Chapter 35: Winning
Kayden
’’It’s Vale with the steal!’’ The lead commentator shouted. ’’Two minutes into the game and he stripped the Wolves’ captain like he wasn’t even there.’’
’’He is not passing, he’s got Calder open on the wing, but Vale is putting his head down!’’ The second commentator shouted. He is in the circles, and he shoots and scores! Kayden Vale puts the Avalanche on the board ten minutes into the first period.’’
The horn blasted, and the thousands of fans that had come to support us screamed out my name. It was a surprise goal that I had not even expected. Maybe I had pushed myself too hard, but I was dying to win, and as I skated hard into the corner of the ice, waving at the fans, I felt the tang of failure leaving me.
’’Unbelievable,’’ the commentator shouted over the noise. ’’That was the craziest shot we had this series. Two minutes in, and the newbie has single-handedly dismantled the Wolves’ defense. What a comeback.’’
Yes, what a comeback. It wasn’t just that; it was me proving to everyone who had looked down on me that I was stronger, more powerful than they thought, and that I could be much more.
I turned back toward the center ice after waving toward the fans. My teammates swarmed around me with their gloves tapping my helmet, and there was Rhys.
He had skated right beside me, his face flushed and his eyes wide with an almost desperate look. He looked proud, more than proud, and relieved. He tried to reach out, raising his glove for a fistbump.
’’Incredible goal, Kayden,’’ he panted, a small hopeful smile tugging at his mouth. ’’I knew you had it. Let’s keep that energy...’’
I didn’t wait to hear what he had to say because his reaction would have been the same whether I had won or lost. Would he have smiled at me or even commended me?
’’I don’t care,’’ I muttered under my breath as I adjusted my glove, staring straight ahead at the scoreboard.
The commentators seemed to notice it, and suddenly their voice sounded from the speaker. ’’Oh, a cold shoulder from Vale! Calder was looking for the celebration there, but Vale is headed straight for the bench. Maybe the rumors about their newly built rivalry after that downfall are true.’’
I didn’t care what they said. I still wouldn’t care if the Coach showed up in front of me and tried to preach about chemistry. All I cared about was proving myself not only to Rhys but to everyone.
The game resumed shortly after the win, and it became a gray war between the Wolves and us. Since we had won, they wanted to take it back and became more desperate, doing all they could to injure us on the ice.
I was pinned against the boards multiple times by them as they desperately tried to get to our goalie, but that didn’t stop me from defending, and Rhys always came to my help each time, even when I didn’t need it.
Even though I hated him now and what he had done, we needed this win, and when I saw that he was open, I flicked a backhand pass towards him, and Rhys didn’t miss. He hammered a one-timer into the back of the net, and the arena went wild with screams.
’’GOAL! CALDER TOOK THE GOAL THIS TIME!’’ the commentator shouted. ’’The Captain puts it away, but that pass from Vale was pure magic!’’
It truly was, except that I hated it.
Rhys turned instantly, his face split with a broad, relieved grin. He skated toward me, his arms open for the usual celebratory hug, his eyes glowing with the hope that the goal would resolve what was between us. Still, I ignored him yet again, ducking under his reach and skating straight to the bench, leaving him standing in the slot with his arms out, hugging nothing but the cold arena air.
When I reached the bench, I looked at him and saw his icy blue eyes staring directly into mine, filled with fury. I grinned wickedly at him, then looked away when Jaxson joined me on the bench.
Payback is a bitch—or what was the word again?
During the short break, I did all I could to avoid him, making sure to keep distance between us, and by the time the second period started, we were back on the ice.
The Wolves hadn’t scored yet, and we were up 2-0.
Once we stepped on the ice again, we were back with caution. Rhys came towards me again, sprinting down the right wing, and I could have ignored him, but we were still playing the game.
I sent a long soaring pass that landed perfectly on his stick, and Rhys didn’t shoot this time; he saw Miller at the back post and saucered the puck over a sliding defender, and Miller redirected it into the open net.
’’AND REID MAKES IT THREE!’’ the PA system boomed from the loud noise of the commentator. ’’From Vale to Calder and Calder to Reid, the Avalanche are back to take their crown.’’
’’Yes!’’ Miller let out a war cry, sliding on his knees and pumping his fist. He scrambled up and gave me a massive high-five, then he turned to Rhys, bumping gloves with him. For a second, the three of us stood in a triangle staring at the fans.
Rhys looked at me through his visor, his chest heaving. He reached out a glove, desperately wanting me to fist bump him, and when I tried to avoid him yet again, I heard the fans near us screaming.
’’Valder! Valder!’’
It was hard to ignore their screams, so I gave in and fist-bumped him, then skated away to return to the game.
It went on for a few minutes until the buzzer echoed through the arena. It ended at 3-0.
The crowd erupted into a sheer wall of sound, the kind of thunderous roar that made the glass vibrate and the ice tremble beneath our skates.
’’AND THAT IS THE HORN!’’ the commentator’s voice sounded through the speakers. ’’Tonight the Northern Avalanche proved themselves to be untouchable, and the highlight of tonight is the newbie, Kayden Vale.’’
’’I have never seen anything like that, Jim,’’ the other commentator added. The tension was visible, and the chemistry was great, which makes me wonder if the locker room rumors are false. Vale and Calder just put on a masterclass in spite-driven hockey.’’
I blocked the rest of the commentator’s remarks from my ears and instead focused on my teammates who had swarmed over me. It was a chaotic sea of blue and white jerseys. Everyone was screaming in happiness as if we already won the cup.
Jaxson and Theo were shouting over the noise, and even Luca looked begrudgingly impressed.
Rhys was there too; he stood on the edge of the huddle, his chest heaving and his eyes fixed on me with pride. Then he took a step towards me, reaching out as if to finally pull me into the celebration to claim his part in the victory.
But then, a familiar voice screamed from amongst the fans.
’’KAYDEN!’’
I froze, my head snapping toward the glass in the third row. I didn’t even give Rhys a second glance as I broke away from the team huddle. I dug my skates into the ice, gliding with a fast speed towards the board.
Leo. His blonde buzz cut stood out in the sea of faces. He waved as I approached him, leaning over the glass, his face split into a wide grin.
’’Leo!’’ I shouted his name, smiling widely. I didn’t care about the cameras, I didn’t care about the thousands of eyes as I reached over the edge of the glass, pulling myself up just enough to wrap my arms around his neck in a crushing hug.
I buried my face against him for a second before pulling back and kissing the side of his cheek.
’’You are truly here,’’ I breathed and laughed again. ’’You actually came.’’
’’Oh, of course,’’ Leo playfully slapped me on the shoulder. ’’I told you I would come, Kay,’’ he responded in a soft, exciting voice. ’’I am here.’’
I smiled at him yet again and then leaned closer to the glass, taking his hand. ’’How did I do?’’
’’Great! You were wonderful, Kay.’’
I chuckled and was about to say something, but Leo cut me off.
’’Isn’t that Rhys Calder staring at you?’’ Leo asked. "Oh goodness, he is looking straight at us!"
I immediately turned around to see Rhys standing a few feet away, motionless on the ice as he stared at us—more like glared at us.
’’I see why you couldn’t let go of his dick. He is hot in person,’’ Leo muttered into my ear. ’’I would too if a man were that hot. He is a walking sex god, Kayden.’’