Page 36 of Trade Deadline

I’m sorry, I wish I was too.

Alex

But you’ll see me tomorrow :)

Blaine

I know but that’s far away.

Blaine

I wanna look up and see you in the crowd.

Alex

Kick some Nashville ass!

Blaine

I will, don’t you worry about that.

Alex

Are you gonna score another goal for me?

Blaine

Baby, I’ll win the whole game for you.

Twelve

Blaine

Goinginto this date tonight with Alex, I wanted to make sure I did it right.

I haven’t needed to think about dating in a while—especially since the thought of going on one would make me want to run for the hills screaming—but with Alex, it’s different. It’s the thought of not seeing him again that makes me angry, like I want to Hulk smash everything in sight.

No one's ever had this kind of hold on me, and it's making me restless.

Back in college, when I was dating Kelly, it was easy. We’d go to a restaurant or bar near campus, nothing fancy because nine times out of ten we would bump into our friends, so it was never really just the two of us.

Thinking back, I wasn’t exactly a picture-perfect boyfriend. I’d often bail on planned date nights to stay late at practice or because I was too tired after a game.

But the one thing I do know is that I’ve never felt this excited about a date before. The only thing that comes close was when I lifted the Stanley Cup two seasons ago.

It was like seeing him at the bakery so unexpectedly was the universe’s way of nudging me to follow Mom’s advice. Not to mention the fact that Elliot wouldn’t drop it in the car on the way back home.

I know I’m not supposed to get distracted, but can Alex even be called a distraction when I’ve been playing some of the best games of my career since that night I slammed into the boards in front of him?

It’s like knowing I’ll be seeing Alex tonight has empowered me.

Seven goals, five assists over the last four games, and the biggest shocker of all?

Zero penalty minutes.

Zero.

Zilch.

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