#hockey one shot

[scudevils]

BEARD BURN WITH QUINN HUGHES PLEASE

trouble — QH43

pairing: quinn hughes x fem!reader

warnings: smut, oral (f & m receiving), roadhead, no actual sex, praise, degradation, swearing, mention of a safe word, use of the word brat like once or twice, canucks losing (sorry quinny), reader is a bit annoying for a scene, a bit of sad quinn for like 2 mins, not proofread!!

synopsis: quinn losing a bet results in you getting to enjoy his beard for just a wee bit longer [4.2k]

a/n: hugeeee thank you to my hockey cunt @thegrantic for basically giving me the whole idea for this!! i waffled BIG TIME on this so a lot of it is filler, feel free to skip to the smut if that’s what your here for (i wont judge you)

you watched him from the comfort of your bed, eyes still sleepy and the morning sun being far too bright for your liking. he's fresh out the shower, steam rolling out of the en suite into the bedroom, windows coated in condensation which only seemed to intensify the suns rays.

morning had never, and you vowed would never, be your thing. but being with quinn meant early mornings, wether it was a run or a workout, he practically begged you to join him. and when he gave you those eyes who were you to reject him?

you weren't sure if it was his hectic schedule, or perhaps just because he liked the look, but he'd been beginning to grow his beard out more than before. you were used to a little stubble sure, but it was usually gone the day after you'd mention it, and you were so fucking happy he'd decided to grow it out.

it was becoming a daily test for you to not jump on him on him the longer he kept it, like a predator with their prey you just wanted to devour him.

from the steamed up windows you could see that he was rubbing the shaving cream on his face, finding the time to brush his teeth when you'd been off daydreaming, but it was the white froth on his face that caught your attention.

it takes practically all of your willpower to even get out of the bed, before 10am it was blasphemous for you, a sin you'd be repenting for the rest of your life, and you'd been brining quinn down with you for forcing you up so early. "what are you doing?" he jumps slightly at the sound of your voice, half expecting you to already be back to sleep that you'd basically snuck up on him.

“uh, shaving." he answers the obvious, motioning to the cream that still coated his cheek, ready to be cut away from the fresh blade he'd put on his razor.

you stop his hand before it can reach the razor, taking it in your own. "q, you can't shave."

quinn quirks an eyebrow at your words, a small laugh bubbling from his chests as the look on your face is so serious, like in your mind this is no laughing matter. "and why can't i shave?"

"cause you look hot with a beard?" you said, mimicking his earlier tone, the reason so painfully obvious to you although it hadn't even crossed your boyfriends mind when he'd started growing it out.

he can't help but laugh this time, the smallest of smug smiles threatening to pull at his lips and you could see the sides of them curving up. "you think so?" you nod your head at his words, like it was the clearest thing to ever understand, and you couldn't quite get why he didn't know that. "too bad, it's fucking itchy."

“quinn," you drag out his name in a whine, like a spoiled child who wasn't getting a toy they'd asked for, hoping it would change his mind, instead he only answered with a shake of his head before squeezing your hand and slipping his own from it, reaching for the razor. "why don't we make a bet."

this seemed to pique his interest, stopping his hand on the way to his face before he turned to look at you, the conversation finally not being had through looks in the mirror. "what kinda bet you thinkin'?" he entertained your request, wanting to see what you'd came up with in that short amount of time.

"well, you guys play tomorrow right?" you asked him, already knowing the answer was yes, and when quinn nodded apprehensively, you continued. "you lose, you keep the beard for another week. you win, you get to shave."

“or i could just shave now?" he propositioned, ignoring the conditions you'd already set.

"you do that and i cut you off."

"you wouldn't." he was quick to reply, what he assumed was an empty threat still not enough to convince him to keep the beard.

a smug smile made its way onto your face, you stepped an inch closer to him, running the tips of your fingers over his exposed chest, small droplets of water still clinging to the taut skin. "i have a hand hughes, i'll be just fine." you dragged out the last two words, emphasising your point to him.

"fine."

~

as usual, you were sat with the other wives and girlfiends, the printed "HUGHES 43" proudly displayed across your back, watching as the clock ticked away, too slowly for your liking, feeling like time was slowing down as they were down just one goal, every action felt like it'd been edited slower, dragging out the losing feeling.

you knew it'd be a tough game, at home and against vegas, it was just a recipe for a headache. they'd been as good as they could've been, quinn getting an early goal in the first period before vegas responded only two minutes later. a similar story in the second period, and now in the third with only a minute left they were lagging behind 3-2, hoping they could get a goal to drag it to overtime and at least salvage a point but luck was not on their side.

the familiar horn went off, signalling the end of the game, the loss of the home team, and the players skated off of the ice, and you could see quinn muttering to himself and kicking up snow as he made his way over to the tunnel, no doubt blaming himself for the loss.

it was wrong, you knew it you really did, that deep down a small part of you was happy they'd lost, after all it meant you'd won your and quinn's bet, but you pushed the part of you that wanted to gloat down, standing in the crowded hallway with the rest of the girls, waiting to greet their own significant others after the loss.

just your luck, quinn was always one of the last out, no doubt taking time to apologise to the guys for the (rare) mistakes he'd made in the game, and you were practically alone when he'd finally gotten himself showered and ready again, save for the security guard you'd found yourself in conversation with.

quinn glanced your way, bag strap draped over one of his shoulders, your eyes trail over his flushed face. he was still sweating, the shower doing nothing to tame the adrenaline rush, and the redness was just barely starting to fade from his cheeks down to his neck. "you ready?" he mumbled, a clear sign he wasn't in the mood for talking and you nodded your head, a quick smile and goodbye to the man who'd kept you company and you were leaving.

"you really did play well, q." from the outside perspective, your words were sweet, but quinn knew you well enough from the years of dating that you were bursting to rub it in that you'd won the bet, but you held back for his sake.

the drive home was practically silent, a stark contrast to how it usually was, even when they lost quinn had at least things to say to you, when he'd go a ramble about how good one of the guys had played or how he wished he'd done a play differently and you'd usually just nod your head and listen, it was all he needed, just a person to listen to him.

which was why it was so difficult to keep your words to yourself, you hated seeing him quiet, quinn was never quiet. you swore he could talk for both of you and still have things to say, so the silence was something different, something you definitely did not like.

you were nearly home, ten minutes left if the roads were clear, not that you were counting, but your eyes kept flickering to the radio display, the time clear in blue led's, as was the "radio off" sticking out to you.

so you decided to test your luck, fingers pressing at the one switch before quinn could question what you were doing, the song coming through the speakers one you recognised but not one you could name, and then you went back to looking out of the window, a quick flick of your eyes towards quinn to see his reaction before you did so.

he was quick to turn it back off, silence encapsulating the car once again but only for a few seconds before you pressed it on again, hearing a sigh fall from quinn's lips and you assumed he'd just given up fighting you on it. "have you always been this annoying?"

“since you met me, q." you quipped, a look over your shoulder thrown in his direction before you faced out of the window again, humming to yourself the tune of the song. "why'd you wanna sit in silence so badly?"

quinn didn't answer you, focus entirely on the road but you seen his grip onto the steering wheel just a little bit harder, knuckles turning white and his jaw clenched as the red light reflected against his features. "what, you not talking to me now?" you breathed out a disbelieving laugh, still not bothering to even look at him fully, maybe you were as bad as him. "don't be mad at me just cause you lost twice."

"fuck y/n, when'd you become such a brat?" finally, you turned to look at him, lips parting at his words and you found his eyes already on yours, a frenzied look on this as they grew a shade darker, a fire burning behind them like he was seeking out conflict, wanting a fight, like he was still on the ice.

"don't call me that."

"why, you're actin' like one right now aren't you?" the light turned green, the only way you'd realised was the way it shone against his face, different from the harsh red glow from before, and this time you could see the humour in his eyes, he was enjoying riling you up, and your eyes drifted from his face down to his hands on the steering wheel, tightening around the leather.

"how long till we're home?"

he quirked an eyebrow at your question, but answered anyway, wanting to know what you were planning. "about 5 minutes."

"you think i can get you off in 5 minutes?" you were already reaching across the console, the sweats he'd chose to wear doing nothing to hide the growing bulge beneath them and you heard him suck in a breath as you ran your hands over it, glancing back up to him to see he's tucked his bottom lip between his teeth.

"know you can do it in less." his words gave you a boost of confidence, quinn helping you push down his sweats and he lift his hips enough for you to rid him of them and his boxers.

its definitely an awkward arrangement, but with a little effort you manage to drape yourself across the console without too much discomfort on your part, right elbow resting between his thighs as you use that hand to stroke him lazily, feeling him harden under your hand before you drop your head pressing a teasing kiss to his tip, feeling his shudder under your arm. "y/n-"

you cut him off when you took just the tip in your mouth, one of his hands falling from the steering wheel to your back, dancing along your spine before it found its place in your hair, wrapping itself in the soft strands and tugging at the roots. feeling him twitch in your mouth when you circle the slit, you grin up at him, seeing his eyes flittering down to yours in a way that was definitely not road safe. "fuck, baby, please."

his pleas didn't fall on deaf ears, entertaining them as your lips brushed up the side of his cock, kissing along his length, before taking him further into your mouth. "only because you said please." this time you let his hand guide your head down against him, fingers flexing against your scalp, desperate to keep a grip on you but it was slowly slipping away.

he can hear you spluttering around him, saliva and pre cum escaping your lips and falling against your chest, the open cut shirt you'd worn at least giving him a nice view. another shaky groan rumbled in his chest, a moan threatening to spill from his mouth when your hand squeezed what your mouth couldn't take. "fuck, never gonna forget how good your mouth feels."

you pull off of him for just a second, catching your breath in the process, before you looked up at him. "never gonna have to." the promise was too sweet for the moment, but he couldn't help but appreciate it, he'd never have to forget you because he'll always have you.

entirely too encouraged by his praise and sounds, against his own direction, you push your head down to lightly gag around him, eliciting a moan from him. your own spit starts to hit your chest again, and the squeeze of your hand around him has him bucking his hips into your mouth, tip hitting against the back of your throat almost painfully but the sound of your name from his lips is enough to make up for it.

“i'm so close, so good to me-" you can feel his thighs tensing under your hand, his cock twitching in your mouth a tell tale sign that he was close, and all it took was pushing your head down till he repeatedly hit the back of your throat for him to be releasing down it, your hums vibrating against him only causing him to let out a groan, feeling him still in your throat and finally lift you off of him.

you almost feel a sense of pride when you look up at him, cheeks flushed for a second time tonight although for an entirely different reason, and chest heaving as he tried to catch him breath, matching your own laboured breathing as you did the same.

"told you you could do it in less." you let out a small laugh against his thigh, glancing up to the illuminated clock, just under five minutes since you'd last checked, and you force yourself to move from the position that had now become unbearably uncomfortable.

the turn in the road felt familiar, one you could recognise out of a lineup if you needed to, the one that took you home and you felt butterflies in your stomach, anticipation practically dripping down your thighs as quinn parked the car in your designated spot in the lot, your legs begging you were already at your apartment as they felt they'd buckle under any pressure.

you, however, powered through their protests, thankful you did as the comforting smell of your apartment filled your senses as quinn unlocked the door. the scent a perfect mix of yours and quinn's, the remnants of a once burnt candle nestled in there alongside the perfume you'd put on earlier.

there was something so domestic about the way quinn looked at you, like in a split second he's be down on his knees proposing to you, what was once just an apartment was now a home, your home. "quinn," the whine of his name broke him out of his trance, at some point you'd made your way over to him, just an inch away, needing to be closer. "have no idea how badly i want you, q."

"fuck, know i love it when you talk like that." he was quick to slot his lips over yours, the kiss harsh enough to knock the air from your lungs, filling them with him. his hand tangled in your hair, forcing your neck up with a gasp, allowing him access to the skin, marking you up with rough kisses against your pulse point.

it was magic really, how he was able to render you a whimpering mess with just a few kisses, hand grasping at the grown our strands of hair, longer than he'd had before but fuck did you love it. "quinn, please."

quinn lifted his head from your neck, swollen lips hovering over yours, brushing over them as he spoke. "please, what? what'd you need baby."

"your mouth, please, q." you were too desperate to have any shame, the only thought in your mind was of your own pleasure.

he pressed a searing kiss against your lips, as if telling you to be patient whilst he go to work with you. "only because you said please." he mocked your earlier words, using them against you and you wanted to roll your eyes at the smirk on his lips as he did so. your jeans were quickly discarded, leaving you only in your canucks jersey and panties underneath.

you could feel the warmth from his body when he hooked his hands underneath the waistband of your panties, carefully pulling them down your legs and you stepped out of them, leaving now just in his name-claimed jersey, the cold hitting your legs more than before and you wondered if it was placebo, you felt more exposed and your body reacted as if you were. his eyes seemed to darken more than they had before, a light blush coating his cheeks like it had the first time he'd seen like this.

quinn spread your legs apart when he lifted he pushed you down onto the bed, stepping in between your thighs, pressing kisses against your skin when, squeezing your thighs when he met them and leaving marks leading to where you needed him most. "hm, so lucky aren't i?" your head fell back when you felt his breath hitting your cunt, blowing hot hair on you to see you squirm, before he gently swiped a finger over your slit, your hips involuntarily bucking towards his hand. "all for me, yeah?"

you felt totally out of it, only nodding your head when pressed his thumb against your clit, your brain short-circuiting at the contact, only adding to the sensation when he flattens his tongue against you. he gave you no time react before his mouth found its way to your clit, your hand instantly reaching for his hair when it became tangled in the brown mess he also seemed to be growing out.

the burn of his beard against your sensitive skin only adds to the feeling, mixing insatiably with the pleasure you were feeling from his mouth on you, something you'd never get used to.

your other hand gripped at the clean white bed sheets, thighs tightening around his head like you were scared he'd move, holding him in place so that even if he tried he couldn't. quinn grabbed one of your legs, hooking it over his shoulder to allow himself a better angle, gently grazing his teeth over your clit, the hairs on his face tickling against your inner thigh, nearly having you melting into the bed, though it elicited a loud moan of his name from you.

there was no stopping the noises that came from your mouth, whimpers, whines and moans of his name falling from your lips at his relentless attack on your cunt. "feels so good quinn-" your words only encouraged him, walls clenching around his fingers when he curled two of them inside you, the feeling of that and his tongue circling your clit had you tumbling towards your first orgasm.

your head fell back against the bed, mouth open in a silent moan, wanting to scream but you couldn't find your voice, and eyes screwed shut from the pleasure. when quinn looked up he swore he saw died, went to heaven and seen a fucking angel, branding the sight in his memory for those long roadies.

your release didn't stop his attack, fingers still moving at the same pace they had before and tongue still relentless against your clit. "know you can give me another one." he mumbled against your skin, the vibration sent shockwaves through your body. his lips quicken against you, his fingers moving inside you at a bruising pace that you can feel your second orgasm beginning to form, still so sensitive from the first, your clit twitching under his tongue.

"quinn, please, gonna cum again." your words heeded little warning, your thighs clenching around his head again, pulling him closer to you in angle that had you writhing against the sheets, moving your hips against his face to gain more friction.

on fire was all you could describe the way your body felt, nerves alive, hairs standing that you didn't even know you had. quinn's touch against your skin feeling electric, like he was shocking you each time he came in contact, the warmth of his lips travelling up your stomach, a trail of your slick being left in his path that any other thing would have you embarrassed, but not now. “taking it like a fucking slut, letting me fuck you how i want to, yeah?”

you swore you could drown in the smell of him, one that came so natural it only made you fall for him even harder every time he was this close to you. he drove you insane, nodding your head frantically without even fully registering his words.

the coil in your stomach tightened until it couldn’t any more, snapping and all you saw was white, eyes screwed shut as your body felt like it wasn’t yours anymore, thighs shaking around quinns waist as he moved to press a chaste kiss to your lips, talking you through your release as he continued the movement of his fingers.

the rise and fall of your chest was something quinn would never get sick of, so addictive that he was the one fucking you so good, even with only his tongue and fingers, that you could barely breathe. in fact, it only spurred him on more.

“think you can give me another?”

you whined at his words, shaking your head although he saw the way you clenched around nothing at the thought. “quinn, can’t-“

“you won remember, winners get rewards.”

there’s not much time for you to react when he’s back against your skin, the friction from his beard has you moaning, the sensation something you could definitely get used to. “remember the safe word?”

nodding your head, you let a small smile form on your swollen lips, no matter how past gone you both were he still checked you were okay with everything. “blue.”

“good girl, gonna make you feel so good.” quinn hooks his arm underneath both of your thighs, dragging you to the edge of the bed and he’s on the floor, throwing your legs over his shoulder and pressing a teasing kiss onto your clit, your head lulling against the cushion from the overstimulation.

he’s almost too slow for you with the way his tongue moves against you, savouring the moment at the wrong time when you press his head further against you, hand on the back of your head in a similar way to the way he had when you were in the car. “need more, q.”

a string of curses escapes your lips when he take your clit in his mouth, sucking on it till your practically sobbing, and his hands move from holding you in place to your hands, a small squeeze of your hands enough to comfort you through anything.

“fuck, quinn-“

your hands begin to push against his head, the sensation becoming too overwhelming that it’s almost sore. your overstimulated clit feeling spent from the night. he simply grabs you by the wrists and pins then down by the side of your body, back to keeping you in place. his tongue flicks against your throbbing clit, a scolding for moving away from him, before he’s back to sucking on it.

your voice is hoarse, moans are now broken whimpers and whines, lacking the energy to even speak, third orgasm approaching quicker than the others, hurling towards you, feeling like it’ll run you over. “fuck, can i quinn?”

his beard scratches against your thigh, the skin now a burning red, his pupils blown out as he looks up at you, tongue still attacking your clit. “let go for me, baby, last one.”

quinn worked you through your orgasm, soft kisses being pressed against your skin, a stark contrast to the relentless pulse of his fingers rubbing your clit, until you had to wrap your own wrist against his, forcing him away from you.

he left a trail of kisses up for your body, reaching your lips when he slotted his lips over yours, not wanting anything more than to just kiss you. you let out a whine when he broke the kiss though, needing him close to you, when instead he went into the en suite, returning with a dampened cloth.

you hissed in pain as he dabbed it against your reddened skin, the gentleness of his touch calming down the stinging. “promise me you’ll never shave again?”

quinn laughed at your request, but nonetheless nodded his head, both of you knowing it to be a hollow promise, but already fantasising about when he grows it out again.

#nhl smut #nhl imagine #nhl fic #hockey fluff #hockey imagine #hockey one shot #hockey smut #quinn hughes smut #quinn hughes fluff #quinn hughes imagine #quinn hughes x reader #quinn hughes one shot #quinn hughes fic #scudevils

[jackhues]

it's november first - quinn hughes

notes: i hope you guys like this, fourth fic for 'it's the most wonderful time of the year' celly :))

likes are good, reblogs are better <3

part of naqia's end of the year celly!

gif not mine

"is there a reason you're inside the closet?"

you looked up at quinn's voice, seeing him standing outside the walk-in closet, brow raised as he tried to determine what it was you were trying to do.

you were buried knee-deep in all of the different things you and quinn stored in this extra closet, trying, but failing, to find what you were looking for.

"i need to find the christmas decorations," you told him.

"why?" he asked you. "it's only november first."

"exactly!" you told him. "it's november first, which means it's time for christmas."

"mhm, and thanksgiving is just not important, i suppose," he muttered, a fond grin on his face.

"quinn, i'm canadian," you reminded him. "we're in canada right now. turkey's gone. that happens during october, remember? now that halloween is done, there's nothing left to stop me from christmas."

"oh yeah," quinn muttered. he shook his head to himself, "the decorations are on the higher shelf. let me help you."

you moved to the side, letting him walk through the mess you made, and pull out the boxes of christmas decorations. you moved like a train, taking the boxes from him and dropping them outside the closet. quinn left the box of hanukkah decorations, including the menorah, inside. you'd be decorating a little for hanukkah closer to the days.

"alright, that's the last one," quinn said, carrying one of the larger boxes outside. "what now?"

"now we decorate!" you grinned happily.

"see, that's a wonderful idea... but what are we decorating?" quinn asked. "we didn't get our tree yet."

"oh yeah," you remembered.

overexcited to decorate for christmas, you'd forgotten about the process of buying a tree to decorate.

"it's okay," you shrugged it off. "we'll start putting the lights up. and we can get the christmas tree... later this week?"

"works with me," quinn smiled.

the two of you carried the box of christmas lights outside, ready to decorate the front lawn. you pulled the wreath out of the box while quinn untangled the lights. together, the two of you wrapped them around the wreath, creating a cute design.

"ready to hang it up?" you asked.

quinn nodded, the two of you reaching up to hang it over the door. you grinned, admiring your work. it was still daytime, so you'd be lighting it up later.

"time for the arches?" quinn asked.

you nodded, causing him to grin widely.

he loved putting the arches over your door for some reason. they were simple, made like the wreath, but there was a mistletoe that hung from the center of it.

the two of you sat on the porch, wrapping the arch with the christmas lights.

"no, no, you need to wrap it looser," quinn said. "otherwise we won't have enough lights. remember last year?"

"oh yeah," you muttered sheepishly.

last year you'd gotten a little excited with the christmas lights, tying them so tightly that they were bunched up at the bottom of the arch, and that there was nothing left towards the top end.

quinn helped you untie the christmas lights, and you wrapped them looser this time, grinning as you finished towards the top of the arch.

"done!" you showed quinn your half of the arch.

quinn finished tying the mistletoe in the center, getting up as he finished. "all right, now it's time to put it up."

he grabbed a ladder, hooking the arch up as he went. you stood below, making sure it was levelled and proper.

"perfect!" you smiled as quinn finished, climbing off the ladder.

he looked up, grinning mischieviously.

you followed his gaze to the mistletoe, rolling your eyes. he did this every year, and you never got tired of it.

"mistletoe," he pointed.

"i know," you muttered.

"it's christmas law to kiss," he added seriously.

"i said i know you goof," you grinned, pulling him in for a kiss.

quinn smiled against your lips, knowing he'd never get tired of this. he'd put the christmas decorations up on november first every year if it meant he could kiss you like that.

#naqia's end of the year celly! #naqia writes! #quinn hughes #quinn hughes x reader #quinn hughes imagine #quinn hughes fic #quinn hughes blurb #quinn hughes x y/n #quinn hughes imagines #quinn hughes fics #quinn hughes blurbs #hockey one shot #hockey fic #hockey #nhl one shot #nhl fic #nhl #nhl x reader

[chickensaladquinn]

Chicken Salad Quinn Pt. 10: Happy Birthday

Other Parts: Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3 Pt. 4 Pt. 5 Pt. 6 Pt. 7 Pt. 8 Pt. 9

a/n: It's officially been one year of Chicken Salad Quinn! To celebrate, I thought I'd write a birthday post. I know Quinn's birthday isn't until October, but oh well :3 think of this as a flashback to his last birthday!

Quinn woke up on his birthday with a heavy heart. It seemed like any other day; the sun rose in the sky, the birds chirped outside his window, but something was missing. As he scrolled through his phone, he couldn't help but notice that no one had mentioned his birthday. Not even mommy or his girlfriend, Y/N.

Feeling a pang of sadness, Quinn tried to shake off the feeling as he got ready for the day. Maybe they were just waiting to surprise him later, he thought optimistically.

But as the day wore on, Quinn's hope began to fade. Mommy didn't wish him a happy birthday when he saw her for breakfast, and Y/N hadn't mentioned anything either. It seemed like everyone had forgotten.

By the time evening rolled around, Quinn couldn't ignore the sinking feeling in his chest any longer. He decided to go for a walk to clear his head, trying to convince himself that it didn't matter.

As he wandered through the streets, lost in thought, Quinn was startled by a familiar voice calling out his name. It was his brother, Jack, waving frantically from across the street.

"Quinn! Over here!" Jack shouted, beckoning him to come closer.

Confused but intrigued, Quinn crossed the street to where Jack stood, a mischievous grin on his face.

"Hey, Jack, what's going on?" Quinn asked, trying to mask the disappointment in his voice.

Jack chuckled. "Come on, follow me. Luke's waiting for us."

Quinn followed Jack to a nearby park where Luke was waiting, a large grin plastered on his face.

"Happy birthday, Quinn!" Luke exclaimed, pulling Quinn into a tight hug.

Quinn's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait, you guys remembered?"

"Of course, we did!" Jack said, clapping Quinn on the back. "And we've got a surprise for you."

Together, the three brothers walked to Quinn's house, where they found the door adorned with balloons and streamers. As they stepped inside, Quinn was greeted by the sight of his mom, Y/N, and a group of friends all gathered in the living room, shouting, "Surprise!"

Tears welled up in Quinn's eyes as he took in the scene before him. Mommy rushed forward to give him a hug, followed by Y/N, who held out a small gift wrapped in colorful paper.

"Happy birthday, Quinn," Y/N said, smiling warmly.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Quinn hugged Y/N tightly, feeling grateful for her and everyone else who had taken the time to make his birthday special.

But the surprises didn't end there. As everyone gathered around the table for cake, Mommy presented him with a homemade birthday cake unlike any he had ever seen. It was made entirely of chicken salad, his favorite dish.

Quinn couldn't help but laugh at the sight of the unconventional cake, feeling incredibly loved and appreciated in that moment. As he blew out the candles, surrounded by his family and friends, Quinn knew that even though the day had started off on a sour note, it had turned into one of the best birthdays he had ever had.

#jack hughes #chicken salad recipe #quinn hughes #quinn hughes imagine #quinn hughes x reader #joe burrow #trevor zegras #nico hischier #hughes brothers #cale makar #chicken salad recipet #quinn hughes smut #hockey one shot #vancover canucks #vancouver canucks

[burningbridgesblacknblue]

A Little Jealousy

A/n: this is an old imagine from my Ao3 when Nolan played for the Flyers and I wanted to share it again. Please enjoy grumpy Patty.

You chuckled at the joke your best friend had told you as you unlocked the front door to get in. Honestly Adam’s joke was stupid but you couldn’t get over how stupid it was.

“Hey did you leave the lights on?” Adam asked you abruptly.

“I don’t think so.”

A rush of anxiety flooded your senses, what if you forgot to lock the door and someone broke in? Several worse case scenarios ran through your head at the same time, causing you to look back at Adam.

“I’ll go first.”

You nodded your head in agreement. Staying huddled close behind him, his much taller body shielding you from any danger. Slowly you staggered behind your friend, you heard the TV on in the bedroom and you know for sure you didn’t leave that on.

“I definitely turned that off…”

“Wait here.”

“Adam don’t leave me here to be killed!” You whispered-yelled harshly, “I’m easy to strangle!”

“Jesus Christ,” he mumbled with a chuckle, “Just wait here.”

As he proceeded on his own and left you standing in the living room, you heard a sound coming from the bathroom. Not wanting to die you jetted after your friend.

“Someone’s in the bathroom!”

“What?”

“Go check Adam!”

It was as you two were having a loud bickering match that you neglected to hear the footsteps coming toward you.

“Babe?”

You gasped at the deep voice you loved so dearly, with one dramatic hand on your chest and the other on your friend’s arm you let out a large sigh. “Nols you scared me halfway to hell I thought you weren’t going to be home until tomorrow…”

Patty stood there in just a pair of sweatpants it looked as if you two interrupted him getting in to the shower. He looked so good, all you really wanted to do was kiss him and welcome him home but when you noticed his expression you knew he wouldn’t receive you well.

Nolan’s gaze lingered in between you and Adam before he licked his lips, “If you had picked up your phone you would’ve known we were coming back a day earlier.”

Your boyfriend was notorious for being monotonous and deadpan in his delivery; most people who didn’t know him would miss the actual ice dripping from each word. You bristled at his comeback, Patty was easily annoyed couple that with his tendency to get jealous and you had yourself a square off that was explosive.

“I didn’t ignore you on purpose Nol,” you retorted calmly, “I was working all day.”

“Yeah working,” the way he said the second word as if he were mocking you was irritating beyond belief. You also couldn’t believe he was doing this in front of company.

“We’re not doing this again Pat…”

He brushed a hand through his growing blonde hair and you knew instantly how angry he was. Whether he was going to show your best friend was another story.

You weren’t too sure why Nolan had such huge insecurities where Adam was concerned, you two never crossed any boundaries. You never even liked each other that way. The only thing you could think of that made sense was Adam was around twenty-four seven while Patty was away.

Nolan smacked a hand against the doorframe before he turned away from you heading toward the living room.

Adam faced you quickly after your boyfriend’s departure, “I didn’t mean to make you guys argue.”

You waved your hand in a nonchalant gesture, “It’s not your fault he gets like this sometimes when he comes home from a roadie. He’s just tired.”

“Should I go?”

Chewing on your bottom lip you nodded affirmatively. Feeling terrible for kicking out your closest friend. It just wasn’t the best idea to let him hang around when your boyfriend’s mood was so poor. Nolan was really a great person and you didn’t want anyone to see him as anything else. So you walked your friend to the door and wished him a good night.

As soon as the door was closed and there were no unwanted visitors Nolan spoke from his position on the couch, “You know the only reason I left the car here was because you were going to give me a ride home, I had to catch one with TK.”

You refrained from showing any signs of agitation, “Nols I’m really sorry time just got the better of me today.”

“You had time to hang out with Adam.”

This time you did put a hand to your face, “We work together not to mention we live one block apart. We weren’t really hanging out.”

“Then why was I stranded at the airport?”

“Because I messed up after I saw your text this morning I got swamped at work I just forgot to text you back.”

“So you knew I was coming home but you left me there anyway?”

“Nolan I just told you it was an accident. I didn’t mean to forget you I’m sorry.”

He looked at you as if you had just insulted him, “Im going to shower.”

“I didn’t do it on purpose—” the shutting of the bathroom door cut off your defense.

You huffed, you knew he was hurt and of course you understood why. There was really only one thing to do and that was to give him space. You watched some TV for about ten minutes but you found it hard to concentrate, you hated when Nolan was mad at you. So you decided to take a shot in the dark.

Quietly you disrobed on your way to the bathroom easing your way behind the door that was miraculously unlocked. You slipped in behind him, threading your arms around him so that your hands rested on his shoulders. Gently you placed a kiss on his shoulder blade.

“I’m sorry,” you mumbled against his skin, “No excuses.”

Everything was so still except the water. You were so sure he was going to reject you but he surprised you, he took a hand of yours and squeezed it.

“I know.”

You knew he forgave you but you were kind of curious, “Were you jealous of Adam?”

“Should I be?”

You shook your head, “No you just seemed extra grumpy.”

“I had to ride home with TK anyone would be annoyed after traveling so long and then having to listen to him talk.”

You chuckled, “TK is your best friend yet you treat him like a bad crush.”

Nolan scoffed at you, “All he does is talk.”

“He’s a nice guy.”

“Then date him instead.”

You couldn’t help but let out a monstrous laugh, “Pat seriously, I love you stop trying to give me away.”

He shrugged his shoulders reaching for his soap shortly after, you knew Nolan always had an issue expressing his emotions and often it left him feeling unsure about himself. You were fine with the way he was, you gave enough affection for the two of you.

“I was jealous…”

He mumbled so quietly in his baritone you could barely hear him but you didn’t dare ask him to repeat himself.

You hugged him tight around his middle, “I love you Nols, no one else there’s no need to worry.”

He nodded his head for you and you knew that’s all that was going to be said on the matter. You placed on last kiss on his shoulder before you tapped it. “I’m starting to prune I’m out.”

“Babe...” Nolan grabbed your hand gently, “Love you.”

Your heart swelled as you leaned on your toes to place a kiss on his lips, “Love you too.”

#nolan patrick #patty #hockey one shot #hockey imagine #nolan patrick imagine #hockey angst #nhl imagine #nhl angst #flyers imagine #hockey smut

[equallyshaw]

forever a leaf feat, OC Dubas + 23-24 leafs.

- possibly going to be adding a actual blurb, but not sure yet!

- also she’s like 20, since kyle (in this au) had Kylie when he was 17 with his then girlfriend.

—

@kyliedubas: see you on the flippity flip toronto.

Tags: Auston matthews, Mitch marner, Alex nylander, morgan rielly, kyledubas, Matthew knies

34.9k likes, 344 + limited comments.

•

@kyliedubas: Too many people to tag !!!

@tessavirtue: I’m gonna miss u girlie🥹🤍

↳ @kyliedubas: I’m crying even harder now 😭

↳ @morganrielly: gonna miss you in the 6 :(

↳ @kyliedubas: me too mo, me too 🫶🏻

@austonmatthews34: gonna miss king Kylie

↳kyliedubas: king Kylie forever 👑

@kyledubas: so many incredible memories with my kyles

↳ @kyliedubas: love you pops!

@stephlachance: come visit soon !!

↳ @kyliedubas: oh you already know :)

@mirandascott: 💙💙

↳ @kyliedubas: love you mama

@fanone: aweeee

@fantwo: you literally grew up here :/

↳ @kyliedubas: i know🫶🏻

@williamnylander: have nobody to compete with for best fashion

↳ @kyliedubas: I know !!!! Willy styles and king kyles style will be missed :’(

↳ @austonmatthews: what about me ?

↳ @kyliedubas: nahhh you have no hope

@mitchmarner: gonna miss you twinnie!!! But can’t wait to see what’s next

↳ @kyliedubas: 🤍

—

@kyliedubas: got the band back together🫶🏻

Tag: Kyledubas and mirandascott

49.3k likes, 1.3k comments.

•

@austonmatthews34: by far the best dubas

@williamnylander: smarty pants with a bachelors in 2 years 😎😎

@fanone: woah I never knew he was with somebody else before his wife

↳ @kyliedubas: yep!! They decided they were better as friends :)

@mitchmarner: Toronto job ? I know a guy who’s looking for some rent income 😌

↳ @kyliedubas: @stephlachance come get ur dude — stranger danger

↳ @stephlachance: lolol we always have a room open

↳ @kyliedubas: mom and dad 🥹

↳ @tessavirtue: oh

↳ @kyliedubas: omg !!! Grandma and grandpa

↳ @mitchmarner: @morganrielly 😭😭

@kyledubas: so proud of you kiddo, can’t wait to see what you do🫶🏻

↳ @kyliedubas: Thankyou for all the support 🤍

↳ @mirandscott: you have no idea how proud we are!

@jtavares: congrats kiddo!!

↳ @kyliedubas: Thankyou jt and family for the wonderful flower arrangement and chocolate

↳ @matthewknies: the literal way to her heart

↳ @kyliedubas: don’t you know it

@matthewknies: I feel dumb

↳ @bunting58: have you considered that you might be ?

↳ kyliedubas: omg let’s take it the gc ladies !

||

Hope you all enjoyed :)

Please like a reblog if you did

#William nylander #toronto maple leafs #Auston matthews #hockey #nhl #hockey blurb #hockey one shot #nhl blurb #nhl oneshot #morgan reilly #tessa virtue #John Tavares #Matthew knies #Michael bunting

[secretlittlerandezvous]

Exhaustion - Josh Anderson

Summary: Tired and overwhelmed reader limits her contact with Josh. He finds her asleep after returning home from a trip.

Words: 1675

It was Y/n’s first instinct, a natural reaction she hardly ever noticed but it happened every time. Each time life was getting a little too overwhelming she distanced herself from people she loved. The explanation was simple. She didn’t like it when her loved ones worried about her, and it was always something that passed away on its own. Sooner or later anyway. Her issues were her own, her worries were her own and so on and so on. There was no need to bother someone else with it. People around her saw through it, of course they knew something was upsetting her. They tried to help, cheer her up. But she avoided them, declined all offers. Too stubborn to accept a helping help. And so, they learnt to give her time and space, to check up on her occasionally to make sure she was doing okay and to wait for her to get back to them.

This time was no different. As soon as the first leaves turned yellow and started covering the streets of the city the time started to go fast and she felt behind. Behind her work, behind her studies, behind her personal and social life. There was simply not enough time. And when all the work and studying piled up into one big mess her body gave up. Y/n tried to ignore the feeling of hopelessness for as long as she could. But one Friday afternoon after yet another bad day at work, after forgetting to turn in her essay it all broke inside her. She came home and cried for hours, staining the pillows of the living room’s sofa with mascara.

Josh was in the US with his team and Y/n felt lonelier without him than usual. He was a tough guy on the ice, tough guy in front of his teammates but to her he was the nicest person she’s ever met. He knew what she needed better than herself. When to cuddle her, when to surprise her with ice cream, when to give her space and when to just listen to her venting for hours and hours. She wanted him back more than anything. If only he was home, he would know what to do to comfort her. But he was far away with the team, doing exceptionally well with three wins in a row and she wasn’t going to ruin it.

Sure, she could call him or text him to complain a little. Get a little bit of steam off her chest. But he would get too worried, he might stop focusing on the game. No. She wasn’t going to be a distraction. She can deal with it on her own.

And so, for the following few days Y/n limited her interactions with everyone to minimum, focused purely on finishing everything that needed to be finished. Every day she became more exhausted and by the end of the week she could barely walk. She didn’t even know where the strength to carry on was coming from.

She limited her interactions with Josh as well. She didn’t answer his FaceTime calls because he would see how tired she was and hardly ever picked up a call because he’d tell just from the tone of her voice there was something wrong. The excuses came easy to her: once she was in the shower, then she was stuck at work, other time she forgot her phone in the car and didn’t notice. Even her texts were as short and as simple as possible. Josh spammed her phone with sweet messages and voice notes daily and it made her both unbelievably happy and sad. She felt bad for being so cold to him, he in no way deserved it. But it was for his own good and for the good of his team as well.

Josh noticed the change in her behavior immediately. Most guys wouldn’t notice the tiny changes, but he did. And he was sick worried about what was going on back home. 

“For the millionth time Josh, “Y/n sighed during one phone call. “Everything’s fine.”

“If you say so,” Josh answered with a hint of disappointment. He knew he was getting nowhere with his questions, but he didn’t know what else he could do since he was away. Maybe it was nothing, but what if it was?

And not only he was worried, but he also missed her. He was used to traveling, being away from people he was close to, but when she came into his life everything or rather, he changed. And sleeping without her in his arms meant a bad night’s sleep. A day without seeing her meant an okay day at best. Going without her touch or kiss for longer than a day could drive him insane. He needed her. More than he would admit to himself, to her or anyone else.

The days kept on passing and Y/n completely lost count of the days. She didn’t know if it was Monday or Thursday, if October ended already or not yet. She had no track of time. Every single day she woke up and went either to school or to work, survived until it was time to leave and then kept on working at home until she passed out. She didn’t remember the last time she had a proper meal or a shower longer than 5 minutes because she was too tired to stand there and wash herself. She rushed personal care to have more time to focus on what she needed to focus on.

Another Friday, two weeks later after Y/n’s issues started was spent at her desk studying. Writing three essays at once while also making notes to study for her exams. It also happened to be the Friday of Josh’s arrival which Y/n completely forgot about.

On the other hand, Josh couldn’t wait to be home finally to check on her.

As soon as he landed in Montreal, he wasted no time and rushed to her apartment. His heart was beating fast with anticipation. He was overjoyed with the results of the last couple of games, but he was most happy about being home and to be just a few minutes away from seeing Y/n after such long time. He didn’t know what news were waiting for him, how bad or serious it was going to be, but he felt relieved anyway. Relived because he would soon know, relieved because he could take care of everything now.

He unlocked the doors and entered the deadly silent apartment. He saw a light in the living room, but the tv wasn’t playing and Y/n wasn’t running to greet him like she usually did. He continued from the hall to the living where he finally saw his girlfriend. Fast asleep on the desk surrounded by papers and post it notes. He stopped for a moment just to adore her face. She was in a deep sleep, most likely a very needed sleep. Her hair was slightly messy but that just made her look cuter in his eyes. He slowly came to her; with gentle touch he removed a piece of hair from her face and tucked in behind her ear. He sneaked his hands around her waist, kissed the top of her head and just as he was about to lift her up, she woke up. Her eyes opened slowly, she looked around trying to figure out what was happening around her and when she realized Josh was standing there just few inches away from her, she gave him a surprised look.

“I’ll punish you for not greeting me later,” he laughed. “But right now, I just want to go to bed and cuddle.”

Y/n didn’t say anything, but she wrapped her hands tightly around his neck, he hugged her even tighter and kissed the side of her face a few times. He then took her into his arms and carried her to her bedroom where he tucked her in. His heart could just melt seeing her so sleepy.

“I couldn’t wait for you to come back,” she mumbled into his chest when she snuggled next to him.

He pulled her closer to his body, making sure she was safe and sound and kissed her again and again. At that moment it felt like a single kiss could fix all her worries. His fingers gently ran through her hair, occasionally scratching her head and each time he did that Y/n let out a quiet whimper of enjoyment. His other hand caressed the skin of her back. Y/n for the first time in over two weeks relaxed, she wasn’t tense anymore, all worries disappeared from her mind as soon as his strong arms wrapped themselves around her body.

“Don’t you wanna tell me what was going on, baby?” Josh whispered into her ear as he kept playing with her hair.

Y/n snuggled even closer to him, took a deep breath and thought for a moment of what to say. She realized now how scared he must’ve been and for what? For nothing more serious than a little bit of stress. “There was just too much going on,” she said quietly. “Too much work and studying. I felt very behind everything.” She then added and stroked the palm of his hand with her fingers.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” He asked although he already knew the answer.

“Didn’t want to worry you?” she answered. “And yes, I do realize now I made you more worried by not telling you.” She admitted.

“It’s okay, I’m just glad you’re safe”. He kissed her. “I love you so much, I couldn’t wait to be back home with you. To hold you and fall asleep with you beside me. And most importantly I couldn’t wait to figure out what was going on with you.” Josh paused for a moment realizing he was getting no reaction from her. “Baby?” he whispered and looked at her. She was asleep with a smile on her face, clinging onto him.

“Good night baby.”

#josh anderson #josh anderson imagine #josh anderson one shot #josh anderson writing #josh anderson imagines #montreal canadiens #montreal canadiens imagine #montreal canadiens one shot #nhl imagine #nhl writing #nhl one shot #nhl imagines #hockey imagine #hockey one shot #nhl players imagine

[raysofcrosby]

FOREVER TO GO – t. jost

warning(s): pregnancy, gender disappointment, medical talk, hospitals and some slightly maternal trauma (just in talk about clementine's mother). if i missed something, please don't hesitate to let me know!!

word count: 31,868

an: ahh it took me awhile, but i finally got around to writing a part two to my tyson fic i wrote last year for the 2k21 fic exchange for @antoineroussel ! i loved this story so much and i had people asking if there was ever a chance for a part two that dwelled further into tyson and clem's life together and well, here it is!! i also made some instagram edits for some events that happen in their lives, but aren't mention in this fic, and you can find them linked below.

part one | bonus insta edits | bonus insta edits pt 2 | deleted scene [from part one]

She knelt on the throw carpet in their new living room, the big plastic red and green storage box in front of her, reaching in and unwrapping ornaments from the different colored pieces of tissue paper before placing them down softly onto the carpet beside her. There were a lot of things she could probably be doing on a Saturday night, but there she was a bowl of popcorn to her left, the ornament box in front of her, unwrapped ornaments to her right and just behind her lying comfortably on the couch, was their two-year-old adopted chocolate lab they’d gotten after she’d graduated with her masters degree– of course, named Fudge.

When Clementine thought back on how life was just two years earlier, sometimes it shocked her just how quickly things have changed in that time. The September after the Avalanches second round exit in the playoffs three months earlier, Tyson was flying with her to London and spent a week with her, helping her get settled into her flat, meeting her flatmates and spending the time before her 12 month program started sightseeing around the city before he flew back home to St. Albert to make sure that her grandparents and his mom had their spare keys to their apartment and that everything that needed to be done before he would travel to Colorado for pre-season, was done.

Her time abroad was an experience that younger Clementine never thought she’d get to experience. On the days they didn’t have class, she and her flatmates and friends from class would just travel all over the UK so that they could wherever they could go, the weekends dedicated to further travel. In that first semester alone they’d traveled all over England, visited Scotland, took trains to Germany, France, the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as a train and a ferry to Ireland. She made sure to take pictures, videos and buy any souvenir that she thought any of her friends and family would like. Surprisingly, the school part was easy, though she still stressed like she normally did despite her marks speaking for themselves. The most stressful part, which was obvious from the beginning, was the moments where she was homesick.

For her grandparents, for her friends, especially for Tyson.

Her time abroad was the farthest and longest she’d ever been away from home or anyone that she knew. The time difference was an adjustment whenever she’d make her calls or facetimes home to her grandparents, but it was even more complicated when the season started and Tyson was traveling– because then it was them having to keep up with multiple time differences. But they still did it. And while it seemed like she was having the time of her life, she really didn’t adjust to being away from everything and everyone, until the All-Star break when Tyson and their families flew to London to surprise her. She knew Tyson was coming, but didn’t know about everyone else and it was just the surprise she needed.

A month later, she was dead asleep when she got a phone call from him. Most of everyone had been acquainted with the time difference, so she couldn’t help but let her mind go to the absolute worst case scenario. And when she saw Tyson’s name through blurred vision, her heart was pounding even harder.

“Tys, what’s wrong? Is everything okay?” She asked, sitting herself up in her bed and bracing herself into the mattress for whatever news he had.

“Yeah, well no…actually…maybe? It just all depends on how you take it,” he sighed, a lot of moving in the background going on. “And you know, you probably would’ve seen it in the morning– well the morning there, and I could’ve just texted you, but I wanted you to be the first one to know before everyone else does and–”

“Tyson what’s going–”

“I got traded to Minnesota,” he replied, this time, silence on the other line. “I’m heading there now.”

“Oh,” she sighed, running her fingers through her hair as she felt her racing heart start to return to a normal rhythm. “Okay, so what does this mean for the future?”

“Well, best case scenario, I spend the rest of this season there and they keep me around next season and hopefully want to sign me again. Worst case scenario, they absolutely hate me, get rid of me next season and I bounce to another team and then become a restricted free agent after that.”

Clementine could hear the stress in his voice, especially since he was dead set on winning a Stanley Cup with the Avalanche and some of his best friends. “Well…I guess it’s a good thing we didn’t buy that house in Colorado, huh?”

Tyson laughed and she smiled, even by the small laugh through the phone she could tell that he was starting to relax a little bit. “Yeah, but now we have to start fresh with the search here…and even then, maybe it’s safer to just start out with an apartment? You know…just in case?”

“Whatever you want to do Tys,” she replied, letting herself lay back down in her bed. “My degrees allow me to get a job basically anywhere. So I’ll follow you wherever your dreams take you.”

“And if we make it to the playoffs, don’t worry, I’ll get a jacket made just for you.” He joked, the movement in the background picking back up. “Even if you’ll be supporting me from a million miles away.”

“Try 3,977,” she laughed, exhaling soon after. “You’ll do great, Tys. Just…go out there and play like you always do. I promise you’ll go far and I’ll be supporting you from all the way over here in my little flat.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

The Wild did make it to the playoffs. They made it into the first round of the Western Conference final, Clem staying up with some of her flatmates to watch the games every time they were on. Unfortunately, the Wild ended up losing the series 4-2 and Tyson’s season had come to an end. Once he wrapped up everything in Minnesota and went home to visit with their families before flying out to visit Clementine for two weeks. It was filled with more traveling and taking pictures that flooded their instagram accounts– making the priceless memories that her abroad program gave them the opportunity to experience.

Before she knew it, her 12 month program was done and while her grandparents couldn’t make the flight this time around because of her grandpa getting a new hip and her grandma and Laura staying behind to help take care of him, Tyson and Kacey were there at her graduation and helping her pack up and then the three of them were flying back home to St. Albert where she stayed behind an extra week to spend more time with her grandparents while Tyson went to Minnesota for pre-season. But by the last two weeks of September she was in Minnesota with him and making their three bedroom apartment feel like home.

For the rest of 2022, she spent her time planning her wedding with the help of Mel and a wedding planner, getting comfortable in Minnesota and befriending the WAGs of Tyson’s teammates and also searching for a job. By November, she was lucky enough to get one so soon post graduation of her Masters. She was a guidance counselor at a local high school and despite settling into the role, she found herself loving every minute of it. She wanted to be the role model for students that her own guidance counselor in secondary school was for her– the one who helped her figure out which scholarships to apply for and encouraged her to apply for schools while she was still in secondary school, aside from Tyson and despite her own self doubt.

And when things started to seem like Minnesota could be a permanent place for them to call home, they took the chance to spend the All-Star break looking at potential homes, though they didn’t quite settle on one and wouldn’t until they were for sure positive that Minnesota would sign him. The Wild made the playoffs again, only this time making it to the conference finals where Tyson faced his old teammates in the Western Conference finals. Clementine enjoyed catching up with their old friends, despite the competitive aspect of it all, but she knew that hockey aside, their friendships were priceless. It was a tough matchup between both teams, Colorado coming off of their Stanley Cup win last year, and at times when the Wild would be scoreless, it felt defeating, even when the series was close. But the Wild never gave up and they pushed it all the way to a game seven before ultimately losing 4-3 in overtime and ultimately ending their season. It was a heartbreaking defeat, one that Clementine hated to witness Tyson go through twice in a row– but she was grateful that she was there for him this time around instead of across an ocean.

And despite their Stanley Cup run ending and the sad feelings coming with that, there were still two things that made the ending more sweet than bitter:

The Wild chose to keep him on, signing him for an additional eight years.

They were getting married in 46 days, less and two months away and they couldn’t have been happier.

And when the time finally came for their friends and family to travel to the Mount Norquay Ski Resort and gather there at the cascade lodge patio with the mountains in the background on July 24th and watch the once childhood friends, turned into sweethearts, exchange their vows and seal them with a dramatic dipped kiss before celebrating the night away and while Clementine was never the girl who planned her entire wedding on a pinterest board growing up– it was still the wedding of her dreams.

It was a simple, and elegant boho themed wedding. Really wanting to highlight the simplicity and the beauty of the natured venue with mainly greenery that decorated the lodge throughout their reception in the smallest of forms. Their pictures were jaw dropping, the photographer that they’d hired grasping even the tiniest of details from her bouquet, their rings, and capturing the varying personalities of their wedding party and their families. The first look they’d had in a quiet out of sight location where she thought she was totally prepared to face seeing Tyson all dressed up in a suit since she’d seen it times before. But the moment he’d turned around and she walked the last few steps towards him and she saw him try not to cry– she was a goner, they both were and it was caught on camera in pictures where the pure love they had for each other radiated from. The pictures where Tyson had convinced Clementine to go up onto the chairlift for some pictures, and despite her never letting go of his hand in fear of somehow falling, she knew that he’d never let it happen in the first place.

She had both of their Grandfathers walk her down the aisle. Their first dance was to none other than that George Strait song he’d always teased her about loving so much– I Cross My Heart– but he was the one to suggest it to her because “besides the obvious, and if you remember…it was the very first slow dance we had as an official couple at Mel and Gabe’s wedding and I believe we also agreed that this was our song.” Tyson danced with his mom, Clementine danced with both of her grandparents, speeches were made by his mom, her grandparents, Mel and Gabe. It was a night that they almost didn’t want to end, but they were okay when it did and the two were having their own sparkler send-off before getting into their rented 1960 Mercedes Benz convertible before driving back to the cabin they’d rented for the night.

The next morning, they were off to the airport and flying off to Bora Bora for a week honeymoon and when they got back, they flew into Minnesota to close on their dream house with the big yards and the wraparound porch, that they’d found based on a recommendation from the Spurgeon’s, who happened to live six houses down from them. Then back to St. Albert to spend time with their families before they went back to Minnesota at the end of August for the preparation of the new school year and pre-season.

A little over two years later from the moment he proposed in the Landeskog’s kitchen after a blow-up fight the night before and five months into post-wedding, newlywed life…things were great. Tyson was just two months into the new season, she into the school year, they were a year into being dog parents…it felt like things were just naturally progressing in their lives and the future that they’d talked about and dreamt about all those late nights were starting to mesh together seamlessly.

Especially with the news that she’d found out this morning.

Once Tyson signed his contract with the Wild, they talked about buying a house and starting a family since there was some guarantee they would be settling down in Minnesota for a handful of years. After they came back from their honeymoon and further discussion, they took the first step on their road of trying for a baby and Clementine got her IUD taken out. They weren’t adamant on immediately getting pregnant, because they were okay with having a baby within the next two years. So it wasn’t like she was tracking her cycle and they’d try when the possibility was high– but they also weren’t trying to not get pregnant either.

So spending every morning of this last week in the teachers lounge bathroom throwing up her breakfast gave her the inkling that maybe there was a reason behind it. Her period had yet to return to a normal regular cycle, so she hadn’t been tracking it like she normally would have, so any missing period in the last few months since she’d gotten her IUD taken out wasn’t really of any concern to her. And Tyson was on a four game road series, so he wasn’t there to notice the still unopened box of tampons beneath the bathroom sink, though it wouldn’t have been odd if he didn’t notice at all.

It was Thursday afternoon when Clementine stopped at a Walgreens on her way home to grab the first pack of pregnancy tests she found and Thursday night post walk and dinner when she took the tests in their bathroom. Fudge who she had left behind at the cushioned bench at the end of their bed where she normally slept, had made her way into the bathroom when Clementine had set all three tests that’d come in the box down onto the counter and waited the painstaking three minutes that two of the tests had required as described in their novel of instructions.

She’d never had to take a pregnancy test before in her life and this wasn’t the time to mess up any result, so she read over the instructions carefully, despite the small writing and the large piece of unfolded paper in her hands that made it stressful to even look at. When she noticed one minute had passed, she looked at the first test– the rapid response– and two pink lines were there in the small oval box, which according to the symbols on the test itself…meant pregnant. But it was just one test, she knew she’d need to wait for the other two just in case this first one was a fluke or she messed up testing it somehow. So she sat down on the toilet lid, scratching behind Fudge’s ears as she waited those last two minutes. When her timer went off, she stood up, the calm chocolate lab standing beside her as she looked down at the final two tests.

Another two pink lines and a digital YES+ written in black block letters.

All three tests were positive which meant more than likely she was pregnant but she still wanted to make an appointment just to be sure. So yesterday, Friday morning, Clementine made an appointment with her OB/GYN a short time after Fudge would be dropped off at the vet since she was due for her yearly wellness exam. So this morning she dropped Fudge off at the vet and then drove to the town center where her OB was officed in and sat down at a Panera, treating herself to a sausage, egg and cheese ciabatta and strawberry banana smoothie for breakfast and then did some shopping, unable to resist lingering amongst the baby aisles until it was time for her to check in for her appointment.

Despite how comfortable Clementine had become around her OB/GYN, she still didn’t like anything having to do with hospitals or doctors, especially if she had to do it alone– but this was also something she knew was fragile, so she couldn’t quite tell anyone just yet…and Tyson was just up north in Winnipeg, set to arrive for warm-ups for their game tonight in a few hours. So it was just her sitting in the room dressed in a gown and waiting for either her OB/GYN or an ultrasound tech to come and perform the ultrasound she was told she needed because– “you, Clementine Jost, are most definitely pregnant.”

She felt guilty getting that first ultrasound done without Tyson there, and Dr. Johnson knew it. Maybe it was by Clementine’s nerves or the fact that she kept asking questions throughout the entire time, wondering if it was common for people to come in that first time without their partner. And even when Dr. Johnson confirmed that it was a frequent occurrence, Clementine still felt a little guilty. Tyson didn’t even know she made an appointment to double check. She’d told him she was focusing on getting the Christmas decorations out so that the two of them could spend tomorrow not only picking out their tree, but also decorating their house. Which she would still do, but only after her appointment.

It was very clear just how unprepared and how much about this process she didn’t understand. For all she knew based on any and every medical show she’s ever watched, the ultrasound was the wand they used on the individual who was pregnant, stomach and saw the baby that way. So when Dr. Johnson was explaining about how based on a possible timeline, a transvaginal ultrasound would be more likely, she was confused. And by no means was the process itself a vacation, but Dr. Johnson kept her mind off of it enough by asking her about their wedding and honeymoon, the two of them sharing dog stories as well. The conversation took her mind off of the awkward feeling long enough up until Dr. Johnson had gained her attention by turning the screen towards Clementine and pointing at the small white blob on the screen and saying “that’s your baby.”

She got to hear the heartbeat, and Dr. Johnson answered every question Clementine had and explained what her next steps would be should she and Tyson choose to go along with the pregnancy. When she left the doctor’s office, she was leaving with a six week window of scheduling her next ultrasound appointment to where Tyson could be with her, a list of prenatals she could take, multiple pamphlets on pregnancy and the stages throughout and the knowledge of knowing that not only was she just three days away from being nine weeks pregnant, but that their baby had a rough due date of the second week of July.

Meaning that they would have a baby of their own joining their little family for their first wedding anniversary.

Clementine hadn’t received a call from the vet yet when she left the OB/GYN so she decided to do some more shopping for the supplies she’d need to tell Tyson when he got home later that night. She felt out of place, not sure on how to tell him and spent plenty of time googling creative ways to tell him and desperately considering spilling the secret and asking Kacey for advice– but she decided to stay mum and tried her best. She managed to grab everything she needed by the time the vet called and told her that Fudge was ready to be picked up. She went home with Fudge having a clean bill of health, her secret of a new addition and everything she’d need to put together Tyson’s surprise.

It was funny how slow time moved though when you were really looking forward to something. The perfectionist she was for making sure everything was just how she pictured it when putting Tyson’s reveal together, it only took her about 30-minutes to put together. Then she made her and Fudge dinner– putting some leftovers for Tyson in a container in case he was hungry when he got home–took Fudge for her walk, played fetch with her for little bit in the backyard, quickly imagining their baby doing the same thing when he would be a little bit older, and then she came back into the house for the night, taking trips to the garage and figuring she might as well keep up with her cover story of getting the Christmas decorations out for tomorrow while watching Tyson’s game.

But even then when the game was done and she went back to starting to unpack the ornaments for tomorrow so it would save them some time, it felt like the hours, minutes and seconds were just dragging on. And when she heard their alarm beep twice, signaling that a the garage door leading to the house had been opened– since she knew it wasn’t the front door because it was in her view– her heart was racing because she knew that Tyson was home and he was unknowingly moments away from being handed what he would no doubt call the best gift he was going to receive this Christmas.

“Clem?” Tyson called out, the sound of the door closing behind him, followed by two more beeps of the alarm system. “You down here still?”

“In the living room!” She called out, sitting back against her heels as Fudge lifted her head from the couch cushion and looked towards the back as Tyson’s footsteps echoed down the hall. “How was the flight?”

“Not bad, hit a little turbulence right when we left since I guess there’s a storm that’s supposed to pass through Winnipeg,” he sighed, coming into view as he walked towards the stairs and dropped his duffle down before walking back over to the back of the couch and reaching down to scratch Fudge’s back. “Hi my second favorite girl, mom said the vet told her you were perfect, which we already knew didn’t we?” He smiled, Fudge rolling over so he could scratch her belly. “Were you a good girl for mom today?”

It wasn’t odd hearing him call Clementine mom, they’d joked about being dog parents before being real parents, calling the other mom and dad whenever it came to Fudge. But now that she knew she was pregnant, it made her heart flutter a little harder because now they really were going to be mom and dad to someone.

“She was. Even got a little extra playtime in the backyard today after her walk,” Clementine smiled as Tyson walked from around the couch and over to her, stopping just behind her and bending down as he cupped her face and kissed her. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” he replied, kissing her again before walking over to the couch and sitting down on the cushion next to Fudge, who had rolled back over in expectation of more belly rubs and scratches. “So I was thinking tomorrow we could go to the tree farm right when they open? Get the best tree, come back here and set it up and then breakfast before we decorate?”

“That sounds perfect,” Clementine nodded, nervously unwrapping the tissue paper around one of the homemade ornaments they’d made on a date to one of those painting pottery places. “I got you something today.”

“Ooh, so does this mean I get to have the first present under the tree tomorrow?” He smiled, sinking into the seat as he started to rub Fudge’s belly.

“Actually, no,” Clementine replied, standing herself up and walking over to their brick fireplace where she’d rested the wrapped rectangular box up in Christmas paper and placed it on top of the mantle. “You get to open it tonight,” she smiled, turning back around and walking over to him with the present in hand.

He tilted his head to the side as he looked at her. “What? But Christmas is what? 22 days away?”

“23, but who’s counting,” she said, holding the present out for him. “Here, open it.”

He looked at the red wrapping paper, scrunching his face as he contemplated and then shook his head. “I don’t know, it feels wrong to open a gift this early–”

“Tyson, open the present or I’m calling your mom,” she said, stomping her right foot just barely against the part of their laminated floor that wasn’t covered by the throw rug.

“That’s cold,” he said, shaking his head as he grabbed the other side of the present. “I thought we agreed not to pull the mom card unless I was in trouble.”

She crossed her arms and shrugged. “You will be if you don’t open the present.”

Tyson sighed, resting the present in his lap as he sat up and stopped rubbing Fudge’s stomach. “Looks like someone is trying to ruin Christmas, huh Fudge?” He asked, scratching behind her ears before looking back at the present. “We should just call mom grinch for the rest of this month, huh?”

“Tys–”

“I know, I know, ‘just open the gift’,” he replied, rolling his eyes playfully as he started to unwrap the gift box. “If this is also your way of trying to upstage me on Christmas this year, just know it’s not happening. I’m going to win the gift giving, I always give the best gifts.”

“Maybe not this year,” she smiled, keeping her arms crossed nervously as she watched him place the wrapping paper off to the side and look at the red squared stock card she’d cut in half, the first half taped to the top of the box with half of a riddle and the second half inside of the box, resting on top of the white tissue paper that was covering up the contents inside of it. “Come on, read it out loud.”

“Bossy,” he smiled, rolling his eyes as he looked at her writing. “It’s been you, Fudge and me for quite some time. And a house too big for three lonely souls, but that’s going to change in a few short months.” He looked up, his eyebrows furrowed. “I wouldn’t say we’re lonely, we’ve got Fudgie.”

“Tyson, just open the box,” she sighed, shaking her head.

“Unless,” he smiled, looking at Fudge. “We’re getting you a little brother or sister! Twice the puppy love in this house.”

“Tyson!”

“Alright, alright, relax, mom,” he smiled, lifting the lid of the box and revealing  the second part of the stock card that he picked up to read. “For heaven has heard our secret desire. Our family is growing by one heart and two feet…” his voice faded out and she could see his eyes skim across the card again before he lifted up the tissue paper, surprisingly following the instructions she’d written at the bottom of the card– “(lift up the tissue paper for a surprise! <3)”

She uncrossed her arms and brought her hands together, resting them beneath her chin as she watched him pick up the YES+ pregnancy test before putting it back down and then picking up the sonogram she’d gotten from her appointment. He held onto it as his eyes moved to the two articles of clothing she’d put into the gift, a red Minnesota Wild newborn bodysuit she’d bought from Dicks with his number and ‘DADDY’ in white block letters self-ironed on the back and a green Minnesota Wild newborn sleeper.

He looked up at her, his facial expression soft as he quickly glimpsed back down at the sonogram in his hand and then back at her. “You’re pregnant?” He asked softly, eyes expressing pure disbelief.

“Yeah,” she nodded, tears brimming in her eyes as she chewed on her bottom lip in an attempt to stop it from quivering.

“Really?”

“Really,” she sniffled, nodded and then laughed as Tyson put the box of stuff down onto the couch and got up off of the couch, taking two steps before he was able to wrap his arms around her waist and pick her up off of the ground in a hug. “Tyson!”

“I can’t believe it,” he said, looking at her before putting her down, leaning in and kissing her as he cupped her face before pulling back. “When did you find out?”

“Technically Thursday night because that’s when I took the tests,” she replied as he wiped away at her cheeks with the sleeves of his sweatshirt. “But I had an appointment this morning after I dropped Fudge off at the vet and Dr. Johnson confirmed it.”

“How far along are you?” He asked, nodding his head back towards the box where the sonogram was still laying. “That’s not a tiny blob, that’s a slightly big peanut blob.”

“Three days from nine weeks, so almost a week over two months,” she smiled, keeping her arms draped over his shoulders as his hands rested on her hips. “She gave me a rough estimate of a due date sometime in the second week of July.”

He looked down at her stomach, moving his hands from her hips and resting them on her stomach. “You’re gonna get a bump, dude,” he smiled, looking up at her with a gleam in his eyes. “We’re gonna have a baby.”

Clementine nodded, a smile overtaking her face. “We’re having a baby.”

“Holy shit,” he hugged her again, holding her against him as the two embraced in the living room, not pulling apart until Fudge barked at them both, now standing up on the couch with her tail wagging. “Fudge you’re gonna be a big sister, are you excited?”

Fudge barked in reply as Tyson walked over and smothered her in rubs and kisses on the top of her head. “You know,” he said, turning around to look at Clementine. “If you’re almost nine weeks pregnant, that makes sense why Fudge has been so obsessed with you. Don’t animals like, gravitate towards pregnant people?”

“Or she just loves me more,” Clementine smiled, shrugging her shoulders.

“Totally possible,” Tyson replied, walking back towards her and resting his hands on the small of her back. “But she definitely doesn’t love you more than I do.” He pulled her closer to him, resting his forehead against hers as he smiled. “We’re going to be parents.”

“We are,” she nodded, her fingers tracing the nap of his neck. “But you know we can’t tell anyone yet…right? Dr. Johnson told me most people don’t announce until they’re out of the first trimester–“

“When’s that done?”

“Um…I think she said 12 or 13 weeks?”

“Perfect,” he smiled, leaning down and kissing her nose. “We can make the announcement on New Years, shock everyone with the best news they’ll get all year. But you know what this means, right?”

Clementine wrapped her arms around his neck, smiling up at him. “Hm?”

“We’re giving my mom her first grandchild, which means I’m forever solidified as the favorite kid.” He beamed as Clementine just laughed. “Sucks to be Kacey.”

Second Trimester

In the midst of the season, Clementine and Tyson were balancing a lot of things. Work, their home life, preparing what had been previously an empty room to turn into a nursery. In their excitement, they’d spent one of Tyson’s rare days off and took a trip to IKEA to look at potential cribs and other furniture they’d want to put in the nursery. If he could, Tyson would have bought the first of everything that he thought, just because he was so excited. Clementine, surprisingly being the more level headed of the two, suggested they look at multiple options and even search online so they could check the safety levels.

“There’s a lot more that goes into the decoration of the nursery besides just how it looks, Tys.”

“Well, obviously she’s sleeping in our room until she’s six, so it’s not like she’ll be sleeping in there while she’s a baby. We have to soak up all of the cuddle time that we can.”

So they compromised. For cribs, they would search online and check out safety ratings until narrowing their options down to the one they wanted and then Tyson could also buy the bedside bassinet.

Despite being a few days shy the first week of her second trimester and being six weeks away from their 19 week scan where they could potentially find out the gender, Tyson and Clementine both were each adamant on what the gender of their baby was going to be. Clementine was so sure they were having a boy. Maybe it was just all of the small talk between her and Tyson in the early years of dating that had her mind set on their first child being a boy, or maybe it was that her body just knew. Whichever it was, she just had a feeling that they were having a boy and she often referred to her bump as such. Now Tyson on the other hand, was the exact opposite. He, for reasons of his own, was adamant they were having a girl.

“Just imagine, Clem,” he’d say as they laid there in bed, resting his hand on her forming bump. “She’ll learn how to walk in the living room, probably trying to get to Fudge or something. Her first Halloween and Christmas, she’ll look so cute in her costume and opening her presents– but you promise we won’t dress her up in something cliche like a pumpkin? I hope she has your eyes, actually no…I don’t. I’ll never be able to turn her down if she gives me puppy dog eyes like you do.”

She let him go on and on in his talks about hoping that their baby was a girl, just like he let her do the same. But they were still undecided on whether or not they wanted to find out when they got their 19 week scan. Part of her wanted to wait until he was born, just the excitement of it all– but the other part of her wanted to know– wanted to be prepared so they could figure out what they were going to name him from the growing list that just seemed to keep growing.

First though, they had to tell their families.

It was hard to keep the secret as Christmas came and went, the both of them wanting nothing more than to surprise their families with a Christmas surprise of “we’re having a baby” but they managed to keep it a secret until the last day that their families were in town. Tyson had a game tonight, so the plan was for them to tell their families right before he left for the arena. Though he’d almost managed to crack in the hours leading up to it.

“Tyson, why are you still here?” His mom asked, coming in from the kitchen. “You need to leave.”

“Mom, we live right down the road, it’s not that far of a drive,” he sighed, shaking his head as he stood next to Clementine, who was standing in the middle of the living room. “We need to talk to you guys before I head out.”

“What’s this about?” Her Grandfather asked, sitting in Tyson’s recliner. “Are those idiots trading you?”

“Don’t worry, Papa, it’s nothing bad,” Clem laughed, waving him off. “And no, they’re not trading him.”

Once Kacey had come into the living room and sat down next to her mom, Tyson and Clementine shared a look before Tyson walked out of the living room and down the hall to the storage closet. “So now that you guys are here, we just wanted to have one more special moment together before you all flew home tomorrow morning.”

“I’m surprised out of all of those times Kacey snuck presents when we were kids, that she didn’t find these,” Tyson laughed, carrying six boxes that were wrapped in red Christmas paper and walking back into the living room before passing out the boxes to who they belonged to.

“Um, no,” Kacey said, looking at him as he went to hand her her present. “You were the mastermind behind that, you just used me as a pawn because you knew I was cuter so mom wouldn’t get mad at me.”

Tyson held back the box, looking at Clementine. “I changed my mind, she doesn’t get one.”

“Tys,” Clementine sighed, motioning towards Kacey. “Give her the box.”

“Yeah Tys, give me the box,” Kacey said, holding out her hand and grabbing the box from a reluctant Tyson before he walked over and stood next to Clementine.

“So we held onto these just because we wanted to have you guys open them now when things got a little less hectic. We had everything customized for you, because they’re very meaningful gifts because you guys mean so much to us,” Clementine smiled, pausing as she felt herself start to get emotional.

“We just wanted to remind you guys how much we love and appreciate you and wanted to see you open your gifts all together without the rush of Christmas morning,” Tyson added, looking at Clem before nodding at their families. “So go ahead and open them.”

Clementine had her hands interlocked in front of her, resting her chin on top of them as she eagerly watched them start to unwrap their presents. As expected, Kacey was the first one who got her wrapping paper undone, but moved to help their grandparents get theirs undone before returning to her own gift, taking the lid off of her box and peeling back the tissue paper.

“Oh my God!” She shrieked, looking up at them. “Shut up, you’re kidding!”

They both just smiled as one by one their family members each opened their boxes and saw what they’d put inside– each baby announcement tailored to their own interests. Kacey had gotten a t-shirt that said “official member of the cool aunt club”, along with a mug with a bunch of her favorite flowers and larkspur and water lilies– the official flower of july– drawn on with “Auntie Kacey EST. 2023” written in cursive beneath it, and a candle of her favorite scent that Tyson had picked out simply because it said “look at you becoming an aunt and shit” along with a greeting card and a copy of the sonogram they’d gotten.

Inside Tyson’s mom’s box, they had put a light gray onesie with “hi grandma, see you in july” printed in cursive, a grandparents keepsake journal since she had done similar books for Tyson and Kacey both, a comfy retro-inspired great sweatshirt that said “I’m a cool grandma” on it and then a wooden frame with “hello grandma” and “baby jost – july 2023” engraved beneath it, with the sonogram clipped to the side.

Tyson’s grandparents had gotten a similar frame, only theirs read “hello great-grandma & great-grandpa”, a cream colored throw pillow cover that had “parents, grandparents and great grandparents” each with the proper EST date beneath it and red hearts decorated in the corner. Each of them got a t-shirt that read “promoted to great-grandpa/grandma EST 2023” as well as a bottle of their favorite wine with the label that read “To the best great-grandparents, I can’t wait to meet you. Love, your great-grandchild” And along with those, Tyson’s grandpa got a golf ball marker engraved with “new golfing buddy coming soon” on it, while his grandma got a mug that had “mom, grandma and great-grandma” also all with the proper EST dates.

For her grandparents, Clementine had gotten them matching mugs, since they often sat at the coffee together every morning or out on the front porch, sipping their morning coffee side by side. They had said “Just when a grandfather/grandmother thinks his/her work is finished, someone calls him/her Great.” She’d gotten then the same frame as Tyson’s grandparents as well, complete with sonogram. Nana got a cream colored sweatshirt that said “Mom, Grandma, Great-Grandma, I just keep getting better”, while Papa received a navy sweater reading the same but with dad, grandpa and great-grandpa instead. He’d also received a fishing lure with “Papa’s new fishing buddy arriving 7/2023” on it. While Nana got a small set of plastic toddler gardening tools, complete with a tote and a light blue apron that had “Nana’s gardening buddy” engraved across the chest.

For her grandparents, Clementine struggled on just what to give them in terms of title. All of her life she’s referred to them as Nana and Papa, because they were her grandparents after all. But as far as she was concerned, they were ones who raised her– who were practically her mom and dad. Ultimately, she settled on getting them great-grandparent titled gifts, but would make it known to their children that they were basically mom and dad to her and that they too could call them Nana and Papa if that’s what they wanted.

But seeing their excitement as they took in the news and saw the surprise, followed by the amount of hugs and love they received, only made Tyson and Clementine more excited for the impending arrival of their baby. They were going to be surrounded by so many people that loved them and cared for them, that it was beyond her wildest dreams.

Clementine knew deep in her heart that their son would never for a single second or moment ever feel the way that her own biological mother had made her feel as a little girl– that she wasn’t enough for someone to want or was someone who could just so easily be left behind…abandoned. No, she knew that he was going to be very, very loved by everyone in their family. And that was all that she could ever hope and wish for.

It was only a few days later, on New Years Day that Tyson and Clementine sat huddled together on their couch with Fudge sitting on the other side of Clementine, her face resting by her belly, while the two of them looked at their phones. It was early afternoon into the new year, Tyson had gotten home from St. Louis around 10:30 and traveled with his teammates to meet up with their significant others and families at the Spurgeons place, where Danielle was hosting the New Years Eve party.

Up until the guys got there, Clementine had spent a lot of her time dodging questions as to why she wasn’t partaking in sipping on champagne, her main excuse was that she’d had a really bad headache all day and thankfully once the person asking heard that question, they’d back off. Otherwise, it was just mingling with the girls and entertaining the kids as the game played on TV. At one point, the Fleury’s youngest, James, had made his way onto the couch and sat down next to Clementine, eventually crawling his way onto her lap and sitting while they watched the game up until he fell asleep. Véronique had apologized, but Clem told her it was okay. However, that small event spiraled out into the millions of questions being thrown around about whether or not her and Tyson were thinking about starting a family now that they were married and he was signed for eight years, or if they were wanting to wait a little longer.

“Whatever happens, happens,” she said with a smile, shrugging her shoulders carefully not to disturb the sleeping toddler. Part of her enjoyed keeping their small secret that they were already expecting, but the other half found it so hard to keep it from them any longer, seeing as she was becoming very good friends with all of the women.

By the time the guys joined the party, the younger kids were all rounded up in the playroom where they were all napping until midnight, when the party would end and the parents would go home. It wasn’t too long though before the countdown was starting and everyone was huddled in the living room watching the ball drop.

“Do you realize this is our fifth New Years Eve together?” Clementine asked, looking up at Tyson.

“Technically, it’s been way more than that,” Tyson smiled, quickly pressing a kiss to her temple as he saw her roll her eyes. “But yes, I do realize that. New Years Eve 2018 changed everything for us, of course I’d remember.”

“It’s crazy to think five years have already passed,” she smiled, leaning against his chest. “Doesn’t feel like it’s been that long.”

“I know, time’s been flying by.” he whispered, nonchalantly resting his hands beneath the Wild sweatshirt she was wearing and brushing his thumbs against the t-shirt she had beneath it. “And just think how this time next year, we’ll have a little one to bring to the party too.”

The countdown had reached one and everyone around them cheered before they all partook in the classic tradition of sharing a midnight kiss with their significant other. Unlike all those years before, Clem wasn’t the one to initiate the kiss, Tyson was and he had pulled back with a smile on his face to say “Happy new year Clem,” before kissing her again. They’d left the Spurgeon’s house shortly after midnight and traveled the short distance down the way to their own home, greeting Fudge with pets and head kisses before they went to bed for the night.

Clementine had woken up that morning, to the smell of coffee and eggs coming from downstairs. Fudge was sleeping at the end of their bed like she always did, waiting for her to wake up before she’d travel back downstairs with Tyson. After the morning snuggles and pets, Clementine and Fudge made their way downstairs to see Tyson in the kitchen, wrapping up cooking breakfast. He hadn’t even been able to get a word out after she greeted him with a morning kiss before saying “I want to announce it to everyone else, today.”

So there they were, staring at the announcement photos they’d chosen to post to their individual instagram accounts, Tyson unable to say no to the puppy dog eyes and pouty lip Clementine had given him the moment the simple request left her lips. She pleaded her case, explaining how she was too excited to keep it a secret any longer and they were officially in the safe zone to where they were allowed to announce it. But she hadn’t needed to do any pleading at all, because Tyson was on board and had been waiting to do the same exact thing.

“So we post on three, then lock our phones and don’t touch them until bed…right?” He asked, looking away from his phone. “That way we can just be completely unaware of their shock and then read all the comments and laugh about it tonight in bed?”

Clementine laughed, scratching the top of Fudge’s head. “You are aware that we’re probably going to get spammed with texts and calls from our friends…right?”

“Eh, we’ll tell them we’re doing newlywed things,” he shrugged, looking down at her bump. “Though we’ve already done that.”

Clementine shoved him as she shook her head. “You’re so annoying, let’s just post.”

“On three,” he nodded, looking at her phone. “One, two…three.”

They both pressed the share button, watching as their feed loaded and then the posts appeared on their screens. They locked their phones before resting them down on the arm of the couch and Clementine leaned towards Tyson, snuggling down into his side.

“How long do you think it’ll be before we get the first phone call?” She asked, looking ahead at the tv screen as Mamma Mia continued to play on the screen.

“Mmm, maybe half an hour? I’m sure plenty of people are still sleeping off last night’s–”

Tyson’s phone rang first, cutting him off. He looked in disbelief as he grabbed his phone, Clementine’s going off soon after. She laughed and slowly reached over to grab her phone off of the arm of the couch, turning it towards him. “It’s a facetime from Mel.”

“Mine’s JT,” he laughed, taking a deep breath and sighing. “So it begins, huh?”

“I guess so,” she smiled, patting his chest before swiping to answer the facetime call, just as Tyson answered his phone.

It was a long five weeks for both Clemetine and Tyson as they awaited their next ultrasound appointment.

Now that she was 18 weeks pregnant, Clementine was starting to have a tough time falling asleep– a symptom amongst many that she’d read about in the books she’d bought for some kind of guidance on this new, uncharted journey. She could call, text and facetime Nana and Laura if she needed advice or had questions– but sometimes she’d just preferred to be able to sit down at a table with them and talk.

Thankfully though, she found that guidance and conversation easy with some of the WAGs of the team. Those who’d had children or experienced pregnancy before. Sometimes the websites and the books could be so overwhelming that she felt like she wouldn’t be able to retain it or that she wanted to know the experience outside of the books and internet. It was in the bonding moments with some of the WAGs where Clemetine was asked in the family room before one of the Wild’s games about if she and Tyson were going to find out the gender, if they were going to keep it a surprise until the birth or if they were going to throw a party. She told them that both she and Tyson automatically knew that they wouldn’t be able to handle it if they kept themselves in the dark about the gender of their baby until the moment they were born– but that they were trying to figure out if they wanted to do a party or just find out themselves.

It was then that Danielle Spurgeon had offered to help plan and host a gender reveal party for them if that was something they were interested in. Clementine, not wanting to make Danielle feel obligated, initially had turned down the offer, saying that it wasn’t necessary since the Spurgeon’s had four kids of their own, which was already a circus. She brought it by Tyson later that night, asking whether he wanted to find out the gender the day of their scan or have a party and Tyson being Tyson said– “oh we have to have a party! I want us to do one of those cute reveals where I shoot a puck or we open a box and there’s balloons.”

The next game day, Danielle came up to Clementine and asked her when it was a good time for them to get lunch so they could talk about party details and what Tyson and Clementine envisioned. Apparently, Tyson had gone up to Jared at the next practice and they talked about the party and everything and thanked Jared for being so hospitable.

The only thing keeping them from the party, was having the actual anatomy scan done to where they could check on how their baby was developing, as well as have the gender handed off to them in an envelope, and Clementine would give it to Danielle tonight at the game.

“Tyson please stop,” Clementine sighed, lolling her head to the side.

He brought the now nearly empty water bottle away from his mouth, looking at her. “Stop what?”

“You were chugging that water bottle and squeezing it and the empty plastic sound was reminding me of how full my bladder is and how bad I have to pee,” her eyes dwindled down to the water bottle he was holding and back up at him. “If you don’t stop, I will pee my pants and I would rather not do that.”

He looked back and forth between her and the water bottle before bringing the bottle back to his mouth and downing the rest of the water, then walking over to the corner of the room where a trash can was and throwing it away. “There, no more water.”

“So everything that I’m seeing right now looks great,” Dr. Cortez smiled, pointing at the screen. “Your little one here is measuring in at just a little over five and a half inches and they’re weighing in at almost seven ounces, which is right where you want to be at 18 weeks.”

Tyson was holding onto Clementine’s hand, but his eyes were glued to the screen and soaking in everything that her OBGYN was saying. Dr. Johnson was taking personal time away from her job, which Clementine was nervous about, especially since she had the ideal of Dr. Johnson being the one to deliver their baby when the time came. However, Dr. Johnson suggested Dr. Cortez as someone to take her place, insuring that she was also one of the best OBGYN’s on their team. So in the case Dr. Johnson wasn’t back from her personal leave, Dr. Cortez had some background on the pregnancy and Clementine and Tyson both could feel comfortable with her. Aside from calming Clementine’s nerves, this was his first time seeing an ultrasound. Sure, he’s stared at the copy Clementine had surprised him with and he’s googled and watched videos on youtube of ultrasounds…but this one was their baby.

He was getting to see their baby move on screen and their outline for the first time with his own eyes. For their announcement, Clementine had made an appointment when she was 13 weeks to get an updated ultrasound, but he was out of town and couldn’t make it. Between that first one from when she found out she was pregnant, to the 13th week…to even now, he was seeing their baby grow. He could start to easily make out what was its head and maybe its arm– their nose if the angle was right since in the first two they had their head turned.

But he wasn’t over being able to see their baby there on the screen, the ultrasound waves catching the movement and he often found himself looking between the screen and Clem’s belly, unable to wrap his mind around how the baby was moving inside of her…and yet when you stared at her stomach, she was completely still.

“Tyson,” he zoned back in and looked down at Clem who was shaking his hand and looked at him with a concerned look. “You okay?”

“Oh, uh, yeah I’m good,” he nodded, squeezing her hand and smiling. “Just got a little zoned out thinking about our little girl,” he dragged out the girl, smiling and nodding at Doctor Cortez. “Am I right doc? Is it a girl?”

Dr. Cortez laughed, shaking her head. “Nice try there, but I know very well that you two are keeping it a secret for your party.”

Tyson sighed, shaking his head. “It was worth a shot. But what did I miss while I was zoned out?”

“I was just talking all of the boring, science stuff. Everything is in the right place, there were no signs of a cleft lip or palate, their spine looked beautiful, arms, legs and all of their little extremities are forming just great,” Dr. Cortez smiled, typing on the computer before freezing the image of their baby’s side profile and putting the transducer wand back up. “Placenta looks great, your cervix is closed and everything else on your end is going very well, Clementine. You and your baby are very, very healthy.”

“Thanks,” Clementine smiled proudly, looking away from Tyson and at the screen. “I’ve been trying to keep up our walks with Fudge, she keeps me active and for some reason, little GUY,” Clementine joked, putting emphasis on the gender, likes a lot of healthy food…mainly broccoli. I could eat that for every meal.”

“And she has,” Tyson chimed in, sighing dramatically. “I make her an omelet? ‘Mm, I think broccoli would taste great with this!’ Broccoli as a side dish, as a snack, sometimes with butter, all of the time with hot sauce…broccoli…just tons and tons of broccoli.”

“I think we should be grateful for that,” Clementine said as Dr. Cortez wiped off the excess gel from her stomach. “Maybe then getting him to eat his vegetables won’t be as hard seeing as you never ate yours.”

“She’ll do just fine, thank you,” he smiled teasingly, leaning down and giving her a quick kiss. “Right doc?”

Dr. Cortez just laughed and shook her head. “I’ll go grab you guys your copies of the scans and then you’re free to go.”

Once Dr. Cortez left the room, Tyson let go of Clementine's hand and walked around the end of the exam table, coming up beside the screen and sitting down on the free space of the table. He looked at the screen that was still displaying the frozen image of their baby in black and white, and tilted his head to the side.

“What?” Clementine asked, resting her hand on his arm.

“I think they’ve got your nose,” he said, looking at her.

“It’s a 2D image, Tys,” Clementine laughed, sitting herself up and letting her sweatshirt fall back down over her bump. “There’s no way you can tell that.”

“Sure I can, see?” He said, reaching out and carefully tracing along the side profile of their baby’s nose. “They’ve got that same, cute little slope that you do.”

Tyson helped her sit up the rest of the way, shifting down the exam bed so she could turn towards the monitor and let her legs hang off the bed. Clementine leaned closer to the monitor, copying Tyson’s earlier mannerism of tilting his head to the side. “If you really focus and squint a little…oh huh.”

“Mhhm,” Tyson said, following her to try and see what she was talking about. “What? What is it?”

“You can see that they might get your forehead,” she smiled, bumping into him.

Tyson looked at her, the smile off his face as he rolled his eyes. “You’re annoying.”

“No I’m not, you love me.” Clem looped her arm through his and snuggled down into his side before focusing back on the screen. “Really though, I think they might have those adorable chubby cheeks you and Kacey had back when you were kids.”

“Really?” He asked, perking up a bit as he looked at the screen.

Clementine nodded, reaching forward and pointing at the baby’s side profile, outlining their cheek. “Oh yeah, look how they protrude out.” She looked back at Tyson with a smile. “Looks like you’ll have to fight off all of the people who will want to pinch them like they did yours.”

“Oh trust me, I will. “I won’t let our kid endure all the pinched cheeks Kace and I did.”” he nodded, looking at her with a soft smile. “So I was thinking about something.”

“Oh no,” she joked, looking worried. “Should I be concerned?”

Tyson rolled his eyes and shook his head. “No, but remember how we were considering doing one of those super detailed scans?”

“The 4D ultrasound? Mhhm, why?”

“I think we should do it,” he said, shrugging as he looked back at the monitor. “I’m too impatient to wait nine months before we can see what she…they look like. I kinda want to know now.”

Clementine laughed as she moved to get off of the exam table, Tyson helping her out. “We can do it, but I was doing some research and they said the best time would probably be around 24-28 weeks. So, you’d have to wait just a little longer.”

“If I have to,” he faked a dramatic sigh before smiling as he intertwined his fingers with her. “Though I mean come on…look at them. They’ve totally got your nose.”

Now being closer, Clementine and Tyson both examined the monitor up close, taking in all the details of the black and white 2D image of their baby. “Hm, you���re right, they totally do,” she smiled, looking up at him.

“Good, because that just means they’ll be just like their mom,” he smiled, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into his chest, resting his chin on top of her head. “Who I love, very, very much.”

Clementine looked up, resting her chin on his chest. “I love you too.”

The one thing that Clementine was most grateful for when she and Tyson decided to take up Danielle’s offer of hosting a gender reveal party at her and Jared’s home, was that the pivotal 20 weeks, or the halfway mark when they would have it, fell right at the beginning of the All-Star break. The two of them were insistent to his teammates and their friends that they didn’t need to hang around just for the party, knowing that the break during the season was when most took the time to travel. But nonetheless they felt loved when they decided to hang around, and even more so when a few of their friends from Colorado decided to stop by before heading out on their vacations.

It was the mix and the best of their years spent in Colorado and Minnesota, seeing the support from some of their closest friends that made the day so special. It was humorous seeing big, NHL playing men, who were always so competitive on the ice, play baby shower themed games and argue over whether or not their prediction for a gender was right. Tyson had surprised Clementine with her grandparents, despite weeks earlier she assured them it was okay if they didn’t want to fly into Minnesota considering their growing age. So when they had driven to the airport to go pick up his mom, Kacey and grandparents, she was surprised to see both of her Grandparents walking alongside them as well that Tyson panicked the moment she imploded into tears in the middle of the airport.

With the party in full swing it was easy for Clementine and Tyson to get lost in mingling amongst their friends and enjoying the catered snacks and decorations. Clementine had also managed to thank Danielle and Jared more than a handful of times for offering to host the party and Danielle for also planning the majority of it, aside from the parts where Clementine offered things she’d like to see and preferred to have. Between the two of them, Tyson was nervous and Clementine was excited. To her, there was no second guessing what their baby was going to be. She’d known from the very beginning, just felt it in her gut that they were going to have a boy. Tyson didn’t have a preference or even a guess– he was just excited to be there and to finally be able to call her bump by one of the names they’d narrowed down to for either gender.

So when it came time for them to stand in front of all of their friends and family to reveal the gender in true hockey player fashion– shooting a pink or blue powdered filled puck off of a shooting deck provided by Jared– Tyson was the one who was hesitating because of nerves. He took a little extra time in making sure his hands were set up right as if holding a hockey stick wasn’t what he did for a living, or prolonging his ‘thank you for being here’ speech as his thumb picked at the buttend of the stick.

“Josty if you delay this any longer, that kid of yours is going to be sixteen and asking for a car! And they haven’t even been born yet!” Gabe yelled out, earning a smack on the arm from Mel.

Tyson rolled his eyes, pointing the hockey stick at him. “You’re lucky I don’t have you removed.” He replied, before standing by the puck. “You can get off the deck, Clem. I don’t want you to get hit.”

“Thank you, I appreciate that,” Clementine laughed, stepping off of the shooting deck once Tyson kissed her temple and stood just across from him with their friends and family behind her.

She stood there nervously with her back turned to their friends and family as she rested her hands on her bump, something she caught herself doing every day from the moment she’d found out she was pregnant and even more so once her bump started to grow. She stared at Tyson who was dressed in jeans and a pink polo, Clementine having picked out which shirt for him to wear since he insisted on wearing pink because he was on team girl. And he chirped her the entire time while she tried to sort through which blue dress to wear.

“It’s February, Clem. It’s cold outside.”

“It’s the nicest day it’s been all winter. I’ll wear tights and a jacket.”

And she did. Wear the nude tights and a cream colored jacket that matched well with the baby blue criss cross tie backless dress. But she was starting to feel a little cold and was hoping that Tyson would shoot the puck and reveal that they were expecting a boy just so she could go back inside and enjoy a large glass of hot chocolate. And when she saw Tyson start his swing, it was like time had slowed and she could only focus on Tyson and the sound of her heart thumping inside of her chest. Her breath held as he swung forward and when he shot the puck forward, the breath was stuck in her throat and her heart stopped.

“What? What is it?” Tyson asked, turning around to face her as their friends and family all cheered at the reveal. “Clem what is it I can’t tell. This was a bad idea, I should’ve worn those glasses–”

“It’s pink,” Clementine finally spoke, swallowing the knot in her throat as she finally looked away from the pink cloud and over at Tyson, tears filling her eyes. “It’s a girl.”

“It is?” He smiled, the joy clearly taking over as his smile only grew bigger. “I knew it! I told you I knew it!”

He dropped the stick and ran over to her, wrapping his arms around her and picking her up. “Tyson, careful!” She gasped, resting her hands on his shoulders as he spun her around, keeping her in his arms even when he stopped. “Come on, put me down in case you drop me.”

“I wouldn’t dare drop my two girls,” he gasped, placing her down onto the ground and moving his arms up her side until he interlocked his fingers behind her back, digging his thumbs carefully into the more tense than normal area. “So now that we know…what do you think about announcing the name to everyone?”

“Yeah,” she smiled softly, playing with the ends of her jacket.

When his eyes locked onto hers, she held his gaze for a few seconds before looking away, noticing how his eyes were skimming across her face to take in her mood. “You okay?”

Clementine nodded, forcing the smile to stay on her face before letting go of the ends of her jacket and rubbing her arms. “Just a little cold. Maybe we can tell everyone inside?”

“You sure you’re–”

“Tys, I’m fine,” she replied, stepping forward and kissing his cheek. “I’m just a little cold and would like to go inside, please.”

Tyson nodded, moving beside her and keeping one hand on the small of her back. “Okay, go ahead and head inside, I’ll tell everyone we’re moving back in.”

“Thank you,” Clementine smiled, leaning over and kissing him, pulling back just slightly to look at him. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” he smiled, bringing his free hand up onto her forming bump before leaning down and kissing it. “And I also love you too, our little girl.”

Once he stood up, Clementine started to make her way off of the Spurgeon’s grass, hearing Tyson following behind her and stopping short to make his announcement. “Okay, we’re not having everyone freeze or catch a cold on our watch, so let’s move everyone back inside where Clem and I have another announcement we’d like to make!”

She wasn’t able to get a moment to herself as everyone was following into the Spurgeon’s home right behind her, flooding into the living room and open kitchen as Tyson and Jared made sure everyone was inside before Jared closed the door. And just before she could excuse herself from another congratulations, Tyson had walked up beside Clementine and rested his hand on the small of her back, leading her to the center of the living room so they were once again in front of everyone.

“Tys, can we maybe do this later?” Clementine whispered, looking up at him as she watched their families settle into their spots to where they were in clear view of them both. “I’m feeling a little thirsty.”

“It’ll only take a quick minute, then I’ll grab you a drink,” he said, squeezing her hip as he looked down at her with a smile. “Promise.”

Clementine sighed, nodding her head again before leaning her head against his shoulder and brushing her hand around his waist. “Okay.”

“Again, Clem and I would like to thank everyone for coming. All of our friends and families, we know travel can be stressful and you guys all could’ve started your vacations a day earlier, but it means a lot. And of course to Jared and Danielle for hosting at their beautiful home. We appreciate every single one of you and are thankful that you guys chose to be here to celebrate our little girl.”

Her heart continued to thud against her chest as she stood there, trying not to look their guests in the eye for longer than a few seconds and trying her best to keep her smile on her face, but it was getting progressively harder the longer that he talked.

“Clem and I have talked names since way before this ever happened, but when it became real we got serious about it, having plenty of options for both boys and girls. And now that we know that we’re going to have a girl…we thought we might share with you all, the name we settled on for our little girl.” Tyson looked down at Clem and squeezed her hip reassuringly as he gave her a smile.

“We went through a lot of names, and trust me…Tys took this very seriously, it was almost a headache sometimes,” she laughed, clearing her throat and thankful that she no longer was having to force the smile on her face as she looked directly at where Tyson’s mom and Nana were sitting. She rested her right hand on her bump as she looked at him. “But we both agreed that if we were going to have a girl, we wanted our daughter to be named after the two women in our lives who influenced us the most growing up.”

“Yes,” Kacey smiled, jokingly pumping her fist as Tyson just waved her off.

Clementine leaned her head more against Tyson’s chest as she looked back in their direction. “So we’ve decided to name her Bailey Frances Jost.” She watched as the look of realization crossed both her Nana’s and Laura’s faces as everyone else focused on the family.

“For those of you who don’t know, my mom’s middle name is Bailey, which is where we got Bailey from. And Frances is Clem’s Nana’s name,” Tyson chimed in, motioning towards the two women. “And it was a very easy thing to agree on naming our daughter after the two of you.”

“Laura, you’ve been like a second mom to me the moment I met you. Marrying your son might have officially made me a part of your family in a legal sense, but you’ve brought me into your family the moment you picked up Tyson from Nana’s after school that first day.” Clementine smiled, looking from Tyson’s mom to her Nana, the tears building in her eyes. “Nana, you’re my mom. You’ve loved me and raised me all these years. The both of you have taught me so many things in life, but the most important thing is that the two of you have shown me just what a strong woman looks like and have molded me into the person that I am today.”

Clementine swallowed the knot in her throat as she tried to ground herself by moving the fabric of her dress with her fingertips. “And Tys and I hope that our daughter will be just as strong as the both of you.”

“Except I hope she doesn’t pull on my ear when she gets mad,” Tyson joked, breaking up the tension filled emotional moment. “That I hope is a habit she doesn’t get from the both of you.”

“But enough of the emotional sappy stuff,” Tyson said, clapping his hands together. “There’s still tons of food and drinks to eat, and plenty of fun to have. So, enjoy everybody!”

Clementine turned towards Tyson, brushing her hand against his back. “Tys–”

But before she could excuse herself to the bathroom for a moment to herself, Tyson kissed her before holding her against him, nodding his head. “I know you said you were thirsty, so let’s go get you something to drink and then you can sit down for a bit to rest your feet and warm up. Does that sound okay?”

From holding her smile from the moment that plastic puck exploded into pink powder, Clementine could feel the sides of her mouth start to twitch, but was still holding strong so she wouldn’t be caught in even the slightest expression of disappointment. “That sounds perfect,” she nodded, leaning into him as the two of them started to walk towards the kitchen.

For a party that’s main event had happened almost twenty minutes earlier, the whole thing was still swinging. None of the guests had left, there was still food and drinks to eat, the kids were running around and having a great time. One part that Clemetine hadn’t expected, was that their gender reveal party, was also secretly doubled as their baby shower– seeing as the timing of a baby shower when it’s normally done would have been in June, and it was up in the air whether or not the Wild would be in postseason.

So when she was once again, thanking people for all of the congratulations and making small talk, still trying to slip away for a moment for herself, Danielle had come up to her and told her how the rest of the WAGs decided to throw her a baby shower as well, that the presents everyone had bought had been ushered off by Jared and Tyson into a separate room– and it was time for her and Tyson both to sit down and open the gifts.

It was easy to excuse herself from Danielle, just by saying “of course, just let me go to the bathroom really quick and I’ll be right there,” was she able to get away from the party and go down the hall to one of the Spurgeon’s bathroom, closing the door. And once she was all alone with nobody around, she could finally stop holding back the true emotions she was feeling.

Hot tears slid down her cheeks, almost too fast for her to keep up with. Every wipe of her cheeks with the palm of her hand was pointless as tears quickly just fell right back down. She was leaning against the bathroom door, her upper back and head against the white painted wood being her support as she stood there and just cried. When she felt the sobs strangling in her throat, she reached out and pressed the switch that was next to the lightswitch, turning on the fan to hopefully muffle the noise. And when it was getting hard to breathe and she felt the snot drip from her nose, she moved herself away from the door and over to the sink, reaching down over the side and grabbing herself some toilet paper to blow and wipe her nose.

This was supposed to be the happiest moment of her life. She was going to be a mom. Her and Tyson were starting a family and actually having a real baby. Yet all of the excitement leading up these 11 weeks since she found out she was pregnant– the ultrasound appointments, the weekly updates Tyson read on the pregnancy tracking app they’d both downloaded, reading the baby books, spending too much time in the baby clothes aisles at stores, buying the furniture, putting together the nursery– all of that came crashing down on her in one single moment.

The moment that Tyson had taken the shot that exploded that plastic puck into a big cloud of pink, telling them that they were having a girl.

It was almost like that moment was the worst nightmare she’d never realized she’d had.

Suddenly, the bathroom door opened and she jumped in place out of fright. “Hey Clem–” Tyson stopped in the doorway, the concern written all over his face as he took in her appearance. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Get out, Tyson,” she said, barely recognizing her own voice but feeling the ache in her throat that was sore from crying.

He tried to walk into the bathroom, looking more worried than before. “Clem–”

“Leave! Go!” She yelled, pushing him back out of the door. “Leave me alone.”

She had managed to get him out of the door, Tyson clearly not putting up too much of a fight since if he had, he would’ve easily been able to power his way into the bathroom. But that didn’t mean he was letting her shut the door on him so easily, because that was where she was currently struggling.

“Clem come on,” he pleaded, and she could recognize a slight fear in his eyes as he looked at her and took in her puffy face, reddened cheeks and tear filled eyes. “Tell me what’s wrong, talk to me.”

“I want to be alone, Tyson,” she sniffled, wiping her nose with the inside of the jacket sleeve. “Just go–”

He pushed the door back open as she tried to shut it the rest of the way and shook his head. “Do you want me to get Nana? My mom–”

“No! I don’t want to talk to Nana, or you just–” Clementine felt her bottom lip start to quiver as she hung her head, sniffling. “Tyson please just go,” her voice wavered as she felt a new wave of tears fill her eyes. “Please.”

“Okay,” he spoke softly, and she could hear the resistance he was dealing with, not wanting to let her be alone in the bathroom but also not wanting to stress her out or make her upset anymore. “Okay, I’ll just…I guess I’ll just hold Danielle off on the baby shower gifts for a bit.”

Clementine just nodded before finally being able to close the door, shutting Tyson out of the bathroom and then locking the door this time. She closed her eyes and took a deep, shuddering breath before exhaling slowly and leaning her head against the wooden door, the sobs escaping from the back of her throat once more.

It was bad enough that she was crying because of the news that they were having a daughter, but it was even worse now, that Tyson had found her crying. Though to him, he probably assumed it was because of her pregnancy hormones– “tons of pregnant people cry, Clem. It’s nothing to be embarrassed about.” But she could only imagine the look on his face or what he would think of her when he found out she was crying because they weren’t having a son, but a daughter.

Would he be heartbroken? Ashamed? Angry? Would they get into a fight about how she should be ashamed for feeling this way? That she was a bad mom for not being as happy and excited as he was about their child? What would he say of her reasoning for her feelings she hadn’t even been fully aware of until this moment? Would he say it was just an excuse? Invalidate them?

Clementine hadn’t even realized the reasons why she had been preferring a son this entire time, not until the reality set in that they were having a daughter. Sure, there were small feelings of dread anytime Tyson mentioned their baby being a girl, but she always figured it was just because ideally she wanted a boy– just like they’d talked about. But then she realized, standing there in the living room and socializing with the guests post gender reveal, just why having girls never crossed her mind.

She loved their baby, she had from the moment she found out she was pregnant. But seeing that pink cloud…it scared her. It scared her because she suddenly saw a path form in her mind that she’d never even considered and maybe it was because she’d spent so many years pushing it into the very back depths of her mind…but here it was again, taunting her and staring her in the face with a haunting grin that seemed to say “this could be you in a few short months.”

A small knock came from the door, vibrating against Clementine’s head and brought her out of her thoughts. “Clementine?” It was Laura and she must have been speaking directly against the door, because Clem could hear her loud and clear, even in the soft and quiet voice she was using, probably to try and not bring attention to herself. “Clementine, sweetie…why don’t you let me in?”

Part of her felt angry at Tyson for getting his mom, because that meant that he’d told her what he’d seen. All she wanted was to be alone. She was embarrassed and scared and just wanted to deal with all of that with nobody else around her. The other part of her was telling her to answer the door, to let Laura in and tell her everything that she didn’t want Tyson or even Nana and Papa to know. Not that she didn’t trust them to not be angry at her for the way she felt, but because she didn’t want to hurt their feelings.

She was feeling this way about Tyson’s daughter, and it all stemmed from her own mother– Nana and Papa’s daughter. And sure, the baby she was carrying was going to be Laura’s first grandchild…but Clementine would feel more comfortable venting her feelings to her than them. Laura had been there from the moment Clem and Tyson became friends. She was another mother figure for her. She had done what Clementine’s own mother hadn’t– she’d raised her two kids when their dad wasn’t around, while Clementine’s had decided she wasn’t worth the hassle and dropped her off on a front porch in the snow.

And though it’s been 11 weeks from the moment she’d found out she was pregnant– the impending thought of how she’d turn out just like her mother, was just not starting to come to the forefront…all because of that exploding cloud of pink dust.

Clementine wiped her face with the sleeve of her jacket as she unlocked the bathroom door and stepped aside, opening it just slightly so Laura could come in. Once she saw her start to come in, Clementine moved further into the bathroom, giving Laura room to stand in there with her. She hugged her arms close to her as she watched Laure close and lock the door behind her before turning around to face her.

“Tyson told me you were upset,” she spoke carefully, almost as if she was trying to gauge how Clementine would react to her presence. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”

The simple question just brought Clementine to tears as she felt her face start to scrunch and her vision blurred. She shook her head as she sniffled and hugged her arms closer to her, signaling to Laura that she, for the moment, was unable to speak. And Laura just stepped closer to her, holding her arms out to show that she was going to hug her before wrapping her arms around Clementine and hugging her tightly, rubbing her back as she just broke down against her sweater.

“Shh, it’s okay Clem,” Laure whispered, brushing her hand down the back of Clementine’s hair. “Whatever it is, it’s going to be okay.”

Clementine held onto Laura tightly, feeling the fabric of her sweater bunched in her palms as her heart raced. “I can’t have a daughter,” she whimpered, scared to hear Laura’s reaction as her breathing picked up. “I can’t, Laura. I just, I–I–”

Laura pulled back out of their hug and for a split second, Clementine’s worst fears came true– that no matter who she confided in, they would be ashamed or upset at her current feelings. But instead of reprimanding her like she feared, Laura brought her hands up to Clementine’s face, cupping her chin and getting her to look at her.

“Clementine, you need to take a deep breath, okay?” She spoke calmly, nodding her head as she took a deep breath herself. “Breathe with me, just follow me and relax.”

Clementine nodded her head as she looked at her through blurred vision, trying her best to slow down her rapid breathing by breathing along with Laura. A deep breath in…a slow exhale out. Again and again, until her racing heart calmed down and she was no longer breathing rapidly through her mouth. 

“Good, Clem, good,” Laura smiled, still keeping her focus on her. “Now tell me again what’s wrong.”

“I can’t…have a daughter, Laura,” Clementine spoke softly, averting her eyes away from Laura’s as she shook her head. “I…I wanted a boy because…” she felt her throat tighten and she stopped, taking another deep breath and exhaling.

“Why do you think you can’t have a daughter, Clementine?” Laura asked, keeping her calm and soothing voice.

She chewed on the inside of her cheek, trying to gain some composure before she could bring herself to look back at Laura and answer. “I’m scared,” her bottom lip quivered as she looked back at Laura. “I’m scared that I won’t be a good mom to her like Nana and you we-were to me. That I’ll be just like my mom.” She sniffled and reached up, wiping at her eyes.

Laura nodded, removing her hands from Clementine’s face before walking over towards the toilet, motioning for Clementine to sit down on top of the closed lid. Clementine walked over and sat down in front of Laura, resting her hands in her lap as Laura grabbed some toilet paper and dampened it in the sink before she started to wipe at what was probably the mascara streaks on Clementine’s face.

“I only came into your life when you were five years old, so I didn’t know your mother personally. But what I do know is that she missed out on the beautiful, smart, kind, passionate and overall amazing woman you grew up to be.” Laura said, carefully wiping beneath Clementine’s eyes. “I can’t speak for the kind of woman she was, though I do know I can say for certain that I can’t fathom why she left you the way that she did.”

Laura tossed the toilet paper into the trashcan before grabbing and rolling up a few more sheets and carefully blotting her skin. “But what I do know is that you were raised by the two most loving people I’ve met aside from my own parents. With the way your mother left you behind, you could’ve turned out very differently, Clementine. You could’ve been angry, bitter, you could’ve never found yourself in this very place– married with a baby on the way. But I truly believe that while you are your mother’s daughter genetically, you are more of Frances and Howard than you have ever been or ever will be Adelisa.”

Clementine felt the tears build in her eyes again as she took in Laura’s words. “What if I’m not a good mom?” She whispered, playing with her hands. “I know I’m not going to abandon her like my mom did me…but what if I’m not like your or Nana? What if I’m just like her?”

“I’m going to tell you what my mom told me when I took Tyson home from the hospital after he was born and absolutely terrified I was going to screw up” she said, tossing the toilet paper into the small trash can before squatting down in front of Clementine and holding her hands. “As long as you’re trying your very best and your baby is loved, you’re already on your way to being a good mom.”

“Clementine, I’ve seen how excited and how invested you are in taking care of yourself and your baby. You’ve been reading books, doing the research on what the safest furniture is, you’ve been eating healthy– you’re already a good mom.” Laura said, squeezing her hands and looking her in the eyes as if she was trying to hammer it into her head.

“Even if I just spent the last five minutes crying in a bathroom because of pink dust?” Clementine sniffled, feeling like she was a child again.

“Even if you’re upset because it was pink dust and not blue.” Laura laughed, nodding her head. “You know, when I found out Tyson was a boy, I was upset. Not so much along the lines of why you are, but because I’d read horror stories about diaper changing for baby boys when I was reading books. I was terrified to be peed on.”

Clementine laughed and wiped her eyes, nodding her head. “When we read that Tyson said he was going to buy hazmat suits off of Amazon to wear during a diaper change.”

When things settled down, Laura squeezed her hands again, giving her a supportive smile. “I’m not saying you can’t or shouldn’t be upset Clementine, because your reasons are very, very valid. And even if they weren’t, gender disappointment is real and it’s okay. But I’m going to tell you right now, that I know deep down inside of my heart, that you,” she held her hands tightly, looking directly into her eyes and nodding. “You are going to be an incredible mother. And if you need any help or have any questions, you know you can reach out to your Nana and Papa and me, heck– you know my parents would love to help you both as well. You and Tyson aren’t alone in this, especially you. You’ve got us in your corner, even Kacey. Okay?”

“Okay,” she nodded, leaning forward and hugging Laura tightly before leaning back and standing up.

“Before we go back out there, I do think this should be something you talk to Tyson about,” she spoke carefully, nodding her head. “He won’t be upset, Clementine, I promise. He wants to support you and be there for you in any way that he can– and communication during a pregnancy is very important.”

Clementine nodded, wiping her eyes again. “I’ll talk to him tonight. And I’ll probably ask Dr. Cortez or Dr. Johnson if maybe they know someone I can talk to, too. For that and for other parents' fears, you know?”

“I think that’s a wonderful idea,” she smiled, walking to the bathroom door and looking back over her shoulder. “Are you ready to go out there?”

Clementine nodded as she let go of Laura’s hand and the two walked out of the bathroom, back down the hall to rejoin the party. As if he’d been spending his entire time standing within eyeshot of the hall entrance, Tyson made eye contact with them both and then immediately excused himself from his conversation with Gabe and rushed over to them.

“I’ll go check on Frances and Howard,” Laura said, giving Clemetine a supportive nod and smile before rubbing Tyson’s shoulder and walking away from them.

Tyson looked behind him at the party before nudging Clementine back into the hall, allowing them to have some sort of privacy away from partygoer eyes. “I know you said you just wanted to be alone but–”

Clementine just wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed herself against his chest, hugging him. “Thank you,” she whispered, closing her eyes as she focused on the sound of his heart beating through his chest.

“Is everything okay?” He asked, holding her tightly as if he didn’t want to let her go. “You scared me there for a bit Clem. I didn’t know if something had happened to you or to the baby or–”

“For right now everything’s fine. I’m fine,” Clementine nodded, pulling out of the hug and looking at him, grabbing his hand and resting it on top of her bump and keeping her hand on top of his. “And she’s perfectly fine.”

Tyson looked down, his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. “Then what happened? Is it the party? Did you not want to do a baby shower too?” He looked out towards the party, shaking his head and looking back at her. “Because if so I can go out and tell Danielle and Jared–”

“No, Tyson, it’s not the party, the party is fine and right now, I’m fine,” she nodded, taking a deep breath and exhaling. “Let’s just enjoy the rest of the party and tonight when we go home, I promise I’ll tell you everything…okay?”

“You promise?” He asked, still a concerned frown on his face.

Clementine nodded, holding up her right pinky. “Pinky promise.”

Tyson looked down at her hand and smiled softly, linking his right pinky with hers before leaning in and kissing her, pulling away just barely. “You really scared me, Clementine,” he said, pressing another kiss to her forehead. “I was about to have them stop the party and find a way to break into the bathroom.”

“I’m sorry, Tys,” she said, hugging him again and resting her chin on his chest, looking up at him. “I promise I didn’t mean to. I just got very overwhelmed and swept up in my thoughts and…” she exhaled, not letting herself get emotional again. “I’ll explain everything when we’re home and in bed, okay?”

He nodded, and she could still tell he was a little worried about her, but she leaned up and kissed him again before stepping back and holding his hand. “Come on, we’ve got some presents to open for little miss here.” She pressed her hand on her bump, still a little hesitant, but not wanting to let her own thoughts get in the way of what is a good day. “I just hope the clothes are all gender neutral if people bought them.”

“Don’t worry, they are,” he nodded, squeezing her hand softly. “Danielle and I made sure it was in a small note at the bottom if anyone was going to buy clothes as a gift, to make sure it was gender neutral. So it’s safe to say Bailey here might be wearing a lot of yellows, greens and gray for a bit.” He joked, a more natural smile on his face.

“I’m sure she’ll love it,” Clemetine replied, smiling at him as she leaned her head against his bicep and kept her left hand on her bump, softly rubbing against the fabric of her dress and feeling a little more at ease now than she had initially.

Small steps…that’s all she needed to focus on right now. Just the small steps and she knew that with Tyson and their families by their side, she’d get to where she needed to be.

Third Trimester

The Wild’s postseason run for the 2023-2024 season had unfortunately come to an end in the second round with a loss to Dallas Stars. What had turned out to be a heartbreaking series that the Wild had started off with a bang and ended up losing by two games, the impending birth of their daughter was perhaps the only thing that had kept Tyson from feeling blue for too long. Not too long after wrapping up the season, Tyson and Clementine had packed up what they were going to take back to their home in St. Albert, secured their home for the time being and then made their way back to their hometown for the remainder of the summer as they waited for the arrival of their daughter.

Clementine had stuck with her promise of telling Tyson about what had happened in the bathroom at their gender reveal party and why she was so upset. And just like Laura had said, Tyson wasn’t upset at her for the fact that she had been disappointed with the reveal that they were having a daughter or the fear of how she wouldn’t be able to be a good mom or didn’t want a daughter. If anything, he was supportive.

Just like his mom had done, Tyson had given her a pep-talk, assuring her that she was going to be a great mom. But also doubling down on how she didn’t need to feel ashamed for feeling the way she did and more importantly, that she didn’t need to fear how he would react, because he was always going to be on her team– she was his best friend. Together, they had reached out to Dr. Cortez shortly after the gender reveal party, who had put them in touch with a therapist that she often recommended to other soon-to-be or already are, mothers who just needed someone to talk to in regards to pregnancy or their post-birth life. And twice a week over the computer, Clementine would talk to her therapist– Cindy– and started to find her way in navigating her feelings about her mom, her pregnancy and their daughter.

And even when they moved back up to St. Albert, Tyson joined in on the sessions, learning how he could support Clementine when maybe things were getting rough or things felt stressful after the baby was born. Their sessions were especially helpful when they had to switch their OBGYN for when the baby was born, since they were going to be up in St. Albert. Having to switch OBGYN’s twice during one pregnancy wasn’t common, and for a first time mom, Clementine felt super stressed. But, her sessions with Tyson and Cindy, as well as her Nana and Laura helping her find a good OB helped her through it. And she knew that when they were back in Minnesota, that Dr. Cortez and Dr. Johnson (seeing if she was back) would both be there for any questions or concerns she had following the birth.

Now though, at 36 weeks pregnant and only being four weeks away from giving birth, Clementine felt more confident and comfortable in her potential of being a mother, and even moreso, with the fact that they were having a daughter.

Despite living in Minnesota for the eight to nine months out of the year, their home in St. Albert still felt like home. They only lived five minutes away from their families and their house was of similar size and features to their home in Minnesota. The only downside, was that they’d spent the last few weeks unpacking the boxes of baby clothes and diapers they’d shipped up here knowing they’d be up here for at least almost three months. That also included nursery furniture they’d bought for their home here that needed to be unpacked and put together, along with the nursery in general that needed to be decorated and put together.

It was a lot of things, but they’d managed to do most of them together. At least when Tyson let Clementine help out instead of telling her to just relax and hang out with Fudge or whichever family member had come over to visit that day.

He had done it again today too. Up in the nursery, Clementine had finished unpacking the clothes and diapers and set up both the inside of what would be Bailey’s closet. She’d also finished filling the metal over the door hanger that would hold diaper changing supplies and other stuff they could put in the closet that was overflow from the drawers of the changing table. She offered to help Tyson put together the crib, only for Tyson to suggest that maybe she go downstairs and relax for a bit. That he would only be a little bit longer before he was coming downstairs to make lunch for them.

While part of her had felt a little annoyed at how he insisted she didn’t help, she knew that he was only doing so because she was so far along now that it was important that she didn’t exert herself too much. Plus, she really couldn’t stand up by herself or even see her toes, so she never allowed herself to get too mad when he would brush her off. He was right though, she did need to sit down and rest for a bit, her back was starting to ache and she’d been feeling the throbbing in her feet get worse by the second.

Fudge had followed her downstairs, just like she’d been following her around the house anywhere she went. Clementine had let Fudge out into the backyard, standing there in the doorframe and using it as a means of support while she waited for Fudge to go to the bathroom and sniff around for a few minutes. And when Fudge came back in, she slid the door shut and locked it, turning around and making her way over to couch in the living room. She knew she was tired when she could actually feel herself get excited about laying down and propping her feet up onto a few pillows.

Yet before she could even make it to the couch to sit down, the doorbell rang. Clementine sighed, feeling a little disappointed that she hadn’t been able to sit down for a bit. But she knew that their families were constantly making stops by the house as her due date got closer. Most of the time they were just stopping in to make sure everything was okay and seeing if they needed anything before hanging around and then going home. Today though, she knew that Kacey was planning on stopping by with Nana and Laura to help with hanging some of the wall decorations they’d gotten for the nursery.

When Clementine got to the door, she looked through the peephole and saw two teenagers standing there– a boy and a girl. The girl looked to be 18, maybe 19 years old and the boy looked to be about the same age, maybe a little younger despite being taller than her. They both had dark brown hair and looked like they could even be siblings. School wasn’t in session, so she wasn’t sure why they were on her porch, but they also looked a little nervous, the two of them talking to each other quietly– not that Clemetine could hear them anyway.

She really needed to get someone out there to install their Ring doorbell.

Nothing about the two teenagers seemed threatening, so she stepped away from the peephole and unlocked the door, opening it and seemingly catching the two teenagers by surprise as she stood on the opposite side of the screen door they’d had installed for days when the weather was nice and they just wanted to sit inside of the house and feel the breeze or hear the rain echo through.

“Hello,” Clementine said, looking at the two of them as she held onto the front door for a little support. “How can I help you guys?”

She was met with shocked stares as both teenagers turned away from each other and faced her. She was starting to feel a little uneasy with the awkward silence that was passing between the three of them, almost considering closing the door on them until she saw the boy nudge the girl beside him. 

“Are you Clementine Blake?” She said fast, a little loud too and blushing after the words had left her mouth. Almost as if she hadn’t meant for the question to come out that way.

“It’s Clementine Jost now…but yes, that’s me.” Clementine furrowed her eyebrows as she looked between the two teens, feeling confused on how they knew her name. “I’m sorry, do I know you two?”

“No…well yeah, kind of…I guess,” the boy rambled, seeming just as nervous as his sister and when he looked at her, it looked as if he was hoping she would fill in for him– help him not be as nervous. But she was still looking at Clementine as if she was in a sort of confused disbelief. “I’m Hayden Johnston and this is my older sister Emily.”

There was something familiar about the two of them that Clementine couldn’t quite put her finger on. She wasn’t sure if it was their names or their faces, but she felt like she’d seen them before…or knew them somehow. She opened her mouth to speak when the girl– Emily– suddenly seemed to zone back in from her own shock and spoke instead.

“Our dad’s Thomas Johnston and our mom’s Adelisa Johnston…formally Adelisa Blake,” Emily swallowed heavily as she motioned towards Hayden, looking at Clementine with a nervous gaze. “We’re your half-siblings.”

It was like all of the breath had been sucked out of her lungs at the mere mention of her mom’s name. And the two of them– Emily and Hayden– they were her half-siblings. Her mom had had more kids…she had siblings after all these years. And suddenly, with the news, she could see the similarities between them. All three had the same dark hair and the same eye shape. Hayden and her both had their mom’s eyes, while Emily had green eyes– presumably coming from their father’s side.

“I’m sorry,” Clementine finally spoke, clearing her throat as her grip on the door tightened and she started to feel the tears burn in her eyes. “I just…how old are you guys?”

“I just turned 19 last week, on wednesday…June eighth.” Emily said, still looking a little cautious at the situation.

“And I turned 18 in February,” Hayden spoke carefully, digging his hands into his short pockets. “February 15th, actually.”

Their birthdays were a day apart. Clementine had been born on February 14th– Valentines Day. While Hayden’s was February 15th. Obviously they were years apart in age– but that made her wonder if her mother ever thought about her as his birthday neared. Did she even celebrate her birthday? Clearly she had to have done something to make the two of them find their way to her home.

They knew about her. They came searching for her.

But why? How?

She wasn’t sure what to say next or how to even feel. Sure, she felt hurt by the fact her mother started a whole new family without her. Part of her felt angry too– but she’d spent so many years angry at her mother, she wasn’t really sure if there was any more anger to have. More than anything, she just felt confused.

“Clem, have you seen my flathead screwdriver? It’s not in my kit.” Tyson asked, his footsteps echoing through the house as he walked down the stairs before making his way over. “Who’s at the door?”

She looked over her shoulder to see Tyson coming closer and then stepped aside to make room for him. “Tyson, this is–”

“Oh!” He said, stopping by the front door and smiling. “You guys must be Emily and Hayden.”

“How do you know that?” Clementine asked, looking at him in confusion.

“Maybe we shouldn’t have come over…” Emily said, still clearly a little on edge as she looked at Hayden. “We can go–”

“No, no, come on in,” Tyson said, unlatching the screen door and nudging it open. “I was just getting ready to make us lunch. Nana Blake told me you were coming, so come on in.”

The two teenagers shared a look before Emily made the first move to walk into the house, carefully stepping inside and standing off to the side to wait for Hayden to follow behind. “Your house is beautiful,” she said, looking around her. “It’s really homey, I love it.”

“Thanks, Clem did some of the decorating,” Tyson joked, closing the screen door and locking it again.

“Some?” Clementine said, shutting the front door and crossing her arms. “I did all of it. If you did any decorating, the living room would be nothing but sports memorabilia.”

“Kidding, babe,” he said, stepping towards her and kissing her cheek. “You two go ahead into the kitchen, it’s straight ahead. Fudge is probably eating out of her bowel, don’t mind her. She’s a real sweetheart. If she tries to jump on you, just tell her no and she’ll get right down, no hard feelings.”

The two siblings took their shoes off by the front door before slowly making their way towards the kitchen, walking side by side as if they were sticking together and unsure about whether or not they should have accepted Tyson’s invitation.

“Nana told you?!” Clementine whispered, grabbing onto Tyson’s arm as she looked at him with raised eyebrows.

“Yeah…I just forgot to tell you,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Pregnancy brain is contagious, you know.”

Clementine shook her head and let go of his arm, hugging her arms close to her chest as she looked off towards the kitchen. “I– I don’t know what to do, Tys. What do I say? I don’t know them and they– I don’t even know what they know about me!”

“They know about you, Clem. They’ve been staying with Nana and Papa for the last three days.” He whispered, looking off at the kitchen. “Showed up on their front porch Thursday night asking if they were Adelisa’s parents and then spent the last few days getting to know them. They asked about you and Nana told them you lived here and they almost weren’t going to come, but you know how Nana is. So, she convinced them and well…I guess they came.”

She sighed in disbelief, looking off towards the kitchen where she could hear Fudge’s nails against the tiling, followed by what was the familiar thumping of her tail against a cabinet. She must be getting head rubs from either Hayden or Emily. “Tys…”

“You saw them Clem. I can guarantee you that they’re just as nervous as you are about this,” Tyson said, reaching down and holding her hand. “Let’s just make some lunch and get to know them, okay? They’re apparently leaving on Friday, so they’ll only be around for four more days. If it turns out that you don’t like them? You never have to talk to them again. But if you do? Then that’s two more people you can add to your family– a brother and a sister, so now you can stop hogging mine.”

Clementine rolled her eyes and nudged his arm. “You’re annoying.”

“No I’m not, you love me.” Tyson smiled, leaning down and kissing her. “Now come on, let me see if I can impress my possible future brother and sister-in-law with my cooking prowess.”

“You literally said you were going to make grilled cheese, Tys.” Clementine replied.

“I might step up my game now,” he replied, draping an arm over her shoulder and pulling her into his side. “Come on, don’t be nervous I’m right here with you, okay?”

She nodded, wrapping her arm around his waist and leaned into his side. She took a deep breath and exhaled, looking towards the kitchen. “Okay.”

Naturally, the beginning of lunch was extremely tense and awkward. Tyson, bless his soul, tried his very best to try and alleviate all of the tension by filling out any of the small, awkward silences by asking questions about Emily and Hayden’s home life, school, or by telling them a little bit about him and Clem’s past and current present. In the middle of eating the grilled cheese sandwiches, Nana, Laura and Kacey had arrived and thankfully, their arrival took a little bit of the awkwardness out of the room.

So instead of Tyson just talking, it turned into Kacey, Laura, Tyson and Nana talking. The three siblings would chime in every now and then, but it was still, obviously a little awkward. Clementine noticed though, just how relaxed that Emily and Hayden had seemed around Nana and she remembered that she wasn’t the only one in the situation who had missed out on their entire existence. Sure, while she had missed out on knowing her half-siblings– which it turns out she has another one, a six year old brother named Tristan, who according to Emily and Hayden based on the pictures that Nana and Papa had shown them, looks just like Clementine did, only with the green eyes that their father had– Nana and Papa had missed out on three additional grandchildren.

Three grandchildren that could have received the same love, attention and happy memories that Clementine had made with the two of them in her life. She wondered how Nana and Papa were so easily to warm up to the two of them. Granted they were their grandchildren and Clementine knew that no matter what, they’d love their grandchildren. But they too had been deprived of a relationship with them because of their own daughter’s actions. How could they just not think about that even sitting in the same room as them?

Funny enough though, once the conversation really started flowing after the three new guests had gotten there, Clementine too found herself starting to open up more and so did Emily and Hayden. She found out that her and Emily actually had a birthmark in the same exact place– on the right side of their ribs– and that just like she was, Hayden was better at English than he was at math and science. That she and Emily both preferred Christmas to Halloween, though they loved Hocus Pocus. She and Hayden loved to ride roller coasters– unless they were the lap bars…they both hated those.

It amazed her the more that she talked and listened to them, that she found the small things in common that they had despite never meeting or speaking until today. And as the hours ticked by, she felt herself begin to understand that the tension and uncertain feelings she had towards them, only turned out to be anger and confusion towards Adelisa.

After lunch, the whole group went back upstairs into the nursery, Hayden helping Tyson finish putting together the crib, while Nana, Laura, Kacey and Emily helped Clementine put together the picture frames, as well as hang the wall decorations they’d already bought, along with finish organizing the closet since Kacey and Laura had brought more diapers and clothes because “we stopped at the store and couldn’t resist all of the cute clothes.”

By the time dinner had rolled around, the nursery was basically set up, aside from the rocking chair that needed to be moved into the room from downstairs, but Hayden offered to carry it up the stairs and once he did that– the nursery was all complete. Tyson offered to order everyone pizza for dinner and everyone moved downstairs except for Clementine who had made a short trip into their bedroom to go to the bathroom. When she was done, she made her way back out of the bedroom and ready to head towards the stairs, but she decided to stop by the nursery one last time.

Looking at the set up that Tyson, she and their friends and families had brought to life from her pinterest board was a surreal moment. In the moments that she had made the board, just jotting down ideas what she’d like to see in their future baby’s nursery, she for some reason, could never fathom actually seeing all the bits and pieces come to life. The light lilac painted walls were complimented by the offwhite furniture pieces throughout the nursery. The one piece of furniture that had stood out, was the old mahogany rocking chair that her Nana had gifted her when she and Tyson had come back for the summer.

It was the same rocking chair that she used to rock her own daughter in, and then on some nights when Clementine couldn’t sleep, she’d sit in the chair with her and hold her, rocking her to sleep even though she was five years old. A chair that had sat in her office, Clementine always remembering sitting in it herself as a child and watching her Nana sit and do her work, or sometimes, just watch her work on her art projects. She was fond of the chair and looked forward to rocking Bailey in it on those sleepless nights, or any of their children after if they decide to have more. And then even one day, passing it on.

There was no specific theme to their nursery, not really. It had a modern touch, along with a sort of dreamy and modern Disney theme. Tyson suggested that maybe they shouldn’t try to do a theme and just see what they find and pick it out because he said it would be less stressful…and he was right. It was extremely less stressful worrying about liking one decoration but realizing that it just didn’t fit in with the rest. Instead, they did try to match of course, but they just knew they wanted to make it a peaceful and happy place for whenever Bailey would start to sleep in her crib.

“It looks really good,” Clementine looked away from the fully furnished crib to see Emily standing in the doorway, slowly walking in. “She’s going to be one lucky kid.”

“Thank you,” Clementine nodded, resting her hand on her large bump and rubbing it softly as she laughed. “Though I doubt she’ll appreciate all of it…being a baby and all, you know?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Emily said, putting her hands in the back of her jean pockets. “I mean, yeah, she’ll probably love all of this stuff too…but I meant it about you and Tyson. You guys are going to be great parents, I can already tell.”

She tried not to let Emily see her be shocked, but she couldn’t help it. “Oh, well…thanks,” she said, turning towards her and nodding. “That really means a lot to hear that. It’s been one of my biggest worries since–”

“Since our mom is who she is?” Emily added, ever so blunt.

Clem nodded, sighing. “Yeah, exactly.”

“Sometimes I wonder if she ever would’ve told us about you if I hadn’t gone searching for my passport.” Emily walked over towards the rocking chair, resting her hand on the back of it. “There’s a picture of her holding you in this chair in your baby book…I recognized the chair the moment I saw it. Because I remember staring at every picture in the book wondering about you. What happened to you, if you were still alive…there were so many questions, you know?”

“Baby book?” Clementine asked, feeling unsure. “She has that?”

“Mhhm,” Emily nodded. “When I grabbed the box she kept our passports in, a second box fell down and your book and a bunch of pictures and stuff all fell out.” She walked back over to Clementine, taking her phone out of her pocket and tapping the screen before handing it over. “That’s how I found everything. Confronted her about it too and she was silent for the first time since well…I can remember.”

Clementine grabbed her phone and swiped through the pictures. Sure enough, Emily had taken pictures of pages in the baby book that looked to have been filled out through at least her first year, like most baby books were. Seeing as how she ended up in the custody of her grandparents, she couldn’t believe the pictures of a baby her, her mom and the man she’d only seen in a few pictures that Nana and Papa had, but she knew was her dad. Though they’d only met her father a handful of times, Nana and Papa never had anything bad to say about him and spoke of him as a polite, quiet young man who adored Clementine more than anything.

Growing up, she’d always wondered what life would have been like had her father not died. She used to dwell on the thoughts for a while, eventually making herself upset to the point of tears and would ask Nana and Papa why her father had to die or why Adelisa left her behind. But as she got older, she learned that there was no point in dwelling on the fact since it was nothing that could be changed. Still though, there was a big part of her that wished she’d gotten to know her father better. What parts of him that she inherited.

“What did she say?” Clementine asked, part of her wanting to know how Adelisa felt being confronted with Emily’s discovery. “If she said anything.”

“She tried to shut me down, but I wouldn’t let it go, you know? I mean what kind of parent keeps their children a secret? So I followed her through the house asking and we were…we were arguing about it which is how it got my dad’s attention the moment he walked into the house.”

Clementine could tell that Emily was starting to revert into her shell and she shook her head, placing her hand on her shoulder. “You really don’t have to— I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable by asking.”

“You didn’t, it’s just…I’m thinking about how Hayden and I were listening in on them while she was explaining and I…our dad rarely ever got mad at home, despite being a lawyer. But he,” she took a deep breath and exhaled. “He was really upset with her.”

Emily looked around the nursery, shaking her head before looking at Clementine. “He never even knew about you. Mom…she had told him back when they were dating that you had died in an accident with your dad. That that’s why she had relocated to Toronto…to start fresh. And then she went on saying how she left you with her parents and she only did it because she loved him and saw a future with him and I guess he had said he wasn’t sure about wanting kids yet.”

“But that’s the thing I just don’t understand, you know?” She said, crossing her arms. “Why didn’t she ever come back to get you once she knew that he wanted kids? Once they got married? I just- I can’t wrap my head around how she’s the PTA mom that I grew up with, always involved in our activities and read us bedtime stories…but at the same time she’s also the mom who dropped her five year old off in the middle of the night on a front porch in a snowstorm…and never looked back.”

It wasn’t hard to see that Emily was where Clementine had been years ago, when she was constantly battling with the thoughts of being able to wrap her mind around what Adelisa had done. When she was going through it, she had a whole small army of people that loved her around her– Tyson in particular was helpful in getting through the constant ‘why didn’t she want me?’ questions. And sure, maybe Emily and Hayden had their dad…hell, maybe they even had Adelisa to help them through it. But right now, they were on the complete opposite side of the country.

Her fingers were fidgeting by her side as she thought about what to do, but there was never any hesitation the moment the thought crossed her mind. She reached out, placing her hand on Emily’s shoulder, gaining her attention to see that she was clearly hurting from the whole situation. And then, she just stepped closer to her and hugged her. Admittedly, she was nervous that Emily would pull away or just stand there and not hug her back– in fact, she feared it. But instead of awkwardly accepting the hug or denying it���she hugged her back. She hugged her back harder than Clementine had expected. As if she was scared to let go.

Or as if she felt safe enough to.

“I’m sorry for what she did,” Emily sniffled,

“Don’t be,” Clementine spoke softly, rubbing small circles against Emily’s back. “I stopped letting what she did bother me years ago. 

“It just makes me so…so angry at what she took from all of us. All of those years…I just, I don’t know if I’ll ever get over it.”

It felt like she was hearing her younger self say the exact words to Tyson. Expressing to him just how angry and upset she was that Adelisa never came back for her and how she felt like she was going to spend the rest of her life harboring those feelings of resentment. But she made it through. Sure, there will always be parts of her that would never fully get over how her own mother abandoned her, but with the right support, those thoughts no longer plagued her mind and she no longer felt that anger every day of her life.

“You will. I promise you that one day you’ll wake up feeling a little less angry and hurt and then every day afterwards it’ll be the same until you’re not anymore. I’ve been in your very shoes, I know that frustration and anger. But I promise that it doesn’t last forever.”

Emily just nodded and hugged Clementine a little tighter, resting her head on her shoulder as the two of them stood there and kept the comforting embrace. It was strange to Clementine just how natural this felt– comforting Emily. All her life she’d wanted siblings, she’d even adopted Kacey as her own younger sister. Yet even though she’d only met Emily today, it felt like she was hugging and comforting someone she’s known for her entire life.

“Oh!” Emily gasped, sniffling as she pulled back out of the hug and looked down at Clementine’s bump. “I think she just kicked because I definitely felt that.”

“Yeah, sorry about that,” Clementine laughed, patting the side of her bump. “This thing gets in the way a lot of the time. But that might’ve been her, she’s been really active lately.”

“That’s okay,” she laughed, clearing her throat and wiping at her eyes. “Though maybe she’ll end up playing soccer instead of being interested in hockey, because that was quite a kick.”

“Well Tyson’s already got his heart set on teaching her how to skate, so she’ll at least learn that.” Clementine smiled, looking back up at Emily.

“We should probably get downstairs before they send a search party,” Emily laughed softly, nodding her head towards the door. “I’m getting a sense that Tyson’s the type.”

“Please, just two weeks ago he came rushing into the bathroom because he heard the bathtub draining and I didn’t call out to him for help out of the tub. It’s been pretty hard navigating with this big ole thing, but sometimes I’m able to push myself up and not fall over.”

They both laughed as Clementine turned the lights off in the nursery and they both walked out into the hallway, ready to go down the stairs as Emily started to take the first few steps. “Hey, Emily?”

“Hm?” She asked, stopping and looking over her shoulder.

“What you said about how she took away all of those years from us…just because we missed so many, doesn’t mean that we still can’t take advantage of the ones we have now and in the future.” Clementine said, swallowing the nervous knot in her throat. “You and Hayden are more than welcome to stay with Tyson and I when you visit, both here and in Minnesota. And when the time comes, if there’s ever a good time…I’d really be up to and like to meeting Tristan too. Bailey’s going to know about her aunt’s and uncles, and I want her to be able to meet you all one day.”

“I think that sounds great,” Emily nodded, a small smile on her face. “And I know it probably doesn’t mean much and I don’t want you to feel pressured…but our dad’s a good guy, he really is. And I think if you were ever up to it too, he’d probably want to meet you and apologize.”

Clementine pondered on the offer. She knew that at one point in time, she’d probably have to meet the hot shot lawyer that her mom ultimately ditched her for. If this opportunity were to have come up years ago, she would have immediately shot it down. But knowing that he was just as much of a victim in the lie Adelisa told had her feeling sympathy towards him.

“Okay, yeah,” Clementine nodded, starting to walk with him down the stairs. “I can’t promise it’ll be any soon, especially with Bailey coming within the next month. But whenever there’s a chance, if there’s a chance, sure. But–”

“No mom, I promise,” Emily said, shaking her head. “Don’t worry. And between you and me…even if you did want to meet up with her, I’m not all too confident that she’d show up. I think she’s too ashamed.”

“Geez, did you guys get lost?” Tyson asked, appearing at the end of the stairs. “Pizza’s gonna be here any minute and Em, Hayden’s out on the front porch on the phone with your dad and said to tell you to go out there.”

Emily nodded and jogged the rest of the way down the steps before turning left and heading out onto the front porch while Clementine carefully walked down the stairs, keeping a hand on the handrail and her bump at the same time before Tyson reached out for a hand to help her on the last two steps.

“You guys were up there for a while, did you get stuck in the bathroom?” Tyson asked, nodding his head up towards the top of the stairs.

“No, we were just talking about our mom and how Emily found out about me.”

Tyson raised his eyebrows and tilted his head. “Oh? And how did that go?”

“Actually…really good,” Clementine laughed softly, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Obviously the passport search happened, but then a box fell and it was a box of pictures and other stuff Adelisa had kept, including my baby book. And apparently, she came clean about it to the lawyer–”

“Thomas?”

“Mhhm, and we talked about maybe one day us getting to meet Tristan…even Thomas. She said Adelisa would probably be too ashamed to…”

“And are you disappointed about it?” Tyson asked, trying to gauge her reaction.

Clementine shrugged, looking at him. “I’m not sure. I think I’m indifferent about it. It won’t hurt my feelings anymore if she doesn’t want to and it’s not something I need to do, you know?” She took a deep breath and sighed. “I did tell her that she and Hayden are more than welcome to stay with us if they decide to visit here or Minnesota. And that I’d really like for Bailey to know them, you know?”

Tyson nodded, holding her as close to him as he could without pressing against her bump. “I think that would be great,” he said, kissing the top of her head before looking out towards the door. “They’re really cool kids, just from what we’ve seen.”

“Yeah, they are,” Clementine nodded, resting her head down against his chest.

“Hey Clement– um…Clem?” Hayden said, poking his head past the screen door and looking at her and Tyson and looking extremely nervous. “My dad’s on the phone, if you want– I mean, you don’t have to if you don’t want to–”

Clementine looked up at Tyson who shrugged and gave her a ‘why not?’ look. She leaned up and kissed him before removing her arms from around his waist and turning towards the front door. “Yeah, count me in.”

“That’s okay I under– wait, what?” Hayden’s eyes widened and then he smiled before opening the door the rest of the way for her to walk through. “Okay, yeah, come on.”

Tyson reached out and grabbed her hand, giving her a smile and a supportive squeeze. “I love you.”

She smiled and squeezed his hand back. “I love you too.”

Labor

They’d heard all of the stories– Tyson was born two weeks early, Clementine born right on time. They knew that with this being their first pregnancy, that the odds of Bailey making an appearance before her due date was possible…and it was also possible that their due date would come and go and still– no baby.

Which is exactly where they were at.

It was July 1st and Clementine was sitting three days past her 40 week mark and it was driving her absolutely wild. Partially because she and Tyson just wanted their daughter to be here so they could hold her and love her and just begin their life together as a family of three. But for most of it, she was just tired of being pregnant. Her boobs were constantly aching, she couldn’t get more than 20 minutes of solid sleep before her back would ache or she’d have to get up to pee. Tyson has to shave her legs for her since she couldn’t reach them even if she had the strength to bend over. Hell, she couldn’t even remember what her own feet looked like– but at least Kacey was nice enough to give her a pedicure when she told her that Tyson had offered.

“No offense, Ty– but we’ve seen your art skills. You can’t color inside the lines, I doubt you’d be able to paint her toes without making a mess.”

All week she’d been feeling some irregular contractions and as of yesterday afternoon, Dr. Warren, her new OBGYN, confirmed that she was in early labor and that she’d in fact lost her mucus plug. However, she was only two centimeters dilated and there was really nothing to do but wait until her contractions got more persistent and of course, for her water to break. While it was great news that it meant Bailey was on her way, it was still not what either of them wanted to here. At this point, everything just felt like a waiting game at this point, which wasn’t all that great because Clementine and Tyson weren’t the most patient people.

So last night was another night of not the best sleep, constant groaning and adjusting with her pregnancy pillow. A few times she’d accidentally nudged Fudge and woke her up in her search to find comfort. And the bathroom trips…for a split moment she’d actually considered just setting up a sleeping space in the bathroom and sleeping in there. It would mean less steps and easy access. Tyson shut the idea down when he said she could barely get herself up off of the couch, so maybe sleeping on the bathroom floor wasn’t the best idea.

Today felt more like yesterday, though her contractions felt a little stronger and more frequent. But not frequent enough for her to totally worry. Based on all of the books she’d read, by the time that she reaches active labor, she would be six centimeters dilated. Labor seems to progress slowly in first time pregnancies, so she knew that those four centimeters between six and ten would take longer for her body to go through. Maybe it was her way of trying to calm herself down at the mere thought of how by tomorrow she could be giving birth and they would be holding their daughter in their arms.

“Hmmm, okay so there’s seven ways to induce labor,” Tyson read, walking slowly beside her, his phone in his left hand while Fudge’s leash was in his right. “First is exercise–”

“Which I’ve been doing for the last three days, not to mention the days leading up to 40 weeks,” Clementine replied, putting her hands in her sweatshirt pockets.

“Second is sex,” he smiled, looking at her and wiggling his eyebrows up and down. “I like option two.”

“Yeah no, that’s not happening either. You’re not sticking anything up there– not for at least a few months. Plus I look and feel like a walrus, I’m hot enough for sex.”

“I think you were hot before and hot now,” he smiled, leaning in towards her. “So?”

“So no sex,” Clementine smiled, leaning over hte rest of the way and kissing him before waving him off. “Next option.”

“Nipple Stimu–”

“Nope.”

“Acupunct–”

“Hell no,” Clementine said, looking at him. “I don’t even like getting my flu shot, Tyson. Why would I voluntarily have an acupuncturist poke me with needles and lay there? What kind of list are you looking at?”

Tyson turned his phone around, showing her the screen. “Healthline?” He sighed and brought the phone back towards him. “Well, your last three options are acupressure, drink castor oil and eating dates. All of which I know you’re not going to want to do, so I’ll keep looking.”

“At this rate, I think I’m going to have to be induced and I’m not looking forward to that at all,” she pouted, resting her hands on her lower back. “I’m more looking forward to my epidural than I am an induction and trust me, I’ve googled that needle and it’s scary.”

“You’ll be fine, Clem,” he laughed, standing closer to her and lightly bumping into her. “But, this site right here says that exercise and sex might actually be your best options. So…”

“Soooo,” she mimicked, leaning in towards him with a smile. “No. Sex is off the table, so exercise it is.” She leaned back and took a deep breath, exhaling. “Even though it’s done absolutely nothing.”

“Maybe walking isn’t doing anything, so when we get home why don’t you try bouncing on that medicine ball my mom got you?” Tyson asked, scrolling through his phone.

“I guess,” she sighed, leaning back to stretch her back. “I think I’m just tired of being pregnant and having this bowling ball of a baby physically in my body, you know? It’s painful.”

“I offered to buy you a top package at the spa as your push present,” he said, taking a quick glimpse at her. “It’s still on the table.”

She laughed, shaking her head. “Tyson, you already got me maternity pajamas for the hospital and after. Plus you got me a new kindle. Really, I don’t need anymore.”

Tyson just rolled his eyes and smiled. “You’re going to be pushing an almost eight and a half pound baby out of your body, Clem. So suck it up, I’m giving you all of the push presents I see fit.”

This time, Clementine rolled her eyes, ready to say something when she felt a small contraction start, bringing her to a stop. “Tys, stop for a second,” she said, breathing through the pain.

“Another one?” He asked, looking up at his phone to see her nod before nodding back down at his phone. “Clem, I’m looking at all of the ways that could be best to at least try and get your water to break naturally, and this article says the top one is nipple stimulation because of oxytocin or something.”

“I don’t–”

“I know you said you didn’t want to do it, but maybe it’s worth considering besides just exercise? I mean, I know we’ll both enjoy it and–”

“No, Tyson. I wasn’t going to say I don’t want to do it,” she looked up from the sidewalk where she now stood in a wet puddle, the inner thighs of her maternity workout leggings soaked from the unexpected action of her water breaking. “We don’t need to do it…my water just broke.”

“What?” He asked, snapping his head up from his phone and looking at her with wide eyes. “When?”

“Um…now, I guess? I just– I mean it just happened,” she said, looking back down at her feet. “Honestly I thought I was about to pee my pants but nope…water breaking.”

Tyson looked down, scrunching his face as he tugged on the lease. “Fudge no, no sniffing. Bad girl, get away from that,” he said, nudging Fudge away from the puddle as she moved in closer. And like all of a sudden it dawned on him what that meant, he looked back at Clementine in shock. “We need to go to the hospital.”

“We need to walk back first,” she said, turning around to make their way back down to the house.

“No, you stay here! I’ll take Fudge home, toss your bag in the car and then pick you up and–”

“I’m not going to the hospital in soaked pants Tyson,” Clemetine said, metaphorically putting her foot down as she kept walking straight ahead. “Besides, we’re not even half a block away, we’ll be fine. Now come on, you call everyone and I’ll call Dr. Warren and tell her what happened.”

It was organized, rushed chaos as they juggled phone calls, Clementine changing clothes and calling Dr. Warren while Tyson called their families to let them know that they were getting ready to head to the hospital and he’d update them once they got there. Kacey had rushed over from down the road to watch Fudge for them so they wouldn’t have to pack up her stuff to drop her off with anyone, and then they packed up Tyson’s car and made their way to the hospital. They were both nervous, but Clementine was trying her best to calm herself down and recall what she’s read in books and taught in classes and what she’s learned from her friends' experience, as well as Nana and Laura. Tyson on the other hand, was panicking and unable to hide it. This proved true when he was filling out the paperwork as they checked in and led them to their room and he had to ask the nurse for a new form because he’d accidentally written his own name on the line where hers was to go– seeing as she was the patient.

Needless to say, once Caroline was hooked up and checked on by nurses and everything was settling down, she told Tyson to sit down in the chair and take a breath. “I’m the one birthing a human here and you’re so pale you look like you’re about to be sick.”

He got better as the time went by…and at times, it felt like it went by extremely slow. Between the contractions and the nurses coming in and out of their room to check and see just where Clementine was at in her labor…which seemed to be progressing slowly. The time was spent rotating between walking around their room, which turned into walking down the halls to try and take her mind off of the pain from the contractions, which were getting stronger. And when it became too much for her to be able to walk around, she was back to staying in the room, close to the hospital bed to be monitored in case Dr. Warren came in and told them it was go time.

Every hour Tyson would update their families on how far along Clementine was and whether or not it was time for her to start pushing. And every hour from the moment they came into the hospital, he’d give them the same news– “slowly progressing, I’ll let you know when we get closer.” They found ways to pass the time of course, watching movies, playing UNO (even though Tyson would try and cheat like he always did when they were kids) and whenever she got the chance, Clementine would try and get a little bit of sleep to rest and prepare for when the time came that she’d need to start actively pushing.

On hour seven, making it 4pm that same afternoon, a nurse came into the room to do another check and then with a smile had told them the news they’d been waiting hours to hear– that she was fully dilated and  it was time to finally start pushing. Dr. Warren came into the room shortly after, as well as the rest of the labor and delivery team, assuring Tyson and Clementine that this was a time to be excited for and that the team was there to make it all go as smoothly as possible before they transferred them out of their booked room and into a labor and delivery room.

And that helped both of their nerves a little bit, but not much. Because in the end, this was something that they’d never experienced before and no amount of books, videos or friendly advice, could fully get rid of that anxiety they felt about how close they were to welcoming their daughter into their lives and into this world.

However, even after it was time to start pushing, things weren’t smooth sailing. Clementine felt supported with both the staff and of course Tyson by her side, Dr. Warren joining in the efforts in trying to coach her through the pushing, but pushing for a near two hours would wear anyone down, even someone who’d been through labor before– and for Clementine, it was starting to drain her more than anything. They changed breathing techniques, two nurses and Tyson helped move her both onto her side and even onto her hands and knees to switch positions to try and help before she asked to be put back down onto her back– but nothing was working.

“I can’t,” Clementine whined, resting her head down against the pillow and shaking her head. “Why isn’t she coming out? Is something wrong?”

“No, Clementine, everything’s fine,” Dr. Warren said, looking over the gown. “Sometimes this stage can take up to three hours, even for those who’ve had a baby or two. It’s just the progression.”

“But she’s okay, right?” Tyson asked, his right hand brushing the hair back off of Clementine’s forehead. “They’re both okay?”

“Yes, they’re both okay, both of their vitals are very good right now. And as long as they keep trending that way, we’ll go ahead and stick with your original plan of a vaginal birth.” Dr. Warren looked between the both of them, nodding slightly. “However, if we surpass the 18 hour mark and you’re still pushing, we might have to consider doing a c-section.”

Clementine squeezed Tyson’s hand she’d been holding and looked at him with wide eyes, starting to feel herself panic as she looked back at Dr. Warren and shook her head. “I didn’t research that, we didn’t– that’s not–”

“Clementine, I need you to try and calm your breathing, okay?” Dr. Warren said, looking at Tyson. “We’ve still got a long way to go before we hit the 18 hour mark, but I’m just informing you that it’s a possibility down the line, okay?”

Tyson reached over and adjusted the oxygen mask that Clementine had tugged down her chin, putting it back over her nose and mouth. “You need to keep that on and just breathe with me, okay?” He said, taking deep slow breaths and maintaining his eye contact. “Good, that’s good. Everything’s gong to be fine, Clem, I promise.” He had a smile on his face, but Clementine could see the worry in his eyes.

She tried to keep a countdown in her head as the time went by and she kept pushing whenever she was instructed to– but there was still that sliver of a doubt in her mind that their original birth plan was gong to be thrown out of the window for the new plan of a c-section. Which Tyson, bless his heart, tried to alleivate the stress by saying, “well, now we know that she’s already got your stubbornness.”

It was at least another hour of pushing and contractions of getting nowhere, before they started to near the end of hour eight, when something just felt different. Her contractions felt stronger and more frequent, and after every push, when Tyson would say words of support or brush her hair out of her face as she tried to focus on her breathing, she felt lighter.

“Clementine, I think we’re getting somewhere now,” Dr. Warren said, looking up from the sheet and nodding. “Go ahead and give me another push and we might just be able to see your baby’s head.”

Clementine nodded and tried to put to action what all of her lamaze classes had taught her. To focus her weight down, tuck her chin into her chest and take a deep breath as she pushed. “Ouch, shit,” Tyson said, quickly covering up his painful complaint with a cough. “Sorry, you’re doing great, just uh…keep squeezing my hand, mhhm.”

“You’re doing great, Clementine,” Nurse Taylor, who was holding onto Clementine’s right leg said, gently patting her knee. “Just keep pushing, you’ve got five seconds left.”

Those five seconds felt like a lifetime and when she heard Tyson countdown to zero, she let her body rest against her hospital bed, releasing her tight grip on his hand. “Sorry,” she frowned, looking at him as he took his hand back and quickly rubbed it.

“No, you’re fine, I promise,” he said, stretching his fingers before reaching back down and holding her hand, bringing it up to his mouth and kissing the back of it. “You could break it for all I care, as long as it helps you.”

“Okay Clementine, I can see the top of her head!” Dr. Warren said, sounding excited as she looked at Clementine with a smile. “If you can give me one big push, we just might be able to get her head out and then you’ll be holding your baby girl. Are you ready to do this?”

Clementine nodded, sitting herself up just slightly. “Hell yeah.”

Tyson laughed and leaned down, kissing the top of her head as he squeezed her hand. “That’s my girl, now come on Clem, you’ve got this.”

“Go ahead and push now,” Dr. Warren said, nodding her head before keeping her attention below the sheet line.

Maybe it was the fact that Dr. Warren had said she could only have to push two more times, but the countdown in this push felt like a lifetime as Clementine tried to put her very best effort into getting their daughter out of her body. Her left hand was squeezing Tysons and her right hand was gripping onto the sheets on her hospital bed as she shut her eyes, trying to gain control of her breathing.

“Almost there, Clementine, her head’s almost out!”

Tyson took the opportunity to lean down towards the end of the sheet, finding himself curious as to what was happening down there– even though he’d been advised by most of his friends and even online forums that there was a possibility that the sight would make him a little queasy and possibly need a chair. Curiosity killed the cat and he couldn’t help but let his eyes go wide as he saw exactly what Dr. Warren was just about to announce.

“Holy shit, Clem her head’s out!” He said, trying not to grimace in pain at the scene. “You should see this.”

“Kind of feeling it instead, Tyson,” Clementine huffed, squeezing his hand tighter, taking another deep breath and pushing at the guidance of nurse Taylor.

His jaw dropped as he saw their daughter basically slip into Dr. Warren’s hands and he realized that all of the forums were right– he definitely might need a chair, because he just saw their daughter be born into the world and just the plain idea of that was a doozy. “She’s here,” he spoke softly, looking back at Clementine with a beaming smile. “You did it, look at her!”

In an instant, all of the nurses went into action, one placing Bailey on Clementine’s chest as others helped Dr. Warren with whatever was happening beneath the blanket, not that Tyson wanted to ask or knew what it was. He returned back to Clementine’s side, letting go of her leg as he brushed back the hair out of her face once more and bent down, kissing her.

He never thought that the sound of a baby’s cry could bring him to tears, but the moment after the nurses started to suction fluid from her mouth and in turn it caused Bailey to cry– hearing the gurgling, high pitched and breathy cry…he had tears in his eyes.

“Dad, would you like to cut the cord?” Dr. Warren asked, taking his attention away from Clementine.

He nodded, letting go of Clem’s hand for the few seconds that it took for them to place a pair of funky looking scissors into his hand and show him where to cut the clamped cord. And once it was done, he was right there back at Clem’s side, looking at the two girls in his life that were amongst the top few that meant the most of him.

They were his girls, the two he knew he’d love the most for the rest of their lives.

There was so much going on around her, yet all Clementine could focus on what the newborn lying on her chest. The nurses were working around her hospital gown so Bailey could be placed more on her chest, while simulatenously trying their best to warm her up. Tyson had placed a hand on top of the hospital blanket the nurses draped over their newborn and he was kissing Clementine’s head and brushing her hair back as they both looked at their beautiful daughter, who had only cried once– the moment she was born– and had otherwise since been peacefully laying against Clementine’s chest.

It was when Tyson stood up from leaning over Clementine that she felt like maybe something was off. She blinked and blinked, wondering if maybe her eyes were just dry, but when she looked up to try and tell Tyson– her head felt heavy to move.

“Tyson,” she said, barely brushing the oxygen mask up off of her face and over her forehead as she kept her left hand on top of Bailey as well. “Tyson, take her.”

“What?” He asked, looking down at her with furrowed brows, too caught up in the excitement to have heard her the first time.

“Take,” Clementine nodded her head down towards Bailey as she tried to brush the oxygen mask back down her face, feeling her heart begin to race. “Take her.”

Alarms filled the room as a nurse brushed by Tyson and gently nudged him away from the side of her hospital bed, her co-worker on the other side of Clementine, making moves that she couldn’t focus on, but knew were happening since she felt someone slide the oxygen mask over her nose and mouth. “Keep breathing, Clementine, take deep breaths, okay?”

“What’s going on?” She heard Tyson ask, the fear in his voice evident. ““What’s happening? What’s wrong with her?”

“Tyson, her pressure’s dropping, but we’re doing everything we can right now,” Dr. Warren spoke matter of factly. “And I need you to follow nurse Nora here over towards the heating lamp and stay with your daughter while we take care of Clementine, okay?”

“Please, just– she’s going to be okay, right? She has to be okay,” Tyson paused, exhaling heavily. “Please…”

“We’ll do everything we can, sir. Now just follow me,” a nurse said, which must have been nurse Nora because while she was still fighting to keep her eyes open, Clementine a nurse carefully wrap the blanket over a now crying Bailey before lifting her off of her chest and walking away.

The sound of their daughters cry and the blurred vision of the yellow hospital blanket being the last thing Clementine saw before everything went dark.

She heard her breathing and Tyson talking before anything else. Her vision was still dark and as her hearing started to focus and she felt herself start to wake up, she realized that her eyes were closed. It took multiple blinks before she could even get her eyes to open just barely, her eyelids still felt a little heavy with each blink. But eventually, she was able to get them open and her vision to clear up to see that she was in her hospital room– the recovery room that they’d been in before she got wheeled off into labor and delivery.

And once the confusion started to pass, the panic set in. Why was she back in here? Where was Bailey? What happened? Did something go wrong? She moved her arms by her side and tried to push herself up in the hospital bed, immediately feeling her entire bottom half ache.

“Hold on mom, let me call you back, I think she’s waking up,” Tyson said, rushing over to her right bedside. “Hey, don’t try to move too much, what do you need?”

“Water,” she replied, clearing her throat and stopping her attempt at sitting herself up.

Tyson nodded and grabbed the cup and pitcher of water that was by her bedside, pouring her a cup of water before handing it to her. “Don’t drink too fast, you’ll make yourself sick.”

She rubbed her eyes as she slowly took a sip of her water, trying her best to keep blinking to keep her eyes from continuing to get dry. She looked up at Tyson as she brought her cup back down from her mouth, seeing the worried expression on his face. “Tys, what happened?”

“What do you remember?” He asked, reaching out and tucking some of her hair behind her ear.

“Um…” Clementine squinted her eyes, trying to figure out what she remembered last before sighing and shaking her head. “I remember feeling a little lightheaded, hearing you and then seeing a nurse take Bailey and then everything went dark.”

At the mere mention of their daughter, it was like she was jolted awake and she sat up quickly, looking around the room. “Bailey, where’s bailey?” She asked, looking at Tyson with worried eyes. “Is she okay? Was something wrong?”

“She’s okay, perfect even,” Tyson smiled softly, nodding his head before turning around and walking over towards the wall that was next to the couch beneath the window. He bent down just partially before standing back up and turning around, walking over to Clementine holding a bundled up yellow blanket. “Though I do have some bad news…”

“Wha–”

“My mom was right,” he carefully placed the sleeping newborn into Clementine’s arms and carefully pulled off the small pink hat that was on her head. “She’s got mine and Kacey’s blonde hair.”

Clementine reached out and softly hit his arm, never taking her eyes off of their daughter. “That wasn’t funny, I thought something was wrong with her.”

“You’re right, that was horribly timed,” he sighed, rolling a wheeled stool over to the side of the bed and sitting down, leaning against the hospital bed. “But don’t worry Clem, she’s perfect. I mean, I didn’t want to put her in her outfit yet, because I wanted you to see it, you know, so maybe her outfit isn’t perfect yet and I’m sure she’s cold…but otherwise Clem, she’s just perfect. All 8 pounds and 19 inches of her.”

She looked back down at Bailey and brushed her right thumb against Bailey’s plump cheeks, feeling the warmth of her skin against her own. She had quite a bit of hair, and of course, just like Laura had said it probably would be– it was blonde, though Clementine could see some twinges of brown in there. She had the same long, dark and thick eyelashes that Clementine and Tyson both had. Her eyes were closed, but it looked like she might have Tyson’s eye shape and lips, and it turns out he was right all those months ago– she did have Clementine’s nose. But Clementine was right too, because she had the same plump and pink cheeks that both Tyson and Kacey had when they were kids.

“Low blood sugar,” Tyson spoke, holding onto the pink hat in his fist. “You had low blood sugar, which dropped your pressure and then with the blood loss…it all just added up and you passed out. Scared the shit out of me too,” he had a hand on Clementine’s arm, softly brushing his thumb against it. “Everything went from sort of relaxed to everyone was suddenly rushing around the room and I just thought…”

Clementine could see his eyes were starting to water as he looked down at Bailey and she carefully move the arm he’d been resting his hand on top of and lifted it up, cupping the side of his face and brushing her thumb against his beard, trying to get his attention. “Tys I’m okay,” she whispered, carefully turning his chin towards her. “I’m okay, she’s okay…you can’t get rid of me that easily. Someone’s got to make sure Bailey here knows how to take care of her curls.”

Tyson laughed, rolling his eyes. “You don’t know she’ll have my curls.”

Her face deadpanned and she nodded down at the sleeping baby. “She’s basically your clone, Tys. Aside from my nose, she’s your twin. I spent nine months growing her and haven’t been able to see my toes the last three months, for her to look just like you.” She joked, smiling soon after. “Trust me, she’ll have your curls.”

He laughed again, looking down at Bailey before looking back at Clementine with the same worried look. “No more scaring me like that, got it?”

“Got it,” she nodded, moving her hand down the side of his neck and softly scratching his skin before moving it to the nape of his neck, running her fingers through his soft curls. “Now kiss me, please.”

“More than happy to,” he smiled, leaning in and closing the space between them with a kiss as he brought his hand that was holding Bailey’s little pink hat, up to her face and cradling the side of it. “You did so good, Clem,” he whispered, pulling back from their kiss just barely. “You’re a rockstar.”

“Mmm, I had the best support with me,” she smiled, kissing him again.

The sound of the tiniest gurgle pulled them both away from each other and brought their attention down to the previously sleeping baby wrapped in her yellow blanket. Bailey was squirming just slightly and pursing her lips, mouthing at something that wasn’t there as her eyes started to blink slowly before eventually she was opening them.

“Oh she’s so your twin, Tys. She’s got your eye shape,” Clementine laughed, reaching down and brushing her hand over Bailey’s soft blonde hair. “Hi Bailey, I’m your mommy.”

“I think she might be hungry,” Tyson said, sitting up and pressing the nurse call button. “They said that when she makes those cute faces, she’s either hungry or pooping.”

“Has she eaten yet?” Clementine asked, frowning slightly. “Did I miss it?”

“Mhhm, she hasn’t really shown any signs of being hungry,” he said, coming back next to her. “You’ve only been out for 20 minutes, Clem. So I called and updated everyone and Bails and I got some daddy daughter time while we waited for mommy to wake up, didn’t we Bails?” He cooed, bending down and kissing the newborn's head.

“Clementine, I’m glad to see you awake!” Dr. Warren said, walking into the room with an unfamiliar face behind her. “How are you feeling?”

“A little tired, and I have a slight headache,” Clementine said, lightly rocking Bailey in her arms. “But other than that I feel good.”

“That’s good, I’m very glad to hear,” Dr. Warren smiled, walking around and over to the machine that was taking her vitals. “I’m sure Tyson here told you, but you did lose consciousness shortly after birth. We’ve run some tests and ruled out anything that was serious, so I don’t want you to worry. Your blood sugar was low, which dropped your blood pressure and that combined with the blood loss in the delivery, you to lose consciousness. We did deliver the placenta and we’re going to have you stay here for an additional two days, just so we can keep an eye on you to make sure that the fainting was a one time thing.”

“Thank you so much, Dr. Warren,” Clementine said, looking up from Bailey and at her. “Really, thank you for helping deliver her and taking care of me.”

“It’s what I come to work for,” Dr. Warren smiled, nodding her head. “Now, I do recommend that you get something to eat! You guys can order in, have someone drop it off for you or you can check out the cafeteria downstairs, but I want you to eat something filling to get that blood sugar back up.”

“Yes ma’am, my mom is dropping off some food soon. She should be here in ten minutes,” Tyson nodded, taking his phone out of his pocket.

“I’ll be around sometime later just to check on you again to see if there’s any complications, just routine so don’t worry. But for right now,” Dr. Warren motioned towards the woman who’d come into the room with her. “This is Dr. Kara, she’s a lactation specialist and will be giving you some pointers on breastfeeding if that’s something you’re interested in.”

“Thank you again, Dr. Warren,” Clementine nodded as Dr. Warren walked out of the room and Dr. Kara came up to the left of her bed. “Hi Dr. Kara, thanks for helping me.”

“Of course and congratulations on your new addition,” she smiled, placing down a small stack of pamphlets on Clementine’s bedside table. “Now I understand you had a little bit of a bump there after delivery, so I can always come back if you’re not feeling up to it. If you are, I’m more than willing to help you walk through the process of breastfeeding. If you’re not, I can always come back and I brought some pamphlets for you to read and gain some insight on the process.”

“I’m feeling okay,” Clementine nodded, holding Bailey close to her. “I think I’m up to learn right now, if that’s okay.”

“That’s great,” Dr. Kara smiled. “Now let’s go ahead and try to get this little cutie fed.”

Their first night as a family of three went by pretty great. Aside from the frequent nurse visits throughout the night to check on both Clementine and Bailey, their night was filled with tons of cuddles, diaper changes and feedings. When Clementne was fast asleep, Tyson took that time to hold and cuddle with Bailey, and soaking up all the time that he could before their families came to visit tomorrow- where he knew that they would give their grandparents as much time to hold the first great-grandchild, that they wanted. They’d both taken some pictures, but hadn’t sent them off or posted any, wanting their families to see Bailey in person first, versus in a picture.

The next morning, they tried to figure out what their schedules would look like every morning when trying to maintain a routine for themselves and Bailey included. A nurse had helped Clementine shower and get changed while Tyson carefully changed Bailey’s dirty diaper and then put her into a sunflower newborn footie pajama set that came complete with a little knit bow headband as well. It was an outfit that Kacey had bought and one that Bailey hadn’t exploded a diaper in yet– seeing as the one time Tyson didn’t double check to make sure the diaper was on tight enough, was the one time that Bailey had blown it out.

It was most definitely a learning experience for them both, one that every diaper change since, had them double checking to make sure it was on good enough before they’d dress her up again.

Now showered and dressed, they just waited in their recovery room for a text from their families that they’d arrived at the hospital. Clementine was dressed in the pajama set and robe Tyson had gifted her as one of her push presents. And despite her telling him he didn’t have to, while they waited, Tyson had announced that he’d gotten her two more push presents– one was a 14k white gold ring that had Bailey Frances engraved on it, a ring that he’d have to take in to get her birth date engraved on the inside. The other was a newborn and family photoshoot next week once they got settled in.

When he got a text from his mom that they were there, Tyson quickly kissed both Bailey and Clem goodbye, telling her that he’d be right back before he left the room to go pick them up from reception and leaving Clementine alone with Bailey for the first time.

She felt herself start to grow nervous, but not at the fact that she was now a mom or that she had a daughter– but a nervous sort of excitement that she was getting ready to introduce their tiny budle of joy to the people that loved them most. The ones that raised them and saw their friendship and relationship blossom from the very beginning. Most importantly, she was going to introduce their daughter to Nana and Papa– the two people who took her in at one of her most vulnerable and defensless moments, who loved her and raised her like she was their own daughter and who turned her into the woman she was today…and the kind of parent she hoped to be.

She heard the door to their room open and seconds later, the privacy curtain that closed around the door was pulled open, revealing Tyson and the rest of their anxiously waiting family. “Hi guys,” Clementine smiled as Tyson ushered them all into the room.

“How are you feeling?” Laura asked, walking over to the right side of her bed and giving her a side hug.

“Better, definitely much better,” Clementine nodded, accepting the hugs from her grandparents as well as Tyson’s and Kacey. “The staff has been looking after us pretty good, plus Tyson’s been like my own personal nurse too.”

“And food order boy,” Tyson laughed, standing at the end of the hospital bed. “We should be uber eats number one customers now.”

The smallest sound filled the short silence after Tyson was done speaking, bringing attention to the newborn lying in Clementine’s arms. Clementine smiled, adjusting the small headband that was on her head and looked at their families. “Everyone, this is Bailey,” she tilted her arms just slightly so everyone could get a view of the barely awake newborn. “Bailey, this is your family.”

“Oh my God, she looks just like Tyson,” Kacey said, coming around the side of the bed and leaning slightly. “Not the nose though, she’s definitely got your nose.”

“So?” Clementine smiled, looking at them all. “Who wants to hold her first?”

“Frances and Howard, why don’t you two go first,” Laura said, motioning towards them.

Tyson walked over to the side, bending down and carefully picking up Bailey so her Nana and Papa didn’t have to bend down to pick her up. “Alright, Bails, this is your Nana Frances and Papa Howard,” he spoke softly, turning around to face them and carefully handed Bailey off to Nana before sitting down just at the end of Clementine’s hospital bed with a smile.

“Oh she’s so cute,” Nana smiled, holding the bundled up newborn against her as Papa stood close to her, resting his hand towards the bottom of her blanket. “Well hi there, Bailey. I’m your Nana and this is your Papa and we are so excited to finally meet you.”

“And we love you very, very much,” Papa chimed in, nodding down at the newborn before clearing his throat and nonchalantly wiping at his right eye to try and wipe away the forming tears. He looked down at Clementine, who was herself quickly on her way to crying and bent down, kissing the top of her head and wrapping his arms around her as best as he could, giving her a hug. “You did a damn good job, Clem and we love you so much.”

“I love you too, Papa,” Clementine sniffled, burying her face into his shoulder as she tried to keep herself from breaking down into tears. “Thank you both for everything.”

He pulled back, kissing the top of her head once more as he smiled, staying close to her and speaking softly. “And we’d do it again without a single hesitation. You are the greatest thing to ever happen to us.”

Once he stood up, Nana handed Bailey off onto Papa where he got to hold her and talk to her for a few moments. And the pattern stayed the same. Papa passed her off onto Tyson’s grandma, then his grandpa, then Laura and then finally Kacey– who was the last one to get to hold her before she made her way back into Tyson’s arms.

There was so much love in the room, that it was hard to keep her tears from falling every other minute. It was all that Clementine had hoped for, a loving environment for their daughter from the very beginning– something stable and filled with people who only wanted the best for Bailey. And sitting in that room, taking pictures and having the walls filled with laughter and love, it was already that and so much more.

Bailey Frances Jost was possibly the most loved person in the room, but she was forsure…by far, the luckiest.

New Addition

Clementine never really understood the whole “time is a thief” saying. That’s what she read in all of the books, the forums, or hearsay from her friends and family– “time flies by, it’s a thief and you’re going to never know it’s happening until one day you do.” It just never really made sense to her, because for all purposes, time just seemed to be moving by very slow– dragging on if you will.

Until Bailey rolled over for the first time.

Suddenly, Bailey wasn’t the tiny 8 pound baby they brought home from the hospital, but was instead now a little over 12 pounds, her dark blue eyes were now starting to darken into what would most likely be the same shade of brown as Tysons and her hair was going on the same path Tyson’s had gone when he was a baby– staying blonde and straight.

She was starting to raise her head and chest during tummy time whenever she heard Tyson or Clementine talk, and if someone were playing with her and holding a toy she had any interest in (which most of those were Fudge’s toys), she would make grabby hands towards them. Tyson’s favorite thing to do was helping her stand up and getting her to bonce on her feet, often earning a giggle from her. She loved bath time, babbled the most whenever Fudge was around and absolutely loved it whenever anyone tickled her feet or her belly.

Going on four months with Bailey in their lives and having been back in Minnesota for almost two months, life by no means was easy. The season had officially started two weeks earlier, just five days after Bailey turned four months old. While they didn’t have their immediate family down in the states to help around the house, they did have their hockey family– all of them more than willing to help Clementine and Tyson adjust to life with a baby during the hockey season. It was a big group that was more like family that the two of them were extremely grateful for. Especially since Clementine was set to return back to work at the end of the month– her sub replacement making sure to add her into emails of what was going on at the school and keeping her in the loop of the students who would come to her office.

But until then, Clementine still had two more weeks left of staying at home with Bailey and Tyson to soak up all of the time she had left before she was set to go back to work, and Bailey would go to the rink with Tyson on days when he was home and if he was on a road trip, Clementine would drop her off with Danielle, who was more than willing to help them out until Bailey was old enough and Clementine and Tyson both were comfortable enough to drop her off at the childcare program at the school, where some of the other teachers had their kids enrolled.

“Tyson, her hat,” Clementine sighed, holding out the small beanie hat that had fallen onto the ground. “I don’t want her ears getting cold.”

“Oops, got it,” Tyson said, stopping just at the brink of the ice and stepping off to the side in the bench area, grabbing the hat. “We don’t need Bails to get cold red ears, do we Bails?” He cooed, entertaining Bailey as he put the small hat onto her head.

“There, now she’s all bundled up,” Clementine smiled, squeezing Bailey’s shoe covered foot as she leaned in and kissed her plump cheek. “And ready for her first ever skate with daddy, aren’t you?”

Bailey smiled and kicked her feet as she was snuggled up in the baby carrier wrap that Clementine was currently wearing. “Ga ga ga ga,” she babbled, wiggling in the carrier.

“I’m telling you Clem, she’s going to say dada first, she’s this close,” Tyson said, stepping out onto the ice and standing off to the side, holding out his hand to help her onto the ice. “Bailey’s a daddy’s girl, aren’t you Bailey?” He smiled, tickling the side of the carrier and getting her to smile.

“Maybe she’ll say mama,” Clementine teased, holding onto Tyson’s hand as she rested another hand on the back of Bailey’s carrier, keeping her close. “Ga ga can end up turning to mama, you never know.”

The two slowly skated around the rink as his teammates and their friends skated around them with their children and significant others. The first family skate of the season had Tyson exploding with excitement. Eagerly counting down the days until this moment, Tyson was eager to get to the arena today– Bailey all bundled up in some little leggings and a Minnesota Wild longsleeved dress that Clementine had foud on Etsy and bought for her, and a small white beanie to keep her head warm– that he struggled to even get her carseat out of the car.

“I’d always wanted to participate in one of these and yeah, you and I got to do one…” Tyson said, looking around the rink before looking at her and Bailey. “But it’s a little more special now that we’ve got Bails to share it with.”

“And then when she gets a little older, you’ll be able to help her skate around too,” Clementine smiled, nodding off at Jon Merrill’s youngest daughter, who up ahead was using one of the skating aids, along with Jon skating beside her. “And maybe by then, I’ll be sitting in the bench area with another little one and we’ll be cheering on Bailey and daddy.”

Tyson looked at her, a slightly hungry look in his eyes as he smiled. “Are you saying you want to start trying for baby number two?”

“Right now? Absolutely not,” Clementine snorted, shaking her head. “I want to soak up at least a year and a half, maybe two years of just Bailey time before we try for another baby.”

“Kacey and I are two years apart, well…just under two years, more like 23 months,” he said, letting go of her hand and wrapping her arm around his waist. “And you see how close Kacey and I are. Imagine Bails getting a best friend of her own.”

“I think it would drive Fudge absolutely crazy,” Clementine laughed, holding onto one of Bailey’s hands that had come out of the side of her carrier. “Bailey already wants to steal all of her toys, imagine if she had two babies trying to steal her toys!”

“Simple, we just buy Fudge more toys,” he shrugged, a playful smile on his face.

“Tyson–”

“I’m kidding Clem, I know what you’re saying,” he said, reaching over and adjusting Bailey’s hat. “And I agree, I’d like to get as much time with it being just Bailey for a while before we have another baby. Then we’ll think and talk about giving this little cutie a baby brother or sister, won’t be Bails? Would you want a sibling to boss around?”

Bailey was leaning her head back slightly against her carrier, smiling and poking her tongue out as she look at Tyson. “Ba!”

“Then it’s settled,” he nodded, leaning in and kissing her cheek. “We’re going to soak up all of the Bailey cuddles and kisses we can until then.”

Bailey just wiggled in her carrier, babbling as Clementine and Tyson doted all of the attention on her. And it was when Clementine needed to go to the bathroom that they stepped off of the ice and she transferred the carrier to Tyson, who by now was an expert at wearing it, considering there were days Clementine would come home to Tyson doing chores around the house wearing it with Bailey in it…or catch him on the tailend of a walk with Fudge, also wearing it.

“Say bye, Mama,” Tyson smiled, holding onto Bailey’s hand and waving it towards Clementine. “Daddy and I are going to go skate laps around the rink!”

“Bye sweetie,” Clementine laughed, waving at Bailey. “And Tyson–”

“I know, no racing or doing anything reckless,” he patted the carrier with a big smile. “Baby on board.”

Clementine nodded as Tyson skated away from the bench area, now fully wearing the baby carrier with Bailey inside of it. While she still needed to go to the bathroom, she waited right there in the bench area to watch Bailey and Tyson skate half a lap. She could see them clear across the ice, Tyson playing with her in the carrier and talking to her as he passed by some teammates, not hesitating to show off the cute four month old or stopping to let them talk and play with her. She couldn’t help but smile as she kept watching before Tyson and Bailey made their way back towards her, where Tyson had slowed down and started to wave towards her again before pointing in her direction for Bailey to look. And when Bailey did, though she was probably more focused on Tyson, she smiled and giggled as Tyson kept waving and saying “say hi to mama!”

The feeling that she had in her chest– the strong, overwhelming, warm feeling of love and happiness that she felt from watching the two of them together– watching Tyson go from a silly boy to a determined teenager, to a loving man and into a supportive, loving and doting husband a father, and watching Bailey experience the love of their family and friends, knowing she’d never have to worry about experiencing what Clementine did as a toddler…it was almost too much, but in a good way.

She would never get over watching their friends try to make Bailey giggle, or watch Bailey play with Fudge’s toys. How Fudge would sleep at the end of the bed still, but her face would now be facing the way that Bailey’s bedside bassinet was on. Watching Kacey try to entice Bailey into walking or making her giggle by teasing Tyson. Listening to Laura talk about how much Bailey reminded her of Tyson as a baby and giving Clementine advice on what to do in the case she turned out exactly like Tyson. Seeing his grandparents play peek-a-boo or sing songs to her. And watching her own grandparents rock her in their arms and read to her just like they had done for Clementine as a child.

There would never be a single moment or a single day where Clementine saw herself ever growing tired of watching the amount of love for their daughter, play out in their day to day life. And it was a feeling that often reminded her of her a quote from her all time favorite book, ‘The Truth About Forever’ by Sarah Dessen. It was when Macy, the main character had just kissed Wes, an artistic boy who had lost his mother to cancer and had rebelled after the fact, sending him to a reform school. The two had grown close and after back and forth and building friendship and feelings the whole book, in the end, it’s Wes, not her boyfriend, who she chooses to be with in the end. He had asked her a single question– what she would do if she could do anything in the world, and her reply was a simple kiss. But it was what followed that made this quote remind Clementine of that overwhelming feeling of love she felt.

“As for me, I was just trying to get it right, whatever that meant. But now I finally felt I was on my way. Everyone had a forever, but given a choice, this would be mine. The one that began in this moment, with Wes, in a kiss that took my breath away, then gave it back- leaving me astounded, amazed and most of all, alive.”

That’s how she felt looking at their little family, especially Bailey. She felt alive in the way that the infant would smile when she heard their voices or giggle at the lightest touch of her tummy. How she’d stick her tongue out as if she was trying to lick her lips. When she would fall asleep on their chests so effortlessly, and so willingly, because she knew she was safe with them. She’d been alive and living live all of this time, and every so often, something would happen that would remind her that she was so– getting into college, dating Tyson, getting accepted into an abroad for her masters, marrying Tyson, adopting Fudge, meeting her half-siblings…having Bailey.

Every moment between the time Adelisa had dropped her off onto Nana and Papa’s porch that cold August night and now, a comfortable October night in Minnesota where she was with her adoring husband and her beautiful and happy baby girl…all of it was a stepping stone, a part of her forever, a piece of her story that one day she would share with their children. A lesson that life had its ups and downs, but it was what you made of them that determined just how much of life you could make your own.

A reminder to be alive in both the big and small moments, because they all play a role in life.

A lesson to feel alive in what they do– to find the things and the people that they enjoy and love the most.

Sarah Dessen had said it best. Life could be long or short– but it was all in how you chose to live it. Because forever was always changing so it was important to make every second count. And that’s what she wanted for their children, for them to live their lives to the fullest, to laugh and cry and love to their fullest hearts desire.

Just like like the guidance counselor at her school had done for her, she was passing on the knowledge that she learned, that the circumstances they were dealt do not limit them to the endless possibilities that are out there for them to grab. And it was written on a sign on her wall just above her desk, big enough for everyone who walks through her office door to see almost immediately. A reminder of sorts.

“Life can be long or short, it all depends on how you choose to live it. It’s like forever, always changing. For any of us, forever could end in an hours, or a hundred years from now. You can never know for sure, so you’d better make every second count. What you have to decide is how you want your life to be. If your forever was ending tomorrow, is this how you’d want to have spend it.”

Her students had always asked her what her answer was to the question on her sign– “Mrs. Jost, what’s your answer?”

And Clementine’s answer was always the same. 

Yes.

Forever could end at any moment, and right now, she was content with how her’s had been. She was married to the love of her life and best friend, shared a beautiful daughter with the same man, she had a job that she loved, a beautiful home, a loving dog and was continuing to make changes in the lives of the students of the school that she worked at.

Her forever had started in late August 2003, when Nana and Papa had taken her in at just five-years-old, lonely, cold and starting to forget what the love of a mother had been. And in the 20 years since, she had experienced parental love, the love of her friends, family and the special love of a man who she knew would do anything for her. And there was more of forever that she had to go, had to live and experience, but all that mattered to her now was that she would take whatever forever had to give, just as long as she had Tyson, Bailey and Fudge by her side.

#tyson jost fic #tyson jost one shot #tyson jost oneshot #tyson jost writing #minnesota wild oneshot #minnesota wild one shot #minnesota wild fic #nhl writing #nhl one shot #nhl fic #nhl oneshot #hockey fic #hockey oneshot #hockey one shot #hockey writing

[cupid-styles]

omg bestieeeee i so need hocker h nd ballerina to talk and smooch !!!!! ngl i’m a sucker for protective and jealous h 🤭🤭🤭🤭 🐱

I feel like ive made you guys wait way too long for this one gvkdfjgkf

a continuation of this blurb! (and sort of this one)

word count: 2.3k (we had a lot of ground to cover)

content warnings: minor mentions of smut, slight angst but all is fixed by the end, not ramadan friendly

main masterlist | hockey h masterlist

talk to me

. . .

Two weeks.

Two weeks of radio silence from Y/N.

Two weeks of over-thinking everything he did that night.

Two weeks of Harry drunk texting her on lonely nights.

please just tell me if you hate me

im so sorry

ill leave you alone if its what you want, I just need to know

Each and every time, Y/N read his messages, eyes scanning over the words, and locked her phone.

The truth is, she doesn't know what she wants from him, if anything. She doesn't know why she felt so attracted to him that night — she was tipsy, not drunk, and in complete control of her actions. She never hooked up with people in public — no messy makeouts, but she certainly never let anyone finger her in the hallway of a bar.

The entire thing was completely unlike her. Maybe that's what scared her the most.

Deep down, she wanted to reply to him, but she didn't even know what to say. She didn't want him to leave her alone — maybe that was selfish, but she liked knowing he was at least a little okay. She'd even been keeping secret tabs on the hockey team. They had won their past two games, but Harry had been thrown out in the most recent one for unsportsmanlike conduct. Apparently, he'd gotten into a fight with one of the players on the other team.

Admittedly, that worried her, but she didn't want to be his babysitter. On top of that, the spring showcase was this weekend, and she'd thrown every last bit of her energy into rehearsing and practicing to make sure her performance would be absolutely flawless.

She didn't have the time — or mental capacity — to worry about Harry right now.

. . .

"You look like an idiot."

Harry rolls his eyes as he adjusts the collar on his button down for the third time. James and his girlfriend Melanie had helped him with ironing it out so it looked presentable enough on his body. Anything he ever did rarely called for slacks and button up shirts, but Melanie advised him to look polished and put-together for tonight.

He wasn't in a place to reject her advice.

The other teammates that James lived with weren't quite as kind. Stephen, a sophomore defenseman who was only on the team for the perks of sleeping with every girl he could get his hands on, wouldn't stop throwing sarcastic comments Harry's way.

"Shut up, Stephen!" Melanie calls from the living room. She marches into James' bedroom as Harry smoothes out a few leftover wrinkles in his slacks, swallowing tightly. "When's the last time you cared about something besides fucking random girls? At least Harry has some direction in his life."

"I'm just saying, the girl's been ignoring him for weeks. She's gonna laugh in his face."

"Leave!" Melanie exclaims, batting him on the shoulder. Stephen lets out a yelp of pain and Harry smirks, despite the anxiety throbbing in his chest. "You're not helping! Get out!"

Reluctantly, Stephen rolls his eyes as he follows Melanie's orders and leaves the room. She sighs and comes up from behind Harry before flashing him a hopeful grin.

"You look great, H. I think this is a really sweet gesture."

He nibbles on his bottom lip as he turns to face her. "Okay, but what if Stephen's dumbass is right? She could call security on me and have me removed."

Melanie gives him a sympathetic look, "Yeah, it's a possibility. But isn't it better to go down fighting?"

He shrugs.

"You said ballet is her everything. It's her entire life. Show her that you're willing to integrate yourself into that."

"Yeah," he breathes out, nodding slowly. "Yeah, you're right."

"I know I am." she grins. "Okay, let's get you over there. Don't forget the flowers you picked up!"

. . .

30 minutes later, Harry can't stop shifting uncomfortably as he sits in an aisle seat in the campus auditorium at Y/N's spring showcase.

The massive bouquet of flowers in his lap keep making his nose run and he feels like he's being suffocated by the buttons on his shirt that go all the way up to his neck. Best of all, according to the show program, Y/N isn't scheduled to go on until the very end. She mentioned to him once that being placed as the finale act is the best and biggest compliment, and he can't fight the bit of pride that thrums in his heart.

For an hour, he sits there, fidgeting with the cuffs of his shirt and pinching his bottom lip between his fingers as he waits for Y/N to go on. He sits through mediocre singing showcases and even a violin solo that almost puts him to sleep, if not for the older man clearing his throat next to him. Melanie and James even text him during the intermission to see how it's going, but he doesn't have much to report back.

Finally, the show comes to a close and her name is announced, following by the title of the French piece of music she's dancing to. His heart throbs in his chest — he's so nervous for her, especially knowing she hurt her ankle just a few weeks back. But the second she graces the stage, she's a vision of beauty, strength, and delicacy all at the same time. It's enough to take Harry's breath away.

As he sits there watching her, he doesn't move a muscle. Not for a single jump, spin, or step. He doesn't know anything about ballet — not aside from what Y/N has told him — but in that moment, he realizes that he'd be willing to learn every little thing there is to know if it meant she let him back into her life.

She's gorgeous. She offers a flawless performance and the second she's finished, a look of relief washes over her face as she takes a subdued bow, her pretty eyes widening when she sees all the people — Harry included — standing and applauding her.

For Y/N, the hard part was over. For Harry, it had just begun.

. . .

Y/N is elated to have a moment of silence after her performance.

With the dressing room door shut behind her, she lets out a long, deep breath. The dance she'd been driving herself crazy over for months was finally over.

And yet, for some reason, she feels empty.

She shoves it down as sits, eager to get her pointe shoes off. She's ready to shed her costume and get into sweatpants and head home. She knows the rest of the performers are heading out to a party tonight, but she's exhausted.

She's sorting through the bag of clothes she brought when there's a soft knock at the door. She knows she only has around 20 minutes to get out before the janitorial staff starts cleaning, so she rises with a sigh, unlocking the door and opening it.

"I'll be done soon, I just need to change—"

It's not the janitor, though.

It's Harry. Standing there stiffly in a starchy button down with a huge bouquet of flowers that almost encompass the width of his broad shoulders.

"What are you doing here?" she blurts without thinking.

"I came to watch you perform," he replies gently. His throat bobs as he hands her the flowers. "These are for you."

"You didn't watch me." she snorts with a shake of her head. She hasn't accepted the bouquet yet.

"Yes, I did," he instantly fires back, "What, do you wanna see my ticket for proof? I was in seat F34, next to an old man who kind of smelled like soup, and he kept clearing his throat and it was really annoying but I didn't care because I came to see you, and I'd sit through hours of bullshit to watch you dance."

Harry can't read the blank expression of her face, but he takes it as a step in the right direction when she takes the flowers from him. She blinks as she glances past him and then steps aside, motioning for him to come in.

"I have to get my shit together and leave soon, so... just sit in here."

He nods. He's hesitant to allow himself to relax since he's not sure if he's in the clear yet. She closes the dressing room door behind her and places the bouquet on her vanity.

"I need to change," she says, spinning around to face him. "Close your eyes."

He chuckles until he sees the serious expression on her face. "Wait, really?"

"Yes, really."

"But... I— y'know—"

"Just turn the fuck around, Harry."

He does as he's told, shutting his eyes as he listens to her roll her tights down and step out of her leotard. One day, if she let him, he'd be more than happy to do that for her — not even in a sexual way, but he knows how tiring it can be to take off his own gear after a long game. He thinks it would be nice to be there for her.

"Okay, you're good," she murmurs. She's stuffing her things in her tote bag when he bats his eyes back open.

"Are you meeting up with anyone after this? I'm sure your friends came to see you, but I just wanted to maybe talk and... y'know, clear the air a bit." Harry says, wringing his hands nervously in his lap. Y/N furrows a brow as she analyzes his body language. She doesn't think she's actually seen him look anxious before.

"Um... no," she says with a shake of her head before quickly revising her answer, "No, I mean, I'm not meeting up with anyone and no one came to see me. Except you, I guess."

"Wait, really?"

She sighs as she pauses the process of gathering her things. "Really, Harry."

He swallows tightly. They're silent for a moment as she grabs her jacket and throws it over her shoulders.

"Come over and we'll talk. I borrowed my friend Matt's car for the night but— yeah, you can follow me to my place or whatever. And I can't promise I'll be awake for much longer but I think clearing the air could be... good."

A rush of relief makes its way through Harry's body.

"Okay. Yeah, let's do that."

. . .

"I never said it, but you were flawless tonight."

Y/N laughs breathily as she settles onto her couch, a cup of sleepy time tea in her hand. Harry rejected her offer for one (his response had been, "Y/N, do I look like someone who drinks tea with a sleeping bear on it?") but he'd be lying if he said it didn't at least smell good.

"I fucked up on one of my jetés — I'll get yelled at for it on Monday, but otherwise I'm decently content with the performance."

"Well, you couldn't tell," Harry replies, "Seriously. You were perfect."

Her cheeks warm and she stares down at her tea. Her legs are sprawled out in front of her while Harry sits on the other edge of the couch, giving her plenty of room to stretch out.

"So... clearing the air."

Harry clears his throat and nods, prepared to embark on the speech he'd been practicing in his head for weeks. But then, she speaks.

"I'm sorry for running out on you and ignoring you," she says, keeping her gaze down in her lap. "That wasn't... I'm not the best person. I'm bad at feelings and I use ballet as a crutch. I figure it's the one thing I'm really, exceptionally good at, and that should give me a pass in life but I know that's not true. I can't just go around treating people like shit because I'm... scared."

"What are you scared of?" Harry asks through furrowed brows. "I'm sorry if I stepped out of line that night, I should've been better—"

"You didn't. You were great. You did everything perfectly," she replies with a shake of her head. Her response surprises him, but he tries to hide the shock on his face. "I'm scared because you're you. You're a hotshot hockey player and, besides this showcase, you're the only other thing I've thought about these past few weeks. That's horrifying for me."

"Is this...?" Harry attempts to roll his lips into a thin line, preventing a smirk from bursting onto his face. "Is this a very Y/N way of telling me that you like me?"

She groans, as if it's the worst thing to ever happen to her, and it makes Harry laugh.

"Don't laugh at me!" she exclaims. That only makes Harry cackle even louder as he slowly crawls over to her, taking her warm cup of tea out of her hands and placing it on the coffee table.

"You're cute when you're exasperated." he murmurs. She pouts and his eyes crinkle with a grin as he peels her shaky hands away from her face.

"You're the one exasperating me."

"I know," he replies lowly, licking his lips as his face hovers over hers, "I like it."

"This isn't us agreeing to date, by the way." she quickly tacks on. He issues out a mhm as he leans forward, testing the waters, and pressing a light kiss to her nose. "We need to take it slow. Like, painfully slow. Or else I'll freak out and run away again."

"Whatever you want." he mumbles, kissing her right cheek. "I mean it."

"And you can't just overwhelm me whenever you feel like it."

He laughs and kisses her left cheek, then her forehead.

"Okay. Any other demands?"

He stops pasting kisses to her face then, instead choosing to simply loom his lips over hers. He can feel her heart beating rapidly in her chest and watches as she swallows nervously.

"No," she finally whispers. "Just kiss me."

And so he does.

#writing #hockey h #harry styles #harry styles writing #harry styles fic #harry styles fan fic #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fanfic #harry styles x reader #harry styles imagine #harry styles one direction #harry styles blurb #harry styles angst #harry styles one shot #harry styles fluff #harry styles x you #harry styles x oc #harry styles au #harry styles smut #one direction #harry styles x y/n #hockerry #harry's house #fine line #hs4

[avatar-anna]

Just, like, a little crazy

this...is absolutely ridiculous, but i'm here for it. jealous hockey player!harry everyone! based on this tiktok

Hockey Player! Harry Styles x Figure Skater! Y/n

*.*

"What's that face, baby?"

You stepped off the ice with a furrowed brow, approaching your boyfriend once your skates were properly covered. His arms were crossed, a scowl marring heis features as he waited for you to finish your training session. Your students were long gone, as you usually stayed back to skate freely before heading home.

Harry didn't always pick you up, but he had a bye week, which meant he spent every moment he could with you. Date nights, casual evenings on the couch, late mornings in bed, breakfast in bed if Harry managed to untangle his tired limbs from yours. It was safe to say that bye weeks were your favorite weeks. And Harry's, though he'd never admit it around his teammates.

Shrugging, Harry took your hand and pulled you closer to him for a kiss. You were used to greeting kisses, but this was different, deeper, his tongue pushing into your mouth before you had a chance to even process it. Not in the mood to argue, you kissed him back, dropping your duffle bag at your feet so you could grip the thick fabric of his sweatshirt.

Harry's hands gripped your ass, pushing you closer to his front, encouraging you to wrap your legs around his waist. "Baby," you murmured, trying to catch your breath, but your boyfriend was rather insistent for a Tuesday afternoon. "We—We're in public."

"There's no one around us," he replied, nipping at your jaw. "And since when has that stopped you? Remember your grad party? Or the away game in Boston? Or—"

"Okay, okay, big shot." You pulled yourself back from him, holding his chin in place when he tried to go for your neck. "Let's go home anyway. There are security cameras, and I happen to like working here."

With a little resistance from Harry, you eventually left the rink hand in hand. In the car, his hand was on your leg, his thumb tracing along your inner thigh in a way that made it hard to think straight. You tried to keep still, for no other reason than Harry's earlier comment and you were inherently stubborn, and maybe because you knew if you stayed still you might be rewarded for it. It wasn't a long trip home, but you knew he would make it worth it.

When his hand dipped below the waistband of your leggings, you knew you were right. Sighing, you settled deeper into the passenger seat, eyes fluttering shut.

"So, who was that on the rink with you?"

"Hm?"

You weren't sure if it was a moan or a response to his question, but you didn't really care. You hadn't really heard him anyway.

"You were skating with someone at the end of practice," Harry said, though his voice was secondary to the sensations provided by his fingers. "I thought you just taught the younger age groups. Not...young adults."

You peeked an eye open, glancing at your boyfriend's profile suspiciously. It's nothing, you thought, or told yourself to think. The only thing you wanted to focus on was finishing before you got home.

"Winter showcase," you sighed, clenching around Harry's fingers to distract him from his questions. "I'm doing a little performance with the senior coach."

As his fingers pumped a little faster, he asked, "Oh? So you're—Have you been training with this person often?"

Groaning, you shoved Harry's arm away, pinching his skin for good measure. Yelping he pulled his hand back, cursing slightly as you crossed your arms. And your legs.

"Ow! What the hell was that for? You weren't finished!"

"Did you really try to butter me up into an interrogation by fingering me?" you accused. You'd be impressed if you weren't so annoyed. "All because you're...jealous of my coworker?"

"I'm not—"

"He's my colleague, Harry!"

"Oh, so now I'm just Harry? What happened to baby?"

"Baby is reserved for my mentally sound boyfriend who doesn't try to finger me into submission! And I thought you just loved me."

"Come on, don't be like that. I just saw you...and him...and you looked—you looked..."

Your annoyance ebbed, but only a little. Harry's thoughts were irrational, but you also tended to not see reason when he was around other women, so could you really blame him?

That didn't stop you from teasing him, though.

"I was thinking about you, idiot," you said, shoving his shoulder lightly.

There was a considerable amount of acting when it came to figure skating. It wasn't just about executing tricks perfectly, but telling a story through the lines of your arms, the bow of your head, the emotions on your face as you performed. Partner work wasn't something you were used to, but you'd been asked to fill in when a senior skater's partner got injured last minute. It was all strictly professional, because he was a student and you were happily involved with someone else, an age appropriate someone else.

You often thought of Harry when you performed. For years, he was the person who drew the most emotion from you. From anguish to love to desperation, he'd made you feel everything over the course of your relationship. It was the easiest way to tap into emotions for a raw and real performance.

"You—You were?"

You rolled your eyes, refusing to answer him as he pulled into the parking spot in front of the apartment you shared. Harry tried to rest his hand on your lap again, but you twisted your body to face the car door in a huff.

"Don't be like that," he said. "You know how I get, I'm sorry. Let's go inside and I'll make it up to you."

Silence was your greatest weapon at the moment. It drove Harry crazy when you didn't talk to him, even moreso when you didn't forgive him right away. You supposed you both knew what made each other tick.

"You're really gonna be like this? When we have a whole week together?" he asked, his lips brushing against the curve of your ear. "What can I do, princess? Tell me."

Excited chills curled down your spine. You tried not to let it get to you, but you could practically feel Harry's grin as he realized he was wearing you down.

"Let's go inside. I wanna finish what we started, and then some."

You wanted to wait, to not give in, but, "Like what?"

"There she is," Harry murmured, kissing your cheek. "I'll let you sit on my face."

"You act like that's a punishment for you," you scoffed.

"Can't blame me for trying," he said with an unapologetic shrug. "Handcuffs?"

All that got him was a raise of your brows.

"Handcuffs on me? No, that's too much work for you," he said, laughing when you swatted at his arm. "Give me a little help, princess. I'm dying to get my hands on you. Dying, princess."

His praise filled you with warmth, just like it always did. You loved to hear him beg, to hear how much he craved your touch, and he loved to see you preen and blush and melt beneath the sweetness of his words.

Unbuckling your seat belt, you opened the passenger door. "Dying, you said?"

Harry nodded, his eyes tracking your every move as he quickly got out of the car, following you up the steps to the apartment. When you got inside, he lifted you up, and your legs went immediately around his waist, but when he tried to kiss you, you pressed a finger to his lips.

"I want to hear you say it."

"Say what?"

Fighting a grin, you said, "That you were a jealous idiot and that you know I would never make moony eyes at a coworker."

"That's what you want?" he asked.

"That's what I want. And that you're sorry for trying to finger the truth out of me."

Harry sighed. "It sounds crazy when you put it like that."

"It does, doesn't it? It's almost as if it was crazy."

Harry grinned, not even the littlest bit sorry. "What can I say, princess? You make me do some crazy shit."

You only looked at him with raised brows. "My pants stay on until I hear you say it."

"Fine, fine, if my proclamations of undying love aren't enough," he said, shaking his head as he chuckled. He kissed your neck a couple times before you hugged him back by the curls that flopped over his forehead. After a deep exhale, he said, "I was a jealous idiot."

"And?"

Harry narrowed his eyes to green slits at you. "You're enjoying this too much. Fine, I was a jealous idiot and I know you would never make, what did you call it, moony eyes, at a coworker. And I'm sorry for fingering—" he sighed, rubbing an exasperated hand over his face, "for fingering the truth out of you. There. Satisfied?"

You beamed at him. "Very. You may now lead me to the bedroom please and thank you."

He shook his head, but did as you asked, commanded, really, anyway. "You think you run things around here, huh?"

"Think?" you asked, giggling as Harry tossed you onto the bed, following closely behind. "Baby, I know."

You held him close as he peppered your neck and cheek with kisses, laughing a little as he nuzzled you relentlessly. Your clothes and Harry's were quick to come off, both of you eager to finish what was started in the car. At the last second, you paused, a small grin gracing your lips. "So, about those handcuffs?"

Harry's eyes lit up. "Really?"

Nodding, you said, "Gonna make me feel good?"

"The best," he promised, kissing you once before scrambling off the bed.

You got into position, readying yourself for Harry while he rooted through your shared closet for the handcuffs. When he came back, he smiled, the gaze that roved your body nearly as powerful as his touch. When he climbed back onto the bed, he kissed your forehead. "Good girl," he murmured.

You beamed as he clasped the handcuffs around your wrists. God, it was good to be in charge.

#harry styles #hockey player!harry styles #hockeyrry #harry styles blurb #harry styles x reader #harry styles fanfic #harry styles oneshot #harry styles imagine #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles x you #harry styles fluff #harry styles writing #harry styles one shot #harry styles fic

[birdiewriteslit]

“so american”

nico hischier x f!reader

masterlist

inspired by “so american” by olivia rodrigo

warnings: fluff, kissing

can you tell i love nico in a hat

You were sitting in the passenger side of Nico’s car with your feet up on the dash. The window was down, and your arm was hanging out of it, the cool wind blowing your hair around your face.

It was spring, and the weather was just starting to feel like it. It had been cold for the past few weeks, and both you and Nico were happy to finally be able to enjoy semi-warm temperatures.

You loved driving around Jersey with Nico. You loved sneaking glances at him while he was too focused on the road to notice. You loved how warm his hand felt on your thigh. You loved how his t-shirt fit you and how it smelled like him. You also loved that he let you have aux privileges.

Nico frowned at you as one of your country songs came on the playlist. If his brown puppy dog eyes weren’t covered by his dark sunglasses, they would probably be enough to convince you to change the song.

You giggled at his displeasure, consoling him by lacing your fingers through his that rested on your thigh. He seemed to accept this, a small smile on his face as he shook his head.

He gave you one last once over before focusing on the road again. His smile grew wider. “You look so American.”

You let out a surprised noise. “What is that supposed to mean?”

Nico shrugged. “You’re listening to country music, for one. I only ever see people’s feet on the dashboard in movies, very American.”

“You don’t do this in Switzerland? You don’t relax with your hand out the window like this?” you teased, making wave motions with your arm in the wind.

He laughed, squeezing your hand as he did so. “We relax. It’s just different here. I like your Americanness. I guess the exception is that you’re wearing a Swiss’s shirt, which you look very pretty in, by the way,” he said slyly, raising your hand to his lips to kiss it.

You felt your face heat up as you watched the smile that spread across his face as he pulled away. “God, Nico, don’t make me blush.”

But that’s really all he did, it was what he was best at. You knew he loved how flustered he could make you if he wanted to. He loved how after five months of dating, he could still easily make you nervous.

The next day, at brunch with your friends, you expressed your utter happiness, but at a table full of mostly single women, it wasn’t received the way you intended.

“I’m serious when I say that I have never seen a more attractive man in my life. Like, seriously, compare him to any celebrity crush you’ve ever had, and multiply that attractiveness by a thousand,” you babbled mindlessly to your friends, who were giving each other looks. “And, ugh, don’t get me started on his accent. It’s so hot, especially when he talks me through it.”

“I’m gonna stop you right there,” your friend said, holding up her hand, a disgusted look on her face. “Frankly, it’s rude to talk about this during brunch. I mean, right in front of my french toast?” She gestured to her plate.

Another friend snorted. “I hate to say it, Y/n, but I agree. You literally only talk about him anymore. It’s like you’re gonna marry him.”

“I might,” you blurted.

Their eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Are you serious?”

You gave a small nod, suddenly uncomfortable by the amount of eyes one you. “I know it’s early but—“

“But you love him,” one of your married friends sighed. “It certainly sounds like you do,” she added after getting some looks from the other women at the table.

You didn’t respond, instead choosing to remain silent as the conversation steadily flowed away from you. You but the inside of your cheek, thinking about how you definitely loved Nico. You knew this before today, but with your history of failed relationships, you figured taking it slow with him was a good idea.

You weren’t lying about marrying him. If he kept this shit up, you were going to.

That night, you were lying in bed, eyes on the bathroom door, where Nico was on the other side. In your shorts and tank top, you were a little cold, and the top blanket wasn’t doing much for you.

When Nico slept over, you rarely made it under the covers. He naturally ran hot, and if you were covered by more than one blanket, you would literally overheat.

Finally, he came out of the bathroom. He was wearing a Devils t-shirt that was well worn and mostly likely from several seasons ago. He wasn’t wearing pants, his boxers out for you to ogle at, although you knew you shouldn’t.

Nico walked over to his side of the bed, stopping before he climbed under the blanket to pick up a book on your nightstand. You’d both read it and come to the conclusion that it was a waste of your good money.

“Why do you still have this?” he asked, showing you the cover. “I can’t believe your friend recommended it.”

“I like reading your notes. I think it’s cute how angry you get,” you admitted.

He set the book down and got into the bed, covering you with his body, instantly warming you up.

Wrapping his arms securely around you, he pressed his face into the crook of your neck. He sighed into your skin, his warm breath fanning out and his stubble tickling you.

He placed small kisses up your neck, trailing along your jaw before capturing your lips with his. Between kisses, he said, “Missed you today.”

Your heart fluttered at his words. “Yeah?” you said, smiling against his lips. “I missed you.”

He pressed one last kiss to your lips before pulling away. He brought a hand up to your face, brushing a piece of hair behind your ear, and stroking your face with his thumb. His lips parted, and his eyes were so big and brown that you genuinely felt like you could lose yourself in them.

“I wish you could come with us when we leave.” Nico was referring to an upcoming roadie. He would be gone for a week.

He was looking at you so sincerely, so vulnerably. “I’ll go anywhere you go,” you whispered.

You knew you couldn’t go with him. It wasn’t realistic. But with the way he was looking at you, you really couldn’t hold back from saying something so sappy.

He glanced down at your lips quickly before meeting your eyes again, his thumb continuing to stroke your cheek. “You would?” he asked softly.

You nodded. “I love you, Nico.”

His eyebrows rose in surprise, like he wasn’t expecting you to say it. His lips parted to speak, but nothing came out.

“Sorry if it’s too soon. I know I’m in love with you,” you spoke quickly. “I don’t wanna just assume that you feel the same about all of it.”

He took your face in his hands and kissed you. When he pulled away, he kept his hands on your cheeks and looked at you meaningfully. “I’ve been wanting to say that for months. Trust me, I feel the same. I love you.”

Your face warmed as he looked deeply into your eyes. You surged forward to kiss him again. You peppered his whole face with kisses, and he laughed as he gripped your waist and flipped the two of you over so that you were on top of him.

He grinned at you when you pulled away, his cheeks rosy and his hair slightly messed. “I don’t think I’ll be getting much sleep tonight,” he said.

Your expression matched his perfectly. “I don’t think so either.”

Even though you didn’t confess that earlier that day, you’d thought about marrying him, this was still just as good.

#birdiewriteslit #birdiewritesfics #nhl #nhl blurb #nhl player x reader #nj devils #nico hischier #nico hischier x reader #nico hischer x reader #nico hischier x y/n #nico hischier x you #nico hischier imagine #nico hischier blurb #nico hischier one shot #nh13 #olivia rodrigo #so american #new jersey devils #hockey imagine

[heavenlyhischier]

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐌𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 - 𝐉𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐇𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐞𝐬

word count: 3.4k

summary: Friends with benefits never worked, especially when that friend had been by your side longer than not, and even more so when both of you were too scared to admit your feelings out loud. While jealousy was a nasty thing, it always brought the truth out.

warnings: implications of smut but no actual smut, kissing, angst, jealous dickhead jack, misunderstandings, pining

For as long as you could remember, you’d spent the majority of your summer with the Hughes’ at their lake house. You’d beg and beg your mom to let you go with them, even though she said yes every time. You’d spend the week before you were supposed to leave with them packing and making sure you brought everything you thought you could possibly need. Jack had always poked fun at you and called you an over packer, but you told him you like to think of it as better prepared for any disaster that could potentially happen.

Now that you were older, not much had changed in most of those aspects. You still asked your mom to ensure that nothing was occurring over summer that you couldn’t miss, and you still very much overpacked. However, there were two small differences now. The lake house you visited now belonged to Jack and Quinn as opposed to their parents, yet you still visited them as often as you could, and your relationship with Jack was a bit different.

After one drunken night during your week-long visit to Jersey, you found yourself tangled in his sheets and woke up the following morning in his arms. You had woken up before Jack, and memories of what occurred only hours ago flooded your mind at a speed that made you dizzy and nauseous. Though maybe that was more courtesy of how much you had drank the prior night. When you tried to slip out of the sheets, his grip on your waist tightened and he pulled you closer into his chest.

“You runnin’ away,” His tired voice vibrated against your shoulder as his thumb caressed the skin of your hip.

“No,” You whispered, hoping he couldn’t hear or feel just how loudly your heart was beating in your chest, “Maybe.”

Jack’s laughter rumbled against your back as he flexed his arm against you, and you couldn’t help but let your body relax against him, your eyes fluttering closed as your breathing steadies. His body was warm against yours, and you let reminders of him pressed against you as he whispered sinful things in your ear fill your head. It was a night you were surely to never forget, but the uncertainty of this morning made the nagging feeling of anxiety linger.

“You can get up if you want,” He mumbled as he began to place small, open mouthed kisses to the skin where your neck and shoulder meet, “Or we can go for round four.”

Needless to say, you didn’t end up leaving Jack’s bed that day until well into the afternoon. From that day on, you were constantly walking a fine line that determined your relationship with him, often straying far off the path into unfamiliar territory when you found yourself in his bed all over again. Neither of you dared to have the conversation of what it meant to the other, instead choosing to live in the moment and just hope and pray that nothing was ruined. But of course, that was wishful thinking and it all came apart at the seams over the summer.

When you arrived at the lake house like you always did every summer, it was the same as every year before. Jack was waiting in the driveway to carry your bags inside and up to the room right beside the one he always claimed as his own. He stayed in your room, perched on the edge of the bed as he talked your ear off while you unpacked your things. However, this time he made subtle, inappropriate comments when you pulled out a bikini or a bra that was a little see through.

His words rang in your ears, a deep blush decorating your cheeks as you shook your head and kept putting your things where you always had. You heard the sound of the bed groan followed by the sound of his footsteps nearing you, and your heart began to thud in your chest. His hand carefully grabbed your hip, turning your body so that you were now facing him with your chest flush against his own.

You peered up at him, your eyes wide as he looked down at you with a smug smirk on his face. His fingers were delicately pressing into the flesh on your hips, his eyes dancing across your face as he slowly leaned forward. It was what he always did when he wanted to kiss you; it was his way of making sure you were okay with it without asking because asking made what the two of you were doing much more real.

“Jack,” You breathed out as his lips ghost over your own, your hands nervously fisting the material of his shirt, “What if someone walks in?”

“They won’t,” He whispers, placing a small kiss to the corner of your mouth,  “You just have to be quiet.”

When you went back downstairs, you avoided eye contact with everyone in fear that they heard the escapades you and Jack were up to only moments prior. None of them seemed to have heard anything, though, based on the way they only stopped their conversations to greet you rather than to give you knowing looks. However, Quinn did glance between you and his brother far too many times for you to not think he didn’t suspect something.

The first couple of weeks of the summer went by as they always did with only a slight change. While everyone still spent a good majority of their time outside or on the water, you and Jack would often sneak away on your own to explore each other's bodies in ways that made you blush to even think about. Every time the boys would drag you to the golf course to be their self appointed cart girl, Jack would leave lingering touches on the curve of your ass or he’d whisper comments in your ear that left you with clenching thighs.

Truthfully, you were surprised that no one had noticed, or at least no one had said anything about it. Your room was directly in between Jack’s and the one that Trevor and Alex shared, and the fact that they hadn’t heard the two of you at night truly baffled you. You did your best to keep quiet, but the bed you slept on creaked with every passing movement and no attempt at fixing it ever worked. Either way, you were grateful your bedroom activities seemed to go undetected.

You never let yourself really think too much on how you felt about Jack, but the more often you found him telling you how beautiful you were, how much he worshiped your body, the harder it got to ignore those feelings. The more often you found yourself encased in his arms, the harder it got to tell yourself that you hadn’t fallen for the boy you’d known almost your entire life. 

“I thought this was supposed to be a few people,” You laughed as you scoured the sea of people for familiar faces.

“That’s what Quinn said, but I’m sure Jack and Trevor went overboard with inviting every girl they met,” Alex laughs as he hands you a drink from the cooler.

There was no stopping the way your chest burned with jealousy as you thought about Jack inviting other girls, but you knew you had no right to feel that way. He wasn’t your boyfriend. Hell, the two of you never even claimed to be exclusive with just each other when it came to hooking up. It was a thought you tried not to dwell on too much because it made bile form in your throat and frustrated tears prick your eyes.

It didn’t help that you hadn’t seen him since people started filtering in through the front door. He had left a little earlier in the day, only telling you that he would be back later, nut he had yet to come back. You had texted him and asked him if he was okay, but your text was left unanswered and that did nothing to cease the nerves twisting and turning in your stomach.

“Yeah, probably,” You forced out, your lips forming a tight line as you looked away from Alex.

You followed him out to the back deck with Cole, doing your best to ignore the anxious nagging in your chest as you mingled with those around you. There were quite a few people you had never met, and you were doing your best to remember whose name was whose, but it was a little difficult when your mind was elsewhere. All you could think about was Jack and the fact that maybe he was too busy with another girl to even remember you. 

It wasn’t long after you had gone outside that everyone migrated to the chairs by the water, but there weren’t enough for each person to have their own seat, so you ended up in Alex’s lap. It wasn’t necessarily uncommon for you to end up in the lap of one of the boys, but it was uncommon for it to be someone other than Jack. Alex was respectful and kept one hand on his drink and the other resting on the arm rest, not touching you in a way that could potentially make you uncomfortable. However, if anyone were to glance at the two of you, you know what assumption they would make.

Everything still felt slightly off without Jack at your side, but you slowly let yourself enjoy what was going on around you rather than think about him and what he was doing. You fell into conversations easily, laughing with the others as they told their stories. Eventually you got tired of sitting straight up and leaned back onto Alex to relax. The both of you knew it meant nothing, but if you were on the outside looking in, it meant you were making a sort of silent declaration to everyone that you were off limits.

Jack had spent the last several hours going to every store he could in search of your favorite drink because he knew how much you hated what they always had at the house. He knew you would never say anything because you never wanted to inconvenience anyone, so he always took it upon himself to get it for you. However, when he had gotten back with Trevor after he finally managed to find it, the last thing he expected to see was you cuddled up against his friend's chest.

“Did you find her– Oh, there she is,” Trevor spoke over the loud music coming from the speakers in the living room, “Is that Alex?”

Jack said nothing in response, instead turning on his heels and going back towards the kitchen with Trevor watching him in confusion. He placed the drink he had grabbed for you back in the fridge, tucked behind whatever items he could use to keep them hidden so no one took them. He grabbed a drink of his own before he silently slipped into the crowd of people, trying to force the image his mind had curated of you underneath a body that wasn’t his own.

You had no idea Jack was back until Alex had gotten up to go play beer pong with one of the other guys and you had made the decision to go back inside. It was Trevor that you saw first as he was leaning against the wall next to some tall redhead you vaguely remember seeing earlier. You furrowed your brows in confusion because if he was back, so was Jack, and that meant that Jack hadn’t bothered to find you or even tell you. 

Your chest tightens as you let your thoughts drift more into the possibility that Jack had found another girl for the night. There was no stopping yourself from searching for him amongst the horde of party goers, standing on your toes to give yourself a better view. You made awkward eye contact with a few people, but you didn’t pay them any mind as you searched for the one person you were looking for. Though the second your gaze finally settled on him, the room began to spin and the voices around you faded into almost nothing.

He had his arm thrown around the shoulders of one of the girls you recognized from the filling station for the boats, a smile on his face as she animatedly talked to him. Your heels fell flat on the ground as you dropped your eyes to the floor, doing your best to keep your emotions at bay as you stood frozen in your spot. It felt like a million needles were poking at your lungs, like someone was wrapping their hands around your throat making it almost impossible to breathe.

You had to force yourself to move, to get away from the situation occurring only a few feet away from you, before you let the thread that was holding you together finally snap. It was pure instinct that moved your feet towards the stairs of the house, and you hoped that your presence would go undetected as you brushed by the group that Jack was in the middle of. 

However, unbeknownst to you, Jack saw you the second you stepped foot inside the house, his eyes drawn to you in the same way a magnet was drawn to metal. He had to make himself look away from you as the girl he had been using as a distraction continued a story he wasn’t really paying attention to. Though, when he saw you slip up the stairs out of the corner of his eye, she was long forgotten as he hastily followed after you before he even knew what he was doing.

Blood was rushing in your ears as you blinked away tears that were pricking the corners of your eyes, the sounds of the party below you fading into nothing but an obnoxious hum. You were oblivious to the sound of Jack’s footsteps behind you as you pushed your way into your room, and you didn’t register the fact that you never heard the sound of the door closing behind you. It wasn’t until you heard him call out your name that you knew you weren’t alone.

You turned on your heels, eyes wide as they meet his own. He carefully shuts the door behind him, taking a few strides until he’s so close to you that you can see the confliction swimming in his gaze. His fingers twitch towards you the same way your own do towards him, but neither of you make an attempt to close the small gap separating you. His eyes are unwavering from your face as if he was trying to get a read on you, trying to figure out what your next move was.

“Did he do something,” Jack asked, a dull anger forming in his chest once he noticed the unshed tears lining your eyes.

“Who,” You sniffled, knitting your brows together in confusion.

“Alex,” He said as if it was the most obvious answer in the world, which it was. To him.

You slightly narrowed your eyes at him, not understanding exactly why he assumed Alex had been the reason for your escape, but then it slowly pieced itself together. Jack must have seen you with Alex when you were outside. He must’ve seen the way you were seated in his lap and made the same assumption many others had, but even then, it confused you. Why would he care if he was off with another girl?

 There was a multitude of emotions filling the room around you, meshing together like an uncomfortable quilt had been thrown over the two of you. His lips were slightly parted as he looks at you, the light filtering in through the window illuminating his face in a way that made him look like he was glowing. It made the desire to surge forward and kiss him almost impossible to suppress. Almost.

“Alex didn’t do anything,” You shook your head, averting your gaze away from his own, “Why do you think he did something?”

Jack nervously clears his throat before speaking, trying to keep his tone as neutral as possible, “You two looked pretty cozy outside, and you looked upset when I saw you, so I just assumed.”

His attempt at appearing indifferent failed miserably, like it always did. Jack had never been very good at hiding his distaste in his body language, and that showed in the way his eyes narrowed and his fist balled at his side even if it was only for a fleeting second. He wore his emotions on his sleeve, but that didn’t mean they made any sense to you. 

“Not sure why you care,” You rolled your eyes as you crossed your arms against your chest, an angry annoyance slowly replacing whatever you had been feeling before, “You looked pretty cozy yourself with fill station girl.”

“At least she wasn’t in my lap practically telling everyone she wanted to fuck me,” He scoffed, his voice clipped and harsh.

“Do you think I would still be up here, with you, if I wanted to fuck Alex,” You snapped, ignoring the way your heart was thudding so loudly in your chest that you wouldn’t be surprised if he could hear it.

“Do you think I would follow you up here if I wanted anything to do with her,” He countered, his gaze fiery and burning into your own.

“Not sure, maybe she wasn’t going to give you what you wanted and you think I will,” You mocked as your voice cracked, a few tears managing to slip down your cheeks.

Jack’s eyes softened the moment he saw your impassive demeanor falter. He slowly and hesitantly brought his hands to your face to cradle your jaw in his palms, “I’m sorry, baby. I’m sorry. I know that I shouldn’t have done that, but seeing you with Alex. I got jealous and angry, even though I shouldn't have.”

His touch is warm as he wipes at the tears on your skin, your entire body heating up as he kept your focus on him. He’s looking at you like he’s waiting for you to tell him exactly what he wants, what he needs to hear. Jack wants you to tell him that he had no reason to get jealous. Not because he had no right, but because it was only him that you wanted.

“You’re right,” You breathe out, hoping that you were reading the situation correctly, “You shouldn’t have done that. I don’t want Alex like that, and I never will, but do you know who I do want?”

He swallows thickly, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he quietly asks, “Who?”

“You.”

Finally, Jack closes the gap between you by slamming his lips on your own in a way that would’ve knocked you over if it hadn’t been for his hold on you. Your hands instinctively fly up to his shirt, fisting the material as you kiss him back, falling into nothing but the way his lips feel on yours. No matter how many times you kissed him, it was like you were experiencing it for the first time all over again.

He carefully walks backwards to your bed, not breaking away from you once as he drops his hands to your hips. He slowly falls back onto the mattress, pulling you onto his lap as you place your knees on either side of his thighs. Your hands find their way up to tangle in his hair, gently tugging on the strands to elicit a quiet groan that vibrates against your mouth. 

“I want you, too,” He mumbles as he begins to kiss down your jaw and to the column of your neck, “I want to tell everyone you’re my girl. I want to be able to kiss you in public. I want all of you.”

“What do I get in return,” You breathlessly tease, your head falling backwards as Jack explores your neck with his mouth.

“You’ve always had me, baby, so you can have whatever you want.”

“Can I drive the boat when you wake surf tomorrow?”

“You can have anything but that.”

#jack hughes #jack hughes imagine #jack hughes x reader #jack hughes fic #nhl imagine #hockey imagine #jack hughes one shot

[scudevils]

GIRL I HAVE THE URGEEEEE FOR DOM!LUKE??? LIKE SUPER JEALOUS LUKE SO PLEASE QUENCH MY THIRST 🙏🏿🫶🏿

poison ivy — LH43

pairing: luke hughes x fem!reader

warnings: smut, unprotected sex, mirror sex, choking, slight orgasm denial, degradation, praise, jealousy, possessive behaviour, swearing, dirty talk (its a lot im sorry), little fluff at the end, not proofread!!

synopsis: *insert the fuck around, find out meme* [3.0k]

a/n: honestly pretty badly written cause i was drunk when i started writing and found it kinda hard to write like harsh dom luke but here we are! 😭😭

luke hand snaked around your neck, calloused hands rough against your skin as it forced your head to look up at him through the mirror. his eyes staring into yours as your head lolled, breaking the eye contact as he thrusts into you, a harsh grip on your hips from his other hand. "i told you to look at me." he punctuated his words with a harder snap of his hips, wearily, you lifted your head to meet his eyes again, your own gone blurry.

he'd always had a thing having you watch when you had sex, telling you how pretty you were when you struggled to look at him, to follow the instructions he gave you, the completely fucked out look on your face, and he wanted you to see that.

and so that why he accept how you were now, head hanging as you refused to look at him, mirror facing the bed. you let out a pitiful whine of his name as he slowed down his strokes, dragging himself in an out of you at an agonising pace, you lifted your head slightly to see him staring down at you through the mirror. "please luke," you pushed your hips back, hoping to get any type of friction that would push you over the edge, though his hand on your body stopped you from getting much.

you were already overstimulated, tired as your legs had gone shaky, going for your third orgasm of the night and luke hadn't even broke a sweat, the only time you cursed the endurance of an athlete.

luke’s fingers tangled their way into your hair, scratching lightly at the roots, forcing your head up and your back to arch as you let out a gasp, he felt you clenching around him, subconsciously or consciously, enjoying the slight tingling sensation in your scalp.

"fuck," you dragged out the word when your eyes met in the mirror, his pupils completely blown as he stared down your body, lips swollen from the marks he’d already engraved in your body. his breath was hoarse, throaty groans being heard as he picked up his pace once again, you could see the way his adams apple bobbled as he tried to keep his composure.

his tongue wet his bottom lip, the sight of the muscles rippling in his arm whilst his hand still held your hair almost enough to make you come right then. you felt him deeper in this new angle, teetering on the edge of your orgasm once again, and god did he know it.

luke released his grip on your hair, your body threatening to fall back against the plush mattress before he wrapped his arm around your abdomen. his hand found your boobs, squeezing the soft, bruised, skin and you swore your knees almost gave out.

you whimpered feeling him twitch inside of you, the sensitivity you felt becoming more and more apparent as he sat stilled inside of you, every move having you hissing, your body begging for more than what he was giving you. "look at you," as he spoke you turned your head up to look at him, luke barely sparing you a glance as he redirected you, back looking at yourself in the mirror.

your cheeks flushed a bright pink, feeling flustered under the attention you were getting, eyes darker with your pupils completely taking over, an animalistic look in them and your hair a mess, bruises littering your neck and collarbone all the way down to your belly. "so pretty like this, fucking perfect.”

you couldn't bring yourself to pay attention to anything but him as he bit on your earlobe gently, placing kisses along your jaw, gauging your reaction. his heavy-lidded gaze sending even more electric shocks through your body, goosebumps forming on the surface. luke’s fingers danced around your jaw for a few moments until they settled on the base of your neck, just sitting there.

you took note of the way the outside of his palm flexed seconds before his fingers stretched out to wrap themselves around your neck and the tips pressed into the skin, ever so lightly restricting your airflow. luke smiled at the vibrations he felt under his hand before pressing an open mouthed kiss to your temple, "look so good with my hand around your throat.”

"please, luke," the begging came out more desperate than you’d anticipated, shocking you at how needy you were for him. the ache between your legs was getting unbearable, worse by every second that passed that luke refused to move inside of you.

you tried your luck again, moving your hips backwards against his body, but it was proved impossible because of how hard his grip was on your abdomen, holding you tightly in place. he let out a laugh at your struggles, his hand that was on your stomach dropping down slightly to circle your clit painfully slowly.

"baby," your eyes found his, a softer edge to his sweet name, a smile on his face as he saw how you were struggling, but it was quickly replaced as he spoke again. "i want you to look at me when you cum." the way he spoke made your head spin; it was just above a whisper and it was as slow as his movements on your clit, just as teasing. "m’not gonna stop there, gonna wait till you forget your own fucking name.”

"luke-“

you felt his hips pulling back, your desperation hitting once he was almost fully out of you, a sudden empty feeling and you were clenching around nothing. "no, no, please," uou could've screamed at him, hit him, your eyes glossed over with tears threatening to spill at the ache between your legs, desperate for the release he was currently robbing you of.

"fuck luke, just let me cum, i’ll do anything,” his eyes met yours in the mirror once again, and you could've swore the second he heard begging like that for him he nearly moaned.

his hand fell back, hips meeting yours at a pace faster than the one before. tears started spilling down your cheeks as you closed your eyes, the feeling of being full once again and every nerve in your body spiked with pleasure. luke’s hand clasped around your throat even harder as a warning sign to keep your eyes on the mirror, more groans coming from falling from his lips. "told you to keep your eyes on me."

luke pulled you back up by your hair again, exposed further in the front of the mirror as your back arched. "such a pretty neck, baby," you felt his breath concentrating on the exposed skin of your neck, admiring his prior work and adding to it as he left open mouthed kisses. "jealous other people get to look at it too." he mumbled against your skin.

"don’t be, i’m all yours,” you spoke in a quiet voice, eyes that were previously screwed shut meeting his eyes in the mirror, attempting not to sound as fucked out broken as you were because of him. his lips ghosted over your neck, just enough for you to feel a smirk forming on them whilst his finger circled your clit.

"everyone should know that, but they don’t apparently-"

"then show them." you cut him off, the finger that was pressed against your clit sank slightly deeper on it, letting you know he was more than happy to hear those words coming from you, in fact he was encouraging it, you held back a moan once his tongue left a wet patch on your neck, sure he could feel your heart thumping underneath it.

luke’s teeth grazed the heated skin on your neck, marks forming from where his fingers dug into you, a reminder for the next few days, for everyone to see like you’d told him to.

you choked out a moan, luke’s lips enclosing around the skin that wasn't held by his teeth. he used another finger to add a firmer pressure to your clit, starting to move inside of you again as the sting on your neck faded.

your eyes closed against, revelling in the feeling of all your other senses being heightened; the feeling of his fingers pressing against your clit and the way he rolled his hips to meet yours, his other hand gripping your waist possessively. your arm wrapping round to bury in the strands of his curls the other holding onto his muscular thigh, all while the nerves in your neck sent signals of pain and ecstasy to your brain.

the fusion of it all left you weak.

you were surprised luke had gone so long letting you close your eyes, as if on cue the feeling of his hand tapping your thigh lightly caused you to open them, seeing him already looking at you with glazed over eyes, his usually dark eyes a shade darker before he went back to attacking your neck.

"luke, please, i'm gonna cum," you cried out, his name falling from your mouth with a loud moan, whines and whimpers following after. the filthy sounding pop of his mouth detaching from your neck followed soon after and he groaned against you before biting down on a spot near the one he had just marked. “please, can i?"

luke held onto your chin with two fingers, pushing upwards, anf forcing eye contact. you swallowed harshly when your eyes met, aware of the tone used in these situations. his lips grazed over the shell of your ear, so close you could feel the brush of his lips. "who do you belong to?"

his eyebrow rose in anticipation of your answer and his facial features had become sharper due to your delayed answer. it hadn’t dawned on you until then what this whole thing had been about. then the memories came back to you, the way the team had been out celebrating a big win and they’d all had a little to much to drink, one of his teammates getting a little too flirty for luke’s liking.

luke already short patience was waining with your lack of answer, rolling his eyes when he pressed his thumb to your lips. you couldn't help yourself but press your thighs together, half of you wanting to refuse to answer, following the simple logic of; if i piss him off further, he'll fuck me harder and the other half just wanting to come as quick as possible.

"answer me," luke’s hand found its place back wrapped around your neck, tighter than before and sure to leave marks that would cause a few people to worry if they seen it. you bit your lip as an attempt to stop a moan from escaping, but you failed miserably when he held the eye contact.

your teeth sank into your bottom lip, enjoying this more than you knew you should, the finger luke had on your clit speeding up when you couldn't hide the whine. "you, luke, fuck," you needed more than he was giving you, rolling your hips in an attempt for more friction when he stopped you with a harsher thrust.

you chased your high, luke temporarily loosening the hold he had on your waist, allowing your hips to grind down on him. you were so close, and he could feel it too, the way you clenched around him was unmistakable. and just just as you could feel yourself building up to it, luke’s hand on your waist returned. "fuck off luke!"

he let out a low laugh, finding how willing you were to do anything to get your release more attractive than he should.

"you're so pretty." luke smirked as he spoke, seeing the annoyance growing in your face, but still your cheeks flushed at the simple compliment. he let his thumb rest on your bottom lip. you groaned, taking the tip of his thumb in your mouth just as you would if you were sucking him off, luke’s muscles twitching at the thought.

he grabbed the back of your neck with one hand and pulling you backwards towards him roughly. the movement was successful as your mouths clashed, your teeth sank into his bottom lip for a moment before you opened your mouth further, trying to gain access into his own with your tongue.

luke’s hips began moving again, his hand around your neck moving to circle your clit, letting your body hunch over again, no energy left to lift yourself up. "fuck, do you think he could fuck you better? think he could get you this wet?"

you tried to speak, but you could barely manage to connect two coherent thoughts in your brain, let alone voice them without producing gibberish. all you could feel was electrifying pleasure that came with every thrust of his cock inside of you, barely keeping your eyes open but still registering his burning gaze on you.

you started to bounce back on him without giving it a thought, your body reacting to luke almost instinctively and providing an answer to his question. you enjoyed him stretching you out and the slight pain that came with it a bit too much, muscles in your stomach tightening already as you rushed to your orgasm.

one last time he tightened the grip on your hair, forcing your head up to look at him. "keep your eyes on me, i want to see your face when you come." he bit his lip feeling his own release only minutes away and he could feel his hips faltering, a small moan leaving his own lips. "tell me your mine,”

"only yours, luke," you managed to let out in a whimper once you felt the start of your orgasm clouding your vision, seeing white and letting out sounds and words you couldn't make out in the peak of pure pleasure. "don't fucking stop."

luke groaned, still pounding deep into you, fingers gripping your hair into a loose ponytail and pulling your head back. "let everyone know how good you feel," you felt him stretching you with every move, no matter how many times you were together. luke made whimpers and curses spilling out from your throat uncontrollably each and every time.

he pushed deeper inside of you, his fingers dipped down to circle your swollen clot, drawing out even more loud and obscene sounds. in less than a minute you went from desperate squirming to another orgasm with no time to recover. you felt your entire body trembling, a feeling of control no longer present, but still luke’s fast pace never slowed.

"were so desperate for it, know you can take it.” luke’s hand reached for yours, in direct juxtaposition to his words and you realised just how close he was too, he was in the same predicament desperate to his own release. his hips stuttered for a few seconds when he tilted your head to kiss him, lips soft, no rush as he savoured the moment and feeling. your moans were swallowed by luke, his being lost between your lips.

luke flipped you over to your back, wanting to see only your face when you both came and not through a mirror. "shit, i'm so close." he leant down to take your lips between his, involuntary moaning into the kiss as your arms wrapped round his neck, bringing him chest to chest with you.

your foreheads were placed together, both working your bodies in sync to reach your mutual goal.

panting out through clenched teeth, luke tossed his head back in pleasure, he was covered in a light sheen of sweat with flushed cheeks. his whole body tingled due to the overlapping sensations that were currently taking over him.

his release spurred on your own, thighs shaking as he whispered sweet nothings to you, not nearly as intense as your last two. uke praising you as your arms wrapped tighter around his neck, moaning out his name and a list of profanities.

luke moaned against your skin as you clenched around him, the aftershock of you orgasm hitting both of you, drawing the smallest of whimpers from his lips. his hands squeezed your hips, over the marks that were already starting to develop.

he ignored the feeling of his own body aching, cock feeling over stimulated as he continued help you ride out the last of of your high, helping you through the pleasure.

you tried to catch your breath, chest heaving as small murmurs and whimpers left you. unlike before, your eyes were screwed shut tight but your lips were smiling. a silent sign to luke that you were doing okay, you didn’t need to verbalise it.

he kissed all over your face, making up the lack of affection before with small pecks on your cheeks, wanting to give you a minute before speaking to him, your chest still rising and falling like you'd ran a marathon.

luke rolled off of you, bringing you in close to his chest when you lay your arm across his midriff. “you okay? didn’t hurt you did i?”

you let out a small laugh, your cheeks still burning as you lifted your head up to face him, seeing luke already looking down at you with concern in his eyes. "i'm more than okay, and you didn’t hurt me, i liked it.”

his cheeks had their own tinge of pink to them, his hair stuck to his forehead with a thin layer of sweat. you melted into his touch as always, letting him pull you in for a tender kiss, nothing like the ones you had just shared.

#luke hughes #luke hughes smut #luke hughes imagine #luke hughes fic #luke hughes x reader #luke hughes oneshot #hockey imagine #hockey one shot #hockey smut #nhl smut #nhl imagine #nhl fic #scudevils

[jackhues]

how'd you make it? - mockingbird! au (platonic! hughes)

requested by: @toasttt11 , anon :)) - combined two bcz they fit rlly well

notes: continue sending in requests for the au! check out the request rules below! thanks for requesting <3 this ones got a focus on luke, but there's a cute quinn moment! ALSO, there's a cute surprise in this one, hope you guys like it (takes place in summer '24)

likes are good, reblogs are better <33

mockingbird! au request rules!|| mockingbird au! masterlist

gif not mine

"go back outside," you laughed, shoving jack's face away from yours.

you were at the hughes' lake house for the summer, spending most of your time wakesurfing, swimming, and hanging out on the boat. today was the one day you wanted to stay inside on the couch and finish the book you'd bought while the boys had the day to themselves.

of course, jack had other plans.

"i don't wanna," he groaned, plopping down on top of you.

"jack!" you laughed, trying to shove him off of you. finally, you gave up, putting your book to the side to let jack lay on top of you.

"why don't you wanna go outside?" you asked him softly.

"because i wanna spend time with you," he answered simply. "quinn went out with his girlfriend to that chinese place for lunch, and it's awkward being the only one with luke and his girlfriend. they're like... weird hormonal teenagers."

"oh, so it's because your brothers are gone that you're spending time with me," you rolled your eyes, laughing a bit.

"even without that, i'd still wanna be with you," he answered in a matter-of-fact voice. "it's why i'm gonna marry you."

"jack, stop making me blush," you hit his shoulder lightly.

"what," he laughed, pulling away. "there's a ring on your finger for a reason."

you smiled, admiring the way he looked at you with such adoration in his eyes. he acted like it was so simple. like he wanted to spend the rest of his life with you, and that was that. in some case, you supposed it was simple.

before meeting jack, you wouldn't have been able to imagine something like that, let alone believe someone could love you that much. but he changed that.

and you loved him so much for it.

"you're thinking," he said, getting up off of you and helping you sit up. "is it good or bad?"

"it's good," you promised. "i'm just thinking about how much i love you."

he grinned stupidly at that answer, "well of course you do. with these killer looks, how could you not?"

"you're such an-"

"luke! luke, what's wrong?"

your laughter was cut off as luke marched angrily past you and up the stairs and towards his room. behind him, ellen followed.

"i don't wanna talk," luke called, causing ellen to stop.

you and jack got up from the couch, making your way to the base of the stairs by ellen.

"what's wrong?" you asked. "why'd he storm up to his room?"

"i have no idea," ellen sighed tiredly. "he just came inside looking all mad, and then ran up."

jack furrowed his brows, "i thought he was outside with his girlfriend."

"did something happen with them, maybe?" you asked.

"i don't know," ellen muttered. she looked up the stairs, where luke had headed. "i'm going to go check on him. you two don't worry about him, i'll make sure he's okay."

you and jack nodded, letting ellen check on luke.

"are we sure it's not something bad?" jack asked you. "what if he's really upset over something?"

"ellen went to check on him," you reminded him. "it's better not to overwhelm him right now. we can go check on him afterwards if you want."

jack nodded, agreeing. "yeah, you're right."

the two of you headed towards the kitchen to take out your lunch. you and jack took a seat on the table, across of jim.

"did you finish your book yet?" he asked you.

"i would've, but someone didn't let me," you sent jack a look.

he held his hands up, a guilty look on his face.

jim looked up as ellen made her way back down. "any luck with luke?"

"he's asking for y/n," she said, looking at you. "honey, could you go upstairs and see what's going on?"

"yeah, of course," you answered, a little shocked.

jack squeezed your hand as you walked by, heading up to luke's room. you knocked on the door, waiting for an answer.

"go away," he muttered from the other side.

"luke, it's me," you called. "ellen said you wanted to talk to me."

you heard some shuffling, before luke said softly, "you can come in."

you opened the door, finding luke sitting on the floor next to his bed. he sat against the wall, his knees folded up to his chest and his head down. he didn't even look up as you entered.

"hi lukey," you said softly, sitting next to him. "you okay?"

luke sniffed, looking up at you with red rimmed eyes. "not really."

"c'mere," you muttered, pulling his head into your lap.

luke lay his head down, allowing you to softly run your fingers through his curls. his tears slowly subsided, and you waited calmly as he built up the courage to talk.

"how'd you stay with jack?" he asked finally. "like, it's been five years, and you guys are getting married in a few months, and not once have you guys even thought about breaking up. how?"

you pursed your lips, pondering the question. truth was, it took a long time for you to be this open and accepting to jack's love. you'd never received that same love as a kid, and never imagined to receive it as an adult.

"it's not easy," you answered him finally. "we were young, eighteen year olds when we met. i never even had a boyfriend before him. and then jack was some famous nhl player, and everyone knew him, and everyone hated that i was with him. but... honestly, we grew up together. we matured together. we made mistakes, but we learned to communicate and understand each other. it takes a lot, but we managed somehow."

you ran a hand through luke's curls, "i'm gonna take a wild guess and say something happened with you and your girlfriend. am i right?"

luke nodded sadly. "she-- she cheated on me. and then, and then she just said it like it was nothing. and then she started talking bad about you and jack, about how you guys probably aren't even a real couple, and i just-- i got mad. i told her she can go and do whatever she wants because i'm done." he looked up at you, "did i make a mistake?"

"no, no, you didn't," you assured him. "cheating's a choice, one that she made. when i said jack and i didn't have it easy, that's not what i meant. i meant that we both had things to work on in the start of our relationship. he was dealing with a lot of stuff with his rookie year, and i was still learning what a healthy relationship looks like. we worked on our relationship together."

"thanks, y/n," he smiled, closing his eyes a little. "that helps."

"anytime lukey," you smiled. "anytime."

--

outside the door, quinn smiled to himself.

he was walking past the room after his date, hearing your and luke's conversation. he'd spent the last four years doing everything to show you that you were family, that you were part of the hughes.

he was happy to see that you were believing it.

---

tags: @woodruff-edwards , @austinbutlerscaresme , @svechnikovvv ,  @hockeyboysarehot , @jimothystu, @mysticaldonkey ,  @lam-ila ,  @babydollmarauders , @starjoyyy , @kjohnson-91  , @moldenhauers, @hischierdevils, @jackhughesily , @panarin10 , @equallyshaw , @power2myheart , @lynnismypseudonym , @beccaiscold , @akengii , @nowandkei , @cinnamonpancakes ,  @mitchymainer ,  @lifeofpriya , @marshmallow-babe, @hughesx3 , @emsully2002  ,  @starsandhughes , @huggy-hischier73 ,  @doglady5678 , @thatoneblog , @exonct07 @hughesmedicine , @qwanelledingele , @mindless-rock , @ireadthensuetheauthors , @huggy-hischier94, @slaythehousedownboots , @diary-of-jj , @fandom-oneshots-etc , @ajbird18 , @cherrysodadevils , @cixrosie , @iikximii , @xcicix , @wbkz3gras , @cole-mcward48 , @starjoyyy , @eagerkya , @idontlikelizards , @trevzeags11 , @al-lie-cat , @kjohnson-91 , @bitchy55 , @privatemythss

join my taglist!

#naqia's au's! #mockingbird au! #naqia writes! #jack hughes #jack hughes imagine #jack hughes imagines #jack hughes blurb #luke hughes #quinn hughes #platonic!reader #platonic #hughes family #hughes brothers #jack hughes x reader #jack hughes x y/n #hockey #hockey one shot #hockey fic #hockey imagine #nhl one shot #nhl imagine #nhl fic

[chickensaladquinn]

Chicken Salad Quinn pt 9 - Day with Mommy

Other Parts: Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3 Pt. 4 Pt. 5 Pt. 6 Pt. 7 Pt. 8

an: I've been in a been of a slump coming out with the next few parts, so here's a random little spinoff about Quinn hanging out with mommy. We'll be getting back to the Y/n storyline shortly <3

It was finally the off season, and Quinn could not be more excited to be spending his time back at the Hughes' lake house. His days were full of golfing, going out on the boat, hanging out with all of his hockey friends, but most importantly, he got to eat fresh chicken salad directly from mommy every single day.

Mommy always rolled her eyes at her sons love for chicken salad, but both she and Quinn knew that it was all a ruse. She secretly cherished her mommas boy always coming to her for her famous chicken salad. As a mom with three boys who were all grown up, it was rare to feel needed. But Quinn always came around to make mommy feel better.

One night, Quinn couldn't sleep, so he made his way down to the kitchen to grab a little late night snack (chicken salad, of course). As he tip-toed into the kitchen, he was shocked to see that it was already occupied. Mommy was still up.

"Hey there Quinny, coming to get some chicken salad?" she inquired. Quinn nodded blushing lightly. Mommy gave him a smile and handed him a bowl of the white, mayonnaise filled, oniony goodness.

"You know, I was thinking," she started, "maybe I could teach you my recipe. That way if a shipment ever goes bad again like last season, you'll be able to make it yourself. Then you won't have to settle for chicken salad chick."

Quinn's eyes widened. "You mean, your world famous, secret family recipe? That you've never shared with anyone? EVER?!?" Quinn was shocked that she would even bring it up. He was a little nervous, too. Would he ever be able to make it like mommy?

"You have to swear on Luke and Jack that you'll never share this recipe with anyone, no matter what," mommy said, eyes narrowed. Quinn nodded eagerly, not bothering that to tell mommy that he would swear his brothers away for a chicken nugget. He knew he would take this recipe to his grave, no matter who or what he swore on.

"Come on, dear. Let's first gather our ingredients."

And so Quinn and mommy spent the late hours of the night working away in the kitchen, mommy guiding Quinn through every step carefully. Quinn listened intently, hoping to soak up as much mommy knowledge as he could.

When they were finished, they beheld their giant bowl of chicken salad. The way it glistened in the fluorescent lights of the lake house kitchen nearly brought a tear to Quinn's eye. It truly was beautiful.

Just as Quinn reigned his tear in, he heard a sniffle coming from beside him. He looked over and what he saw nearly broke his heart into pieces.

Mommy has tears streaming down her face. She tried to dab them away with a napkin but they were falling too fast for her to catch them.

Quinn pulled her into his signature Huggy Bear embrace and asked her what was wrong.

"Now that you can do it yourself, there's no need for me anymore. My boys don't need me." Mommy broke down into sobs. Quinn guided her to the table and sat her down. He sat right across from her and took both of her hands into his.

He looked down and started to cry as well. These small, delicate hands had held him and his brother for years. They had brought them up and made them into the man that he was, that all the Hughes boys were. These hands that had played the game themselves, that had taught him much of what he knows, were now trembling with the sobs of the one person that Quinn knew would always be cheering him on.

"Mommy, listen to me." Quinn said, his voice thick with emotion, "There's no one that gives hugs like you. There's no one who puts on rash cream like you. There's no one that makes chicken salad better than you. I may have learned all these things from you, but they can't have the mommy touch when I do them. I'll always need you."

Mommy took a deep breath and smiled at her boy. They hugged for a long time, then packed up their chicken salad. Quinn walked mommy to her room and patted her on the back, reminding her that she would always be his one and only mommy, no matter what happened.

#quinn hughes #quinn hughes imagine #quinn hughes x reader #jack hughes #chicken salad recipe #chicken salad recipet #quinn hughes imagines #hughes brothers #trevor zegras #vancover canucks #vancouver canucks #cole caufield #auston matthews #hockey one shot #st louis blues #jack hughes imagines #hockey imagines

[puckinghischier]

Nervous

Jack Hughes x fem!reader, smitten!Jack

summary: request for jack and reader on their wedding day

notes: this is my first time writing anything for jack and i literally had so much fun with it. i hope you guys like it 😌

[2.6k]

~

Jack had never been this nervous before. Not during nationals games, not on his draft day, not on the night of his rookie debut, and not in any circumstance that he can remember. Ever. He’s not usually the type to dwell on feelings of nerves, trusting his skill and his ability to focus on the task at hand to get the job done.

Today, though, is the most nerve-wracking day of his life. It’s his wedding day, for crying out loud. The day he gets to marry the girl that has been there for every major event of his life. The girl that has never missed a Devil’s home game. The girl that he’s pretty sure his family loves more than him. The girl that has stuck by him through every hardship and crazy hockey season so far. His girl. The girl he gets to make his wife.

Hell, he wasn’t even this nervous when he asked you to marry him. He recalls the day as if it happened mere hours ago, not a year and a half earlier.

“Jack, where are we going? I thought you said you had an event with the team tonight? You’re going to be late,” you ask, noticing you’re driving further and further away from the city.

You had been doing laundry, trying to get ahead on some chores you had been neglecting, when Jack had come into the living room and told you to put your shoes on, he wanted to take you somewhere. You had asked him where, and if you needed to change, but he simply shook his head no and told you it was a surprise. This wasn’t anything out of the ordinary for Jack. You just assumed he found a new ice cream place he thought you would love, or some quaint little coffee shop he knew you’d like.

You didn’t think anything of it until you found yourself watching the city disappear into the distance almost forty-five minutes later, no destination in sight.

“We’re almost there, darling. Don’t worry that pretty little head of yours,” is all he said, taking his eyes off the road for only a moment to flash one of his soft smiles in your direction before continuing to drive.

You sit in the comfortable silence, a slow country ballad playing softly on the radio. Jack’s hand resting on your thigh adding a much-needed warmth to your body, not having grabbed a jacket before Jack dragged you out of your shared apartment. You watch the road around you become surrounded by trees, admiring the greenery that seems so hard to come by in the city.

Before you realize it, too lost in your own thoughts, Jack is turning off of the paved road you were traveling onto a dirt road, clouds of dust billowing behind the car. You lean forward a bit, trying to take in the scenery to find any sort of clue as to where you were. You’re just about to ask where he’s taking you, yet again, when you see the most beautiful scene appear through the windshield.

At the end of the road stood a large red barn, aged in all the right ways. The red was slightly faded, showcasing the years of sun damage and there were pieces of the shingled roof missing, lost in the wind who knows how long ago. Off to the left of the barn was a large area surrounded by a wooden fence, a few horses grazing on the bright green grass. The sun was just beginning to set, causing one side of the barn to be coated in golden sunlight, the other side blanketed in a shadow. As Jack turned the car to enter the field where the barn sat, you noticed the obscene number of lights strung high into the trees covered by the shadow of the barn, giving the effect that little drops of sunlight were dripping from the limbs.

“Jack…what- where are we?” You ask him, disbelief lacing your tone.

“Just a little place I stumbled across with Luke one day. We were out for a drive, just wanting out of the city for a few hours. Found this place and instantly thought of you. Knew I had to bring you here,” he reveals, parking the car and turning off the engine.

Jack opens his door to get out of the car and quickly moves to open yours, taking your hand while leading the two of you over to the forest of lights. You’re so busy looking up at the sight in the trees that you miss the large, wooden arch set up in the middle of the two biggest trees in the mini forest. There were a few hay-bales on each side of the arch, large bouquets of white daisies placed all over the bales, with some even bunched around the top corners of the square arch.

Once you take in the scene in front of you, you turn your head to look at Jack, finding his eyes already on you.

“Jack, you have about three seconds to tell me what’s going on here,” you calmly tell him, even though your stomach felt like it was doing summersaults.

“I told you, I wanted to show this place to you. Thought you’d like it.” His lips curled into an amused smile once he noticed the glare on your face, knowing you were calling his bluff.

“I wanted to show you this place, because I knew you’d like it. Because I know you. How lucky I am to know you,” he begins, slowly moving you forward until you’re standing directly in front of the arch.

“How lucky I am that I’m the person you chose to trust with your heart. How lucky I am to be able to come home to you after a hard day. How lucky I am to be the recipient of your kindness and your love. How lucky I am to bask in your happiness and your spirit day after day. How lucky I am that you put up with the crazy world I live in, and do it without complaint.”

Your hands were starting to shake at this point, eyes watering.

“What I did to deserve all of this, I’ll never know. But I know I’ll never take it for granted. I’ll never take you for granted. And if you’ll let me, I’ll spend every day of the rest of our lives telling you how thankful I am to whatever celestial being lead me to you,” Jack pauses, dropping to his knee and fishing around in his pocket for the velvet box he’s had hidden in a pair of old skates in the closet for months now.

“You are pure sunshine, shining light on every single person you meet. Y/N Y/L/N, please, let me live the rest of my life sunburnt. Marry Me.”

That was the easy part. Asking you to marry him was the quickest and easiest decision Jack had ever made in his life. He hadn’t thought twice when he called Luke on a random Thursday afternoon, telling him he needed to help him run some “errands”, driving to the nearest jeweler as soon as Luke sat in his passengers seat. Didn’t even hesitate when he called your best friend, asking if you had ever talked about what your favorite diamond cut was. Not a nerve in sight when he flew out to meet your parents to ask for their blessing two months before proposing, claiming he was just making a quick trip to visit some friends.

So why? Why was he so nervous today? He’s been looking at himself in the mirror for twenty minutes now, worried that his bow tie is crooked, or that his hair looks too messy. He didn’t know why he was so focused on his appearance. You’ve seen him at his worst. You’ve been there to take care of him after far too many drinks on a night out celebrating a win, hair stuck to his forehead with sweat, head buried in the closest toilet. You’ve seen him after a brutal game, face red from exertion and weird imprints all over his body from his gear. You’ve seen him when he broke down after his first loss during his rookie year, putting all the blame on himself, holding him in your arms as he sobbed in your kitchen.

He knew you didn’t care if a few hairs were out of place, or if his tie was a centimeter too far to the left. But he did. He cared, because this was the most important day of his life, and you deserved for him to look his best. You deserved for him to make sure everything was perfect.

Jack is pulled from his thoughts by a knock at the door, Luke and Quinn making their way into the room.

“Ready, Rowdy?” Quinn asks, going to stand behind Jack in the mirror.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Jack responds, turning to look at his two brothers, forcing a smile that’s supposed hide all of his nervous emotions.

“Are you sure? Why do you look like you’re about to vomit, then?”

“I don’t? Do I? Oh god, what if she thinks there’s something wrong when she sees me? How do I make myself look like I’m not gonna hurl all over her dress. Luke, do I really look like I’m gonna blow chunks?” Jack frantically asks, looking between the two brothers, turning back around to look at himself in the mirror once again.

“Jack, breathe, man. You look fine. Luke was just being Luke. He doesn’t look like he’s going to vomit, right, Luke?” Quinn attempts to calm Jack, glaring at Luke.

“Yeah, I didn’t mean it. Sorry, Jack. You look fine. She’s probably gonna want to jump your bones or some shit. You look great.” Luke blurts, trying to not only escape the wrath of his eldest brother, but to keep Jack from actually vomiting.

“Okay, not what I meant but whatever works, I guess.” Quinn sighs, placing his hands on Jack’s shoulders to turn him back around.

“Listen, everything’s going to be fine. We just went to see Y/N, she’s nervous just like you are. I don’t know why, you’re both so painfully obvious with how much you love each other. There’s nothing for you to worry about. She loves you, man. More than I’ve seen someone love another person. As long as you’re standing there waiting on her at the end of the aisle, you could be covered in dog shit for all she cares. She just wants to see you. She just wants to marry you.”

Jack stares at his older brother, letting the words sink in. His thoughts drift to you, only three doors down, standing in your dress looking into the mirror just like he is, freaking out over things that don’t truly matter to him. He thinks about how you could walk down the aisle, hair un-brushed, pajamas still on, slippers on your feet and he would still be ecstatic to see you.

“You’re right, Q. Of course you’re right. I knew I chose you to be my best man for a reason,” Jack chuckles, feeling his nerves settle a bit.

“I know I’m right. I know you. And I know Y/N. As long as the two of you leave here today with the same last name, everything else could go wrong and you would still be the happiest couple I know,” Quinn removes his hands from Jack’s shoulders.

“But, nothing is going to go wrong, because Mom has been out there running around like a madwoman to make sure everything is in place. The only thing left is to make sure you get to the altar. Which is what we were sent here to do,” Luke chimes in, trying to assure his brother one last time.

“Alright. Yeah. I guess it’s time, huh?”

“It’s time, Rowdy. And it’s been a long time coming.” Quinn pats Jack on the back, the three brothers making their way towards the door that was left open.

Jack smiles at his brother’s statement, knowing you’re just as much a part of his brother’s lives as you are his. You watch every single one of Quinn’s hockey games (as long as he’s not playing at the same time as Jack and Luke) and scream loud enough for the neighbors to complain. You were there at Jack’s side for Luke’s draft day, just as proud, if not more, of the youngest Hughes. You always invite Luke over for a post-game dinner, knowing how tired he is after games and wanting to make sure he gets a meal before he goes home and claims he’s too tired to eat dinner. He knows you hold a special place in his mom’s heart, too. Her claim that you’re the daughter she never had proving to be true through this whole process, knowing she’s been involved in every step of this wedding right along side your mom and yourself.

Before Jack knows it, the ceremony is beginning and he’s being given the signal to make his way to the altar, standing next to his groomsmen as he waits for you to walk through those doors.

As he looks out over the crowd, he finds himself growing nervous once again. Did he put on enough cologne? Did he bring the right kind? What if he wasn’t wearing the one you told him was your favorite? Did he brush his teeth? What if he kisses you for the first time as your husband and his breath tastes like the burger he had for lunch? Oh god, what if you don’t want to kiss him because he has burger breath?

Quinn can sense the nervous energy radiating off of his brother once again. He places his hand on Jack’s back, giving him a few pats to let him know he’s right there next to him. That everything’s going to be okay.

Jack looks over at his brother only briefly before he hears the unmistakable tune of “In Case You Didn’t Know” by Brett Young start playing through the speakers. It’s Jack’s song for you. He plays it all the time when you’re in the car together, not even trying to be subtle. He loves to send it to you when he’s on the road, letting you know he’s thinking about you. There was absolutely no question in your mind as to what song you were going to choose when your mom asked what you wanted to walk down the aisle to.

He snaps his attention to the double doors that open at the other end of the large room. His stomach is in knots, really hoping he doesn’t actually look like he’s about to puke, because he sure feels like it right now.

As he watches the first flash of white make an appearance in the doorway, he knows he’s a goner.

You step into his full view, hand wrapped around your father’s arm, looking around at the various guests for only a split second before your eyes meet his. Jack swears, all time stops in that second. He can barely see through the tears that well in his eyes, completely in awe of you. You match his gaze, forcing yourself to keep the tears from dropping, not wanting to have mascara streaks running down your face before you even get to the altar.

The two of you simply stare at one another for what seems like an eternity. An unspoken declaration of love passed between one another in a simple glance. Your father having to tug on your arm slightly, forcing you to step forward, too lost in Jack for you to remember where you were and what was currently taking place.

As you start to walk down the aisle, every step bringing you towards Jack, towards the rest of your life with him, the feeling of calmness washes over his body. You’re here. You’re his. And you’re everything he has ever wanted and more. It’s in this moment, watching the rest of his life walk towards him, smile on her face, a single tear slipping down her cheek, Jack Hughes has never been less nervous in his life.

#jack hughes x reader #jack hughes blurb #jack hughes #jack hughes fanfic #jack hughes fanfiction #jack hughes one shot #jack hughes x y/n #jack hughes x you #luke hughes #quinn hughes #new jersey devils #hockey fic #hockey imagine #hockey #nhl x reader #nhl blurb #nhl oneshot #nhl imagine #nhl fanfic #nhl fic #nhl fanfiction #nhl players #nhl #nhl hockey

[equallyshaw]

blue moon, insta edit w mat barzal. imagine link:

—

@lucy.barzal: from then to now…what a difference 2 years can make 🤍 #BarzalTime

Tag: matbarzal

Location: the plaza hotel

•

@lucybestfriend: YOURE OFFICIALLY A MRS

@lucybestfriend: I CANT HANDLE IT

@devonsimons: no longer a simon big sis 🥲

↳ @lucy.barzal: I love u forever little buddy 🫶🏻

@joshuasimon: party. Of. The. Century.

↳ @matildasimon-hanks: RUDE

↳ @lucy.barzal: I’m biased now so I can’t support u hehe

@matbarzal: my love forever and ever 🤍

↳ @lucy.barzal: 🥹🥹

↳ @lianabarzal: ew gross

↳ @deconsimons: tell me about it lol

@anderslee: so much fun, congrats you two kids 🥳

↳ @lucy.barzal: Thankyou LEE!

↳ titobeauvi91: favs

↳ @emmasimard: LOVE YOU

↳ @lucy.barzal: uh that’s awkward, @mattmartin and @sydneymartin are my favs ….

↳ @mattmartin: take that Tito

@tysonjost: congrats buds

↳ @lucy.barzal: feel so honored by your presence 🫡

↳ @tysonjost: u should be

@victorsimon: congrats you two! Welcome to the fam @matbarzal

↳ @matbarzal: so grateful for you all !

—

@matbarzal: mannnnn, am i a lucky husband #BarzalTime

Tag: Lucy.barzal

Location: the plaza hotel

•

@lucy.barzal: FIRST COMMENT

@lucy.barzal: CAN U FOLLOW & LIKE

↳ @titobeauvi91: we love a good troll

↳ @tysonjost: ur a little pest

@anderslee: king 👑

@joshuasimon: welcome tot he fam bro !

↳ @matbarzal: we still need a re do on that game

↳ @joshuasimon: still amazed I beat you

↳ @matbarzal: don’t remind me

@matildasimon-hanks: congrats you two!!! Can’t wait for Hawaii in Jan! 🤞🏻

↳ @lucy.barzal: only you would wish mat to not make all star💀

↳ @matbarzal: atleast she’s honest lolol

@devonsimon: FaceTime soon?¿ ft soon?

↳ @matbarzal: ft soon.

@devonsimon: u got games on ur phone?

↳ @mattmartin: simon = professional trollers

—

Hope you all enjoyed! I don’t really know everybody on the islanders so I hope I got everybody right lol

Please like a repost!

random tags: @matbaerzal @barzysunflower @barzal @rosesvioletshardy @canuckshuggy @bitchinbarzal @andreburakozy @jayda12

#mat barzal #mat barzal x oc #mat barzal imagine #nhl #hockey #nhl imagine #hockey imagine #nhl one shot #hockey one shot #New York Islanders #equallyshaw masterlist