Chapter 64 Chapter 64

Chapter 64 Chapter 64
HAYDEN

The locker room was buzzing with the usual chaos after practice. The guys laughing too loud, the thud of gear hitting the floor, showers running in the back. The sharp tang of sweat and the faint chemical sting of ice spray clung to the air. Normally, it was background noise to me. Tonight, though, it felt like every laugh was aimed in my direction.

Because apparently, news traveled faster in our team than a puck on fresh ice.

Jason tossed a towel at my head the second I sat down on the bench. “So,” he said with a smirk, “girlfriend, huh?”

I pulled the towel down slowly, trying to keep my face neutral. “What’s it to you?”

“What’s it to me?” Jason snorted, leaning against his locker. “It’s everything to me. Do you know how long I’ve had to listen to Logan bet me five bucks every week that you were going to make it official with her while I insistedthat you were still too chicken to do so?”

Logan, across the room, raised a hand in salute, grinning. “And I was right. Pay up, Jason.”

“You don’t get to win on a technicality,” Jason shot back.

“It’s not a technicality if I was right!” Logan argued, grabbing his water bottle and squirting a stream of it in Jason’s direction.

“Hey, watch it,” Jason complained, dodging the spray.

I shook my head, half amused, half resigned. “You guys are idiots.”

“And you’re in love,” Jason said sing-song, ignoring Logan’s cackling.

I rolled my eyes, tugging at the laces of my skates. “Nobody said anything about love.”

“Not yet,” Logan piped up, clearly enjoying himself. “But soon. The way you’ve been smiling? Dead giveaway.”

“I don’t smile that much,” I muttered.

Jason barked out a laugh. “Oh, come on. You’ve been walking around here looking like you just won the lottery. We’re hockey players, Hayden—we notice when one of our own looks suspiciously happy.”

“Suspiciously happy?” I repeated, raising a brow.

“Yeah,” Jason said, grinning. “Happy in a way that only happens when there’s a girl involved.”

The whole locker room erupted with chuckles and whistles. A couple of the guys started chanting, “Ross has a girlfriend!” like we were back in middle school.

I shook my head, fighting the urge to smile. “You’re all twelve years old.”

“Maybe,” Logan said with a shrug, “but we’re not wrong.”

For a second, I considered snapping at them, telling them to drop it. But honestly? The teasing didn’t sting. Not when I could still feel Coleen’s hand brushing mine, her quiet laugh in my ear, the way she’d said yes.

Jason must have caught the flicker of my expression, because his grin softened. “Seriously, though. I’m happy for you, man. Coleen’s good for you.”

Logan nodded. “Yeah. She’s got this vibe, you know? Grounded. The kind of girl who makes you better instead of dragging you down.”

I looked between them, surprised at the sincerity. “You two are beginning to sound like my mom.”

Jason snorted. “If your mom’s giving you good advice, then maybe you should listen.”

I laughed, shaking my head. “Don’t push it.”

The conversation drifted as guys packed up their gear, a few still making jokes but most moving on to weekend plans and assignments due. I lingered, unlacing my skates slowly, when Coach stepped out of his office.

“Michaels,” he called, his gruff voice cutting through the chatter. “My office. Now.”

The room erupted into “ooohs” like a bunch of grade-schoolers. Jason smacked me on the back as I stood. “Don’t worry, we’ll take good care of Coleen while you’re grounded.”

“Shut up,” I muttered, but I couldn’t help the faint smile tugging at my lips as I followed Coach into his office.

The door clicked shut behind me, muffling the noise of the locker room. Coach leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, his expression unreadable.

“Sit,” he said.

I dropped into the chair across from his desk, suddenly feeling like I was about to get benched.

He studied me for a long moment, his sharp eyes narrowing slightly. “So. Word is, you’ve got yourself a girlfriend.”

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. “News travels fast.”

“Locker rooms are like small towns,” Coach said flatly. “Everyone knows everything.”

I stayed quiet, waiting.

Coach tapped his pen against the desk. “You know what I’m going to say.”

“That I need to stay focused,” I supplied.

“That you need to stay focused,” he confirmed. “Regardless of the fact that you're still a freshman, this is your season. You can’t afford distractions.”

Something in me bristled at the word. “She’s not a distraction.”

Coach raised a brow. “Every guy says that. Until he starts missing practice because of late nights or slacking off because he’s thinking about his girlfriend instead of his game.”

“That’s not me,” I said firmly.

“Prove it,” he shot back. “Because right now, Michaels, the eyes on you aren’t just ours. They’re NHL eyes. They’re looking to see if you can handle the pressure. And pressure doesn’t just mean overtime and shootouts, it means life. Balance.”

I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to stay calm. “Coleen isn’t throwing me off balance. She’s the opposite. She… steadies me. When everything else is noise, scouts, my parents, the guys on the ice, she’s the one thing that makes sense.”

Coach studied me, his expression softening just slightly. “That so?”

I nodded. “Yeah. That’s so.”

He leaned back, exhaling through his nose. “All right. Then don’t prove me wrong.”

I stood, the knot in my chest easing. “I won’t.”

As I opened the door to leave, Coach called after me. “Michaels.”

I glanced back.

His mouth quirked into the faintest smile. “Congratulations. Just remember, the ice comes first. Always.”

I nodded, but as I stepped back into the chaos of the locker room, Jason waving a water bottle at me like a victory flag, I knew the truth.

The ice mattered. It always would.

But for the first time, someone else mattered just as much.