What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger

I woke up the next morning to someone trying to push me off.

"What the..." I shouted as I fell to the floor. For my reply I got a door slamming and the sound of someone throwing up.. Quickly coming to my senses, and realizing that it was Candace, I hauled myself off the floor and towards the bathroom which was currently being used by my sister.

"Candace, are you alright?" I asked when she finally stopped retching. I heard Candace slowly get up and before I knew it, I was staring into the gaunt, drawn face of my baby sister. She had tears streaming down her face as she said,

"I guess we don't need that pregnancy test now, eh?" I gently pulled her into a hug and said, "It'll never hurt to try one."

Candace just nodded against my bare chest.

"KIDS! BREAKFAST IS READY!" I heard my mom yell from the kitchen. Without saying a word, Candace and I both just trudged towards the kitchen, trying to process this new information.

"What are we gonna do today?" Cassidy asked in between bites of her homemade pancakes.

"Well, I have practice at eleven so...whatever you guys wanna do after that." I mumbled, my own mouth stuffed to the max with pancakes.

"Tyler, don't talk with your mouth full." My mom instructed almost automatically. I just rolled my eyes and let a small smile grace my face.

"Don't roll your eyes either, I am your mother." She barked as well. This time, I just laughed.

At around ten o'clock, I left my family for practice.

"Segsy!" chorused the whole locker-room full of hockey players when I walked inside.

"Hey guys." I said as I took a seat inside my stall.

"Segs, meet Quaider's lady friend Avery...I think that's her name anyway." Brad Marchand said to me as he pointed to a body that was practically hidden behind Adam. I perked up at this news. Avery was here?

"Hey Avery, how's Boston treating ya?" I called out from my side of the locker-room. Sure enough, Avery's head poked out from behind Adam's back and her voice called back to me,

"Pretty good. Haven't ran into any more creepy guys at airports who constantly stare at me, so that;s good." She and I both laughed as we thought back to how we first met.

Everyone in the locker-room stared at us with odd expressions. Adam asked, "Wait, do you guys know each other already?"

"Yeah, we met at the airport as I was waiting for you to pick me up." Avery informed him a little too harshly. Adam just nodded and continued to get ready.

In about no time, Avery left so the rest of us could get ready and as soon as the door shut behind her, everyone started buzzing with talk of the girl they had just met.

"What the fuck happened to her arm?" Marchand's voice called out over everyone else's.

Just as quickly as the conversation started up, it died down for Marchy had asked a question that they all wanted the answer to.

"Car accident. I don't know all the details except for the fact it was really bad and they had to amputate her arm." Adam explained. Everyone then proceeded to go around the room and ask there own questions.

"Does she have a boyfriend?" Jordan Caron asked. I wasn't really paying attention before, but I was now; for that was the only question that I wanted an answer to.

"She does. Or at least she says she does." Adam said with a grimace, like he knew more than he was letting on.

Those words echoed through my head the whole practice and after.

"So, what did you think of Adam's friend?" Brad asked me when him, Caron, and me were left in the locker-room after everyone else had left.

"She's alright. Why?" I say as I put on one of my shoes.

"I think she'd be kinda hot if she had two full arms and not just a stub for one." Caron stated as he put on his shirt.

"I agree with Jordy...I mean, who would wanna fuck a girl with no arm? Isn't that like impossible?" Brad asked with a laugh. For some reason, anger boiled up inside of me, but I let it go as I laughed with him.

"I don't think it would be impossible, just hard." I told him. Brad just shrugged and said,

"Well, I don't have to worry about it because there is no way in hell I would do a girl with only one arm." Jordan quickly agreed and pretty soon all eyes were on me waiting for my answer.

"No way in hell would I sleep with er. You kidding me? She's not my type at all. I like them hot and sexy. Not average and armless." I lied right through my teeth. Thankfully, both Brad and Caron believed me because they were now laughing like hyenas.

"It's nice to know that's what you think of me." A sharp voice stated from the door of the locker-room. Brad and Jordan instantly stopped laughing and I whipped my head around to see a very angry looking Avery standing there.

"You know, normally that kind of talk doesn't bother me when it comes from people I don't know. But, hearing it from you Tyler, it hurts. Especially when I thought I could at least trust you and maybe consider you a friend." She stated, walking closer to me.

"Avery, I'm..." But I never got to finish my sentence, for her hand made contact with my face before I could.

"I hope I never have to see you again Tyler Seguin! Rot in hell!" She says venomously. And then, with one last look at me, she stormed out of the locker-room, leaving Brad, Jordan, and I dumbstruck at what just happened.

"Did she really just hear all of that? What the hell was she doing here anyway?" Brad said after a moment of silence. But, I'm not listening or paying attention at all For that last look Avery just gave me will be forever imprinted in my mind because it was a look that I thought I would never see one her face...for it was a look of hurt, confusion, and betrayal.