#bornbackwardish

“It is,” Evgeni agreed, hunching down to let the puppy sniff his fingers.

“Why’s there a puppy by my front door?” Sidney asked, sounding confused, “I have a fence to keep things like this from happening.”

Evgeni shrugged, having been deemed worthy by the puppy and now petting its head, “Magic gift for us to practice parenting on?”

Sidney was now looking at the puppy with something akin to horror on his face and he pointed at the puppy again, “You think that puppy is a magic parenting puppy?”

The puppy in question licked at Evgeni’s fingers. He picked it up, picked her up, and kissed her little forehead. “Sid, it’s just lost puppy. New friend for Sam maybe?”

“New friend for Jeffrey,” Sidney muttered back, a little caustically, as Evgeni gasped in faux-outrage.

“Jeffrey would eat in single bite,” he replied mournfully, “Just like he probably do to me.”

Sam came trotting up as Sidney pulled out his phone, murmuring to himself about finding the number for animal control. The two dogs sniffed at each other for a moment and Evgeni pet them both when they turned to him with wagging tails. Sam cast Sidney a dubious look when he turned so his back was to them, eyeing the bulk of his caboose as if he would sit on her at any moment.

“We could keep,” Evgeni suggested as the puppy squirmed with happiness when he scratched her ears, “Joint custody dog.”

Sidney glanced over his shoulder at him, then looked at the puppy, then at Sam. Sam peered back at him and wagged her tail slightly. “Would you actually walk the puppy?” he asked with suspicion.

“I’m love our puppy child,” Evgeni swore solemnly, raising his hand in a scout impersonation.

Sidney heaved a sigh and stepped closer, ducking down to extend his fingers towards the puppy. “Okay, we can share the puppy, I guess.”

Evgeni covertly fist pumped.

“If she doesn’t belong to someone already,” he quickly added. So maybe the fist pump wasn’t so covert.

Leaning over to kiss Sidney’s cheek as their fingers intertwined over the puppy’s fur,  he said, “I will love puppy like our unborn child.”

Sidney cast him an exasperated look and then laughed when Evgeni blew in his ear. “Okay, okay, I believe you. I believe you will love Stanley like your own child.”

Evgeni gasped again, this time seriously, and groaned, “Cannot name Stanley.”

“She loves it,” Sidney crooned, scratching under the puppy’s chin until she yipped in happiness. “And I’m telling everyone you named her.”

Scoffing, he replied, “No one believe.” Sidney hummed as the puppy bumped into Sam and fell over. “Right?”

Sidney stood up and the two dogs followed him out into the yard. Evgeni blinked after them and repeated, “Right?”

“If you point out which one you want, I’m grab when no one’s looking,” Geno muttered in his ear as they watched the Little Penguins skate across the ice. Sidney laughed and bumped Geno with his shoulder. “What if I can’t pick just one?”

Geno hummed, watching as one of the children tripped on his own stick and tumbled to the ice. “Can only fit one under jersey, sorry, Sid.” He tilted his chin at the fallen boy, who had landed on his knees and was already pushing back to his skate, “What do you think?”

Watching him push hard to catch up with the group, Sidney smiled softly, “He’s a hard worker.” He tapped his stick on the ice, attracting the attention of the group as they slowly changed course and moved towards the two of them. “They’re all hard workers, aren’t they?”

A child in the front took a spill, knocking down several others in a messy collision and Geno stifled his laughter behind his glove. “You love,” he commented softly, bumping Sidney back with his hip.

Sidney called out an encouragement as he watched them, a few stopping to help the fallen up, and felt his chest warm at the sight of all the enthusiasm, all the love for hockey. He nodded, “I do, I’m so glad I can share the game with them.” His grip tightened on his stick. “I’m glad I, we, can make practice fun for them.”

Leaning closer, Geno said, “They love you too.”

Sidney’s breath caught in his throat, watching the children skate closer, grins on their faces when they looked up at him and Geno. “I’m glad,” he repeated. “I just want to make them happy to play hockey,” he said softly. The first of the children reached him, a beaming blonde girl, and he smiled down at her. “Having fun?” he asked, adjusting his voice to be gentler.

“Oh yeah!” she replied enthusiastically, head nodding so furiously her helmet looked like it’d fall off. “Thanks, Mr. Crosby, thanks, Mr. Malkin.”

New Americana - Halsey Survival of the richest, the city’s ours until the fall They’re Monaco and Hamptons-bound but we don’t feel like outsiders at all

We are the new Americana High on legal marijuana Raised on Biggie and Nirvana We are the new Americana

We know very well who we are, so we hold it down when summer starts What kind of dough have you been spending? What kind of bubblegum have you been blowing lately?

Come Together - Echosmith Here we are, with our backs against the wall. We’ve got big city dreams, but we don’t move from the asphalt. We run away, from our own imagination. But at the same time, we’ve got this amazing fascination.

We’ve got hopes on the horizon. We can’t stop from climbing the mountain. We’re sick and tired of keeping silent.

Diamonds - Johnnyswim You’ve taken down So many others Oh but you’ll know my name when you see And in these ashes I’m stronger still You’ll learn to fear my pain, yeah you will. You’ll learn to fear my pain, yeah you will, yeah you will, yeah you will.

We’re the fire, from the sun We’re the light when the day is done We are the brave, we are the chosen ones We’re the diamonds, diamonds

L.O.V.E. - Ashlee Simpson I’m talkin’ bout love All my girls stand in a circle and clap your hands this is for you Ups and downs highs and lows no matter what you see me through

Pumpin Blood - NONONO Hey ho on the run again Drive is strong, onward Stick and stones won’t take his course Sky got the part, in the front seat It’s the best of world’s feeling, like nothing can go wrong You’re the decider of the world you’ll get to know Cause it’s your heart, it’s alive It’s pumping blood It’s your heart, it’s alive It’s pumping blood And the whole wide world is whistling

Me & My Girls - Selena Gomez If we want it, we take it If we need money, we make it Nobody knows if we fake it You like to watch while we shake it I know we’re making you thirsty You want us all in the worst way You don’t understand I don’t need a man

Renegades - X Ambassadors All hail the underdogs All hail the new kids All hail the outlaws Spielberg’s and Kubrick’s It’s our time to make a move It’s our time to make amends It’s our time to break the rules Let’s begin

Warrior - Ke$ha We were born to break the doors down, Fight until the end. It’s something that’s inside of us, It’s, how we’ve always been, yeah.

Warrior, -rior, -rior, Warrior, -rior! Warrior, -rior, -rior, Warrior, -rior, ow!

Now this is our time, Our generation, And we’re impatient. Animals you ready to fight? Fight for the fuck ups, Stand up for true love, We’ll never give up. Live like it’s our last night alive.

We’re the ones who flirt with disaster, On your ass we’ll pounce like a panther. Cut the bullshit out with a dagger, With a dagger, with a dagger. Do or die we all gonna stay young,

Young Volcanoes - Fall Out Boy When Rome’s in ruins We are the lions Free of the coliseums In poisoned places We are anti-venom We’re the beginning of the end Tonight The foxes hunt the hounds It’s all over now Before it has begun And we’ve already won