Chapter 11 America, Here I Come

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"I can't believe it..." Antti muttered to himself, gaping at the airplane schedule that was shown on a screen.
"Well, I can!" Jonna came up behind him and gave him a hug.
"Whoa!" Antti spun around and saw Jonna smiling with her hands clasped in front of her. "Jonna, what are you doing here?"
"What else would I be doing here? I'm here to say good-bye."
"Well, um, thank you for coming here to say bye." Antti sighed. "I'm gonna be in a total different country across an ocean...I'm gonna miss you."
"I'm gonna miss you, too."
"Ugh, I can just stay here--"
"No, no, no!!! Ei! No, Antti--" Jonna held onto his arms. "--you are gonna go to Rockford and be the best goalie you can ever be. Don't stay here just because of me; I'll always be here. Go, go live your dream...for me. 'kay?" (No!)
Antti nodded his head. "Okay--"
The airport announced that the flight to Rockford, Illinois was ready to be boarded.
"Well, that's your flight, right?" Jonna asked.
"Yea..." Antti looked ahead of Jonna. "Oh my, I forgot, my bag over there--" he pointed to his black bag that was occupying a seat. "Can you go grab that...for me?" He gritted his teeth.
"Oh, um...sure...." Jonna turned around and went to go fetch the bag.
With his heart pounding, Antti pulled out a velvet, purple box from his pocket and fingered it, waiting for Jonna to come back.
"Here's your, bag, Antti." Jonna held it out at him.
"Um, Jonna..." Antti slowly knelt in front of her. He opened the box and showed a diamond ring to her. "...would you marry me?"
Jonna's eyes widen; she dropped the bag as she placed her hands on his red cheeks. "Oooohhhhmyyyyygooooosssshhhh--YES!!! Yes, yes, yes!!!" She jumped up and down a bit.
Antti stood up slipped the ring on her finger then kissed her. There were some bystanders clapping.
Antti pulled away. "I wanted that to be the last thing I do before I leave."
"I love you!" Jonna squeezed Antti in a tight hug.
The airport announced that the flight to Rockford, Illinois was going to depart in three minutes.
"I better get going," Antti told Jonna.
Jonna let go of him. "Okay...I'm gonna miss you. Bye."
"Good-bye, Jonna." Antti slowly turned around and walked away.
"Oh, wait, Antti!" Jonna shouted while bending down for a moment.
"What?" Antti turned around.
"Here, catch." Jonna threw him his black bag.
"Oh, thanks." Antti flashed her a smile and then walked into the tunnel.

In Rockford, Illinois, Antti was introduced to his new team, the Rockford Icehogs. His goalie partner was Corey Crawford, who alternated with him as the starting goalie for games. There were a few times where the Chicago Blackhawks would call him in need for a goalie, but the majority of that season was with the Icehogs. He was called to be the starting goalie for a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins for overtime, but unfortunately lost. Then he was called again to play against the Los Angeles Kings and he won that game.

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