Chapter 18

I woke up Thursday morning still spooned with Vicky in her apartment. I looked at the clock and saw it was already six so I quickly got out and left her a quick note before heading over to my apartment. I got dressed, grabbed my book bag and laptop and headed to the arena.

I got dressed in my hockey gear and waited out by the rink watching the girls playing their scrimmage. Some were quite good and probably could make a run at the men's team. I stood to the side as they came off, with a lot of them saying "Hi Mike" in a teasing voice that girls seem to have down pat.

The guys came up and Ian asked "How do they all know you Mike?"

"Mark's girlfriend is Susan the goalie. She's friends with Amanda and Vicky, John and my girlfriends. They must talk or something." I replied, keeping it vague as we got on the ice.

We went over everything again for Ian, starting from scratch. We even had him run the offensive play for the D to hit their D, with me playing the other D. He could hit pretty good, but with me knowing the play, it was easy to either avoid the hit or be ready for it. By the end of the extra practice John and I were feeling a bit better on his ability to hold his own. Even his shot had a little more power to it after I showed him a couple of things my Dad had taught me.

We took a break while the rest of the team got warmed up. Ian went to hang around a couple of other rookies while John and I sat back to rest up a bit.

"He should do ok I think" John said to me.

"I think so too, if he doesn't panic out there. His partner will have to settle him down, like you did for me. Has it only been a week since my first game?" I asked.

"Yeah, you act like an old timer around him but you're still a rookie too!" John said laughing. "Well at least you don't play like one."

"The extra practice has paid off, that's for sure. I have another one this afternoon before our afternoon one. I can't wait until the games are two a week. All this practicing gets tiring" I complained.

"The coaches will go to one a day soon unless something goes wrong and we need to incorporate new people or new plays. We can't sustain all this extra practicing, someone will get hurt if they are too tired" John informed me.

"Good, I could use any extra time for studying I can get" I replied.

"Just because we're not on the ice doesn't mean you're not here Mike. There will be extra film prep, extra weight and anaerobic workouts and special practices instead" John said laughing.

"No shit?" I asked. "Damn, that's harsh."

"Welcome to College hockey, Michigan style" he said.

I shook my head and then went back on the ice to take my frustrations out on some pucks and Bob the goalie.

Fred called us together and told us to work hard today as we were off travelling tomorrow with no exercise. He had us practice all the defensive and then the offensive plays for Saturday's game, with our normal partners. Albert took some of the practice on defence but Ian took most of the time with Steve.

We had some more special teams practice and then a longer than usual scrimmage. We were let go a little late so I had to rush to get dressed and back to the main campus.

I got there a little late so I went and used the back door and slipped into a seat as the professor was starting his lecture.

"Hi" I said quietly to Steph.

"Hi" she replied.

The lecture was another review for me as one, I had read ahead and two, it was still mostly review from high school and my own extracurricular activities. Stephanie seemed to follow better as well when I glanced over at her. She saw me and smiled back before returning to listen to the professor. At the end he gave out another assignment, due Thursday and asked for any assignments due today or next Tuesday to be put on his desk. Steph and I went down and asked him which version he wanted of the second assignment, print-out or answers in a file format. He said to hand in both and see if the TA markers would notice the difference.

Stephanie and I walked out together and we agreed to meet at the arena cafeteria at two thirty to continue studying together before we split up. I watched her in her tight t-shirt and shorts and fantasized about her body until I had to turn and walk in the other direction. I got changed into my workout clothes when I got there and looked up Chris to tell him of the change in scheduling due to the extra practice this afternoon. He was on board with the change so I went in and did a chest and arm routine.

I took a shower and went to the cafeteria for lunch. I called Vicky after I was done eating and left a message telling her that I hoped to see her at 2:30 with Steph here at the arena cafeteria.

I went into the locker room and got changed with the other rookies and subs, then got on the ice for stretches and a warm-up skate. We had some shooting practice and then Frank and Sam had us gather around. We had enough players here for five on five scrimmage with a couple of subs so we did that for about half an hour with Frank or Sam stopping to point out things as they happened and suggest a better method. The coach would call out a play for the offence to use and the other team had to defend it the best they could. Then the defensive play was called out and so on. It got everyone some extra exposure to more of our set plays, especially if it got screwed up and the coach had to walk everyone through it.

Near the end of the scrimmage I got plastered into the wall from behind just after I had cleared the puck successfully. It hurt but nothing seemed to get damaged as I looked back to see a rookie forward skate away with a smirk. He was a bit shorter than me but built a bit thicker. I didn't know him or anything about him but he seemed very pleased with himself. Frank was watching from the bench but I just skated back to the bench. Frank walked over and leaned down and said "Good control of your temper Mike, I'm sure you will have time to pay him back with a clean hit later."

I just grinned at him and told him to make sure Chris, the trainer looks after our sore battered bodies not requiring and actual doctor, was available just in case. He chuckled and walked away, but I did see him take out his cell phone a bit later.

I got out a couple more times before I got my payback. Their team was doing a bit of a cycle down in the other corner when he got the puck while skating behind the net, being harassed by our forward. I was loosely following another of their wingers on my side when I veered off and skated behind the net and clobbered him. He flew back and landed heavily on his back, while I scooped up the puck and sent a lob pass out to a streaking forward for a breakaway, before skating back to the bench for a change.

I saw Chris go out and see if he was ok and helped him off the ice. Frank and Sam stopped the scrimmage and spoke to everybody for a minute.

"Bobby decided to take a cheap shot at Mike. It probably would have been a penalty in a game and possibly cost the team a goal. So if Bobby's intention was to impress the coaches it didn't work. Mike didn't retaliate until later with a clean hit, which led to an easy goal. Mike had no intention of impressing the coaches but he did, and seems to have paid back Bobby quite nicely and cleanly. Guess who is playing Saturday and who is staying home."

There was a bit of laughter and then we were split up into forwards and defence at opposite ends of the rink and the respective coach went over a few more fundamentals and then more of the plays, teaching everyone their responsibility in each instance. After about a half hour we re-combined and the forward lines ran the plays against the pair of D. Any well run play generated at least a shot on net or a good scoring play as the D were always outmanned. But we played it the way we were taught and got in the way of passes and shots as best we could. Bobby was back in and trying to hit every defenceman any chance he could until Sam pulled him aside, yelled at him and sent him into the locker room.

They finally called the practice and I went in to get changed. Bobby was dressed and came over to confront me.

"Who the fuck do you think you are, asshole?" He yelled as he walked up.

"Bobby, you're on thin ice with the coaches as it is. Do you really want to do this?" I asked mildly. "I consider everything even now and it's over."

"I don't asshole" as he got closer.

"Shall I change then and meet you in the parking lot or somewhere off school property? I don't want you to hurt your hands on my equipment" I said quite reasonably.

"Fuck that, you're mine now" he yelled as he took a swing at my head. I ducked and pushed him away, letting him fall over a nearby bench.

"Give it a rest before you get kicked off the team idiot" I said.

Sam had walked in quietly and said "I suggest you heed his advice Mr. Vickers, or you will find yourself not only off the team but out of the University very quickly. And from what we have seen from Mr. Stewart, that trip might be in an ambulance."

Bobby got up angrily and looked at me for a few seconds before walking off. Sam watched him and then came over to me.

"I'm not sure why so many guys can't stand me Sam? I keep away from everyone and believe me I tried to talk him out of it" I told him.

"They don't like the supposed easy way you got on the team Mike. Jealousy and envy can lead to anger pretty quickly, especially in highly competitive sports. Don't worry; I saw the whole thing as I came in so you have no problems. At least we didn't have any injuries with this one" he added.

I just shook my head and got changed and left to go find Stephanie. I saw her through the window of the cafeteria, working on her laptop, with a pop and chips beside her. I grabbed some food and went to join her.

"Hi Steph, how's it going" I asked.

"Shouldn't there be an 'eh' on the end of that sentence" she asked with a smile.

"Ha Ha, so funny" I said to her.

"Yes I am" she replied with a grin.

I sat down and ate my food while she told me she was working on the new program.

"Did you finish the logic assignment?" I asked.

"Yep, just need to check it over with yours and that's done" she replied.

"Good work Steph" I said in praise.

She smiled and said "I couldn't have done it without your help Mike. Thanks."

"I bet if you get ahead in your reading and do the questions, you won't need my help at all. I'll be coming to you for help soon" I retorted with a smile.

"Yeah right. Now get to work on the computer program Mister" she commanded.

"Yes Ma'am" I replied with a grin as I opened my laptop and turned it on.

I read through the assignment and started up my editor as I thought about how to attack the problem. It was pretty simple so I quickly got into it and had it mostly complete when I heard a voice say "Don't you two look so industrious".

I looked up and smiled at Vicky as she sat down beside Stephanie.

"Hi there Honey, how was your day so far?" I asked.

"Pretty good, but busy as always. And yours Sweetie?"

"I mostly just had hockey practice and one programming class. Steph and I are ahead of the game as we handed in Tuesday's assignment today and we're getting a good jump on next Thursday's now" I responded.

"Good and you will have lots of time to read and get ahead on the bus too" She replied, before turning to Stephanie. "And how was your day today Steph?"

"Pretty good too Vicky. I got caught up on just about everything and can get a jump on things this weekend" she answered.

"Speaking of the weekend, are you sticking around here or going back home? Vicky asked.

"I'm thinking of sticking around here to get in some reading and get ahead of the game. Why?" responded Steph.

"My sister Becky is coming up tomorrow after school and I thought we could get together with you since it's a no man zone at our apartment with Michael gone" she said.

"Sure, I can't read all weekend that's for sure. Maybe we can get together and watch the hockey game Saturday night too?" she responded with enthusiasm.

"Sure, we were planning to watch it at our apartment with Jessica and Amanda, so you can join us and we can have a girl's night in and have a sleep over. I'll pick up some drinks and snacks and we can order in some pizza or Chinese or something. Sound good?" Vicky asked with a smile.

"Ok, Vicky. Thanks for inviting me over. I haven't had much fun here yet at all. My roommate is in some sort of sorority so I never see her. I've spent more time with you two than anyone else!" she answered.

"Well, we like having you around Steph, you should come over and eat with us and hang out at the apartments more often. We would love to have you, wouldn't we Michael?" she asked.

"Sure we would. We don't have much but it would be nice to have you over. Hopefully you can cook better than Vicky here" I teased.

"Michael Stewart, take that back, I can cook quite fine thank you very much!" she stated mock angrily.

"So why did I have to take over last night? You were just about to burn the pasta and the sauce, that's why." I retorted with a grin.

"Humph, you couldn't take your hands off of me and got me all distracted" she claimed. "He does have good hands Steph, but I'll try and protect you from them when he's around."

"The beast! You poor thing, I had better come over and help you survive his mauling" she said as she hugged Vicky in support.

Vicky hugged her back while saying "Maybe we can beat him off together but I can't risk your innocence being exposed to the beast."

"Hmmm fresh meat to eat" I said in my Igor voice.

The girls cracked up laughing as I smiled. I looked at the clock and started packing up.

"So, where do I meet you two, here or at home?" I asked.

"You two probably want to spend some time alone so why don't I join you two next week instead" Steph suggested.

"What about the weekend?" asked Vicky looking sad.

"Oh, no, I'll be there, I just meant tonight" she corrected herself.

"Good to hear that" Vicky said. We would love you to come over tonight or at least have dinner here with us. We enjoy your company and I would love it if you would stay here with me and watch Mike practice."

"Sure, I love watching Mike play hockey. Thanks so much Vicky" she gushed.

"Ok Sweetie, come find us and we'll figure out if we eat here or at home after practice" she directed.

"Yes Ma'am" I replied. "See you two lovely ladies after practice."

I left the cafeteria and looked in the window to see the two girls talking like old friends. It was nice to see they were getting along and I hoped they would continue to do so.

I entered the locker room and looked around to see if Bobby was still out to get me or anyone else for that matter. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary so I got changed and went out on the ice as the Zamboni got off. We all did the normal stuff and then Fred let us know we would be having a full team scrimmage with all the subs and rookies divided amongst the two teams.

It ended up being fun as you never knew who you would be up against, the top line or the rawest rookies or a mix. There wasn't much hitting as offence ruled the day, like at an all-star game. I kept an eye open to be safe but Bobby, nor any of his friends, took a run at me.

The game was called after an hour and one final special teams practice was ran. I got time on both the power play and the penalty kill and finally felt comfortable. At the end of practice I felt ready and was looking forward to the game on Saturday. I looked up and saw a group of girls sitting together watching us practice. Amanda, Steph, Vicky and Susan were together along with a bunch of other girls.

I got dressed as Fred and Frank went over what we would need to bring, including our birth certificates and IDs as we might be taking the shorter route up through Southern Ontario and would need identification. Clothes, books, homework, laptops, toiletries, entertainment devices were all listed.

They finally let us out and John, Mark and I went up to meet the girls.

"Hi boys" all the girls said.

"Hello ladies" we replied.

I wasn't sure who the rest of the ladies were; maybe they were other girl friends of the guys or teammates of Susan's.

"That looked like a fun practice" said Susan.

Mark answered her saying "Yeah, it got everyone in the game and changed up the lines and defensive pairings."

"So, you guys ready for the game on Saturday?" asked Amanda.

"I think so, even Ian has come far this week and should be ok in the game" John responded.

"So Mike, who is this Bobby Vickers and why did he take a swing at you" asked Vicky with a raised eyebrow.

"A rookie forward who ran me into the boards but didn't like it when I hit him with a clean check later" I responded with a shrug.

"Wait a minute, he took a swing at you and he was still at practice later" asked John. "Are you losing your touch Michael? Is Vicky softening you up?"

Everyone laughed.

"Well he missed and kind of fell over a bench in the locker room. Sam came in before he could try again. He was pretty mad though so maybe he's waiting for me out in the parking lot" I said laughing.

"He's just enough of a fool to do that, wouldn't he?" John asked Mark.

"Unless the coaches read him the riot act, he probably is already waiting along with some of the other rookie idiots" Mark answered.

"So, should we eat first and then I let him prove he's a big man, or should I go out there and meet you back in the cafeteria in a few minutes?" I asked them.

"Hmmm fighting on a full stomach will slow you down and could be messy if he gets you good in the stomach; fighting before will make you a little angrier because you're missing your dinner but the blood might ruin everyone's appetite. Hard decision to make Mike" John analyzed the situation. "Mark?"

"Definitely before. The blood can be washed off prior to stepping into the cafeteria to protect the squeamish" Mark said with authority.

"There you have it Mike, let's go and see if Mr. Vickers is awaiting with bated breath for you to show up outside" directed John.

"I can't believe you're going out there knowing a guy wants to bash your head in Mike" said Stephanie. "Vicky, why aren't you stopping this?"

"Stephanie, don't worry ok Honey, Michael can take care of himself. Do you think John or Mark would really let him go out if they thought he would get hurt? I'll tell you more as we walk ok?"

"If you say so, Vicky, I'll worry just the same" Steph said.

"Alright, let's get this crap over with. Hopefully the fool isn't there, I'm really hungry" I said and walked to the parking lot.

Unfortunately, Bobby Vickers was there, along with four other rookies, waiting by my car. They were a little surprised when a bunch of girls along with John and Mark followed me out.

"Gentlemen, was this to be a five on one affair or are you here to see Mr. Vickers have some fun with me by himself?" I asked as I handed my book bag to Vicky and stepped forward.

"I don't need help kicking the shit out of you asshole" he said.

"So just here for moral support then boys? Good, because if not, all rules are off and hockey careers get ruined" I said quietly.

They backed up and Bobby stood alone. I tried one last time to get him to let it go.

"Bobby, we each got a check in and you even took a swing at me. I consider it even and hold no grudges. Why don't we just shake on it and go our separate ways. I really don't want to fight you" I said mildly.

"Fuck you Stewart, you think you so much better than the rest of us. I'm going to show everyone that you're not so tough and then I'm going show your slut girlfriend what a real man looks like" he yelled.