Fairytales & Lullabies

The ride to Kris's apartment was silent. I had no idea why I had said yes, but a warm bed sounded nice. I had nothing to pack so only had to grab my duffel bag before following Kris to his car. It was a large black SUV; for some reason it reminded me of his personality. I had only known Kris for a few days, but he gave me the impression that he was quiet person until you got to know him, loyal to his family and friends, and polite. It was something I hadn't seen since high school.

He pulled up to an apartment complex in downtown Pittsburgh less than 5 minutes after we had left the arena. It looked like it was about 30 floors tall and expensive. Kris grabbed my bag from the back and led the way inside. He held the door open for me and nodded his head in the direction of the elevator. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he replied. We got into the elevator and he hit the button for the 22nd floor. It was a silent ride, but the awkwardness seemed to have stayed from the car. When the doors open to hallway, we stepped out. He walked to the very end of the hall to a door with 2204 on it. He put the key in the lock without struggle and kept the bag on his shoulders. When the door opened I couldn't believe my eyes.

The entry way opened up with a kitchen on the left and an eating area to the right. The kitchen had granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances. The eating area had a beautiful wood table that could be expanded to add more chairs. Straight ahead there was a living room with a large plasma screen TV, a couch, love seat, and a recliner.

Kris took his shoes off so I followed suit. We went past the kitchen and took a left to a hallway. Kris went to the room on the right and put my bag on the bed. "This room is all yours. The bathroom is across the hall and towels are under the sink. Just let me know if you need anything." Kris turned down the hall to go to what I assumed was his room.

"Kris," he turned around and I walked closer to him. I put my arms around his waist and pulled him for a hug, "Thank you so much."

His body was stiff at first, but he relaxed and put his arms around him. "It's no problem at all." I didn't want to leave his arms; his body seemed to fit into mine perfectly. We pulled back at the same time. "See you in the morning."

I nodded my head and we both headed back to our rooms. I was still wearing my sweatpants and sweatshirt, so I crawled into bed. It was so nice to finally have a comfortable place to sleep that I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

***

Kris looked confused when he saw me cooking breakfast the next morning. "Good morning!" I said a little too enthusiastically. I had always been an early riser. Morning was my favorite part of the day. He only rubbed his eyes and sat with his head against the table. I chuckled to myself before turning the heat on the stove to low. "I hope you don't mind, but I thought I'd make breakfast as thanks for the room."

"It really was no problem." He jumped right in and seemed to wake up seeing all the food. I had made eggs, pancakes and bacon. "Thank you for making breakfast, it looks delicious."

We made small talk while eating. I found out he was an only child and goes to Montreal to stay with mom and step dad in the summer. I told him how I had a sister and my best friend who I considered a sister.

I cleaned up breakfast while Kris got ready for practice. He had called around and Jordan said I could use his extra car when his "baby" got back from the shop next week.

We drove to practice together, listening to whatever song came on the radio station. He parked in the player’s lot and we walked in together. We split in different directions when we hit the locker room. He gave me a small wave that I returned before we both got to work.

I had set up the locker room last night before I had left and Dana had finished what needed to be done this morning. I went straight to my desk and went through the paperwork to see if I needed to order anything before the season went into full gear. I couldn't focus on my work for more than five minutes at a time before my mind drifted to Kris.

I knew I shouldn't feel the way I do, but I couldn’t stop it. When we hugged last night, I didn't want to leave his arms. Everything felt right in those few moments than it ever had. When we had talked, I wanted to know more. I wanted to learn everything about him.

My day dragged on as nothing exciting happened. Not being able to get Kris out of my head, I left my office to see if there was any other work I could get done

No sooner did I leave my office did Jordan come tumbling around the corner. "Greta!" he was running with all of his gear on and his skates were still on his feet.

"What do you need, Jordy?"

"My stick broke." He smiled and held out the two pieces of his broken stick. I could only laugh at his behavior.

"Jordan, I have all the sticks that are ready right by the locker room for you to use when you break one. Why would you come all the way down here to tell me this?"

"I just wanted to see you smile." We both grinned and I walked back to the ice with him. "You know, Tanger keeps asking about you."

I gave him a confused look, "What do you mean?"

"He keeps asking me about where you’re from and if you have a boyfriend." I blushed at the last part. "Don't worry girl, he's a good guy. I've only told him the truth." I looked at him skeptically. "Okay, so maybe I told him you grew up in a tree house and that you had a pet ostrich, but he didn't believe me."

"Go back to practice Jordan." I gave him a gentle shove and he glided back out onto the ice. I watched him skate back to the group with a new stick in his hand and a smile on his face.

My eyes scanned the group before landing on Kris. He looked focused and determined; like nothing would get in his way of getting another Stanley Cup. I sighed and joined the rest of the staff near the bench to watch the end of practice.