The Player

The NRU Wolves’ ice crunched under our blades. The sound of sticks slapping the puck echoed through the empty rink, and the cold air bit our lungs. Hard skate—Coach Hayes had ordered everyone to skate until we tasted metal.

I finished a speed drill and stopped at the boards, gasping for air, jersey stuck to my body, sweat dripping down my neck. Across the ice, Tyler had just stopped a slapshot from Logan and yelled:

“Attaboy, Logan! Almost scored! Almost!”

“Almost only counts if it goes in, dumbass,” Logan shot back, ripping his helmet off and shaking his wet hair out of his face. “If I wanted to be second best, I’d be in net with you.”

“Second best?” Tyler’s eyes widened. “I’m the only one holding you two together. If I slip up, we lose the championship.”

Ryan, leaning against the bench with his water bottle, laughed.

“Someone tell him we’re coming off a near-perfect season because of Justin.” He pointed his stick at me. “Yo, Parker. How many goals did you score last year again?”

“Don’t even bother counting, Ryan. You’d need a calculator to get to that number,” I shot back, wiping my face with a towel.

The guys laughed. Noah shook his head calmly, adjusting his gloves; Danny just watched, as usual, taking mental notes. That was it: chirping, shoulder checks, stupid competition. Routine. Until Evan skated to center ice and tapped his stick three times on the ice.

THAK. THAK. THAK.

The sound instantly cut through the chirping, and everyone stopped. Even the coach, up in the booth, raised an eyebrow. Evan took off his helmet, dark hair plastered to his forehead, deadpan. The guy who always throws himself in front of the puck and in front of any trouble.

“Listen up, boys,” he started, his voice deep and direct. “Quick announcement.”

Ryan already threw his hands up. “If this is about Coach’s diet, I’m letting you know right now I’m not giving up pizza.”

“It’s not about the diet,” Evan cut him off. “It’s about Julie.”

Everyone went dead silent. I froze for half a second longer than the others. Just half. Enough for the name to sound out of place in the rink.

Julie.

Evan continued, his eyes scanning the group. “My sister, Julie, is starting at NRU this semester. Freshman.”

“A freshman?” Tyler whistled softly. “Man, congrats. Now you gotta share the parking lot with your little sis.”

“And the parking lot isn’t the only place,” Evan said, his voice dropping to a colder, harder edge. “So listen closely.”

He looked at every single guy, landing on me last. I felt his gaze like a body check on the ice.

“She is off-limits.”

Ryan blinked. “...Off-limits for what?”

“For anything,” Evan replied. “Hanging out, parties, ‘studying,’ anything involving you guys.”

Logan muttered a “come on, man” and tossed his glove onto the bench. “The girl isn’t even here yet, we’ve never seen her face, and she’s already banned?”

“She’s my sister,” Evan said simply. “And I’m not repeating myself.”

Noah nodded slowly, rational as always. “Got it.”

Tyler opened his mouth, probably to make a joke, but shut it when he saw Evan’s face. Even he knew when to stop.

And me? I just stood there, leaning against the boards with the towel in my hand, keeping my face blank and my breathing controlled. On the outside, I was chill. On the inside, my idiot brain that hates being told what to do was already staring at the red line Evan had just drawn on the ice. I had no clue what the girl sounded or looked like, but Evan’s warning had instantly turned a stranger into the campus’s forbidden fruit.

“Alright, overprotective captain,” Ryan broke the silence, raising his water bottle in an ironic toast. “No Julie, noted. Now someone pass me the puck before I freeze out here.”

Practice started back up—sticks clashing, shouting. The usual Wolves noise. Evan skated back to the blue line, but I felt his eyes on me one last time before he moved.

I skated back into the drill, my mind trying to process the warning while my phone sat in my locker with Sophie’s last text still unanswered.

The rink spat us back into the Wolves’ locker room like it always did: smelling like sweat, melted ice, and burnt rubber. The blast of warm air hit my face as I pulled off my helmet; the heavy door slamming behind me muffled the echo of skates down the hallway. Practice was over, but Evan’s warning still hung in the air like smoke.

“She is off-limits.”

As if saying it out loud would shield a first-year from the rest of the world. I hung my helmet on the hook and started unlacing my gloves. My fingers were numb, my shoulders heavy, and cold sweat was already sticking my shirt to my pads.

“Holy shit, man,” Ryan said from the other side of the bench, a towel already wrapped around his waist. “Your brother takes the big bro role seriously, eh, Collins?”

Evan was already ripping off his shoulder pads, his movements sharp and controlled. He didn’t look at anyone.

“I meant what I said.”

“Yeah, we got that,” Noah replied calmly, hanging up his helmet. “Relax, Evan. She’s a first-year, she probably won’t even step foot near the rink.”

“She will,” Evan said. “She’ll want to watch a game, see the campus, want to...” He paused, his jaw clenching. “She’ll want to live her life, and I’ll let her. Just not with you guys.”

Tyler let out a muffled laugh as he unzipped his duffel bag. “Dude, chill. We don’t even know the girl. Why would we even want to hook up with her?”

Ryan raised an eyebrow at me, leaving the implication hanging. I didn’t bite. I just dropped my gloves on the bench, grabbed my water bottle, and took a long swig, the cold burning my throat.

On the outside, I was the same as always: shoulder leaning against my locker, blank expression, head in the game, the Wolves’ star player. But on the inside, I was digging through my memory... Julie. Nineteen, first-year English major, I think. Evan had mentioned it at a party last year while wasted. I’d never seen a single photo of her, didn’t know if she was hot, ugly, or unbearable, but I knew she was Collins’s kryptonite. Our captain’s weak spot.

“You should stop acting like she’s made of glass, Collins,” Logan said, zipping up his bag. He always felt the need to poke the bear. “She’s nineteen, not twelve.”

“And that’s exactly why I’m saying it,” Evan replied, finally looking at him. “I know you guys.”

That shut the whole locker room up for a second. Because he did know us. He knew Tyler, who threw parties every Thursday. He knew Ryan, who couldn’t keep his mouth shut. He knew Logan, who used any weakness against you.

And he knew me.

Shit. He knew exactly what kind of guy I was. The dangerous kind for a sheltered first-year.

I turned to my locker and yanked it open harder than necessary, the metal clanging loud. Inside, my phone was flashing.

1 unread message. Sophie Bennett.

“Missed you last night 😏 Practice early today? Want to come over later? I promise pizza.”

I clenched my jaw. Yesterday I was at her place because it was easy, because the apartment was empty, because kissing Sophie felt good. Because she wanted something serious and I let her think we were getting there. Pure convenience. I was a selfish piece of shit, and Evan knew it.

If I went anywhere near his sister, I’d destroy the only friendship that actually mattered to me.

I unlocked my phone and typed a quick reply: “Just finished practice. Exhausted. Tomorrow?”

I sent it before overthinking, before the guilt could set in. Ryan passed me on his way to the showers and nudged my shoulder.

“You’re too quiet, Parker. Normally you’d have cracked a joke by now. You thinking about what Collins said or just wiped out?”

“Wiped out,” my voice came out rougher than I intended. “We have a game next week, I need some sleep.”

Ryan laughed. “Right, sleep. Sure.”

I slammed my locker shut. Evan was still there, a towel around his neck, watching me out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t need to say anything; we were brothers by choice, and he knew how to read my silence. And I knew that if I messed up with the new girl, I’d lose him forever.

So I was going to be a responsible son of a bitch. I’d see Sophie tomorrow, focus on the championship, and bury any stupid curiosity about his sister deep down. Because I can handle taking hits on the ice, but losing Evan? That would destroy me.

I turned off my phone and headed for the showers.