Iced

“What are you doing, trying to be our mascot?” Tyler asked the second I opened my apartment door.

I quirked an eyebrow at him, turning my back to him so I could lock the door behind us. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“A little overdone on the black and yellow Lo,” he teased, pushing the button to call the elevator.

I sighed and shot him an annoyed look, not able to resist rolling my eyes at him. “It’s my favorite jacket. Would you like me to go change?”

He shook his head, the impish smile slipping across his face as he played with the lapels of my light yellow leather jacket. I brushed my hands down over my black and white striped shirt, tucking the sides into my black jeans.

Tyler escorted me out of the elevator and into his waiting sleek black car. I laughed when I saw the decked out car - typical show-offy boy.

“Nice ride,” I giggled as I slid into the low seats.

This time it was Tyler’s turn to roll his eyes at me but he didn’t reply, instead he just shut the door on me. The Garden wasn’t too far from my apartment and Tyler didn’t exactly drive slow so it didn’t take very long to get to pre-game skate.

The building was buzzing when we entered, many people shouting greetings our way. I smiled at a few familiar faces and separated from Tyler once we reached the locker room. He waved his goodbye and left me to find the rink on my own. Luckily for me I knew my way around the Garden, otherwise I probably would have gotten lost in a sea of hallways.

Zdeno and Tuukka were already on the ice, a few players trickling out to join them just as I stepped up to the glass. Harry and Johnny were in the next group that came out onto the ice and Tyler was just a few minutes after. People were pressed against the glass staring them down and waving. Zdeno flipped a puck over the glass and the young girl next to me caught it excitedly.

He chuckled and skated away with finesse that seemed unusual of his stature. The pre-game skate seemed to pass by far too quickly and before I knew it both the Rangers and Bruins were preparing for their first face off of the night.

I found my spot by the glass where the press were able to stand, Mikey waving eagerly to me. He kissed me cheek quickly once I reached him.

“How was pre-game?” he asked, eyes on the men skating past him.

“The usual. Nothing too special. Lots of fans, lots of pucks going over to them.” I shrugged and pulled my camera out of the bag, handing it to Mikey.

We watched in silence as Mike snapped pics to post on the station’s website and our blog. I typed out notes on my phone as the big plays were made, making sure to note the first goal of the game made by Tyler himself. He skated right over to here we were and slammed his body against the glass, winking at us as the guys piled up near us.

Just two minutes after Tyler’s goal the Rangers’ Derek Stepan earned a penalty for hooking against Zdeno. Harry’s power play line was eager to take to the ice. His size was something to admire. While he certainly wasn’t the biggest player on the ice, Harry had an imposing air around him that made other players back off.

Nick took care of the face off, winning it for the Bruins and passing it back towards Harry who skated straight towards us. He deftly skated around the two Rangers’ that had caught up to him and lined up to the goal. With one slick movement he netted the goal and the crowd went wild.

To my surprise Harry skated straight to Mike and I and the crowd screamed as they piled up right there. When they stood, Nick was the first to place his hand against the glass, mirroring mine. Milan, Bergeron, and Marchand looked a little confused, as they weren’t there to understand the high school ritual we had put in place. They did it nonetheless and sent me huge grins.

The real shocker was when Harry placed his large, gloved hand against the glass. It was massive and completely dwarfed my hand. I knew he could sense my shock so he smiled gently before he skated back to the bench.

The rest of the first two periods went much the same. The Rangers scored one goal but the Bruins stayed on top, netting two more goals. Mike and I wandered around the Garden during intermission and a little bit into the beginning of the third period. I knew he was anxious to not just stay in one spot the whole night so we ate dinner in the Club Lounge.

Mike, who was still chomping down on a burger that was half the size of his face, turned to me with a smirk on his lips. “So where are you and Harry going for your date?”

I rolled my eyes, “It’s really none of your business, but we’re going to Area Four.”

“Casual. I was expecting you to pick something fancy to try to scare him away.”

“Mikey! Jesus. I’m not that mean. I don’t hate him or anything, but I am a little nervous. He’s so cold sometimes...” I trailed off, a frown flitting onto my face.

Mike dusted his hands off and left cash on the bar, picking up his camera bag and following me out of the lounge.

“I think he’s just nervous around you. Honestly. You probably intimidate him.”

I stared at Mikey incredulously. “Yeah, a reporter slash DJ intimidating a big shot NHL player - that sounds about right.”

I snorted but Mikey just gave me one of his hard looks. “Whatever. We’ll just see how Thursday goes but I bet I’m right.”

The concourse was ghostly empty as we made our way back down to the rink. Obviously people couldn’t have cared less about buying souvenirs while the game was in action. Mike chattered on about something, but I couldn’t hear him over the cheering the second we walked into the rink. Every Bruins fan in the place was on their feet, hands in the air and screaming at the tops of their lungs.

My eyes scanned the ice as we got closer and closer, my eyes squinting to see the numbers on the players’ jerseys. All the players were fighting by the Rangers’ goal, where a puck was in the net. Refs started grabbing at the players, pulling them out before the gloves came off.

When the players were starting to be separated it was revealed who was in the middle of all the fighting. I wasn’t shocked to see number 81 ripping his helmet off and tossing his gloves to the ground.

Harry grabbed Brandon Prust by the neck, shoving him into the boards and almost knocking over a referee in the process. Prust covered his head, bending over to protect himself from Harry’s flying fists, which got in quite a few shots before he was attacked by another Rangers player. The refs were quick to try to break it up and the place was going absolutely crazy.

Both Prust and Harry were sent straight off the ice and into the locker rooms. Nick, who appeared at the glass in front of Mikey and I seemingly out of nowhere, shook his head and shrugged at us. He pointed to the clock and I grinned. Not only were there only 3 minutes left in the third period, the score was definitely in the favor of the Bruins. They were leading 5-1.

The handshake line was almost volatile. Even from across the ice I could see the tension between the two teams. I grabbed Mike’s shoulder and pointed to the press door, not even bothering to try to speak over the excitement that was filling the Garden.

We followed the winding hallways all the way down to where the team locker rooms were, bypassing the visitors doorway and entering the Bruins’ room. Mike seemed unsure if we should have been in there right away, but the players were already starting to come in.

Harry was the last man to file into the room. He had a nasty cut on his cheek that was barely being held closed by two slim strips of band-aids. The trainer was close behind him, murmuring that he would need stitches and to not give any post-game interviews until it was fixed up.

“So, what’d you think?” Johnny’s voice startled me and when I turned around he was chuckling. “That was pretty intense.”

I shrugged. “I’ve seen worse.”

Johnny slung his arm around my neck, ruffling my hair whilst he said a quick hello to Mikey. His acts from the other day were still in my mind, though he was now back to acting like his old self.

I pulled myself from his grasp and tugged on his arm gently to pull him towards his locker. Johnny sat and started to undo his skates, pulling off layer by layer of his gear and stowing it away.

“Johnny what was with you on Monday? Why did you run away from me?”

Johnny’s smile faulted and he stopped chirping Zdeno from across the room. He let out an exhausted sigh and met my eyes. The normally bright green orbs were clouded with confusion and I could tell how nervous he was.

“I don’t know...Look Sloane, just, come out with me on Thursday. I promise I will explain everything,” his tone was pleading, and it caught a few other players’ attentions, including Harry’s.

Harry, whose locker was two to the right of Johnny’s, made eye contact with me and frowned. I cleared a space next to Johnny and sat, ignoring Harry though I could feel him staring at me. My hand was gentle on Johnny’s arm, but he stiffened up almost immediately.

“I can’t. I have a date...” I trailed off. I was careful to avoid his gaze, but that didn’t stop him from asking who it was.

“What?” he exclaimed. His eyes narrowed and his cheeks got a little bit redder. “With who? Do I know him?”

“Does it really matter Johnny? I have a date and I’m not canceling it to hear some backwards excuse from you about why you ran away after you kissed me!” I was furious now and our tones had certainly caught the room’s attention.

Everyone went completely silent. I think I could’ve heard a pin drop. I stood up, crossing the room to grab my stuff. Mikey yanked the door open and held it for me to pass through.

“Sloane!”

I didn’t even make it out the door before I was pulled back into Johnny’s arms. His hands were heavy on my shoulders.

“Just tell me. Just tell me who Lo.”

“Harry.”

His reaction was instantaneous. Johnny’s mouth set into a hard line and his eyes turned scathing. He let out some sort of guttural noise and turned to face Harry with clenched fists. Harry didn’t bat an eye - he took Johnny’s death glare.

“What the fuck man?”

Johnny slammed his fist against the wall and strode towards Harry. Zdeno jumped in front of him, holding Johnny back. Harry stood, hands clenched at his sides, and muttered something to Brad who was standing right next to him.

Tyler appeared at my side out of nowhere. He nudged me gently, pointing towards the door.

“Let’s get out of here. I’ll bring you home.”

I nodded and he shouldered my camera bag. Tyler led Mikey and I out into the hall and turned to us with wide eyes.

“Wow.”

“Yeah,” I sighed. “I know.”