Date: Wed, 06 Nov 2002 19:15:43 +0000
From: . . <ckid2772@hotmail.com>
Subject: Life as a Boy 7

                                 Life as a Boy

                                   Chapter 7

	The end of the care free summer came when soccer tryouts began two weeks
before school started. Both you and Marc made the varsity team easily. You
had played between the junior varsity and varsity teams last year so you
were basically guaranteed a spot. You had found that Marc was a great soccer
player last spring when he played on your select team, so it came as no
surprise to you that he made varsity this year.
	The soccer season came and went quickly. The team didn't play all that well
and you ended up with a losing record. The bright spots were that both you
and Marc put up big goal totals. Marc had surprisingly been put up at
striker with you, rather than his usual midfield position. He had done
nearly as well as you in goal scoring and set you up for many of your goals.
Despite the poor showing by the team you know things will be better next
year. Most of the players were juniors this year so you should have a strong
team next year.
	After the soccer season you only had a couple weeks to recuperate before
the high school hockey began. You and Marc had been playing on a select
hockey team during soccer and that had taken a toll on your body as well but
you love hockey too much to go for more than a month without playing. The
select team disbands before the high school season starts and then starts up
again after the high school season finishes. That way you can stay in shape
pretty much all year round because you have summer hockey as well.
	Hockey tryouts had been a breeze for you, Marc and Steve. You had been the
second line last year but the first line from last year had been all seniors
who had graduated. Steve was selected as one of the captains of the team
this year and the other is a senior defenseman. Your team is ranked high in
the state because last year you had made it to the state tournament. You
managed to win your league and win the section tournament; allowing you to
head to states again this year.
	Going into the state tournament the rumor is that the other teams will be
looking to shut down your line. Your coach had sat you, Marc and Steve down
in the locker room after the last practice before the tournament and warned
that the competition would be targeting the three of you. Your line had
pretty much dominated in the league and had a reputation across the state as
being the heart of your team. Steve had led the league in goal scoring, you
had been a close second and Marc had led in assists and points.
	Also adding fuel to the fire was a rumor that scouts from some prep schools
were coming to this year's state tournament specifically to watch you, Marc
and Steve. You figure that will just add to the opposition's desire to
target your line.
	All this is on your mind as the bus pulls into the hotel parking lot on
Friday afternoon. Hopefully you will be staying here for two nights; that
would mean you are in the state finals game on Sunday. You wake Marc up with
a jab to his ribs and he jerks awake almost immediately. Once the bus stops
everybody gets off and begins getting there things from the under carriage
of the bus.
	After checking into the hotel you get the room keys and head up to your
room on the third floor. The room turns out to be more spacious than last
year's rooms. You and Marc are sharing the room with Steve and the only
freshman to make the varsity team this year, Tyler.
	You and Marc claim the bed closest to the window as always. You like having
the window cracked open at night so a light cool breeze can get in. Tyler
and Steve get the other bed. The beds don't seem to be as small as last
year's. This is probably good because Steve has to sleep with Tyler. You
have been joking with Steve and Alex that Steve sleeping with Tyler might
constitute cheating. Of course you only said that in jest, but Tyler isn't
bad looking at all and that could certainly pose a problem for Steve if they
had to sleep too close.
	No, Tyler is not bad looking at all. You watch him come into the room and
toss his bags down on the floor. Tyler is about 5'7 and a slim 145 pounds.
He's got blond hair and blue eyes that sort of reminds you of Alex. You
wonder if Steve sees any similarity.
	Steve has grown since the summer and is now about 6'3 and 205 pounds. He
has put on some serious muscle because of the weight lifting routine this
year. His body has definitely become more built and defined. Alex is always
happily telling you about how great Steve's body is now.
	Both you and Marc have been growing as well. Marc is now 5'11 and a solid
165 pounds. You have reached 5'10, but you are falling behind Marc now in
the height category. You weigh as much as Marc though at 165 pounds. You've
both been weight lifting and it has helped the two of you add muscle rather
than fat.
	After spending a few hours at the hotel the team gets back on the bus and
heads to the rink. It's only a short ride and you arrive in no time. In the
locker room you tape your stick that you had been given by your parents for
your 15th birthday back in October. Hopefully it will bring you luck tonight
and you'll score a few goals for the team. You aren't as nervous as last
year and you get dressed a bit early sitting in your equipment thinking
about the game.
	The team you'll be facing is one of the top in the state and it's supposed
to be a good match up. Their best player is a senior by the last name of
Young. He will be going to college next year on a full ride scholarship for
hockey. Supposedly he's quite the player, broke a lot of records at his high
school. The scouting report is that he's big, shoots well, skates well and
is a bit nasty. Seeing that you are the first line that means you'll
probably be on the ice against this guy a lot tonight.
	The coach comes into the locker room saying the zamboni is off the ice.
This leads to a scramble of players getting their equipment on and adjusted
properly. About 5 minutes later you all pile out of the locker room and hit
the ice for warm ups. It's the usual routine for warm ups, stretch, skate,
pass, shoot and get off the ice to let the zamboni resurface the ice again.
After that it's time to go out for the beginning of the game.
	Your team gets on the ice and lines up on the blue line for the national
anthem. The other team lines up on the other blue line facing the flag as
well. The anthem is over quickly and everybody except the starting lines
head to the benches.
	You line up on the left wing, Marc will be at center and Steve on the
right. You look at the player across from you and it is the other team's
star player Young. You look up at him, and he looks down at you smiling
smugly. He's definitely a bit bigger even than Steve. To you he seems like a
giant, but you don't let it bother you. If he thinks that your smaller
stature is going to make it easy for him he has another thing coming.
	"What are you looking at?" you ask him casually, jostling him a bit with
your shoulder.
	He says nothing for a bit and then replies, "Not much, you little shit."
	You smile at him mockingly and say, "I hope your skating is better than
your insults."
	The referee gives you a warning look from the center dot and says, "Cool
it." Then he drops the puck and Marc wins it back to your defenseman.
	"Have fun losing!" you say to Young as you skate by him, making yourself
open for a pass from the defense.
	The first shift ends up being fairly uneventful but the next shift you
score a goal on a pass from Marc. By the end of the first the score is two
to nothing in favor of your team. The second period is a different story
though and Young scores two for his team evening the score. In the third
period Marc scores on an assist from you and then Steve on another assist
from you. The other team just won't quit though and it is 4 to 4 with three
minutes remaining in regulation.
	It's your shift and the face off is in your defensive zone. Marc wins it
clean back to the defense and you head up the ice and cut to the center.
Steve gets the puck and chips it out to you as you skate up the right side
boards. You pick up the puck and skate it deep blowing by a defenseman. You
skate behind the net and end up in the left corner. You quickly pass back to
your defense and wait patiently in the corner as Steve and Marc head to the
net expecting a shot from the point. Your defenseman passes it back down to
you and you look to find an open seam to the net. You step out of the corner
and cruise into a group of players tangled in front of the net. You keep
control of the puck as you navigate through 4 bodies, some friend and some
foe. Eventually you can sense a shot will make it through the pile up and
you wrist it. The puck has eyes and it finds its way into the top right hand
corner. The goalie never even saw it. You throw your hands up in celebration
of what should be the winning goal. Marc, Steve and your defenseman
teammates join you in a celebratory group hug. You head off the ice and the
coach sends out the second line. The game ends 5 to 4 with your team
winning.
	After the game you head off the ice and in the hall way to the locker room
a man with a note book grabs you by the shoulder.
	"Hey, would you mind doing an interview?" says the man.
	"Sure no problem," you reply. A reporter, you've done a few interviews this
year actually.
	After a few initial questions of you feelings about the game the reporter
says, "Well it seems like you pretty much carried your team out there
tonight with two goals and two assists. Do you think you'll be able to come
up with another performance like that tomorrow?"
	You pause for a moment staring at the reporter before saying, "I think you
have it wrong. My team played great tonight, I didn't carry them. If they
hadn't played well I wouldn't have been able to do anything."
	The reporter looks at you side ways and then smiles, "Good answer, that
will sound like you're a real team player. Off the record Tim, is there any
chance you'll be leaving high school for a prep team next year."
	You feel a bit annoyed that the reporter completely brushed off your team
play comment like you hadn't really felt that way. The truth is without your
team playing well you would have been shut down. Yes, you played well but by
no means were you the only one.
	"Well I don't know anything about leaving for prep school next year. I've
got a lot of friends on this team and they are all great players. Anyways,
I've got to get to the locker room, thanks," you say as you turn away from
the reporter and head down the hall.
	Once you get into the locker room you strip down quickly and hop in the
shower. Marc's already there and washing up.
	"Hey Tim, what did that guy want?" asks Marc.
	You pause for a moment, wondering if you should say anything about the
reports remark about you carrying the team but instead you say, "Oh not
much, just wanted to get some comments on the game."
	"You looked great out there man, really flying tonight," says Marc.
	"Well, you played awesome and so did Steve, I was just trying to keep up,"
you reply as you bow your head down, letting the warm water run over your
face.
	You feel Marc grab your arm and you straighten up facing him questioningly.
He's looking at you smiling.
	"Tim, I don't think you even realize how great you played, it was
unbelievable. I'm being honest," he says.
	You feel somebody slap the back of your head playfully and when you turn
around you see Steve behind you.
	"He's right man, you made that Young kid look like a garbage player
compared to you. Are you on steroids or something?" asks Steve jokingly.
	You smile at them and think there must be something to what they're saying.
"Well if you guys say so, but I wouldn't have played half as well if it
wasn't for having you guys out there... and no I'm not on steroids! Makes your
balls shrink!" you say laughingly.
	Steve chuckles and heads out of the showers. Marc shakes his head and
laughs. "Stop being modest, it's irritating," he says as he playfully
punches you in the shoulder as he to leaves the shower room. You shut off
the shower and head back to the locker room to get dressed.
	You get back to your hotel room not a moment to soon. You strip down to
your boxers and hop into bed. As soon as your head hits the pillow you are
out cold.

	You wake up at about 10:00 A.M. and click on the TV. Marc wakes up and
takes a shower but Tyler and Steve sleep until a bit later. Your game is at
1 P.M. today. You eat at 11 and then head to the rink.
	You wait patiently in the locker room thinking about today's game. You're
playing the same team as last year, once again they are ranked among the top
in the country. Beating this team would make up for the loss last year and
put you into the State Tournament finals. The team you would play in the
finals, if you get there, won't be as tough as the team you are facing
today. You decide not to think about that and to just concentrate on the
task at hand.
	The team you play today has a lot of players who are seniors and will be
playing in college next year. They don't have a particular weakness, the
goalies are good, the defense is strong and the offense is skilled. It's
expected to be a rough game and you are ready for it.
	By 12:45 you are dressed and when warm up time comes you are the first guy
out there. You skate hard, trying to get into the game before it even
starts. After warm ups the wait is almost unbearable for the game to start.
	Soon enough you the game is about to start and your team piles out onto the
ice for the national anthem. During the anthem you look at the other team,
seeing that they are mostly bigger than your team. You can't let it scare
you though because when you play scared you get hurt. When the anthem ends
your teams huddles at your goal.
	"Come on guys, we can beat this team!" says Steve. "They beat us last year
because we weren't ready for them, but this year most of us have been here
and we know what we've got to do! Let's go!" he yells excitedly. Then you
yell your teams name and you hear the other team doing the same thing at the
other end of the ice.
	You skate to your left wing position for the opening face off. Steve heads
to the right and Marc is the last to get into the position. The puck is
dropped and Marc wins it to your side of the ice. He wins it clean and the
puck flies by you and your opponent to end up along the boards. You rush
towards it and get it, passing it back to the defense. The defense passes it
up to Steve along the right side boards and Steve flips it deep into the
other team's zone.
	Marc hustles in hard and checks a defenseman stealing the puck. He slides
it along the boards to where you are in the left hand corner. You see Steve
crashing towards the net through a couple defenders and decide to throw the
puck towards the net. You let fly a low wrist shot that hits a body in front
and finds it's way through the goalies five-hole, into the net. Steve lets
out a big yell of approval and Marc skates to you grabbing you in a bear
hug.
	"That was the luckiest goal I've ever scored," you say laughing happily.
	"Hey man, I'll take it if you don't want it! I think it went off the ass of
one of their guys!" says Steve. You laugh some more and shake your head as
you skate off the ice for a line shift.
	"Nice goal Tim, way to use the other team to your advantage," says your
coach jokingly.
	The rest of the first period is uneventful and it ends with your goal being
the only goal scored. The second period is a different story all together.
The other team comes out hard and scores a quick two goals and for a bit
they dominate. Then your hotel room mate Tyler scores and that really gets
your team back into it.
	You head out onto the ice with 5 minutes to go in the second period. The
face off is in their zone and you creep back to the top of the circles,
hoping Marc can win it back to you. It's a play you and he have worked hard
on all year.
	The ref drops the puck and Marc wins it right to your stick. You almost
bobble it but manage to steady the puck and let lose a rip of a snap shot.
The puck flies off your stick like a gun shot and finds it's way through a
couple of defenders' sticks before beating the goalie high stick side. You
let out a happy yell and skate into Marc's arms as the refs whistle blows,
indicating the goal. Your line mates surround you and remark on what a great
shot you pulled off. Then you head to center ice for the face off. Your line
will stay out because you had scored so early on your shift.
	The puck is dropped again and Marc wins it, keeping the puck on his stick
this time. He steps by the opposing centerman and you see your opportunity.
You turn on the afterburners and stride into the open ice behind the other
team's two defenseman, calling for the puck. Marc delivers a bullet pass
onto your stick and you don't even have to look at the defenseman on your
left or right to know you've got them beat. Two more steps and you are by
them and it's just you and the goalie.
	You pull the puck back behind you with the toe of your stick blade and then
use the toe again to pull the puck to your left skate, kicking the puck back
to your stick. The goalie isn't fooled but at least he knows you can do the
fancy stuff well and he might expect another fancy move. You pull back the
puck again as you get close to the goal and make it look like you will put
it through your legs again but instead you bring the puck forward and snap a
shot quickly towards the top right corner. The goalie was leaning to the
left anticipating the puck coming through your legs and he is off balance as
he waves at the puck now flying to the right side. He waves at it
desperately but ends up overcompensating, his glove misses the puck and the
black rubber disk ends up ringing around the top of the goal.
	The goal light comes on and you throw your arms in the air, celebrating
your hat trick goal. Your line mates come in for another group hug, all of
them yelling excitedly.
Then it's back to the center ice for another face off. Again your line stays
out because only about 15 seconds has gone by on the game clock since you
first got out there.
	The other team calls a time out so you skate to your bench and lounge
around. Your coach is saying to keep up the pressure and keep working hard.
You can hear the other team's coach ranting and raving.
	"Hit the guy! Every chance you get I want to see you hit him. He's a small
player and the best way to deal with them is to put the body to them," says
their coach.
	"Coach, every time I go to hit him he's already passed off the puck," says
one of the players.
	"Finish your checks, they won't call you for a penalty if you hit him after
he's gotten rid of the puck unless it's been more than three seconds,"
replies the coach. You shrug off what you have just heard and when the ref
blows the whistle you head back out to the center circle.
The second period ends with your team leading 4 to 2. The third period
begins and after you get a few scoring opportunities the other team is
trying even harder to stop you. Now every time you touch the puck at least
one guy tries to check you. You're very elusive though and mostly they miss
or only partially hit you. With 10 minutes left in the game the other team
scores and it is 4 to 3. Your line goes out for a face off at center ice.
Marc wins the face off again and the puck ends up on Steve's stick. He winds
up and slaps it into the zone as you are already skating up the left side
boards to get the puck. The puck rides along the boards and stops in the
left hand corner. You skate towards it at full speed, looking to your left
and to your right. The coast looks clear as you reach the corner and look to
play the puck. In the background you hear Marc yell, "Heads up!!"
You feel a weight from behind you and the glass approaches faster than
you've ever experienced before. You hear a crunching rattle of the boards as
you hit but can't see much as your vision becomes a flashing starry sky.
Blackness engulfs your vision and you see and hear nothing for what seems
like an eternity.
	You feel your body twitch as you regain some semblance of consciousness.
You are staring up at lights that seem brighter than any lights you've seen
before. There are rafters up there, and fans and lights. You glance to your
right and see boards with panes of glass in them. A hockey rink... you're
still at the hockey rink.
	"Don't move him, an ambulance is on the way," says a man's voice from above
you.
	"I think he's awake," you hear a familiar voice say.
	"I'm awake," you try to say but it comes out like a mumble.
	"Yeah he's awake, what did you say son?" asks a voice. You look to your
left and see your coach kneeling beside you.
	"I said, `I'm awake'. What the fuck happened?" you ask a bit more clearly.
	"You got taken into the boards hard from behind Tim; you'll be okay though
so don't worry. We have an ambulance on the way," replies your coach.
	"An ambulance?! I'm okay, I don't need to go to the hospital," you say as
vehemently as you can in your dream like state. Everything really does feel
like a dream. You raise your hand in front of your face and wave it slowly
back and forth across your vision. Is this even real?
	"Don't move Tim, just relax," says coach soothingly, "Try and stay awake
Tim."
	"Where are my parents?" you ask quietly.
	"They'll meet you at the hospital," says the man on your right. You look
down towards your toes and see Marc standing there looking at you worriedly.
	"Make sure my stick and junk makes it back to the hotel Marc," you say to
him.
	"No problem," he says, tapping your skate with his stick to reassure you.
You close your eyes and a dizzy spell comes over you. You feel slightly
nauseous and you just close your eyes hoping it will pass.
	After what seems like forever the ambulance arrives and they get you on a
stretcher and cart you off the ice. Both teams smack their sticks on the ice
and the people in the stands clap to send their best wishes with you.
	The ambulance ride seems timeless to you, the paramedics asking questions,
prodding you, trying to keep you awake. When you get to the hospital the
take you to the emergency room and get you out of your hockey stuff. Your
parents are there at first but you ask them to wait outside, insisting that
you're okay.
	After a barrage of tests are done, including an MRI, which takes some time,
you are given a hospital room and put to bed. It must be late and you are
more tired than you think you've ever felt before. You close your eyes and
feel a bit dizzy. You feel as though you're falling backwards again and
again. You let the feeling take you deeper and deeper, until at some point
you are asleep.
	Through out the night you are woken up by doctors and nurses. When you do
sleep you dream about the hockey game, about the boards coming at you
uncontrollably fast.
In the morning you are woken up by a bustling nurse in your room. You've got
a big time head ache and you look at the small clock in the room. It reads
10:34 A.M.
	"Excuse me, do you know what time I went to bed last night?" you ask the
nurse, wincing as your head pounds at the sound of your own voice.
	"Well let me look," says the nurse as she looks at the chart attached to
the foot of your bed. "You got to the hospital at 3:18 P.M. and you got into
this room at 7:12 P.M."
	"Why did the doctors keep waking me up?" you ask.
	"You've had a serious head injury, a grade 3 concussion. You aren't
supposed to sleep without being woken up every few hours after you have had
a concussion," she says and then quickly adds, "Don't worry though, you'll
be alright. The doctor will be in later to tell you more." With that the
nurse heads out the door of your room.
	A little later your parents come in.
	"Hi Tim, how do you feel," asks your mother worriedly.
	"I'm fine mom, don't sound so worried," you say with a yawn.
	You father looks at you and says, "Well you took one hell of a hit Tim but
the doctor says you'll be okay. The MRI came back showing no bleeding and
not too much swelling. You played a great game though, and the team won!"
	You smile and say, "Good." Then you frown and say, "That means the
championship is today, I guess I can't..."
	"Son, don't even think about it. You won't be doing anything physical for
at least two weeks," replies your father.
	You sigh loudly and say, "I really wanted to win the championship this
year."
	"Hey, you did a great job helping them get there Tim. In two games you got
7 points, that's pretty darn good. You were leading the tournament you
know," he says, your dad always keeps your stats for you.
	"Well, I don't care about that," says your mom, "I just hope you can come
home today. They said they might let you out by 5:00 tonight."
	You look at her and say, "If I get out of here at 5:00 I'll be heading to
the championship game at 7:00 to at least watch."

	You spend the next few hours resting and watching some TV in your hospital
room.  The doctor had come in and said that everything looked alright but
they are going to keep you a bit longer at the hospital. At about 1:00 P.M.
the door to your room opens and in piles 5 of your teammates and your coach.
	"Hey buddy how are you doing?" asks Marc.
	"I'm doing fine, just a bit of head ache," you say, "sorry coach, looks
like I won't be playing today."
	"Tim, I knew that as soon as you hit those boards," coach replies with a
chuckle.
	Marc looks angry for a moment, "I don't know what the hell that guy who hit
you was thinking."
	You see Steve standing by the door as he says, "Yeah, he really took you in
hard and from behind. They should expel him from school or something."
	"Well, he got suspended a few hockey games for it, but because he is a
senior he won't be back next year to serve the suspension," says your coach.
"The other guys wanted to see you but the hospital only lets in so many
visitors at a time," he says.
	"That's okay," you reply.
	After a bit of talk about the game tonight you wish them all luck and
everybody except Marc.
	"So you're okay?" asks Marc.
	"Yeah, just a bit of a head ache. It could have been worse," you reply.
	Marc looks at you as he leans on the side of your bed. "I was worried all
last night," he says, "we didn't know if you were going to be okay or not. I
mean you were out cold for about 5 minutes, it was the most scared I've ever
been I think." Marc looks at the hospital door quickly and says, "Well I've
got to go, I'll see you later today if they let you out of here."
	"Alright Marc, see you soon," you say.

	You get checked out of the hospital at 6:00 P.M. and you convince your
parents to take you to the ice hockey rink so you can see the game.
	The game ends up being a major disappointment.  Despite a good effort by
your team they lose 4 to 1. You are seriously disappointed but manage not to
show it too much. Even if you couldn't play you had still wanted your team
to win.
	After the game the tournament all-stars are announced and you and your
team's goalie make the first team. Marc, Steve and one of your defender's
make the second team. You walk down and hop on the bench with your teammates
to receive the second place medal and your all-star plaque.
	Your teammates are huddled around your coach and you hear coach saying,
"You guys played your hearts out, great effort. You've got nothing to be
ashamed of. Now go get your medals boys, you've earned it."
	"Hey guys," you say before they leave the huddle. Everybody looks at you
sheepishly as if they let you down by not winning. "I just have to say you
guys really left it all out on the ice tonight, you played really well. A
few bounces here and there and the game would have been a whole lot
different," you say.
	Most of the guys murmur in agreement, and Marc skates over to the boards
where you are to be close to you.
	The names are called out for the second place team and you step on the ice
and walk over to get your medal when your name is called. A big cheer goes
up in the stands as the people recognize you are the kid who got knocked out
cold last night. You smile at that and shake the tournament official's hand
as you receive your award. Then you saunter off the ice and watch the rest
of the ceremony.
	You decide to ride home on the bus, rather than going with your parents.
Your stuff is all paced in your parents' car but you want to be with the
team. More than that; you want to be with Marc. Truth is your injury scared
you too and you want to be close to him because he makes you feel safe.
	You sit with Marc on the bus and once it starts moving the lights are
turned off. You lean your head on Marc's shoulder in the darkness, street
lights flying by outside. In the darkness Marc slips an arm around your
shoulder, drawing you close to him. He kisses your head and you close your
eyes feeling safe once again.



My apologies for not including any sex, but there was just no place in this
chapter for any erotic fun. Think of this chapter as setting the stage for
our next chapter. You'll be rewarded in the next chapter for your patience
:).

comments and suggestions can be written to ckid2772@hotmail.com