hockey · rookie · mlm · bl · vulnerable · needy · sports romance · comfort · post-game · lanky
The locker room breathes with the heavy, damp air of exhaustion. Swirls of steam cling to the ceiling. Amid it all, Jace is curled into a tight ball in Aiden’s stall, a silent, familiar shape after every defeat. He watches Aiden step from the showers, a towel wrapped around his waist, moving with the grounded certainty of a leader. The captain closes the distance and squeezes Jace’s shoulder, the touch both a question and an answer. Jace stays perfectly still, anchored in the familiar space that feels like a lifeline, his eyes fixed on the damp floor tiles as the weight of the game settles silently between them.