“O-okay.” He licked his lips. “Who is it?”
I rolled my lips together nervously, hoping he wouldn’t get mad. “Mark Rossi.”
As the seconds ticked by, he didn’t react. Staring out with a look of confusion on his face, he adjusted his beanie, taking in the information. “Rossi? From therink?”
“Yeah.”
His forehead creased. “But he’s a senior.”
“You’re a junior.” I shrugged. “And they’re seniors,” I said, pointing to Colt and Kappy. While the three boys all played on the same AAA team at Centre Ice because they had the same birth year, JP was born in September, meaning he was a grade level below them.
“You’re only a sophomore.” His eyebrows pulled together.
“Okay, so now we know everyone’s age,” I said awkwardly.
“Rossi’s an asshole, Ali.”
“No, he’s sweet,” I said defensively. I knew my boyfriendcouldbe an asshole, but he wasn’t an asshole to me.
“Mark Rossi isnotsweet.” JP snorted. “He was suspended by US Hockey for a full year because he purposely broke a guy’s leg and then laughed about it. He’s not right in the head, Ali.”
“Well, he’s sweet to me,” I said quietly. Mark was the only one who defended me when Kali Beaufort stole my diary and read it in front of the entire lunchroom on the second day of school. And when one of her cronies pantsed me in gym class, making everyone laugh at me again, I tried running back into the school, but Mark pulled me under the bleachers with him where he’d been smoking. He motioned for me to shush, then I watched through teary eyes as he snuck across the parking lot and slashed their cars’ tires. Pretty soon, no one dared to mess with me. I knew Mark was bad news, but he was protecting me. So, when he asked me out, I went along with it—partially because I didn't want to lose his protection.
“Why him?” JP asked, almost like he was disgusted, and that made me doubly defensive.
“Because he asked me, JP,” I snapped. I didn’t mean for it to be an insult, at least not all the way, but by the way JP’s face fell, I could tell that’s how he took it. “Besides, I—” I swallowed the rest of my sentence. It really wasn’t anyone else’s business.
“Besides…?” JP coaxed. His eyes softened, making me want to confide in him, even though I knew I shouldn’t.
“I have my reasons,” I said, hoping he’d let me leave it at that.
His eyebrows raised. “And those reasons are…?” he trailed off.
“Private,” I said quietly, feeling my face heat up. I didn’t want to tell him about how I was bullied at school. I liked keeping my life at school and skating separate because I didn’t want anyone to start viewing me differently, especially not him. At school, I was seen as a weak target, but at the rink, I was a threat, a viable competitor, a future champion. I worked hard for that image, and Iwasn’t about to lose it.
JP stared at me curiously, making me feel way too seen. “Okay.” He nodded. “You like him? He treats you right?”
I stood there thinking of Mark. Of his longer brown hair that flared out under his ears and his dark eyes. His slow grin and unfortunate chew habit. His harsh cheekbones that made him look like a model, and his harsh mouth that made people scared of him. He was one of the most attractive guys at school, which was why everyone liked him. He had a calmness about him that was almost scary. It was the type of calm that came before a storm. And boy, did he bring a storm when he wanted to. He had unmatched reactiveness and a hot temper—which acted as both his strengths and downfalls in hockey. They were strengths and downfalls for me too. He used that temper to defend me. He kept me tucked under his arm at school so I could fly under the radar. But he also jumped to the worst conclusions about me before I could ever explain anything, which created a lot of arguments between us in the last couple months. He always eventually listened and felt bad though. And he could be really romantic when he wanted to be.
“Like I said, he’s sweet to me,” I said with a shrug.
JP rubbed his forehead. “Can I be your friend at least?” he asked.
A little bubble of hope started growing in my chest. “Really?” I asked quietly.
“Of course.” He gave me a soft smile and threw his arm over my shoulders. We fit perfectly together, like two puzzle pieces.
“Well, that’s very sweet ofyou, Jameson.” I patted his chest while relief flooded my system.
He gave me a lopsided grin. “Yeah, well, Iamsweet, Alinna.” Hearing my name from his lips made a shiver skate down my spine. No one ever used my full name. His jaw flexed. “Besides, you and Rossi can’t be too serious if your friends don’t even know about him.” He looked at me in question. He was way too perceptive for his own good. “Right?”
I just shrugged before smoothing away from him to do a couple edge pulls. No, it wasn’t that serious. It was more like an arrangement, but I didn’t feel like explaining it any further. “Too bad you don’t go to public school,” I mumbled more to myself. JP went to the all-guys private school across town.
He glided beside me. “Why would that matter?”
Shit. I stopped skating and rubbed my forehead. “Just saying,” I murmured, hoping to play it off. “A girl could always use more friends.”
He shrugged. “Yeah well, you need the ‘friend’ part before you add ‘boy’ to the front,” he joked, and his cheeks brightened with shyness.
