Haunted

Milan Lucic ran a tired hand over his face. He had decided to come back to his hotel room a little early, the game having worn him out completely. Usually he stayed out with the guys late into the night after a win, but tonight he had wanted to get back to his room and have a little private time before his teammate that he shared a room with came back. He wanted to use the private time to call his best friend back home in Vancouver and wish her a happy birthday, since all he was able to do earlier was shoot her a quick text.

Once the burly left winger entered his room, he immediately went into the bathroom and took a quick shower before getting ready to hop into bed. He glanced at the clock, ready to call that familiar number, but he paused when he saw the red numbers glaring back at him.

It was a lot later than he originally had thought it was, and he wondered if he’d be bothering her by calling so late. He decided to send Jelena, his friend, a text instead, just to be safe. Hey Lena, I didn’t know if it was too late to call you? Call me back if you’re still up. If I don’t talk to you, then happy birthday again!

Moments later, Milan received a response. Skype me?

Milan grinned and grabbed his laptop, resting on his side as he waited for it to boot up. Once he opened his Skype program, he was immediately greeted by his best friend’s beautiful face.

“Are you naked?!” She instantly exclaimed, giggling.

“Butt naked,” Milan smiled, joking around with her. He knew that she was aware that he was teasing her, and that he always wore either sweatpants or basketball shorts to bed. In this case, it was sweatpants.

“Pervert,” she replied. “But hey, I got the flowers you sent. They’re really beautiful, Milan. You didn’t have to do that.”

“I wanted to,” he answered truthfully. “And don’t think that’s the end of your gift, either. Once we get together in person I’ll give you the rest of it.”

“When’s that going to be?” Lena asked. Milan didn’t miss the unhappiness in her voice or her face, and he knew it was because she missed him. He missed her too, and they had never gone this long without seeing each other at least two or three times throughout Milan’s season. Whenever she’d come out to Boston to see him, she’d stay for a few days and then leave again, leaving Milan feeling haunted every time. It was like her presence brought a sense of comfort to him, and her absence just sucked it all away. Every time they had planned to get together this year, however, things had fallen through, leaving them both depressed and frustrated.

Milan and Jelena had grown up together in Vancouver, both having parents of Serbian descent. They had always gotten along and been close, and Milan had to admit that he wished he could spend more time with the young woman.

“I honestly don’t know, Lena. You know my schedule’s tight. What about you? Any free time coming up?”

“Not really,” Jelena sighed. “I mean, I can try to move some stuff around, but I don’t know if I can make anything work. I love it here at home and everything, but it’s just not the same without you around.”

“We’ll figure it out, okay? The season ends in a few weeks.”

“Yeah, but you’re in the playoffs, Mr. Hotshot,” Jelena teased.

“I’m not going to apologize for that,” Milan chuckled.

“I don’t want you to,” Jelena responded, her voice softening. “I’m proud of you, you know. Really proud. Can I make a request for my birthday present?”

“Sure.”

“The Stanley Cup. Win it for me, eh?”

“Piece of cake. Anything else?”

“Sean Avery’s autograph,” Lena answered, not skipping a beat.

“Avery?! What? Why would you want that guy’s autograph?”

“Because he’s a decent player. And a really great human rights activist. Oh, and he’s also super hot,” Lena added, causing Milan to roll his eyes. “I guess I have a thing for fighters.”

Milan looked at her face on the screen, her smirk taunting him. Well if that’s how she wanted to play, then fine. He could play that game too.

“You saying you got a thing for me then?”

“A huge thing,” she grinned, biting her lip.

“You’re going to get yourself in trouble with this topic of conversation, Lena,” Milan warned, growing warm.

“Maybe I want to get in trouble with you,” she admitted, her features still teasing but meaningful.

“Lee…” he trailed off, completely at a loss for words. Suddenly, Lena gasped, changing the topic.

“Did I show you my tattoo?”

“You got a tattoo?” Milan exclaimed. “Where? Of what?”

“You promise you won’t make fun of me?”

Milan looked thoughtful for a moment before looking back at the screen. “I can’t promise that,” he finally laughed, causing her jaw to drop. “But I promise not to make fun of you for it tonight, since it’s your birthday.”

“Fine,” she agreed, lifting her shirt over her head. Milan’s mouth opened slightly, having been taken completely off guard by her gesture. She sat there for a moment in her black, lacy bra, making Milan blink rapidly. “Ready?”

“Uh…”

Jelena turned around just then, showing Milan her backside. His eyes traveled up and down the curve of her spine, not looking for a tattoo but just admiring the view of her body. “Do you like it?” She asked, craning her head to the computer.

“Oh, uh…” Milan jolted, glancing around hurriedly to spot the tattoo. It was right by her left shoulder blade, and it was a small logo of the Boston Bruins with the number 17, Milan’s number, inside the wheel between the spokes.

“I know you might not be on the Bruins forever, but I know it’s still the team that really gave you your start and would be important to you and-”

“You don’t have to explain yourself, Lena. I like it a lot, I really do. I can’t believe you got a tattoo of my team and my number…” he murmured.

“I wasn’t sure you liked it. You weren’t saying much,” she smiled gently.

“To be honest, that was because I wasn’t paying much attention to the tattoo. I have a half naked, gorgeous girl in front of me, so the last thing I’m looking at is your shoulder blade.”

“Milan!” Jelena shrieked, turning back to the camera with a mock glare. She picked up her shirt and held it up to cover the front of her body.

“Don’t,” Milan commanded quietly. Lena’s lips parted slightly, her eyes widening a bit. Never the less, she dropped the shirt. “Any other tattoos I should know about? Any that would require you to drop your pants?”

“Pervert,” Lena restated, her voice much softer this time. The corner of Milan’s mouth twitched into a smirk, despite the heat flowing in his veins. “And no, I don’t. But since you sent me those flowers…” she trailed off, standing up and placing her fingers at the button of her jeans. Milan swallowed hard, disbelief at the situation flowing over him.

Lena slowly shimmied out of her pants, doing a quick little twirl in front of her computer for Milan to show off her matching black panties. She giggled and began to sit back down, but Milan halted her. “Again,” he requested, his voice gruff. “Slower?”

Milan watched as his best friend since childhood displayed herself to him in her undergarments. He had no idea what to do next, but the choice was taken out of his hands as his teammate and roommate Nathan Horton walked into the room. Milan instantly slammed his laptop shut, not uttering a single thing to Jelena about the reason before he did so.

“Hey,” Nathan greeted.

“Hey,” the young man stammered in response. He felt like he was sweating, and he wouldn’t be surprised if he was. Jelena had just gotten him all hot and bothered, and a certain area of his pants was feeling quite uncomfortable.

Milan’s heart was racing.

What had just happened?

What the fuck had just happened?

“You okay, Looch?” Nathan asked, eyebrow raised as he removed his jacket.

“Yep, yeah,” Milan blurted, still befuddled. He stared at his closed laptop for a moment, realizing his hand was still pressing down forcefully on the already shut top. He removed his hand quickly, pushing the laptop away slightly. He moved to get off the bed, but the tightness of his pants in his lap area alerted him to stay put unless he wanted to be slightly embarrassed.

“You don’t look so good,” Nathan observed, watching Milan let out slow breath with his eyes shut.

“Must have been something I ate,” Milan grumbled, running a hand over his shaved head. Nathan seemed to accept this, shrugging as he walked into the bathroom. Milan’s gaze went back over to his laptop, and his thoughts drifted back to Jelena.

In her black, lacy underwear.

“Oh god,” Milan groaned, throwing an arm over his face as he collapsed back onto his pillows. He wondered what was going through Jelena’s mind at that moment. If Nathan hadn’t come into the room, how far would the little show have gone?

That’s when Milan realized he had basically just shut his computer without any warning to Lena, so she was probably sitting in Vancouver, dumbstruck.

Dumbstruck in her black, lacy underwear.

“Fuck,” Milan grumbled, searching for his phone. He stared at her name in his contacts list for a second, wondering if he should call her or send her a text. When Milan heard the shower turn off, he figured texting was the safest option. After mulling what he was going to say over and over in his head, he finally settled on, So, uh...Sorry about that.

A minute later, he got a response. You just disappeared, lol.

Yeah, Horton walked in, and I didn’t want him to see.

Why not? ;)

A wave of possessiveness shot through Milan before he froze. Oh god. What was she doing to him? Was she drunk? Milan typed his response, his finger hovering over the ‘send’ key for a good minute. If he sent his message, it would no doubt change their relationship forever.

If he didn’t send the message, they could awkwardly laugh this whole situation off and hopefully go back to normal. The key word in that scenario was hopefully. He closed his eyes and moved his thumb away from the button, but then a flash of Jelena in her underwear invaded his mind and he sent the message.

Because I want to be the only one who gets to see you like that.

Milan felt like his chest was about to explode as he held his breath waiting for a response. Nathan came back into the room a moment later, hopping into bed after grabbing his own phone. “You setting an alarm or should I?” He asked Milan. “Nevermind, I’ll just do it,” Nathan muttered, noticing the younger man was distracted.

Okay, was her response. It was one word, and yet it sent a wave of pleasure over Milan’s body. He sent her another quick text, telling her he’d talk to her again once he was home in Boston the next day. She agreed, and soon enough Milan fell asleep, haunted by dreams of Jelena.

---

Milan entered his apartment the next day, glad to be home from the road trip. Lena was constantly on his mind all night and day, and he couldn’t seem to get her out of his head. Part of him didn’t want her out of his head, which didn’t help matters.

“Boo!” Someone shouted, coming up from behind Milan and jumping on his back.

“Jelena what the fuck!” Milan exclaimed, barely able to catch her and hoist her to a more comfortable piggy back ride position.

“Surprise!” She shouted, resting her chin on his shoulder.

“What are you doing in my apartment?”

“You gave me a key, remember? For emergencies, in case I needed to get away from home and you weren’t in town.”

“I meant, what are you doing here in general, Lena? I thought you weren’t going to be able to get free time,” he said, looking at her over his shoulder.

“I was lying at the time,” she grinned. “I was still at home when we talked, but I had plans to come here all along. Good surprise, huh?”

“Great surprise,” he answered, setting her down and turning to face her. She immediately threw her arms around his torso, burying her face in his shirt. “How long are you here for?” He asked, wrapping his arms around her form.

“Considering I have a job interview in Boston tomorrow, I’m hoping for a while,” she beamed.

“Are you serious?” Milan questioned excitedly, pulling back slightly to look at her face. She nodded and he swung her around, causing her to emit a small squeal. “When would you start?”

“Not until August, unfortunately, but I guess in a way it’s good. I’d be able to go home with you for the summer at least. Home is so much better when you’re around, Milan. It’s so…haunted without you there. Things remind me of you all the time, and then I just remember how far away you are. I want to be by my best friend again.”

“I want that too,” Milan smiled, looking down at the woman in his arms. She was a good foot shorter than he was, with the same lightly tanned skin and dark features as him. “Look, Lena, about what happened last night…I’m sorry I got kind of, pushy. I don’t want to mess up our friendship, and I don’t want you to think-”

“I thought it was sexy,” Jelena interjected.

“You what?”

“I thought you were sexy, Milan. I have for a while. I wasn’t sure how you felt about me, and I didn’t want to mess us up either. But I’m not going to lie and say I don’t like the way things are going.”

Milan smirked and ran a hand over her hair. “You have no idea what you did to me last night,” he rasped out. He brushed a strand of her soft hair out of her eyes, smiling as he saw them light up mischievously.

“Want to see my tattoo up close?” She whispered, causing Milan to withhold a shiver as he nodded. “Give me my present first.”

Milan groaned audibly. “You’re going to get me all excited like that and then make me wait until I win the Stanley Cup before I get to see it again?”

Jelena let out a large, joyful laugh, pulling Milan down to kiss her hard on the lips. He was caught off guard to say the least, so he stumbled forward before catching himself against the back of the couch, effectively trapping her in-between the piece of furniture and his body. Milan immediately responded once he regained his balance however, soon taking charge of the kiss and taking her lower lip between his teeth.

“I meant,” she stated, breaking the kiss. “The present you already bought me.”

“Oh, that,” Milan rubbed the back of his neck. “Uh, I kind of, haven’t bought you anything else. Yet. I was going to do it when I had some time off, and I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon, and-”

Lena interrupted him by leaning up to kiss him again, effectively shutting him up. Then she moved her lips to his earlobe, biting it softly before whispering, “Make it up to me another way.”

“Now that I can definitely do,” Milan answered, taking her mouth once more.

“I still expect the Stanley Cup,” she reminded once he moved his lips to her neck.

“Not a problem.”

“And don’t forget my autograph,” she added, gasping when he bit her neck softly, marking her.

“Fuck the autograph,” he growled, nipping at her jaw. “You’ve got your own fighter right here, and I don’t plan on letting you around other ones any time soon.”

“Sounds like a good birthday present to me,” she replied, running her fingers along his hard torso under his shirt.

“And to think,” he started, moving to kiss her right under her ear. “I haven’t even given it all to you yet.”

Lena’s lips spread into a slow smile as her eyes fluttered closed, wondering what the hell she was going to do for Milan for his birthday. She felt him shiver has she ran her nails down his back, and she figured he was going to be an easy man to please.