Updated Mar 22, 2026 • ~8 min read
Chapter 15: The Trade Story
POV: Rory
Rory – THE TRADE RUMOR
Rory is at the practice facility conducting routine interviews when her editor calls with information that makes her stomach drop—credible sources saying Henrik might be traded to Vancouver before the deadline, insider confirmation from management that they’re considering the move as part of a larger roster restructuring—and she’s facing the ethical nightmare of knowing something professionally that affects her personally, of having to decide whether to tell Henrik what she’s learned or maintain journalistic integrity and let him find out through official channels.
She sits in her car in the parking lot staring at her phone while trying to remember her journalism ethics training—protect sources, report facts, maintain objectivity, don’t let personal relationships compromise professional responsibility—and every principle she’s ever been taught is screaming that she needs to publish this story without giving Henrik advance warning because that’s what objective journalism requires.
But Henrik deserves to know.
Deserves warning that his entire life might be uprooted.
Deserves time to prepare for being traded away from Chicago, from his teammates, from her.
Rory calls her editor back: “Jim, I need to verify these sources before I write anything. Can you give me until tomorrow morning?”
“Make it tonight,” Jim says. “If we sit on this and another outlet breaks it first, we lose the scoop. Verify and file by eight PM.”
She hangs up and texts Henrik: *We need to talk. In person. Now if possible.*
*Practice just ended,* Henrik responds. *My place in thirty minutes?*
Rory drives to Henrik’s apartment trying to figure out how to tell him she knows about the potential trade without revealing her sources or compromising her professional integrity, and by the time she’s knocking on his door she’s decided that honesty is the only option even if it complicates everything.
Henrik opens the door still in his practice clothes, hair damp from the post-practice shower, and the moment he sees her expression he goes tense.
“What’s wrong?” he asks immediately. “You look—Rory, what happened?”
“I heard a rumor today,” Rory says, following him inside. “About a potential trade. You to Vancouver. My editor has sources saying it’s credible, that management is seriously considering it.”
Henrik freezes, his face going carefully blank in the way it does when he’s processing unexpected information. “When?”
“Before the deadline,” Rory says. “Which is what, three weeks from now? My editor wants me to write it up and publish tonight. Verify sources and break the story.”
“You’re going to publish it?” Henrik’s voice has gone cold. “Without telling me first? You found out I might be traded and your first thought was write an article?”
“My first thought was verify the information,” Rory corrects, stung by the accusation. “My second thought was drive here and tell you before anyone else does. Which is what I’m doing right now instead of writing the story.”
“But you knew before you told me,” Henrik presses. “You had this information and you didn’t immediately share it. How long have you known?”
“Forty-five minutes,” Rory says. “Jim called while I was at practice. I verified sources, confirmed it was credible, and came directly here. What else was I supposed to do?”
“Tell me first!” Henrik snaps. “Before verifying sources or talking to your editor. You could have texted me the second you heard instead of treating this like any other story.”
“It IS any other story,” Rory argues, defensive walls going up. “Professionally. I’m a journalist covering your team. Player trades are news I’m obligated to report. I can’t give you insider information just because we’re sleeping together.”
“We’re not just sleeping together,” Henrik says, and he sounds angry and hurt in equal measure. “We’re in a relationship. We’re supposed to be partners. Partners tell each other things that affect their lives even when it’s professionally complicated.”
“I’m telling you now!” Rory argues. “I’m here, sharing information I technically shouldn’t be sharing, warning you before the story breaks. What more do you want?”
“I want you to prioritize us over your job occasionally,” Henrik says bluntly. “I want to be more important than getting the scoop first. I want—I thought we were building something real. But apparently your career still comes first always.”
“My career HAS to come first sometimes,” Rory says, and she’s getting angry now because this feels like the exact argument she had with Carlos about prioritizing his schedule, except reversed. “I’ve already compromised my professional ethics by dating someone I cover. I can’t also compromise my journalism integrity by hiding newsworthy information. That’s not fair to ask.”
“And it’s not fair to expect me to find out I’m being traded from a newspaper article written by my girlfriend,” Henrik counters. “You knew and didn’t tell me. That’s a betrayal, Rory. Professionally justified maybe, but still a betrayal.”
They stare at each other across Henrik’s living room, both breathing hard, both clearly hurt and angry and not sure how to navigate this collision of professional obligations and personal relationships.
“What did you want me to do?” Rory asks finally, exhausted. “Seriously, Henrik. In this situation, with my editor demanding a story and you deserving to know, what was the right choice?”
Henrik runs his hands through his hair in frustration. “I don’t know. Tell me off the record before verifying? Ask your editor to delay the story so I could hear it from management first? Prioritize warning me over getting the scoop? I don’t know what the right answer is, but it feels like you chose journalism over us and I’m allowed to be hurt about that.”
“You’re right,” Rory admits quietly. “I did choose journalism first. Because it’s what I’ve been trained to do. Because maintaining professional integrity matters to me. Because I’m terrified of compromising my career for a relationship after what happened with Carlos.”
“I’m not asking you to compromise your career,” Henrik says, softer now. “I’m asking for balance. For recognition that I matter too. That sometimes the personal should come before professional.”
“I don’t know how to do that,” Rory says honestly. “I don’t know how to balance loving you with doing my job. Every time they conflict I panic and default to protecting my career because that’s the only thing that’s never betrayed me.”
Henrik is quiet for a long moment, and then he says very carefully, “I think you need to decide what you actually want. Because right now it feels like you’re trying to maintain a relationship while keeping me at arm’s length professionally, and I don’t think that’s sustainable. Something has to give.”
“Are you saying you want to break up?” Rory asks, and her voice cracks on the question.
“I’m saying we need to figure out if this can actually work,” Henrik says. “Long-term. When our professional interests conflict. Because this trade thing—if it’s real, if I get traded to Vancouver—that’s going to force decisions about whether you come with me or we try long distance or we end it. And I need to know if you’re actually invested enough to navigate that.”
“I don’t know,” Rory admits, tears starting now. “I don’t know what I want except that I don’t want to lose you but I also can’t sacrifice my career and I don’t know how to have both.”
“Figure it out,” Henrik says, not unkindly but firmly. “Soon. Because I love you and I want this to work, but I’m not going to be in a relationship where I’m always second priority behind your job.”
Rory leaves Henrik’s apartment with her chest aching and her mind racing, and she drives back to the Tribune offices to write the trade rumor article while crying in her car beforehand because she’s pretty sure she just destroyed her relationship by choosing journalism over warning Henrik first.
The article goes live at eight PM exactly—carefully worded speculation about potential trade discussions, multiple sources confirming management is considering the move, Henrik Andersen’s stellar performance making him valuable trade material—and within minutes her phone is exploding with notifications as other outlets pick up the story and social media starts discussing the implications.
Henrik doesn’t call.
Doesn’t text.
Doesn’t respond when Rory sends: *Article is live. I’m sorry. Can we talk about this?*
She goes home alone and lies in bed staring at the ceiling while wondering if she just chose her career over the best relationship she’s had since her divorce, and whether that choice proves she’s not actually ready for the vulnerability that loving someone requires.
Tomorrow she’ll find out if the trade is real.
Tonight she just has to survive knowing she might have lost Henrik because she couldn’t figure out how to balance professional ethics with personal loyalty.
🔥
END CHAPTER 15
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