# Chapter 2: The Surprise Upstairs and the Grade That Threatens the Ice
Hello everyone, it’s me again! How are you all doing? Today I will continue to walk with you and review Chapter 2 of "The Deal: Off Campus." This chapter drops us right back into Garrett Graham’s chaotic hockey house, where the beer is flowing, the boys are loud, and trouble is waiting upstairs with a pink bow and a very complicated question.
We open with Garrett coming home after study group, and the living room is already a disaster zone. Empty beer cans cover the coffee table, a bottle of Jack is nearly gone, and Logan and Tucker are locked in a fierce game of Ice Pro. Logan gets distracted for one second when Garrett walks in, and that one second costs him the game. Tucker howls in victory while Logan glares at Garrett like it’s his fault. And honestly, in a way, it is.
Meanwhile, Dean is in the corner doing what Dean does best: hooking up somewhere that is not his bedroom. He’s shirtless, sprawled in an armchair, with a blonde in lacy black lingerie straddling him. Garrett doesn’t even blink. He’s used to Dean’s complete lack of shame. The house has seen it all—kitchen counters, couches, dining tables, you name it.
Logan complains that he’s been texting Garrett for an hour, but Garrett was at study group. Then Logan grins and tells him there’s a surprise upstairs. Garrett is immediately suspicious. These are the same guys who once left a live raccoon in his room as a welcome-back gift. Trust does not come easy in this house. But Logan and Tucker look far too pleased with themselves, so Garrett grabs a couple of beers and heads upstairs to his master bedroom—his captain’s prize—ready for anything.
What he finds is not a raccoon. It’s Kendall.
She’s on his bed in white lace, pink bows, and not much else, looking like she stepped straight out of a Victoria’s Secret catalog. She tells him he took long enough and that she was giving him five more minutes before leaving. Garrett, being Garrett, is very happy with this development. They flirt, they tease, and the tension quickly turns into exactly what Kendall came for. Garrett knows they sound like a cheesy porno, but he doesn’t care. When a beautiful woman is waiting in your bed in lingerie, you don’t ask questions.
We learn that Garrett and Kendall hooked up over the summer—convenient, casual, no strings. It fizzled out before midterms, but now she’s back, and she clearly wants more than just a quick reunion. After they sleep together, the mood shifts. Kendall snuggles against him and says she missed him. Garrett immediately panics inside. He doesn’t do cuddling, and he definitely doesn’t do girlfriend territory. When she asks if he missed her too, he tries to dodge the question. But Kendall pushes. It’s a yes or no question, and Garrett’s silence tells her everything.
She flies off the bed, angry and humiliated, scrambling for her clothes. Garrett tries to explain that he was always clear about what this was. He doesn’t want anything serious. Hockey is his life. He practices six days a week, plays twenty games a year, and has no time for a girlfriend. He tells her she deserves more than he can give. But Kendall says she doesn’t want casual anymore. She wants to be his girlfriend.
Garrett doesn’t understand why she would want that when she’s never really tried to know him outside of sex. It makes him wonder if he’s just a status symbol to her. Still, he doesn’t lie. He doesn’t lead her on. He apologizes, but he holds his ground. Kendall finally says she can’t see him anymore because she’ll only get more attached. They agree they had fun. She kisses him one last time, tells him to call if he changes his mind, and walks out. Garrett is left surprised by how smoothly it ended—if only all women were as agreeable as Kendall. And yes, that is absolutely a jab at Hannah.
Afterward, Garrett heads downstairs, hungry and restless. He finds leftover rice and fried chicken from Tucker, the house’s resident chef. Logan joins him in plaid boxers, amused that Kendall is already gone. Garrett shrugs it off—she knows the score. No girlfriends, no sleepovers.
Then the conversation turns to hockey. Logan is fired up for the St. Anthony’s game because Greg Braxton’s suspension is over. Braxton is a dirty player, a genuinely nasty piece of work who once broke a sophomore defenseman’s arm and sent him to the ER. Logan wants to smash his face into the boards. Garrett promises to have his back if it comes to a fight. But then Logan mentions Eastwood next week, and Garrett’s stomach drops. Eastwood is the number two team in the conference, and their matchups are always brutal. If Garrett doesn’t ace his Ethics redo, he won’t be on the ice for it.
So he finally confesses: he got an F in Ethics. He can’t drop the course because he missed the deadline. Logan is stunned, then serious. Garrett has to shape up, study his ass off, and ace the redo. The team needs him. Garrett knows it. This is his first year as captain, and he’s supposed to lead the team to another national championship. But he can’t do that from the bench.
He tells Logan he has a tutor lined up—a genius. Logan offers to chip in money if needed, and Garrett can’t help but grin. It all comes back to the dream: him and Logan in Bruins jerseys one day. Logan orders him to get the grade up, or he’ll kick his ass. Garrett promises he’s on it.
But as he heads back upstairs to find his phone, one thought lingers: it’s time to ramp up the pressure on Hannah-not-with-an-M.
Reader’s Impressions & Star Rating:
This chapter is classic Garrett—charming, honest in his own frustrating way, and completely terrified of emotional attachment. The Kendall scene is steamy but also revealing. It shows why Garrett’s casual flings never stay casual, and it sets up his dynamic with Hannah perfectly. The hockey stakes are rising too, and the Ethics grade adds real pressure beyond romance. I loved the roommate chaos, the banter, and the way the chapter balances humor with consequences.
Rating: 4.7 / 5 Stars
Next Chapter Prediction:
Garrett will meet Hannah for tutoring, and it will not go smoothly. She’s likely immune to his charm, sharp-tongued, and determined to keep things strictly professional. Garrett will try to win her over with humor and maybe a little desperation, but Hannah will push back. The Eastwood game and his captaincy will hang over every study session, forcing them into close proximity and setting the stage for slow-burn tension.
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