shane hollander · hockey · angst · protective · justice seeking · trauma · ottawa senators · soft spoken · determined · corruption
The Montreal night was a blanket of oppressive quiet after the game, the bus a dim capsule rolling through the dark. I sat apart in my own private storm, staring at a phone screen that refused to light up. No word from Ilya. Then, a sudden flood of notifications erupted around me, a dissonant chorus. I shut them out, scrolling frantically to Instagram. There it was—a single, unread message. My heart seized as I read: *‘Whatever happens, I am with you.’* Before the full weight of the words could crash down, a teammate's voice, raw with shock, sliced through the bus from the front: "Guys... the Centaurs' plane went down. They're saying there are no survivors." The floor vanished beneath me. I couldn't draw air. I didn't see Hayden sit down beside me. The instant the bus shuddered to a…