Page 48 of Rookie Attraction

“We won! What a night!” I shout. “Fucking magic!”

The rest of the team swarms around us, shouting, patting helmets, celebrating the victory that is oh so sweet. My first NHL win and I’m over the moon. Over the moon, the stars, and into another galaxy. But despite the on-ice chaos, I feel the weight of Sel’s arm around my shoulders, and when I look over, the fire in his expression.

We stare at each other a fraction too long.

When I blink, he’s turned away, and I think I imagined it.

It’s the buzz of winning.

We’re both riding a tremendous high.

I’m walking on air as we glide off the ice. Jesus, what a fucking game. I’m gonna burst with happiness at any given moment. Reporters crowd the hallway, cameras flashing as Sel and I walk side by side.

“It looks like first-time nerves are gone,” one journalist calls out. “You two were unstoppable out there at the end of the third. Is there a defensive bromance brewing on the ice?”

Bromance? I glance at Sel, watching his face pale. I suddenly don’t know what to say.

“Why do they get all the attention?” Makela hits back, nudging me with his elbow. “I’m the one who scored twice. What about my bromance with the puck?”

Everyone around us laughs, and I offer my teammate a nod in thanks for diverting the reporters. Not that it stops them from lobbing more questions at Sel.

“Sel, how does this win feel? Have you turned a corner?”

“A win is why we’re here and it feels awesome. Everyone on the team worked hard and we’re not letting up.”

“And what about your on-ice chemistry with the rookie?”

“His name is Finn. Finn Baran. And we’re doing what we’re paid to do,” Sel adds. “Next.”

Reporters throw out more questions, but I hardly hear anything. The word “bromance” repeats like a loop in my head and I can’t get it to stop. After the questions are done, and the exhilaration of the win starts to cool, reality kicks in, and we make our way to the locker room. Berg invites us to go out to a club, but I beg off. We have a long road trip coming up, and I want to be prepared to play every game like I did tonight.

But that’s not the only reason I decline.

That one I prefer to keep to myself.

“You need a lift home?” Sel asks me quietly as I reach for my bag.

Despite the warning in my head, the one that tells me to say no, I nod. I’m all up in my feels and I don’t know that I’m ready to be vulnerable in front of my teammates. Only Sel, because I trust him. I’m not sure I can separate our friendship from work, and why should I have to? If I’m too much, he’s free to tell me to get lost. My mind’s made up.

“Thanks.”

The rest of the guys are still celebrating with each other when Sel and I quietly slip out of the locker room. I make it to the parking garage, but when I slide inside Sel’s car, the enormity of tonight’s win hits me like harder than the opposition.

“You okay, Finn?”

I nod and blink quickly, shaking off the tears that threaten.

Sel’s going to think I’m losing it.

No, he wouldn’t. That’s why I’m here, now, with him.

“After my first win in the league, I called my mom, and when I heard her voice, I bawled my fucking eyes out,” he admits. “It’s okay to be emotional about it. It’s what we spend our lives working for. It’s a huge day and you need to feel it.”

I sniff and wipe my eyes. There are so many people I need to call, but my family comes first.

“I should go back and party with the rest of the guys,” I confess. “I just felt, I don’t know, like I needed to be alone with it for a while.”

“I get it.”