Bottle Rockets

TEN - My Little Pipsqueak

Tyler Devlin is a mistake to the Penguins' franchise.

Ms. Devlin is a waste of a draft pick and salary cap.

Why would anyone want to wear a girl's name on the back of their jersey?

If you support Tyler Devlin, you aren't a true Penguins' fan.

Tyler sat in her stall post-practice, her phone in one hand and her special puck in the other. She pressed it tight against her chest as her thumb scrolled through tweet after tweet of bitter hatred. With every mention of her name, her heart broke even more.

The Penguins were a few months away from the playoffs and securely placed first in their division. Tyler expected everyone to drop the sexist hate when they realized how well the Penguins were doing but it continued. It never ended. And Tyler didn't know what to do.

"Ty? What's up? Are you okay?" Sidney's shadow fell over her and she closed Twitter immediately.

She stood and placed her puck back onto her shelf, "Yeah, Sid. I'm fine, I promise. Just a few critics" She flashed him a reassuring grin.

He stared at her for a few moments longer before changing the subject. Tyler listened to him and shared her opinion on their line, the do's and the don't's, relieved to get away from her hater problem.

But she wasn't free of any danger just yet. As she left the locker room, Tanger's fingers gripped her bicep and pulled her aside.

"Hey, pipsqueak, are you alright?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow. His devilish smirk decided to make an appearance, as well.

She frowned, "I don't know what you're talking about, Tangs." She looked around, searching for an escape but found none.

"I saw you after practice. You looked a little upset. You were staring at your phone." And holding the puck to your heart. The one I gave you.

She laughed, nervous as she shifted from one foot to the other, "It's nothing, Tanger. Don't worry about it." She brushed past him but he didn't bother stopping her.

The game against the Avalanche went horribly. They shut the Penguins out with seven goals. Greiss started but had been pulled after the third goal in three minutes and, although Flower had held out for longer between goals, he allowed four more.

After the media fired bullet after bullet at every player they could, the Penguins remained silent. The energy in the room was dismal and only added to the storm building inside Tyler. She kept her back turned to the others the entire time she undressed, even when she had to untie her skates.

Tyler Devlin shouldn't be allowed to play in the same league Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Orr, and Mario Lemieux did.

Devlin is a disgrace to the Penguin name.

Let's hope Devlin never wears the 'C'. What a disaster that would be.

Tyler waited until everyone left. She waited until the room was empty and it was just her and her thoughts. She sunk onto the seat of her stall, put her hands in her face, and let everything out.

Tears slid down her cheeks into her palms and her whimpers filled the corners of the room. Her body trembled with every breath she took.

Oh, god. How did she ever think she could do this? How did she ever think she could handle playing in the NHL? She expected criticism. That goes everywhere with you, no matter what. But she didn't expect the hate she was getting.

"Ty?"

The soft French-Canadian twist ripped through her sobs and caused her to choke. She shot up straight and saw Kris Letang standing in the doorway, his arms hanging at his side. He looked worried. He looked scared.

She wiped her tears on her forearm and sniffled, hanging her head to hide her face with her hair. "Tanger, what are you doing here?" She croaked.

Silence. Tanger was quiet for so long she was afraid he left without saying anything. Maybe her crying scared him away. But then he spoke, soft and gentle and warm, "I was waiting for you. I wanted to make sure you were alright. That was your first...really bad loss and I wanted to make sure everything was okay..."

Tyler laughed, "Obviously, it isn't."

"Yeah, I can see that, pipsqueak," Tanger mumbled and the scuffling of feet on the floor told Tyler that he was approaching.

She glanced up in time to see Kris lowering his body beside hers. He settled down, his thigh pressing against her own, his arm slipping around her waist.

"C'mere," He whispered, pulling her into his chest.

She broke out into sobs and huddled into him, her face burying itself into his chest, one of her hands resting on the crook of his hip. He stroked her back and kissed the top of her head.

He squeezed her tight and pressed his lips into her hair. "Do you want to tell me what this is all about? Because I know that it's not just the game. There's something else pulling at my little pipsqueak's heartstrings," He murmured.

My little pipsqueak. Tyler's fingers gathered a clump of his shirt into her fist. She sucked in a deep breath, catching a whiff of his cologne - cinnamon - before sitting up. Her hand rested on his thigh.

"It's better if I show you," She whispered. She grabbed her phone from beside her and opened Twitter. She offered the device to him to which he took. Tyler watched him scroll through the feed.

"Oh, Ty."

When he spoke, she broke down. She fell back into him and hugged him tight, her tears staining his shirt. His hand cupped the back of her head and she heard him put the phone down.

"I'm so sorry you have to read all of that. All of those people are not Penguins fans. They are not even real hockey fans. If they were, they would love you like I do."

Tyler pulled back and looked at him, tears dripping from her eyes. "What?"

"Like we do," He coughed and carded a hand through his hair. He cleared his throat before continuing, "Surely you don't believe what they are saying, Tyler. You are much better than that."

Tyler shrugged, pulling on a strand of her hair, "I don't know, Tanger. After a game like tonight's, I'm starting to believe them a little."

Tanger's hands grabbed her face and held it in place, his brown eyes staring deep into her own. "You can't, Tyler. That's exactly what they want. You are an amazing hockey player and an even more amazing woman. All of what they are saying is bullshit. Besides, they are probably talking about a different Tyler Devlin. The Tyler Devlin I know is beautiful and courageous and plays a magnificent game of hockey," He crooned.

She smiled and laughed. She went to brush a strand of hair out of her face but Kris' hand beat her there. He tucked it behind her ear and then folded his hands around her own.

"You know what I think you should do? I think you should get rid of it. Get rid of that dumb app so you don't have to read all of that stuff. Do it right now, okay?" He gave her the phone.

She took the phone and opened it, staring down at the blue and white square that was Twitter. She looked back up at Tanger but he urged her forward.

When she deleted it, he wrapped her up in another hug.

"Thank you, Tanger," She whispered into his chest.

He laughed and kissed her head, "Anything for my little pipsqueak."