Love Triangle

Every day, every time, when you looked at his face, you realized just how stupid you were. But then, when you turned around and saw his face, you realized just how lucky you were.
There should be a law preventing these feelings, because at the moment, at every breaking moment you thought of your stupidity or luckiness, you just wished you were in prison and not there. It was even ten times worse when both faces were right next to each, staring at you with two pairs of beautiful brown eyes that had different effects on you. One pair was just heartwarming, making you feel safe and loved, while the other pair… God. They were so mesmerizing. You felt like an arrow struck you in the bum and you were paralyzed until the rest of him just came up and took you in those big, strong arms.
One made you feel protected while the other one made you feel alive.
And it was stupid as hell, because the latter was the one who set you and the former up.
You flinched when an arm suddenly wrapped around your waist. You eagerly looked up, hoping to find – Your smile softened when you met the warm brown eyes. “Oh, hey, Jamie,” you greeted before your lips met.
“Hey, Y/N,” he responded when your lips pulled away. He handed you a drink and took the one you were holding for him. “Thanks.”
You came to the party late – thanks to a certain someone – so your boyfriend greeted you and danced with you on the makeshift dance floor. After a good five minutes of doing that and another thirty or so minutes greeting people, he went off to finally fetch you a drink. In the meantime, you just stood by the large window that took up practically the whole wall, overlooking the beautiful, booming city that was lit by the cars and buildings that would never sleep.
“What were you and Seguin doing that made you so late?” Jamie asked playfully, bumping his nose against the side of your head.
You hoped he couldn’t hear the rapid increase of your heartbeat or even feel it… Hopefully, you’d have a heart-attack. Then maybe – just maybe – your heart would clear and make up its mind. “The idiot had to go find a gas station and then we got lost,” you lied with ease, brushing a loose strand of hair away from your face, only for it to fall back.
Jamie smiled and pulled his hand from your waist to tuck the loose strand behind your ear. “It was full when we drove in it this morning,” he responded, his smile taking a slight dip.
“That’s what I said,” you said, shrugging. Your heartbeat only increased. You looked around and found the room filled with other hockey players, their dates, and other famous friends – none of them were Tyler. Your heartbeat slowed, taking a saddening dip. “So, what are we celebrating again?” you asked, forcing your eyes back onto your boyfriend, mentally slapping yourself for your stupid thoughts.
Jamie was here with all his attention on you. Tyler was gone with all his attention on a different chick. Nothing new.
“Uh,I don’t think there’s a reason behind this,” Jamie responded, casually scanning the room while lifting the drink to his lips. When he lowered his cup, he said, “Just a party. Did you bring anything in case it was a celebration?” He squeezed your side and you shrieked, jumping back.
You were about to respond when you landed and hit a chest with your back. “Oh, I’m so sorry!” you exclaimed, spinning around and stepping back closer to Jamie’s side. You didn’t know whether your heart jumped for joy or terror when a smirking Tyler cocked an amused eyebrow at you.
“Since when were you polite?” Tyler asked, snatching the drink out of your hand and chugging it down with ease.
“Dude,” Jamie hissed disapprovingly while you stared at him in disbelief, your jaw slacked.
Tyler didn’t look fazed as he placed the cup aside and shrugged. “What? I drove her here and I need a DD back,” he said, slipping his hands into his front pockets. His eyebrow raised again when he looked at you, mischief shining through those mesmerizing brown eyes. “Or did you think I just drove you here for the free fun of it?”
Closing your mouth to smirk, you crossed your arms over your chest. “You make me sound cheap,” you chortled.
“You aren’t?”
Your face fell as his playful words pierced me. You remembered Jamie was next to you, witnessing your banter with his best friend. With your eyes on the floor and a frown on your face, you stepped back into Jamie’s side and muttered, “I don’t think I feel so good, babe. Do you mind taking me back to my apartment?”
His warm hand landed on your back and rubbed soothing circles against the small patch of skin on your lower back revealed by your dress. This was what you needed – what you deserved. He smiled gently down at you and opened his mouth to respond when a group of players hollered his name and walked past him, playfully punching his arm.
“C’mon, Jamie. We’re about to start playing some drinking games. You too, Seggy. Let’s go.”
Jamie was pushed back a bit, but he stopped and looked over at you. Those warm eyes… were conflicted. You knew he wanted to go home and cuddle with you on your couch, watching movies, especially since he wasn’t a big fan of parties, but at the same time, he had his own unspoken responsibilities as a hockey player or more specifically as a captain of the team that consisted of a good portion of the people here. One of those responsibilities involved partying when there were more than one team present at said party. There were quite a few: Stars (clearly), Rangers, Islanders, Devils, and a few other Western teams.
“Go,” you interjected before he could say anything. “We’re always together and you barely ever party. Go loosen up and I’ll see you either later or tomorrow.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, stepping closer to you. He ran his arms down your arms and around your waist, pulling you to his chest. “I can just tell the guys I’m not feeling good and –”
“Don’t make Texas look like a pansy to these New Yorkers,” you chortled playfully, gently pressing a kiss against his lips. “I didn’t even drink much, thanks to Ty, so I could get home by myself.”
“If you’re worried, I’ll go with her and make sure she gets home safe,” voiced a certain person from behind.
“And miss the party?” Jamie inquired, cocking a disbelieving eyebrow. You even looked over at the idiot, who was almost always the life of the party, in surprise.
Tyler shrugged and looked innocently at his best friend. “I may or may not have puked in the bathroom twice already. I think I’m done for the night.”
A concerned Jamie made him look like a puppy you just couldn’t resist. When he looked over at you, with those big brown eyes, he asked, “Do you mind dropping him off? Maybe keep an eye on him until I come back?”
“It’s no problem,” you responded weakly. You gave him another, but longer and more lingering kiss. “I’ll see ya later.”
You walked out of the suite with Tyler lingering behind, and once you were out of that very hallway, found yourself pinned against the wall with a hot pair of lips on top of yours. You almost allowed yourself to get lost in the kiss, but then the thought of Jamie being around the corner and the memory of Tyler’s comment from before made you shove the fool away.
“I thought you were sick,” you sneered, swiping your lips.
He smirked, taking a step back. “Please. I can hold my liquor in better than Chubbs.”
You bit back the question as to why he lied, because you knew the answer: Tyler wanted an excuse to spend another few hours with you. The thought made your heart skip a beat, but… you had to stop this game – these feelings.
“Did I offend you before?”
Tyler had his moments of making it easy to get rid of these feelings, but then those moments were always quickly followed by moments of him making it difficult as hell to get rid of said feelings. It wasn’t fair – not to him, not to Jamie, not to you, and especially not to your heart.
You shook your head weakly, your eyes drifting to the floor. “Ty.”
“I didn’t mean it,” he said softly, his hand slipping into yours. He tugged you along down the hallway, and instead of pulling his hand away, intertwined your fingers together. “You’re not easy or cheap. We were just bantering, being playful.”
“I know,” you croaked, still unable to lift your eyes. You didn’t realize he pulled you into the elevator until he grasped your chin and lifted your head for your eyes to meet. You saw the metallic doors sliding closed behind him, but your eyes flickered back to him when he rubbed his thumb in soothing circles against your cheek.
“Stop thinking you are,” Tyler said softly. “I know you feel guilty for what we’re doing, but it takes two to tango. You can’t imagine how terrible I feel every time I look at Jamie’s face.”
“Then we should stop,” you said in barely a whisper. You weren’t even sure he heard you, because you sure as hell didn’t want to hear those words escape your lips. Last thing you wanted was to stop this, but you had to make up your mind eventually.
“We should,” he echoed and your heart took a huge dip. You didn’t realize a tear escaped your eye until he wiped it and a few other tears away. He half-amusedly, half-sadly smiled and said, “But obviously you don’t want that and I sure as hell don’t. Jesus, Y/N. Why are you crying?”
Since the tears wouldn’t stop, you stopped fighting and allowed the tears to burst. You stepped forward, pressing your face into his chest. “This isn’t fair, Ty. This is just not fair. You and Jamie don’t deserve this.”
“Me? Yeah, I do deserve it since I was the one who set you and Jamie up then fell for you.” Your fists clenched his jacket at those last three words. “Jamie? No, he doesn’t deserve it. What we’re doing is definitely unfair for him.”
He gently grasped your shoulders and pushed you away. “And it’s not fair for you either,” he murmured, gently kissing you. His hands went to your waist and he lifted you up with ease. The elevator doors opened and he turned around, walking out into the garage.
You automatically wrapped your legs around his waist, but pulled your lips away. “What do you mean?”
“I fucked up everything for you and Jamie,” Tyler said, stopping at his rented Jeep. You made fun of him earlier for picking this car, because he couldn’t stand being away from his baby for long. “You’re more in love with me than with Jamie.”
Your eyes widened as your feet hit the floor and your lips went dry. You never once uttered the word “love” to Tyler, but you’ve said it a number of times to Jamie, though your heart tightened every time that happened. “Wha–”
He leaned against the driver’s door and crossed his arms over his chest, arching an eyebrow. You’ve never seen Tyler so serious before and it was both intimidating and sexy at the same time. “C’mon. You’re always looking for me, looking for excuses to be with me. You’re always happier when you’re with me than with Jamie. For fuck’s sake,” he gestured towards the elevator, “you got lost in conversation with me when Jamie was right fucking there. I bet he can’t even get you to laugh, smile, fucking moan the way I can. You probably don’t even tell him half the things you tell me.”
As much as you wanted his words to be lies, they weren’t. He was right. He was completely right. “You’re right,” you whispered, stepping back, running your fingers through your hair in frustration. “Of course you’re fucking right. The only thing you were ever wrong about was that I’d love Jamie and –”
His lips met yours and you melted into the kiss with ease. Neither of you wanted to discuss this any further. When you pulled away, you didn’t resume the conversation. All you did were jump into the car and drive off to your apartment, which you questioned Tyler’s sobriety and it turned out the only alcoholic drink he had was the one he stole from yours (very surprising).
When you returned to your apartment, you were surprised Tyler agreed to a night of cuddling and movie watching – not the usual sex-filled night. You settled into his arms, dressed in only loose-fitting pajamas while he was in only boxers.
“I can be the boyfriend you want and need,” Tyler whispered. You knew that… and you knew what you were about to do the next day.

Notes