Page 86 of Unrecognizable Player

I don’t know if Alexei wants people to know he applied for an internship in Vancouver, so I keep my mouth shut. “Isn’t that gonna be tough for you guys?”

“It’s only eight weeks.” She shrugs. “We’ll talk online. I hear that can be kinda sexy.” She winks.

“Stop.” I groan. “This whole thing is a mess.”

“That’s life Stef, it’s messy.”

“You’re so annoyingly cheerful since you got a boyfriend. And why don’t you just go out with Mischa without us?”

“You guys are good buffers. What if we run out of things to talk about?”

“You won’t. I bet you haven’t gushed about Slipknot’s back catalogue to him yet, that takes a good two hours.”

She slaps my arm. “Fuck you.”

I try to put Alexei out of my head while we rehearse, but when I glance over at Alice, she has a stupid grin on her face too and it’s impossible not to get swept up in the romantic mood.

20

ALEXEI

The guys slap me on the back when they see me in the locker room. I’m not changing into my pads because I know I’m not allowed to practice yet. But I just wanted to be here. To see everyone.

Coach calls me into his office and asks how I’m feeling.

“I’m good. I haven’t had any really serious symptoms. I’ve been sleeping a lot and had a bit of a headache, but I don’t even feel sensitive to light or anything.”

“That’s good. But I still want you to be cautious. You shouldn’t even be here right now. It’s way too bright out there on the ice, even if you’re not feeling sensitive to it right now.”

“I know Coach, but seriously, I’m fine.”

“You’ve been staying off screens, taking it easy?”

“Yeah, my roommate’s been laying down the law.” I blush.

“Good. So you’ll be out for the next three games, but only the Colgate one counts in the standings.”

I nod.

“We’ll get you back for the Harvard game in a few weeks if all goes well, okay?”

“Yes Coach.”

“So make sure you rest up good and get plenty of fluids. And no screens! We’ve still got a shot at the play-offs if we can get some wins against Harvard and Dartmouth.”

“Yes Coach.”

I leave Coach Allan’s office feeling a little lighter than I did before. Even if we’re annihilated by Colgate, we can pull it back with the Harvard and Dartmouth games, and I’ll be back for those.

I try to get some studying done back at the apartment, but I can’t focus and my headache comes back. I take some painkillers instead and use Stef’s login to listen to an audiobook.

When the front door opens, I’m asleep on the couch with a book playing in the background.

“Hey, sorry for waking you.”

The sight of him standing there with his violin case and his books makes my heart race.

“Hey beautiful.”

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