Page 75 of Heart Check
Red would never invite input from the team like this. I used to think Dan’sgo on, hit mestyle was a sign of weakness.
I’m starting to rethink that.
“No,” I say. I don’t even have to pause to consider. “No, your strategy is the right one. It’s how Northview’s playing. Did you see their passes? They trust each other. They know right where the other guy is gonna be, so they don’t hesitate. They’re passing before he’s even there. Individually, they’re not any better than us. Probably a little worse. But if we don’t trust each other out there, we’re a mess.” I take a deep breath. Dan’s watching me carefully, hanging on my every word. “We just need to get out of our own way and trust the plays. Trust your coaching. There’s no winning with our old strategy.”
Dan’s silent for a moment, and I wonder if I’ve overstepped. He’s the coach. I don’t need to analyze our opponent. CoachRed would kick me out of the locker room—out of thegame—in a split second. “Sorry, I—”
“Spoken like a captain,” Dan says, a smile spreading across his face.
I blink. “Coach?”
“I’m afraid our current captain doesn’t seem to have his heart in the game. I hear he’s going somewhere bigger and better…. the Gamblers, maybe?” He purses his lips.
I have to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from smiling. “He may have mentioned that once or twice.”
Dan and I lock eyes, and he extends his hand for me to shake. “I think you should get your team back on the ice, Dawson.”
I grip his hand firmly, a new sense of pride swelling in my chest. That sentence feels way better than any compliment from Red. “We won’t let you down, Coach.”
The first thing I do when I head back in is grab my phone and connect it to Bluetooth, pausing while I pick the right song. After deliberating between a few options, a grin spreads across my face.
I post up by the door as the ridiculous beats of “Sandstorm” start blasting and each of my teammates passes by. “We got this,” I say, holding up my hand for a high five and pumping as much enthusiasm and hope into my voice as I possibly can. “Patrick, Louis—incredible skating this season. Let’s show them how hard you’ve been working.”
Patrick holds out his fist for a bump, and Louis smiles around his mouthguard. They’re moving a little faster on their way out, holding their heads a little higher.
“Brady, let’s make this a game you can always remember.”
He nods, his eyes a little glassy. “It’s been an honor to skate with you, Dawson.”
That one chokes me up a little, but luckily, Ryan’s next, typical grin on his face. “Ryan, let’s see them get a single shot past the best defensive line Hamilton Lakes has ever had!”
He jumps up to slap my hand, bopping his head as the beat drops around us. “Let’s go have fun, man.”
“And get the birdcage throwing themselves at you afterward?”
He hesitates for a second, then shrugs. “Eh. That’s just a bonus.”
I’m grinning now too as he heads outside, and I turn to face our goalie with my hand already raised. “Sam, you have a sixth sense for the puck! They won’t get a single other goal past you today!”
Sam nods, glowering in a way that would sure scare me to death if I was part of Northview’s offensive line. “I’ve been calculating the trajectory of Northview’s shots and cross-referencing it with my own stats, and I think you’re right.”
I blink. Sothat’swhat he’s been muttering to himself all these years. And here I thought it was some goalie superstition. Next year I’m asking him for math tutoring instead of Harper.
Alex is the last one out of the locker room. We pause there in the doorway together, me and the best friend and teammate I’ve ever had.
“You’ve worked your ass off this year, and it’s an honor to skate with you. There’s no one I’d rather have by my side on the ice.” I hold his gaze. “And I had the choice, okay? We’re going to win this thing, and we’re going to win it together. It’s time to show them exactly how.”
Alex twists his mouth up skeptically. “Are you sure, Dawson? It’s not too late—”
“No.” I shake my head. “I need you to trust yourself out there, okay? If you can’t trust yourself alone, trust the you who becomes something greater on this team.”
That’s when I see the spark in his eyes again. Attaboy. “Okay,” he says. His voice is quiet but firm.
Alex always understood better than me that it wasn’t about each of us individually, but about us as a team. He just never quite got that the team’s here to help him be his best too. We were all too focused on our own strengths and weaknesses to realize we could be something greater than the sum of our parts.
But when we skate back out onto the ice, it feels different than how we started the game. Like we’re finally a team for real.
I just hope it’s not too late.
