Stanley Cup playoffs were only a week away, the coaches were working them harder than ever.
"Sprint to the finish!"
"Shoot the puck!"
"Work on your slapshots!"
"This is our year!"
After practice, Mat and Bailey went home to their usual Friday evening ritual of eating chicken wings and watching any hockey game that was on.
"The Canes got this one in the bag," Bailey said.
"I don't know, Bails," Mat said. "The Panthers had a great season so far,"
"I've got faith in the Carolina's," Bailey said.
"Alright then," Mat said.
"We've got some tough competition for playoffs, then," Bailey said.
Bailey's phone rang. She picked it up.
"Coach?" She said.
"Bailey, I wanted to see if you would be able to play in our next game against the Sabres," Coach said. "Can you play in Anders' position?"
"For the first line?" Bailey asked. "Yes!"
"Alright, I'll see you tomorrow," Coach said.
"Thank you," Bailey said before hanging up.
"Who was that?" Mat asked.
"It was Coach," Bailey said.
"Anything good?" Mat asked.
"Well, I'm playing in the game tomorrow night," Bailey smiled.
"Are you serious?" Mat asked, coming up to Bailey.
"No joke," Bailey smiled. "Coach just asked me!"
"I'm so happy for you, Bails!" He hugged her. "Did he say anything else?"
"Just if I was ready to play," Bailey said. "I'm so excited,"
"Your first NHL game is definitely one to remember," Mat said.
"I'm ready for it!" Bailey said.
Mat went to go finish cooking the chicken wings. He put them on a plate and set them on the coffee table. Bailey helped put out the plates and napkins. They hopped on the couch and grabbed a wing each. When they finished, Bailey cleaned up.
Bailey made a bag of microwave popcorn during the second intermission. She brought it to the couch, ready for another period of hockey. Bailey threw a piece of popcorn at Mat's face. He looked at Bailey and smiled then opened his mouth to catch a piece. Bailey threw a piece and it landed in his mouth. Mat threw up his hands and smiled. He took the bag and got a handful to throw at Bailey. None of the pieces he threw landed in her mouth. She laughed.
"Barzy," Bailey laughed.
"Okay, okay," Mat smiled. "Catch this one,"
Bailey opened her mouth and Mat threw one piece in. It hit her nose and bounced off and landed on the couch. Mat got a new piece and threw it at her. It hit her cheek.
"C'mon, Barzy," She laughed. "You're not even trying,"
"What do you mean, me?" Mat smiled. "You've gotta move your face to get the popcorn to land in your mouth,"
Mat tried again. He hit it on her nose.
"Move your face," Mat laughed.
Bailey swayed her head back and forth with her mouth open.
"Not like that," Mat smiled.
He held her face in place. Their eyes interlocked for a moment, just like when they first met. Mat realized the situation and he grabbed a piece of popcorn from the bag. He threw it in. They both smiled when it went in her mouth.
"Let's go!" Bailey smiled.
Mat looked back at the TV. The Florida Panthers just scored.
"Awe, yes!" Mat said. "I knew it!"
"There are still fifteen minutes left in the period," Bailey said. "They've got plenty of time to score,"
They decided to eat the rest of the popcorn and watch the rest of the game. The Canes ended up scoring with 12 seconds left, leading the game into overtime.
"Oh, damn! What a goal by Sebastian Aho!" Bailey said.
"That one was sick," Mat said, watching the replay.
The goal was under review for offsides.
"That was on," Bailey said.
"Shit, it's a close call," Mat said.
"He clearly received the puck before the blue line," Bailey said.
The refs decided. The head ref went to the front of the screen and called it an onside goal.
"Let's go," Bailey said.
Before overtime started, they cleaned up the popcorn on the couch and the floor. They sat back down on the couch before the puck dropped. After a commercial, a puck personality video came on. How many Disney Princesses can you name?
"Oh damn, this is gonna be good," Bailey laughed.
"Shit, I think I'm in this one," Mat said.
"How many can you name?" Bailey asked.
"Just watch it," Mat laughed, waiting for his part to come up.
"Jasmine? Is that one? That's it for me," Mat said on his Puck Personality video.
Bailey laughed.
"Hey," Mat smiled. "It's not that funny,"
"Just Jasmine?" Bailey asked.
"I mean, I didn't really watch a lot of stuff with Liana," Mat confessed.
"You wanna know something," Bailey said. "You probably won't even believe it,"
"What?" Mat asked.
"When I was in eighth grade," Bailey started.
"Oh boy," Mat laughed.
"I was in a musical," Bailey said.
"You?" Mat asked, surprised.
"Yeah," Bailey smiled. "Aladdin,"
"No way," Mat said. "What part did you make?"
"I was Jasmine," Bailey said.
"Holy shit, Bails," Mat said. "Seriously?"
"Yeah," Bailey smiled. "My friend wanted me to audition... so I did,"
"Wow," Mat said. "Jasmine,"
"I never would've thought that I would make that part," Bailey confessed.
"Did you sing?" Mat asked.
"For fun," Bailey said. "How about you?"
"Nah," Mat laughed. "I couldn't even if I tried,"
Overtime started in the PNC Arena. Bailey and Mat glued their eyes to the screen. The Florida Panthers scored 2 minutes into overtime.
"What a goal!" Mat said, getting up. "Alright, Jasmine, I'm gonna go to bed,"
Bailey blushed.
"Goodnight, Barzy," Bailey said, folding the blanket that they were using.
"Night," Mat said.
YOU ARE READING
The Rise of the Isles II Mat Barzal
Teen Fiction(Completed) It's Bailey's 18th birthday and she gets tickets to an Islanders game. Little did she know she would run into Mat Barzal after the game. They become friends and Bailey gets a chance to play with the Islanders. How far will her career as...
