“It broke after the game last night.” My face pinches in confusion. I just saw Scott at the parade a couple of hours ago. He could’ve talked to me then. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, but I was hoping we could talk.” He looks over at the couch, searching for a place to sit before his eyes fall on the scattered clothes discarded throughout the living room. “Oh, you would,” he laughs.
I offer him a look without apology. “You’re the one coming over the day I get my girl back. What did you expect to find?”
“Touché.”
Scott takes a seat at the dining room table as I pull out a couple of sparkling waters for us.
“So, what’s up?”
“Well, as you know, the season ended yesterday. We legally haven’t been able to talk to you yet, and we were planning to give you a couple of days to enjoy the win, but after you mentioned signing your free agency over to Seattle on national television, we didn’t think we could wait any longer.”
“Wait any longer for what?”
“Zanders, you’ve been an essential part of our organization over the last seven seasons, and we love having you in Chicago. I thought the least you would do is have a conversation with us and turn down our offer before you signed somewhere else.”
“Scott, I’ve waited for a contract renewal all season. What are you talking about?”
“We made an offer back in October. We’ve been waiting for you to sign all season, so it was a bit of a shock to us when you brought up leaving our team in front of the cameras. We’d thought you’d at least tell us first.”
“I didn’t want to leave. I’ve been working all year, waiting for a new contract from you guys.”
Scott’s head jolts back in shock. “It’s been on the table since our first home game. Your agent kept coming back to negotiations, saying you didn’t think the salary was high enough for you. I know it’s not a raise, but it’s what you’ve been making, and we’re tight within the budget cap. We can’t offer more.”
Fucking Rich.
I run my hands over my face in disbelief. “Scott. I never saw a contract. I swear. I would’ve signed it the second I did. I didn’t care about the money. I just wanted to stay here.”
“Your agent was coming back to us monthly, saying you weren’t happy with it still.”
“That’s why I fired him. He’s greedy. He wasn’t working on a higher salary for me. He just wanted a higher commission for himself.”
“We want you back. We always have. This is Maddison’s and your team.”
Is it? I’d like to believe that, but it’s always been Maddison’s authentic self and my media personality running this team. I don’t know that this city wants the dynamic to change.
“I don’t know, Scott. I don’t want to play into the narrative that Maddison and I have had since he got here. I’m tired of it. I know it fills the seats and all that shit, but I can’t do it anymore. I want people to know I’m half of Active Minds. I want people to like me for me, and I don’t think that’ll happen in Chicago.”
He pauses, hesitating. “Have you been online today?”
“Phone’s broken.”
Scott pulls out his own, quickly typing on it before showing me his screen. “Besides people being obsessed with you and Stevie over that little love confession on national television, Chicago fans are freaking out because you said you’re leaving. Everyone wants you here, Zanders. I know those headlines from a few weeks ago were shit, but those are nothing in comparison to the amount of love people are pouring out for you today.” He hands his phone over. “Take a look.”
He’s right. Message thread after message thread fills the screen with fans desperate for me to return wearing a Raptors jersey next season. There’s also an outpouring of support for Stevie and me that I can’t wait to show her later, but as far as hockey goes, there’s not a single comment from local fans wanting me to leave.
However, there are fans from other teams commenting about how much they’d love to have me in their city, including a countless string from Seattle’s fanbase.
Multiple people mention Active Minds, noting they didn’t realize I hold an equal place with Maddison. There are pictures of my dad and me from the parade. Comments about Rosie being adopted, plus so much coverage of SDOC from our moment inside earlier today.
“Wow,” I exhale, handing the phone back to Scott. “I didn’t realize.”