Hat Tricks

“Are you even listening to me?”

I blinked, shaking my head and turning to look at Lisa, the girl working with me tonight. “I’m sorry, I totally spaced out.”

Lisa laughed, “I could tell. Late night?” She asked me, dumping a scoopful of ice into the wine chiller that was sitting on top of the cart.

I shrugged, setting down a platter of finger sandwiches. “Not really, I just had a hard time falling asleep.”

She nodded, grabbing the clipboard that we were supposed to carry with us into each box suite before nodding to me to open the door. I did so, moving aside so she could push the cart through.

I had only worked three nights as a server, but I hadn’t actually done a lot of serving. I was mainly in the kitchen area, that I didn’t know existed, helping put together platters of sandwiches, desserts and fruit, as well as cleaning up the suite once the game over. I was told that I would eventually be allowed to assist Lisa with serving, and then be trusted on my own, but for now, I was in charge of the simple tasks. I didn’t mind it so much. They paid twelve hours starting wage, and after three months, if I wasn’t fired, I was bumped up to fifteen. If I went for my food safe, I could make up to twenty dollars an hour, which was two dollars more than I made at the ice rink back in Vancouver. It was enough money for my groceries, and since Pascal and his wife refused rent money from me, I didn’t need really need any extra money.

The other plus side was that the job’s simplicity was that it required very little thought, which meant that I could pay more attention to the tiny TV that played the game then what I was actually doing.

“They’re playing well tonight, right?” My boss, Michael, said from behind me.

I nodded, turning to face him. “Sorry I was watching it. It’s just because Lisa took the cart and I didn’t know what to do so-”

“No, it’s fine,” He assured me with a small laugh. “We all take a minute or two to catch up on the game. Besides, the suites aren’t too crazy tonight, so there isn’t even a lot for you to do right now,” He reminded me, glancing back at the clock. “Listen, how about you clean up some of the dishes left in the sink, and then you can head out to catch the last bit of the game. The third period just started, I’m sure you’ll catch the last ten minutes or so.”

I felt my eyebrows raise up in surprise. “Really? Don’t you need me to clean up the suites afterwards?”

“Nah, I just hired Bill Guerin’s nephew as a favour for him. He can clean the box up,” He said, glancing back towards where the kid was. “That jerk had the nerve to wear an Ovechkin shirt to his interview.”

I laughed, thanking him before I headed over to finish off the dishes.

Being on friend terms with most of the Pittsburgh Penguins meant that I had the advantage of watching the game away from the crowd in the back tunnel with the Penguin staff. I had to race into the washroom to change out of my uniform before I made my way downstairs, smiling to the equipment managers and trainers as I walked over to the glass, standing next to the guards who made sure no one hopped out of the seats and over the bars. I had only watched one other game from this area, and even though I had been set a few looks from curious Penguins fans, I had really enjoyed it.

The boys were playing the Islanders, and even though I would have preferred to not see that team up close as I considered one of the least attractive teams in the NHL, I had to watch the last of the game. The Islanders youngest superstar, John Tavares, had control of the puck when I started watching the game. His arrival in the NHL had been met with assumptions of him breaking Sidney’s point total his first year in the big league. All of that hype just made for more interesting games between the two teams.

“Sid’s got a goal and two assists tonight, so far,” One of the trainers, Scott, said to me when he caught me eyeing the scoreboard to try and see if they were flashing who had scored the goals yet. “Letang and Staalsy scored the other two.”

I nodded, not taking my eyes away the game as I watched Geno back check against Tavares, stealing the puck and feeding it down the ice to Sidney, who had already broken away from his check and was waiting just onside at the Islanders end. “Who scored the goal for the Islanders?”

“Moulson,” He said, watching with me as Sidney weaved in towards the goal, Rolouson watching nervously as Sidney gave no indication as to which side, angle or point he was going to shoot at.

“Come on, Sidney. Go blocker side,” I said, standing up on the toes of my sneakers so I could see over the few people who had stood up as well.

As if he heard me somehow, Sidney deeked to the right, causing Rolouson to push himself over to that side, before Sidney spun around and shot he puck high blocker side on his backhand, causing the goal siren to go off and the entire arena to jump to their feet as Sidney pumped his hand in the air and let the other Penguin players skate down to do the celebratory hug.

Scott and I high-fived, as if we had somehow contributed to the goal, before I took a step forward to try and catch a glimpse of Sidney as he pulled away from the hug and began to make his away back to the players bench, which was on the opposite side of the ice as me.

I hadn’t talked to Sidney, or any of the other guys, since last night, when I had so bravely sucked face with the guy. Since my cell phone hadn’t been going off with texts or missed calls, it was safe to assume that Sidney hadn’t done what I had been afraid of him doing; he hadn’t gone off and told all of the guys what had happened. It made me feel a little more at ease, since it hinted at him not viewing it as some act of desperation on my behalf, or some cheesy male accomplishment for him.

“You know what that goal means, right?” Scott asked me, grinning. I shook my head, turning to look at him as the teams got ready for another face off. “Sid just passed Ovechkin to take the scoring title,” he told me.

I grinned, looking back over at the player’s bench, my eyes landing on Sidney as he was laughing with Max, the two of them jarring at the each other, clearly elated with the win after the team dropped the previous two games. I was trying to mentally tell Sidney that he should just be a little selfish and go for the hat trick, just to piss of the Capitals fans even more, but seeing as Sidney was still giggling on the bench and all my intense stare was doing was causing a headache, I’m not sure it was working.

By the time Sidney was back on the ice, there was less then a minute left in the last period, and the Islanders were in the Penguins zone, shooting off as many shots as they could manage, trying to get in another goal. With the Penguins having a three goal lead, there was no point in pulling the Islanders goalie, so my hopes of Sidney’s hat trick were slowly being diminished. Bylsma sent out Sidney, Jordan and Max for the last thirty seconds of play, and by some miracle, the puck hopped Richard Park’s stick and came right to Max, who immediately took off down the ice, stopping a few feet away from the goal and screaming at Sidney, who was making his way down the ice.

My eyes, as well as every other one in the arena, I’d assume, shot up to the clock, which showed just over twenty seconds remaining. The entire building stood up, including all of the players on the bench, and hopeful Pittsburgh fans took off their hats in wishful anticipation of a hat trick.

Jordan managed to join the other two, while Kris and Brooks Orpik tried to hold off the Islander’s players, and set himself in front of Rolouson so the puck was nearly impossible for him to see. Max and Sidney had some sort of telepathic conversation before they switched sides on the ice, Max faked a shot, which Rolouson somehow saw and flinched at, before he shot it to Sidney, who, without thinking, launched the puck in the tiny space between the post and Rolouson’s desperately outstretched leg, signalling the sixth goal of the game, and the hat trick everyone had been holding their breath for. In a split second, the ice was littered with hats, the arena filled with the booming sounds of applause, cheers and pure appreciation while Sidney was dog piled by the team, as if he had just won the playoffs for them.

I was so happy I was jumping up and down, waving my arms in the air. There was only a few seconds left on the clock, leaving just enough time for another face off before the buzzer went, ending the game. I moved off to the side, watching the Islanders leave the ice with their heads hanging low while the Penguins skated over to congratulate Marc and thank the crowd. The doors just in front of me were opened, meaning I had to move over so the team could make their down the tunnel. Fans came to hang themselves over the edge of the bars, desperate to knock hands with one of the players.

I was greeted with many head pats as the guys passed me, all of them ecstatic over the win, and I could feel the curious gazes looking down on me as they did so. Sidney was the last one off the ice, and after he handed his hockey stick up to a three year old boy, he yanked off his glove, reaching down to give my hand a sqeeuze as he passed with a subtle grin. I knew the action was done for two reasons. To not draw attention to me from the possibly crazed female fans staring down, hence his lack of actual eye contact, and to reassure me that he wasn’t going to go all crazy on me after last night.

I appreciated both of the reasons. But judging the cup of Pepsi that narrowly missed my head, accompanied with the, “What a whore,” comment, I don’t think he was as subtle as he thought.

----------------------------------------------

Waiting for the media to clear out of the locker room was something I had already become accustomed to in the last few weeks. I smiled politely to the reporters who glanced over at me curiously, waiting for the guys to start filing out. Dan Potash was the last of the media to leave the room, chuckling to himself about something as he followed his camera man out. He glanced over at me, eyeing me for a moment before pointing to me and asking, “Are you by any chance Hanna?”

I lifted my arms up to the cross them, as I often did when I was nervous or uncomfortable. “I am, yes.”

He grinned, “Fantastic. Good to have you around,” He said, giving me a wave before he headed off in the same direction as his cameraman.

I frowned, confused as to what had just happened, but was immediately distracted by Tyler as he came running out, throwing his arms around me as soon as he saw me. “Hanna, I am taking tonight as proof that you are some sort of good luck charm!”

I laughed, trying not fall over. “Really? Pretty sure I was here when you lost the last two games, though.”

He let go of me, waving one of his hands through the air. “Who cares about those two? We had a six goal night! Sid got a hat trick! We just took top spot in our division, Flower made it in to the top five wins department and Sid passed Ovechkin for the scoring title. You are a ray of luck, Miss Hanna. A beaming ray of luck!”

I could only laugh again as he headed off towards his girlfriend, who I still hadn’t met, leaving me to see a grinning Max Talbot standing behind him. I made a face, “What do you know?”

He grinned, “I don’t know any details, but I know that Sidney was at your house last night and he’s been in a fantastic mood since. Either you’re not as classy as I assumed and the two of you tried out you new bed, or a relationship is blossoming.”

I felt my face grimace a bit. “Why, Max? Why do you need to talk?”

He laughed, “I’m sorry. But really, whatever is going on between you and my buddy Sid, it’s clearly a good thing. The guy got a hat trick! His third one this season! He only had two before this game! Plus, he’s been laughing and joking around with everyone all day. He’s clearly a happy guy right now.”

I nodded, feeling myself blush a little bit. “Hey, great game today. That set up you made for Sidney’s last goal made it look like you actually know how to play hockey,” I joked.

Max laughed, “Thank you. I was hoping someone would say that exact phrase to me.”

I grinned, looking around Max as I noticed Sidney walk of the room, chugging back a bottle of Gatorade. Max didn’t even stand around to play some form of devil’s advocate or even try to tease both Sidney and I. As soon as he noticed that Sidney was standing a few feet behind him, he pulled out his cell phone, pretended it had rung and headed off to “Take the call.” I rolled my eyes, giving my head a small shake as I watched him speed walk down the hall.

When I turned back to look at Sidney, he was already standing in front of me, still chugging the Gatorade. He finally pulled the bottle away, which was now empty, and took a few deep breaths before grinning. “Hi. Sorry, I was really dehydrated.”

I had to laugh at him as he tried to catch his breath. “Is that the purple one?” I asked, taking the bottle from his hands and turning it around so I could see the label. “It is. Wow, you must have been really dehydrated if you chugged purple Gatorade.”

Sidney shrugged, taking the empty bottle back from me and tossing it over to the recycling bin a few feet away, frowning when it missed by a good foot. “Well, this is why I don’t play basketball,” he muttered, walking over to pick the bottle up and put it in the bin before turning to look at me once more. “So…coffee?”

I raised my eyebrows up at him, “Where can you go get coffee and not be mauled?”

“Well, there’s this really nice place I go to all the time called my house, so I figured maybe we could there,” He answered, trying not to smirk at me.

I pouted, causing him to laugh. “I guess I could do that. But I can’t stay too late, I have to call Peyton and wash my uniform before my next shift.”

Sidney nodded, waiting for me to make my way over to where he was standing before he started walking down the long hallway, nodding politely to the staff members who waved to him. “How was work? I’m guessing it’s not as busy as usual since you were down for the last period.”

I nodded, “Yeah, I guess the Islanders aren’t a team all of Pittsburgh really want to watch,” I answered. “It was alright. The job is so easy I feel like I’m stealing money from them because hey pay me to put fruit on a platter. But it means I can buy groceries, so I have no complaints.”

Sidney nodded, stopping just before the back door and frowning. “Did you drive here?” I nodded. “Me too. Do you know how to get to my place from here?”

I laughed, “Sidney, I’m not sure I know how to get too my place from here.”

He grinned, “Well, awesome.” He sighed, “How about I just drive you to my place and I’ll tell Pascal to take your car. His wife is here tonight, so she can drive their vehicle.”

“I could ask him you know,” I reminded him.

Sidney grinned, “Yeah, but he has to listen to me. I’m his captain. Wait here, I’m just going to run back into the locker room and ask him, I’ll be right back,” He said, turning and actually running all the way back to the locker room.

I let out a small sigh, leaning against the wall, and adjusting the strap of my backpack, which had my work clothes in it. There were two girls and who I’m assuming was their father standing about thirty feet away from me getting an autograph from Max. Both of the girls, who looked to be about 17 or so, were wearing a Crosby jersey, and the excitement on their faces as they talked to Max, who was showing off his bicep muscles for some reason that I’m hoping was justified, was evident.

Sidney came jogging back over to me, slowing down as he got closer until he was standing in front of me. “Alright, we’re good to go,” He told me, smiling.

I nodded, glancing back at the two girls and noticing that one of them was eyeing Sidney. “Hey, Sidney,” I called, stopping him as he was about to walk out the door. “Sorry, I just…there’s these girls that look like they came back here just to meet you, and I was-”

“Oh, where?” He asked, stepping back into the arena and glancing over at where I was pointing. “No one told me there was fans coming back tonight,” he explained to me. “Are you okay with waiting a minute?”

I nodded, noticing that the girls were moving a bit closer, clearly having noticed that Sidney had now spotted them. Sidney placed a hand on my shoulder, for a second before he left my side and headed over to the girls, making my entire face warm up. All of those worries that had been at the back of my mind all day telling me that Sidney and I would never be able to talk to each other again were gone as I watched him take the few steps over to the two girls, smiling at them as they both grinned up at him.

“Did you enjoy the game?” He asked, taking the magazine one of them had and signing his name across it, smiling when they both nodded their heads shyly. “Where were your seats?”

Neither girl spoke, so the man cleared his throat before he answered, “We were 20 rows back behind the benches.”

“Oh, good seats,” Sidney said, scribbling his name on the back of the other girl’s jersey. “Are you from around here, or visiting?”

“We’re from Vancouver, BC,” The dark haired girl said, her face turning red when Sidney glanced at her. “We couldn’t get tickets to see you play in Vancouver, so my grandma paid for us to come here as an early grad present for me.”

Sidney laughed, “Wow. My grandma gave me ten dollars when I graduated,” He told them, making all three of them chuckle. “Vancouver, huh?” He glanced back at me, grinning. “That’s a nice city.”

They nodded, the two girls glancing over at me before the blonde one quietly asked Sidney something. He looked quickly between the girl and I before he sort of smiled. “Yes.” Both of the girls seemed shocked by his answer, but it fell from their faces as soon as the dad asked if they could get a picture and Sidney obliged, moving to stand in between the two girls, placing both arms on their shoulders and smiling.

He was met with an abundance of thank you’s from both of the girls, and the dad, as he smiled, wishing them a fun trip before he turned and headed back to me, holding the door open for me. I noticed the girls still watching me and gave an awkward wave to them, which they returned, before I followed Sidney outside.

“Were you talking about me?” I asked him as I followed him out to his car.

Sidney blushed a bit, clearing his throat. “Uhm, yeah they just asked about you.”

I eyed him, “What did they ask?”

He didn’t answer until we had reached his car, where he stepped around me to unlock my door and hold it open for me. “They asked if you were my girlfriend.”

I was halfway into the car, and the answer caused me to pause, lifting my eyes up to look at Sidney. “And you said yes.”

He nodded, holding my gaze. “It was wishful thinking, I guess, but I-”

“No, it’s fine,” I said, which seemed to surprise him. “I mean, I guess it’s pretty obvious that I like you a little bit so…” I trailed off, finally sitting in the car fully.

Sidney grinned, staring down at me for a second before he closed the door and headed over to his own side.

------------------------------

“Sidney,” I began, looking down at the cup of coffee that I had only taken one sip from. “if I were to tell you that this was the worst cup of coffee I’ve ever had in my life, what would you say?”

He turned around to look at me from the kitchen counter. “I would say that you’ve obviously never had a cappuccino from Starbucks,” He replied, making me laugh. He lifted up is own cup of coffee and took a drink from it, making a face. “Oh wow, that is really bad.”
I laughed, “I’m telling you, this is terrible. If the Boston Bruins had a flavour, this would be it.”

Sidney laughed, coming over to grab my cup and dumping it out into the sink. “I always imagined Lucic to be a mocha guy.”

I stared at him for a moment. “I’m sorry, you sometimes sit around and think about what other players flavour would be? Maybe the rumours are true.”

Sidney made a face at me, opening up his fridge. “How about milk?”

“Is it going to taste like a failure?” I asked cautiously, making Sidney laugh and shake his head. “Then yes, I would love a glass of milk.”

He shut the fridge, turning around to look at me. “I don’t have any milk.”

“Why did you offer me some?” I asked.

He shrugged, “I don’t know. What if I made tea? I have tea, and there’s no way I could mess that up.”

“Sidney, just give me something to drink,” I noticed the smirk on his face and rolled my eyes. “I know. That’s what she said.”

He laughed, walking over to a cupboard and grabbing a box of tea bags before he plugged in his kettle and came to sit down next to me at his kitchen table, folding his hands on top of the table and letting out a long sigh. “I’m tired.”

“You should be. I’d have probably just died on the ice if I went out and scored three goals. Well, actually, I’d probably just die on the ice because I’d fall down and break something,” I said to him.

Sidney smiled. “That was a good game. Flower was amazing in net.”

“Flower? Sidney, you scored three goals and had two assists. A five point night! That’s amazing.”

He shrugged, “It’s not about me. It’s about the team. The team helped me out tonight,” he said, moving his gaze to look at me. “Plus, I was kind of trying to impress you.”

I grinned, “Really? You know I’ve seen you play before, right?”

Sidney laughed, “Yeah, but this was different. I had to be extra amazing, and manly. I mean, you made the first move. I had to try and steal back my mojo,” He joked.

I smirked at him. “Well, I was thoroughly impressed until you failed at making me a cup of coffee. Now I’m back to wondering if you have Backstrom’s number.”

Sidney made a face, standing up as the kettle clicked, signalling that the water was boiled and setting it off to start steeping the tea. He brought both of the cups over to the table, where the cream and sugar were already sitting, and sat down once more. “I feel like I have to remind you that I’ll be gone on road trips a lot, and that I have a lot endorsement deals that require me to head out for publicity.”

I nodded, “You’re trying to subtly ask me if I’m good with not seeing you for weeks at a time, right?” He gave me a sheepish nod. “Well, I’m sure it’ll suck, but I know that’s how it will be.”

He nodded. “And you know that I have a few fans who are…territorial?”

I laughed, “Sidney, I already had a cup of Pepsi thrown at me tonight and was called a whore, and that was before anything official had happened. I’m prepared.”

“Pepsi?” He asked, shaking his head. “Man, pop costs like five dollars at the arena. That chick meant business.”

I let out a small laugh, taking out the tea bag and added in some sugar as I glanced over at the clock, seeing that I would have to be heading out in about twenty minutes. “So, remember that time you told me you didn’t date?”

He laughed, “I do remember that, yes.”

“What changed?” I asked, seeming to catch him off guard. “You were so serious about how you thought your career would be too hard for a girl to deal with and that you didn’t want to put her through that.”

Sidney took a drink of his tea. “I think I said all of that to you to convince myself it more than you,” He told me quietly. “I used to think that hockey was the only thing I needed in life. I remember being 13 and thinking, ‘God, if I make it into the NHL, I will never ask for anything else as long as I live.’ I honestly thought it was all I needed, so I devoted everything I had to the game. I threw myself into getting better, into endorsing the game and being the best player I could be. It didn’t leave time for meeting girls or focusing on a relationship, which is why I just came to think that I’d be alone forever. And for the first couple of years, I was okay with that, because I was just going to dedicate my time to leading the team to the cup,” He paused to take another drink of his tea. “But then I won the cup, and I was surrounded by my entire hometown, and I had all of Pittsburgh cheering for me, and I had all of Canada screaming they loved me. And I felt alone. I watched the rest of the team hug their wives and girlfriends after we won the cup, and even though I had my family, and I was so glad they were there, I wanted what the others had. I had the cup for a day, and when the parade was over and I was by myself, that there was all there was. Just me and this cup, the thing I had thrown away relationships for. And even though it was sitting in the middle of my house, shining under the living room lights, and it was greatest accomplishment of my life, that empty feeling I had was still there.”

I listened to Sidney with my heart growing heavy, hearing how this guy had felt like he didn’t deserve a relationship because he had sworn being in the NHL and winning the Cup would mean that he would never ask for anything again. He had convinced himself that the loneliness in his heart could be filled with awards, and once he had that sought after Stanley Cup, he was still alone. “It was the same with the Olympics, wasn’t it?” I asked.

Sidney nodded, staring down at his cup of tea as he played with it. “Yeah. The biggest game of my life so far, and when it was done, I hugged my family goodbye so they could catch their flight, and then watched every other person on the team fall into the arms of the person they loved,” He let out a small laugh. “I was the only single person on that entire team. Everyone else had someone to bring with them to the Moulson house that night, and I walked in completely alone with no one at my side. Not even my family.” He let out another long sigh, “And then I walked in and you were there with Max and Jordan. I guess that was when I started to think that I maybe I was wrong about how I could just carry on alone.”

I sighed, “Sidney, no one can go through the kind of life you live by themselves. I know it has a lot of perks to it, and I know you’re doing what you love, but all of the criticisms, the expectations and the headlines about you, you can’t carry all of that by yourself.”

“See, I get that now,” He said with a soft laugh. “Honestly, Hanna, I think that by the time you and Peyton flew out here I was already thinking about how I didn’t want you to be just another friend, but I didn’t want to pull you into this world.”

I grinned, “And then I just stepped right into it, moved out here and kissed you.”

Sidney laughed, “Basically how it went.”

I frowned, glancing over at the clock. “You’re going to have to drive me home soon, Sidney,” I told him. “I promised Peyton I’d call her at eight, our time.”

“Will she be mad if you’re late?” He asked.

“No, but it’s eleven at night her time and she’s got a seven am class, so I don’t want to keep her up too late,” I explained.

He nodded, pushing his chair back. “Do you work tomorrow?” He asked me.

I sighed, “Yes, I do. At three. It’s a cleaning day or something.”

Sidney nodded. “I have practice at the same time.”

“Are you implying something?” I asked him, raising an eyebrow as he took both of our cups and placed them in the sink.

“I’m saying we should get lunch. Actually get lunch. There’s a tiny diner about ten minutes from your house where people are so used to me they don’t even care anymore,” He told me, waiting for me to get my coat on before he grabbed his keys off of the counter. “Hey, Hanna, hang on,” He called, stopping me before I headed over to the door to grab my shoes.

I turned around just in time for Sidney to lean down and catch my lips, one of his hands pressing on the small of my back to keep me from losing my balance, since I wasn’t completely turned around when he kissed me, and his other hand entangling into my hair. It took me a second to realize what was happening, but once I was completely aware, I wrapped both of my arms around his neck.

Sidney eventually pulled back, brushing my bangs away from my eyes and grinning. “You know, since you caught me off guard yesterday, I figured I owed you.”

I was too dizzy to reply. Instead, I let him grab my hand and lead me over to the door so I could slide my feet into my shoes before we headed out to his car.

Downsides and Upsides

If there was one downside to living in the basement of Pascal Dupuis’s house, it had to be that Kris lived two houses down and enjoyed waking up at ungodly hours, racing over to the Dupuis’ and banging on the door to my basement suite repeatedly until I answered. If he didn’t bring breakfast with him, I would have killed him by now.

“Seriously, you have to stop doing this,” I whined. “You never even gave me a day to adjust to the time difference. I’m feeling sleep deprived,” I let out a groan as I fell back onto the couch, ignoring Kris as he laughed at me, setting down the coffee and egg McMuffins he had brought over.

“Aw, come on, Hanna! I’m helping you adjust to a hockey player’s schedule,” He reminded me, handing a still wrapped mcmuffin to me and sitting down next to me.

“But I’m not a hockey player,” I pointed out, unwrapping the McMuffin and taking a bite. “And don’t you have practice or a work out to do? Something that doesn’t involve waking me up before seven every morning?”

“Hanna, do you how many girls would love to have me wake them up every morning with breakfast?” He asked, smirking at me.

I ignored the comment, taking a bite out of my McMuffin instead and letting out a sigh. “How long are you planning to stay here? Because as soon as you leave, I’m going back to bed.”

Kris rolled his eyes, chewing up the food in his mouth and taking a long sip of coffee before talking. “I promise to leave within the hour. I just hate eating breakfast by myself.”

“Aww, that’s so sad,” I cooed, picking up my own coffee and taking a sip. “But seriously, if you continue to wake me up two hours before my alarm every morning I’m drop kicking you into another state.”

He laughed, taking a bite out of his hash brown as he looked around the room we were sitting in. “You know, you’ve really made this your own place in the last week,” He observed.

“I haven’t unpacked anything in my room yet,” I admitted. “It’s just a mattress on the floor still, with boxes of clothes sitting on top of the dresser Max and Marc bought me.”

“What? When I moved out here, my room was the first place I worked on,” He told me.

“Yeah, but someone is always over here and I’d rather have the living room and kitchen area look presentable. None of you see my room, so I figured it could wait.”

“That is silly,” Kris decided. “You know that as soon as anyone else hears about this they’ll be over setting up your room for you.” He took another gulp of coffee. “What else haven’t you finished?”

I sighed, chewing on my food for a moment. “I still haven’t put up my shower curtains yet. And I never got around to buying a vacuum. Other than that, I think I’m good.”

Kris shook his head, crunching up the wrapper of his mcmuffin. “Hanna, I am so disappointed in you. Thinking of others before your self, sacrificing having a cozy room to host a bunch of ungrateful boys. What are you doing with your life?”

I laughed, “I know, I’m such a disappointment.” There was a brief pause as Kris sipped his coffee and I finished off my food. Once I was done I was let out a long sigh, turning to look at Kris. “So, serious question,” I began, causing him to turn and look at me. “How do you feel about Peyton?”

He cleared his throat, shifting a bit on the couch before he shrugged, avoiding my eyes. “She’s a very nice girl. Especially for everything that happened to her growing up, she’s a brave girl.”

I smirked, “So you have a gigantic crush on her?” I asked, teasing.

Kris pouted, “Why are you picking on me, Hanna?”

I laughed, “I’m not. It’s just that Peyton, and I know this is hard to believe, but Peyton’s only dated one guy and it ended pretty badly, so I want to make sure that your intentions are right before I give you my blessing.”

Kris smiled, “That’s very sweet of you. But, I don’t know how Peyton and I could ever work, with her living out in Vancouver Canada and me living here in Pittsburgh. She deserves better then some long distance thing.”

“Well, you should let her know that before you continue sweet talking her over the phone,” I told him, grinning at the tinge that hit his cheek. “Yeah, she tells me about that. It’s what us girls do.”
He nodded, taking another sip of his coffee. “Hey, what about you?”

I raised my eyebrows at him. “Do I want to date Peyton? Look, I know she’s gorgeous, and I know I seem lonely, but I like my men.”

Kris laughed, “No! I meant Sidney. What is going on with you two? He went out of his way to make sure you’d be as happy as possible out here, and you’ve only seen him twice since being here. Is it some game? Because guys don’t like those games.”

“It’s not a game,” I said, laughing lightly. “Sidney’s just…Sidney’s…I don’t know. He’s complicated. And he spent two blocks telling me about how he doesn’t date and he doesn’t do relationships during the hockey season. He also told me he isn’t a hook-up guy. So basically, Sidney is A-sexual, and there’s not much I can do with that.”

Kris laughed, a loud laugh that actually startled me a little bit. “Oh, Sidney. He didn’t lie to you, he isn’t a hook-up guy, or a go to clubs and find a one night stand guy-”

“That’s basically the same thing,” I pointed out.

“But he hasn’t written off relationships. He just likes to think he has so he doesn’t have to think about how lonely he is all the time,” He explained. “He had one relationship, it lasted about a month, and the girl basically made him feel like no one would ever love him with his schedule. That’s why he doesn’t drag girls into it, he doesn’t want them to come second, but they have too.” Kris yawned, causing him to pause his speech. “No one wants to live this kind of life alone, Hanna. You think Sidney actually enjoys waking up at five am to shoot commercials, spend all day doing interviews, practices, listening to fans of rival teams claim he’s not actually good at hockey or that he has no character, and then go home alone, with no one to talk to?”

I shook my head. “I guess that doesn’t make sense. I mean, I can see how alone he feels sometimes, but he won’t admit it. And he won’t talk to anyone about all of these things on his mind because he doesn’t want any of you to think he’s weak.”

“See, but he does talk to someone,” Kris pointed out. “He talks to you. Maybe he doesn’t tell you everything you’d like him to, but he admitted that he holds everything in, and he trusts you. I know he’s still trying to convince you, and himself, that he doesn’t want a relationship, but that guy is just waiting for you to tell him he’s wrong and hold his hand. Or something more manly than that.”

I stared at Kris for a long time before I shook my head. “You know, sometimes you say the dumbest things, and the all of a sudden, you’re the wisest person around. You’re an interesting guy, Kris.”

He shrugged, “I try sometimes.” He finished off his coffee before he stood up, gathering up the wrappers and the bag the food had come in. “Well, I’m off to practice. I’m sorry to have woken you up, again.”

I smiled, “That’s okay. I do enjoy the free food and the conversation, I guess. I mean, I don’t enjoy it as much as I enjoy my sleep, but it’s still okay.”

He nodded, heading over to the door. “Oh, by the way, you should stop by the arena. I know you don’t work today, since there’s no game tonight, but we’ve got a practice and then we’re all heading out for lunch. Maybe we could come help you get your room together after?”

I yawned, stretching my arms above my head before I answered. “We’ll see. I need to sleep another hour or so and then I might head over.”

He nodded, waving goodbye to me as he finally headed out the door. I wasted no time in getting up off of the couch and staggering back to my mattress, collapsing back into sleep.

--------------------------------


I rubbed my hands up and down my arms as I walked through the back tunnel of Mellon Arena to find where the boys were. I had arrived just as their practice was ending, and Ashleigh, Jordan’s girlfriend, had led me down to their dressing room where some of the other girlfriends and attendees were waiting.

“Hanna!”

I spun around, surprised to find Sidney’s dad grinning at me as he made his way over. “Oh, hi Troy! I haven’t seen you at all since I arrived in Pittsburgh.”

He smiled, taking off the hat he was wearing to scratch his head. “I know, I’m sorry about that. I was back in Cole Harbour with the family. I’m not in Pittsburgh as much as people seem to think I am.”

I nodded, “Sidney told me that awhile ago, actually. I guess I just forgot. How have you been?”

He shrugged, watching as a few of the players filed out. When Sidney wasn’t one of them he looked back at me. “I’ve been alright. I’m tired, though. Taylor’s hockey team was on a pretty intense road trip last week, and Trina and I went with her. All the time changes really did me in.”

I nodded, my attention drifting as I saw more players leaving the room. Marc noticed me and immediately came over, dragging Vero with him. “Hanna, do you need help setting up the rest of your place?”

I sighed, “Kris needs to learn how to shut his mouth.”

Vero let out a small laugh. “I can come help you if you want. The boys don’t need to come. I’m sure you’re sick of most of them.”

I grinned, “I’m only sick of Kris. But I’d love to have a girl help out for once. You won’t try and get me to hang up a glamour shot of Guy Lafleur.”

Troy laughed from behind me. “I’m assuming it was Talbot that suggested that?”

I nodded, “How did you know?” I joked.

Sidney finally emerged from the room, his hair still wet and his t shirt patterned with water marks from him obviously having tugged it on as soon as he was out of the shower. He nodded to his dad, walking over to where the rest of us stood and glancing around. “What are we talking about?”

“Hanna never set up her room,” Marc told him. “So Vero is going to help. Apparently we’re not invited.”

Sidney laughed, “Oh, that’s nice of you, Hanna.” He grinned at me. “Is everything else set up in your suite?”

I sighed, “No. I still haven’t put up my shower curtains, and even though the living room is technically set up, I want to re-organize the couches and everything.”

Sidney nodded, glancing at his dad for a second, having one of those creepy eye conversations with him, before looking back at me. “Well, I’m gonna grab dinner with my dad, but I can swing by and put the curtain up and help you move around the furniture, if you want?”

I nodded, “Yeah, that’d be great. Max picked out the heaviest couch ever, so there’s no chance I could move it.”

He laughed, “Well, then I can definitely help with that. Is that cool dad? If I ditch you a little sooner than planned?”

Troy let out an exaggerated sigh. “Well, I guess I have to be okay with it, don’t I?”

I nudged Troy’s arm. “That’s the spirit. Have a good dinner, guys. I’m grabbing lunch with the rest of your team, but I should be back at my place around four.”

Sidney nodded, bidding goodbye to me as I followed Marc and Vero out to the parking lot, breaking off to find the rental car I had.

------------------------------

“Oh my God, Hanna,” Vero laughed, lifting up one of the shirts in the box she was unpacking. “Why do you own this?”

I turned around to see what she was holding up, laughing when I saw my tie-dye Spice Girls shirt. “I don’t know. I must have thought it had some form of sentimental value if I packed it.”

She laughed, folding it up and placing it into one of the drawers. “So, Sidney was pretty willing to drop by and help you out.”

I sighed, pairing up my socks and glancing at her. “You’re not going to do exactly what your boyfriend does, are you?”

Vero let out a soft laugh. “I’m sorry. I just haven’t seen him so dedicated to a girl before. He’s usually all about hockey first and everything else comes second, but he’s been going out of his way to make sure you’re taken care of first.”

I felt my cheeks heat up a little bit. “Well, he’s just a really nice guy. Besides, he has a lot on his mind, so I’m not expecting anything.”

Vero shook her head, closing the drawer she had now filled with my shirts and sighing. “Hanna, sometimes boys like Sidney need the girl to make the first move. I think Sidney’ main thing with relationships is the fear of rejection, and it’s understandable that he does have that fear. What if he really likes a girl, he asks her out and she says no? Doesn’t seem that bad, right? But, what if that girl tells a friend, who then posts somewhere on the internet that she knows a girl who turned Sidney?”

I frowned, “It’s that big of a deal? Really?”

“Hanna, girls already claim they know someone who turned down Sidney, and then everyone reading it assumes he approached her at a club and the entire thing sky rockets into this conclusion that Sidney is a shady guy who just looks for hook-ups, when the truth is, none of it ever happened. I can almost guarantee that that is the only reason he hasn’t been more forward with you,” Vero said.

I gathered up all of my paired socks, standing up from my finally put together bed and heading over to the empty drawer that the socks would be dumped into. “Even if all of that is true, I still feel like I need a little time. I just moved out here, I started a new job the day after I arrived and I’m incredibly sleep deprived. I need to give my body and mind a little rest before I even think about a relationship.”

Vero nodded, glancing around at the empty boxes tiredly. “Well, it took us three hours, but your room is complete,” She observed, following me out of the room and out into the living room area where we had filled the coffee table with sandwiches to eat as soon as we were done. We both collapsed onto the couch, Vero reaching forward to grab the plate of sandwiches and handing it to me after she grabbed one for herself. We both simultaneously let out a sigh, taking a bite out of the sandwich and falling into an exhausted silence.

We must have stayed like that, silent and exhausted, for a good twenty minutes before I heard the knocks at the door, causing me to groan as I stood up. For some reason, my body was full of aches suddenly, even though my room was probably the easiest room to set up. Maybe it was the mix of fatigue and hard work, but every step I took towards the door caused an outcry of pain in the back of my calves and neck.

I pulled the door open, leaning against it tiredly as I looked up at Sidney. “I’m so tired, Sidney,” I whined.

He laughed, holding up a box. “I went out and bought cupcakes.”

“Oh, you can definitely come in then,” I said, moving aside so he could step in, smiling slightly as he immediately took off his shoes before moving any further into the basement.

“Cupcakes?” Vero asked. “Oh, you are a good man, Sidney.”

Sidney laughed, setting down the box of cupcakes and glancing around. “Wow, this place looks amazing now.”

I nodded, walking over to stand beside him. “Yeah, I’m actually surprised. Pascal’s wife went out and bought all the paint so I didn’t have to deal with the lime green walls that were in here before.”

Sidney laughed, “I remember that! Pascal bought this place before his wife moved out here and he seemed to think that the green was a warm colour.”

“It probably gave his kids nightmares,” I mumbled, earning a chuckle out of Sidney.

Vero cleared her throat, causing both Sidney and I to glance over at her. She smiled, standing up from the couch. “Well, I think I’m going to head out and leave you two to… finish the unpacking.” She sent me a subtle smirk, leaning down to grab a cupcake from the box. “Thank you for buying these, by the way, Sidney.”

Sidney nodded to her, moving out of the way so she could head over to the door.

“Thanks for helping, Vero. I’m pretty stoked to have an actual bed to sleep in tonight,” I told her, earning a polite “you’re welcome” from her before she headed out.

Sidney let out a sigh, “So, where’s the shower curtain you need me to hang up?”

I laughed, leading him over to the bathroom and pointing to the mess of plastic in the middle of the tile floor. “We had a fight,” I explained.

He laughed, nodding his head as he stepped into the room and picked the curtain up, grabbing the rod it was supposed to hang on and walking over to the bathtub/shower. “This doesn’t look too hard.”

“Yeah, I’m sure it’s really easy if you’re not stupid,” I agreed, earning a laugh out of him again. “I’ll just leave you to take care of that and I’ll go make some coffee,” I offered, not waiting to see whether Sidney agreed with me or not.

There was a lot of clanking and a few cuss words, but ten minutes later Sidney emerged, wiping his hands on the front of his jeans. “Well, you officially have a shower curtain.”

“Oh, best day ever!” I told him, grabbing the pot of coffee I had just made. “Do you want coffee? Or is that not in your hockey diet?”

He rolled his eyes, “I don’t have a hockey diet.”

“So, you’d like a cup then?” I asked, smirking at him.

He sighed, “Yes, Hanna. I would love a cup of coffee.”

I poured two cups, scooping some sugar into my own cup before I handed the sugar to Sidney, mixing in some cream before I took a sip, burning my mouth a little bit.

Sidney had clearly noticed my bad decision, as he bit back a grin, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he glanced over at the living room. “So, how do you want the furniture to be?” He asked.

I sighed, “Well, I was thinking that the couch could be up against the wall so it’s not in the middle of the room, in the way. And maybe the chair could be just to the right of it, facing in. Then I’d have to move the TV stand over, too. I don’t know, does that sound too complicated?”

Sidney shook his head, setting down his cup of coffee and heading over to the living room. “How about you clear off the table while I move the couch and chair? Then you can take care of the table and TV stand, unless they’re too heavy.”

I nodded, “No, that sounds like a plan. I mean, it’s way more work on your part, but I don’t mind that.”

Sidney laughed, heading over to the couch and eyeing it up a bit before he grabbed one end, lifting it up and pulling the couch over towards the wall. I hadn’t even managed to lift an end up yet, so I watched in shock as he moved the thing as if it was no big deal. I caught my eyes staying on his biceps and immediately snapped my attention away, focusing on clearing off the table instead.

Sidney had moved the couch and chair before I’d even managed to clear all of the food off, so he, of course, came over to help me with that as well. “You do too much for me, Sidney,” I told him as he grabbed the plates and sandwich platter and carried it over to set down on the kitchen counter. “Just let me handle all of this. Drink your coffee or something.”

He laughed, “It’s fine, Hanna. I don’t want you to hurt yourself. Besides, I know Kris has been here driving you crazy all the time, so I feel like I owe you.”

I smiled, shaking my head at him as he grabbed the last cup on the table, allowing me to lift it up and move it over to where the couch and chair were now. I turned around to find Sidney already carrying the TV stand, with the TV still on it, over to where I was. I pointed to the corner I wanted it in, watching as he carefully set it down before he went to grab the DVD player that had been left. I had to shake my head at him, overwhelmed with how much kindness he had.

I grabbed both of our cups and the box of cupcakes, carrying them over and setting them back down on the table before I sat down on the couch, watching as Sidney plugged everything back in for me before he came and sat down next to me.

“I hope this wasn’t too much for you,” I said to him. “I don’t want this to throw you off your game or anything,” I explained.

Sidney took a drink of his coffee before shaking his head. “It’s not a problem at all. I’ll be fine for tomorrow, I swear. Besides, you needed help, and you’ve done so much for me already, it’s the least I could do.”

I grabbed one of the cupcakes, letting out a small sigh as I leaned back into the couch. “So, what’s new with you?” I asked.

Sidney laughed, “Oh, not much. Just hockey and interviews. The usual.”

“Do you ever get sick of having such a routine life?” I asked, taking a bite out of the cupcake.

Sidney shook his head, “I think it’s good for me. My whole life, or at least as far back as I can remember, has been based off of routines. I’m so used to it now, that it doesn’t even matter. I usually don’t know what to do with unpredictable situations. I get enough of that during the games,” He joked, taking a sip of his coffee.

I chewed up the piece of cupcake I was eating. “I can’t handle routines. My life needs some surprises in it for me to not die of boredom.”

Sidney laughed, “Well, I guess that’s why you’re not living my life.”

I nodded, chewing on the last piece of my cupcake as Sidney and I fell into silence for a moment. I glanced over at him, taking in his now slightly messy hair and the hint of sweat glistening his forehead. He had such a serious expression when he was silent, I had noticed. He would clench his jaw a bit and allow his dark eyes to focus straight ahead. It seemed like whatever Sidney did, even if it was just taking a moment to be silent, he was completely concentrated on it. I let out another sigh, leaning back on the couch and looking around my now unpacked suite, feeling content with the outcome.

Sidney shifted forward a bit, squinting his eyes at he looked at something across the room. “Who’s that a picture of?” He asked, pointing towards the far wall.

I looked over at where he was pointing. “The one in the blue frame is my parents wedding photo. And the silver frame is my cousin Alissa.”

He nodded. “I guess you and Alissa are close, since you keep a picture of her, huh?”

I looked down at the cup of coffee in my hands, swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat. “We were close,” I corrected, earning a curious glance from Sidney. “I’d rather not talk about it right now. Just because I’m so tired,” I explained.

Sidney nodded, seeming to completely understand. “There’s nothing else left to be unpacked or moved around?”

I shook my head. “Nope. I’m probably going to buy some end tables or something, but other than that, it’s all done.” I glanced over at the clock, surprised to find it was nearing eleven. “Oh wow, I guess you need to head out soon, don’t you?”

Sidney nodded, gulping down the rest of his coffee. “Is there anything else you need me to do?” He asked again, standing up from the couch.

I laughed, “No, you’ve done enough Sidney.” I walked with him over to the door, yawning lightly. “Who do you guys play tomorrow?” I asked.

Sidney glanced up at me as he tugged his shoes back on. “The Capitals.”

“Oh dear,” I said, frowning. “I don’t like them very much.”

Sidney grinned, “Me either,” He joked, opening up the door, “Wish me luck.”

I smiled, looking up at Sidney and his grinning face and the way that the outside light was reflecting against his eyes, turning them from their usual dark brown into a shining hazel colour, and suddenly I could hear Vero’s voice in my head, repeating her earlier suggestion;Sometimes boys like Sidney need the girl to make the first move

Before I could even realize what I was doing, my right hand was on the back of Sidney’s head and I was up on the tips of my toes. Sidney dipped his head down just enough that our lips met, softly at first until I pushed myself up more, pressing harder against him. It didn’t last too long, and I pulled away before the kiss could evolve into anything more, catching my breath as I looked up at Sidney as he slowly opened his eyes. “Good luck,” I said, letting my feet fall flat against the floor once more as I gently brought my hand back down to my side.

Sidney stared at me for a moment, looking over my face before he nodded, the faintest smile appearing. “Goodnight, Hanna,” He said softly, surprising me as he leaned down once more to kiss my cheek before he headed out towards his car, turning around once just to glance back at me.

I closed the door once his car had backed out of the driveway and leaned up against it, re-playing what had just happened. It only took a moment before I started giggling like a small child, heading back into my room so I could collapse on my bed and let the giddiness completely overwhelm me.

Gold

“Well, if today isn’t the best day of all of our lives, I don’t know what is.” Jordan said, not for the first time, as he waited for more boxes to carry downstairs.

I was still standing ten feet away from my TV with my mouth hanging open. It would have been more embarrassing if Max and my mom weren’t doing the exact same thing. My dad and Jordan had already returned to hauling out all of the boxes of my belongings, although Jordan always made sure to either say something to convey his excitement or would take a moment to awkwardly dance in front of all of us. Max and I were still in complete shock. Both of us had stood up as soon as the overtime had begun, and we hadn’t sat down yet. It had been fifteen minutes since the game had ended and we were still staring in shock.
“I can’t believe that just happened,” Max said.

I nodded.

“I thought for sure they had lost it. The US had all the momentum going for them,” He added.

I nodded.

“I can’t believe that just happened.”

I nodded.

“Come on, Hanna, you can’t make your father and that that tall boy do all of the work for you,” My mom scolded, coming to stand in front of Max and I. “The sooner we get all of this packed up, the sooner you can all head over to talk with Sidney.”

I nodded.

“You should feel free to bring me with you,” She added. “I mean, I’d like to meet the boy who’s not only stealing my little girl away from me, but also just scored what might be the biggest goal in Canada’s history.”

I finally managed to do something other than nod my head. “You want to meet him?”

Max laughed, “I like how the assumption that Sidney is basically kidnapping you is completely ignored and the thought of your mom meeting him is scarier.”

“Why do you want to meet Sidney?” I asked, ignoring Max.

“What do you mean why do I want meet him? Hanna, it’s Sidney Crosby. Not only is he the best player in the world, but he just scored the gold winning goal at the Olympics, and on top of all of that, he’s spending his free time organizing all kinds of things for you. I want to meet the boy.”

I sighed, “Okay, I’ll see what I can do.”

My mom nodded, turning to look at Max. “That sweatshirt really looks ridiculous on you.”

He shrugged, “I know. I’m French.”

My mom looked at him, completely confused, before shaking her head and heading off. I shook my head, “Why do you always use that as an excuse?”

“Because people don’t know what to say back. It saves me an explanation,” He explained, grinning. “Come on, let’s get everything packed up so we can head out to meet with Sid.”

I nodded, glancing at the TV once more as they were showing an interview with Patrick Kane who, despite not winning a gold, was still smiling, unlike a lot of other players. “I think Kane and I could be friends,” I said aloud to Max.

Max laughed, “Yeah, maybe. I don’t really know him since we only play the Black Hawks twice a year, but I’m sure he could give you some hair tips.”

I narrowed my eyes at him, “What’s wrong with my hair?”

Max’s eyes widened as he tried to grasp at some form of an explanation. My mom had wandered back into the living room, and upon seeing that neither Max or I had moved to start packing, she placed both hands on her hips and gave me a stern look. “Hanna Danielle Ashton, I swear if you don’t move your ass and start packing up all of your stuff, I am going to take you outside and hit you with your car.”

Max started laughing. “Wow, your mom is way more badass then mine.”

“Watch your mouth,” My mouth scolded Max. “Now come on, get packing.”

Both Max and I moved off to finish packing up the few things that were still lying around untouched and tried to get everything packed up before my dad came back upstairs. I was having a hard time focusing, with Team Canada having just won the gold medal and Sidney being the one to score the game winner. It was also hard to imagine that I was leaving Vancouver tomorrow morning. My apartment was being completely emptied out tonight, with all of my belongings being shipped off to Pittsburgh tonight except for the items that I could take on board with me.

I sealed the last box shut, picking it up and carrying it over to where the last few boxes were waiting to be carried down and packed into the truck, taking a moment to glance around at my now nearly bare apartment. Some of the furniture was staying behind, Peyton said she would happily take the couch, but other than that, the apartment was completely empty. Jordan had already loaded my bags into the back of the SUV he and Max had rented for the weekend. Once I walked out that door, I wasn’t coming back. I would be spending my last night in Vancouver sleeping on Peyton’s couch, then getting woken up at some God awful hour and boarding a plane with the guys. Just the thought of leaving almost made my eyes tear up.

“You ready to go, Hanna?” My dad asked from just outside my apartment door. He walked in so he could pick up the last few boxes.

I nodded, “I guess so. I should have kept a change of clothes out, though. Now I’m going over to meet Team Canada covered in dust,” I told him, glancing down at my clothes, which were wrinkled from the hours spent sitting on the floor, walking up and down the stairs and lifting boxes.

My dad shook his head. “You look beautiful, Hanna. You really do.” He hesitated for a second before adding, “And if that boy thinks any different, then he’s not good enough for you. All of these boys better know how lucky they are to have a girl like you in their lives, because I wake up every morning thanking the Lord that he gave me you.” He shot me a smile before he carried the last few boxes out the door, leaving me to stand there fighting back tears.

My dad, the stone man, was going to miss me. And after years of wondering if the guy ever felt anything, I had my answer.

I said a last good bye to my apartment before I grabbed my keys off of the counter and locked the door behind me as I headed downstairs.

------------------------------

“Oh my goodness, it’s so loud!” Jordan yelled, covering his ears as we made our way through the Moulson house in downtown Vancouver.

“Well, this is how Canada acts when they won a gold medal in hockey,” Max reminded him.

Peyton and I were both completely shocked by the abundance of noise that hit our ears as soon as we had stepped into the club. There was barely even standing room down on the club floor, and even though the game had ended over two hours ago, the big screen TV was still up re-playing the winning goal, and every time the puck went in, a cheer went up in the club.

There was a roped off area for the hockey players, and since Sidney had gone ahead and gotten passes for the four of us, we were ushered in there immediately. Team Canada was apparently set to arrive within the next half hour, save for Niedermyer who had opted to see the closing ceremonies. I had been smart enough to leave my Team Canada jersey unpacked so I could get it autographed, but hadn’t managed to clam myself down yet. At the sight of Jarome Igninla leading the rest of the team into the building, which was met with an even louder outbreak of cheers then before, I was beginning to think I might throw up.

“They are all so giant,” Peyton whispered to me as we watched the team file in, most of them stopping to high five the fans who were close to them or wave to the club before they headed over to where we were sitting.

I laughed, “I know. They’re all Jordan sized.”

Jordan grinned from beside me, standing up so he could head over to give Eric, his brother, a congratulatory hug, leaving me to stare with my mouth open as I hadn’t even thought about the fact that other Staals would be here.

Roberto Luongo followed in just two behind Eric Staal, with his little girl in his arms and his wife right behind him. His presence was met with a breakout of “Lou!” chants, causing the already grinning man to grin even wider as he thanked the crowd, looking almost overwhelmed by the appreciation. I joined in on the chants, my love of the goaltender being no secret, and laughed when Max decided to join in as well.

Sidney was the second last guy to walk in, and unlike the rest of the players, who were there with family or with their significant other, Sidney was alone. I knew his parents must have been in Vancouver to watch him in the Olympics, but they had either already headed back to Nova Scotia or had chosen to watch the closing ceremonies instead. His arrival was met with the loudest applause, with a Crosby chant breaking out. People in their Crosby jersey’s were standing up on chairs to catch a glimpse of Canada’s newest saviour.

But Sidney didn’t seem to really notice. He gave the crowd a smile, but he made his way over to the roped off area right away, his head down as he did so. The reaction didn’t seem to take away from the atmosphere at all. In fact it almost seemed like the crowd hadn’t even noticed his lack of jubilation, and they turned their focus onto the last man to make his way into the building, Jonathan Toews, who was met with another roar of applause.

“Sidney!” Max called, seeing that Sidney was heading over to another table. “Over here, buddy!”

Sidney brightened up a bit when he noticed us sitting there, walking over to the table and taking a seat before he let out a sigh and ran his hands over his face. “How did packing go?” He asked.

Peyton made a scoffing sound. “Are you really trying to avoid the topic of that gold medal that you just won?” She asked. “Because it’s not working.”

Sidney smiled, a tired smile that showed how exhausted the Olympics had made him. “It was amazing, that whole game. I couldn’t have dreamt a better ending.”

I grinned at him. “You remember just a couple of weeks ago when I told you Luongo was the hardest goalie to score against?”

He rolled his eyes, letting out a small laugh. “I will never question your hockey knowledge again, Hanna.” He promised.

“Who’s that?” Peyton asked me, poking my arm and pointing over at someone.

I turned around to see who she was pointing at. “Oh, that’s Ryan Getzlaf.”

“He is missing some hair,” She told me, causing both Max and Sidney to start laughing.

“Yes, but that’s okay. He doesn’t need hair to score goals,” I told her.

Max and Peyton became distracted by one of Iginla’s kids wandering over, leaving me to move over and sit next to Sidney. “You look tired,” I told him.

Sidney nodded. “I am. I was prepared for the physical fatigue that came with two weeks of Olympic hockey, but I had no idea how wearing it was going to be on me mentally.”

“Really?” I asked him, surprised. “People have been discussing how Canada needs the gold in this tournament since the last Olympics, and all of the stores sell out of Crosby jersey’s daily. I thought you’d be used to all the weight falling on your shoulders.”

Sidney shrugged, glancing behind him as the crowd was attempting to start another Crosby chant. “I guess I had figured all of the attention wouldn’t be on me. At least not as a leader. I mean, they made Niedermyer the captain so he could lead this team. He’s, in my opinion, the best captain in the league, and all of these commercials were still saying I would lead the team. I guess it got to me more then I wanted to admit.”

I had to nod, trying to drown out all of the sounds around us and just focus on Sidney. Corey Perry, who was sitting at the table behind me, was accepting every beer that was bought for him, chugging it back and earning a cheer from the small gathering just below the area we were all in before he’d accept another beer and do the same. Needless to say, he had been there for many twenty minutes, and Ryan Getzlaf already had to try and hold him up because he couldn’t stand on his own. It was distracting, but since Sidney hadn’t even glanced in the direction yet, I was determined to ignore him as well.

“People just expect you to do everything, and they expect it because you’re one of the few people in the spotlight that actually seems capable of it. It seems like you’re unstoppable,” I tried to explain.

Sidney nodded, running a hand through his hair. “It was harder then I thought it would be. But, it turned out better then I could have ever imagined, so I shouldn’t complain.”

I rolled my eyes. “Please. Just because things turn out okay and you have a good life, that doesn’t mean that there’s nothing wrong. If there’s something you need to get off of your chest, just tell someone.”

Sidney nodded once more, finally looking away from me and over at the rest of the players with a soft laugh. “Well, I guess I could introduce to some of my team mates. I’m going to go ahead and guess that Luongo is near the top of that list?”

I grinned, “Sidney, you know me so well already.”

He laughed, standing up and leading me over to the table where Roberto Luongo was sitting with his wife as well as with Dan Boyle. He noticed Sidney approaching and grinned, setting down the glass of wine he was drinking and nodding to Sidney. “Hey, golden boy!” He greeted, standing up to pull Sidney into a hug.

It was a funny sight to see. Sidney, who, when standing next to me, seemed so gigantic, looked like a tiny little boy next to the towering Luongo. According to the stats, Crosby was only a few pounds lighter, but Luongo looked almost double the size. I was actually intimidated, staring up at him when he noticed me standing behind Sidney.

Roberto pointed, smiling, “Hey, you’re Sidney’s friend, right? Heather?”

I smiled, accepting the enormous hand he had extended and shaking it briefly. “Hanna, actually. But, yes.”

“Oh, Hanna. I’m sorry. There’s too much going on, I can’t keep anything straight,” He apologized, still grinning.

I didn’t know what to say back, I was too overwhelmed. Meeting all of the Pittsburgh boys, and even Mario Lemieux, that had been amazing in itself. But I had grown up with the Canucks, and Roberto Luongo was arguably the best goaltender the team had ever had, at least while I had been alive to watch the games. My mom and dad had the Luongo measuring poster hung up in their living room, and my hockey loving friends and I had all rushed out to purchase Team Canada Luongo jersey’s the second he was named to the team. I didn’t know how to talk to him. In fact, I was fairly positive that if any of the Canucks were in front of me, I would have the same reaction.

Thankfully, Sidney seemed to sense this as he moved back so he was standing next to me. “Hanna’s a huge fan of yours. She always tells me that I’m lucky I play in the East because my goal total would be down if I faced you every month or so.”

Roberto laughed, a surprising sound that I wouldn’t have expected from such a gigantic man. “Wow, thank you, Hanna. It’s people like you that give me the drive to play the best I can. We all won this medal.” Upon that last comment, he grinned again. “Speaking of which,” He turned around, lifting his medal off of the table and handing it to me. “Take a second and try it on.”

I just about fell over as soon as the medal was placed in my hand, staring down at it. It was a lot heavier than I had expected it to be, and even though I knew all of these guys had just won the medal a few hours ago, I was still surprised some of them had brought them with them. I looked up at Sidney, as if asking if it was really okay for me to wear a medal I had done nothing to deserve, relieved to find him grinning down at me, too. “Put it on, Hanna. Come on, this is Canada’s medal, not just ours,” He said to me.
I had to take in a deep breath before I finally lifted the blue string that the medal hung around and placed it around my neck.

Roberto, and a few of the other players who had turned around since Sidney and I came over, grinned at me. “It’s pretty cool, right?”

I nodded, looking down at the medal. “I feel kind of dizzy.”

Sidney and Roberto both laughed, giving me a moment to wear it before I felt too overwhelmed and took it off, handing it back to Roberto. “Thank you for that.”

He nodded, still smiling. “Hey, thanks for supporting us all.”

My eyes moved past him and towards the table next to him where Rick Nash, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook were sitting. I pouted, looking up at Sidney. “When I’m in Pittsburgh, I won’t see those guys playing as much. You only play their teams once or twice a year.”

Sidney pouted back, “I’m sorry. But we play equally handsome teams. Like the lighting.”

I sighed, “The lightning. Ryan Malone. Yes.”

Sidney laughed, as did Roberto Luongo, who, despite having sat down again, could still hear us.

“It’s weird to think that this is my last night in Vancouver.” I said, looking around the Moulson house, taking in the abundance of red jersey’s, the random outbursts of “O Canada” and the giant TV screen that was still replaying Sidney’s goal.

“Pittsburgh’s a great place,” Sidney promised. “It’s not the same atmosphere as out here, but it’s got an amazing one in itself.”

I nodded, still looking around before I looked at him again. “Do you think, maybe later, we could just walk around Vancouver? I mean, if you’re busy-”

“No, we can do that,” He said. “I mean, you can’t leave without saying goodbye, right?” He asked, smirking. “Now, come on. I know you want to meet Rick Nash. And if I introduce you to Iggy, you have to promise not to insult his team.”

I made a face. “I will be nice to Iginla, but I can’t promise that the Canuck fan in me will remain silent and respectful of the flames,” I told him honestly, making him laugh. “Also, and this might be totally awkward, but my mom wants to meet you so she can brag she met Canada’s golden boy.”

Sidney laughed again. “Alright, so we’ll introduce you to all of these guys, and head over to see your parents, and walk around Vancouver. Sound good?”

I nodded, letting him lead over to Rick Nash.

---------------------------

“I’m really sorry,” I apologized again.

Sidney laughed, “Hanna, stop apologizing. It’s been an hour now, it’s fine.”

“It is not fine! My mom grabbed your ass,” I whined.

Sidney only laughed again, “Yes, and as weird as that was for me, you’d be surprised at how often it happens.”

I shook my head, walking beside him. “I don’t know what came over her. She’s a pretty well mannered lady, most of the time.”

“Well, she probably didn’t expect me to be as good looking as I am, and the shock of my facial features made her lose control of herself,” Sidney explained.

I shook my head, letting the two of us fall into a brief silence as we walked forward again. It was nearing two am, and although the streets further downtown were still completely packed with people celebrating, the few streets near Peyton and I’s apartment complex was nearly deserted, making it easy for Sidney to be out in public.

“Where are your parents?” I asked him. “Everyone else at the Moulson house, they had family with them or someone, and you came in looking so alone.”

Sidney hesitated with the question before he started to answer. “They were here for the game, and for most of the Olympics, but my dad only has two weeks of holidays and he has to be back at work tomorrow morning. Plus, Taylor has a hockey tournament coming up and she needs to get back to practice. They left about an hour before the medal ceremonies,” He answered.

I nodded, looking up at him and seeing the way his face had sagged down a bit with sadness suddenly. “Sidney?” I asked, earning his attention again, “You feel alone a lot, don’t you?”

He looked like he was about to laugh for a second before he let out a deep breath of air. “I do, yeah. I mean, I have so many amazing things in my life, and I feel like I have no one to share that with. My parents aren’t in Pittsburgh as much as people assume they are, and I’ve only seen my sister play hockey twice this year. There’s a lot of times where I find myself staring up at the ceiling in my room wishing I had someone to talk too.”

I nodded, feeling the wind blow some of my hair into my face and reaching up to fix it. “Well, since I’m going to be in Pittsburgh, you can talk to me now. I barely sleep anyways, so you can just call me whenever you want.”

Sidney smiled at me, giving his head a small shake before he made a surprising move, lifting up an arm and letting it rest around my shoulders for a moment. “Hanna, I am really looking forward to you being around all the time.”

I could only grin back.

Suggestions

I ran a hand through my hair as I made my way across my apartment and towards the front door where the repeated sounds of knocks were coming from. I stood up on my tip-toes, peering through the peep hole to see who it was before unlocking the door and opening it, smiling at Peyton. “Hey.”

She smiled back, holding up the two cups of coffee and bag of whatever she had for me. “Can I come in?”

I nodded, stepping to the side so she could walk in, shutting the door behind her.

We had both been home for three days now, and tomorrow was scheduled to be our first day back at the arena. After spending four straight days with each other, and having to spend those four days living with each other, we had completely avoided one anther. Peyton had, presumably, spent her Hanna free time with her younger sister, probably arguing about her life choices, or making sure she had everything ready to go for University, as she had signed up to start a cosmetology course in September. Unlike me, who had avoided University because I didn’t feel like there was anything I really wanted to dedicate my life to yet, Peyton wasn’t able to go due to the fact that her dad didn’t have the money, and neither did she. Schools out in the Vancouver area are so costly it’s almost comical, and unless you’d like to dedicate the later years of your life to paying off student loans, you better have a highly stacked bank account. It had taken her all of her high school, and two years after, but Peyton had finally managed to accumulate enough money to attend the University of British Columbia. I’d be lying if I didn’t say a part of me was envious.

I, on the other hand, had spent my Peyton free time drinking coffee, reading magazines and watching hockey games. I had missed two Canuck games, and was pleased to see that they had somehow managed a win against the San Jose Sharks, and incredibly disappointed to see that they had surrendered a 4 goal lead and lost to the Flames the next day. As much as I loved BC, the downside to living so far out West had to be that watching Pittsburgh games was almost impossible. I had managed to watch a quarter of one of the boys games online, but my Internet connection had continually frozen or cut out at the most inconvenient of times. I swear, the people watching my server were purposely hitting a disconnect button every time anyone scored for either team. One second, Jordan would be making a pass across ice to Matt Cooke, then my Internet would freeze. When I’d finally get back to the game, it would be in time to hear the announcement of the last goal scored. I eventually gave up and devoted my attention to eating something. Preferably bacon.

“You look nice today,” Peyton told me, nodding at my outfit choice as she set down the coffee and bag of whatever, I still didn’t know, on the counter. “Are you using a different shampoo?”

I picked up a chunk of my hair and looked at it, as if that was the only way I’d know the answer. “My mom stopped by yesterday with some stuff she had seen on sale. Why, is it killing my hair?”

Peyton laughed, “No, it just made your hair look really nice. And I like the length, your hair gets these soft curls once it’s past your shoulders.”

I picked up one of the cups of coffee, pulling open the bag and seeing two muffins inside. “You brought me coffee, a muffin and a mouth full of compliments?” I asked her, taking a sip from the cup. “What do you have to tell me?”

She smirked at me, leaning against the counter. “I like that you assume the only way I’m capable of being nice to you is if it’s accompanied by bad news of some kind,” She said. “I don’t have anything bad to say. I just have a suggestion.”

I eyed her, grabbing a muffin from the bag and checking to see what kind it was. “A suggestion for what?”

She sighed, picking up her own cup of coffee and taking a long sip from it. “Well, Marc and I were talking last night, via AIM, and he was asking me about school,” She began, watching me as I bit into the muffin I had grabbed. “He asked me about you and whether you were signed up for school, and I said no, and he was surprised by that.”

I chewed on the piece of muffin I had in my mouth, still eyeing Peyton. “Are you here to tell me I need to go to school? Because I’d be all for it if I knew what I wanted to do with my life.”

“That’s not exactly it, it’s…” She sighed, pausing to take another drink of her coffee. “Look, Marc wants you to call him. He said he’ll be out of practice around noon our time, and he has a couple of free hours. I think it should be him that tells you.”

I nodded, “Okay. I can do that. That’s all? There’s nothing more you have to tell me?”

Peyton glanced down at the other muffin, almost in guilty fashion, and shook her head. “No, nothing else of importance.”

I nodded, taking another bite of the muffin as I watched her adjust the bracelet she was wearing. I let her awkwardly adjust it around her wrist for a moment before I spoke up again. “When are you flying out to see Kris?”

Peyton’s face paled as she glanced up at me. “What?”

I grinned, “I know he and his girlfriend broke up just before you and I arrived in Pittsburgh, and I also know that you made a beeline for him whenever he was around. Plus, the night Max and Jordan changed the seating so I was with Sidney, they left you with Kris. I’ve just been waiting for you to tell me.”

She chewed on her lip for a moment before letting out a soft laugh. “I didn’t think it was obvious,” She admitted.

I grinned, “Oh, I’m sure none of the guys have any idea. Except maybe Max. I think Max always knows more then he lets on,” I decided. “Anyways, if he’s single, I don’t see why you need to feel bad about it.”

“I don’t feel bad as much as I feel weird,” She tried to explain. “Have you taken the time to think about how crazy our lives got? A month ago, I could give a shit less about hockey. Now, I’m aim chatting with the goal tender of the Pittsburgh Penguins, checking scores for the Canucks, just because I still think that Bieksa guy is a stud, and thinking about what it would be like to date Kris Letang. I spent the last couple of days thinking I was losing my mind.”

I laughed, “I’ve been questioning my own sanity as well, don’t worry.” I took another drink of my coffee, looking over at the clock on my microwave. My eyes immediately drifted from the clock to my cell phone, which was sitting a few feet away from me on the counter. I let out a soft sigh, taking another bite out of the muffin.

Peyton’s mouth twitched to the side for a moment. “He’s been really busy, Hanna. I wouldn’t read too much into this.”

I nodded, looking back up at her with a forced smile. “I’m not. I was just wondering if it was too soon to call Marc.”

Peyton rolled her eyes at me. “Right. Why don’t you call him? You already know that they’re practice is out at noon.”

I sighed, “I don’t want to bother him. I’m sure Sidney just has a lot on his mind right now, especially with the Olympics coming up and everything. I don’t want to take away any of his free time.”

Peyton gave her head a shake. “Okay, but you know that he’s probably not calling now because he feels bad for not calling right away and doesn’t know what to say to you.”

I shrugged. “Where are you off to today?”

Peyton shrugged back. “I have no plans. What about you, you’re all dressed up and just hanging here?”

“I just saw this shirt in my closet and realized I never wear it anymore,” I explained. “Do you want to hang out or something?”

“Are you sure? You won’t be completely sick of me tomorrow?” She joked.

I laughed. “I’m sure I can handle working with you tomorrow. I just need to get out of this apartment.”

She nodded, chewing on a piece of muffin. “Alright. Well, how about you call Marc, and then you and I will head out, maybe get some lunch or something?”

I nodded, checking the time and seeing that it was already past noon. “I guess I’ll call Marc and see what the two of you are up too,” I mumbled, grabbing my cell phone and heading into my room, leaving Peyton in the kitchen.

Marc answered on the second ring, shouting “Hello?!” over the background noise of who I’m assuming to be fellow players.

“Marc? Hey, it’s Hanna,” I said, suddenly uncomfortable. “Peyton told me to call you.”

“Hanna!” he repeated. “Guys, it’s Hanna!” I heard a chorus of “hi Hanna!” in the background before Marc came back on the phone. “I had just been talking to Peyton about schooling, and I was so shocked when she said you weren’t in school!”

“I thought everyone knew that already. Didn’t we have this conversation at the giant team dinner?” I asked.

“I believe you spent the majority of that dinner talking with Sid,” He reminded me, the smirk on his face obvious in his tone. “Anyways, Peyton told me that you haven’t signed up because you haven’t found anything you want to study?”

“That would be why, yes,” I answered. “Did you just call to mock me with the fact that you’ve known you wanted to dedicate your life to hockey since you were three?”

He laughed. “No, I was just thinking about the way you were with all of us, and how you actually listened to us, which is something most people, even friends, don’t do anymore, and it got me thinking…”

I frowned, “Thinking what? Why did you stop talking?”

There was a muffled conversation going on for a few seconds while I waited for Marc to come back on the phone. “Sorry about that, Sidney was talking to me,” He apologized. I resisted the urge to say something about how surprising it was that Sidney could still talk, since I hadn’t heard from him since we left Pittsburgh, but I didn’t. “I was just thinking that, since you’re not in school and we all like you so much, I heard a rumour that the arena needs is looking for a server.”

“You’re calling to ask me if I’ll up and leave Vancouver to serve drinks for less money than I make out here to crazy Pittsburgh fans? No deal. When the Flyer’s come to town, they’ll be brining their fans, and their fans scare me.”

Marc laughed, “No, to work in the upstairs boxes, bringing in the catering and drinks. It pays a pretty fair amount of money, and Pascal Dupuis and his wife said they have a downstairs suite that they never use and will let you have.”

I sighed, “That’s all really sweet, but I can’t just pack up and leave my family. Also, there’s no way I could afford any of that.”

“Didn’t you hear me? Pascal said you could have the suite, free of charge. For the first year or so, at least. Plus, all of us are totally willing to pitch in and help you get out here. I’ll even talk to your mommy for you,” He tried to bargain.
I had to sigh again. “That sounds great, really, but why would I leave all of my friends and family to go to Pittsburgh and work a job that probably doesn’t pay as much as the one I have here?”

“Because, you need to figure out what you want to do in life, and clearly, you’re not finding it out in Vancouver,” He pointed out. “And I think a change could be good for you. Besides, we are fantastic people. It would be great for you, I feel.”

I was silent for a long time, long enough that Marc eventually asked if I had hung up. “No, I’m still here,” I said. “I just…that’s a lot to think about. I don’t want to say no, but I can’t say yes. Not yet, anyways.”

“That’s totally fine,” Marc assured me. “Take your time and call me when you think you know what you’ve decided. Or when you think you can talk about it in a little more detail.” He let out a long sigh. “And don’t hold this against Sidney. He’s had a tough few days. He’ll talk to you when he’s ready to, don’t doubt that.”

I was surprised that Marc knew I was a hurting a little bit from Sidney not talking to me since I had left just a few days ago, but I should have figured out by now that Marc knows me a little better than I had assumed he did. “I’ll try not to,” I promised. “How are you guys? Are you all doing good?”

“Yeah, we’re fine. Don’t worry about us,” He said with a small chuckle. “Listen, I have to go in and talk to Pens TV, but I hope you really think about coming out here. Or at least prepare a guest room so we can come visit you at some point, because we all miss you,” He paused for a second before adding, “Some of us more then others. I’ll talk to you later, Hanna.”

“Okay, bye Marc,” I hung up, letting out what must have been my hundredth sigh that day before I headed back out to the kitchen to talk with Peyton.

-----------------------

Peyton set down her menu, frowning a bit. “If I order the spinach and artichoke dip as an appetizer, will you eat some of it?”

I nodded, scanning over my own menu. “Can I ask you something?” Peyton hummed, glancing up at me. “Do you think I should lave Vancouver?”

Peyton bit her lip for a second. “I don’t want you to leave, but I can definitely see why getting out of here would be good for you.”

“I just…I don’t know how being in Pittsburgh will help anything,” I admitted. “Their schools offer the same courses the ones out here have, and I’m not sure how being around the guys all the time will help me focus on my life,” I admitted.
Peyton gave her shoulders a small shrug. “Maybe not focusing on it is what you need,” She suggested. “Maybe you need to be out and surrounded by new people, in a new city. You’ve built up so many walls out here, Hanna, and I don’t think you’ll ever be able to take those walls down if you’re out here. Plus, the server job Marc was talking about, I think it would push you outside of your comfort zone, which I think you need.”

I nodded, taking all of that in. “I just don’t know if I’m ready for that.”

“Well, you don’t have to go right now,” She said, laughing. “I just think Pittsburgh has everything you need and want right now. It’s a new place, it’s a fresh start. It has a great job for you, a great group of new friends, and, you know, that Sidney guy.”

I ran one of my hands through my hair. “I’ll have to talk to my parents, I guess,” I mumbled.

Peyton smiled. “Don’t go if you’re not positive that this will be good for you, okay? It’s just a suggestion. If you really think staying out here, with me, working at the arena is better, then stay here.”

I nodded, thankful to see our waitress arrive to take out orders.

------------------------

It was nearing midnight when I heard my cell phone going off from beside me, somewhere on my bedside table. I looked around for it, muting the tiny TV in my room and letting my hand feel around for the phone. “Hello?” I asked into it.

“Hey, Hanna. It’s Sidney.”

I felt my eyes widen, then a sense of rage ripple through me, followed by a wave of relief and excitement. “Oh, hey Sidney. What’s up?”

There was a long pause from the other side. “I’m sorry it’s so late. I’m not sure what time it is there-”

“It’s only eleven, no worries,” I answered.

“Okay, that makes me feel a little bit better.” He let out a long sigh. “I’m really sorry I didn’t call you until now I’ve just been busy and…I just….I need someone to talk too, I guess.”

I felt the beginning of a half smile pulling at the sides of my mouth. “Well, I am here to listen. What’s wrong?”

He didn’t say anything for a second, and I could imagine him scratching the back of his neck in his typical nervous way. “Well, it’s mainly two things. First, remember when you told me that I couldn’t hold everything in?”

I had to let out a small laugh, “Are you about to just unload it all on me? Because I can handle that.”

“That’s what she said,” Sidney mumbled, making me laugh. “I guess it’s not really a big deal. It’s just that we play the Capitals on Saturday, and even though I’ve been trying to not pay attention to the stats, and not listen to all the talk on this apparent rivalry between Alex Ovechkin and I, it’s all getting to me.”

“What caused that?” I asked, sitting up and crossing my legs.

“One of the reporters today brought up the fact that we’re tied in goals, but he’s leading with two assists. I know it shouldn’t get to me, and it usually doesn’t, but for some reason this time, it did,” He tried to explain.

“It’s understandable. Ovechkin’s a douche,” I joked, smiling when I heard Sidney chuckle from the other end. “Look, eventually some of the stuff that gets said about you is going to get to you. This feud between you and Ovi, it’s been happening since your first year in the NHL. If after almost five years, it’s just now hitting a nerve, then you’re a far bigger person then people credit you to be. Besides, you don’t need to worry about this whole rivalry. Even if Ovechkin ends the year with more anything, in ten years, people remember the Crosby’s of the NHL. They remember the guy who went out of his way to do everything for the fans. The guy who no one had any dirt on, because there wasn’t any, the guy who went out and lead a team that looked like it had no hope to a Stanley Cup. Ovechkin can have his so called ‘exciting’ style of play, and he can score a few more goals, but at the end of the day, it’s you who people will talk about with the utmost respect, because to you, hockey is more than just a game.”

Sidney was silent for a couple of seconds before he let out a small laugh. “Hanna, you always know what to say to me,” He told me.

“What was the second thing?” I asked, a little cautiously.

“I heard Flower talking about how he thinks you should come live out here in Pittsburgh,” He began, waiting as I agreed with this. “I think that would be really good for you.”

I was silent. Even though I hadn’t expected Sidney to disagree with the idea, I certainly wasn’t expecting that the first time he’d call me it would be to talk about this, especially on the same day I had been told about it.

Sidney carried on, obviously realizing that I wasn’t sure what to say. “I remember when you were talking to me about why you aren’t in school, how it’s because you haven’t found anything in your life that made you feel the way hockey makes me feel, and I just feel like maybe that’s because it’s not in Vancouver, it’s somewhere else. I’m not saying that I think it’s Pittsburgh, but I think getting away from everything out there, and whatever it is out there that you don’t want to talk about yet. And I’m even willing to pay for your ticket out here, and I’ll have my manager to arrange for trips for your parents to come out and visit you a few times in the year if you want.”

I was silent again, but this time over complete shock. It took me a good two minutes of utter silence before I finally let out a small laugh, “Sidney, I really believe that you are some kind of an angel or something when you just do these amazing things for me, just because you’re a good person.”

I couldn’t see Sidney, but I knew that he was grinning on the other side of the phone as he let out a small laugh. “I just want to be as helpful to you as you have been to me.”

I just about melted, feeling a grin spread across my face. “Then…maybe I should talk to my mom about why I’m moving to Pittsburgh.”

There was a brief pause before I heard Sidney start clapping. “If you need help moving, Max can come help you. Even it’s a game day, he can sit out. No one will notice.”

I laughed, “You’re so sweet, Sidney.”

He let out a yawn, “Thanks. I’m sorry that I called so late, complained to you and am now going to hang up.”

I smiled, “That’s fine. I told you I was here if you needed someone to talk to, and I meant it. Besides, you and the rest of the team have already done so much for me.”

Sidney started to say something but then stopped. “I’ll talk to you soon, okay? And if you need someone to talk to, I’m here.”

“I might take you up on that,” I admitted. “Bye Sidney.”

“Bye Hanna.”

I set my phone back down on the table, letting out a content sigh as I looked back at the TV. It hadn’t even been two minutes when I heard my phone going off once more, signalling a text message this time. I picked up my phone, checking to see who it was from and rolling my eyes when the text from Max popped up. AHHHHHH! Neighbours forever! Excited. C U soon.

I laughed, half at the text and half at the fact that he had actually said “C U soon”. I set my phone back down, letting out a yawn and finally shutting off my TV as I settled back into my bed, trying to let the enormity of my decision sink in.

Bonding

“Let’s say, hypothetically, I ate another one of these,” I began, pointing at the chocolate bar in my hand. “Would that be disgusting, or impressive?”

Sidney laughed. “Well, since that’s your second Milky Way bar and you’ve already eaten two pieces of cake and a burger, I’d say both.”

I nodded, taking another bite out of the chocolate bar. “I don’t know why Canada doesn’t have these. I feel like I should write a letter to the Prime Minister and complain,” I paused, turning to eye Sidney who groaned.

“I don’t know Stephen Harper!” He said. “I’m not sure why you’ve just decided that I must know everyone in the world,” he added.

I grinned, now finished with the Milky Way bar and searching for a garbage can to toss the wrapper into. “It’s because you’re so important I just assume that everyone must want to know you.”

He rolled his eyes, giving his head a shake. “Just because I’ve met some really amazing people doesn’t mean I’m friends with them. Why is this so hard for you to understand?”

“Are those Penguins shirts you always wear free, or do you genuinely like them?” I asked him, completely ignoring his comments. “You wear them all the time, and I just wonder…”

Sidney frowned, looking down at the dark blue Pittsburgh Penguins t shirt he had on underneath of his hoodie and tugging at it. “What’s wrong with this?”

“Oh, so it is because you like them?” I asked. “Well…okay then.” I turned away from him, continuing the walk back to his place.

Sidney jogged a couple of steps to catch up with me. “Seriously, what’s wrong with these shirts?”

“I just don’t understand why you feel the need to constantly remind people of what team you play for when there’s posters, pictures and news about you everywhere doing that for them,” I tried to explain. “But if you like them, then good for you.”

“I do like them,” He told me, waiting a few seconds before adding, “And not just because they’re free.”

I laughed, “I knew it! I can’t believe you’re too cheap to buy different shirts. Don’t you make a gazillions dollars a year?”

Sidney didn’t say anything, and when I glanced over at him I saw the same stoic expression that had crossed his face so many times before when I tried to make light of his superstardom. The laughter that often danced inside of his eyes had calmed, and he didn’t even offer a polite half smile like he had done before. He was just staring straight ahead, hands in his pockets, his eyebrows sinking down a tiny bit. I had hit some kind of nerve with him, and I wasn’t even sure how.

I sucked in my bottom lip, walking next to him in tense silence for a good few minutes, occasionally glancing over at him to see if his face had softened at all. When it hadn’t, and I couldn’t handle the silence anymore, I cleared my throat, managing to earn Sidney’s attention. “I’m sorry.”

Sidney seemed surprised by the apology, frowning. “You don’t need to apologize, I was just…thinking.”

I smirked at him. “I know that the money comment bothered you, Sidney. I can tell by the way you just shut down. Is it anything to do with your fame, is that what bothers you? Because, I need to know so I don’t continue to make you upset.”

Sidney didn’t say anything for a few seconds, which made me fear that I had just upset him again. I peered up at him, thankful to see that he was just taking the time to think. He let out a long sigh before speaking. “I don’t know why it bothers me so much, the attention. I mean, I’m so thankful that people care about me at all, and I know that I’m lucky, more than that even. It’s just,” He stopped, taking in another deep breath of air. “I just hate that people can never see me as anything other than Sidney Crosby, captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins. I hate that there’s all of these assumptions about me, that I have so many girls on the side, that I’m arrogant, that I’m always out drinking and partying. I know that those stereotypes go hand in hand with any form of fame, and I knew they would come along with me when I entered the NHL. But, I try so hard to not be seen as any of that, and sometimes it bothers me more than it should that people will still assume I’m just another guy who’s ungrateful for everything he has and wastes his life in a club somewhere.”

I nodded, just then noticing that both he and I had stopped walking and we were standing idly on the sidewalk. “I don’t think that everyone assumes that,” I said, trying to reassure him.

“I know that, but then they all assume I’m boring, or I have no personality. They all tell me how I should be living my life. Talking about how pathetic I am because I live with Mario. I’m whiny because I talk to the refs, I’m not actually that talented, the NHL just calls me their darling,” He gave his head a small shake. “I mean, I’m 22, I don’t have everything figured out yet. I left home when I was 16. I live with Mario because it makes me miss my family less, and it distracts me from how alone I feel sometimes. I try to just ignore it all and look at the positives; The fans wearing my jersey in Mellon Arena, the kids who wait hours just to meet me, the fan mail, all of that. But, for some reason, it’s all of the other stuff that stays with me.” He chewed on his bottom lip for a second. “I don’t want you to think that I’m not just a normal guy. I don’t want you looking at me as whatever all the magazines tell you to think I am. I know it’s lame to wear the shirts I get for free, but wearing them…I don’t even know how to explain this, but it makes me feel more normal. And lately, feeling like the Sidney I used to be has been impossible.”

I could feel my face falling, almost overwhelmed by how much Sidney had just shared with me. It was so easy to see him in all of those interviews, smiling at the camera, saying exactly what we all wanted him to, and assuming that he meant it all, that all of those smiles were genuine. I’d never once stopped to think that even someone as famous and talented as Sidney Crosby could feel…small.

“Sidney, do you have anyone to talk to about all of this?” I asked him. “Do you tell any of the guys? Your parents? Mario?”

He shook his head. “No. With the team, I’m supposed to be their leader. I don’t want them to hear all of this and think I’m weak. I need to be their strength, I need to be the guy who carries them.”

I nodded, still looking up at him. “I know I leave tomorrow morning, but, if you ever have one of those times where all of this just feels like it’s too much, call me. I’ll listen to you.” Sidney was looking down at me with this expression that seemed to be a cross between shock and appreciation, urging me to add, “You can’t carry all of that around, Sidney. You can’t take the weight of the team and the weight of your own issues and carry that by yourself. It’ll just break you.”

Sidney let out a small laugh, looking down at me. “Hanna, where did you come from?”

“Vancouver,” I answered, smirking at him. “What time do you need to back?” I asked him.

He glanced down at his watch. “Actually, pretty soon. I guess we should get going.” He scratched the back of his head for a second before looking back at me. “Thank you, Hanna. I know I just dumped a lot on you, but-”

“Don’t even worry about it,” I told him.

Sidney nodded, tilting his head to silently ask if I was good to continue walking. I nodded back, falling into step with him as we made our way back to his place.

------------------------------

“HANNA!” Peyton yelled when I stepped into the hotel room, nearly causing me to wet myself as she startled me so much. “Hanna, you’re famous.”

I was leaning up against the wall, taking deep breaths and trying not to pass out as I looked up at her. “What? Why did you just about kill me?”

“I’m sorry. I’ve been waiting all day for you to get back here,” She explained, reaching out and grabbing my arm so she could drag me over to the computer in our room. “Look!”

I leaned around her, peering down at the computer screen and feeling my eyes widen as I realized what I was looking at.

There it was: the picture of Sidney and I from the banquet last night, smiling at the camera. My shock wasn’t caused by the picture as much as it was the location of the picture. Sidney and I were grinning back at hundreds of girls, the baby blue background of the website clashing terribly with the dark blue of my dress.

“Oh dear Jesus, I’m on the girlfriend forum,” I said.

Peyton grinned. “You’re on the girlfriend forum.” She glanced at me, seeing the colour draining from my face. “Hey, it’s not that bad. A lot of these girls like you. Apparently, not being blonde is a bonus. I’m offended by that, since I’m a strawberry blonde, but these girls like that you’re not a typical girl. Also, they like your dress.”

“I don’t understand why they would think I’m his girlfriend, though,” I admitted, my eyes noticing the comments that were discussing my possible compatibility with Sidney, “I mean, it’s just a picture.”

“It probably has something to do with his tie matching your dress,” Peyton pointed out. “Also, if you scroll down, there’s a ton of pictures of you and him talking to one another in the background of other pictures, plus a couple of you sitting at the table with him.” She shrugged, “I don’t see what the big deal is. Everyone else is basically waiting for the two of you to just admit you want to bang each other.”

“I do not want to bang him, Peyton. Besides, we’ve been over this before. Sidney and I just met and I leave tomorrow morning. It’ll take some time before-”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Peyton said, shrugging. “I’m just saying, he’s a stud, and he likes you. And you like him. No one will blame you if you want have a make-out session at the airport tomorrow morning.”

I could feel my entire face burning from her comment, making Peyton laugh. “I’m going to have a shower and try to forget about that comment,” I told her, pushing myself away from the computer and heading over to my own room.

“Hey, Hanna?” Peyton called, causing me to turn around and look at her. “Are you going to the game tonight, or are you staying here and meeting up later?”

I sighed, “I might just stay here and then meet up with everyone later. I’m so tired.”

She nodded, “That’s what we all figured. The team booked the banquet room downstairs so that they could come here after and hang out with on our last night. Just so you know to look fantastic.”

I paused with my hand on the doorknob to my room, turning to raise my eyebrows at Peyton. “I always look fantastic, Peyton. Always.” I didn’t wait to see if she would offer any sort of reply before I walked into my room.

----------------------------
“Hanna, seriously, hurry up!” Peyton called to me, waiting out in the living room for me.

“Just a second!” I called back, digging through my suitcase, which I still hadn’t unpacked and since we left tomorrow, there was no point, in search of my cardigan. “Peyton, did you steal any of my clothes?” I yelled, getting up so I could pull open the door and peer out at her.

Peyton shook her head. “How could I have even done that without you noticing? You’ve seen me everyday.”

I pouted, “I don’t know. I just lost my cardigan. The nice dark grey one.”

Peyton let out a chuckle. “You mean hanging on the back of the couch?”

I glanced over at the white couch, noticing my dark grey cardigan hanging off of the back. “Yes, I do mean that one. Thanks for pointing it out.” I headed over to the couch, tugging the cardigan off of it and quickly slipping it on. “Alright, I’m good to head downstairs,” I told her, heading over to the door where a pair of flats were waiting for me.

Peyton grabbed her purse off of the table near the door, double checking to see that she had her room key before following me out the door.

The majority of the Penguins were already downstairs in the banquet room, the massive mob of fans in their jerseys and a few reporters standing on tip-toe with a notepad in hand being a clear indicator of it. Peyton and I had already become accustomed to flashing the photo ID cards Ray Shero had given us when we first arrived, a card that allowed us into every Penguins event that we were invited to, and also saved us from long and awkward explanations with the giant security guards. Both of us flashed the ID badges at the two gigantic guards standing outside of the banquet doors, trying to keep back the fans. One of them noticed us, nodding curtly and pushing the door open just far enough that Peyton and I could sneak through.

Tyler was the first one to notice us, as he was standing near the door on his cell phone. He grinned at the two of us, waving as we walked past him and headed over to the gigantic table set up in the centre of the room. Peyton immediately moved for the empty seat in between Kris and Jay McKee, leaving me to take the seat next to Max at the very end of the table.

“Hey, hey, long time no see,” Max greeted, grinning at me. “How was your day of Sidney?”

I rolled my eyes at him. “It was good, thanks. How was your game?”

Max pouted. “Not so good. Lagenbrunner scored twice, Pairse scored twice and that stupid Rob Niedermyer scored one, too.”
“How many did you guys score?” I asked.

“Well, I didn’t score any, thank you for reminding me,” He said, shooting me a look. “Tangers got one and Sidney got two, but that was all we managed.”

“Lots of two goal scorers in that game,” I mumbled. “Well, I’m sorry that it didn’t go as well as you would have liked,” I apologized.

Max shrugged, “Ah, you can’t win them all.” He smiled to the waitress who set down a glass of water in front of each of us, the young girl pausing to shoot him a small wink. “Whoa, she is lonely,” Max joked to me as she walked away.

I shook my head at him, lifting up the glass of water in front of me and taking a sip. “So, how much will you miss Peyton and I once we leave?”

Max sighed, bringing his hands up to rest behind his head as he pretended to ponder the question. “Honestly? I will be pretty sad. Even with Peyton leaving. I know she drives me crazy and has changed my view on beating women, but I’ll miss her.”

I laughed, “Well, it’s good to know that you now view violence against women as acceptable.”

“Acceptable under certain circumstances,” He corrected with a cheeky grin. “Really though, I’m going to miss you girls. We have to make sure we keep in touch.”

I nodded, my eyes moving past Max and scanning each player sitting at the table, smiling when one of them noticed me. Sidney was sitting half way down the table, his Blackberry in his hand as he texted someone back, occasionally looking up at Chris Kunitz as Chris was telling Sidney some story that Sidney was clearly not interested in. Once he was done texting, Sidney slid his blackberry back into his pocket before he leaned forward and continued to listen to Chris, who was getting increasingly more and more into the story he was telling. Sidney nodded every so often, a half smile tugging at his lips as he listened. After a good thirty seconds of feigning interest in Chris’ story, Sidney turned his head to look at me, catching me watching him. He smirked, raising both of his eyebrows up at me as if asking, “Yes?”

I shrugged, moving my gaze away from him and over to where Peyton was sitting next to Kris and Jay, laughing at Kris, who had placed both straws under his top lip and was pretending to be a walrus while Jay McKee was sprinkling water above him.

“He’ll miss you,” Max said from beside me.

I turned to look at him. “Kris? I’ll miss him, too. He’s so funny.”

Max chuckled. “Well, yes Kris will miss you, but I meant Sidney. You’re one of the few people he’s actually talked too. And that’s extra special since he just met you.”

I had to smile a little bit, my eye shifting so that I could catch a glimpse of Sidney once more, who was taking a gulp of water, some of it trickling down his chin. “Yeah. I’ll miss him, too.”

Max grinned. “Look at you, all young and lusting over little Sid.”

I made a face, “Please never say that phrase again.”

Max laughed, pushing himself up from his chair and getting up without an explanation. I watched with a puzzled expression as he made his way around the table, patting a few people on the head before he came to a stop right behind Sidney. I let out an inward groan, already realizing exactly what he was doing. Max leaned down and said something to Sidney, patting both of his shoulders. Sidney let out a small laugh, nodding his head as he pushed his own chair back and standing up, watching as Max immediately sat in his place. Sidney grabbed his glass of water, lifting it up to Chris, who seemed just as confused as I had been a moment ago, before he headed over to the seat Max had been in seconds before.

“Hey,” He greeted, sitting down next to me and setting his glass down.

I smiled, “Hey. I hear you had a two goal night?”

Sidney nodded, “Yeah, Geno set me up for the first one, carried it down the ice himself, and I just got lucky on the second.”

I smirked, “Of course you refuse to just take credit for it,” I joked, earning a small grin from him.

“It was a tough game. Brodeur is one the hardest goaltender to score against, and I just couldn’t beat him. The Devil’s are a team we always struggle against, anyways, so I’m pretty proud of the fact that we kept it a close score,” He explained to me.

I had to let out a small laugh. “Sidney, I’m not a reporter. You can tell me that it sucks to play your best and not win, I won’t judge you.” I took a sip of my water. “Oh, and I have to correct you,” I added, “Brodeur is one of the hardest to beat. Luongo is the hardest.”

Sidney only smirked at me, both of growing quiet as Dan Bylsma stood up to propose a goodbye toast to Peyton and I before allowing the servers to bring out whatever it was we would be eating.

“Take it all in, Hanna,” Sidney said quietly to me. “Tomorrow, you’re just a normal girl again.”

I chuckled, “It’ll be hard after living such a flashy life these last few days,” I joked. “In complete seriousness, though,” I added, “Thanks. For everything. I know you were behind most of this trip, and I really appreciate it.”

Sidney seemed embarrassed that I had brought up his involvement in the whole trip. “I just wanted you guys to remember Pittsburgh in a good way,” He said, “That’s all. My dad really took care of everything.”

I knew the last comment was a lie, but I didn’t push it. Instead, I reached out and patted the top of his hand before I picked up my glass of water and took another sip from it, just to cool down the blood that was sent rushing to my face as soon as the gesture was completed.

-----------------------------

“Are you awake?”

I turned my head away from the van window to look at Marc. “Yes, for the ninth time, I am awake.”

He grinned, “I was just making sure,” He tried to explain, taking a big drink from his cup of coffee.

I yawned, letting my head fall against the window once more. It was just before six am, and Marc, Max, Jordan and Sidney were kind enough to hop in the van with Peyton and I and head down to the airport. We had an eight am flight to catch, and after talking with all of the boys late into the previous night, both Peyton and I were completely exhausted. The boys were used to having to get up at unkindly hours in the morning, whether it was to catch their own flights or do interviews or whatever, so they were finding great joy in bothering Peyton and I.

“Leave her alone, Flower,” Jordan said from behind me, his giant hand reaching out to swat the back of Marc’s head. “She’s tired. Plus, you don’t want her last memory of you to be this, do you? She’ll go back to Vancouver and tell everyone all sorts of things about you.”

Marc gasped, “Oh no! Hanna, you have to tell people good things about me, okay? Good things!”

I reached out and pushed his face away, my eyes closing for an extra few seconds as my eyelids seem to grow increasingly heavier.

“Hey, Hanna?” I heard Sidney ask from the seat in front of me, causing me to force my eyes open so I could see him. “Do you want a cup of coffee, or something to eat?” He asked, holding up a plastic cup of Starbucks coffee in one hand and a gigantic banana chocolate chip muffin in the other.

I eyed both things for a moment. “How much longer until we’re at the airport?” I asked, my voice sounding strained.

Sidney twisted back around in his seat to glance at the clock on the car’s radio. “About a half hour.”

“Okay, I will have both of those,” I decided, forcing my body to straighten up so I could take the cup and muffin from Sidney. “Thank you.”

He nodded, turning back around in his seat.

“I would have offered you a cup of coffee,” Marc told me.

I glared at him. “You took my cup of coffee. Remember how you got that cup? You stole it from me.”

Marc frowned, glancing down at the cup in his hands. “I did that, didn’t I? I’m sorry.”

“Are you going to steal my soul next, too, thief?” I asked, taking a drink from my coffee.

I heard Sidney laugh from in front of me while Marc frowned, looking away from me sadly. I turned around in my seat to glance at Peyton, who was fast asleep in the back seat, taking up two spots and forcing Jordan over to the very edge of his seat. “Oh, she’s gets to sit next to the considerate one,” I complained.

Marc made a tisking sound. “You’re so cranky, Hanna. Don’t you want us to remember good things about you?”

I shot him a look, taking a bite out of my muffin and shooting one more envious glance back at Peyton.

It felt like hours before the van finally came to a halt. Troy, who had been driving, turned around in his seat to grin at all of us. “We’re here.” I groaned, still upset over the fact that Marc had dedicate the entire drive to keeping me awake.

I groggily slid to the end of my seat, thankful to find Max already waiting just outside of the van for me, helping me climb out of the van. “I’m so sad now,” he told me. “We can’t even go into the airport with you because Sidney is such a big deal.”

The comment made me freeze in my steps as I hadn’t even thought about that aspect. The guys couldn’t do the cliché thing and walk Peyton and I into the terminal so we could all hug and cry, they would be mobbed. They could just say their goodbyes in the parking lot and watch as the two of us headed inside to try and find our way around. Suddenly my throat felt like it was closing up, and Max became a blurry figure in front of me as I tried to rapidly blink back the tears that had sprung up on me. I had never been one for crying, and yet, for some reason, the thought of saying bye to these boys even just a moment sooner than I had originally thought was enough to cause my chin to quiver.

“Oh, Hanna, don’t cry,” Max said, waving his hands in front of my face. “This isn’t a forever goodbye, we’ll still talk. We can use video chat, it’ll be we’re talking face to face!”

I laughed, wiping away the lone tear that had managed to escape. “I know. I’m just going to miss you guys so much. I’m going to miss all of this,” I told him.

Max pouted, giving me an awkward side hug, as he holding onto one of Peyton’s bags. “I’ll miss you, too, little buddy.”

Jordan came around from the back of the van, carrying my lone duffel bag. “Oh no, you’re sad!” He said, dropping my bag and racing over to pull me into a hug, which was awkward as he was nearly a foot taller than me. “Hanna, don’t cry. I’ll cry, and that would be really embarrassing for me.”

Marc came over to give me a “good-bye high five” and a piece of a liquorice, which I had mo intention of eating since I couldn’t recall anyone buying liquorice and had no idea where he had gotten it from. Peyton was talking to Troy, but Max tugged her over to the little circle so she could be bid goodbye as well.

I turned around, still struggling to not cry like a little baby, and looked for Sidney.

He was standing just behind Troy, almost hidden, doing something with his Blackberry. I frowned, leaving the tiny circle that had formed and walking over to him. Troy smiled to me, heading over to take my place in the circle so Sidney and I were virtually alone. Sidney glanced up, tucking his phone away as soon as he saw me. “Hey,” He leaned down to look at me, frowning. “Are you crying?”

“I’m trying not to,” I said, my voice sounding shaky, which somehow made me laugh. “I think my being so tired is a big part of it. Well, that and how much I’m going to miss you guys.”

Sidney’s face fell as he nodded. “It feels like you just got here,” He said quietly.

I could hear Troy telling everyone else that Peyton and I really needed to head inside so we got past security and everything on time, making the urge to cry hit me once more. Sidney looked pained. “Hey, it’s not like we’ll never see each other again,” He tried to reassure me. “Look, you and I still have to exchange numbers,” He reminded me, taking the Blackberry he had just put away out of his pocket and handing it to me.

“I didn’t bring my cell phone,” I admitted to him, punching in my number and handing it back to him. “Maybe you can write yours down on something?”

He nodded, “Yeah. Or, I could just send you a text right now so when you get home, you’ll have my number,” He said, smiling slightly.

I nodded. “I meant it when I said that you could call me if you needed someone to talk to,” I reminded him. “You can’t hang on to all of this, Sidney. I know you’re an amazing guy, but no one could handle all of that.”

He nodded. “That goes both ways, okay? I know you’re holding something back from all of us.”

“Sidney, Hanna has to get going!” Troy called from behind me.

Sidney nodded, looking back down at me and seeming to debate something in his head before he stuck a hand out. “I’ll talk to you soon?”

I nodded, looking down at his hand and then back up at him before I took a step forward and pulled him into a hug. Sidney’s entire body stiffened for a moment, clearly surprised by my response. It didn’t take long, though, before he returned the action, allowing his arms to wrap around me as he leaned down a little bit so I didn’t have to stay up on my tip-toes. I made sure the hug lasted at least ten seconds before I finally began to pull away, giving him one last smile before I turned around.

Every one else immediately turned around so they were no longer staring at Sidney and I, each one of them launching into a fake conversation, or pointing at something to make it seem like they hadn’t been watching. I laughed, walking over to where Jordan had left my duffel bag, picking it up and waiting for Peyton to grab her suitcase before we waved to the guys and headed inside. I made sure to turn around once to look back at Sidney, glad to see him leaning against the van, his arms crossed and a grin on his face as he stared back at me.