Tape to Tape

Chapter 2

Every time I heard that default Apple alarm sound, my heart would literally drop to my stomach.

This time, it felt like it was sitting on my stomach instead.

I blindly threw my arms around, reaching for my phone on the nightstand. When I finally found it, I turned the sound off as soon as I could, unable to bear another second of that annoying, blaring noise. Groaning, I rubbed my eyes and started doing a bit of a stretch until a huge, solid object pressed into my gut.

I looked down to see what the object was, just to be greeted by Will's sleepy face and his elbow resting on my stomach. I jumped in surprise as I had completely forgotten we had to share a bed the night before. This caused Will to wake up, who had apparently forgotten that, too. He quickly sat up, reliving me of the pressure on my stomach.

"Never speak of this again?" he asked, embarrassed he had fallen asleep while cuddling me. I laughed and patted him on his back as I got out of bed.

"What, that you slept with this legend?" I jokingly asked, pointing at myself.

"That makes me want to hide this even more," he laughed, getting out of bed himself. We both got ready as fast as we could so we could meet Auston and Mitch for breakfast, since we were running a bit late. I tossed on some super comfortable grey sweatpants and black hoodie, finishing it all off with the classic socks and slide.

I sent a quick text to Daniel reminding him to be safe and responsible before heading out the door with my huge duffel bag. Will and I were only five minutes late, and the four of us headed to a nearby breakfast diner to keep us energized for the training camp.

"So Ryan and I were talking last night about elevator girl. Hot as hell, right?" Will asked the table. I rolled my eyes at him while Auston and Mitch laughed.

"Sorry man, I don't know who you're talking about. Wasn't there," Mitch pointed out.

"This fan stepped into the elevator with us, and not going to lie, she was pretty fucking hot," I explained.

"Hey Feds," Mitch said as he turned to me with a devious smile. "Maybe this can be your first girlfriend since high school!"

I half laughed at his snarky remark. Truth be told, I haven't actually had a girlfriend in almost two years. A few one night stands, but nothing ever lead past that. I guess I never really had time for a relationship; I was always working out or skating.

"Come on man, girls are a waste of time," I told them as I began to take a sip of my smoothie. I was beyond exhausted and had zero energy, but I knew once I hit the rink, everything would be different.

———

The best feeling in the world was when the cool air from the ice hit your sweaty, burning face. I let the breeze rush over my body as I took off my helmet, letting my hair flow as I glided across the rink. The first session of the training camp was over, and now we were going to move onto some fitness work.

I had stuck closely with my friends during the session. We were mostly doing some small drills to get back into the hang of it, but it also gave us a good look at how much, or how little, everyone had improved over the off season. It was also a good chance to check out the newer recruits, and helped paint a picture of who your team was.

Everyone new was your typical hockey guy; no one really exceptional. However, there was this shorter player, and though he lacked in size, he was one of the quickest skaters I've ever seen, and his agility was off the charts. I made a mental note to watch out for this guy.

"God, I forget how much Babcock worked our asses," Auston smiled at me as we made our way off the rink. He was right; Babcock was known for his puke-inducing workouts, but it made us all better players.