Chapter 1

It happens against Haverhill, because of course it does.

As much as he hated to admit it, Braden had been on edge since the moment he had surfaced from sleep that morning, his brow already furrowed long before his eyes had even fully fluttered open.

It wasn't just that this was Braden's first game against his former team, or that it was his first game back in Haverhill and Braden wasn't sure what to expect from the fans.

But it certainly didn't help that Braden knew

what to expect from the Monarchs, and even having his husband standing by his side wasn't going to make the 2.5 hour game any easier.

In fact, Braden was pretty convinced that Maxim being there was going to make the game a million times worse.

"You okay?"

Pulling himself from the dark thoughts he had been chasing, Braden turned his attention to Kai, the younger man fast becoming a calming presence both in the locker room and on the ice for Braden, Kai having played on Braden's right wing since the start of the season.

"I don't know," Braden answered honestly, dropping his gaze to the floor and staring resolutely at the pattern in the carpet, one he had spent the last 11 years memorizing, though never from the visitors room.

"Will the fans be supportive?" Kai followed up delicately, his gaze a complicated mix of wonder and worry as it so often was.

"I want them to be, but...I don't think I'll be that lucky to be honest."

Stopping to force down the blockage that appeared in his throat, Braden glanced up briefly to seek out Maxim, realizing as he did that the entire room was watching them—his husband included—the concern obvious in their faces as they listened in on his and Kai's conversation, neither man having realized they had captured the attention of the room.

"We have your back, Braden" Chase said gently to Braden's right, smiling when said man turned his way.

"I might not be a superhero, but I'll do my best to block as many shots as I can tonight.

You guys might as well start calling me Doctor Donovan!"

Barking out a laugh along with the rest of the team, Braden shook his head with a rueful smile, grateful for just how nerdy their goalie was, though he wasn't 100% confident he knew what the other man was talking about until Reed Lindholm leaned over and whispered "Doctor Strange, Marvel superhero" in his ear, the team well aware that "pop culture" and "Braden Callahan" were not synonymous phrases.

"I think for the first time in my entire life, I actually

don't

want to play hockey tonight," Braden admitted once the room had quieted down, a pang striking through his chest as he did, noting the way the words landed on the faces of his teammates, Maxim's especially.

"The guys in that other room..."

"...they were your family," Reed finished for him after a moment when it appeared that Braden couldn't, an angry expression overtaking his features as he did.

"I mean...I thought so," Braden conceded, swallowing heavily around the blockage that persisted in his throat.

"Don't get me wrong, I didn't think they were going to start painting rainbows in the dressing room and taping their sticks every night or anything, but after 11 years and three Federation Cup wins together...I don't know, I guess I just thought I meant something to them."

For a long moment a heavy silence settled across the room, no one saying anything to break the tension that had infiltrated the space with Braden's words, a mounting anger rumbling through the 20 men sitting around the room as they processed the implications of what he shared, his husband clasping his hands together so tightly that Braden was worried he was going to snap his hands in two.

"I, uh...I don't know if it's okay for me to ask this of anyone," Braden continued, frowning as he tried to collect his thoughts and missing as the coaching staff quietly entered the room, their eyes locking in on Braden hunched over in his stall, his head down and his hands rhythmically squeezing the ends of his pads.

"But I'd really, really like it if we found a way to show them what they lost.

And I know that's selfish because I'm just one guy and people get traded and leave teams all the time, but..."

"...this was personal," Coach Langston finished for Braden, smiling kindly as the latter's eyes shot up to meet his own in surprise.

"They made a hell of a mistake, Braden.

One, for ever being stupid enough to not accept you for exactly who you are, and two, for ever being stupid enough to give you and your husband the opportunity to play on the same team."