It's time. It's the day of the JV-Varsity showdown. To say I'm nervous would be an understatement. I feel like vomiting and running away. It's not like me to feel this way, but there is so much at stake here. Not just our scholarships, but freedom from the Varsity Reign of Terror.
We're at our bench before we skate out, and our Duck jerseys are like our flag. Charlie stands in the middle of us, "This is for Jan," he says, nodding, to which we follow his action. He tilts his head down at each of us as we step onto the slick ice, one by one. He gives me a smile, and skates after me, since I was the last of us out.
We begin to skate in a circle, touching our hands to the ice in respect for Jan. I think Josh says it better than I can, however: "It appears they're paying honor to their departed friend and mentor, Jan. The touching of the ice is a Norwegian symbol of respect."
We stand up straight and begin practicing, taking shots at the goal, and skating back and forth to warm up. Orion calls us over to the bench. "Alright," he starts, "Let's go hunting for goose eggs, huh? Come on, hands in." We stick out hands into the middle of the circle. "On three, quack. One, two, three!"
All of us smile at each other before chanting, "Quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack," and soon the whole arena is joining in with us. "Quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, GOOOOOO DUCKS!" We end with a shout.
Our starters go out, myself included, and Adam takes the faceoff against Reilly. They're trash-talking each other, and when the ref throws the puck down, Reilly shoves Adam and wins it. He takes it all the way to our goal, shooting it, but Julie saves it. Barely saves it.
When I try to clear it, someone else hits it to the Varsity by accident. I groan as I go after it, only to get shoved away. Varsity takes another shot, but Goldberg, who is skating since Julie is in goal, steps in front and stops it. They take another shot, but Julie cups it and crouches down, and the ref blows the whistle.
Fulton switches with me, and I sit next to Connie on the bench. We cheer for Julie, who is doing excellent under all this pressure. Another faceoff starts, and it's between Charlie and Reilly, and they both look pissed. Charlie shoves him, and we get the faceoff. I clap and shout a 'good job' to no one in particular, but at least I'm cheering.
It's a smashing-against-the-wall line, since back and forth, both teams are shoved into it. Varsity steals the puck and shoots, but Julie saves it. Charlie takes the rebound, but he gets knocked into the wall by Reilly. The Varsity team takes several more shots, all missing or being saved by Julie. At one point, she dives down and stops it, Charlie receiving the rebound again.
He hits it, but it goes all the way down to the other side and the ref blows the whistle. He gives Julie and Guy what looks to be a pep-talk and the game starts back up again. The Varsity players are lightning quick and pass the puck with ease. They take a chance at the goal, but Julie catches it. The Ducks can't clear it, so Varsity takes shot after shot, but all of them are knocked away.
Finally, the puck is cleared away from the goal, and the Ducks skate down the ice. Charlie takes the first shot at the Varsity goal, but it's saved, unfortunately. Varsity, once again, starts firing shots at our goal, but none go in, somehow. The whole rink is cheering for us and not the Varsity. Guess no one else in the school likes them either.
The puck almost goes in, but Julie crawls and stops it, thankfully as the first period ends. The ref takes the puck, and I'm subbed in for the second period. I hear Goldberg congratulating Julie, calling her Cat-Lady, his nickname for her.
The second period starts, and I take the faceoff. Orion told me too, don't ask why, but I dig my shoulder into Cole, and win it for the Ducks. However, Varsity begins to flip us over their backs roughly. It happens to me and I land with a thud and a loss for breath. I scramble back up and continue playing, but the refs aren't calling anything.
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With Me | Sequel to Be There ✔️
Fanfiction*Based on D3: The Mighty Ducks* "I know you can't be by my side at every moment, but you're with me now, and that's all that matters." *** The Ducks are back and so is Meg. After the Goodwill Games, the team joins Eden Hall Academy, where the Varsit...
