Got It Bad

“So help me God, if I bump into another person…” Clara huffed out a breath, easily visible in the early morning hours and she straightened her files.

“Well, this must be fate. I’ve bumped into you three times in less than three months.” Clara just groaned at the voice, looking up into the face of Sidney Crosby. Of course, she had to go to Pittsburgh to go to school.

“Wow, a cocky hockey player. Go figure,” Clara said overly sarcastically, placing her hand on her hip. She just watched as he grinned at her. She rolled her eyes before turning and walking away.

“Hey, where are you going?”

Clara sighed before replying. “Home. Now if you would stop stalking me, it would be greatly appreciated.”

“I’m not stalking you,” Sid replied, falling into step next to Clara. “I go to work right across the street.”

“Then why, pray tell, aren’t you there?” Clara was getting annoyed now, and it showed in her snippy response.

“Practice is over and I was going to head home to relax before tomorrow’s game.”

“Then why don’t you go do that, Crosby? Or do you get off on the fact that I can’t stand you?”

Sid’s cheeks flushed and it wasn’t because of the cold. Clara refused to glance his way and, luckily for Sid, didn’t see it.

“Why won’t you just let me buy you coffee?” Sid asked, his voice showing his embarrassment and vulnerability. “Why do you hate me so much?”

“Because you’re Sidney Crosby, and the world is expected to fall at your feet. Sorry, I’m not mindless like everyone else seems to be. Sure, you’re a talented player, but that’s not all there is to the game.”

Sid was so stunned for a moment he stopped walking. Clara continued on and thought she was safe when she crossed the street and he wasn’t at her side. She nearly jumped out of her skin when he suddenly appeared after half a block.

“So you hate me for being me?”

“No.”

“Then why do you hate me?”

“Because everyone mindlessly loves you.”

“And that’s it?”

“And you have a baby face.”

Sid ran a hand over his face, feeling the slight stubble on his chin. He never really liked the fact that he had such a youthful face, and it always had a way of hindering him from doing something or looking a certain way. For it to be used against him, especially because it was just genetics, was very upsetting to him.

Clara used his speechlessness to silently edge away from him and into the nearest coffee shop. The coffee shop was quiet, which was perfect for what she had been planning on doing before Sidney had run into her – literally – again. She hadn’t even realized that Sid had, in fact, found her until he had paid for both drinks and addressed her.

“Now you have to have coffee with me,” he said smugly, and Clara just groaned, grabbed her coffee, and walked to a booth with a perfect view of the street. She was already editing one of her cake designs, per her professor’s orders, when Sid sat down across from her cautiously.

All was quiet for a while. Both were content with their coffee, Clara was content to work on her cake designs and Sid was content to watch her. “What is it about me that you find so damn interesting that you had to force me into having coffee with you?” Clara asked all of a sudden, putting her designs into a neat pile and picking up her coffee. She stared at Sid, who had relaxed enough to shed his jacket and looked quite good in the charcoal grey sweater. Not that she noticed that.

“I didn’t force you to have coffee with me,” Sid said defensively, moving as if to put his hands up in an ‘I’m innocent’ motion. “And you’re intriguing. There’s something about you that makes me want to get to know you better.”

“But I’m a Flyers fan,” she stated, as if it was an acceptable counter.

“And maybe if I got to know you better, I might be able to look past the fact that you root for a dirty team.”

When Clara’s blue eyes narrowed into practically non-existent slits, Sid knew he had gone a little too far with his joke. Before he knew it she had gathered her things and was on her way to the door before his hand flashed out and grabbed onto her wrist. They both looked down at the tingles that sprung up when their skin touched, as cliché as it sounds. Clara glanced back at him and her eyes were wide, confused and angry.

“I’m sorry,” Sid said honestly, looking up into her blue eyes and not dropping her wrist, even though her skin was burning his fingers. “I thought it was obvious that I was joking. Then again, the guys always say that I can’t joke for my life.”

Clara sighed and moved back to the booth, where Sid gently slid his fingers from around her wrist. “I’m really defensive over my team,” she admitted, not looking at Sid but more at her hands. “I’ve gotten shit since day one for being a Flyers fan in Penguins territory.”

“How long have you lived in Pittsburgh?” Sid watched her carefully as she took a sip of her coffee.

“Just the past three years, I go to school at the Art Institute. Culinary arts,” she replied, surprising them both.

“Explains all the cakes,” Sid replied with a smile, and Clara flashed a brief one as well. “Where’s home?”

“Philadelphia, of course,” she stated, as if it was the most obvious answer in the world. It makes sense as to why she likes the Flyers. But she had a sweet, shy smile on her mouth, unlike the one she wore when they first met.

Clara was surprised to see that conversation with Sid was easy. They talked about all kinds of things, and she even let him see a few of her finish cake designs. The light December sky had grown dark in the early evening. Clara knew she should be getting home, but she just couldn’t bring herself to leave quite yet.

“See, this isn’t so bad, is it?” Sid asked, his eyes warm and open. Clara shook her head with a tiny smile, tucking hair behind her ear.

“No, it wasn’t. I owe you an apology, Sidney.”

“Sid, please. We’re friends now… right?” That made her heart flutter. Friends with a hockey player. No, he was an NHL player, far more than a hockey player. It had been one of the things that Clara had always wanted, to be friends with a hockey player.

“Yeah, friends,” she was saying, just as Sid’s phone rang. He made a face before answering the phone quickly. She made herself busy doodling on a spare bit of scrap paper. She couldn’t help but hear Sid’s end of the conversation.

“I told you Max – No, I don’t want to go… But I don’t care – We have a game tomorrow… Listen, I’ll come, but I’m not drinking, okay? … Yeah, I’ll see you in a bit, tool.” Sid sighed when he hung up, running a hand through his hair and giving Clara a sheepish look.

“You have to go?” she asked, though he obviously did.

“Yeah, Max is throwing a party. For the team and their significant others. As captain…”

“He’s pretty much forcing you to be there.” She laughed lightly. “Makes sense. We’ve been talking for hours, so I think it’s best we go our separate ways anyway.” She leaned forward, her face becoming closer to Sid’s he almost went cross-eyed trying to look at her. “After all, we wouldn’t want people to think that I actually like the Penguins now, do we?” She leaned back so fast with a feline grin on her face, and Sid couldn’t help but laugh. She had a way of making him hold his breath and looking so adorable the next second.

“No, I guess not, Clara,” he stated, standing up and putting his jacket on. Clara had already bundled up in her winter coat, her designs tucked safely into her folder. “Thanks for coffee company, Sid,” she said with a dazzling smile, patting him lightly on the shoulder as she walked by. He was just going to call out to her when she turned around. “You might want to check your napkin,” she said and then in a blink she was gone into the night.

Furrowing his eyebrows, he looked at the napkin as he also exited the coffee shop. He couldn’t help the giddiness he felt seeing those ten digits, with many doodles around them. Even though he now finally had her number, he couldn’t help but wonder if he would ever get the last word with her.