being the first woman in the nhl came with its challenges. the constant pressure to be good enough for a 'man's sport' was enough to make you go a little insane. you could have 20 really good games and one bad one made the media go crazy. fortunately, the red wings fans were pretty accepting. the toughest critics were the media.

all the red wings were very kind and welcoming to you when you were drafted almost 4 years ago, now you were 21, all was the same. a particular player had always showed extra support and kindness through all the good and bad practices and games, dylan larkin. dylan always confused you. you were 99.9% sure you had feelings for him, but you could never figure him out. he acted so nicely and caring towards you, but you couldn't figure out if he was interested or just being friendly like he was to everyone. you decided not to make a move because of the lack of knowledge you had on the situation.

it had been a tough game. you threw off your equipment angrily. you sat with your head in your hands with silent rage. the team had lost and you had gotten a penalty that caused a goal for the other team. those things covered up the fact you had actually played your hardest and scored a goal. you quickly showered and got dressed into your formal clothes you were wearing before game. you walked out of the locker room with your head down. someone gripped your wrist. you swiftly turned around,

"what do you want?" you snapped, before realizing who it was.

dylan looked at you with soft eyes. he released your wrist looking a little hurt.

"y/n, talk to me. it's not like you to just storm out." dylan pleaded with puppy eyes.

"i'm mad at myself dyl, not any of you guys." you signaled towards the locker room. "i played like shit. i let the team down."

your voice was calmer in dylan's presence. your body became a little less tense. dylan moved a little closer to you and grabbed your hand,

"you didn't let down the team. you did the complete opposite."

"whatever dyl. you're a people pleaser." you said to him.

dylan pinned you up against the cold painted brick wall,

"no, i'm serious y/n."

your eyes were as wide as they could open in surprise. you felt his hot breath on your face. you took a second to scan him over. curly hair that was slightly damp from post game shower. a black suit. a layer of brown stubble on his face. your breath halted for a second. you looked down at the floor.

"i think you did great tonight." he whispered. "not only did you play good, you looked good doing it."

you blushed, but didn't say a word. you played with your sleeve.

"i don't know if you could tell, but i've been in love with you from the time i first met you." dylan said.

your head shot up and looked at him.

"what?" you breathed out.

"i've loved you for forever y/n. it's fine if you don't like me like that, but i couldn't keep it a secret anymore." dylan said quietly, glancing at the floor.

your heart stopped and then began to beat faster than ever.

"i didn't know dylan."

the hall was quite silent.

"i like you too, dyl." you murmured out nervously.

"really?" dylan stammered.

you nodded with a small smile. one of dylan's arms snaked around your waist as the other went to touch your cheek. his lips touched yours. your hand moved up to his cheek.

it felt like a dream. it came out of nowhere really. you would have never thought that someone you cared and loved so dearly, felt the same. the moment was enchanting.

"oh dang get it larks." a voice said. closely followed by a whistle from someone else.

you and dylan jumped apart in shock of the sudden disruption. at the exit of the locker room watching them was andreas athanasiou and justin abdelkader,

"oh look it's y/n." justin spoke.

"i always knew that was going to happen. everyone did." andreas stated.

you blushed at the ground.

"take it to a room." they said walking past them.

you chuckled at your teammates then looked at dylan,

"do you want to go on a date?" dylan asked.

you pulled him in for another kiss.

"did that answer your question?"