Fast Break

four : relief

Matthew had woken up rather early, he went down to the frozen lake behind his house. He skated around, keeping his reflexes sharp for today's game. Matthew was nervous as anyone would be before a game.

He got hype on the ice, listening to his favorite songs. He practiced his shots, he never made many shots as he mostly assisted, but he needed the practice. The sounds of Run-DMC and The Beastie Boys filled his ears. He kept taking shots at his net.

"Game day." Matthew sighed.

He spent the better half of his morning taking practice shots, hoping that today wouldn't be awkward. He hoped he'd play a good game. Today would be promising but, he couldn't stop thinking about Christopher. Was he just trying to be intimidating? Was Christopher trying to prove something? He didn't know. Matthew waited till game time. He had gotten to school and was hyping himself up when getting dressed. He put his earbuds in, Welcome to the Jungle by Guns & Roses came on.

It was time.

Christopher kept being himself. Stealing pucks, making smart ass remarks. Matthew tolerated Christopher's arrogance for the sake of the game. They had won the game 4-1, Matthew was happy they won but what's the point of assisting a play if the center steals the puck? Matthew wasn't thrilled.
Throughout the game Christopher kept stealing glances. The tension between them was building day by day. It was starting to become unbearable for Matthew. He was wondering about their interaction in the locker room, he didn't think Christopher was gay or bi or anything of the sort. He seemed different when he was alone with Matthew, Christopher was such an asshole when he was with his friends. Maybe Christopher was actually a good person surrounded by terrible people.

Matthew went home after the game angry; fuming about Christopher, he tried to blow off some steam on the ice. He managed to break his stick, thankfully he had many lying around. He had attended two weeks of school so far and he was already exhausted. He went the rest of the school week as usual, Elliot and him planned a day trip to Salt Lake City. Elliot had their license already, Matthew was thankful he didn't have to sit through an awkward car ride with his parents.