Page 3 of Charm on the Rocks
Chapter 2
She likedthe first outfit better. Madison glanced at herself in the full-length mirror located in the locker room below the main floor at Sea Side Ice Palace, the ice rink the Newport Beach Seagulls called home and where the Gulls Girls would be taking their team photo. Apparently this shoot had been arranged before Ken’s death, and since he didn’t want to pay the photographers to come back twice, the Girls would be taking the ice right after the players themselves. Given the outfit of choice, however, Madison wished the old man had sprung for a day two.
It wasn’t as though she was embarrassed of her body, but even she had some insecurities she didn’t want presented to the world so vividly. And the outfit wasn’t like the one she would normally be wearing – tight pants and a short shirt - because it was much more revealing and Madison was certain the hair on her arms would draw a viewer away from the pretty faces due to how erect they were standing even now, and she wasn’t even on the ice yet. The shirts were the same black, three-quarter sleeved tops, with a blunt diamond shaped cut that enhanced a Girl’s cleavage, and the material ended just underneath her breasts. The Gulls’ name was scrawled out across the chest in navy blue cursive. Stomachs were bare up until the hip bone, where a matching black mini skirt that reached just above mid-thigh took over for censorship. The coolest part of the outfit, at least in Madison’s mind, was the socks that reached the knees, with black, red, and white horizontal stripes symbolizing the nautical colors of the Gulls, and concluding the outfit were ice skates. Makeup was enhanced in order to bring out the best features each Girl possessed while hiding the subtle flaws that composed some of the face. It was more makeup Madison had ever worn, and she was one of the few Girls who didn’t have very much on – just the typical foundation and powder, eyeliner and mascara, and gloss pink gloss across her lips. Some Girls needed blush or eye shadow in order to accent cheekbones and eye colors that simply didn’t pop.
“You know,” Amanda said, coming up behind Madison in the same outfit as her friend. Like Madison, Amanda’s red hair was left down, but the curls contrasted with Madison’s straight tresses. “The most beautiful thing a girl can wear is a smile.”
“Is it really that obvious?” Madison asked in a soft voice. She pursed her lips and cocked her head to the side as she turned so her back was facing the mirror and she looked at Amanda directly. “I’ve never worn anything this revealing before. I mean, besides that bikini from yesterday, but we were at a beach, you know?”
“Dude, who cares what anyone thinks of you,” Amanda said, her brown eyes sparkling. “Under normal circumstances, do you worry about the way you look? Like, when you get ready for school?”
“Not really...”
Amanda reached out and grabbed Madison’s arms that were crossed around her stomach. “Pretend that this is school,” she suggested. “I’m not going to lie and say looks are unimportant, but even you know that we are so much more than that. We’re smart and we work hard and the outfit that we’re wearing does not represent who we are, it represents our support for a team we cheer for. And obviously you’re gorgeous or else you wouldn’t have gotten the job, as harsh as that may sound.”
“You think so?” Madison asked, and she hated how eager her voice came out.
Amanda rolled her eyes. “God, you’re not one of those girls who doesn’t realize she’s beautiful, are you?” she asked. “Because, yeah, they may be endearing in, like, romantic comedies and stuff, but in real life, they’re so annoying. Madison, this job requires you to have confidence about the way you look because no matter what, people are going to talk. You have to be thick-skinned. Do you think you can do that?”
“As long as I have you on my ass to remind me,” Madison said, smiling for the first time since arriving.
“Oh, trust me, with your ass, I’ll be there.”
The two girls shared a laugh, interlocking their arms together and heading out onto the ice. Madison was surprised at how diverse the team looked, even in the same uniform. There were blondes and brunettes, three girls with jet black hair, and Amanda standing out as the only red-head. There were Asians and Caucasians, and girl from Persia, and one from Spain, all composing a fourteen-player team. If Madison was honest, she found that she was proud to be a part of a group of such different girls with at least one similarity, and as a result, felt her body slowly start to relax.
One of the photographers positioned her on top of the goal so that her back was against another Girl, this one Erica. Madison’s left hand gripped the red horizontal pole, her right knee bent up while her left one stuck straight out. Her face was tilted to the camera while sections of her hair were placed over her breasts. Two Girls were positioned on each side of the goal while six Girls kneeled down on the ice, their arms wrapped around each other’s shoulders. Finally, two Girls were sprawled out on the ice, almost lying down had it not been for the elbow resting on the cold ice that kept them up. Their legs were out in front of them, crossed at the ankles, their free hand resting on their bent knee.
Madison didn’t count how many pictures that they took of she and the Girls, but once they wrapped, she felt her cheeks pinch from all the smiling. As she skated off the ice, she couldn’t help but laugh to herself. It was fun, she could admit.
“See?” Amanda said once they were off the ice. She nudged Madison with her shoulder. “It wasn’t that bad.”
“It wasn’t that bad,” Madison agreed.
Once they reached the locker room, their boss – coach? Madison wasn’t sure – Lara Stinson called them over before anybody could begin to change. She looked as if she could be a former Gulls Girl. Though she was in her mid-forties, she could get away with claiming early thirties, and depending on what she was wearing, could say twenty-nine. Lara seemed to be composed of predictable preferences. Her brown hair was pulled into its usual ponytail, and she was wearing her usual color, black. On her feet were worn pink ballet slippers that could have been attached to her feet given how constantly she wore them. Each finger besides her thumbs was occupied by a different ring, and she wore bright red lipstick but no other form of makeup. Many of the girls were weirded out by her strangeness, but Madison found she was drawn to Lara’s eccentric appearance and behavior; she seemed to know exactly who she was, and didn’t need anyone’s approval.
“Girls, girls.” Her voice was low and soothing but had a firmness that caught attention, and she always began with a ‘Girls, girls.’ “There’s a required meeting being held just outside by Seraphina Hanson, Ken’s granddaughter. Quickly change, quickly! And then meet outside. Players should already be lining up.”
“What do you think they’re going to talk about?” Madison asked Amanda as the two began to peel off the skin tight material from their bodies.
“Probably what’s going to happen to the team,” Amanda replied. “I have an older brother Stewart who loves the Gulls, so he’ll always call me to figure out what’s going on, to get him tickets, that sort of thing. Anyway, he’s a huge ESPN guy, right? Apparently on one of their news shows, the anchor was saying the Gulls need to figure out what they’re going to do because Ken wasn’t just the owner but the manager, and without a clear person running the team, the team will go into what they call limbo, which means they may not get to play as an NHL team this season.”
“That’s awful,” Madison murmured.
Amanda nodded with enthusiasm. “Right? It means that we’d be out of a job, the players and coaches and trainers and all those people. And not that Newport needs it or anything, but without our hockey team, the city loses a lot of revenue generated by fans and tourists and all that stuff.”
“What do think is going to happen?” Madison didn’t realize just how much she wanted to keep this job – despite the discomfort the outfits would no doubt bring – and hoped that it wouldn’t come to being disbanded.
Amanda shrugged her shoulders before pulling on a t-shirt. “I don’t know,” she said. “But we can always hope for the best.”
The two quickly finished dressing and were among the first of the Gulls Girls to reach where the meeting was being held – just to the side of where all the ice skates were located. They formed a small group adjacent to where the players, who were also dressed in street clothes, stood. In only a moment, the rest of the Girls arrived. A couple of them looked at their phones, checking the time. Some even were texting. The players seemed a little more impatient for the meeting to begin. She noticed Kyle, Matt, and Alec in the center. The chemistry between the three of them implied that they were close friends off the ice just as they were on the ice. She saw as Kyle said something and Matt responded with a shake of his head.
Wait – wasn’t he dating the older granddaughter? Katella? If so, wouldn’t he already know the outcome of what was going to happen? Maybe he did and told his team ahead of time, which was why they looked so... anxious. Maybe the team was going to go in limbo and they wouldn’t be able to play anymore.
But she couldn’t read anything more from Matt’s face. He was either good at hiding what was going to happen or he honestly didn’t know.
And maybe he didn’t. Maybe his girlfriend didn’t tell him anything. Maybe his girlfriend didn’t know. The meeting was being held by Seraphina after all.
Madison felt her converse-clad foot start to tap against the cool concrete, her arms crossing over her chest. Her own impatience was increasing with each passing moment that she didn’t know what was going to happen to her, to her team. She knew these girls for only a few weeks, and she had a sneaking suspicion that Faye might not like her very much, but she began to look forward to see them. Hell, she was even getting excited at starting the whole scraping the ice process and watching her first hockey game. Because even though her father loved hockey, she was busy doing other things. Like going on hikes.