What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger

"What the HELL was that?!? You guys basically gave them that game!" Coach yelled at us, his blood veins practically popping out if his neck. All the guys in the locker room hung their heads down low as Coach depicted out all our faults in the game.

"And McQuaid, your defense tonight sucked! The score would've been completely different tonight of you actually took your head out of your ass." Coach concluded, ripping at Quaider. I felt bad for the guy, even though I, and the whole team, knew that what Coach was saying was true; Adam was just not on his game today.

Coach ended his speech by saying that there would be practice tomorrow morning and then he stormed out of the locker room. Everyone was quiet as they undressed, showered, and then redressed. No one knew what to say for there was nothing to be said.

A good hour or so later, it was just Adam and myself left in the locker room.

"Good game tonight Segs." Quaider sighed as he started to button up his dress shirt.

"Oh...uh..thanks." I mutter as I fix my tie. I felt bad that I couldn't say the same to him, but why lie to a team mate? So, instead I say,

"Is everything alright man? You seemed kind of out of it today." Adam sits down in his stall, leans his head back against the wall, and sighs.

"There are just some things in life that you'll never fully understand until you're older Segs." He mutters. My eyes narrow as I start to feel my temper rise. It completely pisses me off on how everyone on the team treats me like I'm a five year old. I mean, I'm fucking nineteen-almost twenty-years old! I'm not a kid anymore!

"You know it really ticks me off when people say that to me." I inform him angrily. He sighs again, looks at me, and says,

"You're right, I'm sorry. Well, lets just say that in nine more months, there's gonna be a little McQuaid running around." My eyes pop out of my head and my mouth drops.

"Leah's pregnant? But...but I thought you said that she could never have kids?" I state, thinking back to last season and how towards the end of it, before our play-off run, ke kept bitching around on how Leah, if he did choose to marry her, could never give him kids.

"Yeah, I fucking know what I fucking said. That's why we were never completely serious on using protection." He growled angrily. Not really knowing what to say, I just walk over to him, pat him on the back, and say,

"Well, I'm here for ya man." That doesn't seem to cheer him up because now he's groaning.

"Damn, I fucked up bad. You know when she told me, I just up and left? I wasn't there to hold her hair when she threw up after, I wasn't there to tell her like a fucking twenty year old is telling me now!"

"Nineteen," I cough. "I'll be twenty in about three weeks." Adam looks up and glares at me.

"Sorry. But, if you want some quality advice, be there for her. And don't fuck this up, because this could be the only oppurtunity you'll have at becoming a dad, since I know that you already bought a ring." I inform him. Adam's eyes widen as he says,

"Who told you?" I think back for a second and then say,

"Jordan told me after he heard it from Brad, who heard it from Paille, who heard it from Looch, who heard it from Horton, who heard it from Denny, who heard it from Bergy, who heard it from Chara, who heard it from Tuuk, who heard it from Timmy, who heard it from you."

"So, basically the whole team knows?" Adam says in disbelief.

"Yep." I say nodding.

"Well, I think that I'm gonna head home. Caron's probably wondering where the hell I am." I say, grabbing my coat off the hook in my stall.

"Alright Segs, thanks for the talk." Quaider says as he gets up and puts his coat on as well.

"No prob. Just don't tell anyone that I can get that deep. It'll ruin my rep." I tell him with a smile. For the first time that night, Adam smiles as well.

I let Adam walk out of the locker room before me, only to have something fall out of the pocket of his coat. I bent down and picked it up and saw that it was a picture of a younger girl who looked about my age. My first thought was that she was hot, but then I noticed that her left arm was completely gone and all that was left in its place was a stub.

"Adam, hey, you dropped this." I shout to Quaider as I ran to catch up to him. Adam takes the picture from me, his hand shaking as he does.

"Who is she?" I ask as he puts it into his pocket.

"Nobody." He says quickly. And then, without another word, he quickly walks away, leaving me standing there completely dumbfounded, knowing that there was more to that girl than he really let on.