Just Look Outside of the Box for a While

I had been watching her over the table all evening. Her name was Samantha, Sam but her friends called her Sammy. She was beautiful, like nobody I had ever seen before. Her long brown wavy hair sat over her shoulders with a row of beads down a plait near her fringe. She wore a simple white sundress that finished mid thigh and her legs, well they went on forever.

I had been trying to find an excuse to get out of this holiday to Florida with the guys for months but now I was glad I came with them. If only I had the guts to talk to her.

"Go," Geno nudged my shoulder.
"No," I frowned sinking down in my chair and hiding my face as she looked in our direction.
"Staalsy not get all beautiful girls, you go," he insisted.
"I can't just go and talk to her, that's suicide, just...Wait where are you going?" my voice screeched in desperation getting the attention of a few onlookers.
"Sid baby, I tell her you like, then you talk," he grabbed my arm and yanked me up out of my seat.
"Geno you can't just tell a girl you like her," I tried to get away from him but his grip on my bicep wasn't loosening.
"No, tell her you think beautiful, go from there."
"Well then why don't you have a girl hanging off your arm?" I frowned.
"Sid girl, hanging on arm, I have," he teased as I pulled my arm from him with a huff.
"Besides," he lent in, "I think her friend pretty. Follow me," he grabbed two beers and headed straight up to them.
"Geno..." but it was too late. This crazy Russian was going to kill me by the end of this trip.

Geno turned around and the three of them looked at me making me feel like a child.
"Come Sid, sit," he waved me over to them grabbing two chairs for us.

We had started our own little half circle around the fireplace while everyone else sat around the table.

We had been hanging out with the same group of people for three days now and I had been too scared to even look at Sam. But now I was stuck, wedged between her and Geno. And while was Geno was getting along with Reagan just fine I was still trying to find my voice. If he could do it and speak only half of her language then surely I could hold a conversation with Sam.

"Hi I am Si..."
"Sidney Crosby I know," she smiled. That was something else that had me distracted. Every time she smiled I found my eyes being drawn to her.
"I am Sam," she out her hand out.
"Nice to meet you," god what was that?

'Nice to meet you' come on Sid you can do better than that, tell her she is pretty or something like you like her dress, yes perfect.
"I like your dress," I tilted my drink at her before taking a sip trying to be casual about it.
"Thank you," she accepted my complement sweetly.

I felt like it was a losing battle from the start trying to build up the courage to talk to her but it was gradually getting easier.

"So you play hockey, I don't know how you skate on those thin blades," she shook her head.
"It's quiet easy, I teach you," I smiled. Damn it Sid stop referring to the future, "I mean I can teach you, if you want that is."
"I would love that."

"Uhh Sid. We have go," Geno stood up in a hurry.
"What? why?"
"Is late you need beauty sleep," he grabbed my arm again pulling me to my feet. God since when did Benedict die and he get elected pope?
"We on holiday Geno, we can sleep whenever."
"Oh now Sid is wild party boy, trust me."

"You know my mother always told me never to trust someone who says trust me," I tried to get away as Geno got me in a headlock. Downside to being short, always getting picked on.
"Now mommy's boy too?"
"No, besides it's not like you can talk, your mother is the only woman you talk about."
"Only woman worth talking about," he shrugged.
"See mommy's boy," I pointed to him.
"No one care Sid, only funny with you," he grabbed my finger.

"What are we doing anyways?" I asked as we got into the elevator.
"You talk about hockey too much, girls no like all that hockey. If stay longer you boring."
"Gee thanks," I rolled my eyes as we got out of the elevator and headed to our rooms.
"Plus you leave her wanting more, not that much more to Sid than hockey," he teased.
"There's more to me than hockey," I tried to defend myself but there really wasn't it was all I thought about 24/7, 365 days out of the year and even on those leaps years I still found something to relate to hockey on that extra day.

"I just tease Sid, go to bed," he opened his door to the room just across the hall from me.
"See ya," I sighed giving up for now.

What was I going to do to get Sam interested? I couldn't talk about hockey all the time, she would get bored like Geno said. Maybe if I talked about what she likes, she mentioned photography. I can figure out something to talk to her about photography. It can't be that hard, can it?