YETI

Sleeping doesn't last long because the hum of the heating shuts off at four in the morning, and then I'm awake again. The alarm clocks are off and when I check my phone, it's not charging. Blackout.

I blink the sleep out of my eyes, staring up at the wood ceiling for a few seconds to collect myself, then I sit up, sheets falling around my hips, hiding a very badly timed waking erection. I was never that forward with my sexual anything so these, especially on road trips, suck. Fenrir, my chronic dorm-mate of three years on the other hand, has a blast with them sometimes, waking up and coming to, then immediately laughing his ass off more than once a season. It's normally based on whatever his dream content was, the timing, the way it happens, any of it. 

I just roll over and wait. Right now, that's most of the plan. I sit and grab my sweatpants off the floor, pulling them up my legs and adjusting them around my hips before grabbing my hoodie off the floor and yanking that on, hoping it's mine considering the moon seems to have set and I have no idea what I'm grabbing. I have a slight feeling it isn't because of the smell but it fits fine and it might just be because of the room. 

I look around, giving my body another few minutes to chill out,  letting my eyes land on Rocket and his long back stretched out of his sleeping bag, the valley his spine leaves in the bottom of his back is gorgeous and so smooth as my eyes adjust that I'm stunned. 

And then oh shit that made it worse followed by oh shit I'm attracted to him. 

And then: Oh shit I'm attracted to him.

And then: "Lads, I swear it's just a ham and cheese sandwich!" 

I put the heel of my hand over my mouth, clearing my throat and looking away, remembering suddenly that he has a sleep talking problem. 

He groans, deep and throaty, "lads." 

I would punch my dick if he were a person. I would throttle my dick if he were a person. 

"Listen to me," Rocket mumbles, pointing with his hand ever so slightly, "poslechni! We don't have time for sendviče." 

I have such a bad urge to stay and listen. I've never heard him speak in Czech before. In my head, I knew he could do it, I knew he knew Czech. I know he has an accent, he just feels more like he's from the Americas than like he was born and raised in the Czech Republic. 

His next sentence rattles out fully in his mothertongue, hot and low across his teeth and his lips, mumbled and garbled just like the rest of his words but Czech. 

If my dick were a man and he were standing in front of me I would run him through with a sword without a second of consideration. 

I don't have time to be into Rocket. I really really really don't have time for it. 

I stand up and unzip my sleeping bag all the way like a blanket, then walk over to him and drape it over his sleeping body, trying not to focus on the way his nose is scrunched and his hands are out like he's gesticulating to whoever is in his dream. 

 By light of my phone, I escape the room and find my way to the common room area.

Paxton stumbles in about four minutes later, drowsy and in sweats and a hoodie, the same as me. 

"Hey," I mumble. He grumbles something under his breath and stretches.

"We need to restart that fire," he points at it, voice straight up fucked because of sleep. I roomed with him for my first few seasons and that was his sleeping quirk. He loses his voice and doesn't get it back for a while after waking up. "This hellhole is going to get cold, really cold."

"Yeah, can you get that? I'm going to look around the basement to see if they have any candles or lo and behold a generator if we're lucky." I scratch the back of my head, trying not to be awkward. I think I'll be clear if I stand up.

Paxton seems to have reignited some of the fire within moments, stacking one or two remaining logs on the rack.

I hear another shuffling and Fen sticks his head in the door, Nico on his tail. "Did the power go out?" Nico is rubbing one of her eyes.

"Yeah," Paxton's got his head in the fireplace. "Can you and Fen go outside and get more wood, we're going to get cold fast if you don't."

"Sure," she grabs Fen's arm and pulls him toward the door. He's 95% asleep and not about to wake up.

"Paxton," I pull open the door to the basement. "Why are you up? Normally you sleep heavy."

"Steph snores."

"No shit, really? I thought that was a joke."

"Yeah, it's not bad, but I was sleeping really light because of it. So when the heat clicked and shut off like that, I was up."

"Nice," I'm procrastinating going into the basement. So, I muster up as much courage as I can get, get up, and shine my phone light down the stairs.

They're long and dark and when I set my foot on the top one, my boot makes the floor creak. I put them on because my feet were cold but now I'm glad, considering the puff of dust that rose up from underneath the sole. 

Once downstairs, all I can smell is must and I can't see much of anything. So I start to look for shelves.

Gladly, I put on boots, because I almost disintegrate on the spot when a mousetrap snaps over my toe, only managing not to scream like a little kid out of fright. The only thing that makes its way out is a yelp. 

"You okay down there?" Paxton yells from upstairs, startled by the noise. 

I kick off the trap, "yeah, fine, just a mousetrap on my shoe," I look around. There are tealights on the shelves, but I need candles or flashlights or something substantial. I knock into something, and shine my flashlight.

It takes all my might not to scream again. There's a manikin in the basement for no reason.

"God," I grumble. Then I need to talk myself out of it, but I keep it to Swedish, nobody needs to know that I'm having a rough time down here.

"Alright," I shuffle through another shelf. "Come on I need to find something. This hellhole has to have something, God it's cold. Stupid permafrost."

I hear something behind me. "I swear to god if that's the manikin I'm quitting this team on the spot," I turn around. It's just a mouse, staring at me. "Oh, fuck off."

I root through the shelves, and then load up my pockets with a couple flashlights. I find another shelf, three candles look new enough to burn.

"Alright, time to go, time to go," I shuffle back past the manikin and then up the stairs, it's time to get the hell out.

"Hey Paxy," I hand him a couple candles, and he sticks a match into the fire and manages to light every single candle in four or five seconds. "Future arson?"

"Future firework technician," he grins in the firelight and I'm sufficiently spooked for a moment or two.

Then Fen and Nico burst back in the door, arms full of wood, dragging in snow with them. Fen kicks the door shut and drops the stack of wood onto the ground next to the fire.

"Good for now?"

"If it's snowing you're going to want to get more before it gets covered." Fen lets out a long sigh.

"Yeah, makes sense, come on Nico," He gives her a little side hug and they're back out the door.

"Should we wake up the rest of the boys?" I look around. "At least Hadley, Rod, and Jorgen, right?"

"Yeah, probably those three, but let the rest of them sleep as long as they can," Paxton sighs. "Let's set up the candles, the flashlights should be the last resort, we only have so much battery."

"Right," I look around. "And it's four, so we have about three and a half hours until daybreak, then we should be set."

"Right on," Paxy shrugs. "We should look for more things to burn. I'm cold."

"Put on more layers, we should only burn as much as we need," I pick up a flashlight and slip my phone into my pocket. "I'll go get Hadley, but having the coaches up will be good."

"Right."

I make my way down the dorm hall, then up the flight of stairs to the four person room that the coaches are in. I pull open the door, shining the flashlight on the floor instead of up. I rap a couple times on the open door.

"Guys, get up."

"What?" Hadley sits straight up. That's too much old man chest for my comfort. "What, what is it? Who died?"

"Nobody died," I clear my throat. "Power's out."

"What?" Jorgen groans and sits up, hunting around for his leg.

Rod rolls over but stays asleep. I continue. "Power's out. Paxy got the fire going again, Nico and Fen are getting wood. I found candles, we have about three and a half hours until dawn, and I thought I'd tell you guys."

"Thanks," Hadley hops off the bunk and puts on a sweatshirt, looking out the door at the lack of lights.

"Should we wake up the rest of the guys?"

"No, keep them asleep," Jorgen mumbles. "They'll be pissey if we get them up."

"Why are you up?" Hadley narrows his eyes, joking around.

I shrug, "heat shut off and made a rattle. I'm a light sleeper."

"Alright," Hadley yawns. "Yeah, let them sleep."

ROCKET

Why is it so flipping cold? I seriously miss Boston on days like this. It would just get gross out, not ridiculously cold like it is now. What is this?

I groan and reach for blankets, swatting around at the bed around me, a sudden shot of a woodsy type of smell hitting my nose. I sit up, squinting down at myself. Noticing one of two things. One: this is Yeti's sleeping bag. He must've put it over me when he got up. Two: morning fucking wood. Hopefully the cold kills it quick. 

I groan under my breath and flop back into the bed, the cold seeping into my skin. 

I roll over after a second of wallowing in it and grab my heavy sweatpants off the floor, pulling them on and then scrambling for the wool socks I packed only one pair of, like an idiot. 

My hoodie is gone. 

I look around. There's one hoodie on the floor and I try my best to stay in bed and still pick it up. 

It's got a 74 on the collar. 

It smells like pine, the same smell that the sleeping bag has. Pine and shampoo and coffee. I'd buy a candle in seconds. 

Yeti. Where is he.

I stand up, noticing the sleeves are a little too long on me, more used to being stretched out around shoulders and biceps much larger than my arms. But other than that it fits alright. Which is weird, considering I always assumed he was bigger than I am. 

I stalk toward the door and then pad down the hallway in my socks, trying to tame my hair as I walk. 

The kitchen is the quiet type of noisy, like they know most of us are still asleep and aren't chatting less, just being kind and quiet about it. 

I stop in the door, looking around, counting heads, spotting the Russians in the corner over coffee, Steph looking half dead next to Hiro, Paxy and Fen arguing about something near the fire, Nico, Jorgen, Rod and Hadley are discussing something near the stove and then I fix my eyes on the man by the stove, working with the coffee machine. Tall, broad, pale and wearing a Stojanovic hoodie. As much as I fucking love my name stretched between his shoulders I really don't think he'll like it all that much. 

I stumble over, stepping on his other side from Finnican, then give my voice it's best shot, "you stole my hoodie."

"Huh?" 

I point at the 42 on his collar, "you've got my hoodie on."

"What?" He pulls at the front of it and spies the 42. "Oh, sorry," He laughs lightly, pink racing into his cheeks. "I knew it smelled different," he pulls at the back of it and takes it off. But he's not wearing a shirt under it.

I swallow down gay panic as the lip of my hoodie slides up and over his bulky abs and then off over his even bulkier shoulders. Biceps and pecs and deltoids all softened up from water weight, looking puffy and soft. It's turning my gears far too much for this setting. Far too much for a fucking teammate I remind myself with a mental slap to the head. 

"Put it away, Yeti Rex!" Nico catcalls him from across the room.

"I stole Rocket's hoodie, sorry," I shrug his off my head. I hand it to him, ignoring the way his eyes are lingering on my boxer line, hoping it's nothing. I really, really, really, really, 100% cannot afford the risk if it's not nothing. I really can't fuck with that. 

"Rocket, you still look like the same twig you were at the beginning of the season. Have I done nothing?" Nico is now standing near the two of us. 

"Absolutely nothing. It's in my gene pool to be the skinniest motherfucker you ever saw," oh I'm so dazed. 

"I'm sorry, but I believe that's my job," Paxton is sitting on the counter, trying to cover up a smile.

"Goalies," Yeti shakes his head, pulling his own hoodie back down again, a little spark in his eye. 

And that's when I decide to fuck-all and wink at Håkon Rex. 

***

i bite my tongue

but your name keeps coming up in every conversation

your name - plested

***

yeah i know this is like an hour late shush i get it

anyway 10 days until i have to go back to school

and the SAT wasn't that bad

they DID whip out a fifth section on us tho

-rabid