Page 47 of Remember Me

“Shit, you’re all here,” he says, still puffing and panting while putting his gear on.

“If you’re out of breath already, it doesn't bode well for the season, Frenchie.” Codey shakes his head at Louis. “Let's get going guys, we need to be prepared for pre-season.”

We all collectively groan as we know Coach is going to be riding our asses hard during training camp, but it’s still weeks away. However, Codey is like a drill sergeant, wanting to make sure we’re all as ready as we can be, and that means starting early. As we head out onto the rink, Louis seems to relax slightly, like we’ve forgotten about his dare. Just you wait, my man.

We run drills until our legs can’t take it anymore, all of us determined to keep our places in the starting roster even if that means more practices like this. As Codey and Theo leave the rink, I hold Louis back so the guys can get the dare ready. Plus, I’m curious as to what made him late in the first place.

“What happened to you this morning, you’re never late?”

He runs his hand through his air and sighs. “Kayla’s car battery was flat, so I had to jump-start it, and as Kayla didn’t know how to do that, it turned into a full-blown tutorial.”

“Did you seriously think she’d know how to do that?” Honestly, I’d have been more shocked if she did.

“Well, I thought everyone knew how to. They should teach you when you take your drivers exam!”

“They should, but they don’t.” I jostle his shoulder. “And now, as you were the last one here, it’s time for your dare.”

He groans. “I actually thought you’d forgotten. I should have known better.”

Behind his back, I grimace, because I know what’s coming. We’ve been waiting two years for this dare, and it’s about to come to fruition. As we walk back into the locker room, Codey and Theo are standing beside a spinning wheel—you know, like the type you’d see on Wheel of Fortune—except we’ve put our own twist on this one.

Collectively, we all say, “Welcome to wheel of piercings!”

I can’t tell if Louis wants to laugh, cry, faint, or puke—maybe all of the above.

“Ok, my guy, all you've got to do is spin the wheel and, whatever body part you land on, is what you’re getting pierced. Today…like right now,” Theo says in his best game show presenter voice.

“Fuck, I can’t do this. You know how I feel about needles!”

“We’re coming with you; we’ll hold your hand,” I reassure him jokingly, seeing the genuine worry in his face.

“I’m not holding his hand. Fuck that,” Codey barks.

“Ok, ok, let’s get this show on the road,” Theo says, clapping.

“Spin the wheel. Spin the wheel,” we all start chanting.

Louis closes his eyes, and the wheel starts to spin. As it starts to slow, we all lean in to see what it lands on. Louis still can’t bear to look.

“Oh my god!”

“Holy shit!”

“Fuck. That!”

“What? What did it land on?” Louis asks.

“Your dick,” Theo explains.

“No. No way am I going through with that. I can’t—Kayla will kill me. Plus, how am I going to play with a half-healed dick?”

Shit, we didn’t think about that. I’m sure we can figure something out. “You know the rules, bud,” I say to him, my own junk shriveled up to nothing at the thought of a needle coming near it.

“Let’s not waste any more time, let’s get going. We’ll even buy you a beer afterwards,” Codey offers.

“I’m going to need more than one beer to face the wrath of my wife.”

Chapter 34