001

Dona’s POV

Hockey was really not my thing. Up until a few weeks ago, I had never watched that sport or showed any interest in it, but here I was, sitting on the bench in the ice rink packed full with people. 

It was a friendly scrimmage between my college's team and University of Tampa's. I should have been focused on the game, like everyone else. My mates screamed with every near-goal, jumped with each hit, and cheered for the boys who were sweating it out on the ice. 

But I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

August Reynolds was the new guy, the one who skated like the ice was made for him. He had transferred just a few weeks ago and already had the school wrapped around his finger. Tall, with tousled dark hair that looked like it never obeyed a comb, and eyes that captured the gaze. Every girl noticed him, and every guy either wanted to be him or beat him.

Usually I didn't care for boys or things they loved, but August and his hockeu had drawn me in from the first day I saw him.

“Seriously, Dona. Can you not drool for five minutes?” My friend, Piper, nudged me hard in the ribs, laughing as she waved a popcorn in front of my face. “He’s just a guy with a hockey stick, amongst other guys with hockey sticks.” 

I shoved my hand into the popcorn cup and didn't respond, watching August Reynolds weave past two defenders and with a hurried aim, the puck slammed into the net, and the crowd went wild. 

With the spotlight now on him, he threw his arms up, grinning widely as his teammates engulfed him.

“He’s more than that,” I mumbled, not caring that I sounded ridiculous.

“You’re just being obsessed.” She groaned, chewing noisily on her popcorn. She always chewed noisily whenever she was brewing something stupid in her head. 

Just like I had thought, she shifted her gaze back to me and with a hand resting under her chin, she murmured, “I told you about Caleb, remember? He asked me about you again. And unlike August freaking Reynolds, Caleb is actually normal. He studies Computer Engineering like us, and doesn’t think the sun rises and sets with his own ego.”

“I’m not interested in Caleb." I said flatly.

“You don’t even know him!” she protested.

“I don’t want to know him.”

She crossed her arms on her chest, a disappointing frown on her face, “You’re wasting your time, Dona. Guys like August Reynolds don’t go for girls like us.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, snapping my head in her direction.

Piper’s expression went soft, but she didn’t take her words back. “You know what I mean.”

“Whatever,” I muttered.

Piper didn’t get it. My obsession with August wasn’t just about the fact that he was hot, but also the way he carried himself. Unlike the other jocks I had met, he didn't seem to care that he was a literal celebrity in our school.

This made me feel the urge to know him more, peel back the layers that made August, August.

The game ended with a win in our favour, of course, and our school erupted into a wild celebration. But I sat there glumly, finishing Piper's popcorn and watching the team members as they returned to their locker room. 

Suddenly a crazy thought occured to me.

“Hey, I’ll head home later,” I started, pulling away from Piper.

“Why?”

“I just want to take a walk, I need to clear my head.”

Eyeing me suspiciously, she whispered, “Don’t stalk the hockey team, Dona.”

“No promises.” I chuckled, suddenly weighing it as an option. Today might be my lucky day, who knows. 

“Alright, then, see you on Monday." She waved me off and disappeared into the crowd the next second. 

I watched the locker room door closely, waiting for the moment the boys would emerge from there. Soon enough, they were out of the room and making their way towards the entrance of the ice rink.

Feeling like a crazy stalker, I followed them all the way out and to a bar directly opposite the ice rink.

In trying to look as inconspicuous as possible, they had gotten into the bar before me. I stopped before the door, and cheers and loud music enough to make a deaf person hear again poured.

Curious, I peeked through the windows, and there they were: the school hockey team. 

August was in the center of it all. He had his head thrown back in laughter and was surrounded by people patting his back and buying him drinks. 

I knew that Piper was right. This man wasn't interested in girls that looked like me, but I just couldn’t look away. What was it about him that set him apart from the other boys I knew?

I stood there, hidden behind a pillar and watching them celebrate like they had just won the national finals. August's smile was different outside the pitch: here it was looser and a little wild. 

I watched as he refilled his glass and slowly brought it to his mouth. And then his eyes found mine.

I froze immediately. "Holy shit, holy shit!"

He stared at me over the rim of his cup and through the window. My heart did a scared little flip as he narrowed his eyes, as if trying to remember my face.

Scared, I turned away from the window, wishing I had listened to my friend. I took several calming breaths, then made a move to get the hell out of there, when his voice stopped me.

“You know, it’s rude to stare.”

I didn’t have to turn to know who it was, but still, I did. He was even more attractive up close.

“I wasn’t staring.” I lied. "It's a public bar, isn't it?"

"A public bar, and yet you were peeping through the windows." August noted, pushing a hand into his pocket. “And you’ve got that fan-girl look. I get that all the time."

Pompous, much? Why did I say he was different from the other guys I knew? He was EXACTLY the same!

“I don’t...” I paused, gritting my teeth in annoyance. “Maybe I was just curious.”

“Curious?” He lifted his perfectly carved brow.

“Yeah. I’ve never seen someone skate like that. You’re… you're good.”

He snorted. "Is that a compliment?"

“Don’t let it go to your head.”

“Too late." he murmured, and was I being delusional, or was that genuine interest in his eyes. “Dona, right?” 

My mouth fell right open. “You know my name?”  

“Uh, yeah. You like to sit in the front of my Fluid Mechanics class, always chewing on your pen. I remember wondering why a sophomore was taking a senior course.” He shrugged. "Yeah, I remember you."

He had noticed me?

Something inside me fluttered happily, and I pushed my glasses up my nose, feeling a blush coming on. And then I chided myself for feeling like that for a boy that was like other boys.

But then he leaned against the wall, his gaze sweeping over me with an ease that made me feel entirely exposed.

“You’re not really my type, though.” He deadpanned. The flutter I felt earlier turned to shards of glass. 

“Excuse me?”

“Don’t take it personally. You seem cool and smart too. You are just not my kind of girl.”

“What is your kind of girl?” I asked shamelessly. 

“You know, party girls, loud girls, arm candies.” He gave me a half smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “You look like you think too much.”

Anger flared in my chest as I glared at him. "And you look like you don’t think enough."

The look in his eyes showed he was surprised. Lifting his brow, he let out a laugh. “Fair enough, fair enough.”

"How are you even an engineering major?" I asked. "Last I checked, idiots don't study professional courses like that."

The smile on his face vanished immediately. His eyes flashed with annoyance at my words, and I immediately started to wish I hadn't said them. 

"There are so many things you don't know about me, Dona." He murmured.

Then, leaning so close that his hot breath was warming my face, he added, “And if you leveled up a bit and quit being such a ginormous asshole, maybe you could find out what those things are."