#went to a hockey game!!! my first in person it was so fun

[tennessoui]

bestie it’s become a habit to check your blog everyday so when you go MIA for a sec I’m like woah my routine !! happy galentines and find love vicariously through the two boys lol

galentines was fun and bedazzling was even more fun (I bedazzled my ibuprofen bottle which is a Look)

today has been incredibly sports heavy but back to usual posting tomorrow!! 🫡

#asks #went to a hockey game!!! my first in person it was so fun #but my team lost in overtime with 4.8 seconds left before a shootout #very sad :( #I never have a sports day I’m literally entering a new era #I bought a ball cap #who am I

[sc0tters]

Three’s the Crowd | Nick Moldenhauer & Luca Fantilli

summary: at a team party two boys get the chance to have you, but what happens when you want them both?

request: yes/no

warnings: sexual themes, p in v, oral (m and fem receiving!), mild degradation, threesome, swearing.

word count: 5.02k

authors note: the Nick and Luca threesome is finally here and I’m embarrassed to admit how long it took me… @fantillisdaylight thank you for trusting me with this idea and I hope I have done it justice! this one gets hot people, that was the aim so let’s all hope I did it!

You had always been someone Luca kept in his mind.

Becoming best friends with Adam when the boys signed to the Chicago Steel was probably one of the best things that had ever happened to you. He was the reason the University of Michigan went from third on your list of potentials to first. The Fantilli boy quickly became your person as he knew you like the back of his hand.

That’s why you ended up a little lost when he made the jump from college to the NHL. The man who kept you sane was no longer there and that what made you sink into the crowd as you needed a new sense of direction. So when Nick showed up it felt like your calls had all been answered with one swift movement.

Luca grew envious by how quickly you rekindled your friendship with the Moldenhauer boy who everyone swore had a crush on you. The thoughts were things that you had heard and anyone would have lied if they said they didn’t enjoy hearing how guys felt about them. But a level of greed seemed to seep into your mind as you turned into a glutton, taking the boys flirting yet still wanting more from other guys.

You thought you were slick as you would have multiple guys in your phone as you basked in the attention, but you had your favourite’s. Your main rule was that you never had these boys in your room, you could flirt but nothing was allowed to cross any lines as you were having fun.

Yet by the time the cold and icy air that January brought, so came a level of frustration that not even watching snow fall outside your window could cure. You were sexually frustrated and after weeks of contemplating and having to accept that your vibrator wasn’t strong enough to cure it. With the help of your friends you came up with the idea that would make you irresistible and if you were lucky more than one guy would end up in your trap.

Just as you hoped from the moment you walked into that party heads turned to watch you. Your black skirt was tight around your ass and your white cropped polo was barely keeping your bra hidden. Luca and Nick each stared at you from where they stood and you did little to hide your smirk “hey boys.” You stopped in front of them as you smiled.

You swore the boys had to be stupid to not see the way you had both of them in your hands “come here with anyone tonight?” Luca asked as he scanned the path behind you only to see a few of your friends from your dorm building walking on together “couldn’t I come see my favorite host alone?” You teased as the sophomore hockey players were hosting tonight after a run of big wins came from the team “you know I won’t turn down seeing you sweets.” The boy had given you the nickname years ago yet somehow it still brought a blush to your cheeks after all this time.

Nick resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he watched the sight before his eyes “you want a drink?” The question slipped from his lips reminding the sophomores that he was there “only if you’ll have one too.” The wink you sent him made any and all jealousy that he had practically vanish from his mind.

He let his hand lock into yours as he pulled you towards the kitchen. A smirk formed on Nicks lips as he could feel the glare that Luca sent him “happy to see you tonight princess.” Nick mumbled sending shivers down your spine.

Luca let a scowl form on his face as bile built up in his throat, if Nick wanted you to play this game then he was going to have a worthy opponent in Luca.

The party continued on and now with a slight buzz and a beer soaked shirt from when Gavin bumped into you. The bathroom seemed to call your name as you pressed your hand against the wall keeping you upright “you enjoying making a mess sweets?” Luca teased turning his attention from the blonde girl who had been up against the wall next to him.

You shook your head as you groaned “Gav did.” His face hardened as he left the girl irritated “gotta help my girl.” Luca shrugged as he sent you a smile.

His hand pressed to the small of your back ignoring her complaints as he ushered you into the bathroom “didn’t need you to come with me.” You mumbled as the door shut behind you “missed you tonight sweets.” Luca smiled as he watched you strip out of your white revealing your sticky pink bra.

He’d be lying if he said that as he watched you pat down your sticky skin, Luca felt his cock throb as his eyes trailed down to your skirt that seemed even shorter “clearly you did.” You scoffed as you shook your head think back to the girl who was next to him not even a few minutes ago.

A laugh left his lips as you furrowed your eyebrows “you jealous?” Sure she was a pretty little blonde, and sure she was exactly his type but she wasn’t you. And for Luca that mattered the most “please you think I care about what you do with some-” you were cut off as his lips hit yours.

His hand reached up as it tugged in your hair “lu.” You moaned leaving your mouth open as it gave him a chance to slide his tongue into your mouth “mhm.” He groaned pushing you against the sink as you sat up on the counter.

He pulled away giving him the chance to see your swollen lips as you looked up at him “some what?” Luca smirked as you sent him a glare “you gonna let me have you pretty girl?” He asked dropping his head to your neck as he began to nip at your skin taking in the taste of the beer.

A whimper left your lips as you pressed your thighs together “you have me Lu.” You nodded as the pool within your panties became far too much for you to handle “fuck who knew I needed to kiss you to get you like this?” The hockey player teased dropping his hand between your legs letting his fingers dance against your thighs.

He watched in awe as you bit your lower lip “fucking do it before I find someone else.” The warning made his eyes go sharp “like who?” Luca didn’t want for your response as he began fiddling with your panties “Nick.” A penny dropped in his mind as Luca ripped the fabric that covered your cunt like it was nothing “Luca!”

Your groan echoed off of the walls as the boy laughed “c’mon you know I’ll get you another pair if that’s what you were worried about sweets.” Luca clicked his tongue as he finally pressed his fingers against your cunt.

You shuddered at his touch feeling himself drive his fingers up and down your slit “you’re fucking soaked.” He gasped into your ear before he went to suck at your ear lobe “please.” You whimpered pushing your hips closer to him.

Luca rolled his eyes as he began letting his lips nip at your skin. Your eyes screwed shut as you were lulled by his actions. His lips moved down your chest as he kissed between the valley of your breasts “just fucking do something god.” You grumbled as you were ready to unclip your bra for him to speed it up.

The boy shook his head as be smiled “you gonna let me taste you before you start acting like a brat?” Luca quipped back making you nod your head repeatedly as though he couldn’t see you.

He didn’t take long as he dropped to his knees hooking his hands under your legs pulling you closer to the edge of the sink “such a pretty pussy.” The hockey players mumbled kissing up your thighs as he made sure to not miss a spot “god please.” You begged feeling his breath against your cunt.

Time seemed to stop as your body almost double downed in pleasure when his tongue lay flat on your slit “that’s how I got to shut you up?” Luca clicked his tongue as he let out a chuckle. The boy squeezed your legs as he moaned at the mere tug of your hand through his hair.

His tongue focused on your clit like you were his last meal “right there.” You mumbled rolling your hips against him. As his cock now hurt in his boxers Luca didn’t even care about it as he watched you have that fucked out look on your face.

In fact he was so focused on you that he didn’t notice the door opening “oh.” Nick looked at the sight with wide eyes and as he spoke it made you use the little energy you had left to look at him “fucking shut the door!” Luca groaned replacing his tongue with his thumb on your clit.

Nick was quickly brought back to wart as he was reminded of the fact that there was a party literally on the other side of the wall “c’mere Nick.” You cooed curling your finger in your direction as you looked at him “we won’t bite.” You added letting your lips form a loose smile.

He nodded finally shutting the door making the effort to lock the door “this what you wanted baby?” Luca teased pulling his head back to your cunt where he went back to his meal “wanted to both.” You confessed making Nick smile as he finally walked over to you.

You watched Nick as he cupped your jaw “want to kiss you.” You mewled as Nick finally listened to you. His lips were rough against yours as you melted at his touch.

Luca couldn’t help it as he pinched your hip reminding you that he was still there “fuck!” You groaned pushing your head against the mirror “enjoying this baby?” Luca teased bringing you back to the image of him between your thighs.

Nick continued to kiss down your neck as he sucked at your sensitive skin “so much.” You whimpered as the boy reached behind your back with one hand to unclasp your bra. Both boys looked in awe as your breasts were freed from their constraints as your bra was thrown to the floor “you been hiding these from us?” Nick let out a grunt as he rolled your nipple between his fingers.

The room grew hot as you had one nipping at your breast and the other between your legs “you see how fucking needy she is for us?” Luca’s rough voice had you shivering as your thighs squeezed his head “can’t wait to see what she’s like around a cock.” Nicks vulgar words made Luca laugh as he kissed your cunt.

His tongue lashed against you and with each swipe your strength wavered “more?” You whimpered now infatuated with the idea of both boys sending you over the edge as their cocks stuffed your cunt and your mouth. Nick seemed to be on the same wavelength as you as he nodded “go make a mess on his tongue pretty girl and then I’ll let you get a taste okay?” The freshman watched in awe as your hair began to stick to the back of your neck from swear as your body shook almost overwhelmed from the pleasure you felt “Lu I’m gonna come.” You announced and you swore it only made him increase the pace of his tongue.

Feelings overwhelmed you as your mouth fell open yet it seemed that not a single sound left your lips as your eyes rolled back “fuck she’s a needy little thing huh?” Nick laughed as he kept his hands on your shoulders forcing your body to stay still as you came “fuck off!” You groaned making him scoff “gonna make you wish you didn’t say that.” Luca was too focused still lapping up the taste of your release to even notice that Nick had his hand pressed against the shell of your ear as he whispered.

As you tugged on Luca’s hair once more he finally pulled away as he was reminded of the fact that he wanted at least one more orgasm out of you. A smirk laced his facial expressions as his chin glistened from your juices that had made a mess on his face “you’ve got such a sweet fucking cunt.” Luca announced as he ran his fingers through your folds separating them in the process “look at how soaked she is.” Nick swore he had gone to heaven when he got the chance to look at you.

A look of almost shame found itself on your face “all for us isn’t it baby?” The freshman spoke in a hushed tone that had you just about ready to roll over and turn into a puddle “I need your cocks.” You groaned as the sudden feeling of Lucas fingers teasing your hole and Nick’s thumb on your cunt growing too overstimulating for you.

That was all it seemed to take from you to have Nick helping you off of the sink as you stood up straight “who do you want first?” Luca palmed his boner through his pants “want him in my mouth.” Your eyes locked with Nick as the image of Luca between your legs became just as strong.

The movements were quick, like in the blink of an eye and you were between both boys with Nicks hands around your neck and Luca’s one pinching into your hip “god you don’t know how much I’ve wanted this.” Luca felt like he forgot to breathe as he guided his cock to your clit spreading his precum over the sensitive nub as he teased your slit.

Your mouth far too occupied to complain though as Nick had his lips against yours. If this was any other moment Luca could have possibly found it in his heart to see the boys joy in the fact that Nick was finally getting with the girl of his dreams. But as you paid little attention to Luca it made him grow jealous, so with that he didn’t hesitate to slam his hips against yours as he gave you little time to adjust to how your walls swallowed his cock “fuck!” You moaned almost watching your legs give out as surprise mixed with amusement and you began to feel your mind go numb.

You let your hand brush down Nicks torso as it slid beneath the drawstring of his shorts “you want me that bad princess?” It took everything from Nick to not pass out in that very moment as he watched your eyes go full as your breasts bounced each time Luca bottomed you out.

It seemed that Nick was no longer going to try to have you in his tough guy act as he instead gave you what he wanted pulling his boner from his boxers as he let it hit his pubic bone “bro you should have gotten this pussy.” Luca groaned as he slapped your ass.

As your mouth fell open Nick took the opportunity to slide his cock into it “there you go pretty girl.” The freshman cooed as he clutched his fingers into your hair as it made you moan out in pleasure “think this is what she wanted all along?” Luca asked as the squelching sounds of your cunt that mixed with the sounds of your gags were like music to his ears.

You couldn’t help but let your cunt clench around him as your walls squeezed his length as you attempted to look up at Nick “looks like you fucking love being our little slut don’t ya?” When you didn’t answer him his hand tugged at your roots unintentionally making you open your mouth wider “hmm.” Your voice came with an inaudible moan that sent vibrations through Nicks body.

Luca let out a grunt as you hadn’t let up on the squeeze around his cock “fuck sweets if you don’t loosen yourself I’m not gonna last.” The warning made you whimper as you swirled your tongue around Nicks cock forcing your back to arch as you tried to take most of his cock forcing yourself to breathe through your nose.

This new angle also meant that Luca was hitting a further spot within you and with that came even more pleasure for all three of you as your throat loosened as the strain on your neck softened “think she deserves her second?” Nick had pushed his fingers to the base of your scalp forming a makeshift ponytail to get better control of his thrusts as he fucked your face.

The Fantilli boy shook his head as he heard you moan at the offer “no I think little sweets here should make you come first.” His words came with his hand on your clit like a bit of encouragement to get you to make him last longer than his younger teammate.

Your eyes were close to rolling back into your head as you gasped swirling your tongue around Nick’s cock like your life depended on it “don’t stop pretty girl.” The coo had your legs shaking as you were left certain that without Luca hand gripping at your hip you would have had your face in the floor “I’m gonna come fuck!” Nick let out a groan as he let his cock slide out from your mouth before his hand replaced where your tongue was “open those pretty little lips f’me.” As his hand began to jerk himself of Nick finally hit his release.

He watched in awe as the warm sticky ropes of his release shot from his aching cock and began to paint your lower face and even found as far as to land on your collar bones only making you moan louder as you felt it. Luca kept his hand locked in your hair as he kept your face from dropping “you close sweets?” The boys wanton expression made you mewl as his other hand stayed pressed against your stomach forcing you to feel how deep his cock went in your cunt.

A flurry of incoherent words flew from your lips as you nodded “so big.” Was the only thing that either of them could understand “is that a yes princess?” Nick let out a grunt as he found his lips hovering over yours as he took the moment to see the mess he had made on your skin “please.” The relentless pounding of Luca’s cock had your legs shaking as your ears rang.

The boys laughter taunted you “know you can beg better than that you.” Nick clicked his tongue as he pecked your lips watching your eyes flutter “want to make a mess for you please.” You whimpered feeling your cunt throb around his teammates cock “let yourself go then pretty girl.” As Luca huffed the words out wondering how much longer he could last within the bounds of your heavenly cunt.

You didn’t need to be told twice as Nick let your lips go as your moans echoed off of the walls as Luca’s orgasm was brought on by yours “right there sweets.” The sophomore grunted as his cock coated your walls fucking you through your orgasm.

Your chest heaved as you came down from it still feeling your core full as his thumb drew faint circles on your clit “enough.” You squirmed feeling a level of sensitivity build up between your legs once more “since you asked so nicely sweets.” Luca teased sliding his cock out of you letting you fall into Nicks arms.

The younger boy placed a kiss to your head as he smiled “Luca you in there!” Rutger groaned as he knocked on the door reminding the three of you that the party was still coming on downstairs.

Luca couldn’t help but groan as he watched Nick smirk “yeah.” Luca raked his fingers through his hair “we’re downstairs playing beer pong so hurry up!” the blondes words made a smile form on your face as you laughed “maybe leave the girl in there though.” He trailed off making your eyes go wide as you were reminded of the fact that they could hear you.

The Fantilli boy sighed as he pecked your lips reaching down for his shorts that were on the floor “stay with me?” You croaked out throat still raw as you looked at Nick.

He nodded as he lifted you back onto the sink as you both watched the older boy leave before Nick locked the door again “how are you feeling pretty girl?” The words made you smile as a giddy feeling built in your chest “this your version of after talk?” You let out a laugh as you watched him walk over to you.

The way his eyes stared at you made you feel so exposed, even as you were naked “liked making a mess on you.” He confessed as he brushed his fingers over your collarbone when he smiled.

Your hand was as placed over his as you nodded “it doesn’t have to end there Nick.” Your proposal made his ears perk up in surprise “what do you mean?” He mumbled as you cupped his face letting your hands squeeze his cheeks.

His eyes intently stared at yours as he waited for your answer “just that I wanna spend just a little more time with ya Nicky.” You cooed letting your lips hover over his “don’t know if I can do it.” His confession made you frown as he feared he had done the wrong thing “you trust me to walk you through it?” Your strong demeanour was replaced by this soft one.

A smile sat strong on his face as he nodded “have me just how you want me tonight.” Nick mumbled as you were fully in control of him. He was surprised as he watched you tug at his shirt “then it’s not fair that I’m the only one who is naked.” There was a hint of amusement in your words as you helped him get rid of his shirt and his shorts.

Just like before Nick was attractive to you as you couldn’t help but smile “you’re such a pretty boy.” You cooed letting your saliva drop to his cock as you began to run your hand up his length as you pumped his cock in an attempt to get him hard again “just for you.” Nick groaned as you kissed his lips reminding him of the fact that he was now the centre of your attention.

It took a few more pumps of your hand for him to grow hard again and you did a few more just to tease him “I’m not gonna last if you keep doing that.” He gasped letting his teeth sink into your shoulder as his cock began to throb in your hand as the precum oozed from his tip “watch this f’me pretty boy.” You ordered feeling a sense of power over the boy as he nodded practically lapping up your demands like they were nothing.

You drove the swollen head over your clit making you both shudder in the process “please.” Nick whined desperate to have more of you “since you asked so nicely.” You teased sliding his cock down your slit before you let it slowly slide into your cunt.

The air around you both grew warm as you both watched how your soaked pussy swallowed his cock like it was nothing “fuck!” You gaped biting down on your lip as you saw his pubic bone hit your clit as your legs went up on either side of him to accommodate him.

A smile formed on his face as he let out a little laugh “you good princess?” He asked as he let his hands setting on your hips “think I should be asking you that.” You quipped back finally losing your strong expression as he pinched the flesh of your ass.

It made him roll his eyes as he began slowly pulling his hips away from you before he brought them back “you can go harder pretty boy.” You mumbled wrapping your arms around his neck.

The thought was hot in your brain as you realised that Nick was fucking you with Luca’s come as his lube since it still coated your cunt “you still so needy after all that?” Nick let out a dry laugh as he began to taunt you “f’you.” You swore your brain was being rewired as it only made his confidence grow.

Nick began to pick up his pace as he nipped at your throat “was waiting to get you like this.” The freshman revealed as his voice was a low rasp “had to watch you be his girl.” He grumbled making his efforts stronger as it caused your breasts to bounce with each thrust.

A low moan left your lips “wanted to have you be all mine but you just had to be a little slut and want us both huh?” Part of you was surprised at how vocal he was “wanted to be your girl too.” You mewled bringing your hand between you two as you began to rub at your clit still feeling sensitive from your first two orgasms.

The sound of your squelching cunt echoed off of the walls “you get to show me that now.” Nick had been jealous the entire night having to fight Luca for every bit of your attention and he had now grown tired of it.

His cock pulsed in your core as his hands kept you planted on the counter “you’re so big.” You whined locking your legs on Nicks hips “should have let you fuck me in Chicago.” He tensed at the mention of your home city but as it made you moan he thought he was unnoticed.

Nick grew tired of kissing your neck as he swatted your hand away from your clit as he replaced it with his own “you don’t know how long I have been thinking about this pretty little cunt of yours.” You clenched around him as you heard his words “but I think you already knew how good you are.” He scoffed pinching your skin as he knew how the other guys were around you.

You were keeping your eyes screwed shut as you felt your stomach tighten “I’m gonna-“ the words couldn’t leave your lips before Nick cut you off “fucking hold it.” The hockey player growled having other things in mind for you.

A whimper was stuck in your throat “you wanted to come then you have to fucking beg.” Nick spat as his free hand was pressed up against the mirror behind you.

If this was any other moment you would have put up a fight but as your cunt was clenched and your body was close to losing it “I just want to be your little slut Nick.” You announced pressing your head against the glass behind you “make a mess on your cock and make you feel so fucking good.” Your promise made him smirk as he kissed your lips letting his teeth nip at your lower lip “make that mess.”

It was as though the heavens opened as you swore you heard the sounds of prayer bells playing in your ears “don’t fucking stop please.” You begged using the little strength that you had left to writhe your hips against him “come in me.” The words left your lips washing away any nerves that the boy might have had.

The room felt warm as your eyes fluttered “shit shit shit!” You chanted as you came clenching his cock as you spurred in his orgasm “right there!” Nick gritted as he continued to fuck you through your orgasm.

As he finally slowed down Nick watched your chest heave “you okay pretty girl?” His voice was soft as he kissed your cheek letting his cock slide out of your cunt “I’m good.” You mumbled as you nodded.

It was sweet as Nick smiled “you want a moment up here or you ready to go down?” He asked as he reached down for your panties “let’s go.” You felt your heart grow full at the gesture and you were going to be excited to learn that his levels of aftercare would only grow to improve from that night onwards.

You had felt weird the last few weeks. Sure the memory of that night was on replay in your mind as you started seeing the boys more frequently, both together and alone. So like any normal and responsible young adult you googled your symptoms and found three different things you could have been going through. One was something that you were about thirty years too young to be experiencing, the second was one you hoped it wasn’t. And the third was one you could have proven wrong with the simple action of peeing on a stick.

Truly you thought it was going to be nothing. Which is why you didn’t mind waiting for those three minutes to run right by. Of course though luck was never meant to truly be on your side as this was college and what better way to add stress to your life than a baby. But it didn’t end there, you didn’t even know who the father was because you had been sleeping with two guys who were also best friends.

So as the two thick lines stared back at you as though it was trying to mock you, you couldn’t help but groan “fuck!” As you slammed the test on the ground hoping that it would erase your current reality.

That wasn’t going to work though as this baby wasn’t going anywhere and you had somethings you needed to figure out, starting with whose goddamn baby, were you carrying?

#luca fantilli smut #Nick Moldenhauer smut #umich smut #hockey smut #umich imagines #umich x reader #hockey imagines #hockey oneshots #oneshots #hockey imagine #imagines #nick moldenhauer #luca fantilli #amber writes fics

[laurenairay]

every breath, every hour has come to this - S. Jarvis

Summary: Seth Jarvis was your best friend, your rock, your protector…but could he ever be anything more?

This is my entry for @callsign-denmark’s Luck of the Puck fic exchange! I’ve written a Seth Jarvis story for @mp0625, and I really hope you like this – it’s my first time writing for him and I had a lot of fun with it! Thanks for providing some really great prompts for me to work with.

Words: 2.5k

Warnings: some bad language, hurt/comfort, alcohol, terrible date, I fudged the Canes’ game schedule.

Title from: A thousand years, Christina Perri

~

For as long as you could remember, Seth had always been in your life. Two peas in a pod, two goofy little kids, always attached at the hip. Even as hockey became more and more of a fixture in his life, you were right there in the stands, cheering him on at the top of your lungs as his biggest fan. You were his staunchest supporter, always giving him reassurance when his self-confidence cracked or faltered. He was your loyal protector, pushing away anyone that was ever mean to you, including shitty boyfriends. Everyone knew in your small suburb in Winnipeg that where one of you went, the other was sure to follow.

So it was exactly no surprise to your parents (and his) when you followed him down to Raleigh the moment his entry level contract was signed.

You didn’t know what you would do without his energetic personality lighting up your day, the ultimate hype-man even before dates that both of you knew weren’t going to end well, or his sweet smiles in a terrible morning after a fantastic night out with his team. You didn’t know what you would do without his built arms wrapped around you on the sofa while you watched awful reality tv or cheesy movies, broad shoulders perfectly places to rest your head on, and especially waking up after a shared nap together, cementing his self-proclaimed King of Naps title.

Or seeing him wake up from a nap by himself, and his whole face lighting up when he saw you there too.

For as long as you could remember, you’d been in love with Seth, and there was nothing you could do about it. You’d seen the girls Seth went on dates with, and they were nothing like you. Even when the two of you were going on your first dates when you were barely teenagers, his ‘type’ seemed to be the complete opposite of you – so you’d always endeavoured to make sure the guys you dated were the opposite of him. It was the only way to preserve your heart, to keep your incredible friendship with Seth as wholesome and solid as you needed it to be, and not once had you ever messed that up.

Seth Jarvis was the best person in your life and you never wanted that to change. Not for anything. That didn’t mean that you didn’t know how hard your life was going to be when he eventually found his soulmate – but that was a problem for future you, and you refused to do anything but live in the moment.

Speaking of living in the moment…

“Hey Seth, do these shoes go with this dress?”

Living with your best friend really did have its perks – you could always guarantee an honest opinion on your outfit from him.

“Hmm, you can’t go wrong with a little black dress and nice black heels, but where is he taking you?”

“Does that matter?”

“Well yeah, you like those shoes and I know you don’t want them to get ruined by a sticky floor,” Seth pointed out.

He really did know you so well.

“He said he’s taking me out to dinner, but he didn’t tell me where or what the venue was like,” you admitted.

You ignored Seth rolling his eyes.

“The dress is gorgeous but I would change your shoes if you aren’t sure. Maybe those black ankle boots? Not too casual but not too fancy,” Seth suggested.

Incredible.

“You are amazing,” you grinned, jogging back to your room to kick your shoes off.

“And don’t you forget it!”

You just laughed at his shout across the apartment, pulling on the ankle boots he suggested. Just as you thought, he was right. With a swipe of lipgloss,  you were ready, so you grabbed your leather jacket and headed back out of your room.

“Hey, sweetheart?”

“Yeah Seth?” you asked, spinning on your heel.

“Have fun tonight. You look amazing – don’t let him forget that,” Seth said seriously, making you laugh, “And if you need anything, anything at all, call me.”

“You’re going to be my knight in shining armour?” you teased.

“With a guy you don’t know taking you out for a first date on St Patrick’s Day? Absolutely,” Seth mused.

Well you couldn’t fault him there.

“Wish me luck!”

“Luck.”

~

If only you’d know just how right Seth would be.

“Seth?” you whimpered, hiccupping into your phone.

“Woah, hey, what’s wrong?”

“I know it’s only been three hours, but can you pick me up?” you pleaded.

“Of course, I’ll leave right now. Three hours or three minutes, it doesn’t matter. Send me your location pin, but stay on the line?”

You just sniffed, nodding even though you knew he couldn’t see you, doing as he asked.

“Okay, I have it. That’s a real shitty bar, sweetheart.”

You choked out a sob. He had no idea. “Real shitty date too.”

“What did he do?”

You could hear him running out of your shared apartment, down the stairs rather than waiting for the elevator, and your heart ached with how willingly he dropped his peaceful evening just to help you.

“He lied about taking me out to dinner. Instead he took me to a bar where a bunch of his friends were, and when I asked him why he lied he told me he wanted to celebrate St Patrick’s Day with his buddies and thought I could come along. Which, fine, okay, he thought I would get on with his friends, so I went along with it. Most of his friends were fine, welcoming even, but they were getting drunker and rowdier and I don’t mind that if I’m with people I know and trust like you or your friends, but with strangers? No way. And then he…”

You trailed off, groaning at the memory, Seth just cursing under his breath. You could hear him driving, not even caring for once that he was probably breaking the speed limit. You just wanted him here.

“What did he do?”

“He started getting handsy. Slapping my ass, pulling me into his body with an arm around my waist, all of that shit, making his friends laugh even though it was obvious I was uncomfortable. But then he grabbed at my boobs and-”

“He fucking what?”

Over all the years of Seth protecting you from nasty dates and boyfriends, you’d never heard him so angry. Never.

“He groped me, in front of everyone. But I shoved him away immediately, I swear!” you insisted.

“Hey, I believe you sweetheart. I know that stuff makes you uncomfortable. I swear I’m going to kill him, I’ll-”

“No, no, I don’t want you to get in trouble, okay? I left the bar already,” you said firmly.

“You left the bar? But your location says…”

“I’m outside the bar, still in eyesight of the bouncer just in case, but I’m outside. I walked out the bar because I couldn’t stand to be near him after him threw the remainder of his beer at me for rejecting him.”

“He fucking what?!”

Okay, that was the angriest you’d ever heard him.

“Told you he was a shitty date,” you mumbled, sniffing again as your eyes stung with tears once more.

“This is not your fault. He was an absolute asshole and none of this is on you.”

“Just my luck, right?” you said, huffing out a bitter laugh.

Seth just cursed under his breath again, continuing to mutter about how men were shit and you deserved better and all the things that usually would put such a smile on your face…but right now it just made you want to be home, safe with him, curled up in his arms. Nothing felt better than being with Seth and it was only because of the few drinks that you had that you allowed yourself to think like this. Thankfully, it couldn’t have been more than 10 minutes before you saw a familiar car screeching into the parking lot, and you finally felt like you could breathe.

He pulled to a stop only metres away from you, and you wasted no time in walking over to him, even as he got out of the car and slammed his door shut, jogging over to meet you halfway.

“Shit, sweetheart, look at you,” Seth scowled.

You groaned softly as he took in your blurred mascara and beer-soaked top, and grabbed his hand to break his attention.

“Can we just go? I want to get as far away from here as possible.”

You rested a hand on his chest, gently guiding him backwards towards his car, out of earshot of the bouncer and anyone else who deigned to leave, Seth’s fuming expression never leaving the dive bar you were walking away from.

“Is he still inside? Is that asshole still in there?” Seth demanded.

“Hey, no, come on, leave it. He’s not worth it,” you pleaded.

“He doesn’t get to treat you like that and get away with it. No-one gets to treat you like that, you hear me? No-one.”

Your breath hitched in your throat and your body thrummed with heat at his furious words, his eyes wild in a way you’d only ever seen on the ice. His fists were clenched, his nostrils were flared, and his shoulders were squared, all the while his cheeks flushing with anger as well. It was only the brief flash of desperation across his face that let you know he wasn’t mad at you – no, this was Seth’s protective side coming out in full force, dialled up to 1000.

“Seth, I…”

You trailed off, running a hand through your hair as you struggled to find words to defend yourself, relying in his car to lean against and keep you upright. He might not have been mad at you, but it still didn’t feel good to know that your situation was making him react like this.

“It’s not like I go out of my way to date assholes,” you eventually managed, “they just seem to find me.”

“Shit, sweetheart, I’m not accusing you of anything. I just…”

He cut himself off, seeming to need a moment to think, and you waited silently for him to give you something. Anything. Eventually he cleared his throat, the wildness in his eyes replaced by an anguish that made your heart ache.

“I can’t take it anymore. I just wish you’d see what you could have, right in front of you.”

What?

What was he talking about?

Right in front of you?

The more seconds the silence stretched on, the more your confused thoughts swirled and the more frustrated Seth looked, until he groaned in frustration.

“I’m talking about me,” he said through gritted teeth, looking like he wanted to be literally anywhere else.

Oh.

Oh.

Oh shit.

“You?” you repeated, your voice cracking.

“Yeah and now I wish I’d never said a damn thing so can we please pretend that you’re really drunk instead of tipsy, and never talk about it again?” Seth muttered, avoiding your eyes.

As all of his words started to sink in, you found yourself shaking your head as decades-buried hope dared to surface.

“You’ve never said anything at all! You like me?” you said, needing him to say it again.

Seth huffed out a laugh, still not looking particularly comfortable.

“How could I say anything? I’m nothing like any of the guys you’ve ever dated,” he muttered.

“Because I purposely date guys that are nothing like you!” you shot back.

“What?”

You groaned as embarrassed heat filled your cheeks, turning your head away to give you a chance to save a scrap of dignity, but then Seth’s hand was cupping your face, gently turning you back to look at him properly. Never had he touched you like this, so delicately and with such purpose. His eyes were a storm, barely giving you anything to go on outside of the intensity, and it was all you could do to let out a shaky breath as he dropped his hand but stepped a little closer.

“I’m going to need you to give me a bit more than that, sweetheart,” Seth said, barely more than a murmur, edge of his voice a little rough, “What do you mean?”

“I purposely date guys that are nothing like you…because you’ve had my heart for longer than I care to remember. I never thought you could ever be interested in me because of the girls you date, and the thought of dating someone even a little bit similar to you was heartbreaking, so I just…went for the complete opposite. Clearly it’s been working out really well,” you said, choking off a bitter laugh as you finished.

Seth’s lips parted in surprise, and for once he was stunned into silence. It was only the fact that he hadn’t moved to step away that saved you from wanting to curl into a ball on the cold ground. Still, that didn’t stop the anguish from building inside of you like a volcano ready to erupt at the slightest provocation.

Eventually he let out a shaky breath, smiling weakly.

“We’ve wasted so much time,” he said softly, shaking his head.

What?

“We…have?” you asked, still in disbelief.

“We have.” Seth nodded, smiling at you in a way that encouraged you to finally smile back at him, giddy without being able to stop yourself, “You’re my goddamned soulmate, how could I ever want anyone but you? And knowing now that you’ve felt the same way all this time? It’s everything. I wish I could say I’ve been playing the long game but honestly I never thought you’d ever want me back. But we need to put a pin in this conversation until tomorrow.”

What? Why?

You didn’t know what was showing on your face but it made Seth laugh – a little deliriously, maybe, but a bright laugh that you were so used to all the same.

“You’ve been drinking, sweetheart. You’ve literally just ended a bad date covered in beer, as well as had quite an emotional night,” Seth explained.

“That still won’t change how I feel about you in the morning,” you pointed out.

His smile turned a little bashful, but definitely pleased, making the butterflies in your stomach riot.

“Then I look forward to hearing you say it again tomorrow. Just…let me take you home? Away from this gritty old bar parking lot?”

You nodded without hesitation, making him huff out a laugh again but take your hands.

“Take me home, Seth,” you murmured, squeezing his hands, barely able to believe the words coming out of your mouth.

With Seth’s wide grin, it looked like he could barely believe it either.

“We’re going to be amazing, you just wait.”

#my writing #seth jarvis fic #luck of the puck exchange #seth jarvis fanfic #seth jarvis imagine #carolina hurricanes fic #hockey fic #hockey imagine #hockey fanfic

[lfghughes]

Seal My Fate | Trevor & Jack

a/n: we all know i love myself a love triangle especially a trevor one

Summer was your favorite time of the year and yes Jack was a huge part of that. Every summer Jack and his family spent it at their lake house so you spent a lot of summers there with the boys. Last summer it was a little different because Jack had brought some of his hockey friends with him and that was when you had first met Trevor. You had heard of him plenty in conversation through Jack previous summers but you finally got to meet the person Jack spoke so highly of.

Only downside every summer was the fact Jack had a girlfriend each and every summer which meant your crush was a silent one. Trevor coming last summer actually ended up being great because he was fun and his flirting did not go right over your head. So who knew how this summer would go with him. Jack had texted you, letting you know that they had gotten in the night before and that if you wanted to come over later to eat.

Even if you did have plans you would definitely clear them for this. As soon as you walked in Jack made his way to you, hugging you and lifting you up so he could spin you. “It’s my favorite lake girl.” Jack laughed but meanwhile your heart was soaring from his words. You had to remind yourself that more than likely he was still with the same girlfriend from last year. “Hey, is it true that you were Jacks first kiss?” This time it was Cole who had asked you the question, you also recognized him from the past year.

At the question your cheeks blazed red “I mean we were probably six.” This had been a running joke in the Hughes family for years growing up. Aside from that one blazing question, it was easy to blend in with all the boys. But all you hoped for was a few minutes alone with Jack, that crush on him was still very much alive. So you couldn’t help but notice when he abruptly got up and disappeared into the house while on his phone. “Ex girlfriend problems.” Trevor rolled his eyes as he watched his best friend go into the house.

“Oh?” You asked, not wanting to seem too nosy but you were definitely being nosy. “They broke up a few weeks ago and almost every other night they argue on the phone.” Your heart still sank a little bit because yes he was single but clearly there was still something there. The rest of the night went by smoothly and reluctantly you returned back to your place which was just next door but felt miles away from where you wanted to be. It was pretty late when you heard the sound of something hitting against your window.

Going to your window you looked out, seeing Trevor with a pile of pebbles in his hand. A laugh left your lips as you made your way outside. “It’s kinda late, don’t you think?” You asked and he just shrugged. “Lets go for a swim at the lake?” He nodded his head back towards the water and you nodded your head. “Let me go change into a swimsuit.” You pointed back into your place and a smirk grew on his lips. “I have a better idea. What if we skinny dip? I promise to look away until you get in the water.”

The idea was tempting as nervous as you were and so you cautiously nodded your head, following him to the lake water. He turned his body, giving you time to take your clothes off and dip into the water before he did the same and slipped into the water with you. He swam around, splashing some water at you playfully. “So you planning on a part two with Jack?” He asked and you knew he was referring to the kiss. Your cheeks were burning hot and you were sure if there was enough light outside that he would be able to see how red you were.

“No but even if I was, are you jealous or something?” You asked, playfully teasing him. “No, I was just going to say if you did then we should kiss too. See who is the better kisser.” Again he shrugged, amused by the little game he was wanting to play. “Or we could just kiss either way.” This time you were the one being bold and you saw the look that flashed across his face as he pulled you into him. You weren’t even thinking about the lack of clothes, instead you were focused on the way his thumb brushed against your lower lip before he leaned in and kissed you.

His lips moved against yours in an urgent manner that was also somehow gentle. His hands were everywhere but also gentle against your skin. His hands moved to your hips, his fingers digging into the skin just slightly. “Can I spend the night at your place?” He asked and you just nodded your head because you did not want this to end, not at all.

The rest of the night went exactly how you expected it to and every single bit of it was perfect. When you woke up in the morning, Trevor was still fast asleep and shirtless in your bed. He couldn’t look any more perfect as he laid there and you figured you would sneak out of bed to get some coffee going for you. You nearly jumped out of your skin when you heard the soft knock on the backdoor. When you opened it, Jack was on the other side a smile and a coffee in his hand that came from the local coffee shop.

“I got you some coffee but remember how we used to swim around in the lake every morning when we were kids? I figured we could do that this morning.” You figured it would be hours before Trevor would wake up anyways so you nodded your head. “Let me grab my swim suit.” At your words he came to step in the house and you quickly panicked. “I’ll be right back, just wait out here.”

Of course that sounded weird but Jack didn’t seem to notice too much. You went and grabbed your swimsuit, Trevor still sleeping deeply in your bed. You grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down that you were going for a swim before you exited. “Alright, ready to go?” He asked and before you could even answer, his hands went around your hips as he lifted you up and tossed you over his shoulder, dragging you out to the lake. You had missed Jack and you were so happy to have all summer with him but you were also now excited to spend your summer with Trevor too and who knew maybe you would get a part two with that kiss with Jack too.

#jack hughes blurb #jack hughes imagine #jack hughes x reader #jack hughes #trevor zegras x reader #trevor zegras imagine #trevor zegras blurb #trevor zegras #( seal my fate ft jack and trevor )

[sunflower-lilac42]

✧ 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐩 || flowers au ♔

summary: violet takes on band camp at uofi and the boys notice an unfamiliar (but recognizable) person in the comments

warnings: band camp

notes: part of the 'flowers' au. this is kind of an introduction to violet's life and the other characters in this au. add yourself to the taglist ➵ taglist!

au masterlist | nhl masterlist | main masterlist

violetsdiaries

liked by adamfantilli, luca.fantilli, lhughes_06, _connorbedard, and 203,983 others

violetsdiaries came to band camp, conquered band camp. first week of uofi and it was amazing! can't wait for our first game, go illini!

view 2901 comments

user01 how can she be so aesthetic at band camp?!

⤷ violetsdiaries it's a talent

adamfantilli don't have too much fun without us

⤷ violetsdiaries would never, miss you adam 🥲

luca.fantilli so that's why you weren't answering my texts

⤷ violetsdiaries no i just didn't want to

⤷ adamfantilli careful violetsdiaries, you're letting your favorite brother show

⤷ violetsdiaries who? i don't see lhughes_06 anywhere 👀

⤷ lhughes_06 hi v!

⤷ violetsdiaries hi lukey! 🫶🏻

markestapa how could you leave me for illinois?! i need you at umich

⤷ violetsdiaries awe, marky. don't worry, i'll come visit soon

user02 mark wanting her to be at umich is so cute

user03 hopefully this means a new video soon!

⤷ violetsdiaries how'd you know?!

_connorbedard violet being aesthetic is something i never knew i needed

⤷ user04 connor bedard?! when'd you get here

⤷ violetsdiaries connor falling on his butt at practice is something i never knew i needed

⤷ markestapa sooo how'd you two meet

✧༺✎༻∞

messyviolets

liked by ollie.barnes, _connorbedard, markestapa, and 79,432 others

messyviolets met some new friends and went explorin' (also someone come get these hockey guys, i don't know where they came from)

tagged ollie.barnes, thompsonjared63, mmcarthy06, justin.rolland94, nathan.dash, aidan.taylor10, nick7andersen, emmitt.joy, drakenilescox, alexlleskaj17, a.varrassi22

view 865 comments

nathan.dash hey, you said you loved us!

⤷ markestapa she says that to everyone

⤷ user05 mark, you're letting your jealousy show

ollie.barnes just the beginning v!

liked by messyviolets

thompsonjared63 illini!

⤷ messyviolets illini!

⤷ ollie.barnes illini!

⤷ nathan.dash illini!

⤷ aidan.taylor illini!

⤷ nick7andersen illini!

⤷ justin.rolland94 illini!

⤷ mmcarthy06 illini!

⤷ emmett.joy illini!

⤷ drakenilescox illini!

⤷ alexlleskaj17 illini!

⤷ a.varrassi22 illini!

edwards.73 don't go replacing us, v

⤷ messyviolets that's offensive eth, i could never

_connorbedard working hard or hardly working?

⤷ messyviolets can it not be both?

⤷ _connorbedard for you, sure

⤷ messyviolets thanks, con ☺️

adamfantilli why is connor in your comments

⤷ messyviolets why are you (bc we're friends)

jackhughes party animal 🤠

⤷ messyviolets you know it 😉

⤷ ollie.barnes messyviolets you didn't tell me you knew jack hughes?!

⤷ messyviolets no one tell her about quinn, trev, and cole then

⤷ trevorzegras hi

⤷ _quinnhughes hi

⤷ colecaufield hi

⤷ ollie.barnes omg?!

⤷ messyviolets phew, that was a close one

thompsonjared63 i think you forgot to say how much you loved us in this post

⤷ emmitt.joy yeah, where's the love messyviolets

⤷ messyviolets i'm so sorry. i love the university of illinois urbana-champagne men's d1 hockey team so so so so much! 🥰🥰

⤷ nick7andersen that seemed a little forced

⤷ messyviolets noooo

#sunny lune writes #sunnyluneflowers #hockey #nhl #connor bedard #connor bedard x reader #adam fantilli #adam fantilli x reader #adam fantilli x sister!reader #luca fantilli #luca fantilli x reader #luca fantilli x sister!reader #luke hughes #luke hughes x reader #jack hughes #quinn hughes #trevor zegras #cole caufield #ethan edwards

[cellythefloshie]

;; The Signing

Summary: Morgan struggles to forget about Emmy, a fan he met at a meet and greet. And when he the opportunity presents itself, Morgan doesn't shy away from taking his shot. Kinks & TW: mild sexual fantasies about a stranger, hosiery, first kiss, dry humping, unprotected sex, fingering, wall sex, creampie. A/N: I think this is only my second time writing male POV smut so be gentle with me. I'm tired so I'm not editing this well, and this has been sitting in my drafts for MONTHS so no I'm not waiting any longer to share this with you. Shout out to @hockeyboysimagines who planted this seed of self indulgence and has supported me as I ran with it. I know Barron isn't a well known/well loved guy in this community but fuck it, this fic has been so much fun to write. Morgan and Emmy 4 Ever. About the OC: Emmy, brunette with brown eyes... that's about it. If I took the time to really develop her, this would be a full on novel. Word Count: 13k+

When you played hockey, even just as a child, you were part of something bigger than yourself. There was a greater community, one that would always stand by you and you by them through victory and loss, and things greater than the game of hockey itself. Morgan Barron had experienced that first hand out on the ice during the many themed nights from when the New York Rangers would support First Responders to the Winnipeg Jets as they supported the cultural diversity of their great city, and everything in between. And he had felt it all again after he had taken a skate blade to the face during the Jets' appearance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The community had so quickly rallied around him, and in turn, giving back and getting out into the community was one of Barron’s favorite things to do during his downtime during the season. 

Some of his outings included visiting the children’s hospital with his teammates, others he spent alone - like the night he spent in a local sports collectible shop for a meet and greet with the fans, the community. 

The parking lot was full, and the overflow of parking sprawled up the length of the residential street. In the darkness, lined along the street curb, was the dim glow of headlights. One after the next, as each person wanting to meet him waited in the warmth of their cars instead of lining up in the Winnipeg chill caught somewhere between fall and winter. 

There was no snow on the ground yet, but the air was cold. And the roads were uneven, ridden with potholes, even as he turned into the parking lot. It rocked him in the seat of his truck as he pulled into the one spot that had been reserved for him. Sliding out of the cab, he took in a shark inhale, the cold hair harsh on his lungs, but the jog to the front door was brief. Inside, the little staff they had set up a table and chair for him and once he sat in it, his jacket draped over the back of it, his night began. 

One by one, Morgan met the fans. He loved it, but a part of him almost felt bad. Chances were, at the end of the night, he would remember a handful of their faces and one or two of their stories as they told them to him. While to them, meeting him would be a story on their social media channels at the very least. The things he signed would be added to one collection, or another. But to him, each conversation blurred into the next. 

Some asked about his scar, others pointed out just how nice it had healed. Then came those who commented on his game and wished him luck for the rest of the season. And with every single one of them, Morgan gave them all of his effort and undivided attention. That was all but one. 

Morgan has been in the middle of personalizing an autograph when he heard the door chime. Through the first fifty or more meet and greets, it had been nothing more than background noise as fans came and went. But for some reason, he had decided to look up as his silver Sharpie marker finished off the now too bold 36. 

Through the door came a young woman, no more than five years older than her, maybe even five years less. It was hard to tell these days, especially when someone was alone. If you were lucky, you would be able to guess just by how she interacted with her friends. But he had a mere few seconds to stare at her between signings. She stood just inside the door, her hand pulling her ticket out of her pocket to show her placement in line. And while that was the first thing she did, the first thing Morgan noticed was her smile. It was one that was almost too perfect, one that could only come from wearing braces. And her pale face was framed by lone, brunette curls that almost looked auburn in the fluorescent light. They may have even hung down into her eyes if it weren’t for the sunglasses pushed up onto the top of her head, more of an accessory than a necessity with the sun having set not long after the traditional workday had ended. 

Morgan tore his eyes from her when there was a shuffle of footsteps at his side. The next fan had finished paying for their small pile of photos to be signed, and the hockey cards that rested on top of them. He greeted them with a smile and fell into the same casual conversation he had all night. 

He did the same with the next, who had a single number from the 3 and 6 pairing that would be stitched onto the back of a jersey that would bear his name. 

It was then, after two encounters, that felt more like lifetimes than minutes, that the woman who had so easily stolen his attention stood at his side. With a small step to the side, she was offering her cell phone to one of the staff members to take a few photographs before she was handing him the puck she had brought to be signed. It was in a square plastic case that took up the space on his palm. The small square of paper inside listed his name and the time at which he had scored the goal. Morgan smiled as he read it over. The puck itself had been from an AHL game. From back when he had been traded from the New York Rangers to the Winnipeg Jets and had played the remainder of that season with their affiliate, the Manitoba Moose. 

She must have been watching him play for some time. 

Smiling, Morgan looked up at her, waiting to just catch a glimpse of a smile back at him, but she didn’t do much more than glance his way. She must have been nervous, trying to hide it between a laugh and avoiding eye contact as she spoke more to the staff than to him. 

She was telling the story of just how his trade, and his play with the Moose had put her on the path of being a Jets fan, again. Morgan signed the puck slowly, his eyes raising to look up at her on occasion until he had finished fitting the signature onto the puck. Then he sat back, and the chair listened to her tale. Not once did his smile fade, and his eyes did not leave her - even if they did wander. 

On her shoulders rested one of the Winnipeg Jets Reverse Retro Jackets that had been sold during the last regular season. It was a jacket that had been earning her compliments since she had walked through the door. And they weren’t wrong. It was a nice jacket. It looked great on her. Hell, she looked great, period. He couldn’t tell much of what she wore underneath the jacket, safe for a sliver of black fabric. He was sure could only be her blouse, and the small glimmer of a silver chain that hung around her neck. But it was her legs that quickly caught his attention. Even in the cold, she had gone out wearing a miniskirt. Intentional or not, she had caught his attention. His eyes dragged up and down the length of her, from the ankle of her brown boots, up over the curves of her thighs that disappeared under the plaid fabric that encased the breadth of her hips. 

He did his best not to stare at how she shifted the weight of her body from one foot to the next awkwardly as she spoke. Or how the slit of her skirt, as it rested over one thigh, looked as if with one wrong move, the stretchy fabric would reach its limits and rip. But it was there as his eyes fixated on the fabric that he did notice a rip, not in her skirt, but in her tights. To anyone else I would have gone unnoticed, but to him as he sat at her side, looking up and so fixated on every bit of her, he was taking in every little detail. The barely there run in her thighs started just above her right knee. The pale hosiery almost an exact match to her flesh, but he followed the run in the tights up, over the flesh of her thigh and to where it seemed to disappear between her thighs. 

Morgan’s mouth went dry, his eyes fixated there on the shadows between her thighs. Without touching her, without even getting out of his chair to get closer to her, Morgan could feel that would radiate off her skin. It made his palms begin to sweat, and it ignited a fire that burned over every inch of his body as he thought about how smooth her skin would feel as his hands slid over her thighs. And how tight the hosiery would be as he took it in each of his fists and tore a hole in them in just the right places-

Taking a sharp inhale, Morgan fixed his eyes on her smile one last time before he could really let his mind falter. It was then he caught a single word of her story that challenged the smile that had grown so wide his cheeks had begun to hurt. 

Boyfriend. 

She had a boyfriend. 

Of course she would. A woman like her, they always had someone waiting for them back home. But that didn’t make him feel any less stupid. He shouldn’t have been looking at her the way he knew he had been with his wide grin and his eyes looking at her in a way he didn’t have words to describe. It was embarrassing, laughable even, but she didn’t seem to notice. 

Nobody did. 

Closing up the protective casing on the puck, Morgan left it there on the table as he stood. He would give her one proper picture before they would send her on her way, and he would move on to the next fan that had already been kept waiting. 

With the single step of his white sneaker scuffing against the floor and Morgan was standing right beside her. Even with the thick heel of her boot, he towered over her. She came up no higher than his chin as he reached out and placed his hand against the wind breaker. It was a light touch, not enough to earn that horrible scratch sound of its unique fabric, but just enough that he could feel the curve of her body against his palm. 

Morgan stood there with his smile, his dark curls threatening to fall down into his eyes, as he tried to ignore how she felt beneath his touch. And he fought through the temptations of letting his mind falter back into the depths that were his unfound fantasy about a beautiful stranger. 

When he pulled back, he secured the puck with the glide of his thumb over the plastic sticker she had pried open to give him access to the puck inside. Then he handed it back to her, her rough fingertips grazing over his soft touch as she muttered out a soft thank you.

“Thanks for coming,” he leaned in as he spoke, hating that he could muster anything more clever or more thoughtful to say. 

He wanted her to stay. To listen to her laugh, and to her stories. To learn her name, and give him time to say anything else but those pathetic words that left his lips. But Morgan could only watch her. Her hand tucked the puck into the cross body bag that hung across her body, and with one final thank you to the girls working the meet and greet, she was gone. 

The young woman would remain nothing more than a stranger, a memory. And with that acceptance of fate, Morgan sighed, carded a hand through the thickness of his curls, and he moved onto the next fan in line whose face would be nothing but the one that blurred into the next. 

After a loss, there was always a certain calm on the bus ride to the airport. No one said a word after a greeting from Schmidt, a quick, “we'll get ‘em next time boys!” before they claimed their seats and fell into their routines. But Morgan had started before he could board. With his headphones thumbed into each year, and his music loud, he kept his head down as he moved to the back of the bus and took a seat. 

It was never a long drive, but he was sure to get a few tracks in, as they played a little too loud in his ears to block out the noise of his teammates around him. -He desperately needed the distraction. While he wasn't playing poorly, Morgan felt he could be playing better. He could always be better.

Maybe he was being too hard on himself, but sometimes you needed to be. And when that weight became too heavy on his shoulders, Morgan disconnected. 

The music blared in his ears, and his eyes fell onto the hypnotic glow of his cellphone as he cradled it in one hand. With the swift motion of a single thumb, Morgan browsed one social media timeline and then the next. Sinking further and further into the rabbit hole until he found himself staring at his own Instagram profile. More specifically, his tagged photos. It was there, his thumb stilled. His eyes fixating on one picture that stood out among the masses of images the Winnipeg Jets had tagged him in. 

The picture stood out to him, the backdrop of a small hockey collectibles shop instead of a hockey rink. And he wasn't alone in the picture, or joined by any of his teammates. Beside him stood the pretty brunette from the signing all those nights ago. Her arm bent so casually behind his back as his hand rested just above the small of hers. Any lower and he would have gotten himself into trouble, but it was innocent enough. 

Morgan smiled a crooked smile as he studied the angle from the other side of the camera. Her smile was a little awkward, and she wasn't as photogenic as she was magnetic in person, but she still held his attention all the same. 

Fingers tapped the side of his phone almost anxiously, his thumb hovering over her account name on the screen. He shouldn't have been so curious, but it was quick to get the best of him.

Her account name was one that could have only been made in high school. Something silly, clever at the time, but she never got around to changing. And it didn't have much more to offer him than that. With her first name, Emmy, the only name left there for him to know she had left no age, no emojis or lovers' initials for him to read. 

And her photos are nothing more than mere snapshots into her life. She liked to paddle boards - one of the many beautiful Manitoba lakes the backdrop to the curves of her body in tiny bikinis. She hikes and fishes in the summer too, the pictures shared of winding trails and her latest big catch. But her winters are reserved for the love of the sport she played - the occasional photo of Canada Life Centre posted on the screen. And she has a cat, who she takes more pictures of than anything or anyone else. Even more so than herself, with her selfies few and far in between. 

Scrolling down, Morgan pressed his thumb to the touch screen to prevent it from scrolling any further as a realization took him. She was alone in almost every single one of her photographs. Returning to her profile, Barron scrolled and looked at the small collection of images she had chosen to share. Each one seemed distinct. Alone and unrelated to the one that came before and the other that came after. Fractures of what once was there; her boyfriend. 

There was no sign of him anywhere on her profile. Not one picture or tag. He had been removed from her life with the click of a button. 

His smile grew. It shouldn't have, but it did as he leaned back against the seat. 

Then, the idea of messaging her made his smile go broader, and Barron cast a glance to the surrounding seats to assure he hadn't gathered any unwanted attention from his teammates. And when he was sure they were distracted by one another or something on their own phones, Barron opened a direct message and watched the cursor blink. 

His thumbs hovered over the keyboard, his mind blank, as he could decide what to say to her. In a perfect world, He could say literally anything to her and she would answer. But even as a NHL player, the chance of her screening him was high - hell, it felt higher than if he were just some average guy. And he didn't know if she was even looking for anything. A relationship, a friend, just someone to talk to… There was so much Morgan didn't know, including just how long she and her boyfriend had been separated. 

But he messaged her anyway. 

You google my name, and you get an entire Wikipedia page about my life. You google Emmy, and you get the awards. I want to know your story, if you’ll let me.

Staring at his phone screen, Morgen's heart fluttered in the depths of his chest at the unread message. It left him feeling nervous, sick even, knowing that she could read it and never reply-

“Hey,” a sharp shout met his ears. It was Schmidty calling to him from the front of the now empty bus. Well, empty except for him. “Bear. Com'on. Coach won't let us leave without you!” 

It was time to fly home.

For the entirety of his fight back to Winnipeg, Morgan slept to keep himself from constantly checking his phone. It was the only way to keep himself from holding his breath, leaving his lungs burning with the great anticipation of waiting for Emmy to reply. Hoping that she would, and the disappointment that would come if she didn’t. But that didn’t stop him from holding his breath as he walked out to his car and started up his phone. The bright light off the screen sent his eyes squinting as the darkness of the night surrounded him. One notification after the next had his phone vibrating in his hand, and his heart thundered as he read each one. And once he saw it, her smiling profile picture beside an Instagram notification, he held his breath until his lungs burned. She had answered! 

It was the first of many messages exchanged between them. The first of many conversations held between the awkwardness of his schedule. He sent quick messages in the mornings, after practice and before games and the late hours after. And she would answer the best she could when she could between her own chaotic schedule that came with working shift work. It wasn’t easy, but they made it work - but it made Morgan all the more nervous when he finally decided to ask her out to dinner, and all the more excited when she said yes. 

Earls on Main street was one of the nicest restaurants in Winnipeg without being intimidating and unapproachable for a first date. It was a place the guys on the team liked to frequent after a victory or during some downtime in a city that really had very little to do during the season unless you liked ice fishing or comedy clubs. And it was somewhere close to both of them, with it behind a mere ten-minute walk from the arena where Morgan parked his car and Emmy had claimed it was close to home for her as well, though Morgan did worry she had only said that to be agreeable. 

He arrived early, securing a table by the window looking over main street as it was already becoming congested with rush hour traffic. Cars sat bumper to bumper on weather eroded roads. The music that set the ambiance of the restaurant couldn’t even block their symphony of honking out. Each heavy honk interrupted the calm and reminded him of the nerves in the depths of his chest as he waited for Emmy. 

The beads of condensation could only calm the sweat of his palms as they dripped down the cold glass of his beer as it was handed to him. Sneaking one in before dinner wouldn’t hurt, not if it eased the worry in his mind. Dating as a hockey player in New York had been easy. He was a bottom 6 plug who barely broke the lineup back then. Girls weren’t intimidated by him, and they were different. Morgan had always had a type, that was for sure. He liked them brunette and outdoorsy, straying away from his type only a handful of times when it served him well. Emmy fit a lot of things in a woman he usually looked for. That alone should have put him at ease, but two things nagged him into the depths of his mind. Being a hockey player in the small city of Winnipeg meant you were a local celebrity. Some women didn’t like the attention that came with being around him. Then there was the biggest worry of all, something he had never worried about until her: what if she didn’t share his attractions? 

Texting was one thing. Something you could do with anyone, regardless of interest or attraction. Something you could do aimlessly when you were bored or trying to kill time. It was how you conversed in person that really mattered. That was where you showed your interest and how you really got to know them. Sitting at a table with someone you aren’t interested in would be harder - and all he could do as he polished off the golden ale of his beer was hope that it wouldn’t be the case. 

A steady hand lowered the empty glass down to rest on a coaster before his hand dropped to his phone that rested face down on the table. Morgan had tried not to watch the time, but the traffic was starting to calm and Emmy had yet to make an appearance. Almost thirty minutes had passed since he had arrived, and ten minutes since the agreed upon meeting time. He shifted in his seat as he placed the phone down again. Ten minutes wasn’t enough to be worried, but the waitress circled like a shark with blood in the water. 

“You have a chance to look over the menu,” the waitress, Jenn, spoke sweetly as she approached him. Her hand was quick to come to rest on the back of the chair behind him, and she smiled down at him, waiting for her response. 

“I’m still waiting on my date,” his head cocked, trying not to sound rude as he gestured to the seat across from him, “she shouldn’t be much longer, but maybe some water for the table?”

“And another beer?”

He paused for a moment, contemplating. Then, Morgan shook his head and let out a soft, “No, I’ll be okay for now. Thank you.” 

His hands dropped to the table, his thumbs drumming on the wooden surface rhythmically. It was a hollow distraction from what was the haunting possibility that he had gotten stood up. The movement and the sound were the only thing keeping Morgan from dropping his palm into his hand, his disappointment only consuming him on the inside. It bubbled there and almost became enough for him to leave enough cash on the table to cover the beer and a generous tip. And he almost did it, but when his thumbs stilled, he heard her. 

“Oh, yes, I see him. Thank you.”

Sitting up straight in his seat as he looked out over the restaurant that was beginning to grow consumed by the dinner rush. Walking down the narrow aisle between the bar and the seats along the large front windows, he found Emmy. She walked towards the table carrying two bags on one arm and her puffy white winter coat tossed over the other. Her coat is so large he can’t make out what she was wearing until she was draping it over the back of her chair: a pair of tight pleather pants hugged at her hips, a white blouse tucked in at the waist and she wore white sneakers that looked so clean he was sure they had never been worn outside. His eyes traced the curves of her body as he admired her, down one side and up the other until they fixated on her face-framing curls that hung loosely from the hold of her claw clip. Between each tendril was the smile he remembered so fondly. 

“I’m sorry I’m late,” her apology was quick and punctuated with a small huff that left her shoulder rising and falling with her breath. And her eyes didn’t quite meet his as she draped her coat over the back of her chair. 

She looked a little embarrassed, frustrated, maybe, but Morgan wanted to do his best to put her at ease. 

“Don’t worry about it.” Morgan stood up quickly, his hand reaching out to take hold of the back of her chair in a simple act of courtesy. He drew it back slowly, towering over her as he offered her a friendly smile. “Long day?”

“Very.” There was a tiredness in her voice, and it had Morgan’s smile on the verge of wavering. 

They could have postponed, he wouldn’t have minded. Yet, there she was looking a little defeated, a little tired with faint purple bags under her eyes that she tried to hide with concealer, but just as beautiful as the night she had walked into the collector's shop to meet him. 

She smiled across the table at him; he smiled back, and before he could say anything else, the waitress Jenn had returned to serve them. 

They started their date with a glass of wine, something to take the edge off. It calmed his nerves, and he watched the tension melt away from her shoulders with each sip of her glass. Then came dinner that was paired with soft laughs and conversation, before they finished with coffee and desserts. Hours passed, the sunset and the restaurant cleared until it felt like they were the only two left in the place. And he would stay there with you until the lights went down, and they tried to kick you both out if he could. He liked Emmy’s company, and he was sure she did too by the way she laughed and how the conversation never seemed to die. Even the silence as he sipped what was left of his coffee felt right in her company. 

Morgan’s lips parted in a satisfied hum as he leaned back in his seat, his long legs stretching out just far enough to brush against hers beneath the table. She doesn’t pull away. She doesn’t even flinch. He wonders if she even noticed his touch, his warmth as his leg rested so casually against what he was sure was her knee. It was the subtlest of touches, and it only left him wanting more. Morgan wanted to reach out over the table and hold her hand. To feel the smooth skin of her fingers and toy with the ring she wore on her right little finger. He wanted to press his hand to her lower back, to let it so subtly find her curves as they walked together. But there was nothing more he wanted than to take her home. To take her to her bed or his and explore every inch of the body he had been left to dream about since the day he met her. 

He wanted their night to continue after dinner. To keep making her laugh, but also make her moan. 

But he couldn’t have her and be a gentleman both-

“Is there anything else I can get you two?” Jenn’s quick question pulled Barron from his thoughts, his head snapping in her direction as he was reminded that he and Emmy were not, in fact, alone in the restaurant.  

“Just the bill, please,” he smiled before looking across the table at Emmy, who smiled back at him in return. Jenn left them, and with a quick glance over the near empty, he half laughed, “I think we overstayed our welcome.”

“I’m not complaining,” she assured him. “It’s a shame they aren’t open later. I could have probably sat here all night.”

Morgan had to bite his tongue. He was sure that was his chance to make this more than just dinner, but maybe she was just being polite. Complimenting his company. Besides, he had already decided he was going to be a gentleman. 

When Jenn returned with the bill, she didn’t linger. She placed the thin leather receipt book down, directly between them and half hanging off the table’s edge. The white edge of the receipt peaking out for the top. Morgan offered a soft, thankful smile as he reached out for it, his hand wrapping around it effortlessly as he drew it back to his side of the table while the other slipped into his back pocket for his wallet. 

“Here, let me cover my half,” Emmy insisted, her hand reaching out to catch the very edge of the book, her fingers so close to his Morgan’s breath hitched, wishing she had reached out for his hand. 

Morgan didn’t even have to think about it. Maybe her insistence was her trying to be kind. A show of equality, the strength of her femininity. But he couldn’t let her pay. It didn’t feel right. Not while he made millions a year. “I’m not letting you do that.”

“But then-” she began to counter, but cut herself off with the bite of her own teeth on her lower lip. 

Morgan’s shoulder slumped, his head hanging there as his eyes shut and a heavy sigh shook him. He didn’t need her to finish to know what she was going to say. 

But then this would be a date. A real date. Not just two people spending the entire evening together with wine, a meal, and what he thought was great company. Had he been wrong? Had she not enjoyed their evening together?

The thought hurt him to even wonder, but he hit the ache in his chest behind a crooked smile and continued to go through his wallet with the intention of paying the bill in full. “I insist,” he continued to assure, his words gentle, “it wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t. This doesn’t have to be anything more than dinner.”

She was silent for a moment, her glossy eyes fixated on the receipt as her hands slid from the tabletop to rest on her lap. Emmy shifted uncomfortably in her seat, a heavy breath rocking her shoulders as she conceded, “yeah, okay, but only if you insist.”

There was a heaviness between them as he paid the bill, making sure to leave a tip for Jenn who was forward but friendly with her service. He offered his thank you's, and helped Emmy gather her things before they moved to the front doors together. It was only as they entered the building’s lobby that she spoke again. 

“I’m sorry, I should have-” she cut herself off with a sigh, “It’s been a while since I’ve gone out with anyone I-” Emmy rambled, as she rounded one of the chairs in the lobby and seated herself down. She draped her coat over her lap, and placed her bags at her feet, her attention on them instead of Morgan, who lingered standing tall at her side. 

And he almost frowns. It’s like she can’t find the words she really wants to say to him. 

“It’s okay,” he assured, his hands dipping into the pockets of his jeans as he slouched his shoulders. He couldn't help but be responsible for what now felt like a miscommunication. “I could have been-”

“No, no, it wasn’t you,” she sighed, her hand falling to her hands, “you’ve been great. Really. A perfect gentleman-” Morgan wanted to beam, but he kept his composure as he moved to sit across from her, “It’s just, this has all been harder for me to adjust to than I thought.”

This? Dating. 

Morgan sighed as he leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. It was hard not to be selfish. To not be upset with the fact that she was struggling to get back into the dating game when he was sitting right in front of her. But it wasn’t easy, not if her boyfriend was someone she had hoped to spend the rest of her life with while he was just supposed to be a hockey player on her television screen. 

He did his best not to be upset, defeated by the fact that maybe she wasn’t all that interested in him or ready to move on, but Morgan showed her compassion regardless. “How long were you two together?”

“Five years… give or take a few months.”

“And how long has it been since…”

“Three months…”

Morgan let out a long, heavy sigh. The break up was still very, very fresh for her. And after being in a relationship for so long, it could take her months, maybe even years, to recover. It was something he couldn’t rush, even if he wanted to be selfish and have her all for himself. 

“If it’s any consolation, I had a very nice night with you, Emmy. And I’d like to see you again, even if it’s just as friends.”

A soft smile splayed over her features as her arms hugged her coat to her chest. “I’d like that.” Her warm eyes met him for a moment. So soft and warm, they alone were almost enough to draw him in, but Morgan kept himself at bay, smiling along with her soft words, “I mean, how am I supposed to pay you back if I don’t see you again?”

“Em,” Morgan started to protest, and her smile only grew. 

“At least let me buy you a beer sometime, as a thank you,” she insisted. 

And how could he say no if it meant securing plans to see her again?

“Okay, fine,” his words were laced with a hint of laughter, “one beer.” 

Emmy smiled at the compromise, her warm gaze falling from his features and to her bed. Morgan watched as she rummaged through it, curious to know what she was searching for, only for his brows to knit when she pulled out a pair of winter boots. 

“You don't plan on walking home, do you?” He asked her quickly. It was late, and sure the buses would be running and taking a taxi was always an option, but Morgan wanted to assure she was getting home safe. 

“I always walk home, it's not far,” she assured. 

“I've kept you out pretty late it’s-” 

“Not safe?” she cut in, smiling. She's had this talk many times before. “I've lived in downtown Winnipeg longer than you've been pro.” 

Morgan raised his hands up, but this wasn't a defeat. “Alright, tough guy, the people of Winnipeg better watch out for you. But please, let me give you a ride, at the very least, to give me some peace of mind.” 

Emmy cocked her head to the side, her warm brown eyes looking across at him as she continued to smile. For a moment, Morgan Thought she might have the gull to refuse him, to insist on walking home alone regardless of his offer. But then she tucked her boots back into her bag and stood up to pull on her coat. 

“Alright, fine. You can drive me home, but only because it's late,” she accepted his offer with a smile, and then took his arm as it was offered to her. 

They walked together, with her arm linked around his, through the city's skywalk system to keep away from the winter's chill. They made small talk, sharing casual conversation about plans for the coming days as they walked back to where he left his truck parked closer to the rink in their secured parking. And she didn't let her touch slip away from him until he had opened the passenger side door of his truck and helped her inside. 

The drive to her apartment was quick, no longer than 5 minutes, and was only delayed by the series of one-way streets he had been forced to wind through and his need to ask Emmy for directions. Her apartment, a mere five story building surrounded by towering sky rises, was calm out front. Light glowed from a number of the windows, but the street itself was calm and felt worlds away from the arena that was no more than four city blocks away. It didn't feel like the city there, so close to the heart of Winnipeg but also so close to the river, and the nature Manitoba was known for. 

Morgan smiled up at the quaint little apartment before he looked across the front seat and to Emmy, whose hand had dropped to unbuckle her seatbelt. “No wonder you go to so many games-”

He bit his tongue. All night, they had done their best not to talk about work. His or hers. The only way he would have known she went to as many games as she seemed was from looking at her social media. Which he had, too many times, before their date that night.

“Are you creeping on me?” Her words were more of a tease than a question. 

Morgan smiled wider. 

“I might have, once or twice.”

Blush flooded her cheeks, her head turning to try to hide it from him, but it still lingered when she looked back with a small smile she was trying to contain as she spoke. “Thanks for the ride.” 

“Thanks for the company.”

“I had a good time.”

There it was. The awkward pleasantries that lead up to the goodbye. The ones that were sandwiched between the feeling of wanting to spend more time with one another and the finality of needing to leave. Worst of all, he wanted to go with her. Morgan would have parked his car on the street and went up to her apartment with her if she had extended the invitation, and would ruin his every effort to remain a gentleman. But they sat in silence, sharing soft smiles as the car sat in the middle of the road, obstructing the traffic that didn't exist at that time of night. 

Yet, neither of them could manage to say what needed to be said. Goodbye. 

Even as she grabbed her bags, it couldn’t slip off his tongue. Not even as he saw her hand hesitate as she reached for the door could Morgan find a single word. Not a goodbye, not the wait that sat lodged in the back of his throat, no matter how desperately he wanted to scream it. And for a moment he thought he might have, because Emmy froze and she placed her bags back down on the floor of the truck. Then she shimmied into the center seat, her arms reaching around him so carefully in a cautious embrace. 

“Thanks for dinner,” she whispered out, her hot words felt against his neck. 

Morgan’s jaw set, a single arm wrapping around her and drawing her in just a little closer. The strength of his arm coiled around her, his fingers gripping at the curve of her waist as his face found its place in the crook of her neck. He breathed her in, felt her warmth, yet he didn't feel close enough. Morgan wanted nothing more than to pull her closer - but if she were any closer, Emmy would be in his lap. 

He held her until he felt her slip away from him. But she didn't go far. She lingered in the space that was once left void between them, breathing his air and not quite out of his reach. Morgan could feel her every heated breath on his cheeks, and watched at her brown doe eyes as they traced the angles of his features. But it was only as she stared fixated on his lips that Morgan felt he knew what she wanted. 

A single hand raised up, his touch meeting the skin of her cheek. Feeling her was so smooth in contract, his hockey callous hands against perfectly imperfect flesh. Fingertips grazed over her cheek carefully, traveling up to her hairline and drew her in. 

His kiss was quick and chaste. That was until Morgan felt her kiss him back. The soft gentle drag of her full lips that almost seemed to gasp at the fiction. He drew her in a little closer, the soft sound sending his heart racing as his tongue swept out between his teeth and tasted the very entrance of her mouth before Morgan found his restraint. 

Morgan's hands fell from her face, his gaze dropping to look down at his truck seat, ashamed. 

He shouldn't have done that. 

“I’m sorry,” his words caught in the back of his throat and his tongue parted his lips and ran over them just to taste what remained of her on his lips. 

“Don’t be,” Emmy breathed out, the heat of her words felt on his face as she had yet to really pull away from him. She was so close he thought she might lean back in, that she might let him kiss her again if he reached up and took her cheeks in both of his hands. And he considered doing it, even as his hands reached up to grip the steering wheel in restraint. The long moment of opportunity passed and all of her warmth was gone in one simple motion as she opened the truck door. The gust of Winnipeg winter wind left him shivering as she grabbed her things. 

“Good night, Morgan,” she told him softly as she moved to slip out the passenger door, where she froze one last time. “Can I call you in the morning?”

Morgan took in a sigh of relief. “Please do.”

The edge of the cold, hard, white plastic of the key card tapped against the rounded edge of his steering wheel as Morgan drove towards the airport. There was a flurry in the sky. Fluffy snowflakes that left the road slick and congested with traffic, but not even that could frustrate him. Not with the key card pinched between his two fingers. 

He didn’t know what it was for, but he knew who it belonged to. It must have fallen from Emmy’s purse, or her pocket when he had given her a ride home. Whether it was intentional or not, he didn’t know. But it gave him an excuse to message her as he rolled to a stop in the parking lot outside the Winnipeg Richardson International Airport. 

The text message may have sounded like an innuendo if it hadn’t been for the picture of her keycard in his hand as he held it out in front of him. 

And as he broke the news, Emmy was quick to respond. 

At two in the morning, when the city was calm and the only thing that was open was the occasional gas station or convenience store, the drive from the airport to downtown Winnipeg was quick. Morgan’s truck was the only vehicle on the road safe for the occasional taxi driving club goers home, or an emergency vehicle wailing through the street on their way to the next call. But the air was quiet when Morgan pulled into the victory parking space behind Emmy’s building. A small caution greeted him, any cars parked there after two in the morning would be towed. He looked to the left, parked car, he looked to the right, another car. This one was covered in snow, and looked like it had been there a number of days. And he shrugged. There was nothing he had to worry about. 

Leaning across the center console, Morgan reached into the glove-box where he stored Emmy’s key card for the short time he had been in Chicago. He tapped it between his fingers, grinning. It was such a simple thing. A plain white card, misplaced, allowed him to see her again so much sooner than he could have anticipated. What was surely a headache for her was a gift to him. 

Morgan smiled the entire way to the building’s front door, where with quick fingers he quickly pressed the cold buttons that would alert her that he had arrived. A cold wind chilled him as he stood, waiting as the ring of the apartment directory box rang. Shoulders raised and his neck shrunk down into his coat as his hands drove into his pockets. Morgan listened to each droning ring, his heart racing at the prospect that it was too late, that Emmy had most likely fallen asleep before the plane had even landed. 

But then he heard her, her voice sounding distorted and robotic as it came through the speaker, “take the elevator up!” 

Then all was quiet and there was nothing more to be heard until the lock on the door clicked. 

Drawing his hands from his pocket, the sticky cold of the handle greeted his palms. It melted beneath his quick touch and the warmth of the lobby embraced him. The contrast of hot and cold left his body shivering as he took quick strides up the quick steps of the lobby, and quickly found the elevator. It roared to life with the press of a button, leaving whatever floor it had stopped on to meet him on the main level. The door parted in front of him, revealing a small, empty elevator that he would take up to the 5th floor. When the doors parted again, he exited out into the hallway and looked left, then right, trying to gauge the layout of the floor only to find a familiar face. 

Emmy. 

“I thought it would be easier to meet you,” Emmy greeted him with a soft smile. 

His smile grew as his eyes dragged up and down her figure. Not only had she managed to stay awake for him, she hadn’t dressed down in her pajamas. Wherever she had been earlier in the evening had her dressed in a navy blue dress that hugged her body and stopped mid calf. His gaze lingered on the hem before following the angles of her legs down to her feet where she stood without shoes, but was not barefoot. She was wearing a pale hosiery that was barely there noticeable and it left his mind spiraling back to the very first night he had met her when the miniskirt she had been wearing wasn’t enough to hide the run in her tights. 

He swallowed hard, trying to moisten his suddenly dry mouth. 

“Saves me from getting lost in the hallway,” Morgan tried to keep his words playful, his dry throat sticking to his words as he spoke. Then, while smiling, he dipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out her key card. “Here, I-” he licked his lips, “I'm sorry I kept you up so late waiting on me.” 

Emmy smiled. Then, she reached out and took it from his hand as it was offered to her. Her delicate touch fluttered over his hand for a moment before she pulled it into her chest. 

“Late? Hardly,” her tone was chipper, reassuring, “I was actually-” she looked down the hallway to what he was sure was her door. Emmy chewed at her bottom lip, sighing as she brought her free hand up to push through her long, brunette curls, “did you want to come inside?” 

Her question had been blurted out when her mind had failed to find words smoother or more coy during her brief moment of hesitation. 

And Morgan should have said no. He knew he should have. But with the memory of her tiny skirt and long legs weighing heavily on his mind, he couldn't refuse. 

Smiling, Morgan gestured up the hall silently and let her lead the way into her apartment at the end of the hallway. It was a good size for one person with the kitchen and main living space visible from the door. The lights were dim, their glow lighting up a wall of bookshelves and her sofa. Across from in, a single television and photographs hung above. It's quaint, comfortable, but he can tell there used to be more. There were large spaces of openness. Like half of the furniture was missing - a void of what was once more left behind. And tucked into the corner, just below the large windows that looked out over the parking lot, and the Assiniboine River, was a pile of boxes. 

Maybe she was moving, or maybe she was just hiding from the memories. 

He didn’t pry. 

“Nice place you got here,” He complimented as he kicked off his shoes and pushed them to the side where a pair of her boots sat on a plastic mat to keep the melted snow from becoming a puddle on the floor, “is there somewhere I can put my coat?”

Morgan hated himself for asking. He shouldn't have been settling in. 

“Here, I can take it,” she was quick to offer, her hands finding his coat as it slipped from his arms. Her touch left his shoulder tense, and his heart racing as he watched her move halfway up the hallway to hang up his coat in the closet. “Did you want a drink or something?”

“No, no, I'm fine, really,” Morgan assured, still standing in the doorway. 

“Let me know if you change your mind,” Emmy smiled, moving past him to curl up on the sofa. 

She sat right in the middle of the sectional, the chaise empty to her left and to her right her laptop with a book resting on top. And across her face came the glow of the television, the highlights from the game playing on repeat. The Jets had won 3-2 in overtime, but it wasn't a game he was proud of. He had less than 10 minutes of ice time, his play was lacking and his mind distracted as he knew that when he landed back in Winnipeg, he had to come back and see her. He knew she watched the game, but she wished she hadn't. At Least then maybe he could pretend he had played better. 

“You watched the game?” He gestured to the television as he approached the couch slowly and took the vacant space next to her on the chaise. 

“Yeah,” she said, “had my family over to watch after grabbing dinner. Hence the dress, I didn't just-”

“Put it on for me?” The suggestion slipped from Morgan's lips before he could stop himself, and it left his tongue feeling like it was swelling in his mouth. The feeling left his mouth gaping, his eyes shutting as he hid his own embarrassment behind his hand. 

“Lounge around in business casual,” she offered him the rest of her words, her smile coy as she brought her legs up to curl off to the side. 

As he peeked through his fingers, he was hyperaware of every one of her movements and how the fabric of her dress raised up higher on her legs as she got comfortable. The dark fabric bunched around her knees, exposing the narrow ripple of the runs as they began and traveled up to where he couldn't see.

“I'm sorry,” Morgan laughed, his hand falling back to his lap as he turned to face her straight on. He should have asked her about her day then. It would have been a nice distraction from the fool he had made of himself, but he had already shoved his foot in his mouth already. “I'm just a little distracted… You just look so pretty over there.”

Over there. He wanted to hit his palm against his forehead. She was mere inches from him, her body within his reach and even closer as she turned to prop her elbow on the back of the sofa and her head in her hand. She gazed at him, her eyes soft, like he was a daydream, and her smile grew with the red flush of her cheeks. 

“I can't tell if you're nervous, or trying to be coy,” Emmy hummed playfully.

And he couldn't tell her it was neither. Morgan wasn't nervous or coy. He was just a man who wanted nothing more than to take her by the legs, hoist up the skirt of her dress and rip a hole in her tights. 

“Which one gets me a kiss?” 

Her entire face lit up at the question, and she knew it. Emmy tried to hide it from him as she looked away at the television, but her composure was weaning, as was his own. “Bringing me my badge gets you a kiss.” 

Emmy leaned in, her eyes shutting and her face softening, and found his lips in a soft kiss that was not much more than a fluttering graze that left his hand flexing with restraint. He wanted nothing more than to draw her back in, to kiss her firmly, deeply, and then he saw her smile and how the corner of her lips curled up and the brightness of her eyes flickered like candle light. She hadn't kissed him like that to be gentle or sweet. Emmy was teasing him - testing him - and he failed. There was no hiding that he wanted more from her. He could feel it written all over his own face as his jaw slacked and eyes narrowed as she leaned in again and placed another slow kiss to his mouth. 

It was an agonizing kiss. Her full lips brushed against his, meeting his kiss with all of her calm sweetness gone. Emmy was as eager as he was. Their kiss hastened, her lips parting and her tongue gliding over his lips before he could reach both hands up to cup each side of her face. It drew her in deeper, his tongue tasting hers and coaxing a soft sound up her throat. It was a mix of a sigh and a moan, her lips melting into his as she pushed up onto her knees, but didn't let her lips stray from their kiss. 

She wanted to be closer to him, and Morgan welcomed it. His hands left her face, dropping down to hook behind her knees where the fabric of her dress bunched. He gripped her there, and used that leverage to pull her in closer, over the rough gray fabric of the sofa. It was the only encouragement she needed to come in closer, her own hands reaching down to pull up the fabric of her dress just enough to climb into his lap.

His own heartbeat pounded in his ears at the feeling of her knees on either side of his thighs, and the warmth of her body as it bridged over him. Morgan could finally, for the very first time, after months of what ifs, maybes, and dreams that left him reeling in a cold sweat, feel her body against him. He could finally feel the curves of her waist and hips beneath his palms. He stoked over them as he kissed her, rubbing up and down and up again before they reached the hem of her dress that had raised up higher and higher until it came to rest at her mid thigh. So much of her was left exposed to him, yet there was so much more for him to uncover if Emmy left him. 

Morgan's hand dipped down, abandoning the skirt of Emmy's dress and grazing over the thin nylon hosiery. He stroked over it discreetly, until he found it, a single run that stretched from knee to inner thigh. Fingertips traced it lazily as he pulled back from the kiss of her lips and began to kiss along the soft angle of her jaw until he was speaking his heated words just below her right ear, “I can’t stop thinking about these.”

Two fingers found the largest point in the run and circled it slowly. Morgan could feel it stretch and grow beneath the friction. He smiled against the skin of her neck. 

“I noticed them the day I met you…” Morgan’s fingers toyed with the nylon, stretching it just a little wider so he could feel the soft flesh of her inner thigh before tracing the run back down to her knee. “You were wearing that little skirt. It was so short, how could I not look? Your curves, I noticed those first. If you don't count that smile.” 

He paused again, just long enough to draw back and take in the sight of Emmy as she sat there straddling his lap. Her eyes shut, her body completely still as if she was holding her breath, hanging on his every word as he offered her a mere fraction of the desire in his mind. 

“Your ass, your thighs. Too thick for the cheap tights…” he followed the run up high, almost to the very apex of her thigh, “so they stretch and they run.”

Emmy shuttered, whether it be from his touch of his words he didn't know, but he felt it. Morgan felt it across his lap first, her hips moving from side to side in an involuntary wiggle as the shiver had run its course down her body, and then he felt it in his thighs as her knees seemed to subtly squeeze around him before relaxing once more. It was paired with an unsteady breath, then another as his fingers stroked in small circles around the exposed skin at the very center of the run. 

He was so close to letting a single finger slip between the nylon and trying to rip it away from her skin. But he hesitated, waiting for her rejection or some sort of permission to keep going. Either way, the damage was done. Morgan had made his advance when he should have done nothing more than talk to her about her day and go home tired with nothing more than a thank you kiss. And as he waited with nothing but the sound of her eager breath to put him at ease, Morgan was sure he was going to be sent home at the cost of any kind of relationship with her going forward. 

But then she spoke, and he heard the smile in her tone, “so that's why you were looking at me like that.”

“Like what? Where?” he breathed out, his nose nuzzling into her neck before he placed a gentle kiss there. 

“At the signing,” her words were soft, jovial, “you were looking at me like I was the only person in that room.” Emmy’s head turned into his as she chuckled, her cheek grazing with his as she spoke softly, “and I was too nervous to even notice. I don't even know if I even looked at you the whole time…”

“You didn't,” he confirmed gently, “but I wished you would.” 

She drew back slowly, and he could no longer feel the heat of her breath against his skin but her doe-brown eyes looking down at him. “I didn't even believe it after looking at the photos. It was my friend who pointed it out…” 

“And what did she say?”

She looked away, and Morgan raised his free hand up to guide her gaze back to his. “Nothing appropriate.” 

“You and your friend, you're close?”

She nodded slowly. 

“You tell her about me?”

“Yes,” her head cocked to the side, “should I not have?”

“No, no,” Morgan shook his head, his hair falling down into his eyes, “I don't care about that. What did she say after our date?”

Emmy’s cheeks turned a brilliant shade of pink and her shoulders slouched forward as she tried to avoid his gaze again. Whatever her friend, Emmy didn't want to repeat it, and that excited him. 

Leaning in, Morgan kissed her neck slowly. A sloppy, open-mouthed kiss that left a heated trail as he kissed his way down to the angles of her collarbone. He felt her breast heave against his chin as he spoke against her flesh. “What did she say, Emmy?” 

Morgan punctuated his question with the graze of his teeth over her collarbone, coaxing a shutter to run its course through her body once more. 

“She,” Emmy gasped, “asked if you fuck as good as you play hockey.” 

Morgan's lips caught on her flesh, dragging over it as he drew back just enough to look over the softened embarrassment on her features. Her friend's words were a bold, brash thing to say. Girl's talk, gossip even, and it had brought them to what felt like the turning point of their night. 

“What did you tell her?” Morgan asked. 

“That you were a perfect gentleman.” Her breath was sweet against his face as she spoke, his own lips so close to kissing her again. 

“That's too kind,” Morgan told her. His hand stroked over one of her cheeks before his fingers knitted into her brunette curls. He wanted nothing more than to anchor himself there. To use it to draw her in and to kiss her again. But that would make him far from the gentleman he was trying to be. 

Emmy needed time to heal, Mogan knew that. Her wounds of her breakup were still fresh. He could see it even as she sat there in his lap in the middle of her living room. The boxes piled and the emptiness that remained. That alone should have been enough to say goodnight. He should have done nothing more than place a simple kiss on her forehead and left, but there was no ignoring the tensions between them. The tension he had been trying to ignore since the very night he had met her. 

He was only a gentleman in practice. His thoughts, however, were the very opposite. 

“Morgan,” Emmy whispered out as she raised up both hands. They took hold of him on each side of his face, the delicate touch of her fingers tickling over his scar and up into his hair. He groaned at the tug on his scalp as her fingers tangled in his post game shower curls. Her touch was all he needed to close the breath of space between them. 

Their lips met unlike they had before. There was nothing chaste or cautious about the kiss. Emmy kissed him with such haste it was as if she thought he might disappear without notice. And his one large hand slid through her soft strands to the nape of her neck, drawing her in and kissed her with such depth Morgan swore he could taste something sweet on her tongue. Feeling it glide along the inside of his mouth coaxed a moan from the depths of his throat. Morgan had hoped the Kiss would have been enough to muffle it. That Emmy wouldn't hear the pathetic sound as it rumbled through his chest, but then he felt her smile against his lips. 

The soft, confident curl of each corner drew a smile of his own, their teeth smacking as they were caught somewhere between a kiss and laughter. There was a level of comfort there on her coach, with her in his lap, that Morgan couldn't have anticipated. It made his every decision easy and made without any hesitation. Morgan barely had to think, only act, and it only slipped out of control and onto instinct when he felt Emmy's hips roll against his own. 

There was no stopping himself from doing what he did next. His hands dropped to her hips instantly, gasping for a fistful of her dress and hosiery clad flesh. Morgan gripped her tight, his hands guiding her body so petite yet to curvy over the stiffening of his cock in his slacks. But it’s not enough. It only took two agonizing rotations before Morgan was slipping her to lie back on the chaise of her couch. Limbs hung over the side lazily as he hovered over her, his mouth capturing hers in a sloppy kiss as he rolled his hips down into hers. Fully clothed, her dress shifting up with the help of the tug of his hands, he felt like a desperate teenager. With Emmy’s hips raising to meet every roll of his own, he wanted nothing more to reach down and flick the button of his pants free. To ease the tension of his slacks over his cock that now raged against the fabric. The friction of her body alone would be enough to make him cum if that was as far as they decided to take things - but then he felt her hands. They fumbled in the space between them, down his chest and to the skirt of her dress. Emmy pulled it up, her body arching and contorting against his to work the navy fabric free. 

Morgan salivated, his hands finding the rough gray fabric of the couch to push off until he was kneeling on the hard, laminate floor in front of her just to get a good look at her. The chaise was too small for her to lie on comfortably. Her leg hung off over the end of the couch at the knee, while the other leg was bent, her heel pressed into the plush cushion. The rest of her body sprawled, her beige hosiery near invisible until the waist wrapped around her stomach and so flattering to her figure Morgan was left biting his lip. Then, there was the contrast of her black panties beneath, and the mismatch of her sunflower yellow bra to catch his eyes as they wandered over each swell and valley of her body. And she watched him in return as she lay there, her chest heaving and her hands coming to rest on the couch’s surface. He was too far out of her reach to touch, but her dark eyes that contrasted his so perfectly told him exactly what she wanted. 

A single hand reached back and gripped the light fabric of his t-shirt in his first. Morgan pulled it off in one fluid motion before it joined her dress on the floor. Then, his hand dropped to his best that sat too snug on his waist. He worked it free with one hand and pulled it free of each loop before dropping it to the floor with a clamor that even startled himself in what had become silence. He then leaned in, his pants hanging off his hips but not discarded, and let his touch return to the inside of her thighs. His calloused fingers traced over each run in her tights slowly, and his eyes followed each tear like roadways on a map while searching for the right direction. It was when he found the widest part of the run; he dipped one finger into it and began to work it larger. Then another. Emmy was shuddering by the time he was spreading his fingers, working the tear large enough to grip it with both hands. The fabric ripped with ease, the sound so satisfying, Morgan’s cock twitched. And he didn’t stop until the hole was ripped big enough for his fingers to tease the dark fabric of her panties. 

There was no seeing her arousal in the fabric that dark, but he could feel it with his knuckles as he let them brush over her crotch in their first teasing graze. He stroked her up and down, the friction against her cunt earning a strangled whimper from her lips. Morgan cocked his head. He wanted her to be louder. He didn’t know if she was holding back by practice or by embarrassment, but he could see it in how her eyes shut tight and her lips parted in a ghost of a moan that there was a sweet sound for him to hear. ‘

A single hand remained between her legs, turning so that his palm could stroke over her clit slowly as he climbed up onto the couch. With one knee between her legs, helping his hand in keeping her already trembling legs apart, Morgan’s lips returned to her mouth in a sloppy kiss. It was as he kissed her, and her hips raised to grind against his palm, that he heard her. A soft, delicate moan that had her tilting her head back into the cushions. 

He could make her louder than that, he was sure of it. 

Without drawing back, Morgan’s hand fumbled between her legs with the soaked fabric of her panties. He hooked them with one finger, then a second when he couldn’t get the grip just right. Tugging them to one side, his fingers felt just how wet she had become. The slick left his fingers gliding over her folds and earning a cuss from his own lips. His jaw slacked in awe at the feeling. The effortlessness of how his fingers moved over her core, up to circle her clit and back down again before sliding them into the warmth of her cunt. Her arousal was practically dripping down his fingers, and not only could he feel the effect he had on her, he could hear it, too. 

The first plunge of his fingers earned the moan that he could practically feel in his own throat. It was hot against his cheek; her face burying in her hair as he began the steady rhythm of his finger thrusts. In and out, then deeper. Emmy’s core clenched around his fingers, her wetness dripping down over his knuckles and onto the sofa below. Her body wound around his, her breath a desperate pant as he brought her closer and closer to her release with nothing more than his finder. And he would have finished her off that way, too. With just a single hand, that was until she gave an order that sounded more like a question. “Take your pants off?” 

Easing up, Barron’s fingers left her core and went straight to his pants. His own movements were rushed, almost clumsy, as he pushed his slacks down to the floor, his boxers slipping down with them. Then there was a bit of a scramble between them as he knelt back down on the couch. Hair fell into his eyes, his hands moved one place and then the next on her body as her smaller and his larger tried to fit together just right. His lips found her lips. His hands stroked the soft angles of her body, traveling down where one hand took hold of his own cock. He stroked it slowly with one hand before guiding it down into the space between her legs where his fingers once were. There his hand remained, dragging the tip of his cock up and down her entrance before his hips eased forward in the gentle pressure. Emmy gasped against his lips, Morgan fighting one of his own back down into the depths of his throat as the warmth of her core welcomed him from the tip, inch by inch with each slow and deliberate rotation, until he was buried to the hilt. 

The couch shifted with each thrust, banging into the wall with a hollow sound. Pillows and couch cushions fell or were pushed to the ground as Emmy reached out to brace herself on the surface, only to find no support. Her hands were then quick to find the strength of his back, her long nails digging in and then deeper as the couch fell from one of its legs, leaving the surface uneven and their bodies sliding. 

He felt her startled yelp in the back of his throat, one arm wrapping around her middle while the other braced their bodies against the arm of the couch. He caught them so effortlessly, his cock still buried deep in her cunt, but they couldn’t stay there. 

“Hold on to me,” he muttered to her breathlessly, and he felt Emmy’s legs coil tight around his middle. 

When he was sure she was secure, her arms grasping tight around the strength of his shoulders, Morgan stood up. He lifted up with little effort, all without his cock slipping from her core. The quick, wide-eyed glance of Emmy’s eyes betrayed her, the shock of what seemed like such a smile movement all over her features. He carried her, a smile pressed to her cheek, as he listened to her gasp and moan as she bobbed along the stiffness of his cock until he had her pinned against the bare living room wall. And he fucked her against it. 

The sturdiness of the wall was the only leverage he needed, his arms moving to hook around the underside of her thighs, as he guided her along his cock. Morgan watched her with a cocky confidence as her face softened, her head leaning back against the blank, white surface as her lips parted. He waited for the words to spill, but her feeble moans were all the met his ears as he fucked her there, feeling the first pulsing wave of her pleasure that sent her arousal dripping down the thick vein of his cock straight down to his balls. 

It left her panting, desperate for more as her hand left his shoulder to push off the wall, “bed, the bed.”

Emmy’s bedroom was down the narrow hallway, just off the bathroom. He couldn’t see it well, wasting no time to turn the lights on, but all he could see was the silhouette of her unmade bed. The duvet wrinkled and tangled with the bodies as he lay her down, his hands finding her hips to brace himself as his hips found their steady roll once more. 

He could feel the exertion overtaking his body. The sweat beading down his muscles as if he had just finished a practice on the ice, and Emmy’s body was against his. Hyper aware of every one of her movements, Barron’s head was spinning as he tossed his head back to toss the sweaty curls from his face. He was starry eyes as he felt her legs drag down the strength of his own, and gritting his teeth with each smack of his hips against hers. Then her limbs were coiling around him. Drawing him in close so she could bury her face into his neck as she moaned out the loudest she had been all night. Her lips grazed over his neck just below his ear as her core gripped around him, tight then tighter as she came undone - but Morgan couldn’t hold back himself any longer. 

One final plunge, the pressure that left his body tense, had met its peak, and he was left in a daze of pleasure that consumed him so fully it almost numbed him. Morgan’s head leaned back on his shoulders, his jaw slacked as he panted out for a desperate breath. He remained deep in her until his cock stilled, his own body quivering at the feeling of her being filled so fully by him that he could feel a mixture of them dripping down his balls. It left him a mess as he fell away from her like a flimsy ribbon, her body tired not only tired from the sex, but the entire game of hockey he had played mere hours ago. 

The exhaustion consumed him as he sprawled out on his side in the comfort of her bed. It’s soft embrace left him feel like he was melting away - completely dissociated from Emmy whose warmth he could no longer feel. He reached an arm out, searching for her blindly. And when he found her, she was crawling back into the bed after discarding her hosiery bra and panties in the garbage and on the floor. 

Her body fit into his with ease, her warmth spread over his chest and his legs and she became the little spoon to his big. His limbs consumed her, drawing her in to share the one large pillow on the bed. Morgan buried his face in her hair, his lips peppering kisses there as she tugged the duvet around their form. There he breathed in the scent of her, his heart yet to calm in the depth of his chest - his own thoughts too loud for him to find peace. 

He didn’t want to overstay his welcome. Worst of all, there was a piece of him so loud in the back of his mind that screamed that he had just screwed up everything. When he started talking to Emmy, that first message he sent was of pure interest. Morgan wanted to get to know her, not hook up with her. And that all felt at risk now that he couldn’t keep it in his pants. 

It left a lump in the back of his throat as he tried to hide from his thought by placing sweet kisses on the back of her neck. The physical kept him distracted from the mental - but then Emmy spoke and put it all at ease, “Do you have practice in the morning?”

“No,” he shook his head slowly, his hair becoming a mess against the pillow - and he almost jumped as the foot of the bed suddenly shifted. Then came the gentle steps of Emmy’s cat, who was only now bold enough to venture out of her hiding spot now that things had calmed. The cat made herself comfortable at the foot of the bed. 

“Grab breakfast with me, then? My treat.” Emmy offered, and Morgan couldn’t suppress the soft laugh that was lost in her hair. 

Morgan’s arms coiled around her a little tighter, playfully drawing her in closer to his frame as he placed a playful nip and kiss on her bare shoulder. “I’m not letting you pay for my breakfast.”

“Fine,” she huffed so loud he could practically hear her pout in the darkness. His brow raised up, she had been quick to concede, but she he felt the wiggle of her ass against his cock teasing him. If he hadn’t taken her already, and if he had the energy, he would have fucked her again. But Morgan settled for sleep, her body perfectly pressed into his, and a smile on his lips as he heard her gentle, dreamy compromise. “It’s a date then.”

Taglist: @mp0625 @starshine-hockey-girl

#morgan barron #winnipeg jets #nhl fanfic #real people fanfiction #nhl fanfiction #nhl rpf #hockey rpf

[cuttergauthier]

Secret boyfriend

female Smith reader x Ryan Leonard

Warning: injury, soft Ryan, fluff 

word count: 1.3k

let me know what you guys think🤍

let me know if you guys want me to do an insta edit of them soft launching their relationship!

I love Boston College, the only thing that sucks is doing homework, studying and just like home I hate when it rains and I have to walk. We are currently in the middle of October, and we are having a rainstorm. I've been here since the end of August and it hasn't rained this much.

Usually my brother would come and drive me to my dorm room since we both live in the same building but he was currently out in the city with two of his teammates Drew and Gabe, since they wanted to go see the bruins play in their home opener and they decided to spend the night since all 3 of them only had late classes tomorrow along with a night practice.

I didn’t bring an umbrella and even though it was raining pretty bad, a lot of students were making a run for it either back to their cars or dorms.

I pulled the hood of my hoodie over my head and started walking fast to my dorm.

I was almost there when another student ran right into me making my fall on my knees on the sidewalk.

I grunted my knee hurt like a bitch. The student just yelled sorry and continued to run. He didn't even ask if I needed any help.

I pulled myself up and looked at my knee. It was bleeding. I groaned and started limping the rest of the way since it hurt too much.

Once i got to the building I opened the door and made my way up those steps and to my room. I am thankfully living in a single dorm room and it also has a small bathroom, i tend to stay up late to study sometimes, so being alone means I never have to worry about keeping my roommate up with the lights.

I unlocked my room and walked in, I dropped my bag on the bed and made my way to the bathroom to see if I had anything to clean my knee. I couldn’t find anything. I looked at myself in the mirror, I was soaking wet. I decided to take a quick shower and I could ask someone if they had anything to help me clean my knee after.

I went to my dresser and grabbed my bc hoodie and a pair of black gym shorts before making my way back to the bathroom to shower.

Once I was done my knee still stings. I got dressed and put on some shoes and made my way to the dorm next to mine. I knocked on the door and Jenna answered she’s the first person i met when i moved here, she’s really sweet.

“Hey Y/n, everything okay?” She asked

“Yeah, sorry but would you have anything to clean wounds?” I ask

She pouted and shocked her head.

“No i don’t i’m sorry”

I smile weakly.

“All good, don’t worry about it”

I made my way back to my dorm room and texted my brother, he’s a hockey player so I hoped he might have something in his room. He gave me a key when we first got to bc in case of an emergency so I could still get in.

Me

Hey, do you by any chance have anything to clean wounds in your room?

Will

Yeah, I should have something in the bathroom if not Ryan probably does. Everything okay?

Me

Yeah, I tripped in the rain earlier. Now my knee is bleeding but I don't have anything to clean it with. Then i remembered that you gave me a key incase of emergency & you’re a hockey player so i figured you might have something!😂

Will

True, go check Ryan should be there! Just tell him what happened and he’ll help you!

Me

Thanks, I love you! Have fun at the game ❤️

Will

Love you too & we will❤️

I made my way to my brother and Ryan’s room & hoped they did have some stuff. My knee is really bothering me. I didn’t really want Ryan to know, but he would have found out eventually.

I’ve known Ryan for a few years, since the untdp days, he and my brother were teammates. We started dating a month before the NHL draft but we wanted to keep it on the down low to make sure we would work out since he and my brother are teammates but also best friends, we didn’t want to make it awkward. Will still doesn’t know only both of our parents do, I’m surprised Will hasn’t figured it out yet.

Once I got there I knocked on the door. A few seconds later Ryan opened up. He looked good, he was wearing some sweatpants and his untdp hoodie.

“Hey, did you forget that your brother went to the Bruins game? Or are you here to hang out with your amazing boyfriend” He asked, confused as to why I was there, since I told him I wanted to study tonight.

“No um, Will said you might have stuff to clean wounds, so i came by to check” i said nervously.

“We probably do, come in.” He said. I walked in beside him and followed him to the bathroom.

“Did you hurt yourself?” He asked, concerned.

“It was raining pretty bad when I got out of class and I had to walk back here, so I was trying to rush and then some student ran right into me, and I ended up falling down, scraping my knee,” I said.

“You should have called me, I would have come by to pick you up” he said, giving me a quick forehead kiss before He took the stuff out of the cabinet and set it down before looking back at me.

“Come here, let me take a look." He said, smiling softly. I jumped up and sat down on the counter without hurting my knee worse.

Ryan looked at my knee.

“It’s not too bad” he said, he grabbed some Cotton balls and put some rubbing alcohol on.

“This is probably going to sting,” he said before cleaning my knee with it.

I bit my lip and turned around so he would see that I had tears in my eyes. I wasn’t as tough as my brother or the rest of them.

Once he was done he put on a bandaid.

“They're all done,” he said softly.

I looked up at him to see he was already looking at me. He gave me a quick kiss on the lips.

“Thank you, i could have done it myself” i said smiling softly

“I saw how you turned your head so i wouldn’t see the tears in your eyes yn, it was probably better i did it since it probably would have taken you longer” he said and i looked at him embarrassed.

“Right, um sorry” I said awkwardly, I hate that I embarrassed myself in front of him.

“Hey you don’t need to be embarrassed about that, it’s just you and I here, I'm not going to make fun of you, I love you too much” he said smiling.

“Thanks Ry, I love you too,” I said smiling back.

He moved away so I could get down from the counter. He put the stuff away and we went back to the room.

“I was just about to put on a movie, do you want to stay a while?” He asked

“Sounds good to me, I don't feel like studying anymore” I said smiling. He chuckled.

He laid down on his bed and pulled me down with him. He pulled me closer to him and wrapped his arm around my waist. He kissed the back of my head and turned on a movie.

A few minutes later I was trying to keep my eyes open but I was losing, it didn’t take long for Ryan to notice. His thumb rubs soft circles on my waist.

“Go to sleep beautiful, i’ll be here when you wake up” he whispered.

“Love you” i whispered softly

“Love you too beautiful” he placed a soft kiss behind my ear, a few seconds later i fell asleep.

#nhl fanfiction #nhl fic #nhl fluff #nhl #nhl imagine #nhl blurb #nhl blurbs #Hockey Fanfiction #hockey fic #hockey blurb #hockey #hockey imagine #fluff #ryan leonard #ryan leonard imagine #ryan leonard blurb #ryan leonard fic #ryan leonard fluff #boston college #washington capitals #will smith #ryan leonard x smith reader #gabe perreault

[ijustreallylovethem]

the lifetime of a relationship

based on six songs from zach bryan's self-titled album. this fic deals with the topics of cancer, self sabotage, grief and mourning, and suicide. if you are not comfortable with those topics, do NOT read this fic.

i am not a cancer expert so some of this is a bit vague but i tried my best

this isn’t finished and never will be but i couldn’t just delete all of it so im posting it instead

quinn hughes x oc, kennedy roth

quinn had been different lately. his teammates and family members were quick to pick up on the attitude change. jack was the first to bring it up, asking him what had been making him so much happier lately. he had an inkling of a guess, and the phone call to his brother only confirmed his suspicions. quinn had met a girl.

neither kennedy nor quinn had made a move yet, but the two had spent weeks talking, hanging out at each other's places, and going out on cute dates. quinn spent nearly an hour gushing to his brother about the girl, telling him just how fast he had fallen for her and how he was nervous to mess it all up. he could already see a future with this girl, and he didn't want to lose all of that over something stupid. jack told him to man up and ask her out then, and the thought of being able to officially call kennedy his had quinn smiling. he thanked his brother, hanging up and texting kennedy, asking her if she wanted to come over that night for dinner and a movie. by the next morning, quinn was calling his mom, telling her all about his new girlfriend.

their relationship was strong at the beginning. kennedy was able to easily adjust to quinn's hectic hockey schedule, which began only three weeks after they labeled themselves. she loved when he would come to her apartment after she got off work and tell her all about what they did at practice that morning. she started to plan her nights around his games so she could watch, even if she had yet to go to rogers stadium and see it all in person. inversely, quinn enjoyed laying in his bed, playing with kennedy's hair and listening as she ranted about her work day. she had graduated from the university of british columbia the year before, and had yet to find a job that she enjoyed. so currently, she was putting up with the one she had until she had enough experience to move to a better one.

the two were infatuated with each other, and anyone around them was easily able to see that. kennedy had been at quinn's place once when a few of his teammates came over, and they chirped him the next day at practice about his lovesick look toward her the whole time they were there. only a month later, kennedy attended her first nhl game, sitting with jim and ellen as they watched all three hughes brothers playing on the ice. they went for dinner after the game, ellen smiling as she walked behing quinn and kennedy holding hands. they were quietly talking about the game, kennedy telling quinn how much more exciting it was to watch in person, and quinn asking her if she understood what was going on yet. when they sat down to eat, quinn's hand immediately fell to her thigh as he spoke to his brother about their performance on the ice an hour earlier. the girl was quick to fall into their brotherly banter, but also engaged with their parents. she informed them of her career and her goals, where she was from and a few of her hobbies and interests. they instantly loved her just as much as quinn did.

over the winter holidays, kennedy had been invited to come home to michigan with quinn. with no other plans for how to spend her days, kennedy was happy to accept. she spent the few days getting to know quinn's family even better. ellen was happy to have her around, loving the attitude quinn had now that she was around. jack and luke loved the way she would make fun of him with them, and pretended not to like they way she would poke fun at them as well.

six months into their relationship, kennedy made her way to quinn's apartment, doing her best to hold back her tears. he was confused, but pulled her into his arms as soon as he noticed her state. he let her cry it out, holding her and not pushing her to speak, knowing she would do so when she was ready. stanley, the black lab that quinn had adopted about six month prior, whined as he rubbed his head against her legs. kennedy had quickly become one of stanley's favorite people and she took an instant liking to the dog as well. the poor puppy knew something was wrong and wanted to comfort her, but she couldn’t even acknowledge him. when her throat was raw and her eyes hurt, she was pulling away from quinn to wipe her eyes and take a deep breath. quinn still lightly rubbed her back.

"you okay? what happened?" she sighed.

"quinn, can we sit down?" he nods, leading her over to the couch. "so, when i was seven, i was diagnosed with lymphoma.” quinn nodded. she had told him all about this only a month into them dating. he was taken back to that night in her apartment that they took a deep dive into each others pasts.

quinn came over for dinner after kennedy got off work, her wanting to cook for him for once instead of the other way around. she made him some pasta that he complimented heavily and then they cleaned up the mess together before heading to her room. they had been spending the night at each other places lately. it was usually kennedy at quinn’s since he had to wake up earlier than her for skates sometimes and it also happened to be closer to where she worked than her own place was. kennedy gave quinn a quick kiss and then made her way to the bathroom to shower. quinn sat on the bed, but then stood to look at some of the pictures taped into a collage on her wall. she didn’t take as long as he thought she would, so when she returned to her room, he was still studying the wall. she didn’t mind, they were up for good reasons.

“is this you and your parents?” he asked, pointing to a picture of a family in a hospital room, the parents smiling as the woman held a newborn baby. it was only two months into their relationship, so neither of them had met the others parents, but quinn wouldn’t know who else she would have such a picture of.

“yeah,” she said softly, making her way to stand just behind them and look at the picture. “they wanted to take a picture because i was their little ‘miracle baby.’” quinn turned just enough to look at her still gazing at the picture.

“was there complications?” she shook her head.

“not with me, no. but my mom had been pregnant three times before and lost them all. they told me that it took a pretty serious mental toll on her. apparently she was so stressed after she got pregnant with me that they were surprised there was no complications.”

“oh, i’m sorry. that must’ve been painful.” she nodded then.

“i’m surprised they kept trying honestly.” quinn reached out to point to another picture. he could tell this one was kennedy, maybe around twelve, but the two people on either side of her didn’t look like the couple from the previous picture.

“who’s this?”

“my grandparents! my dads parents.” quinn looked back at her, noticing she looked and sounded much happier speaking about them than her mom. he noticed her grandparents in a few other pictures of her at various ages, but no others of her parents.

“can i ask-“

“they raised me half my life,” kennedy said, already knowing what he was going to ask. “it’s kind of a long story but i’ll tell you if you want to hear it. you’ll probably want to know at some point anyway.”

“i’d love to listen if you want to tell me.” she led quinn over to her bed, sitting him down and sitting to face him.

“so, it’s kind of a dark story, but i’ll spare some of the details. when i was seven, i was diagnosed with lymphoma. i hadn’t been feeling good for a while and my performance in school started declining. about a month into my treatments, my mom left. i didn’t know much about it until later in my life but apparently she left in the middle of the night, pawned off her wedding ring, and left town. a few weeks later my dad got an envelope containing a letter and divorce papers. she couldn’t deal with a sick child after she had tried so many times to have a baby and failing. i had to do treatments for a while, but after my mom left, dad couldn’t care about much. obviously he blamed me for her leaving so he did the bare minimum to take care of me. he was drinking all the time, barely going to work or even leaving his bed for that matter. apparently one of the nurses noticed when i was brought in for a treatment and called it in. luckily my grandparents took me in instead of sending me into the system. i entered remission not too long after that, so at least one part of my life was able to go back to normal, even though i had to move here from long island since this is where my grandparents lived.” kennedy shrugged, but quinn watched as she glanced over to the picture of her and her grandparents he had pointed to just moments ago.

“i’m sorry all of that happened to you.” kennedy nodded.

“me too.” she took a deep breath and then she was shaking her head lightly. “they passed in a car accident when i was nineteen. i've kinda been on my own since." quinn sucked in a breath, not sure what to say. how could someone have gone through so much in their short lifetime? "tell me about your family?” she asked with a small smile. quinn looked apprehensive, but she nodded in assurance. “it’s okay for you to talk about happy things after i spilled all my trauma. plus it’s only fair that you spill all your history after i spilled mine.”

“okay." quinn nodded. "well, i guess i’ll start with my brothers.”

she took a breath, closing her eyes. quinn knew immediately where she was going with this. she hadn't been feeling well lately, being tired way more than normal and having a hard time walking long distances without being winded. she brushed it off, but quinn knew now that it was bigger than he originally thought.

"it's back, isn't it?" she nodded, and another tear slipped down her cheek. he reached out to wipe it away, wanting nothing more than to scream at the top of his lungs. how could this be happening to his sweet girl?

"hopefully they can treat it and it goes away, just like last time." quinn nods, his mind racing. however, it quiets when she speaks again. "i'll understand if you don't want to deal with all of this. it's a lot, and if you want it, i'm giving you an out right now." quinn could only look at her like she was crazy.

"baby, i don't want an out. i want to be here for you."

"quinn, i'm gonna have some really bad days. i won't be able to get out of bed, i'll probably throw up, i'll be bald."

"i don't care if you have hair or not, kennedy. i want to be there to help you, even on- especially on your worst days. i would never forgive myself if i left you just because i know it's going to be hard." a few tears escaped down her cheeks again at quinn's little speech.

"you're sure about this?" quinn reached out and took her hands in his, making sure he had her full attention.

"kennedy, i love you. and i'm not leaving you." her jaw dropped slightly at the three words, words that before now hadn't been spoken between the two. but then her lips curved into a small smile.

"i love you too quinn. more than you could ever know."

it took about a month for kennedy to start feeling the effects of the treatments. she was tired all the time, barely wanted to eat, and if she did, it was like she couldn’t keep anything in her stomach. quinn had been staying with her most nights in case she needed anything, and he tried to be there as much as he could, but between practices and games, he felt like he was barely any help. she reminded him that she didn’t need him to be there every moment of every day, but he hated knowing that she was suffering by herself.

quinn finally broke the day he helped her cut her hair. he had noticed how fast the shower drain was clogging and the large clumps of it in the bathroom trash. she had shed like crazy before, but this was a whole new level. he didn't speak on it, not knowing if she wanted him to acknowledge it or keep pretending he hadn't noticed. but then she finally came to him, asking if she could borrow his electric razor. he nodded, and offered his help. a few minutes later she was sitting on the toilet facing the wall, and he was taking a deep breath before dragging the clippers through her hair. he could see her shoulders sink, and knew she was doing her best to hold it together. he only held himself together long enough to finish his job. when she stood and turned around, she noticed the tears in his eyes.

"oh, quinny. i thought you said the hair didn't matter," she said, trying to make light of the situation.

"it's not the hair ken, you know that." she nodded, knowing he needed the reassurance at the moment. "just the fact that you have to go through all of this." she pulled him into a hug, and he noticed how weird it felt for his cheek to rest against skin instead of her hair. "i'm supposed to be the one taking care of you," he whispered, causing her to giggle slightly. she pulled away just enough to look him in the eyes.

"this is rough on you too, quinn. it's okay to be upset about all of this." quinn nodded, and then an idea popped into his head.

"wanna go for a drive?" kennedy smiled widely as she nodded. five minutes later, after she has tied a bandana around her head a little too skilled for quinn's liking, they were in his truck and on the road. the truck was something he had driven past one day the previous summer, when he was in michigan. it was a blue ford, nearly forty years old, but it was cheap and he couldn't pass it up. kennedy enjoyed riding in it, saying it reminded her of the old truck her dad used to drive. of course, it wasn't the exact same, but the interior was similar and so was the color. the whole ride, quinn held her hand and let them rest on her thigh, glancing over every few minutes to see her smiling out the open window. she was asleep by the time they returned home, and quinn was careful as he lifted her from the truck and carried her inside.

"hi, um, sorry to bother you but i just saw you sitting over here by yourself and wondering if you could use some company?" quinn turned on the barstool to see a pretty girl standing next to him. she was right, he was over here sitting at the bar because he was lonely. turns out the girl he was talking to only wanted him for the title.

"only if you can handle me being sad and disappointed," he responded. why would he say that? but then she was giggling and sitting on the barstool next to him, so maybe it wasn't too bad of a thing to say.

"you wanna talk about what's got you down or try and pretend it didn't happen?" he shrugged. she didn't seem to know who he was so why would he bring up the girl who only wanted him for his status?

"what brings you out on a tuesday night?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

"well apparently this is the best time to pick up hot guys," she told him with a smile, which caused his cheeks to flush and a small smile to grow on his own lips. "no, the real reason is that i was supposed to meet someone but he never showed up."

"guess we both got let down then."

"the same thing happened to you?"

"not the exact same, but pretty close." the two talked for longer than they thought, and before they knew it, they were being told to pay tabs.

"sorry, i don't think i ever got your name," the girl said.

"quinn."

"kennedy."

"well, kennedy, would it be okay if i got your number before we get kicked out of here?" she smiled, nodding her head as quinn handed her his phone to enter her number.

they had been taking so many drives that kennedy had grow a bit of a tan line on her forehead. she had laughed when she noticed it, a sound that quinn didn’t hear much anymore. he turned to see her looking in the mirror, something else she didn’t do too often.

“what are you laughing at?” she turned and pointed to the line with a smile. quinn had to get closer before he could notice it, but when he did he was laughing too. “you’re getting a bandana line. maybe we need to cut back on the drives,” he joked, but the smile faded a bit from her face at just the thought. “i’m just joking, love. i know how much you enjoy them.”

“of course, i just enjoy hearing you singing off key soooo much.” the smile returned to her face, causing quinn to laugh.

“oh i’m the bad singer?” she nodded, and quinn lunged forward to tickle her. but it was only a few moments of her laughing before her body was tensing and she was tapping out. “what’s wrong?” quinn asked, the smile wiped from his lips. kennedy just responded by making her way back to the bathroom, hunching over the toilet and emptying her stomach. quinn was immediately behind her, rubbing her back. he flushed when she was finished, getting her a glass of water and then carefully pulling her back into his chest as he sat against the wall.

“thank you,” she said softly, taking the cup from him and lifting it to her lips.

“i’m sorry,” quinn whispered, and she shook her head as she swallowed her sip of water.

“don’t apologize. it’s not your fault.”

“yeah but-“

“quinny, i don’t want you to walk on eggshells around me. i want everything to be as normal as possible for us. like it was a few minutes ago.” quinn nodded, pressing a kiss to her temple.

“i love you.”

“i love you too, pretty boy.”

#quinn hughes #quinn hughes x reader #quinn hughes fic #quinn hughes imagine #nhl

[misshoneyimhome]

The friends to lovers trope will always be my favorite, especially with Willy and you do it SO WELL!!

I need more jealous Will, like you guys are super close and have some fun on the side, always together and you’re at his condo 5 nights a week…you’re basically together but you’re not? That absolute shit situation and he’s made it clear that after his on and off 5 year relationship he wants to have fun, whereas you slowly realize with him that you are ready for stability and a relationship…and because you know Will doesn’t want that you start dating! But he’s your situationship, which makes the bff part harder so you keep the dates from him until he’s out to dinner with the Swedes and SEES YOU LEAVE WITH ANOTHER MAN! And he’s fucking destroyed, like a madman he’s ready to go and grab you but the boys talk him down as you’re in fact not his…but that doesn’t stop him from going by your place to see if you’re alone later and when he sees you are alone he makes it clear you won’t be taking anyone but him home…but you fight back that you don’t know who he’s sleeping with beside you while he’s on the road and he makes his feelings clear through action over words🥵 (The words can come in the morning😅)

Oh thanks, darling! I’m glad to hear that you enjoy my writing 😊 And Jealous!Willy is definitely a part of my Roman Empire, so of course I'll do my best to meet your needs -  so another friends-to-lovers story - let's dive in! 💛

Btw, this turned out a bit dirtier than initially intended 🙈

・✶ ｡ﾟ

Warnings; 18+ mild smut; a bit of fingering; protected & unprotected sex (p in v);

Word count: 3.5K

Complicated ⚡️🖋️

"Oh baby, I'm about to come," William moaned, thrusting deeply into your deep core, granting you three intense orgasms before reaching his own peak.

"Yes, Willy, come for me," you gasped, your body quivering and drenched in sweat as William let out a deep grunt and released within the condom.

"Shit, how do we always nail this?" he chuckled, trying to catch his breath after your passionate round of sex.

"I don't know, perhaps we're just perfectly matched," you smiled, as he nestled beside you.

William turned to you, offering a curious look. "Maybe," he gently responded, and you both relaxed, lulled by the sound of your breathing, snuggling before drifting off to sleep.

The evening with William had been a rather typical one. He returned from training to his condo, where you welcomed him with takeout for dinner. And following some cuddling on the sofa, things heated up, leading to an intense session in his bedroom.

Yet, as morning arrived, and you both showered and dressed for the day, leaving his apartment, you felt a slight emptiness and perhaps a hint of disappointment. However, you couldn't quite pinpoint the reason behind these emotions.

**

You and William were very good friend.

Ok, perhaps, you and William shared a bond that went beyond mere friendship.

He was that one person you practically spent every day with, often at his place - let's say about five days out of seven in a week. He was your go-to person, whether you had a rough day to unload or exciting news to share. Amid a streak of terrible dates, he was the one (besides your girlfriends) who provided solace. And he wasn't just a great friend; he was also someone you shared a strong physical connection with.

Right from the start when you first met through mutual friends, there was an undeniable connection between you both.

Things began innocently enough, developing through friendly interactions, but gradually it snowballed into something more. Your communication increased steadily through platforms like Instagram and Snapchat, and you found yourselves engrossed in conversations after hockey games and during William's off days.

You became a fixture at private team events and dinners, where William actively sought your company even among his teammates. And after every home game, you'd wait for him outside the locker room, whether to celebrate a great win or offer comfort after a tough loss.

Your conversations were always engaging, never dull or awkward. And as you spent more time together, you gradually opened up, sharing deeper parts of yourselves - secrets, thoughts, and intimate details that nobody else knew.

One particular night, after dinner following William's training, you stayed over to watch a movie at his place and ended up accidentally falling asleep in his arms, wrapped in a blanket and embraced by his comforting warmth.

William didn't mind, letting you sleep on the sofa, and since neither of you found it odd, staying over at his place became a regular occurrence. Sometimes, you'd even make him breakfast before his game days, which he truly appreciated.

Then, there was that one evening after a particularly rough match. You had stayed over to watch it on TV, and upon his return, William found you wearing his jersey. Despite his weariness from the game, his exhaustion seemed to vanish a bit when he noticed your bare legs below with his name and number, which had driven his mind wild.

Feeling frustrated about the match's outcome, he yearned to be with a woman, and the sight of your inviting lips intrigued him. With a hint of nervousness, he made a move, unsure of how you'd react. But strangely, neither of you felt discomfort about it.

From the moment your lips met in a deep, exploratory kiss, allowing your tongues to intertwine and your hands to discover every contour of each other's bodies, it felt undeniably right.

The first time it happened was a lengthy make-out session in his bed, but it wasn't until the following home match, celebrating the Leafs' victory, that things intensified. In sheer excitement, William pulled you into a fervent, passionate kiss, and as soon as you entered his place, he led you eagerly to his bedroom, a suggestion you were more than willing to embrace.

To you, every part of William's body was flawless. His muscular thighs and robust arms complemented his well-toned torso perfectly. His lips worked like magic on yours, exploring every inch of your skin with an electrifying touch that sent waves of pleasure coursing through your body, leaving your mind blissfully foggy.

For William, witnessing the effect he had on you was immensely gratifying. He cherished every aspect of your being, from your curvy figure to your captivating eyes and enchanting smile.

Your personality had entranced him from the very beginning, and the sound of your laughter never failed to quicken his heartbeat. On chaotic days, you were his anchor; in moments of distress, his solace. Besides his brother Alex and best friend Sandy, you were the person he turned to, someone he felt comfortable sharing everything with.

The connection between you and William was profound, even though it wasn't particularly romantic in the conventional sense, yet emotions he hadn't experienced with anyone else before.

Your closeness had even deterred some of his casual flings. While it was clear to everyone that the two of you weren't officially dating, your bond seemed to carry something deeper, at least from an outsider's perspective.

However, it was evident that William wasn't seeking a relationship, of that you were certain. He was prioritizing his career, especially with a crucial year ahead. And as his friend, you pledged to stand by him and offer unwavering support.

** 

Despite the deep affection you held for William, you couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing in your life. You yearned for more than a casual arrangement - a person to share more than occasional sex and profound conversations with. Someone you didn't have to leave in the morning, only to return to when there was nothing else to occupy your time.

You longed for a romantic relationship.

In an ideal scenario, William would have been the perfect fit. However, the only problem was that William wasn't seeking a serious commitment. He relished his carefree lifestyle and had no intentions of altering it.

You, on the other hand, felt ready for something more stable - a committed relationship.

After several discussions with your closest girlfriends, you made the decision to venture into the dating scene, open to exploring if someone intriguing came along.

And indeed, there were a couple of guys who caught your interest - handsome, kind, and easy to talk to, just the way you preferred. However, you couldn't shake off a lingering sense of guilt. It seemed irrational since you and William were simply friends (with benefits), yet you couldn't deny the slight anxiety about how he might react to you dating. So to play it safe, you chose not to disclose anything to him.

Avoiding any risk to your situationship, you made up various excuses to explain why you couldn't spend time with him or why you weren't at home.

And for tonight's home game, you sought help from the other girlfriends of the team.

"I don't get it, y/n," Stephanie queried. "Why not just tell Willy why you're leaving early?"

"Because I'm worried it might make things awkward," you tried to explain to your friend during the second intermission.

"That's what happens when you sleep with your best friend," Arynne teased, flashing a knowing smile. ” Just saying it complicates things.”

"Well, that ship has sailed," you responded, smiling knowingly at them.

"Y/n/n, if Willy's truly your best friend, he'd understand," Tessa chimed in, offering her gentle reassurance.

As much as you hoped for William to understand your need to date, doubts lingered about whether he would truly grasp your decision.

"I know, and I will - I promise! But for tonight, can you please cover for me?" you pleaded, and the girls nodded in agreement just before the third period was about to begin.

As the girls returned to their seats, you discreetly headed towards the exit to meet up with your date.

Tim was genuinely one of the sweetest guys you'd encountered, as his kind-hearted nature quickly intrigued you. He was the third person you'd been dating lately; the previous two fell short of expectations. However, Tim seemed a bit different.

And tonight, he took you out to a charming spot in midtown, knowing you'd appreciate its cosy and tranquil atmosphere. You both engaged in lengthy conversations, sharing amusing stories while relishing your favourite course: sushi. And deep in conversation, you didn't immediately notice a group of friends entering the restaurant and settling at a table nearby. 

It was William and some other members of the team, opting for a late-night post-game meal. Since you had left the match early, William thought it would be a good idea to enjoy some food with his teammates, including his fellow Swedes.

However, it would be an understatement to say that he was taken aback when he first caught sight of your radiant smile and the faint sound of your infectious laughter. Yet, here you were along with someone else - someone unfamiliar to him, sitting rather close to you.

William felt a pang within him as he observed you from a distance, noticing how you leaned into this man, your hand gently touching his. There was a burning sensation in his chest as he watched another person elicit laughter from you, the kind he was used to sharing with you. And a lump formed in his throat as he witnessed the man casually wrapping his hand around your shoulder.

"Hey man, you okay?" Timothy asked softly, noticing William's intense gaze directed towards you.

"Hmm... yeah, I'm fine," William replied, however his eyes still fixed on you.

"Willy, dude, you're staring!" Calle interjected, noticing how William's grip tightened on his chopsticks.

"She's seeing someone..." he murmured quietly, mostly to himself.

"So?" John tentatively chimed in.

"She hasn't mentioned it to me..." William whispered again, clasping the chopsticks tightly between his hands.

"Does she need to?" Calle chuckled. "I mean, you're not in a relationship with her..."

William was aware that Calle's words held truth, but they seemed to pass through one ear and out the other. He could feel his body trembling as he watched you having a great time on this date. His palms grew sweaty, his heart raced, and a sudden heat engulfed the entire room.

As you rose from your seat, Tim offered to help with your coat. You both then headed towards the exit, his hand lightly resting on your lower back, and it drove William completely out of character. Never before had he experienced such a searing sensation in his chest. He felt an overwhelming urge to leap from his seat, push the other guy away, and take hold of your hand. He snapped his chopsticks into two pieces. s

"Easy, Willy. You're practically oozing with jealousy," Lagesson attempted to soothe his friend and teammate, but his efforts were futile. William shifted in his seat, ready to rise, but Calle swiftly grabbed his hand, restraining him.

"Control yourself, Willy," he urged. "You and y/n are just friends. She has every right to date whoever she wants... you have no right to disrupt what appears to be a good evening for her."

Struggling to regulate his breaths, William redirected his gaze away from your departure through the doors, turning to his friends instead.

"I know... It's just..."

"Just what?" John interjected. "You have feelings for her; then tell her. Otherwise, leave her be, man. Let her find happiness."

His teammates' words seemed to strike a chord within him, compelling him to try and let it go, attempting to immerse himself in his meal. However, it was evident to everyone that the situation had never left William's mind.

The sight of you laughing and enjoying yourself with someone else had etched itself into William's mind, the sting lingering deep within his chest as the night wore on.

"Hey, don't do anything stupid," Calle cautioned William as they exited the restaurant.

"I won't," William assured, but his Swedish friend knew him all too well. Realising the fact that persuading William otherwise was useless, he simply walked away, heading home. William was known for his determination once he set his mind on something - a trait that was both his strength and a weakness.

With the other Swedes gone and William initially heading home, he suddenly changed his course, and instead, he drove to your place rather than going to his own. He hadn't exactly planned anything; he just needed to see you. To ascertain whether you were alone or with the guy you had been on a date with. And if you weren't alone, well, he'd figure it out when he arrived.

Parking his car in front of your apartment building, he made his way to the front door.

You heard the buzzer resonating through the apartment, assuming it might be Tim, who had perhaps forgotten something after leaving you at the front door just a while ago. Consequently, you instinctively buzzed the door open.

However, when you opened the door to your flat, it wasn't Tim standing in the hallway.

"Willy?" you gasped softly, taken aback to see your best friend. "What are you doing here?"

The atmosphere felt tense, his expression devoid of any amusement.

"Are you alone?"

His voice, usually familiar and light, was deep and husky, an unusual tone for him.

"Yes," you replied softly, nodding lightly. Initially frozen in place, you attempted to break the building tension. "Do you want to come in?"

William didn't respond; he simply moved forward, entering your home.

It all felt rather strange. You sensed something was amiss with him, yet you couldn't quite comprehend what it might be. The team had won tonight's match, and there had been no news about William facing penalties or getting into a fight.

"Willy, are you alright?" you asked timidly after locking the door behind you. You felt his body shift to a more dominating stance as he stood before you.

"Why didn't you tell me?" His voice was firm, holding an unexpected edge to it.

"Tell you what?"

"That you were dating someone," his voice rose a notch.

"How did you?" 

"At the restaurant! I saw you with him..."

Oh, so he knew. He had seen you with Tim. Out of all the sushi spots in Toronto, you had to end up at the same place.

"So what? Why do you even care who I go out with?"

You felt frustration mounting within you. How dare he question your choices? It wasn't his place to raise his voice at you.

"Well, I don't! I just don't understand why you didn't tell me!"

"Because I was afraid, you'd react exactly like this, Willy," your voice matched his intensity.

The argument escalated, both of you shouting, the room pulsating with the heat of anger and the growing tension between you becoming fierce and cutting. Sharp words were exchanged, volleying between you in a battle of emotions.

"Of course, I react like this! How else should I react, huh? I sleep with you, spend nearly every day with you, and suddenly I'm just nothing to you while you're out making out with new guys every night!"

"Oh, so that's what you think! Yes, we sleep together, but it's not like I know to all the details about every bimbo you bring into your hotel room when you're on the road! For all I know you could be sticking your dick into every possible free whole before you come home and then have your way with me."

The air crackled with tension as accusations flew back and forth between you both.

"That's not how it is, and you know it! I don't sleep around while we're away - I know I have you waiting for me when I get back."

"Well, maybe not anymore. Feel free to be with anyone you want, Willy. I don't want to burden you," you retorted, tears welling up as you faced the man who would typically be your source of comfort. Instead, you found yourselves in a heated exchange, accusing each other of inappropriate behaviour.

William couldn't handle it. Your words stung him, feeling like he was the one who had been wronged. But instead of articulating his rage, he took aggressive steps toward you, causing you to step back until your back met the wall.

William, significantly larger and stronger than you, used his physical advantage to draw you in for a forceful kiss. However, you promptly broke away, responding to your anger by slapping him across the face. His audacity to come here into your home, raise his voice, accuse you, and then forcefully approach you was unacceptable.

Yet your slap only seemed to inflame William further. So, he pressed his lips against yours once more, gripping your head tightly, warning you not to resist.

Tears streamed down your cheeks as you tried to push against his chest. But despite this, a part of you wrestled with the desire to succumb to his touch, acknowledging the hold he had had over you for a considerable time.

Gradually, you began to relent, your mouths still locked in fervent exchange. William's hands released your face, trailing down to your hips and below your bum. With a gentle yet firm touch, he slid his hands beneath and effortlessly lifted you, earning you to wrap your thighs around his hips. Your arms wound around his neck as he carried you to the bedroom.

It was a chaotic and messy situation yet pulsating with intense lust and passion.

You practically tore each other's clothes off, and William guided you to lie on your back on the bed.

His lips trailed down to your neck, and involuntarily, you pressed against him, craving more skin-to-skin contact, offering him better access. 

His name escaped your lips softly as he licked and lightly nibbled on your skin, his hands exploring every reachable inch. Some attention was given to your breasts before his hands ventured between your bodies, and he gently slid his fingers into your core, causing you to gasp.

He was familiar with your body, knowing he needed to prepare you a bit with his fingers before entering you with his pulsating member.

The intimacy was intense. Positioned in missionary style, William entered you, his throbbing cock finding warmth within you, as he delicately stroked your inner walls, moving in and out.

Your sweaty bodies remained in close contact, mouths connecting and parting as moans escaped your lips. Sensing your walls tightening around him, William's hand found its way back to your core, gently rubbing your clit.

"Willy," you breathed out, feeling the rush of an impending orgasm.

"Let go for me, baby," he moaned into the curve of your neck, and so you did. Arching your back beneath him, you surrendered to the overwhelming intensity of pleasure coursing through your body.

As your walls tightened around William's cock, he soon followed suit and reached his climax, releasing his cum into your warm embrace, filling you in a way he hadn't before.

Heavy breaths echoed in the room as both of you panted, trying to regain control. No words were exchanged as William gently withdrew and settled beside you. And silently, you headed to the bathroom before returning to slip under the sheets with him, and together, you drifted off into sleep.

**

Morning arrived, and you woke up still entwined in William's arms. The lingering rage from yesterday's argument remained within you, yet a sense of relief washed over you, understanding this was William's way of expressing himself.

He had been jealous but struggled to articulate it.

More tears trickled down your cheeks as you relaxed in his embrace, nestled in his comforting, expansive form. Despite your reservations, it felt undeniably right.

Your emotions for William ran deep, and you couldn't deny it. Last night's disagreement had hurt you, reinforcing the fact that losing him was something you never wanted.

And as your body shifted slightly, William gradually stirred, hearing your quiet sniffles. Turning to you, his heart sank as he remembered the words, he had said the night before. Regret flooded him for much of it.

It was never his intention to cause you such pain. He cared deeply for you, and witnessing your sadness hurt him more than he’d ever thought it would – and it was all because of him.

With tenderness, he used his thumb to wipe away a few tears, locking eyes with yours.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered, both of you coming to lay on your sides, facing each other.

"Me too," you softly replied.

A brief silence lingered as you both sought solace in each other's presence. And eventually, William broke the quietude.

"I think I've fallen in love with you," he timidly confessed, his voice almost trembling, and a smile formed on your lips at his heartfelt admission, sensing the sincerity in his words.

"I think I've fallen in love with you too," you responded, and no further words were necessary. Both of you closed the distance, leaning in for a tender, romantic kiss.

#my asks #18+ #william nylander imagine #toronto maple leafs imagine #wn88 imagine

[cecexsblog]

Cold Seat | L.Hughes

Warnings: none again. Fluff asf

Pairing: Luke Hughes x fem!reader

a/n: lowkey a blurb. This is basically based in a high school setting more then anything. Specifically my high school. The whole Friday night hockey games where all the high schoolers sit at the very end of the bleachers that only take up one side of the ice. When the girls only go to hang with their friends (watch their crushes play and find them on the hockey website then add their snaps) yeah that’s how this writing piece is working. Except Luke is actually into you and not just some typical hockey boy. You aren’t official but it’s still fun for you to sit in the freezing cold for 2hrs then take a photo with him after:) Can you tell I’m speaking from personal experience?

Tonight the U18 team had their final game in which determined who won the finals. My whole high school was going. The whole town usually takes up every seat in the stands but always leaving room for the high schoolers at the end of the bleachers. Me and my friend f/n had gotten there early to grab seats, the rest of our friends not far behind us. It was just me, her and couple other students sitting down when warm up started. The most entertaining part of the game. Luke was the star player in my little home town so as soon as he stepped out everyone cheered. He didn’t pay attention to it though, he just went on with his warm up and began shooting pucks and skating in random circles.

“He’s not even the best on the team” a girl behind me says.

I choose to ignore her. The thing is Luke was actually the best in his division, he had so many offers for elsewhere but he really just wanted to stay in his home town and play with his friends.

“Please stand for the national anthem” I hear the announcer say. The announcer being Mama Hughes. Everyone stands, the boys lined up on the blue lines with their helmets off. Luke’s curly hair already sweaty from warm up. He looked down at his skates.

The game started. Luke at face off starting the game of right with a pass to one of his team mates. Nearing the end of the first period the score was still 0-0. That was until Luke made a shot and got it in. The crowd went crazy, he did a stupid bow and his teammates rushed over to him. They all hugged by the glass in front of me. He looks over his shoulder at me and gives me the cheesiest smile. I smile back. I hear the girl behind me scoff.

~

Near the end of the 3rd period we were tied with the other team at 5-5. Everyone knew if we lost this game we were just second place. There was 10 seconds left in the 3rd and everyone was nailed biting, sure over time was fine but it’s not the best. All of a sudden Luke is shooting down the ice making a break away and pulls his stick back making a wrist shot. The puck flies straight down the ice and right past the goalies glove into the net right as the buzzer goes. The arena goes wild. I look across the ice to see all the boys jumping over boards and onto the ice to congratulate the team. Me and all the other students are all screaming, I’m hugging my friends with tears in my eyes. I look down the bleachers towards the penalty boxes and the announcers boxes, I see Ellen waving me over. As soon as step in the box she gives me a big hug.

“They won!” She screams.

“I know!!!” I scream back. “Now we don’t have to deal with Luke’s cranky butt all night”

“Exactly what I thought!” She exclaims.

I look at the ice and notice all the stick, helmets, and gloves scattered across the ice as the boys continue congratulating each other. Mr. Hughes giving Luke a tight hug. Since it was Luke’s senior year the moment was bitter sweet. A bored member brings the banner out to the team and they take a big photo.

“Would Luke Hughes, number 43, please make his way to the penalty box” I hear over the intercom. I look at Ellen who’s speaking into the mic. She shoots me a smile. “There’s someone very special over here who wants to see you”

Ellen opens the gate for me to step on the ice. Luke skating full speed towards me. He picks me up and spins me around while still on the ice.

“Guess what!” He says to me.

“What?!”

“We won!” He says, again with a big cheesy smile.

“I know!” I say with a squeaky voice.

He leans down and places a kiss on my forehead.

“Hey captain!” I hear one of his coaches yell from across the ice. “I gotta get a photo with you”

“I’ll be right back” he says while letting go of my hand.

When he comes back he brings the banner with and says we need a photo, Ellen steps out to capture it. Then we get one without the banner. Before the last photo he leans into my ear and whispers… “I love you”. A smile creeps onto my face as Ellen captures another photo, totally oblivious to what Luke whispered to me.

“I love you too” I whisper back.

<3

a/n: sorry this is short and kinda bland but I thought it was cute. wish all hockey boys were like my version of Luke.

#lukey pookie #luke hughes #nj devils #canada #hockey

[rimouskis]

In the interest of wanting to love life again: what was your favourite moment of the Penguins season this year? Any happy memories?

I had a really great season, man.

I saw games with seven different fandom friends and got to introduce three of them to the city for the first time. I got to see so many wins alongside them, including several friends' first pens wins. I got to watch the Pens win a Pride game, which was amazing and so fun.

I got to see Geno's 1000th game in Chicago (with my family, who'd never been to a hockey game before), and then flew back to Pittsburgh to see them celebrate it on home ice—with Geno winning it in a shootout that was probably the coolest experience I've ever had in a hockey arena.

I got to see Tanger's 1000th game and share that with a friend. Seeing the funky fun little warmups (which I missed for Geno's in Chicago because the arena workers were mean 😂) was super special and cool.

I got to go to the night of assists, which was a lifetime experience, special and made all the better by getting to share it with a fandom friend.

I got to go to a Geno fan signing with another friend, and say hi to him as he signed my jersey and thank him for signing with the pens. he said he was glad to sign, too:)

I got to live through contractgate, which was horrible-at-the-time but also a really unifying experience.

I felt a thousand, no, a million times worse when Geno pulled that dumbass "I'm gonna test free agency 💅" move this summer that made me just SOB in the arrivals lane at an airport on the very first business trip I've ever made in my career ahahaha.

and it's weird and silly, because I'm a person who really needs to reframe those upsetting moments into something good. it's how I live with them. I remember how hopeless I felt—my plane had been turned around, I was late to my first business trip ever, I was about to meet my high-powered boss in person for the first time, I was standing in the Detroit heat waiting for 45 minutes for a shuttle to take me to the grimiest hotel I've laid eyes on because my connecting flight had been delayed until the next day... and I was just crying into my mask as I tried to console my fandom friends and keep my wits about me because it kind of felt like the world was ending.

and it wasn't... about... the team. in a way it wasn't even fully down to being about geno. do not get me wrong: I was personally devastated by the idea of him not coming back. he's one of My Guys. I was in denial about what I would do if he didn't sign with the Pens. I was so torn up about it that I stayed up for hours even though I was exhausted.

but the fear that kept me up in that really weird, shitty hotel room was the thought that my fandom was going to circle the drain because of it. we saw what a ship split did to tk/np, didn't we? their situation was different from sidgeno's... they lacked the amount of history, the sheer years... but nonetheless, I'm really, really aware of how small and tight-knit our corner of hockey fandom is. I was terrified of the possibility of geno leaving and that fracturing this really beautiful chunk of the internet that I've called home for the majority of my adult life, at this point.

that didn't happen. not only did it not happen, but I was in a vacation dreamland, barely needing to work on a business trip in the most gorgeous fantasyland location I've ever seen, having impressed my boss and nailed my part of the trip. all my anxiety—over the trip, over my job, over my fandom, over geno, over sid, over my friends dealing with this—was real, but it didn't win. instead I practically experienced euphoria on the shoreline.

I remember getting the text from a friend at close to midnight or whenever it was. geno had signed. things were going to be okay. things were going to be great.

and they were. I had so much fun this season, man. I really did. I wrote 14ish new fics this season. I participated in three (four? maybe more?) fic fests. I went to so many games that I felt gluttonous about it. I talked to tons of people all over this fandom. my friendships grew stronger. I traveled to two different states to visit fandom friends. I'm flying across the ocean to see more in the coming months.

and like... that's what matters. that ACTUALLY impacts my life, more than a man leaving a team, more than a team losing games. as important as certain players or records are to me, that's all stuff I can come to accept (well... some things I can accept. I don't think I'd ever have gotten over geno had he left. I get nauseous thinking about it. let's not muse on it. it didn't happen and that's what matters).

what I wouldn't have been able to accept was this space—this fandom, this lovely little corner where we talk about and joke about and blog about and meme about and write about the pens—unraveling. I'm not naive enough to expect this place to be around forever, and it already looks radically different from what it was when I joined it, but I'm determined to help preserve it for as long as I can. I want this to be a fun space. A creative one. Someplace where we're having a good time but also talking about things that matter to us and learning about the sport.

I told you all in a post a long while ago after I went to seattle that I want to be more assertive and honest about how much online friendships mean to me. the fact that there's this online community is sick. we're all in this cool little boat together and that is impressive and interesting and unique and I love it. I love fandom, and I love THIS fandom, and I love Sid and Geno and what we do in the name of their friendship. this place has enriched my life in ways I can't even tell you about. it's so cool. it is SO cool.

so.... I don't know what else to leave you with but this picture of the coastline I sat at on a cool July night, with my career changing in amazing ways and my anxieties quelled and my body flooded with adrenaline over the news that Geno Was Back and my mind BURSTING with creativity over a new story idea that was billowing out of me like smoke.

I sat there, headphones in, a song by one of my favorite bands playing on repeat as the sun set and the world turned the most intense shade of blue I'd seen in my life. I kept mouthing along to the words—Die if I must, let my bones turn to dust, I'm the lord of the lake and I don't want to leave it.

I just couldn't get over how lucky I felt. what a life I had. what fortune had come into my life. how crazy it was that things, like they seemingly so often do, worked out.

if I REALLY wanted to be trite, I could say something right now like "well, it was about time my luck ran out." but I don't feel like it has. tonight wasn't fun, but this season isn't about tonight for me.

this season is about:

the look on my friend's face as we caught sight of Sid at the night of assists and had that christ-he's-real moment

starting a podcast with my friends and getting to create silly goofy stuff in fun new ways

my dad being kind of alarmed at me screaming down at the ice and getting to explain to my sister what a power play was

getting to boo and cheer with the fans (and my friends). during overtime and the shootout for Geno's 1001th game, and the ecstasy of him winning it all.

having players walk past me and my friends at our dinner tables randomly in the city and getting to laugh about how cool/funny an experience that is 😂

having geno help me win a game of blackjack, which will forever be one of the coolest things I've been able to experience

organizing trips for people who've never seen the city before and having them tell me how fun experiencing pgh is, which is so meaningful as someone who's done a lot of growing up here

meeting new friends, both online and in person, and getting to learn about them and write with them and create with them

writing. writing. writing. the thing I've loved to do since I was a child. the thing I want to dedicate myself even more fully to.

reading the works people in our fandom write and share, which is such an overwhelming act of community and passion that I need to remind myself of how extraordinary it is

sitting out on the edge of the water and marveling at what a life I had, literally none of it possible without fandom. nothing in my life has shaped my literal life path as much as this fandom and S+G.

this is overly sentimental and perhaps cloying, but god, do I mean it. I mean it so earnestly I can't even be embarrassed about it.

life is good. tonight was hard, and I saw things that are going to stick with me and probably upset me, but the positives outweigh the negatives as a rule in my life. I can't live otherwise. I won't tell anyone else how to deal with stress or fear, and I'm trying to get better at that, but in the meantime I'll leave you with that image of the big blue world all laid out in front of me and me feeling every feeling in the world there was to feel, because I was so overwhelmed with the previous 24 hours that it was all I could do to sit there and let it run its course.

I'm an optimist, for better or worse, because it's the way I make life bearable. and, because I'm also kind of corny, I'm going to go back to that blue dusk eating up the whole sky and melting into the water and remember how I felt.

that's why I'm here. I hope there are moments from this season that made you feel like that, too. I hope you, like me, feel that those moments greatly and meaningfully outweigh bad ones.

it was a good year. I can't wait for whatever comes next.

#warning.... this post is long #AND cheesy #🤡 sorry I am what I am!

[zepuckinghockey]

Matty Beniers KAN Interview Transcript -

9/21/23

Matty's radio interview with Mike Benton from the Kraken Media Day has been released! Full transcript below the cut but some of my favorite bits of up here.

INTERVIEWER: [Borgen] says Call of Duty is up there. He says Mario Kart is up there as far as being competitive. Which one’s your favorite, your go-to against him, and who’s better?

MATTY: [no hesitation] I’m better at both of them. Not even a question. If he said differently, that’s so false. And… that’s a tough one because I like—I play more Call of Duty when I’m home and have a little bit more free time, but we play Mario Kart on the plane, so. But yeah, I’ll—1v1, no doubt I’m beating him. He probably said he thinks he can beat me in COD but he can’t.

//

INTERVIEWER: [Hakstol] is at the forefront of culture, and that culture is a team that has grown together. So jumping off-ice here with this, which Kraken teammate would throw the best birthday party?

MATTY: Schwartzy, no doubt.

INTERVIEWER: Why is that?

MATTY: Schwartzy’s just the guy—you need anything done, he’s your man. He sets things up, he jut gets things done. He’s such a people person, has so many connections, and I think that him or… or Vince Dunn. Those are the two guys that I would say.

Seattle Kraken Audio Network – released on 10/11 – recorded at Kraken Media Day on September 21, 2023.

INTERVIEWER: There are good summers and then there are rewarding summers. How about you, my man? What was the best part of it?

MATTY: Yeah, it was a fun summer. Definitely good to be back in Seattle, for sure, but yeah definitely relaxing.  First couple weeks after, I went on vacation with my family, so that was nice. And then y’know a couple weeks after that, started getting back into working out and skating and y’know kinda just went from there for the rest of the summer.

INTERVIEWER: When you mention all that objective as far as your skating, the working out, how much does life change—how much does your summer change or your goals change after having the season you just had?

MATTY: Yeah, I mean it was basically just the same summers y’know the last couple summers. I like to try to work on as much as I can, and for me, it’s always [sheepish laugh] it’s basically been getting bigger the last couple summers, and then on ice, just y’know keep working on your shot, your edges, your skating, your stickhandling, like basically the main stuff.

INTERVIEWER: It was around this time last year where we asked you if you got your place picked out. What’s the best part of it now that you’re all settled in here and still with Will Borgen?

MATTY: Yeah, it’s great. It’s great having everything set up like you said. Last year was a little bit more hectic, going—doing all the hockey stuff, and then going right home, and you gotta unpack, you gotta set things up, so now it’s been a lot easier. We’re all moved in. Still looking for a kitchen table. [sheepish laugh] But uh--

INTERVIEWER: We’re doing Craigslist. We’ll go right here to radio.

MATTY: Yeah, Facebook Marketplace.

INTERVIEWER: What’s the best part of about having Will as a roommate and as a friend as well?

MATTY: Yeah, I mean he’s great, all around—especially, obviously last year, helping me out being a young guy, just little things, asking him… Making sure I’m up in the morning to get to the rink. But no, he’s been great. He’s been a great friend. I think we have a lot of fun together, especially at the house. And, y’know, I love being with someone because I don’t know how I would be if I was all alone out here. [laugh]

INTERVIEWER: He says Call of Duty is up there. He says Mario Kart is up there as far as being competitive. Which one’s your favorite, your go-to against him, and who’s better?

MATTY: [no hesitation] I’m better at both of them. Not even a question. If he said differently, that’s so false. And… that’s a tough one because I like—I play more Call of Duty when I’m home and have a little bit more free time, but we play Mario Kart on the plane, so. But yeah, I’ll—1v1, no doubt I’m beating him. He probably said he thinks he can beat me in COD but he can’t.

INTERVIEWER: What’s the one game that you would love to relive all over again in this jersey?

MATTY: My first home game was pretty amazing. I would love to relive that one. Maybe the Colorado game when we won in overtime, Ebs scored that goal, that was a really fun game.

INTERVIEWER: He almost won the Jack Adams last year. What is it about Dave Hakstol, your head coach, his best qualities that you love about him as a coach?

MATTY: Yeah, he’s a great coach. I think for me, and I know for—y’know I can’t speak for everyone but for a lot of guys—I think just being a good person goes a long way, and that’s exactly what he is. He’s a great person off the ice, and y’know just a normal guy, someone you can chat with off the ice and then when you get on the ice, y’know he gets more serious, he tries to push the best out of you, so I think a lot of our success was due to him last year, and he’s done a great job.

INTERVIEWER: He is at the forefront of culture, and that culture is a team that has grown together. So jumping off-ice here with this, which Kraken teammate would throw the best birthday party?

MATTY: Schwartzy, no doubt.

INTERVIEWER: Why is that?

MATTY: Schwartzy’s just the guy—you need anything done, he’s your man. He sets things up, he jut gets things done. He’s such a people person, has so many connections, and I think that him or… or Vince Dunn. Those are the two guys that I would say.

INTERVIEWER: Matty, as this day gets closer, what does playing outside on New Year’s Day in the Winter Classic at the home of the Mariners mean to you?

MATTY: Yeah, it’s gonna be really exciting. I mean, we grew up playing outside, playing on the pond—or I did at least. And being able to play an NHL game outside, it’s gonna be special. I remember going to all the Winter Classics in Boston and it’ll be really fun.

#matty beniers #seattle kraken #will borgen #vince dunn #jaden schwartz #transcript #text #kraken #2023 #Spotify

[jackhues]

Hiii and congrats on 1000 followers!! Can I request 🤍 for buttercup/peanut meeting Bedard for the first time? I think it would be funny either way because bee's not super happy with the comparisons with her dad, while peanut probably doesn't even understand who he is

thank youu <33 haha, here's a short blurb on both of the meetings

buttercup:

the stadium groaned in unison as the horn sounded to signal the end of the game. buttercup, along with the other fans, took a moment to clap and cheer on the boys as they left the ice.

plastering a smile on her face, she made her way out of the stands and through the halls reserved for players and family.

"you played a hell of a game out there," she gave tristan jarry, the pend goaltender, a hug.

he nodded half-heartedly, patting the top of bee's head fondly as he moved towards the locker room.

bee smiled sadly after him, always sad to see the goaltenders sad after losing a game.

sid shoved his glove in his daughter's face as he walked by, trying to get her to cheer up a little. bee made a face, swatting his sweaty glove, but giving him a hug.

"i saw your goal," she said. "you're lucky. i just got back from getting some candy. if you were any earlier, i would've been upset that i missed it."

sid laughed, "oh it's my fault you miss seeing the goal?"

"obviously," she answered.

"oh get outta here," he shoved his glove near her face again.

"you can't talk to your child, your own flesh and blood, like that," she called after him, waiting in the hallway as he continued making his way to the locker room.

whenever she watched the game, she had a habit of staying in the hallway until the last penguins player left, and then heading over to wait for her dad finishing up his media.

like always, sid went ahead to get a head start so they could go home and bee would be ready for school the next day, while she congratulated all the pens players on their game.

"your russian's getting weak!" geno called as the two of them finished a half-english-half-russian conversation.

"not my fault!" bee called back.

she craned her head to see if there were any more pens players coming out of the tunnel, freezing as she saw a different jersey.

before she knew what was happening, the blackhawks team made their way past her, too lost in their own huddles and the adrenaline of winning to care about a little girl in a penguins hoodie standing at the sidelines.

bee froze, wide eyed, as players she only knew from watching the game, made their way past her in real life.

they stopped near the hallway before heading to the locker room, huddling up with their teammates and congratulating each other on plays. everywhere bee looked, there was a blackhawks jersey.

"you okay?"

bee looked up at nick foligno, a veteran hockey player now playing with the blackhawks.

"i'm good," she answered, though she wasn't sure how convinced he was.

"are you lost or something? need help?" another person asked.

bee looked at connor bedard, the rookie sensation. she raised a brow.

she expected him to be taller.

"bee?" jon, the equipment manager, called out from the front of the room. "c'mon, your dad's done media for the day. he's waiting in the second hallway."

"i'm coming," bee said, making her way towards him.

behind her, most of the players were now trickling into the locker room, still excited over the win. but she could hear some players whisper "oh, that's sidney crosby's kid!"

she was pretty sure one of those whispers belonged to connor bedard.

-

peanut:

"peanut, where are you even going?" mama sighed, following her kid.

peanut had been adamant on seeing her dad and saying hi to him, and then saying hi to mitchy, and then saying hi to everyone else on the team. now, she was refusing to get back to her seat in the stands.

"you want me to watch her for a while?" jennifer, one of the media coordinators for the leafs, asked. "we're just gonna be here for twenty minutes or so to film chicago's entry."

"fun!" peanut clapped her hands, taking a seat on the floor.

mama made a face, "well, i guess i'll stay here with you guys."

jennifer laughed, setting up the cameras to get some shots ready. soon enough, a trickle of chicago blackhawks players made their way through the hall, some stopped by peanut wanting to claim the hallway to do tricks instead.

"mama, watch me," peanut said suddenly jumping up and blocking connor bedard's path. she looked up at him, "you need to move backwards. i wanna show my mama a trick."

"oh dear god, why is she like this?" mama muttered to herself, embarrassed.

jennifer tried her best to hide her laughter, recording the trick peanut wanted to show mama.

after doing three (partial) cartwheels, peanut threw her hands in the air and grinned. "ta-da!!"

mama, jennifer, and connor clapped dutifully as peanut ran back to sit on the floor.

"that was great," connor grinned, giving the little girl a high five before moving past.

"sorry about her," mama chuckled. "she's at the age where she thinks she's the most important person in the world, and her dad's coddling doesn't help that."

connor shook it off, "no worries. i'd actually have been disappointed if i missed that. she's a cute kid."

"thanks, i made her."

#naqia's 1k celly! #naqia writes! #buttercup's world! au #peanut's world! au #naqia's au's! #dad! sidney crosby #dad! auston matthews

[cementcornfield]

What’s the most underrated Joe and Ja’Marr moment/story in your opinion!?!

Oh man I’ve been trying to come up with an answer for this and honestly the only thing I can say is all of them!! Every moment!! It’s like that post that went around when Joe wore Ja’Marr’s jersey - if this were happening in the hockey fandom there would be sky writing!! One of the greatest duos in sports and so few people are talking about them! 

But I am happy to see the growth in the fandom, even if it’s still small. Because it’s a fun community and I love talking to all of my mutuals about how insane these two are whether in dm’s, through tags, or asks <3 And I’m super excited for the new season to start so we have even more to discuss. 

I will say that most of my posts are about how insane Ja’Marr is about Joe, and I do not regret that lmao. But I don’t want people thinking that Joe isn’t just as crazy about Ja’Marr, he just has fewer opportunities to show it, what with how he evades media as much as he can. I mean, again, he wore Ja’Marr’s game worn jeresy to the Saints game. (He made Ja’Marr take it off the wall!!! It probably stank. But he wanted to ‘honor’ Ja’Marr in his hometown. He wanted to pay homage to their 2019 season. Could he have done that wearing his own Burreaux jersey?? Absolutely, but this was just as much about Ja’Marr as it was about anything else). He gave Ja’Marr the game ball from the national championship, when he had every right to keep that for himself. And, this is just a theory, but one I think has strong evidence, the bengals drafted Ja’Marr for Joe. I think if Joe had, very reasonably given the circumstances, asked for them to draft Penei Sewell so he’d have better protection after his knee was completely destroyed during his first season, they would have done so. Instead they got Joe another weapon, and not just any weapon, but his favorite one from college. Ja’Marr talks about how they’d been texting for at least a month before the draft, talking about their plans to reunite, so you know Joe was absolutely involved in the team’s plans. 

I went off course here but basically, I think my answer to this is that Joe’s appreciation for Ja’Marr might be a little underrated. (Despite him constantly mentioning Ja’Marr’s talent and intelligence and how good of a person he is whenever he’s asked about him). Ja’Marr’s more explicit about it and for a number of reasons from him being more open to him being asked about Joe more, but I think the level of appreciation is definitely equal between them :) 

#ask #anon #i’m gonna put my money where my mouth is and post some of my favorite joe talking about ja’marr moments i think #if anyone has any suggestions hit me up….because i’m thinking of like 3 right now but i’m sure there are more #thank you for this question anon. i could talk about them all day. #as i’m sure all my followers can see #(sorry for those of you who don’t care i’m astonished y’all stick around i love you) #god can you believe less than a week til game day!!! ahhhhhh!!!

[cuttergauthier]

Let Me In

Female reader x Brock Faber

Warning: against, fluff, toxic parent, unwanted, trust issues, bully parents, mention of covid

word count: 2.7k

Reader doesn't have a good relationship with her parents, If this triggers you in someway i suggest not reading!

let me know what you guys think🤍

She's broken, she grew up with parent's who didn't care about her. She couldn't talk to them when something was wrong, they just told her to go away. They would make fun of her if she ever talked to a guy or did certain things, if she did something embarrassing, they wouldn't help her they would laugh or ground her if other people told them she did something that would embarrass them. They could care less about her all they cared about was themselves. They always told her they didn't want her, the only person in her life who really cared about her is her grandpa. When she was 5 years old, he put her in hockey, she fell in love with the game. Hockey became her safe space, when she couldn't stand being with her parents she would go to the rink and play hockey.

When I was 18 years old, still in high school I got recruited to commit to Minnesota university to play hockey. I was born in Larchmont New York, so when I got the opportunity to commit at a university that was around a 10-hour drive away, I took it, it meant I was going to be far away from my parents and that was exactly what I wanted.

The only person who meant the world to me was my grandpa, he was always there for me when my parents weren't, he was a big hockey fan he used to play when he was a kid, he tried teaching my dad, but he never wanted to play, so when my parents had me, he thought me.

My grandpa and I always bonded about hockey, when I got the chance to commit a small part of me didn't want to because I would be leaving my him, but he was so proud, he wanted me to think of myself and what I wanted, not about him, he wanted me to follow my dream, told me he'd visit every chance he got, so I did.

Once I graduated high school and moved to Minnesota my parents didn't even say goodbye to me, they were happy I was leaving because they didn't have to see me anymore. My Grandpa had a lot of money, he had his own real estate business, so when I moved to Minnesota, he helped me find an apartment so I wouldn't have to live in a dorm.

The apartment was close to campus, which was great, I have a car which I drove down when I first moved. There was a chance I wouldn't be going back to New York during the summer except for when I wanted to visit my grandpa. The last thing my parents told me before I left was that they hoped I'd stay in Minnesota.

Because of everything with my parents, I have trust issues, when I started at Minnesota, I made myself a promise that I wouldn't tell anyone about my past, the only friends I had back home were my teammates on my high school hockey team. I didn't want anyone to think any different of me because of what I went through with my parents.

I was friends with the girls on my team, but we weren't best friends where we tell each other everything. I got invited to parties which were a lot of fun, I even became friends with some of the guys on the men's hockey team.

The summer after my freshman year I went back to New York to spend some time with my grandpa before coming back to Minnesota.

After my sophomore, I started living in Minnesota full time only going back to visit my grandpa, he was glad I was finally happy.

Senior year

Today there was a party at the sophomore's house on the men's hockey team. Everyone on campus was invited, since I was friends with the boys, I thought I'd go. The only guy I didn't really like on the team was Brock Faber, he was staying for his senior year instead of going to the NHL.

Brock had always tried to get to know more about me, but I didn't want him to know about my past which is why I can't stand him. He never leaves me alone, always tries to get me to talk about my life back home. I never told anyone, the other boys on the team don't pry, I think they know I might have gone through something so they didn't want to ask me about it in case it might be something bad, they tried to get to know more but when they realise, I didn't want to say anything they let It go except for Brock.

The boys are great, and I can tell they care about me, I care about them too. I like Brock. I've always had a crush on him since the minute we first got introduced by his Teammate Jaxon Nelson. Jaxon and I had a class together when I was a freshman, so we became friends. I just really wish he wouldn't try and dig into my life.

I got to the sophomore's house with one of my friends Allison, she's also a sophomore, we both play on the women's hockey team. I've been captain since Junior year, when she was a freshman, so I took her in when we first started playing together. She was a sweet girl.

As soon as we walked in, we made our way to the kitchen to get drinks. Logan Cooley saw me, he's a sophomore, he's sweet. He smiled at me and made his way over.

"There's are favourite girl" he said happily before throwing his arm around me

"Wow feel the love Logan" Allison scoffed

"Oh, don't worry Alli, I know a guy who is going to be really happy to see you" he replied smirking, which made me chuckle.

It was obvious that Ryan Chesley has a crush on her, and she had one on him.

"Shut up Logan" she said before going to grab a drink, leaving me alone with Logan.

"So are we planning on getting drunk to the point we don't remember the next morning? Or drunk where we still remember tomorrow?" I ask him

"Drunk where we still remember tomorrow, I don't think we need a repeat of what happened with briss last year" he replied making me throw my head back laughing

"Good point" I replied still chuckling

"let's go get you a drink" he said dragging me to the fridge. He grabbed a white claw and give it to me.

"Here you go, drink up" he said

"Thank you" you replied before taking a big drink

we continued talking, a few other boys joined us, after a while all the boys left except Brock. I hate being alone with him because I know he's going to try and ask me question about my past.

"So, what was so bad about you're past that you never want to talk about it?" he ask smirking

"I don't want to talk about it Brock, leave it alone" I said trying to walk away but he grabbed my hand to stop me

"I just want to know more about you"

"Well just stop okay!" I said snapped getting out of his grip and going somewhere else where he wouldn't bother me.

I saw Allison talking with Ryan making me smile. I made my way over to her to tell her I was heading out, I didn't want to have to deal with Brock again tonight.

"Hey, I'm going to head home I am starting to get tired" she looked at me curiously

"I can come with" she said

"No don't worry about it, stay I can tell you're having fun" I said winking

She gave me a hug before I headed home.

Once I got home, I change into some shorts and a hoodie and sat down in the living room to watch some tv.

About 30 minutes later there was a knock on a door.

I opened the door only to find Brock.

"Seriously Brock, I don't want to talk to you right now"

"Can I just come in and talk to you? Please" he pleaded

I opened the door wider so he could come in.

I made my way to the kitchen with him following me. If I must listen to him again, I need something strong. I grabbed the bottle of tequila I had in the cabinet and took a drink out of the bottle.

"Seriously I can't talk to you sober?" he asked in disbelief

"If you're going to ask me about my past again or why I am the way I am, I need the tequila" I said making him scoff

"My god Y/n, what is going on with you, we all care about you, yet you keep secrets from us, you never tell any of us anything!" he said losing his patience

"It's not keeping secrets when it's my personal life. God what is so wrong with wanting to keep some personal things to myself without having everyone know!" I argue before taking another drink of tequila

"Because we care...we can all tell there is something wrong, you never share anything. You like to keep to yourself, it's like we barely know you"

"You know what I want you guys to know, some things I like to keep to myself, you're the only one who kept bothering me about this, everyone else let it go, so you need too if you can't then we just won't be friends anymore." I said softly

"Fine then I guess we are not friends anymore." He said before storming out with the door slamming behind him.

I let out a quiet sob before sinking to the floor crying. Why did my parents have to ruin me from trusting someone.

I really like Brock, he was my favourite on the men's team. I have a crush on him, I just wish he wouldn't ask me about my past.

I decided to call my grandpa because I knew he would listen and give me advice, and I really need that right now.

The phone rang once before he answered.

"hey sweetheart is everything okay? You don't usually call this late." He ask me worriedly

"No, Grandpa why can't I open up to anyone other than you?" I said crying

"Oh y/n you can't let what your parent's did to you ruin you're friendships, What they did to you wasn't right in so many ways, not everyone is going to be like them. You might get hurt, but that's a part of growing up. You never know what opening up to someone what do. But you can't live in fear of not knowing if something good will come from it"

"Thank you, gramps, I really needed that"

"that's what I'm here for, I love you kid"

"I love you too gramps"

"try and open up to someone kid, you never know where it will lead you"

With that we both hung up.

I wiped away my tears and went to the bathroom to see how I looked. I looked like a mess, but I didn't care I needed to talk to Brock. It now close to midnight and I didn't know if Brock went back to the party or if he went home, so I thought I'd try and call him, but he didn't answer.

I decided to leave it for now and go to bed.

The next morning, I woke up with a headache I didn't know if it was from the tequila or because of all the crying.

I made myself some breakfast and when I was finish I got a shower and got ready for the day.

Once I was done there was a knock on the door, I opened it to find Logan, Matthew and Jimmy.

"What can I help you sophomores with?" I asked

"Well we heard about last night" Logan said

"so we wanted to know if you were okay" Matthew said

"Don't worry boys, I'm okay. I was planning on going to talk to him today so I could apologies" I told them as they made their way in my apartment.

"oh okay that's good" Jimmy said

"you don't seem to sure about that" I ask him curious

"Logan why don't you tell her" Matthew said, pushing Logan forward. Making me look at him raising my eyebrow

"Brock's pretty pissed off at you, I don't know if talking to him is a good idea" Logan said

"Which is why I want to apologies, I shouldn't have talked to him the way I did"

"Fine just if you go talk to him, can you let us know how it goes, or If you need anything?" Jimmy asked

"I promise I will"

They nodded and headed out.

I started crying again, I felt bad I didn't want to piss him off last night.

After I wiped my tears away I grabbed my purse and keys and made my way to Brock's place. He got his own place this year instead of living with more teammates.

When I got there I knocked on the door, I was hoping he was there, I didn't know if he had plans or not today.

He opened the door groaning when he saw me.

"seriously why are you here? You made it pretty clear last night" he said angrily

"can I come in?"

He took a few minutes before he let me walk in.

"so what do you want know?"

"I want to apologies, I shouldn't have talked to you the way I did last night"

"But you did, and you made it clear that you didn't want to be friends anymore! Now you can go" he snapped pointing to the door

"I have trust issues okay!" I snapped back at him, he was shocked I snapped back at him.

"so 4 years of knowing you and you still don't trust me, or the boys?"

"You have no idea what I went through Brock" I said softly with tears forming in my eyes. He started coming closer to me.

"Which is why I wanted to know more about you, I never did anything for you not to trust me" he calmly said

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding and made my way to his couch to sit. I wiped a tear that fell. He came and sat down next to me

"the one thing I heard daily when I was a kid was that they didn't want me... that they didn't care what happened to me" I said before looking at him. He was looking at me confused

"what do you mean? Who said that?"

"the two people who should love you no matter what... my parents"

It took him by surprise, you could tell that was the last thing he expected. Which made me continue, why stop now.

"Everything I did was a disappointment to them, like a girl playing hockey... When I got my first boyfriend, they literally embarrassed me in front of him, which made him broke up with me. When I was 16 one of my dad had some business partners at the house, my dad had left his shoes in the hallway and I tripped spraining my ankle, you want to know what my parent's did that night after they left? They grounded me for 2 weeks, they said I embarrassed them" I said crying

Brock got closer to me and wiped away my tears.

"I'm so sorry you had to go through that, no one deserves what you went through. But the boys and I aren't like your parents, I am not like you're parents. I care about you Y/n...fuck y/n I love you, you mean everything to me, I would never make you feel like you aren't worth it, because you are worth everything" he said softly to me

"You love me?"

"I've loved you since the minute Jaxon introduced us"

"I love you too Brock... I'm sorry I pushed you away, I never should have talked to you like that"

"I get it Y/n, but you have to know not everyone is going to hurt you"

"Thank you"

"Can I kiss you?" he asked me

"yes"

He leaned in a kissed you softly

After a minute, you both pulled away breathing heavy

"Any chance I could take you out sometime?" he asks chuckling nervously

"I'd love that" I replied

"good" he said before kissing me again.

#nhl fanfiction #NHL Hockey #NHL fic #nolan moyle #Hockey Fanfiction #hockey fic #hockey #brock faber #brock faber imagine #brock faber blurb #brock faber fic #Gophers #logan cooley #matthew knies #jimmy snuggerud

[polyabathtub]

Harley-Foerster primer

Making my case for why you should ship these two rookies

Tyson Foerster

He’s a rookie on the Flyers with really excellent advanced stats, whatever that means. He had a slow start to his season, but he stayed positive, and he recently hit his stride. Lately he’s been scoring a ton of goals:

All of his cellies are just him flinging his arms up in the air in pure joy. He is almost always smiling.

He cares about his teammates and doesn't like beating them even in pointless competitions.

In this clip, Tyson wins a meaningless accuracy shooting competition against Cam York and a few other Flyers. When asked how it feels, Tyson answers "not good, he's my teammate." We love a professional athlete who just wants to have fun with the boys.

When he isn't smiling, he's extremely expressive:

He has a well-documented history of frolicking

Also one time he dressed up as a playboy bunny. How that alone has not yet launched 1000 fics, I do not know.

So: Tyson Foerster is a sweet ball of sunshine and an A+ goal scorer, secure in himself and his masculinity.

Thomas Harley

From Syracuse NY, he’s the star (heh) rookie defenseman of the Dallas Stars. 

We love him because he's a total babe and also very good at hockey.

He was highlighted on the NHL Network for leap year as a player who's taken a bit leap forward.

drysdalc on Twitter created a dizzying fan edit of him scoring goals and running his hands through his hair, if you'd like further justification.

Personality-wise, The Athletic said the following:

"Harley has always been a soft-spoken individual, especially in front of the microphone. There’s a looser version of him, one who picks playful fights with Wyatt Johnston in practices and during warmups, as he did on Saturday. But the most impressive thing about Harley has always been his maturity."

Sometimes he looks a bit deer-in-the-headlights during interviews. In my opinion this only adds to his charm.

Foerster/Harley

I hope I've convinced you that they're both at the very least plausibly nice boys. But why the two of them together?

I invite you to cast your thoughts back to September 27th, 2019. Harley is a recent draftee of the Dallas Stars. He played a few pre-season games, then was sent back to the Mississauga Steelheads of the OHL.

He gets off the plane and immediately plays a game against the Oshawa Generals, which he loses 5-6. The very next day, he plays another game, this time against the Barrie Colts. Thomas's team loses again, 7-3.

That season, Tyson Foerster was playing on the Colts. In that 7-3 game, Tyson recorded 6 points, including 3 goals.

"Foerster put himself squarely on the draft map on a late September day against the Mississauga Steelheads. He recorded six points including a hat trick. Then he went on a crazy point streak recording points in 13 straight games which including six consecutive multi-point efforts." - The Athletic

See? Huge deal for Foerster, and he got there by absolutely grinding Thomas's team into the dirt.

Thomas responded aggressively the next time their teams played each other, on 12/20/2019. In that game, Harley recorded two points and two assists, and the Steelheads beat the Colts 8-2. They played a few more times, including an overtime win for the Colts and an 8-1 Steelheads win.

After that season, Harley and Foerster didn't face each other again, as they both spent time in the minors. But this year, they're full time with their respective clubs. The Flyers and Stars have played two games this year.

The first, on October 21st, 2023, went to overtime. The Stars won 4-5. Tyson got a couple of shots on goal but neither player was particularly decisive.

The teams faced each other again on January 18th, 2024, AKA Tyson's 22nd birthday. This time, to the shock of basically everyone, the Flyers beat the absolute shit out of the Stars—but it took them a little while to get there.

As the second period was winding down, the Flyers were only up by 1. The shots differential was dramatically worse, at one point  28–3 in favor of the Flyers.

In the final minute of the 2nd period, Thomas high-sticked Tyson in the face. Miraculously, the Flyers scored on the associated power play, and it only got worse from there. The final tally was 1-5 in favor of the Flyers. Arguably, the Harley/Foerster penalty was the beginning of the end.

To summarize:

9/27/19: Thomas Harley plays 5 pre-season games with the stars and gets sent down back to Mississauga  9/28/19: Foerster’s Colts win 7-3 against Harley’s Mississauga, Tyson Foerster gets 6 points including a hat trick  12/20/19: The Colts play Sauga again, Mississauga wins 8-2 and Thomas gets a hat trick  2023–2024: Thomas Harley and Tyson Foerster are finally up with their respective teams for the season.  10/21/2023: Harley and Foerster play their first game against each other in the NHL. Neither of them does anything particularly of note.  1/18/2024: Harley and Foerster play their second game against each other in the NHL. Thomas highsticks Tyson at the end of the 2nd, arguably costing the Stars the game. Oh, and it’s Tyson’s 22nd birthday. 

In conclusion, you should ship them because:

sunshine-quiet is a fun pairing

their games against each other, while few, have a lot of drama

they're both very cute

edit 4/22/24: additional information has surfaced for me personally, which is that Tyson's roommate Joel Farabee is a longtime friend of Thomas Harley. This is very important and relevant information that everyone should know.

#hockey rpf #thomas harley/tyson foerster #thomas harley #tyson foerster #flyers hockey #stars hockey