. “I’m late!” Katella yelped as she ran down the stairs, her luggage bounding down the carpeted stairs behind her. “I’m so fucking late!”

“Which means we’re late!” Seraphina called from the doorway. “Kat, we are only going to be gone three days. It shouldn’t be that complicated to figure out what to pack. You used to travel with the team when you were with Matt. I don’t understand why it’s so complicated now.”

Katella returned with her purse slung over her shoulder and her golden blonde hair in disarray. “Okay, yes,” she agreed, nodding her head once. “But Matt was… It’s just different, Sera. I know this should have been taken care of last night. I just…” She looked away and a small smile lit up her face. Seraphina almost forgot her frustration with her sister seeing Katella genuinely happy. Seraphina couldn’t remember a time when Katella looked like this, but she knew it had to be well before her grandfather died, and that was a year and a half ago. “This is my first official trip with Negan. Yeah, I know it’s a hockey game so technically he’s working and it’s not just going to be us and maybe it won’t even be that romantic. But this is a big deal and I just want everything to be perfect. We literally got together last month so it’s kind of a rush to suddenly take a trip, you know?”

Seraphina pressed her lips together. Unlike her sister, Seraphina didn’t have the experience dating hockey players – dating anyone, really. She had had a couple of boyfriends back in high school and even one in college but none that were serious. Not like Katella was already serious with Negan. So she couldn’t judge, she couldn’t know what Katella was feeling.

But she could be supportive. She could try to understand, even if it meant they were a little late.

“Okay,” she said with a gentle nod.

Katella’s eyes lit up and she pulled Seraphina in an awkward one-armed hug.

“Thanks,” she said. “I think I’m good to go, though. Is Jimmy outside?”

“Jimmy’s been outside the past twenty minutes,” Seraphina replied. “I actually owe him breakfast now.”

Katella snickered as she opened the front door. Jimmy, their driver, rushed up to help the sisters with their minimal luggage before ushering them in the back of the sleek black town car. Seraphina shot one last look at her home, her heart hammering in her chest. She didn’t know why, but she had a feeling that this trip was going to change everything.

* * *

“Well, well, well, Hanson,” a low, sandpaper voice said as Seraphina and her sister were assisted out of the town car. “Look who decided to show.”

Seraphina pressed her lips together and averted her eyes. She knew Negan was referring to Katella rather than her even though their last name was the same.

“Bite me,” Katella snapped.

The team, all lined up and dressed in suits, chuckled at the familiar banter. Seraphina watched Negan push his brows high almost as if to say Don’t tempt me, sweetheart.

Seraphina bit back a smile and kept her mouth shut as she walked past the players and boarded the plane. She knew there was a hierarchy to where the players sat depending on the roles and seniority on the team. However, Seraphina had her preferred seat and since she hated flying in general, she decided her desire won out over some hierarchy. As such, she took a seat in the first row next to the window. She snapped the window cover open and looked out. It was nice to be able to see where they were going and what to expect.

She barely noticed as the team trickled through. She overheard one of the rookies complain about always having to wear a suit but it was a tradition her grandfather adhered to, even though they didn’t have to wear their suits until game day. Regardless, he liked the class it brought to the team and instituted it on travel days as well, which made some players uncomfortable. The majority went along with it because they respected Ken, and Seraphina kept the tradition as an honor to her grandfather’s legacy.

After a moment, someone plopped down next to her. She glanced over, thinking it was her sister, and found herself staring at the chiseled profile of Brandon Thorpe. She immediately snapped her eyes away, not fully believing that this was happening.

“Where’s Katella?” she managed to get out. Her tone made it sound like she wasn’t pleased by his presence and she shut her eyes, muttering at herself internally for not being careful about how she was presenting particular inquiries. “I’m sorry, that’s not what I –“ She tried to give him a charming smile and hoped it didn’t come out like she didn’t want him there. Because she did. At least, she thought she did. Actually, she didn’t want him to see her hyperventilate due to her fear of flying. “Never mind. I take it back.”

He quirked a brow. “You take what back?” he asked. “The apology or the question itself?”

“Um, the question,” Seraphina mumbled. “Sorry. I was just expecting my sister to sit here.”

“I can go and get her if you want,” Brandon said. “I think Katella found her own row that may or may not include Negan. As captain, I sit up front. And as someone who doesn’t socialize, I was expecting to sit alone. But you’re here so I figured I would sit next to you.”

Seraphina felt her cheeks turn pink. “That’s totally fine,” she said. “My bad.”

He gave her an odd look that included a furrowed brow and a cocked head. Seraphina felt herself sink further into her chair.

“Listen,” he said, reaching back to cup the back of his neck. “I just wanted to apologize for yesterday. It wasn’t my intention to have you think I didn’t take you seriously or that Phil Bambridge didn’t take you seriously. I shouldn’t have said anything. I just…” He clenched his jaw so it popped and Seraphina’s eyes were drawn to the chiseled jawline. “I’m sorry, okay?”

"I feel like this is coming out wrong," Seraphina said. Before she could say more, a pretty flight attendant began to announce the plane would be taking off and to please sit down and fasten seat belts. Seraphina felt her fingers curl around the end of the armrest, her knuckles turning white.

Brandon glanced at her profile. His stare lingered a moment before dropping down to her hands. She hoped he didn't notice how tight her grip was. She hoped he didn't realize that her skin had gone pale. Her seatbelt was already fastened and her seat was upright. Her window was up, the sun already up and seeping through the window. The sunlight warmed Seraphina a face but it didn't do anything to calm down. Her heart was pounding against her chest like the victim of a horror movie locked up in the trunk of a car, pleading to get out.

Without saying a word, Brandon placed his hand over hers. He didn't even look at her. However, her mouth dropped open and she looked at him with wonder in her eyes, surprised that someone as reserved and as stoic as he was would think to cover her hand with his.

His hand was big and covered hers perfectly. It was callused but warm and while it didn't make the fear disappear the way she wanted it to, it helped relax her just a little. And to her, a little was enough.

"I'm afraid of snakes," Brandon said, breaking the silence. He stared straight ahead but his thumb began to move up and down the back of her hand, so light, like a butterfly's wing. "When I was a kid, my older brother had a pet snake. It got out and somehow ended up in my bed at night. It was just a garden snake but I can still feel the smooth scales against my arm." He shuddered and his eyes snapped closed. "Ever since, I've hated them. I don't go hiking anywhere where there's a chance a snake could be present. Which sounds ridiculous since we live in Southern California."

Seraphina felt her lips curl up and her heart warmed at what he was doing. Talking. 

"So you're like Indiana Jones?" Seraphina asked. The two flight attendants began reading instructions on safety, demonstrating with their props as the plane backed out from the gate.

Brandon chuckled, a smile lighting up his face. It momentarily distracted her from her fear and she stared at it as long as possible, despite the fact that she might come across as crazy. She wanted to memorize it.

"I wouldn't go that far," he said. "He is way better looking than me, for starters, plus he has the whip, which I would never be able to manage, and he can pull off a fedora like nobody's business."

Seraphina started laughing, even more of the tension leaving her body, even though the jet was racing down the runway, about to take off at any moment.

"I don't know," Seraphina said with a shrug. "You're kind of a badass in front of the net. You know how some players have an incredibly hard shot goaltenders are afraid to stand in front of them. I feel like some shooters are afraid to shoot when you're in front of net."

Brandon threw his head back and started laughing. It wasn't even that funny but her tone was awkward and it was almost a ridiculous thing to say in the first place.

Seraphina reveled in the sound. It was like music to her ears and she was so proud to be the one who caused it. She wanted to make him laugh always.

"I'm serious, Brandon," she told him, her eyes catching his. "Regardless of where we end up in the playoffs, if we make the playoffs, you're going to get nominated for the Vezina. And if you don't win it..." She shook her head. "Well, we all know the hockey media is biased to the east coast, but still."

He shrugged his shoulders and looked away. He was uncomfortable with flattery, uncomfortable with being honored for something he loved to do. He hadn't told her that, but she picked up on it. Last season, even though they played horribly, talk began about Thorpe possibly getting nominated for the Vezina, but that died down just as quickly as it started. There was no way the NHL was going to award a goaltender whose team didn't even make playoffs.

"Did you always want to play goalie?" Seraphina pushed. She knew it was asking a lot, to try and get him to talk more when he didn't talk much at all, but she found she liked hearing the sound of his voice. She liked that he was comfortable enough with her to share these parts of him not many people knew.

Brandon nodded his head. "My older sister Cameron played hockey and liked using me to practice, even when I was really young," he explained. "It freaked my mom out but my dad said it was a good way for me to toughen up. I mean, I was five and my sister was shooting pucks at me. I didn't have any gear except one of her own hockey helmets and a lot of layers of clothing."

"Your sister was the woman at the auction, right?" Seraphina asked.

Brandon nodded, rolling his eyes as a smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

"That's Rachel for you," he said with a shrug of his shoulders. "We haven't seen each other in a few months so she decided to surprise me by attending the auction without even telling me. She does well for herself back home - she's an accountant - but she hasn't settled down yet. She likes her freedom so I suppose she's waiting for the right person."

"She sounds like she's not waiting at all," Seraphina murmured. 

The plane took off into the sky at a steep angle, causing her to grip the hand rests tighter once more. Brandon didn't tighten his grip on her but he didn't remove his hand, either. Instead, he kept it over her hand, tracing mindless patterns into her skin, trying to distract her in any way he could.

"What do you mean?" he asked, looking over at her. He had to raise his voice just a bit to be heard over the noise.

Seraphina swallowed, trying to pull herself out of her funk and focus on his touch, on his voice.

"Your sister," she finally said. "She doesn't sound like she's the type of woman to wait around for the right guy. I don't think she's waiting around at all. She's going after what she wants. She has a good job, she sounds like she'd be the type to have lots of friends, and she still makes an effort to not lose touch with her baby brother. Romance seems like the last thing on her mind. She sounds amazing."

Brandon was silent for a long moment, letting Seraphina's words sink in. Then, he turned to her and murmured, "She said the same thing about you."

"Me?" Seraphina asked as the plane leveled out. Her eyes were wide. "She knows about me?"

"I've mentioned you from time to time," he said, not meeting her eyes. "I wanted to introduce you to her that night but then the whole drama between Peters and Negan occurred and I didn't think that was the right time. But from what she knows of you, she likes you. But she won't make her final decision until she meets you herself."

"I look forward to meeting her," Seraphina murmured, the tips of her cheeks turning red.

The plane ride was still tense thanks to Seraphina's constant discomfort for flying. But it was a lot more bearable thanks to Brandon being next to her and holding her hand.