Days of Black and Gold

“Margot, wake up,” Sidney whispered in my ear. “I made breakfast.”

I let out a groan, and turned onto my stomach. “What time is it?”

“Eight.”

“Shit,” I grumbled, pushing myself up. “I have to get home to feed the girls.”

“I called Greg. He said that he has the girls under control. He has enough food and milk to last until you get home.”

“I really have to stop depending on him. It was great over the summer when I was interviewing and going to meetings, but now it just seems like I’m using him.”

“Were have you been interviewing?” Sidney asked, as I sat up and took the tray of food from him. “I’ve tried to get details from Kris and Geno, but they have been very good at keeping your life a secret from me.”

“I don’t really find that surprising,” I chuckled, digging into the grapefruit.

“Geno kept telling me that if I wanted to know, I should stop by to see you.”

“That would have been the most ideal way to get information.”

“I know,” he sighed. “Do you mind if I come with you this morning? I’d like to see the girls, and maybe we can sit down and talk.”

“Do you not have practice?”

“It’s an optional skate today. I would rather be around my family today, than skating.”

“Are you feeling alright?” I asked, placing a hand on his forehead. “In all the time we were together, you never missed an optional skate.”

“Today is an exception.”

Nodding, I inhaled the rest of my food, and slipped out of bed to get dressed.

“Here,” Sidney smiled, holding out a pair of my jeans and one of his button down shirts. “I found a few of your things, but couldn’t get up the nerve to return them.”

“Uh, thanks,” I smiled, taking the items from him and slipping into them. “Do you want to follow me into town?”

“Is it alright if I just come with you?”

“Erm, yeah, that’s fine.”

We finished getting ready for the day, and made our way out to my old, silver Rav4. We stayed silent for the drive to my place, but it was comfortable, just like it had been when we were together.

Pulling in front of my townhouse, I got out and led Sidney toward the front steps. “So, this is my place.”

“It’s nice, Margot.”

“And you’ve only seen the outside,” I chuckled, rolling my eyes.

“Excuse me?”

Both of us turned to see a couple of younger adults staring at us.

“Are you Sidney Crosby?”

“I am,” he responded, nodding.

“Could we get an autograph?”

“Of course,” he grinned, before turning to me. “I’ll see you inside?”

“Alright,” I agreed, as he kissed my cheek. Quickly, I unlocked the door and slipped into the house. “Hey, Pappy. How were the girls?”

“They were angels,” my father said from his spot on my couch. “They always are. How was your night?”

“It was weird,” I frowned, making my way over to the play crib. “It was good though. Sidney is just outside signing a couple autographs, by the way. He said he wanted to be with his family today.”

“His family, eh?”

“I’m not reading much into it, yet,” I sighed. “He said he wanted to talk.”

“I thought that’s what you were doing last night.”

I cocked a brow at him. “I feel I don’t need to explain that we did not get a lot of talking done. Either way, I really need to tell him about my interviews, so I’m happy he came with me this morning.”

The door clicked behind me, and I turned to see an annoyed looking brunette. “You alright?”

“I love our fans,” he started. “But sometimes they can be very nosey.”

I let out a soft laugh, and shook my head. “You remember Pappy, right?”

“Yes, Greg,” he smiled and held out his hand for my father. “How are you?”

“I’m well, but I’m actually on my way out.”

“Are you?” I asked, unsure what his plans were.

“I’m going to head back to Ontario tomorrow, so I thought I might do some grocery shopping for you today. That gives you two a bit more privacy, and me a chance to spoil my daughter and granddaughters.”

“Thanks, Pappy.” I gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

“Do you need your Rav?”

“No, I don’t think so,” I shook my head and tossed him the keys. “I can always drive Sidney home when you’re back.”

He nodded, grabbed his wallet, and disappeared outside.

“Do you want a tour?” I asked Sidney, as he lifted Georgina out of the play crib.

“Sure,” he said, lifting Nichole out and onto his other hip.

“Obviously, this is the living room,” I stated as I led him into the next room. “Here’s the kitchen dining room.”

“It’s nice.”

“It’s small,” I chuckled, heading up the stairs. “But it’s a nice size for me and the girls. Up here we have the girls’ room and the bathroom.”

“I’m sorry you had to buy cribs. Well, and everything else that I already bought.”

“It’s fine, Sid,” I waved off, entering the last room. “This is my room. Uh, it has an attached bath, too.”

“Where is your dad sleeping? I’m hoping you don’t send him to a hotel.”

“No, no. The couch pulls out, so he’s been sleeping there.”

“Well, I like this place,” he grinned, leading us back down the stairs and to the living room. “It has an antique feel to it.”

“Thanks. I quite like it, too.”

“Can we talk now?” He asked, placing the girls back in the play crib and sitting down on the couch.

“That would be great,” I agreed, sitting next to him. “I’m glad you still wanted to talk. I’ve been trying to come up with the best way to get a hold of you.”

“You could have just called.”

“How was I supposed to know that?” I countered. “Anyway, I need to run a few things by you.”

“Should I be worried?”

“No,” I shook my head. “It’s nothing concerning, but you know I’ve been interviewing for work.”

“Okay,” he drawled, looking me straight in the eyes.

“Over the summer, I branched out a bit, hoping to work with a team again. The team out in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton seemed very interested in having me join them, and we met a few times, but I couldn’t agree to a contract with them.”

“You interviewed with our affiliate team?”

“Yeah, but I couldn’t say yes. It’s a four-and-a-half-hour drive between Wilkes-Barre and Pittsburgh. I really couldn’t justify moving there, and still having you see the girls.”

“I appreciate you thinking of me, especially when I was such an ass these past few months.”

“And you had every right to be.”

“So, now what? You’ve turned down a great opportunity.”

“I found another one, just as great, and closer to Pittsburgh.”

“Where is it?”

“Wheeling, West Virginia. The Nailers and I have settled on a contract that would start next season, if I wanted. It’s only an hour from the ‘Burgh, and I’ve worked it out that I could be back here whenever they are not playing, which was a huge part of my concern when I was trying to find something suitable.”

“So, what now?”

“I don’t know,” I sighed, dropping my head into my hands. “With us not together or communicating, the decision was simple. I needed to start working again, but had figured out a plan to wait until next season.”

“What happens if you don’t take the contract?”

“Then I go broke and have to move back to Canada with my mom.”

“What if you stay here?”

“Sidney, I can’t afford that. I have stretched my savings as far as they will go. Mom and Pappy have been helping a lot, but I really can’t stretch it any further. The opportunities here seem limited, too.”

“You’ve been getting the cheques I’ve been sending with Geno, right?”

“Yes, but I’ve been putting them into a savings account for the girls. Then they have something for when they want to go to university or do whatever.”

“You haven’t used any of it?”

“I couldn’t, Sid. The money is not for me, it’s for the girls.”

“I never wanted you to be struggling to support them.”

“I’m not struggling,” I murmured. “But I haven’t worked since moving to Pittsburgh. No matter how much I saved up, that was over a year ago, and this is a pretty affordable city, especially compared to Washington.”

“How can I help?”

“I need to know whether or not you support my decision to work in Wheeling. If you don’t, I’ll have to find something here.”

“If you take the position, where does that leave us?”

“There was no us when we were developing the contract. Obviously, I didn’t tell them that, but I did make it clear that Pittsburgh was where I needed to be when I wasn’t required to be there. Now, I don’t know what to think. Do I take it out of security? What if I don’t take it, and we can’t make things work? Where does that leave me?”

“You’ll always have a place in Pittsburgh, Margot. You know that. Whether it’s with me or not.”

“That’s not the point Sid. What if something else comes up that doesn’t sit well with you? You cut me out of your life for the better part of nine months, which was totally justified, but that’s a long time to have uncertainty in life.”

“I don’t want you to feel like you don’t have a place in my life. I know it will take sometime to build up the trust I once had in you, but I never doubt you. You’re a great mother to our girls, and I am glad I had children with you.”

“Where do we go from here?”

“When do you need to give them a definite answer?”

“They would like it to be as soon as possible, but I think I can push it until the end of January.”

“That gives us three months without any pressures to just figure us out.”

“I like that idea,” I smiled.

“Will you move back in?”

“I have a lease on this place, Sidney, and do you really think living together is a good idea this soon?”

“Keep the place. I’ll pay for it, too. I just want to wake up next to you, again. This morning reminded me of just how much I loved seeing your face when I woke up.”

“I can’t let you do that.”

“Please, just think about it, Margot. I really think it will be good for us. Get back into old habits, and raise the girls together. We could be a real family.”

“I want nothing more than to raise the girls together. Whether we are together or not, I like to think that we form some kind of family. I also don’t want our past issues to effect how we raise our daughters.”

“Move back into the house. If you need a break from it, come back and stay here. I’ll understand.”

“Give me some time to think it over. I don’t want to rush into anything.”

“In the same way we didn’t rush into anything last year?”

“I told you when we started that I was one to take things slow.”

“Seven months later, we found out we were pregnant.”