Goodnight, beautiful

“Oh, boy”

Bristol held the nylon hockey sweater out in front of her, instantly repulsed by its vibrant orange color. “I don’t look good in orange. Do you have one that’s less…goon-like?”

Tearing the garment from her hands, Kris Versteeg tossed it on to his bed and groaned as he traced his steps back to the closet. His patience were running thin with his new roommate as she was keeping him from the arena, where he his presence was expected in less than twenty minutes. With the Saturday afternoon traffic in Philadelphia, he’d be lucky if he made it on time.

“Is white okay? Do you look good in white?”

Bristol didn’t appreciate his sarcasm but the white jersey he handed her was far better than wearing orange. She would much rather wear Kris’s old Blackhawks jersey but, Kris warned her against doing so as Philly fans didn’t take too kindly to out-of-state colors.

“Yes, thank you.” A smile tugged at the corner of Bristol’s mouth as she slipped the Flyers sweater of her head and pulled her hair out of the collar.

Philadelphia wasn’t exactly the city Bristol saw herself living but it was where Kris currently called home and that was enough for her. As an American born girl, Bristol felt at ease being back on American soil. When Kris had been traded to Toronto following his Stanley Cup win, Bristol had been excited to explore the foreign country but it didn’t take long for the homesickness to sink in. She was beyond grateful of Kris’s willingness to allow her the opportunity to follow him from city to city and if that meant she had to wear an orange sweater here and there, she didn’t mind.

“All you have to do is take a cab to the arena and after the game, I’ll give you a ride back here.” The nerves in Kris’s chest were tingling at the thought of leaving Bristol to fend for her self in a city that didn’t seem too open to newcomers. Plus, the added pressure of him playing his first game with his new team wasn’t helping much to settle said nerves.

Bristol could sense his nervousness a mile away and she was confident it would diminish the second he took his first steps on the ice. He was a hell of a player and it would only take a few shifts for his new linemates to see that as well. Kris kissed Bristol’s cheek before grabbing his equipment bag off the bed. She bid him goodbye and good luck as she escorted him to the door.

“You better behave.” Kris pointed a finger at Bristol. “This isn’t the Madhouse and people in Philly can a little rougher than the people in Chi-Town. Whatever you do, for the love of that is holy, do not bring up anything about..”

Bristol cut him off, placing a hand on his chest to give him a light shove out the door. “Game six, I got it! You’re gonna be late.”

Less than 90 minutes later, Bristol had found her seat at Wells Fargo Center. The arena was alien to her, the atmosphere far different than what she was used to and for the first time she actually felt intimidated by the other Flyers fans. When Kris had asked Bristol to join him in Philly she didn’t hesitate to accept the invitation but now she was wondering if she would ever fit into a place like this. She had always been searching for something bigger and better than the life she was born into but this may have been a bite quite larger than she could chew.

The sea of orange that settled into her vision amazed her. She slightly regretted not wearing the first jersey Kris had offered considering she felt like as though she stuck out more in white than the goon-orange.

“Wow,” she heard the voice of a little boy behind her only seconds before he tapped her shoulder. Bristol turned around, wondering what he was amazed by. “Where did you get that Versteeg jersey?”

A jersey dawning the Versteeg name and number hadn’t been released to the public yet and she didn’t want to say anything that could be misconstrued. With a friendship as tight as theirs, it was common for people to think Kris and Bristol were dating, to the dismay of Kris’s actual girlfriend, Allison.

“Oh, I had it custom made from the NHL website. I’m a huge Versteeg fan.”

Nice lie, Bristol thought to herself. It also seemed to satisfy the young fan.

It was tough for Bristol to watch Kris lose his first game as a Flyer. The Coyotes had given them a run for their money and she knew he would be feeling defeated in that he hadn’t showcased his full talent. He was tired from the move and they skated circles around him. Not to mention being bumped from second to third line wasn’t doing much to help his ego but he would have to prove he was second line material.

Following the strict instructions Kris had given her at the apartment, Bristol waited in the hallway outside the changing room. As players began spilling out, the Broadstreet Bullies would give her an odd look as she stood by her lonesome. Those looks gave Bristol the impression they assumed she was a puck slut; a label she was accustom to hearing attached to her name. She hated waiting alone for that particular reason. In her head, she was thinking of comebacks to shoot if one of the guys had the nerve to say something to her. Being on edge already, she wasn’t in the mood to have her reputation tarnished with the offers of one-night-stands being tossed at her. Constantly checking the time on her phone she wished Kris would hurry up.

When he finally did emerge from the changing room, Bristol stayed reserved, as he had exited with several other teammates. She was happy to see him smiling and laughing as a loss typically put him in a foul mood. It took several moments for Kris to realize Bristol was standing against the wall adjacent to him. He grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into the circle for a formal introduction.

“You must be the girlfriend.” Claude Giroux spoke mistakenly.

Bristol and Kris both laughed at his mix up, having heard it a thousand times before. Kris politely corrected him.

“This is my best girl from Chicago, Bristol.”

She was introduced to Danny Briere, Daniel Carcillo, and Claude Giroux, who apologized up and down for how he misspoke. Kris placed a hand on the small of her back as she shook their hands. Since being introduced to Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane some years prior, there were no hockey players Bristol could meet that would leave her starstruck; unless that man was Sidney Crosby. It was fairly unusual for Bristol to become shy around guys, but when she let go of Carcillo’s hand she could feel her cheeks begin to burn. She just hoped no one noticed her sudden blushing. A year ago Bristol never would have given Daniel the time of day but now that she was in his presence there was a sudden change of heart.

“Well, it’s getting late.” Dan loosened the knot of his tie, “I’m headed out. It was nice to meet you, Bristol. You coming to the game on Thursday?”

Her head was foggy from the sudden shock of lust and she tried desperately not to stumble over her words.


“You’re damn right.” She mentally slapped herself for sounding so stupid as she failed to not overcome the shakiness in her voice. It felt as though her awkward teenage years were coming back to haunt her.

Kris tried to conceal his laughter by coughing but Bristol knew he was snickering at her. She knew exactly how ridiculous she had sounded and she knew at any moment Kris would rub it in.

Giroux and Briere bid the friends goodnight as well as they followed Daniel out. Kris waited until the trio was out of earshot until he bent over in laughter He hadn’t seen her act like that since Patrick Kane had complimented her sweater at a Blackhawks Christmas party.

“You’re damn right.” Versteeg mocked the blushing woman and the punch to the shoulder with stride, as he knew he deserved it. “C’mon, let’s get out of here, I’ve got leftover Chinese in the fridge.”

Kris wrapped an arm around Bristol’s shoulders as they made their way out of the arena. She was still glowing with embarrassment and all she wanted to do was crawl into bed and never make an appearance at Wells Fargo Center again.

Notes

I originally wrote and posted this story almost eight years ago and I was never happy with how it turned out. So, I decided to rewrite it and better develop the relationships between Bristol and her Dannys. I grew so attached this love triangle and feel they deserve a better ending.