Oh Puck, Look Out!

x3 - Mathew

I hustle to where the puck flew, looking around at the group of people lined up by the glass. I see a girl bent over, her hand on her chest, her black hair blocking her face, falling over her shoulders. I tap the glass a few times, trying to get her attention, "Hey! Are you okay? I am so sorry!" She looks up, green eyes lingering on mine, bangs framing her face, freckles dotted lightly across the bridge of her nose. She smiles, "Yeah! I'm fine, no worries! First day on the job, I should expect it," I laugh, cute and funny huh? I start to skate away, giving her a thumbs up and welcoming her to the team. So that must be the new girl that all the guys were raving about.

I meet with Griziano on the bench, sitting down and catching my breath. I open my water bottle while he eyes me, his brows furrowed. "So? Who'd the puck hit? Get any shiners?" I sigh lightly, "I think I just met the new girl." His eyes widen, excitement spreading across his face. He slaps me on the back, "Nice bro! So was she smokin'?" I keep my gaze fixed in the direction of the press, watching as she shakes hands with a man holding a camera, "She's beautiful..."

--

"Let's go Winny c'mon! Finish them!" With six seconds left on the board, the score is 4 to 3, us leading by one point. Nate rushes the net, Dylin and Brandon hot on his tail. He passes to Dylin as he skates up the right side of the rink, slapping the puck towards the opposing goalie. The buzzer sounds across the arena as the puck slams into the back of the net. The boys and I jump out from behind the bench, shouting and hollering as we make our way towards Dylin, sharing hugs and congratulations. The announcer booms over the shouts heard around the arena, "Goal from number 16, Dylin Mirvin, assisted by number 27, Nathan Winslow, leaving the final score 5-3 and the Snowbirds are headed to the finals next week!"

I look up into the crowd, relishing on this moment as the fans are on their feet cheering and clapping. My eyes gleam and I scan the crowd for the girl from earlier, finding her with Corrine, grinning from ear to ear. The boys and I make our way back into the locker room after shaking hands with the other team, excitement radiating off the walls of the room. Coach Shayvan walks in smiling, "Congratulations boys. All of that hard work paid off, but we can't rest just yet. We verse the Houston Bears next week for the finals and we got to keep up this same energy we had tonight. We got way too close to tying this game." After he walks out, Bryce jumps from his bench, "Party at my place tonight to celebrate this win, let's fuckin' go!" We laugh, shortly cut off by Nate, "DID ANYONE GET TO SEE THE NEW GIRL YET?"

Griziano turns to me, giving me the eyes, "Lover Boy over here got to. He said she's beautiful," he mocks me overdramatically. Suddenly, I'm bombarded with "Was she hot?" "Would you tap?" and "Let's invite her to the party tonight!" I zone out of the conversation just thinking of her eyes gazing into mine. I get up and rush out of the room, my eyes darting all over the arena to find her. I see her talking to the other social media assistant and make my way over to them.

"Hey! I'm sorry about earlier, glad you didn't get hurt though." She takes a second, just staring at me, then warmly smiles, "It's alright, thanks for checking in on me." I run a hand through my hair, resting it on the back of my neck, "So... I was wondering if you wanted to come to a post-game celebration at Bryce's house later on? You could meet all of the guys and stuff." I can see her eyes light up instantly, "Yeah, I would love that! Just give me your number and send me the address, I'll be there for sure." I take her phone from her and put my information into it, handing it back to her. "I guess I'll see you later on then?" She nods her head before diving back into the conversation with the other girl she is with.

I turn around abruptly, "Wait! What's your name?" She whips her head around and smiles, "Carter, what about you?" I feel the smile creeping onto my face, "Mathew. Mat." She nods again, "Well, I'll see you later, Mat." I make my way back to the locker room, finding no way to wipe the stupid grin off my face. Carter.