Kayden
The moment I stepped inside the locker room, it went dead silent. My teammates were already there, scattered in a loose circle, but as my eyes met theirs, nobody spoke.
There were no whispers, no pointed looks of disgust like I had expected. It was just heavy stillness.
My heart started pounding hard in my chest as I feared the worst, but then Coach Reddick moved first. He stepped into my line of sight and pointed toward me.
"Kayden," he said. "Are you fine? Can you play the third?"
I swallowed the lump in my throat and gave him a sharp, single nod. "Yes, Coach, I can play, and I…" I opened my mouth, the words of an apology or an explanation sitting on the tip of my tongue, but before I could say anything, Coach Reddick held up a hand, cutting me off.
"Save whatever you have to say. Save it until the third period is over and we have that Cup. Right now, we have a game to win."
I nodded again, grateful for the reprieve.
