No One Belongs Here More Than You

After the incident with Sidney and Ashley, the team had to pack up and head to Philadelphia. I tried to get Ashley to come with me, but she refused, and simply said “I have things I have to get done here.” There was an ache in my chest as I waved goodbye to her in the airport, and kissed her one last time before boarding the plane.

“Dude, you are absolutely crazy about her, aren’t you?” Sidney asked as we took our seats. He sat across the aisle from me, Flower to his left.

“I love her,” I simply shrugged. Sidney gaped at me.

“But you’ve only been together for a month bro,” he said quietly. I could see disbelief and confusion written on his face. Sidney never was the best with women.

“Sidney it isn’t the time that matters, but the quality of the relationship,” Marc said. Sidney stared at him with wide eyes.

“That makes no sense,” Sidney said.

“Sid, it make perfect sense only when it happens to you,” I said. I could feel a grin growing on my face as I thought about Ashley, sitting on her couch in her apartment, writing aimlessly on her laptop and trying to find a job. She had agreed she wouldn’t work outside of Pittsburgh, which made me relieved. I looked at Sid, who looked a little lonely.

“What’s up man?” Flower asks quietly.

“I dunno…I just…” Sid started.

“You want girlfriend too?” I suggest. Sid sighed and nodded.

“But not just some stupid puck bunny…I want a girl like you guys have…you know, someone who loves you for who you are and not what you are,” he explained. I reached across the aisle and patted him on the shoulder reassuringly.

“Let’s see what we can do,” I said. Suddenly, the plane roared to life and we began the takeoff process.

***___***___***___***___***___***___***___***___***

I paced back and forth, picking various shirts and pairs of pants up, throwing them into my duffel bag, and then taking them back out. Packing was a lot harder than I originally thought, but after a few hours I managed to pack the duffel bag. My phone began to ring, so I answered it, hoping that it was Evgeni.

“Hello?” I asked, noticing that the number on the screen wasn’t saved in my contacts.

“Is this Ashley Parker?” a girl’s voice asked on the other side.

“Yeah…who’s this?” I asked.

“It’s Maria…Maria Alberti. We used to hang out in high school remember?” she asked.

“Oh my God, Maria?! How could I forget you?” I cried happily.

“I’m glad to hear that you haven’t forgotten me! So, I hear you’re living in the ‘Burgh now. Is that true?” she asked.

“Yeah, I’m in Pittsburgh,” I smiled.

“You sound like you love it there,” she said.

“I do love it here! It’s amazing! The city is fantastic, the people are the best, and well…I’ve got a boyfriend here,” I said.

“Oh Ashley, that’s great! How about you tell me all about it over coffee tomorrow?” she asked.

“Coffee?” I asked.

“I’m coming to Pittsburgh for a few weeks with my dad. You know how he has his publishing company right?” she asked.

“Oh yeah. How could I forget? He published that book of poetry from the contest I entered when we were twelve,” I laughed.

“Yeah, he still has that book too. Well, I’ll call you tomorrow and let you know what’s going on. I’m landing tonight,” she said.

“Bye Maria,” I smiled, and we both hung up.

I walked into Evgeni’s apartment, using the key I managed to talk Sidney into leaving for me, and looked around. It seemed weird being there when Evgeni wasn’t, but I shrugged it off and walked into his bedroom. I dropped my duffel bag on the floor and shivered. He always kept things ridiculously cold, so I opened his closet to steal a sweatshirt, and raised my eyebrows. Half of the closet was empty. I pulled one of his big black Penguins sweatshirts off of a hanger and put it on. Out of curiosity, I started opening the drawers of his bureau. For some reason, the entire right hand side of his bureau was empty as well. Finally, I walked over to the right side of the bed, where I slept when I stayed at his house. The end table drawers were empty too.

“Holy shit…he really was serious about me moving in,” I muttered. I glanced at the duffel bag, and then at the closet, and then at the drawers, all of which I left open. Oh screw it.

***___***___***___***___***___***___***___***___***

I walked into the terminal of Philadelphia International Airport and scowled. The entire place was a sea of orange and black, and I immediately knew I was going to have to keep my head down. Unfortunately, somebody saw us, and we were greeted by boos, and a “Penguins Suck” chant.

“Yeah, we definitely suck alright…that’s why we beat their team in the first two games,” Sidney grumbled darkly as he dodged a well aimed plastic water bottle that was tossed in his direction. Security guards started yelling at people to calm down, and we eventually made it to the hotel without further incident. I was roomed with Sidney, which was weird, but I didn’t question it.

“So Sid…I kind of want to talk to you about key,” I said quietly, lounging on my bed as Sidney flipped through the TV channels.

“What’s up?” he asked, glancing at me with raised eyebrows.

“You can’t just break into apartment like you do,” I said.

“I know…I’m sorry,” Sidney chuckled.

“You know?” I asked incredulously.

“Ashley called me yesterday and reamed me out for it,” he chuckled.

“Why am I not surprised?” I asked. Sidney shrugged and sprawled out on his bed.

“You’ve got a great girl Geno,” he said.

“I know,” I smiled.

We won the game 3-2, and the Flyers fans were not happy at all. I was walking on air as we returned to the locker room, the boos ricocheting off of deaf ears for once. High fives and whoops were spread throughout the locker room, and some of the guys’ families sprinted into the locker room as soon as they were allowed to congratulate them. I was kind of saddened by it, so I pulled out my phone and decided to call Ashley.

“Evgeni!” she cried happily as she answered the phone.

“Ashley!” I smiled.

“You did so well! I was a little freaked out by that ridiculous hit Carcillo laid on you, but you were awesome! How do you feel? Two assists is a pretty good thing, huh?” Ashley said, talking a mile a minute.

“Ashley, did you drink a lot of coffee?” I chuckled.

“No, I’m just excited for you babe,” she said. I felt a grin starting.

“Thanks. So how is Pittsburgh without me?” I asked.

“Pittsburgh is…well, Pittsburgh. I got a lot of stuff done, and I’m meeting with one of my old friends for coffee tomorrow,” she said.

“You are?” I asked.

“Yeah. It’s a long story, but one of my friends from high school is coming out with her dad and she wants to see me,” she said.

“That’s awesome,” I smiled.

“Yeah…oh, and I have a surprise for you when you get home Evgeni,” she said happily.

“I can’t wait,” I said, and I wasn’t exactly sure if I was thrilled or nervous that she had a surprise waiting for me.