AUTHOR'S NOTES: For the record: the "name" Kestle really isn't a name at all. It's the Swedish word for "castle." Yes, I'm weird. I thought maybe an odd name would add a bit to my latest character. Who is she? Well, read and learn!
A NEW TEAM – CHAPTER FIVE – GETTING STARTED
The two-hour flight to Los Angeles had been hair-raising to put it mildly. Goldberg wasn't happy about being backed up by a girl, and Julie wasn't happy about being the backup goalie. Despite being seated across the cabin from each other, Fulton and Portman argued the whole way about who would be the enforcer. Connie and Guy wouldn't stop glomming all over each other. Luis kept trying to put the moves on Alicia, the flight attendant. She deserved every one of them, but it still wasn't appropriate. Dwayne and Jesse terrorized each other, although about forty-five minutes into the flight it became friendly. Kaley just shook he head at the circus around her, did her schoolwork, and slept through most of the flight. Gordon wanted to follow her example, but he and Michele were too busy playing UN with the ones who wouldn't stop fighting.
But nobody was getting any sleep anytime soon. As soon as the 737 taxied to the gate and Team USA piled out, they were bombarded with questions from the press. Kaley shied away from the cameras and muttered "no comment," while Gordon and Michele had to pull Averman, Luis, Fulton, and Portman away. "You'll have plenty of time to entertain the press after our game against Trinidad tomorrow," Gordon said, dragging Averman away by the collar.
"Trinidad?" Jesse asked. "How do they learn to play hockey over there?"
"Same way we learn in Texas," Dwayne answered.
"How do you know, Cowboy?" Jesse asked.
"Hey, hey, hey," Michele cautioned. "Take it easy."
"Can you believe all these people are here to see us?" Guy asked as the athletes marched into the "opening ceremonies" of the Junior Goodwill Games.
Connie glanced sideways at her boyfriend. "There are other sports here too, Guy," she said, "I'm sure some people are here to see them, too."
"Yeah, but we're the hockey players," Guy said, waving to the crowd. "We're the only ones who count."
Connie punched him playfully. She knew he was kidding. "Hey, there are the figure skaters," she said, pointing to three boys and three girls to their right. "Tammy!" She hollered, waving to Tammy Duncan. Tammy had been with the Ducks back when Coach Bombay first started. She'd never had much interest in hockey and had quickly gone back to figure skating.
The petite blond waved back. "I'll be at your game tomorrow night!" She said.
Connie gave a thumbs-up. "Great! Thanks!"
The USA/Trinidad game was going perfectly. Well, at least for USA. In the third period, they led six to nothing and had easily scored all their goals.
"Go Averman!" Jesse whooped as Averman scored another goal, bringing USA to a seven-point lead.
"Man, my little brother could score better than that!" Jesse turned around and saw a chubby black boy leaning over the box.
"Well, why don't you go pick on him, then?" Jesse challeneged.
"Ha-ha!" The kid taunted. "I ain't even got no little brother!"
"Jesse! Quit gabbing and get to the ice!" Coach Bombay ordered. "Show me you want it, son!"
As much as Jesse wanted to keep "gabbing" with the annoying kid, he obeyed Coach Bombay and went out to play.
"Hey!" Jesse cried as someone bumped him from behind, sending him face-first into Trinidad's net. "I'm gonna get you for that!" Jesse threatened, going after a random Trinidad player.
"Jesse!" Kaley said, trying to hold him back. "Relax! He isn't even the one who hit you!"
"Come on, Kay, let me at him!" Jesse said, trying to squirm out of Kaley's grasp.
The referee blew his whistle. "That'll be two minutes, game misconduct."
"Aw, man…" Jesse complained as the ref led him to the box.
"He got you bad!" It was the same kid who'd been teasing Jesse earlier.
"Hey, come here, man!" Jesse said, trying in vain to climb over the glass. "I wanna talk to you!"
"Jesse! Knock it off!" Coach Bombay commanded.
"Hey," Charlie nudged Adam's shoulder. The two had been sitting in the box for most of the period, and Adam's attention had seemed to be everywhere but the game. "You got a girl in the stands?"
"Scouts," Adam pointed to two men in suits talking to each other. "Look at them."
"Don't worry about scouts, Adam," Charlie said. "Just play your best."
Just play my best, Adam thought. If only it were that easy.
The buzzer began counting down to the end of the period. "Five, four, three, two, WE DID IT!" Gordon yelled, unable to contain his excitement as the kids ran over to the box, slapping high-fives and hugging each other.
"Great job, guys!" Gordon told them. "That wasn't a game, that was a statement!"
The team cheered and dispersed to celebrate.
"Hey, this is good ice cream," Portman said. Coach Bombay had treated the team to ice cream after defeating Trinidad.
"Hey." Fulton slapped Portman's arm. "Look over there."
Portman looked where Fulton was pointing. A small, thin girl was seated at a table, reading a book. "Her?" He asked.
"Yeah," Fulton said. "I think she's here for the Games."
"Everyone's here for the games," Portman said, taking a long lick of his ice cream cone, which was quickly melting.
Fulton rolled his eyes. "Doofus, I mean she's an athlete," he said. "And a gorgeous one at that. Go talk to her!"
Portman looked at the girl and noticed for the first time that she was wearing a USA warm-up jacket.
"Go on!" Fulton gave Portman a little shove.
Portman had never been criticized for being timid-in fact, he'd often been told he could benefit from being a little more timid-but talking to girls made him nervous. Being gentlemanly did not come naturally to him. More than once, he'd scared girls off by being what they considered "uncivilized."
"Come on!" Fulton urged, giving Portman a harder shove. "You checked every Trinidad player tonight in front of the whole world. You can talk to a girl."
Portman took a step over as a dollar bill fell from the girl's table. Perfect, he thought. "Um, excuse me," he said, leaning over to pick up the dollar bill. "I think you dropped this.
The girl looked up from her book. She was gorgeous, Portman realized. Her thin, light brown hair was pulled into a bouncy ponytail, and she had the brightest blue eyes he had ever seen."Oh!" She said, noticing the dollar bill in Portman's hand. "Thanks." She took it and put it in her pocket. "Hey, you're Dean Portman from the USA hockey team," she said. "I was at your game tonight. Nice work."
"Uh, thanks," Portman said, still a bit apprehensive. "I, um, don't think I got your name."
"Oh! Sorry," the girl apologized, extending her hand. "Kestle Carter," she said, pronouncing her first name KES-lee.
Portman shook Kestle's hand, being careful not to squeeze too hard. "Nice to meet you, Kestle."
Kestle smiled. "So…Dean…would you like to sit down?"
"Oh, sure," Portman said, kicking himself for just standing there. He must have looked like a real idiot. He sat in the chair across from her. "So…Kestle, what sport are you competing in?"
Kestle's wide eyes got wider. "How'd you know I'm here for the Games?"
"You've got your warm-up jacket on," Portman said.
"Oh! Right," Kestle said with a nervous laugh. Portman was glad he wasn't the only one who wasn't sure how to act. "I'm a gymnast."
"Gymnast," Portman said, nodding. "Tough sport."
"But it's fun," Kestle said with another giggle.
An awkward silence developed between them. OK, time to make the move, Portman thought. "Can I buy you an ice cream?"
"Sure," Kestle said, smiling and standing up. "Thanks."