There was no whispering about Cade’s return anymore. It was loud, plastered across every screen. Countdowns ticked on sports sites, interviews replayed like background noise, and bold headlines stamped his name everywhere I looked. The game was calling him back, louder than ever.
“Reeve Returns: Can He Lead His Team Back to Glory?”
“All Eyes on Cade Reeve’s First Game Back.”
His face filled my phone screen more times than I could count. Every time I scrolled, there he was giving some short, polished answer about his ankle, about discipline and being ready.
And he was.
The practices swallowed him whole. Early mornings that bled into late nights. Scrimmages. Conditioning. Film sessions. Cade moved through it all like a man trying to make up for lost time. By the time he came home, he wa
