The Exchange

Chapter 46, Part 2

I looked down at the ground. "Fuck."

"That sucks, dude. They did so well," Blaine said.

I rubbed my eyes underneath my glasses and looked up at him. "No. It doesn't suck. It's so much worse. Matt put everything for fifteen years into the sport, and it's all over for him. He deserved better."

I looked back at the ice. The other team huddled at one end of the ice in celebration, and it sickened me.

Matt was on the bench, his head hung in disappointment, David laid on the ice, and Viktor stood beside the net without moving.

I watched Viktor turn his attention up to the crowd, and his eyes met mine. He immediately looked away and skated off the ice and down the runway.

I glared at his back. "It's over for Matt. If the situation was reversed and it was Viktor's last game, Matt would've done anything to keep that puck away from the net. Anything. I'm fucking pissed."

Blaine frowned. "He doesn't have the same heart as you and Matt."

"You aren't born with heart. You find it within yourself when people rely on you. And that's where he and I will never see eye to eye. He doesn't realize that he has certain responsibilities on a team, and when he doesn't perform to the level he's expected to, he should be pissed."

"You could always kill him," Arti said.

I shook my head. "I'm not gonna kill him."

Blaine smiled. "How mature of you."

I stood up from my seat and wiped my sweaty hands on the front of my jeans. "Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuckity fuck fuck."

"You're handling it pretty well. I'm proud of you," he said.

"Just wait until I get my hands on Viktor. Then you'll be thoroughly disappointed in me again."

"It's going to take a lot more than murder for you to disappoint me."

"I don't know how to respond to that," I said. "I'm just gonna go wait for Matt, and, you know, probably not murder anyone."

I turned and headed for the exit.

Blaine laughed. "Probably not murder someone. Probably."

I shook my head as I opened the door.

I sat against the wall by the exit door with the cool, spring-like air washing over me anytime someone came in or left. Part of me wished that I still had my long hair so it would provide some protection from the breeze, but I could live through it.

David walked into the main entrance hall with a limp so slight, I probably wouldn't have noticed it if I wasn't looking for it.

"Hey little Janye," he said and ruffled my hair as he walked past. He turned back to me and laughed. I smiled and didn't even bother to comb it all back into place with my fingers.

Winterview University was his next stop, and as much as I wanted that spot to go to Matt, he was a good option too. It would be nice to have him around if I ended up going there.

But who else would want me for their school? Suspensions spoke volumes about students.

I waited for a moment longer, and that was when I saw Matt.

Matt's eyes met mine, and unlike Viktor, he didn't look away. He just frowned and shook his head. "I'm sorry we couldn't pull it off for you."

I wrapped my arms around him. "I'm sorry it ended like this. It wasn't supposed to."