Chapter 71 Ravenna existence is my problem
Chapter 071
DARIUS
Not from my father.
The message wasn't from my father.
It was a message from Bonn telling all team members to report to the ice rink immediately for an important announcement.
"We have to go," I announced, standing up perhaps a bit too quickly. "Bonn just called us to practice."
Dorian checked his own phone and nodded. "You are right. We should head over now."
Ravenna gathered her things as well, and the three of us made our way to the rink. When we arrived, the rest of the team was already there, sitting in the bleachers whilst Bonn stood on the ice with his arms crossed.
"Good, you are all here," Bonn called out when he spotted us entering. "Take your seats quickly. I have important news."
We scrambled to find spots in the bleachers. I deliberately chose a seat far from where Ravenna sat down, needing some distance before I did or said something else stupid.
Bonn waited until we were all settled before speaking. "The academy's first hockey match in the last six months is happening soon. This is what I wanted to tell you about the other day when most of you failed to show up for the meeting."
A few players had the decency to look guilty at that pointed comment. I kept my expression neutral.
"We will be playing against a friendly academy team called The Bulls," Bonn continued. "They are a strong team with an excellent record, so this will not be an easy match. We need to start preparing immediately and seriously. The game is scheduled to take place right after your final exams end."
Excited murmurs rippled through the team. It had been too long since we had played a proper match against another school. The rogue attacks and subsequent security measures had cancelled most of our scheduled games.
"I expect everyone to bring their absolute best effort to practices from now on," Bonn warned, his voice stern. "No slacking off. No excuses. If you are not committed to winning this match, you can leave the team right now."
Nobody moved. We all wanted this chance to prove ourselves.
"Good. Now get changed and get on the ice. We have a lot of work to do."
The practice that followed was brutal in ways that had nothing to do with Bonn's drills.
Every time Ravenna came near me on the ice, something possessive and angry surged up inside my chest.
I found myself checking her harder than necessary during scrimmages, using my size and strength advantage to push her around more aggressively than I should have.
She noticed immediately, of course. Ravenna was too smart and too observant to miss what I was doing.
During one particularly rough play, she slammed me into the boards in retaliation with enough force to knock the breath from my lungs.
I crashed against the barrier, my helmet cracking against the plexiglass with a loud bang that echoed through the rink.
Before I could recover, she was there, right in my face. Her eyes blazed with fury behind her face guard, her breathing hard and angry.
We were so close I could see the flecks of green in her hazel eyes, and could feel the heat radiating off her body despite the cold air.
"What the hell is your problem?" she demanded, her voice low and dangerous.
I leaned in even closer, refusing to back down even though every instinct was screaming at me to either kiss her or skate away as fast as possible. "You are my problem, Ravenna. You and your insistence on being everywhere I do not want you to be."
"That is not an answer and you know it," she shot back, not moving an inch away from me.
We stood there pressed against the boards, neither of us willing to retreat first.
The tension between us was thick enough to cut with a knife.
I could see her pulse jumping in her throat, could hear her ragged breathing mixing with my own.
"Break it up right now," Bonn's voice cut through our standoff like a blade.
He skated over quickly and physically pulled us apart, putting himself between us. "Save this energy for the real game. If you two cannot control yourselves during practice, I will bench you both. Do I make myself clear?”