2nd Intermissions

I had never really noticed how much Adam had changed my routine so completely.
When I go shopping, I always make sure to get apple jacks and regular milk so he wouldn't have to choke down my soy milk. I stocked up on actual meat products for him to make when I was lazy and we didn't go back to his house.

I pondered this while I was in the shower, getting ready for the last home game before the team went on the annual circus trip. The United Center would be void of sports for a while, both the Chicago Bulls and Chicago Blackhawks leaving to make room for the circus.
I thought of how much I hated being away from my apartment for that long while rinsing the conditioner out of my hair. There was so much work to do and the visitor locker rooms never had very good supplies, so I would have to make sure the baggage guys didn't lose the medical equipment I would bring. The only thing I really liked about road trips with the Blackhawks is the never ending entertainment on the plane and buses. Traveling with the guys was like being in high school again, hanging out with the guys and being accepted as one, messing with each other and getting into trouble. Most of the guys were like family to me, anyway, and I was usually the one patching up cuts and scrapes, as well as bruised egos after they were finished with their pranks.

I dried myself off and wrapped the towel around my body, looking in my closet for any clothes that weren't already packed. (we had to leave immediately after the game.) Finding thin wool slacks and a black cardigan to go over a white blouse, that showed a professional amount of chest, and hinted at cleavage. I sighed and blow dried my hair. I was doubting my choice of white. We played the Rangers tonight and Sean Avery's reputation proceeded him.
Using an old barrette my mother had when I was younger to pin back the top half of my hair, I was dressed and ready to go. I put my suitcase in my SUV and headed to the rink. I checked my phone briefly at a stop light and I had a missed call from Adam.
Pressing the green button, I put the phone up to my ear.
"Sam?"
"Yes, Adam?"
"Why aren't you here?" I heard noise in the background and deducted that he was in the locker room.
"Its three hours before the game starts! You guys haven't even started to warm up, yet!" I said in my defense- I was never late.
"Yeah, but I was hoping you'd be here and stuff." He said and I heard a couple of men chuckle in the background this time.
I laughed too and replied, "I'll be there in ten, just relax, dahling." I mocked him lovingly.
"You better!" He said and hung up.
I sighed and continued through the traffic of the city, admiring the way the streetlights blinked on as the sky gradually darkened.

I finally reached the rink and I brought in my suitcase to drop in to one of the two piles, one with a post-it that said 'Personnel' and one that said 'Players' on the other pile. I saw Troy Parchman, our friendly neighborhood equipment manager hauling a red bag out of my office/work space and said to me, "Why do you always have to pack SO MUCH STUFF?" He said with zest. I replied, "Why do you pack so much stuff?" and laughed my way into the room he had just exited.
Pawel Prylinski was tinkering around in the refrigerator on one of the counters.
"May I help you, Pawel?" I asked the massage therapist. I wasn't suspicious of his actions, we shared the fridge and I often messed around with the strange old pole.
"Haff yoo seen dose schtones I put in here?" He said with his accent that I couldn't help but adore on the old man.
"Yeah, I didn't know what to do with the stones, so I looked it up online. I put them in my medical equipment bag with the icepacks, is that okay?"
He breathed a sigh or relief and replied, "Jees. Tank yoo." And left.
I laughed and put my purse on the back of my office chair and began unlocking the medicine cabinets.
"Glad you decided to join us." I heard someone say from the doorway. I turned around and saw Adam leaning against the door frame, hair pushed back.
"Blah blah blah." I told him, giggling as I said it, and I went back to unlocking the last cabinet.

He walked past me, just brushing his hand across the top of my butt.
"Heeeey-" I began and he interrupted me with, "So you told Wiz that we're going out?"
I looked at him and his large jawline I found incredibly attractive and replied, "Yeah, is there a problem?"
He chuckled at my worry and said, "No, but now he's gone and told the rest of the guys," At this, my face lost all its color, I presume, because he quickly added, "but I swore them to secrecy, so Q won't find out."

"What won't I find out?" We heard from the hallway and we both whipped around to see Sharp, doing his Coach Q impression.
I put my hand up to my heart and said, "You seriously almost killed me there, Sharpie, you know that right?"
He laughed and said, "Yeah sure." Before entering the room. I felt Adam make his way to the refrigerator to grab his protein drink. Sharp did the same thing and said, "You really freaked out Pawel earlier, Doc." I laughed and explained to both of them what I had done.

"Awww, how sweet." said Dr. Harper when he entered the room, his voice dripping with sarcasm. The two hockey players looked at me, cringed and left.

Dr. Harper was the head team physician for internal medicine and after reaching his medical equivalent of a tenure, decided that he would rarely show up to work. Stan Bowman, the GM of the team waved this off and left the health care to me, but kept Dr. Harper on the payroll.
When the doctor did decide to show up, the players parted like the red sea for him. It was easy to tell who they liked more. They unanimously decided I was the more docile of the two of us. Harper would generally put down my practices and insult me before leaving. Today, I saw that he had brought his bag.

"Are you planning on working with me tonight, Dr. Harper?" I asked politely, placing the cabinet keys into my bag.
"No. You are going to work with me." He scoffed, placing my purse on the counter top and putting his bag in the chair, draping his knee length coat over my smaller pea coat.

It was a plain sign of disrespect, put being his technical understudy, I could do nothing but grit my teeth and take it, ripping my coat from underneath his, piling it on top of my purse.
I sighed quietly- so Harper wouldn't hear my sound of weakness and told him, "I will be right back." and I grabbed my purse and made my way to the ladies room in the nearest concourse. I leaned against the stall door and pulled out my cell phone to text my best friend, Angelina.
I pressed the necessary buttons to spell out 'I freaking HATE Dr. Harper.'
She quickly replied with 'I'm sorry, Sampants.'
I smiled at my nickname and typed, 'When we come back from the circus trip, its gonna be you, me, and a loud band.'
I opened my phone to receive her reply when I got a text from Adam instead.
'I am so so so sorry you have to be objected to Harp all night.'
I giggled and replied that I was sorry too.
Breathing deeply and composing myself, I head out of the bathroom and back to the locker room, sending one final text to Angelina saying, 'I'll talk to you on the bus.'
Placing my phone back into my purse, I walked through the big wooden door and through the hallway, back to my (now shared) office.
Putting my purse back on my coat on the counter, I sat in the little doctor's rolling chair and turned towards Dr. Harper, quickly pounding away on his macbook. I sighed loudly this time and asked him, "So- are you coming on the circus trip?"
He glanced above the screen of his laptop and lowered his chin so he was staring at me from above his glasses and replied, "No." in a clipped tone. He went back to typing.
I mouthed, "Thank god." when my back was turned to him, and grabbed a book out of my bag.
I waited patiently for warm-ups to end so I would have something to do.
I quickly realized that the doctor would most likely not enjoy me going off to watch the game with Wiz, so I decided I would just watch it in the coaches room.

Finally, the boys came back in from the pregame and came into the office, breaking up the quiet that Dr. Harper brought with him. I jumped up from my seat whenever a player or coach came in to grab something or ask me about something. Harper just glanced at the intruder and ignored them.
Adam came in to grab a green slush filled bottle for Seabrook and shot a meaningful glance and smile at me, and before he left, he glared at Harper.
I smiled at his retreating figure and his compassion. How positively adorable.