I Bet it Stung

For the first half of the next day, Alice spent her time roaming around the Carnegie Mellon campus, meeting with the people at the office of the registrar in order to organize her courses for the fall semester. It took a little while, but she finally managed to get everything under control. When she told the guidance counsellors that she wanted to be specifically a sports psychologist, they made her a special offer.

“We have a course that could technically be replaced by a job placement or an internship,” the old man told her, peering at Alice through his horn-rimmed spectacles. “If you want to be a sports psychologist, maybe you could find a placement as an assistant to the sports psychologists on one of the teams around Pittsburgh. Provided, of course, that you have those connections.”

Alice felt herself smirk. “Oh, trust me. I have connections.”

The second half of the day was spent with Jordan at the Consol Energy Center. He was practicing with the team while Alice was talking with Dan Bylsma.

“Hey Dan,” she waved. She’d met Dan on her previous excursions to Pittsburgh and liked him instantly. Something about his gruff, seemingly emotionless demeanor reminded her of her own father. But at the same time, she knew that it wouldn’t take much for someone like that to open up to her and start cracking jokes. Alice just had that effect on people.

“Welcome back to Pittsburgh, Alice,” he nodded. “Here to stay this time, I hear?”

“Yes sir,” she agreed. “I got into Carnegie Mellon for my graduate degree in psychology. But there was something sort of school related that I wanted to talk to you about.”

That seemed to pique his interest. “Go on.”

“The university says that there’s a course that could be replaced by a work placement or internship and I wanted to pursue a career as a sports psychologist after my schooling’s all finished. Would it be possible to maybe intern here with the Pens? As an assistant or something?”

Dan thought about it for a moment. “We technically don’t have a designated sports psychologist on staff, but actually, I’m pretty sure your area of expertise could be of help to Mark Mortland, the team’s physical therapist. I’ll have to clear things up with Ray, but I don’t see any problem with it.”

A smile spread across Alice’s face. She hugged Dan and he awkwardly patted her on the back before smiling as well. “Thank you so much for this,” she said. “I promise I won’t get in the way.”

After her conversation with Dan, Alice left Consol to go back to the university and confirm things with the counsellors. They were surprised that she had found a placement already, and even more surprised when they discovered that it would be with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“Yeah,” she said simply, leaning back a little bit in her chair. “I know people.”

Later that night, Alice was lounging in Jordan’s apartment, testing her mental skills as she proceeded to read a magazine as she held it upside down. Jordan walked through the front door and saw his girlfriend intently focused on her reading material and cleared his throat.

“You know you’ve got your magazine upside-down, right?”

“Yep,” she responded, not looking away from the type. “I’m seeing how much I can read and process in my brain when the words are the wrong way.”

Jordan plucked the magazine from Alice’s hands and lifted it high over her head.

“Hey!” she whined, making a sad attempt to grab it. “No fair! You’re like, twenty feet tall.”

“Twenty feet?” he repeated with a laugh. “Come on, you cannot be serious. Do you know how much twenty feet is? You’re crazy. And you’re also the one with the university education here.”

“Ever heard of a hyperbole?” she countered, standing up on the couch so that she met Jordan’s eye level. “Give it back.”

“Make me,” he taunted. Then he added, “And no...I haven’t heard that word.”

Alice laughed. “Well, if I said that you were the sexiest man to ever walk the face of the Earth, that would be a hyperbole.”

Jordan rolled his eyes, understanding her joke. Still, he couldn’t help but comment, “So, a hyperbole is a truth, then?”

Alice smacked him lightly on the chest and snatched her magazine back. But then she let it fall limply to the ground and placed her arms around his neck. “Maybe that was a bad example.”

He eliminated the space between them and pressed his lips against hers. The kiss was light at first, but it gradually became more heated. Jordan picked Alice up off the couch, her legs wrapping around his torso as he staggered to the bedroom.

Much later, once both their bodies were coated in a thin layer of sweat and were thoroughly exhausted, Alice kissed him hard on the lips. “Oh, wow,” she panted once he rolled off of her. Her legs were still shaking. “That was...wow.”

Jordan reached over and pulled Alice closer, his arm remaining firmly on her waist. “You have no idea how much I missed you,” he smiled.

Alice chuckled and skimmed her fingers across his strong jawline. “I’m thinking by the bruises I’m going to have tomorrow in my lower region that I do.”