"And where are you off to this lovely afternoon," Connie had her arms crossed when Julie exited the bathroom, "and looking like that?"
The star goalie in question glanced down to the airy light blue summer dress she decided on and lightly fingered the ends of her hair pulled over a shoulder, "Just going out for breakfast, I'll be back in time so we can leave together for pre-game practice."
"Cat," Connie stopped her best friend as she started for the door, "who's all going? If you give me a minute I'll go with you."
"Oh, well uh," Julie searched for the right way to say this; finally she simply sighed and told her the truth, "it's kind of a date."
"A date? Really?"
She nodded and pulled the straps of her purse up to her shoulder, "Yeah, we're just going to talk things out and see where that leaves us."
Connie grinned, "And who's the lucky guy? Its Gunnar isn't it!? That is so adorable, you two are like a modern day Romeo and Juliet! Except for like hockey sticks and evil teammates and stuff."
"Yes and I promise to talk about it later, but I need to go or I'll be late."
Before her roommate could usher her out the door there was a knock. Julie already began blushing and sure enough there was her date on the other side looking far too attractive for a supposedly casual lunch date. Connie made sure to say hello but he barely glanced at her; it seemed his sole focus was on the blushing girl that refused to meet his gaze.
It was quiet between them as they rode down the elevator, though she felt pretty amazing as he held her hand and walked through the lobby and out into the streets of Los Angeles. Apparently he had a taxi waiting for them and he pulled her to sit close to him as he gave the instructions to the driver.
They were still holding hands.
"I never told you Julie, you look beautiful," he told her quietly as the scenic view passed them by.
"Thanks," and she daringly placed her head against his shoulder, "not so bad yourself."
She could feel the vibration of his amusement as a small chuckle escaped his throat, "Yah." He was proud and confident, but that large ego from a year ago hadn't shown up once since being reunited. If this was him, the real Gunnar Stahl, then she never really had a chance once he set his sights on her. She just hoped and prayed that he wasn't playing games, because she wasn't and Julie knew she will have a hard time recovering if this was a joke just to get back at her.
She sat up further in her seat as she saw they were going right to the ocean. He placed his hand at the small of her back when they got out from the taxi and he tipped the driver, leading her towards a large indoor/outdoor beach hut that operated a bakery and café. Before they went inside they stood there, with his arm around her waist and stared out into the rolling waves cascading along the sandy beach. It was beautiful with the haze of the afternoon sun kissing the waves with its glow.
The star from Iceland was proving to be quite the gentleman, he paid for their meal and let her pick where they would sit. She chose a spot outside so they could continue to watch the ocean. She was a little surprised to see that they were really comfortable being around each other. After all that awkwardness that led up to their first kiss things had shifted to something that meant a little more. Julie was so nervous earlier but as soon as he took hold of her hand everything just felt…right.
"So," he began after sipping on some tea, "I should say I am sorry for being all sweaty when I kissed you."
"Don't apologize Gunnar," she fought off a blush at the memory of his lips so thoroughly taking her own, "I," she hesitated but when he grabbed her hand she carried on, "I'm not sorry at all."
He then covered both of her hands with his own, leaning closer to her on the table that separated them to say, "I want to kiss you again, what do you think about that, Julie?"
"What do I think about that? Gunnar, I asked you before but, what are we really doing here? I just," she removed her hands from his and sat back against her chair, her eyes roving over the golden sand, "I really like you and," it is completely scary, "I'm confused."
"I like you to, you know that," he stood and held out a hand for her to take and they started walking towards the beach. They paused as she removed her sandals so she could feel the sand through her toes, "Does it help to know I am just as confused? I really did think about you all the time, and at first I didn't know why. But you showed me so much Julie, you have no idea how much meeting you changed everything I ever knew. For months I practiced that move over and over again. Yah, and I realized that I did nothing wrong, that it was all you. Some cute girl from America was somehow, in many ways, a better player than I could ever be."
"That's not true and you know it," she told him as they reached the shoreline and a small wave covered her feet, "no one can deny that you were the best player last year."
"The best player didn't win, and it was thanks to you that I learned the player does not get the win, the team does. I'm not the only one who has realized this, my team is different as a whole."
"Yes, I noticed," she admitted, "I still have some fears though, I hope you can understand. Believe me, I want to be with you. But what happens when the tournament is over and you go back home?" That and…what if this was his way of getting revenge on her? She wanted so badly for this to be real, it felt real, it would devastate her if he was only playing her, "I mean, you might have someone waiting for you in Iceland and…"
"There is no one else. I haven't stopped thinking about you for almost a year. I remember that calm and confident gleam in your eyes and it just, it did something. I can handle long distance." They stopped walking and he turned to face her, "I wasn't sure what I was feeling, but then I saw you standing there and I knew. I know it doesn't make sense, I wish you could understand what you have done for me." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "If you don't feel the same then tell me. I will not bother you anymore."
"How could you think that?" She stepped closer and wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head against his chest as she quietly admitted, "If we are being honest then you have to know that I've never stopped thinking about you since that night either. Every time I closed my eyes there you were, staring back at me. I know, it sounds so crazy."
"It doesn't," he placed his chin over her head and held her against him, "I don't want to waste this time we have together. But Julie," he pulled back, his hands followed along the curve of her jaw-line on either side of her face until his fingers disappeared into her thick hair, "My feelings for you are real, I promise."
She moved forward and kissed him first, needing him to know that she believed in him. They are young, he was seventeen and she was just a few months shy of the same age. And this was all happening so fast; it was easy to get caught up in the moment. And the second her lips met his that is exactly what happened. All those long months of remembering him surged to the surface as she felt his hands casually caress her arms and moved to grab her waist to pull her closer against his body. The way he was so gentle and honest with her from the moment they were reunited filled her heart even as her hand gently caressed the side of his face and moved into his sandy blonde hair.
They remained on the beach for the rest of the morning, mostly kissing but talking as well as they continued to explore and get to know one another better. It was so new and exciting and neither ever wanted it to end. They were quiet on the trip back to the hotel, he held her to him the whole way, placing soft kisses to her temple every once in a while.
When they reached her door he promised that he'd be at the Ducks game that night. He grinned and pushed her against the wall and kissed her all over again. She had joked that at least this time she wasn't stepping on his feet but he just nuzzled her neck in response.
By the time she closed the door behind her she couldn't keep the happy smile from her face as she fell backwards onto her bed. Julie let out a little giggle and went through all that happened that morning in her mind all over again. She still had a hard time believing this was really happening to her. Gunnar was hands down the cutest guy she'd ever laid eyes on and now…now they were dating. Hm, maybe she should call him back just so he could remind her that she really wasn't dreaming.
She grinned as a knock came to the door, laughing she quickly got up to answer expecting to see Gunnar there, only to find someone else on the other side. "Adam," unconsciously her eyes looked up and down the hallway, "hey come on in."
"Looking for someone?" he asked and shut the door behind him.
"Not really, so what's going on? Are you ready for tonight?"
He nodded, "Always. I just wanted to talk to you for a little bit."
Julie looked into his eyes and could see pain and confusion there. Moving towards him she put a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Adam, what's wrong."
"My parents," he solemnly told her, already knowing she'd keep quiet what he would confide in her, he could trust her, "they're thinking of trying again. I'm just so sick of this."
They talked privately for a little while longer and she helped him feel better. Julie really wanted to tell him about her new relationship with Gunnar but felt that their conversation should focus on him and what was going wrong in his life. That's what friends were for, and Adam had been nothing but a good friend to her since day one. But she knew something like this couldn't stay a secret for long, and wanted to make sure her closest friends heard it straight from her first.
After talking everything out, Adam escorted her through the hotel and across the street to the ice arena to prepare for the game. Julie had the start again but honestly no one was too worried. They were facing off against Trinidad and really they had only a handful of players to watch out for. Still, it was important to be prepared against all opponents.
Julie stepped out on the ice for the game with her teammates and went straight to her net to get ready. Connie skated up to her and circled around while telling her to look behind their bench. Sure enough, there she found Gunnar sitting beside Olaf as they were talking amongst themselves. It brought a smile to her face knowing he came just for her.
"So," Connie dragged out while they still had some time alone, "how did the date go."
"It was good," Julie was doing her best to ignore her friend's attempt to get more information. She would share, but not right before the game!
The pretty forward simply sighed, "Fine, fine. Let's get this party started."
Cat shook her head and glanced back over to Gunnar to find his gaze locked on her. At his familiar smirk she hid a grin and pulled her mask over her face. It was time to get serious.
A/N **Blu - and I should be working on my LOTR fic but thx to Lady C. I'm busy getting the image of Gunnar Stahl and Elias Lindholm mixed up in my head. Oh yes Lady, I blame you, ha ha. Just want to thank everyone staying with me on this story, I'm having a blast and I hope you can enjoy!