The Final Goal

"So what exactly happened between you and Fleury? Is that why Hornqvist is mad at you?" Kevin asked, directing his gaze on Skylar. They were sitting on Rachel's couch watching game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final. Somehow, Skylar was off work for it, so they decided to hangout at Rachel's.

"She was dating him, but she slept with two of his teammates," Rachel said, nonchalantly taking a sip of her lemonade. "Rachel!" Skylar said, exasperated. Rachel didn't have to say it like that, but Skylar figured any way the story is told, it is still going to sound bad. Bad isn't even a strong enough word to describe it. The whole situation was still causing Skylar's life to spiral out of control. She hated herself for what she had done to Fleury and even if he forgave her, she knew deep down that she would never be able to forgive herself.

"You did what?" Kevin asked, eyes wide in disbelief. "Technically I wasn't dating Fleury when I slept with Downie," Skylar said quietly, trying but failing to somehow make it sound less outrageous.

"Who else did you sleep with? It wasn't Letang was it? Oh my gosh it was! That's his best friend!" Kevin was talking so fast that Skylar was barely able to catch everything he said. "Kevin! I didn't sleep with Letang, okay? I slept with Tommy Kuhnhackl after a night at the club. We were both drunk and didn't mean for it to happen, but that's not an acceptable excuse. It was just one really big... very big.. mistake."

"Obviously it was a mistake. I mean, have you seen Fleury? Why would anyone want to cheat on him?" Kevin asked. Skylar laughed at the exasperated look on his face. "Yeah, he's absolutely amazing. Definitely the best man I've been fortunate enough to meet." Kevin smiled, "Aww, why don't you tell him that, then?"

Skylar sighed and was about to respond, but Rachel beat her to it. "He wanted some time to think things through. He said they could still be friends, but they still act so awkward around each other. Someone needs to say something to fix the awkwardness before it's too late," Rachel said, still looking at the TV. For some reason, it seemed like she was the only one interested in watching the game tonight. "Dang," Kevin said, not knowing what else to say. Skylar was speechless, sitting on the couch with a dumbfounded look on her face.

"How do you give such amazing advice about my relationship with Fleury, but you don't even have a boyfriend?" Skylar asked, unable to understand how Rachel sometimes acted like Cupid, setting people up and making their relationships last longer than her favorite TV series. Rachel shrugged, "I don't know it just happens". Kevin laughed, "Aw we'll find you a boyfriend, I promise! But as for you Skylar, Rachel is right, I think you should go back to Fleury and talk to him again about this. It's been a month or so right?".

Skylar thought for a second and then nodded. "Yeah it's been a while," she said. "So go talk to him. Just say how sorry you are. Don't bother making excuses for something that is inexcusable; just tell him how you feel," Kevin said, peering intently at Skylar's face.

Skylar sighed. "Okay, I'll ask if I can come over to his house," she said reaching into her pocket to pull out her phone. She texted him and hoped he would see it after the game. Fleury seemed semi confused as to why she was calling but Skylar didn't want to elaborate through text where her words could be misconstrued. She definitely wanted to talk to him in person, so she met up with him a few days later.

"So what did you want to talk about?" Fleury asked, trying to be polite. They were seated in his living room, a glass of water perched precariously on a coaster next to her, and Skylar graciously took a sip before starting her speech.

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I don't think there will ever be enough words in the English language, or any language for that matter, that can express how sorry I truly am. I made an egregious mistake, and despise how much it has torn us apart. I will always value the time that we have spent together, and I would love it if I can prove to you just how much I care about you but I understand that asking for a second chance is a lot easier than granting it. If I was you, I probably wouldn't want to give me another chance either. But you deserve to know that I really do care about you and I hope that you can find someone to grow old with, someone that will love you with the same intensity that you care for them. You deserve to be happy," Skylar said sadly, closing her eyes as a tear made it past her eyelashes, slowly streaking down her face.

She stood up. "I am really sorry," she said again, more tears flowing down her face and hands trembling at her sides as she cursed herself and made her way to the door.

Fleury, having not spoken the entire time reached out a hand and grasped her arm. "Wait," he said. Skylar turned around, eyes puffy and red as she watched Fleury warily.

"I don't want to give up on us just yet," Fleury said. "Life is too short to give up on the meaningful relationships I have in my life. I don't want to live a life full of regrets and I do believe I'd regret it if I never gave you a second chance."

Skylar looked into his eyes and saw uncertainty, but also warmth. She couldn't believe that he would actually consider taking her back.

"I know you've been acting more like yourself around me, but I don't know how you can even stand to look at me. I can barely look at myself in the mirror knowing what I've done to you, knowing that I hurt you," Skylar exclaimed, caressing the side of his face softly with her hand.

Fleury softly rubbed a thumb over her hand saying, "Skylar it's okay. I know you are sorry for what you did and we can move past it as long as we work through it together, as a team."

"But-" Skylar got cut off as Fleury's lips crashed against her own. She had forgotten how wonderful his lips had felt pressed against hers. It felt like she was dehydrated for so long and she was just now quenching her thirst. The kiss was a rather wet one, only because tears were still falling down her face and catching between their lips.

Fleury pulled back and stared into her blue eyes, slightly unnerving her the way he looked at her. "Sometimes you talk too much," he said, a slight smirk playing at the corners of his lips. Skylar laughed awkwardly as the palpable tension between them faded.

"Should we mention this to Patric?" Fleury asked. The question caught Skylar off guard. She was not expecting it, and she thought for a moment, biting her lip as she mulled over her options. "I don't know, I mean he's pissed at me. Actually, he seemed a lot more upset than you," Skylar added, averting her gaze before slowly returning it to Fleury's beautiful brown eyes. Who knew brown eyes could be so intriguing?

Fleury thought for a moment, brows furrowed as he tried to think of what to say. "I think he's just torn, Skylar. He doesn't know who to side with. We've been friends for a few years now and in his own way he's probably just trying to protect or stand up for me. He may not realize just how much he's hurting you in the process".

"What should I do about it?" Skylar asked, now seeking advice on how to handle her brother. "I would probably let him cool off a bit more. He's still pretty mad although I've noticed you've almost been getting through to him, so hopefully he will open up more and stop acting like a petulant child," Fleury said, yawning as he finished the sentence.

"Are you tired?" Skylar asked glancing at her phone for the time. "It's only 6:00 pm". Fleury nodded. "Yeah we have to travel tomorrow to San Jose for Game 6 of the playoffs and this time difference is really starting to catch up with me" he said, yawning yet again.

Skylar softly put a hand on his face and said, "Get some sleep. I'll be watching the game at home with Rachel and Kevin. Hopefully you guys can pull through". Fleury nodded, eyes slowly starting to flicker shut so he stood up before he could fall asleep fully and escorted Skylar to the door. "I'll see you later," she said, hesitating for a second, but making up her mind, she pressed her body against his and gave him a soft kiss. Just a peck on the lips, nothing special, but the feeling she felt inside told her that the bond between them sure as hell was.