A/N: *loves Jad*
Chapter 372: Debbie XI—On The Other Side
Debbie
couldn’t believe her team scored two goals while she was in the penalty box,
and then right after Team
“I’m gonna miss you Mommy,” Mitchell said solemnly.
Debbie blew a kiss to him. “Mommy will be right on the other side, don’t be sad.”
Mitchell waved.
“Ooo don’t look so grim my love,” Mimi said with a smile as Debbie slid into the bench next to her. “We still have a one goal lead, yes?” She patted her on the leg. “How is Mitchell doing?”
“Great,” Debbie said, “Little brat,” she laughed and winked. “Okay now we can’t let anymore goals in right? I mean that would be suicide right? It’s only the start of the period. I don’t see Patty letting in anymore than he already has, especially to us.” She looked back at their coach, the assistant, Tony Granato who smiled at her. “What do we do now coach?”
“How about you, Michele and Danny?” Granato said.
“Yay!” Mimi squeaked and she jumped over the boards, stumbling and shrieking before regaining her balance. Debbie took the safe way through the door and Danny leaped over as only a young man could do. “We’ll teach them a lesson, did you see them celebrating as if they won the Stanley Cup and they’re the ones that are trailing yes? Spit on Patrick’s name we shall give them a headache!”
“Heh and how we gonna do that?” Danny asked as they skated into the face off circle. “Who’s taking this me or one of you gals? It’s against Dru I don’t think you gals can take him on, unless you wanna try it’s fine with me cause I can’t either.” He laughed for emphasis.
Debbie was about to volunteer for it when Michele skated to the center. “I’ll do it,” she said and she grinned. “I think I know how.”
“Oh come on Mimi you suck at face offs!” Debbie exclaimed.
“Well you already had a turn yes?” Michele replied, some of her blonde hair had come loose and hung around her cheeks still sunny and clean, not yet touched with playing sweat. Debbie exchanged looks with Danny and they shrugged. She glanced over at Derek Morris who winked at her. Debbie blushed and felt safe and secure knowing those big men would take care of her.
Chris Drury leaned forward with a serious set to his cute mouth, as if he were taking the most important face off of his life. Kerry Fraser was about to drop the puck and Debbie saw Michele’s lips move and at that moment Drury’s face blanched and he looked at her. The puck dropped and Michele snared it and dashed up the ice with it. Just like her! Debbie thought gasping and putting extra effort into her strides, she never for the life of her passed the puck in practice, why would she now?
Drury pressed into her, very lightly trying to maneuver his stick for the puck and Michele dropped it behind her. Debbie saw it and with a shriek of excitement she went after it only to be beaten to it by Milan Hejduk who cleared it to a defenseman. Debbie found herself standing still and watching the action as if it were on a big screen television and when it became clear the puck went to the other end of the ice she began scrambling over there.
Man I bet this skating is great for my thighs! She thought and laughed at herself. She wondered if Joe ever thought the same way while playing.
Still,
Michele’s won face off came to nothing as Hejduk and Drury skated head to head
with Morris and Foote who both tried taking out Drury. In that moment Chris
flicked the puck to
“Oh drat!” Debbie cried and she put her hand over her chest. She looked at the scoreboard. “No way only twenty seconds went by?” She gasped for air and joined a red cheeked slit eyed Mimi and a could care less Danny back on the bench. “Well now there’s something to worry about.”
“Aw I thought this was just for fun,” Hinote said with a goofy grin.
“Hooo we’re winning this game,” Debbie muttered. “I swear to God we’re winning!”
She sat quietly for a shift, watching, waiting for some sort of inspiration to come. In the meantime, Joe came out on another shift, with Drury this time and still with Cecile on his line. What did that girl have a paid ticket for a permanent spot on his line?
“Ooo Cecile’s on Joe’s line again,” Michele remarked, looking at Danny. “She has herself a good deal yes?”
Danny laughed. “Yeah well I kinda traded favors with Joey, you know I didn’t want her scared and alone and shit, so she’s he said he’d take good care of her. Gotta love the captain.”
“But you’re so trusting,” Michele giggled in a low voice and Debbie as nonchalantly as she could leaned her ear in to catch it. “I wish Patrick were as trusting as you were.”
“Oh why so?” Danny asked in a serious voice. Debbie glanced at the oh so adorable earnest expression on his baby smooth face. He seemed concerned in a way.
“I mean you and Cecile, and, well, any other man would be so insecure about asking a gorgeous man to take care of his girlfriend,” she nudged him.
Danny laughed again but it sounded like maybe he laughed a little too hard. “Hey come on, quit teasing. You know Cecile’s a good girl and Captain is like her Dad or something, you’re silly Mimi.”
Michele giggled. “We’ll see.”
Debbie rolled her eyes and looked back at the ice. Danny hit the nail on the head right there. Joe always talked about Cecile with a special smile and tone of voice, but it was an identical way in which he spoke of his sister or his mother. In fact, she wondered if Joe thought of himself as her father in a way or her big brother. Michele needed a good elbowing, and Debbie delivered one.
“Ow!” Michele shrieked looking over, startled and hurt. “What was that for?”
Batting her eyes innocently, Debbie blushed, “Oh sorry Mimi, this gear sucks, I was just trying to loosen my elbow it must have slipped.”
Michele squeaked in pain and rubbed her arm. “Well that hurt.”
Debbie shrugged and looked back at the ice in time to see a cunning little play where Cecile scrambling on her hands and knees swiped her stick at the puck and hopped it to Joe’s direction. Joe immediately snapped it up for a deadly wrist shot and hit the back of the net causing Aebischer to put both mitts over his caged face. Cecile still on the ground sat up and cheered and Joe pushed by everyone to get to her, leaned over, picked her up and squeezed her again. He even kept a hand on her shoulder as they skated back to the bench and her face glowed as he talked to her and he just seemed so casually happy…. Like he did when he played with Mitchell, family, blood…. Drat!
“Oh that little whore! From her hands and knees no less!” Michele snapped.
“Hey!” Danny exclaimed. “That’s my girl!” He sounded truly hurt.
“Oh balls yes?” Michele replied. “There’s no family on the ice.”
Danny laughed. “You girls are crazy.”
“Well come up with a good idea,” Michele snapped. “Come on you useless boy, give us a good idea!”
“Well maybe…” Danny said and his voice trailed off.
Debbie leaned over looking at him, waiting for some spark of brilliance. In the meantime, Forsberg, Josefina and Mike Modano were sent onto the ice. “Now there’s a glamour line if one ever existed,” Mike Keane said with a wry laugh.
And to be sure, Josefina was mean! Debbie laughed watching as she barreled her slim body into Scott Parker, who stopped and watched her bounce off him, laughing heartily. In that moment, Modano and Forsberg took the opportunity to dazzle with a two on one and slice one through Patty’s five hole. Jo hopped to her feet and skated to the two men and gave Peter a real big kiss, hanging onto him as they came back to the bench.
“Hey us ladies gotta score more,” Jo said, “Cecile’s the only one with a goal and are we gonna let that little green eyed hussy get all the glory?!” Peter laughed and kissed her again.
“You guys!” Danny moaned. “Stop picking on my girlfriend!”
“Eh alls fair in love and ice war,” Josefina replied. “Get a thick skin lover boy and get ready for battle! Your girlfriend is dead to us DEAD we need to unite in arms and annihilate!!”
Keane laughed. “You’re one sexy bitch you know that?”
Jo grinned and slung an arm over Keane’s shoulder. “Coach!” She cried. “Put me on a line with Keane and Pete next I wanna make a red head sandwich.”
Debbie gasped and looked at Peter for his reaction. The Swede seemed amused, in a twisted sort of smile kind of way and he put his arm around Jo’s waist and tugged her closer to him. She stood up at the bench impatient for her next turn. But they had to wait a couple shifts as the coach rolled two lines out for thirty second shifts. In that time, Joe got back on the ice again with Cecile at his hip as usual.
Little sister… Debbie thought… she’s just a little sister…..
This time the ruckus crashed into Aebischer’s net with a mess of sticks and bodies that seemed the standard for grinding in the crease. Debbie leaned over the bench trying to pick out who was who and then it lifted a little bit. All eyes focused on Joe as he prepped to shoot it and Aebischer butterflied to meet it.
Instead of shooting, Joe flicked the puck across the ice and met Cecile’s stick. The girl needed no prompting to shoot it right into the empty side of the net. More audience applause and the screaming of the girl, and the red light and music. Cecile ran around on her skates looking like she’d just scored an overtime goal, holding her stick in the air. She hugged Alex Tanguay and stood back and crossed her arms in self satisfaction after the hug. That’s when Joe came up from behind her and hugged her, his arms crossing over the front of her tummy and he whispered something in her ear.
She laughed and wriggled away from him hitting at him lightly with her glove and they skated together back to the bench. Debbie’s gut wrenched. “Oh that wench!” She muttered.
“Okay they’re going down!” Danny roared.
“Ladies we gotta pay off here!” Josefina exclaimed. “She’s gonna be impossible to live with if she’s the only chick on this ice who scores!”
Debbie took the ice with a fist of determination. She only felt more invigorated when Danny said to her and Michele, “Come on ladies, listen close I got an idea!”