nhl one-shots | completed

xxviv | clayton keller

boston baby | for torontofans

-

"Why did they have to make this school so big, Charlie," (Your Name) complained, dragging her feet of the pavement as she complained to her younger brother.

"It's not that far," Charlie said, rolling his eyes. "What are you, ten?"

"The plane ride was long and I'm tired," she argued. Charlie knew very well that (Your Name) was just doing this to bother him, but he went along with it like he always did.

Charlie and (Your Name) McAvoy were on the Boston College campus, where Charlie had gone to school and played hockey before signing with the Boston Bruins. The BU hockey team was holding an event for current and former players, and (Your Name) had convinced Charlie to let her go with him when she was visiting from Arizona.

This, of course, was to see Clayton Keller. (Your Name) had always had a thing for Charlie's ex-teammate, but Clayton had a girlfriend, so she never made a move. Now, she knew they had broken up, and she was greatly anticipating the opportunity she had at having a shot at him.

"You didn't have to come if you didn't want to," Charlie said, looking over at her.

"Oh, I wanna go," she assured.

"Then stop complaining!"

"Charlie, you've known me for how many years of your life?"

"Too many," Charlie grumbled.

"You should know by now that I greatly enjoy complaining," she sassed.

"Hey, Charlie!" a male voice called, interrupting any retort Charlie had planned.

The two siblings spun around to see none other than Clayton walking towards them. (Your Name)'s heart immediately started racing, and she brushed her hair out of her face as Charlie greeted his former teammate and fellow NHL rookie. The two then turned to (Your Name), which was where the fun truly began.

"(Your Name)," Clayton greeted with a large smile, "It's nice to see you again."

"Likewise," she told him, her smile matching his.

Charlie, seeing right through his sister, just shook his head. He should have known Clayton was the real reason she wanted to attend. She had asked if he was going to attend, after all.

"We should go," Charlie suggested, though it was more of a command than anything. It wasn't like he was against (Your Name) dating Clayton, the situation would just be odd. He couldn't imagine his older sister (though she was only older by a couple years) dating someone he knew so well.

The group of three eventually made it to the building the event was being held in. Clayton and (Your Name) spent the whole time talking, while Charlie stayed quiet and tried to tune their flirting out. It was hard to do, however, when he was so focused on where he was going. It hadn't been long since he'd been on the campus, but it'd felt like a lifetime.

Clayton, on the other hand, just hoped that Charlie knew where he was going because with (Your Name) around, Clayton was certainly not paying attention. Clayton had always had somewhat of a thing for (Your Name). She was nice and beautiful, but obviously, he had never attempted to make a move on her.

Things with his last girlfriend hadn't ended as smoothly as he had hoped. She was very upset with him for moving on to the NHL instead of staying at school with her. Though she had insisted that the two could make it work, Clayton had wanted out on the relationship as soon as he heard her true feelings about his hockey career. He didn't want to be with a girl that couldn't support him.

(Your Name), Clayton figured, was different. Her brother played in the NHL, after all. Surely she understood what a commitment it was. Either way, he was probably getting ahead of himself. He had always got the feeling that (Your Name) was into him, but she had never made any sort of move, so he really had no clue how she felt.

The event itself was very nice, in (Your Name)'s opinion. A little too much talking for her taste, but she was willing to sit through it. Charlie had informed her that there were a group of his former teammates that were going out to dinner afterward, and upon realizing that Clayton would be there, she happily agreed to go.

She ended up sitting between Charlie and Clayton like she had expected. Clayton had briefly talked to his former teammates but seemed to want to spend more time talking to (Your Name) more than anything. While Charlie talked to the boys they had gotten to know so well, Clayton and (Your Name) instead continued conversing.

(Your Name) was a little taken aback, however, when Clayton looked towards the door and do a triple take. She raised an eyebrow slightly before turning around, almost immediately noticing who he was looking at; his ex-girlfriend. By the expression on her face, she had noticed them, too.

"Quick," Clayton began urgently, looking over at (Your Name), "Pretend to be my girlfriend."

She looked at him with a mixture of shock and confusion. "What?"

"I know her. She'd gonna walk over here, I know it," he insisted quietly.

(Your Name) just looked at him for a moment, scanning his urgent expression before sighing. She nodded, looking down at Clayton's hand before taking it in hers.

Though this was something that she had wanted, it didn't feel right. It was too unnatural, too forced. Clayton's soft smile, however, made her feel a bit better. She watched him glance at his ex-girlfriend once more before leaning over and kissing (Your Name)'s cheek. Surely, he had made sure she had seen.

Charlie, who noticed the quick action, tapped (Your Name) on the shoulder before giving her a questioning glance.

"His ex-girlfriend's here," (Your Name) answered quietly. Charlie just nodded in response, as he somewhat understood how things had ended between the two.

By the end of the night, Clayton's ex was nowhere to be seen. Much to (Your Name)'s dismay, Clayton's hand had slipped out of hers and never returned. Even as they walked out of the restaurant, they barely touched, their arms just barely brushing.

(Your Name) sighed as it appeared that she and Charlie would be walking a separate way than Clayton was. She looked up at him, looking for something to say in the somewhat comfortable silence.

"Keep in touch, yeah?" Clayton spoke up. "You can get my number from Charlie. Maybe we could meet up in Arizona sometime."

"How did you know I live in Arizona?" (Your Name) questioned, watching her breath disappear into the cold night air.

"I, uh, texted Charlie last night, asking about you," Clayton asked honestly, looking away. (Your Name) whipped around to look at Charlie, annoyed that he hadn't told her. Instead, Charlie just shrugged, acting as if he was innocent.

"Um," (Your Name) began, clearing her throat as she looked back at Clayton. "Yeah, that'd be great."

Soon after, the three had said goodbye and Charlie and (Your Name) walked back to Charlie's car.

"I knew that was gonna happen," Charlie muttered once he knew Clayton was out of earshot.

"You're okay with it, right?" (Your Name) questioned, glancing over at her younger brother.

"Of course I am," Charlie replied. "Like I could stop you from dating him anyway."

(Your Name) laughed, slapping Charlie on the arm. "You know it."

----------------------------

i had to make this about boston,,, im not sorry

04.21.18