AUTUMN LEAVES

EPILOGUE

“Do you, Autumn Scott, take this man, Sidney Crosby, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish for as long as you both shall live?”

Sidney’s heart was beating at an unhealthy rate. Although he knew Autumn was going to say yes, the anticipation has slowed down time. The last two years were the best years of his life. The woman standing before his eyes with her devastating beauty was the best thing that has ever happened to him. Autumn was his, and she will forever be, for as long as they both shall live. And finally, she had agreed to it.

“I do.”

Once Phil Kessel, their officiant, declared them husband and wife, cheers and applause ensued. But all the noise faded in the background as Sidney held his wife in his arms for the first time and kissed her in front of their families and friends, and in front of the cameras for the whole world to see.

Looking at Autumn’s flushed face, Sidney grinned broadly, “we did it, baby!”

“We did it!” Autumn replied as cheerfully. She wrapped her arms around his neck, leaving a few kisses below his ear while his nose was lost in her loose locks.

Clearing her throat loud enough to get their attention, Tiffany nudged Autumn, “at least save some of it for your wedding night, guys, come on!”

As Tiffany hugged her sister, Mario stepped towards Sidney, “congratulations, Sid,” he said while giving his protégé a warm hug. “Thanks, Mario. You’ve been an incredible best man. You’ve always been part of the biggest moments in my life, and today was no different. Today, you took part in the most important one of all,” Sidney smiled at his mentor. “We are both truly honoured,” he added, snaking his arm around Autumn’s waist as she joined his side.

“The honour is all mine, Sid. You’re like a son to me and I’m so proud of you for marrying this wonderful woman, and for making your mother happy. Look at her,” Mario said and the couple looked at Trina who was having a hard time containing her tears.

Mario and Autumn watched with admiration Sidney hug his mother and offer her his handkerchief. “He’s a good kid, Autumn. This goes without saying, but please take care of him. He can be difficult sometimes, but you know that already,” Mario said pensively as he gazed at the vast lake behind Sidney’s summer home. “You two love each other. But there is more to marriage than just love. It is about trusting one another and being honest with each other. But mostly, it’s about compromise, and not just on your end, Autumn. Make sure of that.”

Autumn nodded with a small smile, “thanks for the advice, Mario.”

“I’ve never seen him this happy before. I’d like to believe that I had something to do with it,” Mario added as he watched Sidney hug his father, a look of pure bliss on his face.

“Sure you did. He confessed to me that it was initially your idea that I go with him to your fundraiser,” Autumn spoke as she looked into Mario’s blue eyes. “With how obsessed Sid is with his privacy, going public was a defining moment in our relationship and you were there every step of the way, Mario. You get all the credit for that.”

When Autumn squeezed his arms softly, Mario leaned down and hugged her. “Congratulations, Autumn. Welcome to the family,” he whispered warmly.

Mario felt someone poking him, “can I have my wife back please?” Sidney said with a tight smile, breaking their hug.

“Like I said, he can be very difficult,” Mario whispered in Autumn’s ear before releasing her. “He can be an overbearing caveman,” Autumn said with an eye roll as Sidney pulled her unceremoniously in his arms. “My overbearing caveman,” she said grinning against her husband’s lips.

“Oh come on you two, get a room!” Taylor snickered.

Troy welcomed Autumn into the family, the way Mario did, minus the advice. Trina hugged her daughter in law, with both of their cheeks wet with emotions. “Oh dear, forgive my manners, your mom has been waiting for her turn,” Trina said.

“Thank you for coming, mom,” Autumn said in her mother’s embrace.

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I’ve missed enough milestones, not anymore, Lizzie.”

“Thanks again for being so unconventional. Walking me down the aisle definitely surprised everyone,” Autumn laughed as she wiped Shona’s cheeks.

“Congrats, Sido, and welcome to the club mon ami!” Kris Letang said while giving his long-time friend a brotherly hug.

“Thanks, man. So you don’t think I’m rushing into this anymore?” Sidney asked with a tilt of his head.

“No man, when I said that I was just looking out for you. But then I realized that not every couple has to date for 10 years before getting married, like Cath and I,” Kris said with a chuckle. “You two are clearly meant for each other, I see it, and everyone does. I’m so happy for you.”

Sidney and Autumn walked into their reception hand in hand to the hollering of Sidney’s groomsmen and their raucous hockey ways. Past and present teammates had each a hockey stick in hand. Following Marc-Andre Fleury’s cue, they started banging their sticks on the floor and the chairs as a salute to their unsuspecting captain.

When it was time for a toast, Autumn expected her well-spoken sister to do the honours. She was surprised when her mother took the microphone from Kris who had finished his toast.

“First, to you Sidney I would say, I hope you realize by now how lucky you are,” Shona started. Some people chuckled at the groom’s expense, but Sidney took his mother-in-law’s words to heart. He nodded and sent a soft smile his wife’s way as he squeezed her shoulder.

“And you, my beautiful daughter, you deserve the world. I hope this man gives you all that you deserve and more. I hope he loves you, I hope he protects you, that he gives you a life full of adventure and laughter,” Shona spoke as the couple and their guests listened intently to her graceful words.

“I hope he gives you kids and a lot of them,” Shona continued, but this time her words were met with some roars and whistles.

“I hope you raise them together with patience and lots of affection, I hope you watch them grow up to be happy and successful. I hope you shield them from any unnecessary attention.”

Sidney frowned at that last sentence, knowing all too well why Shona brought this up. Witnessing what her daughter had to and will still need to deal with as the superstar’s girlfriend and now wife was stressful. Sidney could easily predict what will come with being Sidney Crosby’s kid too, and the thought alone killed him. He felt Autumn squeeze his leg. She smiled reassuringly at him and whispered, “I love you, all of you, and everything that comes with that. I don’t care about what they say. I don’t care if I have to get a cornea transplant from all the camera flashes either.”

“I hope you bring your family to the beach one day, I hope to teach them how to surf the majestic waves of the Pacific before I’m too old,” Shona continued with a smile. “And finally, I hope that the inevitable winds of life will be kind to you both and that they would only leave you stronger. To Sidney and Autumn.”

Shona hugged her daughter closely. When it was her son-in-law’s turn, he felt the need to appease her. “I will take care of her, Shona. I promise you that. No one will come even close to hurting her, I will protect her with my life, with all that I have.”

As the newlyweds were invited to the dance floor, Adele’s One and Only started playing. Sidney whispered in Autumn’s ear, “I thought we were doing our first dance to Ed Sheeran’s song.”

“I thought so too, but it’s okay, Sheeran has become too mainstream anyway,” Autumn shrugged, refusing to dwell on the fact that their wedding planner messed-up that detail. Sidney’s face fell at her indifference.

“What’s wrong, baby?” Autumn asked as Sidney has stopped moving completely. From the corner of her eye, Autumn could see a commotion taking place on stage. “I thought he was your favourite and… well, surprise,” Sidney said weakly pointing to the stage where a pale man with red hair stood with his guitar, looking at them expectedly.

I found a love for me
Darling just dive right in
And follow my lead
Well I found a girl beautiful and sweet
I never knew you were the someone waiting for me

“Oh my God, Sidney!” Autumn exclaimed with wide eyes. She covered her mouth with her hands as she watched Ed Sheeran, in the flesh, stand on stage and sing her favourite song. Sidney grinned at how ecstatic Autumn was. He felt extremely pleased with himself. He offered his hand to his wife, “Would you dance with me, beautiful?” Ignoring Sidney’s stretched hand, Autumn jumped right into his arms, 7 layers of tulle and five-inch heels and all.

Everyone cheered at her reaction and contemplated the pure joy radiating from the couple as they swayed and twirled to the music. Single girls swooned dreamily over Sidney’s gesture while his guy friends thought it was too cheesy. “What happened to our friend, guys?” Geno said as he joined Kris and Phil who were watching the first dance.

“He’s in love, dude,” Phil said with a chuckle. “He too romantic, never believed Sid would be like… well, like this,” the Russian pointed to his Captain who had his hand on his wife’s neck as he whispered in her ear something that made her giggle and blush. “Frankly, I never thought he would get married in the first place,” Kris quipped.

On the other side of the dance floor sat the Lemieux family. Lauren watched her dad closely. He was quiet as he followed the newlyweds’ every move. “Do you think Autumn is good for him like everyone has been saying for the last 2 years?” Lauren asked curiously.

Mario sighed. “I think she is good for him. I’m not sure if he is good for her, though. True, he has changed in some ways. But Sid will always be Sid.”

“Hockey will always come first, eh?” Lauren asked.

“Maybe. It’s not just that, though. Autumn deserves someone who’s gonna be there for her, someone who will give her as much as she gives. I’m not sure whether Sidney can be that someone, that’s all,” Mario spoke, his eyes never leaving the woman in white.

“You surely have her interest at heart, dad,” Lauren rolled her eyes.

*****

The stars twinkled in the clear August sky. The serene lake at Sidney’s feet moved with the current at an agonizing pace.

“Are you running away already?” Sidney was startled by Autumn’s voice. She took off her heels and pulled up the skirt of her dress up to her waist as she attempted to sit on the dock next to her husband.

“Wow, starting the show a little early, are we?” Sidney grinned at the sight of her panties.

“Would you stop staring and help your wife. I don’t feel like falling into the lake with that dress. I could die you know. Have you heard of that woman who drowned in her dress –”

Putting his cigar aside, Sidney pulled his wife down next to him and silenced her with a passionate kiss. His hand travelled from her shoulder to her lower back, then to her chest, landing on her stomach. He detached his lips from hers and frowned.

“I love you, Autumn. I will never let anything bad happen to you, to neither of you. I promise.”

“I know, Sid,” Autumn said softly as she laced her fingers with his over her fast-growing belly. Their little secret won’t be a secret for much longer.

“Your mom is right. Our kids will get a lot of attention. They will never have a normal childhood.”

“You didn’t have a normal childhood, neither did I. But look at us, we turned out just fine,” she smiled fondly at him.

“Sid, I’m so happy. I never thought I would ever be this happy. I have a loving sister, awesome friends, I made up with my mother, and did I tell you about my husband?”

Sidney chuckled, “what about him?”

“He’s the most stubborn, irrational caveman, who still doesn’t have a social media account in 2019.”

“He sounds great,” Sidney said sarcastically.

“But he has the biggest heart. He is kind and generous. He would bring his girlfriend soup when she’s sick, he would even sing to comfort her, despite how awfully off-tune he always is. He would skip a night with the guys because he wants to spend more time with her. He would go to extreme lengths to make her happy. And when she told him she was pregnant, he did not freak out like she did. He will also be an incredible father.”

Sidney wiped the single tear that tumbled down her cheek. “He hates to see her cry though,” he whispered as he tucked a loose strand behind her ear, his other hand remained glued to her belly.

“He would make her the happiest wife, regardless of what her mom or anyone else may think,” she said softly as Sidney kissed her knuckles.

“I wouldn’t want any other life, but my life with you, Sidney. I can never ask for more than to spend the rest of our lives together with our baby,” she added, her mind drifting back to her dream, the dream in which Autumn left Sidney. With a happy sigh, she told him, “fantasies are nice, but the reality is sometimes too good, better than any dream.”

Notes

My dearest readers,

I'm sad to write this final note. I want to thank everyone who's read this story. I appreciated all your kind comments and feedback. I hope you liked the ending. I initially had a different ending planned, but I changed my mind. Let's face it, who doesn't love a Happy Endings?!

I've been toying with a new idea for a new Crosby story. It's quite unique and different from this one though. Stay tuned!

Love always :)

Charlie