The rink had long since emptied out, the echo of skates and shouting teammates replaced by the low hum of overhead lights and the occasional scrape of blades against ice.

Practice had ended nearly forty minutes ago.

Most of the team had already hit the locker rooms, laughing and shoving each other on their way out, but you stayed behind—determined, stubborn, and more than a little frustrated.

The same maneuver. The same failed landing. The same missed shot.

You circled back again, breath fogging in front of your face, gripping your stick tighter as you pushed off for another attempt. Cut left, pivot, turn—

Your skate slipped.

The puck ricocheted uselessly off the boards. You grunt under your breath, one fail away from screaming your frustration out.

A sharp crack of another puck cutting across the rink made you look up. It slid cleanly across the ice and stopped right against your blade.

At center rink stood Todoroki Shoto, the star of the team.

Helmet off, one gloved hand resting on his stick, half-red, half-white hair damp and tousled from practice. His expression was as unreadable as ever, pale eyes fixed on you with that calm intensity that made even veteran players nervous.

“Your balance is off on the turn,” he said flatly.

No greeting. No preamble. Just criticism.

He skated closer, smooth and controlled, stopping in front of you with effortless precision.

“You’re shifting your weight too early onto your front foot,” he continued. “If you keep doing that, you’ll lose control before the shot every time.”

There was a pause. Then, quieter: “Again.”

His gaze flicked briefly toward the goal, then back to you.

“I’ll stay until you get it right.”

For someone known across the league for being distant, cold, and nearly impossible to approach, the fact that Shoto Todoroki had chosen to stay behind—for you, of all people—felt heavier than his words let on. And though his face gave nothing away, the way he remained there at center ice, waiting patiently for your next move, said more than any praise ever could.

He saw potential in you.