Don't Make Me Spell It Out For You

Chapter Two

ROSELYN’S POV

“And here is where you will be rooming,” Kris gestured wildly at my room, which had been filled with all my things from Toronto. “All your stuff is here and you can organize that way you wish. I’m going to head to the gym, but Laddie is sleeping in his bedroom. Enjoy!” he called, grabbing his bag and driving off to the gym.

I organized my bedroom feeling much better about life there in Chicago. According to Kris I even had a nickname: Baby Versteeg. I wasn’t that much younger than him, I reminded him, but still. I felt kind of special.

“Hey,” a sleepy voice floated into my ear some hours later. “Your room looks good.”

“Thanks Andrew,” I wiped the sweat from my forehead after moving my bedframe from one side of my room to the other. “I’m surprised you slept through that whole ordeal.”
“It was quiet in the house,” he said, looking confused as ever.

“After I broke a lamp, my bedframe fell apart, and a dresser drawer fell, yes it was quiet.”

“All that happened while I was asleep? Why didn’t you wake me up? I would have helped you.”

I laughed. “I tried! You swatted my hand away and told me, and I quote, ‘Steeger I swear to the hockey Gods if you don’t get the hell away from me I will dangle you out the window in a lightning storm and laugh as you cry for your mommy’. I thought it better to deal on my own.”

He stood there, looking even more confused. “I don’t remember this.”

I rolled my eyes. “What’s for dinner? Kris called. He’s heading to dinner with a girl he met at the gym, so we have to fend for ourselves. Not that it should be too hard. Kris’s cooking sucks.”

Andrew smiled and stretched so that his shirt rose above his belly button. I blushed a little at the sight and turned to my computer for a second.

“Well, what do you like to eat?” he asked.

I shrugged. “Anything I guess except for seafood.”

“You like spaghetti?” he asked.

I nodded.

“Want to help me cook?”

I shrugged again. “Sure.”

“You shrug a lot,” he commented as he started on the sauce while I watched the water boil for the noodles.

“You talk a lot,” I countered.

“I could have sworn that Steeger said you were quiet and shy.”

I blushed. “I am.”

“Not around me or any of the guys it seems.”

I shrugged again. “I don’t know why not. It’s really weird. I don’t warm up to people like I have to you guys. I mean it’s barely been a day and here I am talking to you without blushing and all that.”

Andrew tossed me a smile. “I guess we’re just special.”

We ate at the counter, eating straight out of the pot. It was the best meal I had ever had.

“You’re kidding!” he roared with laughter. “He did not!”

I laughed too, my mouth hurting from all the smiling. “He did! He scored on the wrong goal and was cheering and everything. The coach had to tell him that it didn’t count and he burst into tears.”

“How old was he?”

“Eleven.”

The door opened just then and the man himself came sauntering in, whistling a tune. He saw us trying to hold in the laughter and stopped the whistling. “I have a feeling that I missed something here.”

“Nah, don’t worry about it man. We’ve just been making fun of you for the past hour.”

Kris rolled his eyes. “Thanks guys. Rose, did he make you cook?”

“We cooked together.”

He eyed both of us and shrugged. “I’m not going to complain. You going to the optional
skate tomorrow morning?” he asked Andrew.

He thought about it for maybe a second. “Yeah. You?”

“Yup. Rose, you want to come along?”

I looked up startled that he was asking me. “Huh? Uh sure?”

“Huet is out on account for an injury. I wonder if Tazer will let us shoot on you,” Andrew stroked his nonexistent beard.

Kris looked appalled. “Today was a one time thing! She was not going to be target practice for a bunch of professional hockey players.”

His teammate wasn’t listening. He was texting someone and he broke out into a grin. “Tazer says sure. Only if she wants to though.”

“Ladd!” Kris exclaimed.

He kept on ignoring Kris and turned to me instead. “What do you say Roselyn? You don’t have to, but you’re more than welcome to join practice tomorrow. It’s optional skate, so not as many of the guys will be on the ice. I know Burish and Sharpie like to hit the weight room while Kaner gets his muscles loosened up. Nemo is usually with his goal coach, watching videos with Keith.”

I ate another forkful of spaghetti. “So, who would be there?”

Andrew glanced at his phone again. “Me. Tazer, Kopy, Hossa, Seabs, and Hjalmarsson. Steeger too if he gets that stupid look off his face.”

“Sure.”

“Rose!” Kris shouted.

I shrugged. “What?”

He poked my forehead, making me squint. “Who are you?”

I was confused. What kind of question was that? “Roselyn Versteeg?” I more asked than stated who I was. Where was he going with this?

“No you’re not. You’re not that cute, little, shy girl who blushes when she has to speak and
who would never have agreed to goaltender practice and actually be talking to Laddie without stuttering.”

I stared at him and tilted my head just to the right side and offered up a small smile. “I couldn’t tell you why either but I’m not going to complain. Now, I’m heading to bed. What time is practice tomorrow?”

“Ten,” they both answered at the same time.

“Night boys,” I waved, heading up to my bedroom, feeling like I really wasn’t Roselyn Versteeg anymore. I was someone totally different. And I liked her.

KRIS VERSTEEG’S POV

I watched as Ladd cleaned up their dinner like nothing was changing and all I could do was just stand there.

“Stop staring Steeger,” he finally told me. “Someone once told me that it’s impolite.”

“What are you doing to her?”

He turned to me. “Man, it isn’t me. You told me before she came here that she was a shy little wallflower and I’m met with a spunky girl who is the exact opposite of what you told me. I’m going with it. I mean, think about it. It’s great that she’s breaking out and becoming a new person. Don’t be questioning it Steeger. Just go with it. See where it takes her in life.” He patted me on the back and walked upstairs. “I’m heading to bed too. Wake me up tomorrow Steeger?”

“Sure thing,” I said, not really paying attention.

~~~~~

I woke up to a lovely string of curses and cold water hitting my face the next morning. Not exactly what I had in mind for a wake up. “Dammit, get up Steeger. It’s nine fifteen! Where was the wake up call man?!”

I jumped up, the cold water waking me up right away and I looked around, confused and dazed. “Huh?”

Ladd stood there, dressed in only his pajama pants. “Dude it’s nine fifteen and we’re supposed to be there by ten. We need to leave in twenty minutes!”

“I’ll get Rose up,” I yawned, already throwing on my gym shorts and a tee shirt to get to practice.

She wasn’t in her room and I hopped down the steps, following the smell of bacon. I came around the corner into the kitchen and my mouth watered instantly. Rose was already dressed and she had two go plates of breakfast. “You’re up?” I asked.

She jumped a little at my voice. “Yeah. I was up by eight and I tried waking you all up but all I got was the finger, so then I threw some water on Andrew around nine and well it seems he took my idea. I have breakfast, so get your shit together. We’re already late for practice.”

~~~~~

We were only fifteen minutes late and the skate was optional so I didn’t get why we got lectured by Tazer. It didn’t matter though, considering I let my mind wander during the entire thing and I could tell Laddie had done the same. Rose got off easy by giving him bacon.

“Are you guys even listening?!” Tazer asked.

“Nope,” Ladd answered truthfully. “It’s an optional day and we’re here aren’t we? Though you’re wasting my practice day.”

“Get dressed and let’s go.”

We got dressed and skated onto the ice. As Ladd said, Tazer, Kopy, Hossa, Seabs, and Hjalmarsson were all there messing around with the puck as Rose stretched.

“You guys ready finally?” Rose stood with her hand on her hip. I knew she had a bigger attitude when she was on the ice. Maybe that was why she agreed. She wanted to keep this going. I would have to ask her about it later.

Ladd laughed. “You act like it’s been forever and a day.”

“Well you guys are like a bunch of girls getting ready.”

“We were getting lectured!” I glared at Tazer.

The Captain only shrugged. “Roselyn? What do you want to do?” he asked my cousin.

She fit the practice mask over her face and looked over all of us. “I’m just here to help you all practice. Pretend I’m Niemi or something,” she blushed behind the mask.

Johnny shrugged. “Shootout?”

“We usually do that last,” Seabs leaned on his stick.

“Well we’ll see how quick this goes,” Captain said. “Who wants to go first?”

I scanned the faces of my teammates and finally Hossa skated forward and juggled the puck. “Since no one else will go, I guess I will.”

No such luck. Seabs and Kopy followed suit with the same luck. Ladd and Hjalmy were just as good and finally it was down to me and Tazer. I beckoned for Tazer to go ahead of me and he failed as did the other guys.

Finally it was me. She watched my every move as I skated forward and I thought I had it for a second, but she poked her goal stick out, stopping the puck just in time.

“You’re kidding me?” I told her, my back hitting the glass.

She blushed, but I could see her grin underneath. “Sorry Kris.”

An hour later and Kopy and Laddie were the last ones to score. “Well I guess we’ll call it a practice,” Tazer said, having just finally scored. “Good job Baby V.”

She looked perplexed as she skated towards us, her mask off. “Baby V?”

Tazer shrugged. “Shorter than Baby Versteeg and it has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?”

She rolled her eyes, smiling. “Well okay then. I’m going to go change.”

“No shower?” Ladd raised his eyebrows.

“With like twenty other guys here?” her cheeks lit up. “I mean I would love to, but no. Not happening.”

They all saw the predicament. “Oh,” Ladd said.

“I got this,” Kopy said and beckoned for Rose to follow. We followed and we saw Kopy hanging a sign on the shower stalls. ‘Out of Use’. Then he moved a few feet over to the right and looked like a body guard. “Go for it Roselyn. I got you covered.”

“Uh thanks,” she said quietly and got her things and got into the shower.

Kopy shrugged. “I think it worked out well.”

We all laughed. Tazer came in, a smirk on his face as he changed into his street clothes. “What are you so happy about Tazer?” Sharpie asked.

The Captain looked up. “Nothing yet.”

“You’re smiling. Something has got to be up,” Seabs poked fun at him.

Toews only rolled his eyes. “Nothing yet,” he said and we all knew he wouldn’t budge anymore on that subject.
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