Lia
"Hey Lia." A boy says from behind me. Colton drops his gloves and shoves Jake to the ground, "you might want to control your hoes."
That lit my head on fire. I turn my whole body around and glare at the kid my jaw clenching as well as my fist.
"Get your facts straight before you want to start an argument." I say. The kid not being intimidated by the slightest.
I hear my dads whistle go off. Right then my aggression gets to me and I swing a punch to the kids stomach and he immediately doubles over grunting and coughing.
"I'm going to be nice and give you a few seconds to zip your damn mouth and walk away." My hot breath fanning out my mouth.
He looks up at me bent over with some fear in his eyes and just nods as his friend drags him away. A shock of pain flashes in my knuckles. That's the first time I've ever intentionally punched someone.
I turn around and find my dad, uncle Monty, and one of the stripes dragging Colton and Jake off the ice. The time paused.
"Well this wasn't a very good game." Molly says.
I cross my arms and walk over to the bench. Without my dad's permission, Molly and I step in.
"Lia, you're not allowed in here." My dad says, his face red with anger.
"I don't care." I talk back, my anger not matching his.
I grab Colton's shirt in a fist and drag him to one side of the bench. With all my might I slam him against the glass and he only hits it softly.
"What the hell are you doing?" I ask. Our eyes meet and neither of us feel intimidated or awkward.
Colton sucks in his bottom lip and breath out through his nose.
"Are you Just not gonna answer me?" I release my grip on his shirt but keep my arm against his chest.
"I'm trying to win against our rivals here." He says after a long moment.
"By beating up your co-captain?" I raise my eyebrows at him.
"He's getting in my way."
"He's on Your team."
"Coach your time out is almost up." Stripes interrupts.
Feels like it should've been up seconds ago.
"Shit." My dad says hitting his clipboard.
"Lia. Let me go." Colton says pushing my arm off him.
"If you do something stupid again. I won't hesitate!" To do what? I don't know.
"To what? Break up with me? Awe man. I'll make it easy for you. I'm breaking up with you. Bye." He turns around and stalks to my dad.
I stand there with my lips parted. I feel more angry than sad. I see Colton throw his hands up in the air as he's told he's being sent to the sin bin.
Once he skates off the ice, I walk over to my dad. The stripes huddled together having an intense conversation even though our time should have been up by now.
"I'm afraid to say anything in case I jinx it." My dad says in a low voice.
I press my lips together in a thin line and cross my arms. This has to be the worst game ever.
"We never lose!" One of the players say.
One of the stripes skate back to my dad. He is dragging Jake by his jersey.
"I hate to say it coach." He begins and my dad winces. "But we're going to have to eject them."
My dad's hand goes up to his forehead and he rubs his temple.
"Okay." Is all he says.
Worst game ever.
_____
Colton and I both sit in the locker room alone. Our bodies turned away from each other as much as they will allow as I clean his knuckles that are split open.
"I'm probably going to never be captain again after this game." He says shaking his head.
I don't reply. Instead, I hold down the alcohol wipe on his cut.
"Fuck. What the hell Lia!" He says batting my hands away and holding his hand close to him.
I look anywhere but his face.
"Do you want me to help you or not?" I say.
"I can clean my knuckles myself. I barely even have a scratch on my face. So I really don't need your help."
"Tell that to your blood stained nose and gash in your eyebrow." I cross my legs away from him. "You've never even used your own first aid kit."
"It can't be that hard." He says wiping his knuckles. "This hurts."
"You pretty much did this to yourself." I shrug.
"Yeah cause Jake's a bitch." He scoffs.
"I don't understand. Why was it so hard for you guys to share?" I throw my head back frustrated.
"I'll share the damn puck with him any day, Lia." He pauses what he's doing and looks at me, "but I'm not sharing you with anyone." His blue eyes are dark with anger.
"So that whole thing that happened on the ice wasn't about the fact that he had the puck?"
"What do you think?"
I roll my eyes and shake my head. Childish.
"You really are ridiculous, Colton."
"Sorry I didn't like the fact that someone was flirting with my girlfriend." He goes back to cleaning himself up.
"I didn't like it either but you don't see me beating him up." I scoff. "Don't act like I'm also okay with the fact that you were talking to Christina."
"Yeah I was just talking to her." He looks up at me with his eyebrows pulled together.
"And you've kissed her before. For all I know you've stuck your dick in her." I sigh. "Now the poor girl probably has the wrong idea."
Colton drops the wipe and swings one leg over the bench so his whole body is facing me. He moves so close to me I can feel his breath fan the side of my face.
"I'll make sure she doesn't have the wrong idea." He gently places a hand under my chin and turns my head to look at him, "I want to make sure everyone knows that you are mine." He growls.
"I'm sorry." I let out a dry laugh, "but didn't you just break up with me?"
He throws his head back frustrated.
"I was angry."
"You're still angry now." I point out the obvious.
"Shut up, Lia." He drops his hand from my face but I don't break eye contact.
"And I know you're angry with me because you're using my nickname, Lia." All of a sudden tears start forming in my eyes.
Ah stupid crybaby Lia.
I feel more angry than anything though.
I can see Colton's eyes soften and his body relax. He licks his lips as his eyes travel down my face.
"Baby." He breaths out, "I don't hate you though." He brings his hands up and wipes my tears away.
"You're so confusing me right now." I turn my head away from him.
"How?" I can see him tilt his head out of the corner of my eye.
"Are we actually broken up? How mad are you at me?" I let out a shaky breath.
"No we're not broken up." He pauses for a moment. "I just hate that you're looking at me like I'm the bad guy."
"Because you beat people up for the littlest reasons and sometimes no reason at all." I try to keep my voice steady.
"I just want to protect you."
A laugh forms in my throat.
"You act like I'm some vulnerable deer on the side of the road." I uncross my legs but keep my body pointed away from him.
"I mean after seeing you at the hospital like that. Hell yeah I'm gonna think like that." He raises his voice slightly.
"I'm recovering Colton. And if you want to help me recover stop treating me like a child!" I spring up onto my feet and look down at him. "And stop using the excuse that you want to protect me to beat people up."
"I need some space right now." He gets up and walks into the bathroom.
I wipe away my angry tears and walk out of the locker room feeling hot headed.
He can clean himself up. I don't care.
_____
"That was an interesting game." Toby says getting into my car with his hockey stuff piled in the back.
"Did you talk to him?" Molly asks as she buckles herself in.
I just nod.
"Saw him in the locker room. He didn't look very happy."
I just give Toby a shrug.
"So are you guys broken up?" Molly asks.
I pull my car out of the parking space.
I shake my head.
"He says he just needs some space." I say in a mocking tone.
"We should have a sleepover tonight!" Toby says excitedly.
"We have school tomorrow." Molly reminds him.
"Boo hoo I'm an adult I can get myself ready." He scoffs.
"Do you have clothes to wear tomorrow?" I ask both of them.
"Hey Lia?" Toby begins, "can we stop by my house really quick?" He asks innocently.
"Yes." I drag out the yes. "Molly, you can just wear my clothes."
"Figures." She shrugs.
_____
We all sit at my kitchen table working on our own blank pictures that are in the process of being colored.
"That's a nice teddy bear coach." Toby says leaning over his sheet of paper to look at my dads.
"I like your..." my dad pauses. Turning his head all sorts of directions and morphing his face all over trying to decide what Toby is coloring. "An alligator? Shark? Dog with fins?"
"Nice try but it's a dinosaur."
"Try sticking to coloring inside the lines." Molly says.
I look away from my half colored flower to Toby's paper.
"Stop making fun of him. I think it actually looks good." It is actually pretty good. For someone who isn't very artistic.
"Thank you, Lia." He goes back to coloring.
"Did you talk to him Lia?" My dad asks.
"Yes I did. I don't think he's going to be talking to me for a while."
"Boys." Molly shakes her head.
_____
I angrily slap Toby with a pillow. He immediately shoots up into a sitting position.
"Morning!" Molly says poking her head out of the bathroom.
Toby grumbles and rubs his eyes.
A big fat air mattress takes up half my floor space.
"There's many other bathrooms in this house you can use to get ready." I tell Toby.
Toby grumbles again and gets up off the mattress, stumbling as he does so. He grabs his stuff and walks out the room.
"I hate waking up at the crack of dawn to go to school. It's pointless." I walk into my bathroom and grab my toothbrush.
"And it's only Tuesday." Molly places her newly opened and used toothbrush in the toothbrush holder.
I feel physical pain thinking about that fact that it is in fact only Tuesday.
"I think you should dress cute today. Give Colton something to look at." She smirks.
"If you can find something. I'll wear it."
Now Molly is going to make it her mission.
_____
"I feel like I need to hide or something." I say self conscious about myself.
"I think you look very good." Kylie says.
I'm wearing flannel pants with a white sweater. And paired it with some basic white converse. My hair natural as it always is.
"I feel extra." I admit.
"You act it sometimes." Toby says.
"Don't think I won't shove my fists in your face." I wave a fist in front of his face.
"I know you will so I will shut up now." He purses his lips.
"Well here I go. Starting off my day." I exhale and walk to my first class with Toby.
We walk in and as usual the teacher isn't here yet. I immediately catch Jake's eye which makes me uncomfortable.
I walk past him and luckily he didn't make a comment and just gave me a small smile. I notice a bandaid on his nose and a bruise on his jaw.
I sit down next to Toby and prepare for a long day.
__________
•End•