Fairytales & Lullabies

“I told you to let somebody else do the fighting. You need to stop this. I’m not going to be here forever.” I was kneeling in front of Jordan untying his skates.

“I know, but since you are, I might as well take advantage of it.” I looked back up at him with a stern looked. He responded with a cocky smile. “So what did you and Kris do last night?”

I looked at him weirdly, “What do you mean? We went back to the hotel. I went to Marc and mine’s room and he went to his room with Max. Marc was already asleep, so I finally got to watch what I wanted to.”

“I just figured after he had talked to your parents…” he trailed off. I pulled the last knot out of his skate and sat in the stall next to him.

“So? What does that have to do anything?” I crossed my arms over my chest and looked at him for an answer.

“I just thought you guys might want to talk about it right away. Meeting a girl’s parents is a big deal.” He smiled at me.

“We did talk about it. He said they were just getting to know each other.” We stayed quiet for a moment, “So does that mean I’m a big deal since I met your parents?” I smirked back.

“Of course!” He slung his arm over my shoulder. “They needed to meet my sister from another mister!” The team started to filter into the room. He kissed my cheek and stood up, "That's the way you do it boys!" Jordan ended his sentence with a whoop, earning more cheers from the team. The Penguins beat the Wild with a score of five to one. I was sad that it meant our time in Minnesota was over, but I was glad to see the team win.

I grabbed bags and started putting the remaining equipment in them. I had finished with one when Anne walked in. She looked out of place with the Crosby jersey drowning her small frame.

I went up to her and gave her a hug. "Why do we keep saying goodbye?" I asked her.

"I hate it too. Who knows, maybe I'll be in Pittsburgh soon. I have plenty of reasons to move there." Her gaze drifted to Sid who was sitting in his stall. The last few cameras surrounded him for an interview.

"I'm glad you guys met, and Sid’s a great guy, but I don’t want you to move just for him. Make sure this is exactly what you want before moving." She smiled at me. "Did my parents leave?"

"Yeah, your dad has to work in the morning, but they said to call when you have time tomorrow." I nodded and looked at Anne. Her eyes had moved back to Sidney. He was alone in his stall.

I sighed and ran a finger through my hair. "He’s a great guy, Anne, but you can't just stay here in Minnesota and expect everything to work out. I want it to work, I really do, but you're just too far away."

She turned and faced me, "I understand." She pulled me into another hug. "Call me when you get back."

"Of course." She walked over to Sid and gave him a hug before telling him something. He smiled, but it wasn’t as big as it normally was. He let go of her and said something back. She let out and a small laugh and walked out of the locker room. I sighed and finished packing the bags.

Jordan come up behind me and placed his arm around my shoulder. "Do you miss it here?"

"Of course," I turned my head to look at him. "I'll always cherish my time in Minnesota; it's where I grew up. But my heart belongs to Pittsburgh now.

Jordan patted my head and as he walked away said, "Good, it means we're doing our job then." I smiled and finished with the bags.

I didn't get a chance to talk to Kris until the plane ride home. We sat by each other most of time, after I was able to get away from Jordan. "How’s Anne?" Kris asked as he fiddled with my hand.

"She’s good. I wouldn't be surprised if she comes to Pittsburgh soon." I laid my head down on his shoulder. My eyes tried to stay open but it was becoming difficult.

"What are you doing tomorrow?" he asked as his arm moved around my shoulder and his hand started to play with my hair.

"Besides my job? Nothing. Why?"

"Don’t make plans. I want to take you out."

"Only if you let me go to sleep right now." He gave a sigh of defeat and made himself comfortable. All I wanted was to sleep in the comfortable bed I had waiting for me at home., but it was still a plane ride away. I would have to wait until we got home to sleep soundly, but until then I had the next best alternative; I was able to sleep in Kris' arms.