I’ll tell you more after the game.
I hesitated before adding:
Me
Thanks for making me feel whole.
I hovered over send for half a beat, then hit the button before I could chicken out.
Dani
You make it easy. Kick some ass tonight, coach! I’ll be the one carrying your baby. xx
I exhaled, sinking back into the couch cushions.
And I’ll be the one falling in love.
We pulled off a clean win—5-2 against the Revs—and the buzz of the stadium still crackled in my veins as we funneled down the tunnel toward the locker room. Victory always carried a charge, but tonight it felt lighter, easier, like the whole place was grinning with us.
That, and I was still riding the high from my pregame conversation with Dani, one that had ended with a sloppy kiss behind the stadium’s coffee roastery.
“Can we talk about that double play?” Roman shouted, voice echoing off the concrete walls. He thumped his chest like he’d just saved the world instead of turned two. “Play of the night, right there. You’re welcome.”
Groans and laughter ricocheted around him.
“Please,” Bennett shot back, slinging an arm around Roman’s meaty shoulders. “If you hadn’t bobbled the damn throw in the first place, we wouldn’t have needed a miracle double play.”
“That was strategy,” Roman said, all mock offense. “Gotta keep the fans on their toes.”
“Strategy my ass,” Soren barked. “You tripped over your own fucking shoelaces.”
“I’m just saying,” Roman pressed, grinning ear to ear. “Y’all owe me for locking down the tying run.”
A chorus of overlapping protests rang out, but one by one, their grins gave them away.
“Fine,” Pink said eventually, even more dramatic than usual. “You get MVP.”
Roman puffed up instantly, ready to soak in the glory. That was until Pink clapped him on the back hard enough to make him stumble.
“And since you’re MVP, that means the first round is on you tonight.”
The whole tunnel exploded in laughter.
Roman’s jaw dropped. “No, that’s not—”
“MVP! MVP!” the rest of them chanted, drowning out Roman’s protests. He flipped them off, but they all knew it was good fun, nothing more. He was laughing just as much as the rest of them, doomed to his fate as designated wallet for the night.
I hung back a step, taking it in—the sweat, the smiles, the way a win stitched my guys tighter together. My chest swelled with that familiar pride. Nights like this were a reminder why the grind was worth it.
The noise carried us around the corner—straight into an ambush. A gold, sparkly ambush.
Dani and Clarke were waiting, blocking the path to the locker room with matching grins that spelled trouble. Clarke had her phone directed toward the guys, and Dani—myDani—held up a shiny sheet of gold stars that sparkled under the fluorescents.
“Step right up, gentlemen,” Dani cried out in a fake gameshow host-like voice. She spread her arms wide. “Come collect your stars and compliments.”
“What’s this?” Bennett asked, trotting over to her.
“Positive reinforcement,” Clarke said matter-of-factly. “New content for socials.”
