Love For A Game

Chapter 22

When the rest of the team hears about the incident with Nicole, there is a huge uproar in the dressing room before the game.

"He should be suspended indefinitely!" One says.

"He should be charged!" Says another.

"Send him to juvie!" Yells a third.

"Okay, okay!" I shout, silencing everyone. "What happened to Nicole was pretty horrible. I don't like it either. But we cannot let our anger show. We need the win today."

"Jordan's right," Coach Bennington says. "Whether we like it or not, Darren will be playing today. So will the rest of them who participated in the act. They're going to exploit the fact that Nicole isn't here. We have to be ready."

"If we're not," I say. "They're gonna kill us out there. Our defence is going to have to work that much harder, with Nicole out. It'll be difficult, I'll say that. But we can do it. We have to do it."

"We got to this point last year," Coach says. "If we work hard, we can get past these guys. We've beaten them in the past. Today is no different. Except for the fact that the stakes are higher than they've ever been. It is our time to shine, and finish what we started."

"Also, let's earn a little payback, shall we?" I add.

We all stand, and head out to the ice, with determined looks on each of our faces. This is game one against the Crusaders, and we know how it feels to lose against them. We don't know how it feels to win. Winning this championship is what will solidify the legacies of all of these players, and hopefully my stock will raise.

We step out onto the ice. Colbert is already out there. They see us, and begin to laugh once they realize that Nicole isn't here. The referee blows his whistle, and we begin to line up for the faceoff.

Darren sneers at me from across the line. "What happened to your girlfriend, huh, Devlin?"

"You damn well know," I say. The referee then drops the puck.

From there, the game is a dull one, at least for us. We cannot seem to get anything going, and the Crusaders get scoring chance after scoring chance.

After the first period, the score is 2-0. The score after two periods is 4-1 for the Crusaders. The third period is where they hit us the worst, and we lose 7-2.

To lose so badly in a playoff game is very painful for the losing team. This pain is increased by a factor of a hundred when it's the finals, the league championship on the line. We know the feeling like a child knows his mother: pretty damn well.

The feeling in the locker room is terrible. We just went through the motions today, and we all know it. We all sit in our stalls, reminiscing about last year's failures, and how our current feeling is very similar to what we felt then.

I get up, and leave the locker room. I exit the arena through the back exit, where I know I won't be followed. I then walk over to Nicole's house, to pay her a visit.

***

Nicole's father opens the door. "Jordan, how are you?" He says. "Come in, please."

"Thank you, sir," I say. "I'm here to see Nicole."

"She is upstairs, in her room. You know where it is."

"Thanks a lot."

I head up the stairs and into Nic's room. She smiles when she she sees me. She stands and I wrap my arms around her. I'm careful not to touch any of her bruises.

"How'd the game go?" She asks me. I look down, and she frowns. "Not too well, huh?"

"We lost 7-2," I say sullenly. "We couldn't get anything going, Nic. We played a horrible hockey game."

"It happens," she says. We both sit down, and she puts a hand on my shoulder. "You have to put it behind you. It's only game one. There's still what, six games left?"

"Not if this continues," I mutter.

"Don't think like that," she replies sternly. "The Raiders will win, no matter what it takes. Also, I'm beginning to feel better. Maybe by game four of five, I might be able to play."

I look at her with wide eyes. "Are you sure that's wise?"

"No," she says. "I'm not. But I want to play. I need to play, Jordan. The team needs me too."

"I can't stop you," I say. "If you feel you have to play, then play. We could definitely use you."

"I want to play, Jordan, and I will. Just give me a few days, and I'll be back, and better than ever."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," I say, and smile.

_____

The song on the side is "Start Me Up", by the Rolling Stones.