The Sake of the Show

Corey sat in his SUV in front of Blair’s apartment complex, waiting for her to come outside so they could pick up Patrick. The two of them were going to drive him to the airport and see him off before he headed off to Switzerland. After Patrick’s going away party last night, he had to admit he was nervous to see her.

They’d arrived together to the party, and Kaner had already been sloshed by the time they arrived. Blair had remained glued to his side most of the night, doing subtle things like curling up against his side or holding his hand as they chatted among their friends. It was Abby Sharp who’d recognized their change in status, and Blair had lied easily through her teeth about how the two of them had been together. The reactions they’d received were priceless.

So maybe he was enjoying this all more than he should have, but he honestly wasn’t sure if anyone could blame him. Blair was impeccably cute, even more so when she gave him her undivided attention. He felt like the luckiest man in the world when she zoned out of conversation with one of his teammates to give him a little smile, or when one of them did something stupid and they’d exchange a special, all-knowing look. It was just nice to have a part of Blair that the rest of the guys didn’t get.

Sometimes, Corey didn’t like to share.

“Ugh, I’m terribly sorry. I couldn’t find my bloody wallet anywhere,” Blair gasped as she threw open the car and fell onto his seat, dropping her large tote on the floor as she buckled her seatbelt. Corey chuckled a bit as she turned to him, her hair blown haphazardly around her face.

He instinctively reached over, brushing a strand of blonde hair out of her eyes. “It’s okay, I’m a little early anyway.”

“Still,” Blair shrugged. Corey glanced at her shoulder, his eyes widening as he spotted the gigantic bruise that had at least a two-inch circumference.

“Is that bruise from when Viktor kicked you?” He exclaimed, gingerly running his calloused fingers over the purple bruise.

“Yeah, that’s where he got me.” She pouted, thrusting out her arm so he could get a better look. Last night, Viktor thought it would have been an excellent time for him to learn how to do a proper cartwheel. Without warning he’d given it a go, kicking a lanky leg into the air and clocking Blair in the arm. It wasn’t the worst thing to have happened, but Corey was thankful that he missed her head at least. Aside from that, the rest of the night was peaceful save for Shaw juggling glass bottles. He was surrounded by idiots.

“I’m sorry. My friends are... jackasses.” Corey muttered. They headed to Patrick’s house in a comfortable silence between the two as Blair sang along softly to the song on the radio, while Corey tried not to focus on the overwhelming floral perfume wafting off of her. He wondered if once Patrick got in the car, if he’d be able to get away with nuzzling his face into the crook of her neck to get a better whiff.

They pulled up in front of Kaner’s building and Corey pulled out his phone to send him a quick text alerting him that they were there.

“Now you’re just somebody that I-” Blair stopped singing in mid-song when she realized that Corey had been observing her, an amused smirk on his face as her cheeks began to flush. “Oh my god, I’m so embarrassing.”

“Almost as embarrassing as Viktor.” Corey teased her. He let out a barking laugh as she slapped his bicep, her cheeks still red as he continued to laugh at her. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding woman! Jeez, you slap harder than Pat does.”

“Not shocked. Pat is a softie.” She shrugged, glancing out the window where the smaller player was lugging an armful of bags. Corey popped his truck as she leaned across the arm rest and grabbed his hand, holding it in hers softly. He could feel his pulse in his throat as he avoided her eyes as to try and play it cool, but he almost lost it when she rested her head on his shoulder.

“Way to fuckin’ leave me out here to fend for myself!” Patrick shouted from behind the vehicle, tossing his bags roughly to emphasize his frustration. He went ignored by Blair and Corey as he continued to huff and puff until the last bag was stowed away. When he slid into the backseat, he was still bitter. “Thanks a lot, the both of you.”

“No problem,” Blair said cheerily, lifting her head from Corey’s shoulder to turn to him with a grin. “Besides, I’m a lady. I don’t want to be handling your dirty things.” 


“Bee, I shower at least once a day.” Patrick groaned, his eyes drifting from her smug face down to her hand intertwined with Corey’s. “God, this is too weird.”

Blair shrugged, smiling over at Corey in a way that sent his heart rate dancing in his ribs. “Get used to it, Kaner.”

“Last names now? Tough crowd today, apparently. And to think that at least one person would be sad to see me go.” Patrick sighed loudly.

“Oh come on, quit being dramatic today. Are you on your man period?” Blair stifled a giggle as she caught wind of his horrified expression in the rearview mirror.

“That’s fucking disgusting.” Patrick hissed, looking so mortified that you would have sworn that Blair had condemned his entire family to an eternity of suffering. Blair couldn’t help but laugh at his outright moodiness. “I don’t have periods, I’m not a girl.” 


“My god, Patrick! You’re quite the wanker this morning, what’s your deal?”

“Hungover.” He grunted, finally slumping over in his seat and pulling his cap over his eyes. After a few beats he changed his stance, moving forward and leaning around the headrest to dig his face into Blair’s neck. She let out a shriek as she momentarily released Corey’s hand to flail away from his attack. “I’m sorry, you just smell so delicious.”

Corey was insanely tempted to tap the breaks and watch Patrick fly through his windshield, but instantly felt guilty for such a violent thought and blamed it on his overpowering jealousy. He just didn’t want Patrick’s face anywhere near Blair’s neck, no matter the circumstances.

“You’re so weird!” Blair finally pushed him away, rolling her eyes at Corey as she grabbed onto his hand and laced their fingers again. He instantly felt a wave of victory overcome his jealousy and snickered to himself proudly.

The rest ride to the airport was silent after their spat, no one really knowing what to say in the moments leading up to Patrick’s departure. It weighed heavy on Corey, knowing yet another one of his teammates was leaving with no knowledge of when the ridiculous lockout would end. He supposed that he should consider heading back home, but with the blonde sitting next to him he didn’t think that was possible.

Midway was a force to be reckoned with; business men strutted to-and-fro with tickets clutched in one hand and briefcases in the other. No one cared if they jostled into to you if you were in their way. Everyone had a destination in mind, and there was clearly no stopping them. Blair and Corey followed Patrick meekly as he checked in his bags and then made his way toward the security line. When they knew they couldn’t go any further, they stopped to say their good-byes.

“C’mere.” Patrick stepped toward Blair with his arms held wide. She walked into his embrace, hugging him tightly as she buried her face into his chest. “I’m going to miss you, Bee. I promise you, we’ll Facetime at least twice a week. And I expect daily text updates about your relationship status with my goaltender.”


“Shut up,” Blair giggled, still wrapped in his arms. “Don’t forget about me when you’re gone. I better not find out you made another best friend in Switzerland.”

“Please, I only have room in my life for one European best friend.” Patrick dismissed her notion as they parted. “Try not to replace me with the other Patrick.”


“I won’t.” Blair told him. Patrick turned to Corey, pulling him in for a manly hug as she hung back to give them some space.

“Take good care of my girl, okay?” Patrick muttered, just loud enough that Corey could hear him. He nodded in response, patting his shoulder. “I mean it.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll take great care of her.” He assured him. He glanced over at the subject, unable to contain his grin as she smiled at the both of them. Patrick gave her one last hug before he grabbed his bags and made his way to the security line.

“Come on Bee, let’s go.” Corey mumbled. He wanted to shoot himself in the foot when he grabbed her hand, despite the fact that Patrick was already out of sight. However, Blair didn’t comment on this fact and merely clung onto him as if her life depended on it. When they finally got to the car, he was horrified to find that she had quiet tears falling down her face. “Holy- Blair, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing.” She waved him off, side-stepping him to try and open her door. He intercepted her quickly, grabbing her shoulders and maneuvering her until she was right in front of him. She hastily wiped at her eyes as little smudges of dark make up gathered beneath her lashes.

“It’s not nothing if you’re crying,” He said quietly, moving her hands from her face and wiping away her tears for her. “What’s the matter?”

“I just hate saying good-bye to people,” She sniffled. “I’m going to miss him, that’s all. I feel so stupid for crying, but I hate when people leave.”

“Don’t feel stupid, that’s perfectly acceptable. I hate seeing people leave too.” Corey told her, fighting every molecule of his being from launching himself at her and soothing her. He ached to pull her into him so he could kiss her hair or maybe just hold her, but he knew that would be incredibly too intimate. He really had to stop flirting with boundaries around her. It was starting to become detrimental to his sanity.

“Yeah, you’re not the one crying about it like a complete pansy.” Blair snapped lightly as she rubbed at her eyes again, averting her gaze from Corey’s as she sniffed once more.

“I’m also a manly-man that plays the manly sport of hockey, so I’m too tough to cry.”

She let out a choked laugh, and for the briefest moment when she had been smiling Corey felt as if he’d one the Stanley Cup. Once again fighting the urge to reach out and touch her, he cleared his throat. “Uh, how about I treat you to breakfast? And if you’re nice enough to me I’ll buy you coffee too...”

“Are you treating me like a child right now?” Blair gaped at him through her watery eyes, smacking her palms against his chest.

“And just like that, your violent streak is back. Breakfast it is.” Corey winked at her. When he wove around the front of the car to the driver’s seat, he got inside to find Blair already pulling down the visor and taking her make-up bag out of her purse. “Stop it.”

Corey snatched the bag from her and tossed it into the backseat and efficiently snapped the visor shut. When he glanced over at her she was surveying him with an amused gleam in her eye and an eyebrow cocked. “Well that was rude.”

“You don’t need any of that stuff, you look perfect just the way you are.” He explained easily. He could sense her smiling beside her, and wondered for a moment if he should feel a glimmer of hope. Maybe there was a way he could twist this entire lie into a truth.