A Favor for a Friend

I woke up to the alarm on my phone. I had a half a mind to take my phone and whip it at a wall I was still so tired.

"No, get up Aliyah. Get up and shower and be a presentable human being today." I said to myself as I literally rolled out of bed on to the floor.

"Presentable.... Semi presentable." I continued to talk to myself. I pulled myself up and to the shower.

I turned my music on and turned the volume up all the way on my phone and got in the shower. "Gotta be on time..... Can't give James more reasons to annoy me."

I showered and got ready, I was ready only minutes before James was going to pick me up. I waited down in the lobby for him. It was too cold to wait outside.

Someone outside honked the horn. It wouldn't be anyone else. I got up and walked out to see him waving me over. I got in his car and took a deep breath.

"Should I prepare myself?" "I decided I'm gonna be nice today." He said with a smile. "Do you want to know why?"

"This should be good...." I looked over with my elbow up against the window.

"I talked to Olli yesterday....." He started off.

"Did you interrogate him too?" I sighed.

"No. I asked him if that's really the only thing that made him play better. He said it was but the kid is a terrible liar. I saw right through him. He likes you. Don't even say he doesn't." James looked over at me but still watched the road.

I didn't say anything. I didn't know what to say. Finally I was able to speak. "As a friend, that's all. I'm not staying here forever anyway. I am leaving Wednesday night." It was Sunday, meaning I was leaving in four more days.

"Just saying, if I were him I would be begging you to stay. Give it a few days and he will be." He said with that know-it-all smirk that seemed to be his trademark.

"He has other thing to worry about, me leaving isn't one of them. He can handle himself, he's not a little kid."

"I think you're wrong." He said.

"You're arguing with a teenager, you realize that right?" I said rolling my eyes.

"I know. What happened to respect your elders?"

"It's hard when your elders aren't that much older than you really and are wrong." I said with a rebelliously smile.

"You are so god damn lucky we are here now. " he said as we parked and got out of the car.

"I was winning that one too." I said and started making my way inside.

Sid was waiting for me inside. "Good, you're here. I'm going to take you to the benches. Our coach will be there probably by the time you get over there. Nealer didn't bother you too much did he?"

"You have no idea." I sighed and shook my head as I followed Sid.

Dan Bylsma was standing there waiting for us. "So, this is the girl responsible for what happened yesterday?" He said and held his hand out for me to shake.

"It really wasn't anything." I insisted.

"Whatever it is was more than you think." He said. Great. Another one.

Sid had left to go change. People were filling in seats by this time. A few players were on the ice by now..

"Aliyah, right?" Dan asked. I nodded in reply, "Can you do me a favor?"

"Sure, what is it?" I looked over.

"Give him a little pep talk before warm-ups. I want to see if it does anything. He should be out here any second now."

"Sure, no problem." I said right as he went out on the ice. I waved him over.

"Yeah?" He said stopping in front of the benches.

"You're not over thinking are you?" I said.

He rolled his eyes. "No."

"Good. Now go warm up." I said shooing him away.

He shook his head and laughed, then went to warm up with the rest of the team.

Notes