I'm sad. But Parijac eases it. Here's some fic.
Title: Uncertainty
Author: Jennie
Characters: Travis Zajac and Zach Parise of the New Jersey Devils
Summary: In the end, we’ll still have each other.
Rating: G
Disclaimer: 100% pure, unadulterated fiction.
A/N: A short snippet to help ease the pain of last night.
And then it’s over.
Lockers are cleaned out, sticks are placed in bags, skates are covered. Teammates say goodbye, unsure if that will be their last conversation. Free agency looms, and uncertainty arises. Will they stay? Will the money drive them away? When they leave, will they miss us? Questions that will never be answered; a season that ended too short.
Travis sits on the bench in front of his stall and watches. Microphones are thrown in his teammates faces. Lips are curled under and fists are clenched in an effort to suppress the onslaught of tears. Voices are hushed and audible breaths are heard over the rustle of busy work. His eyes fall onto Zach, a normally strong and confident body slumped in a defeated pose. He sighs, taking a moment to collect himself, and pads in worn sneakers to a space on the tired wooden bench beside Zach. These benches have seen twenty five years. Twenty five years of heart ache, twenty five years of uncertainty, twenty five years of grown men unafraid to let their emotions show. These benches have seen it all. In months, these benches will be among those scraps of wood left in a pile along Route 3. The marks left from the skates of players that will be engraved in Hall of Record books, carved on the Stanley Cup, will be forgotten in a matter of weeks.
After a moment, Zach lifts his eyes, lined with red and brimming with salt water tears. “I just,” he says softly, his voice unsteady, “I didn’t expect it to end this soon.”
Travis knows that feeling. It’s a cross between having your heart ripped out and being pummeled against the glass. He’s never had his heart broken, but he can’t imagine it hurting more than this.
“I mean,” Zach continues, “What’s going to happen? Are they all going to leave? What about..” He pauses and takes Travis’ hand in his, holding it as if Travis is his anchor. “What’s going to happen to us?”
“We’re going to stay together. Even if one of us leaves, we’ll still be here.” Travis lifts their hands and taps Zach’s chest. “What we have, no one can destroy that.”
Everything must come to an end. But for now, Travis has Zach. Agents may request trades for their clients, a wrecking ball will tear down these walls, but for now, they have each other.