JACE
I didn’t realize how often I looked for her until she stopped being there.
Every time the heavy double doors of the locker room swung open, my eyes automatically scanned the corridor, searching for a flash of blue denim or a neat, oversized binder. Every time my phone buzzed on the metal bench post-practice, a sudden, addictive spike of adrenaline hit my ribs, only for a cold wave of profound disappointment to wash over me when the screen showed a text from Liam or a calendar invite from the athletic department.
She was gone. The quiet, lingering presence that had anchored my chaotic semester had completely evaporated, and the silence she left behind was loud enough to make my ears ring.
"Donovan! Focus! Pick up the intensity on the backcheck!" Coach Daniels barked, his whistle pi
