By the time the little interruption leaves and I return to skating finally, I only have 20 minutes left. My goal this year is to be the fastest on the team but the new freshman has been giving me a run for my money. I am not worried about him taking my spot, I am leading the team in goals, but I am competitive even against my own teammates.

"Kid once again I am so sorry," Josh apologizes as I step off the ice and sit on the bench at the end of my ice time.

"Josh it is all good, we are adults and we will figure out how to share the ice." Either that or end up killing each other, but I don't say that part out loud. I doubt she will Tonya Harding me and take out my knees, thought she did look pretty pissed off when she left.

"Listen, I am going to refund you both for the time you paid for since it was our mistake."

"No way man, keep the money. You already have it and it will just be a hassle trying to refund it."

"No way me and Barb both agree you two can't pay for shared ice time, you aren't even going to get a good practice time out of it."

"How about this, I get free hot chocolate for the semester and we call it even?"

"Sounds like a shit trade to me kid," he says, shaking his head at my soft ball offer.

In reality it probably is but I can't take money from two people who are basically like parents to me. Josh and Barb have always taken care of me, made sure I had ice time and even gave me a job my freshman year to help me pay for extra ice time. I can't take money from them, not when I know this place is barely staying afloat and they have a ton of things that need to be repaired. In an ideal world when I get my first NHL check I will cut Josh and Barb a fat check to help them out around here. It is the least I could do after everything they have done for me.

"To you, but to me it sounds like a total win," I laugh, slipping my boots on.

"If you're sure," Josh hesitates, still not sold.

"100% sure, just give the ice princess back her half."

Josh laughs and a sweet voice from behind me pipes up, "Who is the ice princess?"

"Francesca," Josh tells Barb who walks over to her husband. He pulls her into a hug and rubs her arms to warm her up.

"She is a sweet girl," Barb defends. I scoff but make no other comment. Sweet? She said she was trying to kill me, what about that screams sweet? While I gather the rest of my stuff Josh fills Barb in on our discussion. She is also not thrilled with me not taking my money back but I convince them both that the hot chocolate trade is fair and they finally give in. We talk for a few more minutes mostly about hockey and then I walk out to my car.

Mentally I kick myself a little as I start my car. I don't pay tuition thanks to my scholarship but I still have to pay to live and for my car. My parents help me out by paying for those things, it isn't an issue for them financially, but it comes with strings attached. When my dad hands me a check it always comes with the I expect a boat one day or my mom telling me she wants some expensive house. My parents have given me a good life but rarely the things they do are for me. Everything is a bragging right to them, to show their other snobby friends they're better. If I would have gotten my money back I would have been able to cover my car for the rest of the year and my dad wouldn't have been able to threaten me with it whenever I wasn't the perfect son.

When I pull up to the house I take a moment to mentally prepare myself to go inside. My team is great, truly they're all like my brothers, but god living with 13 of them makes me homicidal some days, especially days like today. After a few minutes of relaxing silence I step out into the cold and trudge my way inside.

The second I open the door, I question if freezing to death in the car would have been the better choice. Chaos is the best way to describe it. I can hear screaming like an animal being sacrificed coming from the living room and someone is clearly rollerblading on the second floor. I hear a video game, probably NHL 2016 that is the favorite this week, and someone else blasting house music from another room. The kitchen is just a graveyard of empty cups and dirty dishes. It is the second day of the semester how the fuck is it this bad already?

"Ryder," Stan greets from the kitchen table where he is bent over doing homework. Stan's actual name is Alex Patel but after a brutal first game our freshman year coach said that if he got slammed into the wall anymore he would be the next Flat Stanley. Poor dude never recovered from that. Next practice his entire locker was full of Flat Stanley print outs, someone bought him the box set of the books, and the name Stan, it stuck forever.

"Hey," I greet as I grab a snack from the cabinet.

"Question, did you take OChem yet?"

Silence suddenly descends the first floor of the house. Within seconds multiple heads pop up from all different entrances. "Did you just ask Ryder if he has taken Ochem?," Pman asks.

"Dude," Spars yells, doubling over in laughter.

"He is a chem major Stan, no shit he took OChem already," Tanner tells him flatly before disappearing to resume the game that was paused to shit on Stan.

"Yeah, I took it man," I tell him, feeling bad the whole house is ganging up on him. Stan is one of my best friends but while I went on to make Captain as a Junior, Stan has been less successful in his college career. I feel slightly protective over him because I know on and off the ice he is busting his ass to get better.

"Can you spare a few," he asks hopefully.

I nod and take a seat at the kitchen table next to him to help. I am the go to Chem tutor in the house which doesn't bother me. I love my major so helping out my team isn't a big deal. The stuff Stan is doing is super simple so I go through it quickly with him before taking the back stairs up to the third floor.

Halfway up the stairs I see Bray coming down. Stan is my best friend but Bray is more like a brother. The two of us have been playing hockey together since we were kids and he knows things about me that I pray no one else ever finds out. There is no one else in the house I am as close to as him. "Sup bitch," he grins as we meet in the middle of the stairs.

I just roll my eyes giving Bray the reaction he wants. His favorite pastime is getting a rise out of me. "Someone is a grumpy gus," he coos, grabbing my cheeks and squishing them. If he wasn't the best goalie in the league currently, I would push him down the stairs, but he is too valuable to risk injuring this late in the season.

"I have to share my ice with a fucking ice skater," I pout.

"Noo," Bray yells dramatically. "You can't get Josh to bump her?"

"Nah it seems like she's close with Barb and that man is whipped for his wife. No way he bumps her."

"You two can't skate together, that is an injury waiting to happen!"

"I know," I yell. "Dude it sucks ass so hard, but I need the ice time so I have no choice but to share."

Bray gives me a sad little head pat and then continues down the stairs while I continue up. I unlock my bedroom door and head straight for my bathroom. The perk of being captain is I have the master with the bathroom. While I wait for the water to heat up I shoot coach a quick text about my situation hoping he can pull strings and work something out for me.

After my shower I pack my backpack put on a new hat that isn't sweaty and head to my class, making sure my gym bag is in the car for team workouts later tonight. Driving to class I wonder about my new ice mate. I don't know much about the school's figure skating team besides the fact that we have one. In all honesty, I couldn't tell you a single thing about figure skating except for the fact they ruin the ice and they hate hockey players. No harm, the feeling is mutual but literally that is the extent of my knowledge.

When I emerge from my class, a two hour lab that I have avoided taking for awhile now, I am beat but know I need to head to workouts. Working out three times a day is not fun but I do what needs to be done to be the best. The NHL doesn't care that I am tired and sore so I need to push past my bitching and work.

When I enter Yost I feel an immediate shift in my attitude. I leave everything at the door as I walk in and focus solely on hockey. I walk straight to the kitchen where food is set out for us by the team nutritionist. We are pretty much told exactly what to eat and the kitchen is always stocked with the essentials. Tonight is a warm stew that has the perfect balance of vegetables, carbs, and protein, with the added bonus of it makes you feel all warm, biting the Michigan cold just a little.

I serve myself up a bowl and work on some homework with a few of the younger guys. Most of them are freshmen who eat here most nights since the dining hall doesn't meet our strict diets. I try to use this time to talk to them without the older guys being obnoxious. I remember coming in my first year and the older guys being super intimidating.

"Ryder, are you free some morning before class to work on shooting drills?"

I chew my lip not wanting to say no but knowing I will royally fuck myself and my sleep if I say yes. "Yeah Dunk, when you free?" Ops, goodbye to post practice morning naps.

I talk to Dunk about when he is free and we settle on Monday mornings. Mondays are the best day to squeeze in extra practice for most guys because Sunday is usually our off day and Monday night instead of lifting or cardio we review tapes. I make a note to email my supervisor that I will be switching my Monday hours in the lab to at night after practice. He was a student athlete in undergrad so he is really great working with me about when I can be in the lab.

"Ryder," Coach calls from across the hall. Sometimes I get tired of hearing my name being called. Can't everyone see that I am working myself to the point of exhaustion and I can't do it all? Partly my fault for never saying no to anyone, except the Ice Princess earlier today, but shit man.

"Yeah Coach," I ask as I walk into his office.

"Sit," he motions to the chair and I nod and sit. My mind is in overdriving thinking of every stupid thing I have said or done lately or that the house could have done. As captain I am basically in charge of the house, so if we don't behave, coach jumps on my ass about it.

"Sir," I question as I settle down into one of the plush leather seats.

"I tried to work out some ice time for you based on your schedule but I don't think I can swing it. I am sorry."

"Oh," I say shocked. I thought for sure this was going to be about the firework incident from the other day. A few of the guys still have burn marks as a result and our handyman had to replace two windows. "Thank you for trying."

"Of course. But I was thinking about it and you should use this to your benefit."

"My benefit sir?"

"Yeah," he says, like it's obvious. "Figure skaters are better skaters, it is just a fact. Learn from your new friend. Some of the greatest players ever had skating coaches that were figure skaters. If it works for them it will work for you, so use this as an advantage instead of looking at it like a detriment."

I nod and Coach dismisses me to go change. Advantage? Bold to assume she would help me become a better skater even if I was willing to admit I wanted her help, which I don't. I have been skating my entire life, I don't need her help.

I know I said my posting schedule would be Monday and Wednesday but since I only posted one chapter this week here is a surprise second chapter. Also at the top is a video of the University of Michigans Hockey Areas- Yost Ice Arena, it will be mentioned a lot so I figured I would include the tour of it. Also two chapters in how we feeling about Francesca, Ryder, and all their friends?