Chapter Seven

The opening ceremony was as stressful as Dan had thought it would be, but he managed to wrangle a spot at the back of the hockey team and close to the figure skaters, so he was bracketed safely amongst Ian, Kayla, Bobby, and Simon. Helena was nowhere to be found but Dan had a feeling she would find them later if Ian had anything to say about it. Dan had received a text from Helena telling him she would punch him in the dick next time she saw him for causing her team to ask awkward questions and Dan grinned, looking forward to it.

One of the speed skaters was carrying the flag--not Kayla’s roommate but someone else. Dan was glad given the number of times he’d seen the guy online, and in the news, talking about what an honor it was going to be.

Dan spent most of the time thinking about the drink Bobby had promised him and though the rest of the hockey team had tried to cajole him into joining them for a pre-Olympics celebration, Dan had declined. They were familiar with his brush-offs, so when a couple had kept on, trying to get him to break, Rafael had run interference. Dan wasn’t sure if he knew about Dan’s plans, but he was grateful all the same. He hoped it was just a friend doing him a favor because if he had to have the coming out talk with Rafael as well, he was going to end up quitting hockey, running away to the woods and pretending he’d been kidnapped.

By the time they were given leave to disappear and do their own thing, Bobby leaned in, telling him to be back in the lobby in a half hour and Bobby would be waiting. Dan’s mouth was dry, and he hovered awkwardly by the elevator for a while. He was going to have to shower and change out of the team uniform, but the hockey team hadn’t left yet, and Rafael would still be in the room. Dan had suffered too many awkward conversations in the day to want another, so he waited until hockey players started to filter into the lobby and snuck into the elevator as they mingled, yelling and hi-fiving over something or other. They hadn’t done anything monumental yet, but Dan couldn’t deny their enthusiasm would probably be welcome come game day.

Thankfully Rafael was nowhere to be found in the room, and Dan tried not to spend too much time picking an outfit that would make him look good. Kayla spent enough time for them both on her appearance, and Dan didn’t much care what he looked like; either Bobby would like him as he was, or he wouldn’t. He might have made a little more effort if he had been at home and had access to his full wardrobe, but as it was, Bobby was lucky he wouldn’t be turning up in his Team USA sweatshirt and sweatpants.

Regardless, he snapped a picture and sent it to Kayla, waiting until she gave him the thumbs up before pocketing his phone and heading back down. The hallway and elevator were empty, so Dan played around on his phone, while he was waiting and then riding down the elevator, shooting a message off to Max asking if he was okay, and checking in with his friends back home. The ones who couldn’t make it to the Olympics sent him a range of emojis, most of which he rolled his eyes at, but a couple of questionable ones had his chest tight. They meant well, probably, but the fact that Dan was having a drink with someone and he couldn’t tell them was still difficult to deal with.

“Whatever,” he muttered, the elevator coming to a stop. Right now, he didn’t want to worry about it. He wanted to enjoy his time with Bobby and have some fun before he was forced into a competitive mindset and everything else fell by the wayside.

Leaning against one of the chairs in the lobby, Bobby had his legs crossed at the ankle, one arm folded across his chest and the other tapping away at his phone. Like the first time Dan met him, he looked good, a little makeup around the eyes, tight pants and a jacket. There was less jewelry than there had been previously.

“You look good,” Dan said, sliding his hands into his pockets. He never knew what to do with them, often he had them dangling awkwardly at his sides, but right now he wanted to reach out and touch Bobby. To keep from doing so, pockets it was.

“Daniel,” Bobby said, eyes doing the corner crinkle. He slipped his phone into his back pocket, running his eyes over Dan’s body. “As do you.”

There was a heat in Bobby’s eyes that Dan was no stranger too. While he couldn’t always recognize flirting, he did recognize when someone wanted him. He’d forced himself to learn in an effort to avoid anyone who started getting too close. With Bobby, he didn’t have to ignore it and didn’t have to distract attention away from himself. Part of him would always be uncomfortable with the attention, but it was easier to handle with Bobby than anyone else.

“Where do you want to get a drink?” Dan asked because the only place he knew of was where he’d met Bobby the first time.

Bobby pushed off the chair and stood up. He was a head shorter than Dan, something that still made Dan’s pulse jump, and he had to tilt his head a little to meet Dan’s eyes. “I thought we could take a look around the Village.”

“Sure,” Dan said easily.

Expecting the silence to be awkward, Dan was pleasantly surprised that it was comfortable as they cleared the US quarter, passing by the German and Australian buildings. Dan’s hand itched, desperate to take it out of his pocket and hold Bobby’s hand but they hadn’t had a drink yet. He had no frame of reference for something like this, hadn’t even dated girls. How long was there supposed to be between going for a drink and holding hands?

“Relax,” Bobby said, touching Dan’s arm. His smile was wry. “It’s just a drink.”

“What if I get it wrong?”

That sounded pathetic even to himself but instead of laughing, Bobby shrugged. His hand was still on Dan’s arm, sending warmth down to Dan’s skin even with a jacket in the way.

“The only way you could get it wrong was if you ran out on me without saying goodbye.” Bobby’s tone was light. Everything about Bobby was light as if there was no expectation, no risk. There was always a risk and either Bobby was ignoring it deliberately, or he was hoping Dan was worth taking it.

Dan wasn’t sure that he was. “I can be a gentleman.”

“Not all the time, I hope,” Bobby said, finally letting go of Dan’s arm. He gestured toward a building at the end of the street. “That looks like it will be warm.”

Most of the bars and the restaurants would be crowded. That was a given in the Village and though Dan wanted time alone, they probably wouldn’t get that unless they retired to one of their rooms. Thankfully the bar Bobby pointed to wasn’t overflowing onto the street, so it was already a step up from the places they’d passed so far.

Grabbing a couple of colas from the barman, Dan threaded his way through to the back, where Bobby had managed to snag them a couple of seats. Bobby made a face as he took a sip.

“Not a cocktail,” he said, with a sigh. “But it will have to do given the training we are subjected to.”

Dan smiled, swirling his own cola in the glass. “I don’t think I’ve ever had a cocktail.”

“So many firsts,” Bobby said, that familiar darkness back in his eyes. Dan wasn’t stupid; his being a virgin, his lack of familiarity with alcohol, a whole list of things he had never done, all while being a hockey player was a draw for some people. Hockey had always come first, and Dan had refused to give in to the part of him screaming for him to find someone to share his life with. Now Bobby was looking at him like he could share his life and Dan would enjoy it.

Or maybe that was what Dan was projecting onto Bobby. Shifting a little in his seat, Dan tried to will his interested cock to stay down. He did not need to pop a boner in a crowded bar because Bobby was talking about first times.

“I’ve done stuff,” Dan said. There was the right amount of confidence because Dan was still a hockey player, and he knew what face to show the world.

Bobby ran his eyes slowly over Dan’s body. He had to stop doing that, or Dan’s dick was going to ignore his mental instructions. “And yet there seems to be so much left to show you.”

That Dan couldn’t deny, and he tipped his glass at Bobby. “I’m sure someone will sometime.”

Meeting Bobby’s eyes slowly, Dan kept his expression and tone neutral, but he wasn’t imagining the slight raise of Bobby’s eyebrows, the little puff of breath he expelled. Dan couldn’t shake the thoughts of Bobby giving him his first kiss, the first touch of someone else’s hand to his cock. Shit. Bobby was still watching him, and Dan tried not to squirm under the attention. He wasn’t successful, and Bobby placed his glass on the table, a finger sliding in the condensation on the table. “What do you want, Dan?”

Dan didn’t know how to answer the question. “A drink.”

“I don’t mean with me.” Bobby folded his arms on the table. “I mean with everything. Do you know what you want from someone?”

“I’m not out,” Dan started because that seemed an important factor. “I’ve never been with someone. I don’t know if I like it enough to want it forever, but I do want something. It can be lonely with only your teammates.”

Bobby nodded, understanding in his eyes. “I think most athletes feel the same. It can be a difficult profession for someone to understand, let alone deal with.”

“What about you?” Dan found himself asking. “Do you not want to settle down?”

“I thought so,” Bobby said, after a long pause. “There was someone I loved, someone who couldn’t handle the lifestyle.”

“Anyone that thinks you’re not worth the stress is stupid,” Dan said. He shrugged at Bobby’s pleased smile. “I’ve only known you a day,” and God, that short a time was insane, but Dan couldn’t help himself, “and I think you’re awesome.”

“Awesome,” Bobby said with a laugh. “Thank you, Dan. I think you’re awesome too.”

Dan groaned, running a hand over his face. “Shut up. I spend most of my life with hockey players. I can’t help it if awesome is my primary adjective.”

That set Bobby off again, and Dan basked in the moment, of being able to make someone laugh like that. He didn’t have to figure out what he wanted right now, not at the Olympics when his life was going to fly by in such a whirlwind, but he couldn’t be averse to spending more time with Bobby. Maybe it was because Bobby was the first person he could truly be open with, but Dan didn’t think that was a problem. Dan couldn’t remember a time when he’d felt like this around someone.

“Do you ever think about life without figure skating?” Dan asked, blurting it out. He felt the heat rise in his cheeks almost immediately.

Bobby considered the question. “I design my own costumes,” he said absently. “I think I want to be a fashion designer.”

“I don’t know what I’d do without hockey,” Dan said, staring into his drink. “I’ve never had a backup plan.”

Bobby reached across the table, squeezed his hand. “You don’t have to know, Dan. Sometimes life hands you what you need.”

Life had handed Bobby to him. Some of that must have shown on his face, because Bobby ducked his head, a smile tugging at his lips. Dan waved a hand for more drinks.

Four more colas between them and time was dragging on, and Dan was going to have to get himself into a bed soon if he wanted to be alert for practice. They had a couple of days before their first game, but he couldn’t let himself get complacent. He didn’t want to leave the bar, didn’t want to stop talking to Bobby. They weren’t sharing deep-seated secrets, at least no more than the one Dan had already blurted out, but he was content with sharing anecdotes about his siblings, his friends, and even a few memories of better times with his parents.

“You don’t speak very highly of your mother now,” Bobby pointed out, near the end of the evening.

“We have a difficult relationship,” Dan said. “Which is an understatement. She’s never had a sense of boundaries.”

Watching him closely, Bobby didn’t prompt him or ask him to continue. He just waited Dan out, and while part of Dan wanted to confess everything, thinking about his mother when he was trying to have fun was stupid and would only put him in a bad mood.

“The list of my issues with her goes on, but she’s still my agent.” Dan shrugged. “I don’t know that I can explain how I feel about her in a way that would make sense.”

Bobby’s smile was more sympathetic and understanding than Dan would have guessed. “You don’t have to. I feel the same way about my father, so I suppose I understand and,” he hesitated, eyes darting over Dan’s face then back to the table, “if you wanted someone to talk to.”

Dan licked his bottom lip, something warm flooding his chest. “Thank you, Bobby.”

There was a moment that felt charged with something, and Dan wanted to lean forward, press his lips to Bobby’s just to see what it would feel like; if he would taste like cola or something else entirely. For a second, Dan thought it might happen, but then Bobby was patting his hands on the table, smile shifting into something brighter.

“What say we get out of here?”

Dan didn’t want to, but he nodded, slipping off his chair and dropping to the ground. The cold air was a harsh change from the warmth of the bar, but Dan shrugged deeper into his jacket and grinned internally when Bobby pressed closer, arm to arm as they made their way back to the team rooms.

“I will come to see you, you know,” Dan said.

“You have a game the same day,” Bobby replied. At Dan’s raised eyebrows he shrugged. “I checked the schedule.”

Bobby wanted to know if Dan could come and see him. Dan didn’t know what to do with that, but he did know what to do with the idea that he’d have to miss it because he was playing a game.

“You have another performance, right?”

Bobby nodded.

“Well then,” Dan said, opening the door to let Bobby through. The lobby and elevator were both empty and their ride up to Bobby’s floor passed mostly in silence. “I’ll see you at that one.”

Even if he had a game. Dan would find a way to watch some of Bobby’s program, even if he only caught the end. It would be easy enough to watch his routines online, Kayla was always duplicating programs that went well, but there was something different about watching things live— like a hockey game.

“All right,” Bobby said, without argument.

There was a little awkwardness when the doors opened, both hesitating, but Dan covered up his aborted kiss with a quick hug. That was acceptable for guys, right? Bobby’s hand came up to his neck, squeezed, then he stepped back. He was smiling, so Dan assumed that whether it was all right for guys to do it, it was all right for Bobby.

“See you later,” Dan said.

The doors closed on Bobby’s pleased smile.

Dan bumped his head back onto the wall and closed his eyes. He was such an idiot. Why hadn’t he just gone in for a kiss? Still, there was always time. The Olympics lasted for two weeks—plenty of time for Dan to see whether Bobby tasted as good as he thought he might.