off the rink being surfing. I hope you all enjoy the party as much as I do!

Just re read this chapter to edit it, and it's such a filler chapter!!! If you have any juicy ideas to spruce it up I'll take them! If not I'll just leave it as it is and give you all a really good next chapter!