CHAPTER FOUR

~ZANDER~

   Something was seriously wrong with me.

Because for the last twenty minutes, all I could think about was a girl in a stupid Ladybug shirt.

It made no fucking sense.

Girls like her were exactly the kind I stayed away from, the ones that were too bright, too innocent looking and too soft. The type who smiled too much and wanted to help anyone they could.

I hated girls like that so why the hell couldn't I stop thinking about her eyes?

There had been something off about them. Something hidden beneath all the nervousness and irritation. She smiled but it didn't quite reach her eyes completely.

Like she was pretending and for some reason, that unsettled me.

And why did she seem so familiar?

“Zanders!” Kai's loud voice snapped me out of my thoughts as he jogged toward me outside the rink.

“Where have you been man, practice started ten minutes ago" He told me and I frowned as I shoved my hands deeper into my pocket.

I was ashamed to admit that I had waited outside my dorm building, watching Ladybug sit on the bench and had only left when her friend arrived.

It wasn't like I cared, I just… didn't have to explain myself.

“Shut up” I muttered as I walked past him.

“Damn, still as cold as ever. I thought by now my charms would have melted that cold heart of yours” Kai uttered and I rolled my eyes.

“Kai” Mason muttered as he walked up beside him, “The captain has threatened to kill you at least twelve times this week. Take a hint”

“Hey, I wasn't bothering him and that's the way he shows he loves me. Don't be jealous” Kai argued and I rolled my eyes as I walked towards the rink entrance.

The second I stepped onto the ice, the familiar chill settled under my skin, easing some of the irritation twisting inside my chest.

Hockey always did that, it silenced everything else.

“By the way,” Mason said as we headed towards the locker room after warming up on the ice. “Freshman tryouts are tomorrow. Coach wants you there early. Apparently, there are a lot of promising recruits this year”

“We don't need recruits. We are fine as it is” I uttered and he sighed like he had predicted my words.

“Austin's shoulder is fucked, Zander. I doubt he would have recovered before the playoffs” Mason told me and I stopped walking.

“He’ll recover”

“That’s not the point”

“I don't want new players”

“And that.” Coach Jones’ voice cut in sharply behind us. “Is exactly the problem”

I turned slowly and saw coach standing a few feet with his arms crossed.

“You and I need to talk” He muttered and I frowned as I folded my arms.

I nodded and he glanced at Kai and Mason who made no move to walk away then sighed.

“Everyone is complaining about you, Cole. It's not a good look,” He explained and I tilted my head.

“It's not anything new, is it?” I asked.

“But it's not good either. You're the captain cole and your reputation affects everyone. The new freshmen are so intimidated by you that many of them don't even want to try out anymore. Even your teammates call you unapproachable” He stated and I turned towards some of my teammates that were standing close with a glare and they immediately walked away.

“See? That's not the way of a captain.  A captain is there to lead, there to advise his team on what to do…”

“I do lead…”

“No you don't” He corrected sharply. “You score goals, there's a Difference” My expression hardened.

“I show up to practice, I play harder than anyone else on the team and I win games for you”

“And I'm not saying that's a bad thing but you barely speak to your teammates except on the ice. You avoid every year's event. The only friends you have are these two”

I shook my head at him.

“First of all, I only tolerate Mason and Kai is basically a pet” 

“Meow”

He stared at us for a while then sighed.

“You have no idea how serious this is, Cole. After that article on you two years ago, the Internet has you under their watchful eyes, criticizing your every movement and you're making it easy for them. You need to clean up your ways or you're off the team” He told me and Kai gasped beside me.

“You can't do that, he's your best player” Mason uttered.

“He is and that's why I'm giving you a chance to clean up your reputation, Cole. You're a prodigy and if you play your cards well, you'll be drafted into the NHL before you even finish college. Isn't that what you want?” He asked and I clenched my jaws.

He sighed.

“Look, I understand what happened to you…”

“Don't” I muttered coldly and it was almost like the entire hallway went silent.

He stared at me and his expression softened slightly before it hardened again.

“I'm giving you six months to clean up your reputation. That's more than enough time and don't think for one second that I won't kick you out” He muttered then walked away.

“Damn, that was intense,” Kai muttered.

“What are you going to do now? Because Coach is dead serious” Mason pointed out and I clenched my fist.

I couldn't get kicked off the team. Hockey was the only thing that kept me going.

The only thing keeping me from completely losing my mind after…

No, I wasn't going to think about that right now.

As soon as we walked into the locker room, one of our teammates, Daniel, suddenly came jogging in, looking way too excited.

“You guys need to see this. There's a juicy scene happening at the cafe close to the library” He uttered as he pulled out his phone.

“Daniel, you should keep your nose out of gossip once in a while” Mason muttered and I turned away ready to tune everyone out.

“But this one is juicy and the girls involved are smoking hot, especially the one with the Ladybug shirt. Weird choice but I dig the weird any day” 

My ears perked up instantly as I turned to Daniel.

“What did you say?” I asked and his eyes widened.

“Oh I…” I snatched his phone and there she was, in the middle of the cafe standing in front of a girl and boy with her friend from earlier Beside her. Someone was broadcasting the whole thing.

Fuck, i didn't care.

I shouldn't care.

I didn't even know her.

“I need to go,” I muttered as I shoved the phone back into Daniel's hand and grabbed my keys from my locker.

“Wait, what about practice…” I heard Kai yellow but I was already out the door.

I got into my car and drove down to the cafe.

“Imagining having nowhere to live and still attracting trouble” I muttered as I stepped on the gas and in minutes, I was there.

As I walked over to the door, irritation pursed through me for reasons I refused to examine too closely.

I paused by the door and saw as Rhea tried pulling away but was held back by the brunette boy who stood in front of her.

“Chase, let go of me” His grip tightened slightly. 

“I've been calling you, texting you but there has been no response. Can we talk, please?” He pleaded and I could see it on her face that she was about to break.

I didn't know what had happened between them but I didn't like his face.

I was about to walk in when the girl beside Him stepped forward and grabbed her arm.

“I know you're mad at me, I know you blame me but I'm sorry. If I could turn back time, I would, even if that meant giving up on what we have just to make you happy and less lonely” The girl muttered and I scoffed at how condescending her words were.

“I don't give a fuck, Sienna. Leave me alone” Rhea said shakily and shoved the other girl a little bit but the girl fell back dramatically like she had just been shot.

Chase immediately caught her then turned to Rhea with a glare.

“Rhea, what the fuck Is wrong with you?” He asked then pushed Rhea away as she stepped forward.

He pushed her so hard that she fell on the floor and in that moment, something inside me snapped cold.

“How dare you? It seems the beating I gave you two wasn't enough huh?” The girl that had been beside Rhea yelled.

Guilt flashed across the boy's face and he tried reaching for Rhea when I slapped his hand away as I stood in front of her.

“Touch her, I dare you” I muttered dangerously softly and instantly, the whole cafe went dead silent.

The boy stared at me with confusion on his face and I ignored him as I turned to Rhea who was still on the floor, staring up at me with her Hazel eyes glassy with unshed tears.

Something about that look irritated me more than it should have.

I crouched in front of her and brushed the tear sliding down her cheeks with my thumb.

“Now” I said softly as I caressed her cheek. “Who dares to make my girlfriend cry?”…