AAOOOSC! #10

Chapter 33: "You're On."

Nestled by a main street in Pittsburgh, the pizza restaurant, Papa Crosby's, is booming with business.

Well, that's what happens when over fifteen hockey players stop by for a bite all at the same time.

Inside the small restaurant, our heroes and their friends are munching on all sorts of pizza from pepperoni to Hawaiian to the works to the Meat Lover's to just plain cheese pizza.

On one table is Sidney, Jonathan, Nathan, Toews, Jonas, and Patrick.

"I'm so happy you can finally go outside!" Sidney exclaims to Patrick as he holds a pepperoni pizza up in his air, propped in his hand.

"Same here, man," Patrick replies. "It's radical to be out of that medical wing." He has a white bandage around his forehead, which is partially covered by his curly blond locks. Although he is decorated with bruises, gauzes, and adhesive bandages, he is back to himself.

"And back with me?" Toews adds in, eyeing his buddy.

"Defs, dude." Patrick then uses his non-bandaged arm to fist bump the ruler of the NHL.

Sidney takes a bite of his pizza then puts it down. "Yay!" He claps his hands and swallows. "We're all friends here!"

"Yeah!" Nathan yells, throwing his hands up in the air.

"Yeah!" Sidney tells him with the same degree of excitement.

"Yeah!"

"Yeah!"

"Yeah!"

"Yeah!" Sidney high-fives his friend.

Jonathan exchanges looks with Jonas with disapproval.

Then two other people join them.

"Howdy!" Carter greets them as he plops himself in the booth, right next to Jonathan. Pekka follows along with him.

"Hey, Carter! Hey, Pekka!" Sidney waves to him with a sweet smile. Nathan waves along as well.

Carter catches sight of Patrick. "Hey, Kaner-- How's it going?" He nods to him.

"Getting better, dude."

"Yup!" Toews wraps his arm around him. "Thank you, really, for saving him."

"Yeah, thanks for saving me, man. I wouldn't be this gnarly at all if it wasn't for you."

"Aw, no problem!" Carter waves an arm in the air. "Just doing my ninja job."

Pekka chuckles. "Some ninja you are if he knows who you are...!"

"Hey, I'm working on it, Peks," Carter informs him cooly.

"I'm only joking." Pekka punches Carter's shoulder lightly. "It's good for Kane to know who saved him!"

Carter grins. "Oh yeah."

"Do you guys want some pizza?" Nathan asks the goalies as he points to the disappearing pizza that is in the middle of the table.

"Or do you want some chips?" Jonas pulls up a box filled with an assortment of bags of chips.

"Actually, we already ordered a pizza," Pekka tells them.

"Yeah, we just decided to sit here to not be lunch," Carter randomly adds in.

Jonathan gives him a concerning look. "You guys are lunch? Who's gonna eat you?"

"Wait, you guys hadn't seen...?" Carter's voice fades off as his eyes drift next to him.

Everyone else follows Carter's gaze to see what he is talking about.

On the other side of the restaurant are the Penguins, where they are huddle around a large table, snacking on pizzas. Next to Evgeni's feet, well hidden from the Penguins but not the others, is Rosie. The tiger is quietly pawing and yanking at a whole pizza with her paws and teeth.