Page 102 of Rookie Rules

Eli accepted the help with poor grace. Mateo buttoned one cuff, then returned to his own stall before the act could become comfort anyone had to acknowledge.

Rowan watched the exchange. Mateo's instinct to protect was not the problem. The problem was his belief that protection counted most when it cost him something visible.

The video assignment needed to show him alternatives, not merely shame the old one.

Mateo looked across the room at the rookie defenseman. "Breakfast included?"

"No," Rowan said.

"Cruel leadership."

The humor returned lighter this time. It did not erase accountability. It gave Mateo a way to remain in the room while carrying it.

Vale dismissed them.

Rowan sat and began removing his skates. His hands worked through the familiar sequence while his mind remained on the bench: Mateo crossing six strides, the official's arm, the shift after the power-play goal, the late slot coverage.

Control failed in moments before consequence announced itself.

He thought of Luca in his living room saying the rules were costing him. Rowan had understood only after weeks of accepting each small harm as manageable.

The parallel was not exact. Luca was not a lead to defend or a penalty to avoid. Thinking of him in tactical terms was part of the problem.

Rowan knew that.

Knowledge did not provide a different language.

Across the room, Luca dressed without looking toward him. Since Luca had named the harm at Rowan's house, they had remained flawless at work. Passes arrived. Corrections landed. No teammate had reason to notice anything except the line's uneven results.

Private time had narrowed to messages about schedule and one dinner that never happened because the team traveled.

Rowan had told himself space was respectful.

Gabriel's silence after the previous loss had made the argument less comfortable.

Mateo came over fully dressed, tie still loose.

"You think I cost us the game."

Rowan looked up. "I think your penalty cost us control of it."

"Same result."

"Not the same responsibility. We had chances after."

Mateo nodded once. "I saw him hit the kid."

"I know."

"Nobody touches our rookies."

"Then stay on the ice long enough to protect them."

The line struck. Mateo's face lost its practiced ease.

Rowan lowered his voice. "You are valuable when you defend. Not when you make yourself unavailable."

For a second Mateo looked younger than twenty-nine, caught between relief and not knowing what to do with it.