Chapter 2

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 "Gonna line my eyes, I'm gonna paint them black. Gonna lose my red lipstick to a whiskey glass, I want one of those nights that goes on for days. I'm in a bad girl phase" -Sunny Sweeney

Two days later, Mati was en route to the UC to watch the Hawks take on the Stars and help corral the zoo of media.  She got to sit in the press box to watch and to help the social media team tweet/Facebook the game. After a losing streak, the atmosphere was not nearly as exciting as it had been her first few home games but it was still packed in the arena and people were praying for a win.


And a win they got. 

After a scoreless first and second period, Kane had snuck one in and given the Hawks their first win in 5 games. Even though Mati knew little about the game, she found it hard to stay quiet in the box when Chelsea Dagger filled the arena after the goal.


Towards the end of the third, she meandered her way down towards to locker room to grab players as they were ready to meet the media. They took forever to get ready, so she was in no hurry. She grabbed her phone and scrolled through her social media. When she pulled up Instagram, she saw she was tagged in a post from her best friend,Taylor.

"Tbt with my loves @matiross and @tyty16"

It was a picture of them last fall at the alumni night football game at home. That was a huge deal in her little hometown. She had been a cheerleader all four years of high school and her step-dad was the head football coach for varsity.

She got engrossed in thinking about home and her best friends when she was interrupted.

"Getting texts from your boy toy?" Andrew Shaw asked

"Huh?"

"Most people don't just stare at their phones and smile for no reason. And if they are, it's usually love". He explained

Mati laughed "aren't you philosophical?  Nope. No boy toy for me. Just looking at some old pictures. But anyway, you're the first one out so let's go".

She walked him to the room and stood by as he was bombarded with questions.  Next up, was Crawford. After shutting out Dallas after the tough losses, he was one of Chicago's heroes tonight. The star of the game was next, followed by Captain Serious himself. Mati tried to make a joke with him before he was up and he just gave her a half smile and walked on. Whatever. I only have to deal with him for a few more months.

As Jon was finishing up, Kaner came up beside Mati and poked her in the side.

"Ouch! What the hell was that for?" She exclaimed, only half joking.

"Are you coming out with us tonight? We are celebrating. My treat." He asked.

"Ehhh I don't know, y'all go out and have fun. I'm kinda tired." She said

He got a puppy dog look on his face. "But please...just for a little while? It'll be fun. Plus you're still new. You need to make friends. Let us help you."

She scoffed "I'll make my own friends thank you...but....fine. I will. Just cause you're buying!"

He grinned at her and told her to go home and change and gave her directions.

Clubbing was not her scene. Going out to her was a fire by a creek or a tailgate party. A beer at a local bar watching Baylor kick ass. Not clubbing. But Kane was right, she didn't have many friends outside of Tess and the people at the internship she talked to, and she didn't have to work tomorrow.

She quickly went home and dug through her closet, cursing that Tess was at work. She would have had an outfit pulled together 5 minutes ago. She finally settled on a black, long sleeved lace dress. She only had two pairs of heels with her. The rest were tennis shoes and cowboy boots. Not exactly club attire. Her black sensible low heeled pumps were out. Guess the silver Louboutins she had splurged on after she sold her first song were the winners. They killed her feet but she knew she would never buy another pair of shoes that expensive again so why not enjoy them?

She drove to the club and when she said who she was meeting, she was quickly ushered to a backroom where most of the team was sitting.  Jon was noticeably absent she saw.

"Daaaayyyyuuuuum girl!" Kane greeted her.

She blushed and Abby Sharp came to her rescue.

"Ignore him. He's already three shots and a beer in. By the way, I'm Abby" she smiled.

"Mati...nice to meet you!"

The two chatted for a little while and sipped SoCo Sours when Patrick Sharp came over to grab his wife to dance.

"Only if Mati comes too!" She squealed. She was definitely drunk.

Mati, having a good buzz going ,agreed and shook her ass to all sorts of music with Abby and eventually a few of the players. This was unlike her, but new city, new her? She wasn't really sure, but it felt good to let loose and besides, she was only here for a little while. Why not have fun?


Jon was laying in bed watching highlights from the game. He skipped going out with the guys, feigning exhaustion, but really he just was getting over that scene. He was past that point and wanted to find someone else like it. And, Mati wasn't going to be there.He didn't think. He had definitely noticed her over the past two weeks she had been with the team. He didn't know much about her other than what Kaner and Sharpie had figured out. She was an intern for PR, was going to school in Nashville, was from Texas, and most recently, there was no man in her life. Besides that, she was stunning. Her blonde hair always done just right, her curves, her humor, and that accent. Jon smiled to himself.


He had just drifted off when his phone pinged with a new Snapchat. He looked at who it was from...Kaner. Probably someone shot gunning a beer.  It could wait until morning.


But as he laid there, now awake again, he opened it up. It was Mati in some lace black dress and heels, grinding between Abby and a very drunk Shawzie. He was mesmerized by the ten second video. He had to start talking to her. He vowed to start being more social in the upcoming week. His last thought as his eyes closed was that blonde southern sweetheart.



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