When I softened the correction, Holloway filled the empty space with noise. When I came down too hard, he braced against me. When I gave him a clear expectation and left him no room to turn it into a fight, he got better.
Not calmer, exactly.
Focused.
I made a note in his file.
Best response: private, specific, immediate. Avoid vague criticism. Avoid public escalation. Define task.
I looked at the words for longer than I should have.
Private mattered.
I had seen enough in two days to know public correction turned Holloway into a performer. Give him an audience and he’d hide embarrassment behind speed, humor, or defiance. Sometimes all three. Alone, he still challenged, but he listened underneath it.
A knock hit my doorframe.
Tessa Moreno stood there with a tablet in one hand and the expression of a woman who had already been disappointed by three adults before nine in the morning.
“If you’re busy, pretend I’m not here,” she said.
“I’m busy.”
“Great. Milo just posted a video from the locker room where you can clearly see Sokolov changing in the background, Lowell agreed to a youth clinic he’s not actually available for, and Jace missed my reminder about the afternoon media hit.”
I leaned back. “Missed it how?”
“He replied with a thumbs-up at 11:48 last night, then asked me ten minutes ago what time media was.”
That sounded about right. “When is it?”
“One-fifteen. It was in the team schedule, the individual schedule, and the calendar invite he accepted.”
“Who else is on it?”
“Roman, Milo, and Eli. Which means Roman will be on time and annoyed, Milo will say something that makes legal sweat, and Eli will answer every question like he’s being deposed.”
“You love this job.”
“I love competence. This job is where I come to grieve it.”
I almost smiled. “I’ll handle Holloway.”
Her gaze flicked to the monitor, where Jace was still frozen on the screen. Tessa saw too much. She always did. “He’s not doing it on purpose.”
“I know.”
That earned me a sharper look. Not surprised, exactly. Recalibrating.
“Good,” she said. “The last staff treated every missed detail like a character flaw. It made him worse.”
“I’ve noticed.”
“Of course you have.” She tapped her tablet against her palm. “Also, your dog is in the equipment hallway.”
I closed my eyes for one second. “He was in my office.”
“He is no longer in your office.”
