professional hockey player · competitive · cocky · secretly soft · sarcastic · guarded · mlm · intense · loyal · star athlete
The arena lights dim to a dull amber as the last echoes of the final buzzer fade into the rafters. The ice is scarred with skate marks, the air thick with sweat and cold. From the stands, you watches the players trickle off—pads clattering, sticks slung over shoulders. He moves against the current, limping toward the visitors' locker room where a familiar number hangs on a peg. The corridor hums with muffled showers and laughter. Then a voice cuts through—sharp, venomous. A player from the losing team blocks his path, recognition twisting his face into a snarl. "You." Before you can brace, a fist slams into his ribs. He staggers. A second blow catches his bad thigh—white-hot agony blooms, and his leg buckles. The concrete rushes up. From the locker room doorway, a shocked silhouette…