Page 70 of The Save

Chase nodded. "Yeah, honestly? I'm not upset about that loss. We played good hockey, and the puck happened to bounce in their favour a few times, but we're going to stick with our game and play steady tonight."

"And what is it that defines your game?"

Chase considered a moment, then answered, "If you would've asked me that before the holidays, I probably would've given a different answer, but now I'd say it's preparation. Discipline. Paying attention to the numbers." Chase looked up, straight into the camera. "We've been lucky enough to have some fantastic training, helping us work on analytics. It's helped us put our guys in the best position to use their strengths."

Crystal grabbed my arm. I couldn’t breathe. Chase hadn't said my name, but he'd just given me a shout out on national TV. The interviewer thanked him, and Chase shook his hand, then looked up again and?—

"He winked!" Shar pointed at the screen. "Did you see that?" She whirled in her seat, grinning. "Maddie?—"

"I saw it." I gave her a look, willing her not to draw any more attention.

I escaped to the washroom, his words replaying in my head. What the hell did Chase Wilson want? He wanted me, but thenwouldn't let me make choices to want him back? He wanted to coach, but then wouldn't say out loud what type of position he was looking for? He wouldn't make plans or admit that there was anything worth trying for, and while I understood where that came from, I didn't like it.

I plopped down next to Crystal and Shar, hoping I could forget for the next few hours and just get lost in the game. But I knew I'd be disappointed. Because Chase's touch was the only thing that did that for me.

The Outlaws came out against Manitoba Tech like they had something to prove. Chase and Blakely worked the bench like a chessboard. They rotated lines with precision. The guys played loose, fast, and electric. It was 3-1 before the second period even started.

Manitoba rallied in the beginning of the third, but Douglas held them 3-2 until the buzzer sounded.

Douglas had medaled.At Nationals.

People in the North Centre screamed, hugged, and cried. Sharla, Crystal, and I stared at the screen in awe. It was the first time that Douglas had ever placed, and it was our boys that did it.

_____

Three days later, the crowd outside the Douglas Dome pulsed with cheers and whistles, the tinny bray of the student pep band squawking out a peppy version of “We Are the Champions.” I stood shoulder to shoulder with Crystal and Sharla near the edge of the crowd, wrapped in our maroon-and-gold scarves.

"Isn't there another victory song we could pull into the mix?” Crystal muttered as the chorus kicked in for the third time.

“It's Queen. It never gets old,” I teased.

Sharla was quiet, her hands tucked over her belly.

"Nervous?" I asked.

She sighed. "Just thinking."

"About what?" Crystal undid the buttons of her jacket. It was getting warm in the sun.

"All of this. Rob. Hockey." She grazed her teeth over her lower lip. "I don't think he can be happy without this. And I know that if he played pro he'd find a team and we could be more settled, but . . . "

I let out a breath. "If he doesn't."

She nodded. "Right. If he doesn't."

My conversation with Chase flickered in my head. This is their backup plan. My thoughts moved from Rob to the rest of the guys on the team. The ones who hadn't been invited to join the summer travel team. One year left, and then what? Beer leagues?

A shout rippled through the crowd as the players filed onto the makeshift stage set up in front of the Dome. Cheers swelled as Bear waved his arms to pump everyone up. Axel blew a kiss to a group of freshmen at the front.

"They're so much more creative than we were," Crystal noted, staring at signs that read “Bear Down” and “#47 is my Daddy” in glitter glue.

Blakely stood behind them, arms folded, squinting into the sun. I waited, watching for Chase, but when Blakely stepped up to the mic and launched into a speech, he still wasn't there.

“First-ever Nationals medal for Douglas. I’d like to say I always believed we’d get here, but the truth is, these boys surprised the hell outta me.”

Laughter. Cheers. He clapped a hand on Rob's shoulder and continued, but I wasn't listening. He wasn't there. Why wasn't he there?

"If I could take just a minute."

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