Hockey is My Life, Plus Some Others

Chapter 4

Last nights final score was USA 11 Italy 0. I'm at the beach with my softball team and team USA. Cake-eater is teaching Lyla sand hockey. What that is, I have no idea. Dean is splashing water on Christiana while she tans. Christiana is fed up and is chasing Dean all over the beach. Dean runs into the water and Christiana has no choice but to follow him. She follows him until she can't touch any more she starts screaming "Dean! I can't swim!" Dean surfaces and picks her up and drags her farther. Christiana is kicking and screaming and despite her best efforts Dean forces her farther. Fulton is teaching Izzy how to catch a fish with her hands. Mena and Tatum are hanging out with Connie and Julie. Goldberg and Averman are chasing Ken. Charlie and me are chilling on the beach. Jillian has joined Mena, Tatum, Connie, and Julie. Raegan is chasing after Dean and Christiana. Dwayne and Lilly are drawing things in the sand. "AJ! Help us!" Jesse shouts. Charlie helps me up and I see Iceland chasing Jesse and Luis. Charlie hands me my crutches and I walk over. Dean brings Christiana back to shore and is at my side almost immediately. Fulton leaves Izzy wading in the shallows and jogs over to me. One by one everyone that I came to the beach with is assembled around me. Even Izzy who is at least two years younger than everyone. "They ruined our workout!" Stahl shouts. "How so?" I say quizzically. Sanderson stutters. "They threw water balloons at us!" One of the Iceland guys says. "Did they hit you?" I ask. "No." Stahl says. "Then you have no reason to be mad. Now, leave us so we can continue our beach day." I say. The Iceland team walks away. Jesse and Luis thank me in a million different ways. They're real dorks. Everyone goes back to what they were doing. "How did you stay calm?" Charlie asks me. "I don't know." I reply. "I can tell you now that I wouldn't have been that calm." Charlie says "Do you wanna go out with me?" I pause. "Yes." I say. Charlie looks surprised. I laugh at his face and I start to fall over laughing. Charlie catches me, he sits me on my towel, kisses me on the lips, and runs away. Fulton was watching, holy crap. Fulton walks over. "What was that?" He demands. "Charlie asked me out!" I squeal. "Are you happy?" Fulton asks. "Of course I am!" I say. "Then I'm happy." Fulton says as he walks back to Izzy. I get up and walk over to Connie and my other four friends. "I need girl talk." I say as I sit down next to them. Julie and Jillian bail and go swim in the ocean. "What do you need sister from another mister?" Connie asks. "Charlie asked me out." I blurt out. "Ooooooohhhhhooooh." The girls say in unison. "Stop, just help me, please." I plead. "Wow, you're desperate. Did you say yes?" Connie asks. "Of course I said yes, I like him after all." I reply. "Ok, what do you want to know?" Connie says. She's clearly gonna be the most help because she has a boyfriend. "What do I wear? How do I act? What do I say?" I ask her. "1. Wear what ever you want, the girl who Charlie likes is this girl in front of me. 2. Be yourself, Charlie likes you for you. 3. Be honest, in a way, nothing has changed so why should you say different things." Connie advises. "Thank you Connie, you're the best!" I reply. "You should finalize some plans." Mena says. "Like what day, what time he's supposed to pick you up, things like that." Tatum adds. The rest of the time at the beach I'm texting Charlie and talking to Connie. We walk back to the dorm building and take the elevator up to our floor. We go to our dorms. I walk over to my bed and lay down.Today was a good day. I think to myself as I drift off to sleep.

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I'm getting ready for my first date with Charlie and I'm wearing my black long sleeve shirt, a blue and black flannel, a pair of jeans, my black classic converse, and white laces. Charlie says he has something he wants to show me. I just finished getting ready when I head a knock on my door, coming. I read the engraving on the dog tag necklace my mom got me a year ago. It reads ALWAYS REMEMBER YOU ARE BRAVER THAN YOU BELIEVE, STRONGER THAN YOU SEEM, SMARTER THAN YOU THINK, AND LOVED MORE THAN YOU KNOW. I go answer the door and see Charlie. "You look amazing." Charlie says. "Thank you." I say. We walk to the elevator and go down to the main floor where the Tigers and team USA are chilling in the common area. "Good luck." Fulton says. We walk out and down the street to the beach where I see that Charlie has prepared a picnic. We chat and I remember what Connie said about being myself. We have a lot of fun, after dinner we watch the sunset. I start to shiver. Charlie gives me his jacket and we decide to go get ice cream. We run into Fulton and Dean. We see Bombay and the Iceland trainer. Dean and Fulton bail so me and Charlie can continue our date. Me and Charlie get ice cream and he takes me to an alley where he has hockey sticks and pucks to shoot into empty trash cans. "I was thinking about when I met you." Charlie explains "I'll tell you what, if you beat me, I have to buy you something and if I beat you, you have to kiss me." We place the bet and it's first one to ten wins. We are tied at nine and I shoot and score but instead I say "Charlie, I didn't see it go in." He shoots the puck into the trash can. He walks over, leans down, and kisses me. We stay that way for a while and I decide we need to head back. "No, just a little longer." Charlie says as he kisses me again. I pull away and make him grab the hockey sticks and pucks. He kisses me again. "Charlie, enough, we have to go back to the dorms." I say. He accepts the fact that we have to go back and holds my hand as we walk. I love him. He walks me to my room and kisses me on my forehead after saying goodbye. He is the love of my life. The girls are so happy for me. Connie invited all the girls from my softball team to stay the night. Only Tatum, Mena, Lyla, Reagan, Izzy, Jillian, and Christiana wanted to stay though. I drift off to sleep thinking about how much I love my life. My life is perfectly imperfect. And that's way I like it.