SWNOVELS Break My Heart: Chapter 11
Three hours later and I’m completely wiped. Parents are trickling in for pickup, and I didn’t expect wrangling a group of hyperactive children would be more exhausting than my own two-hour practices filled with physically demanding jumps and routines.
Some of these kids have the attention span of a goldfish. They’re constantly asking questions, wandering off, or worse, encouraging others to do the same.
And the ones who can’t seem to focus for more than five seconds?
I keep them glued to my side.
Their parents must be saints, because there’s no way I’d survive one day in their shoes.
“Coach Ava?” A small tug on my fingers pulls me from my thoughts.
I glance down into the big blue eyes of a little girl. Two teeth are missing from her smile, which only makes her cuteness factor shoot off the charts.
“What’s up?” I check the white tape on her helmet that has her name scrawled in black Sharpie. “Kia?”
“I’m thirsty. Can I get a drink of water?”
“Of course.”
She beams before rushing off toward the bench where the bottles are lined up like little soldiers. She’s one of the few girls in the clinic, and definitely the youngest.
A couple minutes later, she’s back, standing in front of me with that same wide-eyed grin. “Do you play hockey?”
The question takes me by surprise. “Nope. I’m a figure skater.” A small stab of sadness twists inside my chest. That answer used to fill me with pride. Now, it’s a reminder of everything I’ve lost.
Before I can wallow, I push the feeling aside, refocusing on the little girl. “Are you here by yourself?”
She shakes her head, pointing toward a group of boys on the other side of the rink. “My brothers are over there.”
“Hockey must run in the family, huh?”
Her dimples pop as she nods. “Yup. My brother says I can play on a team next year.”
“That’ll be fun. So, who’s picking you up? Are they here yet?”
“My brother drove us,” she says.
I glance at one of the boys she pointed to and frown. “Isn’t he, like, ten?”
Kia bursts into a fit of giggles. Before she can answer, Hayes skates over with two boys trailing behind him. One of them looks about twelve, the other younger, maybe eight or nine. When Hayes scoops Kia up into his arms, her face lights up.
“Did you have fun, squirt?” His tone is gentle in a way I wasn’t expecting.
“Yeah! Can we come back next weekend?”
With a smile, he shakes his head. “Nope. This was a one-day thing, remember? We talked about it.”
Her pout is immediate, and I can’t help but soften at the exchange.
“These are your siblings?” The question slips out before I can stop it.
His gaze locks on mine, that familiar grin creeping across his face. “Yup. All three of them.”
“My feet hurt,” one of the boys complains, sounding every bit the pre-teen he probably is. “I think I’ve got blisters.”
Hayes pats the top of his helmet. “I’ve got bandages in my bag. We’ll check them in the locker room.”
As they make their way off the ice, I realize the rink is mostly empty except for the Wildcats players who volunteered for the clinic.
Just as I step onto the rubber mats, a small hand slips into mine. Kia looks up at me with those big blue eyes. “Can I come with you? The boys’ locker room smells bad.”
The question catches me off guard, and I glance at Hayes, unsure how to respond.
He shrugs, clearly amused by the situation. “If it’s okay with Coach Ava, it’s fine with me.”
I look down at her again. “I mean… yeah, sure.”
“Yay!” she chirps before pulling me toward the girls’ locker room.
A grin simmers around the corners of Hayes’s mouth as we walk away. “I’ll grab her bag,” he calls after us.
A minute later, he hands me a pink hockey bag that’s bigger than she is. It could probably fit her and one of her brothers inside. I chuckle at the thought as I lead her into the locker room.
There are only a few other girls left, all pink-cheeked and sweaty, slowly peeling off their gear. Kia chatters nonstop as I help remove her helmet, then work on unlacing her skates.
“Are you friends with my brother?” she asks, her tone curious but innocent.
I hesitate, my fingers pausing on her skates. “Umm… yes?”
She doesn’t seem to notice the uncertainty in my answer, and keeps talking, completely unaware. “I miss him when he’s at college. I wish he lived at our house.”
“I bet that’s hard. Does he visit a lot?”
“Yup! Sometimes Mama brings us to his games, and we get to yell his name really loud.” She cups her hands around her mouth and shouts, “Hayes!”
When her voice echoes off the concrete walls of the locker room, I laugh. This girl is way too cute. “I bet he can hear you all the way from the ice.”
“He says he can.” There’s a brief pause and then her voice drops. “Guess what?” She doesn’t give me time to respond before blurting, “He’s gonna play in the NHL next year.”
I raise an eyebrow. “So I’ve heard.”
“And when he does, we’ll have lots and lots of money,” she whispers, as if this is a big secret she’s sharing with me. “He promised I can have a puppy.”
I pause, digesting her words.
“Hayes gives Mama money so we can skate,” she adds quietly, her voice growing solemn.
The innocence in her tone is heartbreaking. She says it so simply, but there’s a heaviness behind her words that makes my chest tighten. This is the first time I’ve gotten a glimpse into the weight Hayes carries, the responsibility that must rest on his shoulders.
I clear my throat, wanting to shift the mood. “Sounds like he’s a pretty great big brother.”
Her face brightens again as she bounces on the bench. “He’s the best!”
As we finish packing up her gear, I can’t help but mentally replay everything she said. It paints a different picture of Hayes than the one I had before. Less cocky center for the Western Wildcats and more protective older brother, willing to do whatever it takes for his family.
We head out to the lobby where Hayes and his brothers are waiting. The minute they spot us, Kia runs to him, her small hand clutching his tightly.
“Who’s hungry?” he asks.
“Me!” they all shout in unison.
I take a step back, raising my hand in a wave. “Well, have fun—”
“Can Coach Ava come?” Kia interrupts, her eyes wide and hopeful.
I pause, startled by the unexpected question. I glance from her to Hayes, shaking my head. “Oh, no. I don’t want to intrude—”
“Please?” Kia pouts, her expression tugging at my heartstrings, making it impossible to say no. This little girl already knows how to wrap people around her finger.
Hayes smirks, clearly enjoying my discomfort. His laughter is barely contained. “You’re welcome to join us, if you’re up for it.”
With a sigh, I check my watch. “I guess I can go.”
“Yay!” Kia hops around, her energy boundless despite the hours spent on the ice.
As we head toward the exit, Hayes falls into step beside me. His siblings run ahead, eager to hit the arcade area near the concession stand.
I give him a sideways glance as my lips twitch with amusement. “You realize your sister is going to be a handful, right?”
He snorts. “What do you mean going to be?”
As much as I hate to admit it, for the first time since I met Hayes, I see him in a different light. Maybe he’s not just an arrogant hockey player who always seems to have a smirk on his face. Maybe, just maybe, he’s a guy who has a lot more going on beneath the surface.
And maybe that makes him someone worth getting to know.