Page 5 of The Save

My pulse skippedas we descended the stairs to the concrete hall that led to the locker rooms. Sharla wanted to see Rob, obviously. The two of them had been attached at the hip since they got together, and while I was sometimes annoyed that Sharla wasn’t spending as much time with us, I was truly happy for them.

It wasn’t a surprise to me or Crystal that Rob had a thing for her. What had been surprising? That he’d won her over. Last semester, all she’d done was complain about him being in her and Logan’s space. Although now that I thought about it, that should have been a red flag in and of itself. She always had strong feelings for him. And if the Buffy the Vampire Slayer film had taught me anything, it was that someone who annoyed you would probably be your love interest.

The Zamboni slid in lazy circles around the ice, erasing any sign of the game as we passed along the boards. We stopped at the benches lining the far wall. Sharla bounced on the balls of her feet, waiting for Rob. "I'm going to kill Axel and Rory," she muttered. "There's no way we should have lost to that team."

Crystal tucked a strand of her soft pink hair behind her ear. “It sucks.”

I nodded. Rory and Axel liked to have a good time, no doubt about that. But I was surprised it had gotten so bad that they'd been benched.

Sharla shook her head. "I do see them studying when I’m over at the house. They don't seem like they're just slacking off. And I doubt they'd be putting on a good show for me."

A memory jumped to my mind unbidden—me leaning over Chase's math textbook, circling a sentence with my fingertip. "It's right here. The angles have to equal?—"

"Yeah, I get that it's right there, but that doesn't mean I know when to use it.”

“You just need more practice."

Chase ran a hand through his hair. "This makes sense to your brain, Maddie. I don't think with all the practice in the world, this is going to be simple for me."

That had been one of the first times I considered that maybe school didn’t always get easier with hard work—that maybe I had a special capability. If I were honest, in that moment, I'd been judging Chase. Assuming he didn’t want to try or put in the work. But then I'd seen Crystal struggle through entry-level chemistry. Her C+ wasn't from a lack of trying.

"It's not even that I want them to win all the time,” Sharla continued. She leaned back against the painted cinder blocks. "This is their last couple of years of competitive hockey. It's hard enough to go through Juniors and not make it into the higher leagues. But then to come to college and not even be able to play . . ."

I nodded. "More than that. What are they going to do after this?” There was always a chance that one of them got into a feeder league or went over to play in Europe or something. Logan was proof of that. But the majority of these guys weregoing to have to rely on the degree they earned to get a regular job.

The door to the locker room banged open, and Axel and Rory exited first. It made sense since they didn't even have to shower or change. Rory's expression was clouded over, and Axel hung his head.

"Hey, guys." Crystal gave a smile that looked more like a wince. Rory lifted his hand in a small wave. They started to walk past, obviously not in the mood for conversation, but I reached out and grabbed Axel's arm.

"Hey, can I ask you something?”

He exhaled, his jaw tight. “Sure. What’s up?”

I dropped my hand and took a step back. I always forgot how tall Axel was until he was standing in front of me. “I want to help. With your grades.”

Axel glanced at Rory, then turned his attention back to me. “We just haven't had as much time to study because of these extra practices.”

My eyes narrowed. "What extra practices?"

Rory and Axel exchanged another look.

Sharla exhaled. "Did Rob rope you guys into that? He told me he was doing it on his own."

"Rob's been doing extra practices?" Crystal asked.

She nodded. “I guess a scout is coming in April?—”

“Coach Wilson has a connection.”

I blinked. Coach Wilson. That was Chase’s last name.He had a connection with a hockey scout?So it was what I thought. Logan had gotten an opportunity with the AHL, and now the rest of the team was ready to shoot their shot. I couldn't blame them for it, but I wasn't exactly the right person to talk to about dreaming. Following the rules of societal engagement and working my ass off had always gotten me more than fantasizing.

I straightened. "Okay. That's great if you want to do extra practices, but you can't let everything slip, or you'll lose time on the ice." I put my hand on my hip. "I hate to go all maternal on you, but what will you do if you fail out of Douglas and don't get a spot on a feeder team?" I wasn't going to quote the stats for them. I'd save that for later if they chose to be difficult.

Rory shrugged. "Their expectations are too high. It's not like I'm failing."

"What are their requirements?"

"We have to have at least a B in every class." Rory looked scandalized.

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