Story #2

Cast List:
Hannah Chaddha
Da’vonne Rogers
Jun Song
Vanessa Rousso
Danielle Reyes
Candice Stewart
Tiffany Mitchell
Jameka Cameron
Lisa Donahue
Natalie Negrotti
Britney Hayes
Jen Johnson
Keesha Smith
Libra Thompson
Diane Henry
Jennifer Dedmon
Alison Irwin
Jodi Rollins
Jackie Ibarra
Helen Kim
Monica Bailey
Christmas Abbott
Amber Borzotra
Jack (@therealityroyal)

When Hannah comes face to face with her social worker for the third time this year, she begins to pack her bags. She’s accepted moving from foster home to foster home. It’s her life now. The system has always been corrupt. The chances of finding a forever home are damn near impossible when foster parents are neglectful and in it for the money. She wishes her parents were still alive.

Hannah has very few memories of her parents. It’s been years and those memories are slowly fading. She can barely remember her mother and father’s faces. She has one core memory of when she was little. On Hannah’s fifth birthday, her mother handed her one last present after dinner. It was a box wrapped in red wrapping paper, her favorite color, and a white bow on the top. She quickly tore the present open, and it revealed a new pair of white figure skates. Her mother mentioned that they’re going to be a little big on her at first, but she will be able to grow into them soon enough. She thanked them knowing that this gift meant a lot to them. After all, skating on the ice is one of her parent’s favorite hobbies. That night, they took Hannah to an ice rink.

At first, Hannah was scared to go onto the ice. She’s heard of her parent’s stories of when they first went ice skating. The chance of falling when just learning is extremely high. At the end of the day though, Hannah knew her parents would be there to support her. Observing those skating, she asks her parents why some of them are holding bars. When her parents mention that they help with balance, she asks for one. In a matter of a minute, her father is coming back with a bar. As her parents lace their skates, Hannah realizes she doesn’t know how to tie something so complex. Asking for help, her mother comes over to help put them on.

The first time Hannah steps onto the ice, she grips onto the bar tightly. Her father tells her to dig the edges of the blades into the ice and lean forward. After hours of skating, she decides she doesn’t need the bar anymore. When her father takes the bar, she falls onto the ice. This doesn’t stop Hannah though. She’s ready to try and glide on the ice like her parents.

When Hannah learned about hockey, she asked her parents if she could join the school team. Her parents supported her decision of joining and showed up to every single game.

Thinking of the memory again, Hannah releases a sigh. She hadn’t thought about her parents for a month until now. She didn’t realize how in her head she was until her social worker stopped the car.

As Hannah steps out of the car, she’s brought face to face with a beautiful woman who introduces herself as Da’vonne. After the proper introductions, Da’vonne enters her home with Hannah in tow.

Da’vonne comes into Hannah’s room at 6:15 in the morning to wake her up for school. Hannah has always disliked changing schools. She’s been through seventeen different schools in her fourteen years of living. This will be the eighteenth.

Walking into her first period midway through the first semester, Hannah feels out of place. She doesn’t know anyone here. That is until a girl by the name of Tiffany introduces herself. It’s clear to Hannah that Tiffany is outgoing, but that’s not surprising as she would assume most people who take a debate class would be. By the time the first period ends, Hannah has made a friend. Tiffany gives Hannah her number.

At lunch, Hannah didn’t know where to sit. There were hundreds of kids sitting around the cafeteria. It wasn’t until she heard her name called by Tiffany that she realized that this school wouldn’t be so bad after all. That didn’t last long the second she saw what the school was serving for lunch. Hannah didn’t understand how somebody could fuck up tater tots so badly. The tater tots were a steamed, mushy, mess.

Hannah got to know the others she sat with. There was Jun, Vanessa, Danielle, Keesha, Libra, Candice, and, of course, Tiffany. She learned that Keesha had a pet Chinchilla and that Jun had two dogs. Everyone else had no pets. When Hannah was asked if she had any pets, she had to explain that she was moved into a new foster home and that she isn’t sure if she has any pets at her current home or not. Everyone apologized profusely, but Hannah said that it was okay. She hated sympathy.

Before lunch ended, Hannah made sure to ask about the hockey team. She was met with blank faces. After being told that there is no hockey team for girls, Hannah inquired as to why. From what she gathered, the school was tight on money as it is, and would not be willing to fund another hockey team. Tiffany has asked for a girls hockey team as well but was told that unless they can come up with the money for equipment, it’s not happening. The students at this school weren’t well off, and no parent would be willing to donate that much money. It was then Hannah realized that for the first time, she might not be able to partake in a school sport. Hockey was the last thing she had with her parents, and now that’s gone. She was going to do something about it.

It was the last period of the day when Hannah was called down to the office. She was questioned on how her first day went and if she had any questions. When Hannah asked why there was no girls hockey team, the principal chuckled and questioned if she was serious. Hannah’s face was stone cold. She decided right then and there she hates Mrs. Abbott, her principal.

After Hannah got home from school, she received the same question asking how her day was from Da’vonne. Hannah expressed her negative feelings towards Mrs. Abbott, and when Da’vonne inquired as to why, Hannah explained how Mrs. Abbott practically laughed in her face. What Hannah wasn’t expecting was the emotion Da’vonne displayed on her face. Da’vonne went from sympathetic to angry at the flip of a switch. Hannah didn’t know this, but Da’vonne read Hannah’s profile. Da’vonne knew what hockey meant to Hannah, and boy was she pissed at Mrs. Abbott.

That night, Da’vonne began researching what is needed to start a girls hockey school team, the cost of equipment, and the rules of hockey. Da’vonne wants Hannah to know she’s loved and that while she’s had many horrible foster homes, this time it would be different. Hours into researching, Da’vonne feels as if she knows all there is to know about hockey. For instance, she learned that hockey teams require at least twenty players, hockey pucks are frozen before games to prevent bouncing during play, and that goalies cannot touch or carry the puck on the opposite side of the center line.

Da’vonne hopes that she will be able to help Hannah organize a female hockey team for her school, but she can’t do all of the work. For a team to begin, there needs to be some kind of petition or push for it. A school wouldn’t start a hockey team without some form of proof that people would want to join.

Before Da’vonne heads to bed, she emails one of her friends who happens to work at the school, Jack. She’s lucky that Jack is a hockey fan, or else she wouldn’t be sending this email. Not expecting a response that night, she goes to brush her teeth and change out of her work attire. She goes back to her computer and purchases a used phone for Hannah. She knows Hannah doesn’t have one and she’s hoping that Hannah stays with her as long as possible. With a phone, if Hannah were to ever leave, they would still be able to contact each other. It’s then that she notices Jack has emailed her back, which surprises her. After exchanging emails back and forth for half an hour, Da’vonne silently cheers. She’s found a willing hockey coach.

Keeping up with the schedule, Hannah is awoken by Da’vonne at 6:15 in the morning. Hannah is glad it’s a Friday. She’s already worn out and cannot wait to get some extra sleep in. She quickly gets ready for the day, says goodbye to Da’vonne, and heads out of the house to the bus stop.

At the end of the first period, Tiffany and Hannah are asked to stay after class. Both were confused as they did nothing wrong. It wasn’t until her teacher, who asked to go by Jack, starts to say the words “I spoke with Da’vonne” that Hannah is fearing leaving her fourth home in one year. Hannah is dejected and confused. She was dejected because she liked Da’vonne, and was confused as to what this had to do with Tiffany. She tunes back in after hearing the word hockey and asks for Jack to repeat himself and apologizes. Jack explains the situation and how he is willing to be the coach, but that at least twenty female students must be willing to sign up for the team and that they have to speak with Mrs. Abbott about funding.

When lunch rolls around, Hannah sees the same mushy ass tater tots on her plate. It sours her mood slightly, but her mood cannot be completely ruined. Da’vonne cares about her. She’s found a good foster parent. She thought that was make-believe. When Hannah gets to the lunch table, Tiffany is already filling her friends in on the news. Everybody is silent but has an excited expression on their face. As lunch continues, the topic of funding and petitioning is brought up. They need to find at least twelve other girls and earn the money Mrs. Abbott asks for. Vanessa brings up that they could post on their Snapchat stories if anyone is interested in a girls hockey team to try and find other potential players.

As Hannah continues with her school day, Da’vonne is sitting by her computer on her lunch break contemplating on emailing Mrs. Abbott. She’d rather the news of Jack being willing to coach the team comes from her than Hannah. The last thing she wants is Mrs. Abbott laughing in Hannah’s face again. That’s when she begins typing out her email and asking how much funding will be needed to start the team.

When the school day ends and Hannah is right about to enter her house, she thinks of what she could do to thank Da’vonne. Hannah isn’t a words person, but an action person. She shows her gratitude by doing things, not speaking. Though, she will say thank you. On top of that, she’s feeling bad for not being able to text Tiffany, but she can’t. That is until she enters the house.

Once she enters the home, she shouts for Da’vonne to say her thanks. Da’vonne says to not mention it and that it was the least she could do while pulling out a box from behind her. Da’vonne gives the box to Hannah and tells her to open it. When Hannah does so, a phone is displayed right in front of her. Da’vonne mentions that her number is already in there and that if Hannah ever needs to contact her, she will be able to. It’s then that Hannah begins to cry. She doesn’t mean to. Hell, she hasn’t cried in years, but she’s never had anybody care for her since her parents. As Hannah hugs Da’vonne tightly, she’s thinking of where the cleaning supplies could be. She figured she could clean the house and make it as spotless as possible. It’s the least she could do.

Mrs. Abbott gets back to Da’vonne later in the night to let her know that for the go-ahead for the hockey team, the girls must come up with at least $1,900 for practices, games, league fees, ice officials, and the coaching staff. This amount does not include the cost of gear, and each player must be able to purchase their gear. Da’vonne has no idea how each girl is going to be able to afford this as the gear itself is going to cost around an extra thousand dollars. Mrs. Abbott provides a follow-up email stating that the money must be brought to her and nobody else.

While Da’vonne is busy chatting with the horrible principal, Hannah is starting to grasp how her new phone works. She takes the slip with Tiffany’s number from her nightstand and enters it into her phone. She shoots a quick text to Tiffany to let her know that it’s her and that she’s sorry she couldn’t text her sooner. Tiffany says that it’s okay and invites her to come to the lake tomorrow. She mentions how Vanessa has had enough girls swipe up showing interest, and that tomorrow everyone will meet up and play with the little bit of equipment that they do have.

Before heading dozing off for the night, Da’vonne enters Hannah’s room to let her know that she’s going to bed and goodnight. When Da’vonne is just about to exit the room, Hannah asks if she’s allowed to go to the lake tomorrow with some friends. Da’vonne replies saying that it’s okay and that if she needs anything, to just text her.

An hour later when Hannah is positive Da’vonne is asleep, she heads into the kitchen and checks the cabinet under the sink. Bingo! Knowing that this is going to be grueling work, Hannah takes out all the supplies from under the sink and reads each label. After understanding what each bottle does, she grabs the roll of paper towels and begins her work.

It’s afternoon when Hannah wakes up and she’s hoping Da’vonne won’t be mad at her for waking up late. Some of her old foster parents would verbally abuse her for not waking up early on the weekends to clean. As she makes her way downstairs, her phone buzzes with a text notification from Tiffany stating what time they’ll all be meeting at the lake.

Da’vonne is seen making a plate of brunch for Hannah as she enters the kitchen. Hannah wears a worried face and when Da’vonne notices her expression, she questions what’s wrong. When Hannah speaks up that she’s sorry for sleeping in so late, Da’vonne brushes it off and says how sleep is important for the body. Noticing the aroma in the kitchen, Hannah asks Da’vonne what she’s making. Da’vonne then replies with 2,000 cookies, which confuses Hannah, but she opts against questioning it.

An hour or so later, Hannah leaves the house to head to the lake. After arriving, she sees a few familiar faces and a lot of new ones. Jun, Vanessa, Danielle, Candice, Tiffany, Keesha, and Libra are the only people she knows in this new group. Feeling the need to know those who could potentially be her new teammates, she walks over and engages in conversation. She introduces herself and meets Jameka, Lisa, Natalie, Britney, Jen, Diane, Jennifer, Alison, Jodi, Jackie, Helen, and Monica. Counting in her head, that’s nineteen other people excluding herself who would want to join the hockey team. Knowing that the minimum number of players is twenty, she’s delighted to see that all they have to do now is figure out how much they need for funding.

Tiffany pulls out a piece of paper that has “Girls Hockey Sign-Up” on it and asks for everyone to sign as proof for when it’s given to Mrs. Abbott, so all the girls quickly line up to sign the paper. Before Hannah can sign the paper, she receives a text from Da’vonne saying she’s at the lake. As Hannah looks towards the parking lot, Da’vonne is seen ushering all of them over.

“I understand that it might seem strange that I’m here, but I’ve spent all day baking 2,000 cookies for you all to sell. I’m counting twenty of you, so each of you will have one hundred cookies. The purpose of this is not for you to eat them, but to sell them. I’ve spoken with Mrs. Abbott, and if you sell the cookies at $1.25 each, you should have enough to not only fund the program, but a little extra to hopefully help with the cost of your gear. It won’t be much, but it’s a start. All I ask is to not cheat each other out of money. Please bring the money to me and I’ll give you the extra $30 you earned. I will personally give Mrs. Abbott the money,” Da’vonne explains to them.

Everyone is quiet. The looks on their faces showcase pure shock. To have somebody willing to put that much effort into helping them fund for the sport is a miracle. The chances of that happening were almost impossible, but it happened. Hannah decides then that if she could, she would stay with Da’vonne as a foster child for as long as she’s allowed.

A few weeks pass by and everyone has sold their cookies. Da’vonne emails Mrs. Abbott stating that she will be coming in the following day to give her the money for funding. That very next day, Da’vonne drives Hannah to school and gives Mrs. Abbott the money as promised.

During the school day, Hannah’s lunch table decides on other funding options to make sure they can all afford gear for when their season will begin. They all know that gear is extremely expensive, and the sooner they focus on earning money, the less they’ll have to worry when they get the go-ahead for the team to be made. Before lunch ends, they’ve decided to stick with Da’vonne’s idea and do multiple bake sales.

Another few weeks pass by when Hannah comes barging into the home asking Da’vonne why she never gave Mrs. Abbott the money. Da’vonne, bewildered, asks Hannah what she’s talking about. Hannah mentions that she spoke with Mrs. Abbott today and Mrs. Abbott said she is still waiting on the money before anything can begin.

Da’vonne calls somebody. She’s not going to allow somebody to scam a group of children out of $1,900 and a sports team. Hannah isn’t sure who she called but can hear bits and pieces of the conversation. All she’s focused on is the anger Da’vonne displays in her voice. Hannah hasn’t seen anyone that angry before.

Another few weeks have gone by before Hannah and Tiffany realize Mrs. Abbott hasn’t been seen the entire week. A rumor began floating around the school that she got fired, but nobody knows what for. Hannah has felt dejected knowing that all the money they’ve earned is gone and that they won’t be getting a hockey team, but she smiles knowing that she won’t have to see Mrs. Abbott’s face again.

Their lunch table has expanded. All the girls from the lake sit with them now. While they’re all somewhat salty that Mrs. Abbott stole their money, they’re happy in the fact they’ve managed to expand their social circle. All of the girls get along well. Hannah enjoys being able to talk about hockey with people who understand, so she’s lucky to have found nineteen other girls who share her passion. All of them even have a group chat together on iMessage. They’ve planned to hang out at the lake the following weekend to play hockey again.

That night, Hannah is sleeping when her phone continuously buzzes over and over again. Candice, Alison, Helen, Jun, and Vanessa are spamming the chat asking if all of them have been contacted about being witnesses in a civil lawsuit. Hannah, groggy as ever, goes back to sleep. That's tomorrow's problem.

At school the following afternoon, the lunch table is in shambles. Everyone is speaking over each other about what’s going on. From what they’ve gathered, somebody has filed a civil lawsuit on their behalf against Mrs. Abbott for $2,000 for the money she stole and the date will be this weekend. Hannah pulls out her phone to send a quick text to Da’vonne to let her know what’s going on, but Da’vonne’s response was shocking. She was the one to file the lawsuit.

As the court date slowly gets closer, Hannah and her friends are interested in seeing who the new principal is. They’re all gathered together in the gym so that the principal can introduce herself. Hannah tunes out the assembly after learning that the new principal is named Mrs. Borzotra as she’s focused on the lawsuit and praying Da’vonne will win the case.

Mrs. Borzotra can be seen walking into multiple classrooms just introducing herself officially to the teacher and their pupils. One of those classes just happened to be Biology, the class Hannah is currently in.

Before Mrs. Borzotra leaves, she comes up to Hannah and tells her that she’s aware of the civil lawsuit her caretaker made against Mrs. Abbott and what she’s done. Mrs. Borzotra then mentions to Hannah to make sure to practice as next weekend will be the first practice for the team. Equipment will be provided for the first few practices to give each girl time to buy equipment.

Hannah is flabbergasted. She didn’t expect the new principal to be so understanding. Mrs. Borzotra is the complete opposite of Mrs. Abbott. Hannah decides to keep this to herself for now as a surprise for the others.

Da’vonne is made aware of what’s happened from Hannah on Saturday and sends an email to Jack just to update him. She’s glad the new principal is understanding, but can’t think about it too much as she must make sure both her and Hannah are ready to go to court.

One by one, each girl is called to the stand to testify on behalf of Da’vonne. To make sure the truth is set in stone, Da’vonne printed and gave the judge the emails she exchanged with Mrs. Abbott. She also provided video evidence from a school surveillance camera of her handing Mrs. Abbott the money. Da’vonne silently thanks that Mrs. Borzotra was willing to hand over the footage. By the end of the hearing, Mrs. Abbott owes Da’vonne $1,900. Da’vonne won the lawsuit.

The following weekend rolls around and it’s time for Hannah to leave to go meet up with the others at the lake. Da’vonne asks to accompany her there and to let the others know she has something to share.

When Hannah and Da’vonne get there, everyone looks anxious but excited.

“As you’re all aware, I won the lawsuit against Mrs. Abbott. The $1,900 you all funded has been returned to me,” Da’vonne starts.

“With that being said, Mrs. Borzotra spoke with me. There will be a team this year, and the season starts soon. We’ve all practiced with each other for awhile now, so I hope you’re all used to each other. The $1,900 isn’t needed now for all the trouble we went through,” Hannah adds on.

“This means that the $1,900 I’m currently holding will be split amongst you twenty. Each of you will receive $95 towards equipment,” Da’vonne continues.

“Oh, and one last thing. Our first official practice is tonight! Be at the school’s rink by 8 PM! Equipment will be provided for now!” Hannah shouts.

Cheers can be heard amongst the group. After going through so much trouble, they finally have a team.

When 8 PM rolls around, all the girls have shown up. From a distance, another figure enters.

“Gear up! Equipment is in the locker room. We’ve got our first practice ladies! Let’s see your chemistry, yeah?” Jack calls out.

After all that trouble, their team is officially made.