Status: oneshot
Need You Now
1/1
The bright neon numbers on the clock read 1:00. It was 1:00 on a Saturday night, well Sunday morning and Kelsie was laying in her bed, alone. She was laying there listening to the rain and maybe trying to catch up on some sleep. It had been a while since she had slept well. She kept thinking to herself that she should be out somewhere; she should be having fun with her friends, but she chose to be in her room. Alone.
The wind from the rainstorm started to crash against her bedroom windows. The thunder clapped and the lightning seemed to light her entire room. Kelsie stared up at the ceiling as she felt her apartment shake and heard a crash coming from by her desk. She looked up to find the French message board she kept hanging on the wall laying on the floor and all of the pictures and notes strewn across the carpet. Kelsie got up and walked across the room to start to clean up the mess. Underneath all of the pictures with friends and reminders of events past and future, she found a picture that she thought was gone. When Kelsie and her boyfriend Corey got into a fight and broke a few weeks before, she thought she got rid of every picture she had of the two of them together. But there it was. The picture was from the first time Corey tried to teach her to skate at the rink at Navy Pier. She was falling and he put his arms around her waist to catch her; they were both laughing and a friend happened to snap the camera at the perfect moment. Kelsie felt the tears forming in her eyes as she flipped over the picture To my beautiful Kelsie and many more memories. Love always, Corey. He had given her the picture as a gift on their six month anniversary. That was over a year ago. They had fought before, but this time was different. They hadn't spoken in three weeks...neither one had even tried. This time it was over for good, but that picture made her wish it wasn't.
15 Months Earlier
”What do you mean you’ve never skated?” Corey asked in absolute amazement.
“I don’t know, I’ve just never skated.”
“You realize you’re dating a hockey player?”
“I had no idea,” Keslie laughed, “is that why you go away for days at a time leaving me to miss you?”
Corey grabbed Kelsie and kissed her gently telling her that he was going to take her out ice skating. The Blackhawks owned the rink at Navy Pier, so there would be no problem getting in there whenever he wanted. It was December and the city of Chicago was already covered with a sheet of white. One night when the Blackhawks were off, Corey was able to guarantee a good amount of time to skate. First, he took her out to a nice Italian dinner where they sat at a corner table with candles lit between them. They enjoyed the rare time they got to spend together, just the two of them.
Corey never told Kelsie where he was taking her that night, just that he had something special planned. They strolled around Navy Pier looking at everything all decorated for Christmas before Corey led her to the rink.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“I’m going to teach you how to skate.”
“But you’re a goalie, what do you know?” she joked as he handed her a pair of rental skates.
“Oh yeah? Is that how we’re gonna play?” he replied, tying his laces.
“Yep.
With that, Corey hopped on the rink and started skating as fast as he could across it, weaving between people. Keslie stepped onto the ice and immediately began to lose her footing. Corey watched from a distance and skated back to catch her. At the moment he caught her, they both saw a camera flash. Corey looked up and saw his teammate Patrick Kane skating in circles with a camera.
“Kaner, what are you doing here?”
“Just checking it out, what about you?”
“Teaching Kels how to skate,” he laughed.
“Good luck with that.”
Corey gave Keslie that picture a few days later. They were so happy that night; they were laughing and joking and being happy just to be together.
While Kelsie stared at the picture, trying not to cry, she heard her cell phone ringing. When she looked at the caller id, she wasn’t sure whether or not to answer. It seemed like more than a coincidence that she had wanted to call him at that moment.
--:
The Blackhawks played against their biggest rivals, the Detroit Red Wings that Saturday night. They lost and Corey let in a bad goal to Zetterberg that ended up being the game winner. The rest of the team thought it would a good idea to head out to the bar to help their minds move on. Kaner wanted to go to a bar called Once; that was the last place Corey wanted to go. Once was the same bar that he met Kelsie in over a year before. He missed her more than words could say, but he had yet to call her after their fight.
A Year and a Half Earlier
It was early October when Corey went out with the boys to celebrate a win. They went a new bar that just opened Downtown called Once. The first time he saw her, Corey’s entire world changed. A group of girls walked in the door and the brunette in the center of them all stuck out to him. She wore a black dress that hugged her body perfectly. From the moment she walked in, he couldn’t take his eyes off of her; it wasn’t even just that she was beautiful, he felt a connection immediately.
A few of the guys kept trying to convince him to go over to her, but Corey’s shyness took over. He stood over by the bar with a Jack and Coke watching his teammates hit on girls on the dance floor. At one point, he lost sight of the brunette.
“What are you drinking?” he heard behind him. Corey then turned around to see her standing there.
“Shouldn’t the guy be asking that?” he smiled back at her.
“Well you hadn’t, so I did,” she responded before ordering a drink from the bartender.
“Put it on my tab,” Corey said before turning to the girl, “I’m Corey.”
“Keslie.”
“Another shot of Jack,” Corey said to the bartender. The alcohol was starting to feel pretty good, but he still was in Once and still kept looking at the door for Keslie to walk in. Although people were trying to stop him, Corey took out his cell phone and dialed her number. As the phone rang, he didn’t know what he was going to say, but the whiskey would take over
“Keslie, it’s me. It’s a quarter after one and I’m a little drunk. I miss you so much. I know I said I wasn’t going to call, but I need you now. I’m at Once and everything about this place makes me think about you.”
After realizing what he did, a few of his teammates dragged Corey onto the dance floor. He started to dance with some random girl. The girl was feeding him line after line; Corey knew that she was the type who just wanted to get a Blackhawk into bed. Thinking about it mixed with the whiskey made him laugh to himself.
--:
Keslie picked up her phone and dialed her voicemail. Before typing in her password, she put the phone down and started to run through scenarios in her head. There were so many things that Corey could have said. He might have told her that he never wants to see her again. She tried again to listen and this time actually heard the entire message.
It was still pouring outside and Keslie was wearing sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt. She didn’t care as she got in her car and headed towards that so familiar club. She had gone there so many times before; the time she met Corey was supposed to be just another night out with the girls. Deep down, it kind of bothered her that he was going there without her, but she had to remember that they were supposed to move on with their lives.
--:
When Corey saw her walk in the door, everything that was already in the back of his mind came pouring to the forefront. Her chestnut brown hair was dripping wet, stuck to her face. Her t-shirt was glued to her skin with the rain and the look on her face was devastation. All Corey wanted was to be where they once were, but she walked in just as the girl dancing on him fed him yet another bad line.
He looked at the girl next to him and immediately bolted across the dance floor and towards the door. He couldn’t believe that it was really her; he even thought that maybe it was his imagination. It wouldn’t have been the first time since they broke up that Corey had thought it was Keslie walking through a door and back into his life.
By the time he got to the door, she was already gone. He started to think again that it was never really her until his teammate Andrew Shaw walked over to him.
“Dude, I just saw Kelsie. She looked like hell, looked right at you and ran out the door.”
“Fuck, where did she go?”
“I don’t know.”
Corey ran outside and the rain seemed to be coming down harder. As he looked through the pitch black streets, he couldn’t see a thing. Then all of a sudden there was a bolt of lightning that lit up the street and he saw a figure in the distance hiding under a street awning. He would know that figure anywhere.
“Kelsie?”
“Why did you call me, Corey?” she said, he could tell that she had been crying.
“I wanted to see you. I miss you. I need you,” he said almost sounding like a list of grievances.
“Are you sure?” she almost sounded angry. He knew that she saw the girl, but that girl meant nothing. She was the only girl who meant anything.
"Kels, every time I look at you, I fall in love again. You're the best thing that I've ever had."
"We're not a fucking Taylor Swift song. I can't tell people you're gay and make myself feel better, I can't burn your picture. I'm in love with you, Corey Crawford and it sucks because right now, I hate you."
"Keslie..."
"Don't Corey. Don't try to say anything. I was vulnerable and you called me when I had already been missing you and in a moment of weakness I came here. I found you grinding on some other girl with a big smile. Go have fun and be free. I'm done."
"Stop, Keslie," he yelled as she started to walk away. When she turned around, he saw the tears in her eyes and he did the only thing he could think of. He grabbed her wrist, pulled her close, and put his lips on hers. He kissed her like he never had before. Their rain soaked clothing made their bodies almost stick together. They both were dizzied by the emotion before they separated. She was crying even harder.
"If you hurt me again..."
"I won't," he whispered with a sincerity that Keslie couldn't help but believe.
The wind from the rainstorm started to crash against her bedroom windows. The thunder clapped and the lightning seemed to light her entire room. Kelsie stared up at the ceiling as she felt her apartment shake and heard a crash coming from by her desk. She looked up to find the French message board she kept hanging on the wall laying on the floor and all of the pictures and notes strewn across the carpet. Kelsie got up and walked across the room to start to clean up the mess. Underneath all of the pictures with friends and reminders of events past and future, she found a picture that she thought was gone. When Kelsie and her boyfriend Corey got into a fight and broke a few weeks before, she thought she got rid of every picture she had of the two of them together. But there it was. The picture was from the first time Corey tried to teach her to skate at the rink at Navy Pier. She was falling and he put his arms around her waist to catch her; they were both laughing and a friend happened to snap the camera at the perfect moment. Kelsie felt the tears forming in her eyes as she flipped over the picture To my beautiful Kelsie and many more memories. Love always, Corey. He had given her the picture as a gift on their six month anniversary. That was over a year ago. They had fought before, but this time was different. They hadn't spoken in three weeks...neither one had even tried. This time it was over for good, but that picture made her wish it wasn't.
15 Months Earlier
”What do you mean you’ve never skated?” Corey asked in absolute amazement.
“I don’t know, I’ve just never skated.”
“You realize you’re dating a hockey player?”
“I had no idea,” Keslie laughed, “is that why you go away for days at a time leaving me to miss you?”
Corey grabbed Kelsie and kissed her gently telling her that he was going to take her out ice skating. The Blackhawks owned the rink at Navy Pier, so there would be no problem getting in there whenever he wanted. It was December and the city of Chicago was already covered with a sheet of white. One night when the Blackhawks were off, Corey was able to guarantee a good amount of time to skate. First, he took her out to a nice Italian dinner where they sat at a corner table with candles lit between them. They enjoyed the rare time they got to spend together, just the two of them.
Corey never told Kelsie where he was taking her that night, just that he had something special planned. They strolled around Navy Pier looking at everything all decorated for Christmas before Corey led her to the rink.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“I’m going to teach you how to skate.”
“But you’re a goalie, what do you know?” she joked as he handed her a pair of rental skates.
“Oh yeah? Is that how we’re gonna play?” he replied, tying his laces.
“Yep.
With that, Corey hopped on the rink and started skating as fast as he could across it, weaving between people. Keslie stepped onto the ice and immediately began to lose her footing. Corey watched from a distance and skated back to catch her. At the moment he caught her, they both saw a camera flash. Corey looked up and saw his teammate Patrick Kane skating in circles with a camera.
“Kaner, what are you doing here?”
“Just checking it out, what about you?”
“Teaching Kels how to skate,” he laughed.
“Good luck with that.”
Corey gave Keslie that picture a few days later. They were so happy that night; they were laughing and joking and being happy just to be together.
While Kelsie stared at the picture, trying not to cry, she heard her cell phone ringing. When she looked at the caller id, she wasn’t sure whether or not to answer. It seemed like more than a coincidence that she had wanted to call him at that moment.
--:
The Blackhawks played against their biggest rivals, the Detroit Red Wings that Saturday night. They lost and Corey let in a bad goal to Zetterberg that ended up being the game winner. The rest of the team thought it would a good idea to head out to the bar to help their minds move on. Kaner wanted to go to a bar called Once; that was the last place Corey wanted to go. Once was the same bar that he met Kelsie in over a year before. He missed her more than words could say, but he had yet to call her after their fight.
A Year and a Half Earlier
It was early October when Corey went out with the boys to celebrate a win. They went a new bar that just opened Downtown called Once. The first time he saw her, Corey’s entire world changed. A group of girls walked in the door and the brunette in the center of them all stuck out to him. She wore a black dress that hugged her body perfectly. From the moment she walked in, he couldn’t take his eyes off of her; it wasn’t even just that she was beautiful, he felt a connection immediately.
A few of the guys kept trying to convince him to go over to her, but Corey’s shyness took over. He stood over by the bar with a Jack and Coke watching his teammates hit on girls on the dance floor. At one point, he lost sight of the brunette.
“What are you drinking?” he heard behind him. Corey then turned around to see her standing there.
“Shouldn’t the guy be asking that?” he smiled back at her.
“Well you hadn’t, so I did,” she responded before ordering a drink from the bartender.
“Put it on my tab,” Corey said before turning to the girl, “I’m Corey.”
“Keslie.”
“Another shot of Jack,” Corey said to the bartender. The alcohol was starting to feel pretty good, but he still was in Once and still kept looking at the door for Keslie to walk in. Although people were trying to stop him, Corey took out his cell phone and dialed her number. As the phone rang, he didn’t know what he was going to say, but the whiskey would take over
“Keslie, it’s me. It’s a quarter after one and I’m a little drunk. I miss you so much. I know I said I wasn’t going to call, but I need you now. I’m at Once and everything about this place makes me think about you.”
After realizing what he did, a few of his teammates dragged Corey onto the dance floor. He started to dance with some random girl. The girl was feeding him line after line; Corey knew that she was the type who just wanted to get a Blackhawk into bed. Thinking about it mixed with the whiskey made him laugh to himself.
--:
Keslie picked up her phone and dialed her voicemail. Before typing in her password, she put the phone down and started to run through scenarios in her head. There were so many things that Corey could have said. He might have told her that he never wants to see her again. She tried again to listen and this time actually heard the entire message.
It was still pouring outside and Keslie was wearing sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt. She didn’t care as she got in her car and headed towards that so familiar club. She had gone there so many times before; the time she met Corey was supposed to be just another night out with the girls. Deep down, it kind of bothered her that he was going there without her, but she had to remember that they were supposed to move on with their lives.
--:
When Corey saw her walk in the door, everything that was already in the back of his mind came pouring to the forefront. Her chestnut brown hair was dripping wet, stuck to her face. Her t-shirt was glued to her skin with the rain and the look on her face was devastation. All Corey wanted was to be where they once were, but she walked in just as the girl dancing on him fed him yet another bad line.
He looked at the girl next to him and immediately bolted across the dance floor and towards the door. He couldn’t believe that it was really her; he even thought that maybe it was his imagination. It wouldn’t have been the first time since they broke up that Corey had thought it was Keslie walking through a door and back into his life.
By the time he got to the door, she was already gone. He started to think again that it was never really her until his teammate Andrew Shaw walked over to him.
“Dude, I just saw Kelsie. She looked like hell, looked right at you and ran out the door.”
“Fuck, where did she go?”
“I don’t know.”
Corey ran outside and the rain seemed to be coming down harder. As he looked through the pitch black streets, he couldn’t see a thing. Then all of a sudden there was a bolt of lightning that lit up the street and he saw a figure in the distance hiding under a street awning. He would know that figure anywhere.
“Kelsie?”
“Why did you call me, Corey?” she said, he could tell that she had been crying.
“I wanted to see you. I miss you. I need you,” he said almost sounding like a list of grievances.
“Are you sure?” she almost sounded angry. He knew that she saw the girl, but that girl meant nothing. She was the only girl who meant anything.
"Kels, every time I look at you, I fall in love again. You're the best thing that I've ever had."
"We're not a fucking Taylor Swift song. I can't tell people you're gay and make myself feel better, I can't burn your picture. I'm in love with you, Corey Crawford and it sucks because right now, I hate you."
"Keslie..."
"Don't Corey. Don't try to say anything. I was vulnerable and you called me when I had already been missing you and in a moment of weakness I came here. I found you grinding on some other girl with a big smile. Go have fun and be free. I'm done."
"Stop, Keslie," he yelled as she started to walk away. When she turned around, he saw the tears in her eyes and he did the only thing he could think of. He grabbed her wrist, pulled her close, and put his lips on hers. He kissed her like he never had before. Their rain soaked clothing made their bodies almost stick together. They both were dizzied by the emotion before they separated. She was crying even harder.
"If you hurt me again..."
"I won't," he whispered with a sincerity that Keslie couldn't help but believe.