Chapter 227 Chapter 226
Chapter 227 Chapter 226
Logan POV
Chicago was bigger than I remembered.
The moment I stepped out of O’Hare, it hit me all over again.
The noise.
The traffic.
The endless stream of people moving like they all had somewhere more important to be than everyone else around them.
Even the air smelled different.
Less like home.
More like opportunity.
Or pressure.
Maybe both.
A shuttle waited outside the terminal with a sign reading USA Hockey National Showcase across the windshield. Half a dozen players were already loading equipment into the trailer, their conversations bouncing between colleges, junior teams, and draft rankings.
I recognized a few faces.
Some from summer camps.
Some from tournaments.
Some from highlight reels I’d watched online.
Guys who were supposed to be the best.
Guys everyone expected to make it.
One of them looked over.
“Shaw?”
I nodded.
“Yeah.”
“The defenseman from Hartwell?”
“That’s me.”
He grinned.
“Heard you’ve got a cannon from the blue line.”
I laughed.
“I’ve heard that too.”
He laughed with me before introducing himself, and within minutes we were all talking hockey like we’d known each other for years.
That surprised me.
I’d expected everyone to treat each other like competition.
Instead…
Most of them were just kids.
Kids who happened to be really good at hockey.
By the time we reached the hotel, my nerves had settled just enough for me to notice something else.
Everyone here carried themselves differently.
Confident.
Focused.
No one acted like a superstar.
There wasn’t any showing off.
No peacocking.
No trying to prove who belonged.
Because everyone belonged.
That realization was oddly comforting.
Maybe Coach had been right.
Maybe I didn’t need to spend the weekend proving anything.
Maybe I just needed to play.
Check-in only took a few minutes before I found my room.
I tossed my bag onto one bed and walked over to the window.
Downtown Chicago stretched out beneath me.
Skyscrapers disappeared into the clouds.
Cars crawled along streets that looked tiny from this high.
Somewhere out there…
Life kept moving.
Back at Hartwell…
Classes were still happening.
The guys were probably giving Cole a hard time about something.
Harper was probably sitting in the student center with one of those ridiculously oversized coffees she somehow always managed to finish.
I smiled before pulling out my phone.
Harper ❤️
A picture of us from graduation practice filled the screen.
She’d been laughing because I’d complained about wearing the cap.
I hadn’t realized she’d snapped the picture.
It was my favorite one now.
Without thinking, I touched the bracelet around my wrist.
Play Free.
I smiled.
“You’d better be right,” I muttered.
A knock interrupted my thoughts.
When I opened the door, Coach Reynolds stood there.
“Meeting downstairs in ten.”
“Yes, Coach.”
He started to leave before stopping.
“You settling in?”
“I think so.”
He looked at me for another second.
“You look different.”
I blinked.
“Different?”
“You usually come into these things wound tighter than goalie tape.”
I laughed.
“I guess…”
“I don’t know.”
“I think I’m just excited.”
Coach smiled.
“There he is.”
“Who?”
“The kid I started coaching.”
He nodded toward the bracelet.
“I was wondering if that message would stick.”
I looked down.
“It already has.”
He gave me one firm clap on the shoulder.
“Good.”
“Because tomorrow…”
His smile widened.
“…I don’t want NHL Logan.”
“I don’t want Future First Round Pick Logan.”
“I don’t even want Captain Logan.”
He pointed toward the elevator.
“I want the little idiot who used to smile every time he stepped onto fresh ice.”
I laughed.
“I can do that.”
“I know you can.”
That evening, the coaches gathered all forty players in one of the conference rooms.
The walls were covered with banners.
NHL logos.
USA Hockey.
Development programs.
Names of former players who’d stood exactly where we were standing now.
Some had gone on to win Stanley Cups.
Others had never played a single NHL game.
The showcase director stepped to the front.
“I know every one of you is thinking about scouts.”
A few guys chuckled nervously.
“So let’s get this out of the way.”
He smiled.
“The scouts already know who you are.”
The room became silent.
“They’ve watched hundreds of hours of film.”
“They know your strengths.”
“They know your weaknesses.”
“They know your statistics.”
He paused.
“This weekend isn’t about convincing them you exist.”
“It’s about showing them how you compete.”
I felt something inside me loosen.
Maybe Harper’s bracelet really was working.
Because for the first time in months…
My heartbeat wasn’t racing.
The director continued.
“The players who struggle at showcases usually make one mistake.”
He held up one finger.
“They stop playing hockey.”
Several confused looks spread across the room.
“They start trying to create highlight reels.”
“They force plays.”
“They become selfish.”
“They stop trusting the instincts that got them here.”
He smiled.
“So here’s my advice.”
“When the puck drops tomorrow…”
“…forget every scout in this building.”
“…forget every ranking.”
“…forget the NHL.”
He pointed toward the arena next door.
“And remember what it felt like the first time your parents tied your skates.”
The room erupted in quiet laughter.
I felt my fingers wrap around the bracelet again.
Play Free.
Coach.
Mom.
Harper.
Three different people.
Three different conversations.
The exact same message.
Maybe the universe really had been trying to tell me something.
Later that night, I lay in bed staring at the ceiling while the city lights filtered through the curtains.
Sleep refused to come.
Not because I was nervous anymore.
Because I was grateful.
Grateful my mom had believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself.
Grateful Coach had never let me settle for being just talented.
Grateful Cole had always been the brother I never had.
And most of all…
Grateful for the girl who had somehow spent years breaking through every wall I’d ever built.
I picked up my phone one last time before turning off the light.
Me: Made it safely. Chicago is loud. Coach already told me to stop overthinking.
The typing bubble appeared almost instantly.
Harper: Good. I was about to call the FBI.
I laughed quietly.
Me: Miss you already.
There was a longer pause this time.
Then another message appeared.
Harper: Miss you more.
Another.
Now go get some sleep, Hockey Boy.
Tomorrow…
Just play free. ❤️
I looked down at the bracelet one last time.
Then smiled into the darkness.
Tomorrow wasn’t about becoming someone new.
Tomorrow…
I was finally going to become the player I’d always been.