The Trade - A Jamie Oleksiak Story

Chapter 1

"Guys shut the fuck up, she's still sleeping." I heard one of my roommates, Radek, whisper loudly from somewhere in the house. Waking up to the sound of professional hockey players wasn't anything new. It was normal life for me at The Headquarters, the name given to my house in Dallas.

"It's noon." The deep voice of Jamie Benn grumbles.

"Yeah, well, it's her last day of All Star Break, so let her sleep." Someone else replies. Based on the murmurs and movements, it sounds like there's a whole group of hockey players already in my living room.

I loved living at The Headquarters. After my parents passed away in a house fire a few years ago, I took my inheritance, moved from a small town in Pennsylvania to Dallas, Texas, and bought a beautiful 5-bedroom, 7-bathroom home in a Dallas suburb. I wanted it to be the home where I eventually raised a family, but for the last few years, ever since I ran into a rambunctious group of guys in a bar and made them my best friends, it had been the group house for the Dallas Stars. My spare bedrooms had turned into rooms for random Stars who needed a place stay. Since there were normally a minimum of three guys at the house at any given moment, it also turned into the main place where the team hung out and had impromptu meetings.

Currently I had three roommates, Radek Faksa, who had been my constant roommate for years now, Roope Hintz and Denis Gurianov. Those two were the youngest guys on the team and were staying here not only until they could find a place of their own, but also until they felt more comfortable on their own.

"We need to tell her before she wakes up and finds out on her own." That loud voice definitely belonged to Tyler Seguin. He didn't know the meaning of whispering. He had two volumes- loud and louder.

"I still don't understand what the big deal is." A quiet accented voice added. It sounded like Roope, but I couldn't quite be sure. It could have also been Esa or Miro since they all had quiet voices and Finnish accents.

"Believe me, it's going to be a big deal." Jamie, also lovingly known as Chubbs, barked.

"You guys know the promise. You all made the promise to me and Jamie." Radek sighs. "We made you all promise to protect her like a little sister before we'd bring you around. We told you all how she's family and if you hurt you, you'd answer to us. This is the one thing that will hurt her that we can't do a damn thing about."

I laid in bed and sighed. I had heard rumors that before Jamie and Radek would let any of the new guys come over, they had to promise to be nice. I didn't realize how seriously they took their promise, though. I loved them all dearly but having over 20 big brothers was exhausting sometimes.

I also couldn't imagine what they were currently trying to protect me from. I wasn't an emotional girl. The main reason I got along with the guys so well was because I basically was one of the guys. I drank and cursed. I didn't bullshit or play games. I was honest to a fault and never overly emotional. I was just simple. Just me.

"Then we keep him out." Oh, Alex Radulov. You're whispering voice is just about as good as Seggy's.

"That won't work, and you know it, Rads." Another voice added.

I pushed myself out of bed, threw on an old oversized Stars t-shirt over my sports bra and pulled on black leggings. After running to the adjoining bathroom, I made my way to the living room and found 10 huge men filling my house. I leaned against the entryway and crossed my arms.

"If you guys are going to wake me up with your gossiping, the least you can do is give me coffee and tell me I'm pretty." Immediately, all 10 heads turned to my direction.

Roope immediately stood up, kissed my cheek and smiled down at me. Since I was barely over 5-foot-tall, every guy in the room, even the shortest guys on the team, towered over me. "You're beautiful, as always, and Esa brought you coffee, it's on the kitchen counter. Please don't kill us."

"I'm moving to Finland. You Fins are fucking fantastic." I headed to the kitchen and before I could even take a sip of my coffee, Radek followed me into the room. He had a serious look on his face, which made me nervous. Being the awkward person I am, I of course had to break the tension with a joke. "Czech guys are fantastic, too, Radek. Don't be jealous." A smirk crossed his face, but it disappeared almost as quickly as it came.

I sighed, knowing that whatever they were whispering about before I woke up needed to be talked about.

"Can I at least finish my coffee before you guys ruin my day with whatever it is you were all trying to whisper about?" Radek nodded and left me alone in the kitchen.

I turned back to the counter to grab my phone, which I know I left charging by the coffee maker. I always leave my phone there. If not, I know I'll stay up half of the night. I'm well aware of my addiction to my phone, but I'm smart enough to do what I can to correct it. Except my phone wasn't where I always left it. The charger was dangling off the counter, but the phone was no where to be seen.

"Where's my phone?" I yelled figuring someone was just trying to screw with me. But when Chubbs walked into the room with my phone in his hand and a serious look on his face, I knew there was something else going on.

"I know you have alerts for the team set up. We need to talk to you before you see todays news," he said grimly. I sighed and rubbed my eyes.

Grabbing my coffee cup, I made my way to the living room, kicked Stephen Johns out of my favorite recliner, and curled up on the chair.

"Well, let's get this over with then. Why are you all acting like you're here to tell me I have 3 months to live?"

"First," Seggy starts, "you need to know that whatever decision you make, we will back you, 100%. We all love you and we want you to know that."

"I love y'all, too, but if you don't spit it out I'm going to have to call Monty and explain why I stabbed half of his team." I expected them to laugh, but I got a few small chuckles and they all stayed stoned faced. I'd only seen them so serious once before, and that was during the worst month of my life just over a year ago.

Suddenly it all started to click. There was only one thing that could get the guys acting like this.

"There was a trade this morning." Radek explained.

"Who did we lose?" I asked, but I knew that wasn't the case. They wouldn't be acting like this if we lost someone. They were professional athletes; trades happened all the time. We had a ritual when players got traded away and it didn't include emotional meetings in my living room.

There was only one time we broke the trade ritual.

It was the day that started the worst month of my life.

More pieces of the puzzle started to click.

"We lost a draft pick, Savvy." Tyler said.

"Oh, for fucks sake." There was a reason Jamie Benn and I argued like a married couple but were still best friends. He was so much like me. He saw no reason to bullshit or beat around the bush. He was done with them tiptoeing around the situation. "He's coming back, Savannah. He was traded back from Pittsburgh this morning. He will be here tomorrow, and his first game is two days from now."

Even though I had already figured it out and knew what they were going to say, it still made me freeze. Tears pricked behind my eyes and my chest tightened. He was coming back. After just over a year, he was coming back to Dallas.

The only player I ever let myself fall for.

The only man I ever loved.

The only man to ever break my heart.

The reason for the worst time of my life.

Jamie Oleksiak.