“I KNOW!”
“LIKE REALLY, REALLY GOOD!”
“I KNOW!”
The celebration on the ice was even more chaotic than the first goal. The entire bench was standing, banging their sticks against the boards, and Rook was getting absolutely mobbed by his teammates. When he skated past the bench for the fistbumps, Coach grabbed his shoulder and said something that made Rook grin.
The second period ended three to nil, and the crowd was absolutely buzzing.
The third period started with the Raiders desperate. They came out throwing everything at the net, knowing they needed to score or the game was over. Saint made three huge saves in the first two minutes, and the Wolves weathered the storm.
Then the Wolves got a power play.
A Raiders defenseman took a penalty for tripping Jace, and the Wolves' special teams unit hopped over the boards. Rook lined up for the faceoff in the offensive zone, and I could see the Raiders' penalty kill setting up in a box formation, trying to clog the shooting lanes.
“What's happening now?” Micah asked.
“Power play,” I said. “The Wolves have an extra skater for two minutes because the other team has a guy in the penalty box. If they score here, it's basically game over.”
The puck dropped and Rook won it back to Tate on the point. The power play went to work. Tate moved the puck to Dmitri on the other point, who fed it down low to Jace. Jace cycled it back to Rook at the half-wall.
Rook held it, surveying the ice, and I watched the play develop like I was watching film. The defenders were focused on Jace and Cole in front of the net, the biggest threats. That left Tate open at the point.
Rook fed him the puck.
Tate wound up and unleashed a slap shot that had to be going ninety miles an hour. Rook had already moved to the front of the net, and he got his stick on it — a perfect deflection that changed the puck's trajectory just enough to beat the goalie.
Four to nil.
Hat trick for the captain.
The arena absolutely exploded. Hats started raining onto the ice — hundreds of them, thrown by fans in celebration of Rook's three goals. The Wolves players were piling onto Rook again, and even from the VIP section I could see him laughing.
“What are they doing?” Poppy asked, pointing at all the hats on the ice.
“Hat trick tradition,” I explained, my throat tight with emotion I wasn't ready to name. “When a player scores three goals in one game, fans throw their hats on the ice. It's good luck.”
“That's so many hats.”
“That's because everyone in this building loves him,” Talia said, looking at me with a grin that said she meant more than just the crowd.
I couldn't even chirp back because she was right. The crowd was chanting Rook's name, the building was shaking with noise, and I was watching the man I loved celebrate with his team while thousands of people screamed their appreciation.
The final ten minutes of the game were pure clock management. The Wolves played conservative, protecting the lead, and the Raiders couldn't find any answer. When the final buzzer sounded and the scoreboard showed 4-0, the celebration started all over again.
Players piled onto each other on the ice, the crowd was chanting, and my siblings were hugging me and each other and probably some strangers in the general vicinity.
I just stood there watching Rook celebrate with his team — watching him raise his stick to salute the crowd, watching him skate over to tap gloves with Saint, watching him be exactly who he'd always meant to become — and felt the weight of everything that had happened over the past few weeks finally settle into something that looked like a future.
My siblings were safe. Rook had chosen me in front of everyone who mattered. We'd just watched the Wolves demolish their playoff opponents. And for the first time in longer than I could remember, I had enough hope and joy and love in my life that I didn't know what to do with it all.
“This is the best day ever,” Poppy said, hugging me so hard I had to catch my balance.
And watching Rook skate a victory lap while the crowd screamed his name, I had to agree.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
block by block
