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chapter forty-seven: carried by love, it's so hard
{a/n:
puuhleassee don't be a silent reader!! commenting and voting are greatly appreciated. enjoy :)}
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WHILE NOT TECHNICALLY open so early in the morning (unless Coach Beau is in the godawful mood for 4am practices), Adam long discovered that jigging the lock a certain way and at a certain angle, can in fact open the door to the Westbrook practice arena.
So, the blonde takes advantage of them empty rink for some early morning skating.
Maybe a little more often than he should.
What can he say? He was made for the biting cold.
Adam's not a musician and he's a pretty piss poor painter, but to him, flying across the ice has always been a work of art. He skates idly, twisting and turning freely as he careens across the arena.
He can't help the feeling of pride that bubbles up in his chest as he coasts across the ice, increasing his speed, moving and weaving without second thought.
Adam's never been the smoothest of people. He thinks too much, says too little, and has a way of going unnoticed behind the more vocal personalities of his teammates.
But on the ice...he's someone else entirely.
He's confident and self-assured, but never cocky. He hasn't been cocky since his far-gone Hawk days. When he's on the ice, it's just like magic. Everything clicks. He sees and understands and acts without second guessing himself. He can anticipate any move.
His father has always told him that skills like that will be what separates him from the crowd.
It will be what makes him great.
Times moves effortlessly while on ice and it isn't until he chances a glance at his wristwatch that he sees that nearly an hour has passed and soon the early birds will be getting breakfast at the dining hall.
Adam comes to a quick stop on the ice, the skidding of his skates echoing all around as he greedily breathes in air. He bends and places his hands on his knees, wiping his brow and batting his damp hair out of his eyes. Sweat is now pooling across his chest, armpits and down his neck and he's hot as he stands on the stillness of the rink.
He rotates his neck slowly, groaning as it cracks, loosening up his muscles. He stands and skates back to the bench, throwing himself down as he undo his skates and sinks back into his converse sneakers. He stands, the joints of his knees aching slightly in distress as he books it to the boys' locker room.
He grabs a towel from his locker, strips off his sweaty clothes and pads towards the showers. He is utilitarian in his use of the hot water, washing efficiently and quickly.
Soon enough he's back in his street clothes, water dripping from his hair as he gathers up his belongings and books it out of the arena before Coach Tyson can chance upon him. (The guy is known for skulking about the rink at the most inopportune times.)
The sun has just come up and the sky is a canvas of hues of pink, yellow and purple as the early morning light shines down upon him. The campus is still pretty empty, but a few dedicated joggers are out, Adam nodding to them as they run past him.
Once inside the residence hall, he takes the stairs two at a time and quickly finds himself back in his room. Guy hasn't budged at all in the hour and a half Adam has been gone. He's just an unmoving lump covered by blankets and quilts.
Adam fondly rolls his eyes before dropping his skates and fishing through his wardrobe for a new pair of clothes. He tosses his dirty ones into his laundry basket and changes into khakis and a pale blue quarter-zip that his mother told him accentuated his eyes.
He moves into the bathroom, brushing his teeth and fixing his hair along the way.
By the time he has his backpack slung over his shoulder it's nearly 7am and Guy looks no closer to waking up, if anything he's more asleep if the drooling is anything to go by.
Adam sighs and wishes he was less of a good guy as he walks over to his teammate, shaking his shoulder.
"Guy, c'mon man, get up."
The blond just grunts and burrows himself deeper into his blanket burrito.
"Stop it, Connie," he murmurs as he hugs his pillow, "It tickles."
Okay.
Adam could have gone his entire life without hearing that.
Rolling his eyes, he huffs out a breath and weighs his options. Suddenly an idea comes to him as he smirks wickedly. He bends down, getting close to Guy's ear and attempting his best Orion impression, yells loudly.
"GERMAINE! Get off your lazy ass and give me thirty laps!"
Guy shoots up, nearly bucking Adam in the head as he sits up panting.
"Sir, yes sir, Coach!" he saults crazily as he finally realizes he's awake. He blinks wearily and immediately spots Adam who is doubled over in laughter.
"Oh man!" Adam chokes out as he clutches his stomach, "You should have seen your face."
Guy scowls at his roommate's traumatic wakeup call. "Fuck you, Adam."
Adam is still hollering as he runs to the door and shuts it just in time to narrowly avoid being nailed in the head by one of Guy's pillows. He's wiping tears from his eyes as he travels towards the dining hall to get some much needed breakfast. The dining hall is a low hum of activity as the early risers of Westbrook sit and eat, most sitting alone. Adam moves through the line quickly and stocks up on some breakfast staples before joining his fellow early birds: JJ, Reina, and Grizz.
"Morning, Banks." Reina greets him casually as he parrots it back and digs into his fruit cocktail.
The four engage in small conversation and more of their friends trickle in throughout the breakfast period.
First comes Julie with her hair pulled up into a loose ponytail, tiredly yawning about how hard it going to be to regulate her sleep schedule.
Guy slinks in soon after, flipping Adam the bird as he grouchily begins spearing his scrambled eggs with his fork.
Adam smirks from his spot across the table.
"Okay, now they're getting lazy." JJ bemoans as he sifts through his oatmeal, "Look at it! We deserve better than this grey mush, we're athletes!"
"Babe, be grateful," his girlfriend, Reina, sighs from her spot, "They have to prepare and feed breakfast to hundreds of students in the span of, like, three hours."
"The least they could do is add a little cinnamon."
She scoffs and turns back to Julie to resume their initial conversation they were having before her boyfriend started complaining.
Adam, meanwhile, has been letting his eyes roam the entire dinning hall in search for someone.
He remembers seeing her earlier this morning when he was first on the way to the practice arena.
The boy was lost in his thoughts as he strolled past the outdoor rinks, and it's only a flash of color that broke him out of his daydreams. He'd stopped and saw and lone figure firing pucks at an empty net. Even from the distance, he could see the long, chocolaty brown hair and bright colored windbreaker as the figure continued lobbing pucks into the goal.
Vera was sure dedicated to her craft.
She lives and breathes hockey the same way he does. He respects it entirely.
He watched her absentmindedly with a smile for a few minutes before turning on his heel and continuing on his way back to the indoor arena.
In this moment, he's very regretful of his decision of not going up to her.
"So, Banksy," Guy seems to have gotten over his resentment after getting some food in his stomach. He tips his chin towards Adam, who looks over at him, "how was your Thanksgiving?"
Of course he knows how his Thanksgiving went.
Adam had told him everything.
"Uh, it was normal," redness was already beginning to crawl up his neck, "Uncle Theo tried getting all the kids to drink his 'special juice,' again."
"I'm surprised that guy hasn't been arrested yet," Julie laughs. She's heard her fair share of stories about the bizarre Banks' uncle.
Adam blows out some air, "Oh, he has."
"Multiple times, actually," Guy adds in before going back on track to his original discussion. "So, how was Vera? Did she have a good time?"
The tips of his ears were pink. "I think so. We didn't really do much."
"Pfft, sure."
Adam rolls his eyes before taking a bite of his bacon, mumbling under his breath all the while as Grizz pats his back sympathetically. Guy decides it's best not to push it since it's still a new and sensitive subject.
The remaining time for breakfast goes by quickly and all of a sudden a voice comes booming from the intercom system.
"Will all students please report to the auditorium for a special announcement? I repeat, all students to the auditorium, please."
JJ stretches as he stands, "I wonder if the 'special announcement' has anything to do with Bellucci's daughter coming back."
His remarks are met by chuckles and muttered threats under breaths as they meander their way towards the spacious and opulent designed auditorium. Adam sits himself down in a velvet plus chair in between Julie and Reina as students mill all about in seats in the aisle, chattering away to one another.
All and all, it takes Fallon Bellucci nearly five minutes to bring the room to attention. He stands upon the stage in his tweed blazer and ironed bowtie, the Westbrook faculty and coaches seated behind him.
"Welcome, everyone," The man begins jovially, his grin stretched wide across his face.
"I hope everyone has enjoyed a relaxing holiday and is prepared to get right back on schedule filled with new challenges, opportunities, and of course, hockey!"
A wave of applauds erupt throughout the assembly hall.
"Westbrook has always been fortunate to boast of the many victories of its teams and athletes. We hope that the tradition of excellence will be projected through the eyes of pro and minor league scouts at our upcoming Rochester tournament in December!"
Mr. Bellucci gestures to a small screen behind him, a logo of the 'Deep Freeze' tournament imprinted on the illuminated surface. "We're honored to announce that we've received tips that numerous teams have been looking into our academy and are eager to hand out offers. Some are hoping to find new candidates for the upcoming 1999 draft in the fall!"
By now, the student body is out of control and it's all Mr. Bellucci can do to dismiss them in an orderly fashion as the first round training bell sounds. "Good luck to all!"
Adam stands, swinging up his backpack, and pushes his way out the crowded door.
Although the exciting news bubbles in his mind, he's more worried about finding Vera.
Of course, hockey is his entire life and he's beyond thrilled about the possibility of his lifelong dream coming true but -- he hasn't seen her since dropping her off that one morning in front of her room, his lips softly touching her cheek before she went inside.
And for some reason, finding her seems more important to him than even sparing a thought that he might be playing professionally next fall.
He finally spots her filling up her water bottle at a drinking fountain. He finds himself fixing up his hair and straightening out the hem of his shirt while he walks over, unknowingly trying to make himself look nicer.
"Hi," he says softly, leaning the side of his body against the wall as he stuffs his hands in his pockets.
She gives him a quick glance, smiles, then focuses back on her bottle. "Hey, Ads." she screws the cap back on and turns her whole body to face him.
Adam is nervous.
He's always nervous, it's his nature, but he's never felt this type of nervous.
Man, I am so screwed.
Everything between them has ben cleared off. There's no bad blood holding them back anymore, and everything they say is genuine and real. So, that's why his heart is racing and his palms are sweaty.
"So," she senses what's happening and can't help but smile at his awkwardness. "I was wondering if you'd want to meet up at the library later. Finals are coming up and I haven't started studying like -- at all."
"Uh, yeah!" He internally curses as his voice breaks at his proclamation. He coughs, covering his mouth with a closed fist before speaking again, "Yeah, that would be so fun."
That would be so fun? Okay, smooth, Banks. Real smooth.
Vera is unaware of his internal smackdown as her smile grows wider.
"Perfect," She rocks up to the tips of her toes and presses a soft kiss to his cheek, a hand resting on his chest. "I'll see you there at around 1:30ish? After our first round?"
"Mhm!" The blonde nods with closed lips. He hopes she doesn't notice how hard he's blushing.
But, she does and she giggles. One of her pale hands makes it way to the top of his head, her delicate long fingers ruffling through his sandy blonde hair. "You're adorable."
Adam watches as she parts away from him and starts heading her way down the hall. She feels his gaze and looks over her shoulder, sending him a small wave and mouthing, 'See you soon.'
Almost feeling as if he's under a spell, nods like a bobble head. The boy lifts up a lazy hand and mimics her, the corners of his lips slowly lifting as she turns back around.
He closes his eyes in mortification of how he'd just acted, and bows his head down.
Just kill me how. I can see my headstone already.
RIP
Adam Everett Banks.
Good hockey player, absolutely terrible at talking to girls.
With a disappointed sigh, Adam backs away from the wall. He mentally scratches off his original plans of working on an english paper and makes his way to the gym with all intentions of blowing off steam and preparing himself for their study session later that day.
THE LATE AFTERNOON sun was delightful. It shown into the room with a soft, gentle glow. All was still and calm, a slight buzz swarming the air in the silence.
Perfect for alone time.
They'd started out studying in the library, but Vera kept flicking these cheeky little glances at him under her long, dark lashes and pretending she hadn't, and he decided her lips were better designed for him to nibble on rather than for her when she was confused over a flashcard, and finally they'd both given up trying to concentrate and agreed a nice long study break was necessary if they were going to get anything done today.
So it was up to Adam's room, where they'd settled in on the bed, shed some clothes to get nice and comfortable.
He rests his head on the warmth of her abdomen, idly running his fingertips up and down the curve of her bare legs, watching her skin as it went all goose-pimply. Her underwear today was black, with a velvet red lace edge and a tiny little bow.
That looked interesting, so he shifted slightly, pressed a slow line of kisses along the tempting edge of that lace. Her skin was soft and luscious under his mouth.
"Careful..." she mumbles, but he heard the laughter in her voice.
Adam presses his face down into her tummy, pretending to hide in shame.
Their unspoken rule for their 'study break' was nothing below the waist. This lazy afternoon was theirs alone, just to enjoy each other, to curl up and kiss until their lips were swollen. Clothing was optional.
"Just making sure all's well at the border."
A soft laugh bubbles from her lips, and he could feel the vibrations through her body under his face.
He settled back down, curled an arm around her thighs possessively and closed his eyes to enjoy the bliss of having her all to himself. Just them, nothing needing to be said. Vera's fingers combed through his hair with the softest touch, and he could tell from the slow rhythm of her breathing that she was totally relaxed.
Her stomach contracts suddenly, and he hears her quick, sharp gasp.
"What's wrong?" He glances up at her, but she was tensed up, staring at the door with dismay.
Hayden was standing in the doorway.
Vera froze for a sickening moment as the world came crashing down.
"H-Hayden!"
Adam jumps up the bed, covering her with his arm. "Jesus - what are you doing here!"
His hard gaze moves from Vera to Adam, and for once, his eyes aren't cold. They're livid.
"As I recall, this is my dorm too. What in the hell do you think you're doing?" He demands, low and furious.
"Can you please just get out!"
"I-"
"Dude, get out!" Adam shouts, his anger growing as Hayden continues to stand there, violating their perfect private moment with his presence. Vera flinches a little at his voice. It occurs to him on some level that she's never heard him scream at anyone before today. (Excluding his father.)
She slides out from under him silently, turning her back on them to reach for her clothes on the other side of the bed. Her thin lacy camisole covers a little of her at least, but only a little, and she huddles over to try and cover up.
Finally, after what felt like forever, Hayden hastily grabs his wallet that he'd left on the side table next to the room entrance and leaves, clear he was pissed from the way he slammed the door.
Adam slides both of his hands up his face, sighing harshly as he drops them and turns to her. He licks his lips, glancing down for a moment, "Sorry, I - uh, didn't mean to yell."
"It's okay," she nods just slightly, tone quiet.
She's just confused on why Adam is still so defensive. Yesterday, for example, when he'd brought the boy up and referred to him as her 'boyfriend.' There wasn't a reason, yet he still did it.
Adam senses her confusion and lets a breath fall past his lips. "I know you know that I really don't like him. Just, since I've been here, he's always been on my ass over everything and I guess he just kind of, I don't know, intimidates me?"
Vera almost wants to wave her hand in front of his face and tell him he doesn't have to explain, but she doesn't.
"He's your friend and I have to respect that. He knows you better than I do and it makes me a little uneasy. I'm just annoyed that he just saw you all exposed and might think differently of you so I kinda, maybe got jealous and that's why I yelled. I'm sorry."
The brunette waits a moment before letting out a small chuckle. She crawls a little closer to him as his face squishes together, and slips her way into his lap.
"You really didn't have to explain all of that to me, you know. I even wanted to yell at him." Her arms loop around his neck gently.
His cheeks are red again. "I know, but I wanted to tell you."
Communication is key.
Vera smiles cheekily and places a small peck on the tip of his nose. She curls up in his lap whilst he wraps both of his strong, protective arms around her.
They sit like this for a very long time.
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mari speaks!!
aw so cute! (gets the urge to ruin them again)
guys i won't, i promise...!
i'm only joking. i literally cannot wait to write about their honeymoon phase. you guys are in for a real treat, i have so much planned.
also, next week i should finally be releasing 'your little astronaut' which is my new adam banks fic! i'm actually so excited for it.
just giving you a reminder that i do have an edit account on tiktok. it's almost the same user on here but with a 'p' instead of a 'q'.
@bpnksy so please go check it out!
thank you all for reading! I hope wherever you are, that you all have a blessed day or night commenting and voting are greatly appreciated! they boost my motivation sm
not edited**
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