Kids in Love // Nolan Patrick

Chapter 5

September 28th, 2017

I was the second to last preseason game tonight and Shayne couldn't have been more excited. When I walked down the stairs that morning, he was watching the Bruins previous preseason games, trying to figure out their offensive strategies. I couldn't blame him, when I played hockey I tried to do the exact same thing, except high schools didn't record their games so I had to go down and watch the game live. Anyway, I walked past my brother, who hadn't moved his eyes off the screen or even acknowledged me yet and went into the kitchen. I made myself a bowl of cereal and sat quietly while I watched the game Shayne was analyzing. It was a little annoying since he kept pausing and rewinding the same plays over and over, but I dealt with it. I finished my breakfast and walked back up to my room. It was a night game so I had some time before I needed to get ready. I decided to re-watch some episodes one of my favorite Youtube show, Buzzfeed Unsolved. I watched three or four episodes when I got a text from Hextall.

In that moment, I kinda freaked out. The general manager trusted me with something as important as the montage for the home opener. After I got dressed, I ran downstairs and told my brother I was going to the Fargo. He nodded his head, still focusing on the game. I drove to the Wells Fargo Center and practically ran to my office. I logged into my computer and got to work right away. I was in that office for a solid six hours, my eyes drained from making sure everything looked perfect. I did a total of 5 montages just in case. After emailing all of them to Hextall, I checked the clock to see that it was 5 pm. The boys had most likely arrived by now. I left my office and walked down to the locker room. Before I could knock on the door, someone grabbed me and pulled me down the hall. I turned and saw Travis Konecny pulling me. We went into a separate room where no one else was.

"Gostisbehere. We need to talk" He said sternly

I gave him a confused look, "What's up?" I asked

"Do you like Nolan?"

"Uh..." I responded, as he caught me off guard

"Do you like Nolan?" He asked again, this time he put his hands on my shoulders

I put my hands on his shoulders, to mock him. "No"

"Are you sure?" He pestered again

I looked him dead in the eyes. "Just because I have a friend who is a guy, it doesn't mean I like him." I walked out of the room, leaving Travis in there by himself.

*Travis's POV*

Well that was pointless I thought to myself

There is no way she doesn't like him though. The way she looks at him, the way she talks to him, it's obvious. The only problem is that she won't admit it. Like seriously, I'm one of her best friends, she can tell me anything.

I walked back into the locker room where Ivan was.

"I got nothing." I admitted

He groaned and leaned back in his cubby.

"We need to find out." He said

I nodded in agreement as the rest of the team walked into the locker room.

*Reagan's POV*

A few hours later, the game begun. It was a fairly eventful first period, as the Flyers were up 2-0 at the end of it. The second however, is where things intensified. It was 4-0 in favor of the Flyers with 4:49 left in the period. Jordan's helmet came off due to a check, and Nolan didn't take kindly to the gesture. A few pairs of orange and black and black and gold got into little skirmishes, so I took some pictures. I looked over and saw him and Krejci having a few words. I held my breath nervously as I saw the gloves drop. The 31 year old and the 19 year old rookie both threw punches until the refs split them up. With less than 5 minutes left in the period, the guys returned to their respective locker rooms to serve the 5 minute major. I walked down to the locker room, where Nolan was sitting alone.

"Welcome to Philly." I said with a slight chuckle, leaning against the doorway.

He looked up and smiled at me. He had a fairly bloody nose, but other than that he looked fine.

"Thanks." He said "I didn't know how much the fans love fighting."

I walked over to him and wiped his nose with some tissues. "You guys don't have the nickname 'Broad Street Bullies' for nothing."

He shrugged in agreement. I finished cleaning him up and we sat there in silence for a minute. Our eyes met and we both looked away. I turned my head back to face his and he did the same thing.

"So, um uh..." I started, desperately trying to find something to talk about when the rest of the team walked in.

"Good period boys" I turned my attention to the team into the locker room. "I'll let your coach talk." I added as I saw Hakstol enter the room.

I left and got assigned to do even more montages during the third. The Flyers won 5-1 and Nolan was a goal away from a Gordie Howe hat trick.