I drum my pencil against my teeth with the soft light of my lamp shining on my table. Tap. Tap. Tap. It’s after six, and I’m trying my best to study.

Chemistry, shemistry—not my thing at all. I could care less about the chemical compounds in hydrogen cyanide.

All I know is cyanide is toxic and not a good thing. All these chemical gremlins aren’t helping me get to the Olympics.

All I have in my head is Reggie, and not for the right reasons.

Does he want to skate with me or nah? He’s no Roman Henley, that’s for sure, but he’s got potential and already knows how to glide around a rink despite the change from hockey skates to ice skating skates.

I can’t see him throwing me in the air and me landing straight. I don’t want a broken ankle on account of a Vancouver Wolf’s incompetence. Sheeyt. Hockey hacks and their pucks.

I blatantly stare at my phone. It’s propped up in its holder on my study desk and looming larger than life in my face. Almost like the size of my TV, willing me to pick it up and text Reggie.

What would I even say to the guy?

Umm, hi, Reggie. Do you want to skate with me? Pretty please with a cherry on top? I want to go to the Olympics, and you’re my only chance. Tick the special box yes or no.

I throw my pencil down in disgust. No freaking way. It’s like I’m back in grade school or something. I can’t text him. I have to let the circumstances play out. I smooth back my curls—they look as distressed as I feel inside.

Doubts start to creep in.

Maybe me trying to make it to the Olympics is way too much of a stretch. Singles to pairs? With a hockey player? Who am I kidding?

Distract yourself, that’s what you need to do. Don’t cry. Don’t.

My coach's words roll around in my head.

X-Men United is the perfect movie for me to drown out the noise of my skating sorrows. Ororo Monroe, aka Storm, is my favorite Marvel character.

At least I’ve got her to comfort me. She’s a badass who knows how to manipulate the weather, and she's way better than the others in my opinion. She’s the powerhouse of the team.

I slip into my unicorn onesie, dragging the covers up to my neck with my laptop, pressing play. I forget to wrap up my curls, knowing in the morning they’re going to be a bedraggled mess, but I don’t care.

Reggie’s triple looping around my head, and these weird tears are falling down my face. I swipe them away, furious I can’t control it.

Man, life can be shitty, and this is up there with the Nancy Kerrigan–Tonya Harding scandal.

I cut the movie off half way through. Storm can’t help me this time. I close my eyes, hoping the nightmare news will pass, and I’ll wake up to a phone call from Coach Myers.

“Guess what? Roman’s made a miraculous recovery and can skate now!”

Tears soak into my pillow, but I’m not giving up. No way, I’ve come too far. Skating’s the only thing I’ve got to hold onto.

I mean—I’ve got my friends at school, but it’s not the same as chasing my ice princess dream.

I hold onto my pillow a little tighter, hoping when I wake up, things will be different.

A squeak and a sliver of light is what lifts my head from the pillow. I squint through the dark, not wanting my adoptive mom to see me crying.

“Sweetie, are you okay in here? I came to check on you. I know you must be bummed about your pairs-partner.”

“I’m not okay.” I sniffle. “But there’s not much I can do. I have to wait and see if Reggie wants to skate with me.”

The slip of her shadow lingers at the door. “Can I come in?”

“Sure.”

My room floods with light as she comes to sit next to me on the edge of the bed. “Do you remember when I took you to your first lesson with Coach Myers?”

I sit up, squirming from the sudden frontier of light blurring my vision. “Yes. How can I forget? I fell over about ten times and never wanted to go back.”

Crescent moon dimples bring my mother’s smile to life. She nods. “Exactly, but then what happened?”

I frown. “I went back.”

“Exactly, so this is the same scenario. You’re going to go back, and eventually, being the determined superstar you are, you’ll get it.”

I snuggle into her as she strokes through my mess of curls. “How can you be sure?”

“Because I know you. You never let an obstacle stand in your way, and I don’t see why this one should either.”

I hug my mother’s knees, enjoying her toasty warmth. “Thanks for encouraging me.”

“Always and forever. I’m not going anywhere, baby girl. Your father and I love you so much.” I let her embrace soothe me, and it's ten times better than any X-Men movie.

“Love you too. I should get some rest. I want to be up early and study some more for this chemistry test. It’s killing me.”

“Okay, lights out it is. See you in the morning. Don’t worry so much.”

As soon as the door closes and my head hits the pillow, I fall into a deep sleep. I hear my phone beep, but I’m in my wallowing phase so I let it go.

The next morning right before I jump in the car for attendance at my less than kingly school, I scan my phone, spotting a text from Coach Myers.

I’ve got good news for you! I drop it right back in my bag. I can’t even right now.

Sometimes, I wish I were a princess and could be living a luxurious life. To be on top of the world. It’s not that far-fetched. I do attend a king's school after all.

One day… One day…

Later in the week I walk into the rink, quiet except for Reggie and my coach. Scratching my nose, I see Reggie’s already standing on the ice—minus his hockey stick and puck, and with proper ice skates! They look a little smaller on his feet, causing me to smirk.

Hopefully he can hold up.

His broad, sturdy shoulders stand out, and a tingle sprinkles through my chest. Embarrassed at the feeling, I remember he’s public enemy number one.

That’s right. I want to wipe the silly smirk off his face, but I have to behave. He’s my only hope. “Hey, Coach,” I say mildly on approach.

“Shauna! Perfect timing. Your ears must be burning. Did you get the message I sent?” he quizzes, zipping up his sports jacket.

I sit on the bench as Reggie waves at me. Timidly, I wave back. “I got it. Sorry, I forgot to reply.” I don’t want to tell him I did get it but didn’t think there was any good news I wanted to hear.

I lace up my skates tight, sneaking quick glances at Reggie. He’s got the right gear on, and he’s keen. He looks cute, the way he’s standing there, a little worried.

I look at the cut of his shoulders again; he’s going to have to carry me on those. He’s the boy I’m going to have to rely on and trust wholeheartedly to lift and not drop me.

“Okay, we can talk about it after training. We have a lot to work on. We’re going to spend the next couple of weeks working on your on-ice chemistry and getting used to working in a pair.”

When he says on-ice chemistry, it sends extra shivers through my spine. I hope we can gel well enough together to make a run at the Winter Olympics.

Once I’m laced up, I step out onto the ice with Reggie. “Hi, how are you?”

“I’m okay, I guess. How about you?” Standard blah, blah, blah small talk, but I guess we have to start somewhere.

“Guy and gal, let’s warm up. Give me ten laps, easy crossovers, loosen up, and then we can start some easy pairs drills,” Coach Myers cuts in, but both of us put our hands up to indicate we heard him.

We skate around the edges of the rink, and I enjoy the easy glide around the corners crossing over. “Hey, I know this is kind of messed up for you, but I’m not your enemy, I promise,” Reggie points out.

The air cuts over my face as my eyes narrow, and I test him picking up speed.

“It doesn’t have anything to do with you. It’s just that I was a singles skater, not a pairs. And then Roman…” I let the sentence trail off; if I continue, the tears are going to start falling again.

“Yeah, but if you teach me, I can be just as good as him. All I gotta do is catch up.” Reggie slides in slightly behind me. “How’s your week been anyway?”

I close my eyes, letting my skates do the talking. “There’ve been better weeks of my life. I watched X- Men a lot, let’s say that.”

Reggie’s face beams as my breath shortens and our speed naturally increases. “Get outta here! I like X-Men too. Who’s your favorite character?”

I snap my head back at him. He likes X-Men? This guy? “Storm,” I say, regarding his bouncy curls rocking in rhythm with him.

“Wolverine, now that’s my guy. Give me those razor claws anyday.” Even his chuckle is cute.

“Well, I guess a lot of people like the franchise. It’s pretty iconic.”

“Yeah, but it’s cool that we both like it,” he puffs, not letting up with his cheesy grin.

Boy, this is getting worse, but Coach is liking it; he’s clapping on the sidelines.

“We got two more laps,” I rasp, feeling a little tired.

“Yep.”

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Shoot the puck, ma girl.”

I burst out laughing. I can’t help it. “Shoot the puck? What?” I double over, touching my knees, and raise back up. “Okay, okay, you’re silly. Did you decide if you want to skate or not?”

“I can be a little goofy, but yeah, I slept on it and skating with you would be kinda cool.”

I want to jump in the air, but I don’t. I stay cool and wind down our laps to stretch. “Cool. That’s awesome.” Inside—now that’s where the back flips are going down.

Reggie puffs his cheeks out. “Cool, that’s awesome? Is that all I get?”

I shrug, and Coach Myers breaks us up with the news he’s been withholding. “Let’s get the cat out of the bag. Reggie is so committed to skating, he’s applied for a full-ride scholarship.”

Heart be still. Maybe I can do this. Maybe we can make it after all.

Reggie reaches for his multicolored bandana to keep his curls in check with a wicked grin. Meanwhile, I’m still regulating my emotions. “Wait. How—”

Coach Myers puts his hands up to slow the steam train of questions I’m about to throw at him.

“There are no guarantees, but with Reggie’s hockey accolades, grades and skill, and my endorsement I don’t see why it can’t work.”

Reggies shrugs. “I figure why not skate my way through. It’s a better bet than me getting a scholarship for hockey.”

“Okay. I guess we’ll have to wait and see how it pans out.”

And just like that, my Olympic dream stays alive. It’s just not coming in the form I thought it was…