Page 12 of Puck You
“We can stay here,” I suggested.“I’ll meet you in my room in a few minutes.”
Kate pressed a soft kiss to my check before she disappeared into the house.The past few weeks had gone much better than I’d expected.My knee was feeling strong, the team was shaping up to be unstoppable, and I was keeping up with classes.Life hadn’t gone this well for me since before the injury.But every time I felt high on hockey, Kate was there to drag me down.It was complicated, feeling both gratitude and overwhelming frustration toward the person I trusted the most.She was the reason I was here now, but I wasn’t sure that was enough.Not anymore.
Chapter 4
Grace
Someone had taken a sledgehammer to my head.That someone was me, and that sledgehammer was five tequila shots downed in the span of twenty minutes.With deep regret for my late-night decisions, I heaved myself up and into a sitting position and tried to piece together my memories of the evening.After running into Sebastian at the hockey house, my planned two-drink cap had gone out the window.It was all I could do to forget that smug expression he wore like a badge of honor.
Head pounding, I stumbled out of my bedroom and into the kitchen.Pearson and Big D were passed out in the living room, the former on the sofa and the latter splayed out across the floor in front of the TV.I was pleasantly surprised to find Lydia awake, nursing a cup of coffee.She didn’t hesitate to grab another mug and fill it for me.
“Thank you,” I whispered, grabbing the creamer from the fridge.
“No need to whisper,” she said with a chuckle.“Those two can sleep through a tornado warning.”
I closed my eyes as the hot liquid warmed my stomach.After taking another long sip, I filled an empty glass with water and drained it in a single go.
“How are you feeling?”she asked, and I let out a low groan in answer.“I figured that might be the case.You probably should have stopped at the fourth shot.”
“I shouldn’t have had a single shot.”Letting loose every now and then was fun, but last night had been a desperate attempt torid my mind of one frustratingly handsome hockey player.
“Do you remember everything?”she asked.
My cheeks heated under her teasing smile, and I nodded.
“Honestly, everything you said was spot-on.I agree wholeheartedly.”
Before I could reply, Caroline appeared at the edge of the kitchen wrapped in her fluffy pink robe.“You agree with what?”she asked.
“Grace’s drunken rant about the power of protest.”
The discussion had sprung from an unfortunate conversation with a guy named Landon, who ate up at least five minutes of my time bragging about the perks of DuLane Arena.I’d been close to pouring my drink on him when Lydia rescued me.After that, I spent the rest of the night scheming ways to right our ridiculously unfair training conditions.
Caroline poured herself a cup of coffee and hummed in agreement.“You did have some good ideas.Enough to convince those two to come back and make plans,” she said, gesturing to our still sleeping teammates.
Though the end of the night was a bit blurry, I distinctly remembered sitting around the coffee table with a whiteboard and several bags of chips.I could have sworn Caroline took notes as we shouted out different ideas.
“Gate-crashing the men’s fundraiser would be epic, but it could get you in big trouble,” said Caroline.
According to Pearson, the fundraiser took place at the Vincent Hotel every year.She’d be attending with her boyfriend, who worked as the team’s student manager.This year, they would be honoring the man who’d funded DuLane Arena.He’d put millions of dollars into rebuilding the facility, one that only the malehockey players got access to.It felt like the perfect opportunity to make a stand.
“If we expose the disparity of the training conditions between the men’s and women’s programs, it could bring about the change we need.There will be a lot of important people attending that gala,” I argued.
“If you sneak into a private event and disrupt it, it could get you into hot water with the university,” Caroline warned.“I want you to be sure you’re okay with taking this risk.”
If I were being honest with myself, I didn’t have much experience when it came to taking risks, at least not when it came to my future.Following the rules was second nature to me.But rules were meant to ensure a sense of rightness, and nothing about this situation was right, or fair.What did it matter if I got to play hockey when our practice conditions made training miserable?We deserved better, and so did all the women who would come after us.This was something that I had the power to fix.If there was any chance to make a change or start a conversation, I wanted to be part of it.
“I’m willing to do it,” I said confidently.“I just need help getting into the venue and documenting everything.”
The three of us turned to the living room, where Pearson was curled up on the sofa.All I had to do was convince her to let me in through the back door and record my announcement.I’d handle the rest.She’d already agreed last night, but I felt it was only fair to ask her when she was sober.
“If you’re willing the take that risk, then the rest of the team should be more than willing to help with what comes after.We need to let the students know just how little DU cares about their national championship-winning women’s hockey team,” Lydiasaid, and I didn’t miss Caroline’s firm nod of agreement.
Thus far, she’d been the voice of reason warning me to be careful.But even I could see the fire in her eyes.Just like everyone else on the team, Caroline despised the hand we’d been dealt.It was time we were heard, no matter what it took or how many parties I needed to crash.
“What happens after the gala?I don’t think posting to my five hundred followers on Instagram is going to do much, especially since most of them don’t go to school here.How are we going to get people to see this?”
I could practically see a light turn on in Lydia’s head.“I know the guy who runs the unofficial DUpdates TikTok—Austin.He’s a wannabe journalist and big social media guy.Most students here follow him for random updates and school news.Sometimes he even interviews students on campus.Last year, one of his videos went viral.He went around campus with a girl from the basketball team and recorded her challenging guys on campus to a shoot-off.There were a lot of bruised egos that day.I’m sure I can convince him to help spread the news.”
