Page 65 of Puck Shots
“I might need more…relaxing later tonight,” I say, and he gives me that cheeky grin of his.
“I’m pretty sure I can make that happen.”
“Oh, I know you can. Just like you’ll make your NHL dream happen. You can do anything you set your mind to, Cosmo. You see that, right?”
“Since I met you, yeah, I think I do.”
***
I’ve got my first big presentation, and as I step up to the lectern, my heart is racing like a jackhammer, the calm from my earlier release with Cosmo waning. I’m the first to present, too, which I haven’t yet decided is a good or bad thing, mostly because I have nothing to compare this feeling to. When the professor posted the class order, my heart sank seeing my name at the top. I hate getting up in front of small groups, let alone big ones like this. A full class of eighty-seven students. Though with me being the one presenting, I guess I am in front of eighty-six, but then there is the professor and his aid, so eighty-eight. Fuck. Stop doing the math and just focus on your presentation. You’ve run it twenty times with Cosmo. You know the data. You know the program. You know what you have to do.
My palms are clammy, and I wipe them on the front of my shirt when I’m sure no one can see before opening my laptop and connecting the cord to feed my screen directly into the projector overhead.
My professor sits in an open seat at the front and watches me with an impatient raised brow directed my way.
“The study of mm…” I stutter, swallowing the lump that has risen to my throat and wishing I had brought up my bottle of water from my seat as well.
My gaze scans the back of the room. Cosmo isn’t here, and the churn in my stomach grows into a tornado. Don’t throw up, I tell myself as I take a steadying breath, my gaze catching the corner of the black lightning bolt on my wrist. Cosmo might not be here, but he believes in me. I have to believe in myself. I can do this.
“As I was saying,” I begin, my voice coming out clearer across the floor than I expect, and it gives me a little boost. “The physics of human movement has been widely studied, however, with the introduction of 3D generative technologies and modern mathematical modeling, my program can go further.”
The professor sits up straighter. He’s interested. The whole class is watching. No one is fiddling with their phones or chatting in whispers. My heart is still racing, but now it’s different. It’s like there’s a shift from terrified to excited. I keep going. “My program translates theoretical adjustments to movement into real-world applications and enhancements. Just take the video on slide one.” I click, and the screen shows Cosmo flying down the ice on one of his failed attempts at his slap shot.
“Taking real footage and inputting the data, I was able to simulate the skater and make adjustments to stick angle, stride timing, and shot release to present new outcomes.” I click to the next slide, my heart beating steadier now, and as I show the generative image of Cosmo making the shot utilizing his now signature double-tap, I can’t help but smile. More than one student in the class is smiling up at the screen, too, actually interested in what I’ve been doing, my professor is leaning forward on his seat, intently studying the screen, and that’s when I really know, I’ve got this.
I nail the rest of the presentation, zero mumbling, exhibiting the confidence and cool Cosmo does on the ice, and when I finish, my professor actually claps. A few students do, too, and my gaze goes again to the back of the room, hoping for just a moment that Cosmo might have made it after all.
21
Cosmo
“How do you stay grounded?” Coach Kirkishin asks, and Billy Jenkins, right wing for Chicago, grins beside him like he knows something I don’t. Fuck, he probably knows a hell of a lot I don’t. He’s been playing for the NHL for three years. I’m not even getting the call up. Not yet anyway.
“I can’t say it’s easy,” I begin, and Coach tilts his head a little to one side. I’ve got his interest at least. “That might sound cocky as shit, but when the crowd starts cheering your name and you get that rush of adrenaline, it’s like nothing can touch you. Especially now that I’ve got my double-tap slap shot down.”
“We noticed that, an impressive move at that speed.”
“I would never have figured it out if it wasn’t for Elli, and him and my best friend Luka, the guys in the frat, even the lacrosse players.” I laugh. “Especially the lacrosse players. I guess they help keep me grounded. No matter how loud the crowd screamsmy name, they’re there reminding me that I am only human. Eli reminds me I am more than hockey.”
“Are you sure you want to go pro?” Billy asks, leaning back in his chair, arms folded over his chest.
“More than almost anything.”
“You want something more?” the coach asks, and I nod.
“To keep being the guy they want to take the effort to bring down to earth. If I lose them, what’s the point of any of it?”
“That, kid, is the right answer,” Coach says, and I swallow the nervous lump in my throat.
“So you play for more than yourself, that’s good,” Terrance, a defenseman for the team, says, and I nod.
“If I’m being totally honest, I’ve kind of noticed I play so much better when Eli’s in the stands. Having someone there watching me that actually gives a shit about me and not just my stats somehow makes me skate harder. He’s brilliant, and kind and sweet and…” My face goes hot as I register what I am saying. These guys are here to get to know me, not hear about how I’ve totally fallen for a guy. But Coach is sort of chuckling, and the guys don’t seem phased.
“Sounds like you’ve got something real there. Have you thought about what happens if you get asked to play somewhere new, like…Chicago?” Just hearing him even suggest it as a possibility has my pulse thumping in my ears in excitement.
“He knows what I want and will be happy to see my dream realized. If they are.”
“Well, we’ve got the number seven pick, and I can totally see you skating out onto the ice with us next season,” Terrance says with a nod and a grin that sends my stomach into a flurry. Holy shit, can they actually be interested in me?
