Chapter Text
“If this is how you practice than how the fuck did you even make the team? Let’s go!”
II and Vessel snickered at coach giving one of the new team members a hard time. Coach had asked for the new recruits to come in early so he could get a feel for them, and he sounded like he was having a blast .
The two had just arrived, the other team members arriving in toe behind them. They stood in the players' benches as the other teammates went to the changing room to get their gear on.
“Come on, this is hockey, not figure skating! Move it!”
II punched Vessel’s arm to keep the taller man from outright laughing.
“It may as well be fucking figure skating with how you’re making us practice!” Barked the tallest, who had vibrant shoulder length red hair, before getting shoved, rather aggressively, from him not paying attention.
“Pay attention, twinkle toes! Move it!” Coach said, clearly unamused. The taller man groaned, turning to follow the others.
Vessel had pulled his sweater up over his mouth to cover his giggles. II shoved him, nearly tripping himself as he tried to shove Vessel out of the player's bench. “Go, before he turns on you,” II couldn’t help his own giggles.
“Did I hear coach call one of the new recruits ‘twinkle toes’?” Sam asked once the two got into the changing room.
Vessel bit his lip to stifle his giggles as he nodded, getting a symphony of snorts and laughs from everyone in the changing room.
II moved to sit next to Adam, the other Goalie, giving him a fist bump as he pulled his sweater over his head. Someone in the room whistling as they watched II remove his sweater to reveal a slim fitted long sleeve, his thumbs through the thumb holes of the sleeve.
II turned to face the group, an eyebrow raised, amused, smirking. “Don’t be shy, come give me a kiss.”
Beside him, both Adam and Vessel broke out into a fit of cackles. II turned back around to continue changing, and everyone else followed suit, not wanting to join the new recruits on being smack talked to by their coach.
They quickly changed and joined the coach and the new recruits on the ice.
“Ayy, and the Captain finally shows.” Coach snickered as Vessel waddled into the players bench with everyone else.
“This is Olen, Cody, and Three, the new forwards,” coach said, pointing to each in turn, II and Vessel sharing a curious glance with each other at the latter’s name, seeing the ‘III’ was the dude with the red hair. “And these are Stacey, and Four, the new defensemen.” II and Vessel shared another glance at the name again, seeing that ‘IV’ was a dirty blond, his hair close-cut to his head, and Vessel could’ve sworn he could see vague hints of eyeliner on IV.
Vessel looked around at his familial teammates, sharing a look with each of them, a grin slowly growing on his face. “Well, let’s give these newbies hell then, shall we?” They all grinned, some banging their sticks off the ground. Vessel caught Coach rolling his eyes with a playful smile, moving out of the way for them all to get onto the ice.
“Warm ups, get to it.” Coach hollered as everyone got on the ice. II and Adam went to the far-left side of the rink—they usually did their warm ups together during practice—while everyone else went to the right side to start on their warm ups.
Vessel watched as III drags IV to the side of the rink, near the penalty boxes, IV handing something to him that Vessel couldn’t see, giving the taller man a gentle smile before skating away to join in with the drills.
“Come on twinkle toes, the fuck you standing around for?” Coach hollers, exasperated already.
“Yeah, yeah, hold ya fuckin’ horses.” III rolled his eyes, reaching his hands to his head, pulling his hair back. Vessel realized what IV had handed III must’ve been a hair tie, as III began tying his hair back and out of his face, before quickly joining in with the drills.
After their warm ups, Coach had them play some practice games against each other. They played well, some of them were still a bit sluggish, but quickly got into the groove of things, especially the newbies III and IV.
From a distance, Vessel was able to tell that IV was a rough defenseman. He was good at sticking with the puck, and even better at sneaking it away from someone. His stick-work could use a bit of work, but Vessel chose to leave that alone for now, it was only practice, so he hoped it would be better during a game. Stacey was also good, great with his stick-work, his footing was immaculate, he could visibly tell that Stacey’s been skating since childhood, and the man clearly wasn’t afraid to get handsy, if all the shoves he was dishing out was anything to go by.
Olen and Cody seemed a bit more on the down low side, they passed to each other, frequently, kept distance from the rest of the team, and acted like they were the puck when skating across the ice. Distantly, Vessel admired that of them, being able to get so zoned into the game that they could manage to look one with the puck.
III on the other hand, Vessel was entirely amused by, he took every shot he could, his cocky attitude clear as day whenever he was able to sneak a puck past Adam. Vaguely though, Vessel could tell the way III skated was different, he still skated with the aggression every other man on the ice did, but it had a gentler touch. Other than that, Vessel was surprised that, once they got into the game, III seemed focused on the game, and only the game. It was as if him putting his hair up had made a whole new person. Cocky, sure, but he passed the puck, he shot it, his stick-work was amazing, and his ability to stick on a player was impressive .
Some guys had begun complaining about bathroom breaks, so they took a ten-minute break. Vessel skated over to Coach, near the penalty box, he had been the referee for their practice game.
“Why twinkle toes? I can see he skates differently, by why twinkle toes?” Vessel asked, leaning against the wall.
“My wife calls our daughter a twinkle toe.” Coach shrugged. When he caught the confused look Vessel was giving, he elaborated with an amused smile. “My daughter figure skates. His techniques are learned after baseline figure skating.”
Vessel made and ‘o’ with his mouth at the realization, turning to look at III who was talking with IV, laughing about something as he took a drink from his water bottle. A grin suddenly crossed Vessel’s face. “Do you think if I asked, he would do some figure skating move?”
Coach let out a snort, “honestly? I wouldn’t put it past him. Though, not during practice, yeah?” Vessel let out a laugh. “Alright, get away from me, go socialize, Bug.” Coach smiled, bumping shoulders with Vessel.
He laughed and skated away. He exchanged pleasantries with his teammates, fist bumping and grinning as they playfully shouldered each other, but he made his way over to III and IV, which Vessel was confused when he noticed III had pulled IV into a headlock, the two moving in circles on the ice from their rough movements.
“Get the fuck off me, you lanky bastard!” IV was yelling, but his anger was overshadowed by his laughter. He managed to weasel out of III’s grip, only to reach up and yank his hair, causing them to topple over, IV landing on top of III.
“Woah! Woah, the fuck is going on?” Vessel asked, pulling IV off III.
They didn’t seem angry, if III cackling on his back on the ice and IV wheezing in Vessel’s hold was anything to go by.
“Did they only make ya’ Captain because ya’ tower over everyone? Cause if that’s the case, then they may as well make me Captain.” III was grinning ear to ear, letting his hair down as he got up from the ice. It wasn’t holding much anymore, not after IV had yanked his hair.
Vessel let go of IV, who had calmed down as well. He had to avert his eyes from III, the man’s grey-blue gaze paired with his cheshire cat smile too much for Vessel, who was usually never one to shy away from eye contact.
“Don’t think too highly of yourself twinkle toes, I’ve been here for years, I earned the Captain label. You,” Vessel looked III up and down, “you’re too much of a fool to ever be called Captain.”
Vessel, always one for dramatic effects, left it at that and turned to skate away, grinning at the laughter that erupted out of IV. “Shut the fuck up, Ivy.” He heard it come from III, and he had to bite his lip to prevent himself from laughing.
“I’m not sure I want to know.” II said as Vessel skated to a stop in front of him at the net.
“Two, shut up. Vess, you have to tell me what the fuck that was about. The look on Three’s face as you left? His jaw was on the floor!” Sam was practically yelling, slinging an arm over Vessel’s shoulder, which had Vessel bending a bit to make it easier to do so.
“He was questioning if the reason they made me Captain was due to me towering over everyone, and therefore should make him Captain because he’s apparently taller. So, I called him twinkle toes and a fool.”
Sam hunched over in his laughter, II choking on his water.
“Vee! You’re supposed to get to know the newbies, not call them names!” II swatted at Vessel’s arm.
Vessel shrugged with a giggle. “He’s a big boy, he can handle being called names.” He turned, catching sight of III pulling his hair back up and out of his face just as coach was calling them back.
They practiced for another hour, working on stick-work, shooting, skating techniques, and played another mini game against each other. Vessel and III got into a bit of a rivals spat, checking each other against the walls, often hitting each other with their sticks, and poking fun at each other.
II watched Vessel and III fighting from his net, acting like kids, shoving and racing each other across the ice. He rolled his eyes, catching Coach doing the same thing. II figured if Coach was letting it be, then there was no real harm being done, if they kept this to practice and put it aside during games.
At the end of practice, Vessel stayed behind with II on the ice while everyone else went to get changed and go home. II, none too gently, took his pads off, leaving his helmet on the net.
Vessel found a little amusement in watching II take his heavy gear. “What are you feeling for dinner today?” Vessel asked, holding his hands out, which II took without hesitation, skating backwards, dragging Vessel with him over the ice.
“I’m kinda feeling steak, but we’d need to go to the store.”
“Okay,” Vessel smiled down at II. They skated around for a bit longer in relative silence, before picking II’s gear back up and going to the changing room to properly change.
By now, most of their teammates had left already, only a few lingering.
As Vessel and II sat to take their skates off, they heard a distant buzzing. Vessel looked around the room, standing in front of II once he got his skates off. “Where’s the buzzing coming from?”
“I think it’s coming from Four’s stuff. He's in the shower though.” Stacey shrugged, lacing up his running shoes.
II swatted at Vessel’s leg to get his attention, and the taller man held his hands out, looking back at II, who took the hands, letting Vessel hoist him up from the bench and onto his bare feet. Vessel stepped to the side, letting II grab his things, but the shorter man stumbled as he took a step towards the showers, Vessel quick to help stable him. II went to take another step, wobbling a bit, but more stable this time, he patted Vessel’s arm and the taller man let go of him so he could get into the shower.
“What was that?” Stacey asked, stood, just about to leave.
“You will never catch him fall on the ice, unintentionally, but Two has terrible balance on solid ground.” Sam snickered.
“He’s always tripping, especially when he has to recenter his balance from skates to solid ground.” Vessel chuckled.
IV came back into the room, already wearing shorts, his towel over his shoulders.
“Four, mate, who the fuck is spamming your phone like that?” Vessel asked, exasperated as the man went to his stuff, pulling his phone out.
“Sorry- er- just a crazy ex.” IV waved off as he turned his phone off, tossing it back in his bag as he got his clothes on. Vessel brushed it off, but he could tell that something was up with IV. Not just his mood shifting after he looked at his phone, but Vessel could see the man flinching as he ruffled through his bag, as if he were in pain.
A look of relief crossed IV’s face as he pulled out a pair of gloves. They looked more like compression gloves, and Vessel’s eyebrows furrowed in curiosity. He chose not to ask though.
III walked in, all the other guys having left already, with just a towel wrapped low around his hips. Vessel was quick to avert his gaze, turning to finish packing up his things.
“How’s the hands, Ivy?” III asked IV. Vessel’s curiosity spiked again at the name, but he kept quiet.
“Ah, pins and needles, you know.” He shrugged in reply.
They descended into silence and II came back a few minutes later, dressed to go, but he paused, staring at III’s back.
“What the fuck is that ?” II asked, his eyes wide in an emotion Vessel couldn’t name.
III looked over his shoulder at II, confused, until he caught where II was looking, a mischievous grin crossing his face. Vessel walked closer to II, trying to see what he was looking at.
He noticed some ink on III’s lower back, and his mouth fell open as he realized the taller man had fucking tramp stamp . It was whimsically shaped, starting in the dip of his back and swirling out to his hips in a wide V, a heart right in the dip, noticeable if you were staring. Which Vessel was. Very obviously.
“I might have to put your mouth to use if you leave it hanging open like that.” III smirked, and Vessel was quick to close his mouth and turn away. He didn’t know why, but he was suddenly so turned on. He didn’t have a thing for tattoos. II had a tattoo, he had been with II when he got it done. Mind you, he was hardly needed for company, II ended up sleeping through all the sessions to get his back tattoo done.
Distantly, Vessel could hear IV cackling, he tried his best to ignore it and school his expression, grabbing his bag and trying to leave the changing room as quickly as possible with II in toe.
“That was not something I thought I’d see tonight.” II mumbled as he got in the driver's seat of their car, Vessel getting in the passenger’s seat.
They went to the store before driving home. II driving, Vessel playing with the radio. The two lived together, mostly for convenience, both saying if they ever needed space they could move out, but they had found a comfortable routine around each other and hockey, and the next thing they knew, it was five years later.
They kept up with practice, daily, for the next two weeks, getting familiar with their new teammates and such.
Everyone had become accustomed and annoyed with Vessel’s and III’s petty rivalry. They nitpicked everything on each other, and acted as if they were on opposite teams with how roughly they checked each other. Even once getting into a small fight, which coach had quickly broken up.
And when it came to the changing room, Vessel diligently did not look at III. Especially whenever III came out of the showers with his towel low on his hips.
Everyone was starting to get fed up with it, all the jabs, the name calling, the rough housing, and the ignoring they did of each other off the ice.
“Vess, I’m serious, Coach is going to say the same thing tomorrow, you and Three need to pull your shit together.” II was saying. Vessel had joined II for his morning run and coffee, they sat in the corner of the small coffee shop, II finally lecturing Vessel on his behavior.
“We’ll play nice tomorrow.” Vessel playfully rolled his eyes around a sip of his coffee.
“You know I’m not asking you to play nice. I need you to be focused on the team, not fighting your own team. If you act like you’ve been tomorrow night, then your no better than he’s saying.”
“Hey,” Vessel protested, frowning.
“Don’t ‘hey’, you know what I’m talking about.” II said, kicking Vessel under the table.
Vessel hissed. “Okay, okay. I’ll work with him, not against him tomorrow, but if we lose, it’s on him.”
“Better, thank you.”
Vessel smiled softly at II’s attitude, rolling his tongue ring between his teeth. If it were up to Vessel, he would’ve nominated II to be the Captain, not him. II cared more than anything about the team, it was endearing, and Vessel often wondered why he was made Captain.
He playfully kicked II under the table, earning a soft smile from the smaller man. They stood from the table, taking their drinks with them as they began walking home. Their first game was tomorrow, so everyone was on edge and practicing extra hard, which, unfortunately for everyone else, led to III and Vessel being even more competitive and rough on the ice.
For now, though, instead of worrying about their first game, Vessel was happy to walk home silently beside II, watching as the shorter man bobbed his head to whatever song was currently stuck in his head.