Fairytales & Lullabies

Pittsburgh had a feel to it that reminded me of Minneapolis. The buildings were large, but not over the top. Sports teams were taken very seriously, especially the university. Everyone worked hard for their money and did it with a smile on their face. This put me at easy.

Pittsburgh was already starting to feel like home. Once I got accustom to something it was a hard habit to break. Having a familiar city feel was going to make this transition. It took me a few years to get out of the habit of having my mom read to me before going to bed, and I’m still working on not biting my nails. It was a part of me and it was hard to change.

The taxi ride was silent as I made my way to Consol Energy Center. I was needed at the arena as soon as possible. I had passed my initial interview two weeks before, meeting with not only Dana, but Coach Bylsma as well. They were both impressed with my resume along with my organizational skills. Coach Lucia must have made one hell of a recommendation; just like that, I had a job.

I had been in only the main offices of the arena and seen Pittsburgh at a glance. In less than 24 hours I had gotten my dream job and was on my way home to pack my belongings. Anne had promised to ship the rest out to me when I found a permanent place to stay.

CEC looked even more beautiful the second time around. I paid the cab driver and walked in before being over whelmed. I had no idea which way to go. What is it they always say? If you’re stuck on which way to go, go to the right? Or was it the left? But I’m right handed so I’ll walk that way. I walked for about fifty feet before deciding to take another right.

Before I could see what direction to go next I ran into a blonde giant. He caught my upper arms before I cold fall. “Whoa there! Watch your step.” He set me backup perpendicular to the ground and gave my shoulders a nice pat. “Wouldn’t want a pretty girl like you falling on such a filthy floor.”

Jordan Staal was standing only a foot away from me. His blonde hair swooped out from underneath his baseball cap and his blue eyes stood out in contrast to the black t-shirt on his chest. His crooked smile made me weak at the knees.

I felt a blush creep onto my cheeks, “Thanks for catching me.” I almost turned around but realized I had no idea where to go. “Um, you wouldn’t happen to have the time to show me to Coach Bylsma’s office would you?”

“For you, I have all the time in the world.” I couldn’t help but smile at his cheesy line. He walked back to the hall I had just been in and walked another 50 feet and opened a door, letting me walk in first. “Ladies first.”

I nodded my head in thanks before walking into what I had only seen pictures of before: the locker room. I wanted to get to know one of the places I spend so much time in, but Jordan led me through another door to a short hallway with several doors. He knocked on the closest one to our left and walled in.

"Ah! Ms. Peters! I'm glad you made it here on time. I see you've already met Jordan, please, sit." Coach Bylsma got out of his seat and greeted me.

"Thank you, and Jordan's actually the one who led me to your office. It's a little tricky to find." I told him taking a seat in the Penguins decorated room. I couldn't believe how many Penguins logos were in this office alone.

We stayed in silence for a few moments before Dan spoke up, "Go get ready for practice, Jordan." Jordan only smirked and gave a two finger salute this coach and winked at me. I laughed at his actions while Dan just shook his head.

"Anyways, we're thrilled to have you on our team Greta. We've just got a few papers I need you to sign and I'll show you to the equipment office..."

***

I was organizing my area in the office when there was a knock at the door. My eyes flashed up to see Jordan standing in the doorway, "Coach wanted me to come get you to introduce to the team." I nodded my head, leaving my desk to follow him to the locker room. "I don't think I caught your name, I'm Jordan Staal." He held his hand out for me to shake.

"Greta Peters," I grabbed his hand and shook it. We walked in silence for a few steps until we reached a pair of doors. Jordan held it open for me and I walked through. "Thank you." I walked a few steps a head and turned to see Jordan in his same spot "Stop staring at my ass, Staal, you're not getting any." His jaw dropped before a blush creeped onto his cheeks. I could only smirk before continuing to the locker room.

I stood quietly next to the other equipment staff members as we listen to Dan introduce himself to the group. He wanted not only the players, but the rest of the staff to introduce themselves. I took note of player’s names as they spoke, trying to remember the few that had been acquired over the summer. I had trouble with the trainers names and a few of the assistant coaches, but I was confident I would know them all soon.

One player immediately caught my attention. He stayed quiet and only nodded when the player next to him spoke. I knew his name, but he said it so quietly when it was his turn I couldn’t make it out. “I’m Kris Letang and I’m from Montreal.” So that’s why he had an accent. He just continued to listen to each person introduce themselves like he had never met them before. There was something about him that immediately attracted me to him.

When it came to my turn I kept it short and simple, "Hi, my name is Greta Peters, I'm from Minneapolis Minnesota, and I am the new equipment assistant."

Jordan's hand flew up and I looked at him strange. "Are you single?" he asked with a cocky smirk on his face.

I could only laugh as I shook my head in confirmation. The rotation continued on and the commotion settled down. I looked away from Jordan and met Kris’ gaze. We held eye contact for a few seconds before looking at the person speaking. After that, I knew I was going to like it here.