Page 5 of The Official Problem
“Is that what we’re calling it now?” Kieran could practically hear Cole’s eyes rolling through the phone.
“Well, we were in my room, and I was serviced.” He chuckled, knowing it would push Cole a little closer to the stroke he’d been working up to for some time now. “Is there another term you’d prefer I use?”
“This wasn’t the main reason I called, but while we’re on the topic…” Cole’s tone shifted, and Kieran braced himself.
“Don’t you think you should be more careful?” They said in tandem, Cole in his stern business tone, Kieran in mocking imitation.
“Stop with that,” Cole snapped, though he didn’t mean it.
Although highly strung, Cole was a good guy and a damn good agent. He’d been with Kieran since he was drafted ten years ago. Kieran liked to think they were close. Cole probablypreferred to pretend he didn’t exist, so Kieran made that as difficult as possible by creating little problems for Cole to solve.
“You know I’ve always supported your… your…”
“You can say it, Cole.”
Cole stumbled over his words before finally getting it out. “Orientation. But I don’t think it’s a good idea to be flaunting your?—”
“Raging homosexuality?” Kieran added, helpfully, he thought.
Cole, as usual, chose to ignore him. “All eyes are on you after that stunt last night. Every news station is playing clips of you getting punched by a damn referee and your little declaration that you deserved it. The last thing you need is a sexual scandal on top of that.”
Kieran scrunched his nose. Why’d Cole have to say it like that? All slow and awkward: sex-u-al scandal.
“I know you're sick of hearing this,” Cole continued. “The truth is, while the NHL’s more accepting of…”
“The gay agenda?”
“…queer players in the league, there’s still a long way to go when it comes to support from the fans. Teams will do anything to avoid bad press, and this is a critical year for you. You’re a free agent at the end of this season. I’ve got a few potential offers in the works, but nothing’s set in stone until the paperwork’s signed. Any of those teams could back out at a moment’s notice.”
Kieran felt his mood sour. “I understand,” he grumbled. “I can be gay or in the media, not both.”
Cole sighed audibly. Kieran pictured him shifting on his feet, trying to work out the tension in his stiff shoulders as his face turned beet red.
“You know I don’t feel that way,” Cole said at last. “It’s my job as your agent to make you aware of potential risks to your career.”
“I’m pretty sure your job is to make sure those ‘potential risks’ don’t impact my career,” Kieran shot back. “But I’ll do a better job keeping it in my pants. Can we move on to the main reason you called?”
Kieran didn’t want the conversation to drag on any longer. He knew Cole wasn’t homophobic. He’d known Kieran was gay when he signed him, and despite the complaints, he’d always supported Kieran being out.
It had been Kieran’s only condition when choosing an agent. He refused to stay in the closet just because he was joining the NHL. Cole had handled the media storm with grace, shutting down stories that painted Kieran in a bad light and made sure the only time his sexuality came up was in connection to one of the LGBTQ+ charities he supported.
Cole seemed to need a moment to recenter, so Kieran stayed quiet on the hotel bed, waiting for him to gather his thoughts and get to the point. After a few moments, Cole finally continued. “So, what happened last night?”
“I ran my mouth, said something I shouldn’t have, and got punched in the face for my trouble.”
“Yes, I watched the press conference. Thanks for consulting me beforehand, by the way. Glad I was prepared.” Cole's words dripped with sarcasm. “I’m asking now, off the record, what really happened out there?”
Kieran didn’t bother hiding his frustration. “What did it look like happened?”
“It looked like Matthieu Bouchard lost his damn mind, and then you put your career on the line to cover for him. What I don’t understand is why.”
Kieran’s heart skipped at the mention of Bouchard’s name. He tried not to dwell on why it still affected him after all these years.
“I might be a hothead,” Kieran said, a little rough, “but I’m not a liar. I provoked the guy, knowing it would set him off. I wasn’t about to let him lose his job over it, so I told the media the truth.”
Cole paused. “I’ve watched the footage and listened to the sound bite from Bouchard’s mic a hundred times. I still have no idea what this supposedly horrendous thing you said even was.”
He wouldn’t have. The video showed Kieran knocking his helmet into Matthieu’s. Unprofessional, sure, but not unheard of when a player was pissed about a bad call. The sound bite caught the only two words Kieran had said before Bouchard’s fist collided with his face.You’re crazy.However, neither video nor audio could capture the mile-long backstory that led them to that moment, or the painful history that made “crazy,” falling from Kieran’s lips, the most hurtful thing he could’ve said to Matthieu Bouchard.
