AllFreeNovel
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"That's right. You know I worry about you. I shouldn't, of course. You make friends everywhere you go."
He smiled at that. "Thanks."
"We miss ya, kid," his dad said. "Kick some ass tonight."
"I'll do that."
"Love you, Will," his mom said.
"I love you both. Talk to you after the game."
He hung up and shoved his phone in his pocket, grabbed his bag and put on his coat, then headed toward the arena. It was a huge night and Will felt equal parts nervousness and excitement. This was the big game--the last game.
They'd had a long practice this morning and again this afternoon, allowing Canada their time on the ice as well. The entire team had eaten an early dinner together and had talked strategy for dealing with a very talented Canadian team. It wasn't like it was a given they were going to win.
He breathed in the crisp air. It smelled like impending snow. Clouds had gathered earlier, that ominous look that spelled a storm was coming. Will hoped it wouldn't be too bad. Just enough snow to bring a fresh pack to the mountain for the events.
It was getting colder, too. He pulled the hood of his parka over his head to ward off the cutting wind. By the time he made it to the arena, snow had started to fall in big, thick flakes, coming faster every minute.
He made his way to the locker room, shaking the snow off his coat and hat and tucking his gloves into his pocket. He felt chilled clear through to his bones. He needed a nice hard skate to warm him up.
"My man," Drew said, coming up to shove his things into the locker next to him. "You up?"
"I'm up."
"Gold looks really good on me," Eddie said, his golden blond hair spiked straight up. He slid alongside them on the bench. "So don't fuck this up."
Will cracked a grin. "I don't plan to, Eddie. I'd hate to ruin your golden moment with the press, especially since you're having such a good hair day."
Drew snickered.
Eddie shot Drew a glare. "Hey, don't diss the 'do. This takes work."
"You do realize you're about to stick a helmet on your ''do,' right?"
"Not a problem. It'll bounce back in time for me to have my moment with the cameras."
Will rolled his eyes and got his gear on. He was more than eager to get out there on the ice.
Coach Stein gave them an incredible motivational speech about doing this for their country, who were all behind them. Will felt that love of country deep in his bones. He was ready.
So when they were in uniform and stood at the entrance, listening to the clamor of the crowd, he felt that first rush of adrenaline drilling right into his marrow. That noise, those cheers, got him excited and eager to play.
They skated out to earsplitting noise, American flags waving throughout the crowd. He'd never felt happier to be representing his country than he did at this moment. He could only hope to do his country proud.
He saw Tim McCaffery skate by, wearing his team Canada gear. Tim skated backward, grinned and waved. Will smiled.
It was still so weird to be playing against a teammate. He knew Tim would do everything he could to win for Canada, just like Will would give it all he had for the US.
And when it was over, they'd go back to being teammates on the Ice.
Each team did their warm-ups and got ready for the game to begin. Will used all that nervous energy and centered it into his gut, preparing to go for the puck. He knew Canada had a loaded team with a ton of talent and this game wasn't going to be an easy skate for them. It was going to be three periods of digging in and working their asses off, with no guarantee of a win.
Which meant it was time to focus.
At the puck drop, Canada got the advantage, skating to the US net. Hance, their goalie, captured the shot from McCaffery and punched it out to their defenders. Will ended up with the puck and dropped it off for Oster, who took a shot.
Denied. Their goalie was sharp.
Dammit.
It was a back-and-forth battle, the puck making its way to both ends on a frequent basis, which meant they were all skating their asses off.
When Canada slid the puck into the net at the end of the first period, Will felt that sinking disappointment all the way to his feet. He ignored the erupting crowd noise.
He had to shake it off. Still plenty of time, and the game was close. They could do this.
They all fought hard for a score, but the only team that scored in the second period was Canada. Again.
Shit.
They could not lose this game. They went into the locker room and he'd never seen his team so down. He remembered every game they had played here. And it looked like they had already given up.
He stood. "Hey, guys."
They all glanced up.
"Take a look around this room. You know most of us play against one another all season. You know the talent in this room. You know how good everyone is. There is no way we can lose this game."
"Yeah, I'm sure the other guys in the other locker room are saying the same thing," Miles said.
Will laughed. "Probably. But you know what? We're just as good. No, we're better. That second period shot was lucky as hell and we all know it. And scoring two goals in a period? How many of us have done that in a game? Or more than that?"
"Plenty," Drew said. "So what's stopping us from scoring three?"
That's what Will needed to hear. "Exactly. This is it. This is for gold. This is what we came here for and we're not leaving without it."
They all stood in unison, sticks in the air, and shouted, "Yeah!"
They came out in the third period with a renewed sense of determination. They could come back from this and win it all. They would come back from this and win it all.
And when Drew sank one into the net within the first thirty seconds, that bright light of hope beckoned to Will. He felt the spark that jazzed him up like nothing else. This was that last game and they wouldn't give up.
They scored the second goal on a shot from Oster to Will, who slid the puck in between the goalie's legs. He had no idea how the goalie missed that block. What's more, he didn't care. They were tied and the arena was going crazy. Just the way Will wanted it to. Because they were tied and there were still five minutes left in the game.
Defense was going hard at Canada, and Hance was blocking every shot.
They were firing on all cylinders now and Will could feel it in every one of his bones. They had the crowd behind them, and the team was a fucking machine. They had this game.
But after four blocked shots, and the clock dwindling down, he wasn't sure they had this game in regulation. None of them wanted to do this in overtime, but if they had to, they would.
They were on the US side now, and Will was waiting for defense to do their job.
When the shot came his way, he and Drew hustled their way down the ice. He passed to Oster, who lined it up while Drew and Will fought their way to the goal. Canada's defenders were all over him as he skated his way to the interior. But he wrestled the puck and dropped it off to Drew, who took the shot.
Holy shit, it went in. It went in. They'd scored.
The crowd erupted and all Will could see was the lamp light up. He practically flew over to Drew.
"You fucking did it." He wrapped his hand around Drew's helmet and pounded him on the head.
"With a hell of a pass from you, buddy."
Will grinned. "Now let's close this out."
Will's heart was beating so fast he could barely catch his breath. He glanced up at the clock. A minute and a half left. It seemed like an eternity, because Canada could still score.
But defense was relentless, and Hance seemed to make himself even larger at the goal, blocking everything that came his way.
The buzzer signaling the end of the game was the sweetest sound Will had ever heard.
They'd won. They'd won gold. It wasn't like four years ago when Canada had beaten them by one goal. This time it was their turn.
Will had never ex
perienced this kind of elation before. As he skated to center ice to celebrate with his teammates, he felt as if he were floating on his skates. They all smacked one another on the head, hugged and skated around in circles.
It was total euphoria, all played out to the backdrop of screaming fans.
He knew his parents and his brother were watching, knew they'd be as excited as he was. He hoped the bar was packed and everyone had been buying drinks all night, that the bar's take tonight would be awesome.
Because he felt awesome.
He looked up at the crowd, knowing that Amber was somewhere up there.
They did their handshakes with the Canadians. Damn, he felt awful about Canada losing. A lot of these guys were his friends. He'd been on that side four years ago, so close to gold you could taste it.
But a silver medal wasn't too damn bad to come home with, either.
Once they finished shaking hands, they skated around the ice, waving to the crowd, some of whom threw the flag to them. They skated with the flags, proud of being Americans. The Canadians did the same.
It all felt damn good.
The medal ceremony later felt even better. He fought back tears when the national anthem was played, and in the end, just let the tears fall, knowing his teammates were crying, too.
It was an emotional moment to play for your country, to know you'd given everything you had out there, and had come out victorious.
It was a moment he'd never forget.
*
AMBER HAD CRIED WATCHING WILL AND HIS TEAMMATES receive their gold medals. She'd been so moved, watching those guys tear up, letting their emotions out.
She knew she wouldn't see Will tonight. He and his teammates would have so many interviews with the media, and they deserved to celebrate their win. She sent him a text message letting him know how proud she was of him, how amazing he'd played and she'd see him in the morning. She had her own big day tomorrow, so she needed to get some rest.
She and all her friends had been there to watch him. She was hoarse from all the screaming she'd done. It had been the most incredible game she'd ever watched.
Lisa had told her she was going to hang out with Blake at his place, so after saying good night to them, she made her way back to her apartment alone.
Her phone buzzed. It was her mother. She punched the button.
"Hi, Mom."
"Hello, Amber. What are you doing?"
"I went to the hockey game tonight. Now I'm heading back to my apartment to get ready for bed."
