Figuring it Out

N I N E | B R E A K A W A Y

Breakaway: A situation in hockey where a player has the puck and nobody is standing in their way except the goaltender.

Xavier stood with Val beside his truck waiting for Rosaura and his sister to arrive. He only meant to invite Rosaura, but Brea invited herself as well. It was a pain in the ass, but Xavier had to admit, Brea was the one who had convinced Rosaura to come along in the first place.

"What the hell is taking them so long?" Val asked beside him swaying on his feet impatiently.

Xavier knew why he was so restless. His foot had not completely heeled and was still swollen. He was pretty sure that Val was barely able to stand up on his feet without pain.

"Go in and sit down with the guys, I'll wait for them." Xavier said.

Val scowled but did as Xavier suggested. Minutes later, Xavier watched as Rosaura's car pulled into the driveway. He could see his sister bobbing her head up-and down to whatever music they were listening to.

"You sure took your time." Val said as they made their way out of the car.

Both ignored Val but Rosaura said a quick thank you before entering the restaurant. The boys were seated near the back with menus in their hands. The familiar smell of Mexican food filled his nostrils and he sighed. He rarely went out to eat because it was unhealthy, but the roster for World Juniors was about to be announced and he was anxious. Food always provided comfort to Xavier.

"Man aren't they a rowdy bunch." Brea said nonchalantly but Xavier could see the hidden smile.

"Behave," he said warningly. There many reasons as to why he never liked Brea to be near his teammates. The biggest reason being that he feared she would hit it off with someone and when they broke up, his relationship with them on the ice would suffer. He knew his sister like the back of his hand and he knew she liked humbling the arrogant boys, which hockey players very much were.

"What's Val doing here?" Rosaura asked, looking completely surprised.

"I thought you wouldn't feel as awkward if there was another person you knew quite as well." He mumbled, trying to stop the feelings creeping into his stomach.

Rosaura gave him a sweet smile. "Thank you, that was very thoughtful."

Before he could say anything else, Val jumped from his seat before waddling towards Rosaura.

She looked at him before pulling him into a hug. "Good to see you're alive."

Val said something back to her, but Xavier couldn't hear what it was. Introductions were made among the group before they all sat down to eat. Xavier heard his aunt coming from the kitchen and he smiled at her.

"Tía Marym cómo estás?"

She looked surprise to see both him and Brea at the same table. Brea caught her gaze, "It's a long story."

His Aunt nodded before pulling them all into hugs. "It's good to see you boys again." She said referring to his teammates.

They smiled at her. Xavier had introduced a couple of his teammates to his aunt and uncle's restaurant when he was first drafted. The boys had immediately love the place due to the privacy and the food provided. They didn't have to deal with fans asking for autographs or gawking at them while they ate. It was the perfect place to hang out.

"Mi amor, I see some new faces as well."

It was Brea who introduce them. "Tía, they are an amazing ice dancing couple, practicing for the Olympics."

His aunt raised and eyebrow, hoping to learn more but Rosaura was strangely quiet. It was clear that she didn't like being talked about much. His aunt got the hint and took their orders. She disappeared into the kitchen soon after no doubt ready to spill the gossip to his uncle.

Xavier looked around the table to see that everyone was getting along well. Jett and Brea were having a quite conversation and were closer then Xavier would have liked.

"Stop scowling dude." Val said, grabbing his attention.

Xavier looked up to see the Russian's smiling face. He had learned that Val was originally born in Russia and had moved to Canada when he was two years only. He had dual citizenship but because he was partnered with Rosaura, they always represented team Canada.

"He's right." Rosaura added softly. "You don't need to be watching over her every moment. She's only talking to him."

Xavier sighed. It was true they both had a point. Xavier was about to say something to Val but found him in a heated debate with Reese. That left only him with only Rosaura to talk to. It was clear that she wasn't going to make the first move, so he did. "How's practice coming along?"

Rosaura shrugged her shoulders. "Right now, it's not." She motioned towards Val's injured leg. "He can't skate, so I do occasionally practice on my own but it's terrifying since the Nationals are only two months away."

Xavier nodded. "That sucks, hopefully he'll get better."

He didn't know what else to say so they both sat in silence. Truth be told, Xavier wasn't a charmer. Sure, he occasionally flirted and appreciated girls, but with Rosaura it was different. She wouldn't fall for his charm easily and he found himself acting like a middle-schooler around her.

Feeling uncomfortable, Xavier shifted around and, in the process, his foot brushed Rosaura's leg accidently. He saw her jump a little before biting her teeth a bit. She was doing her best not to look at Xavier. He felt like saying something, but Reese cut in.

"There is a party at my place tonight. You guys should come."

Val answered. "Rosaura's not really the partying type, I'll try to swing by with my foot in place."

The group chuckled. Val nudged Rosaura. "Although I did force her to attend a party a couple of week's ago and she had fun."

"Yeah that party was so much fun." Brea quipped in.

Xavier's head whipped towards his sister. "Now what would you know about this party?"

Brea's face whitened a couple of shades and Xavier knew he had caught his sister red-handed.

"Brea, were you at the party on a school night?" he asked calmly.

She shook her head. Xavier wanted to say more but he also knew Brea would never forgive him for embarrassing her in front of his friends.

Before he could say anything else, Rosaura cut it. "She was fine. That's where we first met. Believe it not, we left the party after only a couple of minutes."

Xavier's gazed turned towards Rosaura. She looked him straight in the eye without any fear. Xavier calmed down a little. He could trust Rosaura. She wouldn't lie about something like this. Their food arrived soon after and everyone tucked in laughing and making jokes. Xavier temporarily forgot about Brea and enjoyed himself in the company of his friends.

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