Page 76 of On His Team

Percy sits on the floor with his back against the mattress and a plate balanced on one knee. He doesn’t touch it.

Stanley starts telling us about his cousin’s girlfriend owning a snake. I have no idea why. Neither does anyone else. The story takes at least ten minutes and ends without an ending. Nobody stops him.

Eventually Percy eats. And I’m relieved. That’s good enough.

The next afternoon, Fuller puts him right back in the net.

Percy stops thirty-three.

We win three-two.

Nobody makes a big deal out of that either.

Stanley gets the winner, and for once, Aspen cannot complain about where it comes from. He gets underneath the defenseman instead of drifting around him, takes the puck inside the dots, and scores from close enough that there is no argument to make.

He makes one anyway.

On the flight home, he FaceTimes Aspen and spends five minutes explaining what the slot is. Aspen lets him, even though she knows it.

Benson eventually gets up and changes seats, and I don’t blame him. I’m laughing when my phone buzzes.

Gianna: Did Stanley just score from the middle of the ice or am I hallucinating?

I look two rows ahead.

Stanley is still talking to Aspen with one AirPod in.

Me: He did.

Gianna: Is she okay?

Me: No.

Three dots appear.

Gianna: Proud of him though :(

I smile.

Me: Don’t tell him that.

Gianna: Obviously not.

Things feel normal again for about five days.

That’s the problem with winning the second game of a bad weekend. It gives you just enough evidence to believe the first one didn’t mean anything.

Michigan State comes to Camden the following Friday. The building is full before warmups. We’re home. We’ve won sixteen of our first twenty-four. We’re still in a good position nationally, and nobody inside our room is talking like anything is wrong.

We go up two-nothing.

Marsh gets the first. Blue gets the second. For forty minutes, we look like ourselves. Then the third period starts. Michigan State gets one early off a scramble in front of Percy. He never sees it.

2-1.

Still our game.

We settle for a few shifts. Get possession back. Spend enough time in their end that the building relaxes. Then we turn a puck over at the blue line. They come back with numbers.