Chapter 19

Liam

I've been riding a high since last weekend. It felt good to put a genuine smile on Emi's face, one she didn't have after her date with James. Maybe its petty of me to feel so good about that but I don't even care. Even if I can't admit my feelings to her now, knowing that she had more fun with me does something for my pride.

I pull up to Emilia and Rosie's apartment and sneak in the front door behind another tenant. How easy it was to do that is slightly terrifying but I'm praying they keep their door locked at all times. It's Friday night and we're all headed to the hockey game. I head down the hall and knock on their door, Rosie answers wearing black jeans and a hoodie with Garretts jersey overtop, the typical hockey game attire. I'm wearing something similar myself, jeans with Ryan's jersey overtop a long sleeve shirt.

"Emi! Liam's here!" Rosie turns her body to yell into the apartment.

"Really? He didn't text yet." I hear Emilia's mumbled words, before stepping into the open living room from her bedroom. She stops when she sees me standing in the doorway. "Oh you're here, here."

"I am." I smile at her. "You know it's kind of concerning how easy it was to sneak in the front door. You keep your door locked at all times, right?"

"Of course we do." Rosie chuckles and I send her a glare before turning my attention back to Emilia. My beautiful Emi. She's wearing leggings and my hoodie, it swallows her whole but she looks adorable in it. "I don't have a jersey, Garrett only has the one extra and buying one from the school store just seems so fan girly."

"Well, I have something for you." I remove my hands from behind my back, stepping slightly inside to hand Emilia the gift I've been holding, a small package wrapped in white paper. Emilia's eyes light up as she takes the gift from my hand.

"Really? For me?" I nod at her, her smile growing. The things I would do for more of these unguarded, true smiles. She carefully unwraps the white paper, placing it on the counter before unfolding what lays inside. Emilia gasps. "You got me a jersey?" There's emotion in her voice, she sounds almost chocked up before she clears her throat.

"We can match." I point to the back of the jersey I'm wearing, number 31 with the name Saban on the back. She flings her arms around my neck pulling me into a hug.

"Thank you." It comes out muffled with her face pressed into my body. I squeeze her back, she fits perfectly in my arms. If I thought just being around her was a comfort then having her in my arms is like heaven.

Emilia surprises me by how into the game she gets, her and Rosie jumping up to their feet, screaming for our team. It's a new energy I haven't seen before but I'm glad she feels comfortable sharing this side of herself with me. When Garrett gets checked by someone on the opposing team the two girls are up on their feet yelling towards the referee, who can definitely hear them since we're sitting close to the ice.

I can't help the small chuckle that escapes me seeing this side of her. Emilia blushes as she sits down, turning slightly to face me. "Sorry, I'm a little competitive."

"A little? Don't apologize, I like seeing this side of you." The pinkness on her cheeks deepens and she quickly turns back towards the game. The rest of the game flies by, our team, the Watertown University Bears crushing the visitors and ending in a victory of four to one. The three of us get on our feet cheering for the team, Garrett sends us a wave, Ryan sends a wave and wink which I'm pretty sure is only directed at Rosie. When we get back to the car, I open both Emilia and Rosie's door before rounding to the driver's side. My phone vibrates in my pocket and I pull it out to see a few texts from Ryan.

Ryan

You know what a win means.

Ryan

Going out, if you didn't get that.

Ryan

Going to Harry's. You should come and bring the girls.

I let you a small laugh as I read the texts. Ryan's not crazy by any means but he does love a good celebration and nothing gets him more hyped than a hockey win.

"What's so funny?" Rosie pops her head in between the two front seats.

"Rosie" Emilia scolds her, turning her head to the side.

"The hockey team is going to Harry's tonight. Ryan invited us to come with if you guys want." I turn to look at Emilia. While I don't really care about going out I do want to spend more time with her.

"Hmm that could be fun." Emilia looks at Rosie, "What do you think?"

"Heck yeah. You know I'm always down for a margarita and dancing."

"Alright, let's go then."

"Can we change first though?" Rosie looks at the jersey's we"re all donning.

"Do you mind?"

"Of course not." I start the car and head towards the girls' apartment so they can change for the night.

We get to the bar before the hockey team does so there's plenty of open tables for us to claim a spot at. We claim the same booth as we did the last time we were here. Rosie heads to the bar to get herself a margarita and Emilia heads up with her to get a water. I pull my phone out of my pocket, texting Ryan that we got a spot before glancing back to the bar where the girls are. My hand tightens around my phone as I see James approach Emilia, sliding an arm around her shoulder. I can see the way her body goes rigid from all the way over here.

I shoot to my feet, about to head to her when Ryan and Garrett block my view. "Why are you scowling?" Ryan asks, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't scowl."

"You usually don't but you definitely are now."

"Yeah, Liam you kind of are." Garrett chimes in. I shake my head, trying to glance over their shoulders but unfortunately for me they both actually have a few inches on me. Confused by me trying to peek around them, they turn around trying to find what I'm looking at. They spot the girls and Ryan just gives me a sympathetic pat on the back. "They're fine." Garrett rounds over to my side so I can see them now, James is gone and it's just Emilia and Rosie chatting at the bar. I nod and sink back into the booth, maybe she finally told James she wasn't interested. She's been avoiding him for the past week, she felt bad and didn't want to hurt his feelings but it's something she couldn't avoid forever.

Ryan and Garrett join me at the table and we get into talking about the game, future games, and where they think the season is heading. The girls hit the dance floor and it's turning out to be a good night. I would have loved it if I got to spend more of this time physically closer to Emilia but the fact that she is out and having fun makes me happy.