Page 50 of Slapshot Obsession
No one is surprised that being down one player results in a goal for the Bobcats.
When the action resumes, Mack is taken off the ice tohave his bleeding nose tended to. Coach Harrison sent the second line on the ice in the meantime to give everyone involved in the fight a breather.
A few minutes pass with both teams fighting for possession of the puck, but no one seems to be able to gain any real momentum.
With two minutes left on the clock, Mack returns to the bench and the crowd reacts with a warm welcome. My teammates and I join all the other Cove Knights fans, jumping and screaming to celebrate seeing Mack back unharmed.
“Is it wrong that I think the way the guys fought to protect Mack is a little hot?” I whisper to Jodie.
“Nope,” she chuckles. “I think it was super hot.”
The rest of the third period is uneventful, with the referees paying close attention to the action and nipping any further squabbles in the bud.
There’s one minute left on the clock when Mack receives a pass from Colsen and takes off on a breakaway. The Bobcats’ goalie has no chance to stop the killer slapshot that hits the top right corner of the net.
The Cove Knights celebrate piling on top of Mack.
“By the way they’re playing,” Talia says on the way to our locker room. “You’d think this was the playoffs, not a preseason game.”
Gen chimes in. “This is how they should always play to show the world that Star Cove deserves its very own NHL team. Between the highlights of this game that will be shown by the reality show and the game being televised, there’s going to be a huge spotlight on the town, like the sponsors want.”
“Televised?” Jodie asks.
“Yeah, didn’t you see how many cameras there were?That wasn’t just the reality show crew. And they filmed our performance too.”
Between the idea of being on TV in front of a wider audience than the one following the reality show and the prospect of a cocktail party with the sponsors and the whole hockey team in attendance, the locker room is buzzing with excitement.
We’ve all brought the cocktail dresses Carole and Lexi have chosen for each of us to the locker room, and we’ll be getting ready here to save time. We have one hour before a few limos will pick us up to take us to Star Cove Country Club.
Colsen and I have a plan to slip away once the official part of the night is over. I’m more excited to spend some quality time with him than about the party. A part of me hopes that Colsen asked Tucker to hang out with us too. But even if it were just me and Colsen, I’m really looking forward to it.
I’m gonna need a shower before I put on the sexy underwear I chose to go under the pink cocktail dress that’s hanging in my locker.
The showers in the cheerleaders’ locker room are supplied with excellent toiletries. But I don’t have time to wash my hair, so I open my locker to get the shower cap I ordered online.
“Fuck!” I scream, slamming the locker door shut.
My heart is pounding in my throat, and I squeeze my eyes shut. What in the ever loving fuck is that?
“Tar-Tar?” Jodie’s fingers brush my bicep, and I jump. “Babes, you ok? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“I’m fine.” I answer more as a knee-jerk reaction than anything.
But Jodie wasn’t born yesterday, and she’s been my bestfriend and roommate for four years. At this point, she knows me better than even my own mom; there’s no way I can fool her.
“You don’t look fine.” She argues. “You look like you’re about to pass out. There are goosebumps all over your arms. Is it a spider?” She asks, pointing at my locker’s door.
I don’t blame her. The last time I screamed like that, I found a huge spider inside a mug back in our college dorm.
Jodie and I have always joked that we’re a perfect match because I can cook while she can’t make microwave popcorn without burning down the house, and she isn’t afraid of spiders and other creepy crawlies, whereas I’m terrified.
“Not a spider.” I bite out, putting myself between Jodie and the locker when she attempts to open the door. She knows my combination; we’ve always shared each other’s passwords and stuff. We’re like an old married couple.
“Taryn, you’re scaring me.” She lowers her voice, but everyone else is showering, and we’re alone in this portion of the locker room. “If you don’t tell me what’s wrong, there’s nothing I can do to help you.”
She’s right. This is becoming an obvious problem. “Ok, you can look inside, but promise me you won’t freak out.”
“The fact that you’re asking me not to freak out is making me freak out, Tar.”
