CHAPTER 005
964 Words
KNOX
My phone buzzed with a text.
I almost crumpled the damn thing right there.
Dad:
*Governor Mitchell confirmed the Blackwolves match. Post-game photo is a must. You'll be there. You'll shake hands. And you must smile for the camera. You know who funded that new training facility. This isn't up for debate, Knox.*
I had told him no. Not once. Not twice. Said it to his face last week when he cornered me after practice.
Hockey was mine.
The only thing I had that was purely mine.
And I wasn't letting him drag it into his political circus.
He kept trying to use me as his poster boy. His prop. His ticket to the sports dad vote.
Like funding the new training facility was some generous gift instead of another chess move to sink his hooks deeper into my life.
I was done being his campaign strategy.
"Yo, Ryder."
Kim Dan was five spots ahead in the lunch line, tray balanced on one hand, looking at me like I'd glitched.
"You coming or you wanna make out with your phone some more?"
I pocketed it. "Jealous you're not getting the attention?"
"Devastated and heartbroken. I might cry later."
"Save the tears for the ice."
"Cold, bro. Cold."
I grabbed a tray and slid into line behind him.
The cafeteria was in chaos.
Freshmen scrambling for tables, upperclassmen staking territory, the constant clatter of trays and silverware echoing off the high ceilings.
I reached for the tongs. Grilled chicken breast. Quinoa. Mixed greens. A banana.
Kim Dan watched me plate everything with the enthusiasm of a funeral director.
"Bro. You eat like a robot whose taste buds filed a restraining order."
He grabbed a slice of pizza. Then a second one.
"This is real food."
"That's grease shaped like a triangle."
"Delicious grease." He took a massive bite. Chewed with zero shame.
"You should try happiness sometime."
"Mm." I replied.
We moved forward. I grabbed a protein shake. Tossed a hard-boiled egg onto my tray.
That's when I saw the banner.
Stretched across the back wall. Massive. Unavoidable.
SILVERBLADE VS. BLACKWOLVES
STATE CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFIER
THREE WEEKS
Our colors on one side. Theirs on the other. Two teams. One ticket to state finals.
This was the big one.
Every scout in the region would be watching. Every coach. Every sports media looking for the closest scandal.
Kim Dan followed my gaze. His chewing slowed.
"You ready for that?"
"Born ready."
"I'm serious."
"You gotta be careful this time," he said. "We can't have another... you know."
He didn't finish.
He didn't have to.
We both remembered.
"I've been clean," I said. "Months now. Alcohol's the hardest thing I touch anymore. And barely even that."
"Good." He nodded. Wanted to believe me. Maybe did. "Keep it that way. This match is everything."
"I know."
"Do you?"
"Dan."
"Alright." He held up a hand. "Just checking."
We headed toward the back of the cafeteria. Hockey table. Our territory.
Marcus was already seated, pushing lettuce around his plate like it personally offended him.
Theo was halfway through a massive sandwich. Javier had his earbuds in, laughing at something on his phone.
I should've been thinking about the match. About training. About the plays we needed to tighten up before the Blackwolves came to destroy us.
But my brain had other plans.
Alicia
Three nights and I still couldn't shake her off my mind.
Silver dress, messy hair, and mask that hid half her face.
'Name your price.'
No girl had ever stood up to me that way before.
And then she vanished.
No warning, number, last name. Nothing.
Just gone.
How could she leave like that?
Had I said something wrong? Done something stupid?
I couldn't find the mistake.
And that jacket she wore, it was not a knockoff. Not a merch you buy online. The real thing.
She was a student here. And I was going to find her.
"Knox."
I blinked. Kim Dan was staring at me.
"What?"
"You just walked past the napkins. You never skip napkins."
"So?"
"So your head's somewhere else." He grinned. "Who is she?"
"Nobody."
"Liar."
"Drop it."
"Fine. But you're buying me dinner when you finally admit I'm right."
I grabbed my tray and kept walking.
Then something crashed into my chest. Hard.
My tray flew. Chicken hit the floor. Quinoa scattered like shrapnel.
The protein shake somehow survived the fall but the lid popped off, green liquid splashing across the tiles.
And my blazer.
A stain. Spreading right across the navy fabric.
I looked down.
A girl.
On the floor.
Surrounded by what used to be my lunch.
She wasn't getting up.
Just sat there. Looking up at me. Eyes wide. Mouth open.
Like she was waiting.
For me to kneel down and scoop her up? Dust her off? Ask if she was okay?
The cafeteria had gone dead silent.
Everyone watching. Phones probably out. Recording. Because that's what people did here. Watched and waited for someone to screw up so they could blast it everywhere.
I stared at her.
She stared at me. Still not moving.
Still sitting there like she expected something from me.
I knew this game.
The fake accidental collision. The helpless act. The wide eyes and parted lips designed to trigger some protective hero response.
Girls pulled this crap all the time.
Bump into the hockey captain. Make a scene. Hope he falls for the damsel routine.
And maybe if I wasn't already pissed about my dad. Maybe if Dan hadn't just reminded me that one wrong move could end everything.
Maybe if the whole damn cafeteria wasn't watching, waiting to see what Knox Ryder would do next.
Maybe I would've been nicer.
But I wasn't.
"You planning to stay down there all day?"
- Writer
