Page 25 of Retaking the Shot
“I crashed hard. You?”
“Yeah, I did too.”
Butcher got into line behind me and clapped me on the shoulder. “Ready to kick ass tonight, Cap?”
“Of course.”
I really had to admire my teammates. After I’d dropped the bomb that I was gay, not a single one had an issue with it, and everything had been business as usual in the locker room. It made me wonder if times were changing and maybe I’d been worried for no reason. Sure, back in the day, there were no gay athletes who were out and proud, but now it seemed people were more open and understood that sexuality wasn’t so clear-cut. Because people were more open with who they truly were, that also led to people being more accepting, or at least not making a big deal about it. It wasn’t that my teammates didn’t care, but more they had no problem with it because it didn’t affect them. We were there to play hockey and win games.
We moved up in the line and Cardinale turned back to me again and asked, “Do you have a minute to chat after we get our breakfast?”
“Of course. Is everything okay?” I wondered. It wasn’t unusual for younger players to want to pick my brain. I loved that part of being the captain and having played for most of my life.
“Think so.”
It was his turn to order his omelet and then mine. Once we were done, I followed him to an empty table with only two chairs. We dug into our food and after a few bites, I asked, “So, what’s up?”
He wiped his mouth and swallowed the food in his mouth. “First, I want to say how awesome it was for you to come out to everyone the other day. I admire you even more for that.”
My heart smiled. “Thanks, man. I appreciate that.”
Cardinale grinned. “No problem, Coop. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something as well. It’s just ... I figured, since you were open with us, I should be too.”
I raised an eyebrow, curious about what he was going to share. Cardinale took a deep breath.
“I’m pansexual,” he admitted, looking down at his omelet.
I paused for a moment, processing his words. Then, a warm smile spread across my face. “Thanks for trusting me with that, Card. It means a lot.”
He chuckled nervously. “Yeah, wasn’t sure how you’d react, but after what you did, I thought, why not? We’re teammates, and I respect you.”
“Absolutely,” I replied, genuinely touched by his honesty. “Sexuality doesn’t change anything between us. We’re a team, on and off the ice.”
He visibly relaxed, relief washing over his face. “I’m glad you see it that way. It’s not always easy, you know?”
“It definitely takes courage. Just be you, and if anyone has a problem with it, they’ll have to deal with me.” And Butcher and no one wanted to mess with Butcher.
Cardinale grinned again. “Thanks, Coop.”
After we ate,I went back to my room to relax until it was time to head to the arena. I opened The Click app and saw I had a message.
Looking4Luv12: Good morning! Hope you don’t think I’m a stalker but saw the Bruins are in Cali and have a game tonight. If you’re a player, hope you have a good game ??
I sat on the king-sized bed and thought about what my reply should be. When we’d originally chatted, he had assumed I was a player because of my username. I guess I could have chosen one that didn’t have any ties to hockey, but hockey was my life and it felt natural to have StickWhisperer95 as my username. If I confirmed I was a Bruin, there were many to choose from. He would only know it was me if eventually we met up.
StickWhisperer95: If I am a player, thank you ??
By the time we had to head out, I still hadn’t gotten a reply.
We endedup losing in a shootout. Those were always soul-crushing, but we’d played our best and we were still in first place. On the way back to the hotel, I opened up The Click and saw I didn’t have a message from Looking4Luv12. I had to admit that I was a bit bummed.
“How are you liking it?”
I looked up to see Butcher across from me on the bus. He was pointing at my phone.
“The Click?”
“Yeah. Meet anyone yet?”
