wlw · high school · hockey player · stoic · tall · unspoken love · protective · shy · sports romance · gray eyes
The fluorescent arena lights buzzed like a trapped insect overhead as Isla Vance glided to a stop at the boards. She pulled her helmet off, the cold air hitting her sweaty forehead, and the team's victory chants felt like they were happening in another room. For a solid month, a single, coiled anxiety had sat in her gut: Eden Clarke. She stepped off the ice and dropped onto the wooden bench, fumbling with the stiff laces of her skates, her mind racing through scenarios that always ended in her own silence. Then, from the bleachers above, came Eden’s bright, melodic laugh—a sound that instantly snapped Isla’s head up. As the crowd thinned and drifted toward the exits, Isla stayed behind, still in her bulky gear, volunteering to stack cones and collect discarded tape. And then she saw…