31
Sasha
I love hockey. If you had told me a year ago that I’d willingly spend my evenings and weekends sitting in a freezing arena where my nipples could cut through the ice while I scream at grown men on skates, I would have laughed in your face.
Now though? If the Flames are playing at home, I’m there. I’m basically the world's most supportive fake girlfriend.
Olivia is still working as the team photographer part-time, which means tonight, she gets to sit in the stands with me.
We are always offered the family box, but being in the stands is so much more fun.
The atmosphere is electric. Every hit shakes the glass.
The screams of the fans are loud enough to burst ear drums, and the smell is…
well it’s not great but it’s all a part of the appeal.
Our team is playing well tonight, but those other bastards are roughing it up, making it almost impossible for our boys to get anywhere near the net.
“What is wrong with these refs tonight? They’re useless.
” I say to Olivia, who’s nursing a giant tub of popcorn on her lap.
“Open your fucking eyes! He was clearly off-side!” I scream down at the linesmen but even if they could hear me, they probably wouldn’t understand what I’m saying because they’re so fucking stupid.
“You having fun, babe?” Liv asks around a mouthful of popcorn.
“I really am.” We laugh together just as Conor gets back on the ice, a determined look on his sexy face.
God, watching him play is amazing. He’s so hot and focused and sweaty.
It’s such a turn on. I want to lick every inch of that man clean when he gets home tonight.
He deserves it after that goal he scored.
Hopefully he’ll score again later and put his puck in my net. I chuckle to myself at the thoughts swirling around in my head but my stomach flutters, my pussy throbs and I can feel my cheeks heating even though it’s cold as balls in here.
“What’s so funny?” Olivia asks, a curious look on her face.
I bite back my grin. “Nothing.”
Conor skates around the ice with so much ease. It’s like it's his second home. There are no thoughts behind his every move, just pure instinct and muscle memory.
Josh takes the puck down the ice before passing it off to Daniel Michaelson. At the same time Daniel hits the puck towards the goal, a gigantic beast of a man bulldozes towards Conor, shoving him with everything that he's got.
It feels like all the air leaves my lungs at the sound of Conor hitting off the boards. It’s deafening and I think I'm the only person in this whole arena who heard it. Everyone else is screaming and banging on the floors and the glass as Daniel scores and the buzzer sounds.
Everyone jumps to their feet. Everyone except me.
I’m searching the ice. I can’t see Conor behind the masses of people in front of me, blocking my view of the ice.
“Can you see Conor down there?” I ask my best friend who’s cheering beside me.
She doesn't seem to hear me, too busy lost in the feeling of our team scoring another goal and evening the score.
The celebration slowly dies down and people begin sitting again. I scan the ice. Josh. Knight. Johnson. Michaelson. Where’s Conor?
God, I feel sick. The Flames are all crowded in one area of the ice, the same area Conor got hit. No one is celebrating anymore. The game has officially stopped and Josh raises his hand, signalling frantically towards the bench. A medic climbs over the boards.
Oh God. No. My stomach bottoms out, falling through my ass as another medic appears.
“I need to get down there.”
Olivia finally looks at me. “Why? What’s going on?” I frantically look around, trying to figure out which side of the row would be quickest to get to Conor. “Jesus, Sash. You look like you’ve seen a ghost. What’s wrong?”
“Conor’s hurt.” I say as more medics rush onto the ice, joining the group of hockey players.
“Don’t panic, Sasha. They get hurt all the time. I’m sure he’s fine.”
“Does that look like he’s fine?” I snap at her, too stressed to give a shit. The whole team looks worried, standing back from the medics to give them space to work.
“Come on.” Liv says, standing with me. We squeeze past the other watchers who are eager to know what’s going on, leaving the arena and racing down the hall to the back of the building. “I have my pass in my bag. We can go down and see what’s happening.”
The adrenaline flows through me and my lungs burn, but I don’t stop running. It feels like hours pass before we finally make it down, Olivia using her pass to get us to where the tunnels begin. “We need to wait here, Sash. You can’t go onto the ice.”
“Like hell I can’t” I march straight past her and towards the rink side.
The arena is deathly silent now, the goal that was just scored long forgotten.
A security guard built like a brick wall blocks the entrance.
He looks like he’d be more suited to be a prison officer.
He’s huge, muscles straining through his clothes, arms folded, wide stance. He looks so intimidating.
Getting closer, I can see the medics working on Conor through the opening of the rink side, but I can’t see him. There are too many people crowded around them, blocking the view from the spectators.
The security guard is so intent on watching the medics that he won’t pay any attention to little old me sneaking past him.
Perfect. This is when my height can be used as an advantage.
This man is so tall, taller than most of the hockey team on skates, his head is so high up in the clouds that he’ll never see me down here if I sneak past quietly.
I just need to keep low and stay quiet. Light feet, Sash. It’s like I’m on the prowl, my eyes set on my prey before I pounce. I swear, I could be a ninja or something with how stealthily I’m moving-
“Sasha!” I snap my head back to Olivia with a glare. The security guard turns, meeting my eye. For fucks sake! I was so close. I’ve never wanted to strangle her more than I do now.
“You can’t go through here, miss.” The man says in a gravelly voice that sounds like he’s been smoking fifty a day since he was pushed out of his momma.
“Yes I can.” I walk on, feigning control and importance. If I look like I’m meant to be here, maybe he’ll believe that I am. It probably won’t work but it’s worth a shot.
I don’t even make it three steps before two large hands circle my upper arms, dragging me back. “Don’t touch me!” I lash out, pulling my arms free from the man’s grasp. “I need to make sure he’s okay.”
“The ice is restricted. It’s for officials and players only.”
“Just turn your head the opposite way for thirty seconds and act like you didn’t see anything.” I plead with him. Puppy dog eyes activated, working my charm. “Please? I need to know Conor isn't hurt.”
“Nice try.”
“Sash, let’s just go. We’ll wait around back.”
“No, Olivia. He’s clearly hurt,” I fling my arm back in the direction of the ice, “He needs me.”
“Unless you’re a paramedic, he doesn’t need you.” The security guard says. God, I wanna punch him in the face but I don’t think I could reach.
I look at the man’s name badge attached to his uniform and then train my eyes up at his face again. “Look, Otis,” Really? Otis? I was expecting something a little scarier like Bain or Lucifer, not fucking Otis, “My boyfriend is out there, clearly hurt, I need you to let me past right now.”
“Ma’am, if I have to tell you again, I will remove you from the building.”
I square my shoulders, “How will you do that if I don’t give you permission to touch me?” I fire back, acting like an entitled brat.
“I would have no issues picking you up and carrying you out of here. It wouldn't be too hard.” He shrugs. “My son is five and probably bigger than you.”
“Oh, ha ha. Funny man.” I retort with a sarcastic laugh, “Not the best height joke I’ve heard but maybe all that altitude sickness has got to your head.”
He steps forward with a look of thunder on his face at the same time as Olivia grabs my arm, pulling me away. “That’s enough, Sash.” She hisses, dragging me back down the tunnel. “What is wrong with you? Why are you acting like that?”
“Because he’s hurt, Liv. I can’t just sit and watch like everyone else. I need to be with him.”
“Because you love him?”
I stop walking and just stare at her. “What? I don’t love him.”
“Oh please. You were the only person who realized he was hurt. You were watching him instead of the game. I’ve never seen you so worked up like you are now.”
“I’m supposed to be his girlfriend, Olivia. How did you expect me to react?”
“Supposed to be his girlfriend or are his girlfriend?”
“We’re friends. I care about him. I don’t love him though, not like that.”
“Okay.” She says, holding her hands up in surrender.
“I mean it.”
“I said okay.” She sighs heavily, “Let’s just go around back and see if we can get any more info.”
We walk to the back of the building, where an ambulance sits waiting at the exit. Fuck, he must be really hurt. My heart is hammering in my chest. Every second of waiting feels like an hour.
The back door of the arena finally swings open. Conor appears on a stretcher and my heart drops into my stomach.
He’s pale, wrapped in a blanket with his eyes closed.
I instinctively move towards but get stopped once again by another two security guards. I don’t even argue this time. I just stand there and watch as the stretcher disappears into the ambulance.
I feel like a piece of my heart gets shut behind the doors when they slam shut.
I meant what I said to Liv. I do love Conor, but not in the way she thinks.
He’s become one of my best friends, someone I tell everything to, someone who would never judge me or ask me to change anything about myself.
He’s an amazing man and I am so lucky to have him in my life, as my friend.
I know it doesn’t make sense that I’m also sleeping with him, but we both know the deal we made. So what if I have started to get feelings for him? He doesn’t feel the same way. I just have to remember that at the end of the day, none of this is real.
Coach walks out through the exit doors, spotting Olivia and me off to the side and makes his way over.
His expression softens the second he sees my face.
“I think it would be best for you to follow the ambulance to the hospital.” Coach sighs, shaking his head slightly. “He’s gonna need you when he wakes up.”