Chapter Text
Nicole heard Jecka’s voice long before she tore open the door to the locker room, slamming it against the wall, and rocking Nicole's helmet that sat on the bench nearby.
“What,” she shot through, “the HELL, was that?”
Bingo, right on schedule.
“Hey to you too,” replied Nicole, swiveling casually to face the intruder, and doing everything in her power not to smirk obnoxiously. “Also it's a locker room, you should knock first.”
“Not sure there's much reason at this point considering we’ve already- would you stop smirking?”
“Sorry,” Nicole lied as she continued smirking. Might as well commit to it now.
“I- ughhh,” Jecka groaned, finally ripping her helmet off, freeing her mess of frazzled, golden hair. It looked as if she had stormed straight off of the ice and to the Meerkats room, stopping only to slip on her blade covers. “What, was that?”
“What was what?”
“THAT?!”
“Still not following…”
“That move was COMPLETELY illegal!”
“I didn't see the referee whistle it out.”
“Yeah, cuz he was too busy watching Emily!”
“So there you go, no whistle, no harm, no foul.”
“You launched the puck right at my head!”
“Well,” Nicole shrugged, turning back to her locker. “I missed so-”
“Doesn't change the fact you still tried it! I mean, why would you even-”
“Oh calm down, it wasn't gonna hurt you.”
“And you know that because…?”
“Because it missed!” Nicole nodded happily.
“BUT YOU SURE AS HELL WHEREN'T AIMING TO MISS!!”
“You don't know that,” Nicole said, closing her locker and turning her full attention back to Jecka.
“Then what,” Jecka breathed out a deep sigh, “was your plan?”
“To get your attention.”
“WHY?!”
“Because if I did it with something like that, I knew you’d get angry.”
“You got that right,” she grumbled, crossing her arms to drive the point home.
“Which means,” Nicole sang, “I get a good laugh!”
Jecka stared at her, bug-eyed. Hell, Nicole wouldn't have been shocked to see two plumes of steam erupting from her ears with how red her face was growing. “Let me get this straight,” she began.
“That’d be a first,” snickered Nicole.
“Shut it!” she warned. “You threw a puck, going god knows how fast, directly at my SKULL… because you thought it would be funny?”
Nicole pursed her lips, glancing aside as though considering this. She waited the appropriate amount of time before nodding, and turning back with as innocent a smile as she could manage. “Yeah, that about sums it up.”
“Nicole.”
“Jecka.”
The blonde reached down, grabbing Nicole's helmet from the spot beside her, “get dressed back up,” she commanded, hurling the helmet at Nicole.
Catching it, the brunette let yet another smirk wash over her face. “Why~?”
“Because,” she said, equipping her own helmet, “I fully intend to return the favor. You, me, the ice, NOW!”
With that, Jecka stormed out, likely headed back to her own locker room. Nicole meanwhile, couldn't help but smile happily.
“Bingo,” she grinned, making her way back out to the impromptu training session she had been aiming to attain since the start of the last game. "All according to plan!"