437PSYCH! New chapter!
The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don't play together, the club won't be worth a dime." Babe Ruth
Chapter 2: Country Livin'
Saturday, October 18th
Connor's POV
Crash.
"Don't touch that."
Thunk.
"That's not the right-"
Bang.
"STOP!" a voice screeched out, jarring me from my slumber. I didn't know who it was or how much pain I would have to inflict, but whoever it was, they would pay. First they had the nerve to drag me to the middle of nowhere and now they won't let me rest.
"What the hell is going on?" I demanded as I sat up in the lounge chair. I tried to see who the culprits were but the sun hit me directly in the eyes.
"Go back to sleep. It's nothing," a voice closely resembling Tom's assured me.
"Don't listen to him," another voice cried out. "That's not how you do it. You can't fix the engine by," the second voice trailed off.
Tom groaned. "Shit."
My eyes finally adjusted to the light and I was finally able to pick out the two figures standing about twenty feet away from me. Tom, covered in grease, was looking under the hood of an old red tractor and Jack, with his flaming red hair, was standing nearby with a grim look on his face. Despite the fact that Tom was a pretty good mechanic, he's spend his entire life in New York City and this was probably the first time he's ever been that close to said machine.
"I told you not to do that," Jack groaned, resting his elbows on the edge of the tractor. Curious, I got up from my lounge chair and made my way over to them. After a brief glance under the hood, I could see the reason behind Jack's frustration. Half of the hoses had been disconnected and a brown liquid was oozing out of the hose that Tom held in his left hand. Now, I was no mechanic, but I knew that it could not be a good sign.
Both guys gave me a quick nod, acknowledging my presence, but continued with their bickering.
"You did nothing of the sort," Tom argued, grabbing a rag and stuffing it into one of the leaking hoses.
Jack looked livid. "I told you to stop," he paused and looked over at me. "Madison, you're my witness."
Luckily, I knew better then to get in the middle of their arguments. Tom and Jack were complete opposites and over the years, it seemed as if they were always at each other's throats- it was always best to just let them duke it out for themselves because chances were, they would get over it. One minute they would be arguing over who was the last one to finish the cocoa puffs and the next minute they would be sitting out on the porch, drinking beers, and coming up with new game strategies.
I shot Jack a look. "There's no way I am getting involved in this." The ride down to West Virginia was pure hell being stuck in a car with Jack was torture. Every five minutes he would either be bouncing up in down in his seat or asking us the dreaded question of 'are we there yet?' Brian and I were tempted to find a gas station to stop at to pick up a muzzle but Alex wholly protested. Unfortunately, she won.
By the time we had finally reached Jack's house, it was late so we got ourselves settled for the night and crashed. We all woke up late and the majority of the guys decided to explore the farm. Jack, Tom, and I decided to stay behind, mostly because we overslept and everyone left without us.
But whatever, I really wasn't in the mood to go hiking anyway. I was completely satisfied with taking a nap in the sun, or I was until I was rudely awoken.
"Here," Tom mumbled as he grabbed a screwdriver off the bumper, "let me try something else."
Jack tensed up immediately. "No. I've told you about a hundred times already. THE. TRACTOR. AIN'T. BROKEN. It's don't need fixin'." Jack was never one to let someone else touch his belongings.
"It don't don't it?" Tom countered with a short laugh.
"No," Jack glared at him; clearly annoyed that someone once again was poking fun of his accent. But then again, when you say things like getting the cow out of the ditch and butter my butt and call me a biscuit, you can't do anything but poke fun.
"Just give me a second," he muttered as he used all of his strength to remove the two rusted screws that bolted a piece into the engine. "I swear this should do the trick."
"Tom," Jack warned, glancing up at me, hoping I would back him up.
I shook my head and Tom waved him off with his free hand. Neither of us wanted to egg Jack on. "Just trust me on this," Tom said, leaning back over the engine and gentle pulled the round object from the engine. Oil started gushing out.
Jack nearly turned white. "Last time you told me that, we all ended up in jail."
"I got us out didn't I?" he smirked. Tom, while being a good guy, had a horrible habit of getting into trouble, especially when a female was involved. The only positive was that he also had an uncanning ability to charm his way out of it and thus saved our asses on multiple occasions.
"No, don't touch that," Jack cried out as Tom pulled out yet another hose.
"Look country boy," Tom growled, his patience starting to wear thin, "I know what I'm doing."
Jack took a step back but didn't back away from the argument, He knew as well as I did that Tom suffered from the male version of PMS and changed moods at the snap of a finger. Jack knew that when Tom was really pissed, his face would be red and he would be inches away from your face.
There was about five feet between the two bodies. I'd say we were safe.
"So now you're insulting me by calling me a country boy?" Jack retorted. "Do I look like a country boy to you?"
"Look around," Tom waved his hand gesturing the fields surrounding us. "I'd say the shoe fits."
"What do shoes have to do with this?"
"And you're worried about me screwing this up, aw, shit," he cried out again. I glanced down and saw the same brown liquid now gushing out of the hole left vacant by the piece in Tom's hand.
Jack was physically refraining from smacking Tom upside the head. "Let me guess, that wasn't suppose to happen either?"
I chuckled. "I thought you were a mechanic?" I piped in however, Tom quickly sent me a glare that made me regret my words.
"I am. I've just never fix a tractor before."
"It ain't broke," Jack pleaded. He finally lost control, knocked Tom out of the way, and started reconnecting hoses but it was obvious that he had no idea where any of them went.
Tom hovered behind him, cringing at Jack's every move. "It makes a clanking sound whenever the engine runs," he pointed out.
"It's been doing that for years now. It's fine, it still works."
"Jack, how many times have I told you, if you don't fix it now, it will just break down in the next few weeks, and since this is your main tractor, your family will be screwed."
"And how many times do I have to tell you, it has been functioning that way for years" Jack paused, glancing back under the hood. "Or had been, before you decided to go and break it."
"I didn't decide to. It was a mistake and if you would just—"
"A mistake that should've never happened." Jack interrupted. "And now we need to bring it to the shop."
"Just give me few minutes," Tom muttered. "I'll get it back up to speed."
"Step away from the tractor," Jack threatened but after a few moments, a grin spread across his face as he eagerly looked over at me. "I've always wanted to say that line."
Tom rolled his eyes. "Glad I could make your dreams come true."
"There's still a few left. Fair to take a gander?"
"Jack?"
"Yes?"
"Shut your mouth before I push you in the watering hole," he threatened; however, his tone was light as well. I called it right?
Jack did a 360. "Watering hole? There ain't no hole 'round here."
"I thought this was the country?"
"It is. Still doesn't mean there's a waterin' hole. Just like we don't have any wanderin' bull. They are all stereotypes, as in not real."
Tom rested his hands on the edge of the tractor. "Maybe you're not real?" he finally replied.
Jack and I both laughed. "Maybe you need to work on your comebacks?"
Tom scratched his head. "That was pretty lame wasn't it?"
"Not your best."
"Give me a second to think."
"Just a second?" Jack jabbed.
Tom just shook his head and bent his head to continue working on the tractor. Within minutes, he had managed to correctly reconnect the hoses and the oil had stopped leaking.
Jack shot Tom another look and I could feel another argument coming on. Hoping to head it off, I changed the topic. "Are we still playing tonight?" Jack had mentioned playing a scrimmage earlier today and I was itching to get back on the ice. Yesterday's practice did not end on a good note so I was determined to get in some more time on the ice. Maybe this change of scenery would do me some good.
"Yeah, everything is all setup. A kid I played with in school is going to be our second goalie, he plays for the Rockford IceHogs and I got a buddy of mine to ref so we can have a somewhat official game. We should be able to manage a three on three game, as long as we can convince Alex to play."
The pair of them snickered and Tom elbowed me in the gut, and not gently either. "I'm sure Madison here can convince her."
"What is that suppose to mean?"
"Nothing at all," he held his tongue. "And look, speak of the angel."
We all turned are heads and sure enough, Alex was walking down the path towards us. "Dinner's ready." She must have been helping Jack's mom prepare dinner because she had traces of flour in her hair. She looked adorable.
Tom drops the engine piece carelessly on the ground, grabs Alex's shoulder and starts pulling her back to the door. Halfway back, Alex twists away from him, muttering something about the grease.
I laughed before turned back to Jack, who had his brows raised. I wished I had enough sense to tag along with Tom and Alex because Jack had his let's talk about Alex face. Only he and Banks had the nerve to bring up the topic and I usually did my best to avoid it, but I wasn't going to be so lucky right now.
"So," he began, "how did she convince you to come anyways?"
In the beginning, my defense was to always avoid the subject. A chance of topic, dodging the question, or simply walking away always did the trick. However, as time past, they got smarter and I knew that ignoring them was not healthy. Jack had a tendency to get more physical on the ice when I was pissing him off and with a pickup game tonight, I was not looking forward to the addition bruises. "Have you ever been able to say no to her?" I told him honestly. "She has us all wrapped around her finger." And it was the truth as over time, we had all developed a soft spot for everything involving Alex.
"What's going on with you two right now?" he asked and I let out another groan. This was definitely a conversation I wasn't really in the mood to have.
I'll be the first to admit that yes, I do like Alex and I have pretty much since the day I met her. She was smart, charming, and beautiful. She knew the game of hockey as much as the rest of us and was passionate about the game.
But despite all of this, there was no way in hell I was going to make a move on her because in my mind, she was off limits. Al was one of my best friends and the heart of the team and I would never want to mess with that. Besides all this, she wasn't interested. "Nothing," I glared at him, begging him to drop the subject.
A mischievous grin spread across Jack's face and I knew I was in trouble. "You know, she's been single for a few months now. Ever since Jason I believe."
I shrugged my shoulders, already well aware of this fact. Ever since we have known her, Alex has always been in a relationship. Some would last a few weeks while others a few months, but none of them were ever serious. It seemed as if there was something always holding her back from fully committing but we haven't been able to figure out what it was. And it wasn't our place to ask about it. We were allowed to beat these jerks up when they messed with her, but whenever we tried to interfere, she cut us out of her life for a few weeks. After a while, we just stopped trying.
"And your point is?"
"It just weird," he shrugged. "She's always been bouncing from one guy to another, and now, she's not."
I throw the greasy rug at him. "Just drop the subject. The food is going to be cold if we keep arguing this ridiculous topic."
And, with the mention of food, Jack's demeanor completely changed and he flashed me a grin. "Don't want that. I think momma made dumplings tonight."
Jack bounced down the path, not bothering to check to see if I was following. That was another thing about Jack—he loved food.
Alex's POV
My passion for the game came from my father and as a child; I played in every league that would accept females. From the smell of the ice to the cold nipping at your nose—I loved everything about being on the ice, stick in hand, and my only mission was to put the puck in the goal. There was a time where all I wanted to do was to play hockey.
It seemed like all the stars were aligning to point me in the direction of my goal. My father owned the town ice rink, coached on the side, and allowed me to sneak onto the ice whenever it was free. My mother was a figure skater who taught lessons to various age groups at various levels and in her spare time, taught me how to skate.
Unfortunately, the dream quickly faded as reality set in. I was twelve when my mom was diagnosed with stage three cancer and she died the following the summer. I stopped dreaming of being a hockey player and started living in the moment. I didn't pick up another pair of skates for years.
My father did everything he could think of to make sure that my passion for hockey never died. Like a religion, every Sunday night, he would force me to join him in the living room and watch whichever NHL game was highlighted for the week. He dragged me along to countless games that he coached, and in the beginning, I sat at the end of the bench in protest.
But as the years went on, my resistance disappeared and I found myself falling in love all over again. I knew it was too late to ever have a professional career so I looked into alternative jobs that would allow me to stay as close to the action as possible and a sports trainer just seemed to fit the bill.
When it came time to select a college, I knew that I had to stay local for my dad so I picked the closest university that would still give me everything I wanted it. Luckily Kensington had a kick ass hockey team to match.
Charming the players had been the easy part, but hiding the fact that I once aspired to play was the hard part. It wasn't that I was ashamed; I just couldn't find the words to explain everything. They just assumed that I somehow picked up the game after watching it for so many years. Kind of lame, yes, but they are guys after all so they will pretty much believe anything.
I laced up my skates, preparing for my first proper game of the season. It was rare that the guys let me play with them, mostly because they liked beating up on each other and were afraid that I would get hurt in the process. Last year, before the season even started, I wormed my way into a pickup game between the guys and locals and ended up with a broken wrist and ever since then, they left me with two options—coach or sit on the sidelines.
So let's just say I was beyond excited to get out on the ice.
I tighten my skate and raced out to center ice where most of the guys were gathered. "Can I play defense?" I piped in, not really caring that I was probably was interrupting whatever they were talking about.
Connor and Jack just rolled their eyes at me. I knew my chances were slim but I was in the mood to play defense. The guys were always easier on me when I played offense so it was never really fair in the first place. "Al," Connor began, "you know that you suck on defense."
I didn't bother to deny his words. "Offense is boring though," I protested, "I can only steal the puck away from you guys so much and score on Banks before it gets boring."
"Oh hardy har. You better watch your mouth." Jack, who was standing on my left, elbowed me in the gut and because I wasn't expecting it, Connor, on my right, grabbed my shoulder to prevent me from toppling over.
"Come on guys," Jay piped in, "she can barely stand up straight, how the hell can she play defense?" And instead of replying to him, I merely raised my middle finger. He was a prick and was the one guy on the team who I never really got along with.
"Enough," Ryan shouted starling all of us as we all assumed that he was in his own world as he had been skating laps for the majority of the conversation. "Are we going to play or what?"
"Jay, Tom, and Ryan verses Jack, Alex and me," Connor said after a few minutes thus fulfilling his rightly duty as captain and taking charge.
I glanced over at Jay and he seemed pretty content with the teams, but then again, he would be happy with any team as long as it didn't involve me. As much as I tried, I never figured out the cause his hatred but I had come to a point where I just didn't care anymore. It was a well known fact that we did not get along and thus we've spend the last three years avoiding each other as much as possible, a situation we were both perfectly happy with.
In fact, the only person who seemed bothered by it was Connor and thus felt it was his personal duty to keep us apart as much as possible, and this game was just case and point.
We broke off into our respective teams and gathered at the blue line to discuss our game strategy. I quickly noted that our goalie was Jack's friend before turning back to the boys.
"Why did you stick us with Alex," Jack immediately protested, directing the comment towards Connor. Unlike Jay, I knew he was just teasing. "And since we're stuck with a forward who can't shoot, it looks like I have to carry this team to victory."
My eyes quickly darted over to Connor's to see if he was affected by the comment but his expression remained unchanged. "Jack," I open my mouth to protest but one glare from Connor and I quickly closed it.
"Jacko," Tom yelled from across the ice, "I hate to break it to you but I think that your fan club just arrived." We all turned around and sure enough, about twenty people had gathered on the bleachers, fully decked out in Kensington colors and sporting Jack's number 47.
"What? Oh them," he laughed. "I guess I better go over and say hi."
"Old Jackie boy has fans after all," Jay yelled after him. "It's a miracle."
This time, I wasn't able to bite my tongue. "Jay, play nice," I barked, tempted to go over there and smack him on the back of his head.
Connor, who was still by my side, groaned and pulled on my arm dragging me over to the bench. "I need you to play offense," he repeated, his voice softer. "Here, take this and I'll let you take the face-offs."
I shrugged as he skated away. It seemed like a fair trade, especially since we both knew that Jay was playing offense and Connor wanted to get me as far away from him as possible. And from the looks of it, Tom would be taking the face-offs for the other team, and despite leading the league in face-offs; he always at least gave me a chance.
As Jack returned to the ice, I glanced down at the shinny red helmet that Connor had shoved in my hands. My fingers briefly traced the 17 painted in gold lettering on the back before quickly shoving it on my head and adjusting the chinstrap. No one else was wearing one but I knew there was no way hell he would allow me to play if I didn't comply.
Ahh, sorry for playing the nasty trick on you all with the title chapter that was send to your inboxes (those who have me on alert). But I figured it would be a lovely surprise since I know none of you were expecting any type of update from this story anytime soon.
I apologize if this chapter was not up to pare, because frankly, even though I was happy with it, I wasn't completely thrilled by it. The scene with Jack and Tom has been written ever since I decided to rewrite this story (and in fact it was suppose to be opening paragraphs) but I felt it just wasn't as powerful and captivating as what is there now. I just really felt that I needed to get this chapter out to continue on with the story, and actually get back to the plot line, and the characters we all fell in love with, myself included. Also, I apologize for any grammar mistakes and whatnot, I seemed to have lost my beta but more on that below.
On a more personal note: I've been doing a lot of writing as of lately and I have some new stories on the site, my most recent being Another Chance. I also decided to revive Live in Fifteen as well I'm continuing to post in Just There. For those of you who are too lazy to go to my author profile, I'm going to do some shameless plugging below.
Another Chance: College never agreed with Sophie Hunter, but for James Carson, it was a walk in the park. Can he convince her that college is truly the best four years of her life?
Just There: Julie always fell for the wrong guy. She's dated enough jocks, jerks, and jackasses to last a lifetime. When she meets Matt, he's all three rolled into one. But then again, he can also be very caring, extremely charming, and incredibly sweet.
Live in Fifteen: Dan Johnson and Kate Cullen have been friends since birth and in two months time, they will be attending different colleges on different sides of the country. Dan's afraid. Kate's excited. But with tensions high, will their friendship last until then?
In addition to this, I also have a blog that I've been posting weekly updates in so if you want to check out my status on anything, you can find it here.
I'm also looking for a new beta, someone who is a little more proactive and is willing to kick me in the ass from time to time and yell at me to write. The only criteria that I have is that you're at least 17 and you've had some experience betaing in the past (and that you love my stories). I'm not sure if you'll just be working on OTI or I'll pull you into helping on all my stories, but that will be determined at a later date. So, if you are interested, drop me a PM or email saying why you think you are qualified and we'll go from there
Also- I have lost track to whose reviews I have replied to and whose I did not. I try to reply to everyone, although, I sunk into a writing depression a few months ago so I ignored everyone. My deepest apologies and I promise that I will never do it again. I will get back to you this time (unless it's anonymous).
Sorry for the long note once again, but it's been about eight months so I had a lot to say. I'm hoping I can have the next chapter up a lot quicker.
As always, please feel free to drop me a line if you have any question/comments/concerns (I love hearing from you guys) and like I said, check out my blog for more info.
Alex
xxxooox