I managed to take my time while walking to the locker room. I was trying to make it seem like I hadn't just been friendly with and Iceland player. For some reason, everyone on the team hated them the most. I understood it in a competitive manner but some of the comments were crossing a line that I didn't expect some of the team to cross. 

It didn't matter now. 

I was sitting on the bench, watching the team dominate the Italian team. Italy's players were good, just not good enough. 

Goldberg was currently preventing one of the players from making a goal. It was a quick glove save. He immediately started to provoke the other team, possibly trying to get a penalty. He almost succeeded when one of the players started to shove him, "Goldberg!" Bombay scolded from next to me as the refs pulled the Italian player away.

Goldberg shrugged his shoulders, "What'd I say?" Clearly trying to feign innocence. 

They game picked back up and the hitting on our part continued. Almost everyone in the stadium had stood up to watch as one of the Italian players was checked into the boards, U.S.A had gotten ahold of the puck once again and Fulton shot hard, scoring the seventh goal of the game.

"God, he's good." I exclaim. The kid was a sweetheart but on the ice, god, he was intimidating. Not someone I would want to face up against. I cheered alongside my friends, excited for our friend. 

At the end of the game, it was a complete shutout by 11 points. Incredible game, really. 

The team went out to go shake Italy's hands and then we were all quickly ushered into the locker room. No one had an issue, seeing as they were all sweaty and in dire need of a shower. The smell of sweat was almost completely overwhelming. 

I sat against the wall and waited for the team to finish getting ready. I leaned my head back on the wall and closed my eyes. I was tired from my early awakening this morning. 

"You alright?" Someone asked. I felt their body sit next to mine. 

I opened my eyes and looked over to see Adam, "Yeah. I'm just a little tired."

Adam smiled, "Yeah, no kidding." 

I rolled my eyes and hit his shoulder with mine, "Hey, don't act like I don't have a reason to be tired," Adam raised his hands up in defense, "I'm never up as early as today. Plus, people wear me out." 

"I get it. Sometimes people wear me out too. Especially everyone here. Everyone just has so much energy all the time, makes me tired trying to keep up with them." 

I nodded and leaned my head back again, "You did amazing today. I'm proud of you." 

Adam's face turned to a slightly pink tint, "Thanks." I closed my eyes again, this time because the lights in the room were too bright and it was starting to annoy me, "So, were did you go when you left us today?" 

I smiled, "I was with a friend." 

"You know people in California?" 

I sniffed and rubbed my nose, "Not necessarily. I just made a friend of someone here for the games. That's all." 

"All right team!" Gordon yelled as he entered the room, "I am so proud of all of you guys! You played great. I want you guys to keep up the same energy for every game we play here. There isn't any practice tonight, all the rinks are unavailable because games are running late today. Remember your curfews though, so don't be out all night." 

What if I want to be out all night Gordon? Who's gonna stop me? God? 

"Gordon," I hear Tibble's voice say from somewhere in the room. I open my eyes to see him standing at the doorway, "We have some business to attend to." He looked at the team and smiled while giving two thumbs up, "Hey! You guys played great today! Keep it up!"

As soon as they left the room people started making plans for the rest of the day, I heard Goldberg, Jesse, Dwayne, and Averman say they were going to hit up Rodeo Drive. Connie and Guy were already leaving. 

"I'm in the mood for ice cream." Adam says next to me. 

"Do you even know where any ice cream parlors are?" 

Adam looks over at me, "Well, no, but that's part of the fun, right? Trying to navigate in a place we don't know." 

I scoff, "Yeah, until you're sweating and dying of heat exhaustion because you've been walking around for two hours and got lost." 

"So, I take it you don't want to get ice cream with me?" 

"No, I'm coming." I stand up from the wall and Adam follows after me, "Any of you guys wanna go get ice cream with me and Adam?" I ask the remaining team members who were still in the locker room. 

No one wanted to come with us, the majority of them saying they were going to go take naps or workout in the gym that was available for us to use.

Ok, but who would willingly go to a gym right after they've played a game of hockey? It honestly doesn't make any sense to me but hey, who am I to judge? 

Adam and I leave the rest of the team behind and start walking on the sidewalks, hoping to find an ice cream parlor, "So, why don't you play hockey? I mean, I bet you'd be pretty good at it." 

I laugh at Adam's suggestion, boy did he know nothing about me, "Trust me I tried. I broke my wrist at my first game and was like, 'Nope. This isn't for me.' and that was that. No one ever tried to force me to play after that anyways. Why do you play hockey?"

Adam shrugged, "It's kind of a family thing. My dad played and so did my older brother-"

"Hold on, you have an older brother?" I interrupt. 

Adam smiles, "Yeah. Alex. He's honestly such a great brother, I don't know what I'd do without him." 

Adam clearly loves his brother and it makes me smile, "Maybe I can meet him one day...Is he as good as you at hockey?" 

He laughs as we turn another corner, "No, actually. He did it for fun, when he was a sophomore in high school, he quit. Girls started taking up too much of his time." 

I bump into Adam lightly on purpose, "What and you don't do it for fun?" 

"No, I do. It's just that I want to go pro, he didn't." 

"What happens if you don't?" 

Adam frowns at my question, not liking the idea of him achieving his dream, "I don't know. I think I'd want to help people. Making people happy is kind of a big thing for me. Other people happy makes me happy. Hockey makes me happy too though," We walk in silence for a minute before Adam points at something, "Look. Ice cream." 

"About time." I say as we walk into the place. 

Immediately the cool air washes over me, I was almost dying out there of heat so the cold air makes me feel better instantly. Lucky for us, the ice cream shop is just about empty, except for an old couple eating together. 

We walk over to the ice cream selection and start looking over it, "Hey guys, what can I get ya?" The teenage boy behind the counter asks. 

I look up at him, "Um, I'd like a minute if that's alright." 

"Yeah, me too." 

The boy smiles at the two of us, "Alright, just call me over when you're ready." 

Adam and I take a minute before selecting our flavors, Adam gets rocky road and I get a raspberry sorbet. 

We take a seat away from the door, my back facing it, "So, Adam," I take a bite of my treat, "What's your brother up to?" 

Adam smiles at me, "Why, gonna try to pick him up?" 

I laugh at him, "I don't know. Is he single?" 

Adam playfully rolls his eyes at me, "He's in college. He actually got into NYU which is shocking, considering he's a dumbass. And no, he's not single. Alex is in a very happy and committed relationship with his girlfriend Annie." 

I sigh, "What a shame." 

"What about you, do you have any other siblings besides Coach?" Adam asks me. 

"I wouldn't know. If I do then they're my dad's kids and I'd rather not talk to that side of the family." 

Adam furrows his eyebrows, "Why? Or...do you not want to talk about it? I don't want to make you uncomfortable." 

I smile, "No, it's fine. You aren't, I promise. I would tell you if you were anyways. Um...my dad's side of the family is kinda, I don't know the correct words here really, but I guess I'd call them dickheads. The whole lot of them. Granddad was a drug addict the majority of his life and then when he sobered out he was a mean old man. My grandma had a very strict way of parenting, whenever she would babysit me and have to discipline me it was in the nicest of ways." 

"What about your dad?" 

I sigh, I hate talking about him, "He's in jail. It's for the better though. My mom told me that he could never really right himself, even after I was born. I think moving to Illinois was just a way to get away from having to see him." 

"Can I ask what he did to end up in jail?" 

"No you may not. I just don't like talking about it with people." 

"That's alright. I understand." Adam smiles comfortingly at me. 

We eat in silence for a minute, "You only talk about your brother. What are your parents like?" I ask Adam. 

Adam clears his throat before he answers me, "Well, my dad is um, very demanding of me. He wants me to be the best at everything. School, hockey, life. I'm not really close with him. My mom," Adam's face lights up at the mention of his mom, "she's amazing. I'd do anything for her. She loves me a lot." 

I smile at him, "Momma's boy?" 

Adam blushes a little bit before taking another bite, "I guess so." 

"Hey, nothing wrong with it." 

The bell on the door rings as someone enters the parlor, "What can I get you guys?" The worker asks. 

"I'll have one chocolate scoop please." Someone says in a distinct Icelandic accent. I turn around to see none other than Gunnar Stahl and some of the boys on his team ordering ice cream. 

Thankfully, none of them have noticed me, I really didn't want to be approached by them when I was with someone from my own team. I knew that Adam would probably get mad at me for becoming friends with the enemy. 

I look down at my now empty bowl, "You almost finished?" I ask. 

"Yeah, I'm all good to go." Both of us stand up and throw away our empty bowls. 

I pass by the Iceland group as quickly as I can without making it look unnatural. I even reach the door. 

"Wren?" Gunnar Stahl's unmistakable voice calls out. 

Oh fuck.