The next day, I walked down the class alone, still brooding, when Laura came up to me.

"Hey, congrats on making the team." She smiled.

"Yeah...whatever." I mumbled.

"What's wrong? I hear that you're starting? Isn't Daddy proud of you?" She asked, sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes, annoyed. I didn't want to talk to anybody, about anything today, especially about hockey. "He put me at Adam's position okay. It sucks. He's just seeing me because of Adam, not because of anything that I did to prove myself."

"Banks...shut up." Laura frowned.

"What the-"

"I'm serous!" Laura threatened. "You are being such a brat about this! Kids from around the state would kill to play on that hockey team. Don't you get it? And you are starting, and you don't even care? That's so...stupid. If you're not going to be grateful for the talent that God gave you, and for the people that are going to help you develop that talent, with THEIR money and THEIR time, well, then maybe you don't belong on the team. Maybe you don't deserve it, Jeremy." She spat, and walked off.

I sighed. What Laura had said made me feel really bad. I was expected to be a leader, and how was I supposed to lead with an attitude like I had right now? I was a duck...a duck! Laura was right, kids around the country would kill to be a duck, to carry on the legacy that my brother's team had started. It was then that I remembered another sign in the locker room of the rink. It read "Tradition in excellence." I should be proud...if nothing else, than just to be a duck.

***

I grabbed a quick bite to eat during lunch, and then headed to the rink, where most of the rest of the team was there. A lot of them stared at me. I couldn't help but wonder what they were thinking. My father would say that they were staring because I was good, because they wished that they could have talent like mine. Adam would say that they were staring because they had nothing else to look at. Me? I can't help but wonder if their staring at me because they think I'm some kind of a snob. I haven't even spoken to some of them at all. I didn't even know some of their names. It wasn't my fault though, I was new, I was shy....

After a while longer, Coach Orian handed out a schedule, explaining when our practices were, what was expected of us. A lot of guys hadn't known about the B average rule. "Last year, the ducks had the highest academic average of any team in the state! I want you to be better, understood?" He asked.

I gulped. I knew that I had already screwed myself over in two of my classes. I would have to work hard to bring up those grades. I honestly never understood teachers who gave a quiz on the second day of school. Are they just trying to scare you or something?

"Banks?" A kid asked, walking up to me, after Coach Orian had left.

"Yeah...." I trailed off as two of the other defensemen came up behind him. "You must think you're pretty good, huh? Being the...brother of a duck and all."

I stared blankly back. "No- um- not really."

"Well, just so you know, this is my team. If you start to show off, I might just have to do something about that. We don't want anyone to think that you're a better player than me or anything...."

I frowned.

"Because, my father's on the alumni board."

Was that supposed to scare me? Didn't he know that I wasn't here on scholarship like the ducks had been? There was no way that he could get me kicked out of school, or even off the team...at least, I didn't think so....