Login

***cake307*** · 04-12-2024, 09:38 AM

The Enterprise Center was the home of the Saint Louis Scarecrows, which made it the perfect place to meet new teammates. Though, Alexa glanced at the time on her phone, not a single one had shown up yet, and it was already ten past the hour. She frowned as she looked towards her car in the parking lot, considering if it was time to leave now, and hope for better next year. Well… maybe five more minutes.

Suddenly, a gray car appeared in the distance. As the rapidly car approached, Alexa had the chance to be relieved. She wouldn't be alone after all. As the car stopped, a man came out. He was about 6 feet tall with broad shoulders. You could tell he was a hockey player. “You must be Alexa!” He exclaimed. “I'm so sorry for how late I am. It's my first time in Saint Louis and I was amazed by the Gateway Arch, I just had to stop to take a picture. My name is Louis and I just joined the team. Jimmy told me that you would be helping me out?”

“The… Gateway Arch? It’s alright, I guess, the amazement wears off pretty fast,” Alexa shrugged, opening the door to the arena. “Yeah, welcome to Saint Louis. You know me, clearly, but for a quick crash course, I’m Alexa Johansen, sophomore player for the Scarecrows, first line left winger, and most importantly, team captain. I’m going to give you a bit of a tour today… just you, turns out, but at least someone showed up,” she grimaced. “We’re not going to do any training or anything, coaches will want to get first look I’m sure, but just so you know I usually get here early and leave late, so if you ever want to get some extra practice in, let me know. I’ve got a set of keys… why don’t you tell me more about yourself while I give the tour?”

“Thank you for the tour!” Replied Louis. “I was born in a small town called Montebello, about an hour and half from Montreal. I actually barely played any organized hockey growing up, I would play on outdoor rinks during the winter and play gym hockey in the summer. When I was 16 years old, I was looking for an opportunity to play at a higher level and that's when I heard of the SMJHL. You see, playing hard and strong is in my DNA and I can tell you one thing, you won't be the only one anymore arriving early and leaving late. I intend on working hard to achieve my dream of reaching the SHL.”

“You’ll need to learn fast that playing hard and strong is in everyone’s DNA in this league, or we wouldn’t be here,” Alexa told him as they entered the lobby. It was huge, clearly designed for the crowds it would get during game days. “But I do like the determination to actually put the work in. Not everyone everywhere puts in the sweat to back up the words. As for the SHL, it’ll take more than hard work alone, but that’s why you’re on a team. We help each other,” she said, waving her arm forward slightly. “Come on, follow me. What kind of player do you see yourself as?”

“It’s good to know that everyone works hard. I’ll just have to step it up and work even harder!“ Said Louis with a grin on his face.“I trust we can help each other out on the team to all achieve the SHL. As for the type of player I am, I consider myself a physical player that can lay out a hit but that also has an offensive touch. I want to be a leader in the locker room in the long term. You probably won’t see me as the leader in points but I want to be a player that my opponents hate to play against and my teammates love to have on their team. Ultimately, an ideal playoff player that…” Louis suddenly stopped talking. He just realized he was standing right beside the rink. What a view he thought to himself. ‘’I’m amazed’’ he proclaimed. ‘’I never thought I would have the chance to play on a rink like this, look at all the seats!’’ Louis was getting emotional, he dreamt of hoisting a cup in front of thousands of fans and family, surrounded by teammates that would become friends. ‘’Tell me Alexa, does this feeling ever go away? Do you ever pinch yourself and realize the amazing opportunity you have of playing in SMJHL?’’

“Well… yeah, kinda, it does,” Alexa said, leaning against the wall between them and the rink. “I’ve been playing here a year, it doesn’t really feel like ‘oh, wow, I’m actually a pro’ now, it feels like ‘I’m a pro, I have to put it all out there,’” she explained, indicating the ice. “You’re probably well aware of the struggles we’ve had here in Saint Louis, last season especially, and it’s hard to say it didn’t have an effect. It’s not just that, though. I’ve played in Norway, now, as part of the WJC, and some of those arenas were even bigger than this one, though maybe not by too much. I’ve also been to Edmonton and seen what that stadium is like, and it is bigger. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be excited, or anything, that’s normal. I was pretty… well, that doesn’t matter much. It would ruin my image if you thought of me as an excited girl jumping about,” she smirked slightly.

Louis laughed at the idea of Alexa jumping excitedly. She seemed so serious he thought, so focused on achieving a higher goal. “That’s right, you got drafted a few months ago! What an amazing feeling that must have been to be standing there on the platform, wearing Edmonton’s jersey,” Louis' face then changed. “As for the struggles, yes I am aware. I had a lengthy conversation with the front office about this and I hope to be a positive force that can help the team improve this year. Ultimately, what’s important are the results on the ice. Louis then turned around and asked “I love the rink, but could we go see our locker room? I’d like to see my locker and where I will be seated. By the way, do you know if I’ll meet anybody else today?’’

“I don't think so,” Alexa said, standing straight again and leading the way away from the rink. Luckily it wasn't very long to reach the locker room, at least once they got around to the correct tunnel. It was pretty standard, with names above each locker, Alexa's closest to the door, a little benefit of her captaincy status, Louis’ near the very back. “We’re not really open today, but I came back early to greet the new players where I could. You're at the back, your locker is empty but they'll get you your uniform and stuff soon, I'm sure.”

Louis looked around disappointed. “That's it?” He thought to himself. “I was expecting more out of a locker room for a team like the Crows, a team that won the cup a few seasons ago.” The forward took a few steps to the back of the room and sat down “It's actually not bad” He proclaimed. “I have a nice view of the room, I can see the coach well.” Louis knew that as the season went by, he would have a chance to have a better seat in the room, all rookies went through this. “Just seeing my name on the plate touches my heart in a special way. So what else is there to see Alexa?”

“We're not the team that won that cup anymore,” Alexa pointed out. “A lot of changing who we are. Don't worry, it'll be more lively come game day. For what else to see, I should probably show you the training room, and the doctors. We can swing up to the front office offices, too, if you'd like, but you won't likely have much business up there.”

“I talked to Jimmy and Jay earlier.” Replied Louis, standing up from his locker. ”They couldn’t make it today, but I’ll be meeting them eventually so I don’t see a point in going to the front offices right now. Training room would be nice, I suppose that’s where I’ll be seeing you a lot?” While Louis was asking his latest question, he ran his hand through his bag looking for something. ‘’There it is!‘’ Exclaimed Louis. ‘’I wanted you to have this since you’re my new captain, I hope you will appreciate it as much as I did when I was an alternate captain on my previous team’’.

“I mostly like to practice technique at the moment, so,” Alexa began to reply, raising an eyebrow. “There’s what? What are you giving me?”

“You don't need to make that reaction Alexa, it's not anything bad. It's a viking helmet!” Replied Louis. “Well, a replica at least. The captain would award this each game to an unsung hero of the game. The player would then wear the helmet and take a picture with the captain. It was a little gesture to recognize the efforts of someone.” Louis then took the helmet and put it on her head. “See! It fits you very well too!”

“... right,” Alexa said, taking the helmet off. “So did you know I have Norwegian citizenship, then?”

“Of course, that’s why I’m surprised you didn’t recognize the helmet. But at least it explains why it fits you so well“ Louis replied as he took the helmet from Alexa’s hands.“So where should we put this in the meantime?”

“Well, it’s not the most authentic,” Alexa pointed out the horns. “And it’s not very Scarecrow, is it? But I don’t hate the idea. We just need something other than a viking helmet, something that fits the identity of this team. Maybe a cob pipe?... that might be hard to find, though.”

“You’re right, maybe the viking helmet isn’t a good idea, but I’m happy you like the concept’’ Louis said as pushed the viking deep into his bag. “I’m sure we can find something. The pipe is good, what about the hat that the scarecrow is wearing in our logo?

“I don’t even know what kind of hat that is, honestly,” Alexa said. “I’ll ask Booth at some point. He seems like the type to know,” she said, holding open the door of the locker room. “Come on, then, we’re not done yet. You wanted to see the weight room, right?”

“Yeah, enough chit chat about things we put on our heads. Please lead the way” Louis replied. ”While we’re on the way, do you know any good BBQ spots around town? I’d like to take out the team for a team meal.”

“Depends, are you paying, or am I?” Alexa joked. “Actually, one more thing that goes on your head we should talk about. Make sure your helmet fits when they give it to you. Can’t have any imperfections in the thing that protects your head, got it?”

”You’re free to pay if you want to,” Replied Louis with a big smile on his face. “But no, I was going to pay for everyone. And, right, I’ll make sure the helmet fits my head well. I have to be on the good side of my captain if I want to keep a spot on the lineup!”

“Well, then, if you want to spend a bunch of money and be broke, there’s a place called Carmine’s, it’s a steakhouse. Pricy, but good,” Alexa said. “I go to a place called Hi Pointe on occasion, it’s a lot lower down the price and quality rung, chain I think, but decent. Those are my suggestions.”

”Thank you! I’ll see what I pick. I know you’re aware the salary we rookies get isn’t as big as those big shots in the SHL so I might have to pick the cheaper option.” Louis replied as he walked into a room of average size. Dumbbells were laying on the ground in front of a giant mirror and a series of treadmills were facing the north wall. A man in his 50s, probably part of the training staff, was running on the treadmill nodding his head to the sound of music in his headphones.

“I think they just standardized the contracts, but I don’t remember how much it was for. You might have more money than me,” Alexa shrugged. “... damnit, who left their dumbbells on the fucking floor again? I swear to God, pendejos!”

”I just had to pay a lot of money for summer training so I could improve my skills! It was the weirdest thing, they plugged you into a machine and suddenly I could shoot with more precision, skate faster, hit harder.” Louis replied, trying to change back the subject to money, scared of Alexa’s reaction to the dumbbell lying around. ”Ohh wow, that’s a nice machine in the corner there. I’ve never had one before. Do you know what it's called and what it does?”

“... you better not be on steroids, dude,” Alexa said as she put away the weights. “That one is… a rowing machine,” she said. “Highly recommend it, actually. Really good for cool downs after practice or games, low impact so it doesn’t strain you too much, but helps keep the back and shoulders especially in good condition.”

“Steroids? Never… I’m kind of disappointed you could assume something like that. Look at The Rock and look at me, we’re not the same species.“ Louis replied with a saddened face. “But thank you for the recommendation, I’ll have to try it. Actually, this just gave me an idea! This could be a good team exercise, we could all go on the Mississippi River on a big canoe and row together. It’s a really good team building exercise as we need to all be synchronized.“

“It’s not so much an assumption as a warning,” Alexa said. “None of us can help if you get busted with something you shouldn’t have. Honestly, I’ll probably warn the other rooks too. And, uh, no, we’re not going rowing in the Mississippi, for a bunch of reasons. That’s a major trade artery, for one, so lots of big boats, but more importantly, the water isn’t very safe. I think there was a bunch of mercury in it or something?”

“Ok ok. Let’s not do that, I wouldn’t want to cause the death of a hockey team, especially not a week after joining in. It seems like a lot of my ideas aren’t very good, I think I’ll leave you to do the talking from now on.“ Louis said as his stomach started rumbling. “I’m quite hungry, is there a cafeteria in the building?”

“Hey,” Alexa frowned. “I’m not saying your ideas aren’t good, don’t get it twisted. You just don’t know everything, and that’s fine. Anyways, food… I mean, there is some, but it’s pretty meh. Too healthy. And you can’t get a good taco in this entire city, I promise.”

”Is that a way of saying you’ll cook me some? Cause I could really go for some delicious homemade tacos right now.” He replied with eyes that shined with anticipation at the idea of eating some enticing food.

“... don’t push it, rook,” Alexa rolled her eyes. “Come on,” she added, waving him on to the hall again, then down it, to a small cafeteria area tucked away in the back. It was clearly for the team and not the public, far too small and hard to access for that. “Are they even open today?... looks like no. Well, sorry.”

”That’s unfortunate” Louis said as he took a seat at one of the tables looking, once again, for something in his bag. ”Where did I put these again?...Right! Here we are.” Louis took out a little box and placed it on the table. Once opened, it revealed a pack of cards. “Care for a game captain?”

Alexa stared at Louis, and then sighed. “... kid, is this the first time you’ve been this far from home on your own?”

Louis looked at the ground, unable to look at her eyes. He felt ashamed. “Yes, it is… I grew up playing cards with my teammates, I thought…. This was stupid.” Louis said as he grabbed the cards and put them back into the red box. He then quickly put the box back into his bag and stood up, ready to leave. “So… is this it?”

“Hey, alright, stop dashing ahead on your own train of thought,” Alexa said. “... I’m not playing cards with you, though, I do have other places to be today. But just, remember, this isn’t a high school team, or even a travel team anymore. You’re a professional now, and not every player is going to be your friend, or even want to be your friend. You still need to play hard and work hard right alongside them, though. Be friendly, that’s great, but be ready to be told no without beating yourself up, alright?”

“You’re right! I need to pick myself up and become a man“ Louis replied as he started walking towards the middle of the cafeteria. “Starting today, everything will be different.“Suddenly, Louis opens his bag and starts taking out some stuff: the box of cards, a rubber chicken, some miniature hockey sticks, a bright green hat, 4 different fidget spinners and a bunch of little bouncing balls. Arriving in the middle of the cafeteria, he takes all these toys and puts them in the garbage. “Alexa, you are witnessing the transformation of your new teammate. I will not be your friend, nor anybody else. I’m here to win. I’m here to bring a cup to St-Louis. I’M HERE TO MAKE IT TO THE SHL.”

“... yeah, you are,” Alexa snorted a little bit, shaking her head with a small smile. “I’ll see you soon, kid. Don’t hang around, spend your last few days of freedom getting used to the city. It’ll do you good.”

“Don’t you underestimate me Alexa. I see you smile, I see you shaking your head. Once you start playing with me on the ice, you’ll know I’m the real deal. That I can perform and that I can help you be a better captain,” Replied Louis with frowned eyebrows rapidly moving his index finger. “On that note, thank you for the tour. I suppose I’ll see you around. My next stop is Carmine’s steakhouse and no, I’m not inviting anybody else. Although, if you could spare me some change…”

Code:
Words: 3,127

Split 50/50 with Popol

Popol · 04-12-2024, 09:40 AM

This was very fun to do as a collab. Good job Cake!

***jaypc8237*** · 04-12-2024, 09:12 PM

Navigation

Extra Menu

About us