Jonah didn't know why his coach felt it was necessary to announce that he'd invited an NHL scout to come watch him play at their after school hockey game in front of the entire locker room, but there he was, hyping Jonah up in front of the rest of the guys, who looked like they were getting ready to rip him apart once Coach left.

"This is a big deal, boys, and not just for Moshe. I want you all working your hardest," he told them, but his gaze was fixed on Jonah as he said it, which made him squirm a little bit. However, nothing was more uncomfortable than the fear he felt after Coach gave him a supportive clap on the back and left, leaving him alone with his fuming teammates.

In an attempt to release the massive tension in the room, Jonah smiled and gave them all a thumbs up. "Good luck, guys."

They all glared back at him, so he lowered his hand as they started to file out of the locker room around him. Erik walked by and gave him a good shove to the shoulder, but he wasn't on his skates yet, so he didn't go anywhere. He stayed completely still, knowing it was better that he let everyone go before he finished getting geared up.

Only when he was positive that they'd all walked away did he start to put on his skates. Freshman year, he put on his skates in the locker room like everyone else, but some senior had used his instability to his advantage and pushed him over. He twisted his ankle and couldn't play for a week and a half.

Jonah tried not to think about it too much. He didn't want to be afraid of his own teammates.

He finished lacing up his skates and pulled on his lucky blue guards aba got him for Hannukah when he was a kid. With a deep breath and a silent prayer he wouldn't get tripped on the ice again, he walked over to the big metal door and pulled it.

Only nothing happened.

So he gave it another good pull.

It didn't budge.

"No," he mumbled as he frantically yanked the handle. "No no no no no."

He clambered over to the other door in the back of the room and tried again, only to find it was locked as well. He pounded on the metal, but there was no use. Nobody would hear him.

"Fuck!" He screamed, throwing his stick on the floor. He grabbed his phone from his bag and checked the time.

He had sixteen minutes until the game started, and he was sure his coach would want him on the ice warming up in less than five. At this point, he'd have no time to introduce himself to the scout, no time to run drills, and no time to psych himself up.

Translation: he was fucked.

He considered pounding on the door some more, but that wouldn't do any good. The locker room was isolated from the rest of the rink by a long hallway filled with trophies.

He also couldn't call his parents. The last thing he wanted was for his teammates to see his mommy save the day for him. Plus, they worried too much about him, as he was their only child and he was dedicated to playing a seriously dangerous sport. Jonah hated that he was such a big concern in his parents lives, so he really didn't need to give them another reason to worry about him.

Jonah was trapped. He looked around him at the cinderblock walls and the metal lockers he'd had the luxury of being shoved in more than once and decided this place was ten times worse than Happy's. Sure, he had to endure Priya's rants and the awful smell of the pharmacy, but nothing could be worse than being trapped in a locker room filled with humiliating memories that made him shudder to think about. Also, it smelled like BO.

He leaned his head against the cold metal locker and squeezed his eyes shut as tight as they go, trying to figure out a way to get out in the next ten minutes. "C'mon, Jonah. You got this dude," he whispered to himself, hoping a little boost of confidence was all he needing to think up a great plan.

His intense thinking was interrupted when his phone buzzed on his lap.

From: Nicky!!
hey. I was gonna supise you by coming to your game but then I got to the place and I realized idk which rink you play in. whoops. anyway which one is it?

From: Nicky!!
*surprise fuck my fingers are literally gonna fall off why is it so cold in here

Jonah grinned at the thought of Nicky watching him play, but his happiness faded in almost seconds when he realized that wouldn't be happening. In fact, he probably would never see Nicky again. He'd probably live out the rest of his days in this locker room, rationing the single granola bar he had in his bag until it ran out, and then he'd die. Then maybe they'd name the rink after him or something.

He groaned and decided he'd give Nicky one last goodbye before he met his demise. Or before the game ended and his team came back in. Whichever came first.

"Hey, Nicky! Thanks for coming, but I probably won't be playing," he said into the phone.

"Why?"

"Oh, I just... I'm not feeling all that great."

On the other end, Jonah could practically hear Nicky roll his eyes. "What did your fucking team do now?"

Jonah didn't say anything.

"Answer me, Jo."

He sighed and squeezed his eyes shut like he was waiting to be hit by a punch as he told Nicky, "they locked me in the locker room."

There was a long pause on the end of the line, then a deep, deep sigh. "One second," Nicky said, abruptly hanging up before Jonah could say anything else.

Two minutes later, the door busted open and a large woman with hair as white as her skin, all bundled up in a scarf and mittens, was standing in the doorway. Behind her stood Nicky with his arms crossed and his teeth grinding together.

He looked pissed.

"Jonah Moshe, how did you get yourself all locked up in here? You have a game in a few minutes!" The lady, whom Jonah knew as the skate rental lady, Doris, scolded. Jonah loved Doris. She always pinched his cheeks and gave him candy and told him when his hockey hair got too long and looked like a mullet.

Jonah shrugged. "Must've been an accident. Thanks, Doris."

She winked at him and nodded her head at Nicky. "Don't thank me, thank you're little friend here. He looked like he was gonna explode when he told me you were stuck in here," she told him with a laugh. Nicky rolled his eyes, but Jonah didn't miss his little smile he was fighting to suppress.

When Doris left after propping the door open with a spare stick and telling the boys to call her if they managed to trap themselves in again, Nicky grabbed Jonah's gloved hand and pulled him up from the bench. "Come on. I didn't ditch my date with my AP Chem textbook for nothing."

Jonah didn't budge, though. Nicky wasn't strong enough to pull him along, so he just turned back to Jonah and gave him a sideways look. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," he said quickly, but Nicky didn't look convinced. He sighed and looked at his shoes. "It's just... this is the second time you've had to save me this week and-"

"Don't apologize."

"I wasn't gonna!" Jonah assured him, throwing his hands up in defense. "I was just going to say... thanks. And if anyone ever messes with you, call me. I'd do anything for you, Nicky."

Nicky scoffed and crossed his arms tightly around his chest, his eyes wandering around the locker room. His ears were firetruck red, but his cheeks were blushed slightly, dusted pink under all his freckles. Nicky usually had these hard, intimidating features that would make anyone a little nervous, but he looked different now. Jonah always thought he looked really cool, and he'd tell Priya that almost every day, but at that moment, he was more sweet and innocent looking than cool and intimidating. It was cute, almost.

A sharp pain shot through Jonah's chest and surged throughout his body out of no where, leaving almost as quickly as it came. He clutched his chest and winced. It felt like a lightning bolt had zapped his heart and send electricity all throughout his body, leaving tingles everywhere (and he meant everywhere).

"Are you okay?" Nicky asked. Jonah shook out his hands, feeling little pricks that weren't painful like the ants, but rather comfortable, like there were little dancers prancing around on his fingers.

He felt good.

He nodded and shook out his curls. "Totally. Just nervous, I think. Someone's here from the NHL to watch me."

Nicky's eyes went wide and then Jonah was being pushed out the door, stumbling a bit on his skates as Nicky tried his best to move him despite the weight of his gear and the few inches he had on him. "What are you waiting for, dumbass! Go! Go! Go!"

And so Jonah went. And he played great, scoring once, assisting a teammate to another point twice, and never losing focus enough to mess up.

At one point, when the defensive players were the ones doing the most work to keep the puck from flying into their goal, he scanned the crowd for the scout to see if he was watching. He was pretty easy to spot with his fancy suit and the giant black notebook he had on his lap. He was scribbling down notes and following Jonah as he moved around the ice, keeping his eyes only on him. That made him a little nervous.

What really made him nervous was the boy sitting two rows behind, chin resting on his hands and brows furrowed as he watched Jonah skate around, probably trying to figure out what the hell was going on. Jonah gave him a little wave— so tiny nobody would be able to notice it unless they were really watching. Still, Nicky waved back and gave him a thumbs up.

And that sharp pain started up again, but he ignored it, too busy grinning from ear to ear to care.

———————

👀👀👀👀

Guys don't call Jonah stupid he's trying his best ):

jk you can roast the shit out of him if you want.

How were your guys' holidays? I hope it was all good with family, because I know family can be tough.

Thanks for reading!!

~Teddy