“Visitors?” Tyler asked skeptically. “Who?”

“Come out and see for yourself,” Candace said, gesturing behind her towards the rest of the house.

He shot Nicki a questioning glance. Since he had been back in her presence, he couldn’t bear the thought of her not being with him. She stared blankly at him, not allowing the slightest hint to how she was feeling. Aware that he couldn’t leave whoever had come to see him without a host, he pushed Marshall’s heavy body off of him and stood, extending his hand for her to either take or to brush away.

Nicki placed her delicate hand in his massive one, and he could feel his lips pulling into the tiniest of smiles. He helped her up from the small couch, waiting for her to adjust her clothing before he took her hand again and left the room, following Candace into the living room.

The sight of the full room caused him to absentmindedly drop Nicki’s hand, and his mouth to fall open. There, in front of him, stood his entire team. Even Andrew and Shawn had come, and lingered in the front with two enormous cases of beer. A scan of the people in front of him quickly gave tell to their plans; they were going to ride out this horror show with him. Each teammate held something in their hands, some with booze and snacks, others with movies and videogames.

For a moment, Tyler stopped breathing. He could hear Nicki sniffling next to him, and didn’t have to look to know that she was crying. Mostly everyone in front of him was looking sympathetically at her. Dougie dropped his bag to the floor and approached her apprehensively before wrapping his long arms around her. When he was through with her, he did the same to Tyler.

“I can’t believe this Segs,” he mumbled as he backed away. “We’re all here, and we’re not leaving until something happens, one way or another.”

Tyler’s vision darted between all of his teammates, taking in each face that he’d come to know as family. A heaviness hung in the room, unlike anything he’d ever felt.

“You guys didn’t have to come,” he said, unable to get his voice much above a whisper.
Patrice stepped forward next, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Segs, buddy, you’ve known since the minute you first stepped on the ice with us that we’re a family. We’ve already lost two brothers, I can’t comprehend losing a third. Everyone in this room looks up to you. We’re here to stay, Seggy.” He paused, and turned his attention to Nicki. “Only if you don’t mind.”

Tyler looked at her, waiting for her response. Most days, she would have been thrilled to have his team over. They loved her even more than she loved them. But with this recent turn of events, he was unsure of what her reaction to anything might have been.

“Of course I don’t mind,” she said softly, obviously still shaken. “I think we could use all the company we can get.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Candace lingering in the doorway. She was exchanging a sad smile with Brad, and Tyler put together how everyone had found out about the pending trade.

One by one, his team came up to both him and Nicki, giving reassuring words and hugs. Their tenderness towards his wife simply could not have been overlooked. To see how much they cared about her, to see how gentle their words and actions were around her, warmed his heart.
He cared for their wives, but not the way they did for his.

It only took a matter of minutes for everyone to settle in. Until then, Tyler hadn’t realized just how large his living room was. It comfortably fit nearly the entire team, and chairs from the dining room accommodated everyone who couldn’t fit on the couches or armchairs. Adam turned on the TV, and Milan began to set up the XBOX that Brad brought with him. Besides some quiet chatter, the room was eerily silent.

He watched from the corner of the room as they made themselves comfortable, and couldn’t help but regret not doing something like this back when they didn’t have to worry about the team falling apart. Nicki wandered away from him and into the kitchen, and he decided to follow. He caught her by the elbow and spun her around to face him.

“You really don’t mind them being here?” he asked, taking in her drained expression.

“Nah, I’m actually happy they came. I know I’m not doing a very good job of making you feel better,” she responded, her voice low and shameful.

“Hey,” he whispered, pulling her closer to him, “It’s not always up to you to make things better.
This affects you just as much as it affects me. I’m not expecting you to pretend like nothing’s wrong and rub my back and tell me it’s all going to be fine.”

Her sad eyes looked up at him, and it took all of his willpower to hold back tears. This wasn’t the person she was supposed to be. He wanted, more than anything, to give her the life that she deserved, instead of the one she’d been cursed with.

Nicki didn’t give him a response. Tyler observed her as she completed her walk into the kitchen and spoke quietly with Candace and Cassidy. Feeling as though he should give them some privacy, he decided to return to the living room. As he turned, he slammed into a hard, small body.

“Sorry Marchy, didn’t see ya there,” he apologized.

“Don’t sweat it, Seggy.”

After a long, uncomfortable silence, Tyler asked, “Going to see Candace?”

Brad took a deep breath and leaned against the wall opposite from Tyler.

“No, actually, I was coming to find you. I don’t know what I’m gonna do without you bro. I know things have been different between us since I started seeing Candace, and I get that. But you’re no less of a friend to me than you were those first few weeks of training camp. You’re my best friend, Segs.”

If Brad’s sentiments were supposed to make him feel better, he was doing a terrible job. If Tyler hadn’t been on the verge of tears before, he certainly was now.

“I could keep going,” he continued, “But honestly dude I think I might start to cry. All of this has just been too much. I didn’t think anything could hurt worse than losing that game. Was I wrong or what?”

Tyler nodded; he’d been thinking the same things for hours. If it hadn’t been for finding out about Nicki’s pregnancy, the only thing that would have pulled him out of the depression he was in after losing the Cup was knowing that he would be returning to the team he loved next season for a fresh start, and with a renewed hunger. Now, even that had fallen through.

“Listen bud, I gotta ask you something.”

“Anything, Marchy. What’s up?”

“I’ve been putting this off for a while now… I guess I didn’t know how to bring it up…”

His hesitation clued Tyler in to what was going on.

“Yes,” he stated, watching as Brad’s blue eyes grew wide with shock.

“Did you know what I was going to ask?”

A small chuckle escaped Tyler’s lips. “Of course I knew. I’ve been waiting years for this man. Not gonna lie, it took me a long time to get used to the idea. But you treat her good, and you make her happy. What else can I ask for? Besides, I guess it wouldn’t be so bad being related to you.”
Brad let out a long, relieved laugh. “You’re really cool with this?”

“As long as you know that I will kick the living shit out of you if you hurt her, I’m cool with it. Do you already have – “

Candace jumped around the corner and into Brad’s arms. “Hey boo,” she said, planting a kiss on his cheek. “What were you guys talking about?”

“I was just telling Seggy here that I don’t know what I’d do without him,” he answered sadly, instantly making Candace’s face turn grim.

“This is absolutely disgusting. How could they do this to you Ty?”

Tyler shrugged and stepped aside, so that Adam could pass him and enter the kitchen. He was about to ask what he was doing, but figured sometimes with Adam it was best to just let him do as he pleased without question.

“I don’t know, Candace, It’s about the money. At this point, there’s nothing we can do but wait.” He stopped for a moment to peek into the kitchen, trying to catch a glimpse of Nicki. “Is she any better?” he asked, lowering his voice to a whisper.

Candace shook her head, making the worry in his gut grow tenfold.

“She’s a wreck big bro. The only reason she isn’t still throwing shit around the house is because
she was afraid to upset you.”

“Is that why she keeps trying to avoid me?”

“Probably. Give her some space for now. If she needs to think, let her think. Cass agreed to stay with her, make sure she doesn’t get too worked up.”

He nodded, unsure of what else he could possibly say. If she needed time without him, he would give it to her, no matter how badly it hurt him. Tonight was the night that he needed her the most. Not to comfort him or to try and make him feel better, but to have by his side. To feel her in the spot she belonged, up against his hip and underneath his arm, was an unrivaled source of strength.

Candace stepped up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

“I’m sorry Ty. I don’t want to see you go through all of this.”

“Yeah, me either,” he mumbled, breaking free from her hold and sauntering back to the living room.

“Segs! Come on, we’re putting on the Longest Yard,” Tuukka called from only feet away.

Tyler couldn’t suppress a chuckle. Back when he was a rookie, the team would get together for movie nights and dinner parties, and the Longest Yard always seemed to be the movie of choice. Just the mention of it brought back memories that he had long since forgotten.

He took a seat that had been reserved for him on the couch, between Milan and Shawn. As he sat, each of them gave him a pat on his back, saying everything they needed to with one simple motion.

“Where’s Nicki?” Milan asked.

“In the kitchen, I think. She’s not doing so great.”

He shook his head and let out a long breath. “She must be devastated.”

“You have no idea,” Tyler scoffed, recalling the explosion that had occurred just hours before.

“She’s terrifying when she’s mad.”

“I can’t picture that,” Milan chuckled. “That girl doesn’t get mad.”

“Oh, really? Ask Dave. He heard some of it. Or Candace. When I came back from the Garden, it looked like a tornado went off in the kitchen.”

“Honestly Segs, if you didn’t look so bugged out about it, I wouldn’t believe you. That’s terrible, man. As if you haven’t been through enough already.”

Tyler shrugged him off and focused his attention on the movie playing in front of him. He didn’t want to talk about it anymore. The more he talked about it, the more real it felt. He was perfectly comfortable staying in denial, at least until he had reason to do otherwise.

“So how are you going to find out?”

He turned back to Milan, and saw something in his face that he had never seen before. He genuinely looked sad.

“I don’t know for sure,” he answered, scanning the room for Dave. “I’m guessing Dave will know first. Peter said they would ‘be in touch’.”

“God that’s rough,” Milan murmured, settling further into the couch.

For a while, no one else spoke. They sat in silence and attempted to enjoy the movie that they’d all watched together so many times before. As hard as he tried, Tyler couldn’t shake off the impending dread, and the horrible depression that was beginning to surround him. He didn’t want to leave his home. But, more importantly, he couldn’t stand the thought of leaving the incredible people around him.

He took his time looking around the room, bringing back memories with each and every teammate who sat with him. When his eyes landed on Brad, he couldn’t stop himself from smiling. Candace was curled up by his side, fast asleep with her head on his chest, the same way Nicki had slept so many times on him. As strange as it may get sometimes, he was excited for both his sister and his teammate. They both deserved to be happy. And if it was with each other, then so be it. Briefly, he entertained the thought of what his mother would be like when she found out that she would have another child tying the knot. Surely it would not make her feel any better about her age.

Halfway through the movie, Adam came bouncing back into the room, each hand holding a large tray of food.

“I made nachos!” he exclaimed proudly, sending nearly everyone in the room into hysterics.

Adam had a knack for cooking, and he loved to show off his talents at other people’s houses. Needless to say, he never asked if it was okay. He would wander into whoever’s kitchen it was, raid their fridge and cabinets, and use whatever he found to concoct some kind of meal or snack.
After setting down the trays on the coffee table, Adam stood in front of Tyler and stared at him.

“You’re creeping me out Quaider.”

“Sorry Seggy. Just gonna miss that handsome face of yours.”

Another round of laughter filled the room, and it couldn’t have been more welcomed. They needed something to lighten the mood, to take their minds off of the reason why they were all assembled in the first place.

“Oh, by the way, I think Nicki’s passed out at your island. I was gonna ask her if she was okay but I didn’t want to bother her.”

“Where’s Cassidy?” he asked, perplexed by Adam’s odd statement. Nicki could fall asleep anywhere, but he’d never seen her doze off on a counter.

“In that little side room, snoring on your couch.”

Out of concern for Nicki, Tyler rose from the couch and crept into the kitchen. It was obvious as soon as he entered the room that she was asleep. He considered taking her upstairs to bed, but thought of a better plan.

He slid one arm underneath her legs and the other around her back, lifting her off of the stool and holding her the same way he had when they walked through the door to their new home for the very first time. Although it seemed like years ago, in reality it hadn’t even been one. They hadn’t even been allowed to spend a full year in the place they loved.

Walking slowly as to not wake her, Tyler returned to the living room, earning respectful glances from his team. Doing your job on the ice gained you a good amount of respect from your teammates, but taking care of your family was the ultimate sign of a man. He’d gathered long ago that none of them had a relationship quite like his and Nicki’s, and what seemed normal to him seemed outrageous to them.

Tyler took a seat in the same place he’d been before, and adjusted Nicki so that she wasn’t falling onto Milan or Shawn. She was more or less sprawled out on top of him, with her head resting just below his chin. Her steady breaths on his neck calmed and comforted him, and he had no problem with sharing such an intimate moment with the people around them. Whether they were watching or not remained a mystery, but it couldn’t have mattered any less to him. He ran a hand down the length of her hair and placed a few soft kisses on the top of her head.

“Yeah Segs, she’s a real monster,” Milan joked in a hushed voice, garnering a few chuckles from the rest of the guys.

“She probably just tired herself out,” Candace said from the other side of the room, suddenly wide awake. “I’ve never seen her scream before, it took a lot of energy to keep going the way she did.”

As much as it killed him to hear it, Tyler had to be happy that she was letting everything out, rather than holding it in.

“Did she take her vitamins?” he asked her, instantly becoming all too aware that his team still had no idea that she was pregnant.

Candace seemed to notice too, as her eyes darted nervously around the room. Unfortunately, everyone had picked up on his slip of tongue.

“Is she okay?” Dougie asked, mouth half full of nachos.

“As far as I know, yeah,” he said hesitantly.

“So what’s up with the vitamins? Why’s she taking ‘em at night?” Nathan inquired, piquing the interest of the rest of the group.

There was no way that he could sit there and lie to all of them, especially not after all they’d done for him that night. They deserved to know, and if Nicki got pissed at him for telling them without her, he would take the heat. His hand subconsciously stroked her silky hair, which had spilled onto his chest and shoulder.

“Uh, well,” he stammered, not exactly great at sharing big news, “She’s... pregnant?”

It came out sounding like a question, and seemed to confuse most of the guys.

“Wait, are you serious?” Milan asked excitedly. “I thought she couldn’t?”

“Yeah,” he responded, gently hoisting her up on his lap, “So did we.”

“When the hell did you find out?!”

“The day after we lost.”

For a moment, the room stayed still and quiet, until curiosity got the best of Nathan.

“How?”

“I don’t know man, it’s a mystery. To be honest I think her doctor was even more surprised than we were.” He paused for a while, pondering over whether or not he should share with them the complications. As he told them about the possibility of his greatest fear, his voice became lower.
“We don’t know for sure if she’s gonna be able to do it. I mean, she made it through the first trimester, and the doctor said it should give us some hope. But he was pretty convinced it’s going to end the same way it did last time.”

“So you’re basically holding your breath for the next half of a year, just waiting for things to go wrong,” Patrice stated quietly.

“Seems like that, doesn’t it?” he asked, subconsciously holding Nicki a little closer to his body.
“To be honest though, that’s not how it feels. I just, I have this gut feeling that she’s gonna pull through. She does, too.”

“That takes a lot of guts, from both of you,” Milan said, placing a calloused hand on his shoulder.
“You know we’re all here if you need us, right?”

Tyler nodded and looked around the room. “Yeah, I know. You’re all too damn good to us. I mean, way back, when you threw that party for her at your place? I’ll never be able to thank you for that, not the way you deserve.”

“Segs, don’t mention it. I’ve always felt like she was a little sister, and I know I’m not the only one here who feels that way.”

“I guess I just don’t really understand why,” he murmured. He certainly didn’t consider their wives to be like family, no matter how close he’d become with them.

“I think it’s because of the way we met her,” Dougie intervened. “Remember how scared she was back then, of everything? She was so timid and sad. I think when she started crying and hugged me, I realized that I cared about her. I’m sure you of all people know she’s easy to love Segs. I never told you guys this, but when we were in the box together at that last game, she gave me some really great advice. She talked to me like we’d been friends our whole lives.”

“Damn Dougie, I think that’s the most grown up thing you’ve ever said,” Brad teased, earning a slap on the chest from Candace. “Really bud, he’s right on point. She came into our lives needing friendship and support. I mean, you did a pretty good job, with that whole ‘we’re just friends’ stunt. But when you were all in denial and shit, she turned to us for help. We knew her as a friend before we knew her as your girlfriend. I think that’s the difference.”

Glancing down at Nicki, a smile slowly worked its way onto Tyler’s face. There could have been a million reasons for it, but the only thing he was sure of was that he loved the woman in his arms more than he thought possible to love anything. He held so much pride in her, and even more in being with her. Nothing quite compared to being able to brag about your wife, knowing that she was the single most incredible person you’d ever met, and she somehow found it in herself to love you back, to love every ounce of your less than perfect being.

“Aw, look at him,” Shawn teased, passing a beer his way. “Baby Seggy’s still head over heels.”

Tyler laughed along with the rest of the guys, feeling not an ounce of shame for being in love. He knew more than a few of them envied what he had, and he wouldn’t give it up for anything. Their outbursts stirred Nicki, and she rolled around on top of him. When she lifted her head to look at him, her eyes opened just the tiniest bit, melting any kind of composure he had left. Nothing could take his eyes away from her sleepy, contented face, not jokes by his teammates nor Marshall’s sudden yelping.

“Hey,” he said under his breath, pushing the hair back from her face.

All he received as a response was a tired smile, one that made his heart feel as though it might explode. In seconds she had nestled into his neck, becoming a compact ball that he could easily support on his lap. Tyler heard snickers all around him, making it quite clear that he was being observed. Moments later, soft snores were vibrating against his skin.

“Is it wrong if I point out that that was fucking adorable?” Adam asked, fishing through the nachos he’d made for the ideal chip.

“No, not if you don’t mind sounding like a pussy,” Tuukka quipped, earning a cheesy tortilla chip to the face.

“You guys need to learn that it’s sexy when you say shit like that,” Candace added, sitting up a bit, but keeping as close as she could to Brad. Her reaction when he proposed was sure to be one for the history books. She screamed enough as it was.

“Give us an example,” Shawn said, “What has Marchy said that made you wonder if he had a vagina?”

Brad’s cheeks flashed red before he could cover them with his fists. Tyler got the feeling he was about to hear of a side of him that no one but his sister knew existed.

“Hmm… okay. How about the time with the kitten?”

“Oh, come on babe, don’t do that to me,” Brad pleaded, trying to spare himself the humility.

Dougie egged her on. “What happened with the kitten?!”

“This was back when we were trying to find one, before we adopted Snowflake. So I dragged him to the shelter with me, and at first he seemed like I was trying to get him to jump from the John Hancock. We walk in, Brad’s acting all tough, until he sees the litters of kittens. I could tell he was getting kind of emotional, right? But I didn’t want to say anything. We’re checking them out and picking them up, and then he finds the runt of the litter. This itty bitty thing, cute as a button. Then we noticed that it was missing a leg. Yeah, the little ball of hate? Cried the entire way home.”

This time, there was nothing Tyler could do to stop his chest from shaking with his thunderous laughter. He attempted to be subtle so that he wouldn’t wake up Nicki again, but the image of his tough-as-nails linemate crying over a kitten was too much. Her head shot up, this time looking a bit alarmed.

“Sorry babe,” he apologized softly, placing his lips on her smooth forehead.

“What’s so funny?” she mumbled with her eyes still half closed.

“Marchy crying about kittens,” he said, sending everyone in the room into howling hysterics yet again.

“Aw, that’s cute.”

“See? Told you it was a good thing. You guys should cry more often. I’m sure you get all sappy with Nicki, don’t you Ty?”

He shrugged, not willing to subject himself to his team’s torture.

“You totally do. Nicki, hon, has my brother ever cried in front of you?”

Nicki flipped around on top of him, so that she was on her side facing Candace. Her head shook lightly against his chest.

“Nope, never,” she murmured groggily.

Tyler buried the bottom of his face in her hair and grinned. He was pretty sure everyone in that room had witnessed him cry, and he wasn’t afraid to admit that. But she lied for his sake, to preserve his pride amongst other men.

“Sorry Nicki, I’m gonna have to call bullshit on that one,” Andrew said, chuckling. “Pretty sure
Segs is the biggest cry baby on the team.”

“Besides Dougie,” Nathan added, sending them into another fit of laughter. Even Nicki shook gently on top of him.

Suddenly, she was upright, and Tyler had to shoot a hand down to cover his crotch. Clearly still half asleep, she wasn’t exactly observant of where she was moving her limbs.

“Do I smell nachos?” she asked, sniffing the air, not unlike how Marshall did.

“Yeah, Quiader decided to play chef,” he explained, placing his arms back where they had been before she moved, around her stomach.

After another sniff, she rose from his lap and grabbed an entire serving bowl full of nachos. She plopped back onto him and cradled it in her arms like a baby.

“Adam, these are fucking delicious.”

“Thank you!” he exclaimed with a smile. “At least someone appreciates my talents.”

“Looks like someone’s having one hell of a craving,” Tuukka pointed out, drawing a glare from Tyler. He had no idea how she would react to them knowing, and her not having been the one to tell them.

Slowly, her head turned to look at Tyler. He nodded, answering the question that was on her mind.

“Well, when you’re eating for three…”

For a minute, her comment went unnoticed. Surprisingly, Dougie was the first to pick up on it.

“Did you just say three?!”

Only able to see half of her face, Tyler still managed to pick up on the smirk that rested there. His hands moved to cover her stomach, which it seemed every person in the room was staring at.

“How the hell did you manage to leave that out Segs?” Milan asked, almost sounding a bit insulted.

“I was under the impression we were surprising everyone on the Fourth,” he said skeptically, directing his words straight at Nicki, looking for some kind of explanation.

She looked at him, making him feel like he was the only person in the entire room.

“Ty, how do you know we’re even going to be here? We could be in Calgary or Florida, trying to find a new place to live. They deserve to know while we can have everyone together still.”

“Calgary?! Chia is sending you to fucking Calgary?!” Shawn roared, causing Marshall’s head to pop up from the floor.

“Nothing’s for sure yet,” he mumbled.

“This is fucking horse shit,” said Tuukka, shaking his head in utter disgust. “What the fuck does Calgary have to offer that we could possibly use?”

“A draft pick.”

“Are you shitting me,” Patrice said, his voice reflecting the mood in the room.

“Seggy, why didn’t you say anything?” Brad asked. “Jesus dude, I thought you’d be going to Toronto, Philly even. How could he send one of our best players to some shit team? It’s like he doesn’t give a fuck about you.”

“That’s what I’ve been fucking saying!” Nicki shrieked, alarming the people sitting closest to them. As quickly as her outburst started, it ended. “Sorry, I’m just not exactly okay with this.”

“None of us are. I really don’t think the locker room will ever be the same,” Patrice admitted, sharing glances with Tyler, Shawn, and Andrew.

Following a moment of uneasy silence, the movie that was playing in front of them flicked from the screen, and was replaced with a Honda commercial.

“It’s 11:30!” Candace said loudly, “Who’s up for some Saturday Night Live?”

Tyler exchanged a smile with her, wordlessly thanking her for finding a way to break up all of the tension and sadness. Everyone seemed to be in agreement that Saturday Night Live was their best option, and all conversation about hockey came to a halt. Eventually, Nicki set aside the nearly empty bowl of nachos and curled up again, molding her body into his. Every time she did it, it took his breath away. He earned a few approving stares from the guys and rested his chin on her shoulder, leaning his head against hers. Tyler easily could have stayed that way with her until the end of time. It felt so right, in so many ways.

A few minutes into the show, he noticed that his lips could be perfectly positioned for whispering. He lifted his head just enough, and felt her shudder as his breath bounced off of her ear.

“I know it might not seem this way right now, but Nicki, I promise you everything is going to be okay. I love you, and I love these babies. I have so much faith in you. We could end up in Antarctica for all I care. Boston will always be where I belong, and leaving will probably never hurt any less. But my home, it’s wherever you are. If I can lay with you every night, and wake up with you every morning, I’ll never complain. Babe, we have two kids on the way. It doesn’t matter where we end up, watching you raise my children is going to be the single most rewarding thing I’ll ever experience. So trust me. Trust me when I say we’re going to be alright.”

As to not give away their secret conversation, Nicki did nothing but nuzzle her head closer to his, cheek against cheek, her soft, silky hair against his thick, fluffy hair. His hands squeezed her stomach lightly, partly as a hello to whoever was growing inside, and partly to let her know how much he believed in her. He trusted the instinct she had. He trusted that she was strong enough, both mentally and physically, to bring his children into the world.

While his emotions were still running high, he decided to take advantage of their chance at an intimate moment in the company of others. Tyler figured it wouldn’t be a horrible time to tell her some things he thought that she needed to hear.

“And I’m so proud of you,” he continued in a hushed voice, only loud enough for her to hear. “You were such a good person when we met. But you’ve turned into this, amazing, woman. You’re so beautiful, Nicki.” He stopped to wipe a stray tear from her cheek, and listened as she tried her hardest to hold back sobs. After pulling her closer to him, he kept going. “You know what I think to myself every morning? When I wake up and you’re all tangled up with me?” Her head shook subtly, being careful not to draw attention from anyone else. “That I am the luckiest man on the entire planet. I honestly doubt that anyone else knows what it feels like to be loved by you. It’s the craziest, most incredible thing, and really, I’m not sure I deserve it. I know sometimes I seem like I take it for granted. I’m an idiot for it. And I’m an idiot for thinking even for a second that it’s okay to treat you badly. It’s never okay. There are some things I wish more than anything that I could take back. As horrible as it feels to know that I’ve hurt you, it just makes me realize how precious you are. You could have ended up with some random guy. You should have. After the way I acted that night we met, you should never have given me a second chance. But you did. And I think I fell in love with you right then and there, watching your hair fall into your face when you were trying to decide what kind of pancakes to order the next morning. There isn’t a single doubt in my mind that you’re the one. You were the girl that I was supposed to fall for, and the woman I’m supposed to spend the rest of my life with.”

Through the darkness, he was having difficulty finding out if she was crying. As a bright white Geico commercial lit up the screen, it reflected off of her face, the way the sun reflects off of a shallow puddle. Her face was stained with tears and traces of mascara. Moving one of his hands from her stomach to the back of her head, Tyler gestured for her to hide her face so that no one would wonder what was wrong. On a second thought, he realized that she had every right to be crying, after the news they’d so abruptly received. She already had her face buried in his neck, however, and gentle sobs began to shake her whole frame.

At first he was alarmed, wondering if there was something wrong and he had just gone and made it worse. But when her velvet lips pressed against his skin, the worry faded. Her arms wrapped snugly around his broad shoulders, and he utilized his to hold her entire body in them. They were long enough to snake all the way around her, and thick enough to cover a good proportion of her. He knew that the more of her that he could hold, the safer she would feel.

Once her trembles subsided and her breathing regulated, Tyler focused his attention back to the television, using the dull distraction to ease him into sleep.

** * * *

Tyler nearly shouted out as the buzzing deep within his pocket ripped him from his slumber, quickly covering his mouth as he remembered that he was surrounded by two dozen unconscious friends. He swallowed a few times, trying to rid himself of the dryness that had appeared in the wake of him sleeping with an open mouth. It took longer than he would have liked to wake up enough to answer the call, and as he reached to slip his phone from his tan shorts, the vibrating stopped. It was probably for the best, as he wasn’t sure how he could take a call without at least waking up Nicki. Had it been Peter calling about his fate, the ill fated news could surely wait an hour or so.

The sun was just barely peaking in through the large windows behind him, casting a soft orange glow across the room and the scattered bodies it held. It couldn’t have been any later than 6:30, and he figured he might be able to catch a few more hours of rest before the need for food and utilities drove him from the comfortable spot he had on the couch.

Just as he closed his eyes and tightened his arms around Nicki, his phone began to buzz again.
Holding his breath, he fished into his pocket and pulled it out slowly, saying a silent prayer that it was Peter telling him that the deal was off, and that he was safe.

The number that popped up was vaguely familiar, but it wasn’t saved in his contacts. Out of both curiosity and a need for answers, he picked up.

“Hello?” he whispered, turning his head far away from Nicki’s ear.

“I’m sorry, is this a bad time?”

“Who is this?”

“This is Amelia Ingersoll. From the Brighton Adoption Agency? We met briefly when you and your wife were exploring adoption.”

So that was how he knew the number. He’d called it four or five times, to ask questions and consider appointments.

“Yeah, I remember. Listen, I guess Dr. Baker failed to mention – “

“Yes, she’s pregnant,” she said excitedly. “I’m so very happy for the both of you.”

“Uh, thanks.”’

“You’re probably wondering why I’m calling, then. Mr. Seguin, I’m going to have to ask for your complete discrepancy. Can you promise me that, with the exception of your wife, you won’t tell anyone about this conversation? I could lose my job for this.”

“Yeah, I promise.”

“Okay good, good. Yesterday one of our volunteers brought in a new child, a boy. They found him a few blocks away from the TD Garden, lying with his mother’s corpse. He’s in quite a bit of shock, and isn’t responding to much treatment.”

“That’s horrible,” he murmured, trying to piece together how this could possibly have anything to do with him. A flash of worry hit him, making him wonder if he had a long lost child that he was unaware of.

“Absolutely heart wrenching,” she agreed. “I’m violating every policy we have to do this, but the only items he had on him were a picture of you and a napkin with your signature on it. The solitary way that we’ve gotten him to talk is by bringing up you, and hockey. He said that he wanted to play at the Garden someday, just like you. Mr. Seguin, if you and your wife could find it in your hearts – “

“Woah,” he snapped, a bit too loudly. “I feel terrible for the kid. But I have two of my own on the way. I’m gone for half of the year, and busy for most of it. I can’t just leave my wife to take care of three kids by herself.”

“I see. I understand, I truly do. But is it too much to ask of you to just consider helping this boy? You’d receive reparations from the state, it would be plenty to hire help for your wife. I’m begging you, don’t dismiss this right away.”

Tyler’s lack of sleep had obviously been clouding his judgment. What this woman was asking of him was ludicrous. Yet, something inside of him fueled a desire to know more about this boy. To meet him and learn his story.

“Listen, I’ll talk to my wife. This is kind of bad timing,” he admitted, with the issue of the impending trade pressing heavily on his brain.

“I cannot thank you enough; this boy deserves a good home. It doesn’t seem that he’s ever known anyone as a father, and I truly believe being able to call his idol ‘dad’ would make his dreams come true. You’ve got a good heart, Mr. Seguin, I could tell the moment I met you and your wife.”

He nodded, trying to process all of the things that had been piled on top of his already stressful life.

“I’ll talk to you soon,” he promised, ending the call and letting his phone drop to the couch cushion beneath him.

Nicki wriggled around on top of him, eventually peeking up at him through one eye. Her smudged makeup reminded him of everything he’d said to her the night before. Using his thumb, he wiped some of the black from underneath her eyes. He stared into them for a moment, perplexed by thought.

“Babe, we need to talk.”