Let's Get Carried Away

There was nothing in the entire world that I would rather do than not get up from where I currently was.

Laying here, on this bed, was pure bliss. Nothing mattered when I laid here. All of my troubles drifted away, all pain escaped my body and my thoughts turned clear. Only one thing could possibly make the experience better than it already was, and that one thing was more of a person- Sidney Crosby.

With the hockey season about to start I hardly saw him at all. I constantly ran into notes on the fridge or on the table by the entrance but no matter how different the paper they were written on was, they all read the same thing. Every note vaguely described where Sidney was, that he was training, and his approximate time of arrival back home. It was absolutely ludicrous. If it weren’t for the notes, or the fact that I saw messes he created with clothes in the bedroom or food in the kitchen, I would probably start believing that I was living alone.

I stared at the vacant ceiling, wondering exactly what I had gotten myself into in the last couple of months. Trying to date a hockey player was not easy in the very least. Especially not when we barely had time for each other, and that’s not even counting when he has to be out on the road for weeks on end. No girl should have to feel this empty and yet yearn so much for someone they hardly knew anymore.

I began to plan out my Sunday, the one day I didn’t have to work during the past week and week ahead. I rose from the bed I shared with number eighty-seven, and decided that I’d start off my day with a short workout and the local gym. Fate would have it otherwise, for my cell phone soon vibrated, creating the loudest, most annoying sound against my hard-cover plastic-encased laptop on the bedside table.



Lunch? I hadn’t realized I had slept through the breakfast hours. Now my day would be shorter than originally intended. Great. I typed him a quick confirmation, looked at myself in the mirror and decided that I didn’t care enough to change out of running shorts, sports bra under a fitted t-shirt, and Nike’s. I’d probably just end up going to the gym after seeing Sid anyways. He was most likely on a tight schedule that required him to get back to whatever it was he was currently working on as soon as possible.

In all of the mindless thinking I had done, I had somehow overlooked the fact that I was about to see the one person my soul craved. My shoulders stiffened up and my back became erect as the distance between Sidney and I shrank. The grasp I had on the steering wheel intensified.

What was I thinking? I look like shit! I must have really been out of it if I willingly drove myself to a lunch date looking like I did. My hair in itself was absolute chaos pulled back into a high bun and kept back with a small headband. Fuck.

“You look even more beautiful now that you’re awake than you did when I saw you sleeping this morning,” was what he greeted me with in the parking as I left the comfort of my car. He brought himself over to where I stood, stupidly smiling at him. In the moment, it felt like nothing had changed. Like we saw each other every single day, made stupid jokes at each other, and embraced each other as often as we did over the summer.

Being in his arms had the same effect that our bed had on me. Everything was instantly okay and a million times better. “I’ve missed you,” I voiced as we made our way into the diner.

“I know,” he said, looking up at me from under his raggedy, sweaty Reebok baseball cap with his tantalizing hazel eyes. He was being completely honest; I could see it in his eyes. There weren’t any lies there, or anything that he was trying to hide.

“Being here feels like a dream,” I said looking straight into his eyes. It was true, we had not been able to spend any significant amount of time together in over two weeks. I understood that he was busy. I mean, it’s not like I expected him to rearrange his work-out schedule for me and he certainly wasn’t expecting me to live my life around his.

“These couple of weeks have been rough, I’ll agree. But I hope you understand that this is just the beginning. I hate that I’ve dragged you into this-”

“You haven’t dragged me into anything. What’re you talking about?” I was getting a bit anxious and unsure about what insane thing he might say next.

“Emmerald, I’ve dragged you into my lifestyle and I don’t think I will ever be able to forgive myself for that. You don’t deserve this. You deserve someone who can be there for you whenever you need them. I know that sometime I won’t be able to be there when you need be, but believe me when I say that I’ll try my absolute best.” I watched him as he fiddled with his straw wrapper the entire time that he spoke. I don’t think he wanted to look at me as he spoke and I know I wouldn’t have been able to look at him.

As it was, I was beginning to tear up. “Don’t,” Sidney ordered me, “don’t cry. I didn’t mean to make you cry, or for that to sound sad. I just wanted to make sure you understood. Come on now, don’t be sad.” I saw him raise his hands from across the table reach over. He then placed his hands on either side of my face, lifted it up, and wiped away the tears that were gently streaming down my left cheek.

“You make it sound like you’re breaking up with me,” I accused him while pulling my hair out of its messy bun and into a pony tail.

“Em’,” he said, pulling his drink closer to him and biting the straw,“ I’m too selfish to do that. I need you too much.” The way he said that just about made me melt. There was no better feeling than all of those butterflies swerving all around my stomach. After all these months, they only seemed to get more and more intense.

“What do you say?” He had proposed a day of just him and I watching movies. The idea was pretty enticing and I couldn’t resist. “You and me, movies, and our bed,” he repeated.

Our bed, it definitely sounded better whenever he said it.

“I say ‘yes’ to that wonderful proposition. That maybe just be the best idea you’ve had in a while, Mr. Crosby.”

“You think so, Ms. Hall?”

“Oh, most certainly,” I continued playing along as he held the door for me and we exited the restaurant. I felt him grab my hand and I suddenly found myself wrapped inside his arms.

“I’m gonna stop by the grocery store and get some stuff, I’ll meet you back home when I’m done. Shouldn’t take more than a couple minutes,” he informed me.

“Alright, I get to choose the first movie then.” I felt him groan.

“Not 50 First Dates again,” he sighed.

“Yes,” I laughed.

“Fine, whatever makes you happy,” he said pulling me into a kiss then walking away towards his car. “You can start it without me!” he yelled, not bothering to look back at me.

“I think I’ll wait,” I shouted back at him.



The next day I woke up to intense sun light penetrating the bedroom. Who pull the curtains out of the way at this time of day? It’s so early, I thought with my eyes closed. I refused to open them, or get out of bed for that matter so I pulled the pillow next to mine over my face.

I heard some chuckling coming over from the corner of the room followed by some footsteps that appeared to be getting closer and closer. “Get up, babe.”

“Sidney, stop,” I groaned, pulling the pillow closer to my face as he pulled it away.

“Don’t you want to come watch my morning practice?”

“Now why would I want to do that?” I joked.

“I’m leaving in ten,” he said throwing the pillow he had pulled away from me back onto the bed and leaving the room.

“You look like a stupid Reebok commercial,” I grumbled as I got out of bed. That’s it, I thought. I knew what I was getting this kid for Christmas, some real clothes. Everywhere we went if felt like he was advertising Reebok, which was what he was, I guess, in a sense doing. After all, he was being given all of that free stuff for a reason. But there was a time and a place for everything.

“You’re wearing that and are making fun of me for wearing this?” He asked, pointing at my Blue’s Clues scrubs.

“I’m going to work after this!” I said defensively, “and besides, they’re comfortable.”

“So are these shorts, shirt, cap, and shoes,” he said starting up the car as he simultaneously closed the car door. “Am I dropping you off after the first work out or do you just want to drive yourself there? I can have one of the guys drop me off after.”

“I’ll just drive there, I guess, since I don’t know when I’m getting off.” I saw him nod as he pulled out of the garage and began driving down the street. Meanwhile, I took out my phone, opened up the Twitter app and found that I had been Tweeted a couple of time by Chelsea. “Hey, Sid?” I sat there scrolling down the feed, waiting for a response. “Who is this Maxim Lapierre?”

“He plays for the Canucks,” he answered, briefly looking over at me.

“I figured that much, Captain Obvious.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know, Chelsea Tweeted me some pictures of her and him.”

“What?” He asked in disbelief.

“Yeah, look,” I said, shoving my phone towards him.

“Emmerald, I’m driving!” He exclaimed, pushing the phone away from his face.

“Fine then, don’t look.” I saved the pictures to my phone and made a note to myself to ask her about him later.

“Is everyone supposed to be here today?”

“Yup,” he replied, holding my hand as we made our way into the Consol Arena with his practice bag slung across his left shoulder and hockey stick in hand. “Ready to see everyone again?”

“Yeah, are you kidding me? It’s been like forever.” I was excited to see all the guys again, especially Geno.

He laughed at my exaggeration. “It’s been a month, Em’.”

“Same difference,” I said, swinging our entangled hand excitedly.

“You’re such a little kid sometimes, I love it,” he said bending down for a quick kiss before we entered the arena. “We’re a bit early. Just a couple of minutes though, so don’t get too carried away with some of the guys.”

“You make me sound like a whore,” I pretended to sound offended.

“Oh please,” he rolled his eyes. We continued to walk down the long hallway until we reached the double doors with the Penguins’ logo splattered across the doors.

“Sid! You bring Emmerald!” The Russian giant soon realized and wobbled his way over to where Sid and I stood, still holding hands. “Emmerald, I miss you!” He said tossing his stick aside and pulling me into a hug, forcing me to let go of Sidney’s hand.

“I’ve missed you too,” I sighed out as he pulled away. We looked at each other, laughed, and he quickly pulled me into another bear hug.

“Are you staying to watch Sid practice?” He asked in his thick accent.

“Yeah, for a little while. I have to go to work at 12.”

“Well well well, look who couldn’t keep away from my sexiness,” joked Max as he entered the locker room.

“Max!” I squealed, rushing over to his open arms.

“How are you doing, gorgeous? Bon, j'espère?”

“You’re lucky I took two years of French in high school. Yeah, pretty good.”

“Sid the Kid, treating you right?”

“Of course,” I laughed, looking over at Sid who was now tying his skates.

“I’ll see you guys out there,” I informed them, giving them all some time to change and converse among themselves. I took my phone out again to check Twitter once again as I backed up into the locker room doors so as to push them open without having to let go of my phone or look up. That backfired for I ran into someone.

“Oh, I’m so- Jordan?” How could I have forgotten about Jordan? With all of the excitement, I had forgotten what running into him could possibly entail.

“Emmerald,” he said, rather shocked. I guess he wasn’t expecting to run into me here either, at least not any time soon.

“Hi, are you okay?”

He chuckled, “Seriously? If anyone was going to get hurt after that minor accident it would have been you. Compared to me, or anyone hockey player, you’re tiny.” An arrogant ass, like always.

“Okay, you’re fine, see you around.” I said, sounding more annoyed than I thought I was as I walked past him, phone still in hand.

I heard him drop his equipment bag and stick and jog in my direction. “Emmerald, wait,” he said grasping onto my arm.

“Let go of me,” I said between my teeth, not looking up at him.

“No. You and Chelsea and Sid have been keeping stuff from me. I want to know!”

“Let go of me, Jordan.”

“No! Not until you tell me everything. Where is she? Why did she leave? Why did she leave if she felt that way? Why did she only leave me a letter? How could she!”

“Let go of me,” I said, pausing between every word for emphasis.

“Jordan!” I heard Sid’s voice boom down the hallway. “Let go of her.”

“Look dude, I wasn’t doing anything,” Jordan explained, letting go of my hand, turning to face Sidney as he approached us.

“Jordan, I know what you were doing. You can’t pester her like that. Just, just leave her alone, man. She’s not going to tell you anything. Chelsea begged her not to.”

Jordan glanced away from Sidney, back at me, and walked past Sid, bumping his shoulder on his way. “Sorry about that Em’, maybe I shouldn’t have invited you,” he sighed, pulling me into a hug.

“No Sid, it was going to happen sooner or later. It’s not like you could have prevented it. It was bound to happen.”

“It’s okay, look at me,” I begged, looking up at him, “it’s okay, I promise. I’m fine. We’re all fine. Well, besides Jordan but he’ll get there soon enough.”

“I hope you’re right,” Sidney whispered, looking down at me before pushing his lips down on mine.