5. January 17, Monday #2
Ian nodded wisely. “Seriously. That’s pro level. I’ve never seen a play that confidently elaborate, and you know Barney Stinson is my spirit animal. I even have my own playbook. But that…” He whistled in appreciation, sharing an awed look with Tommy. “That’s the goat of long plays.”
Ilya placed his hands palm down on the table so he didn’t choke their star winger and high scoring center.
“There is no tortoising. Whatever the fuck that means. There was no long con, no diabolical plan. No late nights wishing upon a star that she’d realize that she belonged with me.
” Well, not that many wishes. He had his own Taylor Swift playlist for the rougher nights. “We both loved Mitch too much—”
Tommy’s mouth quirked and a teasing glint came across his face.
The implication of what he’d just said landed. Ilya rolled his eyes and corrected himself before Tommy could turn it into something that got everyone distracted and off course.
“In very different ways, obviously. To ever even think about that. It never crossed our minds. And it never will."
“I mean…” Jason muttered, eyes darting anywhere but Ilya’s face, “…it crossed your mind. So maybe it crossed hers.”
Fucking fucker. Ilya couldn’t even spit out a retort—his brain was too busy doing gymnastics, trying to process the last half hour.
There was no way Zoey ever felt anything for him.
Sure, he’d wished it, wanted to see some spark in her eyes meant for him. But that was fantasy. What did he have that Mitch didn’t?
Nothing.
"Man, I don't know how you did it," Christian chimed in, shaking his head. "If I were in your shoes, I'd have definitely made a move."
“Duly noted,” Ty said with a scowl at Christian. “On a side note, stay the fuck away from Ashley when she visits.”
Christian laughed and flicked water from his straw at Ty. “You know what I mean. Not for just any hottie with a body, would a bro deviate from the code. But for love? Love wins all, man.”
“No one said anything about love,” Ilya hastened to interrupt before that became the company line. He didn’t need that pinging around their heads as the gospel truth. Ilya turned to scowl at Jason, happy to blame him for this entire conversation.
"Sure, no one said anything about love, per se. But we aren’t blind. And now your past aversion to relationships makes a little more sense,” Tommy teased before finishing the last of his bright pink pre-workout.
“I don’t have an aversion to relationships,” Ilya grumbled, giving Tommy a dark look. “I just don’t have the time, energy, or mental capacity to actually nurture a real relationship during the season.”
“And during the summer?” Tommy continued to push.
“Yeah, I’m really going to find true love during those few weeks in the off-season.”
“Hey, no one said anything about true love! There you go, gents. Bogo is on the brain!” Tommy boomed, throwing his arms wide as if Ilya just proved his point.
“Oh, fuck off,” Ilya ground out.
Tommy chuckled, but Pavel, one of their younger guys, looked seriously pensive. “Why not, Cap? They’re divorced. She’s single. You’re single. Why not go for it?" His young face looked at him, open and encouraging, and Ilya once again wished to be anywhere but here.
“Maybe because he’s not Christian and the bro code means something to him?” Ty added sardonically.
“Maybe he’s a chicken,” Ian shot back.
He didn't need his teammates poking at the barely contained emotions he was struggling to keep in check.
“Maybe,” Ilya interrupted before anyone else could chime in, “I don’t want to ruin my friendship with Mitch for asking out his ex-wife.
” As Tommy opened his mouth again, Ilya rushed to continue, “and maybe, I’ve never gotten any vibe from her that she would even be interested in that, and I don’t feel like making things awkward and losing her from my life irreparably. ”
“For what it’s worth, I think you should go for it,” Bobby said while turning a page and not looking up. His reading glasses had slipped down his nose and he pushed them up absently, without saying anything more.
Ty raised his blonde eyebrows at Bobby’s uncharacteristic unsolicited contribution and tried to fill the silence.
“Uh, I think what he means to say, is you shouldn’t be scared of losing her…
and you might find that the rewards are worth the risks?
” Ty said the last part as a question, like he wasn’t quite sure his interpretation of his best friend’s comment was correct.
Ty needn’t have worried. Bobby heaved a sigh and looked up, like he was being distracted from finishing a really good scene.
“What I mean is, she seems like she likes you. You should ask her out. And if nothing else, you will at least know you tried, and maybe it will cause her to see you differently. Then, you’ll know for sure.
Better than wondering what might have been.
Trust me. And, from what you’ve said about her, she seems to be pretty sharp.
At least in your case, you’d have the benefit of asking out a woman who actually picks up on the social cues of those around her. ”
“Thea is pretty unobservant…” Jason muttered on a grin.
“Not unobservant,” Bobby correctly gently.
“Just…mentally distracted. She’s constantly thinking of a million different things and doesn’t process…
things quite the same way as most of us.
It’s…probably something that should have been noticed when she was a kid…
but over the years I’ve read a lot on neurodivergent processing types and I try to always have that awareness when I’m witnessing her make an unnecessarily harsh critique.
” Bobby swung his legs to the side as he prepared to stand.
“But Zoey isn’t Thea and I’m sure she comes with her own idiosyncrasies.
Regardless, if she’s as amazing as you say she is, then she’s worth the risk.
” And with that, Bobby stood, slid his slim paperback into the back pocket of his jeans, and headed off down the hall.
Jason pinched his lips together to stop his smile and slapped his palms good naturedly on the table. “Well…Okay then.” He gave another slap and stood. “See you gents shortly.” With a nod to Ilya, Jason then proceeded to follow Bobby down the hall towards the team’s film rooms.
Ty grinned and shifted as if to stand as well.
“To be fair, Ashley can be pretty harsh too. But I don’t think that’s a brain thing.
I think that’s an upbringing thing.” Ty winked.
“But I like her level of haughty. But as sexy as it is, for your sake, I hope Zoey’s a little gentler.
Now that Ash is a hockey fan, if I have a bad night…
I hear about it after.. In a loving way, of course.
” Ty’s beaming smile and bright eyes showed that he’d take Ashley’s shit-giving all day long, as long as she’s talking to him.
"Regardless, we've got your back, man. Whatever happens, we're here for you. "
“And your crush will stay a secret.” Pavel made a motion like he was zipping his lips. “Like Christian’s STD.” That earned the young winger a shoulder check from his now red-faced and swearing linemate.
The guys got up and headed down the hall, off to the next parts of their day.
Ilya’s chest felt tight.
He couldn’t see Zoey giving him shit for a bad game.
Instead, he remembered countless nights where she sat with him at aftergame parties or in a quiet corner of his and Mitchell’s apartment, talking the game through with him, breaking down where he thought things went wrong and what he could do better.
She wasn’t a critic. She was a cheerleader.
An unwavering beacon of support and encouragement.
No, Zoey wouldn’t be a harsh critic at all.
"Hey," Tommy said, snapping his fingers in front of Ilya's face. "You good?"
"Yeah, just…thinking," Ilya replied, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. He forced a smile. "We probably should get going so we’re not late to film review. You know how Coach gets if we drag in even remotely close to start time."
Tommy gave a pointed look to the vacant table, and then looked down to his own feet, which he was standing on. “Uh, yeah, we know. Hence why we’re all leaving. You’re the one stuck in fantasy land.”
Ilya gave him a sheepish grin and urged him to go on ahead. “I’ll be there in a minute.”
Tommy shook his head with a put-upon sigh, but his grin gave him away.
He clapped a big hand on the back of Ilya’s neck and gave it a firm squeeze.
“Can’t believe you went to Bobby about her and not me.
Fucking dick.” He gave Ilya a rough, brotherly shake before peeling off toward the others, leaving Ilya sitting there with his thoughts spiraling.
As Tommy’s hulking tattooed form disappeared down the hall, Ilya glanced around the small but mighty cafeteria, his mind still swirling with thoughts of Zoey.
He loved Springfield and felt more at home here than he had anywhere else in his life.
He could name ten places right off the bat that he’d love to show Zoey because he knew how much she’d appreciate them.
Ilya could name the meal she would order from the Five Hole and exactly how she’d order her drink.
He knew how big her eyes would get when he took her to the Basketball Hall of Fame, and how she’d lose, repeatedly, at the local casino but still laugh and place another bet.
Having her back in his life would be as incredible as it would be painful.
He wasn’t looking forward to constantly battling back the feelings he'd long stifled, but if that was the price to pay for having her back in his life…it would be worth it.
Maybe.
The problem was…if she was back in his life…how did he manage that…without losing Mitch?
He’d put on a big show earlier, but he wasn’t entirely sure that Mitch would be so understanding about Ilya resuming his tight friendship with Zoey.