Chapter Two

“Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you..”

Everyone at the table was singing to me while I tried to pretend that I wasn’t there. I had told Ryan and Abby plenty of times in the car that if anyone even mentioned a hint to any of the servers in the restaurant that it was my birthday, I would make sure that their face would have a lovely conversation with the cake.

Apparently I’m not very threatening. Not even to keep Sidney Crosby away.

Granted, I thought for sure that he wasn’t going to show up after our meeting at the arena. I didn’t blame him if he didn’t come. I wouldn’t want to hang around someone I just met who already thought so low of me. Nevertheless, I secretly hoped that he had gotten over it and would still come so I could at least apologize to him for my not-so-friendly behavior. After I was certain that he wasn’t coming, Sidney walked into the restaurant towards our table. He apologized for being the last one to arrive due to the fact that he was still trying to find his way around Pittsburgh and all the ramps Downtown didn’t help his horrible sense of direction. As he sat down between Marc and Max, he just looked at me and smiled. I smiled back, hoping that maybe he would get the hint that I appreciated him being here.

“Make a wish and blow out the candles, chicka!” Abby said as she clapped her hands excitedly.

I stared at the sixteen candles in front of me. I wasn’t going to be ridiculous and pray that I got a car or to meet Justin Timberlake (although that would be amazing and I’d probably faint). What did I really want for myself? I looked around the table at all of the people who joined me for my birthday. At that moment, I felt really blessed to know that people cared about me.

I just want to be happy, I thought as I blew out the candles with clapping and cheering in the background.

Once all the cake was eaten, some of the guys went up to the bar to get a drink. Abby and I began talking at the table when I heard the chair next to me move. I turned to look as Sidney sat down next to me. Abby grinned, “If you’ll excuse me, I hear a strawberry margarita calling my name.”

Well this is awkward, I thought as we sat in silence until we were sure she couldn’t hear us.

Sidney then pulled out a small gift box from his jacket pocket and handed it to me, “Happy Birthday.”
“You didn’t have to get me anything,” I replied, shocked that he would. “You barely know me.”
“I also know that it’s rude to come empty handed to a birthday party as well. Just open it.”

I was nervous to open it. What was inside? It couldn’t possibly be jewelry, that’d be way out of line. And if it was, what do I say to the guy?

I finally unwrapped the gift and took the lid off of the box to find two different crystal-like key chains. One was simply my first initial ‘R’ while the other one was a rectangular photo frame.
“I..uh..thought you’d maybe like to make your set of keys not so boring when you begin driving,” Sidney said, nervous that I didn’t like the gift. “I know it’s kinda lame-”
“No, not at all,” I replied honestly. “I think they’re very thoughtful and cute! Picking out the picture is going to be a tough decision though. Thank you, these are really nice.”
Sidney smirked, “To be honest with you, I needed help from Nathalie to make sure I didn’t pick out anything too out of the ordinary.”
“Who?” I asked puzzled.
“Mario’s wife..”
“Oh, right! I forgot you were living with them. How’s that been going?”
He shrugged his shoulders, “So far, so good. It’s kinda weird staying there with their kids around the house, but they’re a nice family. I’ve never really felt unwelcome there, but I do miss my family a lot.”

As I watched him stare into space, I realized how hard the move must have been on him. Yeah, he was living his dream, but he also had to sacrifice many things as well. Not being able to see his family, his friends, going to college, and his privacy. All gone with a simple signature on a contract. I immediately began to feel more ashamed of how I had treated him this afternoon.

“I’m sorry about how I acted towards you today..it was completely uncalled for and you didn’t deserve that.”
Sidney looked back at me, a little shocked at first, but then grinned, “It’s okay. To be fair, I really did smell like dog sweat.”
I laughed with my head down, “Yeah, glad you clean up well.”
“So..you’re in high school..a junior, right?”
I nodded my head, “Yeah, I can’t wait to get out of that place.”
“Trust me, graduation was a memorable moment, but don’t wish it away so fast. I wish I could go back in time and do some of the normal things that I should have been doing in high school.”
I looked at him weird, “Like what? You played hockey. I imagine you were quite the jock.”
Sidney rolled his eyes, “Yeah, if you like everyone sucking up to you just because you’re breaking school records. I was bullied by some of my teammates just because I was beating them in points and getting all the attention. And then all of the girls tried to cling onto me like a hook. It was hard to tell who really wanted to be my friend. And then my hockey schedule made it nearly impossible to go to dances, football games, just being a teenager.”
“..Wow. I had no idea.”
“Eh, I got over it. There’s nothing I’d rather be doing than what I’m here for now so I’d like to think that I overcame all of my obstacles.”
I looked at him, “Sidney, how did you know that hockey was it? Y’know, was there ever a doubt in your mind that you weren’t supposed to?”
He shook his head, “Not really. I thought about going to college for a little..especially during the lockout, but I figured that I would just be playing hockey there anyways and that the dream would only get bigger and harder to reach for if I didn’t go for it now.”
“You’re so lucky. You had your life basically laid out for you when you were two years old. I can’t even decide on a career yet alone a college.”
“Well, what do you like to do?”
Sing, I thought. Write music, help out other people through music.
“I dance at a local studio ..but I really can’t see myself wearing a pair of tap shoes the rest of my life. I like to help others out a lot through my youth group. I like kids and have thought about teaching.”
He raised an eyebrow, “But there’s something else you’d rather be doing..”
I froze. How could he see right through me? I just met this guy and he already knows I’m holding something back. Damn it, am I that easy to read?
“Well..I..-”
“Rachel! I won, baby!” Max said as he put his arm around my shoulders.
“How many times must I tell you, Max? Don’t call me baby. And what did you win?” I asked annoyed.
“I beat Bugsy, Fleury, and Army on how many of those mints that they gave us after our meal I can fit in my mouth!”
“Good Lord,” I rolled my eyes. “Next time, you should challenge yourself to count to one hundred under water.”
Max pouted, “I thought you loved me!”
I smirked, “I like you when you’re quiet and the only time that happens is when you’re not around.”
Max walked over to Sidney, “You see what I have to deal with? Can’t even get the girl to go on a date with me.”
“Max, I’m just not interested in dating anyone right now,” I said, and couldn’t help but notice the disappointment on Sidney’s face. “But if you always need a date, you can just pick any girl outside waiting for you after a game.”
“I tried that once. Turns out the girl just wanted a ride home since she took a bus to the game.”
I couldn’t help but laugh as the rest of the crew came back. “You ready to go home?”

I nodded at Ryan as we all gathered our things and headed for the parking lot. I said goodbye to most of the crew and thanked them for the gifts and their company. Ryan and Abby began to load my presents in the car which left Sidney and me standing alone in the parking lot.
“I’m really happy that you came after all tonight. I was afraid I scared you away.”
Sidney chuckled, “Nah, I needed to get out of the house. Plus, it doesn’t hurt to try to get to know my teammates better along with other people as well..”
“..Yeah,” I fidgeted. “Listen, if you ever need someone to talk to ..and it doesn’t have to be a serious conversation. I know Pittsburgh pretty well living here my whole life. I could give you some tips and suggestions on where to go..”
“Yeah, I’d like that. Can I see your phone?”
I looked at him puzzled, “My phone?”
“Well, yeah, that’s usually a main resource to keep in contact with people,” he smirked.
Duh, ya big dummy, I thought. “Oh, right. I don’t know what I was thinking,” I replied as I handed my phone to him. He saved his number on my phone and then called himself.

Ryan honked the horn, “Hey, you two! Let’s speed it up a bit! Normally, I wouldn’t stop this, but Mr. Kenzington might take a baseball bat to my head if she’s not home on time!”
I groaned, “I swear, Ryan’s the big brother I never had.”
Sidney chuckled, “If only you were so lucky.”
We smiled at each other. This was weird. I couldn’t help but notice the nervousness I had whenever I was around a guy I liked. But I had just met Sidney. There’s absolutely no way I could have feelings for him and I never would. It just wasn’t going to happen. He’s the reason the NHL is slowly coming back to its popularity. I could never date someone with that much of a hype yet alone the schedule he has to live by.

Nope, that would never happen. But having a good guy friend could help with potential boyfriends in the future. He seemed to be like the type of guy that would honestly tell me what to watch out for in a guy. Potentially, he seemed like another big brother to me.
“So..I guess I’ll see you later,” I said as I held out my hand.
He smiled and accepted it, “Thanks. Glad to know I have another friend now. Let me know whenever you’re planning on another visit to the arena.”
“I will,” I promised.

We said our final goodbyes as we got into our cars that would drive us home. So my birthday wasn’t bad after all. It was actually fun. I enjoyed hanging out with everyone tonight. And surprisingly, I really enjoyed getting to know Sidney a little bit better. Maybe he’s not a stuck up hockey player after all.
“So,” Abby turned in her seat, “looks like you and Sidney were getting along real well.”
“Yeah, he doesn’t seem so cocky after all.”
“I told you,” Abby said. “Just give him a chance and you will see.”
“See what?” I asked.
“Oh, nothing at all,” she mused. “I can just tell that you guys are going to be great friends.”
“So, Rach,” Ryan said as he looked into the rearview mirror, “what do you say your best friend Ryan takes you to get your permit tomorrow?”
“Ugh,” I replied. I still didn’t look over the damn driver’s manual. What a great ending to my sixteenth birthday..studying on a Friday night. Great.