Bringing the Devil Out of Me

"LETS GO DEVILS!" I screamed as Ilya Kovalchuk raced down center ice with the puck in his possession. Marc settled in the crease, anticipating the break-away, but Kovy knew what he was doing. He slipped past Marc and flipped the puck into the upper left hand corner at the last possible second. The red lamp behind Marc's head lit up and I went nuts, jumping up and down in the stands. The man to my left shook his head and scowled at me, but the man to my right was also cheering. There weren't many Devils fans in Pittsburgh, but I was glad to have gotten seated next to one. It was November, and both the Penguins and the Devils were hot. The Penguins had grabbed first seed, while the Devils were closing in behind them with the second.

"Can I ask you a question?" the man to my right suddenly asked. I raised my eyebrows.

"Sure," I said.

"Why the hell are you wearing a Penguins bracelet and a Brodeur jersey?" he asked, pointing to my wrist. The sleeves of my jersey usually covered my hands, so I had forgotten that I was wearing it.

"What? Oh...I know some of the guys on the team...I'm dating one of them actually, so it was kind of a truce between us. I can root for the Devils, as long as I don't root for the Penguins to lose...except when they're playing the Devils of course," I laughed, running my finger along the black and gold bracelet. It was actually a really nice bracelet that Sidney had given to me for our 3 month anniversary. The band was about as thick as my pinky, with Penguins engraved and shadowed with black in the center. On the inside Sidney had gotten For Alice, my little Devil. You make everything right in my world.~Sidney. I blushed whenever I thought about the inside of the bracelet.

"You're dating a Penguin?" he asked, disbelief sketching his face.

"Yeah," I said.

"Then why aren't you in their box cheering them on?" he asked.

"Because I'm a Devils fan. I'll never back down on my team. They respect that, but I wanted to be part of the crowd for once," I explained. The man shook his head, still disbelieving.

"Which one of them?" he asked.

"Crosby," I said, pointing to the blur of black and gold flying down the ice. The number 87 seemed to shine a little more brightly whenever he had the puck, but it was probably just his confidence.

"Yeah right," he scoffed.

"I'm dead serious," I sighed, sitting back down. He sat down as well, and we watched the game.
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"You're not allowed to root for the Devils anymore," Sidney scowled in the car. I raised my eyebrows, having peeled off my jersey as soon as the game was over. I knew he was going to be in a bad mood, so I tucked the jersey into my bag as soon as I got the chance.

"Why not?" I asked as he pulled out of the player parking lot.

"Because whenever you root for us, we win. You were rooting for them this time and we lost," Sidney said, as if it made perfect sense.

"You guys lost because you were disorganized. It has nothing to do with me rooting for one team or the other," I said

"I'm serious!" Sidney said as we pulled up to a stoplight.
"Sidney, I know you're superstitious, but really? Me, a lucky charm? You guys have won plenty of games before you met me, so don't act like I'm some form of good luck," I laughed, rolling my eyes. He scowled the entire rest of the ride home.
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The next few days went by rather quickly. The guys were all quite busy with practice; the coach was busting their asses because of the loss to the Devils. Annabeth was overwhelmed with school work, so she was also unavailable. I did my work too, but I couldn't help but get a little bored. Thursday came around, and my phone rang. I leaped on it like a cat would pounce at a mouse, and answered it.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Hey," I heard a voice say. I felt an icy feeling run down my spine.

"Ryan...what do you want?" I asked, my back stiffening.

"I want you to meet me at the Starbucks on Grant Street in an hour," he said.

"Why would I do that? What are you doing in Pittsburgh?" I asked, questions flying out of my mouth faster than I could stop them.

"I came here to see you. I want to fix things. Please. Meet me. I'll see you in an hour," he said before hanging up. My mouth went dry, but I found myself reaching for the keys to my little black Saturn. Sid would not be happy about this.

I sat at a table in the center of the coffee shop, sipping a java chip frappuchino and biting my lip nervously. My feet bounced and I couldn't help but look over my shoulder every few seconds to see if Ryan had walked in. Just when I had thought he wouldn't show, the door opened. I didn't even have to turn around to know it was him. He had an energy about him that was raw, and slightly frightening. I heard him order a coffee in his deep, rumbling voice, and could hardly look up from my drink as he sat across from me.

"Alice...you came," he said, staring at me. I could barely bring myself to look into those startling blue eyes he had.

"I...I did," I stuttered. He sighed and sipped his coffee.

"You're still upset about what happened," he said simply. He had a way of making everything so simple...it annoyed me.

"Of course I am. You left me and all the shit that you brought into the relationship, didn't explain anything at all, and then expected everything to be hunky dory," I said, anger filling every one of my features. He shrunk a little bit, which was rare for the towering young man. A sheepish look formed on his face, one that I was used to seeing in high school, when things were okay between us.

"I know...and that's why I'm here. I just...I couldn't handle everything that was going on in my life. My parents were flipping out on me all the time, especially when they found out about you. My classwork was insane...I was a wreck. I couldn't help but dump all that negativity on you and when I saw what I had done, I couldn't cope. I just up and left, hoping to leave you with a shred of happiness left in your life," he explained. Remorse dripped in his voice, and his eyes were full of regret. I stared at him for a while before sighing.

"So...you thought that leaving me would help spare me?" I asked quietly.

"Yes," he said, reaching out and taking my hand in his. I stiffened again.

"Ryan..." I choked out. He looked at me, and then noticed the bracelet.

"Since when are you a Penguins fan?" he asked, holding up my arm. The bangle slid down my wrist and I snatched my arm back.

"I'm not...It was a gift," I said defensively.

"You have a boyfriend, don't you?" he asked. I nodded.

"I do,"

"Who is the lucky guy?" he asked sadly.

"Sidney Crosby." I said quietly.

"The center? You seriously couldn't have dated one of the more...manly guys on the team? You just had to go for the guy that everyone hates?" he asked, his voice teasing.

"I don't hate him, and neither do the people in this city. It's only the Flyers fans that have a hatred for him," I laughed.
"I'll give you that much," he chuckled. What the hell is going on right now?