A/N: Sadly, I do not own Degrassi, it's characters or the Mighty Ducks, etc...you know where I am going with this. I wrote this because it was something I would read in a magazine if it were ever done. Please criticism is always welcome...flames will be used for a pyrotechnic display for the positive reviewers. I will still make anything Italian for those good reviewers with either good things to say or constructive criticism. Review it will make you feel happy.

Kaitlinbell: thank you so much for the confidence to post something. You are a terrific person and extremely talented. You are priceless in my book. You know I love you! I will write that kitchen scene just for you in the next fic. Thank you for the awesome review for my first shot at this.

Vixen-Dragon16: Thank you so much for your first review of my poetry. I am happy that you like it.

AquilaRemy: Thank you too for such a lovely review. I so appreciate any feedback on anything I write.

The Romance behind Hockey's Biggest Star

I am Marco Del Rossi-Micklachuk and an author. I am also a journalist with several big newspapers. Some of you know me; many of you have read my stories and most have read my columns but did not know who I was. That is okay though. You read my stuff, you keep reading it, and so I must be doing a good job. I was asked to write a feature article on the pride and joy of Anaheim's Mighty Ducks. The reason they petitioned me to write this is because I know him better than anyone else in the world. He is my husband, lover and best friend, Dylan Micklachuk. I know you have heard that name before and are wondering what this piece is going to be about. Let me tell you, this is the story of how we met and fell in love. Being gay, we were not readily accepted in high school but over came all the odds and are still going strong today. We have been married for almost two years now and could not be happier. Now that I have introduced myself and the story, let's get on with it.

It was the summer after my Grade 9 year when I met a handsome, funny soon-to-be Grade 12 at the beach with some friends. That is partially a lie; we did not meet at the beach. We met at my friend's house, seeing as he, my friend was dating Dylan's sister, Paige. I took one look into his big blue eyes and fell hard for him. My friends did not even know that I was gay at the time. I was not comfortable telling them, mainly in fear that they would not accept me anymore. After I met Dylan, I could not stay in the closet any longer. I knew I had to have my chance at this wonderful guy. When I did come out to my friends, Paige's first order of business was to try and get Dylan and me together. I appreciated her efforts but was not sure if Dylan felt the same way. I was bashed in the park one night for being gay, which kind of pushed me back into the closet for about a month. Dylan tried to help me but I kept pushing him away. I was stupid, I can see that now. Paige's boyfriend and my good friend, Spinner, finally interfered even though he was a jerk when I came out. I guess he figured he owed it to me. He got Dylan to ask me out since I was too scared to ask him out. I mean, how could I not be scared. He was the star of the hockey team and gorgeous and I was this little nobody who hung out with his sister. Talk about being lame. Anyway, Dylan asked me to a movie and I said yes, of course. The date started out bad, got better, and then turned to the eighth layer of hell. I was surprised and thrilled when he decided to give me a second chance. Our second date went a lot better and just kept getting better after that.

One reason Dylan said he fell for me was because of my personality. I am not sure how much of that is true but I will give him the benefit of the doubt. I was very hard on myself when we first met. I am a perfectionist by nature and whenever Dylan was around, everything went wrong. I would get nervous and flustered, so nothing I said would come out right. Then I would get angry at myself, which would start a barrage of self-esteem issues. Yeah, it was not pretty. Dylan managed to see through all of that and get me to relax. I finally got comfortable with him and things started going smoother.

He also claims to love me for my sense of humor and my good heart. I was not aware of having a sense of humor but if he says so, okay. I do know that I have a good heart though. I have always tried to help everyone around me. I hate to see people sad. I got permission to use this from Paige and my friend Katelynn. I helped them both deal with being raped. Katelynn, I helped from the very beginning and Paige I helped later. I had already helped Katelynn by the time I met Paige, so I knew with what she was dealing. I wanted to help her, not only because she is Dylan's sister but she is my friend. She had pushed away all her feelings about what had happened and could not figure out why she was still having nightmares. I helped her deal with the nightmares and the rape; it is the only way to get past something like that. She spent more nights in my bed that first year Dylan and I were dating than Dylan did. He understood and tried to help his sister as well. He loves Paige, even though she is a brat (his words, not mine). She passed the dealing phase of recovery and moved on to healing. I was happy to help and was rewarded greatly for being there with her. The night she finally stopped sleeping in my bed, was the night Dylan first said "I Love You". It is a night I will never forget.

We had been dating for a little over a year and he was a freshman in college. I was at his apartment, waiting for him to get home from hockey practice, watching television. He came in with a big grin and a bouquet of sterling roses. He knows they are my favorites but are so expensive that I don't get them too often. I was stunned that he would do something like this; it was not our anniversary or anything big. He handed them to me and kissed me lightly before going to take a shower. He had not said a word to me, not even hello. I remember sitting there on his couch looking from the roses to the bathroom door, confused. I was staring at the door when he crossed the hall to his bedroom from the bathroom; he looked over at me and just grinned. He was so infuriating. I have since forgiven him of his complete lack of regard for my sanity. I was going insane trying to figure out what he was up to and I could not do it. By now, I had gotten pretty good at reading Dylan and knowing what he was up to before he told me but this left me clueless. He emerged from the bedroom dressed to go to dinner, which we had already planned on. He stood in front of me and held out his hand waiting for me to take it. He still had not said a word. Judging from the gleam in his eyes and his grin, I decided to just go with it. I was still irritated but it was easier than trying to get him to spill whatever he had planned. My confusion grew when we pulled up in front of his parents' house but still did not question. He let me in the house and my confusion vanished. He set up a romantic dinner with candles, music and all of my favorite foods. I found out later that he skipped the end of practice to set this up for me with some help from Paige. I was floored, that is the only way to describe it. Finally he spoke, "This is your surprise. Well, part of it anyway." He sat me down at the table and sat down next to me. I can still remember the way he looked in the candlelight, all soft and glowing. That mischievous grin playing at his lips, almost taunting me. We ate dinner and had dessert. He took me over to his parents' couch and sat me down. He sat in front of me on the coffee table and just looked at me for a few minutes before speaking. I was starting to get nervous under his watchful gaze. "Marco, I need to talk to you about something. I do not want you to interrupt me until I am finished. Okay?" Dylan asked me. I had a sinking feeling in my stomach and was afraid to talk so I just nodded. Yes, even after all that he had done for me I was expecting something bad. "I have been with you for over a year now. I have watched you grow up and change before my very eyes. It is not something I would trade in for the world. I watched you help Paige for the last ten months without one complaint. She wrecked some of our dates and some of the very little alone time we had together. You just took it all in stride and did whatever she needed to get through it. I admire that in you. I don't know if I would have been so understanding if she was not my sister and I saw her after what she went through. I am not sure if that made sense but it did to me. I feel there is one thing that is missing in our relationship though. I am hoping to remedy that tonight. I want you to know that I love you. I have loved you for a while now but I think I was too blind to see it. I want you to accept this promise ring as a sign of how much I love you." Dylan stopped speaking and looked at me, waiting for me to answer. I was shocked, not with the fact that he loved me; I guess I already knew that but the fact that he was thanking me for helping Paige. "I love you too Dylan. I have since the day at the beach. It has just grown into a stronger love since I have been with you. There is no need to thank me for helping Paige or explain why I did it. I did it because she is my friend and she is important to you. I would do it again in a heartbeat. Of course I will accept your promise ring but I do have one question. What exactly is this ring promising?" I said. He actually looked relieved that I said yes. "It promises that when you get out of high school, we will get engaged and then when you graduate college we will get married." Dylan explained. "Okay. I agree to all of that." I said laughing. I was nervous, I am not sure why but I was shaking. Dylan opened the jewelry box that he was holding in his hand and I got my first look at the ring that I still proudly wear. It is white gold with two hearts etched intertwined together. He pulled it out of the box and handed it over to me. "There is an inscription that I would like you to read before I put it on your hand." He leaned over and turned on the lamp I was sitting beside. It read "L'amerò per sempre" and I was shocked. It translates to I will love you forever for those of you who don't know Italian. I started to cry, it was just so sweet of him to go to that much trouble for me. I knew he must have called my mom to get that phrase correct. That is the kind of boyfriend Dylan had always been though; kind, thoughtful and romantic.

Our relationship just continued to grow stronger with each year. It was in no way perfect, we had our share of fights. I remember one particularly well and will tell you about it because it shows just who Dylan can be. It was a month before my graduation from high school and Dylan had just gotten his summer practice schedule for the hockey team. He said he had practice at the same time I was graduating and could not make my graduation. I was devastated. It was not only my graduation but his sister's as well. I could not believe he was going to miss it because of a practice. Graduation day was drawing closer and I was getting testier because he was going to miss it. I was at his graduation in spite of the fact I was missing a final in science. I was picking random fights with him over nothing just to make him mad. I wanted him to feel as bad as I did at that moment. The fight that set us off and did not speak again until graduation day started like this. "If you could not handle everything that comes with having a younger boyfriend, maybe we should have never started dating." I said angrily. "I have never had a problem with you being younger. I cannot make your graduation, I am sorry. I am missing Paige graduate too. I have to be at this practice though." Dylan tried to calm me down. "You have missed out on practice for lesser reasons. You just don't want to come and risk an embarrassment. I know you don't introduce me to all your friends because you do not want them to know I am still in high school." I was on a roll by now. "Marco, you have met all of the people I consider friends. What is your problem?" Dylan was starting to get angry by now as well. "You are my problem. I don't think you know how much this means to me. I wanted you there to share it with me. Instead, you are going to be on the ice. I am too tired to fight about this anymore, I am out of here." I walked towards the front door and slammed it shut behind me. Dylan tried to call the next three days but I refused to answer the phone. He emailed me at least ten times a day too, I read them but never responded. Paige tried to get me to talk to him but I just ignored her. I just wanted to be mad. I knew I still loved him and that would never change but I was hurt, I did not want to forgive him that easily. Graduation day arrived and it had been three and a half days since I had walked out of Dylan's apartment. I was still hurt but a little less mad so I picked up the phone and dialed his number. The answering machine picked up, that meant he was either avoiding me or already at practice. I did not leave a message because I had no idea what to say. So, I got up and got ready for graduation. I was walking with Ellie but was right in front of Paige and Spinner. Paige was still mad at Dylan because he was missing her graduation too. We got out onto the floor and I heard Paige gasp behind me. "Look in the stands. Over by where my parents are sitting." She was whispering in my ear. I looked over and there was Dylan. I just smiled and felt better. I started to feel bad about what I had said the last time we spoke but maybe that is what made him come. Paige was whispering in my ear during the entire graduation about the fact that he had come just for me. I must have really made an impression for him to blow off practice. I got my diploma and looked back into the stands at Dylan; he was holding a sign this time. It read 'I love you! Marry Me?' My heart stopped beating for a minute and I just gave him a slight nod before sitting back down in my seat. Ellie and Paige each grabbed an arm and hugged me. I was stunned but my heart felt lighter, knowing he had forgiven me for being a jerk. That is how we got engaged, kind of sweet and a little corny. I don't think this is a proposal that will soon be forgotten.

Now you know how we met, when he told me he loved me and how we got engaged. I guess the only thing that is left is our wedding. I had a year long promise ring phase and then a three year engagement. I promised my parents I would not get married until I had my first degree, so I worked really hard to fit four years into two and a half then plan a wedding. It worked out beautifully. Being the shorter and more feminine of the two of us, I took the role of the bride. I had bridesmaids and luncheons and all that kind of thing. My bridesmaids were Paige, Ellie, and Ashley. The looked gorgeous in the gowns that we picked out. I however, got to wear a tuxedo instead of a dress. I may be gay but I am not a cross dresser, no offense to those who are, it is just not my style. Dylan looked wonderful in his tuxedo. His groomsmen were Spinner, his dad and Scott, a friend from school and fellow hockey player. It was an evening ceremony on the beach at Santa Monica. It was breathtaking with the sun setting behind us. I am glad that the government got off their moral high horse and made same sex marriages legal in all fifty states and in Canada. We had a wonderful reception with all our family and friends. His hockey player friends were all there with their wives or girlfriends. Paige announced she was pregnant at the reception, thankfully she and Spinner had gotten married a month before conception. Spinner will live to tell his children about his stupid stunts. I was a little worried at first. We left the next day on a perfect two week honeymoon in Hawaii. We are going to Italy this year to celebrate our five year anniversary.

I just wanted the American and Canadian people who have been following Dylan's career since high school to know who he is as a person, not just a hockey star. He is the best person I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. I love him with all my heart, so I may be just a little biased. Thank you for taking the time to read about a side of Dylan Micklachuk that very few people get to see. I am glad I got the opportunity to show it to you. I hope to see you at the Stanley Cup this year next month. For those of you who don't follow hockey but are reading this, we play the North Carolina Hurricanes. Once again, I am Marco Del Rossi-Micklachuk, husband of Dylan Micklachuk, forward for Anaheim Mighty Ducks.