My Girl (Jonathan Toews)

31

Jonathan

After such a crazy season with the lockout and winning the cup our summer wasn't going to be all that long. A little less than two in a half months to be exact. So first thing first we head up to Canada to get ready for the day with the cup. Alexis was close to being back on the ice but she put training off a little bit longer to spend time with me and Kimberly in Manitoba. So we get to the house I was renting for the week and get settled in. Then as customs have it I go to my parents house and they have us for dinner. Kimmy and Alexis hang out in the kitchen with my mom and she teaches them some things about how we do things here in Canada and I chill out with my dad in the living room and watch some hot July baseball.

"So how has life been treating you" my dad asks and I just smile.

"There's isn't a thing I can complain about. I didn't know it was possible to be this happy" I insist.

"How has Lexi and Kimberly been" he wonders and I laugh. He loved those girls like his own. He might have gotten me and my brother into hockey but I know he secretly wanted a girl at some point. And now he's got two and there's none better.

"Lexi has been pretty good. She had that procedure done on her knee and she's better now. She's close to being able to get back into skating and she's excited. She can start working on stuff for worlds in January then the Olympics in February. She already has it all planned out and tricks she wants to do and the songs. She's had it rough with taking a back seat to her knee again but she's been so strong. She's the strongest girl I know, over all the hockey players I know I would pick her any time of the day. I'm so proud of how hard she fights, how much she tries to do even the simple things that most people don't care about. She's an amazing woman and I am so so incredibly lucky to be with her.

And Kim... she makes me have hope for the future. She's going to be a leader, so smart and head strong, just like her sister. Watching her grow up has been such a gift. I don't get how her parents could have ever walked away from her. It's hard enough for me to leave her for games let alone completely give up on her. All I know is that I would be an absolute idiot to give up on them" I insist.

"So this is a forever thing for you" he asks and I smile.

"Yeah... it is" I admit.

"Does she know that" he questions. I shrug as I look at the ground.

"We haven't really talked about it. I mean, she knows that I want the world for her and I am going to be by her side through it all. But we've never talked about our forever. I mean I've known her for 7 months and we've already been living together for 6 months. It feels like forever we've been together. We have such big plans for the near future, I guess we never talked about what happens after the Olympics. That has been the goal for the both of us since the beginning of our time together. I'm not really sure what happens after that. We would have been together for over a year and Kimberly will be in first grade. I'm not sure what her plans are for after the Olympics" I admit.

"Do you think she'll stay" he asks.

"Yeah. I mean she's stayed when it was hard, I can't imagine her leaving now that it's easy" I insist.

"Are you going to propose" he finally questions and I smile. I know he wanted me to say it myself without him asking, but with me being cryptic like usual he couldn't get it out of me unless he flat out asks me.

"I would very much like to" I smile.

"Now was that so hard to say" he teases and I laugh.

"No. If that's what you wanted to know why didn't you just start with that" I ask.

"Because god forbid something be easy with you" he rolls his eyes.

"I'm still kinda new to the whole serious relationship thing. I don't think about that type of stuff. I just want to make sure she's happy now and every other moment we're together. And I want it to be like that forever" I explain.

"Good. Because I can teach you how to hold a stick and shoot the puck. I can build you a rink out back and help you practice. I can drive you to tournaments and coach you the best I can. 

But I can't teach you how to love. Those feelings you have, even though they might be confusing, they're things that you've created on your own. And as a father being able to teach you hockey has brought me so much joy. But there's nothing better than knowing that you found something bigger than the game. Something that I can't teach you" he says.

"I don't know, you've always told me that my head will get my far and my heart will take me farther. I think you've done pretty good" I admit.

"I can't take all the credit for the man you've become, but I can happily try to take some" he smirks.

"Deal."

Eventually we sit around the table and enjoy a nice meal the girls created. We stay until about midnight before we're finally able to slip away. I tuck Kimberly into her bed before meeting Alexis in our room. She opens up the covers for me as she waits for me to join her. I happily climb in with her and she wraps her arms around me.

"Someone missed me" I tease.

"I did" she admits.

"I've been with you all day" I remind her.

"I've been with your mom and Kimmy all day. And while they are wonderful women, I just want my man" she claims. I smile big as I pull her close. I press my lips to hers and she takes no time pressing them back.

"I missed you too" I whisper as we break apart.

"So what did you and your dad talk about all day" she wonders and I laugh.

"You" I admit.

"You did not" she accuses.

"We did! We really did" I insist.

"How could you have possibly spent the whole day talking about me" she challenges.

"We were talking about what was going to happen after the Olympics are over" I admit and she stops. Her face falls when she realizes we really haven't given it much thought. So much focus has been spent on the present. But the present one day becomes the past and we're gonna realize that there is no future planned for us.

"What's going to happen after the Olympics" she wonders.

"I don't know. We really haven't talked about it, eh" I ask.

"No. I haven't even thought about it" she admits.

"Do you plan on sticking around" I ask.

"Of course! I mean... if you still want me around" she says softly.

"I want you around forever" I insist and she smiles.

"Forever is a mighty long time" she says.

"It is. And it still doesn't feel like enough time with you" I smirk.

"Those are marrying words" she teases.

"I know" I assure her. "Nothing would make me happier than you being my wife. Well... maybe us having kids" I admit and she laughs.

"Slow your roll. I still got years of skating in these legs" she assures me.

"But marriage" I ask and she smiles real big.

"It would be a honor to be a part of your beautiful family" she insists.

"I was hoping you would say that" I admit.