Episode 53: The Fall of One of Us
The next morning came without warning.
No whistle. No drill lineup. Just a message sent to every player's device:
"Mandatory review. Individual player assessments begin at 8AM. One by one. Results are final."
Jaden stood in the hallway, his team quiet around him. Leo, Luka, Damien, Hiro—every one of them tense.
By 9:00AM, the first name was called.
Damien Cross.
He stood, silent as always, and walked into the evaluation room.
They waited. Ten minutes. Fifteen.
Then the door opened.
Damien stepped out. Expression unreadable.
And then he said the one thing Jaden didn't expect.
"I'm out."
The hallway froze.
Leo stood. "No way. That's not—"
Damien looked at him. "They didn't even talk to me. Just handed me a paper."
He walked past them. Didn't say goodbye. Didn't look back.
Jaden sat back down. Heart pounding.
They were cutting people for reasons that had nothing to do with football now.