#7 - Say What You Need To Say

Say - John Mayer(Cover)


“Hello?” The familiar, comforting tone spread out over the phone line.

“Hey dad!” I said, worry thick in my voice. “Umm… are you busy?”

“No, just sitting in my office hun, going over some things with Dan.” When I didn’t responded he pressed; “Everything ok?”

“Yah… yah…” I said, false enthusiasm in voice; I wasn’t sure who I was trying to convince - him or me. “I was just calling to let you know that I got on as an intern…”

“Already? Jes, that’s fantastic! Did you get on with one of the school teams, or…?”

“Actually, no.” I took a deep breath, bracing myself for his reaction. “I got on with the Capitals.”

“The Washington Capitals?” His voice wasn’t angry; it was full of humour and disbelief.

“Yah… that’d be the one.” I laughed slightly, my voice leaning towards hysterics.

Pause. “Oh… well that’s great!” He said finally, unexpectedly. “I mean, if you’re in Washington, that’s pretty much the best team you can work for…” He chuckled slightly before continuing. “I’m not gonna lie, I’m a little surprised but… you’ll be all ready now for when you come home and start working here!”

I didn’t bother to argue with him; no sense reiterating the fact that I was never going to work for him. “Sure dad. Anyway, I have to get going so… I’ll give you guys a call later.”

“Alright hun, sounds good.”

“Oh and dad!” I exclaimed as an after thought. “Don’t tell Sidney ok… I’ll give him a call later tonight.”

Laughing he agreed, hanging up the phone and leaving me feeling slightly better. One down, one to go… I thought, trying to keep my mind off Sidney and his reaction as Ben came back into the room; waving at me to follow him.


“Alright not everyone is here yet, but I can introduce you to the ones that are…” Ben explained as I followed him down a back hallway. I knew we were getting closer; when the noise became louder and the air took on the familiar pungent smell of sweaty hockey boys.

“Ben! Ben! I need you over here for a minute…” A man yelled as he appeared around a far corner.

“Alright!” I he shouted back before turning to me. “I’ll just be a sec… wait here.”

I stared after him, mouth agape, as he turned around and strode off towards the other man.
All the feeling of confidence that had grown after my father’s approval, disappeared as I stood alone. I leaned back against the wall, trying to disappear through the concrete bricks. “Hey.”
The voice caused me to jump slightly as I turned to the left, looking for the cause. A boy stood a few feet away from me - shirtless - as he gave me a small smile. After spending so many countless hours watching hockey, I knew who he was instantly. “You one of the new medical interns?” He asked, pointing at the uniforms that I was clutching against my chest.

“Yah I am…” I smiled, trying to clam my nerves. This wasn’t the first time I had ever seen Mike Green in person, but it was definitely the first time I’d seen him out of uniform; the first time I noticed how smokin’ hot he was.

“Cool… I’m Mike Green… Greener…” He grinned, extending a hand towards me.

“Jespin… Le- Landry.” I changed quickly. “Jespin Landry.” I smiled back, taking his hand. I hoped he would ignore my stutter, chalking it up to nerves instead of my poor attempt at lying.

“So… you can wrap stuff?” He asked. I stared at him, unsure of what he meant. He pointed to his ankle.

“Oh! Yah sure…” I shook my head slightly. God I’m dumb…

“Awesome, stuff’s in here…” He explained, pointing towards one of the doors.

I followed after him, watching as he hopped up onto one of the tables, rolling up his pant leg once he was situated. I glanced around the room, spotting a pile of wrapping tape.
I grabbed one, moving back towards him. I pulled a nearby chair over, plopping down in front of him and patting my knee.

I was just finishing up when Ben came in. “Wow, you just get right down to work!” He said happily, coming over to admire my work.

“Yah sorry… I didn’t think it would be a big deal… I’ve done a lot of wraps.”

“Oh no, no worries. Looks good.” Ben said as he nodded, “alright Mike, get back out there.” Mike pushed himself off the table and headed out the door, turning around and giving me a small grin before disappearing around the corner. “So, you’ve found the supply room!” Ben explained, “first aid kits, braces, wraps, all that kind of things.”
He headed out the door after Mike, I hurried to keep up in his wake. “Down that hallway is the x-ray room… neck braces, stretchers… all that kind of stuff is down there.” He informed me, still moving quickly down the biggest hallway. “And this… this is the locker room.” He said, throwing open the swinging door and heading into the room.

It was almost full; or at least it seemed that way - some of the guys were so big they looked like they needed their own area code. I was use to people like Sidney, Marc, Kris; guys that could pass for a regular everyday person - well, minus Sidney’s thighs.

I stood in awe, looking like a moron. For someone who had grown up around pro hockey players, I was still caught off guard. I wasn’t expecting any less; they were the Washington Capitals after all… so who else would be in here? Even so, I could only stand mutely and nod as Ben went around the room, pointing to each guy in turn. “Backstrom, Mo, Johnny, Feds… you already met Green… Brooksy, and Schultz.”
They all nodded or waved in acknowledgement. “And guys this is Jespin… ahh…”

“Landry.” I threw in quickly, remembering the name I had used before. I took a sideway glance at Ben, he looked neither angry or confused; he just smiled.

“Alright boys… now I know you’ll do everything you can to make her feel right at home… but give her a few days before you start pulling out the stunts alright?” He asked, turning to each boy in the room; staring them down. “That means no paintball fights, no wrestling matches, no stealing the gator… and no trying to decapitate yourselves... Mike?”

“That was Ovie… not me!” He complained, shaking his head slightly as Brooks punched him on the shoulder.

“Either way… let’s not scare her away ok?” The guys nodded, semi-serious expressions on their faces; something that caused me to suppress a giggle. What am I getting myself into?


Ben was showing me around the locker-room when my phone went off. I glanced up apologetically but he told me not to worry about it.
I hurried into the hall before I answered it. “Hey Sid.”

“Hey Jes!” He exclaimed, and I could hear the grin in his voice. “How’s everything going?”

“Good Sid… really good!” I sighed, knowing that it was better to get the conversation over with as quickly as possible. “So listen… there was something I wanted to tell you… it’s hard to say though…”

“Well, go ahead babe, say whatever you need to say.”

“I got an intern job-” I said quickly, trying to finish my explanation before he got a word in. “-I’m working for Washington Capitals.”

“Oh… oh!” The line went silent after that, causing me shift back and forth on my feet nervously. “So… you’re working with Ovechkin?” He asked slowly.

“Umm… I guess so but, I’m working for a team not a person…” I grimaced, hoping he’d take that into consideration; it wasn’t exactly a secret how Sidney felt about the Russian sensation. “I mean, in Washington… it’s really the best that I can get-” I added quickly, repeating what my dad had told me this morning.

“Oh, for sure… yah… it’s great Jespin.” I could hear Sidney clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth as he ran my words over in his head. “Just be careful,” he said finally. “I heard Ovechkin can be a prick to work for… if he gives you a hard time… let me know, ok?”

“Sure Sid…” I said as I shook my head. Cause I’d tell him if he was mean to me? Did he seriously think I was dumb enough to do that? There was enough animosity between those two, to last several lifetimes, they didn’t need me adding fuel to the flame. “Alright well… I should get back. I’ll call you later on.”
We said out goodbyes and I returned my phone to my pocket with a sigh.

I was relived to say the least. Sure Sidney wasn’t happy but, it was a much better reaction than I had been anticipating.
I felt oddly buoyant as I headed back into the locker-room; having spent so much time worrying about Sidney, I didn’t actually get a chance to celebrate the fact that I had landed one of the most sought-after interns in Washington. “You good now?” Ben asked, his signature smile on his face. I nodded and his grin widened. “Good, good… the other intern is here so I thought I’d introduce you.” I turned around and saw James smiling at me.

“James!” I exclaimed, moving over to give him a hug.

“I’m really glad you got this too Jespin! I was kind of hoping I’d get to see more of you…” he trailed off, his comment causing me to blush slightly.
Luckily, for me, an insufferable noise interrupted the conversation before it could go any further.