Page 65 of Brace and Chase

It’s after the first minute of the game that Laney likes to shake things up, so we never really know which line he’s gonna call next, but I had a feeling he was going to put us on the ice as soon as possible. I didn’t say anything to Charlie because I didn’t want to jinx us—and as a hockey player I take jinxesveryseriously—and because I know that with the mood he was in all day, he wouldn’t have believed me anyway.

It’s a test, of course it is, since Laney wants to keep us on our toes even though we’ve proven to him that there won’t be any more fighting and that the team needs us to start winning some games.

Jules, Eagle, and Benny all skate over when Laney signals to them, and the shift changes go by fast. Less than ten seconds later, Charlie and I are climbing over the boards when Mater and Bates get to the bench.

And then it’s fucking on.

Tampa did a line change too, to their second line as well, so we’re pretty evenly matched when it comes to our forwards, but the two defensemen havenothingon Charlie and me.

We put on a show and I get an assist when Twocox puts one in the back of the net not even thirty seconds later.

Charlie blocks, and the way he got in the Tampa’s players’ way was a thing of beauty. It’s only thanks to him that I could focus on making the perfect pass, so of course I jump into his arms by the boards during the celly.

“Fuck yeah,” I scream with all my might.

Charlie’s smile could light up the whole fucking arena, but he doesn’t say anything. He hugs me back, though, before we get back to the bench and our first line comes out for the face off.

Laney sends out our fourth line after that, and he must’ve told them something while we were on the ice because the only line that goes for the attack is the first one, and they’re not trying that hard really...

So Laney wantsusto do all the scoring.

That’s fair, I suppose.

“He told them to focus on defense.” I speak directly into Charlie’s ear as he lifts a water bottle and squeezes a biggulp between his guard. He nods as he swallows, the only indication that he heard me.

His jaw’s set, and he looks like one of those fragrance models in that moment, but it doesn’t have the same effect on me as it has whenever I’ve noticed how perfect-looking he is over the last few days.

Right now all I want is to get back on the ice and prove ourselves. I want to show the team what they’ve been missing, and I want to show our fans why they should cry with happiness at the thought of having the both of us on their team.

So that’s what we do.

During the sixty minutes of play time something beautiful happens.

Charlie and I get so in sync that I know what he’s doing at every possible moment. Because he does the exact same things I would. His thought process is exactly the same as mine when it comes to hockey.

We hit passes that seem like witchcraft, and we block for each other and for our three baby forwards like our lives depend on it.

Because in a way, they do.

Hockeyisour life. It’s our passion, our one true love.

Outside of the rink, and when we’re not in full pads or training, we’re as different as two people could be, but here we’re the same. We act as one, and by the end of the night he got one goal and an assist, and I got the same.

We win four to one and it feels like we just made the statement of the fucking century.

When the horn goes off to signal the end of the third period, I go right over to him and engulf him in my arms, squeezing him as tight as I can.

“We fucking did it,” I tell him, my voice hoarse from all the shouting I’ve done for the past three hours.

Dazed and with his eyes unfocused, he looks up at me and repeats my words back to me.

“We fucking did it.” It sounds like he’s having trouble believing it for a second but then his jaw gets back to that stubborn set and he nods once. “We’re going to do it again.”

“Fuck yeah, we are,” I scream like a victorious gladiator, then go line up like a good little boy to shake hands with Tampa’s players.

In the locker room, we celebrate like we just got into the playoffs, and even Laney smiles.

Our teammates congratulate us on putting on a masterclass in being a defenseman, and I know right then this is the night that has the potential to change absolutely everything.

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