Outside Edge (Knockout Girl Book 5)

by Natasja Eby

  The way Brooke’s face lights up gives me shivers down my spine. “Okay, great! Because they always have this big rink in the middle of Sugarplum Street and I thought it’d be fun for us to get some practice in.”

  I chuckle, because it seems like all we do lately is practice. But that gives me an idea. “No, we won’t practice.”

  “We won’t?” she asks, her lips turning down in disappointment.

  “We’ll do better than that. We’ll perform!” I smile when she does. “You said lots of people come to this thing, right? And there are probably reporters and the news and—”

  “And maybe they’ll see us do some cool stuff?” she finishes for me in cute, excited way. “Like some free advertising for our pageant?”

  “Yeah,” I say. “And who better to represent it than an Olympic-level athlete like you?”

  “Adrian!” She throws her arms around me, knocking me back a step while I laugh. “That’s a great idea. Let’s do it!”

  ***

  I’ve never been more excited or nervous for anything than I am about the Holiday Festival. I mean, there’s the whole thing with the performance. I’ll probably mess something up. But it’s not just that. No, I think that this might be more of a...date. Is it a date? I don’t know, but I’m going to treat it like one. I have my suit dry-cleaned just for the occasion, even though I know I might be a little cold in it. Thankfully the coffee stain and smell comes out of it.

  My phone rings just as I’m buttoning up my dress shirt. I don’t recognize the number and I still have to do my hair, but I answer anyway.

  “Oh, Adrian! I’m so glad you didn’t change your number.”

  For a second I forget to breathe.

  “Elli?”

  “Yeah, it’s me,” she says with a little laughter.

  “I—I—” I don’t know what to say to her.

  “I know you probably weren’t expecting to hear from me,” she says in her usual perky way. “But I just read your letter and I wanted to say thank you.”

  “You’re...thanking me?” I ask incredulously.

  “Yeah,” she says. “It was really nice and I appreciate how much time and thought I’m sure you put into it.”

  I know Elli and I know she’s being sincere right now. But I still can’t believe she’s being so nice to me. “Yeah, well, Brooke and the others thought you’d like a letter so I went for it. I’m just glad you read it.”

  “I’ll be honest—I didn’t want to. Julian made me, but I’m glad he did.”

  There’s no denying that Julian is the best guy in the world for her. “That was nice of him. How’s he doing?”

  “He’s good!” She sounds genuinely happy. “He’s sitting right next to me, pretending not to listen, but I think he’s still listening anyway.”

  I hear masculine mumbling in the background and smile. For once—maybe for the first time—I don’t feel any jealousy or resentment.

  There’s a little pause and then she says, “You know, Adrian...you could have talked to me about anything. I would have been there for you.”

  I sigh. “I know, Elli. But to be honest with you, I couldn’t even admit to myself that I’m an alcoholic until a few weeks ago.”

  “But you’re doing okay?”

  “I’m doing a lot better,” I say. “Thank you.”

  “Good,” she says. “Okay, I’m dying to know. Who’s Brooke?”

  “Um—uhh—who’s who?” I say. I start running my fingers through my hair as my face heats up. When did I even say her name?

  “You said she said I’d like that letter,” she says, totally unaware of my internal tide of emotions.

  “Oh, she’s, um, this girl I’m skating with,” I say.

  “Oh! Like a co-ed hockey team?”

  “Er, no,” I say. “Like...like ice dancing. Or figure skating. I think there’s a difference?”

  “Shut up,” she says. Faintly, I hear her repeating what I said in a muffled way and Julian answering in a similarly surprised tone. “Are you serious right now?”

  I can’t help but laugh. “Yes, I’m serious.”

  “Oh, man, Zara would love that,” she says in a gooey voice. “That’s Red’s girlfriend. They dance together but she’s also really into figure skating.”

  There are several things in that bit of info that surprise me. “Really? I had no idea.”

  “Yeah, I think they might even skate together sometimes. I’m not sure how into it he is. I didn’t know you were, though.” Now her voice is a little teasing.

  “I didn’t know I was either,” I say cryptically.

  “Until you met Brooke?”

  I could lie to her. But I’ve done enough lying to last me a lifetime. “Until I met Brooke,” I confirm.

  “Awwwww,” she says for about thirty seconds or so.

  “Okay, okay,” I say through my laughter. “It’s not— Don’t do that. It’s not like...like what you think it is. It’s not like a thing.”

  “Right, sure,” she says in that tone of voice that means she doesn’t believe me at all. I’m not sure I believe me either. “Anyway, Adrian, it was nice talking to you. Thank you again so much. Even though I forgave you a long time ago, it was nice to actually feel like doing it this time.”

  For some reason, her words bring tears to my eyes. “You did?”

  “Yeah, it’s not healthy to hold on to that stuff.”

  “I guess you’re right.” It’s like Dawson said—you have to be forgiven but also forgive yourself.

  I say goodbye to her, feeling lighter than I have in a long time. There’s this big weight off my shoulders that I didn’t fully realize I’d been carrying around.

  I finish getting dressed and quickly go style my hair. Careful dishevelment. Perfect.

  Just before I leave, I go check on Pops. He’s sitting in his favourite chair, reading a newspaper.

  “Are you coming to the Holiday Festival?” I ask him.

  He pushes his reading glasses up on top of his head to look at me. “I think I’ll sit this one out. I’ve been to lots of those.”

  I smile. “But have you ever been to one with a spontaneous, choreographed ice dancing routine featuring your grandson?”

  He laughs. “Can’t say that I have.” He folds his newspaper and stands up. “Alright, I’ll come.”

  “Oh, good,” I say. “I’m already late to meet Brooke and the kids, and I didn’t want to have to run in my suit.”

  Pops smiles at me as he looks me over. “You look a little too dressed up for a festival, Adrian.”

  “I know. It’s for the performance.” It’s actually really just for Brooke because I’m hoping that she’ll like seeing me in my suit when it’s not wrinkled. But I don’t want to admit that out loud just yet.

  Pops takes us as close to the main streets as he can. The good parking lots are already all full, so there’s still a bit of a walk, but nothing I can’t handle. Pops on the other hand is taking his dear, sweet time and I don’t want to be rude.

  When he realizes I’m slowing down for him, he waves me off. “Go ahead, I’ll see you soon.”

  I smile at him and then start rushing through the crowds to get to Sugarplum Street. The rink is bigger than I expected, which is great, and surrounded by people, vendors, and lights. So many lights. This is going to look awesome.

  Brooke’s sitting on a bench, ready in her skates and looking around nervously. I feel a little guilty, but she’ll understand.

  “Brooke!”

  She looks over and relief washes over her face. “There you are,” she says as I sit next to her. “What happened?”

  “Sorry,” I say as I get the skates out of my bag. “I’ll tell you later. Is everyone ready?”

  “Yeah, except Santa.” Beneath that annoyed tone, I hear the hint of concern. I know she’s not mad.

  I take her hand and kiss it. “I’m here now.” I wink and she smiles.

  “You’re lucky you look so good in that suit,” she mumbles. �
��Come on, the kids are all waiting. You got your music?”

  “Yup!”

  I pull my phone out. We got a bunch of the kids from Marie’s program to wear some Bluetooth speakers, and I see them waiting on the ice in a little clump. They’re going to skate around me and Brooke while we do a mini-routine.

  I smile at their Santa hats and sparkly faces. They’re adorable. My heart grows three sizes. I think I’ve fallen in love with Christmastown.

  “Alright, guys, you ready?” I ask. They all shout enthusiastically. “Great. Turn your speakers on. Keep those smiles. We got this. Brooke?”

  “I’m here. I’ve been waiting for you, remember?” She still sounds exasperated but that’s okay. I’m not always easy to be around.

  I take her hand and we find a mostly empty spot of the rink. I start up the music—“Coventry Carol” by Pentatonix. Brooke starts the song by herself, doing some fancy arm moves that look amazing.

  When I join her, we start moving down the rink together. The kids surround us in a loose circle, making a way for us between the other skaters. It’s not easy to do our beautiful dance moves in a confined space, but soon enough, people catch on and give us some room.

  We’ve finally got enough room to do our bigger moves, while the kids hold their positions, doing little spins and jumps around us. Even though I’m supposed to be leading Brooke, it’s clear that she’s the one carrying this whole routine. She makes me look good, simply because I can hold her hand while she spins in and out of my arms.

  At one point, I stop skating to let Brooke do some moves that I’ll never be able to name. She’s beautiful and elegant. I get so caught up watching her that I almost forget to join her for the end.

  She still won’t let me lift her, but she does let me do a cool spin where she’s stretched out across the ice and I’m holding her wrists. I spin her around three times—and only three, because she told me four is too many—before pulling her back up. Despite what she thinks, it’s not hard for me to bring her back up to me. We end the dance with her facing me and it takes all my strength not to kiss her.

  Apparently she’s not as restrained, because she puts her hands on my face and kisses me softly. People clap and cheer for us, so we break apart and take our bows. Then she points to the kids who also bow.

  I see a reporter holding a mic and staring at us. There are two cameramen next to her, which is exactly what I was hoping for. With the kids crowding around us, we approach the woman in the fancy coat.

  “Hi, there!” she says brightly, looking first at me and then at Brooke. “Wow, Brooke Dubois! It’s so great seeing you perform like that tonight. How are you finding life now that you won’t be competing in this winter’s Olympics?”

  Did she really just...? Oh, she’s pointing the mic towards Brooke, who looks like she’s seen a ghost. This is so not happening.

  I grab the mic and smile into the camera. “Hi! My name’s Adrian and I’m a recovering alcoholic. Brooke and these talented kids have been helping with my rehabilitation and reformation as a former hockey player. What you saw tonight was just a taste of the show we’re putting on December sixteenth and seventeenth. Come and check it out. You won’t be disappointed.”

  I push the mic back at the startled reporter. She opens her mouth and says, “But can I just ask—”

  “Sorry,” I cut her off. “We’ve got a festival to enjoy.”

  I twist around so quickly my skates skid all over the place. But I manage not to fall. I take Brooke’s hand and skate away as fast as I can without knocking into anyone else. The rink isn’t exactly huge but I just want to get away from that icky reporter.

  “Adrian,” Brooke says, tugging on my hand to get me to slow down. “It’s okay. Stop.”

  I stop and turn to her. Her eyes are lit up by the millions of twinkle lights hung all around. Her cheeks are flushed from the cold and her hair is wind-whipped.

  “You didn’t have to do that, you know,” she says quietly, gesturing loosely to the other side of the rink.

  I jam my hand through my hair, totally ruining the look I was going for earlier. “Yes, I did. I wanted them to see us, to see what we were capable of. Not ask us questions we don’t want to answer.”

  “They weren’t asking us,” she says with a little shake of her head.

  “Well—I mean—” A slow smile creeps across her face as I fail to get a single thought out. “No, but that doesn’t mean we can’t answer them.”

  “Oh, Adrian.”

  She pulls me closer and kisses me, her hands wrapping around the back of my head. I know there are a bunch of people around us, and that the reporter might even still be creeping around. But I don’t care. I’d rather be kissing Brooke than answering to any of them anyway.

  CHAPTER seventeen

  Adrian

  The rest of the festival is as I expect it to be—people selling handcrafted art and food, carolers, Christmassy things everywhere. It’s all of the things I would have avoided back home for no reason other than to seem cool.

  But I don’t care about cool anymore. I care about doing things that make me and other people happy. Like Brooke, who’s excitedly showing me the “staples” of the Christmastown Holiday Festival.

  I notice the annoying reporter has moved on to hanging out by a group of carolers in period clothing. She’s bobbing her head in an awkward way and I glare at her, even though she’s not remotely looking in my direction.

  “Oh, check it out,” Brooke says, quickly gaining my attention. She takes my elbow and juts her chin off to the left.

  I follow her line of sight and see Pops and Marie near a coffee vendor. They’re both drinking something hot, and she’s animatedly telling a story while he listens. She looks so happy. He looks...not totally unimpressed. Tired, maybe. But he’s also leaning towards her in a very encouraging way. I’m so confused, but I don’t want to try to talk to him about it again.

  “That’s so cute,” Brooke says in a gushy voice.

  I don’t have the heart to tell her that it’s not what she thinks. Instead, I put my arm around her and pull her closer to me. “I’m really glad we came here tonight.”

  “Me, too,” she sighs as she leans her head against my chest.

  I don’t deserve to be this happy. After all the hearts I’ve broken, after that terrible incident with Elli, there’s no reason I should have been given this gift. But that doesn’t stop me from wanting it, from pulling Brooke even closer to me.

  That doesn’t stop me from falling more in love and hoping that she could ever feel the same way.

  “You never did tell me why you were late tonight,” she says softly.

  “Elli called me,” I say, without thinking to word it differently.

  “Oh.” Brooke’s body stiffens, so I lean down and kiss the top of her head.

  “She just wanted to say thanks for the letter,” I tell her.

  “Oh.”

  “Brooke.” She turns her head to look up at me, her eyes catching the coloured twinkle lights. I almost blurt out that I’m in love with her, that I never want to leave this place. But instead I say, “Do you want to skate with me again?”

  She smiles. “Yeah, I really do.”

  ***

  A few days after the Holiday Festival, I decide to just bite the bullet and call the last person on earth who would want to hear from me. You’d think that would have been Elli. But no—she gladly gives me Red’s phone number when I ask for it.

  Taking a deep breath, I punch his number into my phone. He answers after a few rings with a confused “Hello?”

  “Hey, Red. It’s Adrian and I—”

  The dial tone cuts me off. I should have figured he’d hang up right away. I wait a moment and then call again.

  “What?” he says.

  “Red, it’s Adrian and I was wondering—”

  Dial tone again. I roll my eyes and call back.

  “Stop calling me,” he says.

  “Look, if you’re going to an
swer three times can you at least let me get through a sentence?” I huff out.

  “Depends on the sentence,” he says and he sounds as annoyed as I am.

  I rack my brain for anything that I think would make him stop and talk to me. What pops out is, “Do you want to do some ice dancing with me?”

  There’s silence on the line for a moment. Then he laughs out loud before asking, “What makes you think that I’d want to do that or that I even can?”

  I ignore his first question and say, “A little birdy told me you might sometimes do that with your girlfriend.”

  “Not...Julian?” he asks in a surprised voice.

  “No,” I say. “Definitely not him.”

  “Right.” He grunts. “And what else did Elli tell you?”

  “It doesn’t matter,” I say, since it wasn’t about him at all. “Look, I’m doing this Christmas pageant on ice thing and I want it to be really amazing so it draws a big crowd so they don’t shut down the program next year. It’s really important to the kids in this town.”

  “In what town?” he asks.

  “Um...Christmastown?”

  “What are you doing all the way up in Christmastown?” he asks. He still sounds exasperated, but it’s better than him just hanging up on me.

  “It’s...a long story,” I say. “That maybe I can tell you over a cup of coffee?”

  “Like I’d go all the way there just to have coffee with you,” he sputters.

  I swallow back the last little bit of pride that I carried over from my old life. In my nicest voice, I ask, “Will you at least consider skating with us? It’s important.”

  “Yeah, you said that.” He sighs heavily. “I want to say no, because it’s you. But also Zara would probably love something like that, so...I’ll ask her. When it is?”

  My heart thumps a little harder. “December sixteenth and seventeenth,” I say, hearing how eager I sound.

  “No promises.”

  “Thank you!” I practically shout.

  “I didn’t say yes.”

  “You didn’t have to,” I answer.