So Be It // o. maatta

Chapter One Cont.

Chapter One Cont. Alex's POV:

After crawling out of my car, and hoofing it from the second level, down to the street, I stepped onto the busy Pittsburgh sidewalk, still amazed by all the hustle and bustle.

I wandered aimlessly, until I made my way down to Point State Park, the park that was resided at 'The Point'. 'The Point' was what locals called the area where the rivers met.

See, Pittsburgh had three main rivers; the Allegheny, the Monongahela, and the Ohio. At 'the Point', the Allegheny, and the Monongahela bled together, to form the Ohio. And right at the Point, there was this big-ass fountain.

Finding an empty area in which tourists weren't taking half-ass photos of the larger-than-life fountain, I sat on the concrete steps, and began reading. Within twenty minutes, I finished my book and was hungry for a new story.

I had decided I'd take the opportunity to check out the Duquesne book store. Which was just a few blocks up from my location.

I walked along the Allegheny River, and back to into the chaos of the downtown. After crossing a few streets, I found myself outside a Barnes and Noble, with a large Duquesne poster hanging in the front window. Interestingly enough, the store was only a two minute walk from Consol Energy Center, where my brother's hockey team played.

Reaching out, I grasped, and opened the thick, glass door, and felt a wave of entirely too cold air conditioning hit me. I shivered slightly, and walked back to the mystery section of the store. Mystery books seemingly fueled my existence.

I strolled up and down the aisles of the bookstore, hoping to spot a book that I had not read, that I would enjoy.

Eventually, I ended up in an aisle with one other person in it; A tall, lanky, blonde haired, baby-faced guy who looked to be about my age. He had a book in his hand, and appeared to be examining it. I caught a glimpse of it, and noticed it was the book 'Nail in the Coffin' by Timothy Burke, one of my favorite authors.

"That's a really good book," I told him softly, and spontaneously. I wasn't really one for talking to strangers. Even if they were cute guys in the bookstore. "I'm sure you'd love it."

He looked up, saw me, and blushed deeply. "It sounds," He cleared his throat, " It sounds like it."

He took a few steps closer to me, and stuck out a shaking hand. "I'm Olli."

I shook his hand. "I'm Alex."

We stood there awkwardly for a few moments, me staring down at my Chucks, before he said, "I've never seen you here before. Are you new to Pittsburgh?"

I nodded, slowly. "Yeah, um, I'm actually from Whitby, Ontario. I just came to Pittsburgh to start college."

His face lit up. "You're from Whitby? I know someone from Whitby!"

I tilted my head, but wasn't that surprised. Whitby was a decent sized town. "Really? What's their name?"

"James." He told me, cooly. "James Neal."

I just about choked on my own saliva. I began chuckling.

"What, what is it? Is something wrong? Was it something I said?" He quickly asked.

I shook my head. "No, it's just," I chuckled some more. "James is my older brother."

He went pale as a ghost. "Oh, then I suppose you've met him."

I nodded, with a smile. A genuine smile. "Once or twice. How do you know him?"

I watched as Olli ground his toe into the faded gray carpet of the shop. "Oh, uh, well I'm actually going to the Penguins training camp. I'm kinda, well, a Penguin."

I felt the color drain from my face. I was attracted to my brother's teammate.

"Well, Miss Neal, what I'm about to ask is probably wildly inappropriate due to the fact that your big brother is my teammate, but, would you like to get a coffee?"

I couldn't help but smile. There was something about him that was just genuinely adorable. I hardly knew the guy, and was practically weak at the knees, already. "I'd love to."

He smiled a gentle smile, and laid the book back on the shelf. "It can wait." He told me.

We began walking to the Starbucks that was inside the store, when I noticed he was wearing black Converse All Star low-tops. I just about died. He was adorable, and he played hockey, and he asked me if I wanted to get coffee, and he wore Converse? He seemed almost too good to be true.

"So what college are you going to?" He asked me.

"Duquesne University. Pre-med major, with an English minor."

His eyes grew wide. "Good god, that must be a lot of work."

"Classes technically haven't started yet, but it will definitely a lot."

We walked up to the counter, and he ordered a small black coffee. I ordered a small, straight hot tea. I began to pull cash out of my pocket, but Olli told me he'd pay. I insisted I'd pay for myself, but then he told me that it would not be gentlemanly of him. Eventually, he won. We selected, and sat at a table in the corner of seating area, up against the window, that overlooked the sidewalk.

Olli was wearing a navy blue polo shirt that accented his light blonde hair perfectly. His skin was pasty and acne covered, which I thought was adorable. I got lost in his light-colored eyes as he began to talk...

Olli's POV

Her dark brown eyes watched me intently as I spoke. She looked like a carbon copy of James, except she had brown eyes while his were green. They both had dark brown, almost black hair, and pasty skin. They both had pale pink lips, and wide smiles made up of straightened teeth. Her hair looked straightened, and fell down over her shoulders, and to mid-chest length. Her face looked bare of any make-up, which was nice. She had acne on her forehead. She was beautiful. She wasn't fake and covered up, she was real, and inviting.

She took a sip of her tea and then said, "So what position do you play? You look like a defenseman, so my money is on defense."

I smiled. "Yeah. Defense. I tried to play forward when I was about 12, but it was awkward for me. Scoring isn't exactly a knack I possess."

Alex ran her fingers through the front section of her hair. "I used to play defense. I loved the feeling of beating someone to the puck, or firing the puck in from the point. Scoring wasn't all-that appealing.

I coughed on the sip of coffee I had in my mouth. "You, you played hockey?"

"Yeah. Do I not look like a hockey player?" She challenged.

I shook my head. "No, not at all. You're, you're gorgeous."

I had never seen anyone's cheeks become so red. She stared at the tea in the mug. "You're pretty handsome yourself." She told me softly.

"Alex." I murmured. "Would you, maybe, want to go on a date with me?"

She grinned. "I'd love to." She bit her lip, then said, "There's something undeniably likeable about you."

My cheeks burned like mad. "The same thing could be said about you."

We both sat there red-cheeked, until she asked, "Are you doing anything Friday night?"

I shook my head no. "Not a thing. Why?"

She shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I was, I was wondering if, well, you'd like to walk downtown with me? Like, at night. You probably knew that by the fact that I said 'Friday Night' didn't you? Damn. Well, uhm, would you?" She was adorable when she babbled.

I leaned on the table, and looked across, into her deep brown eyes. "I'd be honored to."