Page 44 of Rise Above

game. My brain demanded that I show off for her which was also unlike me. I wasn’t a theatrical player. I had a role, and I performed it. Yet, Aife made me want to toss all my norms out the window if it meant her screaming my name in some capacity. Melody hadn’t done that, and if I had more energy, I’d likely examine it.

Zeke poked my shoulder, lathering deodorant onto

his armpit. His goalie gear made him sweat more than the average player. “What’s going on with you, man? Where’s Mr. Calm, Cool, and Collected?”

“Enamored by a woman,” Chris said as he laced up

his skates. He eyed me intensely. “He’s got the look in his eye like he needs to impress someone.”

I stared at my captain, hating his ability to read

people. He was a natural pest like Zeke, and it showed in the way Chris analyzed everything. He had an innate talent for getting under people’s skin which could be good or bad. Today, it felt bad.

“That’s… not…” I trailed off.

“Eh, lie to Zeke and me all you want, but don’t

deny it to yourself or me. There’s a hot chick in the stands that you wanna impress. Happens to us all.” Chris looked up at me and smirked. His eyes twinkled like he knew a secret I didn’t.

My goalie glared at me, clearly a little hurt that I

wasn’t talking to him about my feelings. “Aife?”

“Fuck. Am I really that obvious?” I pulled my

gloves on and grabbed my stick. Zeke followed suit.

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“Basically from the moment we met her,” Zeke

said, throwing on his knee pads.

Shaking my head, I followed my team out onto the

ice. We were playing Toronto, and I was desperate to win. One, because I wanted to show off for Aife. Two, because I was insanely competitive and treated every game like the Stanley Cup. Tonight, I was out for blood or, at least, some solid goals. I had a girl to impress whether I wanted to admit that aloud or not, I could at least say it to myself.

We took our positions on the ice, and I quickly

scanned the seats for Aife and Davis. They sat front row, near our bench. She looked stunning in my jersey, and I could definitely get used to seeing her like that. Focusing back on the game, I popped my neck and waited for the whistle. Scowl on. Let the game begin.

The whistle sounded and fire seemed to enter my

veins. This was a game that I knew we were going to win. The Chaos Coliseum was chaotic with energy. The air felt electric, like the slightest movement would ignite the crowd. I loved it; I thrived on it. Fuck, I craved it. Hockey demanded this kind of fanatical energy and attitude. Tonight, it just seemed to be off the charts, and it felt amazing.

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CHAPTER 7: DARLING

AIFE

Something was different compared to my previous

visit to the Chaos Coliseum; the arena nearly felt alive with the way the crowd was acting. It was indescribable. So much of me wanted to watch the crowd instead of the game. People watching was so fun for me, but the game was truly mesmerizing. TJ, in particular, seemed to be on fire. I didn’t really know much about hockey still, and yet, my eyes couldn’t leave the rink.