Jake woke up Saturday morning feeling like he'd been hit by a truck, but in the best possible way. Every muscle in his body ached from the game, and he had what felt like permanent helmet hair, but he couldn't stop grinning.
His phone looked like it had exploded overnight. Texts, missed calls, social media notifications - apparently scoring in your first college hockey game was bigger deal than he'd thought.
Dad: watched the highlights online. so proud kiddo. mom would've been screaming
Random numbers: great game last night!
Tyler: dude you're famous. check Binstagrammy.
Alex: good game rookie. ready for practice Monday?
And buried in all the congratulations was one message that made his stomach do something weird:
Ashley:amazing game last night. you looked incredible out there. still want to celebrate?
Jake stared at that message. He'd been pretty clear about being busy, but Ashley didn't seem to get the hint. Or maybe she got it and just didn't care.
"You look like someone who scored his first college goal," Danny said from across the room, where he was doing pushups because apparently even Saturday mornings weren't safe from his fitness routine.
"I can't believe it actually happened."
"I can. You were incredible out there. The whole floor was watching in the common room, screaming like maniacs."
"Seriously?"
"Dude, when you scored, I think Tyler actually cried."
Jake's phone rang - Sophie calling.
"Hey, goal scorer," she said, and Jake could hear the smile in her voice.
"Hey yourself. Sleep okay?"
"Are you kidding? I was way too hyped up to sleep. I kept replaying the goal in my head."
"Want to grab breakfast? I'm starving."
"Thought you'd never ask. Meet you at the dining hall in twenty?"
After hanging up, Jake realized he was still grinning like an idiot.
"You're disgustingly happy," Danny observed.
"Shut up."
"I'm serious. It's gross. You're like a Disney prince after the happily ever after."
The dining hall was buzzing with more energy than usual for a Saturday morning. Jake couldn't walk ten feet without someone congratulating him on the game. It was weird but also kind of awesome.
Sophie was waiting at their usual table, looking perfect even thought she was wearing sweatpants and had her hair in a messy bun. She jumped up when she saw him.
"There's my hockey star," she said, kissing him on the cheek.
"I scored one goal. That doesn't make me a star."
"It does to me."
They got food and found seats with the usual crew, who were all looking way too please with themselves.
"So," Mia announced, "you guys officially dating now, right?"
"What?" Jake nearly choked on his orange juice.
"Last night. The kiss. Very public, very romantic. I'm assuming that means you're together."
Jake looked at Sophie, who was blushing but smiling. "I mean... are we?"
"Do you want to be?" Sophie asked.
"Yeah. Definitely yeah."
"Then we are."
The table erupted in cheers that were way too loud for 10 AM on a Saturday.
"Finally!" Emma said. "I was getting tired of watching you two dance around each other."
"We weren't dancing around anything," Jake protested.
"You absolutely were," Tyler said. "It was painful to watch."
Jake's phone buzzed again. Ashley.
Ashley:heard through the grapevine that you and Sophie are official now. happy for you both
Something about that message felt off, but Jake couldn't put his finger on what.
"Everything okay?" Sophie asked, noticing his expression.
"Yeah, just... team stuff."
The rest of the breakfast was spent planning their Saturday. Sophie had studying to do - pre-med never took breaks - but she wanted to hang out later. The fraternity guys were having some kind of party that night, but Jake wasn't sure he was up for if after the exhaustion of his first game.
"You have to go," Tyler insisted. "You're like the hero of campus right now. People will expect you there."
"I don't want to be the hero of anything. I just want to not embarrass myself."
"Too late for that," Mia said cheerfully. "You're officially a big deal now. Embrace it."
After breakfast, Jake decided to go for a walk around campus to clear his head. Everything felt different somehow - like he was seeing the place through new eyes. Maybe it was the confidence from the game, or maybe it was finally feeling like he belonged somewhere.
He was walking past the library when he literally ran into Ashley.
"Oh my god, Jake! I'm so sorry!" she said, even thought it was pretty obvious she'd stepped directly into his path.
"No problem. You okay?"
"I'm fine. Great game last night, by the way. You were amazing."
"Thanks."
Ashley was wearing workout clothes that looked like they cost more than Jake's entire wardrobe, and somehow she managed to look like a fitness model despite claiming she'd just been running.
"So," she said, falling into step beside him as he continued walking, "I heard congratulations are in order. You and Sophie?"
"Yeah, we're... together."
"That's wonderful. She's a lucky girl."
Something in the way she said it made Jake's skin crawl slightly.
"I should probably get going," he said.
"Of course. But Jake?" She touched his arm lightly. "If you ever want to hang out as friends, I'm always around. I know how stressful college can be, especially with hockey and a new relationship. Sometimes it's nice to have someone to talk who doesn't have any expectations.
"Thanks, but I'm good."
Ashley smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Of course you are. I'll see you around."
As she walked away, Jake couldn't shake the feeling that the conversation had been about something completely different than she'd actually said.
That afternoon, Jake met Sophie at the library to study. Well, Sophie studied while Jake mostly watched her be brilliant and occasionally tried to understand his business textbook.
"You're not getting much done," she observed after catching him staring at her for the third time in ten minutes.
"Hard to concentrate when you're around."
"That's terrible logic. You're going to fail all your classes."
"Worth it."
Sophie laughed and kicked him under the table. "Focus I'm not dating a dropout."
They actually did get some studying done, and Jake was starting to think he might survive his first semester after all. Sophie was a good influence on him - she made him want to try harder at everything.
Around 6 PM, they were packing up to leave when Sophie's phone rang.
"Hey Mia," she answered, then her face changed. "What? Slow down. What happened?"
Jake could hear Mia talking rapidly on the other end, but couldn't make out the words.
"Okay, we'll be right there," Sophie said, hanging up.
"What's wrong?"
"Something happened at the Delta Sigma Pi house. Mia said Tyler's in the hospital."
They ran across campus to the fraternity house, where they found chaos. There were campus security cars outside, an ambulance pulling away, and a crowd of people standing around looking scared and confused.
Marcus spotted them and ran over.
"What happened?" Jake asked.
"Tyler fell down the stairs. Or got pushed. Nobody's really sure."
"Pushed?"
"He was pretty drunk, but some people said they saw him with someone right before it happened."
Jake felt his stomach drop. "Is he okay?"
"Conscious, but he hit his head pretty bad. They're taking him to get checked out."
Emma appeared next to them, looking pale. "I'm going to the hospital. Someone needs to call his parents."
"I'll come with you," Sophie said immediately.
"Me too," Jake added.
The hospital waiting room was the kind of place that made you think about mortality and bad lighting. Tyler's parents had been called and were driving down from two hours away. The doctors said he had a concussion but would probably be okay.
"Can we see him?" Emma asked the nurse for the fifth time.
"Family only right now. Maybe in few hours."
Jake paced the waiting room, trying to process what had happened. Tyler was one of the most careful drunk people he knew - the guys was like a professional at college parties. The idea of him just falling down stairs didn't make sense.
"Jake?" Sophie appeared next to him with two cups of coffee that smelled like it had been brewing since the Clinton administration.
"Thanks." He took the coffee and immediately regretted it. "This is awful."
"Hospital coffee always is. But it's caffeine."
They sat in uncomfortable plastic chairs that were clearly designed by someone who hated human backs.
"You think someone really pushed him?" Sophie asked quietly.
"I don't know. Tyler's not exactly the type to make enemies."
"Maybe it was just an accident. People fall down stairs when they're drunk."
Jake nodded, but something felt wrong about the whole situation. Tyler had been fine at breakfast, excited about the party, looking forward to celebrating Jake's game. And now he was in the hospital with a head injury.
His phone buzzed with a text message from an unknown number.
Unknown: accidents happen when people don't watch where they're going
Jake stared at the message, his blood running cold.
"Everything okay?" Sophie asked.
Jake showed her the text. Her face went pale.
"That's... that's probably some random spam thing, right?"
"Yeah," Jake said, but he didn't believe it anymore than she did.
He was about to delete the message when another one came through.
Unknown: be more careful. wouldn't want anything to happen to your new girlfriend
This time, Jake's hands were shaking as he showed Sophie.
"We need to tell someone about this," she said immediately.
"Tell them what? That I got a weird text? They'll think I'm paranoid."
"Jake someone might have hurt Tyler, and now you're getting threatening messages the same night. That's not paranoia, that's connecting dots."
Before Jake could respond, Emma came running back to into the waiting room.
"They're letting us see him," she said. "Two at a time."
Tyler looked small and pale in the hospital bed, with bandage wrapped around his head and monitors beeping softly beside him.
"Hey, superstar," he said weakly when he saw Jake. "Heard you scored again tonight."
"I didn't play tonight, you idiot."
"Right. Concussion. Everything's a little fuzzy."
"What happened?" Sophie asked gently.
Tyler's face scrunched up in the concentration. "I was at the party, having a good time. Someone wanted to talk to me privately, so we went upstairs. Then..." He touched his head carefully. "I don't really remember. Next thing I knew, I was at the bottom of the stairs and everything hurt."
"Who wanted to talk to you?" Jake asked.
"I... I cant remember. The doctors said that's normal with head injuries."
A nurse came in and told visiting hours were over, but Tyler would probably be released tomorrow if his scans looked good.
As they walked back to campus, Sophie was quiet.
"You okay?" Jake asked.
"I keep thinking about those texts you got."
"Yeah, me too."
"Jake, what if this isn't random? What if someone's trying to send you a message?"
Jake had been thinking the same thing, but hearing Sophie say it out loud made it feel more real and a lot more terrifying.
"Who would do something like that?"
Sophie was quiet for a long moment. Then she said, very softly. "I don't know. But I think we need to be really careful."
As they reached Sophie's dorm, Jake's phone buzzed one more time.
Unknown: sweet dreams.
Jake looked up at Sophie's dorm window, then around the dark campus, suddenly feeling like they were being watched.
"Sophie?"
"Yeah?"
"Maybe you should stay with Emma tonight. Or have her stay with you."
Sophie nodded, her face pale in the lamplight. "Yeah. That's probably a good idea."
As Jake walked back to his own dorm, he couldn't shake the feeling that everything had just changed. Yesterday he'd been worried about hockey and homework and figuring out college.
Now he was worried about keeping Sophie safe from someone who might be willing to hurt people to get his attention.
His phone stayed silent the rest of the walk, but somehow that felt even worse that the than the threatening messages.
Someone was watching. Someone was waiting.
And Jake had no idea what they wanted or how far they were willing to go to get it.