Dedicated to SadieSummers , thank you so much for Cam's imagine& support :D
You lived near your favorite NHL team's practice facility and it was not unusual for you, your best friend and sometimes her boyfriend, who happened to be your brother and a hockey player, currently playing for Chicago Blackhawks, to spend every spare hour at the rink. Mostly skating, but sometimes, when your brother was away, also hanging on a fence, gossiping and bragging about guys with you friend. She, unlike you, was not really keen on skating. Hockey? Yes. Skating? Not that much.
~~~
It was just an ordinary Californian evening and you and your best friend were skating laps. With no one there, you two had the whole ice for yourselves, so you picked up your stick (since you became a part of U.S. National team, you couldn't let it down) and decided to teach your friend few useful puck-handling tricks. Completely in teaching, you did not see few guys watching you and whispering something to each other, until your friend stopped you, pointing at their direction. You stopped in a split second and stared in disbelief. It was few guys from LA Kings, your favorite team, and the one staring directly at you was no one else than number 11, Anže Kopitar, forward from, until his arrival to you unknown country, Slovenia.
"Y/B/F/N, can we go, please?"
"Why? Don't you want their autographs?"
You looked at her and tried to move her away and off the ice, but it was too late. They approached you two, grinning widely.
"Well, I've never seen a girl handle a puck like that. Where did you learn it?" asked Anže and your heart skipped a beat. He spoke to you! And he complimented your puck-handling skills.
"She is in U.S. National team," answered your best friend when she noticed your disability to speak.
"In that case... maybe you could join us sometimes. Your skills could be useful to make our rookies feel worthless," laughed Doughty and stretched his hand: "Drew Doughty. And you are?"
"Y/N. Y/L/N. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too, Y/N. And I was serious, it'd be great if you joined us."
You nodded and smiled lightly. Drew moved away and slowly the whole team introduced themselves. Of course you knew everyone's name, but you pretended to be a bit clueless, not wanting to make them think you are a bit obsessed with them. Lastly, Anže shook your hand , but held it for few seconds longer than the others. You felt blush creeping up your cheeks and you looked down on the ice.
"So... would you join us?"
"I'd love to, but I am here with..."
"Actually, Y/N, your brother just called me. He is back in town and he will pick me up."
"But we came to-..."
"Yes, but I haven't seen your brother since the day he left and I'd like to spend some time with him. Beside, my legs hurt," your best friend remained persistent and going by the look in her eyes, you stood no chance against her already made up mind. Realizing that, you gave up, but deep inside thanked her for not backing off.
"Are you sure you're going to be alright?" you asked her.
"Positive. And have fun," she chuckled and hugged you. Then she whispered to your ear: "Don't forget to tell me everything later."
You gently nodded, promising her quietly you'd tell her everything.
~~
Two hours later, you are exhausted but satisfied. Everything you've ever dreamt of came to life. You actually practice-played hockey with LA and even more! You played forward with Anže. Whenever you were together on ice, you two were unstoppable. You knew exactly where to pass and so did he.
At the end of the practice, Gaborik lightly slapped your shoulder and said in that Slovakian accent of his: "Great job. You two really had chemistry out there."
"6th sense," you joked, trying to conceal how happy you felt.
Gaborik looked at you one last time before he went to a locker room. You thought you were left alone, but there was someone else on the ice.
"Marian was right," you heard someone say behind your back and you almost fell on your butt. It was Anže, grinning widely. You smiled back, suddenly frozen and not knowing what to do. He skated closer and leant down. His breath tickled your ear when he said quietly: "You should join us at every practice. I'll talk to the coach."
"But...how will I know?"
"You can give me your number and I'll give you a call. And maybe we could go out sometimes," he said and planted a small kiss on your cheek.