Tierney
Like. An actual human?
Me
Yup! Grant’s coach has a daughter, and she needs someone for her lessons.
Through a weird twist of fate, I’m the one who is going to be working with her.
Tierney
Hannah, WHAT? Wait. I love this for you! You’d be a GREAT coach.
Are you excited?
Me
Yeah… but I also feel like I’m going to be sick.
Tierney
Deep breath. You’re a badass who is going to kick ass.
I can’t wait to hear all about it.
From the very firstday I started skating, I’ve been confident stepping onto the ice. Today, I’m nervous as hell. I could barely eat lunch. I spent all day prior to arriving at the Stars’ practice facility making a list of things to discuss with Olivia.
I’ve racked my brain trying to remember what my coaches have taught me before we started working on program choreography. I don’t want to assume Olivia knows or doesn’t know certain terminology. I also don’t want to push her so hard she winds up like me, stuck in limbo about whether or not I see a future for myself in this sport.
Being a good athlete doesn’t mean you’ll make a good coach, but I’ve taught a few Learn to Skate camps in the past. I’ve helped the younger skaters at the rink when they’ve struggled with some of their moves, and I’m going to rely on that directional instinct to help me get through our first couple of lessons.
No one will have any idea I’m flying by the seat of my fucking pants.
I fix my ribbon and walk down a long tunnel toward the players’ bench. I pull out my skates and take off the soakers protecting the blades, reminding myself to breathe. Brody and I agreed on a four o’clock start, and a quick check of the time tells me I have fifteen minutes to shake out my jitters.
The ice is smooth, and the first lap has my shoulders relaxing away from my ears. My legs are lighter, andthisis what I’ve been missing: complete peace. The ability to skate just toskate, not to perform for judges giving me scores. The second lap has me smiling. I go through some of my favorite moves on the third lap, landing a double Axel more perfectly than I have in months.
“If I tried to jump like that, I’d be taken away in an ambulance,” someone yells.
I grin on instinct, finishing my turn to find Grant joining me on the ice in athletic shorts and a DC Stars Hockey hoodie. I move toward him, noticing freshly dried blood under his eye and a nick on his skin.
“What happened to your face?” I ask, stopping abruptly and spraying ice on his shins. He groans and tries to shove my shoulder, but in his slides, I’m much faster. “You weren’t good-looking before, but now you look like a troll. I preferred the inch worm mustache.”
“Glad I have such a loving sister who boosts my confidence.”
“Like it needs boosting. I know you saw that social media page dedicated to making thirst trap edits of you.”
“What can I say? I’m the people’s princess.” His grin is smug. “As for my face, I took a stick to the cheek during morning skate. I’m fine, and the battle wounds make me cooler.”
“It would be even cooler if you were missing some teeth.”
“Might happen in our next game. We’re playing the team we beat for the Cup two years ago. It’s shocking they’re not fans of us.”
“Are you all scheduled for an afternoon practice today? Please don’t tell me my lesson is about to be taken over by twenty hockey players.”
“Nah. Just wanted to stop by and say hi before your first official day as a coach. How’re you feeling? Not stressed, I hope. You’re going to knock this out of the park, Han.”
It’s impossible not to smile at his encouragement.
