Unexpectedly // Tyler Seguin

Chapter 13: The Hunt

It's been about a month since you've seen or heard from Tyler. The day after the Greg incident you booked a flight to come home and you both haven't resolved the issue since. You took some time off of work to deal with getting yourself back together. You stepped out of your bedroom and heard Sam playing Christmas music in the living room. You walked down the steps and smelled hot chocolate and cookies. Your Christmas tree was already up and today was the day you both decided you'd decorate it and watch Hallmark movies to get into the Christmas spirit. "There she is." Sam said while handing you a cup of hot chocolate. "How ya feeling?" She asked sympathetically. She knew not talking to Tyler was killing you and apparently it was killing Tyler too. He had gone the past 5 games goalless and she blames you for it. You stopped looking at the tabloids. You didn't want to know whether or not Tyler was going to be a dad. Sam kept up on them for you though and she promised she would tell you if anything popped up. It had been pretty quiet. You started opening the bin of full of Christmas ornaments when Sam handed you a letter.

"Open it." She urged you. It was addressed to you but you couldn't recognize the handwriting.

 "Y/N, we want to sincerely thank you from the bottom of our hearts for taking such good care of Chase during his stay. He loved you more than you could ever imagine. I still picture his face lighting up as you walked into the room with a professional hockey player. I'm just so sorry he wasn't able to enjoy your Christmas gift, but I'm sure another child will. You made Chase feel like a normal kid again and for that we thank you. You truly made all of his dreams come true. We wish Chase could have said goodbye, but just know that he loved you and he thanked you so much for all you have done for him. With love, Mr. and Mrs. Carol." 

Tears welled up in your eyes. You hadn't even gotten a call from work about Chase. Could you really be reading this right? Sam looked at you and took the letter to read it. "Oh my god." She said wiping tears from her eyes. "Y/N, I am so sorry." You broke down. You fell onto the couch and cried. You didn't know what to do but what you did know was that you wanted Tyler with you right now. You jumped when you heard your phone ring but you saw it was from your boss. He informed you of Chase's passing and said that they were going to provide another family with the Flyer's practice experience. You agreed to let him handle it so you could take time to attend the funeral services for Chase. You closed your eyes as you hung up and fell back onto the couch. "I can come with you to the services." Sam offered. "No...you have work. I'll be fine. I just need some time to take this all in." You replied. You were grateful to have a best friend who was always willing to be by your side through this stuff.

It was the day of the funeral. You slipped on a black dress and black pumps and made your way to the car. You didn't like funerals but you especially didn't like them during the Christmas season. You got to the cemetery and checked your makeup in your mirror before making your way out of the car. You expressed your condolences to Mr. and Mrs. Carol and then took a seat towards the back. The priest started reading from the Bible and you pulled a tissue from your bag trying to hold your composure as best as you can. You relaxed a bit and tried to focus on what was being read. Suddenly, you felt a hand on your shoulder and a familiar voice was whispering in your ear. "Hey, can I sit here?" You looked up to see Tyler standing there, red eyes and a broken smile. He looked tired. You were caught off guard but smiled and moved over to let him sit next to you. You felt the cool December air blow through your dress and you shivered a bit. "Here take my jacket." Tyler slipped his jacket off and laid it over your legs. "Thank you." You said shyly. He lifted his arm to put it around you. "Is this okay?" he asked. You nodded yes and he pulled you closer to him. You felt the warmth of his body pressed against your side and you felt like you were home and safe. He reached over with his other hand and grabbed yours, rubbing his thumb along it.

You felt comfortable but uncomfortable at the same time. You knew you had to address the situation from before but you really didn't want to. When the service was over, you stood and began to make your way to your car handing Tyler his jacket back. "How did you know about Chase?" You asked while wiping the tears from your eyes. "Sam called me...I tried to call you but you didn't answer, Y/N, we need to talk." Tyler was looking down at his feet. "Tyler, I'm not mad about the possibility of you being a dad. I'm mad that you kept it from me." "I shouldn't have kept it from you. I just...I just got over telling you about how I have changed and how I want something serious and the story broke and I didn't know what to do. I didn't want you to think I was fucking things up again." "Tyler stop thinking I think you're a fuck up. I don't think that at all. We all make dumb mistakes but don't hide them from me at least. I want something with you. I want to be able to take this serious but now I feel like I can't. I feel like we started back at square one and I hate this feeling." You broke down crying. You couldn't stand in front of him anymore, you really weren't angry you were just hurt. "Thank you for coming, I know Mr. and Mrs. Carol appreciate it but I have to go." You made your way back to the car and sat in the drivers seat, tears in your eyes. You loved him. You knew from the moment you met him that you loved him but you couldn't play this game. You needed him to be truthful with you. You pulled away and watched in your rear view mirror as Tyler got in the drivers seat and hit the steering wheel, then laid his head over it. You wiped the tears from your eyes and drove home.