The Hockey Girl

Chapter 9

Smirking, I walked from the room and toward my personal shower. I closed and locked the door, stripped quickly, turned the warm water on and stood underneath the soothing heat of the water. After training, I lived for showers.

I stepped out from the shower and quickly dried and changed, collecting my things and leaving quickly – minus my shoes. I always seemed to forget those, leaving them in my locker.

Opening my locker door, I dropped my bag on the wooden bench below it and reached for my shoes. I heard my phone ringing just as Vasic, Nate, Drew and Riaz walked out from their communal shower – shirtless of course. They never wore shirts after showers.

I walked over to the stereo to turn it down before quickly answering the phone, “Hello?”

“Hey Kid.” My dad answered.

“Hey dad, what’s up?”

I heard a heavy, exhausted sigh from the other end of the phone. “I hate to do this to you again kid, but I won’t be home tonight. Work stuff.” He explained.

I felt my lips move into a grimace but quickly checked myself. “That’s okay dad. It’s not your fault so don’t feel bad.”

“Kid, I really am sorry though. I promise that one day soon we’ll have a day just you and me okay?” I smiled at that. I did love my dad, he really did his best.

“Yeah dad, that sounds good.”

“It’s a plan Kid. Alara, I want one of the guys to stay over our place tonight please. I don’t like the thought of you being alone.”

“Dad, I’m sixteen, not four.” I answered.

He sighed, “I know Kid but please. Put my mind at ease and make Vasic stay over or something, please.”

“Okay dad. Look after yourself okay?”

“Yeah Kid, you too.” He said before hanging up.

I threw my phone back into my gym bag and picked my shoes up before turning to sit on the seat to put them on.

“Why were you defending your age to dad?” Vasic asked. He often called my father ‘dad’ and the man in question encouraged it.

“He won’t be home again tonight and he wants one of the team to stay over. I think he’s worried about me.”

Vas nodded and his wet hair fell into his eyes. Pushing the hair from his face with a strong hand, he smiled. “He loves you Ari and I’m free so I’ll stay over, okay?”

I nodded, conceding to the men in my life once again.

“It’ll be good anyway. We haven’t had Vas and Ari time in ages. I miss it.”

I smiled at that. “Yeah, I miss it too.” I said as I turned to face him with my shoes successfully on my feet.

The boy still didn’t have a shirt on and unable to resist, I smacked him upside the head. “Hurry up and get a shirt on Vas, let’s get out of here.”

Vas glared at me playfully before standing and moving toward his locker.

“What do you want for dinner?” Vas asked as he walked toward me – fully clothed now.

“Did someone mention food?” Riordan shouted as he walked into the locker room, followed by the remaining members of the team – all shirtless.

Nate, Drew and Riaz all closed their lockers and joined Vasic and I on the bench in front of my locker as we waited for the rest of the team to finish getting ready.