Fire & Fury

Chapter One

There were several new faces on the team this year, including the 2nd overall draft pick Gabriel Landeskog. He was only a year or so younger than I was, which was pretty crazy. But at least I would be around someone my own age, even if it was for brief moment.

Other new face was a goalie we acquired from the Washington Capitals. Semyon Varlamov, I believe his name was. I was scared I was going to completely butcher his name, because I still wasn't one hundred percent sure how to pronounce it. The words, "the Russian one" will most likely slip out of my mouth, causing even more of an embarrassment.

I grabbed my equipment and frappucino as I slowly made my way inside the facility. I asked several faces where to go, and finally I made my way close to the media room. I set everything up, testing out my camera as I point it at several different things.

A knock on the door catches my attention. I turn around quickly to see a tall, dirty blonde male looking at me. I believe his name was Justin, if I wasn't mistaken. He was basically the head of almost everything the Avs did. He organized team events and he was the one who told me I was hired by the Avalanche.

"Are you ready for your first day on the job, Cameron?" Justin asks me, walking up to me as he holds his hand out for me to shake.

I grip his hand firmly, giving his hand three shakes before releasing it from my grasp. "I am, though I am not sure what to expect."

"The players will come in one-by-one and you will take their yearly head shot picture. We are organizing them to come in by their number, which means the goaltender will come in first because his number is one," he replies, making direct eye contact with me.

"Right," I reply unsurely. "And his name is?"

"Semyon Varlamov," he replies. "Don't fret, I just learned how to pronounce his name not too long ago," he adds with a slight chuckle.

"The players will be here in about ten minutes. They're putting their jerseys on as we speak." Justin says, giving me a reassuring smile before we say our goodbyes.

I quickly run over everything, making sure my equipment is set up properly. I take a sip of my frappucino, looking down to see the bottle completely empty. I frown as I shake the bottle in my hand. I sigh in defeat, soon tossing it into the trash can across the room.

I take a minute to fix myself, making sure my skirt wasn't wrinkly and my hair wasn't frizzy. A knock on the door catches my attention. I turn around and I see a tall, brown haired man poke his head into the room. He wears an Avalanche jersey with the number one stitched on the arms. His blue eyes lock with mine and a dimple filled smile spreads across his face. As he smiles, I notice his front tooth is chipped, adding some sophistication to his features.

"I come in now?" he asks, his English very broken as his Russian accent shows deeply. This must be him. This must be Semyon Varlamov.

"Yes! Of c-course!" I stutter nervously, watching him walk over towards me.

He holds out his hand as a smile paints across his face. "Semyon Varlamov," his accent echoes through out the room.

"Cameron Meyers," I reply, shaking his hand firmly, feeling sparks shoot through out my body. His simple touch was electrifying.

"I go over there?" Semyon asks as he points his thumb over his shoulder, gesturing to the white screen leaning against the wall.

"You guessed it!" I laugh nervously, soon walking over to my camera to have it focus on him.

Semyon stands there as if he's tense. He doesn't look comfortable at all. I notice his apprehension as I approach him, seeing him bite his lip in reply to my actions.