Patrick
Five goals. We let in five straight goals in a span of ten minutes. The crowd was stunned, the players and coaches were pretty stunned too, we were supposed to be this big bad team and we let in almost every puck shot at the net. Even the ones they weren't shooting went in. Maybe it just wasn't our night but this is just embarrassing. People paid good money to see a game, not have our asses handed to us not even halfway into the first period.
At the end of the first we do end up getting a goal but we were still far from being able to compete. We head to the locker rooms silently and just look around not sure what to say.
"Do you think this game is over" coach Q asks. "Do you think they have it won" he continues.
"No" Jonny speaks up. That's why he's the captain.
"Then why do I feel like you guys think this is over? There are forty minutes that remain in this game. You have the same amount of time to turn this around as they do to keep going ahead. What happens from this point on is up to you. I can send you out there and the crowd can cheer you on but only you dictate which one of those happens. You're a great team, and how you show others that you're good is defying odds and rising up. Only then will other people see how great you are too" he says. He goes out and leave the room silent. Usually he just lets us do whatever and talk amongst ourselves in between periods but obviously something needs to be said.
"He's right you know" I say.
"What do you mean" Sharpy asks.
"I mean we can sit here and tell ourselves that it's just one loss. That losing by ten is the same as losing by one in the standings. But this game is more than just a few points. It's us at a crossroads looking down two paths. One is letting what happens define us and the other is defining what will happen to us. And the second path has a cup at the end so I would love to take that one" I admit.
"I think kaner is right. We go out there and chip away, one goal at a time" Jonny say.
"One goal" Sharpy repeats.
We go out there and we do get one goal, thanks to yours truly. Then another one comes and another and another. Soon enough we were tied and head into over time tied at five a piece. The crowd was really feeling it and so were we. We come out in over time and no one other than Brent seabrook scored the winner. I had a goal and assist and furthermore we completed one of the biggest comebacks in NHL history.
We get into the locker room and we were all feeing pretty good. How could we not?
"Way to fucking win boys" big buff yells.
"I feel so alive" Duncan adds on and we all laugh. What a odd man he is.
After showering and interviews we were finally set free. I head out to the car and see Danny there taking to Sharpys wife Abby and Hammers wife Elina. They say their goodbyes and I wrap my arms around my fiancé.
"Patrick... that game was amazing. Well, not the first few minutes but the rest of it was great. You guys really came together and showed why you're supposed to be this amazing team. It was a privilege to watch" she claims.
"I'm not going to lie, I wasn't happy at first. But I'm more than that to know that we are capable of defying odds" I admit. She starts to laugh before her face falls and she grabs her stomach.
"Are you okay" I ask as she groans.
"Yeah, I'm just on my period and it fucking sucks" she sighs. She starts to rub her stomach and I feel bad.
"At least your not pregnant" I say and she smiles a little.
"I wish good news didn't hurt so bad" she admits.
"Get in the car" I say and she looks at me weird.
"What? Why" she asks.
"Just trust me" I say and she nods. We get in my car and I drive the convince store. I have her wait in the car while a grabbed a few things and headed out again.
"What is all this about" she asks.
"You'll see" I smirk and she rolls her eyes.
We get home and she slowly walks in. She lays on the couch and I go to the DVD player. I pop in a movie and grab my bag of things I bought. I hand her some sprite and a tub of rocky road ice cream because I know it's her favorite. I then hand her a stuffed bear that was holding a heart that said "I love you" along with some chocolates. The words "the notebook" come on the screen as she just stares up at me while I throw this stuff at her. I give her some ibuprofen to help with the cramps and some popcorn before sitting next to her.
"What's all this for" she wonders.
"Well I think it sucks that you have to go through this every month. I know it has to hurt but you never let it effect you. I just wanted to make you feel better" I shrug and she smiles big.
"That's so sweet of you, thank you Patrick" she says softly.
"Anything for you" I insist.
"You're seriously the best, I love you so much" she says staring straight into my eyes. She didn't even have to say it, I know she loves me. I can feel it.
"I love you too. And I know I don't say it enough but you mean the world to me. In fact you are my world and seeing you in pain hurts me. Even if it is just your period I know that you could be feeling better and that's enough to make me want to do something about it. It might be something small but actions speak louder than words and I want to show you how much you mean to me. Even after a game like tonight's where I feel on top of the world, as soon as I saw you knew something was wrong, it didn't feel right. That feeling isn't a good one, but it's a important one because it makes me realize how much I need you to be okay" I explain. She puts her lips on mine and suddenly I forget what I was going to say next. It could never top the sensation of her lips on mine.
"Thank you" she says.
"For what" I wonder.
"For reminding me how great love can be."