Chapter 5 The Fall
I went back to the dorm with my jaw still tight.
Chloe was on her bed scrolling her phone when I walked in. She looked up and grinned.
“There she is. Frostwood’s famous Ice Girl.”
I dropped my bag on the floor. “Not now.”
She sat up. “I’m just playing. You looked ready to fight those boys earlier. Everyone’s talking about it.”
I sat on my bed and started unlacing my shoes. My hands still felt shaky from the path and the classroom.
Chloe watched me. “You’re really going to the tryouts tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
She let out a short laugh. “You’re crazy. But I kind of respect it. Most girls would have quit already.”
I didn’t answer. I pulled my skates out of the bag and checked the blades. They were still sharp. Still mine.
Chloe leaned forward. “Your face is all over the group chats again. Some of the hockey guys are making bets on how fast you’ll cry.”
I looked at her. “Do you think that’s funny?”
She shrugged. “A little. But only because you’re not crying. That’s the part that bothers them.”
I put the skates back in the bag and zipped it shut. “I’m going to sleep early.”
“Suit yourself, Ice Girl.”
I turned off my lamp and faced the wall. I could still hear her soft laughing under her breath.
My phone rang just after nine.
Mom.
I stared at the screen for a long second before I answered.
“Hello?”
Her voice came out sharp. “Ava. Why am I hearing from Mrs. Thompson that my daughter is trying to join a boys’ hockey team?”
My stomach dropped. Mrs. Thompson. The neighbor. Her daughter must have seen the chats.
“Mom…”
“Do not ‘Mom’ me. I sent you there to study medicine. Not to chase some game that already took your father.”
I sat up in the dark. “It’s not just a game.”
“It is exactly a game. And you are not a boy. You have no business on that ice with them.”
My throat burned. “You don’t understand.”
“I understand perfectly. You are throwing away everything for something that will only hurt you. I already lost him. I will not lose you too.”
Tears pushed at my eyes. I blinked hard. “I’m good at it. Better than most of them.”
“I don’t care how good you are. You are there for school. For a future. Not for bruises and boys laughing at you.”
The room felt smaller. Chloe had headphones on now, but I still lowered my voice.
“Please. Just let me try.”
“No.”
“Mom…”
“I said no. You will focus on your classes. You will stay away from that team. Do you hear me?”
I closed my eyes. My voice came out small. “Okay.”
Silence on the other end. Then her tone softened a little.
“I only want the best for you, Ava. That is all I have ever wanted. Your father would have wanted you safe too.”
The lie sat heavy in my chest. Dad would have wanted me on the ice. I knew it. She knew it too.
“Okay,” I said again.
“Be good. Call me tomorrow after your classes.”
“I will.”
She hung up.
I sat in the dark holding the phone. My “okay” still echoed in the quiet room.
I looked at the skate bag by the door. I was still going.
Morning came too fast.
I got to the arena early. The cold hit my face the second I stepped outside. My stomach felt empty and tight at the same time.
Boys were already on the ice warming up. Sticks tapping. Pucks hitting the boards. Laughing.
The second they saw me, the laughing changed.
“Look who showed up.”
“Ice Girl actually came.”
“This is going to be good.”
I kept walking toward the boards. My bag felt heavier with every step.
Coach Hargrove, from the name on his jacket, stood with a clipboard. He looked up when I stopped in front of him.
“You’re the girl from the chats,” he said.
“I’d like to try out.”
A few of the boys skated closer. Tyler, the tall blond one from yesterday, smirked at me.
“You’re joking, right?”
I looked at the coach. “I’m serious.”
Coach shook his head. “We don’t take girls. Never have. Policy.”
“I can play.”
“I don’t care what you can do. Rules are rules.”
More laughter. Someone shouted, “Go find the girl’s team!”
Noah was on the ice too. He skated closer to the boards. His face looked tight.
“Coach,” he said. “Just let her show what she can do.”
Tyler turned on him fast. “You serious right now?”
Another boy called out, “What’s wrong with you, Reed? You like the Ice Girl or something?”
Noah’s jaw clenched. He didn’t answer.
Tyler laughed. “Yeah. That’s what I thought. Sit down before you lose your spot.”
Noah looked at me for a second. Then he skated back and stayed quiet.
The coach sighed. “Listen, kid. I respect the guts. But this is a men’s team. You’re a girl. It won’t work.”
I stepped closer. My voice shook but I forced the words out.
“Please. Just one chance. This is the only thing that still connects me to my father. He played. He taught me. When I’m on the ice it’s like he’s still here.”
For a second the rink went quieter. Then the laughing started again. Louder.
“Aw, she misses her daddy.”
“Somebody get her a tissue.”
“This is pathetic.”
Tyler leaned on his stick. “Your dad should have taught you to stay in your lane.”
My face burned. My eyes stung. I didn’t look at them.
Coach raised a hand. “That’s enough. Look… I’m sorry. We can’t help you. Policy is policy.”
I didn’t move.
I dropped my bag, sat on the bench, and started putting on my skates as fast as I could. My fingers fumbled with the laces. My heart was pounding so hard I could hear it.
The tension made everything clumsy. I stood up too fast but then, I lost my balance.
I fell hard on the rubber floor. The sound of it was loud in the sudden quiet atmosphere.
“Ava!” Noah’s voice cut across the ice. “Are you okay?”
Someone yelled at him, “Sit down, bro. You’re gonna lose your place.”
Noah stayed standing for one more second. Then he sat.
I pushed myself up. My knee throbbed. My face felt hot with shame.
Coach looked at me with something almost like pity. “I’m sorry. We can’t help you.”
I picked up my skates and my bag. My hands were shaking so bad the blades rattled. I turned and walked toward the exit.
Behind me the boys started up again.
“Awww.”
“Bye, Ice Girl.”
“Don’t cry too hard.”
Laughter followed me all the way to the doors. I pushed them open and stepped into the cold. That was when I felt the hard shove from behind.
I stumbled forward hard. My bag slipped. I almost went down face-first on the concrete. Somehow I caught myself. I turned around fast.
Tyler stood there with that same smirk.
Something inside me snapped clean in half. I stepped forward and hit him across the face with everything I had. His head turned. Shock flashed in his eyes. He raised his fist to hit me back but Noah and two other boys grabbed him from behind and held him.
I stood there breathing hard, fist still clenched and the cold air burning my lungs.
