Breakeven

"It's been three weeks- how long can this go on?"

"Are you sure this is okay?" Reese asked. The friends were waiting in the baggage claim at O'Hare. After their two week trip back home, the pair was back in Chicago; their home away from home. Reese was set to move into Jonathan's apartment until she found her own place, but was slightly apprehensive about the move. The only other boy she had ever lived with was Sean and she wasn't sure how things worked when you lived with someone from the opposite sex as just friends. It was an awkward situation of sorts and she wasn't sure if she was fully comfortable with it yet. Jonathan seemed to be hell bent on the idea though, and she didn't want to break him anymore than he already was.

"Of course Reese," he insisted. "For the millionth time," he added with an eye roll.

"Just making sure! I mean, I know you've got your own stuff going on and I don't know if you're just being nice or if you actually want me to come stay with you. I mean, this could be a disaster," she worried.

"Leave all the over thinking to me," he grinned. Reese smiled at his small attempt to make her feel better and then set her eyes to the luggage carousel. When her bags came around Jonathan grabbed them quickly, and he did the same when his lone bag appeared.

"How are we getting back to your place?" Reese asked as they stepped out onto the noisy sidewalk of the airport. She couldn't help but notice how all eyes had been on them since landing back in Chicago. Eyes curiously danced towards their favorite Captain and the girl who was with him. No one actually came up and said anything to either of them, but Reese noticed the whispers and the secretive pointing. Jonathan didn't seem bothered by it, or like he even really noticed. She guessed he must've gotten used to it, but to her this was something new. It made her feel awkward but because Jonathan seemed to pay no attention to it she didn't bring it up.

"Sharpie's coming to get us," Jon said, jerking his head in the direction the cars were coming from. "He should be here soon," he added, glancing down at his iPhone and checking the time.

Reese bit her lip, chewing on it lightly as she shifted her weight between her legs. Jonathan picked up on her nerves quickly and casually snaked his arm around her waist, tugging her tiny body into his and rubbing her arm gently.

"What's the matter?" He whispered.

"Besides the fact I have to see Sean and Anna again? Or besides the fact that I actually have to go back to my old apartment and get all of my stuff like a pathetic looser? Or besides the fact that I have to meet one of your teammates who will probably think I'm seducing you and then he'll hate me because he liked Alexis better?" Reese rattled off nervously.

"Once again, you need to leave the over thinking to me. I know it's going to be hard to face Sean and Anna again, but you're a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for. And as far as meeting Sharpie," he chuckled lightly. "You don't have to worry about him. I'm sure he'll make you feel a little awkward at first, and he'll probably even rag on you a little, but he means no harm at all. And he'll love you, seriously. All of my teammates will," Jonathan said.

It was quite an odd role reversal for them, but the fact of the matter is Reese didn't realize how upset and nervous she was about going back to Chicago until she landed there. Suddenly all of the comfort she found being back in her hometown was gone. She felt safe back in Winnipeg because nothing there reminded her of Sean; it was her safe haven. She could pretend her life in Chicago never happened, and she could focus on trying to help Jon feel better about his broken relationship. But back in Chicago she was forced to face her problems head on; there was no hiding anymore. Being back there was a painful reminder of why she had been back in Canada in the first place. All of the pain she felt walking in on her best friend and fiancé fucking consumed her once again as she stood on that sidewalk and she had to push back tears in order to stop herself from crying.

A large black SUV pulled up in front of them soon after that and a tall man with a gorgeous face walked around to greet Jonathan. Reese stared at Patrick Sharp as he ruffled Jon's hair and pushed him around a bit. He was certainly a good looking guy, there was no denying that. When he saw her standing awkwardly next to Jonathan he smiled widely and immediately wrapped her in a warm hug. Although she was quite surprised and a little offset by his sudden display of affection, she hugged him back; feeling a small sense of security in his arms.

"You must be Reese," he said as he slowly pulled away and held her at arm’s length. His eyes gave a quick sweep of her body, not being shy about giving her the up and the down.

"And you must be Patrick," she said, smiling back up at him. He had a brilliant smile, two rows of remarkably straight white teeth; and Reese would be lying if she said she didn't find it insanely attractive.

"I'm sure Tazer's already told you plenty of good things about me," Patrick winked. Reese blushed something fierce and Jonathan grabbed her arm, roughly tugging her in his direction.

"We're tired," he said. "We just wanna get home."

"Oh that's right," Patrick said, giving a sly smile. "You two crazy kids are shacking up together," he grinned. "You sure did move on from Alexis fast."

Jon narrowed his eyes at his teammate and Patrick seemed to get the hint. They both grabbed the luggage and placed it in the back of Patrick's car as Reese climbed into the back seat and relished in the warmth of the car. Once Sharpie and Jon climbed into the respective seats, they were all speeding off in the direction of Jon's apartment.

"So you used to live in Chicago or...?" Sharpie asked as he approached a stop light, trying to make conversation.

"I moved here to go to college," Reese confirmed. "I've been living here ever since."

"So you've been living here longer than Jonny then, huh?"

"Seems that way," she smiled at him in the rearview mirror.

"So what's up then, your place burn down or something?" He asked, attempting to joke. Unfortunately though for the state of mind Reese was in, she didn't find Patrick's joke humorous- although under normal circumstances she probably would. Instead she quickly looked down to her hands sitting in her lap as her knee bounced around nervously. She bit her lip and tried to push her memories to the back of her mind.

"I wish," she offered as an answer quite pathetically.

"What happened cutie?" Sharpie asked charmingly.

"My fiancé cheated on me," she admitted, seeing no use in lying or trying to sugarcoat the situation.

"I'm sorry," he said in a soft voice, truly sounding genuinely sorry about what had happened. Reese let a small smile crawl onto her lips at the sound of his voice. "But if it makes anything better- at least you found out he was an asshole sooner rather than later."

Cocking her head to the side, Reese looked at Patrick oddly. He offered her a small smile through the rearview mirror and then focused his attention back on the road. "Anyone who would cheat on you is clearly an asshole," he elaborated. Reese smiled a bit, but let her eyes wander back down to her lap. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate his compliment; it was just that she didn't exactly believe him. Since arriving back in Chicago she felt terribly self conscious about the whole cheating situation. She knew in her heart that she didn't do anything wrong, but she also couldn't help but wonder why Sean would do something like that to her.

She knew it was going to be a lot harder than she originally thought it would be to get over him.