"Locker rooms breed rumor."
Eli showed up to morning practice the next day knowing he was walking into a storm.
The locker room went quiet when he entered. Not obviously. Just that shift in conversation when someone becomes the topic instead of a participant. Voices dropping. Eyes avoiding direct contact.
Locker rooms breed rumor. Always had. And Eli had just given them plenty to work with.
He went to his stall and started changing, pretending not to notice the atmosphere. Carter was already dressed, lacing up his skates with more focus than necessary.
"Morning," Eli said.
"Morning." Carter didn't look up. "You're here early."
"Couldn't sleep."
"Yeah, I figured." Carter finally met his eyes. "Listen, before practice starts, you should know the team's been talking."
"About?"
"About Silver. About the screenshots. About you missing practice yesterday and leaving early the day before." Carter's voice was low. "There are questions, man."
"What kind of questions?"
