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"You coming, Y/N?" Viktor asked as he passed me in the hallway.
"Yep, I'll be there!" I shouted as the distance between us grew.
"Y/N!" I heard Filip calling.
"Hey you" I turned to face him as he ran towards me.
"Are you going to dinner with everyone?" He looked at me hopeful.
"I wouldn't miss it" I smiled slightly to him.
Being the only female teammate on the Nashville Predators had it's advantages and disadvantages. One major advantage was having an almost army of protectors at any given moment, it was also a disadvantage since they were almost too protective sometimes.
Filip and I became fast friends when we first met. I knew I could count on him whenever I needed to and I hoped he felt the same way. We spent a lot of our time off the ice together and if I wasn't so shy and standoffish, I would tell him about the feelings I had for him. The feelings that felt like they were about to bubble out of me a lot of times.
"Here let me take that" Filip smiled grabbing the bag I was carrying.
"I can carry my own bag Forsberg" I giggled shaking my head.
"Oh I know you can, doesn't mean I can't still carry it for you" he grinned tossing the bag over his shoulder.
There was never any wonder to why I had such strong feelings for him.
"You want to ride with me or are you going to drive separate?" He looked over at me.
"Can I ride with you?" I asked smally.
"I was hoping you'd say that" he lightly laughed.
The team was going out to dinner to celebrate the game we had just won. It was a huge win for us and the team wanted to do something to relax and celebrate all together. I made sure to snag a seat next to Filip, I was always the most comfortable around him.
"How beautiful was Y/N's goal though?" Filip asked during random conversation at the dinner table.
Little did he know that that little statement would open a giant can of worms at our 'relaxing' dinner.
"Not nearly as beautiful as she is" Juuse Saros spoke with a wink.
"Thanks" I smiled shyly and let my head fall. Embarrassment filled me to the brim and I figured dodging eye contact was in my best interest at that moment.
"I mean you have to know how gorgeous you are right, Y/N?" Ryan Johansen turned his attention to me...along with the entire team.
"I didn't...but thank you" I muttered shifting uncomfortably.
I hated being the center of attention, especially when it came with compliments. So getting compliments from my male teammates while being the center of attention at dinner had me just about ready to die.
"I'm going to the bathroom, I'll be right back" Filip squeezed my shoulder gently as he got up from the table.
My safety net was leaving me, I had to try and stop him.
"Hey, I-" I started before he cut me off.
"I'll be five seconds, I promise. I just...need to get away from this table right now." He half smiled turning away.
If only he knew how much I needed to get away from the table in that moment as well.
I always leaned on Filip for support, comfort and safety. This was definitely an uncomfortable situation I had myself in and now with Filip disappearing across the restaurant, it had just gotten ten times more uncomfortable.
My safety net had indeed left me.
The compliments continued and eventually turned into full on flirting. The only thing I could do to not make the situation any worse was to mutter quiet and shy thank you's even though the only thing I wanted to do was get up and run right out of the restaurant.
When I saw Filip coming back into sight, I breathed a sigh of relief. His smile as he grew closer to the table had my stomach in knots, his smile always made my stomach tangle. It was one of the many things I loved about him.
"No seriously" Viktor started with his hands up as Filip approached the table "if Y/N ever even gave me the time of day I would kill to take her out, I can't be the only one right?"
A rustle of conversation started softly as Filip made his way to stand next to me and before sitting down leaned forward, took my face in his hands and kissed me sweetly.
I felt like my body was going into shock. It took my brain a few seconds to catch up with what was happening before I kissed him back.
"Was that ok?" He whispered his face still barely centimeters from mine.
"No" I half smiled. "It was not ok that you stopped" I grinned as he pulled my face back to his for another quick kiss.
"Well, what were we talking about?" Filip smiled sitting back in his seat and slinging an arm around my shoulders.
"Definitely not the same thing we were a few seconds ago" Ryan laughed.
"Yeah, this" Roman motioned with his hands to Filip and I "is the new topic of conversation"
"You guys still hitting on my girl?" Filip asked looking around the group.
I tucked my face into Filips shoulder as I felt him place a kiss to the top of my head. His girl. I liked the sound of that. I was back where I wanted to be in that moment...in the comfort of my safety net.
After dinner we walked to Filip's car hand in hand.
"So, did you leave the table because you were jealous?" I finally asked him. It had been bothering me.
"I was about to lose it I was so jealous" he chuckled. "I knew I just had to go for it at that point"
"Well I'm glad you did...did you really mean it when you called me your girl?" I swallowed hard afraid of his answer.
"Only if you want to be" he stopped walking and tugged me to him by the hand.
"110%" I smiled at him before kissing him gently.
Someday I would tell him about how he made me feel long before I was able to show him but in that moment the only thing that mattered was he knew I would always be his girl, and he would always be my safety net.
