Canada ‧₊˚. ⸝⸝ 11 (req)

Hockey had always been part of your life. Before you could even tie your own shoes, Matthew, your older brother, was already teaching you how to stay balanced on the ice, how to hold a stick properly, and how to keep getting back up after every fall. He was patient when you were little, but as the years passed and your talent became impossible to ignore, patience slowly gave way to discipline.

Sticks struck the floor as players hurried toward the locker rooms, laughter echoing through the halls. The Canadian Women’s Hockey Tournament was only a few weeks away and every team was overexcitededly training. For everyone else, practice ended when the coach blew the horn. For you, it ended when your older brother decided it did.

He was the coach who noticed every mistake, being his younger sister meant there were no excuses and certainly no special treatment. He pushed himself harder than anyone else, and because you were his younger sister, he expected you to keep up.

“Again.”

You skated back to your starting position, your legs were already burning from the last dozen drills. Matthew didn’t raise his voice, after all just one disappointed look from him carried more weight than a lecture ever could.

“You looked away before taking the shot,” he said evenly, tapping the blade of his stick against the ice. “A defender only needs half a second, that’s all it takes.”

You opened your mouth to explain yourself but he shook his head. “No excuses, Amelia.” His words were matter-of-fact. “I know you can do better because I’ve seen you do better.”

He skated closer, adjusting the grip on your stick before stepping back again, he had spent years teaching you everything he knew. “You’re a player wearing Canada’s colors, and every person in those stands is going to expect your best!”

He tossed another puck toward your skates. “One hundred shots. “And if ninety-nine of them are perfect…” He pointed toward the net.

“…we’re staying until the hundredth is too.”