Luciano’s heart lurched into his throat.
His jaw dropped.
He suddenly felt hotter.
He lowered his head instinctively, already imagining the reaction of his teammates.
What would they think if they walked in and saw him pinned against a locker by the new boy?
What would they say?
The thought alone made his blood boil.
His entire reputation, his pride, and his authority is hanging by a single thread.
Then without warning just before the door finally open, Roman released him from his hold causing him to stagger backwards.
So what his teammates saw when they came in was Luciano swaying and barely holding onto a nearby locker for balance.
His face flushed.
His eyes unfocused.
While Roman stood at the side of his locker, a helpless expression and calculated innocence on his face.
This is the scene that their teammates saw, a wave of confusion ran through their faces as they looked from Luciano to Roman and back to Luciano again.
Joshua was the first to step forward.
His eyebrows furrowed.
“What is happening here?” He asked.
His gaze landed on Luciano.
“Luciano, are you bullying the new boy again.”
Luciano did not reply to him, he clenched his jaw.
His fists tightened.
Yet somehow no words came out.
How was he supposed to explain what had just happened?
He could only stare at him, shook his head regrettably and looked away in the opposite direction.
Joshua then turned to Roman.
“What did he do to you? tell me.”
Roman then made a pitiful expression.
Then he covered his face with his hands as if he was embarrassed.
He picked up his gears and walked with a slight limp.
He let out a low, shaky breath that sounded like a suppressed sob.
He got to where Joshua is and placed his hands on his shoulder, a painful expression on his face.
Leaving them all stunned and Luciano wincing in anger unable to talk.
*****
The laptop screen beeped twice, then lit up before a handsome man with green eyes, dressed sharply appeared.
Though the man was well into his late forties, his jawline was razor-sharp, and his dark hair was perfectly styled.
His expression carried the confidence of a man who was used to getting exactly what he wanted.
Coach Ferdinand on the other side immediately adjusted his posture and positioned his microphone properly.
“Hey coach.” the man said in an overly excited voice that felt more like a demand than a friendly greeting.
“Mr Anderson.” The coach said, his posture dipping in respect.
“How is it over there?”
“Everything is good chief.”
“How are the boys? I hope they are getting their preparations up. The championship is coming faster than the wind.”
“The boys are trying their best. We have been training harder than ever.”
The man’s smile waned a little.
“Doing their best is not enough. Remember your best could be someone’s worst.”
“I understand chief.”
Both men stared at each other for some time.
Each in their own deep thoughts.
Coach Ferdinand knows that Mario Anderson, the CEO of MARIS Chemicals and oil, will not just call him to exchange mere pleasantries.
“How is my son Luciano reacting to the new boy?” Mario went straight to the point.
Ferdinand wiped his face with a difficult expression.
As if he was given a hard task.
“To be honest with you,” Mario Anderson’s ear perked up in attention.
“They already fought twice. The first time your son met Roman Milkov, he greeted him with a punch. I even heard from the boys that they fought in the refectory over a table. I don’t even know what they would do next.”
Mario spoke up.
His brow furrowed.
“Didn’t Luciano have an exclusive table in that refectory? My late wife made sure of that.”
“Yes. Roman sat on that same table and refused to stand up.”
“I see.” Mario’s eyes narrowed into slits, his expression complex.
“It seems Roman and my son have an interesting dynamic.”
“They are always at each other’s neck and it doesn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.”
“Sounds like good news to me.” Mario said, his head bobbing enthusiastically over the laptop screen.
Confusion crept up Ferdinand’s face.
“Wha….What do you mean?”
“Roman not backing down for is good new to me. Luciano needs someone to shake him up, he thinks he is so good.”
“Mr Anderson….”
“He has been lax and ungrateful of recent so that is why when I saw that clip of Roman hitting the puck like a beast. I know he has the defiance, the competitiveness to disrupt the team dynamic for good.”
“I told you I don’t just want the team to be good. I want them to be phenomenal. I want them to shatter every rink they enter. I want their names to echo in every city for a long time and my Luciano must be at the forefront of all these successes. He needs a rival to burn away his laziness.”
Coach Ferdinand was listening while nodding his head slowly.
He had known Mario Anderson since high school and he knows how competitive and stubborn he can be.
Mario started playing hockey because a girl he loved was stolen from him by a varsity star hockey player.
He was a terrific player who controlled the puck like a pro.
Unfortunately after one year of glory, an knee injury ended his career— a fact he remains bitterly angry about to this day.
That is why Mario swore that his son must be the greatest hockey player the country had ever peoduced.
“Thank you Mario for your concern and support to our team. But we mustn’t push these young player to their limit. Unless they will crack and crash.” Ferdinand feared that his team spirit would be hijacked by unnecessary rivalry instead of team spirit and cooperation.
“Then let them crash,” Mario said proudly, his voice completely devoid of any fatherly empathy.
“We are not pouring in tons of money for nothing. Winners don’t crack.”
“These are my boys. Leave them to me. I know them better.”
“As for Luciano and Roman. I want you to watch them carefully.” Mario commanded, completely ignoring the coach’s warning.
“I want you to pit them against each other. I want you to make Luciano see Roman as a lethal threat.”
Mario licked his lips and continued.
“I have not told you this before but do you know the scout did not discover Roman by accident? I arranged for it.”
The coach stared at him, his blood runned cold.
“What does that mean?”
Mario grinned wickedly.
“It means,” he said quietly, “that Roman’s arrival was never a coincidence.”
Then the screen suddenly went black.
The call had ended.
******
Back in his office Mario Anderson stare at his phone screen, at the video of Roman playing in his village in Ashford.
A strange grin set out across his face.
“He looks exactly like his father.”