Chapter 26: The Rumor
The blog post appeared on a Tuesday morning.
I sat in the locker room staring at my phone screen.
‘SECRET LOCKER ROOM ROMANCE?’
‘Sources say that two players on the team are more than teammates? Who is breaking the code?’
The blog didn’t drop any name or proof, it was just speculation disguised as journalism, but it didn’t matter; the damage was already spreading, with people commenting and asking questions.
My hands shook, and I set my phone down.
I hadn’t slept well since the interview. I hadn’t slept since I’d said the truth in front of the camera and watched Cassian’s face light up when he called me his home. We’d been extremely careful since then, we were distant in public and silent in the locker room. We acted like nothing had changed when nothing was the same again.
The team’s PR director, Brynn Castellano called for a meeting at 2PM.
I’d only met her twice before now. The first time was when I got the C, and the second time was when she had a one-on-one meeting with me about how to address the media after a bad loss. She was polished and efficient, the kind of woman who was very serious about brand image. I’d never seen her angry, till today.
The conference room was bright, with fluorescent lights buzzing overhead. The chairs were arranged in rows, all facing the front like we back in junior hockey about to receive a lecture about curfew. Every member of the team was there, Raffi sat in the back with his arms crossed and Cassian sat three rows in front of me; his posture rigid and his head down. I could see the back of his neck and the tension in his spine with the way he sat up straight.
I wanted to reach for him to comfort him, but I couldn’t.
Brynn paced in front of us, her heels clicking with every movement, her jaw was set as her eyes swept the room, trying to figure out the guilty party.
“I’m very sure you all must have seen the blog post speculating about a romantic relationship between two members of this team.” Her voice was sharp, cutting through the silence. “As of this morning, the post has over fifty thousand shares and major outlets are picking it up; we’ve also been getting calls left and right from sponsors!”
She paused, letting the silence stretch.
“I’ll only say this once. This organization does not tolerate any behavior that compromises its reputation. The sanctity of this room, the trust between teammates and the image we have spent decades building is not something to be toyed with, and I’ll be damned if I let one scandal tear everything down. The people responsible for this should understand that for every action taken, there’s an aftermath, not just for them but for everyone sitting in this room.”
Her sharp eyes landed on me; I stared back blankly, but my heart thundered.
Her eyes moved away from me, focusing on something else. “Let me be clear on one thing.” She said, her voice dropping. “I do not have anything against people who choose that lifestyle, but this is a professional environment; families bring their kids to our games, sponsors pay for a certain image to be upheld. So, I will not sit back with folded arms and watch two selfish individuals destroy all that this organization has carefully built.”
The words landed like bullets.
Someone inhaled sharply somewhere.
Brynn smiled tightly. “By now, I trust that we have come to a mutual understanding. If anyone has any information about the people involved, my door is always open. And if you are the culprit, I suggest you both come forward so we can handle this quietly, before it becomes a problem for all of us.”
No one said a word.
No one moved.
Her eyes hardened. “This meeting is adjourned.”
She walked out, her heels clicking sharply down the hallway as the door slammed shut behind her.
——
Everywhere was silent.
Then one by one, the players started filing out quietly with their heads down, no one made a sound, nobody tried to start a conversation. I sat still in my seat, watching everyone leave. Raffi passed by me without a word, but he squeezed my shoulder reassuringly before leaving.
After a while, the only people left in the room were Cassian and I.
He stood in front of the room, with his hands shoved into his pockets and his back to me. I watched his shoulders rise and fall with each inhale and exhale.
I watched him for a while before standing and walking towards the door. I walked past the chairs, past the fluorescent lights that made him sick and then past him.
I had barely made it to the hallway when I heard his voice behind me.
“Tor.”
I didn’t stop, I kept walking.
He caught up to me, grabbing my arm to pull me around. His face was pale and his eyes was bright as if he was about to cry.
“We need to talk.”
“We can’t do that here.” I said looking down the hallway, it was empty for now, but it was still open; anyone could pass by and see us.
“Then where?” He asked with a broken voice. “When? You’ve been avoiding me since the interview, just after you promised not to disappear on me again.”
“I haven’t——“ I started.
“You have.” He said, stepping closer, close enough for me to smell him and see the pain in his eyes. “I get it okay? I’m just a random rookie and you’re the great Captain. But you don’t get to pretend this is happening. You don’t get to make me look crazy for wanting you to just look at me.”
I pulled him out of the hallway into the conference room we just came out of of, shutting the door behind me.
“What do you want me to say?” My words came out rough. “That I think of you all the damn time? That I can’t sleep because of you? That everytime you’re on that ice, I pray for the game to be over so I can get to you, so I can touch you, so I can make sure you’re safe,” my voice cracks as I continue.
“That every time you get hurt, I have to sit there and watch it happen, because I can’t—“
I paused, taking in a deep breath.
“I can’t protect you the way I want to, not without destroying everything.”
He stepped even closer to me, his eyes holding mine in a steady gaze.
“What if I don’t need protection? What if all I need is for you to be with me?”
The door opened and we sprang apart.
Raffi stood in the doorway, his eyes moving between us without a word.
My heart pounded furiously.
He stepped inside and closed the door quietly.
“I didn’t see nothing.” He said, walking past us to grab his forgotten jacket.
He headed towards the door, stopping to meet my eyes in a wordless reassurance.
‘You’re safe.’
He left.
——
I turned to face Cassian.
He was trembling now.
“Brynn hates us.” He said quietly. “She doesn’t even know us yet, but she already hates the fact that we’re together.”
I pulled him in for a hug, he buried his face in my chest, his hands fisting my shirt.
“I won’t let her win.” I said, pressing my lips to his hair.
He looked up with wet eyes.
“How do you intend to do that?”
I thought about Brynn’s face and how it scrunched up in disgust when she talked about people who choose ‘that lifestyle.’ The way her eyes swept the room sharply.
“I don’t know yet.” I said as I cupped his face to wipe his tears off with my thumb. “But we’ll do this together.”
He closed his eyes, leaning into my hand.
“And you promise not to run?”
“I promise.”
He let out a breath and opened his eyes, letting me see the fear in them.
“I’m terrified, Tor.”
“Me too.”
“What are we going to do?”
“We’re going to survive this.” I said.
He smiled as his arms tightened around me.
We stood there, holding each other while silently waiting for whatever came next.