Past Lives

As I dug through my bag looking for my toothpaste, I heard a knock on my door. "Coming!" I yelled as I threw Craig's jersey back on my bed. Assuming it was Craig, I started to open the door. "Hey, baby, I didn't know you were-" I stopped as I realized that the man in front of me was both too tall and too French to be my boyfriend.

"Marc."

Flower laughed. "I don't know how Craig would react to you calling me 'baby.'"

Shaking my head, I responded, "About as well as Vero would I'm assuming." I leaned on the doorway. Marc was a piece of work.

"So in other words he wouldn't care?"

Vero loved me. I could get away with murder.

"What can I do for you, oh Bendy One?" I never missed an opportunity to pick on Marc. Granted, he did the same back so it was totally acceptable.

He nodded inside. "Can I come in?" The fact that Marc never stopped smiling just made me smile. I shrugged.

"I don't know. That's a little different than calling me 'baby.' Craig and Vero might not be ok with that one."

Marc laughed and pushed past me. "Oh, they don't have to know."

We both laughed a little more as he walked in and I closed the door. I sat on the edge of my bed and smirked. "Now, Gumby, what did you need that's not a sexual favor?"

"How do you feel about pranks?"

I didn't care if he wasn't done talking. "Oh, I am SO in"

Marc laughed. "Perfect." Nodding towards my phone, he said, "I called Ads and Max already."

Confusion covered my face. "What do the Superstar and Ads have to do with anything?" I could only imagine what Flower had done with Brooks' friend and girlfriend.

With a little grimace, Marc answered, "I. Am. An. Ass."

"Then Ads is a bitch if she agreed," I retorted.

Marc just grinned. "Want to get Craig, too?"

My only response was a wicked little smile.

--

"Brooks."

My friend opened his door and I handed him my cell phone. "Ok. You can't freak out. Max and Ads are on the phone. They...have something to tell you."

Brooks just looked confused. "Why is Max on the-"

"Don't worry about it. Just...take the call." I pushed the phone into his hand and stepped back, "concern" covering my face. I tried to look as worried as I could. It was hard when I wanted to laugh so badly. I also knew that as soon as this was out of the bag, Marc had better start running. Actually, I hoped he had already started running. Brooks was going to learn to teleport out of anger and kill him.

"Hey guys...Yeah?...Just tell me, ok?...Ads, baby, don't cr-" The color drained from Brooks' face. "YOU'RE WHAT?!"

I backed up slowly. I still couldn't believe that Marc had come up with this one. I really didn't think he was behi-

There was no way he was behind it.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN, 'I'M PREG-'" Brooks stopped and threw my phone at me as he ran down the hall and tried to break down Max's door. I put my phone to my ear.

"Max, why the hell did you get Flower in on this?"

"He's the king of pranks."

"Yes, and you're about to die a very painful death as soon as that door breaks down."

I could just hear Ads rolling her eyes. "It was only a joke."

"And such a bitch move."

"I know, I know."

I watched as Max's door seemed to buckle. "Maybe you should tell him now." I shook my head, "Otherwise, your ex is a dead man."

"BROOKS!" He turned to me and just glared.

"Not now. I need to kill my friend for impregnating my girlfriend."

"No, you just need to punch him in the back of the head for being an asshole." I threw him my phone. "Talk it out. I'm going to go kill Flower."

As I walked down the hall, I shook my head. How Max had even gotten Flower involved in that one, I would never know. Actually, I wasn't sure what Flower had to do with that one to begin with. Whatever. I still needed his help.

"So what happened?" Marc asked as he trotted over.

"Max is a dead man and Ads is on sexual hiatus, guaranteed." I rolled my eyes. "I don't even know WHAT they were thinking." We rounded a corner and sat down.

Marc shook his head. "I won't even pretend to know." He held up his hands. "In my defense," he said quickly, "it wasn't my idea and I wasn't directly involved. I just had to find a helper for them."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever." I looked at my watch. "So, what else are we doing?"

"We'll get it tonight," Marc grinned.

--

Brooks was pissy that night and I couldn't blame him. Max was still apologizing as they headed into the locker room. I knew exactly what I was supposed to do that night.

As the wives and girlfriends all wished their men luck, I hid behind a door. Sid headed towards the bathroom and the guys threw one of his gloves back into his bag while I crawled inside.

"Sid will never know. If everyone's in the locker room, who's he going to suspect?"

Naturally, I was all over it. I curled into a ball and stayed still as the guys zipped the bag shut. I heard Sid come back and search for his glove. "I know I pulled it out!"

Craig responded, "I don't know, dude. We haven't touched it."

I imagined Sid double checking the locker room. "Fine."

He grabbed the zipper and as he pulled it back to open the bag, I jumped up. "RAHWR!"

"HOLY SHIT!" Sid jumped about ten feet in the air while the guys laughed their asses off. I took a bow and Sid threw his glove at me. "JAMIE!"

The guys continued to laugh and Craig pulled me close to kiss me. "That's my girl," he said with a smile. He whispered in my ear before he let me go, "I'm staying in tonight."

I knew what that meant.

--

I blamed myself for the boys' 6-3 loss that night. "I messed with your stuff, Sid."

He shook his head. "It's not your fault." I knew Sid was the most superstitious. He easily blamed me in his mind. He had to.

Clearly, Scuds was trying to make a point. As he passed Craig and I in the hall at the hotel, I heard him randomly bring up his goal that night on the phone. Craig pulled me close and shook his head. "Don't let him get to you."

I nodded. "I know...I just..."

Craig kissed me as he slid the key into his door. "Shhh..."

"Craig, you have a roommate," I said in his ear as he kissed my neck.

"Not tonight." His smirk turned me on faster than anything as the door closed behind us and I popped a couple buttons off his shirt. Something told me Craig was going to hear about it in the morning from his neighbors.

--

I woke up to a text from Flower. Fully expecting it to be about the noise levels the night before, I just laughed when I read, "It's done. I'll send you a video."

Sitting up, I stretched and looked at the empty bed next to me. Craig had left with the guys. There was a note on his pillow, though.

Jamie,

When i get back from practice, we'll go out and have some fun. Lunch and sightseeing sound good?

Last night was amazing, baby. I've missed seeing you alone. This summer will be perfect, I promise.

Craig.

I smiled and grabbed his pillow, snuggling with it like a stuffed animal to fall back to sleep. I was still pretty tired. I woke up instantly when my phone went off, though. Opening the video message, I had to hold back the fit of laughter as I watched Craig step onto the ice...and fall flat on his face.

"WHAT THE HELL?" Craig tried to stand up and went down again. Sitting on the ice, he looked at his blades. "YOU ASSHOLES!"

The guys all died as Craig threw a glove and peeled the sock tape off his blades. "Who's bright idea was this?"

The phone shook as Marc laughed. "Your girlfriends'."

Craig looked at the phone and shook his head. "I have nothing to say."

I flopped back on the bed, laughing hysterically. It had worked out so perfectly.

I just waited for him to get back. Something told me I was in for it.

...I giggled. Bring it, Craig.