Face-Off With Fate: A Rink Romance | Book #1 of UM Hockey Series

forty eight

Vincent Thompson☽

We still haven't spoken about what to do after my signing.

Scar's been swamped with her finals and I've been crashing here all week.

I only had two finals, but one was just a presentation in class before the official exam period. Luckily for me, spending all my summers here, I chose to take a few courses over the summer terms while I worked.

Nothing crazy, just the gen ed or any electives that would cut down my school time during the season.

It's why nobody knew why I was never in classes. When you jam-pack your summer schedule, it frees up your year.

"I have my last exam at noon, it's three hours, but after that, we're going to talk," Scarlett shouted from the bathroom.

She refused to let me shower with her today or this week at all. She insisted that she needed to use that time to study and had Kaia laminate her notes for her.

I've been thinking of what to do about the signing, especially if it was back to the LA Kings, and what our plan would be.

I really wish she'd come with me. Even just for the summer. Then when the fall comes around we can always figure it out then.

She's always been worried about money, school, her loans, and debt, but when has she ever had the chance to just let everything go?

Scarlett once slept and talked about opening her own business. She said something about designs and selling them, which made me think she wanted to open a store.

She's always been pretty artistic, it's nothing she's ever let her friends know about though.

Stella's the dancer, Brooke's the artist, and Kaia's the brains.

No wonder she's always felt lost. If everyone was labeled based on their talents, I don't think Scarlett would know what hers was.

She's a great singer. I love the way her voice sounds when I drive her in my car. She always puts on some crappy mainstream pop music, but she has one hell of a voice.

She's also a great writer and artist herself. She has a keen eye for fashion and always loves to style us. Whenever we're at my place, she rummages through my closet and picks out my outfits for game days.

I love reading her work. She has a small diary in her sock drawer where she writes about her days. Everything she's written is poetic. It's a series of questions that make one think further on.

Scarlett deserves the world. She deserves to have her own dreams and explore beyond what she's limited herself to.

I think her coming with me would be the best thing for her. She can use that time to figure out who she is, separately from everyone.

She's always been a lost child, an adoptive kid, the outcast in her friend group, and now my girlfriend.

I want her to be happy.

"Okay, I'll be back around three, so be ready so we can get your suit for tomorrow," she instructs me as she grabs her bag and kisses me goodbye.

I follow her out and wish her luck as she heads to her exams.

Three hours to kill. Just me, my thoughts, and I.

"Vin! Hey. Are you going to the house? I wanna go see Seb," Stella shouts from her bedroom.

So long to have some time to myself.

"Yeah, sure, give me two to get ready."

Stella and I never had one on one time before and it's shows.