Chapter 3

Chapter 3
The next day, Lauren, Liz, and Maria picked up their tickets at the will-call office and an usher took them to their seats. They were nice seats, Igloo seats at center ice, about 4 rows behind the Penguins’ bench. Lauren’s phone beeped, indicating she had a text message.
Hope you like the seats. Can’t wait to see you. –Sid
He must have sent it from the locker room. She responded.
We love them! Good luck – knock ‘em dead. See you later!
About 15 minutes later, the Penguins took the ice. At one point, Sidney came over to the bench to get a drink, and looked up at where Lauren and her friends were sitting. His eyes lit up when he saw her and he flashed her a smile and winked. She smiled and waved and then he went back to warming up.
The Penguins won the game 4-1, thanks to Sidney’s two goals and two assists (AN: As much as I love hockey, I don’t write game play-by-plays very well). As promised, a Pens staffer showed up at the end of the game and escorted them down to the locker rooms. There was media everywhere as well as a whole slew of other people wandering around. Lauren, Liz, and Maria hung out for a while, and pretty soon Marc-Andre came out of the locker room, having showered and put on his suit. He smiled when he saw them and came over. “Hey girls! Thanks for coming today! I know Sidney is really excited that you’re here.” He said, directing his last comment at Lauren.
“You played really well today. It was a fun game to watch.” Maria said.
“Well I’ve got to get going. I have plans with my girlfriend tonight. But it was good to seeing you lovely ladies, and we’ll definitely have to hang out again soon.” He grinned and left.
Sidney came into the media room at that point, dressed in a charcoal gray suit with a blue tie and a light blue shirt. He smiled when he saw Lauren from across the room and waved. He whispered something to the Pens staffer standing next to him and then the staffer disappeared back into the dressing room.
A moment later, the same Pens staffer approached them, holding a pink rose. “Excuse me, Miss Somers?”
“Yes, that’s me.” Lauren said.
“Mr. Crosby said to inform you that unfortunately, he will be another half an hour or so with the press. But he said to give this to you.” He said, handing her the rose.
“Aww, well thanks! Tell him it’s no problem. Thanks for letting us know.” Lauren looked for Sidney across the room. When their eyes met, she held the rose up and he winked at her.
The girls continued their idle chatter until Sidney was standing at Lauren’s side. “Well hello. You all are looking wonderful tonight.” He was talking to all three of the girls, but his eyes focused only on Lauren. “Ready to go?” He asked her, offering his arm.
She smiled and took his arm. “Yeah. Thanks for coming to the game with me tonight. I’ll see you later.” She said to her friends.
As they stepped outside, Lauren noticed Sidney’s SUV was parked in the middle of the alley. She gave him an odd look.
He chuckled. “On nights where I have plans after the game or don’t really want to stand around forever signing autographs, I send someone out here and they move my car into the alley. That way, when I leave, I’m already in the car. And tonight I definitely had better plans.” He said, winking at her again. “Besides, you already had to sit through the game and nearly an hour of press interviews. It would be rude of me to keep you waiting any longer.”
“Sidney, I loved watching the game! I’ve been coming to Penguins games since I was a little girl, and I’ve never even to come close to feeling like I was suffering! And besides, I’m sure you have something planned that will be completely worth the wait.” She teased him, flashing him a devilish grin.
“Well, then we better get going! I’ve got some pretty big expectations to fill.” He teased back as he opened her door for her.
“So where are you taking me?” Lauren asked as they drove away from the arena.
“Well, first, if you don’t mind, I was hoping we could stop by Mario’s so I can change out of this suit. And after that, you’ll just have to wait and see.
“Of course I don’t mind. It gives me time to try and guess the surprise.” She said.
He laughed, and she spent the rest of the drive trying to guess where he was taking her, suggesting things like the moon, or McDonald’s, and things like that.
They pulled into the driveway and she followed him into the house. It didn’t seem like anyone was home. “Mario was still at the arena talking to the press and Nathalie took the kids to Montreal for the weekend.” Sidney explained, almost as if he read Lauren’s mind. “I’ll be right back.” And he disappeared up the stairs.
A moment later, he reappeared wearing a pair of jeans, a polo shirt, and one of his RBK baseball caps. “Wow, that was quick.” Lauren remarked.
“I laid clothes out before I left for the game. Ready?” She nodded and they walked back out the door. “This way.” He said, leading her past the car and down the driveway. “Where we’re going is only a few minutes’ walk away.”
As promised, they arrived at a little walk-up diner adjacent to a large parka few minutes later. “This place has the best French fries in town!” He exclaimed. They ordered some hot dogs, some fries (of course) and couple of drinks. The server brought their food to the window in a bag and handed them their drinks. “Let’s find a place to sit down.” He led her over to a picnic table in the park and they sat down.
About 15 minutes later, the food was nearly gone. “Well?” He looked at her.
“You’re right. Those fries are pretty good!” They both laughed.
“Come on.” He said, grabbing her hand and pulling her up from the table. “Let’s go for a walk. I’ll show you all my favorite paths.”
As they walked down the path, Lauren couldn’t help but notice that her hand was still neatly tucked in his. She looked up at him and smiled. He looked down at her and smiled back. “Thanks for coming with me tonight. I’m having a lot of fun.” He said as he took her hand that he was holding and kissed it.
“No, thank you. I haven’t enjoyed an evening this much in such a long time. My college years haven’t exactly been a joyride, so anytime I get to have a little fun, I certainly make the most of it”
“If you don’t mind my asking, what do you mean?” he asked her.
“Well, sometimes it seemed like it was one thing right after the other. When I first started school, I was really homesick. I’d left behind my family, who I am very close with, an amazing group of friends, and a great life. There were things about school that I liked, but I hated my major and more often than not, I wanted to be home. I started as a business major, but once I switched to education during my second semester, I really started to like school better. That’s when I joined my sorority too, which was a lot of fun. But then second semester, I started having heart problems. I had trouble walking up even just one flight of stairs, and when I would lay down to sleep at night, it felt like my heart was going to come pounding out of my chest.” They had stopped walking and were sitting on a bench. Sidney still held her hand in his, and his eyes widened as she continued talking. “So, before I reached my 19th birthday, I started seeing a cardiologist. I have a condition called sinus tachycardia. It just means that I have a really rapid heart rate. An athlete’s resting heart rate is usually between 45 and 70, and an average person’s resting heart rate is between 60 and 80. Well, my resting heart rate is usually between 95-110. It’s gone as high as 170.” He raised his eyebrows in shock.
“Wow. So, are you okay?” he said, concern evident in his voice.
She chuckled. “Oh yeah. I take medicine that usually keeps in under control. That’s not what really bothers me. About a year and a half, ago, about ½ way into my junior year, I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease.”
“What’s that?” He asked.
“Well, I’ll spare you all the gross details, but it’s a chronic illness that affects your digestive system. It affects different people in different parts of their digestive tract, but for me it’s mostly in my large intestine. And Crohn’s is a lot less easy to keep under control than my heart condition.”
“Is there a cure?” He asked, looking more and more concerned.
“Not yet.” She sighed. “But with the right combination of medication, most people can live a pretty normal life. Even though it’s been a year and a half, my doctor and I are still trying to figure out what the right combination for me is. I take a handful of pills every day. In fact, I’m almost 22 years old and I have a pill box, which is slightly pathetic. But the really sad part is that not all of my pills fit in it. There’s a few I keep in the bottle. And I get IV treatments every eight weeks, and blood work at least twice a month. My veins are starting to look like a heroin addict’s.” She joked, but then continued. “I’ve tried just about everything, and the only thing that’s really ever relieved the symptoms is Prednisone, but it’s not good for your body to be on steroids long-term. Besides, it was has some pretty undesirable side effects, so I don’t want to be on it if I can avoid it.”
“Again, I hope you don’t mind me asking, but what kind of side effects?” he asked.
She smiled. “I don’t mind at all. It causes things like weight gain and swelling in your face – every girl’s dream.” She joked, rolling her eyes. “Oh, and it causes a potassium deficiency, which can cause muscle cramping. I get the worst charley horses in my sleep sometimes.” She added with a grimace.
“Ouch! I’ve gotten charley horses occasionally and they hurt like hell. And sometimes there’s no way to move your legs to make it stop hurting. And even when you do get some relief, your muscles are still sore. I usually have to have my calves massaged the next day after I’ve had one.”
“I know exactly what you mean!” Lauren laughed at their unexpected bond over leg cramps.
“And I certainly don’t notice any unnecessary weight or swelling in your face. In fact, I think you’re beautiful.” He said in a quiet, yet assertive tone as he held her face gently in his strong hands. He leaned in and kissed her lips. She responded by putting her hands over his and deepening the kiss. He ran his fingers through her silky hair. As the kiss ended, he kissed the tip of her nose and pressed his forehead against hers and looked into her eyes. “I like you, Lauren. A lot. I hope you feel the same way because I really want to spend a lot more time with you.”
She smiled and kissed him. “I like you, too. And the fact that I’ve had more fun tonight with you than I had in almost four years of college says a lot.”
He leaned back and wrapped his arm around her. She rested her head on his shoulder. “I wish you didn’t have to go through all of that. It’s not fair. I just wish there was something I could do, ya know?”
She looked up at him and smiled. “You are. Just being the wonderful person you are makes things better. Sure, it won’t cure me, but it makes life fun again. And tonight, I got to forget I was the ‘sick girl,’ if even for just a little while. Thank you for that.” She leaned up and kissed him.
When their kiss ended Sidney spoke up. “As much as I hate to end this night, we should probably be going. I’m sure Mario will be wondering on how long I plan on staying out.”
“You’re probably right. Since I still live with my parents when I’m at school, it makes me feel like I have some obligation to get home at a decent hour.”
They walked back to Mario’s hand in hand, and when they got back, Sidney poked his head inside and told Mario that he was going to take Lauren home and he would be back in a little bit. He came back out and opened her door for her. When she climbed in the car, he leaned in and kissed her again. “Man I must me some kind of lucky. Gorgeous, crazy enough to hang out with me, and an amazing kisser!” he smiled.
She giggled. “Well, your kisses definitely made it worth all the waiting.” She joked, referring to their earlier conversation.
He smiled and kissed her again. “Well, just in case, here’s another one to make up for making you wait while I was changing.” She laughed as he walked around and got in the driver’s side. The drive to Lauren’s house in Cranberry was filled with more conversation and laughter. Finally, he pulled up in the driveway came around and opened her door for her. She took his hand as he helped her out of the car and laced her fingers with his as they walked up to the door. “Can I call you tomorrow? I really want to see you again soon.” Sidney said.
“Of course! I want to see you again soon too.” He leaned down and kissed her, pulling her into his arms. When the kiss ended, she rested her head on his chest. He kissed the top of her head sweetly.
“Good night, Lauren.” He said.
“Night, Sidney. Drive safely.” She said and went inside.
About twenty minutes later, Lauren in her bedroom getting ready for bed when her phone rang. She smiled as she read the caller ID display.
“Hello?” she said.
“Hey, I know I said I’d call tomorrow, but I’m heading up to bed and I just wanted to say good night.” Sidney said.
She laughed. “Well I’m glad you made it home safely. And I certainly hope that this phone call doesn’t mean you’re not going to still call tomorrow.”
“Of course not. In fact, I’m going to go to bed right now so tomorrow will come faster and I can hear your voice again.” Sidney said.
“Well, I’ll let you get to sleep then. Good night, Sidney. Sweet dreams.”
“You too, babe. Talk to you tomorrow.” He said.