Long Time No See

It had been three weeks since Leslie had arrived in Chicago. She had snagged the job as a photojournalist for a small news magazine, and she worked daily from 7:00 - 5:00, and she didn't work Saturdays or Sundays. Jon would wake her up when he got up at 6:00, and he would drop her off at the office before heading to practice. With a little bit of persuading, he ended up getting her a used, beaten-up car so that she could drive herself to and from work and the store when he was away.

To say she missed him when he was on road trips was an understatement. But she had found ways to deal with it; she lost herself in her job, and he always called her after games, no matter what. She hadn't met the team yet, but she had heard guys in the background teasing Jon about calling her. She would smile as Jon would reply with, "At least I can keep a girl longer than one night."

But there was always that ache when he was away. They had only been dating for 2 months and had never really had to be apart until now. She couldn't help but wonder, was he out with other girls? There were so many around him all the time, it had to be tempting for him, right?

She would shake the thought. He always called her and, although she felt sort of guilty about it, the guys' teasing made her feel better because that way, she knew he was being faithful because of the taunting of being a 'one-girl man'.

Jon respected her wishes about not wanting to have sex, and she knew it was hard for him - he was a guy after all - but he was doing a spectacular job so far. He understood that she wanted to save herself for the guy she knew she was going to marry.

But she was lonely.

One day, Jon's plane was delayed, and Leslie dialed her mom's number through her tears.

"Mom, this is crazy." Leslie sighed into the phone.

"I know sweetie. You can come home anytime, but just remember how much Jonathan means to you," she reminded Leslie. Leslie nodded.

"Yeah. You're right. I'll talk to you later. Love you, mom." she hung up the phone and turned around. She jumped as she saw a hurt-looking Jonathan standing in the doorway, arms crossed.

"You didn't have to come," he said quietly. "I just thought you felt the same way that I do."

Leslie walked up to him quickly and took his hands in hers.

"Jonny, you know I want to be here. I do feel the same way, you know that. It's just a bit scary for me," she said, and Jon's body relaxed. She leaned into him and kissed his chest. "Just give me some time to adjust, okay?" he nodded and kissed her hair.

"You have to promise to tell me if you don't want to stay anymore, or if you're lonely, so I can try to fix it before you take off on me, okay?" he searched her eyes, wiping the last few stray tears.

"I promise you, Jonathan Bryan Toews. But you know how much I care about you. So I don't think me leaving is going to happen anytime soon. I'll be okay." She grinned up at him and he leaned down to kiss her.

"That's good to hear."

***
"Babe, get up. You're coming with me to practice. It's a perfect chance for you to meet the team."

Leslie sighed, running her hands through her hair and trying to focus in on Jonathan's face. She yawned and Jon looked at her, amused. She finally gave in and stood up to grab a shower. Jon made breakfast and they ate it quickly before heading out the door.

They reached the rink and Jon took her hand, leading her into the big building. She had only been to two games while she had lived here, and the size of the building was still overwhelming. Jon squeezed her hand as he led her into the arena, and she took a deep breath before he led her into the locker room.

As soon as the door opened, heads snapped up and she was soon surrounded by a flurry of muscle. She felt her cheeks flush as handsome men crowded around her.

"Tazer!" A guy that was shorter than Jonathan but very handsome spoke up. "I see why you stuck with her! She's a babe!"

Leslie blushed even more furiously and Jon placed his arm around her shoulders protectively. "Watch it, Sharpie. She's mine."

The guys all introduced themselves and Leslie smiled politely at each of them. They had just finished the rounds when a man appeared at the door and yelled for Jonathan to join him in the hallway.

"Will you be okay?" Jonathan asked me quietly. "I'll be like two seconds."

I glanced around at the smiling faces and nodded.

"I'll take care of her!" Patrick Sharp spoke up, grinning.

Jon shook his head and kissed me quickly before whispering in my ear, "He's really not that bad. He just puts on an act."

I nodded and Jon disappeared into the hallway.

"So, Future Mrs. Toews," Patrick said, pronouncing Jonathan's last name as 'toes'. He grinned at me and I shuffled my feet awkwardly. "I have to get ready, but you can plop your butt down next to me if you want." He motioned for me to follow him, but I couldn't get over the fact that he had just mentioned my butt.

I eventually made my way over and sat on the bench beside him. I looked around the room, my eyes landing on a short guy with curly blonde hair. He caught my gaze and nodded cockily, causing me to frown and turn back to Patrick. I watched out of the corner of my eye as the guy sat down beside me.

"I'm Patrick Kane," he said, sticking out his hand so that it was in my view. Could he not take a hint?

I turned to him and sighed, shaking his hand. "Hi, I'm Jonathan's girlfriend," I informed him, putting the emphasis on the word 'girlfriend'.

I really didn't like the way he was looking at me.

"I'm the better Patrick, though," Sharpie spoke up from the other side of me. I turned to him and gave him a smile, hoping he'd take the hint that I definitely thought he was the better Patrick.