Chapter 85

**At long last! Sorry about the wait - you might need to read Chapter 84 again to figure out where everything left off...  Speaking of waiitng, I cannot freaking wait until tomorrrow - Stanley Cup Final baby! Let's Go Pens!**

Chapter 85

(Author’s Note: Pete Tambreau is made up.  I didn’t want to taint anyone’s image of a real Ottawa Senator, so I just made one up.)

          The next morning, Sidney and Lauren both woke up in a good mood and excited about the day ahead of them.  They were planning to tell the press about their engagement that night before the game and while Sidney went off to the morning skate, Lauren took a long shower and tried to mentally prepare herself for the frenzy that was about to come down on them.  She had enjoyed the past few days, with only their friends and families knowing, but after tonight, things would be different.  She could only imagine all the questions people would want to ask her and she was so grateful that Sidney would be right by her side and that he would field the questions if she got too overwhelmed. 

          When Sidney got home from the morning skate, Lauren was working on some homework and she sent him on up to take his afternoon nap.  “But I was hoping you would nap with me.”  Sidney whined.  “We were up pretty late last night, after all.”  He emphasized with a passionate kiss.

          “I’ll be up in ten minutes – I promise.”  Lauren said, holding her hand over her heart.  Sidney took her hand in his and kissed her knuckles before heading up the stairs. 

          Ten minutes later, Lauren stepped into the bedroom and smiled when she saw Sidney was already sleeping.  It always amazed her how quickly he could fall asleep and how he could sleep through loud noises and bright lights and even Pascal’s incessant snoring on the airplane.

          She slipped out of her jeans, leaving only her t-shirt on and crawled into bed next to him, prying her pillow out of his fingers and curling her body up next to him instead.  He mumbled something incoherently and pulled her tighter against his chest. 

          The alarm went off and while Sidney took his time getting up while Lauren headed downstairs to make him some dinner.  She was surprised to find Nathalie in the kitchen, standing at the stove stirring what could only be her homemade spaghetti sauce.  Sidney would be so excited – her sauce was his favorite.

          “I figured you’ll get to make his dinners soon enough – this might be one of the last times I get to watch him devour my homemade sauce.”  Nathalie explained with a sheepish smile.  She pulled two mugs out of the cupboard and set the tea kettle on to boil.  Amid all the excitement of the engagement, Lauren had received a call saying most of their furniture had been delivered to the new house, meaning they could move in whenever they wanted to. 

          “Nathalie, I don’t think you need to worry.  I have a feeling that as long as we’re still welcome, we’ll be here quite a bit, especially around meal times.  Neither Sidney or I know how to cook much more than spaghetti or anything that comes out of a box.”  Lauren said, causing Nathalie to chuckle.

          “Well, you two will always be welcome here.  You’re family, you know.  Both of you are.”

          “Thanks Nat.  It really means a lot.  Sidney and I are lucky to have three families.” 

          “We’re lucky to have you both, too.”

          “Sweet! Nat’s special sauce!” Sidney said, pumping his fist in the air as he walked into the kitchen.

          Nathalie and Lauren exchanged a smile and Sidney sat down next to Lauren at the island, resting his hand on her leg.

          Lauren and Sidney had a quiet dinner together – Nathalie had to go pick the kids up and the Lemieux family was going to meet them at the arena for the game.  They put the dishes in the dishwasher and went upstairs to get dressed.

          “So what’s a girl to wear when she’s about to tell the hockey world that she’s stealing away the league’s golden boy?”  Lauren joked.

          “Oh, hush.” Sidney said, rolling his eyes.  “Don’t worry about them.  Besides, you stole my heart away a long time ago.  This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone.” 

          “You’re sweet, babe.  But I can assure you there will be some girls waiting to claw my eyes out on the way out of the arena tonight.”

          “I’ll protect you.”  Sidney said, resting his fists on his hips like a super hero.

          “Oh, my knight in sweaty under armor!”  Lauren pretended to swoon, and they both rolled their eyes with a laugh.  “We are too cheesy.” 

          “That’s what makes us perfect for each other.”  Sidney said.  “Wow, that was pretty cheesy too, but it’s true.”

          “I love you.”  Lauren said, wrapping her arms around his waist. 

          “I love you too, babe.”  He replied, leaning down for a quick kiss.  “And as much as I love what you’re wearing right now, I’m not sure I like the idea of the whole arena getting the privilege seeing of this.”  Sidney said, running his hand over Lauren’s bare stomach.  

          “Well, what should I wear, then?”  Lauren asked anxiously.  Sidney could tell how nervous she was, so he did his best to lighten the mood and relax her. 

          “Babe, seriously?  You want my advice about clothes?  I have enough trouble picking out my own clothes – women’s fashion isn’t exactly my forte.” 

          Lauren laughed.  “Good point.  It’s not fair – you just have to pull a suit out of the closet and go.” 

          “It’s not that simple – I do have to pick out a shirt and a tie…and match my own socks.” 

          “Oh, poor baby.”  Lauren said sarcastically.  “Speaking of ties, will you wear the blue one that I love?”  

          Sidney smiled.  “I was planning on it.” He said, holding the tie up in his hand. 

          Lauren smiled at him as she finally pulled a pair of dark rinse skinny jeans out of the drawer and pulled a long black sweater over her head.  She put on her trusty pair of black ballet flats and kept her hair down – she knew she couldn’t focus enough to pull her hair back and still have it look presentable. 

          Sidney held Lauren’s hand the whole way to the arena, rubbing his thumb over her hand and trying to make her feel less nervous. 

          “Babe, we’re getting married – it’s not like you’re forcing me into retirement or something.  Everything’s going to be fine.  Marc and Vero said they would stand in the back, so you’ll see them, and my dad’s gonna be there too.” 

          “I know.  I’m just ready to get the whole thing over with and let people get mad at me and then move on.”

          “They’re not going to get mad.  People love you.  Remember how they were after Montreal?”

          Lauren recalled the outpouring of cards and letters that showed up in Sidney’s mailbox at the rink that had been addressed to her.  People had been very supportive of her and even made donations to rape crisis centers in her honor, a gesture she was completely floored by.  “I guess you’re right.” She conceded. 

          “What was that? I don’t think I quite heard you.”  Sidney said, cupping his hand behind his ear with a devilish grin. 

          “I said you were right.” She repeated with a huff.  When she saw the gleam in his eyes, her face broke out into a smile too.  

          They arrived at the arena and Sidney pulled right into the tunnel, rescuing Lauren from the crowd waiting outside at the gate.  “Ready?” he asked as he opened her car door and held his hand out to her. 

          “I guess so.  At least the end result will be worth all this torture.” She said with a grin.  “After all, I do get to marry you.” 

          Sidney kissed her lips softly and held her hand as he led her through the arena towards the locker room.  They arrived and the coach’s pregame press conference began shortly after.  Sidney, Lauren, and Troy waited off to the side until the press was done questioning Coach Bylsma.  “Thank you.  Now I think our captain has an announcement he would like to make.” 

          Lauren took a deep breath and Sidney squeezed her hand as they walked to the podium. 

          “Good evening.  It is with great happiness that I get to share with all of you that Lauren and I are engaged.  As you probably already know by now, Lauren means the world to me and we are very happy together.  We are both very excited and couldn’t wait to share our good news with the fans and the people of Pittsburgh.”  

          The Penguins media relations coordinator stepped up to the podium.  “Now, Sidney has a game to get ready for so he will be unavailable to answer questions at this time.  Thank you, and congratulations to Sidney and Lauren.” 

          As Lauren and Sidney walked back down the hall towards the dressing room, Lauren smiled at him.  “That was it?” she asked. 

          “What do you mean?  Did you want me to say more?”  Sidney asked, confused. 

          “No, you were fine.  I just meant…did I really get that worked up over thirty seconds of a press conference?”  Lauren asked. 

          Sidney chuckled.  “Yes, you did.  I told you not to worry.” 

          “Yeah, you were right.’’  Lauren begrudgingly admitted. 

          “Wow, I must be hearing things because that’s the second time I’ve heard that phrase come out of your lips tonight.  Could you repeat that, just to make sure I’ve heard you correctly?” 

          “You were right, Sidney Crosby!” she yelled, attracting the attention of the people milling around in the hallway outside the locker room.  Sidney laughed and picked her up and spun her around, causing her to squeal with delight and wrap her arms tightly around her neck. 

          “I thought that’s what you said.  I just wanted to hear it again.”  Sidney said, his lips vibrating against her neck.  

          “Hey lover boy, think you can pry yourself off her long enough to play in a little hockey game?”  Max said, kissing Lauren’s cheek and giggling as he passed them in the hall.  

          “You better get going, stud.”  Lauren said, kissing the tip of his nose.  

          “See you after the game?” Sidney asked, kissing her neck. 

          “Of course.  I can’t wait.  Score one for me tonight, okay?” 

          “I’ll see what I can do.”  Sidney said with a chuckle.  “With the way he’s been playing lately, it might end up being Geno who scores the goal for you.” 

          “I score goal for you.  Sidney maybe help me.”  Geno said with a grin as he walked past them into the locker room. 

          They both laughed and Lauren kissed Sidney’s lips.  “I love you.”  She whispered in his ear before pushing him in the direction of the locker room. 

          Lauren made her way up to her seat, where Vero was already sitting down and Trina and Troy were in the row behind them.  

          “Lauren, I think the announcement went very well.”  Vero said. 

          “Yeah, I think I was nervous for nothing.  People kept stopping me on the way up here to say they had already heard the news and to congratulate me.” 

          “People just want to see Sidney happy, and you make him very happy.” 

          “Thanks, V.  I guess I was just really nervous that things would go poorly tonight.” 

          The game started so they focused their attention on the ice.  They were playing the Senators and the game started off with a lot of intensity. 

          About five minutes into the game, there was a TV time-out and the players were skating casually around the ice.

          Pete Tambreau, the Sens’ biggest goon, skated in Sidney’s direction and spoke up.  “So, you’re really gonna marry that slut, eh?  She’s damaged goods man, letting that guy put his hands all over her and have his way.  Chicks like that can’t be trusted.” 

          Sidney didn’t hear what he said, but Jordan did.  He skated with full force towards Tambreau and started wailing on him.  “What the fuck is wrong with you, man?  You are an asshole.”  Jordan screamed, continuing to throw punches as his anger boiled over.  

          Marc had come closer and could hear Jordan yelling profanities and Tambreau continuing to make comments.  “Dude, she’s a slut!” he said, despite Jordan’s strong fists connecting with his cheekbones. 

          Marc started to piece together what was going on.  “Jordan!  What the heck happened?”  Marc asked. 

          “This ass hat called Lauren a slut.  She was raped you idiot…raped!”  Jordan screamed through his clenched teeth.  Upon hearing this, Marc threw his glove and blocker off and started punching Tambreau as well.  

          Sidney turned around and his eyes nearly bulged out of his head at the sight of Marc fighting and raced over to figure out what was going on.  “I can’t fucking believe you! How dare you ever speak like that, let alone about someone as incredible as Lauren is?” 

          Sidney heard this and furrowed his eyebrows in momentary confusion.  Jordan caught his eye and said, “He fucking called Lauren a slut – said she was damaged goods.”  Sidney’s eyes blazed as he dropped his gloves and joined his teammates in the scrum.  At that point, other players joined in. 

          From their seats, Lauren and Vero looked on in complete confusion as the bench-clearing brawl unfolded in front of them. 

          “What the hell just happened?”  Lauren could head Troy ask from behind her.

          “Is Marc really fighting with someone?”  Vero asked in disbelief. 

          “This is so weird…it looked like Jordan just went crazy and started beating on him.”  Lauren said.  “And then the other guys joined in…this is weird.  That’s not like Sidney at all.  When I saw him skating over, I thought he was going over to break it up, but he just joined in too.”  Lauren said, shaking her head back and forth in confusion. 

          After a few minutes, the referees were finally able to break up all the fighting.  Jordan and Tambreau were immediately sent to their respective penalty boxes and the officials gathered around to figure out what to do.  Sidney approached them, as did Daniel Alfredsson, and Sidney explained what happened.  Alfie looked horrified as Sidney told him what his teammate had said.  Tambreau was issued a game misconduct and Jordan spent ten minutes in the box for instigating and another five for fighting.  Tyler Kennedy served out Marc’s five minutes for fighting.  Fans cheered as Tambreau was escorted to the runway to the locker room, but Lauren and Vero just looked even more confused.

          “Well, can’t say I’ve ever see anything quite like that before.”  Troy said. 

          “Do you think Sidney’s okay?  He looks awfully upset.”  Lauren asked Troy, watching Sidney’s face.  He looked angry, but at the same time, he looked like he might burst into tears at any moment.  She was worried about him – about him and Jordan and Marc – this was very out of character for them to just start big fights for no apparent reason.  

          Things somewhat returned to normal and the game continued.  The Penguins ended up winning 4-2.  Vero and Lauren and Sidney’s parents waited for the crowd to thin out a little bit before heading down to the family lounge.  Normally, Lauren just waited in the lounge until Sidney was finished with the media and had gotten his shower, but tonight she headed straight for the locker room, with Troy and Vero trailing closely behind her.  She found Sidney in his stall, with a Penguins media relations intern waving off any reporters who tried to approach him.  

          Sidney looked up and Lauren saw that his eyes were red and his bottom lip was had a cut on it.  He stood up and she could see that his fists were clenched.  “Give me ten minutes.  I just need some time right now.  Okay?  And then I think I’ll be a little calmer.  Just ten minutes.” he said in a quiet, ragged voice, making eye contact with her.  She nodded quietly, unable to find her voice.  He unclenched one of his fists and pressed his palm to her cheek for a moment before walking towards the weight room. 

          Troy was talking with the coaches.  Jordan was nowhere to be seen and someone mentioned that Marc was in the shower, so Lauren and Vero sat down at Sidney’s stall.         

          Troy returned a few minutes later.  “What happened?”  Lauren asked cautiously. 

          “Tambreau is a senseless pig, for starters.  And you already know this, but this team is fiercely protective of you.”  Troy said tersely.  He was obviously irritated with whatever had transpired. 

          “What do you mean?  Do you mean that fight was about me?”  Lauren asked in confusion. 

          “Yes, unfortunately.  Tambreau made some pretty tasteless comments about you, and I guess Sidney didn’t hear him at first, but Jordan did, and that’s when he went off on him.  Then Marc came over and Jordan told him what was said and that’s when he jumped in.  The league’s already considering suspending Tambreau for this.  As they damn well should be.” 

          “I don’t even know Pete Tambreau.  What could he possibly have to say about me?” Lauren asked. 

          “Frankly, I don’t even want to say it out loud.”  Troy replied. 

          “Troy, what did he say that was so awful that it caused an all-out brawl?”  Lauren pressed. 

          Troy sighed loudly.  “He implied that you were…somehow…less than perfect and he asked Sidney why he was even bothering with you anymore.” 

          “Anymore?”  Lauren said, trying to keep her voice even. 

          “Since you were raped.” Troy whispered.  “He seemed to think that would somehow make Sidney love you less.”  Troy said, exasperated. 

          “He said that?  What the hell?”  Vero exclaimed, linking her arm with Lauren’s.  

          Lauren sat there quietly for a few minutes, not really sure of what to think or what to say or how to feel about the whole thing. 

          As promised, Sidney emerged from the trainer’s room looking a little more even-tempered and his bottom lip had a couple of tiny stitches in it.  Even though he should’ve looked refreshed from the Penguins victory and from the shower he had just taken, Sidney looked exhausted, and his usually bright eyes were dimmed with sadness. 

          Lauren stood up as he approached her and he gathered her into his arms and held her tightly against his chest.  He kissed the top of her head and she rubbed her hands gently up and down his back.  “I love you more than I could ever possible tell you in words.”  He whispered after a few minutes.  She leaned back to look up at him. 

          “I know you do.  And I love you too.”  She leaned up and kissed the side of his mouth, careful not to bump his stitches. 

          They stood there holding each other in silence for a few minutes before Sidney spoke again.  “I don’t have to speak to the press tonight – Coach is the only one giving an interview.  Are you ready to go?” 

          “Yes, but do you think it would be alright if I spoke to Jordan real quick?”  Lauren asked. 

          “I’m sure he’d like that.  Come on, I think he’s still in the trainer’s room.”  Sidney said, leading her by the hand.

          They found Jordan sitting on the trainer’s table having his eye looked at.  A bruise was already forming and his eyelid looked a little swollen. 

          Jordan looked over and saw Lauren’s raised eyebrows and gave her a crooked grin.  “It’s not as bad as it looks.  A kiss might make it better though.”  He said, tapping his finger to his cheek. 

          Lauren softly kissed his cheek and Jordan sighed dramatically.  “Uh oh, Sidney saw us.  He knows our secret now.”  Jordan joked.

          “Uh, newsflash - you two aren’t so secretive.”  Sidney said, rolling his eyes.  Lauren was glad to see a smile, albeit a small one, on his face. 

          “You’re a good man, Jordan Staal.”  Lauren said, holding one of his hands between hers.  

          “Any of the guys would’ve done the same thing.  Sid probably would’ve killed him with the first blow.”  He pointed out. 

          “Yeah, they probably would.  But it was you – and I love you for it.  Thank you.”

          “You’re welcome.  And I love ya too.”  He said.  She hugged him again and turned and put her hand back in Sidney’s. 

          “Ready to go home?” she asked. 

          “I am so ready to go home.” 

          When they emerged from the locker room, Daniel Alfredsson and Dany Heatley were standing in the hallway waiting for them. 

          “Sidney,” Daniel began, “and Lauren, we just wanted to apologize for what Tambreau said.  That was completely unacceptable and quite frankly, I’m embarrassed to be on the same team as him at the moment.  I know that ‘sorry’ doesn’t begin to cover it, but we just wanted to let you know that we’re pissed about what he said and that we don’t intend to tolerate that sort of behavior from any member of our organization in the future.” 

          “Thanks Alfie.  I appreciate it.”  Sidney said quietly. 

          “It looks like you’ve won the lottery with this one, Sid.  We were all pretty inspired by your story, Lauren.”  Dany said. 

          “Thank you.  I’m lucky to have great people in my life.”  She replied, giving Sidney’s hand a squeeze. 

          “And this guy’s certainly one of them.  I’ve always thought you were a class act, Sidney.  The way you handle yourself both on and off the ice is remarkable.”  Daniel said. 

          “Thanks, again.  It means a lot.”  Sidney said, shaking each of the men’s hands. 

          “Well, we’ve got a bus waiting for us, so we’ll let you get going.  Good night.”  Daniel said, resting his hand on Lauren’s shoulder for a moment before walking past them towards the visitor’s locker room. 

          “They’re good guys.”  Sidney said as he linked his fingers back in Lauren’s.  

          “Yeah.”  She agreed.  “That was really nice of them – they didn’t have to do that.” 

          “Alfie never would’ve just let this go.  He knows his teammate screwed up…big time.  Heater’s the same way.  And they know they can’t take it back, but it’s at least nice to hear that they all think he’s an idiot too.” 

          “Are you hungry or anything?  Do you want to stop and grab something to eat on the way home?”   Lauren asked as they walked down the hallway towards the car. 

          “I’ll just get some leftovers out of the fridge or something.  I really just want to go home and crawl into bed and hang out with you.”

          “I don’t even know if I should ask this, but do you want to talk about it?”  Lauren asked nervously as they pulled out of the arena.

          Sidney let out a heavy sigh.  “I just…I just can’t believe he would say something like that – that anyone would say something like that.  He made me so angry – I wanted to hurt him, Lauren.  I wanted to really hurt him – I’ve never felt like that on the ice before.  I mean, I’ve gotten pissed and gotten in fights before, but this was different.”

          “I know.  Vero and I could tell something wasn’t right.” 

          “Bettman better suspend his ass.  Hell, they should kick him out of the league.”

          Lauren smiled.  “Sidney, I don’t think they kick people out of the National Hockey League just for being a giant douche bag.  Besides, who cares about him?  I care more about the sweet and kind hockey player that’s right in front of me.” 

          Sidney smiled.  “I seriously don’t understand how you handle everything so well.  Like, you don’t seem bothered at all.” 

          “Sidney, the only way it would really bother me is if I thought that you thought he had a point.  And given that performance tonight, and the shiner you’re going to have on that beautiful cheek of yours in the morning, I’d say your opinion of him is pretty clear.” 

          “That’s for damn sure.  Seriously, Lauren, if anything, I love you even more for how strong you are after everything you’ve been through, and it’s just disgusting that people like him are allowed to walk around breathing the same air as you.” 

          “I love you.”  Lauren said, leaning over to kiss him.  “I have to admit – I was worried about people’s reactions tonight, but I wasn’t expecting it to be a player that I’d have to worry about.  What a tool.” 

          Sidney chuckled.  “Pretty much.  He’s always been a little bit of a goon, but he’s never done anything like that before.” 

          “I guess they can’t all be as wonderful as you.”  Lauren said.  Sidney shrugged and smiled and gently brushed his lips over her knuckles.

          When they got home, Sidney and Lauren changed into sweats and curled up in bed with some reheated leftovers.  

          “Lauren?”  Sidney asked quietly once they had put their dishes on the nightstand.

          “Yeah?" 

          “You know that guy was crazy…right?” 

          Lauren smiled at him.  “Sidney, what’s this about?” 

          “I just need to make sure you know that.  I needed to say it out loud.  What he said was just unimaginable.  I mean…I could never think that.” 

          “Sidney, I know that.” 

          “But I just need to say it anyways.  Humor me?”  Sidney asked, looking into her eyes.  She smiled and nodded for him to continue.

          “You’re not damaged.  You’re perfect.  You’re beautiful and strong and smart and witty and way funnier than me, hell, you’re even funnier than Colby sometimes.  You are kind and compassionate and loving and for some crazy reason you agreed to marry me and you’re going to be the best wife that any man could possibly wish for.”

          “Thank you, Sidney.  I think you’re perfect too.  But I didn’t need that speech to know that you love me.  I can feel it every time I’m with you.  I’m not worried about what anyone else has to say.  I only care about you and me.  And with that, I think this meeting of the mutual admiration society has gone on long enough.  Come here and kiss me.”  She grinned, tugging on Sidney’s shirt and closing the gap between them.