Wolf Heart

Chapter 30

RAYAN

He prepared his school bag with everything he needed for the Starcross game, packing his full to the brim water capsule for the grueling challenge ahead while Ava ate her breakfast in silence nearby. He frowned at her, where her gaze settled on the I-Screen. "Ray?" she asked. "Where'd your mom go?"

"She had to leave a little early for some security stuff," he said as he shouldered his bag. "She didn't want to leave you until she knew you got something into you. It's all yours." He indicated back to the sweet-smelling kitchen. "There's some extra if you need it." Ava continued to wolf down her breakfast, and Rayan winced. "You don't want to choke."

"Sorry." Ava swallowed. "I... didn't get time to eat yesterday, so I'm starving." Rayan waited while she put the plate into the dishwasher and raced back up to the second floor landing. His wristpad ticked closer to the scheduled game, and he smiled when she raced back down to meet him. "Okay, let's go."

Rayan took the lead off the property, with Ava following right behind him. "Good luck," she said, and he stopped. "With the game."

Rayan forced a smile on his face. "Oh, the other team will need that luck," he joked, but turned away to hide his flailing confidence. But, James' head isn't going to be in the game. Jon might have to do a pep-talk... or I will. We got this. He clenched his fists and pumped them in front of him. Nope, all we've been doing is practicing, if we have to make sure there's not so much pressure on James on defense, we should be able to pull this out.

Ava kept close to them as they reached the school grounds, where the stadium filled with people. "Well, I've got to get to our locker rooms," he told her, then held his arms out. "I'll see you soon, when we've won." His heart swelled when she returned his embrace without hesitation. "I'll try talking to James too." He raced for the pitch where the other team's school gathered to watch the game between Eastpoint Collegiate and Roxton Collegiate. He spotted some of the teachers filling students into their side of the bleachers, though compared to the amount of Roxton students, their side lacked spectating cheerleaders.

Around the Starcross pitch, he slipped into the locker room.

His fellow frontliners, Tomas and Tharan eyed him as they slipped on their protective gear, then twisted to the corner. Jon loomed with a sense of desperation over James, who had his head tucked in his geared knees. The other two backliners sat on the bench with a sense of fading morale, what with their anchor unresponsive in the corner.

"Falae," Jon said and left James to head to him. "You need to get geared up, and then we need to have a bit of a talk."

Rayan glanced at James, who sank deeper into the corner. "I can assume what about." He opened his locker to slip on his wristguards, where they hissed and fell into a firm, but flexible fit around his forearms. Legs covered in the same formed padding, he nodded at Jon when he hovered around him. "How long was he like that?" He pointed at James, who gave no indication of hearing their conversation.

"He was like that when I entered," Jon said with a shrug. He pressed his fingers against his lips. "I've tried giving him my classic pep talks, but I think I just made it worse."

Rayan straightened himself out and readied his head protection on the bench while the rest of the team gathered around him and their goalie captain.

"We're playing against Roxton Collegiate," Tomas pointed out. "Every time we've tried anything against them they've just rolled over us." Morale dimmed in the air while Jon tapped his temple. "Our best bet was always our defensive strategy but..." Everyone of them turned to James, who ignored them in his cloudy misery. "If one of our head's isn't in the game..."