Rating:

Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning:

No Archive Warnings Apply

Category:

M/M

Fandoms:

Heated Rivalry (TV), Game Changers | Heated Rivalry - All Media Types

Relationships:

Luca Haas/Young, Luca Haas & Young, Luca Haas & Ilya Rozanov, Bood & Young, Haas & Young & LaPointe

Characters:

Luca Haas, Eric Young, Young (Game Changers), Ilya Rozanov, LaPointe (Game Changers), Zane Boodram, Ottawa Centaurs Team Ensemble (Game Changers), Cassie Boodram, Wyatt Hayes, Troy Barrett, Nick Chouinard, Evan Dykstra

Additional Tags:

Luca Haas-centric, Luca Haas Needs a Hug, Insecure Luca Haas, Luca Haas Has a Crush, Book 2: Heated Rivalry (Game Changers), Ottawa Centaurs (Game Changers), Supportive Ottawa Centaurs (Game Changers), Mentioned Ottawa Centaurs (Game Changers), Book 6: The Long Game (Game Changers), basically if Rachel Reid wrote book 7 about Luca, Young is realizing he might have a crush on Luca, Friends to Lovers, Ilya Rozanov is Good With Children, Ilya Rozanov is Trying His Best, Demisexual Luca Haas, Eric is figuring it out, One Shot, Cannon Divergence, Inspired by Heated Rivalry (TV), Luca Haas gets high, Luca Haas gets loved, Smoking, weed makes you say dumb things, Internalized Homophobia, Eric Young is just a little bisexual guy who is trying to navigate the world, Ottawa Centaurs rookies are just trying to have fun, Young Love, Secret Crush, First Crush

Language:

English

Series:

Part 3 of Growing Outward Series

Stats:

Published: 2026-04-08 Words: 6,936 Chapters: 1/1

A Special Walk

Summary

The Centaurs rookies go for a "special walk" during one of Bood's bonfires. Chaos and gayness ensue.

OR,

This is a one shot from my larger fic, "Growing Outward", which is basically book 7 of the Game Changers series if it was about Luca Haas. In that fic, Luca moves in with Ilya for his rookie year and slowly gets adopted by Hollanov. He also starts to develop a crush on fellow rookie, Eric Young. Some people wanted some scenes from Eric's perspective, so here we are!

This scene is briefly alluded to in Chapter 13: Navigating of "Growing Outward" from Ilya's perspective, but this can be also read as a cute stand-alone fic if you really wanted to.

Hope you enjoy :)

Notes

Ottawa, November 2020

The bonfire was going well as far as Eric was concerned. The guys had all eaten to their hearts content and were stretched out around the fire pit, chatting about whatever came to their heads first. Troy was just showing Eric a video of this trick shot from an old All Stars Game when Cassie called over to him from the back porch.

“Eric, could you help me?” Cassie asked. He immediately jogged over to her and took the stack of empty plates from her arms as she gave him a pointed look.

“I can carry it, I just couldn’t get the door.” She grumbled as she slid it open for him. Eric stepped inside with a frown on his face.

“I know you can carry it but that doesn’t mean you should be carrying it.” He responded, walking directly over to the sink and gently placing the plates inside.

“I’m pregnant, not incompetent.” She shot back.

Cassie grabbed a tea towel from the counter and hit his hip with it. He just rolled his eyes at her. Eric loved Cassie, he really did, but she was one stubborn lady. It made it hard for him to feel sorry for Cassie when she complained about her swollen ankles. He always offered to get her ice packs though and he would frequently take her on secret Dairy Queen runs when Bood had already gone to bed. It was for the baby, of course.

“Okay you two, no fighting. We have guests.” Bood joked from the doorway. He’d followed them inside with an arm full of empty cans, which he quickly discarded in the recycling bin before coming to stand beside Cassie at the sink. She had already started rinsing the plates.

“You don’t have to wash those. I can do them when the guys leave.” Bood insisted, rubbing the small of Cassie’s back. She slumped into his touch, clearly exhausted from the long day. 

Eric had no clue why they agreed to have a barbecue at this time of year; it was already getting cold out and it was always a big deal hosting this many professional hockey players at once. They had to make so much food just to feed all of the guys and the clean-up afterwards was always a nightmare. Eric never complained though, he knew that the Bood’s loved hosting, so he kept his mouth shut and completed whatever task they asked him to. It was the least he could do considering they didn’t even charge him rent to live there.

“I’ll just do a few now but I might crash soon.” Cassie yawned. It made Eric yawn too, it was getting late and the guys probably wouldn’t be leaving for another hour. 

His phone buzzed in his pocket and he took it out to find a text in his rookies grouphat with LaPointe and Luca.

Pointer: Anyone up for a walk?👀

Eric rolled his eyes at the message before glancing out the back window. Sure enough, both LaPointe and Luca were on their phones, even as they sat in a group surrounded by their teammates. Luca's knitted eyebrows were illuminated by the blue glow of his phone. His phone buzzed in his hand again. 

Haasy: A walk?

Eric chuckled to himself. Of course Luca wouldn’t know what LaPointe was saying. He ignored the three bubbles that appeared beside LaPointe’s icon and responded to them both.

Eric: Did you bring something, Pointer?

 

Pointer: …maybe

Pointer: Don’t tell Chouinard

 

Luca: What are we talking about?

Eric couldn’t help but smile.

“What’re you smiling at?” Bood teased as he leaned over and pinched Eric’s cheek. He quickly swatted Bood’s hand away.

“Nothing.” He muttered as he walked over to the back door. LaPointe was ushering Luca away from the rest of the group, coming up with some dumb excuse about how Eric needed them inside when Chouinard asked where they were going. Chouinard definitely didn't believe him but he watched them go anyway.

“Is it Isabelle?” Cassie asked with a smug smile on her face. Eric groaned.

He’d only been talking to Isabelle for a few weeks and it was going really well. He liked her; she was pretty, she had good taste in music, and she was easy to talk to. If nothing else she was a good friend outside of the Centaurs world. That was, until Cassie and Bood got involved.

They’d recently walked in on Eric and Isabelle while they were watching a movie on the couch–-nothing more, much to Bood’s teasing remarks–-and it was only downhill from there. They quickly brought Isabelle into their fold and invited her for dinner the next day, insisting that they wanted to get to know her. Eric tried to protest later that night, after he’d profusely apologized to Isabelle and driven her home, but they wouldn’t hear it. They wanted to meet his girlfriend, which in some twisted way made his relationship with Isabelle official before he’d even gotten the chance to ask her himself.

One thing led to another and Cassie immediately fell in love with Isabelle. They had a lot in common, having both grown up in Ottawa, and were quickly able to joke about things that neither Bood nor Eric could relate to. Eric had to admit that it was nice watching Isabelle interact with them but he’d be lying if he said that it didn’t make him feel a bit weird. It was far too early to be bringing Isabelle into their lives like this. And yet, there she was. All because he hadn't checked his text messages to see that Cassie's doctor's appointment had been cancelled last minute.

Back in the kitchen Eric quickly shushed Cassie and Bood, who were still making teasing remarks, just as LaPointe slid the back door open. The two guys froze when they saw Bood and Cassie inside. 

“What’re you three up to?” Bood crossed his arms over his chest. 

“That’s a great question.” Luca said, looking between Eric and LaPointe, entirely unaware of what they were even doing. Eric resisted the urge to face palm as he smiled innocently at Bood. Cassie was also watching them now, toweling off her hands as she studied the three boys. 

“We’re going for a walk.” Eric said nonchalantly, quickly gesturing for the guys to head towards the door. They obliged and Eric trailed after them, avoiding Cassie's eyes at all costs. She could read him like the back of her hand.

“A walk, eh?” Cassie laughed, as if on cue, “Sounds completely inconspicuous.” 

That got a nervous laugh out of LaPointe and a small grin out of Eric. He couldn’t help it.

“Just be safe, please.” Bood called after them.

“We’re always safe.” LaPointe insisted. Bood just rolled his eyes and they made their way out the front door. When Eric tried to pull the door closed behind them, Luca placed a hand on his arm. He paused.

“Wait! It’s kinda cold out here.” Luca admitted shyly. He was already tucking his sweater a bit tighter around himself when Eric finally drew his gaze from Luca’s hand to his face. His blue eyes were rounded and glossy as they searched Eric’s own.

Eric furrowed his eyebrows at him, “We’ve been outside all night and you’re saying you’re cold now?”

Luca’s cheeks flushed.

“Well, we don’t have a bonfire now.” He mumbled.

It might’ve been the way he was looking at him or the fact that Eric was still in host mode, but he sighed and ducked back into the house quickly. He debated running up to grab a coat from his room but that seemed so far away, so he frantically looked around the living room instead. He didn't usually spend time in this room, Cassie always had it staged to perfection for whenever they hosted anyone that wasn’t the team; they’d probably tear this room up in the span of five minutes.

There was a basket full of perfectly rolled up blankets in the corner and he grabbed the first one that he saw. It was fluffy and a light blue colour, which he figured Luca would like, and he yanked it out of the basket without a second thought. He jogged back over to the front porch before anyone could stop him. Eric knew that he’d pay for that decision later on but for now Luca was cold and he’d be damned if he had to look into Luca’s puppy dog eyes for another second.

“Here, use this.” 

Eric handed Luca the blanket and pulled the door shut behind him again. Luca smiled and quickly wrapped himself in it. He did a little happy dance as he followed LaPointe down the front steps to the driveway. Eric smiled to himself.

“Who would like to do the honours?” LaPointe held up the joint and wiggled his eyebrows at the pair. 

Eric glanced sideways at Luca whose eyes widened when he realized what kind of walk they were going on. He gulped and looked over at Eric for help. He just smiled back at the younger boy and quickly took the joint from LaPointe, placing it loosely between his lips.

“Did you bring a lighter?” He mumbled around the joint.

LaPointe presented the lighter to him like a magician who had just pulled a bunny out of a hat. Eric just grinned and took the lighter from him. He carefully cupped one hand around the end of the joint and lit it with ease. When a wisp of smoke appeared from the tip of the joint he flicked the lighter off again and stuffed it in his own pocket for safe keeping. 

Eric closed his eyes as he took a deep inhale of the smoke. It burned a bit on the way down but it was nothing he wasn’t used to; it had been many years since his first experience with weed, and with it being legal now, there had been many experiences since then. Some great, some not so great. He hoped that tonight’s experience fell under the ‘great’ category though, he needed something to take the edge off.

When he removed the joint from his lips, he turned his head away from the group before blowing a swirl of smoke into the air. He was sure to blow it away from Luca, who didn’t like the smell of it, just in case he didn’t want to participate tonight. 

When LaPointe took the joint from him and started to walk aimlessly down the street with it, Eric glanced over at Luca. He was just watching LaPointe with his bottom lip pulled between his teeth. Eric knew that he was debating joining them, weighting the pros and cons of the activity, calculating just how much time they had until their next practice. Weed wasn’t considered a performance enhancing drug in the MLH so it’s not like they had to worry about drug testing, but Luca was always a good boy; he held himself to a high standard, even if no one else did. It was one of the things that Eric liked most about Luca, his dedication and drive. Eric hoped that would rub off on him a bit more as they got further into the season. When Luca finally met Eric’s eyes, he nodded down the street after LaPointe. 

“We should probably follow him before he ends up in a ditch somewhere.” Eric joked to relieve some of Luca’s stress. Luca smiled faintly and walked in stride with Eric after their friend.

They walked in silence for a bit with LaPointe just a few meters ahead of them. It was a peaceful night. The sky was clear overhead, perfectly displaying a full moon and some freckles of stars around it. It was starting to get cold in Ottawa, though, so Eric pulled his hood up around his head and stuffed his hands into his pockets, silently regretting that he hadn't grabbed a second blanket for himself. Luca looked warm tucked in his blanket, the blue fur of it only making Luca's eyes pop behind his thin frames. That brought Eric a bit of satisfaction as he stole looks in his direction.

“Guys I could really go for a Costco hot dog right now.” LaPointe announced suddenly, whipping around so that he could face them as he walked backwards down the street. Eric chuckled and took the joint from him, taking another drag of it as LaPointe pouted back at them.

“I don’t think Costco is open but maybe we could go tomorrow.” Luca offered. Eric snickered to himself.

LaPointe groaned dramatically, “But that doesn’t help me now, Haasy, does it?”

“How are you even hungry right now? Bood just fed us like a whole truckload of food.” Eric said. He took another drag and blew the smoke sideways out of his mouth. Luca watched him intently as he did so.

“You can never be too full for a Costco hotdog.” LaPointe scowled. He tried to take the joint from Eric who pulled it away and took another quick drag. LaPointe frowned and nearly fell off the sidewalk as they neared the edge of it.

“Woah, okay. How about we walk forwards, yeah?” Luca steadied him with an outstretched arm. LaPointe just laughed but he happily obliged as he spun back around again, looked both ways dramatically, and then crossed the empty road. 

Eric giggled as he watched Luca anxiously track LaPointe’s path with his eyes. 

“Do you want some?” Eric held out the joint to him. Luca looked down at it and then up at Eric, his mouth opening and closing again as he decided what he wanted to say, “No pressure, Haasy.”

Luca smiled appreciatively at him.

“Maybe in a bit?” He suggested. Eric just smiled.

They fell into another comfortable silence as they made their way through the quiet neighbourhood. Well, Eric felt comfortable, but he wasn’t quite sure about Luca. He seemed to tense every time that LaPointe made a step that wasn’t perfectly balanced. At one point, LaPointe decided that he wanted to start Leprechaun clicking his heels down the middle of the street and Luca nearly had an aneurysm just trailing after him, his arms stretched out in case LaPointe looked like he was going to land awkwardly. He wasn't quite sure if it was the weed or just the fact that his friends were naturally entertaining, but he couldn't help but giggle after them. 

“Wait, guys, there’s a park over here if we want.” Eric pointed down a street when they got to another stop sign.

LaPointe gasped happily, “Oh my gosh! I would love to go on a swing right now.”

And with no further warning, he started sprinting in the direction of the park. 

“Jesus fucking Christ.” Luca mumbled under his breath before he took off after him. 

Eric laughed as he followed them, trying his hardest to stay in stride with Luca but ultimately failing as they both pushed harder to catch up to LaPointe. From this angle, Luca’s blanket looked like a cape as it flapped in the wind behind him. If it weren’t for his baggy hoodie then Eric would also be able to see the outline of his muscular arms, which were also comparable to a superhero if you really thought about it. But Eric didn't want to think about that, not right now, so he pushed it aside. When they finally reached the park LaPointe practically launched himself onto the swing, stomach first.

“Weeee!” He squealed happily as he pushed himself into the air, raising both his legs and arms at the same time, “I feel like I’m flying!”

“That’s good, buddy. Just, hold on please!” Luca panted from beside Eric. He ran a nervous hand through his hair as they stood a few feet away from LaPointe, just watching him push higher and higher into the air.

When Eric finally caught his breath, he relit the joint and took another drag. He could feel Luca’s eyes on him but when he glanced over at him, he quickly averted his eyes back to LaPointe. He smirked and also looked back at LaPointe, who had gone limp in the swing, letting whatever remaining momentum there was carry him back and forth like a pendulum.

“What’re you thinking about?” Eric asked. Luca glanced back at Eric nervously and then down at the joint in his hand.

“I’m confused how you’re acting like a normal human being while he’s acting like, well,” He gestured over to where LaPointe was dragging his hands through the wood chips below him, clearly mesmerized by the sensation, “That.”

Eric giggled, “That is because he has a lower tolerance than I do.”

“Do you smoke a lot?” Luca tried to ask the question casually but it sounded more like a little kid asking an adult something they knew they shouldn’t be talking about. Eric bit back the smile that threatened to rise to his face and simply shrugged instead. 

“I had a bit of a phase at the beginning of high school. I slowed down a bit when hockey got more serious,” He paused to look down at the shrinking joint in his hand, “I guess I can still handle it though.”

Luca nodded along with his words, just letting them hang in the air between them. The truth was that Eric never liked smoking weed. He mainly just did it to fit in with the kids at school; he somehow ended up hanging around with the popular kids so it only made sense for him to partake in the same activities as his peers. Who would he be if he didn’t? Would they still want to be his friend if he was the only one not smoking? Not drinking? Not going to the parties that his much richer friends would host on weekends? In those moments he would always hear his grandmother’s voice ringing in the back of his brain.

“Those aren’t your real friends if you feel like you have to be someone else to keep them around.” 

He smiled at the memory. She always had something wise to say to guide him through his toughest moments. He wondered how many times she’d shared that same wisdom with his mother growing up. How many times had she tried her best and failed to get through to her own daughter? Eric shook the thought away as he turned to Luca with a tight-lipped smile.

“Was the Halloween party your first time smoking?” He asked.

Luca’s cheeks tinted pink as he thought back to the Halloween party that Ilya had hosted just a few weeks before. Eric was standing at the dining room table, pretending to listen to Troy as he explained the logistics of beer pong trick shots, while his focus drifted over towards the window. He watched Ilya teach Luca how to smoke his first joint which resulted in a very dramatic coughing fit. Eric smiled to himself. He was quite amused by Luca's innocence.  

“Yeah, it was.” Luca admitted quietly. He knew that already but hearing Luca admit to it was sweet. 

“Is it legal back home?” Eric prompted, taking another drag.

“No but it’s pretty popular. Lots of kids at my school did it.” Luca said.

Eric nodded along, “But not you?”

“Are you kidding?” Luca laughed dryly, “I think my parents would kill me.”

Eric chuckled too. He understood the sentiment. His grandparents weren’t exactly happy about his own party phase but he couldn’t blame them. They were just worried about him; god forbid he ended up like his parents. The addiction gene was hereditary afterall, so really, Eric should’ve been more careful than he was. In hindsight he considered himself lucky that he ended up alright. Not everyone was so fortunate.

“Can I maybe have some?” Luca asked shyly. Eric was hesitant but he held out the joint to him anyways, which Luca took from him carefully. Eric watched as he took a shallow inhale of it before blowing the smoke back into the space between them. He didn’t cough this time which made Eric smile.

“You’re a natural.” He joked.

Luca glared at him which only made Eric grin wider.

“Guys, look at the stars!” LaPointe called over to them. He’d somehow managed to get up off the swing and was now standing in the middle of the playground, head tilted back awkwardly, as he pointed up at the dark sky. 

“Pointer, you look like you’re going to snap your neck if you keep standing like that.” Eric laughed. Luca chuckled under his breath as LaPointe finally stood up straight and scowled over at them.

“Okay then lets go lay in the field.” LaPointe suggested, as if it was the most obvious thing for them to do. Eric looked over at Luca with expectant eyes. He just shrugged back at him.

That’s how the three of them ended up laying in the outfield of the baseball diamond staring up at the night sky. Luca took another drag of the joint before passing it over to LaPointe who was laying on his other side. It was barely a nub at that point and LaPointe took the liberty of stomping it out on the ground beside him once he’d finished it off.

Eric released a steadying breath as he tried to make out the constellations in the sky above them. The stars all sort of blended together but he was pretty sure he could name a few of the constellations if he tried hard enough. He squinted his eyes.

“Is that Big Dipper?” Eric pointed at the constellation like it was any help to the two guys laying beside him.

“What?” Luca asked. 

He leaned a little closer to Eric to try and follow exactly where Eric was pointing. Eric’s breath caught in his throat as Luca pressed the side of his head to his shoulder. He radiated a warmth that Eric hadn’t felt before. It was probably just the weed talking, he thought to himself.

He cleared his throat, “There, see? It’s the big spoon looking one.”

Luca furrowed his eyebrows together before he fell into a fit of giggles. Eric let his arm fall back down to his side as he smiled sideways at Luca. His eyes weren’t even open.

“Were you even looking?” Eric laughed at the boy who was clearly already high, even though he’d barely smoked anything, at least not in comparison to the other two. Eric was pretty sure that LaPointe was asleep on Luca’s other side by that point, his tolerance much too low for the amount that he'd smoked.

“No, I can’t open my eyes,” Luca sighed happily and nuzzled himself a bit closer into Eric’s side, “But your shoulder is comfortable.”

Eric’s heart fluttered in his chest. Luca was warm and he smelled good, like clean laundry and toothpaste. It helped that the blanket was fluffy, too, offering a bit of padding between their two bodies as they folded together. It felt good and Eric just smiled to himself as Luca let go of a deep exhale. Luca was relaxed, no longer stressing over whatever it was that weighted him down, and that’s all that mattered. Eric considered it a success as he let his cheek rest against the top of Luca’s head.

“Hey! I feel left out.” LaPointe exclaimed. 

Eric lifted his head a bit so see him over Luca’s body. So he was awake, and dramatically pouting at them now, which made Eric chuckle to himself.

“Well then come here, you big oaf.” Eric said and held out his other arm. 

LaPointe quickly scrambled over to join them, nuzzling into Eric’s other side, and bringing more warmth to their cuddle puddle. Eric just chuckled at how stupid they probably looked right now; three professional hockey players, lying in a baseball field, cuddling like little kids at a sleepover.

“You’re boney.” Eric whined when LaPointe rearranged himself into his side. LaPointe gasped dramatically which made Luca giggle. The sound of it brought a big smile to his face.

“Don’t say that! I’ve been spending so much time in the gym.” LaPointe argued.

“Might need to spend more time there then.” Luca mumbled under his breath. Eric snorted.

“You’re boney too, Haasy. You’re like me but just stretched out.” LaPointe chirped back. 

“I don’t know, Eric hasn’t made any complaints about my body.” Luca joked back. Eric’s eyes widened between the two boys, hoping that neither of them felt the way that his body had momentarily stiffened at the comment.

It was true, he didn’t have any complaints about Luca or his body. He was sort of perfect in every way. He was the best hockey player that Eric had ever played with, he was so kind to everyone, and he had the most beautiful blue eyes Eric had ever seen. He would never tell Luca any of this, obviously, that would be weird. The last thing he needed was for his friend–-verging on best friend, now, with how much time they spent together–-thinking that Eric had a crush on him or something.

They were just friends. Besides, Eric had Isabelle and Luca was straight. And there was no world in which a sober Eric would ever let himself have thoughts like this. Not about the boy laying on his shoulder right now. That was crazy.

An Eric under the influence, though? He let himself go there sometimes. Like on Halloween when Luca had looked so adorable in his Minion onesie. And at their first home game celebration at Monks; Luca looked really good in a backwards baseball cap. But those were just platonic thoughts anyways. Just facts of life, like how gravity was real and the sun always rose in the East.

LaPointe’s scoff brought Eric out of his thoughts.

“That’s because you have the blanket protecting Eric from your bony-ness.” LaPointe pointed out. 

Did he just say something about a boner? No, definitely not.

Eric let go of a shaky breath, “Okay, you guys need to stop. This is getting weird.” 

It was. At least in his own brain, which seemed to let random thoughts stream through him now. The weed must be kicking in a bit more.

“You’re weird.” Luca mumbled. 

“Yeah, you’re weird.” LaPointe added.

Eric just rolled his eyes. Both of the guys had their eyes shut, fully letting themselves be enveloped by the high. As much as Eric wanted to lay there forever--at least until his toes got frostbite and his face muscles stopped hurting from smiling so much--he knew that he needed to get them back soon. It was getting late and they still had responsibilities to tend to the next day.

“Guys, you can’t fall asleep on me. We gotta get back to the house before Bood sends out a search party for us.” Eric tried to shuffle out from underneath them but Luca held him in place with a firm arm across his stomach. Eric froze under the weight of it. He was so strong, even in this dazed state.

“No! Just 5 more minutes.” Luca pleaded.

And who was Eric to say no? So they stayed like that for what was probably a lot longer than 5 minutes before they begrudgingly let Eric stand up. He helped LaPointe to his feet first and then Luca, who clutched onto the fluffy blanket for dear life, unable to part with its warmth as he tucked it around his head and shoulders now.

It was a much slower walk back to the house, full of stupid realizations and comments from the two boys; comments that Eric would try not to hold over them later. Like how LaPointe thought that cheese didn’t really count as dairy and how Luca was so grateful to have Eric in his life. LaPointe didn’t quite appreciate that last comment as much as Eric had. He couldn’t wipe the stupid smile off of his face as he made sure that Luca didn’t fall off of the curb all the way home; he insisted on walking on it like gymnasts did on a balance beam.

"I could probably be a gymnast if I really want to." Luca insisted just as he nearly fell off the curb.

"I'm sure you could, Haasy." Eric chuckled to himself, holding onto Luca's hip firmly for the rest of the walk.

They eventually managed to get back to the house, with only one escape attempt by LaPointe and many more giggles from Luca. Eric told them to go over to the side gate. He didn’t want to take them through the house, they probably stunk of weed and Cassie was likely already in bed; the last thing she needed was three rookies, stoned out of their minds, waking her up.

“How crazy is it that we all met each other?” Luca whispered just as they reached the driveway.

“How crazy is it that we’re all playing in the MLH?” LaPointe responded, which made Luca’s eyes widen, as if he was just realizing that he was a professional hockey player. Eric chuckled and redirected Luca around one of the many expensive cars parked in the driveway so that he didn’t accidentally set someone’s alarm off. 

“Oh my gosh, you’re right!” Luca placed a firm hand on LaPointe’s shoulder as they waited for Eric to open the side gate. 

Luca and LaPointe fell into a fit of giggles when they walked into the backyard again. Eric immediately made eye contact with Bood who sent them a lazy grin amidst the animated conversations of the rest of their teammates. They managed to rejoin the group without any teasing remarks or questions from the rest of their teammates. Eric considered that a success in his books.

Luca tried his best to appear sober as he hovered behind Ilya. He placed both of his hands on Ilya’s shoulders, more to steady himself than anything else, which Ilya quickly realized as well. He glanced over at Eric as if to say, “Really?” but Eric ignored him, choosing to be drawn in by the flames instead. They were just so mesmerizing and orange right now. He wanted to reach out and touch them but he refrained. That would be one painful experiment. 

The guys seemed to be playing a questions game, one that resulted in Chouinard throwing an empty ginger ale can at Ilya’s head and a series of boos to erupt from around the pit. Bood turned to the rookies to bring them back into the conversation.

“Okay, rooks, quick question for you!” He spoke loudly over the rest of the group to settle them, which they quickly did, and nodded in Wyatt’s direction. Eric snapped his eyes away from the fire and over at their goalie who sat directly opposite them.

He cleared his throat and held up the question card dramatically, as if presenting a scroll or something. He was such a weird guy sometimes.

“If you had to date one of the other players on the team, who would you choose?” He asked them happily. Eric’s smile faltered for only a moment before he remembered that all of the guys were watching them. His heart beat was ringing in his ears and the back of his throat suddenly felt quite dry. He wanted to blame it on the weed but he wasn't so sure as he tried to process Wyatt’s words.

LaPointe immediately fell into a fit of laughter beside him which Eric quickly realized was probably the most socially acceptable reaction. He joined in with a laugh of his own, feeding off of LaPointe’s energy, and even using him as a way to balance himself as he folded over. Okay, maybe he was trying to sell this a bit too much. He eased up on the laughter and turned to LaPointe to answer first.

“I would choose Wyatt.” LaPointe said with a wide smile. 

Wyatt seemed to love that answer because he threw himself out of his lawn chair and ran over to place a big kiss on LaPointe’s cheek. LaPointe wiped it off and shoved their goalie away, which only gave Eric a few moments to come up with an answer of his own.

He couldn’t say Luca, could he? That would probably be weird. Would it, though? Wouldn’t that be the answer that they all expected him to give? They spent so much time together and when they weren't physically together, they were texting or playing Chel online. They were practically glued at the hip. It would almost be weird if he didn’t say Luca. Right?

“Young? Haas?” Dykstra prompted unhelpfully. 

The rest of the guys turned their attention to two of them and Eric forced a smile on his face. He knew that Luca was probably blushing right now, just from the sheer amount of eyes on them, and he didn’t want that to go on for any longer so he let out a dry chuckle to draw their attention.

“Well I have to choose Haasy, right?” Eric said, his voice surprisingly even. He threw an arm around Luca’s shoulders and smiled over at the younger rookie. Luca looked like a deer in headlights, his eyes impossibly wide behind his glasses, as he refused to look in Eric’s direction.

“I mean he lets me control the thermostat in hotel rooms and he doesn’t even complain when I make it freezing cold. He buys me coffee, he lets me sleep on his shoulder on plane rides, and he draws little things for me whenever I ask. He’s boyfriend material.” Eric shrugged.

Only after he gave his explanation–-one that the guys hadn’t even asked for–-did he realize what exactly he’d just said. There was no way he just called Luca boyfriend material in front of their whole team.

Holy shit.

Eric braced for the laughter, the teasing that he was sure was about to come, but it never did. Quite the opposite, really. The guys all agreed in their own ways, Wyatt even “Awww’d” at them, which made Eric smile wide. Luca seemed to tense under the weight of Eric’s arm and he half debated removing it but  he didn’t actually want to. Not until Luca gave his own answer and the blush on his cheeks subsided.

“What about you, Luca?” Wyatt asked with a wide smile. 

Eric turned to him with expectant eyes. He wasn’t quite sure what he wanted Luca to say but his heart was pounding in his chest anyways. Was it anticipation? Nerves? The weed? It was hard to say, but the silence stretched out a little too long for Eric’s liking, so he squeezed Luca’s shoulder and sent him a cheeky grin.

“Well he has to say me now, doesn’t he?” Eric joked. 

Please say me, a small part of his brain whispered.

What? No, that's ridiculous. That was the more rational part of his brain speaking.

Luca’s cheeks turned a darker shade of red and Eric couldn’t stop himself from pinching them. Luca swatted his hand away immediately and suddenly there was no more contact between them. Eric’s arm fell down to his side and a wave of cold washed over it.

“You wish.” Luca mumbled under his breath.

“Okay, next question, Wyatt!” Ilya announced.

Eric looked between Luca and Ilya, at the way that they were practically holding hands, and he felt a pang of something in his chest. His smile faltered and he quickly turned away, grateful that the attention was no longer on him, as he walked over to where Bood was sitting on the other side of the bonfire pit.

The game continued but Eric didn’t pay much attention to it. His head was spinning and he desperately needed some water to soothe this throat. That’s one side effect he hadn’t missed from smoking. That and the random bursts of anxiety that he sometimes got. He couldn’t quite tell if that's what he was experiencing as he tried and failed to find a comfortable sitting position on the ground. Everything felt off--awkward--like his bones were too clunky for his body and couldn't find their rightful place under his muscles. He focussed on the flames again, letting himself get lost in the way that they flickered and crackled in front of him. He took a few steadying breaths. He would be okay. 

Around him the guys were all talking about their first times. The idea of sharing that part of himself with the guys only brought him more anxiety as he scooched closer to the fire. He really didn’t want to think about that memory right now, not while he was spiraling like this, so he played it off with a dry chuckle. 

“I might have to pass up on this question, boys.” Eric joked. He hoped that they would just skip him but of course that wasn’t the case. From behind him Bood nudged his side with his foot.

“Oh, c’mon. I know you’re not a virgin.” Bood teased.

It was a joke, one that was supposed to be light-hearted, but it pierced Eric’s chest in a way that he hadn’t expected it to; in a way that Bood hadn’t intended it to. A warm blush rose to his cheeks as he stared at the fire. The guys all started razzing him but Eric never took his eyes off of the flames, which were dying out now. He didn’t want them to go just yet. Not now.

“There’s a story there.” Dykstra insisted. More of the guys egged him on and LaPointe even leaned over to shake his shoulders, as if physically wishing the story out of him.

“It’s nothing!” Eric nervously laughed. He really just wanted the ground to swallow him whole but of course it wouldn’t. No one was coming to save him.

“We just came home the other day and found Eric with a young lady on the couch.” Bood continued. Some of the guys around them whistled while others continued to tease Eric. He tried everything in his power not to cry. He wouldn’t do that, not here, not in front of the guys.

It was just the weed, he tried to reassure himself, you'll be fine. 

He forced a smile on his face, “It wasn’t like that, you perverts! We were just watching a movie, nothing happened.”

And nothing had happened. They were just talking, watching some vampire movie that Isabelle liked. Heck they weren’t even touching, there was at least a foot of empty space between them, and Isabelle was sitting under a blanket. It couldn’t have been more appropriate if he’d tried. 

“Yeah, yeah, rook, I’ve used that same excuse before.” Chouinard laughed.

Eric gave up trying to defend himself. He let the guys think whatever they wanted to and zoned out for the rest of the conversation. At some point he’d decided to lie on his back and stare at the stars again. He could faintly hear the guys all deciding to answer one final question but he didn’t care about the specifics. He just stared up at the Big Dipper and, if he focussed hard enough, the Little Dipper too. 

At some point he fell asleep like that, his teammates still chuckling and having fun around him, while his own thoughts drifted. All he could see was Luca’s big blue eyes staring back at him as he glanced between Eric’s face and the joint in his hands. Then he could see the way that his pink lips blew out a whistle of smoke. Then he felt the warmth of his body as he cuddled into Eric’s side. 

He wanted to stop. He wanted to do anything but think about Luca but his brain betrayed him. The clips rolled through like a film reel and as much as they confused Eric, they also brought him a sense of peace that nothing else could. So he let himself go there, even when Bood shook his shoulder in an attempt to bring him back into the conversation. Eric faintly heard some joke about how Bood’s favourite thing about him was his ability to fall asleep anywhere, followed shortly by a chorus of well-intentioned laughs around him.

Only when his phone buzzed in his pocket did he jolt awake. He glanced around nervously but the backyard was empty and the pit was only a dark pile of embers and ash. Bood was still putting the lawn chairs away in their respective holders and walking them two at a time over to the shed. Eric groggily sat up, his brain a little foggy still, as he tried to figure out where everyone went.

“Go up to bed, bud.” Bood nodded to the house when he noticed that he was awake. Eric’s phone buzzed again in his pocket and he wasn’t quite sure who he thought it would be but he wasn’t expecting it to be Ilya. It was a photo of Luca, fast asleep in the car, still swaddled in Cassie’s blue blanket. 

Rozanov : *image*

Rozanov : We have stolen your blanket

Rozanov : I will wash it and bring it to practice 

Rozanov : Tell Cassie we are sorry

Eric smiled to himself. He didn’t reply, at least not right away, not with his head still swimming with the thought of Luca comfortably wrapped in that stupid blanket. Instead he took himself up to bed, quickly gulped down a glass of water, and fell asleep with the same image floating behind his eyelids like his own personal movie.