This is a very short prelude to the rest of the story. Thanks to all who read "Wanting What You Have." This is a little different because while the story does focus on Adam Banks, the rest of the Ducks will play a bigger role in the plot and exploring their own personal feelings. The details in this story should correspond to those established in my previous story. Thank you and enjoy.
Scott "Scooter" Vanderbilt III strolled through the Eden Hall Academy Varsity locker room after his post-game shower, towel wrapped around his toned, athletic waist. "Good win today, guys. Ashland didn't stand a chance; 11-0. Lunch Box, awesome check on Lawrence Evers—he'll be feeling that tomorrow morning. Party Pants, sweet assist to GQ. But major props go out to Banksie—three goals, 1 assist. You ruled tonight. Moment of silence so we can recognize Banksie's general domination." Scooter looked around with a grin on his face—it was easy to see that he enjoyed his BMOC status. "So, are we partying tonight?"
While the general hoopla of the locker room surrounded the team's senior captain and star goalie, Adam Banks sat on the bench in front of his locker and quietly wrapped his right wrist. As a sophomore, Adam found himself in a weird position. When he was a freshman on Varsity, Adam played behind the first and second line senior centers, Rick Riley and Owen Thomas. He could quietly bide his time and develop with minimal expectations. With their departure last year, Adam suddenly was thrust into the role of first- line center and focus of the offense of a team expected to win a state championship every year. Although Adam succeeded on the ice as Varsity's leading scorer and was given Minnesota second-team honors, he never fully was comfortable with the off-ice team dynamic.
Adam never blamed most of his Varsity teammates for resenting his presence on the team. He left Varsity his freshman year just before the annual JV/Varsity Showdown and had aided in handing Varsity its first loss in the history of the game. That feeling of euphoria ended abruptly when Adam's father insisted that he rejoin the Varsity team in order to fine-tune his skills. Coach Wilson happily took him back, glad to have a talented young center to groom after the departure of his senior stars. When Adam first made Varsity, many of his teammates came to trust and accept him—probably because Adam came from a well-off WASP family. Although they put up a front, many of them felt betrayed when Adam left. It was safe to say that the reception that the Varsity team gave Adam when he returned was quite chilly, and stayed cold for the remainder of the year.
And so came the awkward feeling Adam had towards his sophomore year with Varsity. His two biggest antagonists, Rick Riley and Eric Cole, had graduated and Scooter stepped into the leadership role as captain. Although Scooter always genuinely tried to incorporate him into the team dynamic off the ice, Adam never really fit in. To Adam's dismay, he found himself losing his connection with his teammates on the Ducks. Charlie, like Scooter, made a valiant attempt to keep Adam in the loop but nonetheless there was no way that he could share the same relationship with the Ducks that they all had with each other. There were countless times when Adam was at the local pizza parlor with Varsity on a Friday night and see the Ducks there, too, on the opposite end, laughing and having fun. There was never a day that Adam did not miss that. However, there was nothing he could do and it frustrated Adam to no end.
Adam shook himself out of the memory. It was the first day of his junior year and things were going to be different. Scooter had graduated, and Adam was going to miss his good friend. However, his friends on the Ducks were finally going to join him on the Varsity team. The seniors on the team were all pretty agreeable guys who had no real agenda against Adam. Adam's life was finally going to return to normal. Of course, in the back of Adam's mind he knew that life was never normal.