Chapter 73 73

Chapter 73 73
Roman’s POV

I entered the corridor that led to the locker room, , listening to the low rumble of thousands of spectator voices vibrating through the concrete walls.

As I walked past the equipment cage, I met Miles, Dex, and Jesse, who seemed to be on their way to the locker room too. They were leaning against the painted brick wall, their arms crossed over their team jackets.

“Look who decided to show up,” Dex said, swinging his hockey stick slightly. “We’ve been waiting for you, captain. We thought the pressure finally got to you and you jumped ship.”

“Very funny,” I muttered, shifting the strap of my duffel bag on my shoulder.

Miles stepped forward, checking his wristwatch. “Where have you been, man? Coach has been doing a lap around the rink looking for you. You’re cutting it pretty close today.”

“I ran into Harmony and Quinn outside,” I explained, leaning against the water fountain to catch my breath.

The moment I mentioned Quinn, Miles’ ears perked up instantly, his whole posture changing as his eyes widened and scanned the empty hallway behind me. “Wait, Quinn is here? Are they still outside right now? Or did they already go up to the student section?”

I chuckled and shook my head, the desperate look on his face amusing me. “They went inside to find seats before the place gets packed out. And, Miles, you need to chill. One of these days, Quinn would cut you up and have you for lunch if you keep suffocating her like this.”

Miles stared dreamily into space, a goofy, helpless grin spreading across his face as he leaned his head back against the brick wall. “Man, that would be my dream come true. She can chop me into tiny pieces if she wants to.”

Jesse rolled his eyes, groaning loudly as he kicked the bottom of Miles’ sneakers. “You are pathetic. Get a fucking grip. We have a game against the toughest team in the state in twenty minutes and you’re planning your own funeral.”

“Come on, Roman,” Dex said, jerking his head toward the locker room. “Bailey is already on a warpath today. If she catches us standing out here gossiping like high schoolers, she’s going to make us do suicide drills until midnight.”

“Yeah, yeah, go ahead,” I told them, setting my duffel bag down on the bench next to the water fountain. “Give me a minute. I’ll be right behind you.”

They turned and started walking further down the hall, but I stayed behind by the sink. I turned the metal handle on the tap, letting the water run until it was freezing cold. Then I bent over and poured it over the pulse points on my wrists, holding them under the stream for a long moment, praying that Harmony was right.

The sudden chill sent a sharp shock right up my arms, forcing my frantic breathing to slow down into a steady rhythm. It felt incredibly strange, but the tight, swirling sensation in my stomach actually started to fade.

I wiped my wet wrists against my jeans and turned around to find all three of them standing by the locker room door, staring at me like I had lost my mind.

“What the hell are you doing, Foster?” Jesse asked, pointing a finger at the wet patches on my clothes. “Are you trying to wash your hands or are you practicing some kind of weird voodoo magic before the game?”

“It’s science, you idiots. It calms the heart rate down. Just go inside.”

Miles stepped away from Dex and Jesse, lowering his voice into a dramatic whisper as he looked at my wet arms. “Amigo,” he said, shaking his head with a heavy sigh. “If you embarrass me like this in front of Quinn, if she sees you doing this weird water routine in public, you're the one who’s gonna be cut up and eaten for lunch by me. My reputation can’t take this.”

I swatted him away, throwing a playful punch at his shoulder to get him out of my face, just as the locker room door opened some distance away and Coach Bailey walked out.

She stood in the doorway, her clipboard gripped tightly in her hand and a whistle dangling from her neck. Her sharp eyes settled onto the four of us instantly, and the noise in the hallway died down to absolute zero.

“What is going on out here?” She barked. “Why are you not dressed yet? Move it!”

Dex and Jesse apologized quickly, their faces turning red as they grabbed their bags and ran toward the locker room door without looking back. I grabbed my own duffel bag from the bench, and Miles fell into step beside me, but Coach Bailey stepped right into the center of the doorway, blocking us.

“Foster, Carter, stay here for a second,” she said, waving her clipboard. “The rest of the team can start tape. I need a word with you two.”

We stopped in our tracks, setting our gear down against the wall.

She looked directly into my eyes first. “Roman, I know the pressure is high today. I know what everyone is saying. But you are the leader of this team for a reason. Don’t worry about the Salukis’ record. You just play your game, and the rest of the boys will follow you. You're the leader here. Got it?”

“Got it, Coach,” I said, nodding as her words pumped a fresh wave of confidence into my chest.

Then she leaned closer, looking down the hallway to make sure none of the assistants were within earshot. “I also need you two to know that there are going to be some new changes in the leadership around here, sooner or later.”

My heart dropped into my shoes for a second. I almost thought someone was going to replace Coach Bailey, that the athletic board was pushing her out after the mixed season we had last year.

“Coach, what do you mean?” I asked quickly. “Are you leaving?”

She let out a short laugh, shaking her head. “No, no, no, I’m not going anywhere, Foster. Relax. I’m talking about the front office. We are getting a new athletic director to replace the one who retired last month. He’s a major person in sports, spent the last ten years managing big college program scouting networks and corporate sponsorships across the Midwest.”

Her dark eyes shone with a lot of excitement. “Actually, he should have been here today to watch the game, but he called to say that he was held up by a compliance meeting down in Springfield. He’ll be here next week.”

She tapped the clipboard against her leg, leaning in slightly. “You guys should know that he has direct lines to three different NHL scouting directors. When he comes into town, I am putting the two of you right in front of him. The tennis, lacrosse and baseball coaches are all doing the same with their star players, and I am not about to let my two best skaters miss that window. This can kickstart your professional careers before the scouts even buy their tickets for the winter classic.”

Miles was already grinning, his face lighting up and his earlier worries about Quinn completely gone. I felt his excitement too, because a surge of pure ambition had replaced the last traces of my morning anxiety. This was exactly what Aaron had always talked about. Getting the right eyes on you at the right moment.

"Sounds good, Coach." I said.

"That's right." Coach Bailey clapped us both on the shoulders with two solid thuds and pushed us toward the rink, her face hardening back into her classic game-day expression.

“Now go get your armor on,” she said, pointing toward the locker room doors where the sound of shouting teammates was getting louder. “Get out there, boys, and make me proud.“