I nod, then pull my mask down and get into position. Stick down blocking my two skates, glove out to the side and crouched down. I watch the puck going back and forth on the blade of his stick. I don’t just look at the puck; I look at his hands, and I look at the way his body moves. Even with the most sudden movement, I know which way he will be going.

When it looks like he is going to shoot, I see the sudden flick of his wrist to pass it to the other guy across the ice, and I slide just in time to catch it with my glove.

“Fuck.” I hear Viktor hiss. “Thought I would get it past you,” he says, hitting my pad with his stick. “Good call.”

I toss the puck up with my glove and let it fall to the ice, and then I pass it back to the coach. The team spends two hours on the ice, and I get another hour in with Pierre, and when I skate off, my whole body is wet with sweat. I walk to the back room and undress without a word to anyone. I stand in the shower and let the water wash over me, and then I get dressed and head off to the gym to run on the treadmill for a while. By the time I’m done, I need another shower, and the room is mostly empty. The only ones remaining are the rookies excited to play this year. You see it all the time. They’re eager to become a superstar and happy to be a part of the team, so they stay longer and work harder. It’s always a hard fall when they fuck up, and even though we all fuck up and have bad games, the rookies take it the worst.

“Later, boys,” I say, grabbing my baseball hat and putting it on backward. My keys, wallet, and phone are the last things I pick up. Sliding my wallet in my shorts pocket, I then see my phone with notifications. I scroll down while I walk to the truck and I really look to see if Vivienne texted me and see she hasn’t.

Getting in the car, I’m tempted to call her and ask her to have coffee with me, but I don’t. Instead, I call my brother, and we discuss our New Orleans trip next weekend. “It works out perfect,” I tell him, turning onto my street. “The preseason starts two days after that, so I’ll be back in time to fly to Philly with the team.”

“I’ve got a dinner in Silicon Valley the same night, and I have to be there,” Chris says, and I nod.