Noah

The locker room buzzed with noise — metal clanging, cleats scraping, voices overlapping. The kind of chaos that came before every game. Normally, I thrived in it. The noise, the adrenaline, the smell of turf and sweat — all of it was fuel.

But tonight, I just wanted quiet.

I sat on the bench in front of my locker, taping my wrists, forcing my breathing to stay steady. The noise around me felt too loud, too sharp. Daniel was in the middle of the room, doing his usual pregame ...