All the Ways

xiv

He picked up his car from the airport parking garage and headed home. Johnny expected to open the door and see a completely dark house, since Sean liked to go to bed early sometimes. He was greeted by the opposite. Sean was sitting on the couch, watching a rerun of SportsCentre.

"Hey man, what are you doing up?" Johnny said, setting his suitcase down.

"Just wanted to make sure you made it home safe," Sean kept his eyes on the TV, "Benny's a mess."

"I heard. He told me after it happened. Relationships are stupid." Johnny grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and took a swig.

Sean laughed, "Yeah. Every relationship is stupid, honestly. I don't know how we're doing it with Paige and Amber. I'm heading off to bed."

"Night," Johnny said, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Johnny texted Paige that he was home and that he was heading to bed. She didn't respond, nor did she read it, so Johnny assumed she went to bed.

/////

The boys got up at seven the next morning to practice. Johnny squinted at his alarm clock, wishing that he could sleep in today. But it was game day, and he got to see his girlfriend today, so he hopped out of bed quickly. He grabbed his phone and posted a quick tweet:

@johngaudreau03: So excited to end the year with a game! Can't wait to see what the new year brings 🎉🎉

Him and Sean left the house together and went off to practice. When they arrived, they noticed Sam was the only one on the ice, starting practice earlier than the rest of the team. He was cleared today, and he was going to play tonight.

/////

Amber and Paige got ready for the game, and Vivienne, who was still kind of hung up over her breakup, opted out of the game tonight. Amber begged her to come and she still wouldn't budge, so they thought it was best to not drag her somewhere she wouldn't want to be. However, Vivienne agreed to going to Joe's New Years celebration tonight, because Vivienne loved having a good fifteen drinks when she was upset.

/////

The game ended well for the team, but horribly for Sam. He kept missing passes, missing the net, skating too slowly--his game was way off tonight, and he knew exactly why. He was upset. Sam might have well stayed scratched if he was going to play this badly.

/////

Johnny exited the locker room as quickly as possible, even though he had to talk to reporters for what seemed like an eternity. He swung the doors open, and spotted Paige instantly. She was wearing her usual Gaudreau jersey, paired with a black parka, black jeans, and black boots. Her hair was in a half-up ponytail, all curled. She must've done her hair and makeup for the party tonight early, so all she had to do was change. Paige was looking down, scrolling through her phone.

"Hey." Johnny said, walking towards her.

Paige looked up and a giant smile spread across her face. She ran over to Johnny and jumped into his arms. She missed him more than anything. "Hi! I missed you so much. It's so good to see you. Oh man, I have so much to tell you!" She said quickly and excitedly.

"We can talk about it tonight. What's the plan?"

"Well, I still need to go home and change into this super cute dress, and Amber left early to go get ready so she took my car. So I guess I will walk home and meet you at Joe's."

Johnny laughed and wrapped an arm around her as they walked to the parking garage, "Or you don't walk home. I take you home, see you in your beautiful dress, and we can head to Joe's."

"That sounds good too."

Johnny's black SUV beeped, and Paige jumped in the passengers seat. During the drive, Paige talked Johnny's ear off about San Francisco, "I know you've been to San Jose many times, but San Francisco is so beautiful, Johnny. You need to come!"

He kept his eyes on the road and smiled, "Beautiful girl from a beautiful city."

She chuckled, typing on her phone, "Shut up, Johnny."

Johnny's phone buzzed in the cupholder, but it was just a tweet notification from Paige.

@paige_ellis: Nothin better than being back in Calgary with my boy 💗🎊 @johngaudreau03

Johnny peeped his screen and smiled. It was good to be back.