__

You sit down on the couch in your apartment, glancing down at your phone but knowing better. He was out with the guys and he’d told you that would be the plan two days ago when he’d spent the night. You had told him to have fun and planned for a much needed relaxing night in. 

You can’t help the sigh you let out, even though you knew you weren’t supposed to be hearing from him. It was always supposed to just be a hookup for the two of you, but as always, someone is bound to catch feelings and it happened to be you. You loved spending time with Mike whenever he wasn’t too busy, and even though it was “just a hookup” as he said, he was also pretty public with you. It made for some mixed signals at the least. 

You’d gone out together, he hung around your place and your friends pretty frequently, and he’d even admitted he cared about you a time or two before. The only thing missing from it all was him being willing to commit to a real relationship and it felt like that might never come around. 

__

Mike checks his phone for the fifth time in ten minutes when Owen finally calls him out. 

“What’s your issue, Vorlicky? Your girl not checking in to see if you’re safe?” Owen teases, a little smirk crossing his face. Everyone knew Mike had it bad for you but he was the only one who wouldn’t admit to it. 

Mike scoffs, trying to play it off like he usually did, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but no. It was the family group chat. My mom had a question for my brother and I.”

The lie rolls off his tongue easily but Owen is less than convinced. He doesn’t press the issue though and just nods before turning his attention back to the conversation he’d been in before interrupting Mike’s daydream. 

Mike runs a hand through his hair and checks his phone again. When had he started to get like this? He didn’t mean to catch feelings for you but he definitely did. Now he seldom spent a day away from you and it was starting to scare him. He figured a night out with the boys would fix all that but all he wanted was to call you and crawl into your bed. He swore it was easier to sleep with you next to him but he’d deny it if the guys ever asked. 

Maybe if he got his mind off you then he’d be able to move on. Maybe then he wouldn’t worry about what you were up to at every minute of the day. He notices Shay and Dylan keeping the attention of a few girls and he wonders when the last time he tried to turn the charm on was. He figured now was a good time to try. 

He walks over and claps Shay on the shoulder but he smirks at the girls standing there. One looks up at him and flashes him a quick smile. He knows she’s up to no good and he entertains it. He introduces himself and starts up his usual questions: what’s your major, where are you from, and what do you think of hockey players. 

“And so yeah, hockey is like super awesome,” she nods, finishing her ten minute explanation of why she just loved hockey. 

Mike is pretty sure she hasn’t ever watched a single game in her life and he only hears maybe every third word she says. He’s not drunk, not even close, and he knows he’s not listening because he’s comparing her to you. Her hair is shorter and not something you’d probably ever like to try, she wears heels and he knows how you feel about heels at the bar, and most of all Mike can tell she’s got her makeup caked on. 

The girl leans in and squeezes his arm, mumbling something about going to get another drink. He knows he’s supposed to offer to buy hers since he’s been giving her all this attention, but he’s faking it. He shakes his head a little and leans closer. 

“Hey, I’m really sorry but I need to go. I hope you have fun tonight though,” he apologizes, giving her a tight smile. He doesn’t miss the disappointment on her face but he can’t play games any longer. 

He turns and catches Ryder’s eye, who had apparently been watching him long enough to know what was going on. Ryder shakes his head at Mike but he’s smiling at the same time. 

“You’re going to her place, aren’t you?” Ryder asks once Mike makes his way over. A little shrug of his shoulders is the only answer that Mike provides, but they both know better, “tell her I said hi. We won’t wait up for you tonight.”

Mike feels a little lighter for a moment and pulls out his phone. He opens the messages between the two of you, ones that go back months and months now, but he locks his phone again and puts it away. He figured you won’t be upset if he just showed up. 

__

You finish your glass of wine and rinse it out in the sink, shutting off the kitchen light on the way out. You walk over to the windows and look out at the city below you. People were going in and out of buildings all over, but none of them were Mike and you certainly weren’t with him. 

You frown, hating that you felt so dependent on him, and decide that maybe it was just time to go to sleep. You double check the locks on the front door and head into your room without even checking your phone. You go through your night time routine and just as you’re setting your toothbrush back in its spot you swear you hear a knock on the front door. 

Your heart rate picks up a little because there’s no reason anyone should be stopping by, but another knock confirms that someone is definitely on the other side of the door. You suck in a breath and quickly tiptoe back out, not turning on any lights and somehow not stubbing your toe like you half expected to. You lean up to see out the peephole and immediately start swearing under your breath as you whip the door open. 

“What the hell, Mike?” You ask, pushing his chest. 

He gives you the most confused look ever as he grabs your wrist, “what do you mean? What’s wrong?”

“You can’t show up in the middle of the night and scare a girl like this!”

You let out a little laugh and he relaxes then, letting your hand go. He thought you were legitimately upset and he’s more than happy to find that you were just caught off guard. He smiles then and goes to walk in, but you put an arm up on the door frame. He gives you a questioning look that you return immediately. 

“I thought you were out with the boys tonight?” You inquire, looking him up and down. He was certainly dressed like he was ready to go out, but him being in front of you said otherwise. 

He shrugs, trying to play it cool, “I did go out, but I’m done now.”

You squint a little as you ask, “and the boys? They’re done and back at their places too?”

Mike’s cheeks start to redden a bit and you have to fight off a smile. Had he really bailed on the boys to come hang out with you? You missed him, of course, but you definitely expected to not see him until at least the next day. 

“I was done. Am I allowed in now?”

You step back and let him walk in, locking the door all over again and turning towards him. He has his hand sticking out, waiting for you to grab it. It’s silent between the two of you, but it feels charged. It feels like there’s a lot unsaid between you both. 

You let Mike lead you over to your couch despite the fact you were definitely ready for bed. The lights from the city pour into the room, leaving it illuminated enough to not need any other lights. 

“I tried to flirt with someone tonight,” he admits, trying a couple times to meet your eyes, but he keeps glancing away. 

You frown, a weird pit forming in your stomach, and all you can say is, “oh.” 

“I couldn’t do it. I don’t even know what her name was and I know she wasn’t as pretty as you.”

You snap your eyes up to look at him and squeeze his hand that you still haven’t let go of, wanting more of an explanation. 

“I always said I wouldn’t date in college. It’s supposed to be when you have fun and go out. You get to meet new people all the time. I guess I didn’t expect to meet someone I’d like so much,” he says quietly, but he looks up finally to make eye contact. 

Your heart feels like it could pop out of your chest at any moment and you really can’t fight the smile off that makes its way over your features. 

“Mike,” you mumble, stepping closer and wrapping your arms around his shoulders, “are you trying to say you like me?”

“I think you knew I liked you,” he says, but he’s still blushing as he does, “but I didn’t really know if you felt completely the same.”

You bite your lip and play with the hair at the nape of his neck, watching as he relaxes under your touch, “I tried really hard not to like you. I figured it was a one or two time thing when we first hung out, but it just kept going. Then I told myself that I couldn’t fall for you because you were a hockey player, and well, that apparently didn’t matter.”

Mike smiles at you, his eyes going a little wide as he realizes what you were saying, “so you do like me? Like you don’t want to go to the bar and flirt with someone else either?”

You laugh and shake your head at his question, “no, Mike, I don’t want to go flirt with anyone else at the bar that isn’t you.”

“So maybe we give this a try? Because I can’t handle going downtown again and trying to act like I wouldn’t rather be with you,” he says honestly, giving you a bit of a sheepish smile. 

You lean in, kissing him slowly and softly. You think you could probably kiss him forever if the real world didn’t intervene with it, but you take what you can as often as you can with him. You lean your forehead against his and soaking things in for a minute. 

“Ryder says hi,” Mike whispers, a little grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. 

“I love that boy,” you smile, watching Mike’s expression quickly turn a little sour as you amend the statement, “but not the way I love you.”

He raises an eyebrow at you, smirking as he mumbles, “you got so soft on me. Who are you anymore?”

You laugh and push away from him, knowing damn well he was the one who’d gone soft. You start to walk towards your bedroom but he catches your wrist quickly, tugging you back against him. 

“I was planning to spend the night?” He asks, his tone unsure despite the fact you’d never told him he couldn’t. 

You smile at him, giving him a little nod, “I don’t care if you spend every night here from now on, but I’m a little wine drunk and I’d like to get to bed.”