Page 77 of The Trade Deadline
“You feel really good,” Ryan said. He’d finished his work at Lars’s shoulder and had moved on to nibbling at his ear. “Think I’ll finish before you?”
“Yes, because you’re such a fucking tease,” Lars said. He sounded painfully breathless, like he was coming off a long shift instead of sitting back while the hottest guy he’d ever met gave him a lap dance. “You’ll come and leave me to finish myself off,” he said with a pout.
“Don’t worry.” Ryan’s voice was just as airy, as needy, as undone. “I wouldn't do that to you,” he promised.
That was when Lars gave in completely, letting Ryan have his way with him. He was along for the ride, free to enjoy the glide of Ryan’s strong body over his, admire the graceful way he moved, devour every wonderful sound he made. Even as he tipped closer and closer to the edge, he couldn’t take his eyes off Ryan. Who was he fooling, thinking he could ignore his attraction to Ryan?
“Close,” he said. “Really close.”
“Got you,” Ryan said. He kissed Lars, deeper than before. “Come for me,” he whispered, the plea going straight to Lars’s dick and hitting him like a freight train. He pulled Ryan close as he thrust through the waves of his orgasm, pleasure ripping through him so sharply his vision went white for a few seconds until the feeling dulled and relief took its place. He went limp and had to rely on Ryan and the couch to keep him up as Ryan chased his own release. Lars watched Ryan’s face as he tensed and thrust more sloppily against him until he groaned, his movements dragging out and then stopping altogether before he collapsed on top of him.
They stayed there as their breathing slowly leveled off. His come grew sticky and Ryan’s weight heavy, but Lars couldn’t bring himself to end the moment. It didn’t matter how uncomfortable he got; he wouldn’t be the first to move or speak.
“When you leaving?” Ryan eventually asked. His forehead was resting against the back of the couch, leaving his words muffled by the fabric.
Lars sighed internally. Back to reality, then.
“Early Thursday,” he said. They had a game tomorrow, but then nothing until two days after Christmas. Almost five days with no scheduled hockey. They wouldn’t have a break that long again until the All Star weekend. “You?”
“Thursday afternoon. Back late on Boxing Day.” A pause. “That’s the day after Christmas.”
Lars nodded. He’d heard that before. “Why is it called that?” He’d never once seen a boxing match connected to the day.
“No clue. I think it’s originally British, something to do with boxing up leftover food to donate or something.” He made a dismissive noise like it was a mystery he was content to never solve. “When do you get back?”
“The day after that.” Lars again wondered if this thing between them was a fling or dating or something else, and if it was okay to ask to see him again when they got back.
“Want to get dinner?” Ryan asked. It sounded confident, almost breezy, but Lars could hear the shyness that was underneath. He was trying to use his media persona, and it would’ve fooled Lars if he weren’t used to picking it out and trying to see Ryan’s real thoughts underneath the bluster. “When you’re back in town?”
He finally shifted under Ryan to force him to sit up. This conversation was too weird to have without looking Ryan in the eye. “Dinner would be great,” he said, watching Ryan’s reaction.
He looked…not quite surprised or relieved, but something like that. And happy. His reaction was muted, but he was clearly pleased and couldn’t quite hide it. “Great,” he echoed. “Rangoons?”
“It’s a date,” Lars said, having chosen the words carefully and watching even more so.
This time there was no hiding it: Ryan was definitely surprised and definitely happy. “Yeah?”
“Yes,” he confirmed. “Now let’s get these clothes in the washer and ourselves in the shower.”
Ryan crawled off him. “The pants on was your idea.”
“And it was a good idea at the time. It’s the after part that makes it gross.” He accepted Ryan’s hand and let him pull him up. “Let’s be quick, I want the rest of those donuts.”
Holiday Break: Updates From Around the League
Abigail Cunningham, The Baltimore Sun
WE’RE NOT QUITE HALFWAY through the season, but with the abbreviated winter break upon us, it feels like as good a time as any to take a look at how the Crabs are doing as they try to maintain a Wildcard position, what the competition looks like, and notable updates from around the league.
The Metro: The top playoff positions in the Metropolitan division are likely to go to the Otters and Nor’easters, who have consistently dominated the competition this season. The Pythons and Gliders, on the other hand, have been inconsistent, with sparks of greatness that then turn into multi-game losing skids, particularly when their top players are injured or in dry spells. One of these teams will likely grab the third top spot in the division, and unless one completely plummets in performance, the other will take one of the two Eastern Conference Wildcard spots. So where does that leave the Crabs?
The Wildcard:The Blue Crabs have been doing well this season. Dependable goaltending and consistent scoring have driven the team since October. The real issue is that the division is stacked with talented teams where every loss hits like two in the standings. They’re very much in the Wildcard race, and, if they do an exceptional job in the new year, could even fight for third in the Metro. Their real competition looks to be the Ice Owls, who have nearly an identical record. As the regular season winds down, we’ll have to turn our eyes to the Atlantic division to see who potential playoff matchups might be; for now the Crabs are trying to get their foot in the door.
The West: Most of the team’s trips to visit Western Conference teams are out of the way, but a good chunk of the West still needs to make it to Baltimore to face the Crabs on home ice. It’ll be important to keep track of which teams are making a playoff push, though the only team I’ve been following right now are the Prowlers. They had a mediocre track record to start the season, then seemed to rally after their win against Nilsson and the Crabs: they’ve been on a five game win streak and are 15-2-3 in their last twenty. They’ll be in Maryland in Late March and I for one want to see how the Crabs do against a team that’s gunning for them.
The Crabs: And now to our traditional pre-holiday wrap-up where we ask Blue Crabs players where they’re going for the break:
Jake Campbell:My parents are flying in to see the kids for Christmas. I’ll get to stay up late on Christmas Eve wrapping about a hundred presents and putting together a new swingset, then maybe get a few hours of sleep before the kids wake me up. Fingers crossed!
