#kirill kaprizov fanfic
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This fic is like my favorite lol I printed it I love it that much lol
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CHRISTMAS WITH YOU â k. kaprizov
warning(s): mentions of death and loss, but otherwise just tons of cute holiday cheer, an embarrassing near fall ice skating and just cute holiday fluff.
word count: 17,897
an: this better late than never, fic is my entry for @antoineroussel's winter fic exchange 2k23!! i had the absolutely pleasure of writing for @callsign-denmark who supplied me a list of players she enjoys reading about and got me broaden my horizons outside of my usual hockey men to write about and got me to write about the happy ray of sunshine that is kirill kaprizov!! as a sucker of friends to lovers, this is a friends to lovers fic, sprinkled with some nice christmas spirit and ofc, as a lover of happy endingsâ this one's got a good one!! i had fun writing this and i hope you enjoy đ„°đ
Tori Holly never understood when people said that Holidays could be some of the loneliest and saddest times in peopleâs lives. Growing up, she remembered how lively their house always wasâ filled with music, laughter and the smell of home cooking spreading throughout the house. Especially around Christmas timeâ that was always the most magical time of the year.
It was when her parents seemed to pull all of their magic together and turn the holiday into every feel good Christmas movie alive. And while both of her parents were only children and her one set of Grandparents that were still alive lived on the west coastâ she and her older sister Jess (Jessica only if she was in trouble) never felt like their family of four celebrations were lacking. They were all each other needed and it was always more than enough.
The teaming up on their parents for the gingerbread house building contest, taking turns going shopping with their parents to be able to pick out gifts to buy using some of their saved up money (and in the younger years, their parents money of course). Watching their mom make her momâs special hot cocoa recipe that she promised to share the recipe with them once they got older âand you two can do the same with your children one day.â Building snowmen, snowball fights, that horrible time Jess convinced Tori to climb into the igloo they tried to build and having it collapse on her (though thankfully it wasnât a lot of snow and Jess tearfully pulled her sister out by her gloved hand.) Sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace and snuggled up beside their parents as they watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas after begging their parents to let them open just one present on Christmas Eve like they did every year without fail.
No, Tori Holly could never understand how Christmas time more specifically, could be one of the worst times of someoneâs lifeâ not until Christmas 2006, when it was going to be the first Christmas and her first birthday without her mom. She was only seven and Jess eleven when their mom got sick. She couldnât remember a lot of the specifics, but she remembered her mom never looking or acting any differently even after her parents had sat them down on the couch and said âmommyâs doctors say that Iâm very sick, but Iâm not going to stop fighting.â Sure, her mom was slower around the house, maybe a little more tiredâ but there wasnât anything specific that stuck out to her.
In fact, that last Christmas of â05, they still did every tradition theyâd done in the years prior and she never once saw her mom falter or complain. And by May of â06, two months after Jess had turned twelve and only seven months until Tori would turn nine, she had completely forgotten about the âIâm sickâ conversation there on the couch. Until right at the end of the September, when sheâd gotten called out of class to go to the front office. And when she got there, she saw her Grandma Carol standing there speaking to the woman at the front desk.
âYour dad sent me here to pick you up and Grandpa Dan is going to grab Jess.â She had said it with a smile that Tori couldnât pinpoint exactly, but instantly recognized it as a softer than her usual big, sunny smile.
She thought maybe they were going to grab ice cream and spend some more time at home with their mom. Seeing as only almost a month into school, their dad let them stay home on Fridayâs just so they could spend a little extra time with her. But there was no ice cream and her Grandma didnât take her homeâ they were at the hospital. And when she walked down the halls with her Grandma holding her hand and they saw her Dad, Grandpa Dan and a crying Jess, she remembered getting that sinking feeling in her stomach that something was wrong.
And something was wrong. Because it turned out that they were all there to say their last goodbyes to her mom. While she was there, she swore time dragged onâ but looking back on it now, she realized just how fast her life had changed in one hour.Â
They âcelebratedâ her ninth birthday and Christmas three months later and while their dad tried his hardest to not let the magic their home always held fade, and he really did try, there would always be a mom shaped hole in her childhood home and she wondered whether Christmas would ever be the same.
Luckily though, their dad was a Godsend. A man who was actively grieving the love of his life while adjusting to being a widower and parenting two girlsâ one of whom was entering her teenage yearsâ Tori never once saw him waver. He was there at every school or after school event they had, he kept up their traditions, and was the shoulder to lean on and cry on whenever they needed one. He never once complained and after she got older, Tori always wondered how he did it. How he managed to parent them, stay strong and be everything they needed all while he was grieving on his own.
But that was just itâ he was the hero their broken hearts needed and he helped heal theirs and his own every day of every month, and every birthday and holiday that came and wentâŠhe always managed to keep that magic alive.
To the point where Tori and Jess started to love Christmas once again and not see it as a mourning time for those childhood memories they left behind. And while their mom was a key figure missing at their poignant timesâ first days of school, first boyfriends, proms, first day of college, graduations, Jessâs wedding day to her high school sweetheart Steven and even the birth of their daughter Clara (their momâs namesake), their dad, Jess and even she, always made sure that their mom was a part of it.
Especially once Jess and Steven had Clara, and on Toriâs 17th birthday, nonetheless, Jess had told Tori that suddenly she understood the kind of love that their parents had for them and how their dad managed to keep the magic.
Even a week later going on to say, âI would go to the end of the earth to make sure she was happy, and she just tore through my vagina like it was nothing, last week.â
And for the longest time after their mom died, life seemed to slowly return back to what their dad had fondly called their new normal. Eventually, Tori had gone to and graduated from college and moved further into the city not too far away from Jess and Steven or their home to work as a social media intern for the Minnesota Wild. A job that she luckily got with some help from her college mentor who helped her apply and wrote quite the recommendation letter for.
The life she was building for herself felt like a dream. Sure, growing up just south of Saint Paul, she and her family had frequented both Vikings and Wild games. But working behind the scenes in social media for the hockey team whose games she grew up attending was a whole different atmosphere. She met great people within the organization and had even found herself on a first name basis with some of the players.
But it was when she moved into her post-grad apartment the season after commuting from her childhood home to Saint Paul that she became better friends with two players on the team. Jordan Greenway, who was going on his third season with the Wild, and Ryan Hartman who had come from the Philadelphia Flyers. The two werenât roommates, but both coincidentally lived a few doors down on the very same hall that Tori had. And after bumping into each other a few times and also seeing each other at the rink, it was natural that the three formed a good friendship during her first season working for the team.
Things were going great and Tori had felt like she was on a high after that first season interning for the Wild for the 2019-2020 season. Even when Covid struck and things were in such a limbo. And at the end of what was a wild and unknowing what was ahead time, she felt blessed enough to have been invited back as an intern for the 2020-2021 season, even shadowing more on the producer side of players interviews and getting to see more behind the scenes. And with every day she went to work, she felt more and more confident in her job and herself. Moving away from home was scary, but she was starting to form a life for herself in Saint Paul that she knew her mom wouldâve been proud of.
Ryan and Jordan both were amongst the first few people to congratulate her when they found out she got the second producer job within the same department in what would be her third year working for the team that 2021-2022 season.
And it was truly as if things couldnât go wrong. She loved her apartment, she got to see her sister and her family often, and she had made a nice circle of friends in the job she also loved. And as she celebrated New Years Eve with the Wild at a hotel ballroom the organization had booked out for everyone to celebrate before the Winter Classic the next morning where they would host the St. Louis Blues at Target Field in Minneapolis. She invited Jess and Steven as her plus ones, booking them a room in the hotel so they didnât have to drive the 30 minutes home the next morning and probably hungover.
Tori woke up early the next morning back in her apartment and went through her whole routine before getting dressed and heading out the door to catch her uber that would be taking her to the stadium where she would be getting everything together before heading over to the field to work the game. And it was just before she and her co-workers were heading out of Xcel Energy Center that she got a call from her dad, answering it like it was just any other old phone call and not one that would ultimately change her entire life.
Just like when she was seven, that sinking feeling in her stomach was back, only this time around it was more poignant and felt like it would knock her legs out from beneath her and sink her down to the floor.
There had been an accident an hour earlier on the same street that the hotel where the Wild New Years Eve party had been hostedâ a car accident. Jess and Steven had decided to check out early, walking to the cafe down the block from the hotel to grab some coffee and donuts to take with them before they would drive back to her dadâs to pick up Claraâ Tori had the text conversation with Jess in her phone to prove it along with a ânot as hungover as we thought, but hungover enough for sugary donutsâ selfie of Jess and Steven that Jess had sent with her âgood morning, we had a great time and Iâll text you when we get homeâ text.
Only Tori would never receive that text, because Jess and Steven would never make it home to their dadâs to pick up Clara. They would get hit by a drunk driver who ran a red light while they crossed the street in a crosswalk.
In an instant, she had lost her older sister and brother-in-law, while her niece had lost both of her parentsâ and it was a pain that Tori never, ever wanted her to feel. To add on top of it, in the flurry of grief and âwhat happens nextâ endless scenarios, it was revealed in their will that if anything were to happen to either Jess or StevenâŠthen Tori would become the legal guardian of Clara.
She had made the commitment to accept the position as Claraâs Godmother when they had asked her almost two weeks after Clara was born. And now, she knew the best way she could honor both her older sister and a man who was like a brother to her, by dedicating herself to making the best life possible for Clara.
The last eleven months of seeing grief counselors, balancing work, frequent trips to her dadâs house where Clara was staying for the meantime and her new responsibility of taking care of a soon-to-be eight-year-old as a soon-to-be 25-year-oldâŠ.all of it had finally come down to now.
It was December. The week leading up to Christmas. Five days until their shared birthday and most importantly, six days until what would be Claraâs first Christmas without her parents.
And Tori had her heart set on making it as great as a Christmas it could be for Clara, just like her dad had done for her and Jess after their mom had died.Â
âAnother month?!â Tori gasped, keeping her voice low as she leaned against the hall of her childhood home. âBut Andrew, you said Iâd be able to move in by tomorrow. Iâve already got friends to help me move everything up to that floor.â
âI know I did Tori, but they were finishing the inspection today and there was more mold in the apartment than we first thought, plus some issues with the kitchen and bathroom areas,â Andrew, one of the landlords of her apartment building said, actually sounding sincere. âIâm not going to let you and your niece move in there and put both of your healths at risk.â
Tori nodded, rubbing her right temple with her free hand. âI understand, Andrew.â
âBarb asked them to start as soon as possible because we know you need this two bedroom. So theyâre going to start cleaning everything up tomorrow. The guy said that there might be a chance they finish before a month, but thatâs the at most itâll take, time that he gave her.â
âThank you, Andrew. I appreciate it, really.â She replied, peeking around the corner into her Dadâs living room to see Clara still kneeling in front of the Christmas tree. âThank you both for looking out for us, I really appreciate it.â
âYouâve had a really rough year, Tori and youâve always been a really good tenant. Anything my wife and I can do to help you out, weâre more than happy to.â
Tori took a deep breath and exhaled, nodding again. âKeep me updated if thereâs any changes.â
âOf course. Have a good day.â
Once she hung up the call, Tori let her head lean back against the wall once more as she closed her eyes. The moment that she had found out that she was going to be Claraâs guardian, Tori had put in a request for a two bedroom apartment. At the time, there was a six month waitlist, so her dad had agreed to take care of Clara until Tori could secure a two bedroom apartment for them both. It wasnât like she had just dropped her niece off with her dad and went on with her life. On weekends when she had them free, she would drive back to her hometown and spend the night there, keeping herself as involved with Claraâs life as possible. She would pick her up from school, sometimes take her out of school and take her to lunch. She was just as involved in her nieceâs life as her dad was, only she wasnât sleeping down the hall every single night.
And three weeks ago, Barb, the other landlord of their complex, had called her to ask if she was still interested in the two bedroom apartment. And once she told Tori it was hers, Tori knew there were some steps to go through and she requested that Barb and Andrew have whoever it was doing the cleaning, be very thorough. Being grandparents themselves to kids around Claraâs age, they both agreed without a problem.
Until there was a problem that the hired cleaner had found and reported. Some mold that he thought might be more than a surface problem. Andrew and Barb had brought someone out to inspectâŠleading to the phone call that Tori had just hung up on. She knew it wouldnât be a problem with her dad for Clara to live here for a month longer. He loved having Clara around, plus he knew that Tori was trying her best to get everything set up so that Clara would be comfortable and in a safe environment when it came time to move.
The only problem was that her dad was out west in Washington State, taking care of her Grandma Doris, who had fallen down in her apartment in the assisted living complex, broke her hip and needed to get surgery. He left only this morning when she and Clara dropped him off at the airport and his return was up in the air, but at most he said he could be back before or after New Years Eve. So now Tori was tasked with the problem of figuring out how they were going to spend Christmas and the week leading up to it, when she needed to be at work a few days this week and all of Claraâs belongings were here at her dadâs house.
Initially, she figured sheâd just pack up her things and move into her dadâs place until he came back. Dealing with the extra commute wouldnât be that bad and Clara wouldnât have to relocate her things, more importantly they wouldnât have to lug the already wrapped Christmas presents over to her apartment. However, the short trial run she did when her Dad had informed her of his trip out westâ left her with leaving five minutes to spare before she would be deemed late to work.
Which is why they were over at her dadâs placeâ grabbing the presents already wrapped for her and Clara beneath the tree and putting them into an old foldable wagon before putting them into her car and driving back into the city.
âAunt Tori, are we taking Grandpaâs too?â Clara asked, calling out.
Tori put her phone back into her front pocket and walked out from the hall, over towards the decorated Christmas tree. âWe can if you want. That way if heâs able to come home earlier, we can have him come over to the apartment and open his presents there.â
Clara looked at her and then back at the tree. âBut then Grandpa will have to drive back here with his presents, right?â
âHe could always sleep on the couch,â Tori shrugged.
Clara laughed before scrunching her nose. âHeâs old though.â She looked back towards the tree and sighed. âWe can just drive over here when he comes home, right? So we can be with him when he opens his presents?â
âI think that sounds like a great plan, Clara.â
âOkay, Iâll leave them then,â she said, putting down the present that sheâd been holding. âI think I got all of ours though. Iâm ready.â
Tori nodded and grabbed onto the handle of the wagon as she let Clara walk ahead of her and they left her childhood home, tugging the Christmas presents that she and her dad had bought Clara, along with some of the presents Clara and her dad had bought for her. Once she helped Clara carry the wagon down the front porch steps, she walked back to the front door and made sure it was locked before walking towards her car to help Clara put her presents into the trunk.
This wasnât how she expected to be spending Christmas. If anything, she was planning on spending the week here with her dad and Clara at her childhood home, making new memories and reliving old traditionsâ the three of them opening their presents together on Christmas morning and watching movies on Christmas Eve.
But life had a crazy way of flipping things upside down a lot of the time, and this was just one more hurdle she had to overcome.
âWe donât need that many groceries, Clara. Weâre just here for some quick necessities.â
âYou have like, nothing in your fridge, Aunt Tori!â Clara whined, hanging onto the end of the cart. âItâs like youâre trying to starve me.â
Tori laughed, shaking her head as she put a carton of eggs into the cart. âIâm pretty sure you can go a week without the betty crocker cake mix. Weâre just here to get some breakfast stuff, cookies for Santa, some carrots for the reindeer and then maybe we can find one of those gingerbread house making kits.â
Clara audibly groaned as she leaned her head back, acting more thirteen than she was near eight. Today was supposed to be the day that the four boys down the hall would help Tori and Clara move into their new two bedroom apartment just a floor above where they were staying nowâ however, seeing that the apartment wasnât ready for them to move in just yet, it was instead just an errand day, seeing as Tori had already taken off of work. Leaving her with the responsibility of entertaining Clara for the whole day, especially since groceries was the only errand she could come up with.
It didnât help that Clara had been spewing off a âwhat are we gonna do later?â question what felt like every fifteen minutes. What she didnât want to do was keep Clara inside of the house and sit her in front of the tv all day. She wanted to take her to play in the snow, go sledding, maybe even ice skateâ do fun things that she could report back to her second grade class once winter break was over. But aside from the rink and the local spot in her childhood neighborhood, Tori couldnât think of any place they could go ice skating at, especially seeing as driving to and from her old hometown with holiday traffic wasnât ideal.
âAunt Tori, I thought you were fun,â Clara groaned, her tone echoing just the same as they were in the grocery store, only now they were standing in the apartment hall, just in front of her door as she fished for her keys from the depths of her purse.
âI am fun,â Tori huffed, digging her hands and moving around all the non important things she had shoved into the crossbody bag.
âThat sounds like something someone boring would say.â Clara replied, leaning her right shoulder against the wall.
âTori? Boring?â They looked down the hall to see Ryan Hartman walking down the hall. âYou must have the wrong Tori, squirt.â
âHi Ryan, Mason, Jordan and Kirill!â Clara smiled, perking up. âDid you guys do anything fun today?â
âJust practice,â Jordan replied, as the group of four came to a stop. âWhat about you?â
âJust grocery shopping,â Clara replied, looking at Tori. âWhere someone wouldnât buy the Betty Crocker cake mix.â
âYouâll survive,â Tori replied, moving the plastic bag further onto her arm so she could use two hands. âI just need to find the keysââ
âHere, Tori, let me help,â Kirill said, coming up and grabbing the plastic bags from off of her arm, holding them for her as he smiled and nodded. âGo ahead.â
âWell would you look at that boys,â Mason teased, patting Kirill on the shoulders. âWhat a gentleman.â
Tori tried not to tuck her chin into her chest too much and hoped that her warm cheeks werenât turning pink as she nodded at Kirill. âThanks, Kirill. My arm was killing me.â
She quickly found her keys in her purse and grabbed them, unlocking the front door and motioning for Clara to go inside. âLet them get back to their apartments and nap.â
âOh great,â Clara sighed dramatically. âNow I get to be more bored and watch tv.â
âNo plans?â Jordan asked, as Clara walked into the apartment.
âNone that I can think of that arenât back home. I spend every Christmas back there, I donât know of anything happening around here.â
Jordan laughed, shaking his head. âDid you completely forget about the family skate theyâre doing down at the rink later? The oneâs for players and staff?â
Tori blinked, looking at the four of them. âWasnât that last week?â
âTry today in about two hours, Tor,â Ryan said. âWeâre just grabbing lunch and then heading back.â
âCAN WE GO ICE SKATING AUNT TORI? I WANT TO GO!â Clara said, running back towards the door. âPlease, please, please, pleaseââ
âIâ do you even know how to skate?â
âI can help!â Kirill chimed in, sheepishly smiling once he realized just how loud his interruption had been. âI donât mind helping.â
âPLEASE AUNT TORI? PLEASSSEEEEEEââ
âFine, fine,â Tori laughed, shaking her head as she took the bags from Kirill and playfully pointed at him. âBut Iâm counting on you not to let her fall if she turns out to be a total bambi.â
âI wonât.â
âAlright, so get ready, weâll swing by in a few to pick you up and weâll all head over together,â Ryan said, patting both of Kirillâs shoulders before the four men made their way down the hall to their apartments and Tori walked back into hers.
âThis is gonna be so much fun, I canât wait!â Clara squealed, running back to Toriâs bedroom. âI need to grab some thicker socks!â
Tori just sighed, shaking her head as she locked the door behind her and moved the groceries onto the kitchen island, prepared to unpack them before the boys came back.
It was funny. In all of her time working for the Wild, sheâd never actually been to one of the family skates as a participant. Maybe once or twice to fill in and capture some stuff for their social media teamâ but even that was only just there for a few minutes and then she went back home. But now, now she was actively sitting in the bench surrounded by some of the team and staffâs family who were either choosing not to skate or were caring for little ones who werenât going onto the iceâ while the players and the staff who chose to skate with their family members, were out gliding around on the ice ahead of her.
She was leaning against the edge of the bench arena watching out for Clara as Kirill had stuck to his word and stayed with her to make sure that she wouldnât fall down and hurt herself. Tori knew that Clara had been skating a few times before, but she wasnât sure how she would be able to handle being out by herself or her skating abilities at all. And Tori would be lying if she said that watching Kirill holding onto Claraâs hands and skating backwards as he pulled her along, didnât make her weak in the knees. Being the kindhearted guy she knew he was, he was probably telling her words of encouragement as they moved around the rink and every so often when he would let her hands go, he would be cheering her on to catch up to him.
Kirill has always been the kind, gentle guy he is, since she met him his rookie season. And while she hadnât originally seen herself falling for the brown eyed boyâs natureâŠshe couldnât help but do so. Anytime they saw each other at the rink, heâd always make sure to say hi and talk to her. Even if they didnât cross paths, it seemed like he would actively go out of his way to pass by her and Kaiaâs office to say hi. In the interviews she got to run, he was always more than eager to play into whatever she had plannedâ more so than any of the most playful guys on the team.
Perhaps the one thing that hooked her onto him the most, was when there were home gamesâŠheâd always meet her at her office or wait for her in the parking garage to get to her car before driving back to their apartment complex with herâ just so he could walk her to her door and say goodnight. He was a gentleman, that was for sure. And Tori has been trying so hard not to let herself fall for him, because he was one of her closest friends.
However, it was proving very, very difficult and the only thing keeping her from totally falling for him, was the realization that he had yet to make a moveâ the confident, kind, hockey playerâŠhadnât even done as much as try to hold her hand on their walk out of the elevator and down their hall to their respective apartments.
âHey Tori,â Kirill said, coming to a stop just next to her on the other side of the ice. âWhy not come out and skate, hm?â
âWhat? Did you lose Clara?â She laughed, trying not to let herself melt into his warm and welcoming eyes.
He laughed, shaking his head before looking out onto the ice for a few seconds and then pointing out across the way. âShe left me. Sheâs a lot better of a skater than she said. Fast learner too.â
âAnd now you need a skating buddy?â
âMhhm, so come on, what do you say?â He asked, leaning against the boards and smiling. âWhatâs Clara do? Oh yeah, please, please, please, pleaseââ
Tori covered his mouth as she laughed and shook her head. âOkay, fine, fine, Iâll skate with you.â
He moved slowly down to the bench gate as Tori awkwardly walked on her rented skates and when she reached the open door, Kirill held out his hand for her to take. The small action actually caused her heart to thump against her chest and she stared at his hand before reaching out and grabbing it, allowing him to take her cold hand into his warm one.
âDo I need to teach you too?â He teased, still holding onto her hand as she balanced on the ice and pushed away from the boards.
âHa ha, no,â she replied, rolling her eyes and not wanting to drop his handâ but also wanting to prove to him that he was just as good a skater. âYou might not know this about me, but I did figure skating growing up.â
His eyes widened as he started to quicken his pace to follow her. âReally?â
âNo,â she laughed, looking over her shoulder and smiling at him. âBut, we did go ice skating sometimes. So Iâve picked up a few things when I was younger.â She turned herself around, slowly starting to skate backwards as she kept up her pace. âSee?â
âYouâre the best out here,â he laughed. âHowâs Christmas shopping going?â
âI think my dad and I have gotten Clara just about everything she asked for,â she replied, turning herself back around and somehow keeping herself balanced. âThe only thing I canât find is this like, DIY living room tent thing? I donât know, itâs something she saw on youtube and itâs like a cute tent she can put up with some lights and stuff.â
âIs that what she really wants?â He asked, looking concerned.
Tori nodded, bringing out her phone. âYeah, she had it highlighted under both her birthday list and Christmas list.â She pulled up safari which opened up the link to the tent, handing him her phone. âIâve looked at just about every retail store, Amazon, their websiteâŠand I guess I keep missing the restocks or something because Iâve had no luck.â
Kirill looked at her phone, and he noticed him scrolling, probably trying to read and look at the product. âWant me to help?â
âNo, no thatâs okay,â she replied, taking her phone as he handed it back and putting it into her front pocket. âIâm sure theyâll restock it after Christmas and Iâll find a way to grab it then.âÂ
âHi Aunt Tori, hi Kirill, look at me!â Clara smiled, skating by them at a faster pace.
âPlease be careful!â Tori called out, her plea falling on deaf ears as she slowly turned herself back to skating backwards. âSheâs so cocky, I donât know where she gets it from.â
âNo?â Kirill laughed, raising his eyebrows.
âTotally a lie, she gets it from Jess and I. We were best friends, but we always used to compete at who was the best,â she smiled, starting to freely move backwards and getting a little more comfortable. âJess could never really get the whole skating backwards thing, but me? Nailed it easily. You can tell too, canât you?
âYou could be on the team,â he smiled, staying close as he skated by her side.
âI wouldnât go that far,â she said, brushing off her shoulder. âWouldnât want to take your jobâoh!âÂ
She felt her skate hit a ridge, knocking her off balance and sending her falling backwards to the ice. She fully expected to make contact with the cold ice, even preparing herself for trying not to hit her headâŠbut her body never met the cold ground. She looked up to see Kirill standing thereâŠno, holding herâ heâd caught her from hitting the ground.
âYou okay?â He asked, looking down at her as he had her in his firm and secure grasp.
Tori nodded, trying her best to laugh it off as if her heart wasnât racing inside of her chest. âI guess Iâm still a little bit rusty.â
âNot too bad,â he smiled, helping her hand back up and then standing in front of her. âBut maybe I should help you like I helped Clara, yeah?â
He held out both of his hands and Tori found herself thanking the cold environment for hiding the fact that her cheeks werenât red from the cold, but from the blushing she had going on. She nodded and reached out, grabbing onto both of his hands and smiled. âYeah, I could use a lot of it. You wonât let go, right?â
Her last comment was meant to be a little teasing, but deep down inside, she was asking him not to let go of her hands because she enjoyed holding themâ feeling the callouses from years of playing hockey against her soft palms.
Kirill shook his head, still smiling. âI wonât let you go.â
Tori never expected sheâd have to go into the office while the team was on a two game roadie, but there she was, trudging into the office during a snowfall while Clara tagged along, practically bouncing her way down the halls as she took in the sights of the stadium. The one thing that Tori always loved about kids and hockey, was that it was always as if they were seeing the stadium and the halls and the decorative wallpaper with players and history past and presentâŠfor the first time. It was also just so magical to them, which reminded her to never lose that spark for her job.
Kaia had come in earlier, which is why Tori knew she needed to. There was some files that Kaia couldnât locate on her work computer that had to do with their upcoming plans for interviews after the holidays and Tori knew they were on hersâ the only problem was that her computer was in her officeâ not home with her. It was a simple fix, all sheâd need to do was grab her laptop, check the files were on there and email them to Kaia before taking her laptop home with her.
Clara wanted to see everything though, because sheâd never seen what Toriâs office was like. No one was there, so Tori let her look around the office and then as they were leaving, they passed one of the equipment managers who had stayed home on the trip and once Tori told him she was giving Clara a tour, he offered to let them take a look around the locker room.
It was nothing but excitement once they walked into the decorated locker room, Tori having been in there once or twice before, but never realizing just how huge it was when there were twenty some guys lounging around. Clara went on the search for the lockers of the four men from down the hall, sitting in each one and asking Tori to take a picture so she could send it to them. And when she did, she was greeted with lots of laughing emojis and a few âis she trying to take my job?â comments.
But once they were on their way home, Tori knew that they could relax for the rest of the day. Maybe order in some chinese and watch whatever it was on tv that Clara wanted to watchâ Christmas movies or not. Once they parked, Tori felt her pocket vibrate and pulled out her phone to see she had a text from Barb saying that she had a package up at the front desk.
âQuick detour, Clara, weâve got to pick something up at the front desk first,â Tori said, putting her phone back into her pocket and taking a left in the parking garage towards the door that would lead into the lobby of the apartment building versus the elevator to take them to their floor.
Barb was sitting at the computer behind the counter and immediately greeted them with a smile once she saw them. âPerfect timing,â she said, coming around the corner of the desk. âThis just got dropped off about five minutes ago with the rest of the amazon deliveries.â
âAmazon?â Tori asked, furrowing her eyebrows. âI donât remember ordering anythingâŠâ
âMaybe itâs from Grandpa!â Clara smiled. âA last minute present!â
âMaybe,â Tori said, taking the long box and realizing it did have her name on it. âHm, weâll just go upstairs and Iâll open it in my room to see what it is. Thanks again, Barb.â
âOf course, you two have a good rest of your day. Warm up a bit, your noses are red.â
âBye Mrs. Barb,â Clara waved, now carrying Toriâs computer bag over her shoulder as they made their way towards the elevator, Tori trying not to struggle carrying the long box.
âAre you sureeee I canât look at it?â Clara smiled as the elevator started to move.
âIâm sure,â Tori replied, smiling back. âItâs too close to your birthday and Christmas for you to open anything.â
Clara huffed as the elevator doors opened and they walked out into the hallway, making their way to the apartment door. Once Tori unlocked the door and nudged it open with her foot, Clara walked inside, resting the computer bag onto the island counter. âIâll be right here, not looking at my present.â
âYou do that,â Tori laughed, closing and locking the door behind her before making her way down the hall to her bedroom and locking that door behind her as well. She placed the box onto the floor and walked into her bathroom, grabbing a pair of scissors she had to trim the candles along her bathtub and walking back into the room, kneeling onto the ground.
She had stopped a majority of her Christmas shopping last week, anything she bought now was just some small stuff she figured that Clara would like that could go into her stocking, so she couldnât imagine what was in this box, because as far as she knew, she didnât have anything out for delivery. When she lifted the open edges of the box, her jaw droppedâŠit was the tent sheâd been searching for for weeksâ the only thing isâŠshe didnât order it.
But who did?
She grabbed the box and opened her bedroom door, walking out into the living room where Clara was on the couch. âAlright, Iâll let you open this one present before your birthday. But just this one, got it?â
Clara smiled, jumping off of the couch and running over as Tori put the box down onto the ground. She squealed in excitement once she saw what was in the box, throwing the sides open and reaching in to grab it. âOh my God, Aunt Tori!!!! Itâs the tent!!!!â She smiled, looking up at her. âCan we please clear some space so we can open it? Pretty please, please, please, please?â
âOf course,â Tori laughed, helping her take the box out of the amazon box and smiling. âJust give me a minute and weâll clear out a space for it.â
She walked over to the island counter, resting the box against it when she saw her phone lit up with a text from Kirill.
Kirill đ»: I see you got the amazon delivery. Was that the right one?
Her eyes widened as she looked over her shoulder to see Clara still admiring the box the tent came in. SHe walked further into the kitchen and kept her back to Clara as she clicked on his contact and opened up a facetime call. It only rang a few times before he answered it, his smiling face appearing on the screen. âHeyââ
âYou bought it? But how did youâ where did youââ Tori was speechless.
âI remembered you showing it to me at family skate,â he said, laying down in the hotel bed he was at. âI looked for it and I mustâve been lucky because they restocked it on Amazon that night, so I ordered it and paid for express shipping.â
âKirill, IâŠâ she sighed, shaking her head. âI donât know how to say thank you, butââ
âYou donât need to,â he replied, shaking his head. âI saw you were stressed about it and I wanted to help. I like seeing you happyâŠClara too,â he smiled.
Tori smiled, nodding her head. âThank you so, so much. You just made her birthday Iâm sure.â She looked over her shoulder at Clara. âClara, come say thank you to Kirill for finding the tent.â
Clara ran over and in an instant, appeared right by Toriâs side and into the frame. âKirill, youâre the best and youâre my favorite person in the whole entire world!â She squealed, jumping up and down.
Kirill laughed, shaking his head. âCan I see the tent when we get back home?â
âDuh!â Clara smiled. âYouâll be the first guest besides Aunt Tori! Unless you guys want to see it together.â
âGo unpack your text,â Tori replied, rolling her eyes and nudging Clara out of the kitchen. âKirill, I really canât express how much this means to herâŠand to me.â
âYou donât need too, just as long as it makes you both happy,â he said, sitting up in the bed. âI need to go now, got to get ready for the bus ride to the arena.â
âGood luck tonight, score a goal or two, hm?â She smiled, wrapping her left around around her waist.
Kirill laughed, nodding his head. âMake it two, one for you one for Clara.â She felt the butterflies liven in her stomach when he said it, still smiling. âIâll talk to you later.â
âBye Kirill, good luck.â
âWAIT,â he said, appearing back in the frame. âBefore I go, I wanted to know if umâŠâ he cleared his throat, appearing a little nervous. âIf you wanted to be my date for the Christmas PartyâŠor we can go as friendsââ
She felt her heart pound against her chest at the mention of that one wordâ date. She smiled, nodding her head. âA date will be nice,â she spoke softly.
Kirill lit up, his smile big as he nodded. âOkay, great, Iâll talk to you later then! Bye.â
She hung up the phone call, biting onto her bottom lip as she brought her phone up beneath her chin and tried to stop herself from smiling so big. She couldnât wrap her mind around just how he had been searching for the tent after she told him how she was really wanting to buy it for Clara since it was the thing she wanted most. He didnât have to do thatâŠbut he did, because he wanted Clara to be happy just as much as she did.
âAunt Tori, come on,â Clara said, standing up in the living room. âIâve got it unpacked!â
Tori laughed, nodding her head. âAlright, weâve got a tent to build.â
She went to put her phone down onto the counter, seeing it light up one more time with a text from Kirill.
Kirill đ»: Canât wait! đ
If it was up to Tori, she would bring Clara along with her to the Wild Christmas Party tonight. Clara was a social girl, she seemed to love Ryan, Kirill, Mason and Jordan, and she knew there was no doubt in her mind that she would also get along with the rest of the players and staff sheâd meet at the party. However, the party would go pretty late into the evening and keeping her up that late, even though she was on Christmas break didnât exactly scream âIâm a responsible guardian.â Even though she remembered all the times on holidays where her parents let her and Jess stay up late (and she thought they were great parents), this was something she was new at and she was too scared to mess it upâ even over something so incredibly small.
So, she called up Maddie, her old childhood best friend and college roommate who Clara knows well, seeing as Maddie was close to Jess too, and asked if maybe sheâd be able to babysit Clara for a few hours while Tori was just minutes down the road in one of the ballrooms at the St. Paul Hotel.
Once the two had left the arena after her brief stop into the office to check her emails, they went out to breakfast and then went shopping. Any and every store that Clara had wanted to stop in, Tori never said no. She wanted the day to be a good one. One where they stopped at Starbucks and got Clara a lemon loaf and a hot chocolate while she got herself a cake pop and a hot chocolate as well. Sipping and snacking on their drinks while they went to target and they took turns pointing out what they hoped Santa would bring for themâ Tori taking pictures whenever Clara wasnât looking so she knew what she could send an order out for tomorrow and have someone swing by and pick it up when she had the chance.
And when they came home, they sat down at the small kitchen table with their to-go lunches they grabbed from a panera down the street and sat down together to eat. Tori listened while Clara talked about which Christmas movies they should watch. How she relived telling her the play-by-play of the day she, Tori and the boys went ice skating three days prior. And when lunch was over, Clara sat in the living room watching Julie and the Phantoms (again) on Netflix while Tori took a quick shower, getting dressed into some light pajamas before walking out and checking on Clara.
âEverything okay here?â She asked, towel drying her hair. âDo you need anything?â
âIâm good,â Clara replied, looking over at her. âWhat are you doing?â
âIâm gonna do my hair and put on some make-up,â Tori replied, softly squeezing the water out of the ends of her hair.
Clara perked up on the arm of the couch, a small smile on her face. âCan I help?â
Tori smiled, draping her towel over her arm. âYou want to?â Clara nodded, pushing herself up onto her knees and Tori just nodded her over. âAlright, letâs go to my bathroom.â
Clara jumped off of the couch and ran over to her brushing by and going down the short hall before making a left into Toriâs bedroom. Tori just laughed as she followed behind, walking into her bedroom and then going into her conjoining bathroom where Clara was leaning against the sink.
âOnce Iâm done blow drying my hair, what do you think I should do? Curl it or straighten it?â She asked, grabbing her blow dryer and plugging it into an outlet.
âHmâŠâ Clara squinted as she focused on her. âStraighten! You already have curly hair.â
âI have waves,â Tori laughed, looking down at Clara. âYour mom got the curls from our mom, your Grandma Clara.â
She spoke before she thought about how mentioning Jess might affect Clara. It was just so natural for the words to come out, she couldnât help it. She felt guilty when she thought she saw a flicker of sadness wash across Claraâs hazel eyesâ her fatherâs eyesâ before she just walked over and sat down on the edge of the tub.
âCan I play music on your phone while you dry your hair?â She asked, kicking her feet. Tori nodded and picked up her phone, handing it to Clara after she synced it with her bluetooth speaker that was set up in her bathroom. âAny requests?â
âWhatever your little Christmas loving heart desires,â Tori smiled, getting ready to turn the blow dryer on before turning back towards Clara, pointing the dryer at her. âExcept the hippopotamus song, thatâs my ultimate crossing the line song.â
âYouâre no fun,â Clara replied, rolling her eyes before looking back down at the phone, her small fingers scrolling up the phone screen in search for a song to play.
Tori had to point out that she had a Christmas playlist on Spotify, ultimately finding it for her and then letting Clara pick whatever songs she wanted to play from the list as she blow dried her hair. The two of them sang along to all of the classics even as Tori switched from blow drying her hair to straightening it.
The both of them burst into song with smiles on their faces once Mariah Careyâs classic, âAll I Want For Christmas Is Youâ came on, and though the memories of her and Jess doing the very same thing when they were younger flooded her mind, seeing Clara sing her little heart out, belting the notes at the top of her lungs, was enough to wipe away the sad afterthought just long enough for Tori to finish straightening her hair.
âAre you sure about the gold eyeshadow? You donât think itâs too much?â Tori asked, looking away from her small portable mirror and turning to face the soon to be eight-year-old.
âI think it brings out your eyes,â Clara replied, swinging her sitting besides Tara on the floor, using the small bathtub carpet to place the make-up she had placed just in front of her to âhelp figure out our options.â âYou guys have pretty eyesâŠâ Clara paused and then looked back down at the make-up containers in front of her. âHad, I guess.â
Tori swallowed the knot in her throat, wanting to comfort the sadness that Clara was feeling, but even her correction into a past tense had been so soft, Tori wandered if acknowledging it was going to be the right thing to do. âWell I think you have the prettiest eyes.â
âTheyâre alright,â Clara shrugged, picking up a lip pencil. âTheyâre just brown.â
âTheyâre hazel,â Tori corrected, putting down the liquid golden eyeshadow after closing the tube. âAnd even if they were just brown, theyâre still beautiful. Brown eyes are likeâŠâ she paused, trying not to let herself picture the moment at ice skating when she almost embarrassed herself falling down and Kirill caught her fall. âTheyâre warm and sometimes when theyâre really brown, theyâve got this depth in themâŠlike that personâs got all of the secrets in the world hidden behind their eyes. And when the light catches them? Magical. Itâs like they can change a multitude of shades andââ
Clara was smiling, catching Tori off guard. âWhy are you looking at me like that?â
âBecause you have a crussshhhhh,â Clara sang, handing Tori the pencil. âAnd itâs on Kirilllllll.â
âI do not,â Tori scoffed, taking the pencil and looking at the shade before uncapping it, shaking her head. âI do not, nope.â
âYes you do,â Clara giggled, sitting up from her butt and onto the backs of her heels. âAnd you know how I know? Because he has brown eyes and you went all,â she fluttered her eyelashes and smiled, cupping her hands beneath her face as if she was playing a lovesick girl in a movie. âWhen talking about brown eyes.â
Tori laughed, turning her focus back to the mirror to apply her lip liner. âJust because he has brown eyes and I romanticized them to make YOU feel better, doesnât mean I have a crush on Kirill. Now find me a shade of lipstick, my little make-up guru.â
Ever like her mother, Clara rolled her eyes at Toriâs playoff of the all too real situation that sheâd brought up. But crushing on the guy just down the hall wasnât really something she wanted her niece to call her out on. It was bad enough that it had been something Jess had picked up on last year when she and Steven had a date night to a game and met her afterwards.
And it didnât help that Tori had always been the kind of girl who let the smallest of moments and things turn into the biggest when it came to love and things like it. Thoughts always spent a little extra time in her head and her brain would spin them and turn them into special butterfly inducing memories until her feelings were almost as big as the heart her mom always told her she had and one that âanyone would be lucky to have love them.â The absolute last thing that she needed was for her brain to spin the small moments, big moments, and every funny tik tok, simple text or wave from Kirill, into something butterfly inducing. The absolute, very, very, VERY last thing she neededâŠwas to have feelings for the kindhearted, brown-eyed boy down the hall.
Or, you know, that she needed to acknowledge them. Because she knew deep down that there were feelings there for him, small or large she didnât know. She didnât want to allow herself to feel those, when she wasnât even sure about whether or not him having similar feelings for her were possible.
âAunt Tori,â Clara said, waving the lipstick in front of her face. âHowâs this shade?â
Tori cleared her throat, removing herself from her inner thoughts before looking at the perfect match of a shade of red lipstick and smiling. âItâs perfect. I should just have you do my make-up from now on, that way I can sit back and relax while you do all the work.â
âOnly if you boost my allowance up to $10,â she said, standing up and brushing off her pants.
âOnly if you actually do your chores,â Tori replied, carefully applying her lipstick onto her top lip before blotting it with the bottom.
Clara extended her hand out, nodding. âDeal.â
Tori laughed and shook her hand before returning back to applying her lipstick, Clara coming over with a folded up piece of toilet paper before she even had to ask. âDo you just watch those beauty youtubers all the time?â
âMainly tiktok, but sometimes I watch youtube. Iâm gonna go get a snack.â
âOkay, Iâll be out there in a bit,â she replied, capping her lipstick and blotting using the toilet paper. She collected the makeup from beside her and put it all back into the storage where it belonged before standing up and putting her make-up all back onto her bathroom counter.
She took a step back from the counter, moving her hair off of her shoulders and towards her back as she took in the job that she and Clara had done together. She was still getting used to the way her curtain bangs were framing her face, knowing that Jess would be right over her shoulder and telling her that she knew sheâd second guess getting the hairstyle. That was the thing though, she wasnât sure if she did second guess getting itâŠshe just liked the idea of being able to hear her older sister tease her in the back of her mind.
Besides, Clara, her dad and Kirill said that they liked her hair. Though perhaps Kirillâs approval was right up there with Claraâsâ almost a close second.
Tori turned off the bathroom light and walked into her bedroom, going over to her walk-in closet and opening the door, not even needing to turn on the light to know where her dress for tonight was at. Sheâd hung it just next to the door the moment after sheâd washed itâŠthe same day she bought it. Sheâs been excited to wear it from the moment she saw it on a random shopping trip during her lunch break with Kaia. It wasnât anything extravagant, but it was a dress that when she jokingly tried it onâŠshe felt different in it.
She imagined, as she stood there in that dressing room with the lights illuminating her closed stall, that this feelingâŠwhatever it was, was what her mom had talked about when she and Jess were growing up. That one day, when they were engaged and wedding dress shopping, that it would be nothing like shopping for homecoming dresses or prom dresses was going to be. That the dress, would make them feel like they were the most beautiful person in the room. Her mom was right, she and Jess never felt that way shopping for their homecoming or prom dressesâ but she knew Jess had felt that moment the day she, after trying on what felt like every dress in the bridal shop, tried on the dress she would wear when she walked down the aisle to Steve.
Granted, Tori hadnât bought her dress while preparing for her wedding, but the way she suddenly saw herself in a different light as the deep green, sparkly velvet material hugged her body as if it were made just for her. Feeling the soft material cut in an A-line on her chest and flare out into a skater dress just at her mid thigh, she stood there so long in that dressing room admiring the way the dress looked, that Kaia had knocked on the door saying âthe dress canât be that bad.â
And it wasnât, because the moment Tori walked out of the dressing room, Kaia told her to turn right back around and change because, âyou are so buying that dress.â
She grabbed the hanger, bringing the dress out of her closet and then walking towards her bed as she laid it down on top of her comforter. She changed out of her sweatpants and tank top and grabbed the dress, sliding the material off of itâs hanger and stepping into the dress, the material hugging against her body, feeling the velvet against the palms of her hands as she rubbed her hands down the stress, flattening out any wrinkles. Also in her closet, were the shoes she was going to wear tonight as well.
âWhat, Clara?â She called out, swearing she heard Claraâs voice. She bent down and quickly slid on each heel before making her way out of her bedroom and down the short hallway, eventually coming into her shared living and dining rooms.
âI said, Maddieâs here,â Clara replied, walking over towards the couch and sitting down next to Maddie.
âYou answered the door?â Tori asked, eyes wide as she walked over to the small island counter where she had set down the purse she was going to use tonight, was. âI know for a fact that you were taught not to answer the doorââ
âFor strangers,â Clara replied, shrugging. âI got a chair and looked through the peephole to see who it was. Maddieâs not a stranger, so I answered it.â
Tori sighed, shaking her head. âOkay, technically sheâs not a stranger, but you shouldâve come back and told me that Maddie was here before opening the door. For all you know she could be on one of her crazy trips and rob us blind.â
Maddie rolled her eyes as she sipped on her Starbucks refresher. âHa ha, very funny. Mind you, Iâm here arenât I?â
âYes and thank you for that,â Tori replied, grabbing her small clutch and making sure she had transferred everything over that sheâd need for tonight.
âYeah, yeah, what are besties for, now come over here so we can see the final look.â Maddie said, waving her over. âFull on fashion show like the ones we used to do in fifth grade.â
This time, Tori rolled her eyes as she put the clutch back down onto the island and walked into the living room. âDo I reallyââ
Maddie held her hand up, shaking her head. âI said, fashion show. So strut.â
Clara laughed, sitting up on her knees in excitement as they both had their eyes on Tori, who was giving into the demands and like when she was a kid, put on her best âsupermodelâ runway walk and walked into the living room, doing a twirl and then playfully flipping her hair over her shoulder before stopping in front of them and sighing, shrugging her arms. âSo? Thoughts?â
Maddie looked at Clara and then leaned over, cupping her ear and whispering as Clara shook her head and then nodded, her face going through a whole slew of emotions before finally nodding again. Maddie sat up straight and the two looked at each other before Clara looked back at Tori and smiled.Â
âWe think you look hot.â
Tori laughed, throwing her head back just barely as she shook her head. âWell thank you, but hot should not be in your vocabulary yet. Wait until youâre likeâŠI donât know, 18.â
â18?! But thatâs forever!â Clara whined, falling back against the couch. â14.â
A knock on the door interrupted what Tori was going to say as she pointed at Clara. âWeâll talk about it later.â She walked towards the door, already knowing who was going to be on the other side since this was about the time that they agreed in their group chat to meet up so they could all travel to the party together.
âHey guyâŠoh, hiâ she expected to see Ryan, Kirill, Mason and Jordan, along with three of their dates she knew were tagging along. But insteadâŠit was only Kirill standing at her front door, dressed very nice in a black suit that had gold trim, along with a dark gray shirt underneath.Â
And he was wearing the hell out of the suit.
âHi,â he spoke, clearing his throat soon after as he pointed his thumb down the hall. âThe guys sent me here. Weâre ready to go, are you?â
âI am,â she nodded, trying not to focus on the way she could see his eyes taking in her dress. âI just um,â she looked over her shoulder. âNeed to grab my purseâŠcome on in.â
âThanks,â he nodded, sucking in his lips as he kept his hands in his pockets and walked into her apartment, closing the door behind him.
âHi Kirill!â Clara said, standing up from the couch and walking over. âWhatâs with the funny suit?â
Kirill smiled as he held out his fist for her to bump. âFunny suit?â
Clara giggled as she shook her head. âYouâre just really dressed up! I only ever see you wearing jeans and stuff.â
âOh,â he replied, looking a little embarrassed as Tori turned around. âA Christmas party. Iâm picking up Tori.â
âMhhm and now weâre getting ready to leave, so please be on your best behavior for Maddie,â Tori said, draping the chain of her clutch purse over her shoulder and pointing to Maddie. âAnd no obscene amount of sugar after eight.â
âNo fun,â Maddie replied, waving at Kirill. âHey Kirill, take care of our girl tonight please. No shenanigans.â
âShenanigans?â He asked, looking at Tori, his cheeks tinting pink as he looked for a translation.
âNo pranks, practical jokes,â Tori replied, shaking her head. âIgnore her.â She turned back towards Clara bending down to her level and holding out her pinky finger. âPromise to be on your best behavior?â
âYouâre leaving?â Clara asked, her eyebrows furrowing as she looked between Tori and Kirill.
Tori nodded, adjusting her clutch chain, going to kiss the top of Claraâs head. âJust down the street to the team Christmas party. I promise Iâll be backââ
âNo!â Clara yelled, backing herself away from the affectionate moment.
The three adults stood there in shock at the way the personable and bubbly, but often quiet, Clara raised her voice so defiantly.
âNo, you canât go!â Tori could see the way Claraâs face began to crumble and knew she was only moments away from crying. âIf you go, you wonât come back! My mommy and daddy didnât!â
Tori stepped towards Clara, ready to comfort the now crying child. âClaraââ Just as she went to get down to her level, Clara spun around on her heels and ran back towards the only bedroom of the apartmentâ Toriâsâ slamming the door shut behind her.
The silence was loud and heavy as she stared down the hall, the most outrageous part expecting her for Clara to come back out laughingâ that it was all a joke. But the big part of her, the one that knew Clara was genuinely upset, scared evenâŠthat part tugged at her heart, causing an ache so deep that it didnât take her a second to turn around to face Kirill.
âIâm sorry,â she spoke, shaking her head as she took her clutch off of her shoulder. âI canât go tonight. I canâtââ she looked back over her shoulder, shaking her head as she looked back at him. âI canât leave her like this.
She couldnât tell what exactly it was that he was feelingâ confused at what went down, sad that she was bailing, concerned for Clara or maybe even a little scared at the outburstâ but like he always did, he put on that small, comforting smile that always gave her the biggest of butterflies, and nodded his head.
âIâll let the guys know.â He walked back to her door, opening it as she followed behind him. He turned back around, his eyes looking just past her and over her shoulder. âTell Clara I hope sheâs okay.â
Tori leaned against the door, nodding. âThank you,â she whispered. âAgain, Iâm sorry. I knowââ
âItâs okay, Tori.â He replied, still smiling as she rocked back on his heels. âSee you later.â
She waved as she watched him walk back down the hall towards his room most likely to grab the rest of their group before looking back into her apartment and sighing, nodding at Maddie. âYou should probably go too.â
Maddie nodded, getting up off of the couch and collecting her things off of the island counter before coming over to Tori, not hesitating a single moment before wrapping her arms around her and hugging her. âItâs not your fault.â
âI didnâtââ Tori paused, as Maddie pulled back and she looked down the hallway. âI shouldâve known sheâd get upset and I didnât think about that.â She took a deep breath, exhaling as she looked back at Maddie, feeling the tears burn in her eyes. âJess wouldâve known what to do. She wouldâve knownââ
âHey, donât get down on yourself, Tor,â Maddie said, holding onto Toriâs arms. âThisâŠall of this is new to you, but youâve done a hell of a job so far. No one expects you to be perfect, okay? You had one slip up and even thenâŠyouâre doing your damndest. Youâre canceling your plans to make sure that Clara is okay.â
Maddie reached up and cupped her face, gaining her attention as she looked into her eyes. âYouâre trying, Tori. Youâre trying and youâre learningâŠand thatâs all Jess and Steven both would have wanted.â
Tori nodded, hugging Maddie again before pulling away. âThank you.â
âYou know Iâll always be here for you,â she smiled, walking out of her apartment door. âAnd send me that receipt for your Target order, Iâll swing by and pick it up tomorrow. Love you Tor.â
âLove you too, Mads,â Tori replied, waiting until she saw Maddie get into the elevator before closing and locking her apartment door for the night.
She took a few deep breaths as she took off her shoes and placed her purse back onto the counter before making her way back down the hall, coming to a stop in front of her bedroom door. She raised her fist, holding it there for a few spare moments before knocking on the door. âClara?â
Tori pressed her ear against the door, hearing her fan on the other side of the door blowing, but not a peep from Clara. She knocked again, keeping her ear against the door. âClara, can you come out please? Or let me in?â
Still silence and Tori was starting to feel defeated as she exhaled and let her body fully lean against the door. âIâm sorry that I didnât tell you about the party. IâŠI didnât even think about,â she paused, unsure of how to say the idea that maybe Clara would have some kind of reservations about Tori going to a party, without making it seem as if she wasnât considering her feelings. âIâm sorry that I made you upset, thatâs the last thing I ever want to do.â
âI sent Maddie and Kirill home, so itâs just gonna be me and you tonight.â She crossed her arms, focusing on the sounds from the other side of the door. âAnd I donât know about you, but Iâm kind of hungryâŠso I think Iâm gonna order a pizza. If you want some, just let me know.â
The one thing that she learned between her Dad and Claraâs therapist, was that she needed to let Clara come to terms with things on her own time. Not to force her to talk about it before she was ready or ignore it when the time came. If she had questions, then it was okay to answer them until Clara either started to look uncomfortable or stop asking questions altogether. So thatâs what she was going to do, she held out her olive branch of a pizza offering and was going to sit in the living room and wait until Clara hopefully would leave the room and join her.
Tori had ordered the pizza on her phone and sat down onto the couch, leaning back into the warm material as she stared at the âare you still watching?â Netflix screen. It was only a few minutes after she placed the order for pizza when she heard her bedroom door open from down the hall, Clara appearing at the end of the hall a couple of seconds later.
âYou still want to watch Julie and the Phantoms?â Tori asked, nodding towards the tv screen.
Clara nodded, keeping quiet as she slowly made her way over to the couch and sat down right beside Tori, immediately curling herself up against her side. âWhy didnât you go to the Christmas party?â
Tori shrugged, reaching up and brushing Claraâs hair back as she continued to play the show. âYou were upset and I didnât want to leave you behind,â she replied, looking down at her. âBesides, hanging out with you is a lot more fun than going to a fancy Christmas party.â
âIâm sorry for yelling at you,â Clara spoke softly, resting her head against Toriâs chest. âI justââ
âSh, you donât have to apologize, Clara,â Tori replied, tucking some of her hair behind her ear. âI know.â
They sat there for a relaxed moment before Clara looked up at Tori, pouting. âBut now youâre all dressed up and prettyâŠâ
Tori smiled, sitting up straight. âHow about we change over into some pjâs, then I can do your hair and make-up and after that, weâll clean it all up and have a spa night like your mom and I used to have with our mom?â
Clara perked up and nodded, a smile on her face. âOkay!â She scrambled off of the couch and headed towards the hall. âFace masks too?â
âOf course,â Tori scoffed, standing up off of the couch and following behind her, holding onto the hand Clara had outstretched towards her. âWeâll go all out, I promise.â
And they did.
After changing into some comfortable pajamas, Tori rounded up all of the spa stuff she had available in her bathroom and they walked back out into living room area with spa and make-up stuff in hand. Just like when Clara was helping Tori get ready, she had picked out all of the colors she wanted to wear, and Tori would apply it. She opted for having her hair curled and once it came down to make-up. And to no surprise, Clara had handed Tori the golden eyeshadow she had picked out for her earlier in the evening, when Tori had asked what eyeshadow she wanted.
âWith as knowledgeable as you are about make-up, I give it until youâre 12 to be better at it than me,â Tori joked, carefully applying the finishing touches on the eyeshadow. âI was never this good at make-up, I only learned a little in high school and then a little more in college.â
Clara kept her eyes closed as Tori shut the eyeshadow pallet and then grabbed the eyeliner. âI like watching youtube and tik toks,â she said, sitting still as Tori began applying the eyeliner. âPlus I really liked watching my mom do her make-up, she looked really pretty.â
Tori smiled softly, nodding her head even though Clara couldnât see. âYour mom was always very pretty.â
Silence settled over as Tori carefully applied the eyeliner to Claraâs top lid before having her open her eyes so she could apply it to the waterline. Words were none even as she put the eyeliner down and then grabbed the mascara, even more carefully applying it so she didnât accidentally poke Clara in the eye.
âAll right, youâre all done,â she smiled, putting the mascara tube down and grabbing the make-up mirror that sheâd brought out from the bathroom and held it in front of Clara. âWhat do you think?â
Clara scooted closer to the mirror, turning her face side to side as she even played with the curls of her chestnut colored hair. âDo I look like my mom?â She asked, looking up at Tori with a softened expression.
âIââ a knock on the door interrupted Toriâs reply, signaling that hopefully the pizza was here. âThat must be the pizza.â
Tori got up off of the floor and walked over to the front door, peeping through the peephole and seeing the pizza delivery man. She opened the door, making small conversation as she was handed the receipt to sign before finally wishing the delivery man a good night and taking the pizza, closing the door behind her and walking into the kitchen as Clara walked in. They grabbed some plates and each put two slices of pizza and a cheesy breadstick onto their plate before Clara took their plates into the living room while Tori grabbed them each a cup of water to drink.
When they settled back into the living room and sat on the floor, Tori noticed the small silence that was still there as Clara started to eat her pizza and focus on the Hannah Montana episode that was playing on Disney+. She knew it was most likely because sheâd never gotten the answer to her question since the pizza had been delivered and so Tori put her pizza back down onto her plate and turned towards Clara.
âYou do look like your mom,â she said, watching as her response took a few seconds before it sunk into Claraâs focus that she had said something.
âI do?â Clara asked, her bite of pizza still in her mouth as she quickly chewed it and swallowed. âOr are you just saying that?â
âNo, you do,â Tori smiled, nodding her head. âYou have her hair, especially now with the curlsââ
âBut we curled itâŠâ
âYour momâs hair didnât get curlier until she was 14, before that, her hair was straight just like yours. You have her nose and her cheeks,â she smiled, scooting closer to Clara. âYou have your dadâs eyes and his dimple, but your smile,â she reached out and gently poked right by the outside corner of Claraâs left eye. âYou definitely have your momâs smile, it reaches up into your eyes.â
Clara smiled and just like she said, for a moment, Tori could see a glimpse of Jess just in her smile alone. âThanks Aunt Tori.â She sighed, picking her pizza up again. âIâm sorry for ruining your date with Kirill.â
Tori laughed, shaking her head. âIt wasnât really a dateâŠI was just his date to the party is all. And besides,â she nudged Clara, smiling. âI think weâre having more fun doing this than I would at a party.â
âEven if it meant you couldnât go on your date?â She frowned.
Tori nodded. âEven if it meant missing out on tonight. Besides, if Kirill has a problem with me canceling so I can spend more time with you, then heâs not worth it.â She picked up her pizza and looked at Clara. âBoys will come and go Clara, but family is forever.â
Clara smiled and picked her pizza back up to eat and Tori joined in, sneaking a glimpse at her phone to see that she still didnât have any messages from Kirill. Itâs not like she was expecting him to text her throughout the night, because it was, after all, a team Christmas partyâŠbut she was also hoping that her hypothetical âif he has a problemâ scenario wasnât real. Because a big part of her, though she would deny it if asked, did care for Kirill.
And she hoped he felt the same way.
Itâd been maybe an hour and a half into their night, the make-up was all washed away and the two of them were lounging on the couch in their face masks, complete with some chopped up cucumbers to snack on as they watched The Polar Express, one of their favorite Christmas movies they watched as kids. If it wasnât so late, Tori might have suggested the two of them bundle up into a jacket and boots and wander down the street to get some ice cream. But, since tomorrow was their birthday, she figured that could be something she treated Clara to during the day.
Because right now, Clara was close to being ready to fall asleep and a sugar rush would only keep her up for a little bit longer.
âWhoâs that?â Clara asked, looking towards the front door following the soft knock they heard. âIs Maddie coming back?â
âIâm not sure,â Tori said, getting up off of the couch and keeping her blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She walked over to the door, looking through the peephole and immediately stepping away. âShit.â
âWhat? Who is it?â
âItâs Kirill,â she replied, reaching up and touching her dried clay mask. âAnd my face is completely purpleâŠâ
Clara jumped off of the couch and ran by Tori, nudging her out of the way and unlocking the door locks before swinging the door open. âHi Kirill! Come in!â
âHi,â he laughed, going along as Clara grabbed onto his coat jacket and tried to tug him in as best as she could. âWhat areâŠâ he paused and looked between both girls as Clara shut the door. âWhatâs on your faces?â
âFace masks to help us look young,â Clara chimed in, pointing at the plastic bags he was carrying. âWhatcha got there?â
He looked down at the plastic bag and then held it up. âI brought ice cream.â
âBut,â Tori paused, seeing that he was still dressed up in his suit. âWhat about the party? It doesnât end for another two and a half hours.â
Kirill smiled and shrugged. âIt wasnât fun and Ryan said heâd tell everyone I wasnât feeling good.â
âDoes this mean we can have ice cream, Aunt Tori?â Clara gasped, turning towards her and grabbing onto her hand, pouting. âItâd make me feel so much better! Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty pleasseeeeee?â
âYeah Tori, pretty please?â Kirill laughed, looking at her.
More than anything, she just wanted to wash the clay mask off of her face, even though it was looking like Kirill didnât care that she was wearing it. âOkay,â she nodded, holding her blanket tighter. âWe can have ice cream. Weâll just go wipe this stuff off our faces real quick and thenââ
âNo need!â Clara ran around the counter into the kitchen and grabbed the small stool Tori had for her, moving it in front of the sink and then turning the water on, vigorously rubbing her face with the water until the face mask was off.
Tori just sighed, grabbing a paper towel and ripping it, handing it to Clara. âWipe around, youâve got some flakes leftover.â She looked at Kirill and nodded. âIâll be back.â
She swiftly made her way down the hall to her bedroom, walking in and going to the bathroom to wash the face mask off her face. She tried not to let her racing heart make her nervous at the fact that Kirill had left his own teamâs Christmas party hours earlier, just to come by her apartment to make sure that they were okay. And he even brought ice cream. Those were two wins in her book and if she were to text Maddie and Kaia, no doubt in her mind that they would tease her and say that heâs definitely got feelings for her.
But she didnât want that disappointment, because maybe he was just a friendly guy.
When she wiped her face dry, she walked back out and down the hall, seeing Kirill still standing at the counter, only now he was holding an ice cream scooper in his hand and looking at Clara for approval as he dropped a second scoop into the bowl. âGood?â
âMm, one more.â
âNo, two is good,â Tori laughed, shaking her head. âYou need to sleep at some point tonight, because tomorrow is a big day.â
âOur birthday!â Clara smiled, looking at Kirill. âAre you guys coming to my party? Itâs just Aunt Tori, Maddie and me right now.â
Kirill laughed as he handed over the bowl of ice cream. âI would love to come.â
âSweet,â Clara smiled, grabbing her bowl before giving him a hug. âThanks Kirill, youâre the best.â
She ran off before he could reply and Tori walked over, taking her place at the end of the island. âThis was really nice of you to do,â she said, leaning against the counter. âI thought my spa night and pizza was good, but you really took the cake with this ice cream.â
âTook the cake?â He asked, eyebrows furrowed as he dropped a scoop of ice cream into her bowl.
âIt means you won,â she smiled, nodding at the ice cream. âPlus, itâs like you have a radar in your head and knew I was craving something sweet.â
Kirill smiled, shrugging his shoulders. âI know you.â
It was a good dayâ a day to be celebrated in many ways.
It was Christmas Eve and then it was both Clara and Toriâs birthday. A bittersweet day, but also one that needed much celebration in itâs own right. When she woke up this morning, Clara was still fast asleep in the bed beside her, so Tori took the chance to get up and make a phone call to her dadâ hoping it wasnât too early in the morning for him.
The first thing heâd said when she answered, was wishing her and Clara both a happy birthday. And after the polite conversation and questions about how they were doing had come and gone, Tori had asked him the most important question for the dayâ âhow did you do it?â
âHow did I do what, Tori?â
âHow did you make that first birthday after mom died, so special?â
There was silence on the phone before her dad sighed. âWell, I didnât shy away from the topic if you wanted to talk about your mom. We did a lot of talking about her and past birthdays. We kept up with those traditions, and just made sure to include mom as much as we could.â
Tori was biting her long sleeve as she stared at the Christmas tree. âIâm just nervous Iâll ruin it,â she whispered, feeling the tears burn in her eyes. âYou made that birthday and every one after that so special, even when deep down I was missing mom so much. Iâ I want to do that for Clara, I donât want Jess and Stevenâs death to overshadow her and make her hate her birthdays every year.â
âAs long as you just talk about Jess and Steven when she wants to and you validate those feelings she has, you wonât ruin it, Tori. She loves you and youâve got a way of making everyone feel special, especially on their birthdays. Just do things youâll think sheâll enjoy or if she asks to do something, do that too.â
It was her dadâs advice that made her feel a lot less nervous going into the day. First up on the day, sheâd made Clara a special breakfastâ chocolate chip pancakes complete with whipped cream and some cut up strawberriesâ a birthday breakfast that their mom had made Tori and Jess every year on their birthday since they could remember. And it was a tradition that Tori knew Jess had kept up with, because when Clara finally woke up and joined her out in the living room, her eyes lit up when she saw the pancakes on the kitchen islandâ even if the smile wasnât there.
Tori didnât remember much about that first birthday without her mom, part of her thinks she probably blocked it out because it was too sad to think about, but watching Clara go through it, she probably experienced the same thing. The sniffles and tears while eating her breakfast, the smile on her face but one that didnât reach her eyes as she opened the gift Toriâs dad had gotten her. The apologizing for feeling sad and the âitâs okay,â from Tori when she had apologized.
It felt like uncharted territory, even though sheâd been in it before. The only thing that had even boosted her mood just a little bit, was when the four boys from down the hall stopped by to wish them both a happy birthday, even giving her some presents.
Kirillâs was the only one that Clara was actually interested inâ maybe it was because it was from him or maybe because it was the only one that wasnât personally signed Minnesota Wild merchandise. It was a Polly Pocket set, one that Tori wasnât sure whether or not he just saw in a store and thought that sheâd like it or if it was something he knew that she wanted. At least not until before they left, Tori had asked him how he knew what to get her and he saidâ âwe're best friends, duh. She said she liked Polly Pockets, so I just went to the store and asked someone for help.â
Once the boys left, they just hung around the apartment, watching whatever Clara wanted to watch. It wasnât until she started to feel a little antsy that Tori had asked what was wrong. Clara looked at her, a sad look on her face as she played with her hands and said, âI want to go see mommy and daddyâŠif thatâs okay.â
Visiting the cemetery back in her hometown wasnât exactly what Tori had on the birthday card for today, but she remembered what her dad said about being open to whatever Clara wanted to do and agreed. They had gotten dressed and left the apartment complex, getting to the garage and getting into her car before setting out for the drive back to Saint Paul. Christmas songs were on the radio, but that was the only sound in the car on their drive, especially once they neared the cemetery where her mom, Jess and Steven were all buried in the same section, but only plots away from each other.
Theyâd stopped at the store, buying some flowers before reaching the cemetery and once they parked off to the side, they got out and walked through the snow, trying their best to find the headstones. Theyâd found her momâs first and Tori bent down and wiped off a few extra whisps of snow before placing the red poinsettias into the flowerpot. It wasnât the first time since her mom had died that Tori had come to the cemetery, but each time was just as emotional as the first time after the funeral.
âAunt Tori, can I go find mommy and daddy?â Clara asked, pointing just head. âI think theyâre eight up.â
âOkay, just stay in view.â Tori nodded, watching as Clara walked just ahead in front of her. She took a deep breath and sighed, staring down at her momâs engraved name. âI know you told us that even if you werenât here anymore that youâd always be aroundâŠbut I really hope thatâs true because I feel like Iâm out of my league.â
âI hope youâre with Jess and Steven up there, and I hope you guys are looking down at us and show up in times we need you. Dadâs doing good, Claraâs doing as good as you can expect her toâŠand I think Iâm doing okay,â she replied, wiping her running nose. âYou and Jess would be glad to know that I finally mightâve found someone I really like, though Iâm not sure if the feelings are mutual. And I think you wouldâve liked him, his nameâs Kirill and he plays for the Wild. Jess has met him and she liked him, so Iâm sure sheâs told you all about him. Heâs everything you always told us we deserved and needed to find in someone, one day.â
Tori laughed, shaking her head. âAnd honestly, I wouldnât be all that surprised if you somehow sent him to me.â She looked up to see that Clara was squatting down towards the ground and knew sheâd found where Jess and Steven were. âI miss you a lot, mom and I wish you were here all the time, but I know you are just like you said you would be. I love you and Iâll visit again soon, hug Jess and Steven for me.â
Tori quickly wiped her face and calmed herself down before walking away from her momâs headstone and taking the short walk up to where Clara was at, not getting to close as to not want to interrupt Clara, wanting to give her privacy. When she stood up, Tori walked over and stood next to her, draping her arm over her shoulder. âYou okay, Clara?â
Clara sniffled, wiping at her face and shaking her head. âI miss them,â she sobbed. âItâs not fair.â
Tori squatted down to her level and wrapped her in her arms, hugging her as she tried not to cry herself. âI know, I know,â she whispered, cupping the back of her head before leaning back. âBut you know what my mom always told your mommy and I when we were little and she got really sick?â
Clara shook her head, sniffling again as she wiped at her nose. âNo.â
âShe told us, that even if she wasnât here physically where we could see her and hug her,â she said, reaching up and wiping away the tear stains on Claraâs cheeks. âThat she would always be right here in our hearts,â she reached down and patted Claraâs heart. âAnd that she would never, ever leave there.â
âCan I talk to her there too?â Clara asked, wiping at her face again.
âAlways,â Tori whispered, holding onto Claraâs arms. âI was going to wait until tonight to give you this, but I think now might be better.â
âWhat is it?â
Tori reached into her jacket pocket, pulling out the small red gift box and lifting the lid and the small tissue paper from over it, revealing a small silver locket. âWhen you were born, your daddy bought this for your mommy. It says, âhome is where the heart isâ on the front and on the back, itâs got all three of your guys initials,â Tori smiled, showing Clara both sides before opening the locket. âAnd then inside, they added this picture of the three of you smiling in the hospital room. See? There you are right there in your mommyâs arms.â
Clara leaned down, looking at the locket before looking up at Tori. âI was so small.â
âYou were a few hours old,â Tori smiled, pointing to the empty side. âAnd then right here, if you wantâŠwe can add a picture of the three of you from that family photo session we all did together, yeah?â
âYes please,â she nodded, wiping at her nose. âCan you put it on me?â
Tori nodded, taking the locket out of the box. âI figured you were old enough to have this now, that way youâll always have your mommy and daddy to look at when you get a little sad and Iâm not there to comfort you.â
Once she put the locket around her neck, Tori let it rest against her chest and Clara reached down and held it into her palm with a small smile before looking up at Tori. âI love it Aunt Tori and I love you.â
âI love you too, kiddo,â she smiled, hugging her again, this time just a little tighter.
It was hard trying to decipher whether or not Claraâs trembling lips and body were from her crying or from the harsh cold winter air. So they said one last goodbye to Jess and Steven, Tori saying her own goodbye in her head before they made their way back to their car, staying close to each other and holding hands. When they got back into the car, Tori turned around to make sure Clara was settled before offering her a small smile.
âHow about we got get some hot chocolate from the cafe your grandma Clara used to always take your mom and I to when we were kids and weâll talk about your mom and dad?â Tori suggested, unsure of how Clara would respond.
She sniffled again, wiping at her nose. âDo they have cake pops? Daddy loved cake pops.â
âThey do,â Tori laughed, nodding her head. âWeâll get a cake pop too.â
They spent hours in that cafe, ordering hot chocolates and cake pops, nursing them as Tori told stories of Jess when they were younger and answered any questions about her mom and dad that Clara had. By the time it was time for them to start driving home so they could meet Maddie at the apartment for the small dinner and cake they were going to do for Clara, Clara was smiling for the first time that entire dayâ genuinely smiling.
It wasnât until they got in the car that Tori saw she had a missed call from Kirill and a voicemail. And when she listened to it first, she smiled. âKirill called, did you want to hear what he had to say?â She asked, looking over at Clara.
âYes please!!!â Clara nodded, sitting eagerly in her car seat.
âHey Tori, I just realized that I forgot to do something when I swung by earlier. I know itâs Claraâs birthday, so I wanted to wish her a happy birthday again and this time, do it the way we always did growing up.â He said something in his native Russian, probably something along the lines of happy birthday and then, the part that made Tori smile, he started to sing the simple tune of happy birthdayâ still in his native language.
âTHAT WAS SO COOL!â Clara smiled, eyes wide. âNext time I see him Iâm gonna ask him to teach me russian!â
Tori laughed, putting her phone down and starting her car. The only thing Clara didnât know was that Tori had ended the voicemail seconds before he went on to say what he did after.
âI know itâs your birthday too, so I wanted to say happy birthday and Iâm very happy I met you. Youâre doing a great job, Tor.â And then he said something else in russian before translating it for her. âI am the happiest man on earth because I met you, bye.â
She didnât need Clara teasing her until she was red in the face, but also, she knew that she would never get his voice out of her headâ constantly replaying the compliment on their drive home.
The day had come and gone, the sun was set and all around Minnesota, Tori was sure parents had their kids all tucked into bed. But in their small bedroom apartment, Tori, Maddie and Clara were watching âHow the Grinch Stole Christmasâ like all the Christmas Eveâs before, snacking on some of the leftover cookies theyâd made for Santa and just enjoying each otherâs presence.
âDid you have a good birthday, kiddo?â Maddie asked, looking over Tori as Clara sat down on the floor, wrapped up in a blanket Maddie had gotten her that was a picture of Clara, Jess and Steven together from last Christmas.
âYeah, one of the best,â Clara smiled, looking over her shoulder at them. âThank you guys a lot.â
âYouâre welcome, Clara,â Tori smiled, tucking her legs beneath her on the couch. âIâm glad you had a good day.â
âI feel bad though,â Clara frowned, holding the blanket around her. âItâs your birthday too, Aunt Tori and you didnât get a cake to make a wish or anything.â
Tori smiled, shrugging her shoulders. âThatâs okay, I got what I wanted and that was for you to have a good day. I know how hard those firsts can be when you lose someone important to you and all I wanted was to do for you what Grandpa did for me and your mom when we were younger. To make sure you could still have a good day, even if you were a little sad.â
Clara got up and walked over to the couch, leaning over and giving Tori a hug. âI love you Aunt Tori, youâre the best ever.â
âI love you too, Clara,â Tori replied, rubbing her back as she held onto the hug.
A knock on the door interrupted the hug and Clara jumped back, handing her blanket off to Tori. âIâll get it!â
âWhat did we say about answering doors?â Tori laughed, holding the blanket in her lap.
âYeah, Clara,â Maddie smiled, looking at Tori. âI wonder who that could be.â
Tori folded the blanket the best she could before getting up off of the couch, just as Clara opened the door. âGRANDPA!!!!!â Clara squealed, being lifted up moments after as Toriâs dad walked into the apartment, closing the door behind her.
âDad?â Tori asked, eyes widening. âWhat are you doing here? I thought you were back with Grandma?â
âOh no, she got tired of me hovering,â he laughed, shaking his head. âHer surgery went successful and she maybe lasted two days of me staying with her in her little apartment before she told me I needed to come home and be here with you guys. Sheâs got some good staff looking after her and I told her Iâd be on the first flight out if she ever needed anything.â
Tori walked over with a smile, hugging him with one arm as he held Clara. âItâs good to have you here, we missed you.â
âI missed you guys too,â he said, kissing them each on the temple. âAnd happy birthday to you both. Hi Maddie.â
âHi Mr. Holly, Iâm glad youâre here,â she smiled, sitting up on the couch. âThough youâre not quite who I was expecting.â
Toriâs dad laughed. âIf youâre talking about a certain Wild hockey player, heâs still hanging out in the hall. Looks a bit nervous if you ask me.â
âWhat?â Tori asked, looking at them as her dad put Clara down and Clara started to drag him over to where she had put her Christmas presents down.
âOh yeah, heâs out there giving himself a pep talk, open the door if you donât believe me,â her dad laughed, following behind Clara.
Staring at the closed door, she knew that Clara wouldâve announced Kirillâs presence if he was out there. She practically adored him just as much as Tori did. But more of a pointâŠwhy was he out there pacing in the hall? Tori opened the door and didnât even need to look out into the hall, because there was Kirill, wearing a Christmas sweater and moving himself right into view of her apartment door.
âKirill,â she said, still surprised even though she was told he was out here. âWhat are you doing?â
He brought his hands out from behind his back, holding an all too familiar pink bakery box from Toriâs favorite bakery down the street. âI wanted to give you this, itâs your birthday.â
She was speechless as he handed over the box to her and she lifted the lid, seeing her favorite three layered chocolate mousse cake she would always treat herself to a slice or two whenever she stopped by the bakery. On it, was white icing that was written in script that saidâ look up. She furrowed her eyebrows and looked up at Kirill to see him holding out a small plastic mistletoe decoration with nervous eyes. âWhatââ
âI know itâs probably lame,â he sighed, dropping his arm by his side. âBut I didnât know what else to do and itâs your birthday and I didnât want to overlook that. But youâre one of my best friends out here and youâre beautiful and kind and you always make me laugh. Iâve been too nervous to tell you or do anything which is why the guys like to chirp me about youâ but I do. I like you a lot, Tori. I like watching movies with you and Clara and ice skating and Iâm not good with stuff like this butââ
Tori smiled, before closing the lid on the box and stepping forward, leaning up onto her toes and cupping the left side of his face with her right hand before leaning in and kissing him. Sheâd always been afraid of making that first move, too nervous about ruining their friendship. Even after theyâd spent most of the family skate days earlier, holding handsâ playful manor or not. But now, with the cake and his equally adorable rantâŠshe knew that he had feelings for her too and nothing was going to stop her from doing what her hearts been wanting this entire time.
When she pulled away, he looked at her with wide eyes before smiling, holding up the mistletoe. âSo it wasnât cheesy? Because Ryan said it was cheesy andââ
âI loved it, it was very sweet,â she smiled, nodding her head. âWant to come in? Weâre just watching a movie.â
He nodded, stuffing the plastic mistletoe into his pocket before walking into the apartment and then coming to a deadstop. She closed the door and turned around, her eyes going wide to see her dad, Clara and Maddie all standing there with smiles on their faces. âOhâŠuhâŠâ
âReally guys?â Tori sighed, feeling her cheeks grow hot.
âTook you a while huh, Kirill?â Maddie said, playfully shaking her head. â
He reached up and rubbed the back of his head. âYeah, I just got nervous. Especially when you walked up, sir.â
âNo need to be nervous, Iâm a friendly guy,â her dad said, walking over and shaking his hand. âHowever, why donât we go sit on the couch and talk about your intentions with my daughter, hm?â
âDAD!â Tori gasped, quickly ushering them away. âAll of you go sit in the living room and Iâll cut up the cake.â
âCAKE?â Clara asked, eyes wide as she ran over and lifted the lid to the pink box. âYouâve gotta make your wish first, Aunt Tori!â
âFine, fine, but you guys go in there and Iâll make my wish in here,â Tori said, as Maddie and her dad went back into the living room while her, Kirill and Clara were in the kitchen. Tori opened a drawer and grabbed the lighter, lighting the two candles.
âMake a wish, Aunt Tori,â Clara smiled, resting her arms on the counter and then her chin on her arms. âEven though I already know what youâre going to wish for.â
âYou do?â Kirill asked, playing along.
âYou do not,â Tori scoffed.
âSure I do,â Clara smiled. âFor Kirill to be your boyfriend.â
âI guess I did forget something after all,â he laughed, taking the plates from her as she grabbed a knife to cut the cake. âIs that something you want? Becauseââ
Tori just leaned in, kissing him again before pulling away with a smile, subtly nodding her head. âItâs a yes.â
âOkay, me too,â he nodded, blushing as he motioned towards her cake. âMake another wish.â
Tori blushed, tucking her chin into her chest as she smiled., looking around the room. She had her best friend in the entire world and her dad here, Clara was starting to look more like her old self even after the rough year that sheâd been throughâŠand the guy from down the hall sheâd been crushing on for almost as long as sheâs known himâŠhad finally confirmed what her heart had been telling her all alongâ that he had liked her too. There wasnât much more in the world that she could want, but maybe there was, and maybe it was just that she wanted Jess, Steven and her mom to know she was trying her best and she wanted them to be proud of her.
She closed her eyes, making the wish that she hoped all of this would stayâ the happiness and the peace that her family had adapted after tragedy, her very new relationship with KirillâŠthere was nothing more in this world that she wanted than to see Claraâs smile and hear her laugh, or getting to feel Kirillâs hand in hers and experience the fireworks she had when they kissed. After savoring the moment, she blew out the candles and opened her eyes again.
There they were, Clara and Kirill. Clara with her big smile, the one that had the best of both Jess and Steven. And then there was Kirill, smiling just as big and looking at her with a kind of love in his eyes that made her heart patter against her chest.
âBest Christmas Eve and birthday ever.â
#kirill kaprizov writing#kirill kaprizov fic#kirill kaprizov fanfic#kirill kaprizov one shot#minnesota wild fic#minnesota wild writing#minnesota wild one shot#nhl writing#nhl fic#nhl one shot#nhl fanfic#hockey writing#hockey one shot#hockey fic#hockey oneshot#hockey fanfic#kirill kaprizov oneshot#minnesota wild oneshot#nhl oneshot
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We Were Wild Masterlist
Hey guys. As you may be able to tell, I am a HUGE Minnesota Wild fan. A huge hockey fan in general. I decided to write a fanfic about the Wild and Kaprizov (the love of my life). Iâm writing this for my own entertainment but I also hope you guys like it. Even if you arenât a NHL fan, I think this will be a cute love story. You donât need to know the players.
Thanks guys.
Also the title will probably change... Haha.
Taglist
Also I'd love some feedback or to interact with y'all some more! My Ask/Request box is always open!
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
#hockey fic#kirill kaprizov#kirill kaprizov fanfic#minnesota wild#mn wild#nhl fanfiction#mn wild fanfic#nhl fic#saramae21#wild fanfic
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lowkey though if someone wrote some kirill kaprizov fanfics.....iâd love u forever
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So Chapter 4 of We Were Wild will be out this weekend, but will anyone read if I start a Tyson Jost fic?? I love him so much đ
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/7e1c5e06bd053f700de92c15c266b451/c87e4294d01760cb-da/s540x810/ee15866c6f59cc111fd9e1ff862e5bc730b588a8.jpg)
#minnesota wild fanfic#mn wild fic#mn wild fanfic#kirill kaprizov fic#kirill kaprizov fanfic#tyson jost#tyson jost fanfiction#tyson jost fic
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We Were Wild - Chapter 4
Hey y'all, so I'm sick! This is a little late and I'm not happy with it... You guys need to let me know if this is something worth working on or not because I don't know if I am in love with it or not...
I'm a huge Kaprizov fan and I know I could make a great fanfic, but I don't know this is any good or not...
If you want me to keep writing it, the next chapter will be better. I'm blaming the sick brain...
Masterlist
Taglist
Also I'd love some feedback or to interact with y'all some more! My Ask/Request box is always open!
Chapter Four
Soon days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months. I began to find my rhythm with the Wild, while keeping myself an arms length away. The only time I interacted with the team was at practice, except for Kirill.
Once a week, Kirill and I go shopping together. We grab the essentials, while I scold him about unnecessary purchases, and then we go back to his apartment for a cooking lesson. I kept our extracurriculars short and sweet, making sure that neither of us became too comfortable with each other. However, after a few weeks of hanging out, I could no longer say that we werenât friends.
He found comfort in someone he could communicate freely with and I found comfort in him. He was very different from my other friends and it didnât take effort for me to spend time with him. That was the scary thing about spending time with him.
Still, I kept the boundaries that I had set for myself. I didnât want him to become a distraction for me at work. I had finally become acquainted with my new work environment and I wasnât failing the job yet, Iâd prefer to keep it that way. Even though everything would be changing again in a few daysâŠ
The snow fell from the sky and landed lightly in my dark hair. I always loved the way it looked like a tiara of crystals. I looked up and watched it fall all around me. It made me feel like a little kid again, running around in the powdery snow.
âWhat are you still doing here?â Kirill asked, causing me to jump a little. I opened my mouth to reply, but I could see the nervousness in him. His NHL debut was approaching quickly and he seemed a lot more on edge these days. I wouldâve expected him to be cool as a cucumber, but that just wasnât the case.
âAre you excited for Thursday?â I asked. He stared silently at me for a second before letting out a sigh.
âI am, trust me,â he said. I could sense the word âbutâ coming next. âBut, I donât want to mess up. Everyone was so excited when I got here and I donât want to disappoint them.â
I laughed. I didnât mean to, but I couldnât help it. Sometimes I forgot that he was my age and had insecurities. Heâs still human despite the whole professional athlete thing he has going on. It was cute that he was nervous, but he had nothing to worry about.
âKirill, have you seen yourself during practice? Your goalies have a love-hate relationship with you. Theyâre the luckiest goalies in the division because neither of them have to protect the goal from you, Talbotâs words not mine,â I said, smiling proudly at him.
The goofy smile that he wore so well flashed across his face as he nodded. He knew deep down that I was right, he just had to hear it from someone that wasnât himself. I chuckled as he processed it, but ultimately I knew that I had to be on my way. I said my goodbyes and was on my way, thinking back to the smile on his face as I walked away.
As I walked into my apartment, I was still thinking about his smile. Lately, Iâve been having a hard time getting him out of my head. Maybe it was all the time we had spent together⊠or maybe it was because we were becoming closer. Either way, having him live rent free inside my head was not a good thing.
The lights were off and no one was home at the apartment, which wasnât unusual these days. Eliza spent a lot of time at Joshâs place, which meant I had the apartment to myself. It was a little lonely at times.
As I made myself a bowl of cereal for dinner, I debated going over and bothering Nate. I knew that he would be secretly happy to see me since weâve had conflicting schedules lately, but I couldnât bring myself to walk across the hall. There were weird boundaries and imaginary lines that I wasnât ready to cross.
I heard my phone vibrate and picked it up, taking both my bowl of cereal and my phone to the couch. I turned on the tv and shoved a spoonful of cheerios into my mouth before looking at the text.
From Kirill Kaprizov: Thanks for today.
I stared at it for a moment, my eyebrows furrowed together. It wasnât unusual for him to shoot me a text every once and a while, but it was always about practice, cooking, or translating something the guys said. It was never just because he felt like it.
To Kirill Kaprizov: No problem! Donât be nervous, you got it!
I thought that would be the end of the conversation, but another text came through less than a minute later.
From Kirill Kaprizov: Got home safely?
It was cute that he asked. Cute. I silently cursed myself for thinking that. He wasnât cute, I was just overexposed to him. Thatâs all. Except it was all, he was cute. I think many girls would agree with me, but I didnât want to be a girl who agreed with them. I work with him. He was completely unobtainable. On top of that, I swore to be done dating hockey boys.
To Kirill Kaprizov: Yup! Hbu?
I sighed as I took a few more bites of cereal. I ignored the next notification from my phone and just focused on finishing my food. I set the now empty bowl down on the coffee table as my phone vibrated a couple more times, but I was too distracted by picking out a show to watch to care. Finally, I checked it to see 3 more texts from him.
From Kirill Kaprizov: I did. Made some dinner too. I still owe you dinner sometime for all the help.
From Kirill Kaprizov: Did you eat yet?
From Kirill Kaprizov: I have some leftovers from tonight if you want to come over
I smiled at the messages and debated going since I was feeling lonely at home, but I knew it would be bad for my heart.
To Kirill Kaprizov: I did eat, sorry! Thanks for the offer though! And you donât owe me anything, itâs okay. :)
I smiled, satisfied with my reply. I wanted to keep our conversation professional without sounding like a robot. Going over to his apartment, at night, on a Tuesday seemed out of the boundaries that I had set for myself.
I left my phone on the couch as I got up to do my dishes. There wasnât much there, but it was enough to make me forget all about my text conversation with the Russian rookie. I took a shower and got ready for bed before going back out to grab my phone and turn off the tv.
As I laid down in bed, I plugged my phone into the charger and turned on my alarms for the morning. I swiped down to see the notifications and was met with two more small texts.
From Kirill Kaprizov: All good, just thought I would extend the offer.
From Kirill Kaprizov: Goodnight.
For some reason, his goodnight text made my heart flutter a little bit. It was such a small action with no ulterior motive behind it, yet it felt special. I felt my shoulders slouch as I rolled onto my side and put my phone on the bedside table.
He was just a boy who I barely knew, so why was I overthinking everything this much?
___________________________________________________ Taglist: @puckbunnyforsway @elephantswithpants @mellowyellowbun @mapofthepsyche @lokioftherings
#minnesota wild#kirill kaprizov fanfic#mn wild fanfic#saramae21#hockey fic#kirill kaprizov#mn wild#nhl fanfiction#nhl fic
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We Were Wild - Chapter Three
Hey guys. As you may be able to tell, I am a HUGE Minnesota Wild fan. A huge hockey fan in general. I decided to write a fanfic about the Wild and Kaprizov (the love of my life). Iâm writing this for my own entertainment but I also hope you guys like it. Even if you arenât a NHL fan, I think this will be a cute love story. You donât need to know the players.
Thanks guys.
Also the title will probably change... Haha.
Taglist
Also I'd love some feedback or to interact with y'all some more! My Ask/Request box is always open!
Chapter Three
We walked through the aisles in an uncomfortable silence as he grabbed items from the shelf and put them into the cart I was pushing. Every once in a while we would stop so he could really ponder the items he was grabbing. Then when he wasnât looking, I would sneak some necessities into the mix. If I was going to teach him how to cook, I would be doing it the right way.
He grabbed some snacks off the shelf and threw them into the cart before making his way over to the premade items. I grabbed his arm to stop him.
âYouâre not putting that processed stuff into your body!â I said. He was an athlete and that food has probably been in the packaging for months.
âI donât always have time to cook,â he said, reaching for them again. Once again I grabbed him.
âThatâs not food for a NHL player! Iâll make leftovers and teach you quick meals!â I said impulsively. He turned to look at me, his head tilted as he processed my words. I realized that I might have been out of line, but this is who I was at my core. âPut that stuff down and let's check out.â
I turned around with the cart and scrunched my face up in embarrassment. I just yelled at him like we were old friends while in public. I shook it off and walked up to the counter, placing items by the register.
âYou and your boyfriend are very cute together,â the older woman at the counter said. My eyes went wide as I waved my arms in front of me. I tried to exclaim that we werenât like that, but she just smiled at me. I scratched the back of my neck sheepishly as she continued to ring up the items.
Kirill walked up and placed a few last minute items on the table. He looked at me for approval as he set them down and I could feel the blood rush to my face. I was in no position to tell him not to eat what he wanted, but I also had no objection to his picks.
I grabbed the bags from the counter, trying to help out. However, Kirill was the one to stop me this time. He grabbed my arm and took the bags from my hands.
âI got it,â he muttered. I blinked a couple times before smiling and nodding. I opened the door for him and we made our way back to the car. This felt natural unlike every other interaction with him today.
I asked him to guide me to where he lived, which was a mistake. However, with a little help from the GPS, we made it there in no time. I helped him carry everything into his apartment and was stunned when I got inside. It was beautiful. He had this gorgeous view of the U.S. Bank stadium and a million city lights. I wished my apartment had a view like this.
I turned back around to see him putting things into his fridge. I wondered if he wanted me to make him something or if he wanted me to leave, but I was too nervous to ask.
âAre you hungry?â he asked, reading my mind. I chuckled a little bit and smiled.
âMhm⊠What sounds good?â I asked. âI could make borscht or blini?â
I could see him deep in thought as he continued to put items into the fridge. He nodded and turned to face me. He rubbed his neck awkwardly and made a face.
âI feel bad making you cook after all the help today,â he said. I could see how I put him in an uncomfortable position. I bet heâs felt like that a lot since coming to Minnesota⊠I put a kind smile on my face and offered up a solution.
âHow about we make blini together? Iâll teach you and you can make it for me next time?â I suggested. Breakfast for dinner sounded good to me and it was a nice compromise for the both of us. That small smile that I had seen on his face a couple of times reappeared and he nodded.
âThank you,â he muttered.
We didnât talk about much while making the food, but my curiosity kept growing. The more time I spent with him the more I wanted to know. I didnât want to pry though. Instead of talking, I observed.
He was a pretty quiet guy and his expression didnât give a whole lot away during situations like this. He was fairly stoic. He had small emotional tells though. The corner of his mouth flipped up into the tiniest smile when he made a perfect blini. His forehead scrunched up a little bit when he made a mistake. The small things told me how he felt.
âWere you raised in Minnesota?â he asked while plating some food for the both of us.
âYeah, but I was born in Kemerovo.â I said. âWe moved here when I was four. My parents followed my uncle here and I donât remember Russia that well.â
âThatâs not far from where I grew up,â he said.
We sat down at the table and I watched him take his first bite. I hoped that it was good. It was my momâs recipe and it had a special place in my heart. I watched as his eyes lit up and he took another bite. I smiled to myself and took a bite. It tasted just like childhood.
âThis is really good,â he said with his mouth full. I smiled and thanked him, chuckling a bit. Sharing a meal with someone was something that I had taken for granted. I usually make something quick and just sit on the couch to eat.
I finished up my plate and walked it over to the sink. I grabbed the other dishes that we had used to make the meal and turned the water on.
âNo,â he said and grabbed my arm. I had been reaching for a rag to start cleaning up. âIâll clean up, you sit back down.â
I decided not to argue and plopped back down, watching as he picked up. My mind raced as I tried to figure out what question to ask him. I didnât know if this made us friends or not.
âHow do you like Minnesota so far?â I asked. I watched him shrug.
âI really like the team, but itâs weird being away from home,â he said. There was a pause as I tried to find the right thing to say. âItâs nice having someone I can talk to though.â
I smiled to myself. I couldnât imagine moving to Minnesota alone. I had my parents and people to talk to, but he had no one. The language barrier was the most frustrating part and I knew what it felt like when no one understood what you wanted to say.
After the cleaning was done, I knew I had to head out. I had a meeting early in the morning and I was already out late enough. He walked me out to my car and we exchanged an awkward goodbye before I drove home. It was nice to know someone who understood me a little bit more than who I was in Minnesota.
____________________________________________
Taglist: @puckbunnyforsway @mapofthepsyche @elephantswithpants @mellowyellowbun
#saramae21#hockey fic#kirill kaprizov#kirill kaprizov fanfic#minnesota wild#mn wild#mn wild fanfic#nhl fanfiction#nhl fic#wild fanfic
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We Were Wild - Chapter One
Hey guys. As you may be able to tell, I am a HUGE Minnesota Wild fan. A huge hockey fan in general. I decided to write a fanfic about the Wild and Kaprizov (the love of my life). Iâm writing this for my own entertainment but I also hope you guys like it. Even if you arenât a NHL fan, I think this will be a cute love story. You donât need to know the players.
Thanks guys.
Also the title will probably change⊠Haha.
(Also Chapter 2 is done... lmk if you guys want it posted right away!)
![Tumblr media](https://64.media.tumblr.com/f5803f0e78a7df369c90ffc43b85ff24/b9218c6ab5b69427-b3/s540x810/6c252385efa76b0e817a1066260f1fafda74e0d0.jpg)
_______________________________________________
Chapter One
His dark brown eyes stared at me with a puzzled expression. I could tell that he wasnât someone who could conceal their emotions well. He wore his heart on his sleeve and there was nothing wrong with that. I lowered my camera to really get a good look at him. He had this baby face and an energy about him that radiated success.
âYeah, I can understand you,â I said. I watched as his face lit up as the words left my mouth. I chuckled a little bit as emotions spilled out of him. In my mind, he resembled a yellow lab or golden retriever. There was an innocence to him that was hard to match.
âCan you help me?â He asked. It was a rhetorical question though. I watched as he turned and waved the guys over. Suddenly my nerves came rushing to the surface. Iâve watched some of these players for years and now they were right in front of me. âCan you tell them that Iâm trying, but I donât quite understand?â
I nodded at him before staring at the men in front of me. My words caught in my mouth, but I knew I had to push through. I placed a smile on my face and conveyed what Kirill had said to me in Russian back to the others in English. They looked at me with a confused look, even though they understood me perfectly.
âWhat else should I tell them?â I asked Kirill since they all stared in silence. Then something clicked.
âYou speak RussianâŠâ Mats Zuccarello said hesitantly. I looked at him and smiled. I gave a small nod and listened as all of them began to talk at once. Everyone had something they wanted to say to the rookie.
It was a back-and-forth conversation, none of which actually involved me. However, I didnât mind. I just smiled and did my part, trying my hardest to make myself useful. I wanted to leave a good first impression since I would be doing this for the upcoming year. They didnât know me yet, but maybe they would. I wondered if any of them would even remember me tomorrow.
After saying everything that needed to be said, the guys went back to their drill. I saw how hard they were trying to get Kirill accustomed to how things worked in Minnesota, and it was slightly wholesome. Even though I smiled at the exchange, something felt empty inside of me. I lowered my camera all the way down to my side and let out a sigh. This wasnât what I expected. This wasnât what I wanted. Still, I was going to try my best.
As their mini practice came to an end, I didnât expect anyone to come talk to me. I just packed up my things and sat down on the bench for a second. I knew when their training camp started, I would be overwhelmed with everything going on. I should be enjoying the days leading up to that level of stress.
âHey, wait!â a voice called from behind me as I grabbed my things to leave the rink. I turned to find those brown eyes staring at me from across the boards. âThank you for today. Will you be back?â
I could sense his anxiety. I felt for him, I truly did. The language barrier was scary and the man in front of me reminded me of my younger self. I remember being frustrated that I couldnât communicate how I felt with anyone around me after coming here. Iâve been through what he was dealing with.
I nodded to ease his nerves. I could feel him relax and grow just a little more comfortable with my presence. With how anxious the boy in front of me was, I could tell why they wanted someone he could communicate with freely.
Thatâs when everything began to click in my head. I was around his age and a speaker in his native language. Me being here really never had anything to do with my photography and knowing that stung, but I couldnât resent Kirill for that. It wasnât his fault that I happened to fit the right profile and it wasnât his fault that my boss couldnât be honest with me about why I was here. I just had to make the best of the situation.
âIâm Katerina, but everyone calls me Kat,â I said, extending my hand. He smiled and shook my hand carefully.
âKirill,â he said. I released his hand and stared at him for a second. He wasnât what I was expecting at all. I told him that I should get going, but it was nice to meet him. I grabbed my bag and turned my back to him. âKaterina.â
My name sounded beautiful coming from his voice. Itâs been a while since I had heard it the way it was supposed to be pronounced. I glanced at him over my shoulder, wondering what he needed. He just looked at me for a second.
âIâm in group two tomorrow, just so you know,â he said. Then he was gone.
I walked to the front of the building before realizing that this was a moment I didnât want to forget. My first day working in the Wild franchise was a big deal. I pulled out my film camera and looked around at the lobby. The logo was stamped onto the wall next to the doors. I snapped a quick photo and smiled to myself. Day one was over.
I dragged my feet a little as I walked up to my door. As much as I wanted too, I couldnât bring myself to hold my chest up high. It was one thing to be positive at the job, but it was another to stay positive after leaving. I fumbled with my keys a bit before finally getting the door unlocked.
The room was filled with energy as I entered it. Eliza and her boyfriend Josh were in the kitchen and our good friend Nathan was plopped on our couch with a handful of chips. He greeted me with a mouth full of food as I walked in. I smiled at him and said hello.
âHow was your first day K?â Eliza called from the kitchen as I put my camera bag down in my room. I took a deep breath before walking out.
âIt was nice!â I said excitedly. I walked back out and sat on our barstools in the kitchen. I snagged a carrot off of Elizaâs plate and watched her give me the look. I knew she didnât believe me and was waiting for me to spill the tea. âNo seriously! It was nice. I get to shoot practice from their bench every day and I met some of the players.â
âYou mean you met Kirill Kaprizov?â she said. I gave her a joking eye roll.
âI met Mats Zuccarello, Matt Dumba, Kevin Fiala, Jared Spurgeon,â I rattled off. Her eyes didnât leave me once though. â...and Kirill KaprizovâŠâ
âKnew it,â she said. I looked at her and shook my head.
âKaprisun?â Nate asked from the couch. I chuckled at his joke as I spun the stool around to look at him. He was peering back at me over the top of the couch. I could see his brow furrowing cutely as he stared back at me.
âKaprizov,â I corrected him. âHeâs the new rookie on the team. Barely speaks English so Iâm probably going to help him grow accustomed to Minnesota and his team.â
Everyone saw right through my carefully picked words. I didnât want it to seem like I wasnât happy with my job after one day, but I know they could all feel my disappointment. Still, I held the smile on my face and tried to seem bright.
âSo⊠was he cute?â Eliza asked in a hushed voice. I rolled my eyes at her and glanced at Nathan.
Nate and I had a complicated relationship. He went to college with us, but college wasnât for him. Instead of sticking around, he moved back to the cities to live his own life. Iâm convinced we wouldnât be just friends had he stuck around.
âEh,â I said with a shrug, knowing that I was lying. He was cute, but if I told them that it would give them something to bother me about. I didnât want to only talk about him, because my job was so much more than that. I was so much more than that or at least I hoped I wasâŠ
______________________________________________
Taglist: @puckbunnyforsway
#saramae21#mn wild#minnesota wild#minnesota wild fanfic#mn wild fanfic#wild fic#wild fanfic#nhl fanfiction#nhl fic#kirill kaprizov#kirill kaprizov fanfic#nhl writing#hockey fic#hockey fandom
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We Were Wild - Prologue
Hey guys. As you may be able to tell, I am a HUGE Minnesota Wild fan. A huge hockey fan in general. I decided to write a fanfic about the Wild and Kaprizov (the love of my life). Iâm writing this for my own entertainment but I also hope you guys like it. Even if you arenât a NHL fan, I think this will be a cute love story. You donât need to know the players.
Thanks guys.
Also the title will probably change... Haha.
____________________________________________________
Prologue:
The cold always felt like home to me. Winter always made me happier than the summer ever could. With winter came skating and hot chocolate. It also brought blizzards and freezing temperatures, things that often reminded me of myselfâŠ
I woke up with the air feeling extra heavy within my room. The humidity would not let up, especially during a Minnesota summer. On top of that, my air conditioner sat broken in the window, mocking me.
I could hear the sounds of rush hour beginning. I pulled my curtains open to see the city bustling around me. I smiled down at the busy street below me. Whenever I looked out the window at the traffic below, I felt on top of the world. Something about the busy city made me feel at home. After spending my time at college up in the northland, I was happy to be back in the cities.
I let out a yawn and made my way down the hallway. I could see my college best friend and current roommate pouring a bowl of cereal out of the corner of my eye as I slipped into the bathroom.
âKat! You arenât really going to spend the rest of your summer in an ice rink, right?â Eliza yelled across the apartment at me when she heard the faucet running. I chuckled as I splashed the cool water on my face.
âYou know I love hockey,â I retorted, grabbing my toothbrush. I heard her snicker and told me to come eat breakfast before I left. I shook my head though. My stomach was filled with butterflies at the idea of starting my new job.
I pulled my long brown hair out of my face and up into a high ponytail. I couldnât have it getting in the way today. I applied a small amount of makeup before really looking at myself in the mirror. I smiled, trying my hardest not to look too tired.
âCome at least sit with me while I eat breakfast!â Eliza whined. I chuckled and walked out to the kitchen. I filled a glass of water and sat down next to her. She rolled her eyes when she saw the excitement in me. âYou know they only want you because of the new Russian kid theyâre bringing in. Youâre basically going to be a translator, Katerina.â
Sadly, she was right. They hired me as a photographer, but they asked me to help their newest rookie out. I had a feeling that pictures would be lower on my task list then I had initially expected.
They hired me because I had hockey photography experience from college. I took photos for my universityâs hockey team. Not to mention that they were one of the best college teams in the US. However, they also hired me because I was Russian.
Katerina Petrov, first generation immigrant. My parents immigrated to the US when I was four. My mother didnât speak a word of English and my dad had a limited vocabulary. He basically got a factory job by saying, âI fix that for you,â and pointing at a machine. Russian was my first language and English was my second.
âI knowâŠâ I muttered. âBut on top of that, theyâre paying me to shoot their games. Thatâs my dream. Plus who wouldnât want to be surrounded by the hottest team in the NHL.â
She laughed at my joke, knowing damn well that I was right. The Minnesota Wild has some of the best looking hockey players across North America. Still, Eliza looked at me and told me not to get my hopes up. She was right, this job might not be what I think it would be.
After she had finished eating, we both went back to our rooms to get ready for the day. She was off to her engineering job and I was heading to the TRIA Rink where the Minnesota Wild held practice. We lived very different lives.
My jaw hung open as I walked up to the building. I couldnât believe that I was actually here. I secured my camerabag on my back and took a deep breath. I slipped my face mask on and pulled the door open.
Inside the lobby, Bruce Kluckhohn waited for me. He smiled at me as I walked in. I walked up confidently and offered him a handshake. I greeted him nicely with a huge smile on my face.
âKaterina, right?â he asked me. I smiled and held back my chuckle. Hearing my full name in an American accent always caught me off guard.
âYou can call me Kat,â I said. He nodded in response and took me around the practice arena.
It was cold and empty when we got there. There was no sign of players anywhere. My head swiveled around to see everything about the room. I took mental notes on where the lights were and where the best spots to stand would be. I glanced at the plexiglass around the rink and smiled at how clear they were still.
âYou wonât have to worry about that,â Bruce said as he motioned for me to follow him. I tilted my head in confusion and walked slowly behind him. We made our way around the rink and onto the bench. I could feel the chilled air radiating off of the ice. Bruce turned to me with a smile. âYou will shoot from here.â
I stared at him in silence for a moment as my mind tried to process what he was saying. Why would I get such an awesome spot to shoot from? I opened my mouth to ask questions but I was interrupted by someone behind me. I turned around at the call of my name and saw someone I would recognize a mile away. Dean Evanson, the Wildâs head coach, stood right in front of me.
âKaterina, itâs wonderful to meet you,â he said with a smile. He shook my hand.
âHi,â I said, freezing up a little bit. âYou can call me Kat.â
I could tell he was surprised by my voice. I sounded very American and he was not expecting it. Even though I was Russian first, I lost my accent at a young age. I spoke English everywhere except for at home and having an accent made things harder for me growing up.
âOkay Kat,â he said, a smile on his face. âC,mon. I can show you the rest and explain things a little bit more.â
I nodded and followed him through the rest of the training facilities. It was a huge building and I could see myself getting lost before I got used to it. I listened carefully as he explained the situation to me. As I listened, I felt myself getting more and more discouraged. The reason I was here was to provide Bruce a hand. There was no guarantee that they would use my photos anyways. The main reason I was here was to help with communication between the coaches and their newest team member, Kirill Kaprizov. Thatâs why I would shoot their practices from the bench. It was so I could provide clarification at practice whenever he needed it.
âWe really appreciate having you here and we look forward to seeing the talent you bring to our team,â Dean said as we made it back to the rink. I forced a smile on my face and nodded, telling him I would do my hardest before he walked away.
After he left, I looked out at the rink and noticed a few of the players skating on the ice. Bruce was over on the side opposite of me taking a few photos of the guys. There were no coaches around, but they looked like they were working on some drills. I walked over to the bench and pulled my camera out. I attached my 70-200 mm lens and adjusted my settings carefully. I snapped a couple of photos, observing the players on the ice. I immediately recognized a couple of them. Jared Spurgeon. Mats Zuccarello. Kevin Fiala. Matt Dumba. I could name them all. Well, all but one.
He looked young. He had to be around my age. His dirty blonde hair stuck out the back of his helmet. However, the thing I noticed the most was that he looked frustrated. He skated over to the bench, muttering to himself.
âIâm trying to understand, but I keep messing it up,â he said under his breath. However, he didnât say it in English. This was him. This was Kirill Kaprizov.
âYouâre working hard. Donât worry, it will get easier,â I said to him.
His head shot in my direction. He had this dumbfounded look on his face as he stared at me.
âYou can understand me?â
#saramae21#mn wild#mn wild fanfic#mn wild fic#wild fic#wild fanfic#Minnesota wild#kirill kaprizov#kirill kaprizov fanfic#kirill kaprizov fic#hockey fic#hockey fanfic#nhl fanfiction#nhl fic
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Fic Updates!
Hey y'all,
I'll be doing one chapter updates a week unless I have more inspiration. I'm starting a Tyson Jost fic for Tyson Tuesdays, prologue will be up this weekend and first chapter on Tuesdays. We Were Wild will now be updated on Sundays for Kirill KapriSundays. That's the most punny I could get. There might be two updates for We Were Wild this weekend, but I am super sick so no promises!
However, I would love feedback on what is working and what isn't. You guys can always request imagines, etc too. I just don't have a lot of ideas of what people want to see more of. So, please reach out in DMs or my Asks are always open!
Tagging the taglist for WWW!
Tags: @puckbunnyforsway @mapofthepsyche @elephantswithpants@mellowyellowbun
#kirill kaprizov#kirill kaprizov fic#minnesota wild#kirill kaprizov fanfic#mn wild fanfic#hockey fic#saramae21#mn wild#nhl fanfiction#nhl fic#wild fanfic#tyson jost fanfiction#tyson jost fic#tyson jost
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Yâall, Iâm writing a hockey fanfic (MN Wild) and I donât care if yâall read it. Iâm doing it.
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