“You can’t hate him, maybe you are just mad at the moment?”
“No, I am pretty sure I have some hate in there”
“Do you want to talk about it?” I could tell he was thinking about the question long and hard. I started to think I was going too far in but my decision changed when Sidney finally answered.
“It’s a long story.”
“I have time?” I said softly trying to soothe him.
“Alright, here goes nothing.” He sighed. “My father is in New York, he comes to the bigger games which I guess you could call these ‘big’ games. Well before I went to my room I knocked on his, usually we meet for coffee the next morning before I go to the rink for morning skate.” He paused now rapping his arm around my shoulder and pulling me closer. After that I made myself comfortable snuggling into his shoulder and resting my head. When we were situated he began again, “I probably had to nock five or six times before he answered, when he opened the door I knew he was pissed so I replayed my actions in the day pretty quickly. I signed autographs, didn’t punch any reporters in face even though I was very tempted.” I laughed at that, and it didn’t help that he looked down at me with this strange look in his eyes, which made me laugh even harder. “Okay? Well the only other two things I did were go to dinner, and then do stuff with you, which wasn’t bad. At least that’s what I thought.”
It wasn’t bad at all I thought, maybe if someone took a picture of the good night kiss, which I didn’t think anyone would, they would still be at the clubs at midnight.
“So I was summoned into his room and I was slammed. I didn’t come back with the guys, I got back close to one thirty and Tyler told my father that I went off with a girl. The way my father said it you would think girls still had cooties. So I being me told my father who you were and all the good stuff and his answer to that. You don’t need any distractions right now, you have a big game tomorrow, relax now.”
“So technically,” I started “You were bitched out by your father because of your teammate having a huge mouth because of me being a girl. Well Sid I am sorry for being the reason for you getting bitched at but is it a felony for having a life?” I ask looking up at him.
“In the Law of Troy, right now it is, but I would have rather have done my dad’s punishment then not do what we did last night.”
I blushed. Not slightly. Hard, I think with the heat in my face you could see the pink from miles away. “We don’t have to get breakfast if you think you will get in anymore trouble.”
“I don’t care about the trouble I get into, I want to know more about you. So you pick a place to eat and we will go there, and I will treat you to breakfast.”
“There’s this little coffee shop around the corner, really good.”
“Well let’s go then.” He said standing up, then reaching out for my hand. We started walking in silence, when we rounded a corner, right before we got out of the park I felt his hand intertwine with mine. “Are you sure?” I asked.
“No one will know it’s me,” He said smirking, pulling down his hat. “Just act normal, call me a different name, how about John.”
“As in John Dow,” I replied laughing. “Real creative Crosby” I said whispering.
“I try he said laughing and pulling me closer to him.”
When we got into the coffee shop and sat in the back, both sipping at our green teas. “What else in on your agenda for today, what’s your name?”
“Pre-game nap, talk to dad, talk to Dan, go to rink, play a game, get onto the flight back to the ‘Burgh. What about you smartass?”
“Ouch that hurt, I have nothing to do, and maybe I too will have to take a pre game nappy too.”
“Don’t make fun of me.” He snarls. All I can do is smile and finish my tea. It’s great just to be with him, I am so relaxed and so carefree. I hadn’t been like this since high school really, but being with Sid it’s like I can be myself, everything is off my chest and I am fifteen again, looking at my crush.
“Can I ask you something,” Sid says almost scared to be asking the question.
“mhmm,” I answer.
“It’s nothing personal or anything…” His voice drops. It must be something serious. I grab his hand, and he takes it sighing pretty hard. “it’s been bothering me a bit…umm…. After your, er accident? Why didn’t you go back to playing? Did you not get onto a team or into a college you like?”
Wow that was a loaded question my therapist didn’t even have the balls to ask me. “Well umm, John was it.” He looks serious now. “Sorry, well after I woke up, is that what you call it? I found out that I didn’t have an appendix, or a gallbladder, I had three broken ribs, and some bruised ribs. I had a bruised knee, which still hasn’t healed. And I messed up my shoulder. Yes, I did have a full scholarship to Middlebury, St. Lawrence, and Cornell for hockey. The offer still stood as far as a knew when I was recovering but when I was “resting” I could hear the doctors talking to my family and saying my chances of playing college hockey were slim in the next season which were slim anyways. I mean a freshman playing hockey in a D3 school, not likely. But anyways the doctors go on to say we don’t think she will be playing competitively again. That’s when I went downhill, which is another story. So I wrote a letter to all the schools I got accepted into and told them the situation which they all understood. I knew that Izzie and Abbey were going to school in the city, so I looked and found Berkley which I love, but I would rather be playing.”
Sid’s eyes go soft, almost like he wants to pull me into a hug. I can feel my eyes water and I want that hig more than ever. “Did you get a scholarship?” He asks softly.
“No, some girl from the west got it, good for her, free education and all. And here I am stuck paying student loans until I am forty.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t need to say anything.”
“Can I ask you something else?”
“Yea, go ahead.”
“What was the other long story?”
“Well to keep it short, I got depressed, I mean really depressed. But wouldn’t anyone, I mean I had a shot, a big one too, maybe even go to the Olympics or something. But it was crushed because of some girl from our rival town, it wasn’t fair. It also wasn’t fair that I scored the winning goal of our state championship and I didn’t see it, I couldn’t live it, I didn’t celebrate. I graduated with honors, almost couldn’t graduate. So yea, I got a little depressed. So my parents, wonderful people sent me to a therapist and still I go twice a week and we talk about the weather because you Sidney Crosby are the only one I have ever opened up to, you my friend are the only one who has gotten into Madison Martins crazy mind,” I finish now tears flowing down my cheeks. Sidney raises his hand and wipes them away.
“Well Madison Martin,” he whispers now sliding into my side of the booth, and putting his arm around my shoulder, “You are not crazy, and was never crazy. Some bitch ruined your hockey career and that was not fair.” He says kissing my forehead. “And I feel like I have a privilege of knowing your whole life story, even if sucked.” Now he is resting his lips against my ears, and I can feel his hot breathe in my ear. “I want to make your life so much better now.” I shudder, but it’s a good shudder, the one you get when you are in love and you’re touched by your lover. But I can’t be in love yet? I have only known this guy for less than 24 hours.
“I want you to too.” I whisper back looking to see if anyone is starring, which no one is. “But Sidney, I have known you for less than a day, we need to move slowly, and how if we do start to date do this, I am in New York, and you are in Pittsburgh, and my breaks I go home.”
“Slowly is good, I still have to break it to my dad that you will never be a distraction, only if you are being a distraction, and for your breaks, you should see your family, but maybe I can fit inside your schedule, and when I am in the city or in Jersey we can see each other, we will and can make it work,” and with his speech ended, he seals it with a kiss, but the kiss is barely a kiss because he briskly touches my lips. “We will make it work.”
