Elliot laughs, because he does remember that. He isn’t much of a party person, likes hanging out with the guys, but not at clubs. Bars are mostly okay, although he always felt bad when he got into places before he was twenty-one, because he knew he wasn’t supposed to be there. “Seriously, though, we’re going into enemy territory. You should have warned me.” He’s wearing a Ravens baseball hat that he’s probably going to leave in the car.
“Oh, don’t worry about it, Bram usually invites guys from other teams. I think Riley said he was going. Bunch of Mariners are gonna be there, too.”
“That’s just asking for trouble.”
“Nah, the boys can behave, it’s not even the preseason yet.”
Elliot decides to trust Adam on that; he’s been to that party before after all.
They’re greeted by a heavily inebriated Johnny Brammer who shouts at a fellow Jersey Knight to hand them drinks. Elliot does know most of the guys at the party, sees Riley talking to a blonde girl in the kitchen. He waves at them when he sees them, but all it takes is a shared look with Adam for them to decide that they’re not saying hello right now.
The doors at the back of the kitchen are open, leading them out onto a terrace where people are lounging on beach chairs, eating pizza, drinking, laughing, and there’s people in the pool, throwing a ball back and forth. A guy Elliot doesn’t recognize is floating around on a slowly deflating unicorn.
Adam has already finished his drink, so Elliot hands over his own, because he didn’t really want it in the first place and takes a bottle of water from a nearby table. When he looks around, Adam has disappeared and Elliot is stranded by the pool. He’s never had much trouble getting to know new people, but he hasn’t shaken off the feeling of being in enemy territory, so for a moment he stands there by himself, not sure where to go next.
Elliot’s eyes wander across the crowd gathered around the pool and eventually settle on Blake, who is sitting on a beach chair next to the Mariners’ Noah Andersson, who’s laughing at something Blake just said. Elliot didn’t even know those two knew each other, but he has to admit that he knows very little about Blake in general these days.
They text sometimes, never much, and even less this summer, after Blake won the Calder Cup. Elliot assumes that he’s embarrassed and wants to tell him that it’s fine, that he gets it, that he has nothing to be embarrassed about. Maybe today’s not the best day for that, though.
Blake, of course, immediately catches him staring, and before Elliot can disappear, Andersson catches him looking as well and waves and now Elliot has to head over there to say hello. Anything else would be rude.
“Hi,” Elliot says.
Blake looks at him for a long moment before he nods at him and says, “Hey.”
“Hey, what’s up,” Noah says and nods at an empty chair. “Have a seat. I’m Noah. Andersson.”
“I know,” Elliot says. “Sorry.” He doesn’t even know why he’s apologizing, probably because he’s been mostly looking at Blake and only spared Noah the briefest of glances.
“You guys know each other, yeah?” Noah asks. “OHL?”
Blake nods.
“Cool,” Noah says and pulls a pizza carton off a table next to them. “Want some?”
“Thanks,” Elliot says. He takes a slice and lets Noah carry the conversation, mostly about off-season training and Elliot chimes in here and there, talking about his and Adam’s trainer, who’s been torturing them all summer.
Blake is quiet, but that’s hardly surprising. He’s never been much of a talker, especially when there was someone else around who didn’t mind doing the talking and that clearly hasn’t changed. He looks different, though. Broader somehow, tattoos covering his arms, and his hair longer, falling down to his shoulders, disheveled, and it’s a good look on him. Elliot has seen pictures of him, has even seen him in person throughout the season, and yet Elliot is surprised that Blake isn’t the exact same person he was three years ago. Sitting next to him like this, like they’re old friends who happened to come across each other at the same party, seems wrong somehow.
“How do you know Brammer?” Blake eventually asks.
“Oh, I don’t, really,” Elliot says. “Adam’s girlfriend’s out of town and I’m… a mediocre replacement, I guess.”
“I’m sure you’re…” Noah trails off with a grin. “Sorry, I gotta go say hi to someone. I’ll see you guys around.”
Elliot only nods, his eyes settling on Blake, who looks like he wants to bolt. He fights down the urge to ask Blake if he’s okay and instead says, “How was your summer?”
“Good,” Blake says. “How about you?”
“Also good,” Elliot replies. “I went to Sweden for Magnus’s wedding and it was… Have you ever been?”
“No. Liked it, huh?”
Elliot nods.
“Did you swing by Iceland while you were in the general area?”
“I wouldn’t say that Iceland is in the general area,” Elliot says with a laugh.
Blake’s lips twitch, like that was his plan all along, making Elliot laugh. The thought pulls at something in him, so he tries desperately not to think at all.
“So Iceland’s still on the list?” Blake asks.
“Yep, still on the list.”
Elliot doesn’t really remember that conversation, only remembers being on the road, sharing a room with Blake, curled up in Blake’s bed instead of his own, mumbling nonsense between kisses and one of those things was, “I want to go to Iceland.”
Blake promised he’d go with him. They obviously never went. Blake shifts in his seat, restless.
Elliot
