She Makes Me Wanna

I took a shaky breath as I pulled up to the Penguins practice rink. It was the first day of rookie camp, and aside from being bombarded by media, I hadn’t gotten much in the way of attention from the Penguins. I had been contacted by several of the trainers, and had a very long phone conference with Ray Shero, Mario Lemieux, and Dan Bylsma, but the Penguins had remained silent otherwise. My 1994 brick red Nissan Pathfinder looked out of place next to a very nice black SUV, and it shuddered uneasily. I patted the steering wheel affectionately before turning the key and stepping out of the car. I opened the rear door and pulled out my bags, slinging the larger pad bag over my shoulder while opting to carry my skate bag in my hand. I bumped the door closed with my hip before growling in annoyance and opening the driver’s seat door again to hit the lock button. Once I checked to make sure that my keys were in my hand, I bumped that door shut as well and headed into the rink. I immediately felt a wave of nervousness hit me as I entered the rink through the player’s door. The hallway, which was painted a faint shade of gold with black lines running horizontally down the walls, seemed to go on forever until I finally reached the door labeled PENGUINS LOCKER ROOM. I took a deep breath and turned the handle, pushing the door open.

It is always awkward when you walk into a room and everyone stops what they are doing. A few of the guys stared at me, dumbfounded, and I stopped at the very entrance to the locker room.

“Holy shit…I didn’t believe it when I saw it happen, and I was at the draft. So you really are a girl huh?” one of the guys finally said, breaking the tension. I raised my eyebrows and let out a slightly nervous, slightly annoyed laugh.

“Yep, and I’ve been since conception,” I retorted, which drew a laugh from some of the guys.

“Uh oh, she’s sarcastic!” another guy jeered, tugging on his skate laces. I rolled my eyes and searched for my locker stall. I finally found the stall labeled 36-VANCE and put my bags down in it. I couldn’t help but beam proudly as I noticed the black Penguins practice jersey hanging in the stall. I immediately began getting changed, peeling my tee off without second thought. I froze when I heard one of the guys wolf whistle however, and my face immediately flushed angrily. I spun around, folding my arms across my chest, and glared at the rest of the people in the locker room.

“Look, I’m going to let you guys know this right now. I have never, and will never, walk into a locker room and gape at any of my teammates, no matter how attractive they are. If you can’t show me the same respect, you and I are going to have a major problem,” I snapped before spinning back around and unzipping my bag. Someone let out a low whistle, and the chatter in the locker room slowly built up once again. The guy standing next to me looked over and waved feebly as I pulled my black Underarmor tee shirt on over my black sports bra. I waved back, smiling warmly as I did so.

“Hey…I’m Jack,” he said, pulling his own navy blue tee on.

“Emily,” I said, holding out my hand. He shook it firmly, nodding as he did so.

“So, I take it you’re used to the animals in the locker room eh?” he asked, jerking his head towards the center of the locker room.

“You have no idea,” I sighed, slipping my yoga pants off before pulling on my pelvic protector, and then the black shell shorts I wore under my hockey pants.

“Well I won’t ever be a problem,” he laughed, pulling on his own shell shorts. I slipped off my sneakers before pulling on my thin knee high socks. I then pulled on my hockey pants, pulled on my shin guards over the knee highs, and then I rolled the black, gold, and white hockey socks that were sitting on the shelf in my stall on over them. I Velcroed them in place using the straps attached to my pelvic protector and then set to tying on my skates.

“Wait, so girls have to wear a jock too?” one of the other guys asked, a few stalls down. I raised my eyebrows.

“No…it’s called a Jill, but it is kind of the same thing,” I said slowly, pulling my chest and shoulder pads on.

“Why?” the guy asked.

“It still really freaking hurts to take a puck down there,” I laughed, pulling on my elbow pads.

“Nice…I’m Patrick by the way,” he said, smiling broadly. I grinned back and pulled my jersey over my head.

“Emily,” I said once the jersey was over my head.

“Welcome to the team!” he beamed, pulling on his own equipment.

Once I got onto the ice I felt much more comfortable. The metallic scent of the ice filled my nose, and calmed my nerves almost immediately. The ice was my second home, and the instant my blades hit it I took off. My new teammates soon became blurs of black and white as I whizzed by, a huge grin forming on my face. Suddenly a whistle blew and I stopped on a dime, turning back towards the bench. Dan Bylsma was standing there in a black sweat suit, but despite his casual attire I knew he meant business. I skated back towards the bench quickly, and he greeted me with a nod of his head and a brief smile.

“Welcome to the Pittsburgh Penguins boys…and girl,” he said, smiling broadly. We all mumbled various greetings before he cleared his throat.

“Over the next few weeks you will participate in rookie camp. Here is where you will prove your abilities in a friendly atmosphere. Those of you who perform up to our expectations will be allowed to participate in the pre-season games…after that, we will decide if you stay here in the NHL or are sent down to the AHL for some fine tuning. No matter where you end up, you are all valuable members of the Penguins association and will be treated as such. Now, before we get started, I’d like to introduce you to your captain, Sidney Crosby,” Dan said, and I finally noticed the tall young man standing beside him. I felt something in my chest turn a little bit as I looked at Sidney Crosby. I had always heard girls squealing over him, but I had always been too wrapped up in my own hockey world to see exactly why they flipped out the way they did. However, as I took in his thick, curly brown hair, his big, puppy-like brown eyes, the adorable way his full lips curved over his not-quite-perfect teeth, and his broad shoulders, I suddenly understood. I immediately tore my eyes away from the man, terrified that I would blush. It was not long enough ago that I had learned the hard way not to fall for the captain of my hockey team, and I was not going to let it happen again.