31. Cody
Cody
I'm tense. So much more tense than I normally am before a game. I don’t know what to expect and I'm terrified Jude’s going to show up and something will happen.
We’re just getting onto the ice and I keep glancing up at the box I know Sloan is in.
“Dude, stop looking at that box like you can see her,” Jax hisses. “If he’s here, you’re going to give away where she is.”
“You’re right. She’ll be ok… right?”
“Uncle Mason won't let anything happen to her. If Jude makes a move, we’ll know. Uncle Mason isn’t afraid of making noise.” He pats me on the back and I nod my head. I need to focus.
The faster we get through this game, the faster I can get to my girl. The key is winning. If we lose, Coach will want us to stay in the locker room longer so he can tell us everywhere we went wrong. We need to play well so I can have Sloan in my arms sooner.
I squeeze my eyes shut and try to push everything else out of my brain. The only thing that matters is getting that puck into the net.
As soon as the game begins, I keep my eyes on Jax and read his every move. We work together like a well-oiled machine. By the end of the first period, we’ve scored four goals with Tanner’s help and Griffin, Huxley, and Killian have prevented at least two dozen attempts made by the other team.
“We’ve got this, boys!” Tanner yells above the noise of the crowd. He’s the hype man, the one always willing to get the team ready for the next period.
Normally, Jax is right there with him, encouraging us to keep going and to push ourselves a little more, but I can tell Jax’s mind isn’t solely on the game. Which is odd.
“C’mon, man, we only have two periods left. We can do this.” I nudge him with my shoulder and try to smile.
“He’s here, Cody.” Jax nods to the side and I follow his line of sight. I swallow hard as I find Jude’s face in the crowd.
He’s sitting in the same seat he was when I saw Sloan that first night. He’s waving in our direction like a crazy person.
“Wave to him and smile like you’re friends,” I murmur, keeping my voice quiet enough that no one else will hear me.
“What the heck? I'm not doing that!” Jax rears back and stares at me like I'm insane.
“Do it. He might think you don’t hate him anymore then.
C’mon, Jax, we need to chill his hostility towards Sloan.
” I'm practically pleading with him to do this. I understand his hesitation, he doesn’t want Jude’s stalker tendencies to increase, but I'm hoping if he thinks he has a shot at being friends with Jax again, he’ll leave Sloan alone.
“Honestly, stare at the girl next to him and pretend you’re waving to her. ”
Jax sucks in a deep breath and blows it out slowly as he plasters on a fake smile and waves in Jude’s direction. The girl next to Jude smiles brightly, thinking Jax is showing her attention and Jude puffs out his chest like he’s the most important person here.
“I hope you get run over by a bus,” Jax growls through gritted teeth. He might look like he’s smiling, but his jaw is locked so tight I'm sure he’s going to give himself a migraine.
The buzzer sounds and we take the ice again. When a play takes us over to where Jude’s sitting, he jumps to his feet and pounds on the glass like he can somehow help Jax keep the puck away from the other team. Jax’s frustration is palpable and I can tell he just wants this game to be over.
The worst part is, we can’t go home and relax in the hot tub like we normally would. Mason doesn’t want us outside in case Jude gets over the fence. There isn’t much we can do after a long game. That’s going to leave Jax even more tense at the end of the night.