The Hockey Player (Matt Sturniolo)

Clowns

Aurora's POV

The smell of pizza toppings, grease and minimum wage labour greeted me at work. Other than hiding in my bedroom, all other possibilities hit a roadblock. Raine's pro Matt stance was no help, although her first dates made interesting lunch conversation.

My quiet, peaceful work shift changed ten minutes in, when I got a text from Dan.

Dan: sending you some security today

"Huh?" I blinked down at my phone.

Martin didn't look up from his inventory and payroll sheets. "Aurora, no phones at work"

I said a course of swear words under my breath and put my phone back in my pocket. Ten minutes later, the door opened.

"Hi, Aurora"

Three skinny guys stood at the counter in their hockey jackets. "Hi" I forced out a smile when two more players entered. Weird. "What can I get you?"

The door chimed again before they answered. Unfortunately for me, Martin and the new guy, Ben, the stream of players didn't stop. Poor Ben worked his third day in the kitchen, and the problem most likely came from my brother.

My stomach clenched when the first group of guys showed up, smiling. Like clockwork, more players entered. Despite Martin helping Ben, the kitchen was overwhelmed with orders. The guys were polite, but in between taking orders and serving, I got asked to Homecoming.

I will kill Dan.

More than an hour later, Dan , Luke and Chris were the last players to arrive. I marched around the counter and shoved my hands into his chest. Dan tipped his head back and laughed. "Where's my warm welcome?" I wanted to punch the smirk off his face. How could he?

"What the hell is this?" I asked, waving my hand at the sea of guys. It was funny if not at my expense.

"I told you" he said, with a little dark in his eyes. "Just a little security"

"Security?" I crossed my arms over my chest. "For what?"

"To make sure nobody bothers you" he exchanged a look with Luke and crossed his arms. "Especially with the Highlander game coming up"

"That's three weeks away!" I glared at him, and my lip trembled. My brain couldn't wrap itself around one more work day like this one.

His eyes flashed, and he smiled like he was more amused. "And I'm not letting any of those guys come in and bother you at work"

I frowned and crossed my arms. How did he know they were here? Unless...fuck, I did tell him at the library. "Like this isn't bothering us"

"It's good for business" he winked, put his hands on my shoulders and guided me back behind the counter. "Get back to work before your boss gets mad. We'll take the usual"

Could this week get anymore stressful?

Unfortunately, Dan was right. His team ate the stock room empty. We sold more pizzas in those few hours than we did that previous week. The scene was worse when I went back on Tuesday. The lobby was crammed with cheerleaders, fans and more girls than I saw at school. Martin was thrilled.

It was ridiculous. The food wasn't that good.

Despite shifts from hell, the week went at a slow pace. At school, I shifted in and out of the masses. I didn't talk to anyone, other than Raine. I fell into a schedule of eight classes, then crazy work shifts, showered from work, did homework and fell asleep.

"You're kidding me!" Raine's eyes widened behind the wheel. "No wonder you look like death"

"Thanks for the ride" Dan's overprotectiveness earned him the silent treatment. I forced him to get a ride home after I took his car to work on Thursday and left him stranded. It wasn't effective, he still showed up at my work with Luke and the rest of the school. "Dan doesn't exist to me right now"