Forever Changed

Niklas couldn’t help feeling nervous and excited at the same time as he sat on the bench with six and a half seconds left in the third period. It was June 4th and his team was that close to winning the Stanly Cup. Yet he knew that in hockey- especially in this round-anything could happen. He glanced into the stands behind him and saw Alana leaning on the glass. She saw him and gave him a smile before she mouthed “I believe in you”. The butterflies in Niklas’s stomach lessened slightly and he smiled back. Alana was continuing to be an inspiration to him and the team because they knew whatever battle they were facing; she was facing an even bigger one. As much as Niklas wanted to win the cup for himself, he even more wanted to win it for Alana. He knew deep in his heart that the reason they were here, beyond their work and effort and sweat and blood and tears, was her. He chewed on his lip as the seconds counted down. THREE…TWO…ONE… AND THE DETROIT RED WINGS ARE THE STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS!!! Tears poured down Niklas’s cheeks as he threw off his helmet and gloves. He swirled around to glance at Alana, who was screaming and jumping for joy, before he smiled and jumped off the bench to join his teammates. He quickly found Hank and pulled him into a hug.

“We won. We darn won the cup”, Hank said. Niklas smiled.

“Yes we did, Hank. We won what we fought hard for. But…” He let his voice trail off and pointed into the stands where Alana was. Hank looked in the direction his teammate was pointing and tears filled his eyes.

“We won this for you, baby girl. We won this for you”, he said.

Alana was a blur of unstoppable energy and joy up in the stands. She was screaming, crying, and jumping around like a bunny. “I can’t believe it! Nicky won it”, she said to Tyler. Tyler smiled down at his daughter.

“He sure did, Lannie”. Alana stopped jumping and glanced at the ice.

“They all won it. I’m so proud of my boys”, she said. Carol wiped a tear from her cheek and picked up Alana.

“Who do you think will get the MVP”, she asked. Alana smiled and bounced in her mother’s arms.

“You mean the Conn Smythe Trophy. Hank’s gonna win it for sure. He played good all playoffs”, she replied. She glanced back at the ice again and found Niklas, whom she could see was hugging Hank. She could see his face, but she knew he was happy.

“I love you, Nicky”, she said, blowing her friend a kiss. Carol and Tyler smiled at their daughter, knowing that her sisterly love for Niklas was growing.

“He loves you too, baby”.

Niklas wiped the sweat from his face as he wanted for Alana and her parents to come onto the ice. He’d seen her celebrate in the stands and saw just how happy she was. – She deserves to be happy- he thought. A sharp elbow in the side made him break from his thoughts. He turned to see Hank standing at his side.

“You’re thinking about Lannie, aren’t you”, he asked. Niklas nodded.

“Yes, I was thinking about her. I saw her in the stands earlier and saw how happy she was. She deserves that… with everything she’s going through. I’m hoping tonight will be a light for her.” Hank smiled and shook his head. Before Niklas met Alana, it was rare that he got that deep. Now, it seemed like every other day he was saying something like that.

“I agree. She deserves this night more than any of us do. She was our inspiration to get here and we won this for her. She’s a special girl”. Niklas was about to reply but got cut off by the sound of his name being called. He turned to see Alana standing up on the bench, her parents on either side of her. The giant smile on her face made Niklas knew that all the sweat, injuries, and tears had been worth it. He skated towards the bench and smiled when he saw her bounce. He came up to the bench and she jumped into his arms, her arms wrapping tightly around his neck.

“You did it, Nicky! You won the cup!” Niklas smiled and tightened his arms around her.

“Yes, Lannie, we did. All the injuries and sweat and blood were worth it”. Alana pulled her head from his shoulder and Niklas could see the tears in her eyes.

“I’ve been waiting for this for a while. I wanted you to win the cup last year and now you’ve got it. So proud of you”. Niklas pressed a kiss to her cheek, making Alana smile.

“Thanks, baby girl.”

“ALANA”. The girl turned her head to see Hank skating towards them.

“Zetta”, she yelled back. Hank smiled and gently took her from Niklas’s arms. “You’re going to win the Conn Smythe”, she informed him. Hank looked at her, surprise written across his face.

“How do you know?” Alana traced the Red Wings symbol on his jersey, her green eyes lighting up.

“You played so well, Zetta. You were like… one of the hardest working players out there. How could you not win”, was her reply. Hank shook his head, once again wondering where this girl got her smarts.

“Thank you for the complement, Lannie, but there were others that played just as well as I did.” Alana smiled.

“Yes, I know. All of you guys played great. I just have this feeling you’re going to win.”

“I’m taking you up on that, Lannie.”

Alana bounced in Niklas’s arms, waiting impatiently for the cup to come out. Hank, as she had predicted, had won the Conn Smythe.

“I told you, Zetta! I said you’d win this and you did”, she had said. Hank had just laughed and kissed her cheek.

“Whatever you say, Lannie.” Alana bounced again and Niklas shook his head at her.

“You are full of energy right now”, he said. The young girl smiled.

“No, I just wanna see the cup.” Niklas laughed.

“You’re not the only one, baby. I want to see it too. It’s been my life’s dream to win it and I have”. It was minutes later the cup was brought out.

“There it is, Nicky”, Alana said, pointing.

“I see it, Lannie. This is what I’ve been dreaming about since I was a kid… and now I’ve achieved it”. It seemed like years, but it was soon enough that Hank was skating towards the cup.

“I can’t believe it! I’m finally seeing Hank lift the cup”, Alana said happily. Niklas smiled and shook his head, loving how happy his friend was. “YES, ZETTA, YES!!!” That was what Alana screamed only seconds later as Hank lifted the cup over his head. Tears ran down her cheeks but she didn’t wipe them away. She was too busy getting caught up in the excitement and joy of the moment. But she was surprised to see Hank skating over to her seconds later with the cup.

“I know you can’t lift it, Lannie, but at least you can touch it. We won this for you, baby girl. You were and still are our inspiration and now it’s your chance to touch what we fought for”, Hank said. Niklas turned around so that Alana was facing the entire team. Hank stood beside them and as he raised the cup, Alana touched it with the hand. Tyler took a picture, Carol cried, and the team chanted her name. Niklas couldn’t help but feel tears in his eyes when he saw Alana’s happy face.

“This is all for you, baby. This is all for you.”