Part 16 - Pure Gold

The flight wasn’t particularly long. Grand Forks isn’t exactly that far away from Winnipeg or anything like that. We sat in our assigned seats, and I read a book. It was a wild and exciting time let me tell you. When we got off the plane the guys gathered their things and got on the bus, as the parents and other family members, and well, me, gathered our things and caught shuttles over to the hotel.

Mr. Crosby’s eyes widened as he caught sight of my pile of bags. “What on earth did you pack?” He asked, forgetting for a second (apparently) that I was the enemy.

“Well I went shopping in Winnipeg.” I said with a blush. “I had a whole day to myself yesterday, so I did a little damage on my inheritance from my Grandma Whitney.”

Mr. Crosby laughed slightly. “Well you are definitely a woman.”

I wanted to snap something about him doubting it, but I bit my tongue, saying instead. “D says that no one can keep up with me in the mall, and he’s probably right. I love to shop when I have the time and the money.”

“You said that you and Dion lived together one summer didn’t you?” He asked.

“Umm yeah we did.” I said warily. “My parents were fighting a lot, but I had to come home for the summer and D didn’t want to live with a billet, so we got a place and we lived together. It was a fun summer. That’s when we really got a lot closer.”

“You two weren’t together then were you?” He asked.

“Umm no.” I said feeling a little cornered. “D and I have never dated. We’ve always JUST been friends. Nothing more.”

“And you and my son?” He asked.

“We met and we just clicked.” I said immediately, not even contemplating lying. He’d see through a lie, so I had to tell him the truth, just not the entire truth. “Right now that stays on a friendship level. I don’t see the future though, so I have NO clue what the future may bring. I know what Sid wants, and he knows what I want, and I think we’re both cool with that.”

“And what do you want?” He asked.

I wanted to snap at him again, this time something about him leaving me the fuck alone, but I bit my tongue again. I sighed. “I want to get to know Sidney.” I said, carefully avoiding referring to Sidney as his son. “I want to watch him play amazing hockey. I want to be here to watch Team
Canada win Gold…. And I want to have some fun in the process.”

“But if the boys are distracted how can they do that?” Mr. Crosby asked pointedly.

“With all due respect Mr. Crosby, I don’t think you’re giving these guys the credit they deserve. Here they have ONE girl who can potentially distract them. Back home they have tons, every single night. Plus, I’m not willing to have to sex with any of them, just conversation and friendship. Back home every second or third girl is willing to have sex with these guys.” I paused taking a deep breath. “Those guys deal with those distractions all the time… and nearly every single one of them plays for a winning team, and they are the best this country has to offer. If they can deal with that, then they can handle having me along for the ride.”

Mr. Crosby looked impressed. “You are a very intelligent young woman.” He said admiringly.

“Thanks.” I replied with a slight blush.

“I’m sorry if I seemed harsh when we met, but I only want what’s best for my son.” He explained. “And he looks at you so admiringly, though now that we’ve spoken I can see why.”

“I appreciate that Mr. Crosby.” I said, still feeling awkward. “Sidney is an amazing young player and an amazing young man.”

“He admires you very much.” He said glancing at me… no, he was watching me, it was more then a glance. It was as if he was trying to figure out exactly what it was that his son saw in me.

I smiled shyly. “The whole country admires Sidney.” I said, feeling uncomfortable talking about myself with this man who watched me so carefully.

“But you admire him as more then just a hockey player.” Mr. Crosby said perceptively.

I nodded. “I do. I admire him as a young person who is under a whole lot of pressure but who is still a nice kid. I admire him for his maturity, which is light years ahead of most other kids his age… even that of other kids his age in the CHL. I admire him for his intelligence, which a lot of people seem to forget about when they talk about his talent. So yeah, I do admire him for being more then just a hockey player.”

He nodded, still watching me carefully. “You can understand how this makes my wife and I a little uncomfortable though right?”

“Yes.” I said simply.

“I mean, we’ve gotten used to teenage girls literally throwing themselves at our son, and I know that you aren’t throwing yourself at him. But its difficult for us to understand why of all the girls… and girls his age or even a year or two older or younger, our son wants a woman who is what? Six years older then he is.” Mr. Crosby sighed and ran a hand through his hair, reminding me of Sidney. “To us, it just doesn’t make sense.”

“Mr. Crosby, I don’t want to… I don’t know, try to speak for Sidney, but it almost DOES make sense to me.” I said nervously. “I mean, your son, because of his talent, spends a lot of time with people who are older then he is. He is, as a result, far more mature then most kids his age… especially since he has to deal with a lot of pressure and attention from the media. As a result of all of this, girls his age… those girls who throw themselves at him, seem silly and insipid.” I paused. “I guess, when compared to someone like me… someone who isn’t immature or silly… someone he can actually talk to about the stuff going on in his life… well it sort of starts to make a little sense.”

“And has he talked to you about what’s going on in his life?” Mr. Crosby asked.

“A little yes. He told me about Shattuck’s St. Mary’s and his life there, he’s talked about you and Mrs. Crosby and Taylor. One day we talked about Lebron James and how he’s dealt with being a prodigy as compared to Sidney.” I told him candidly. “Sidney and I just… understand each other, I understand him because I pay attention and I actually listen. I’m not overwhelmed by WHO he is to the Canadian media and the hockey world. He is tired of silly teenage girls who scream and fawn over him. I don’t do that.”

“Yet I can already tell that you care more about him then they do.” He said. “With those girls its an obsession, with you it’s… different.”

“So can Sidney.” I told him. “That’s what makes me so unique and interesting to him.”

He sighed. “I guess it does make sense when you think about it. But it’s so odd in other ways.”

“Mr. Crosby I know this bothers you and Mrs. Crosby, but really, what and who matters to me the most is Sidney and what’s best for him. When I tried to talk to him about our situation he point blank told me to leave decisions about what was best for him to him.” I said honestly. “So I have to let myself just his judgement.”

“I suppose I should do the same.” He said with a rueful grin.

“Probably.” I said with a shrug.

He laughed. “You sound a lot like Sidney.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” I replied.

“Dion’s parents were probably like this when you first met them too huh?” He asked.

I could tell he felt guilty (not enough to apologize or anything, but still guilty), but I wasn’t about to change the truth for him, because the truth was, he should apologize. I shrugged. “Not really. Of course, I was a couple of years younger when D was 17. But his parents and I have always really gotten along.”

“They never minded that you were older?” He asked.

“Well maybe when they first heard of me, but once they met me, they realized that Dion was far more likely to corrupt me then I was to corrupt him.” I told him honestly. “So whatever reservations they had, well they let them go.”

Mr. Crosby nodded. “It’s just hard to accept that you won’t corrupt our son the way you chose to dress.”

I shrugged. “If I weren’t a teacher it wouldn’t be a big deal.” I said. “I mean, most young women my age dress this way. I don’t dress this way in the classroom that’s not the time or the place. But this is my Christmas holiday and I want to dress to make me happy.”

“Well you certainly make my son happy.” He joked.

I laughed. “Well that really isn’t my intention. Maybe a happy coincidence for him at best, at worst an unhappy coincidence for me.”

His Dad laughed. “I really want to dislike you Drew, but much as I try, I can’t.”

I shrugged. “No, if you really want to dislike me, there are people in Red Deer who could give you all the reason you’d need.” I said. “But I learned a long time ago that rumours only ever tell part of the story.”

He nodded. “Sidney gets pretty tired of the rumours that are spread about him in Rimouski. He says he can’t talk to a girl without the whole town thinking that he’s ‘taken’.”

“It doesn’t hurt that he takes advantage of the girls who will do whatever he wants simply because he’s the prodigy.” I pointed out. His Dad blushed as if he was embarrassed that I knew that. “It’s not really a big deal to me.” I added. “I hang out with Dion Phaneuf after all. If there’s a heart he hasn’t broken among the pucks of Red Deer, I have yet to meet that girl.”

Mr. Crosby laughed. “I suppose if anyone knows how these boys operate then, its you.”

I laughed. “And I am definitely not the kind of girl to fall for that kind of stuff.” I said, forgetting for a second that I was talking to a Dad, and thinking I was talking to a friend. “I’ve never even dated a hockey player. I mean, I’ve hung around a few but I was only in it for the….” I trailed off realizing who I was talking to.

“The sex?” Mr. Crosby supplied with a grin.

I flushed. “Umm well yeah.” I said, figuring if I was being honest, I might as well be honest.
“Sometimes you just want to treat a guy the way he treats other girls.” I paused. “Plus sometimes they’re jerks, so you don’t want to actually date them or anything, but….”

He laughed. “You sound like Sidney. There’s this girl in Rimouski who is completely obsessed with him and it turns out he’s slept with her. When I asked him why, he said that she wasn’t the kind of girl you dated, but I should check out her body, because she was definitely, umm worthy of something else.”

I laughed, while he blushed, embarrassed at having told me that little detail about his son. “I don’t mean to make it sound like Sidney goes around doing this kind of thing all of the time.” He said sounding as embarrassed as he looked. “Because he usually doesn’t. But he is 17 and he does make mistakes.”

I laughed. “It’s alright Mr. Crosby.” I said. “I’m not about to tell Sidney that his Dad told me about his scandalous past.”

“Call me Troy, Drew.” He said, smiling as he helped my pile my bags into the shuttle. “Because I have a feeling that when my son gets his way… and he usually does, we’ll have no choice but to
get to know each other well.”