Page 21 of Suck My Puck

“As long as they don’t inherit your brain,” Del deadpans. Ingrid gently elbows him, but Xander laughs.

“Nah, you’re right,” Xander says. “I want Sophie to passher genius brain to our kids. I don’t want them to be a dumbass like me.”

Maya pats his shoulder. “Aww, Xander, you’re not a dumbass. None of us are as smart as Sophie. Not even close”

Sophie is a legit genius. She tested out of most of grade school and middle school. She completed high school in just two years and went to medical school when she was a teenager. At twenty-five, she’s the youngest team doctor in NHL history.

Xander glances over at me. “She fix up your shoulder?”

“Yeah. She told me to ice it and rest for the next few days.”

Dakota passes me a shot, and I tell her thanks before downing it. I listen in on Del and Theo’s conversation about how their fantasy football teams are performing before I notice Maya and Ingrid having a conversation in hushed tones. Ingrid shows her phone to Maya, who sports a concerned look on her face. Her big brown eyes dart to me. Her tan skin flushes red before she looks at Ingrid.

“What’s going on?” I ask them.

They exchange another concerned look. It’s a second before Ingrid speaks. “There’s a meme going around about you on social media.”

I frown. “What?”

She opens her mouth, then quickly closes it. Then she tugs at her long blonde hair, which is in a messy braid, clearly hesitant to tell me.

“Wait, is it bad?” I ask.

She bites her lip before she shows me her phone. When I look at the screen, I see a gif of me from tonight’s game crashing into the net right after Sam collided with me.

I skim the text below the gift.

That feeling when you’re the worst goalie in the NHL

An ugly feeling rips through my gut.

I know I shouldn’t read the comments underneath the gif, but I do.

Dude is past his prime.

How the fuck is this the same Braden Blomdahl that dominated just a few months ago?

Blomdahl is terrible. I hope the Bashers trade him. Literally anyone would be better than him.

Can you believe he’s one of the highest-paid goalies in the league?

This guy gets paid $7.5 million a year to suck

Dude just can’t get it together. It’s pretty sad to watch his decline.

You suck, Blomdahl!

Theo, Xander, and Del all lean in to look.

I fall back in my chair, a weird mix of anger and shame coursing through me.

“I’m so sorry, Blomdahl,” Ingrid says. “Memes like that are so dumb. I’m planning to post some cool new content on the Bashers’ Instagram and TikTok starting tomorrow. People will lose interest in that meme soon, I promise.”

I force a laugh. “It’s fine. Hockey fans post stuff like that often.”

It’s true, but it doesn’t make it sting any less.

Because they’re right. I’m not as good as I was last season. I’m struggling, and millions of sports fans are watching, judging me for it.

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