Just a Game

Alec POV

I could hear the fans screaming and the ever present bite of the cold arena air, I could sense the rest of my team closing in behind me and my mind went blank the way it always does before the puck starts flying. Hockey was my life, and what a marvelous life it was. I wasn't the only one that thought that way. My brother was just like me, his home was on the ice and we had never known another home.

Our parents had never been around to teach us what was expected of the heirs to the lightwood fortune, but it never mattered, we weren't meant to sit in the house surrounded by maids and servants just waiting for the next conference call to come. This was where we were meant to be and we fought like hell to get here and fought even harder to stay here.

The ref blew the whistle and the puck went flying, the air was filled with the sounds of metal scrapping ice and hollow sound of two hockey sticks clashing together. Most people thought that the sport was just about men skating around on ice with sticks, but it was much more than that. To the people that played it, it was life, it was the air they breathed and the drug they craved more than anything else.

I was racing down the ice with the puck and my vision tunneled to see only one thing ahead of me, the goal. I didn't see Jace skating beside me keeping the other team away or the rest of the guys as they closed in around me, I only saw the goal and the open spot the goalie wasn't blocking. My heart was racing and I realized that I was about to shoot the winning goal, that I was the reason that we were going to go to the finals this year.

I brought my stick back and hit the small black puck sending it flying towards the goal. The goalie dived for it and for a second I thought I had missed, but the sound of the horn told me that I had scored and that we had just won the game. The roar of the fans was deafening and I struggled to make out what the announcer was saying, "and the winning goal scored by, Alexander Lightwood." Everyone screamed louder and the guys surrounded me, everyone was happy and cheering, but I just wanted to get out of here before the NHL reporters could corner me that was the only part I hated about the game. The fame that came with it, I hated the spotlight and that was part of the reason that I never stayed around to celebrate. That and the fact that showering with the team was just a little to awkward, if they ever found out that the teams star player was gay, well I couldn't ever show my face at a hockey game again.

My life would be ruined if they found out my secret, I would be kicked out of the league and out of my family, I would be called a disgrace to the Lightwood family and they would have nothing to do with me. The only person besides me that knew was my sister, and she almost had to torture it out of me. It was years ago that I realized that I had no interest in dating girls, I tried to deny it for a while but eventually it was obvious that I would never be able to date a girl and be happy.

Jace on the other hand was my opposite in every way, including that. He was a player never staying on one girl for more than a week, and while he was all golden looks I looked like a black and white painting, the only color was my blue eyes. I never thought I was much to look at, but all of our female fans thought I was, the only thing about me that kept the girls away was my personality.

While Jace was outgoing and could be a bit of a sarcastic asshole, I was quiet preferring to let my game speak for me, Jace was always on the TV and I avoided it like one might avoid going to the dentist. I hated it and very rarely if ever would I end up on NFL.

I broke away from the team, leaving them all to celebrate together, Jace used to question why I never went out with the team after a win or went drinking after a loss, but eventually he got used to my strange behavior. I opened the door to the stadium and the cameras went wild, people screaming questions at me from all directions but I ignored them. I kept my head down as I tried to maneuver my way across the parking lot to my car. Most people thought it was weird that with my personality that I drove a cherry red car, but I loved it and after people got to know me they accepted it. Isabelle had always thought that it was funny that the only piece of color I owned was my car.

When I had opened the door and gotten in the car I let myself relax and try to work off the after game shakes. I was always nervous after a game, some people got nervous before a game, but I just put off the nervousness until I was at home and away from the ice. I put it in drive and drove home, just when I was about to walk in the door to my apartment my phone rang.

"You have got to be kidding me, at one in the morning the damn phone has got to ring. This had better be good," I muttered to myself as I tried to get the phone out of my jeans pocket. I almost laughed when I saw who it was, Isabelle.

"Izzy, what are you doing up at this hour. You need some sleep." I asked. I heard what sounded like paper crinkling on the other end of the phone but didn't try to figure out what the strange noise was, with Izzy you never knew.

"I know I should be Alec don't lecture me like mom does, but I can't sleep and I thought I would congratulate you on the big win today. I know it meant a lot to you, and I also wanted to ask you for a favor." Oh no when Isabelle wanted a favor it never ended well for me, usually it was for me to go to a party with her because she didn't want to ask anyone and she didn't want to go alone or for me to go to one of her shows. With Fashion Week coming up I assumed it was the later.

"Can you possibly sit in the audience at my show tomorrow and tell me what people say about it," she asked. I sighed, Izzy was always nervous about her shows, as an up and coming designer what people thought about you mattered and it could make or break a career. Although with Izzy's talent I always wondered why she thought people wouldn't like her stuff, but when she got nervous I was always the one she called on to go eavesdrop in the audience. I never like the fashion shows but I hated to see her so unhappy so unless I had a game the next day I would usually go.

"Of course Izzy I will eavesdrop in the audience and make sure people say nothing but good things about your show." I was only half way serious about the last part and she laughed at the poor excuse for a joke.

"Thank you so much, you don't know how much this means to me Alec that you would do this for me when I know you hate fashion. I'm pretty sure everyone knows you hate fashion I mean you dress like you're going to a funeral and nothing you wear is designer." She was always on me about my wardrobe, she seemed to think that because I had money I should dress like it, or maybe it was because I was gay. There seemed to be a stereotype about gay guys and fashion. Even though she was teasing me I could hear the relief in her voice that I had said yes, she was going to give herself gray hair worrying about things like that.

"I better go Alec there an emergency with one of the models but thanks again big brother I'll see you after the show. I love you."

Before I could reply she had hung up and with that crisis averted I stripped off my sweaty clothes and fell into the bed.

Sorry that was so short the next one will be longer I promise. If you liked it good if you didn't just don't tell me about it keep that opinion to yourself.

Kisses, love Sarah