Off the Crossbar Read Free

other for a good ten seconds before Charlie turned back to his schedule.
    Liam elbowed Jake in the side again. “I think he likes you.”
    Jake was about to say something when a man entered the classroom. In three strides he was behind the teacher’s desk. He took a moment to arrange some papers, which gave Charlie a chance to study him more closely. He had to be at least six feet tall, athletic, with broad shoulders and a thick chest. Charlie was impressed by his commanding presence. The rest of the class apparently felt the same way, because everyone straightened up in their chairs and sat quietly, even the four rowdy boys who had been harassing him.
    “My name is Mr. William Hilton,” he said. He paused for a moment, and then added with a slight twinkle in his eyes, “but you can call me Mr. Hilton.” The class laughed politely, and he continued. “I will be your English teacher this year; this will also be your homeroom.”
    Suddenly he broke off and turned to his right to face Jake and Liam, who had started whispering to each other.
    “I’d appreciate your full attention,” he said forcefully. They immediately stopped whispering to each other andlooked up anxiously. Hilton smiled slightly, but without warmth, and turned back to the class.
    “I’m going to hand out the syllabus in a moment and go over it with you, but first I’d like to lay out some very simple and straightforward rules. First, get here on time, or go to the office and get a late slip. Don’t come in late and wait for me to ask, and please don’t try to sneak in when I’m not looking. Second, please be quiet during announcements and when I am speaking. And that’s just about it. Only two rules, so I don’t expect them to be broken, at least not too often.”
    He pointed at a girl sitting in the front row. “You’re Julia Chow, right?”
    She nodded.
    “Didn’t you play hockey last year on the Thunderbirds? I think my niece Sarah played with you.”
    “That’s right,” she giggled.
    “I remember. I saw you play, and I might have even met you at Sarah’s house. At least this means I have one less name to remember. It also means I am going to pick on you right now and ask if you would come up here and hand out the syllabus to the class.”
    Julia got up to get the papers.
    “While we’re on the subject of hockey,” he continued, “I should mention that tryouts for the high school tournament are starting tomorrow. Terrence Falls usually has a girls’ and a boys’ team in both the junior and senior draws. I expect this year will be no different. Last year I had the privilege of coaching the girls’ teams. Ms Cummings will be taking over that duty this year.” Henodded at Julia, who had sat down. “Julia, I have no doubt, will be on the junior team — I regret that I won’t have the opportunity to coach you, Julia. She could probably teach a few of you guys a thing or two about goal scoring, believe me.”
    Julia blushed deeply and looked down at her desk.
    “Anyway, I have been given the opportunity to coach the junior boys’ team, so if there’s anyone here who plays hockey, and happens to be a boy, then I invite you to come out and give it a shot, and also mention it to your friends. I’ve attached a notice to the cafeteria bulletin board.”
    “When’s practice?” Jake called out.
    Hilton didn’t answer right away. “When you ask a question, I’d appreciate it if you would put your hand up first,” he said finally. “Since this is our first class together, I’ll cut you some slack. The first practice is tomorrow at 4:15 at the Ice Palace, right after school.” He smiled wryly, adding, “I can expect to see you on the ice, then?”
    “I was the captain of the grade eight team at Humewood Junior High and of my Triple-A peewee team, so yeah, I think so,” Jake replied.
    Hilton appeared to consider the information carefully before replying. “Would you be Jake Wilkenson, by any chance?”
    “You got that