My muscles are on fire as I speed up even more. I zero in on their net, watching the goalie track my movements.
I wind up like I’m going to shoot, but at the last second, I hold back right as he dives forward. Then I smack the puck. It lands at the back of the net.
I pump my fist and holler. My teammates surround me and smack my shoulder and my helmet in celebration as the home crowd cheers.
“Nice fucking shot,” Blake hollers.
The second period ends with us ahead. Blake scores another goal in the third period, and we walk away with the first win of the season.
“Way to set the tone, boys,” I say when we’re back in the locker room, shedding our gear.
They all whistle and holler. When Coach Sawyer walks in and heads for the middle to address us, we all quiet down.
“Impressive showing, fellas. I liked what I saw out there tonight. You were fast and tenacious, and you didn’t let up, evenwhen you had the lead. That’s the kind of stamina I want to see out of this team for this whole season. Keep it up.”
We all clap, then go back to talking while we all shed our gear and get cleaned up. Coach walks over to me. “Your academic advisor let me know that you’ve performed well on your most recent exams.”
“I’ve been working really hard with a tutor to get my grades up.”
Coach Sawyer’s stern expression remains. “Good. Keep that up. It’s only the start of the school year, so you’ve still got a long way to go. I don’t want to see any slacking in the classroom from you from now on, understand?”
“Yes, Coach.”
He walks off. My phone, which is in my stall behind me, buzzes. I turn and see a text from Poppy.
Hey. Thank you for the takeout you had delivered to the Writing Center tonight. It was delicious.
I grin down at my screen.
Me: Glad you like it :)
Poppy: I can’t believe you ordered the whole menu
Me: I wasn’t sure what you liked, so I wanted to cover my bases.
Poppy: You could have texted me and asked lol
Me: Nah, I like what I did better
She sends an eye roll emoji and a laughing emoji
Poppy: The Writing Center tutors love you. They’re helping me eat all this food because there’s no way I can finish it all myself.
Me: Glad to hear it :) What’s your favorite dish, by the way? I want to remember for next time.
Poppy: Pad Thai with shrimp. I’m basic lol
Me: Not basic at all. Pad Thai is good as hell.
“You texting your girlfriend?” Blake asks.
“Yup.”
“How come she didn’t come tonight?”
I glance up at him. “Huh?”
He pulls off his shoulder pads and pushes his sweaty hair off his face. “Just figured she’d be here cheering you on. Every other guy on the team who has a girlfriend, they come to most of our home games.”
