Pucking Fantastic

Chapter 16: You Don't Have

Look out for the<>!

I have this nasty pain in my neck that hasn't gone away in a few days. I was hoping that writing would help. I'm not sure it did, but enjoy!

I woke up to my alarm going off. With a yawn, I stretched and got out of bed, putting my skating pants on and slipping on a loose over-sized T-shirt that I probably stole from one of my brothers, then walked out my bedroom door.

My mind flashed back to all the tests that I had to get done the day before. I sniffed my hair, convinced that I still smelt like a hospital, but today being Tuesday, I was ready to get back into the groove of skating. I was not about to let my diagnosis be my prison.

I walked down the stairs and saw my mom sipping coffee in her PJs. She wasn't ready, but we had to leave in ten minutes. "Mom, what are you doing?" I asked as I poured myself a glass of water.

Mom looked up at me from her phone, slightly confused as she looked at my outfit. "I was thinking you would rest today."

I shook my head, knowing that wouldn't happen. I needed to show my face at the rink again or people would question my health. "No. I did that yesterday. I want to skate today and go back to school."

She tapped her manicured nails on the wooden dining room table in thought. But I could tell she wasn't happy with my response.

"Mom, I made it to nationals. I need to train," I said with a sigh, reminding her of the importance of going.

She knew as much I did I couldn't take days off. Every moment counted when Nationals was only a few months away. "Ok. Let me get ready." She stood up from her chair, then walked back upstairs to change her outfit.

Within minutes, we were in the car, driving to the rink. "I don't want you to push it too much. Ok? Maybe skate only an hour instead of two this morning," she said to me as she drove her black SUV.

I nodded, although I didn't want to listen to her. Honestly, I probably would still skate two hours, she just wouldn't know that I did. "Sure," I lied.

"So I was told we'll get the test results tomorrow."

I was silent as those words rattled around in my empty mind, wishing she didn't bring that up. I rather not know what they found. The three-word diagnosis was enough, and I needed nothing to add to that.

"I'm hopeful that there's nothing to be concerned about at the current moment," she said, trying to make conversation.

I looked out the window, hoping that she would get the hint that I wanted to end the conversation. I didn't want to talk about this, instead I wanted her to drop the topic, not wanting to be reminded about the tests or anything else about why I passed out. I just wanted to move on with my life as if nothing happened. "Yeah," I said simply as she pulled into the rink. Thank goodness. "Well, I'll see you this evening."

"I love you, Ellis," she said with sincerity.

"I love you too," I said as I grabbed my things from the trunk of her car. "Bye." I waved to her one more time before walking into the rink lobby.

As I stepped in to the cold rink, for a moment, I felt like I could breathe clearly. For a second, it was like everything that had happened the past few days didn't.

I saw Cami jumping rope in the lobby's corner, but as we made eye contact; she stopped jumping instantly with a frown. I knew her well enough to read her mind. She had a million questions that she would want me to answer.

I walked up to her and forced a smile. I didn't want to answer any of her questions, but there was no way of avoiding her any longer. It wasn't like I could ignore a conversation like I could a text. "Hey."