Goalie // Sidney Crosby

Four

"Ah wow this place really is nice." Emerson and Pete stood with the realtor inside the unit they were looking to buy. Things were all moving quickly now so they needed to find the perfect place and be done.

The floor plan was open, bright, beautiful and would give both of them their needed privacy. One bedroom was on the main floor, while the other was up in the loft- yet it was still sunny and warm. There were two bathrooms, open kitchen going right into the living room. There were some exposed steal beams in certain places giving it character.. But it was modern and had obviously, an amazing location giving them easy access to the arena, downtown and the south side. Really it was perfect for two twenty-two year olds right out of college. Maybe even too big, nice- but with their money it was almost too inexpensive.

"We could definitely entertain some people here if we wanted. And people could stay in the living room, or when your on road trips depending on who it is they can just use your room."

"Yeah, if it was a former teammate or your sister they could use mine... which I'm guessing would be the loft."

"Oh yah um, no way am I using the stairs on a daily basis. And having my room right off the kitchen is perfect." Pete placed his hands on the granite counter top of the island. He would have wanted a bigger kitchen, like the one at their house in Boston, but he couldn't complain. Everything was of high quality and in a very convenient place for Emerson. Even their training center, upmc lemieux sports complex was a twenty minute drive. All in all, it was going to be great.

"That means guests would be using your bathroom mainly-"

"Or I send them to yours!" Pete countered back immediately. Though he was a lot neater than his close friend so that probably wouldn't be working out well.

The realtor gave them a sweet smile, her bright red lips upturned. She was happy to see how interested they were, these apartments could go quick., "and it is a great location. Very close to where the Pittsburgh Penguins play."

"Oh we know." Pete said nonchalant.

The realtor once again looked at Emerson. She had been doing that for most of the tour, something about the girl really catching the older woman's eye, "Oh! You're the new goalie..."

"Hi, yeah." Emerson started to turn red. This was the first time someone recognized her like this. She had been waiting, more like fretting for when these moments started happening. There wasn't exactly a guidebook on how to act or what to say in these moments. And Emerson wasn't exactly one for major things of confrontation.

"The city of Pittsburgh is very excited to have you Miss Rousseau! Now, I feel like the two of you really have your hearts set on this unit."

Emerson and Pete shared quick glances for nodding in unison. This was definitely the place for them to be.

"Perfect, let's get this on its way."

After a few hours Pete and Emerson officially had a place to call their own in the city of Pittsburgh. Emerson for sure felt a huge relief knowing she wouldn't be having to stay in a hotel much longer, and would be with her close friend.

Right away they decided that it was time to start moving at least the large things in. After Emerson made a few calls to Jake, Fleury and Kris.. they'd be all set. Thank god for her abilities to easily form bonds with her teammates. Because trying to move beds and a couch wasn't something her and Pete would be able to accomplish together.

The end of the day proved to be successful. The two friends stood in the kitchen with wine glasses in hand, happy to already be making great strides.

***

Sidney Crosby set down his bags as he entered the front door of his home. The last two weeks were a whirlwind for him, but well worth it as he held the World Cup trophy in his hands as the mvp, and as always- the Captain.

He was ready for a night of quiet before heading to practice tomorrow morning to meet the rookies and familiar faces. As he sat down on his couch, he felt his whole body relax, relief rushing through his muscles. As good as summer always was- this year with the cup especially- he was ready for a new season with new challenges. Sidney had his mind once again set on the Stanley Cup. And as he was in great shape, the rest of the team from what he'd been told- there was a great chance of them repeating.

Teammates who were back home instead of in Canada for the tournament were doing their best to keep him in the loop. From drills, shooting to basic problems, he was told everything.

The only person who was a mystery to him that had all his interest peaked was Emerson Rousseau. He had yet to meet her, and it was something he felt very guilty about. As one of the first girls in the league to play at this high of a level he felt like his duty as a captain was to be present, and he hadn't been. Fleury though, only had praises for her and seemed to be doing a good job as a leader to her.

"Do you want me to see if Emerson would come early so you can meet her?" -Flower

Sidney stared at the text from his teammate. He wasn't sure exactly how to approach this situation due to the fact he knew almost nothing about her besides her stats.

Instead of proceeding in a strenuous text conversation Sidney decided to just call Fleury instead.

It didn't take long for the goalie to pick up the moment the cellphone rang, "Hey Cap, how's it going? Good to be home?"

"Oh for sure." he chuckled softly, "Now, about Emerson..."

"What do you want to know? She's such a lovely girl, Véronique adores her already. Fairly quiet but works hard."

"Would she feel comfortable meeting me one on one? Would she want you there? The other rookies?" Sidney had how turned on the TV to some random channel, the volume low. He continued to flip through shows as the phone call continued.

"I feel like she'd be fine if it was just you two. She's easy to converse with."

"Alright that's good. I don't want it to seem like I'm favoring her as a rookie but these circumstances are a bit new."

"I doubt anyone would think we're giving her special treatment by you meeting her, how would I say this... specially by yourself, I guess."

"I'd think not, eh?" Sidney smiled taking a pause before saying, "I have a good feeling about this season Flower."

"Me too Sid, me too.. See you tomorrow?"

"As usual it'll be good to be back; see you."

As soon as their phone call began, it was over. And Sidney was left to his thoughts. Coming in late to practices right around games starting was never fun, especially with new teammates that hadn't been completely established yet. His job as Captain hadn't been fulfilled yet and now he'd have more to catch up on.

There was a lot for him to think about right now, same even with Geno and Olli. Coach Sullivan had even missed a few weeks due to being one of the coaches for the tournament. Sidney was already starting to worry about how things could have all gone wrong while he was gone, that there would be too many errors to fix. He liked to be in charge or at least know about everything that was going on with his team.

Now, on Emerson. So far he hadn't been asked many questions regarding her. In fact almost none of the team had been either. He hoped people wouldn't dwell on the factor of her being a girl, but he'd probably have to start preparing himself and the other guys for possible media frenzies. The last thing they'd need would be to possibly piss off every female that enjoys their sport- especially with all the new fans Emerson was sure to bring in. There was going to have to be a certain way to go around this and either him or Sully were going to have to approach it.

***

AUTHOR'S NOTE: ok so basically Emerson is gonna be replacing Murray in this story.. Idk if anyone noticed I used his exact draft pick and the fact he's close with Buckley... or I'm just trying too hard whoops