TSN (TSN_Sports)
FINAL from #PURGvsPEG: Blue Devils bounce back from Tuesday's heartbreaker to defeat Peg City Pirates 8-2 on the strength of Nicole Haught's first career goal and first career hat trick
12 Oct – 4:35 PM MDT
PURGATORY SPORTS REPORT (JeremyC_PG)
Blue Devils rookie Nicole Haught on her performance in today's win over Peg City: "Scoring your first goal is something every little hockey player dreams of, so obviously I'm excited, but all the credit goes to the team today. Solid team win."
12 Oct— 6:00 PM MDT
CBC: Monday Night CEWHL Action—Brandon Bobcats defeat Purgatory Blue Devils 3-1
Hot and cold Devils struggle to find consistency.
Tuesday, October 15th
PURGATORY GAZETTE
SPORTS: Up and Down Devils Depart for Road Trip Amid Ownership Tensions
Story By: Jeremy Chetri
The hometown Blue Devils have not quite sprinted out of the starting blocks, but haven't exactly stumbled either. The 3-2 Purgatory squad have shown flashes of brilliance in their victories over Peg City, Moose Jaw and most recently last night's victory over the Red Deer Rampage, but have looked less than average in their losses to Victoria and Brandon. Success is undoubtedly hard to come by in this league, but there are already questions circling about the consistency of the team.
Despite finishing at the bottom of the league for the last six seasons, the new ownership has high expectations. "I didn't buy this team for it not to succeed," says owner Bunny Loblaw. "I expect greatness and I expect them to win. I don't think that's too much to ask." Strong words from the ownership are sure to have tensions running high due to the weight of expectations. General Manager and Director of Hockey Operations, Xavier Dolls, doubled down on Loblaw's sentiment: "A rebrand and a relocation means a fresh start. The higher ups expect a certain level of performance, and it's the team and the coaching staff's jobs to reach that. All we ask is for a little bit of consistency."
The Blue Devils appear to be taken aback by the strong demands. Team captain Shae Pressman was a little more than vocal, saying: "The competition in this league is elite and a complete turnaround isn't going to happen overnight. I've got a lot of faith in the girls on this team, and if the higher ups ease up and give us a little more time to get into the swing of things, we'll give them the results they want to see." Coach Nedley backed up his captain's response, "I've been around the game my entire life, I've been on both sides of the coin. If you're a manager and you want your team to succeed, let them know what you expect, but give them a little breathing room to figure it out and do it right."
With a ten-day, five-game road trip looming, it appears the Devils will be put to the test, not only physically, but mentally as well as they navigate their schedule and the murky waters of tension created between them and the team's ownership.
The Blue Devils will look to find production from unlikely sources, as rookie center Nicole Haught leads the team in assists and is tied with Shae Pressman for goals with 4 apiece. Other team notables are center Corine Saunders and left winger Mary Anne Johnson.
Blue Devils Upcoming Schedule:
Monday, October 21 Sydney Challengers (7:00 pm ADT)
Tuesday, October 22 Halifax Warriors (7:00 pm ADT)
Friday, October 25 Summerside Islanders (7:30 pm ADT)
Sunday, October 27 Charlottetown Storm (1:45 pm ADT)
Tuesday, October 29 Moncton Cougars (7:00 pm ADT)
SYDNEY CHALLENGERS (challengersCEWHL)
CHALLENGERS WIN!
Hannah Boyd nets the GWG with :03 left in OT to defeat Purgatory 5-4
21 Oct— 9:57 PM ADT
Nicole yawned as she pushed her way into the hotel room, throwing herself onto one of the beds. The first few days of this road trip had kicked her ass, and losing tonight's game in overtime was not helping. For a kid who'd hardly ever traveled out of the province of Alberta, flying clear across the country to Nova Scotia was jarring to say the least. The more seasoned vets had brushed it off like nothing, but Nicole at least took solace in the fact that the other rookies were struggling as well.
She felt her phone vibrate next to her on the bed. She was sure it was a notification from the league's Twitter page with the results of the night's games, but couldn't muster enough energy to do much more than roll over to face the ceiling, groaning more than a little melodramatically when the light in the room was suddenly flipped on.
Her roommates had finally made their way up to the room, returning later than Nicole had because they stopped for food at the one place open after 11:30.
"Heya Red," Powers said as she threw down her backpack and sat at the small table in the room. "How's the wheel?"
In her exhaustion, she had almost forgotten her injured leg. She had laid out to block a shot late in the third period and took the puck right in the unpadded area of her leg, right square on her right calf. She came up limping and finished her shift, but Doc refused to let her go out to play in the overtime.
"Kinda sore, pretty sure it's just a stinger though." She answered, pulling herself up to sit and converse with her roommates. Her, Powers and Finning had drawn the short straw of being stuck in the triple room on the trip, though the size of this room for three people wasn't anything Nicole could complain about. It wasn't like they were spending much time here anyway, really just for sleeping. They'd checked in yesterday afternoon and then had practice in the evening, a game today, and they'd be taking off first thing in the morning for Halifax.
"Dude, did you see Shae's face after the game today?" Finning asked, popping a chicken tender into her mouth. "I thought she was gonna kill someone."
Powers laughed, nodding in agreement.
"Probably because princess didn't get the game winning goal." She teased, taking a bite of her own food before waving her fork in her hand, revising her comment. "In all seriousness, her and Sheriff have been catching a lot of shit from the owners."
"Yeah, what's the deal with that?" Nicole asked, knowing that all the sports outlets had been beating the team drama to death. For the most part, she tried to stay above it all and to perform her best, but Shae firing back at Bunny and Dolls? Well that was a little harder to ignore. Tensions were definitely high, and a loss tonight was most definitely going to ruffle Bunny's feathers.
"New owner's a psycho bitch."
"Yeah, I got that Vic," she sent Powers a duh look. "Why is she up our assholes this early in the season?"
"Guess she's not used to losing, still blows my mind she even bought the team." Finning shrugged.
"Jesus Shan, what're you tryin' to say?" Vic quipped, feigning offense.
"You wanna tell me how many games we won last year?" Finning retorted. Nicole was thoroughly enjoying their banter. "Seventeen," she turned to Nicole, "We won seventeen games in case you were curious, Haught." The schedule called for a total of eighty-two games, so Nicole knew that calling that a tough season didn't even begin to scratch the surface. "So, I'm just sayin' that I don't know what kind of instant success that old bag was expecting."
(That old bag, if that didn't sound like Wynonna, Nicole wasn't sure what did).
"Alright, fair enough." Vic admitted to Finning's point. "Gotta think things are looking up though, this has the best the team has clicked in the four years I've been here."
Nicole looked between her two linemates, seeing Finning nod in agreement with the other winger. She was thankful that she had clicked so easily with the two women, it was helpful to know they had been around the block a couple times and could answer any question or help with pretty much any problem she may have had.
They'd been calm and levelheaded during the whole fiasco surrounding Management's demands, unlike much of the rest of the team, who were letting the pressure get to them. Nicole was still uncertain as to why management had been so seemingly unreasonable with them—they'd only won 17 games last year, surely they couldn't expect them to go win 82 straight games right off the bat. And, as it stood, they were still 3-2-1 and sitting right around third in the division standings, even with the loss tonight. She supposed that some people would find any reason to complain—and she suspected that Bunny Loblaw was exactly that type of person.
"Yo, you wanna maybe answer that?" Shan nodded at the bed, to Nicole's phone that had been ringing without her even noticing.
Incoming Call: Waverly Earp
Furrowing her brow in confusion as to why Waverly would be calling her at such a late hour, she excused herself from her roommates and took the call in the en suite bathroom.
"Hello, Waves?" She answered, "Is everything okay?"
"Uh yeah, why?"
"It's just late that's all," Nicole explained. "Not that I'm not glad to talk to you."
"Well I'd hardly call nine-thirty late, but you did just play a ga—oh my god! Nicole I'm sorry." Waverly gasped and apologized profusely upon her realization. "I didn't even realize. I didn't wake you did I? God, what is it 11:30 there?"
"12:30, but it's fine, you didn't wake me." Nicole reassured, hearing Waverly sigh on the other end of the line. "What's up?"
"Well, I…" Waverly paused, "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."
Nicole felt her heart swell at Waverly's concern, but tempered herself slightly. She knew that Waverly was no longer with Champ, but that didn't mean that she reciprocated the ever-growing crush she had on the brunette. And besides, Waverly had been voted Nicest Person in Purgatory, and was probably just being friendly.
"I mean, I saw you block that shot and then I didn't see you for the rest of the game."
"Yeah, I'm good. Doc just made me sit it out. Said it was imperative to take the necessary precautions." She imitated the mustachioed team doctor, earning a snort from the girl on the other end.
"God, you and Wynonna with that impression." Nicole could practically hear the roll of Waverly's eyes. "Well, I'm glad you're okay. Sorry that you guys lost."
"It's all good. I mean it's not, it's a loss, but just gotta move past it now."
"I'm not sure Bunny Loblaw would agree."
"Seriously, Vic and Shan and I were just talking about her. It is what it is, as long as we play the game we know we can, that's all we can do. Their crazy demands are only stressing everyone out."
"That's a mature way of looking at it."
"Well, I have been hanging around some good influences."
"Didn't Finning get suspended three separate times last year?" Waverly chuckled.
"Yeah, fair point, but she's been pretty cool during this whole thing. It's helped me out a lot." She smiled, thinking about how much of a mental minefield the season started off as. "Anyway, how're things back in Purgatory?"
"Boring. We finished setting up the Halloween decorations and set up a lot of stuff for the Fall Festival you guys are having—I still think it's crazy you guys have to host that the day after you get back."
"No rest for the wicked." Nicole said, earning herself another little giggle from the other brunette.
"But other than that, it's been quiet. Without you guys in town there's not all that much to do around here, so Wynonna's been playing more pranks, mostly in Doc's office—"
"—Oh god, he's gonna be in a mood when we get back then."
"Uh huh," Waverly agreed. "Jeremy's been hanging around a lot too. Says it's easier to write about the team when he's in the rink, but I think it's just because he's got a thing for Robin."
Nicole pondered the pair, recalling the few times she'd seen them interact.
"They'd be cute together, don't you think?"
"Oh my god! They would be, but Jeremy's too oblivious to see Robin likes him, and Robin won't make a move until he's sure Jeremy knows he's into him."
Nicole fell silent for a moment, smiling at the irony that that was pretty much the situation between her and Waverly. (Except, Jeremy and Robin's crushes were obviously mutual, but the jury was still out on Waverly).
"Nicole?" Perhaps her silence had lasted a moment too long.
"Hmm? Yeah?"
"It's late there, and you're probably tired, so I'll let you go."
Nicole was reluctant for their conversation to end, but the adrenaline from game day was rapidly draining from her body and she could feel her body ache from the wear and tear of the game mix with exhaustion, and decided it best to turn in for the night.
"Alright, good night Waves," she said, stifling a yawn. "Thanks for calling, I miss you."
"Good night, Nicole." Waverly said heartwarmingly, leaving Nicole with a soft smile on her face as the call ended.
Nicole exited the bathroom and returned to the main area of the hotel room, finding her two roommates sitting across from each other in silence, fixing her with a knowing look.
"What?" She asked, not liking how much this had felt like an intervention all of a sudden.
"Thanks for calling." Powers teased, mocking her voice. "I miss you."
"Who were you on the phone with?" Finning probed.
"N-no one." Nicole silently cursed herself for stuttering, feeling a heat rise in her cheeks.
"Really? Sure sounded like someone to me." Her linemate continued. "Didn't it sound like someone to you, Vic?"
"Why you know Shan, it sure did."
"It was…my mom." She lied. Terribly.
"Ah ah ah," Finning chastised. "I figured you'd be a better liar than that. Or at least have enough of a memory to remember when you told us how you cut your parents out of your life the second you could on your 18th birthday." She had forgotten about that. Finning had invited her and Powers to her place for dinner about a week before the first game. ("If we're gonna be lineys, Red, we're gonna have to have each other's backs—we gotta trust each other"). They'd shared some pretty personal stuff with each other, but now they shared a bond that showed on and off the ice. "Are you sure it wasn't that Earp girl? The scorekeeper? The one you can't stop staring at in between shifts?"
"Wha? Pfft…no! Of course not! I don't even—I'm not even," she stammered.
"You're not even what? Gay?" Powers interjected. "Yeah, you are. But that's totally fine, Red."
"What's not okay is you pretending you're not all stupid, googly eyes, middle school head over heels for the scorekeeper. What's her name again, Wendy? Willow?"
"Waverly." Nicole mumbled.
"What was that?" Finning asked, cupping her ear to hear her better.
"Her name is Waverly." Nicole gave in, blushing furiously.
The older winger sat down next to Nicole on her bed and put an arm around her shoulder.
"That stupid smile you were wearing when you walked out of the bathroom, Haught, that's the one you've got on your stupid face when you leave practice because you get to go work with the Earps—and we both know it's not because of Wynonna. That's the smile of someone in love. Don't even try to deny it."
Nicole sighed heavily, and relaxed slightly.
"Waverly doesn't—isn't…she just broke up with her boyfriend, Shan."
"Okay, and?"
"I can't fall for a straight girl."
"You know there're these people who can like more than one gender, they don't exclusively date—"
"—I know how bisexuality works, Vic." She interrupted her linemate sitting across from her.
"All I'm saying is that you," Finning pulled Nicole in tighter with the arm slung over she shoulder, "are in deep with Waves," she teased with a suggestive wiggle of her eyebrows, "and people aren't always as straight as they seem."
PURGATORY BLUE DEVILS (bluedevilsCEWHL)
Captain Shae Pressman shines as the Blue Devils bounce back with a dominating 6-3 win over the Warriors in Halifax. Blue Devils improve to 4-2-1
22 Oct—9:55 PM ADT
PURGATORY BLUE DEVILS (bluedevilsCEWHL)
CAPTAIN CLUTCH! Shae Pressman scores the GWG with 1:27 remaining in the 3rd to secure back-to-back wins for the Devils. Purgatory 1, Summerside 0.
25 Oct—10:25 PM ADT
TSN (TSN_Sports)
THE DEVIL'S IN THE DETAILS—Randy Nedley credits attention to the fundamentals as the source of his team's recent success
27 Oct—5:15 PM ADT
PURGATORY SPORTS REPORT JeremyC_PG
Blue Devils weather late Storm surge, Powers' 2nd period goal stands as the game-winner, and the Devils defeat Charlottetown Storm 3-2
27 Oct—5:19 PM ADT
Day nine of the road trip saw everyone just really wanting to go home. Tonight would be their fifth game in eight days, and they were exhausted, some of them more than a little banged up. It took them all a little longer to get out of bed, and even longer to get going. Nicole supposed that's why Nedley had made morning skate mandatory—to make sure they'd be awake and ready to take on the Cougars tonight.
The Devils were hopeful to add to their win streak, finding their groove on the road after the overtime loss on night one of the trip. If anything, they were hoping they could keep Bunny quiet for another day by appeasing her with a victory. (She'd already announced loudly in the morning meeting that she'd made the trip to New Brunswick to see them play).
Nicole really wanted to be on top of her game, she really did, but she just couldn't get her head right today, and it had been Waverly's fault. Well, not directly, but definitely related.
The brunette had been increasingly less communicative with Nicole over the last few days, and she couldn't help but wonder if she had done something to the girl without realizing. She'd been wracking her brain all week, but couldn't think of anything. She'd decided against reaching out to the girl—who hadn't wished her good luck before the game (not that Nicole had been looking forward to it or anything), and hadn't said anything beyond "Congrats" after they had won their game in Charlottetown two days ago. She knew she should be a professional, separate her personal life from her job, but that was easier said than done.
Almost as if the girl could sense Nicole was thinking about her, Waverly's contact lit up Nicole's phone.
"Yo, Haught, we're gonna go watch some game film, come join us." Finning had called out to her in the hallway after they'd changed from morning skate.
"Uh, yeah, just give me a sec. I'll catch up with you guys." She told her teammate quickly before finding a secluded area of the unfamiliar arena to answer the call.
"Hello?"
"Hi." Nicole could tell something was off about her.
"What's up Waves?"
"What, I can't call you to wish you luck before the game?" The younger girl snapped, and Nicole was a little taken aback.
"Woah, woah, what's going on Waverly?"
"Nothing." Nicole could see the stubborn little pout on her face and Waverly crossing her arms as she spoke.
"Waves, seriously, you can talk to me ya know."
She heard the girl draw in a heavy breath before speaking again.
"Do you ever feel like the world is spinning too fast? Like everything is changing before you have time to process it?"
"Are you kidding?" Nicole suppressed a chuckle. "Waves, six months ago I was a college student finishing my application to the police academy, and now I'm a professional hockey player flying all over the country."
She'd meant it to be light and helpful in cheering Waverly up, but it seemed to only stress her out even more.
"Right, so you understand that everything is changing too quickly. Like everyone's got all these expectations of you and you have no clue what you're doing and you're not sure if you should be even doing it at all. It's all moving too fast, everything needs to slow down—GOD! I just wish everyone would slow down for like even just a second."
Nicole felt a sucker punch to the gut. Somehow she had pinpointed everything she had been feeling since she got to Purgatory; everything she thought she'd moved past as she grew more comfortable with the team—the self-doubt, the outside noise, Bunny freakin' Loblaw's insane demands, Dolls' cold stare etched in the back of her mind watching everything she and the team did.
"Hey, it's gonna be okay." She said, though she wasn't sure if she was trying to convince Waverly or herself. There was a long pause on the other end of the line. "You can tell me what's going on, something's clearly bothering you. Is that why you've been quiet all week? I've kinda missed your texts."
She'd been trying to make Waverly feel better (even if Nicole could feel the bad butterflies creeping up out of her stomach and all the way up into her lungs, threatening to strangle her right before the big game), so Waverly's reaction came as shock to her.
"Wow, clingy much?" She snapped. "I've got a life outside of being a groupie for you, you know."
Wow. Okay. That was…something.
"Sorry I've been really homesick and wanted a sense of normalcy." Nicole could feel her anger get the best of her the way it usually did when her anxiety was at a higher than normal level.
"Well, I'm sorry I've got my own shit going on and can't be at your beck and call."
She knew better than to get into a screaming match on the phone in the hallway while she was supposed to be conducting team business. She could hear Dolls' voice in the back of her mind reminding her that he'd appreciate it if she lived up to the professional part of her job title. That, and she could tell that whatever was bothering Waverly was something she clearly didn't want to talk about directly, so she let it go, though she was still a little more than upset at their interaction.
"Right…" she let the silence sit for just a moment. "Well, I'm here for you if you need it."
Nicole could feel Waverly drop her attitude slightly.
"I just screamed at you, how're you so nice to me?" She asked softly.
In a moment of her heart speaking before her mind could censor her, she opened her mouth and couldn't stop the words that had tumbled out.
"Well, I just think you've been dating too many shit heads."
And just like that, Waverly's wall went back up and her iron mask came back on.
"We're not dating."
Nicole knew that, and she'd regretted her phrasing the second she'd said the words; cursed herself for not thinking before she spoke.
"I know." She sighed into the receiver. "God, Waves, I'd never ask you to be someone you're not," she added, remembering what the brunette had said earlier in their conversation.
"Good. Just don't ask me to be anyone at all."
At this point everything inside of Nicole that had started to bubble back up had now started to boil over uncontrollably. Waverly had (unintentionally) touched on a sore subject for Nicole, and (also unintentionally) reminded her that she never had a shot with the girl.
She grit her teeth to stop herself from saying something she knew she'd regret.
"Fine."
"Fine."
Nicole opened her mouth to speak, but than closed it again, thinking better of it. There was another beat of tense silence.
"Well, maybe just friends."
"Sure, whatever you want Waverly." She said, rolling her eyes, done with the conversation. She wasn't sure her heart or her head could take any more. "I gotta go, bye."
She'd hung up before Waverly could respond.
Nicole tried to take a breath to steady herself, right her mind, but this wasn't that simple. There was too much tension from her personal life, and too much pressure in her professional one.
She found the room where Powers and Finning were setting up the film and joined them, offering a tight smile as she entered the room. Her linemates eyed her with concern, but didn't say anything.
CEWHL (CEWHL)
7 different Cougars score as Moncton wallops Purgatory 7-1 on Tuesday night in New Brunswick
29 Oct—10:15 PM ADT
TSN (TSN_Sports)
"Abysmal. An embarrassment. My grandmother could've played better and she's been dead for thirty years."— Purgatory Blue Devils owner Bunny Loblaw following her club's 7-1 loss to Moncton
30 Oct—9:30 AM EDT
Yahoo! Sports: ICYMI—Drama On and Off the Ice:
The biggest storyline of the first month of the CEWHL season has not had anything to do with goals or outstanding goaltender performances, but rather the outspoken owner of the Purgatory Blue Devils. Bunny Loblaw has caught the attention of her team, and the entire league with her strong words and her refusal to hold back on expressing her expectations. She's been very clear that she demands success and victories galore and she demands it immediately, judging by the amount of noise she's made just a month into the new year. The head-scratching part of it all? Her club is currently sitting in second place of the league's BC/Alberta Division and tied for third in the entire Western Conference. For a group that finished with a historically low number of points last season, their 6-3-1 October record is a monumental achievement, though clearly not good enough for the higher ups.
With the team's head coach and captain speaking out against the strong demands, it is clear that there are more than a few ruffled feathers. If tensions continue, what will the future hold for the Devils? As it stands, management has created a culture in which a loss equals being told off in front of the entire league, a culture of fear. Will they live up to the extremely high expectations, or will the fear of defeat only make things worse for the team?
Wednesday, October 30th
Nicole hardly had the energy or the motivation to get out of bed on Wednesday, the day they'd returned from the road trip. She'd called it jet lag when Wynonna texted her, asking if she'd be by the rink at all, but she knew it was more than that.
For one, it was her first day sleeping in her own bed in over a week and a half and she'd wanted to take advantage of that. (And Calamity Jane had not been pleased she had to stay with Nicole's landlord for ten days, so she was afraid of what destruction may lie ahead if she left the cat alone in the apartment for any amount of time).
For another, her body was tired and sore in ways she'd never thought possible—she still hadn't mastered the art of not getting hit in open ice, and the aching and bruises were evidence of that. Finning and Powers teased her endlessly about how she'd have to lose her "training room virginity" and make friends with the ice bath if she was going to survive the season.
And thirdly, she really was just mentally destroyed. No matter how many good shifts she had, goals scored or assists made over the road trip, she felt like there was always something lacking to her game. In the past, she'd used that feeling as fuel to keep improving her game, but this was unchartered territory for her. She'd known she was more than partly responsible for the poor performance of the team last game—she'd been unable to connect a pass to save her life and she may as well have been carrying a piano on her back with how sluggish her skating had been. She was honestly surprised Nedley hadn't benched her entirely. Mental toughness and confidence were something that Nicole had prided herself on, so Bunny's comments prior to and following the game should've been water off a duck's back, but she couldn't shake them. That being said, she knew that the real problem lied in her confrontation with Waverly.
Nicole knew better than to let feelings get in the way of her performance, but Waverly Earp had had a power over her since the day Nicole had met her. Fighting with Waverly had been the spark that ignited the trash can fire that was her game in Moncton. But it was more than that, because it had bled into her psyche outside being a professional athlete. She'd needed to sort herself out and find a way to be friends with Waverly without thinking about her eyes and how they lit up when she was excited about something, or how soft her lips most definitely were, or how a million choirs of angels couldn't hold a candle to the sound of her laughter. Because the truth was final, and it was that she was not, nor would she ever be dating Waverly Earp. The second she got that through her hard head, Nicole thought, the sooner she could return to performing at an acceptable level.
So, while she'd told Wynonna it was jet lag, it was so much more than that.
Halloween. Fall Festival. It all should've been so much fun. And virtually everyone else had been enjoying themselves.
The Fall Festival was the team's first big community engagement event, and the turnout had been amazing. They'd been outside, in a sectioned off area of the arena parking lot, decorated for the fall feeling. All of the children ran around in their Halloween costumes, playing games, decorating pumpkins, interacting with the team. Nicole had been stationed with her linemates at the makeshift maze made out of hay bales.
She'd done her best to stay cheerful and match the excitement of the children as they entered the maze, but quickly found herself exhausted by pretending she was thrilled to be there. Under normal circumstances, this would've been right up Nicole's alley—and she probably would've found a fun costume to wear to the function, but the last few days had worn her down to the point that all she could do was put on a fake smile and spend thirty seconds at a time over-exaggerating her enthusiasm for the sake of the children.
Instead, as it was, she was sitting, distractedly staring across at the face painting booth, waiting for the sun to set so that the children would leave to go trick-or-treating throughout town.
She'd felt someone nudge her shoulder roughly, drawing out of her trance.
"Helloooo," Finning snapped her fingers in front of Nicole's face. "Earth to Haught."
She hummed her response.
"Jesus Red, you've been spacy all day." Powers quipped. "You sure you don't have a concussion? You're not exactly great at not getting hit."
"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired…jet lag." She defended, using that damn excuse again.
"Jet lag." Shan repeated, a knowing skepticism in her tone. "God, you are such a bad liar."
Their conversation was momentarily put on hold as a family came by the maze with a little girl wearing a full Devils get-up, and asked for a photo with the three of them. The girl, who looked to be about five or six, tugged on Nicole's jersey. Nicole lowered herself down to the girl's eye level.
"Do you like my costume?" She'd asked excitedly.
The girl was clearly dressed up as one of the Devils, but in paying full attention, she'd seen that the girl was wearing a number fifteen sweater.
"I do!" She'd chimed, for the first time all day not faking her excitement.
"I'm you!" The girl all but shrieked with glee, giggling her little kindergarten giggle. "When I get big, I'm gonna play for the Blue Devils too!"
"Well, I'm sure you're going to be a superstar and score all the goals in the world." Nicole told the girl. "Why don't you tell me your name, huh?"
"My name's Nicole, just like you! You're my favorite player."
The thought had never crossed her mind that she, Nicole Haught, could be anyone's favorite player. A year ago, if you would've told Nicole she'd be in Purgatory with the girl in front of her who was wearing her jersey, over the moon at meeting her, well Nicole would have just laughed in your face.
"Well I guess it's something in the name then." She beamed brightly at her younger counterpart. "But I bet you're already better than me."
The little Nicole giggled and nodded her head proudly, and the interaction showed Nicole just how impactful she could be. She'd never given the thought of being someone that kids wanted to be when they grew up any weight, but she now realized that she was bigger than just herself or the team.
The girl's parents thanked them for the photo, and Nicole specifically for making their daughter's day, before entering the maze.
Finning and Powers teased her harmlessly about how that girl could probably take her spot on the team, but were really truly, happy for Nicole. The excitement of the encounter left her smiling for a few moments, but it seemed staring off in the distance at that damn face painting booth was inevitable.
"Could you please, for the love of God, stop pouting?" Powers grabbed her attention. When Nicole sent her teammate a confused look, Vic elaborated. "You've been staring over there at her all damn day with your sad, wounded puppy face. It's depressing."
It had felt like the universe was playing a cruel joke on her, putting the booth across from her, because of course Waverly had to be the face paint artist at the festival. She'll admit, begrudgingly, that she had been staring off at the younger Earp, distracted and a little self-indulgent of her own melancholy. However, she'd gotten so caught up in the distraction that she failed to notice Waverly's absence, the booth now being run by her teammates Jamie and Angelique instead.
"She went inside," Shan told her, reading Nicole's mind. "Looked like she was headed off to do something for Sheriff. Go talk to her, you're obviously a mess, and it's obviously about her."
Nicole was going to fight, say that she was fine again, but she knew neither of them would believe her, so she settled on appreciating her friends.
"Thanks, you guys." She said vaguely, but she knew the women knew she was grateful for them being a steadying force yet again.
"We just want you to get your head screwed back on straight again so we don't have to hear Bunny shit talk us after a bad loss again."
"It's entirely selfish." Vic added to Shan's comment, as Nicole rolled her eyes and all but jogged away to find Waverly.
She walked back into the arena, searching for the girl, walking down the long corridor and past coach's empty office, stopping just outside the room they put all of their miscellaneous storage items. The door to the room had been open and the light was on. She could hear the sounds of someone moving things around inside.
"Waves?" Nicole called. The person inside the room stopped, and moments later, Waverly emerged, holding a box addressed to Randy Nedley. She acknowledged Nicole's presence with a nod, but had a weird look in her eye as she switched the light off in the storage room and made her way into Nedley's office, Nicole trailing her curiously. "Waverly, can we talk?" The younger girl ignored the request, but pushed Nicole out of the way of the office door, closing it and locking them in the room. "What're you do—"
Nicole never got to finish the question because Waverly had seized her by the shoulders and short-circuited her brain by crashing their lips together and quickly moved them away from the door and onto the couch in her coach's office.
Her brain was caught somewhere between the thoughts Waverly Earp is kissing me (!) and Is it possible for lips to feel so perfect (?!) and Well this is certainly not something friends do.
It was that final thought that caused her to pull away from the girl.
"What happened to friends?" She asked, still trying to catch her breath from the ambush.
Waverly sat up straight, looking straight at Nicole, a turmoil behind her eyes.
"You know what I've been thinking about for the last two weeks?" She asked. Nicole shook her head in response. "I've been thinking about how upside down my life has been. But you know what?"
"What?"
"It's been upside down for more than just the last two weeks. It's not new, so what's the difference? Why now do I feel so lost, so topsy-turvy?"
Nicole just fixed her with a confused look, her mind still reeling from the kiss.
"Something in my life was temporarily removed two weeks ago, and I was lost without it, but the thing is, I didn't even know that thing was so important."
"What is it Waves? Is that why you were so off? I can help you find it—or replace it. Is that why we fought?" Nicole rattled off questions. "Sorry about that, by the way."
"No…well, yeah, but it's not a thing per se."
"What is it then?"
"You know, all week everybody was telling me I was pouting. Gus said I'd been miserable ever since the team left, Wynonna teased me about calling to make sure you were okay after the game, but Champ made a comment about us being so close and it…scared the shit out of me, because, well…you kinda scare the shit out of me."
"I scare you?" Nicole's face softened.
"Yes." Waverly sighed. "If you never started working here, I'd've been fine with the team being gone for so long, but you were gone for almost two weeks and I was miserable, and I had time to think about when we'd interact and I realized some things…some feelings that I'd definitely never thought could exist."
Nicole could hardly believe what she was hearing, her heart soared, feeling lighter than it had in days, knowing that Waverly (might have) had a crush on her back.
"Are you saying—"
"—Yes." Waverly didn't let her finish. "I wanna apologize to you…that fight, you didn't deserve that. I was scared, scared of how you made me feel, even when you weren't here. I didn't want to believe what all the signs were showing me. Because, when I slowed myself down enough to see them, they all lit up neon and pointed straight to you, and your smile, and your laugh, and your charm, and-and…" As Waverly spoke, the smile on Nicole's face grew larger, and she felt the collective ache of her head and her heart from the last couple of days dissipate, leaving her happier than she had been in a long time. "I really don't know what I'm doing Nicole, maybe I should stop talking."
"You're getting better already." She smirked, and she saw a switch flip behind Waverly's eyes, almost like she remembered their current position, her on top of Nicole on the couch in Nedley's office.
"Maybe you should stop talking, too." The brunette said, her unsure voice beginning to take on certainty.
Well this, Nicole knew how to handle. All she had to do was nudge Waverly in the right direction.
"Why don't you make me?"
And so Waverly did. (Suddenly, Nicole wasn't jet-lagged anymore).