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He came up short, blinking back at them.
“What?” He asked, crest starting to fall.
“Nothing,” Sal said quickly. “Good shot. Let’s line up again.”
He grunted in agreement, turning and following them back down to the starting positions.
The rest of practice went just as well. They did a few more plays, worked some strategy, then set a meeting to go over vids of the next team they were facing. It was going to be an away game, which meant traveling to their stadium which would have different terrains and hazards. Trikball was not a forgiving game, and not preparing for what you were going to be playing in could easily get you hurt and lose you the game.
Afterwards, they went back to the locker room to shower and change.
Rane went through the motions of it, mind completely somewhere else. He knew he should be thinking about the next team and their stadium and how he needed to adjust his technique and plans to win, but he just couldn’t.
Because all he could think about was Sandy.
That bright smile, the delight sparkling in her eyes as she played with her soft, fluffy hair, the warmth of her lips moving against his while he held her close.
It was just… temporary. Only until he could get her to the embassy so he could send her away from his mother and back to safety.
But if he clung to what little happiness and comfort she could give him in the meantime, there was no harm in that, right?
He showered and grabbed his towel, slinging it around his waist. When he stepped out, he was once again confronted, this time by Sal alone.
“Hey,” he grunted, arms crossed, leaning against the wall, fully dressed.
“Is there a problem?” Rane asked, cautious, ready to be lectured again.
“No problem. You played good today.”
“Oh. Okay. Er, thanks.”
“You played like you used to. I haven’t seen you pull that move in… years.”
“Hm? You mean, my move? I do it all the time.”
“No. You don’t. You stopped a couple years ago. When you started failing at it. You just kind of stopped even trying.”
“Oh. I… guess I didn’t realize,” he admitted, thinking back. Had it really been that long?
“I’m not trying to make you feel bad,” Sal said quickly, standing straight, dropping his arms. “I’m glad. I haven’t seen you play like that in so long, I kind of forgot… or maybe I just didn’t notice…”
“Didn’t notice what?”
Sal shook his head, as if he was trying to clear away a thought. “Nothing. So, I guess that means things are going well with you and your mate?”
Rane frowned.
Sandy had yet to be announced. In fact, as far as he could tell, his mother was taking steps to make sure that her presence, and the reason she was here, was kept secret. If anyone knew a human was hanging around him, it wouldn’t be hard to guess why. Humans were famous in Coalition space for being capable of breeding with other species, but also for not being full members of the Coalition. There were exceptions, as far as he knew, but if you saw a human, it was a good bet that they were there because they had been mated.
Elffa kept Sandy locked up, out of sight, and had released no announcement about her. Bringing her to the game had been done without his, or anyone’s knowledge, and the afterparty had been amongst other celebrities and VIPs that knew better than to post anything without permission. And Orza and Kirs, for as skilled as they were at dragging him in front of combots and cameras, were equally as proficient at keeping her out of them.
Sal, however, was the exception.
He was, likely, the only reason Sandy was here. Elffa had been forced to placate him to keep Rane on the team. Since Rane and Sal founded the team together, they shared control over it. Control that Elffa had taken from Rane a long time ago. However, Sal maintained his, and he could, if he wanted, remove Rane from the team. Elffa had to tell him about Sandy to keep him patient, promising it would bring Rane under control.
Sal was also a professional though. He would never leak the information that Rane was mated. Which was probably why he was here now, separate from the rest of the team. He wanted to speak to him about it out of their earshot. They weren’t likely to tell anyone who Sandy was, but they didn’t need to know that she was there mostly to keep Rane in check.
“What’s wrong?” Sal asked when Rane averted his gaze.
