Who Do You Think You Are?
chapter un
Alyssa sat on the bench of an area just outside Ottawa, Ontario; shivering from the cold, she wished she had worn her warmer coat. She typed away at her laptop, trying to write down as much information as she could. This is why her father brought her to his practices, to take notes on his players. Alyssa smiled as she got to Evander Kane, who was a close friend, seeing as her father owned the team he played for.
She looked up to find Evander, but saw that the rink was empty, save for a large mass of hockey players in front of her. Alyssa was hoping that her father would save her the agony of introducing herself to the boys, even thought she was at the camp in the summer.
“Alyssa?” Pat Quinn called.
Alyssa sighing closed her laptop and zipped it up in her backpack. “Yes dad?”
Pat gave his daughter a cold stare which earned an eye roll from Alyssa.
Alyssa jumped over the boards, landed gracefully on to the ice without skipping a beat. She glided over to her father, wishing she had stayed in Vancouver.
“Boys,” her father boomed. “I would like to introduce my daughter Alyssa; she’ll be working with the team in every aspect. I think I’ll let her finish the introductions.”
Alyssa growled softly at her father, “As my father said, I’m Alyssa and if you want to know anything else, well you’ll just have to ask.” Alyssa waited for any questions and when none came, she spun on her heel and jumped over the boards, again without missing a beat.
Then, a question came.
“Shouldn’t a little girl like you be at school?” a voice said from the crowd.
Alyssa clenched her fists and spun sharply, only to have the team laughing at her. Within seconds, she was standing in front of the team, clearly angry. She looked to Evander, mouthing ‘tell me who said that.’ Evander nodded in the direction of John Tavares.
As if he said that, Alyssa thought to herself. There was one person that she despised on the team and that was John Tavares.
Alyssa waltzed right up to John, who was having a chuckle with Cody Hodgson and Jordan Eberle. Standing inches away from his face, she whispered harshly, “I wouldn’t be talking if I were you, seeing as you just finished school this fall.”
John laughed in her face, making Alyssa’s blood boil. “Why does it matter when I finished school?”
It was Alyssa’s turn to laugh, “’Cause I finished in January.” The whole team erupted into hoots and hollers, as John was shown up. Alyssa knew it had been Evander who started the cheering, and she winked at him as she strutted back to the bench.
Pat decided that this was a good time to intervene, “Okay boys, this is the first practice, behave now. Go clean up and we’ll set up rooms for the road.”
Alyssa was sitting in the meeting room, waiting for the team to finish showering and such. She pulled up the team file and added a new entry.
John Tavares – good hockey sense
– good puck handling
– goal scorer
– attitude
Alyssa smiled, yah she was being a bitch, but no one, no one messed with her. The boys that had met her in the summer knew that and John Tavares was soon going to find that out.
Ten minutes later, the boys started filling into the room and Pat soon followed. Alyssa waved Evander over, patting the seat next to her, “Please save me, I’m dieing of boredom.”
Evander laughed, “You better watch out, Tavares is out to get you.”
Alyssa laughed, “I think he should be the one looking out for himself.”
Evander shook his head at the immaturity of his two friends, “You two are more alike than you think.”
Alyssa faked a shocked look, before Zack Boychuk sat next to her, “That’s a good look for you Al.”
Alyssa was in mid-punch when her father interrupted her.
“Okay, everyone, the plan for rooming is 3 boys to a room. Don’t worry there are 3 beds. So that means one room will have 2; John and –” Pat looked down at his clipboard, “Alyssa will have that room.”
The team erupted into laughter, they knew the hostilities between Alyssa and John were mounting and they would continue to increase. After the rest of the rooms were read out, the team filed out of the meeting room and onto the bus. Alyssa intercepted her father before he sneaked out.
“What are you playing at?” Alyssa asked, fury burning in her eyes.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Pat said, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.
“First, why are you allowing a boy to stay in the same room as me? And second, you know I despise Tavares.”
Pat laughed at his daughter, “Firstly, I trust John the most; after Evander of course. And secondly, you need to learn to deal with people you don’t like.”
Alyssa opened her mouth to complain, but her father was quick to silence her, “What’s done is done. Now get on the bus.”
Alyssa groaned and made her way to the bus, she really didn’t want to face the team at this exact moment, but she had no other way of getting to the hotel. She saw that Evander had saved her a seat, which sent a smile to Alyssa’s lips. But she saw that he wasn’t meeting her gaze and was looking…guilty. She was about to sit down when Evander shouted “No!” But he was too late, Alyssa sat down and a loud farting sound soon followed.
Alyssa felt her cheeks burning as the team once again, erupted into laughter. She stood up, grabbing the whoopee cushion in the process, “You know, this means war…Tavares.”
John stopped laughing, “What makes you think it was me?”
Alyssa could tell he was nervous, by the sound of his voice. She held up the whoopee cushion, “Whose dumb enough to write their name on a whoopee cushion. Oops! You are.”
This time, John felt the blood rush to his cheeks and he heard his team start laughing at his rookie mistake.
The bus soon arrived at the hotel that the team would be staying at for the night before they left for CFB Petawawa. Alyssa groaned as she was crammed into an elevator with a bunch of sweaty hockey players, most girls would relish at the idea, but Alyssa on the other hand was just plain grossed out.
She made her way to the room that she shared with her father as she packed up her suitcase, grabbed the key her father had left and made her way out the door. Celebrations were being taken place in the halls, as the players realized that had just made Canada’s World Junior team. Alyssa counted the rooms, finally reaching room 197. Weird, Alyssa thought to herself, that Tavares’ number and mine.
The door was thrown open to reveal a half naked John Tavares, wearing only a pair of sweatpants. Alyssa, as much as she would deny it, couldn’t take her eyes off John’s body. The summer did him some good.
“Take a picture, it will last longer,” John said, smirking.
Alyssa’s jaw dropped, “Who do you think you are? The next Sidney Crosby? I think not.”
The whole team stopped what they were doing, and turned to watch the battle encountering between John and Alyssa.
Alyssa saw the hurt in John’s eyes as what she said sunk it, she felt horrible the instant she said it. She opened her mouth to apologize, but John was already out of the doorway, heading to someone’s room.
She looked up to find Evander, but saw that the rink was empty, save for a large mass of hockey players in front of her. Alyssa was hoping that her father would save her the agony of introducing herself to the boys, even thought she was at the camp in the summer.
“Alyssa?” Pat Quinn called.
Alyssa sighing closed her laptop and zipped it up in her backpack. “Yes dad?”
Pat gave his daughter a cold stare which earned an eye roll from Alyssa.
Alyssa jumped over the boards, landed gracefully on to the ice without skipping a beat. She glided over to her father, wishing she had stayed in Vancouver.
“Boys,” her father boomed. “I would like to introduce my daughter Alyssa; she’ll be working with the team in every aspect. I think I’ll let her finish the introductions.”
Alyssa growled softly at her father, “As my father said, I’m Alyssa and if you want to know anything else, well you’ll just have to ask.” Alyssa waited for any questions and when none came, she spun on her heel and jumped over the boards, again without missing a beat.
Then, a question came.
“Shouldn’t a little girl like you be at school?” a voice said from the crowd.
Alyssa clenched her fists and spun sharply, only to have the team laughing at her. Within seconds, she was standing in front of the team, clearly angry. She looked to Evander, mouthing ‘tell me who said that.’ Evander nodded in the direction of John Tavares.
As if he said that, Alyssa thought to herself. There was one person that she despised on the team and that was John Tavares.
Alyssa waltzed right up to John, who was having a chuckle with Cody Hodgson and Jordan Eberle. Standing inches away from his face, she whispered harshly, “I wouldn’t be talking if I were you, seeing as you just finished school this fall.”
John laughed in her face, making Alyssa’s blood boil. “Why does it matter when I finished school?”
It was Alyssa’s turn to laugh, “’Cause I finished in January.” The whole team erupted into hoots and hollers, as John was shown up. Alyssa knew it had been Evander who started the cheering, and she winked at him as she strutted back to the bench.
Pat decided that this was a good time to intervene, “Okay boys, this is the first practice, behave now. Go clean up and we’ll set up rooms for the road.”
Alyssa was sitting in the meeting room, waiting for the team to finish showering and such. She pulled up the team file and added a new entry.
John Tavares – good hockey sense
– good puck handling
– goal scorer
– attitude
Alyssa smiled, yah she was being a bitch, but no one, no one messed with her. The boys that had met her in the summer knew that and John Tavares was soon going to find that out.
Ten minutes later, the boys started filling into the room and Pat soon followed. Alyssa waved Evander over, patting the seat next to her, “Please save me, I’m dieing of boredom.”
Evander laughed, “You better watch out, Tavares is out to get you.”
Alyssa laughed, “I think he should be the one looking out for himself.”
Evander shook his head at the immaturity of his two friends, “You two are more alike than you think.”
Alyssa faked a shocked look, before Zack Boychuk sat next to her, “That’s a good look for you Al.”
Alyssa was in mid-punch when her father interrupted her.
“Okay, everyone, the plan for rooming is 3 boys to a room. Don’t worry there are 3 beds. So that means one room will have 2; John and –” Pat looked down at his clipboard, “Alyssa will have that room.”
The team erupted into laughter, they knew the hostilities between Alyssa and John were mounting and they would continue to increase. After the rest of the rooms were read out, the team filed out of the meeting room and onto the bus. Alyssa intercepted her father before he sneaked out.
“What are you playing at?” Alyssa asked, fury burning in her eyes.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Pat said, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.
“First, why are you allowing a boy to stay in the same room as me? And second, you know I despise Tavares.”
Pat laughed at his daughter, “Firstly, I trust John the most; after Evander of course. And secondly, you need to learn to deal with people you don’t like.”
Alyssa opened her mouth to complain, but her father was quick to silence her, “What’s done is done. Now get on the bus.”
Alyssa groaned and made her way to the bus, she really didn’t want to face the team at this exact moment, but she had no other way of getting to the hotel. She saw that Evander had saved her a seat, which sent a smile to Alyssa’s lips. But she saw that he wasn’t meeting her gaze and was looking…guilty. She was about to sit down when Evander shouted “No!” But he was too late, Alyssa sat down and a loud farting sound soon followed.
Alyssa felt her cheeks burning as the team once again, erupted into laughter. She stood up, grabbing the whoopee cushion in the process, “You know, this means war…Tavares.”
John stopped laughing, “What makes you think it was me?”
Alyssa could tell he was nervous, by the sound of his voice. She held up the whoopee cushion, “Whose dumb enough to write their name on a whoopee cushion. Oops! You are.”
This time, John felt the blood rush to his cheeks and he heard his team start laughing at his rookie mistake.
The bus soon arrived at the hotel that the team would be staying at for the night before they left for CFB Petawawa. Alyssa groaned as she was crammed into an elevator with a bunch of sweaty hockey players, most girls would relish at the idea, but Alyssa on the other hand was just plain grossed out.
She made her way to the room that she shared with her father as she packed up her suitcase, grabbed the key her father had left and made her way out the door. Celebrations were being taken place in the halls, as the players realized that had just made Canada’s World Junior team. Alyssa counted the rooms, finally reaching room 197. Weird, Alyssa thought to herself, that Tavares’ number and mine.
The door was thrown open to reveal a half naked John Tavares, wearing only a pair of sweatpants. Alyssa, as much as she would deny it, couldn’t take her eyes off John’s body. The summer did him some good.
“Take a picture, it will last longer,” John said, smirking.
Alyssa’s jaw dropped, “Who do you think you are? The next Sidney Crosby? I think not.”
The whole team stopped what they were doing, and turned to watch the battle encountering between John and Alyssa.
Alyssa saw the hurt in John’s eyes as what she said sunk it, she felt horrible the instant she said it. She opened her mouth to apologize, but John was already out of the doorway, heading to someone’s room.