The Sailor and the Hawk

“Kylee, would you just.....OW!” I yelped as my sister yanked on my hair again. She didn't say anything, just continued to tug and pulled my hair around until she was satisfied with how it looked. She must be getting some sort of sick enjoyment out of this...

“Oh please! This doesn't hurt!” She shot back, tugging one last time for good measure and then stepping back, pleased with herself. “There, done.” she said. I took a quick look in the mirror and nodded, pleased with it as well.

“Okay....now what?” I asked as she dragged me over to her closet. She started looking through all the dresses she owned, humming to herself. Thankfully, we were the same size. I had brought the dress I wore to dinner with them a few months ago but apparently, you're not allowed to wear the same dress. I rolled my eyes so hard at that one that they nearly fell out of my head.

“Good thing we're the same sizes or you'd be shit out of luck.” She said, smiling to herself as she pulled out a dress and then started digging for shoes.

“Oh darn....” I teased, making her shoot me a look before going back to the shoes. Jonathan spoils her, as it was made obvious by the amount of red soled heels she owned. She made an ah-ha sound and pulled out some heels, smiling and handing them to me before pushing me into the bathroom to change.

I slipped off the borrowed bathrobe and looked at myself in the mirror for a moment. The pale pink scars on my stomach and back made me cringe. It was hard to believe my tour in Afghanistan ended just a few months ago. I shook the images from my head and slipped on the dress and then the heels. I sighed a little and adjusted my bra to fit the dress and then did a little spin in the mirror, the skirt of the dress swishing with me. I smiled a little to myself this time, feeling pretty for once. I stepped out of the bathroom and Kylee stopped moving, her eyes sparkling with tears and a huge smile on her face.

“You look so beautiful!” she squealed, running over and hugging the air out of me before sighing and holding my shoulders. “Now, no staying too late, you hear me young lady?” she teased, making me swat at her.

“Okay, mom...” I teased back. She laughed and handed me a jacket then opened her bedroom door, peaking out and hearing the guys...not really talking. More like, aggressively discussing. She frowned and told me to wait before she stomped out to the kitchen. I heard some mumbling and then silence before she came back, a soft smile on her face. I followed her out and saw Jon with his arms crossed tightly, leaning against the couch and Patrick in the kitchen. Patrick looked so precious, wearing a suit and his hands in his pockets. He looked over and smiled at me widely, coming over and taking my hand and spinning me.

“Damn, I'm going to be the luckiest guy in Chicago tonight.” He said, making me laugh. I could hear Jon mumble and then Kylee slap him in the arm before she smiled over at us.

I quickly said goodbye to Kylee and Jon, not wanting a fight to break out before we even got out of the building. Patrick stayed quiet, holding me hand as we made our way down to his car. He held the door for me and then got in as well, taking my hand again, his calloused them running over the back of my hand. I tried to hide my smile as I looked out the window but I knew he saw, because he started smiling more. He pulled up to a nice restaurant and helped me out, keeping an arm around me. I wished I could of texted Kylee, because this was the most expensive thing I've ever seen.

“Patrick, this is....crazy...” I said, laughing a little after we both sipped on our wine. He smirked and laughed a little, taking my menu away from me.

“If you make another comment about the prices, I won't let you order. I'll just make the decision for you.” he joked, grinning before slowly handing the menu back to me. I snatched it from him, sticking my tongue out at him before picking something and closing it.

“So, what were you and Jon talking about?” I asked, glancing at him over the rim of my glass. His posture stiffened slightly and he rolled her shoulders to release some of the tension. He put down his menu and ordered for us before leaning forward, arms on the table.

“We have a game against the Canucks on Monday, that's all...” He said, swirling the wine in his glass before taking a long sip.

“I know that, I work with you, remember?” I teased, making him laugh and smile again, the tension gone. I knew they weren't talking about the Canucks. Maybe Jon was just stressed about him and Kylee's wedding but he really needed to lay off Patrick. I'm a grown woman, if I can handle a war, I can handle Patrick Kane.