Dance like everyone is watching

If you thought you were excited though, your students were practically screaming and running around the classroom when you announced it (so much for your classroom management that day). The morning of the trip, you checked your students in and loaded them onto the bus, sitting down next to the grade chair as the bus left the school parking lot. “So, who is cute on the team?” she asked you.

“What?” you asked with a laugh.

“Out of the Avs. Who do you… Axel sit down right now… think is cute?” She asked again.

“It doesn’t matter. We aren’t here for ourselves, we’re here for the kids,” you said out loud, shaking your head that the one moment you have to meet the Avs you will probably have at least one student hanging off of you like monkey bars.

“So, who said we can’t have a little fun,” she laughed back.

“You’re married Mrs. Ritchy,” you eyed her.

“Married, not blind,” she said, causing you to giggle as you turned around to check on your students. “I bet it’s MacKinnon, he’s your type,” Mrs. Ritchy continued.

“You don’t know my type,” you defended yourself as you felt your cheeks start to turn red at her questioning. Of course you thought the Avs were full of attractive players, Nathan MacKinnon just happening to be on the top of that list for you.

“You thought the maintenance guy was cute the other day. He has MacKinnon’s build,” she shrugged but sent you a smirk. You rolled your eyes playfully, checking in on your kids again as you heard one of them call out to you.

Once at the rink, the students filed out of the busses, the three third grade classes lined up in single files behind their teachers. You let Mrs. Ritchy’s class lead the way, then Mrs. Kirkman’s class. You brought your class up behind everyone, laughing when your line leader was so busy looking around that she walked straight into your back. Your group was directed to the stands, where you made sure each of your students took a seat before even realizing what was going on. Hearing a loud thud, you jumped slightly, turning to see a few of the Avs waving up at your students. The kids all cheered and yelled for their favorite player, and you couldn’t help but smile. A few of the players tossed some pucks over the glass, the students jumping up and down trying to get one. Sitting next to you was your little quiet student, Keily. She was beaming, always the happiest and friendliest girl, but sitting very close to your side as she took comfort in your presence. She was very reserved, and it took a few weeks for her to open up to you.

As you watched Noah catch a puck and wave it around for his friends to see, you heard a knock on the glass and looked up. Nathan MacKinnon was grinning at you, pointing to Keily who smiled even brighter. You nodded, knowing he was trying to get the puck to her. He tossed it over, only for Steven to stand up right in front of Keily and catch it. “Steven, that was for Keily,” you got his attention.

“Oh, sorry Miss Y/L/N,” he said, slightly defeated but handed it to the aforementioned girl. You looked back at the glass, mouthing a thank you to Nate. He nodded and got back to practice.

After practice, you were all ushered into a locker room, soon joined by the team. The students were all sitting on the floor, raising their hands to ask questions. Parent chaperones were milling about the room, as you sat in the back with Mrs. Ritchy and Mrs. Kirkman. As you watched your students interact with the professional athletes, you would glance back up at Nate every so often. To your surprise, he was usually already looking at you. This was not something that went unnoticed by your third-grade team unfortunately. “Alright everyone. We’re going to turn your attention back to you lovely teachers now. They are going to give you instructions on what to do so that way we can get you all out on the ice with us,” Gabriel Landeskog said with a grin, pointing in your direction.

“You’re up,” Mrs. Ritchy nudged you with a wink and a smirk. You smiled.

“You suck,” you said very low through your teeth before turning back to the quietly awaiting third graders. “Okay, if you can hear me clap once,” you said, clapping yourself as you walked to the front of the room to stand in between your kids and the Avs. “If you can hear me clap twice.” Two claps. “If you can hear, touch your nose.” Your kids were ready for the change up, you always changed the last instruction to make sure they were actually listening to you. You saw some of the students that weren’t in your class clap, and even heard a few coming from behind you. “I got you, I got you, I got you,” you said teasingly and the kids all started to giggle. “I even got a few of you,” you said turning around slightly, “Ya’ll need to work on your listening skills,” your students laughed even harder, as did most of the Avs who did not look totally confused and guilty at not realizing you would change the instructions.

“Yeah Dogg, stop looking at the pretty teacher and listen,” you heard muttered behind you, but tried to stay focused on giving your instructions. Dismissing the class one by one to get their skates, you finally had your class stand up.

“Miss Y/L/N, I have a question,” Justin said as you were filing out behind them, the team behind you.

“Mr. Valdez, I have an answer,” you said back as the eight-year-old grinned at you.

“Are you skating too?”

“Of course I am sir,” you answered.

“Can we race?” he looked at you with wide eyes.

“Yeah Miss Y/L/N can we race you?” Steven chimed in.

“You have to promise me one thing,” you said and the boys in front of you nodded. “No crying when I beat you,” you teased and the boys started to laugh. You heard some chuckles from behind you as well.

“You’re on Miss Y/L/N! Let’s gooooooooo” Justin said as he bounced over to get his skates on. Your confidence served you well for about two seconds. You fell down the moment Keily yelled go for you, Steven beating Justin to the other side before they started to laugh at your expense. You laughed along with them, all in good nature as some of the girls started to hover around you asking if you were alright.

“I’m fine you guys, thank you for the concern. Go have fun!” You said, retying Cierra’s skate quickly. You felt a larger presence skate up behind you, then coming into your view as you tapped Cierra’s finished laces and she skated away.

“Are you okay Miss Y/L/N?” Nathan MacKinnon was standing in front of you, extending his hand toward you.

“Pride is a little damaged but I’m fine. Thank you, Mr. MacKinnon,” you replied, taking his hand and he lifted you up easily. He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck, looking down slightly before meeting your gaze. Surely he wasn’t nervous around you, was he?

“Nate,” he said, reextending his hand.

“Y/N” you shook his hand. Feeling yourself start to blush, you tried to keep talking as nerves were getting to you also. “Should I be that embarrassed about that fall?” you giggled as Nate shook his head with a grin.

“No. Just shows you’re a good teacher by messing with them,” he said and you blushed even deeper. You were about to respond when one of your students called out for your attention. After another half hour spent on the ice, it was time to get off the ice and head back to the busses. The Avs sent the kids away with signed memorabilia, and you knew this day would be talked about the rest of the school year. You were lining up your class when Alexa called out to you.

“Teacher mom! When are you getting us a teacher dad?” she said and you laughed while shaking your head. She had started calling you “teacher mom” a few weeks ago as she claimed that being at school all day and you teaching her made you like her mom.

“I’m not sure Lexa, we’ll see,” you said.

“Can he be our teacher dad?” she asked suddenly, pointing at Nate.

“Alexa, we do not say things like that or volunteer people unwillingly,” you corrected her and she pouted. “Sorry about that,” you said to Nate as he seemed to be turning red.

“It’s fine. Listen to Miss Y/L/N you guys, she seems like a great teacher,” he said with a grin and you nodded in thanks, leading your class out to the buses and loading them on.

“Listen to Miss Y/L/N, she seems great” Andre mimicked Nate, the later hockey player rolling his eyes and shoving the curly haired man out of the way. “Okay teacher dad.” The team did not let Nate live that down for a few weeks.

2.

The next time you saw Nate was the last day of school before winter break. You had heard some of the Avs would be coming onto campus for the fifth and sixth graders to discuss the importance of having an active life style. With fifth grade being the first year for the presidential fitness test, it always helped to give the students a little motivation, and luckily the different sports teams in Denver never minded volunteering their time at local elementary schools. You weren’t expecting to see them though, slightly saddened about missing another chance to see the blue eyed Canadian.

You were cutting ribbons and twine, making sock snowmen with the students as holiday music played in the background. There was glitter all over the floor, you included, and you were pretty sure you had some red paint in your hair from when the bottle exploded half an hour ago. You were too busy laughing with your students to really care though. It was the day before break, who really cared if things got a little messy?

There was a loud knock at your door, and you winced slightly. It was probably the principal coming to tell you your class was being too loud…it’s happened before. You walked over and pushed the door open with your back, keeping an eye on your students with scissors. “Arely do not cut your hair! Not your shirt either!” You yelled and Arely gave you his sweetest smile that you just shook your head at. He put down the scissor though and went back to decorating his snowman.

“Sounds like a party in here,” a deep voice said, and you remembered you had opened the door for someone. Turning quickly, you were met with three large bodies. Andre Burakovsky, Erik Johnson, and none other than Nathan MacKinnon, all of whom were grinning at you. You noticed a slight tint to Nate’s cheeks, but played it off as being from the slight chill in the hallways.

“Hi. Can I help you guys?” you asked, flushing slightly as you realized the mess you probably looked. Steven walked up behind you and stopped, him being slightly taller than average for his age and you not the tallest person, he saw who you were talking to and raced under your arm in the doorway to approach the three men.

“You guys are really here! Can you come to our class? Can you watch the movie with us?” he fired off. The men laughed as you tied to tug the excited boy back.

“Steven, they’re probably busy. Get back in the classroom please.” You spoke calmly, Steven pouting and going to stand behind you so he could still see the hockey players. You turned to him and made a shooing motion with your hand and he walked back to his table.

“Sorry, he loves sports in general and can be quite distracted,” you giggled as another one of your students held their snowman up for you to see. “Very nice Ellie.”

“It’s fine. What movie are we talking about?” Erik asked and you smiled.

“Polar Express,” you answered.

“Can we stay?” he asked, raising an eyebrow. You laughed, opening the door a little wider.

“Of course. If you guys want to join a table and make a sock snowman, the kids can show you how!” Erik and Andre walked right in, joining tables as your students tried showing their snowmen off for them. Nate paused inside the door and turned toward you.

“It’s nice to see you again,” he said so only you could hear. You smiled softly, letting the door close behind you.

“You too Nate.” What you didn’t know was that the guys specifically sought you out when they arrived at the school in the morning. After talking with a few classes, Andre asked where your class was, dragging an embarrassed Nate behind him as Erik tagged along.

When everyone was done with their sock snowmen, you had your tables clean up as you prepared the snacks for the movie. Nate watched you walk around the classroom and interact with your students with a smile on his face. He was enamored by you, and his teammates could tell. Without thinking twice, he stood up and walked over to help you distribute the snacks. You were sitting in the back of the room keeping an eye on your class as Alexa walked over to you. “Are you sure he is not teacher dad?” she whispered to you. You laughed this time and shook your head.

“What did I tell you about saying that Lexa?” you asked quietly and the eight-year-old ducked her head.

“Fine,” she mumbled and went back to her seat.

3.

You hadn’t had any more chance run ins with Nate after that day at work. You were disappointed, but expected as much. The two of you led very different lives, and really, what were you expecting? For him to fall for the third-grade teacher, red paint in her hair and all? Well yes…a girl could dream right?

It was teacher appreciation week and you were enjoying a chocolate bar for lunch that one of your students had given you earlier that day. While you were setting up for a science experiment, your door flung open to reveal Mrs. Ritchy. “Have you heard?” she grinned and you laughed.

“You know I only hear things from you so obviously not,” you laughed. “What’s up?”

“We’re getting an awesome teacher appreciation gift from admin this year,” she leaned against your back counter.

“What, a new coffee pot in the lounge?” you joked, but not really as the one the school currently had always seemed to break.

“Tickets to the Avs game on Friday. Seats right at the glass,” she said with a smile. You turned to her fully with your mouth hanging open.

“Shut up!” you couldn’t believe what she had just said. “How did we manage that?”

“Kelly sent in an email saying how hard working we are, yada yada. They were honoring teachers this week I guess and we were the chosen school,” Mrs. Ritchy explained. You were going to hug your principal the moment you saw her. “But don’t say a word yet until Kelly tells us at the staff meeting tomorrow,”

“I have nothing to tell,” you mimicked zipping your lips. Internally you were bouncing. Front row seats at the Avs game Friday… maybe Nate would recognize you.

~ ~ ~

Friday night came and you were sat between Mrs. Ritchy and Mrs. Kirkman. You were all talking when the Avs came out for warm ups. You cheered for them, then laughed as your group of elementary teachers made it onto the jumbotron. As you looked back over the ice, you watched as Andre skated over to Nate and then motioned in your group’s direction. Nate looked over and smiled, sending a slight wave. You waved back as Mrs. Ritchy nudged you with her elbow and a smirk on her face. Nate skated over, and eyed you while showing you a puck. You smiled at him as he tossed it over the glass for you. The two of you held eye contact until Mikko Rantanen bumped into him, saying something you couldn’t hear. Nate seemed to flush and waved quickly before skating away.

“What was that about!” Ms. Beckman, a second-grade teacher asked from behind you.

“I don’t know,” you laughed, turning the puck over in your hands as a large smile took place on your face.

“Someone has a crush on you. Someone has a crush on you,” Mrs. Kirkman sang teasingly.

“You’ve spent too much time with kids,” you laughed at her, trying to hide the blush on your cheeks that you knew was there. It didn’t work. Not only was Nate chirped relentlessly by his team throughout the game, you were also the topic of teasing the rest of the evening.

4.

A week later you were standing in line at your favorite coffee shop before work started. You were messaging back a parent about the books their student owed to the library, not paying attention to anyone around you. As you stepped up, you ordered your coffee and went to take your wallet out.

“Oh don’t bother. The gentleman in front of you paid for your order,” the barista smiled at you. You looked at her confused.

“Who?” you asked, and the barista pointed off to the side. As you turned to look, you caught sight of a familiar pair of blue eyes. Thanking the barista and leaving a tip, you walked over to Nate. “You paid for my coffee?” you smiled up at him, and he shrugged.

“From what I’ve heard, teachers need their coffee,” he smiled back at you, and you giggled while nodding.

“That would be correct.”

“It’s good to see you again Y/N.”

“You too Nate.” Nate’s name was called, and the two of you made small talk until your name was called also. You grabbed your coffee, then walked back over to Nate, preparing to say goodbye as you had to get going to work. “Thank you for this. It was kind of you,” you said with a smile, and Nate rubbed the back of his neck.

“Yeah, what if I had a motive for it though?” he mumbled, and you gave him a quizzical look. “I was hoping to be able to see you again soon,” he explained, and your brain short-wired.

“What?” you asked, a bit too quickly.

“If you don’t want to it’s fine. I just thought…” Nate started to ramble so you cut him off.

“No, I want to see you again,” you smiled and he shot you back a grin. “I have to get to work right now, but let me see your cup,” you said, taking a pen out of your bag as he handed it over to you. You wrote down your number and handed it back to him. “See you around?”

“I’ll call you,” he grinned, and you smiled up at him as the two of you walked out of the coffee shop together.

+ 1

Nate did as he said and called you that evening. You both talked a bit before he asked you to dinner. That one dinner turned into two, which then turned into three and you became exclusive. You finished the school year as Nate finished the season, and you were both able to spend some more time together. Nate came to your classroom to help you clean up and shove all the desks against the wall, and you visited him in Cole Harbor when he went back home for a month during the off season. Once back in Denver, besides your jobs, the two of you were inseparable.

That was how when the Avs went back to your school the following year to speak with the new class of fifth graders again, Nate was automatically in your room helping you with the Christmas party. You laughed, spotting some paint in his hair like it was in yours just a year prior. Nate loved watching you with your class though. The connection you built with your students made the classroom a warm and caring space, and he admired that about you. He also admired the fact that when a student of yours was hurt, you calmly took care of them and calmed them down instead of just freaking out and sending them to the nurses.

“Mr. MacKinnon, can you help me tie this please?” Brooke asked as she was struggling getting the ribbon on her snowman.

“No problem,” Nate said, helping the eight-year-old while you looked on. Seeing Nate with your class always made you feel butterflies as you started to think about having kids of your own one day with him. Who doesn’t love a guy that’s great with kids?

You started to pass out the popcorn while Nate passed around the juice boxes. Once the movie was on, he sat with you at your desk, watching the movie while you finished grading before break. There was a knock at your door, your door monitor opening it. Alexa walked over to your desk and you smiled at her. “Hey Lexa, what’s up?”

“Hi Miss Y/L/N. Mr. Thompson is wondering if you had any glue sticks we could borrow?” She asked, looking around the room.

“How many?” you asked, walking over to a cupboard.

“Four,” she answered, smiling when she recognized Nate. He smiled back at her. Walking over, you handed her the glue sticks. “Thanks teacher mom. Bye teacher dad,” she skipped out of the room before you could correct her. Nate chuckled beside you as you sat back down.

“Sorry,” you apologized for her.

“Don’t be. I think it’s funny. It’s cute she calls you teacher mom,” he said, giving your hand a quick squeeze since you had told him before coming back to your classroom that he wasn’t allowed to kiss you with your kids present.

Half an hour later it seemed that the whole Avalanche team had found your classroom and decided to partake on the snacks and movie. You laughed as they sat their large bodies down on extra classroom chairs and the floor, your students absolutely ecstatic to share their food and space with the athletes. You had a packed classroom before you knew it and laughed when Cale raised his hand to ask if he could use the restroom. Tyson also came up to you because he gave himself a papercut while coloring (you were still trying to work out how that happened) and you gave him a Phineas and Ferb band aid. EJ became jealous of it and just flat out asked you for one. You complied and gave him the last one in the box that you had, and he said he would buy you a whole new box. Nate just laughed at his team’s antics, grateful he found someone who didn’t think they were all crazy.

At the end of the day you had given all the kids their Christmas presents and wished them a happy winter break. After leading them out to the front and making sure they were all picked up, you walked back to your room to find the guys cleaning up snacks. “I should have you guys here more often,” you joked and Nate walked over to you and finally kissed you after not being able to all day. You smiled into the kiss, laughing as you heard chirps from the guys.

“Ewww, cooties” EJ said as he walked by with a bag of trash, Nate flipping him off. After your classroom was rid of all the junk food, the guys started to take off.

“Bye teacher mom,” Andre said while giving you a hug and you laughed. After hearing Alexa call you that last year, a few of the guys had taken to it and would teasingly call you it. “Coming teacher dad?”

“Naw, I’m going to stay here with Y/N till she leaves,” Nate said and Andre smirked.

“Don’t make any teacher babies,” he said over his shoulder.

“Andre! This is an elementary school. Watch what you say,” you scolded in your “teacher voice”, praying that administration was not around to hear his comment. Andre just laughed and waved goodbye. Nate came up behind you and wrapped his arms around your waist now that everyone was gone and it was just the two of you in your classroom.

“You know I think it’s hot when you use your ‘teacher voice’ right?” he muttered in your ear before planting a few kisses on your neck.

“You know we’re in a classroom and nothing is going to happen right?” you giggled and Nate let out a huff.

“Yes Miss Y/L/N.”