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eightmakar · 2 years ago

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celebrations | c.m.

Pairing: Single Dad!Cale Makar

Word Count: 10.2k

Warnings: cursing, drinking, celebrating

A/N: this is the prequel to accidental blessing (18+)! all i could think about during the Stanley Cup celebrations was Cale with Willow so I wrote Willow into it. hope yall enjoy :)

tags: @bitchinbarzal @burkymakar @nateslehky @taking-shots @fallinallincurls @jostyriggslover96 @hockeylvr59 @matbaerzal @capsvsducks @xsyntheticsensation @corneliaskates @equallyshaw

One minute.

Cale’s heart pounded as Tampa kept the puck in the zone. EJ came off the ice, Toewser hopped on, but Mans stayed. Cale watched him intently, doing everything he could to keep his eyes off the clock and his mind off the fact that they were less than a minute from winning the fucking Stanley Cup.

Nate and Toewser tied up the puck on the far boards, allowing time to tick down. Tampa desperately fought to clear the puck out of the mess of skates. They didn’t lay down and die quietly, and Cale knew that every second Tampa spent in their offensive zone was an opportunity for them to tie the game up.

30 seconds.

Nate cleared the puck down the ice, and Mans came rushing to the boards for a change. Cale leapt over the boards and raced into position while Val chased down the puck. The referee waved off icing, to Tampa’s dismay, but Hedman calmly picked up the puck and carried it down the ice. He passed Palat the puck and in an instant, Cale was on him.

Cale shoved his weight against Palat and reached around him for the puck. He landed a small poke check—enough to get the puck out of the zone and make Palat panic. He tried to recover, failed, and sent the puck deep into his own zone.

Ten seconds.

Bending his knees as low as he could go, Cale charged towards the puck. A Tampa player technically beat him to it, so Cale hip-checked him into the boards and shoved his body between his opponent and the puck. Tied up in his skates, two more Tampa players joined the desperate skirmish for the puck. One of them finally took control of the puck and cleared it out. The puck crossed the blue line, but it didn’t matter.

They did it.

They fucking did it.

Cale threw his stick in the air, gloves flying somewhere on the ice as he leapt up in celebration. He made his way across the ice, screaming, and joined the pile of teammates against the boards. Hands grabbed at jerseys, slapped at shoulders, ruffled hair, screaming and shouting filling all of their ears.

They did it.

Cale hugged teammate after teammate, but his mind was on someone else: Willow. Every time he tried to strain his neck and look for his family, someone else came to hug him and speak to him, which naturally made him stop to celebrate once again. Finally, he was able to break away and skate over to where he could see his family.

Willow sat up on Taylor’s shoulders, wearing his burgundy hat backwards, and Cale’s eyes prickled with tears. Her uncle’s hat was much too large for her tiny head and made her look even smaller. Taylor saw Cale and excitedly pointed down to him, making Willow’s tiny face scrunch to see him, so Cale waved dramatically so she could see him. Her face lit up the moment she saw him and waved back with one hand while her other hand clutched a handful of Taylor’s hair. Cale blew her a kiss, then was called away by his team to go through the handshake line.

The handshakes all blurred together. Cale felt like he was walking—well, skating—through a dream. He congratulated Vasilevsky on a great series, he stopped and said a few extra words to Hedman, and Jon Cooper stopped him to say, “That’s not the only trophy you’ll be lifting tonight.” Cale pressed his lips together and thanked him, but doubted he’d be carrying home any extra hardware. He was content with the Cup.

As he was handed a Stanley Cup Champions hat, someone from operations grabbed him and told him he’d be receiving the Conn Smythe. He was shocked; why him? Why not Nate or Gabe? He didn’t feel he’d played well enough to warrant any extra attention, but as he hugged Sammy on the ice, the booming announcement confirmed what he’d been told.

“Congratulations to the 2022 Conn Smythe Trophy winner, Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar!”

The boys went wild as he skated over to the pedestal. He stepped onto the black carpet, shook the presenter’s hand, and lifted the trophy for a photo. He skated the trophy over to the bench, handed it off to the same operations person who’d told him he won. He tried to look at his family again, but several people were blocking them as they hugged and congratulated them.

Nate greeted him as he rejoined the boys, hugging him, then Gabe and Mikko, all telling him how much he deserved it and how proud they were of him. Cale smiled and thanked them, but all he wanted was to hug his baby girl. He kept glancing back up at the stands where she sat on Taylor’s shoulders, and he silently thanked his brother for putting her somewhere he could see her.

Then it was time. It was time to raise the Stanley Cup.

Gabe skated over after the presenter said a few words that Cale really didn’t process. He picked up the Cup, fireworks exploding behind him, and then hoisted it over his head. The boys screamed with him as he skated around them and showed the Cup off to the crowd. He returned to the crowd of guys, and handed the Cup to EJ.

Cale clapped and cheered and yelled for his friends and teammates. For Cogs, for Nate and Jack, for Naz, who got fought through threats and injuries to be able to hoist the Cup. He yelled a little louder when Helmer handed the Cup to Toewser, grinning widely at his d-partner. Toewser handed it off to Val, Val to Frankie, and then it was Cale’s turn.

Frankie handed the shining Cup to Cale. He skated forward, then lifted it up over his head, grinning bigger than he thought he’d ever grinned before. He couldn’t count the number of times he’d imagined this very moment, this very feeling of joy and pride. The Cup was heavier than he’d expected, heavier than Willow was.

Tears pricked at his eyes as he looked up at his family in the stands. Willow, still perched on Taylor’s shoulders, hand in his hair, waved at him and blew him a kiss, mimicking what he’d done before. His parents had their phones out, but they waved too. Taylor simply put up one finger at him, grinning.

Cale rejoined his teammates and passed the Cup to Comph. He stood in the middle of his friends, the people he’d battled with for eighty-two regular season games and twenty post-season games. His brothers. He couldn’t be happier to see them celebrating, couldn’t be happier to be able to share this with them.

Reporters had swarmed the ice and were interviewing as many guys as they could. Now that he’d had his turn, the reporters started asking him for interviews. He felt like he said the same things to everyone, that it hadn’t sunk in yet, that he was happy to be able to share this with the guys, and what he wanted to do with the Cup.

One reporter asked him about Willow, and he grinned. Glancing up in the stands again, Cale noticed that Willow, Taylor, and his parents were gone. Had they been told to leave? They shouldn’t have, not when so many of his teammates hadn’t gotten to raise the Cup yet. He frowned a bit, but was sure he’d see them at the hotel later, and continued his interview until he was summoned to go take a group photo with the Cup.

He gasped and laughed as Kubey fell and dropped the Cup. Dozens of photographers captured the moment, the shock of seeing the base of the Cup hit the ice. Cale and his teammates grinned widely, holding up one finger to the cameras. After what felt like forever, they dispersed, some guys going off for more interviews, others mingling with each other.

Cale meandered around the ice, trying to take everything in. He noticed a small mob of people joining them on the ice, several wearing matching denim jackets, even more wearing jerseys, all holding Stanley Cup Champion flags.

Their families.

Cale skated against the flow of people, carefully weaving through them and craning his neck in search of his family. He furrowed his brows as he searched. Had they passed each other and didn’t realize it? He turned around to look behind him. Surely he would've seen Taylor towering over some of the wives and girlfriends.

“Daddy!”

Cale whirled around on his skates when he heard the small voice he’d recognize anywhere and nearly fell, earning a giggle from his squealing daughter who was running towards him. Tears began to stream down his face as Willow ran up to him, Taylor’s too-big hat bouncing around on her light hair, clad in her tiny burgundy and blue number eight jersey, black pants, and purple sneakers. Cale knelt down on the ice so Willow could run into his arms.

“Hi Daddy!” Willow squealed and wrapped her arms around his neck as Cale wrapped his arms around her tightly. He lifted his daughter up as he stood, squeezing her even tighter.

“Hi, sweetheart,” Cale croaked through his tears. He readjusted his grip on Willow so his right arm was under her bottom and he could look at her.

Willow’s face scrunched as she registered Cale’s tears. She pointed to them and said, “Daddy sad?”

Cale laughed, but tears continued to flow down his face. “No, baby, Daddy’s not sad, Daddy’s happy. So happy.”

“Oh.”

Cale pulled her head into his face with his free hand and kissed her cheek. “I love you so much,” he whispered to her, kissing her again.

“Wub Daddy,” Willow cooed.

“You found Daddy!”

Cale looked away and grinned when he saw his dad standing in front of him, his mom and Taylor behind him, all grinning with tears in their eyes. “She found me,” Cale said.

Gary pulled Cale and Willow in for a huge hug. He patted Cale on the back and whispered through tears, “We’re so proud of you.”

“Thank you,” Cale mumbled back. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

“We are too.” Gary gazed proudly at Cale, then moved out of the way so Laura could hug him next.

Cale bent down and wrapped his free arm around his mom. She kissed his cheek and squeezed him muttering, “You did it, Cale. You did it.”

He agreed softly, “We did it.”

Taylor excitedly held out his arms before Laura even let him go. He grinned and collected Cale and Willow in his arms, patting Cale’s back and laughing, making Willow giggle at him.

“Look at you!” Taylor exclaimed. He took his hat from Willow’s head and put it back on his own.

Cale reached up and fixed her Avalanche bow. It had been flattened by Taylor’s hat, but Willow didn’t seem to mind. Her jersey started riding up, too, so Cale tugged it down and kissed her forehead again.

“Daddy happy!” Willow said and grabbed Cale's cheeks.

“Yeah, Willow, Daddy’s happy. Do you remember how I told you about the big, shiny Cup? The one that’s as tall as you are? That we can eat pancakes and ice cream out of?”

Willow nodded.

“Daddy won that Cup,” Cale explained, choking up. “Do you see it over there?”

Willow leaned backward in Cale’s arms, looking where he pointed, at EJ holding the Cup. “Pwetty!” she gasped.

“It is pretty, isn’t it?” Cale smiled. “Soon, we get to have a whole day with it, just for us. We’re gonna go to Gamma and Gampa’s house in Calgary and have a party. Doesn’t that sound fun?”

“Cow-gawy fun,” Willow commented. The Makars laughed at her statement.

“You’re right, Willow,” Gary agreed. He opened his mouth to keep speaking, but someone yelled Cale’s name.

Cale jerked around, making Willow giggle, in search of whoever called for him. It was another reporter, and she asked politely if he would mind doing another quick interview.

“Do you mind if I have guests?” Cale asked, bouncing Willow in his arms.

“Not at all,” the reporter said.

Cale skated over to her, holding Willow in his right arm. She shyly buried her face into his neck and shoulder when she realized the reporter was there, making Cale chuckle. He waved Taylor over as the reporter went live.

“Alright guys, we are live here with Cale Makar,” she started. “Cale, I know the big trophy was what you wanted, but how did it also feel to be named the Conn Smythe winner?”

Taylor joined him and casually wrapped an arm around his brother, sandwiching Willow between them, as Cale answered, “Yeah, I mean, yeah, this is my brother here, obviously drafted by the Avs, too, and this is my daughter, Willow. But, I mean, it’s just so awesome to have family here, and I mean, that’s not an individual award, it’s a team-based thing, just guys, guys working together. And, um, I mean, we got the big one, which was the Stanley Cup so that’s all that matters.” Cale readjusted Willow in his arms and she stuck her thumb in her mouth like she did when she was nervous.

“How proud are you of your brother?” the reporter held out her microphone to Taylor and asked.

Taylor grinned. “I can’t even speak,” he said. “It’s been—it’s been his dream ever since we were playing mini sticks in our—in our living room, banging up the walls and stuff like that. I just can’t even speak, I’m so proud of him.”

“Willow,” the reporter asked softly and kindly, “how proud are you of your dad?”

Willow’s eyes went wide. She sat up and looked at Cale, for permission or encouragement or both.

“It’s okay,” he said. “What do you think about the Stanley Cup?”

Willow put her hands up in celebration. “Daddy happy!” she exclaimed.

“What are we gonna do with the Cup?” Cale continued. “What are we gonna eat out of it?”

“Pancakes!”

“That’s right,” Cale laughed. “And what else?”

“Ice cweam!”

“Yeah,” Cale pulled her in and kissed her head, “We’re gonna eat pancakes and ice cream out of the Stanley Cup. Are you proud of me?”

Willow nodded enthusiastically, and the reporter laughed.

“Thanks, Willow,” she said. “Cale, to hoist that trophy after everything you guys have been through, what did that mean to you?”

Cale answered, “I mean, I’ve said it time and time again, I’m just so proud of these guys in the room, the guys that have been through this year after year of ups and downs, of Landy, Nate, EJ, and Mikko and everybody that’s been here for a while, and I’m just so proud and I’m happy that I could be a part of that success for those guys in this pure joy right now.”

“Cale Makar, thank you so much,” the reporter said.

Cale smiled, thanked the reporter, and skated back over to his parents, Willow still in his arms, Taylor treading behind him. Gary and Laura were smiling when they returned, and Cale noticed them both wiping away more tears.

“I hope we get that video,” Gary said. He wrapped an arm around Cale like Taylor had during the interview, just on the other side of his body, the one Willow wasn’t curled into.

“Cale!” someone called.

Cale whipped around and saw Toewser holding the Cup. He jerked his head to indicate that Cale should come over, so Cale kissed Willow on the forehead, said, “Daddy will be right back,” and handed her to Taylor to hold. His heart sank when he heard a sad little cry as he skated away.

Cale skated up next to Toewser, wrapped an arm around his shoulders, and took hold of the bottom of the Cup so they could take photos together. Glancing back at his family, he was grateful to realize that Taylor had immediately redirected Willow; instead of her being upset that Cale had left to take pictures, Taylor had focused her attention on naming various teammates on the ice. He vaguely heard her tiny voice, but he could pick it out anywhere.

“Who’s that?” Taylor asked, pointing to EJ.

“EJ!” Willow declared proudly.

“Who’s that?” Taylor pointed at Nate.

“Nay-tan!”

Cale smiled a little bigger next to Toewser before he handed his end of the Cup back to him and skated back to his family. Willow squealed in delight and leaned towards Cale with her arms outstretched. She grabbed at him with her tiny hands.

“Daddy,” she whined to Taylor. “Want Daddy.”

Taylor replied, “Daddy has to—.”

“It’s okay,” Cale interrupted and held his hands out to him. “C’mere, baby.”

Taylor handed Willow over to Cale. She immediately cuddled into her father, taking her thumb back in her mouth as she leaned her head against his neck.

“She’s lighter than the Cup is.” Cale cracked a grin. “But you can’t touch it, Taylor, it’s bad luck.”

Taylor threw his hands up and grinned back. “I’m not gonna! I’ll touch it when we win it together.”

The celebrations on the ice felt like they lasted a lifetime, and Cale never wanted them to end. Standing on the ice with the people he loved the most, with Willow in his arms, everything felt perfect.

The same operations person, someone from the NHL, found him again and said they needed him for a press conference. He nodded, then turned to Taylor.

“Come with me,” Cale told him.

“Is that okay?” Taylor looked at their parents, almost for permission.

“I’m not doing it without you,” Cale shrugged, “so they can deal.”

Taylor grinned. “Cool.”

“We’ll take her,” Gary said, holding his hands out for Willow.

Cale tried to pass her off to her grandfather, but she clung tightly to his jersey and wailed, “No! Want Daddy!”

“Daddy will be right back,” Cale told her softly. Gary tried to take her and Willow screamed, face red with tears in her eyes.

“Okay, okay,” Cale sighed and pulled her back into his body. She settled back into his neck and rubbed her eyes.

“I can hold her,” Taylor offered with outstretched hands.

“I’ve got her,” Cale protested. “It’ll be fine. I think I’ll have to go to the locker room after, so I’ll see you guys back at the hotel?”

“Sounds good,” Gary said. He hugged Cale and Willow tightly and patted Cale’s back. “So proud of you.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

Laura hugged him when Gary released him, kissing his cheek again. “We love you so much.”

“I love you guys,” Cale replied and smiled at his mom. “I’ll see you at the hotel. I can’t guarantee I’ll be sober, but I’ll see you there.”

Cale’s family laughed, then Gary said, “You deserve it.” He patted Cale on the shoulder, then Cale skated off toward the bench, Willow in his arms and Taylor trailing behind them.

Stepping off the ice, Cale was ushered through the inner halls of Amalie Arena. Willow sat up in his arms, eyes wide, taking in the photos and murals and posters that decorated the walls in front of her and Cale.

“Wassat, Daddy?” she asked, pointing to a big, white lightning bolt painted on the dark blue wall.

“That’s the other team’s logo,” Cale explained. He pointed to the Avs logo on his chest. “Like this. That’s what they have on their jerseys.”

“Ohhh,” Willow said in awe. She turned around, looked over her shoulder, realized Taylor was behind them, and shrieked, “TayTay!”

“Hey, Will,” Taylor laughed.

They arrived at the press room and walked into the brightness. Willow tucked her head into Cale’s neck again, so he readjusted her in his arms and softly rubbed her back. He sat down at the table next to the Conn Smythe trophy, still holding Willow, Taylor on his other side.

Cale fixed Willow’s bow again as one of the NHL press employees announced, “Conn Smythe trophy winner Cale Makar here to take your questions,” then picked one of the reporters to ask the first question.

“Congratulations, Cale,” the reporter started.

“Thank you,” Cale replied and fidgeted in his chair a bit to adjust Willow in his lap. He was still in full pads, so it was a little awkward, but he made it work.

“You’ve wracked up some hardware,” the reporter continued, “with the Hobey Baker, the Calder, the Norris, and now the Conn Smythe. How grateful are you to this organization?”

“Yeah, I’m so, so grateful just to be part of the success, help the guys who’ve been through the ups and downs of this team succeed. It’s just, um, it’s just surreal. I’m not too worried about this individual stuff, just celebrating the main thing with the boys.”

Cale pointed his thumb at Taylor and grinned. “It’s awesome to be able to have family here, too. This is my brother, Taylor, he’s drafted by the Avs, so he’s gonna be at camp in a couple weeks, so I figured I’d bring him in. And this is Willow, my daughter, she’s two and a half.” He rubbed her back as she shyly peeked at the crowd of people.

“Does your daughter understand what this means to you?” the next journalist asked. “What have you told her?”

Cale laughed, “Yeah, I mean, she gets a little of it. I told her that it’s really old, that if we win it, we get to take it to Calgary and spend the whole day with it. Willow, what are we gonna eat out of the Stanley Cup?” Cale looked down at her, then pulled the microphone toward her.

“Pancakes,” she whispered.

“Tell everyone else,” Cale encouraged, tapping the mic. “Say it here.”

“Pancakes!” Willow said into the mic proudly.

“And?”

“Ice cweam!”

The room laughed and Cale said, “That’s right, baby, we’re gonna eat pancakes and ice cream out of the Stanley Cup. Where are we taking it on our day?”

“Cow-gawy!”

The room laughed again, and Willow decided she was done with Cale. She reached for Taylor with grabby hands, so he tugged her into his arms while Cale answered the next few questions. Taylor even got a question or two, and Cale scoffed when Taylor said he was the hardest person Taylor knew.

Finally, they were excused. Cale led Taylor and Willow out to the hall, then said, “I’m going to the locker room.”

“Cool,” Taylor replied. “I’m gonna find Mom and Dad and I’m guessing we’ll meet you at the hotel.”

“Yep,” Cale smiled. He leaned in to speak to Willow. “I’ll see you back at the hotel with Gamma and Gampa, okay? I love you.”

Willow cried out, “No, Daddy stay!”

“You stay with TayTay, baby,” Cale insisted, kissing her head. “And I’ll see you soon.”

She squirmed in Taylor’s arms, reaching for Cale, and his heart broke as she started crying. Cale knew she was exhausted—it was much past her bedtime, and she hadn’t had a good nap—but he still hated hearing her cry. Taylor held her close and started to walk away, Willow red-faced and sobbing and reaching her tiny hand out for Cale. They turned a corner, and though he couldn’t see her anymore, he could still hear her as he turned and went to the locker room to celebrate.

Cale was drunk.

He grinned as his head swam, obnoxious ski goggles on his head while he walked to the bus. He felt floaty, giggly, and his filter was all but nonexistent. Laughing as Bo yelled at some of the journalists they passed, Cale was silently thankful he wasn’t nearly the lightweight that Bo was. Not that he was a lightweight; people just forgot he went to college and could hold his own with the other college guys like Newy and OC. And that he was Canadian.

The stairs on the bus wobbled as he tried to climb them. Giggling, he held onto the rails and pulled himself onto the bus, then held his hands up and yelled in celebration. He flopped down in a seat and cheered again. As more guys got on the bus, the cheering and yelling continued and grew louder and louder with each teammate.

Cale didn’t realize they were moving until the bus arrived at the hotel. He wandered off the bus, careful on the stairs, and followed his teammates to the ballroom of their hotel. Fans at the bar cheered for them, and he yelled back at them. With alcohol pumping through his brain, he became a different person, someone who didn’t think about every word, who said everything that came to his mind and then some, who was not the innocent person people made him out to be.

When they walked into the ballroom, their families cheered. He beelined for his family, whose backs were all turned, Willow sitting cross-legged on the floor with his mom’s phone in her hand. He hurried up to her and scooped her up, sending her into a fit of giggles.

“Daddy!” she shrieked.

“Willow!” he shrieked back. He attacked her with kisses, making her giggle even more before he put his arm under her bottom to hold her

“Smelly,” Willow said, scrunching her nose at Cale.

“You tell him, Will,” Taylor added. “You do reek.”

“Champagne showers will do that,” Cale chuckled. “And I need another drink.”

“I need one, too,” Taylor agreed, “and I don’t think Willow’s leaving you any time soon.”

“Mom? Dad? Drinks?” Cale looked expectantly at his parents.

Gary raised his bottle of beer and said, “I’m good.”

Laura put her hand up and added, “I am too.”

Cale nodded, then floated his way to the bar, Willow in his arms and Taylor trailing behind them. He giggled when he heard Bo and Newy yelling again.

“Funny?” Willow asked him in confusion.

“Bo and Newy are silly,” he giggled to his daughter.

Willow glanced at them, then giggled with Cale as Bo took his suit jacket off to reveal his bare chest and yelled, waving his jacket above his head.

“Daddy’s drunk, Willow,” Taylor teased, stepping up to the bar and asking for two beers from the bartender.

“Dwunk?”

“Daddy feels silly like Bo and Newy,” Cale explained.

“Why?”

Taylor handed Cale one of the beers. “Sometimes,” Cale explained, “grown-ups drink stuff that makes them feel and act silly.”

“Oh,” Willow replied.

Cale took a sip of his beer. “It’s also why I smell funny.”

Willow sniffed Cale, then scrunched her nose again and said, “Yuck. Smelly.”

Cale sniffed Willow back. “You smell like you.”

Taylor snorted. “Okay, weirdo, let’s go.”

They began walking back to their parents, but EJ saw them and screamed, “WILLOW!”

Cale whipped around and Willow giggled, before she yelled back, “EJ!” She leaned forward for him, grabbing out to him, so he took her out of Cale’s arms and plopped her on his shoulders.

“WOO!” EJ yelled, running Willow around the ballroom as she screamed with laughter. “WE DID IT!”

Cale cheered and took his phone out to record. EJ passed Willow to Gabe, who also put her on his shoulders while he began to dance to “Celebration” by Kool and the Gang. She clung to his hair the way she’d clung to Taylor’s at the arena and squealed in delight until she decided she was done with Gabe.

“Nay-tan!” she shouted, leaning for Nate. Gabe’s body tipped to the side a little as Willow leaned, and Cale’s stomach dropped. He jumped past his teammates that were crowded around Gabe with his arms up, ready to catch Willow if she fell. Nate beat him, however, and let Willow slide from Gabe’s shoulders into his arms.

“Jesus Christ,” Cale muttered, heart pounding. Thinking his child was about to fall sobered him up significantly.

Willow cackled and clutched his shirt as Nate danced around with her in one arm. She tried to sing along to the song, but didn’t know the words, so she sang with her toddler gibberish instead. Taylor called it “Willish.”

Cale quickly finished off his beer, and keeping his eyes on Willow, he wandered to the bar for another, then another and another until the floaty, fuzzy feeling was back and the celebrations began to blur away. But one thing didn’t blur away.

They did it.

“Willow, honey, are you ready?” Cale called. “We’ve gotta go.”

Cale and his parents were waiting for Taylor and Willow, who insisted her uncle help her get dressed for the parade through Denver. Cale was secretly worried no one would be there and was anxious to get going.

“Coming!” Willow came running out of her bedroom in a jersey t-shirt with “Makar” and an eight on it—it was far too hot to put her in her jersey. She had on purple shorts to match her purple shoes, her Avalanche bow in her hair, and her little backpack on her shoulders.

Cale grinned at her. “Look at you, cutie!” he said as she ran into his arms and he picked her up. “Did TayTay help you put sunscreen on?”

Willow nodded, “Yep!”

Cale placed a big kiss on her cheek and immediately made a face. Taylor had, in fact, slathered her in sunscreen.

“Jesus, Taylor, did you bathe her in sunscreen?” Cale exclaimed, wiping his mouth.

“I don’t want her to get burnt!” Taylor protested. “You know she’ll fry out there without it.”

Cale pointed out, “It’s gonna rain later.”

“So?” Taylor shot back. “It’s gonna be sunny til then.”

“Alright, boys,” Laura said sternly, making Gary chuckle. “We don’t want to be late.”

Cale playfully shoved Taylor’s shoulder as they grabbed their stuff and loaded into Cale’s car with Gary driving. Taylor sat shotgun, while Cale and Laura piled into the back with Willow’s car seat. Cale sat next to Willow and smiled as she looked out of the window.

“Willow,” Cale said excitedly. She turned to her father and stretched her hands out to him, so he offered her his hand to hold. She wrapped her two tiny fists around two of his long fingers and he wanted to melt.

“Daddy!” Willow parroted.

“We’re gonna see a lot of people today,” he explained. “They’re going to be loud and cheering for Daddy and for the rest of the team, but I’ll be there with you the whole time, just like TayTay and Gamma and Gampa, okay?”

“Okay,” Willow replied.

“We’ll keep you safe,” Taylor added.

Willow smiled and babbled at him, some indistinguishable Willish. Taylor chuckled in response.

They arrived where they were told to meet, a parking lot packed with fire trucks and police officers and Avs players and their families. Cale helped Willow out of her car seat, then plopped her on his shoulders. Taylor made sure to grab the two cases of Trulys they’d brought, and they trekked over to their fire truck they’d be riding.

Taylor clambered onto the top of the truck, placed the boxes of drinks down, then held out his hands to grab Willow. She grabbed back at him and squealed when he wrapped his large hands around her wrists and lifted her up onto the truck with him. Cale climbed on after her, then Gary and Laura. Toewser and Kerry were joining them, along with a couple more people and the Conn Smythe trophy. There was a cooler already on the truck filled with beer and seltzers, so Cale dumped the boxes they’d brought into the cooler while Taylor held onto Willow.

“Will,” Taylor said, “what sound does a fire truck make?”

“Wee-ooh wee-ooh!” Willow proclaimed.

Everyone on the truck laughed.

“Good job,” Taylor said and held up his hand. “Gimme five?”

Willow enthusiastically gave him a high five and everyone laughed again. Through their laughter, they heard someone call that they were moving soon, that the parade was starting, so they settled in their spots on the truck. Taylor held onto Willow, since Cale and Toewser planned on standing on the truck so they could see the fans better.

The parade began, the fire trucks moving slowly through the streets of Denver, and Cale had never seen so many people cheering for them in his life. He waved and chugged Trulys and beers, he screamed and hollered and shot beer at the crowds from a water gun.

At one point, Taylor handed Willow over to Cale, and he placed her on his shoulders. The crowd began to chant, “MVP! MVP!”

Instead, Cale began to chant, “Willow! Willow! Willow!”

The crowd quickly picked up on the chant. Willow squealed in delight and waved at the people chanting her name, her grandparents and uncle laughing. She joined in on as much as she could, giggling wildly at every moment.

Willow laughed extra hard whenever Cale chugged a drink or poured it on himself and cheered. The alcohol running through his veins fueled his own laughter and screams, which in turn fueled Willow’s. Someone threw a drink up to Taylor, and he made Willow shriek with laughter when he pulled his shirt over his face and chugged it through the fabric.

They arrived at Civic Center Park, but there was a bit of a traffic jam. The fire trucks they’d all been riding on had clogged up the roads, so they came to a stand still. Cale, adrenaline and alcohol flowing through him, hopped off their truck and sprinted through the street, high-fiving fans. He’d left Willow in Taylor’s arms, but she started to fuss, so Cale jogged back to the truck so Taylor could hand her down to him.

Willow happily settled into Cale’s side. He kept his arm under her bottom and she clung to his bicep with one hand and the collar of his shirt with the other. She giggled and babbled as they walked around and mingled with the fans. Nate and Gabe joined them, Gabe wrapped in a Swedish flag.

“Nay-tan!” Willow squealed at Nate. She leaned for him and grabbed at him with her small hands.

Grinning, Nate walked over to Cale and Willow and greeted her, “Hey Chill Will!”

Willow kept grabbing at him, fighting against Cale. “See Nay-tan, Daddy.”

“It’s cool, Cale,” Nate reassured. “C’mere, kiddo.”

Willow cackled as Nate took her out of her dad’s arms and put her on his shoulders. He began to chant her name, quickly getting the crowd to join him.

“Willow! Willow! Willow!”

Cale took his phone out and recorded the cheers for his baby girl. He was so happy she got to be there with them, to be part of the celebration. He laughed with Willow when Nate danced around the streets with her on his shoulders.

To their dismay, the trucks began moving, so they all started walking towards the Civic Center. Cale shadowed Nate and Willow as they walked. He waved at and high-fived more fans—he was stunned that so many people had come to see them.

When they reached the Civic Center, Cale tried to give Willow back to his family, but she clung to Nate and refused to let go. Cale knew she’d have a meltdown, and there were enough of his teammates around that she would be fine, so he let Nate carry her into the building.

Cale couldn’t stop smiling and giggling as he waited in the building for the rest of the guys. He was thoroughly intoxicated, hitting his peak at the perfect time. He mingled with his friends and raised the Cup a couple more times. Cale didn’t think raising the Cup would ever grow old.

He remembered that he had, in fact, brought Willow into the building with him and he began to panic. He frantically looked for her, and easily found her atop Darcy’s huge frame. She was cackling, but wavering around unstably, so Cale made her get down from Darcy’s shoulders and took her in his arms.

“Fun, Daddy!” she squealed.

“I’m so glad,” he croaked. He was starting to lose his voice from all the shouting he’d done.

Mikko ran by them, yelling and double-fisting beers. Lehky ran behind him with a child-like, giddy grin on his face. Cackling at them, Willow reached out for the two Fins when they ran back by her, then squirmed to tell Cale that she wanted to get down. Cale placed her on the ground and she immediately began racing after Mikko and Lehky.

Willow suddenly tripped over her own feet. Cale flinched and prepared for her to cry, but instead, she picked herself up and kept running. He laughed lovingly.

The operations team started lining them up in number order, which was significantly more difficult when Cale and the boys were all smashed. Cale had to bring the Conn Smythe out with him, much to Willow’s dismay, so she had to walk next to him instead.

The coaching staff was announced first, with thunderous applause for Bedsy. Cale cheered the best he could, but since his hands were full, he just whooped for his coach. Once the staff was all out, they began to announce the players.

Jack went out first, then Bo, then EJ and Toewser, then finally Cale was called. He walked out, grinning, and went straight to the stand for the trophy. He placed it down and clapped and waved to the fans before he felt Willow run into his leg and hide. He leaned down, picked her up, and waved again, then walked over to join his teammates.

The rest of the announcements were a blur of yelling and the crowd cheering until everyone was standing in a clump next to the podium. Joe gave a speech, Bedsy gave a speech, but Cale wasn’t paying attention to them. Instead, he was laughing at Willow, who had found her way into Comph’s arms.

“Cale?” Comph called. “Why are her hands wet and sticky?”

Cale shrugged and cackled as Willow grabbed at Comph’s beard. He held his head back to try and stop her, but she giggled and kept going after it until he gave up and let her touch it. Others tried to get her to come see them instead—Nate, Burky, even EJ—but she was content in Comph’s arms.

Gabe said some words, then called up Cale and EJ and Nate and Mikko to say something. Cale hollered into the mic, earning cheers from the crowd, and let the words spew from his mouth. He had no idea what he was saying, but the cheers and chants egged him on. Willow cackled at her dad, which spurred him even more, until he passed the mic to Mikko.

Mikko slurred his words, accent thicker than usual. He said something about only speaking Finnish, and Cale wasn’t surprised, reminded of a vague memory of the night they won the Cup and Mikko on a table with Lehky shouting in their native language.

After finishing his bit, Mikko came back to join the guys. He suddenly lifted Cale up onto his shoulders and clutched his thighs so Cale could hold his arms up to the crowd. The “MVP” chant returned, but Cale could hear Willow shrieking with laughter.

“Daddy up!” she screamed at Comph. He flinched away from her. Mikko put Cale down, and Willow began reaching for Mikko, saying, “My tuwn!”

Mikko reached for Willow and placed her on his shoulders, too, to Cale’s dismay. He watched her like a hawk, not trusting Mikko to not drop his baby girl. The chants started again, but this time, Mikko led the crowd in shouting, “Willow! Willow! Willow!”

Cale was finally able to extract Willow from Mikko and held onto her tightly as rain began to drizzle down on them. He bounced her up and down, relishing in her giggles, and wished he could freeze that moment in time forever.

Summertime was Cale’s favorite.

He spent his summer in Calgary, sleeping in his childhood bedroom, surrounded by his family and friends. He took Willow around to his favorite spots, his favorite restaurants, everywhere that meant something to him. Almost feeling like he had to make up for lost time, Cale wanted to show Willow around her second home, wanted her to have childhood memories from Calgary just like he did.

Willow loved being in Calgary nearly as much as Cale did. Taylor was home with them, doing workouts with Cale to prepare for his upcoming sophomore season at UMass, so she got to see him every day. His parents were overjoyed to have Willow, too, and have their whole crew under one roof.

This summer, however, felt a touch different, since Cale and his family were busy planning for his Cup day. He had so many places he wanted to take it, so many people he wanted to share it with, that it was difficult to narrow it down to make a schedule, but he was happy with the way it was shaping up.

The day before his Cup day, Cale sleepily opened his eyes as sunlight lightly streamed through his curtains. His back pressed against the bedroom wall with Willow lying next to him, her tiny head on his pillow, her arm wrapped around her favorite unicorn toy and her thumb in her mouth. Plenty of people had told Cale not to let her sleep in his bed, but when she had a bad dream like she did the previous night, he wasn’t going to say no.

Cale carefully crawled out of bed, but Willow woke up anyway. She blinked the sleep from her eyes, then cooed as she realized he was awake, too.

“Good morning,” he greeted her as he stood up and stretched.

“Daddy,” Willow mumbled. “Monning.”

“Smells like someone’s making pancakes,” Cale commented. He reached down for her and scooped her up to take her downstairs.

“Pancakes!” Willow sighed and rubbed her eyes.

“We have to brush our teeth first, right?”

“Right.”

Cale took Willow into the bathroom where they brushed their teeth together, though Willow’s version of “brushing her teeth” was mimicking Cale’s movements. He helped her after he finished brushing his own, then the two of them joined Gary, Laura, and Taylor in the kitchen.

“Good morning!” Gary exclaimed when Willow ran to him. “How’s my favorite girl this morning?”

“Hungwy!”

Gary picked her up and pointed at the griddle. “What are those?”

“Pancakes!”

“You’re so smart, Willow,” Gary sighed, kissing her temple. “Who do you want to help you get your breakfast?”

Willow searched around the room until she saw Taylor sitting at the table. She joyfully squealed, “TayTay!”

Taylor looked up at her. “What?”

“Willow wants you to help get her breakfast,” Cale explained.

“Of course!” Taylor leapt out of his chair and took Willow from his dad. “Whatcha want?”

“Pancakes.”

“Okay.” Taylor dropped two silver-dollar sized pancakes onto her purple plate. “Do you want bacon?”

Scrunching her face, Willow said, “Ew.”

“Ew?” Cale repeated. “Will, you love bacon.”

“Ew. Yucky.” Willow stuck her tongue out and made a noise.

Taylor laughed and Cale rolled his eyes. Willow had been exploring saying no, making for an interesting summer. She had been refusing some of her favorite things, then asking for them later, almost testing the waters.

“It’s okay, Will, do you want some eggs?” Taylor chuckled.

“Yes!”

“And fruit? This fruit sure does look good…”

“Fwoot yummy!”

“Alrighty.” Taylor carefully spooned some scrambled eggs and a few cut-up strawberries onto her plate. “What else?”

“All done.”

“What do you want to drink? Juice or milk?”

“Juice!”

“I’ll get it,” Gary said, opening the refrigerator while Cale began to load up his plate with breakfast and Taylor took Willow over to her high-chair. He plopped her down in her chair, placed her plate in front of her, then retrieved the maple syrup and poured some on her plate.

“Mmm,” Willow giggled. “Yum.”

“Not too much,” Cale cautioned. “Unless you want sticky toddler hands everywhere.”

Taylor insisted, “She’s fine, look.” He pointed at Willow, who had carefully dipped a pancake into her syrup.

Cale winced as she pulled the pancake out of her syrup and began to wave it around in the air, syrup dripping everywhere, including in her hair. Sighing, Cale sat down at the table next to her and glared at his brother.

“Told you,” he said glumly.

“I’ll give her a bath,” Taylor offered and sat down, “No big deal.”

Willow proceeded to cover herself in her breakfast. Taylor looked apologetically at Cale while they ate and watched Willow until they all finished.

“Okay, Will, we’re gonna go take a bath,” Taylor announced and carefully lifted her out of her highchair.

“I’ve got it,” Cale said, offering his arms out. “I wanna have some time with her before tomorrow to explain, like, what’s going on.”

“Sounds good, I owe you a bathtime,” Taylor said.

Taylor handed Willow to Cale, and he walked her into the bathroom. He set her down on the ground and gathered her towel, her washcloth, her shampoo, and her tub toys before he turned on the water. He tested it to make sure it wasn’t too hot—especially because Willow liked her baths to be a little cooler.

“Alright,” Cale turned to her, “arms up!”

Willow stuck her arms up in the air so Cale could help her undress and get in the bathtub. She grabbed her favorite toys, a mermaid Barbie and a unicorn, and babbled as she played with them, her own world taking over.

“Hey,” Cale said as he shampooed her hair. “Tomorrow is gonna be a weird day. Remember the big shiny Cup?”

“Cup!” Willow nodded.

“Tomorrow is Daddy’s day with the Cup. We’re taking it to some fun places, like to see GiGi and to Daddy’s rink. But there’s gonna be a lot of people there to see the Cup and Daddy.”

“Fwends?”

“Lots of friends. It’s gonna be fun, but Daddy’s gonna be very busy, so you’ll get to be with TayTay and Gamma and Gampa too. Okay?”

“Okay!” Willow offered him her mermaid Barbie to play with, and he smiled softly as he began to play her game.

She had no idea how crazy the next day would be.

Cale nearly leapt out of bed when his alarm went off in the morning. He didn’t want to miss a single moment of his time with the Cup, which would be at his house soon. He hopped in the shower, then threw on a white t-shirt and black shorts and headed downstairs with a huge grin on his face.

“Daddy!” Willow exclaimed, running towards him wearing a black shorts and her number eight jersey.

“Hi baby girl.” Cale leaned down and picked her up to kiss her cheek. “Today’s gonna be a fun day.”

The doorbell rang, so Cale handed Willow off to his mom, his grin widening. He went outside to meet the Cup Keeper, Philip, who opened the case and allowed Cale to pick the Cup up. He carefully took it inside and put it down on the coffee table in the living room.

Taylor, Gary, and Laura followed Cale, as well as a couple of the Avs media team with their cameras and a local Calgary photographer the Makar’s hired to capture the day, and they all took a moment to gaze at the Cup. Willow came sprinting in, always wanting to be included, and she gasped when she saw it.

“Pwetty!”

Taylor bent down and picked her up. “It is, isn’t it?” he asked her, leaning her in so she could take a better look.

“Taylor, don’t touch it,” Cale warned.

Taylor insisted, “I’m not gonna! I promise!”

“I hungwy, TayTay,” Willow whined.

“Daddy’s gonna make pancakes and eat them out of the Cup,” Cale told her. He went into the kitchen and started gathering up the ingredients he needed for his gluten-free pancakes.

“Help Daddy,” Willow fussed. She squirmed in Taylor’s arms until he gently placed her on the ground so she could run into the kitchen with Cale. Willow decided at the beginning of the summer that she wanted to cook with whoever was cooking, which Cale loved.

“Can you ask TayTay to get your stool?” Cale asked gently.

“TayTay,” Willow ran up to him, grabbed his hand, and said. “Pwease help.”

“Of course.” Taylor grabbed her stool from the pantry, set it up, and helped her up onto it before standing protectively behind her so she wouldn’t fall backwards.

With Cale’s and Taylor’s help, Willow measured out and poured all the ingredients into the bowl. She tried to whisk it all together but quickly gave up and made Cale do it. Everyone laughed when she gave up, and once Cale finished her task, he began to plop pancake batter on the griddle.

The smell of sizzling pancakes filled the room. While Cale worked on breakfast, Gary held Willow and pointed out different teams that had won. He read team names to her, paying special attention to the ‘89 Flames names and of course where Cale’s name would be.

Cale brought the plate of cupcakes over to the Cup and, grinning, began to layer them up inside the Cup. Laura brought over a bowl of fruit and maple syrup. Cale spooned some fruit in with his pancakes. He looked at the camera that was on him and grinned.

“This is a feast,” he said. Picking up the syrup, Cale added, “At least it’s Canadian maple syrup.”

As Cale poured syrup on his pancakes, he heard his dad agree, “That’s right!”

Cale dug into his pancakes while everyone watched. “Oh man,” he said with his mouth full, “those are the best gluten-free pancakes ever!”

Cale scarfed down three pancakes and some fruit before he called Willow over to have some. Taylor picked her up and held her up to Cale’s level.

“Will,” Cale said, cutting off a Willow-sized chunk of pancake. “Want some pancakes?”

Willow opened her mouth hopefully, so Cale carefully put the fork in her mouth for her. She ate the pancake and exclaimed, “More!”

Everyone laughed, but Cale obliged, carefully feeding her until she said she was done and managing to keep her jersey syrup-free. Gary and Laura had some too, all laughing as Gary goofed off.

They finished breakfast and after quickly cleaning out the Cup, Cale took it upstairs to his room to take some photos. Willow was confused by her dad carrying it around and not her, so she started to fuss until Taylor picked her up.

Once they were done, they packed up the Cup to take it over to the rink Cale grew up skating at. He was planning on showing the kids’ teams the Cup, then had invited the community for a meet and greet to see the Cup too. Cale hoped people would show up; he knew at least there would be kids there.

He couldn’t have imagined how many people actually showed up.

“Holy shit,” he muttered when his dad drove past the seemingly endless line of people wrapped around the rink.

They cheered when he got out of the car and walked the Cup inside. Cale pressed his lips together at them, then headed inside. He was greeted by Willow sprinting at him.

“Hi Daddy!” she said, reaching her arms up to him. She wanted him to hold her.

“Hi, Will,” he said, “I have to hold the Cup, I’m sorry sweetheart.”

Willow’s face scrunched in distress until Taylor picked her up instead. He made a snorting noise and kissed her cheek to make her giggle as Cale walked down towards the ice with the Cup.

He stood on the ice, Cup next to him, and gazed at the letters on the wall that he’d grown up with. Thoughts of his childhood flooded his mind—his first goal, his first penalty, his first everything all happened on this ice, and there he was, a Stanley Cup champion.

The kids began to stream out onto the ice to see Cale and the Cup. Cale grinned as he talked to them and directed them and took photos with them, thinking about how much he would’ve loved this as a kid.

The group he and Taylor trained with brought their skaters out, too, who were much older and much more starstruck. Many of the kids were too young to understand, but the teenagers understood.

Between photos and greetings, Cale glanced up at the window that looked out over the ice. He smiled and waved at Taylor and Willow, who stood in the window, watching. Willow looked up at Taylor while she pointed at Cale to let him know she saw her dad. Taylor nodded, said something, and Willow turned and waved enthusiastically at Cale.

Cale eventually brought the Cup back to the lobby for the community meet and greet. Sweat was pouring down his face, but he couldn’t stop grinning as people began to cycle through to see the Cup.

After several hours of greeting people—plus staying late to make sure he got to see everyone—Cale finally sat down for a moment. Halfway through the meet and greet, Willow fell asleep in Taylor’s arms, so Cale held his arms out to take her for a moment before they left.

Taylor handed her off and mumbled, “Thanks, my arms are cramping like crazy.”

“It’s only gonna get worse from here,” Cale chuckled.

Willow suddenly scrunched her face and rubbed her eyes as she woke up, sat up in Cale’s arms, and looked at him sleepily.

“Daddy,” she sighed, grabbing at his face.

Cale kissed her fingers. “Hi, honey. Are you ready to go see GiGi?”

“Yeah.” Willow yawned adorably.

“You’re gonna ride with Gamma and Gampa and TayTay and I will see you over there, okay?”

“Okay.”

Gary appeared, ready to carry his granddaughter to the car, and Cale handed her over so he could grab the Cup. When he looked back, Willow was snuggled into Gary’s chest, already asleep again as he took her out to the car.

Cale grabbed the Cup and took it outside to the fancy, old-school car he’d rented. He clambered into the car, placed the Cup next to him, and held it away as Taylor got in next to him.

“Don’t touch it!” Cale warned.

Taylor settled carefully into his seat, and the driver was off to the assisted living home their grandma lived in. They enjoyed the ride in the convertible, taking in the sun and waving at all the cars that honked at them when they drove by.

When the driver pulled up to the stop sign right before the home, Gary was waiting on the sidewalk, a huge grin across his face.

“This is crazy, the seniors are all outside cheering,” Gary said.

“No way!” Cale replied as they turned around the corner.

Cheers erupted and Cale’s driver honked the car horn at them. His heart swelled and he felt like he could cry seeing all the seniors who he’d known and visited for so long celebrating him. He smiled and waved as he clambered out of the car, then picked up the Cup and walked over to his grandma Helen with a huge, proud smile.

“Grandma,” he said excitedly.

Clad in his jersey, she smiled up at him from her spot on the bench and stared at the Cup in awe.

“Lemme see how heavy it is,” she said, reaching for the Cup.

Cale started, “Oh, I can’t let you—I don’t know if you can hold it.”

“Oh, for crying out loud!” she exclaimed, shocked.

“Yeah, it’s pretty crazy, eh?” Cale laughed.

“Daddy!”

Cale whipped around to see Willow sprinting at him, Taylor rushing behind her. “Hey, sweetheart,” he greeted, putting the Cup down and squatting so she could hug him. “Did you say hi to GiGi already?”

“Yeah!” Willow exclaimed, then walked over and hugged her great-grandma’s legs.

Helen patted her on the back. “She sure hasn’t slowed down,” she said.

“No, she hasn’t,” Cale agreed with a laugh.

He took the Cup inside and placed it down on the table set up for it. For the next couple hours, the seniors came to see him and the Cup, and he shook countless hands and heard countless stories. The seniors were all incredibly amused by Willow, how she would just run up to any of them to tell them something in Willish or show them her stuffed unicorn.

Cale eventually took Helen out on a little drive with the Cup in the car, much to Willow’s dismay; they left Willow screaming in Laura’s arms while Cale drove around the block.

“I’m so proud of you,” Helen told Cale during their ride, patting his shoulder.

“Thank you, Grandma,” Cale said, fighting back tears. Sharing the Cup with her meant the world to him.

He drove her back to the front of the Senior Center so Taylor and his parents could get her into their car to take her home for the party. He helped her out, then he and Taylor clambered back into the car, but Willow came sprinting over to the side of the car, Laura chasing after her.

“Daddy!” she screamed. “Go with Daddy!”

“I can hold her,” Taylor offered, holding his hands out.

“Are you sure?” Laura asked.

“She doesn’t need to be screaming in the car with Grandma,” Taylor insisted. “She’ll be fine with us.”

“Alright,” agreed Laura. “Will, baby, you’re gonna ride with Daddy and TayTay, okay?”

Willow reached out for Taylor from Laura’s arms and Taylor pulled her into his lap. She wanted Cale to hold her, and she whined a little when Cale continued to hold the Cup, but then she settled into Taylor’s chest. He held her tightly when the driver started up the car and began to drive to their family’s favorite spot that overlooked Calgary.

Clambering out of the car, Cale hauled the Cup with him. Someone handed him a bottle of champagne, which he easily popped open and poured into his family’s and friend’s waiting flutes. Cale gazed across his city, across the view, and he smiled to himself. God, he couldn’t believe how lucky he was.

“Daddy, up!” Willow called from the ground. He looked down to see her reaching her arms up to him, so he leaned down and picked her up. Willow nuzzled into him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

“I love you so much, Willow,” Cale mumbled to her and kissed the top of her head. “You’re my biggest blessing.”

“Wub Daddy,” she sighed happily. She’d been confused and a little jealous that he hadn’t been able to hold her as much, so he was glad to get to spend a few quiet moments with her before the photographer they’d hired started directing everyone for photos. Cale tried to hold on to Willow for as many photos as possible, but when he needed to hold the Cup, he reluctantly handed her over to Taylor or his parents.

Once their photoshoot ended, Cale wanted to make one last stop before their party back at his parents’ place. He climbed back in the car with Taylor, Willow, and the Cup, then drove to 7-11. Back during his rookie season, he told a reporter–Emily Kaplan, he believed–that he splurged and bought a Slurpee one day, so he thought having a Slurpee from the Stanley Cup was only fitting.

Cale lugged the Cup into the small convenience store and immediately caused chaos. Willow cackled behind him as he and Taylor filled up the Cup with various Slurpee flavors. The other customers went crazy at the sight.

Cale carried it back outside, sending Philip rushing in to pay for the Slurpee. Grinning, someone handed Cale a straw and he took a long sip. He motioned for Taylor to join.

“Can I?” he questioned.

“You can drink, just don’t touch it,” Cale said.

Grinning, Taylor leaned down and took a sip with Cale. Someone told them to look up, so they both looked at the cameras surrounding them in the perfect picture.

“Yummy, Daddy?” Willow asked.

“Oh, that’s the best Slurpee I’ve ever had!” Cale exclaimed, laughing. “Here, you have some, Will.”

Willow stood on her tiptoes and sipped out of the straw Cale held. She looked up at him and giggled, “Yum!”

Everyone took their turns, smiling and laughing and drinking Slurpee out of the Cup until they had their fill. Then, they returned to the Makar’s home for their final gathering of the day. Before everyone arrived, however, Cale took Willow inside to change her clothes.

Cale plopped Willow down on the bed and she giggled as she bounced. She yawned, then sleepily rubbed her eyes.

“I know, baby, you’ve had a big day,” Cale said comfortingly. “Just a little bit more, then bedtime, yeah? Are you ready to put on your party dress?”

“Yeah!” Willow replied. She’d picked out a sparkly, purple dress just for this final party.

“Okay, arms up!”

Willow obliged, and Cale quickly helped her change out of her jersey and pants and into her dress. She squealed, delighted, and once Cale put her down on the ground, she sprinted downstairs to see everyone as they arrived.

A flurry of family and friends joined them a short time later. Cale spent the evening with them, and wished and wished for more time, but as the sun went down and the party bus they’d rented for one last ride around Calgary arrived, Cale sighed and smiled at the Cup.

He’d done it.

And he’d done it for Willow.

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