One Shots

I’m doing things a bit differently for this story; I want you to think of your favorite hockey player. Not just your favorite off your team because he’s a great player or whatever, but that one player, you know the one, the one you just love, like actually love, the player that you’re 100% you could marry on the spot and life would be good. He’s the player you’d support even if he played for your teams biggest rival, ok got that player in mind? Good because you’re the main character and he’s right in front of you, and your best friend is right by your side.


When she told you she got meet and greet tickets for you for your birthday you thought she was lying, and even when you saw the tickets you thought it was some kind of joke but now here you were, you’d been in line for almost an hour and you were probably a good 80 people from the front of the line. Your mind was a constant babble of nerves and excitement settling mostly with nerves because after all it was HIM. It wasn’t like she’d gotten you just any meet and greet tickets it was to meet HIM and this is why she was your best friend, because driving to the meet and greet place almost an hour away from your home and standing in line while you babbled on half the time with chants of excitement and the other half a constant mantra of “I can’t do this” seemed entirely normal to her.


The time passes quicker than the line moves and each time you step forward your heart beat quickens, sure you’d met hockey players before but never him and even though in your mind you’d instantly fall in love and he’d whisk you off somewhere you knew that was probably the thought of a lot of girls in this line.


“I can’t do this” you mutter and she rolls her eyes at you again


“We’ve been over this like 60 times already today, yes you can, and you will, and you’re going to be fine”


“No you don’t get it, I can’t what if I say something stupid!? If I make a total ass of myself now there’s no going back! He’s not even going to remember me anyway”


“You’re being dramatic” she says waving you off and taking another step forward


“I’m being realistic” you correct following her


In part you knew you were right, the likelihood of him remembering you from a single meeting when all these other people were involved were slim, but as much as you hated to admit it she was right as well, you were being dramatic this one meeting wasn’t going to shape his entire impression of you, you’d even admitted he wasn’t going to remember you.


As a matter of fact what did it even matter, it wasn’t like you were going to fall madly in love, sure you knew every single statistic from his entire career, but all that did was make you a fan with a good memory, sure you owned every piece of memorabilia the merchandise store had to offer with his name and number plastered across it, but that just made you seem, well slightly creepy if you were being honest.


You knew how this went, you’d walk up to the front he’d smile and say hello, you guys would echo the greeting, he’d ask if you had anything for him to sign you’d nod pass it over he’d sign it in one quick swoop of illegible cursive you’d say thanks the cameraman would snap a picture and you would leave.


And yet here you were now 10 people from the front and all of a sudden your hands were shaking, because it wasn’t just any hockey player, he was your absolute favorite, the one you’d watched a million interviews of, the one you marveled over the goal compilation videos on YouTube of, and you were about to meet him, and it was going to make your day/week/month/year/life whatever, it didn’t matter because you were just going to be another face in the crowed.


“We should go” you say quietly


“You’ve lost your marbles haven’t you?”


“What’s the point? I’m not special; I’m just another girl who’s in love with someone I can’t have. No one in the group feels any different from me! He’s not going to remember my name, this isn’t the fairy tale dream girl meets guy, and they fall in love and live happily ever after. This is a meet and greet where he signs a picture that hangs in a plaque on my wall and he leaves with writer’s cramp and I leave with a signed picture. At the end of the day he’s still a superstar, the world knows who he is, and I am invisible!”


“Ladies you’re up” the security type person says and your mouth goes dry you hadn’t even been paying attention to the fact that you were still moving up in the line while you were ranting. She pushes you forward with her and that adorable ‘I’m so happy I just scored a goal’/ ‘one of my teammates said something funny’ smile is on his face and you feel your cheeks flush.


“Hi ladies, how’re you?” he says extending his hand to shake hands with both of you and you can’t help but smile at how polite he is, she answers on both your behalves and you just look on shell shocked as the whole meeting goes by in a flash. As you walk away your heart drops, there was your chance and you made sure you were no one special because you didn’t even say 2 words.


You run a frustrated hand through your hair making your way back to the car. After you’re seat-belted in and on your way you take a look at the picture in your hands “Happy birthday” and your name were scrawled across the picture with his signature and a smiley face, you feel a smile and a blush creep across your cheeks.


“Thanks” you mumble and she starts laughing patting you on the leg while she drives


“You’d do the same for me”

Notes

Song credit- Taylor Swift, Superstar