eleven: we've got a big big mess, a big big mess

song: we've got a big mess on our hands, the academy is...

Anna's POV

He was hot. Screw that, he was smoking hot. With every drink I downed, he looked even better. Those eyes, that hair, that body- I wanted every inch of it, and I wanted it right then and there.

Jacob Markstrom was his name. He was Swedish- at least, I thought he was at the time. It’s hard to remember things when you’re so drunk. I knew he was property of the Ottawa Senators- the team that Carey and Julie hated. But do you think I cared?

I could feel Ryan in the back of my mind as I stayed at the bar with Jacob, but somehow I felt that with the more I drank, the more likely he was to disappear. And with time, he did. Jacob and I danced closer, drank more and touched more. It soon became apparent that I could not stay at the bar with him.

“You wanna go back to my place?” I slurred.

His blue eyes widened, “Really?”

I let my hand wander, “Yes, really. Let’s go.”

Somehow I was able to tell a taxi the directions to the apartment. Jacob and I stumbled out, giggling like schoolchildren as we made our way up the stairs. We made out on the wall before I stuck my spare key in the door. From there we tumbled into the living room area and onto the couch.

I pulled Jacob’s pants off, followed by his shoes. He busied himself with removing my top and bra. We fell down on the couch, drunk as hell, still making out like teenagers. God it felt good to kiss someone again- it didn’t matter that his kisses were nothing like Ryan’s.

How they used to be, at least.

Jacob took off his shirt and I pulled my tights to my ankles, lifting up my skirt. It was somewhere along this time that I heard some footsteps, followed by a gasp. Then the yelling. Oh, the yelling...

“What the hell is going on here? Who are you?”

Jacob’s face turned bright red and he scrambled off the couch to grab his clothes, “Err, um, I’m...I, uh...” Carey pointed to the door. Jacob made a beeline for it and disappeared.

I groaned, “Come on. We were just having fun.”

“I cannot believe you would bring a strange guy into my apartment,” Carey said angrily, a harsh whisper, “Anna, what is wrong with you?”

I leaned back, “So many things.”

“Put your clothes on,” Carey snapped, “Now. And go to sleep. We’ll talk about this in the morning.”

-

I woke up on the couch the next morning to the sound of Carey and Julia in the kitchen. They were whispering to each other, and every now and then I heard my name. I decided to pretend I was asleep so I could hear them. But it wasn’t easy. My head felt like it had been run over by a truck fifty times or more, so moaning in pain was out of the question.

“...and she has a nipple piercing. A nipple piercing!”

“You know this HOW?”

“I told you. All they had on was underwear. If I’d have ignored the noise and blown it off as something in the plumbing system, we’d have an even bigger mess on our hands.”

Jules sighed, “Oh Carey...I don’t know what to do anymore.”

“There’s only one thing we can do,” Carey told her, “Baby, I’ve had enough of this. I’m not going to call him or anything. I’m just dropping in.”

“Wait, what?”

“The road trip starts tomorrow and I am sure as hell paying Ryan Miller a visit once we get to Buffalo. I don’t care what he thinks. I am dragging his ass down here to rid us of this....this big mess.”

“Carey, I don’t know-”

“Julie, we have a baby to prepare for. This is no environment to raise a child in. Anna has to go. I don’t care if Ryan wants her back or not, I’m making sure she’ll be out of here.”

So that was what they wanted, then. For me to leave. I was just this mess, this infection. I knew that something was not right with me, but I never thought my friends would be the ones to tell me that. I decided, as I pretended to sleep through a pounding headache, that as soon as Carey had gone to Buffalo and Jules was at work, I was going to leave. No note, no breadcrumbs. I was good as gone.

-

Carey's POV

Saying goodbye to Julie was harder than usual. I felt like I was sick the entire plane ride to Buffalo. The last thing I wanted to do was leave her behind with the monster Anna had become- and pregnant, no less. Protecting my girlfriend, and now my baby was something I had to do.

We went to the hotel shortly after landing. Luckily, airplanes rarely make me feel ill, so as soon as I tossed my bag into the room I shared with Mike and told him I'd meet him and the guys for practice in an hour. I didn't care if I wound up messing Ryan's game that night- I had to talk to him and now.

I took a taxi to Ryan's house and was there in no time. I swallowed any fear I had and remembered I was about to become a father, and that I had the right to protect my child.

That was when she answered the door.

Her hair was long and dark brown, and she had wide eyes that sparked curiousity. She was wearing an old Buffalo Sabres shirt, definitely Ryan's, with old faded jeans. I blinked at her and instantly knew she was a replacement- an Anna doppelganger.

"Can I help you?"

"Yeah, I'm looking for Ryan..."

"Oh, he's just having his pre-game nap upstairs. Perhaps if you-"

"I'm sorry, but I need to talk to him now."

She shrugged, "If you leave your name and number, I could-"

I paused, "What's your name, miss?"

She was taken aback by my question, "Noureen. Noureen DeWulf."

"Miss Dewulf, please forgive me for being so forward, but you seem like a very nice girl," I said slowly, "In fact, you're quite pretty as well. But the truth is, Ryan's not in a good state for a relationship right now."

Noureen frowned, "Excuse me?"

"My name is Carey Price, and I've just found out my girlfriend is pregnant," I explained, "I know this sounds weird and crazy, but...Ryan's girlfriend, Anna, is staying with us in Montreal, and she's not doing very well."

"...but he doesn't have a girlfriend. He said they broke up."

"I'm sorry you have to hear this," I continued, "But I have a bad feeling that things could escalade to a dangerous level. I'm not saying that I'm here to make Ryan get back with Anna, but I'm here for his help. No one can get through to her." I sighed. "I'm just so worried for my Julie..."

Noureen opened the door further, "Come in. Tell me the whole story."

So I did. Sitting in Ryan's living room, with Anna's replacement, I told the entire story. The pregnancy attempts. The miscarriages. The fights, the break up, and now, the bringing strangers home to sleep with in the apartment. Noureen listened intently, and I felt sorry for her in a way. She was a very nice girl and didn't deserve to be brought into all of this.

"Mr. Price," she said when I finished, "I feel awful about Anna...and your poor Julie."

I rested my chin in my hands, "I'm at the end of my rope, here, Noureen."

To my surprise, she reached out and touched my shoulder, "Might I tell you something? Something, private?"

I nodded solemnly.

"I am not sleeping with Ryan. In fact, it is just the opposite. I stayed here last night because my home is currently under renovation. I stayed in the guest room, and in the middle of the night, I got up to use the bathroom." She smiled a bit. "I saw Ryan was awake in his room, and was looking at something. After peaking through the doorway I realized they were ultrasound pictures. He seemed distant, a bit sad, really..." She sighed gently. "And now you, having shown up like this, have helped me make sense of it. I was very curious as to why Ryan never tried to initiate sex with me, but now it makes sense. There is someone else he will share that with, and she needs him now more than I ever will."

I was in complete shock. Here I was expecting a cat fight, if anything. This girl was calm and understanding.

Then I understood why. Noureen rose from the couch and took off the t-shirt, pulled on her jacket and headed for the door. She glanced at me and nodded, "I have somewhere I need to be. Someone I need to call. Ryan is upstairs. Do what you need to do, Mr. Price." Those words said, she left.

Now came the hard part.

"Noureen?"

Lucky for me, I didn't have to wake him up.

"She's gone, Ryan," I said, standing at the bottom of the stairs, "I told her everything."

Ryan glared at me as we came face-to-face, "What the hell are you doing in my house?"

"I'm here because I need you," I explained, "We need you. Anna needs you."

Ryan scoffed, "No she doesn't. She made that very clear awhile ago."

"Julie's pregnant, Ry," I stated, watching his eyes go wide, "And I am going to take care of her. We can't have a safe environment for the baby if Anna's around any longer."

"So kick her out then. She'll find some other guy to live off of. I don't see how this involves me."

"You're the only one who can help Anna with her self-control," I said, "And believe me, she needs it."

"She needs help, period."

"Will you stop it already? This is all such bullshit! I know you still have feelings for her."

Ryan said nothing.

"And she feels for you, too."

"She told me to go fuck myself. She obviously doesn't have feelings for anyone but herself."

"That's just it. Her self-respect is gone. The other night, she dyed her hair rainbow. RAINBOW."

"Pfft."

"And she got lip piercings," I continued, "Did I mention she does drugs now? She smoked weed before coming to my game the other night and Julie had to escort her out."

Ryan shook his head, "Do you realize how crazy you're sounding?"

"I'm telling the damn truth, Ryan," I seethed, "Maybe this will make you listen. Last night she disappeared and came back drunk with some guy. I found them half-naked on the couch."

Ryan's eyes flashed, "What?!"

I smirked, "Now you're listening."

Ryan shrugged his shoulders, "That doesn't sound like Anna."

"You and I both know she never cheated on you with Drew Stafford."

He avoided my gaze.

"And we both know that she's lost without you."

"She seems to be leading an exciting life."

"A dangerous life," I told him, "Please, you've got to help me out, here. Call her. Text her. Something. I don't care what you do, but please try to talk some sense into that girl. Anna won't listen to Julia or me, and things are getting out of my control."

"She won't listen. She hates me."

"I know she doesn't hate you. The other day at the market she yelled at Scott Gomez." I smiled a bit. "She said she hated him for what he did to you. I'm sure you remember well how things were when that happened."

"I...I do remember. She stayed in bed with me all day because I was upset."

"Case in point. So, call her up."

Ryan shook his head, "I can't."

"Why?"

"Because."

"That's not a reason."

"I don't love her anymore, Carey."

"You're lying to my face. That's a new one."

Ryan shot me a nasty look, "I want you out of my house, now."

"Your house and Anna's house," I shot back, "You still love her. Just admit it."

"I don't!"

"Fine then," I said angrily, heading for the door, "Be a coward. Let your ego get the best of you. Just because your girlfriend miscarries doesn't mean you give up on them."

"I didn't give up!" Ryan screamed, "She did."

"You both did! And I'm getting bored of this, Ryan! I have a baby on the way and I am determined to protect it. I'm not giving up just because things get hard."

"You don't understand what you're talking about."

"Oh, and you do? Letting her turn into a crazy person and pretending you don't give a shit?"

"You don't know what it was like!"

"Then tell me. I'd love to know what's driving Anna to do drugs."

That was when Ryan forced it all out.

"The disappointment of not conceiving a baby drove us crazy. We tried non-stop. We tried so often that sex wasn't like lovemaking, or exciting, or even pleasurable anymore. It was robotic. It drove a stake between us. I became obsessed with the game because I was so angry at myself for not being able to father a child; at least one that would live until birth. Doctors told us it would never happen, but we ignored them. We kept trying. And eventually, it was just too painful and we started to fight about it. The last time we kissed must've been ages ago. The passion died. We slept in our bed like strangers. It was...it was the worst time in either of our lives."

I gave him time to catch his breath before I spoke again.

"You still love her, though."

Ryan let out an exasperated sigh, "Of course I do. But I can't have this right now. I can't deal with it."

"Why? Because of your career?" I chuckled, "Get your priorities straight."

"Like you'd understand."

I shook off the insult and opened the front door, "You've got two options. Either you call Anna or we'll bring her back here. Unlike you, I'm choosing the love of my life over the love for my career. Take care of yourself, Ryan. God knows Anna has no idea how."

Those words being said, I left Ryan's house and started to walk back to the hotel. I wasn't interested in a taxi this time. Something told me I needed a nice long walk to clear my head.