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She said she needed her own space.

But I know what that really means.

Space turns into silence. Silence turns into goodbye.

Connor whistles beside me during a drill. "Yo, Jones. You planning on passing that puck to me today or just making snow angels out here?"

I grunt. "My bad."

We line up for the next set. I try to focus, but my stick fumbles a drop pass and I hear Coach's voice cut through the rink.

"Jones! Lock it in! You want a warmup or a wakeup?"

"Yes, Coach."

I chase the next drill like it owes me money, but my head’s still not in it. James skates up next to me and bumps my shoulder.

"Dude. You okay? You missed like three jokes in a row. One of them was even about a Zamboni and a raccoon."

"I’m fine," I mutter.

Connor smirks as he flies past us. "Somebody’s got a case of the 'girlfriend said something cryptic and now he's spiraling.'"

My teeth clench. "Fuck off."

They both go quiet. It hangs in the air like a slapshot gone wrong.

Then James whistles. "Damn. He’s in it. Like...itit."

Connor grunts. "That dude is sinking in quicksand and can't pull himself out."

I shoot him a glare, but it doesn’t land the way I want.

Because they’re not wrong.

***

In the locker room after practice, the guys are loud as usual. Towels whip through the air. Music blasts. Someone’s arguing over who farted during scrimmage like it’s a war crime.

I don’t move. I’m sitting on the bench, staring at my phone like it might ring. Or buzz. Or maybe just blink with a miracle.

Nothing.

James walks past, towel slung low, and stops. "Alright, bro, you gotta tell us what the hell is going on. You’ve been skating like you left your soul in the penalty box."

I rub my hands over my face. "She’s pulling away."

Connor spins around. "Mandy? The bar-exam badass?"

I nod.

Parker leans against his locker, frowning. "What happened?"

I exhale. "She saw those pics from our night out. You know the one. That blonde clinging to my arm like I was about to propose?"

James whistles. "Yikes. That girl was definitely auditioning to be a puck bunny centerfold."

"I didn’t do anything. Didn’t even notice her until the flash went off. But Mandy saw the comments. The tags. And then her sister FaceTimed her, apparently had a full meltdown over something on Instagram.”