#but if there is going to be e*plicit stuff

[catzy88]

As a 90s kid, I kept coming back to a fic idea based on the 90s/00s teen movies where the popular guy starts dating the unpopular girl because of a bet. Naturally, the girl finds out about it at some point. Cue drama and angst, but the guy is remorseful and apologizes to the girl with a big gesture, like running after her to an airport just as she's about to take off. She, of course, forgives him and they kiss and live happily ever after.

Now, imagine this, but with McEichel and a lot more dark and angsty.

Psst. Here's a playlist of the songs I was listening to while writing this:

The Smashing Pumpkins - Never Let Me Down Again

The Smashing Pumpkins - Bullet With Butterfly Wings

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Parallel Universe

My Life With The Thrill Kill Cult - A Daisy Chain 4 Satan (Acid & Flowers Mix)

Oasis - Talk Tonight

Jack seduces Connor at the Combine and steals his first everything. (First everything except going first at the Draft.) Jack just wanted to see if he could do it, and because he was jealous of Connor getting drafted as the overall #1 draft pick. But for Connor it was real. He fell in love with Jack, hard. And when Jack suddenly, and cruelly, saying it was just a game, dumps Connor, he goes into a downward spiral.

Connor starts partying a lot, so much so that it starts affecting his hockey, too. The hockey world is shocked: The Next Next One, the Savior of Hockey isn't saving anyone, the least himself. Sex, drugs, and hockey, baby! Before Jack, Connor was a good Canadian boy, but after... After, he becomes a shameless slut, snorting coke at nightclubs, getting into bed (or any surface, really) with anyone willing. By the time the World Cup of Hockey rolls around, approximately one third of the NHL has f*cked Connor McDavid more than on the ice.

But Connor is still madly talented, so he's selected to team North America. And sure, Jack has been vaguely and uncomfortably aware of what has been going on with Connor. (The NHLers are a bunch of gossips.) But he hadn't imagined it would be this bad. He observes from the sidelines Connor's erratic behavior, but things don't come to a head until one night, when the Young Guns are celebrating a win at a club.

Connor had disappeared early on, but at some point in the evening Jack sees him near the bathrooms with some guy who is aggressively pushing Connor against the wall. The guy seems to be saying something into Connor's ear, and with a smirk he takes both of Connor's hands into his and pulls Connor into the men's bathroom with him.

At this point, Jack sees red. He's not even really sure why, because he doesn't care about Connor, but this is his team mate. If nothing else, he needs to make sure Connor doesn't do anything that compromises the team and their chance to win. So, he goes after Connor and the guy to the bathroom. What he sees there, makes him absolutely livid.

The guy has Connor bent over a sink, with Connor's pants halfway down, and the guy in process of getting his own pants undone. The thought that couldn't they have gotten at least to a stall where everyone wouldn't be able to see them, hysterically makes it's way to Jack's head. His feet move him without him even noticing, but in the next moment the guy is on the floor, holding his face where Jack had punched him.

Aside from getting the guy away from Connor, Jack decides to ignore him and turns to look at Connor. Connor who is staring at Jack with eyes blown wide and mouth open. His pupils are dilated and he's sweating, but he's still the most beautiful thing Jack has ever seen. And suddenly he doesn't remember why he ever left Connor behind.

And sometime after that, after they've gotten back to the hotel and Connor has sobered up, they have that much needed talk they should've had ages ago. It doesn't magically make everything okay, because Connor will still have to battle with addiction and Jack will have to earn Connor's trust, but it's a road they're willing to take. Together.