Back in the game
1417 Words
(Kendall)
(Three years later.)
I walked into the arena like I owned it.
Not because I wanted to be seen. But because I knew I would be.
I'd changed.
Gone was the girl who cried in the dark and begged for escape. I stood taller now. I had lost a lot of weight, so now I knew that they wouldn't recognize me. I wasn't some player's sad mistake. I was the one calling the shots.
It wasn't easy getting here. After I found out about the bet, I fell apart. For weeks, I ate my feelings. Ice cream at 2 AM and takeout for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But one morning, I caught my reflection and didn't recognize myself. The sadness in my eyes was one thing, but my body had become a physical manifestation of my pain.
That's when I decided: if I was going to come back, I'd come back stronger.
I started small. Walking around the block. Cutting out soda. My legs burned and my lungs screamed, but with each step, I felt Chase's words. "Hockey scholarship girl can't even keep her balance." fade a little more.
Some days were harder than others. I'd get on the scale and see no change. I'd pass by the pizza place, smell the cheese, and almost give in. One night, I broke down in my bathroom, a carton of ice cream melting beside me on the floor. But I got up the next morning anyway. Put on my sneakers. And kept going.
Six months in, I could run a mile without stopping. A year in, I had to buy new clothes. By the time eighteen months had passed, people who knew me before did double takes when I walked by. It wasn't just the weight. It was the way I carried myself. Like I was worth something.
The scrimmage had ended minutes ago, and the players were coming out of the locker room, sweaty and laughing. I stood by the exit, arms crossed, waiting.
Then I saw him. Number 7. He's fast on his feet and smart with the puck. He was the reason I came. Jaxon Hale was Chase's biggest enemy.
Jaxon's team always comes out victorious when playing against Chase's team. So, because of that, they were enemies on the rink. That's why Jaxon would be the perfect one for my revenge.
He spotted me. Slowed his pace.
I tilted my head. "Nice game."
He gave a crooked smile. "Thanks. You scouting for someone?"
I stepped forward. "Maybe. Your footwork was brilliant."
He blinked, clearly caught off guard. "Uh… thank you. I wasn't expecting that."
"Let's talk over dinner," I said smoothly, just loud enough.
Behind him, I saw Chase coming out of the tunnel.
His eyes locked on me.
He froze.
He didn't recognize me. Not fully. But he felt something. I saw it in the way his smirk faltered.
Good.
I turned my back on him without hesitation.
Jaxon rubbed the back of his neck, nervous but curious. "You serious?"
I smiled. "Completely."
"Alright," he said. "Yeah, sure. I'd like that."
I nodded. Jaxon gave me his number and I texted him my address. He was going to pick me up later and that was when I planned on telling him about my revenge plot.
I was about to leave when Chase seemed to build up enough courage and walked over to me.
He rubbed the back of his neck, a look of confusion in his eyes. “Hey, I’m sorry. This might sound weird, but... have we met before? You look kind of familiar.”
I arched a brow, hiding the laugh bubbling in my throat. “Why do you ask?”
“Because... I think you’re gorgeous.” He gave me the kind of smile that used to make me melt. “And I’d kick myself if I didn’t at least try to get your number. If you're single, I mean.”
I held his gaze for just a moment too long, watching him squirm slightly under the silence.
Then I smiled. Cold, controlled and turned my back without a word.
It seemed as if I was now his type, not the fat girl that he had made a mockery of three years ago.
If he knew that it was me, would he have the courage to approach me?
I know that people would say that it's petty, but I don't care. This is my life and I won't allow anyone to get away with what they did to me. I came back here with one thing on my mind. Get Jaxon to agree to a fake relationship with me; that way, Chase can see what he lost.
When I got home later in the evening, Zoe was still here idling around. She was shocked when I called her and told her that I needed her to be my roommate. I had found myself a three bedroom house thanks to Dad for helping me.
I moved out of my parents house two years ago when things were starting to look better for me. They weren't happy with my decision, but they still supports me.
Since I left, I haven't stayed in contact with her, not because she did anything to me. It was only because I was trying to work on myself first.
So now she's here with me and still the only person that I could trust. "Hey, you're back early." She said, putting her phone away and giving me her attention.
"Yeah, I have to get ready for a dinner date tonight," I replied and her eyes became wide.
"You mean you got the date with Jaxon just like you told me." I nodded my head and braced myself for the squeal that followed next. "Oh my God! I'm so happy for you. You should let me do your hair and makeup. You have to wear something sexy; that way, he can agree to your proposition without any problems."
She's right, I was already thinking about that. "Guess who I saw there?" My mood instantly changed before I even mentioned his name.
"Chase? Yeah, I know that he would have been there. After all, he still plays for them, and the NHL has always been a dream of his." Zoe rolled her eyes as if hating that she had to talk about him.
"Yeah, but that doesn't stop him from being an asshole. I'm going to crush his dreams. He doesn't deserve redemption or forgiveness. Not with the way he treated me and played with my feelings. He and the others caused my career to end before it even started." There was this pent up anger in me that I hadn't let go of since that day I found out that Chase was with me because of a bet.
He's going to be sorry that he ever played me for a fool. "But that was three years ago. If it was me, I would have found a way to let it go. But heck, you don't let go of things so easily so I'm here to help you get even with him." That was more like it.
"Come on, help me pick something out and get ready," I said.
Zoe grinned and followed me into my room. I opened the closet and stared at the clothes hanging there. "You nervous?" she asked.
"A little," I said. "Not about Jaxon. About seeing Chase again. I didn't expect it to hit me like that and for him to flirt with me."
Zoe gave me a look of understanding. "It's okay to feel stuff. But don't forget why you're doing this."
"I haven't," I said. "I want him to see me. The new me. And realize he messed up."
"He's going to choke on his regret," Zoe replied.
That made me laugh. "Good."
"What about Jaxon? He's gorgeous; he's every girl's walking wet dream." I laughed when she said that. She wasn't wrong, Jaxon is a handsome man.
I noticed before how girls used to flock to him, trying to get his attention. I don't blame them though. Plus, he as a charm about him that was hard to find nowadays. "Jaxon is just the type of man that I want to work with." I didn't say anything else, because she knew what I was talking about.
I started getting ready. This was it, I was back in the game, and this time, I was going to come out as the winner.
- Writer
