Discovering...Love?

"Hey, babe," she says as she reaches me.

"Hey," I say back.

She twists my Reebok hat around, that had been helping to conceal my identity, waiting for me to kiss her. I cup her neck and run my thumb across her jaw line, but it's weighed down with makeup. I gently bring my lips to meet hers, I wait for the fireworks, but there are none, now that I think of it, there never has been any. She doesn't have the soft curves that make Caitlin fit into me perfectly, I realize as she presses into me. Her fingers don't play with the hair curling at the nape of my neck like Caitlin does. Her bleached blond hair is slightly weighed down by hair spray as my hand brushes through it, so unlike Caitlin's silky chestnut locks. Her fake eye lashes that are the same length as Caitlin's natural one's, and they don't fan out on her cheeks the way they do on Caitlin. She is a good kisser, but she's not like Caitlin who seems to have a natural talent for it. I break away, and look at her. She smiles at me, her light blue eyes don't meet mine, like Caitlin's dark chocolate brown ones do. She's just not Caitlin.

"Ready to go," I sigh, pulling the Reebok hat back down to my eyes.

"Of course, let's go," she giggles wiping a smudge of lip stick off my mouth.

The ride is by no means silent, like I would have hoped. Instead, she goes on about how she and her mom went shopping at the new mall and she bought, blah, blah, blah. I try to picture seeing her walk down the alter to me, laying in the hospital bed after giving birth to our baby, rounding up a house full of kids and dogs, being there with me through hockey wins and loses, watching our grandchildren open presents in our living room by a warm fire in the fireplace on Christmas day, growing old together.Then I realize that it's not her I'm picturing at all, it's Caitlin.

"Do you want to have kids?" I ask interrupting her.

"What?" she asked stunned.

"Do you want to have kids," I repeat looking at her.

"Ummm... I guess, maybe one, in a couple of years."she shrugs.

"Just one?" I frown.

"Of course, I don't want to run a zoo. One is more than enough," she giggles.

"Really ? 'Cause I was thinking more like 3 or 4."

"Oh, you must be joking. What would we do with all of them?"

"We'd be a family."

There is an awkward pause and then she says,

"How about we go home, so I can open your presents and then maybe we can go to that expensive french restaurant that I like."

"I have a game tonight."

"Sidney, I didn't get to spend Christmas with you and now we can't even spend tonight together," she pouts.

"Well, you could come to the game," I begin.

"No, that's okay." she says wrinkling her nose, "Can't you skip a game just this once? You can tell them you caught the flu."

"Victoria, I can't just skip a game! This is my job. You know, the thing that pays me so that you can buy all of your stuff," I yell.

"Fine," she pouts.

"Do you love me?"I ask.

"What?" she looks at me startled.

"Do you love me? You've never said it before."

"I... um..."

"Victoria, it's a simple yes or no question." I grumble.

"Of course, I love you," she says putting her hand on my arm. I pull the car over and turn to look at her.

"No you don't. You just love my wallet. God I should have seen this." I sigh.

"Is this about that puck bunny, Caitlin. I told you she would put all kinds of stupid ideas in your head. You should have never been friends with that whore, you hardly knew her for a day."

"Caitlin is not a whore or a puck bunny. If anyone is the puck bunny it's you. Caitlin and I met four years ago, I fell in love with her but I pushed her away because I thought she was someone like you. And then I lost her. I should have never pushed her away."I say closing my eyes and shaking my head. "I'm sorry I got you tangled up in all of this. But I don't love you, and we need to break up. I'm sorry. I'll take you back to the house and help you pack up, then I'll buy you a plane ticket to where ever you want." I continue, knowing that I have to be rid of her.

"I can't believe you're breaking up with me! Nobody ever breaks up with me! I should have known better than to leave Sean Avery for you."

Victoria demands that I take her back to the airport right away, and buy her a ticket to Dallas, my guess, she's going to plead Avery to take her back. After telling her I will send all her stuff to her mother in LA. She leaves but not before calling me and Caitlin a string of names. I just laugh it off and head back to my car. I call Army,

"Hey, Sid, what's up?"

"I'm free!" I sigh into the phone.

"You mean? Oh yeah! Way to go, man! The guys will be ecstatic to hear it. Hey, hon, Sid finally broke it off with Victoria," I hear him tell Sara.

"Wooo Hooo! I'll have to tell everyone that the puck bunny is gone. WAY TO GO SID!" I hear her yell.

"Alright, I'll see you at the game tonight, Army,"I laugh.

"Okay, see you later man."

The next day I try to call Caitlin, to tell her the good news but she's not at home or at her office. Now that I think about it, I haven't seen her car in the driveway for the past couple days, the thought worrying me. I call her cell phone, but I get her voice mail.

"Hey Caitlin it's Sid, I'm just wondering where you are, um... I'm going home for the next few days, so just call my cell."

I hang up and head to our last practice before a four day break. I'm about to head out of the locker room when my phone goes off, I see that it's Caitlin and immediately pick it up.

"Hey, where have you been?" I say.

"Hey, I'm in Newfoundland," she replies tiredly.

"Newfoundland. Like Newfoundland, Canada? Why are you there."

"Yes, Newfoundland, Canada. They had a pretty bad avalanche up here, and Flash, Hawkeye, Bran, and I were called up to do some search and rescue."

"Oh, are you on the slopes now?"

"Well, actually there are no 'slopes' left. The avalanche decimated a whole town. And no, I'm in my hotel room, so I can rest for a few hours before I go back out there."

"Alright, I'll let you sleep some then. If you need anything I'm going to be in Nova Scotia for the next few days, just give me a call."

"Okay will do," she yawns into the phone, "See ya Sid."

"Yeah, see ya later."
I hang up and go out onto the ice, I'm greeted by a round of applause. I laugh knowing it's because I broke up with Victoria.

"Wow, I didn't realize you guys hated her so much," I laugh.

"Yeah, yeah. So did you talk to Caitlin?"

"Shit I knew I forgot to tell her something. Yeah, I did talk to her, but I didn't tell her. She's up in Newfoundland doing search and rescue with some of the dogs. She said that an avalanche totally decimated a town," I reply, damn I knew I had called for a reason.