Page 18 of Two for Holding
Miraculously, out of nowhere, Tom came out with, “The best defense is a good offense, though, my dad always used to say.”
Sensing an opening, Jax slung an arm around Tom’s shoulder.“And look, between us, you’ve got Tom here, and you’ve got me.If you put us together, you won’t find much better offense in the league.”
Morris’s mouth twisted.“I’m aware.I thought I’d keep you two separate to even out some of the deficit in the D-zone.”
“True,” Jax said slowly.“But you’re not going to fix the D-zone by tonight, and if we know a lot of goals will go in, the best we can do is to score more ourselves.”
Eyeing them speculatively, Morris said, “I guess I’ll give you a shot.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Jax watched Morris have a word with Trout.Trout was older, a man from whatever generation wore baseball caps with gas station brands on them and had a thick mustache but no other facial hair.He looked less than thrilled with the plans for the day’s practice, but that could have just been his face.
Either way, practice went well.Jax had spent an embarrassing amount of time admiring Tom’s game, so he had no trouble finding him on the ice.They got an easy four goals past Vladimir Dmitriyev, the starting goalie, and when Morris pulled him to let the backup get a chance, they scored more.The D-men took their turn in the 3-on-3, of course, but unlike the last few practices, they weren’t taxed more than anyone else.
They still couldn’t put up enough of a fight against Tom and Jax to stop them.
This left East in a good enough mood to start up the locker room tunes on the plane already, which was his God-given right as the only Black man on the team.Jax wished he would play something other than early-2000s club shit, but it got the people going.When the third song in a row that predated Jax’s birth came on, he peered over at East, trying to figure out if he was catering to the masses or if his taste really had stalled out in 2010.
East wore a plaid button-up under his plain black suit.
Stalled out, then.Good to know.
Jax balled up his sweater, sending a silent apology to Louis Vuitton as he did it, and closed his eyes, trying to catch up on rest.But the plane was too loud, and every now and again the sound of Tom’s low, reluctant laugh broke through the noise.Instead of falling asleep, Jax spent the flight imagining how his face must look.
He managed to nap at the hotel for a scant hour before the game, unbothered by thoughts of Tom, so it didn’t mean anything that the idea of Tom’s smile had haunted him for a half day there.
Of course, then Jax ended up walking into the arena just behind Tom and caught a glimpse of his frightened woodland creature expression when the media team tried to film him.Jax knew instantly that would be making his internal repeating loop of “Tom looking cute” moments.When had that started?
He shuddered, shaking the thought loose from his brain, and set about getting changed and warming up.
By the time the first period started, the team was pumped up and ready to go.Jax thrived on the pregame energy.Team sports, from peewee hockey to the highest available professional level, had one thing in common: when things went badly for someone, especially one of the team’s big stars, it could drag everyone down.But when one or two of the guys were in a better mood than usual, they could buoy everyone up with them.Jax loved being part of what made the whole group tick.
The longer he played with the Sea Lions, the more he realized they all craved that same hype.Despite having some of the best stats in the league, Tom seemed to be under the impression that things were going badly, which made him quiet and withdrawn, making the team’s communal spaces quiet as well.Between a captain with self-esteem issues and a coaching team in an identity crisis, the team’s up-and-down stats ceased to be a surprise.
Good thing he was there to save the day.
And save it he did, if he did say so himself.Morris must have approved of what he’d seen at practice earlier because at the top of the second, with the score still nil-nil, he sent Jax out with Tom’s line.After a period working with Mooney on his wing, it took Jax a moment to get used to top-line speeds again.But within five minutes, he and Tom were racing down the ice toward the opposing goal, the puck going tape to tape as they ducked around the opposition.The Arches backcheck sucked this season, relying too heavily on D-men who weren’t as quick as the Crow.Jax shot him a neat between-the-legs pass, and all Tom had to do was tap it in from right beside the goal.
The horn blared; three sweaty guys in Sea Lion jerseys slammed into Jax and Tom.
On the bench, Morris nodded in stern approval as if this had been his idea.
They kept it up, and before the end of the period, Tom returned the favor, and Jax netted a sweet little goal over the opposing goalie’s shoulder.
Jubilation filled the locker room during intermission.They were up two-nothing, which didn’t mean much in hockey, but good energy in the room meant everything.
“Fuck, yeah!”East stood on the bench with the speakers in his hands, playing Nelly, which was lame as fuck, but also kind of great.“You going for the Gordie Howe, Jax?”
“I’m a lover, not a fighter,” Jax said with a wink.
Next to him on the bench, Tom choked on his red Gatorade.
Jax clapped him on the shoulder.“Cap can do it.”
Everyone laughed.
Tom excelled at getting out of tight corners, and if they gave out awards for legal shoulder checks, he’d win every year, but a bruiser he was not.
Of course, Breezy yelled out, “Oooh, sick burn!”
