They’re doing it again 🙄

Robbie’s pretty used to hanging out with guys from other teams after games. The Caps are a friendly fucking bunch, and while nothing like the Caps-Panthers increasingly gigantic hangout happens with other teams, presumably because Chaps isn’t, you know, dating any other team captain, as long as it wasn’t a bad blood game there’s a better than even chance at least one dude’s breaking off to go see an old teammate, or training buddy, or whatever.

Robbie knows a few of the guys on the Nucks, but none better than kind of peripherally. One was down in Hershey for awhile, played a few games with them years back, didn’t make much of an impression, at least with Robbie. Cap Q greeted him like an old friend, but that doesn’t really mean anything — it’s literally the dude’s job, or part of it. Another guy was the linemate of a dude Robbie trained with, and man did he have some stories about him. Nobody he really knows, and nobody the guys really know, so Robbie’s not expecting to see half a dozen Canucks at their bar after the game.

“Didn’t think we knew any Canucks,” Robbie says. He recognizes the old sorta Cap — Kiefer — but that’s it. Oh, and Oleg’s brother. He guesses that counts as a Canuck-Cap connection.

“Oleg’s brother’s on the Canucks,” Chaps says, right on cue.

“Doesn’t Oleg hate his brother, though?” Robbie asks.

Chaps frowns at him and waves a hand, and Robbie’s not sure if that’s supposed to be ‘no, what the hell, Bardi’, or ‘yes, but we don’t talk about it, you’re not supposed to admit you hate family’. Robbie would ask, but Oleg waylays Chaps then, very much like a man who would like someone to stand between him and his brother. Hates him. Robbie called it.

It’s not that he really minds tag-a-longs. They happen in every city, and Robbie would prefer a player he’s a degree or two away from in the Kevin Bacon scheme of things than some chick a guy’s picking up, or hockey fans that figured out they were there and decided to gawk at them from across the bar, elbowing each other, like ‘can you believe that’s David Chapman right there, drinking a beer?’ as if that’s super exciting and not Chaps just sitting around until he feels like he can safely duck out without breaking Caps socializing rules. Robbie swears he’s got a fucking clock in his head, he’s so consistent about it. Or like. On his phone. Probably just uses the one on his phone.

Chaps isn’t looking at his phone for once, sandwiched between Sanny and a guy talking his ear off who’s like, practically David level pretty, so pretty fucking pretty. Robbie’s at least eighty percent sure the dude’s hitting on Chaps, just from body language, and about ninety percent sure that David is completely unaware that the dude’s hitting on him. Chaps, man.

Maybe it’s not hitting on him though, because when Robbie passes by on the way to grab drinks for the Class of Canadiana after losing rock-paper-scissors, David’s getting an earful about his Art Ross season. To be fair, gushing about someone’s hockey can look a hell of a lot like wanting to fuck someone. It can get confusing.

Sanny joins him at the bar, ordering a slew of drinks that aren’t even fucking drinks. White wine spritzer? Robbie wishes he thought Sanny was getting that for his girlfriend, but it’s probably for him. Grace has better taste than that.

“Grace says stop hiding from your rematch like a coward,” Sanny says while they wait for their drinks. Might be awhile, judging by the trays of shots multiple bartenders are working on. Robbie would be more annoyed if he didn’t know the likelihood it was a Cap ordering them.

Robbie sputters. “I’m not hiding,” he says.

“Hm,” Sanny says.

“We can’t exactly do it here,” Robbie says.

“Dougie invited us over this weekend,” Sanny says.

Robbie sighs. He guesses he’s going to Matty and Wheels’ place to get his ass kicked by a girl, then. That or he’s getting teased by them for being afraid of getting his ass kicked by a girl. His poor fucking ego. It’s frankly unfair how good she is at literally any game he can think of.

“Who’s the hanger-on?” Robbie asks.

“The hanger-on?” Raf asks.

“The Caps fan all over Chaps,” Robbie says. Chaps and Sanny aren’t usually the type to get surrounded by randos. They’re both probably too nice to get rid of them, though — or maybe nice isn’t the word with Chaps. Too polite. “I can tell him to fuck off if you want.”

“Hm?” Sanny asks, looking back at the table, then laughs. “That’s Jared.”

“Okay?” Robbie says.

“Jared Matheson. We train together,” Raf says. “He’s on the Canucks, Bardi.”

“Seriously?” Robbie asks. “Dude looks about a second away from asking Chaps to autograph his boobs.”

Sanny shrugs. “David was one of his favorite players growing up.”

“Growing up?” Robbie sputters. “What is he, five?”

Sanny just smiles at him. It’s easy to forget how much younger Sanny is, just because the dude’s the kind of guy who was probably more mature than Robbie by the time he hit kindergarten, ‘old soul’ or some shit. Growing up, Jesus.

Jared continues to look completely riveted by whatever Chaps is saying, and Robbie loves the dude, but he is not riveting unless you’re Jake Lourdes. And even then Robbie’s pretty sure Lourdy’s less listening and more lovingly gazing upon him. What’s Chaps telling him, the importance of putting one-hundred and ten percent into everything you do? Get pucks deep?

“Who the hell’s drinking that spritzer anyway?” Robbie asks. “Please tell me it’s not you.”

“It’s Jared’s,” Sanny says.

“So he does like dudes then?” Robbie asks.

Sanny freezes. “For — drinking wine spritzer?” he asks with a scoff. “Way to stereotype, Bardi.”

“Nah,” Robbie says. He did a pretty good job there, but the way he went stock-still was a pretty big giveaway. That was a man whose brain was going ‘fuck fuck fuck’. “For hitting on Chaps all night. Should probably let him know Chaps isn’t single.”

“He isn’t either,” Sanny mutters, then, “I don’t think he’s hitting on him. Or like. Knows that he is.”

“Well,” Robbie says. “That’s kind of impressive. I don’t think I flirted as hard on any first date as he’s doing right now.”

“It really is,” Sanny says. The drinks arrive, and Sanny carefully gathers them up, sort of coltish about it, like he’s terrified of spilling a single drop. This kid can turn anything into a perfectionist thing. It’s honestly impressive.

“Enjoy the show!” Robbie says.

“Fuck you, Bardi!” Sanny says, and Robbie grins as he gathers the beers he ordered and heads back to the guys. He’ll take whatever pint he slops the most beer out of, that’s about all the perfectionism in him about that.

“Where’ve you been?” Matty asks.

“Shots!” Ziggy yells.

When pictures of Bryce Marcus and Erin Matheson surfaced on social media, people were assuming the worst. Bryce Marcus, 25, of the Calgary Flames, is wearing a wedding ring. Erin Matheson, 18, the younger sister of Jared Matheson of the Vancouver Canucks, is not.

The pictures weren’t what they looked like.

“It was crazy getting a call from my mom like ‘twitter’s all saying Bryce is cheating on his wife with you’,” Erin Matheson says, with a slightly incredulous laugh. “I was sleeping and I got that call and I was like ‘wait what?’.”

“Bryce is basically my big brother,” Erin says. “And no offence to Jared, but he’s totally my favourite big brother. I graduated high school and Bryce wanted to do something special to celebrate that so we did a little staycation thing. I think it’s kind of weird that everyone just assumed things. He’s family to us.”

Bryce Marcus and Jared Matheson met at a summer development camp for elite Western Canadian prospects in 2015. Marcus was an associate coach, Jared a camper. By the end of the month, they were inseparable.

“They said he was a coach but he mostly just stood around,” Jared says. “Totally slacking as a coach.”

“Jared didn’t listen to anything I told him,” Bryce counters. “He was totally uncoachable. He listens to my advice now though.”

“He has pretty good advice,” Jared admits. “I definitely listen now. He knows the game inside and out.”

“They instantly clicked,” says Rafael Sanchez of the Washington Capitals, who was also a prospect at that camp, and trains with Matheson in Calgary during the offseason. “They’re really different personalities but they complement one another.”

Chaz Rossi, former linemate of Matheson’s on the Calgary Hitmen and current teammate of Marcus’ on the Calgary Flames, also trains with Sanchez and Matheson during the offseason. He disagrees with Sanchez about how different Matheson and Marcus are.

“They’re actually really similar in a lot of ways. They’re really quiet until you get to know them, pretty introverted people, and they’re two of the best hockey IQs I’ve ever met. Really smart guys. I’m not surprised that things clicked when they met one another. People really underestimate Bryce in a lot of ways, which is frustrating to watch. I can’t imagine how frustrating it must be to deal with every day.”

Rossi is also frustrated with press coverage of Marcus, and unsurprised people assumed Marcus was dating Erin Matheson, who he describes as a ‘cool kid’. “My girlfriend Ashley and I hang out with Bryce a lot,” Rossi says. “We’re tight. So of course everyone was saying that she was Bryce’s secret wife or something. I think it’s really messed up that people think because Bryce plays hockey for a living that he doesn’t get to have privacy. Ash and Bryce were able to brush it off, but it’s messed up.”

<image, selfie of Ashley and Bryce, taken by Ashley Guerin>

<image, Bryce, Jared, Chaz, Raf, and Grace at a restaurant table, taken by Ashley Guerin>

<image, Bryce and Jared and Chaz playing video games, taken by Ashley Guerin>

“We’re all really close during the offseason,” Rossi says. “Bryce doesn’t train with us but he hangs out with our training group and all that. That’s basically our Calgary crew. Whatever happens during the season, we all end up back in the same place, and during the season we’ve got a group chat and everything. And Don and Susan <Matheson> are really welcoming to us too. Basically a Calgary family or something.”

Don Matheson agrees with Rossi that they’re a family.

“Bryce is pretty much a second son to me and Susan,” Don Matheson says. “So at least I have one Flame in the family.”

Jared Matheson groans when he’s told what his father said. “My dad’s been a Flames fan his whole life. It was a little tough when I got drafted by the Oilers. He has Bryce to cheer for, at least. He says he cheers for me when the Canucks play the Flames but I’m not so sure. Depends on the standings, probably.”

The Mathesons, who live in Calgary, almost instantly adopted Bryce into the family, and soon that included his mother, Elaine Marcus. The Mathesons attended Bryce’s wedding, and the two families even share Christmas together.

<image, Elaine and Erin wearing formal attire at an outdoor event>

<image, Bryce and Erin with presents in their laps>

<image, Elaine and Susan with wine glasses, mid-conversation>

“It’s really a comfort knowing Bryce has had a family in Calgary,” Elaine Marcus says. “I feel better knowing that. Bryce lost his dad when he was young, and I think it’s important that he has Don in his life.”

And the hospitality goes both ways — when Jared was traded to the Vancouver Canucks, Elaine was happy to offer him a place to stay.

“Elaine’s amazing,” Jared Matheson says. “One of the nicest people you’ll ever meet. She would even drive me into practice some days, it was like having a mom in Vancouver. It was a big comfort when I was adjusting.”

“He was the perfect house guest,” Elaine says. “He cooks and cleans, unlike someone I won’t name. He was a pleasure to have.”

“It was a relief knowing that Jared was staying with Elaine,” Don Matheson says. “Jared’s really self-sufficient but he’s still young, and you never stop worrying about your kids. But knowing he was with Elaine, I wasn’t worried.”

<picture of Bryce and Jared looking serious mid-conversation, taken by Ashley Guerin>

<picture of Bryce and Chaz on one side of centre ice, in discussion with Jared on the other side of centre ice, courtesy of Getty Images>

We caught up with Matheson and Marcus when the Flames came to Vancouver. They’ve just finished lunch with Bryce’s mother, and managed to find the time to squeeze in a quick interview before they separated for their respective pregames.

“He’s my best friend,” Marcus says, with the earnest seriousness his friends and family all remarked upon. “Some people you just know are supposed to be in your life.”

“I don’t know about best,” Matheson says with a straight face, indulging one of the favourite pastimes of siblings and hockey players alike. “I have a lot of friends.”

“Jared,” Marcus says, in the complaining voice of all siblings facing a chirp.

Matheson grins now that he’s scored his hit.

“He’s my best friend too,” Matheson says.

How is it, being so close to a player on a rival team?

“We put it aside,” Matheson says. “Obviously when it’s game time we both do our best to win, but whatever happens — it’s hockey. You don’t let it define you at the end of the day. Some things are more important.”

“Totally agree,” Marcus says.

Would it be the same if they were to face off in the playoffs this year?

“Absolutely,” Marcus says.

Matheson laughs and disagrees. “All bets are off.”

Raf knew that it wasn’t a very good idea the first time he heard about it. He wasn’t alone in that. Grace knew it. Chaz and Ash knew it. They also all know how stubborn both Jared and Bryce are, but Raf’s more aware than anyone that if you tell Jared his idea is bad he’ll nod and agree with you and then do it anyway, if not something worse.

Raf may have intervened anyway, fruitless cause or not — someone has to tell Jared when he’s being ridiculous, and Raf is resigned to it sometimes being him — but an offhand comment from David means that Raf knows that Gabe Markson’s one of Jake’s closest friends. Raf doesn’t really think he’s going to freak out about his linemate being gay if he didn’t freak out about his former roommate not being straight.

He wonders if Markson’s experience is going to be anything like Raf’s was, watching the two of them at camp, desperately pretending they hated each other and flirting at the same time.

Poor Markson.

*

Legit going to kill him idc if hes our leading scorer

Ashley cannot say she’s surprised to be receiving this text, or even that the text arrives all of two minutes after Chaz sent her We’re going in. Fingers crossed. Honestly, she’d be more surprised not to receive this text, considering the hubris Bryce and Jared had in thinking they’d be able to see each other for the first time in months and not let on that they’re pretty much obsessed with each other. 

Ashley doesn’t mean it in a bad way or an unhealthy way, really, it’s just that those two have basically become her definition of ‘gross lovey-dovey couple’ and she would put money on the fact that Bryce spends more time thinking about Jared than he does anything else, probably including hockey, and that for all Jared would protest, it’s probably mutual. They’re very cute. Sickeningly so sometimes.

Ashley bets they’re doing an absolutely horrendous job of pretending they’re not madly in love right now. She shoots a text to Grace to let her know things are proceeding pretty much as expected. Raf’s on the ice right now, but Ashley imagines he’ll appreciate a play-by-play when he gets off it. The secondhand embarrassment and also amusement is real.

Kill Jared instead, Ashley sends him. Not your leading scorer!

point! Chaz replies.

*

After talking to the press and getting out of his gear, showering, Raf finally lets himself check his phone to find out whether tonight was as big a disaster as he expected it would be. He’s got over two dozen messages between Chaz and Ashley and Grace, and the group chat’s blown up, he should check Chaz’s first since he’s got the firsthand details, and Grace is probably getting the story from Ashley through Chaz, but he opens Grace’s anyway.

Two minutes in Chaz has declared this a failure.

Apparently they’re staring soulfully into one another’s eyes over the table.

Chaz just accidentally made eye contact with Markson and says he definitely knows something’s up.

Chaz and B left. B just told Chaz he thought it went well. Ash says Chaz is about to snap.

There is zero chance that this worked.

Markson told J to go home to his husband so he went home to his husband and then promptly kicked Chaz out of their apartment. Do we consider this a mission success or complete failure? I’m going with ‘mixed’. because Markson was apparently cool about it.

Raf snorts, and David gives him a politely curious look, a silent ‘tell me what’s funny’.

“My friend’s doing this crash and burn stuff,” Raf says. “Grace sent me updates.”

“The ridiculous friend?” David asks.

Jared would be so mad if he heard David say that. And it’s not something Raf’s ever explicitly called him, but he guesses he gave David that impression. Which is — a fair impression.

“Don’t do it don’t do it don’t do it,” Chaz chants, then, “Fuck, Grace!”

“No mercy in Mario Kart,” Grace says. “Enjoy last place, Rossi.”

It’s hilarious, because the worst thing about playing Grace was that she wouldn’t even bother to chirp you, like her victory was all but assured and it’s best to just yawn through the process of beating everyone, but either that doesn’t apply to Mario Kart, or university made Grace mean.

It’s less hilarious when Jared eats shell and goes right off the track to a sugary sweet, “Bye, Matheson.”

“Your girlfriend is a demon,” Jared hisses to Raf, who’s only in second place because she loves him or whatever.

“Suck it, Sanchez,” Grace says.

Raf is no longer in second, and he noticeably doesn’t debate Jared about Grace being a demon.

*

“My point,” Ashley says, with a sweeping motion, nearly knocking Grace in the face before Chaz catches her wrist and gently lowers it. She looks down at Chaz’s hand like she’s trying to figure out where it came from. Jared’s been sipping slowly, but he’s still feeling it, and he’s by far the most sober person in the room right now — even Raf’s pretty tipsy, and Grace might actually be asleep. It’s a good thing they have three straight days off, or Arvan would probably smell the fumes on them the second they walked in the door. He might still.

“What was my point?” Ashley asks after a moment.

“The arbitrary segregation of interrelated courses into discrete categories is fucking with your degree?” Grace says without opening her eyes. Jared guesses she’s not asleep, then. Also he feels like the words ‘fucking with’ don’t belong in the same sentence as ‘arbitrary segregation’, but what does he know. Not what’s discreet about any of that.

“Right!” Ashley says.    

“What the fuck are they talking about?” Bryce whispers in Jared’s ear.

Jared honestly tuned out five minutes ago to wonder if Bryce would eventually notice that he was like, sprawled half on Jared and subsequently freak out about it, because while Ashley and Grace are almost certainly aware that Bryce and Jared are together, they haven’t officially been Told. If he has noticed, he hasn’t done anything about it.

“School?” Jared ventures. It sounds like a school thing, and Ashley and Grace both study at University of Alberta, so school makes sense.

“Like, how many different degrees in design can you offer before you’re just making a mockery of specialization!” Ashley says. “And if this is undergrad, what the hell is post-grad like?”

“I’m so confused,” Bryce says softly.

Jared pats his hand, squeezing when he doesn’t pull away.

*

“M’gonna die,” Chaz says, face buried in his couch cushions. It was a particularly tough day of training, but he’s still being a giant baby.

“Can you let us sit down first?” Jared asks.

Chaz kicks his legs up, drops them right back on Jared after he steals the spot. “Get your fat legs off me,” Jared says.

“My legs are fucking chiseled,” Chaz retorts.

Raf, smarter than Jared, drags a kitchen chair in, so he’s not stuck with a lapful of fat ass calves.

“Chiseled!” Chaz protests when Jared says so. “You’re just jealous because you’re bony.”

“I am not bony!” Jared says.

“Poor BJ probably gets bruises,” Chaz says, then, “See?!” when Jared elbows him in the back. “Where’s the muscle?”

“I’ll show you the fucking muscle,” Jared says, and he must take Chaz by surprise, because even though Chaz has at least thirty pounds on him, Jared becomes the king of the couch.

“Ow,” Chaz says mournfully into the carpet, as Raf heartlessly steps over his fallen form.

“Can I sit?” he asks.

“Sure,” Jared generously allows, and swings his feet up to make room.

“A little bony,” Raf says, poking one of Jared’s knees.

“You want me to kick you off this couch too?” Jared asks.

“Try,” Raf says, with this set in his eyes like Grace gets during video games, and Jared is suddenly very certain, despite the fact that him and Raf are a lot closer in size than him and Chaz, he wouldn’t succeed.