Page 64 of Monstrous Serpent

He never takes his eyes off the ice during a game. Not once. Not when he's hurt, not when he's in the box, not when he's so pissed he can barely see straight. His eyes are always on the play.

A chill slithers up my spine, and I turn back toward the crowd.

What the hell did you see?

The penalty kill starts, but it only takes UConn forty seconds to score, and now we’re tied.

“Fuck!”

I push out of the box the second the door opens and make my way toward the bench, but Coach Reed waves off the change. Hunter hops over the boards and glides in beside me.

There are five minutes left in the period. We need to keep our shit together because no way are we losing our first game of the season.

But something’s off with Hunter. He's right next to me, yet a thousand miles away.

“Hunt?”

“Focus.”

I roll my eyes and drop into my stance, jaw clenched.

Because the last twelve hours haven’t been shitty enough, now he’s icing me out.

Cap loses the draw, and the puck goes straight back to their defense. I push off, heel-to-heel, stick in the lane. They swing it across the top once and hit the weak side. Their left winger takes it wide and rips a low wrister from the circle.

Shin's square to it. The puck hits his right pad and kicks hard into the corner.

I pivot and chase, edges biting into the ice, but their winger slips around me and dishes it into the middle to Nakagawa. He doesn't even set up, just rips a wrister in one motion. Shin gets a piece of it, but the puck pops loose at his feet.

Nakagawa takes two more hard strides and barrels straight through the top of the crease, plowing into Shin full speed.

“Motherfucker!” I take off ready to pummel this goddamn freshman into the ground, but Hunter's already there.

Nakagawa laughs as Hunter knocks his helmet off and unloads. The kid takes two shots in the face, and his grin doesn't even flicker. “That all you got, big man? My sister hits harder.” He throws a right to the side of Hunter’s cage. “Come on, come on, give me something real!”

I cut my angle, skating toward Hunter. I need to stop him before he does something stupid, something that lands him in jail.

Someone slams into my shoulder, causing me to lose my footing. “What the—”

Pink hair flies past my shoulder.

Shin.

He grabs Nakagawa by the back of the jersey and yanks him off Hunter, spinning him around. “Touch my crease again, and they carry you out.”

“Does the pretty goalie want to play too? I'm honored.” The kid grins at our goalie like he's been waiting for this all game, and Shin just handed it to him gift-wrapped.

“Kutabare, temee.” Shin's stick goes across Nakagawa's throat, pinning him to the boards.

“Ooh, spicy.” Nakagawa looks right at Shin and drags his tongue up Shin's cheek in one slow, deliberate stripe. “You taste like expensive moisturizer. What is that, La Mer? Very bougie for a hockey player.”

Holy shit.

Did this fucking kid just lick Shin's face?

“Omae, kimochi warui.” Shin wipes his cheek with the back of his glove, disgust radiating off him so hard I can feel it from ten feet away. “Touch me again, and I'll gut you.”

“Promise?” Nakagawa winks.