“Pat, where the hell are we going?” I ask, following him into the rink.
“We’re going for a skate!” He announces, smiling.
“At three in the morning? We’re not allowed to be here! If we get caught we could get in serious trouble. I’m not trying to go to jail at sixteen years old.”
“Oh my God, Leah. If we get caught we’ll just get reprimanded or something. We won’t get arrested. We’re only kids. If anything, the most trouble we’ll get in is with our parents.”
I sigh.
“Pat, so help me if I get in trouble....” He laughs.
“If you get in trouble, you’ll what? Beat me up? We both know that’s not going to happen.”

I smile at my best friend, knowing he’s right. I lightly punch him on the shoulder as we reach the ice and take out our skates. He laughs at my figure skates, always making fun of them. I can’t help it, though. I’m a figure skater. It’s all I wear.

We quickly lace them up and step out onto the ice, the familiar feel of my gliding blades forcing a smile across my face.

“Show me what you’ve been working on.” He asks.
Pat will never admit it, but he loves watching figure skating. I catch him all the time watching our practices when he’s waiting for his mom to pick him up. Gaining speed, I throw myself into a single Lutz.
“You’ve been doing that one for years.” Pat laughs.
“Well I have to warm up first!” I chide.

The next ten minutes I build up my jumps, eventually reaching the one skill I’ve been working on for the past month. I almost have it, and it’s frustrating me that I don’t. As usual, I almost land it. But also as usual, I end up landing on my butt.

“You okay?” Pat asks, skating over to me.
“Frustrated I can’t seem to land it. But other than that, yeah.” I respond.
He grabs my arms and pulls me up, drawing me into a hug.

I blush at the feeling. Even though Pat and I have been best friends for years, the past couple months I’ve been feeling more about him. I’ve been catching myself staring when he’s not looking at his goofy blonde hair and his big smile. And the way that over the past couple years his body has started to really look good. He’s one of the best hockey players in the country right now, and I know he’s thinking about going to the NHL. He definitely looks like he could do it.

“You know, one day I’m going to make it to the NHL.” He says, still hugging me. “And you’re going to make it to the Olympics. I’m going to be a Stanley Cup champion and you’re going to be a gold medalist.”

I chuckle.
“That’s the dream, isn’t it?” I ask.
“Can I tell you something?”
“You can tell me anything, Pat.”
He looks at me and I can practically see the debate doing on in his head. Instead of saying anything, he surprises me by dipping his head down and attaching our lips together. I freeze for a second, wondering if this is real. But then my body reacts immediately and I press back, deepening our kiss. It’s the most wonderful feeling I’ve ever had, and I don’t want it to end.
“I think I’m falling for you.” He says, pulling away.

-----------------

Ten years later I find myself standing on the podium in Sochi, accepting my third straight Olympic medal. And just like Pat promised me a couple weeks ago, this time it’s finally gold. Tears form in my eyes as I lower my head so the band can slip over my neck.

I feel guilty for being so happy. Pat and the rest of Team USA Hockey practically imploded in their tournament, coming away without a medal at all. I was convinced that they were going to seriously contend for the gold this year. To see your boyfriend fail like that is crushing.

I look into the crowd and wave, holding up my bouquet of flowers. I spot the familiar American flag that my family has held at all three of my Olympic medal ceremonies and smile towards them. I see the familiar blonde head waving to me, and can’t hold back the tears that slip down my cheeks.

After the medal ceremony, I practically sprint back to the athlete’s village. I won’t be able to see my family today, but I’ll at least be able to see my boyfriend.

“Leah!” I hear as I walk towards the Team USA House.
Turning, I spot a bunch of large guys in Tram Canada jackets.
“Jon!” I cry, leaping into my friend’s arms.
“Congratulations!” He laughs, spinning me in a circle. “I’m pretty sure I deserve the right to say I told you so!”
“You do!” I laugh.
“Okay, okay. Let’s see this hardware.” Patrick Sharp says, wrapping his arms around me.

I hold up my medal and my Blackhawk friends cheer.
“Now you match us!” Jon says.
“Yup! Except I still have one more than you, Toes.” I joke, getting a laugh out of the rest of Team Canada.
“Well I have two golds, missy. Pretty sure that beats two silvers.”
“Whatever you say, Cap. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a boyfriend to celebrate with.”

I hug each of my friends goodbye and make my way back to the USA house, only to be swept into a pair of huge arms as soon as I walk through the door.

“You won!” The arms yell.
I turn around and find James Van Riemsdyk smiling at me.
“I did! Did you watch it?” I ask.
“Yeah, we all did!” He responds, pointing to the large group of men in the next room. “We threw popcorn at the screen when they showed Kaner, but other than that we just cheered for you!”
“That’s so sweet, James.” I laugh, imagining the entire USA hockey team throwing popcorn at Pat. It could definitely happen. “Where is Pat?”
“He just got back like two minutes ago. Said he had to run to his room and if you showed up to keep you down here.” He responds, a smirk playing on his lips.
“Okay...” I start as he leads me to the room with the rest of the hockey team.

As soon as I get into the room, they all burst into cheers and I’m passed around from hug to hug. It’s a strange feeling for me. Figure skating is an individual sport, so I’ve never had that sense of family like they do. And to think that most of these guys are rivals during the NHL season, it baffles me that they can come together and be a family during the Olympics.

Phil Kessel pulls me into a hug just as I hear another round of cheers and when he lets me go, I turn to see Pat coming through the door. He smiles brightly at me and I go running into his arms the same way I did at my previous Olympics, jumping up and wrapping my legs around him. He presses his lips to mine and instantly deepens the kiss. We ignore the catcalls from behind me and get lost in each other for a minute.

“I’m so proud of you.” He says, lowering me to the floor. “Let’s go for a walk.”
I look at him, confused. But nod my head and allow him to lead me out the door. He takes my hand and we start walking around the athlete’s village.

“You know, it sucked so bad losing the bronze medal game.” He says, rubbing my hand. “I really thought we were going to win gold and then we didn’t even win any medal at all.”

“Pat-” I start.

“Just listen, okay?” I nod. “You know how I am when I lose. It takes me forever just to smile again after a regular game. And with everything going on with the way I’ve been playing terribly and losing my grandfather, I’m pretty sure I should be in the most depressed state ever right now. But- fuck, Leah.” He sighs. “I can’t find it in me to be even slightly upset right now. Because I just watched you win an Olympic gold medal!” He smiles, tugging me towards the giant Olympic rings. “I can’t help but smile so big when I look at you. I see this gold around your neck and my heart soars. So what if I didn’t win? You did. And that, to me, is the greatest feeling in the world.”

I gently kiss his lips, a smile growing on my face.

“You know, right after you won Olympic Trials my grandfather called me.” He says, rubbing my hands together. “He said he watched the entire thing. You know how much he hates figure skating.” I laugh, thinking about the old man’s severe distaste for my sport. “He told me that it didn’t matter that we’ve been together on and off for ten years. He said if I don’t grow some balls soon and officially make you mine, I’m probably going to lose you. Because you’re just too perfect.”

I shake my head, appalled at the idea of ever being with anyone other than Pat.

“I think he’s right.” Pat says, reaching into his pocket. He pulls out a small box and looks at it, his hands shaking. “I’m so fucking nervous right now.” He laughs. “Leah, you’re the only girl I’ve ever been in love with. I made a stupid reputation for myself because I thought that if I just hooked up with random girls all the time and never got another girlfriend it was okay. But even though we weren’t even together, I still consider each of those girls as a time I cheated on you. Because my heart has always belonged to you. I’ve always been with you. And I never want to be with anyone else.”

He takes a breath and takes a step back from me, bending down so he’s on one knee. He opens the box, revealing a sparkling diamond ring.

“What I’m trying to ask, Leah, is will you marry me?”

My hand flies to my heart and I smile brightly at the perfect man in front of me.

“Yes, Patrick. Of course I’ll marry you!” I say.

His eyes sparkle and he flashes me that signature Kaner smile. He stands up and takes the ring out of the box, sliding it onto my finger. His lips crash onto mine and I suddenly hear a round of cheers coming from behind me.

I turn and see the majority of both Team USA and Team Canada on the hill with their phones out, taking pictures of us. I chuckle slightly.

“How long have they been there?” I ask.
“The whole time.” Pat says, wrapping his arms around me. “I asked Jon to take a video for us and he told Sharpie about it. You know Sharpie can’t keep a secret, so I’m pretty sure you’re the only athlete in the entire village that didn’t know this was happening.”

I laugh and rest my head on his chest, hearing the sound of the two teams making their way towards us.

“I love you, Patrick Kane.” I say.

“I love you too, future Mrs. Leah Kane.” He responds, kissing my forehead.

Notes

Requested. Enjoy!