Fire & Fury

Chapter One

"Are you alright? You seem tense." I say softly, tilting my head to the side.

"I, uhh, yeah," he mumbles, looking down at the floor.

"You just gotta loosen up!" I say, resting my hands on his shoulders and moving him back and forth.

"Hey, what you doing? Stop," he whines, soon busting out into a contagious laughter, causing me to join in with him.

"I'm getting you loosened up. You want to have a good picture, right?" I giggle, still moving him from side to side. "I don't bite."

"Okay, okay!" he chuckles, his cheeks turning a deep shade of red.

I slowly remove my hands from his shoulders, him pouting his lips in response to my actions.

"What's wrong?" I pucker my lips, looking him in the eyes.

"That was fun," he pouts, soon a smile peaks across his face and he chuckles once again.

"Alright, alright. Let's get started." I smile, walking back to my camera.

I stand behind it and I look through the lens, watching Semyon take a deep breath before a sly smile spreads across his face. The clicking sound of my camera echoes across the room and soon I pull away from my camera.

"See? Not so bad, right?" I smile at him reassuringly, seeing him flash a smile in return.

"Do I need to do anything else?" Semyon asks, shrugging his shoulders at me in nervousness.

"I can take a picture of you in your goalie helmet," I suggest, tilting my head to the side once again.

He runs out of the room and returns with his goaltenders mask resting on top of his head. I take a picture of it resting on his head, then one of him wearing it while he glares into the camera.

"You are very photogenic." I smile, pulling away from my camera.

"Thank you," he blushes, soon resting his mask on top of his head.

"Welcome to Denver," I smile as I walk him to the doorway.

"Bye bye, Cameron," he grins and waves at me before I see him disappear into the hallway.

I continue to take pictures of the rest of the team, feeling a little bit uncomfortable when a handful of them try flirting with me. Some of the guys who I had never even heard of were total jerks, making me frustrated on the inside. Why couldn't they be like Semyon who was super sweet to me?

Practice had started as I moved all of my photography equipment towards the ice. My eyes scan the ice for Semyon, seeing him stretch his legs in ways I could not think were even possible. He does the splits and I make eye contact with him for a moment. Do the splits on me, my subconscious says. I shake my head clear of these thoughts. I wasn't that type of girl. But I could be for him, my subconscious adds.

He waves his glove hand at me and I return the friendly gesture, waving at him in reply before I hold up my camera.

"Smile!" I mouth at him, snapping a picture of him.

I take a couple more pictures of him as he purposely poses for me. I giggle to myself before I take pictures of the other Avalanche players. I prayed my camera wasn't going to die soon.

Practice had ended as I started to pack up my equipment. I would make eye contact with Semyon after every save he made during practice, mouthing the words "good job" in his direction, receiving a smile immediately afterwards.

I had packed my car with my equipment, soon sitting there for a moment in the drivers seat. My first day of being a professional photographer for the Avalanche was in the books, and I couldn't be anymore excited.

I turned the key in the ignition, hearing my car stutter in response. I try again, nothing. I sigh as I press my forehead against the steering wheel, defeat surrounding me. My car was dead. How lovely.

A knock on my window startles me. I turn my head and I see Semyon, waving slightly at me as a look of worry is written across his face. I slowly open the door and I look up at him, forcing a smile.

"Are you alright?" Semyon asks, his blue eyes looking down at me.

"No," I sigh in defeat. "My car is dead."

"Oh, no!" he exclaims, covering his mouth with his left hand. "Let me see."

I pop the hood of the car and I get out, watching him look at my car with his arms crossed over his chest. He now wears camouflage printed shorts that cut off just above his knee, a gray v-neck shirt, and a pair of black converse. He hums to himself as he looks at my car, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

"Jumper cables?" he looks over at me, raising his eyebrow.

I pull a set of jumper cables out of my trunk and soon he pulls his car up besides mine. His car was so much nicer than mine. Mine was a piece of crap that always broke down.

He hooks up the jumper cables to each of our cars. I turn the ignition, soon hearing the engine purr as I smile to myself.

I get out of the car as Semyon unhooks the cables, soon handing them back to me.

"Thank you so much!" I smile, holding the cables in my arms. "Is there any way I can repay you?"

"No, no. Do not worry," he smiles, holding his hand in air to deny my offer.

"Let me make you dinner tonight." I plead, pouting my lower lip as I give him the best sad puppy dog face I possibly could. "I know some Russian dishes."

"Hmm," he hums, rubbing the side of his face with his palm. "Okay," he adds with a smile.

I write down my address on a piece of paper. As he reaches for it, I pull it back playfully and a smirk spreads across my face.

"Seven o'clock," I whisper seductively with a wink. "Don't be late."

A/N -- Yay, first chapter of Fire & Fury is up! Sorry it sucks; and yes, I am purposely making Semyon's English incredibly bad. xD Please comment and vote! :)