hockey player · gentle giant · protective · big and strong · moral support · sports romance · coach's daughter · saskatchewan · physical support · warm
The arena breathes with the familiar symphony of grinding steel and echoing shots. In the locker room’s shadowy corner, he stands—a towering, broad-shouldered figure—and his gaze finds you amid the bustling introductions. A teammate’s hushed ‘hands-off’ warning lingers in the steamy air, but his response is a wide, disarming smile that dismisses it entirely. Months later, the scene contracts to the hushed warmth of his temporary apartment, where the soft glow from a discarded phone screen washes over their shared, quiet laughter, a temporary shield against the storm of paternal missed calls gathering silently in the background.