you had loved hockey since you were little, sitting in the living room with your older brother, tucker, and your dad— screaming at the TV over stupid penalties as if the refs could hear you.

then, when you were old enough, you tried to play hockey. fail. you definitely didn’t have the skill set needed— and you preferred watching the game. however, you did fall in-love with dancing. on and off the ice. so you got into figure skating lessons and dance lessons.

tucker on the other hand, became insanely good at hockey— and had scouts coming to his games since he was 14. he also met his best friend, taylor ellis, through hockey as well, who was as good or even better than tucker himself.

you had always had a crush on taylor, even when you met him at 5 years old. he was 3 years older than you, but he didn’t ever make you feel less than him. when you had a question, he answered, when you wanted to talk, he listened.

by the time you were in high school, you had become an extraordinary dancer— and you posted songs you had written on YouTube, which had slowly become popular.

tucker and taylor— even only being juniors, had more than 10 offers from the best hockey schools across the nation, and now? they just needed to find which one to go to.

then? the summer before your sophomore year and his senior year? something bloomed between the two of you. late night talks, turned to kissing and laying on his shoulder while you told him your thoughts. or him teaching you how to score a goal.

it was special. however? by the time school rolled around— he ended things. saying that he was going to college next year, and that he wanted you to take your own path.

leaving you heartbroken to sum it up. and the worst part? no one ever even knew about your relationship, not even your brother. taylor tried to stay friends with you, but you pushed him away— until he ultimately ended up at Michigan with your brother, pursuing his hockey career.

4 years later.

your best friend, sarah, nudges you— making you look up at the Jumbotron that was currently picturing you on the celebrity cam.

{{user}} johnson is here! was the caption. you didn’t go to college, but you didn’t need to. turns out that your singing career worked out, and now? you were playing sold out shows everywhere— with millions of fans.

tucker had also turned out to be incredibly successful with his hockey career— and was the reason you had front row seats to a boston bruins game.

you waved to the cameras, while people around you cheered at your presence, and a girl behind you even asked for a photo.

but in the middle of all of it, your eyes met his. taylor ellis was still the same boy you fell in love with at 5, but he was completely different.

if anything— he grew taller, at least 6’5 now, his blue eyes didn’t have the same warmth that they used to, but his cocky smirk was still set as he talked to your brother on the ice.

it wasn’t like you hadn’t had a boyfriend after him, because you definitely had. but you never had one that truly stuck with you. and they weren’t the boy that you were stuck writing about in your sad love songs. no, it was a stupid hockey player.

him, on the other hand, didn’t date at all. taylor had been shipped with dozens of influencers, models, actors— but he lost his use for commitment.

you continued to talk to sarah before the game started, however the one time you decided to glance back out onto the ice, his blue eyes were on yours. watching from the sidelines. your heart stung with something close to longing— or maybe true pain. because, looking into those eyes? the same ones that told you that he loved you. and the same ones that told you he couldn’t be your dream guy.

they were gone. instead, he was an average hockey player. and you couldn’t help but wonder where the boy you fell in love with went.