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“Everyone find a partner! Let's go!” Coach Robert's yelled, clapping her hands together as the group of Fire Hawks quickly scrambled to find a partner. Riley stood awkwardly in the back corner, further away from the other girls, pinching the bottom of her shirt. This was their first tournament and for some reason, Coach Roberts was having them stay in a hotel the night before. She said it was, ‘So we can get on the rink early for extra practice’ but Riley didn't understand. Why couldn't they practice on the rink before they took the bus there? “Andersen!” Riley jumped, gasping softly as she looked up to Coach Roberts.
“Yeah?” She asked as some of the other girls turned to look at her. The extra pairs of eyes only made her squeeze her shirt harder.
“Where is your partner?” Riley looked around, meekly making eye contact with each girl she took a glance at. Everyone stood next to someone and the feeling caused a sense of dread in her heart. She was all alone.
“I- uh,” Coach Roberts raised her eyebrow, an impatient look resting on her face. Riley licked her lips, a thick layer of blush flooding her cheeks.
“I'm with her, Coach Roberts,” Riley's eyes widened as her heart thumped against her chest. Val emerged from her friend group holding her overnight bag over her shoulder. She grinned as she nudged Riley's shoulder, resting her arm on it afterward. Riley smiled as her eyes found comfort in the cracks on the locker room floor.
“Does anyone else not have a partner?” Coach asked, looking around at the girls. “Good, this is an even team after all,” Coach muttered, rubbing her forehead as she paced towards the door. “Be on the bus in 30 minutes or we will leave you behind!” And with that, the locker room door slammed shut. Conversations continued as the sound of lockers opening and locks clanking filled Riley's ears with haste.
“Hey, Coach won't actually leave you behind,” Val said, patting Riley's shoulder before she set her overnight bag down on a nearby bench. Riley sighed in relief as she turned and watched Val sort through her bag. “But she'll make sure to publicly humiliate you and make the team do line drills,” There it is. Riley gulped, flashbacks of her first locker room mistake circling her head like orbs.
“O-Oh,” Riley pressed the tips of her fingers together while she watched Val zip up her bag and lean against a nearby locker. She looked so effortlessly cool and the red streak in her hair added an extra flair that made her look even more appealing! How did she do it?
“Are you excited? You barely smiled Minnesota,” Riley glanced down at her hands and held them behind her back, forcing a bright awkward smile in Val's direction.
“Yep! Yep, just super excited,” Val chuckled as she crossed her arms and watched some of the girls leave the locker room. Riley refused to break eye contact, worried that Val would find out that her palms were sweatier than an ocean and her heart was pounding harder than a drill. The corners of her lips staggered as Val turned her attention back to Riley, her smooth and sly smile still present. Riley's smile soon fell into something more genuine the longer she held eye contact with Val. Even her eyelids went half closed with adoration.
Val was gorgeous and even more so up close. The way her wavy hair just fit her around her face and her inviting yet subtle smirk; or how her stances just looked natural. And she was so nice to Riley, treating her kinder than all of the other girls combined. She'd be lying if she said the thought didn't make her blush. The number of times she screamed into her pillow over Val or woke up from a dream about her was... well it was a concerning amount. She was perfect in every way. And her lips, so smooth and filled with cushion. Those perfect lips... were moving? Riley blinked, her eyes returning to its normal state as she focused the static out of her ears.
“Minnesota? Hello~?” Val asked, waving her hand at Riley's face and looking at her with a worried look. Her tone even sounded a little unstable, wavering ever so slightly. “You spaced out, are you alright?” Riley chewed the inside of her cheek while she nodded. Crap, she had totally spaced out.
“Mhm! Just, um, just nervous,” Riley said with a slight chuckle in her tone.
“What for? It's just hockey and you're already great at it,” A compliment from Val? That's a core memory right there.
“Thanks, but I just haven't been away from my parents for this long,” She bit her lip as soon as she finished blurting her thoughts out. Why did she say that? That's so embarrassing, nobody talked about their parents anymore; this is high school! As Val's smile turned into an understanding one, Riley felt her cheeks warm up. Why was she looking at her like that? She held her breath as Val leaned off of the locker and walked up to Riley.
“Hey, I get it. I was the same way when I went to my first tournament. It's nothing to be embarrassed about, we all went through it,” Her words soothed Riley's nerves. “It's actually not as bad as you may think. The space is really nice,” Riley nodded. Val was right, she always was. The space did sound nice plus she would be sharing a room with her and that sounded amazing.
“Yeah... yeah you're right,” Riley looked up at Val, a smile starting to form. “It does sound kinda nice. And hey, we're going to be roommates, right? T-That's nice too, right?” Val grinned.
“That is nice,” She confirmed, turning over to grab her overnight bag. “Come on, let's get to the bus,” Disappointment surged Riley's body. They were cutting their alone time so short, why?
“How come?”
“If you're on time then you're late, it's what Coach always tells us. Plus, I don't think you want her yelling at you before the trip,” Riley nodded. She scrambled to fill her bag with her overnight essentials and slung it over her shoulder, nearly falling over from the sudden weight. She straightened herself and after giving Val an excessively wide smile, followed the captain out of the locker room.
“Woah,” Riley gasped under her breath as she stared at the large bus that stood tall outside of Bay Area High School. It was huge and had metal handles for what she assumed was for luggage. She'd be riding this to the tournament? How long was the ride? Riley adjusted the strap on her shoulder and approached the bus. Teammates were on and off the bus while Coach Roberts was complaining to the bus driver about something. Riley slipped around the group and stuffed her overnight bag where the others were, a blush creeping on her face as she noticed her bag was significantly brighter colored compared to everyone else.
Note to self: Get a black bag
She looked for Val but she was nowhere in sight. After squeaking out an ‘excuse me’ to Coach Roberts, Riley boarded the bus, her eyes widening even more. The bus had a bathroom?! Cool. She could see the top of her teammate's heads as she slid into a seat towards the front of the bus. The chatter in the back grew louder as the voice became more recognizable. She tried to ignore it as she took her headphones off of her neck and powered them on, only pausing when she heard someone say her name. Riley blinked; was she hearing things?
“Riley!” Her voice got caught in her throat as she poked her head into the alley. Val had most of her body in the alley and appeared to be the one who had called for her. “What are you doing up there?” Riley saw the heads of Val's friends poke into the alley, causing Riley's heart to drop. Why was all the attention on her?
“Sitting,” Her reply had some of the girls giggling and Riley's stomach churning. Val simply tilted her head, her brows pinching ever so slightly. What was that look for?
“Not up there, you're not. Buddy system, come back here,” Val said, waving Riley over. Did she want to sit with her? Riley slid her hand off of her headphones and reached to hold on to one another, wincing at the sweat that she felt. She prayed her armpits weren't this sweaty; Val would think she was gross. Suddenly, Val stood and began making her way up the alley, closer and closer to Riley. With each step she took, more beads of sweat seemed to form on her back and the harder her heart thumped. “You're stuck with me, Andersen. Come on,” Riley squeaked when Val held her arm and gently pulled her to her feet. She didn't get a chance to respond as Val led her down the alley but her eyes were locked onto Val's hand. Val Ortiz was touching her.
Val Ortiz was touching her!
The thought brought a blissful smile to Riley's lips and set her in an almost dreamlike mind state. Only did the spell break when they stopped and Val motioned to their shared two-seater. Wait- two-seater!? How were they going to fit in that!? They were going to sit so close to each other. What if their bodies touch? What if Val was so grossed out by her that she sat with her other friends?
“Ok,” Riley whispered to herself, sliding into the seat and putting herself near the wall. Val slid in beside her, their thighs touching. Her breath hitched at the contact and she was quick to press her body against the cold bus wall and window. Val probably wanted the space anyway, she shouldn't be greedy.
“You know the bus hasn't moved yet. What's so exciting outside?” Riley gulped; was that a joke or did Val notice how tiny she attempted to make herself look?
“Jeez Val, you're scaring her,” Dani said, laughing as some of the girls turned to look at the two. Riley whimpered as she looked down at her hands and tried to press further into the wall.
“Woah, hey relax I don't bite, promise,” Val said while she tapped Riley's shoulder. Riley glanced at Val, being met with an almost guilty look from her. Wow, Val had such beautiful brown eyes. All Riley could think about doing was-
“Yes, she does! Val Ortiz is a shark! Grr!” Dani teased, using her hands to make biting motions as the other girls erupted into laughter.
“Seriously Dani?” Val said, rolling her eyes as Dani sat back down and muted her chuckles. Val shook her head as she turned back to Riley. “You don't need to squeeze against the wall. I don't mind if you touch me.”
“Really?” Oh no, why did she sound excited? And why did she respond so quickly? What if she took it back and called her weird?
“Yes really,” Val smiled and nudged Riley's arm. “Loosen up, we've got 6 hours together,” Wait, what? Six hours; in this seat; with their bodies touching?! Riley forced a smile, chuckling awkwardly as she wiped her hands against her pants. Six hours spent sitting with Val sounded great in her head. Hopefully, it turned out that way.
“Yay, sounds fun,” She hoped she sounded nonchalant enough that Val wouldn't realize she was geeking out inside.
“Good. I'm glad,” Glad? Riley smiled. She was glad too. Wait a minute... Riley squinted at Val as she turned her head away. Was Val blushing? Riley chewed on her bottom lip as she looked away, unable to stop her lips from curling into a smile.
Val Ortiz was blushing and she was blushing for Riley Andersen.
It felt as if Riley's blush never went away. The bus ride itself was smooth sailing but she's never been more anxious than now. Being in such close vicinity of Val was making her palms sweat and legs bounce. For some reason, she felt so drawn to her but so unattached. It was an odd feeling but it felt too good to be bad.
“Woah,” Val said as the bus hit a big bump and caused the girls to rise from their seats briefly. As they hit the bus seats, Riley reached to grab something; literally anything to stabilize her fall. That ‘anything’ happened to be Val's thigh, and the two landed on their butts staring at each other. Riley's jaw dropped at the realization but she didn't opt to move her hand, instead keeping eye contact with Val. What was she thinking? Was she appalled? Disgusted? Riley glanced at her thigh. What if she didn't care? What if she liked it as much as she did? “Riley?”
“What!? Wha- huh- I, um-” The gibberish that flew out of her mouth made her face burn an even darker shade of red. What if she doesn't like it? Move your hand, move your hand, move your hand. Riley jerked her hand back to her chest, gripping her t-shirt as she pressed her body against the bus walls again. “I'm so sorry! I-It was an accident, really, I was just surprised when the bus flew and didn't have anything to hold cause, well, I have window seat and there's nothing really to hold onto and-”
“Ok ok ok, hey, it's alright,” Val cut her off and reached to hold her hand. Her hand was warm, exactly like her demeanor, and as embarrassing as it was to admit, Riley did loosen up. “You can grab my thigh all you want for whatever bump you need, I hardly felt it,” Val shrugged, smiling at Riley. Not a smirk, a genuine smile; and it made Riley's heart flutter. Why didn't she smile like that more often? She really should.
“Y-Yeah... ok,” Riley stammered, her eyes darting to their held hands. Val chuckled and her eyes looked Riley up and down before she turned away to continue talking with her friends. Riley gulped and turned to look out of the window, panting while she tried to regulate her breathing. Val's words left her mouth dry and her chest tight. This girl was going to be the death of her.
“Be up by six am!” Coach Roberts shouted and immediately everyone let out a groan. “You're dismissed, go find your rooms,” As Coach Roberts left the waiting room, the girls each grabbed a key off the receptionist's desk and hurried off to the elevator. Riley saw Val grab them a room key and took a deep breath in before she joined her.
“Ready to see the rooms?” Val asked, jingling the keys in her hand as if she was waging a dog over. Riley nodded and Val led the two over to their room.
“Are they big?”
“Big enough for a mini kitchen, connected bathroom, and-” Val paused as she unlocked the door and pointed inside. “One bed,” Riley's eyes widened.
“One bed?” She repeated. Val nodded as she went inside the room and set her bags down on one side of the bed. Riley gulped and stepped inside the room, closing the door with her heel.
“I mean there's a couch too and a coffee table but I wasn't going to start listing furniture,” Val chuckled as she set her clothes on the bed. Riley looked down at the couch, hesitating as she considered the likelihood of Val caring if they shared a bed. She chewed her lip. No, she already took up too much space on the bus, Val probably wanted space.
“Ok. I'll take the couch,” Val looked up, eyebrows raised as she watched Riley set her bag down on the couch.
“Risking back pain I see?” Riley listened to Val chuckle. “Suit yourself. A queen isn't as small as you think,” Her tone sounded inviting but Riley brushed it off. She couldn't possibly want to sleep in the same bed, right? Riley glanced at Val. Right? No. Get it together, you're sleeping on the couch. She turned back to the couch and began setting it up for bed.
Riley lay on the couch, her eyes locked onto the ceiling fan that gently blew a breeze into the room. She could feel the strain in her eyes when she didn't blink which ended up being often. Her thoughts were running wild over Val and she didn't have the privacy to scream into her pillow this time. And she especially couldn't share her thoughts when the person causing her sleeping issues was in the bed 5 feet away from her. Riley inhaled through her nose before she sat up. Her eyes drifted to her sleeping roommate and she felt envious of how easily accustomed Val was to the new sleeping conditions. She had no right to be, Val had been doing this for years. Ok, she needed to stop staring. Riley looked away.
“Get it together,” She whispered, hitting her forehead. If she didn't sleep tonight, she'd be exhausted in the morning and then everyone would blame her when Coach would make them do skating drills because she was slowing everyone down! Riley whimpered, interlocking her fingers as she looked around the room. It was fairly dark, even with the little light from the kitchen stove top. She looked back at Val. She kind of wanted to sleep in the bed with her, but there were no takebacks, right? Could she try?
Riley stood, swinging the sheets off of her and approaching Val's side of the bed. Her hands fidgeted with each other as she stood over Val, watching how peaceful she looked when she slept. She hated to disrupt but the urge to sleep beside her was too strong to ignore. She patted Val's shoulder. “Psst?” She waited but nothing happened. She put her hand on Val's shoulder and gently shook it. “Psst?” She tried again, flinching when Val stirred.
“Hmph?” Riley pulled her hand back when Val groaned. Val partially opened her eyes and looked up at Riley. “Riley? What's up?” Riley rubbed her knuckles as she looked away.
“I can't sleep,” No, that was wrong. “What do you usually do when you can't sleep?” Better. Val rubbed her eyes and sat up. Her messy hair caused a flutter in Riley's stomach.
“I usually just count sheep or slow my breathing,” Val whispered, her voice still hoarse from sleeping. She looked at Riley's face and then down to her hands. “Are you ok? You seem nervous.”
“Just a bit, it's nothing really,” Riley waved it off and turned to look away again.
“Hey, I used to sleep with a teddy bear when I was nervous as a freshman,” Riley's eyebrows raised as she turned to face Val.
“A teddy bear? You?” Val chuckled.
“Yeah. I wasn't as confident as I am now. The transition from middle school to high school was hard for me too,” Riley softened at that. She wasn't being overdramatic, Val went through it too. It must be normal. “Do you have a stuffed animal right now?”
“No,” Riley said, her voice low with shame and guilt. She had purposefully left any toys at home with the fear that she'd be judged by the other girls. Val frowned and pulled the covers off of her.
“It's ok, uh,” Val smoothed her hair out while she thought. She then looked up at Riley, smirking. “How about I become your teddy bear?” Riley gasped, her cheeks flushing at the thought of holding Val while she slept. Oh, that sounded like heaven.
“You don't have to,” Riley said, half chuckling as she tucked her hair behind her ear. She hoped Val would be persistent, she wanted to sleep with her so bad.
“I want to. As cringy as it sounds, everybody needs somebody, and right now...” Val paused and opened her arms up to Riley, a soft smile on her lips. “You need me,” Riley's heart dropped and she almost couldn't breathe. Sleeping with Val would make her entire week! She could imagine it, cuddling up with her and being held by her strong arms. Wait, why was she imagining it?
“Ok,” Riley nodded as she walked to the other side of the bed and climbed on. She scooted closer to Val, hesitating before she moved even closer. Once she was in range, Val wrapped her arms around Riley and pulled her into a hug. Riley smiled as she leaned into it.
“I'm soft, promise,” Oh right. Riley giggled as she wrapped her arms around Val's body. She was right, she did feel soft; and toned, holy crap did she have muscles under her clothes? Riley moved her hands down her back, her eyes shining as she felt the muscles on her back. “Are you comfortable?” Val whispered, gently stroking Riley's hair. Riley sighed, practically melting in her arms.
“Very,” Slowly, Val lowered the two onto the bed and pulled the covers over them, mostly over Riley.
“Comfortable?” Riley smiled; Val cared so much.
“Very,” She repeated.
“Hey, I'm just making sure,” Val teased but she never pulled her arms off of Riley. Riley took in a deep breath, her body relaxing. This was everything she could've asked for. This was perfect.
Riley awoke first, having seen the sun's beaming gaze through the corner of her closed eyes. As she opened her eyes, she saw complete darkness. Oh no, was she dead? She inhaled. Nope. Slowly, she lifted her head and saw Val's head not even a foot away from her. Wait, that darkness... Riley blushed and squeezed her eyes shut. That was Val's chest!? She grinned, gently pressing her face further into the fabric. She breathed in the smell of Val; a sweet yet subtle scent of lavender. Riley let out a dreamy sigh, everything worked out perfectly. She got sleep, she's no longer anxious, and she's cuddling with Val Ortiz! That's only happened in her dreams.
“Riley?” Val muttered. Riley smiled, she loved the way her name sounded from Val's sleepy voice. She wished she'd say it again. “Riley?” Riley beamed as she looked up and came face to face with Val's half-opened eyes and scrunched-up face. She looked adorable, was that even possible?
“Val,” Val smiled immediately, her hand moving to brush the hair out of Riley's face.
“I told you I was comfortable,” Riley giggled, nodding.
“You are,” The silence that fell upon them was not awkward but natural. Everything just felt right between them.
“Hey, Riley I-” Bang bang bang. Riley jumped and Val held her arms tighter around her.
“It's 5:55!” Dani shouted from outside, banging on the door again.
“Five fifty- shit!” Val said as she rushed out of bed. Riley's face hit the sheets when Val moved and she lifted it to watch Val run around their room grabbing clothes and all kinds of things.
“What does that mean?” Riley asked as she got out of bed and made her way to her own bag. As she pulled clothes out of the bag, Val ran into the bathroom.
“Just don't repeat it around Coach!” Riley nodded and began putting her clothes on. As she went into the bathroom, Val ran out, now completely dressed and ready. Crap, she needed to hurry up. While Riley quickly brushed her teeth and hair, Val opened the door.
“You're going to get us skating lines, dude. Come on,” Dani said with a huff. Riley gulped and ran out of the bathroom, nearly tripping over her shoes as she appeared in Dani's line of sight. “Oh... oh~” Dani snickered as Val shot her a glare.
“Don't say a word,” Val said through her teeth while Dani laughed. Riley threw her shoes on and grabbed her phone.
“Sorry,” Riley said as Val held her forearm and led her out of the room.
“There's no way Coach is going to punish us because you two were-” Dani started to say before Val cut her off with a groan.
“Shut up Dani!” Dani laughed as the two followed her down the hotel halls. Riley glanced at Val, her cheeks slightly pink with blush. Val looked at Riley and she smiled almost instantly making Riley's heart pound. She enjoyed the night too.
"Could we maybe do that again?"