Cinematic Confessions

Corey and Autumn danced the night away as Corey ignored all the looks and comments he was getting from his teammates. He didn't care what they thought or had to say. He was making Autumn happy, and that's what was important to him.

He had been more than excited when Autumn had whispered in his ear that it was time to go home, and he had gotten her out of there quickly after saying goodbye to his teammates. She admitted that the evening was actually pretty good, despite her being nervous all week long, and she thanked him for dancing with him. She continued thanking him when they got back to his place all the way to his bedroom.

After a few rounds, Autumn was completely exhausted, and she fumbled, trying to find Corey's shirt to throw on. She finally found it on the floor, and she reached over the bed, grabbing it, and slipping it on over her head. She then sank into Corey's arms, as he kissed the top of her head. "That was amazing," he breathed, and Autumn smiled as she nodded her head.

He flipped the tv on and started scanning the stations, stopping when he heard Autumn shout out. "Pitch Perfect!" she said excitedly, and Corey set the remote control down, not even bothering to argue with her. He wasn't a fan of the movie, but he'd watch it with her.

He didn't get through very much of it, though, as he fell asleep within fifteen minutes. Autumn stayed up, though, and watched the entire movie and the beginning of the movie that followed it before falling asleep on Corey's chest with the television still on.

A sharp pain in her stomach interrupted her sleep, and she sat up in bed, wondering what was going on. She had read the books and knew that an occasional pain wasn't anything to worry about. But, by the time the third stab had hit her, she was nearly hunched over in pain. "Corey," she said softly, but he didn't even stir. "Core," she repeated a little more loudly, reaching over and touching his shoulder.

"Huh?" he asked, still halfway asleep.

"Corey, something's wrong," she said as another pain hit her and she crunched forward.

Corey shot up, realizing what she was saying. "Autumn, what's wrong?" he asked, worry evident in his voice.

Autumn grabbed her stomach. “I don’t know,” she groaned. “I’m having pains...cramps. Not the normal kind,” she clarified, bending forward as a pain shot through her once again. “Corey, something’s wrong,” she told him once again.

He was up out of bed in no time, grabbing a pair of sweats off the floor and throwing them on over his naked body. “Let’s go to the doctor,” he told her.

Autumn shook her head. “It’s like two in the morning,” she replied, glancing at the clock on the bedside table. 2:14. “Maybe it’ll go away,” she said wishfully, though she wasn’t very confident of that. She’d had cramps before, and they’d go away within a couple of minutes. But, these were much more severe, and they were lasting longer.

“We’re going to the hospital,” he stated, leaving no room for argument from Autumn. He walked over to his dresser and pulled out some of her clothes that she kept at his place. When he turned back around, she was still sitting in bed, staring up at him.

“Do you think something is wrong with the baby?” she asked, obviously getting more worried the more she thought about it.

“I’m sure the baby is fine,” Corey faked confidence. In all honesty, he had no idea if the baby was okay, but he wasn’t about to say that to Autumn. He needed to keep her calm right now.

“But, let’s go get you checked out,” he said, walking over to the side of the bed and helping her stand up, just as another pain hit her and she hunched over.

He handed her the clothes he held, and she slipped them on, making her way out to the living room to put her shoes on. Corey grabbed a Blackhawks t-shirt out of his dresser drawer, tossing it on over his head and threw on a pair of tennis shoes before meeting her by the front door. He grabbed her coat, helping her put it on, and then put his own on quickly as he walked out the door.

He couldn’t believe that just a few short hours ago, he had been at the Blackhawks dinner with her, dancing, followed by a night of fantastic sex. And now, he was taking her to the emergency room, worried for her.

He tried not to let his mind wander too much with thoughts of what could potentially be wrong as he helped her into his SUV. “Corey, I can take myself. You shouldn’t have a sleepless night because of me, especially when you have practice in a few hours,” he heard her say as he slipped into the driver’s seat.

He chuckled. “You think I’d be able to get any sleep if I sent you off on your own?” he questioned, starting the vehicle up and backing out of the parking spot. “Not a chance. Sorry, but you’re stuck with me,” he told her, reaching over and grabbing her hand, holding it.

She smiled at him. “I think the pains stopped. Maybe I was overreacting,” she told him. But, as if on cue, another cramp happened.

“We’re going to the doctor,” he told her, not taking a chance of it being something serious. She didn’t argue, but instead leaned her head back against the headrest and looked out the window as he drove to the hospital.

They got there in a few short minutes since there was very little traffic in the middle of the night, and Corey helped her inside, getting the attention of a nurse right away. They whisked her away quickly, but when Corey tried accompanying her, the doctor stopped him. “Are you the father?” he asked.

Corey shook his head. “No, but--”

“I’m sorry, but you can’t be back there then,” the doctor replied, leaving Corey frustrated as he stood there, feeling completely helpless. He paced the floor for what felt like forever, not knowing what else to do. He didn’t know what was happening with Autumn, and it was killing him. He tried asking several nurses if he could get updates, but they all told him the same thing: they couldn’t release that information to him.

“Corey!” he heard his name being called, and he spun around to see Cade standing there.

“Oh my God, Cade,” he began, getting ready to explain what was happening to him.

“C’mon, you can come see Autumn, she wants to see you,” Cade cut him off, motioning for Corey to follow him. Corey realized Cade must have been working in the ER when he noticed the scrubs he was wearing. He followed him down the hallway and into a room at the end of the hall.

“Corey,” Autumn smiled as he walked into the room. “Thanks, Cade,” she added.

Corey was immediately at her side. “Are you okay?” he asked, worried.

She nodded her head. “Yeah, they were Braxton Hicks contractions,” she explained, but Corey looked confused, not knowing what she was talking about.

“False labor, basically,” Cade explained from behind him. “Most likely from a mix of things, but she’s a little dehydrated. So, they’re giving her an IV of fluids, and then she should be able to go, as long as she promises to keep up with fluids at home,” he said, giving Autumn a look.

“You know I will,” she responded with a firm nod of her head. She felt awful that she could do anything to put the baby in any sort of harm. She hadn’t realized she hadn’t been drinking enough water, but now she was sure to drink plenty.

“Thank you for bringing her in,” Cade told Corey, who simply nodded her head. “She and the baby are just fine,” he added, putting his hand on Corey’s shoulder, trying to ease the goalie.

“Call me if you need anything, but I’ve got to get back to a few other patients,” he told them.

“Thank you,” Corey told him, while Autumn repeated the sentiments, promising to call him later. Corey walked over and pulled a chair up to the side of Autumn’s bed. “I’m glad you’re okay,” he said, leaning over and kissing her forehead.

“Thanks for bringing me in, but you can go home and sleep. I can get Cade to drive me back home later after his shift,” she said, still concerned for him getting enough sleep when he had morning practice.

“Don’t worry about me,” he told her. “I’ll grab some coffee on my way in.”

“Coffee,” she sighed dramatically. “I miss that stuff!”

Corey smiled at her. “A few more months and you can have it again,” he reminded her.

***

Corey had gotten the biggest cup of coffee they had at Starbucks, added two extra shots of espresso, and sipped on the black coffee as he made his way into practice. “Dude, you look exhausted, you must have gotten laid damn good last night,” Brent was the first to comment on Corey’s appearance.

“Of course he did, he danced. Girls love that shit,” Duncan added.

“She must have really forgiven you after last night,” Patrick Sharp elbowed him jokingly.

Corey shook his head. “No,” he told them. “Well, yeah, but no,” he continued, confusing everyone.

“Wait, what?” Sharp asked with a laugh.

“We did have sex,” he admitted. “But, then the rest of the night was spent in the emergency room,” he explained.

“You fucked her so good you sent her to the ER?” Shaw asked in disbelief. “What the hell did you do to her?” he questioned, wanting the details.

Corey rolled his eyes at his  younger teammate as he took a big gulp of the coffee that had finally cooled down enough that he could drink it without burning his mouth. “I didn’t do anything to her,” he told him. “She was having some stomach pains and we were worried, so we took her to the hospital. Apparently, it’s some contraction shit or something?” he muttered, still not knowing the technical term for what had occurred.

“Oh, Braxton Hicks contractions?” Sharp provided for him. “Abby had those, too, with Sadie this last time,” he told him. “They didn’t last long though. But, apparently it’s not good if it happens too early in the pregnancy,” he explained to the group of men.

“Yeah, Autumn was dehydrated and that caused them,” Corey told them. “She’s okay now, and so is the baby,” he added, looking at Brent, knowing he would be concerned about his niece.
“She’s at home now, it was just a long night,” he sighed, drinking some more of his coffee. He needed as much caffeine as possible to get through this practice.

He put on his gear as the other guys talked about their nights. He listened but didn’t add much to the conversation. He skated out on the ice with everyone else, and he could feel the exhaustion setting in, despite the caffeine in his system.

Corey was fortunate for the easier practice Coach Quenneville gave them, and he couldn’t get off the ice fast enough. All he wanted to do was sleep, and he needed a lot before their home game the following night. He said goodbye to the guys and made his way home, not even stopping for food. He could eat after he slept.

He walked into his place, confused when he went back to his bedroom and didn’t find Autumn there. He had assumed she would just stay there after they had come back from the hospital. He texted her, but he couldn’t even stay awake for a response, passing out as soon as his back hit the bed.

He woke up a few hours later, feeling the warmth of a body next to him. He sleepily rolled over to find Autumn there with a smile on her face. “Hey sleepyhead,” she said softly.

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in closer to him. “Hey, where were you when I got back?” he asked, settling his chin on the top of her head.

“Work,” she answered.

Corey pulled back slightly so he could look at her face. “You went to work after last night?” he questioned.

“So did you,” she pointed out.

“But, I wasn’t the one in the hospital last night. Are you sure it was safe to go back to work?” he asked.

She nodded her head. “Yes, they said I could work as long as I stayed hydrated. And I did. I had a water bottle with me the whole time,” she assured him. “Don’t worry about me,” she added.

“Yeah, that’s going to happen,” he scoffed.

Autumn smiled, knowing how protective of her he was. “You hungry?” she asked him.

Corey nodded his head. “Yeah, I didn’t even eat after practice, I was so tired.”

“Bri texted me earlier and invited us to come over if you want to go over there. I guess they’re having a bunch of people over. I think Kat and Cade are over there now,” she told him.

“Sure, let me just change and stuff,” he said, giving her a quick kiss on the temple before getting out of bed and changing out of the sweats he had worn to practice and into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. He was starving, and if he knew the Seabrooks, they’d have a ton of food ready for them.