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rsadelleSummary: Tyler can't fix things for Segs, but he can be there for him.
Notes: If you're looking for something particularly realistic, this is not the story for you. This is the melodramatic variation on the TBrown outsider pov TSegs sexuality crisis story I keep saying I refuse to write.
Story on AO3
August 2013
Tyler spends most of his time up in Canada with his family, but he drives down to Toronto to stay with Segs for a couple of days. One of those days is a Thursday, and some of the boys have been texting them about maybe going out later. Tyler doesn't outright say no, because if that's what Segs is up for, they can do that, but he does suggest that they could just stay in and chill.
Segs seems pretty cool with that, so when he goes to take Marshall out for a walk before they figure out what they're doing about dinner, Tyler declines to go with him.
"Lazy," Segs chirps him.
Tyler flips him off without heat and waits until he's sure Segs and Marshall are gone. He probably has about fifteen minutes before they get back, which is more than enough time for him to go grab things from upstairs, get the couch set up downstairs, and pull the blinds closed.
Tyler's chilling on the couch when Segs gets back, talking to Marshall until he gets the door open. Then he looks around. "Why's it so dark?"
"Movie night," Tyler says. "You can choose what we watch." He points at the stack of DVD and Blu-ray cases by the TV. "I already ordered pizza. It'll be here in a bit."
Segs throws him a smile and goes to look at the stack of movies. He turns around with cases in both hands. "There's no way you own these."
"Nope," Tyler says. "Borrowed them from your sisters."
"You planned this."
"Yep." Tyler's totally justified in feeling smug about it.
Segs puts in a disc and smiles at Tyler, his cheeks all round and flushed with it, when he sits down on the couch.
Tyler hands over the remotes and settles in to watch.
They pause it when the pizza gets there, and Tyler gets up to answer the door and sign his credit card receipt.
"I would've gotten that," Segs says.
"I got it," Tyler says. He grabs some paper towels and Gatorade from the kitchen and puts the boxes down between them. They demolish the pizza, with Segs feeding bits of pepperoni and sausage to Marshall because he's well trained but also totally spoiled.
Tyler gets up to put the leftovers in the fridge, and he turns the air down a little while he's up, because he's seen Segs eying the blankets Tyler brought down from upstairs, and it's still a little too warm to get under them.
Tyler sits down a little closer to Segs when he gets back to the couch, and he's pretty much waiting for it when Segs lies down and puts his head in Tyler's lap.
Tyler puts one hand on Segs' shoulder and runs his other hand through Segs' hair so he knows it's cool. Segs smiles at him and settles down to watch the rest of the movie.
Marshall whines at Segs a while later, and Segs lets him up on the couch with him because, again, Marshall is completely spoiled.
Tyler gets up to switch discs when the movie's over, and Marshall isn't the only spoiled one because Segs grumbles about having to move his head so Tyler can stand up.
The apartment's cooling down, and after Tyler sits down again, Segs puts his head down in his lap and tugs one of the blankets off the back of the couch. Marshall doesn't want anything to do with that, and he jumps down and wanders off to find something more interesting than humans and their blankets. Segs laughs at him, then tugs at the blanket until he's mostly covered by it, except for his head and his shoulder.
Tyler puts his hand on Segs' shoulder and rubs it gently while they watch the beginning of the movie.
Tyler gets tired of sitting up after a while, and Marshall is still doing whatever it is he does when he's not curled up against Segs, so Tyler makes Segs pick up his head and stretches out between him and the back of the couch. It's a good thing the couch is so deep; they end up pressed tightly together, but there's enough room for both of them, Tyler a little farther up the couch so Segs can rest his head on Tyler's arm and Tyler can still see the TV. He can also see Segs' smile, just a tiny curve of his lips that means he's happy.
There are still a bunch of things in the stack of movies, but Segs is half-asleep already by the time they're done with the second movie, so Tyler turns off the TV and runs his hand down Segs' side.
"You're not going to be happy if you sleep on the couch."
Segs turns his head into Tyler's arm. "Don't want to move."
"Just up the stairs," Tyler says. "You don't even have to open your eyes if you don't want to."
Segs grumbles, but gets up. Tyler stays right behind him up the stairs; it's possible Segs really didn't open his eyes, and Tyler doesn't want him to fall.
"You should stay with me," Segs says when they get to his room. "The bed's big enough."
"It really isn't," Tyler says. He strips down to his underwear anyway and gets into bed with Segs. The bed probably isn't big enough for both of them, but they fit on the couch, and they fit together here, Segs curling up to Tyler like it's a given that Tyler will be okay with it. It's only going to be a problem if Marshall tries to get in bed with them too.
"Awesome movie night," Segs mumbles. "Thanks."
Tyler lets himself feel a little bit smug about that - he totally knows what Segs likes - and says, "Anytime."
Segs is quiet for a little bit, and then he says, "I fucked up last season."
Tyler just rubs Segs' arm because he doesn't know exactly what to say to that, and because it seems like just the beginning of whatever Segs really wants to say.
"What if I fuck things up in Dallas?"
"You won't."
"What if I do?"
"Don't," Tyler says. "Work hard. Play your game. You'll be good."
"You really think it's that easy?" Segs asks after a couple of moments of silence.
"You're a second overall draft pick," Tyler says. "Yeah, it's that easy."
December 2013
The only days Tyler and Segs' breaks overlap are Christmas Eve and Christmas. Tyler actually has to fly out on Christmas, so he gets his dad to make a stop on the drive to the airport, detouring through Brampton so they can spend half an hour with Segs and his family.
The first ten minutes are all about everyone saying hi and hugging and shit, and then they abandon the families and go up to Tyler's room.
Segs flops down on his back across the bed, and Tyler lies down next to him, close enough that they're touching all down their arms.
"How's Dallas?" It's not like they haven't talked since the season started, but he thinks he might get something out of Segs in person that he hasn't been saying on the phone or over Skype.
"Everything's bigger in Texas," Segs says, "except hockey."
Tyler hmms. "Your stats are good. I've watched a couple of games, and your playing is good."
"No one cares," Segs says. "Not there."
It's more bitter than Segs usually is.
"Are you making friends yet?"
Tyler feels more than sees Segs' shrug. "Not really."
Tyler turns over, props his head up on his hand so he can look at Segs. "You okay?"
Segs smiles at him, and it mostly looks real. "Being home is good," he says. Then he rolls out of bed and goes over to rummage through a pocket in one of his bags. "I have something else for you." They exchanged gifts with the family downstairs - Segs gave him a dark green Stars snapback he'll never wear, and he gave Segs a bright orange Flyers tee he'll never wear - but now Segs drops a couple of pieces of metal into his hand and lies down next to him again.
Keys. They're keys. Tyler holds up his hand.
"Building," Segs says, pointing. "Apartment. The place in Dallas."
Tyler closes his hand around the keys. "You know I'm not going to be in Dallas anytime soon."
"Well," Segs says, "if you ever are."
When Tyler settles in again after hooking the keys onto his keychain, Segs scoots closer and puts his head down on Tyler's shoulder. Tyler wraps one arm across Segs' chest and they just lie there for a couple of minutes until Tyler's dad calls, "Tyler, we need to go," up the stairs.
Segs walks down the stairs with him, and Tyler hugs the rest of Segs' family before he catches Segs up in a tight hug that's going to have to last until the summer.
April 2014
The Phantoms don't make the playoffs, and neither do the Flyers so Tyler doesn't even get called up to be one of the Black Aces for their series. Dallas makes the playoffs, though, and Tyler keeps an eye on that for a couple of games before he decides it's worth buying a plane ticket.
He doesn't tell Segs he's coming, just flies in the day before Segs has an afternoon away game, figures he can hang out at Segs' and watch the game, and be there when Segs gets back. They're two and one, so he'll be able to see at least one home game.
Tyler lets himself into the apartment, and Marshall comes running to see him, which means someone else is there. He says hi to Marshall, then goes in the direction Marshall came from. The place has an entryway that's more or less hidden from the living room it opens onto.
The handful of people spread out over the living room - Fred, Brandon, Brendan, another dude Tyler thinks he's met but can't place - look up at him.
"Man," Fred says after a second, "what are you doing here? Segs didn't say you were coming." He gets up to hug Tyler.
"He didn't know I was," Tyler says. "It's a surprise." He says hi to everyone else, and they all promise not to spoil the surprise.
"Don't know where you're going to sleep," Brian, the other dude, says. "We're taking up pretty much all the space."
"I can crash in with Segs," Tyler says, "if no one else is."
They aren't, and they all kind of look at him kind of strangely, but no one says anything when Tyler retrieves his bag from the entryway and finds Segs' bedroom.
They chill and order food, and they gather around to watch Segs' game the next day, all of them vocal about it, and settling into grouchy mostly quiet when the Stars lose.
The conversation, later, turns to Segs getting back, because Fred's been messaging with him about the state of his flight.
"If no one goes to get him," Fred says, "he'll get a ride back. I think, like, two of his teammates live in the building, and another one's down the street."
"I'll go," Tyler says. He gets Segs' keys from Fred, along with directions on how to get to the car and then where to go once he gets to the airport.
He knows he's in the right place by the other people hanging out and waiting, obviously guys' wives and kids. The team comes through in their suits, bags slung over their shoulders or rolling along behind them, breaking off from the neat line stretching into the building into a jumble of people greeting each other.
Segs doesn't see Tyler at first, so Tyler gets a minute to look at Segs. He looks tired, more than even a full season and a loss should account for.
Segs looks up, obviously looking to see if anyone came to get him, and he smiles a little when he sees Tyler, and then walks right to him, letting go of his bag for a hug. Tyler's willing to hold on as long as Segs is, which seems to be a long time.
He only steps back when someone says, "Got a ride, Seguin?"
The lack of nickname can't be good, but Tyler just pulls Segs' keys out of his pocket and holds them up.
"Yeah," Segs says to his teammate. "Thanks."
Tyler hangs onto the keys and makes Segs get into the passenger seat. "You can navigate."
"The one thing this place has going for it," Segs says, "is awesome burritos."
"Burritos," Tyler says, "sweet."
Segs directs him to a place that's pretty packed. Segs takes off his tie and jacket, unbuttons his collar and rolls his sleeves up. He's still dressed way nicer than anyone else in the place. Everyone else is dressed more like Tyler, jeans and t-shirts.
They slot into the end of a line at the counter, and Tyler reads the menu as they wait for their turn to order. They order burritos and a couple of beers and find an empty table. They talk while they wait for their food, and a little more while they're eating. They don't talk about hockey or Segs' teammates at all.
The other guys chirp them a little for not coming straight home, and for getting food without them.
Segs flips them all off and goes to his room, then comes back in shorts and a striped t-shirt.
It isn't that much longer that they order more food anyway, and they lie around the living room eating and playing video games.
Tyler's sitting on the floor, legs stretched out in front of him, Xbox controller in his hands, when he realizes Segs isn't just lying on him, he's actually asleep with his head in Tyler's lap. Tyler hands his controller off and nudges Segs awake.
"You don't want to sleep on the floor," Tyler says.
"Comfortable," Segs mutters.
"You'll be more comfortable in bed. Come on. I'm going with you." Tyler hauls Segs up, and they go to bed, Segs crashing the moment they get into his room and Tyler taking time to brush his teeth and change out of his jeans.
Segs turns toward him when he gets into bed, and this isn't just cuddling up to him. Segs wraps his arms around Tyler and clings to him.
Tyler rubs Segs' back until Segs falls asleep and loosens his grip.
*
Tyler wakes up before Segs in the morning. He leaves Segs to sleep and goes to figure out if there's food for breakfast. He's not really expecting anyone else to be up yet, but they are, all of them gathered around the kitchen watching the coffee maker drip.
Tyler bypasses them and opens the fridge. There are eggs, some bacon, enough for all of them.
"So," Brendan says while Tyler cracks eggs into a bowl, "you notice things are fucked up here?"
"Seriously," Brandon says, "he hasn't Snapchatted me chicks about to suck his dick in, like, the whole time he's been here."
Tyler doesn't have to contribute to the conversation, because Brian and Fred both protest that as a measure of well-being, and they all shut up when Segs stumbles out of his room, not quite tripping over Marshall.
Tyler gives Segs the first plate of eggs, and deputizes Fred to make protein shakes.
Segs looks at his plate, and up at Tyler with a smile that's more real than anything Tyler's seen since he got here. "Thanks."
Tyler smiles back at him, and makes more eggs for everyone else.
*
Segs has a light practice, and another one tomorrow, but no game and allowed to be home for two days, so they go out that evening, to a bar in the neighborhood, which means they run into some of Segs' teammates, who all come over and introduce themselves.
They all hang out together, and Segs seems to relax about it after a while, enough that when Benn gestures Tyler outside with him, he doesn't feel like he needs to stay in Segs' orbit.
"If I'm going to talk to one of you about Seguin," Benn says, "should it be you?"
Tyler squares his shoulders and crosses his arms across his chest. "What about him?"
"He's great on the ice," Benn says, "but he's not much for working on off-ice chemistry. This is only, like, the tenth time I've been out with him in Dallas."
Tyler rubs his forehead. It doesn't really sound like the Segs he knows, but he also know Segs hasn't made friends here. "Yeah?"
"Yeah," Benn says. "We'd all like to hang out with him more, if he wants to."
Tyler nods. "Got it."
Benn nods back at him and lets him go back inside.
*
Segs comes home after his late morning practice to hang out with them before he has to go check into a hotel with his team. While everyone else argues about what to eat, Tyler says, "Give me your phone," to Segs.
Segs hands it over without question, and Tyler copies Benn's phone number out into his own phone, then sends him a text. This is Tyler, Seguin's friend. We're ordering food. Come over if you want. Bring whoever you think should come with. He holds the phone up so Segs can see what he's written.
Segs sighs, but goes with it, and they wait for Benn and a couple of Segs' other teammates to show up before they order food.
There's a lot of milling around and jostling for places to sit after they split up the food, but Tyler claims a chair, and Segs sits on the floor in front of him, leaning back against his legs. It's not exactly getting him to be friends with his teammates, but Tyler figures he needs the security for whatever reason and lets him get away with it.
*
The Stars drag it out, but lose at home in the last minute of the seventh. It's disappointing for everyone. Segs' family is there, so there are a lot of people to fuss over him. After his family's done, the rest of them take him home and get him too drunk to think about it anymore. It doesn't take as much as it used to, but he still wakes up hungover and miserable.
Tyler takes pity on Segs and brings him Gatorade, painkillers, and toast in bed.
Segs leans against him and takes tiny bites of toast. "I can't remember the last time I was this hungover."
Tyler figures that's as good an opening as any. "You haven't been partying as much this year," he guesses. "Brandon says you haven't Snapchatted him girls this year."
Segs chews on a bite of toast, then another. "I haven't hooked up with girls this year."
Tyler blinks. "You haven't gotten laid since last summer?"
Segs' shoulders go tight. "I didn't say that."
Tyler rewinds the conversation. "Oh," he says. "Are you being safe?"
"No one here cares about me," Segs says. "I'm not going to be outed."
"I meant are you using condoms and staying away from assholes," Tyler says, "but that's good too."
Segs finishes his piece of toast. "Can you come to Toronto?"
Tyler has to look at his phone to figure out what the date is. "I'm training in Philly again," he says, "but I can come up for a week, maybe two."
*
Tyler waits until the night before he's headed back to Glens Falls to pack up for the summer move to Philly before he sits Segs down and says, "I'm saying this now, so if you're pissed at me, I'm leaving anyway. You're not happy. Benn said he and the guys are willing to be your friends and you're not trying. You didn't want to go to Dallas, but you're stuck with it, and you need to learn how to deal with it." He sighs. "I want you to be happy, dude. And if that means," he waves a hand, "whatever it means, then cool. I don't care if you're only hooking up with guys now or whatever. But figure it out."
Tyler's been sleeping in the room what was his when he lived here, but that night Segs pulls him into his room, and they curl together in Segs' bed.
"I don't know how to fix it," Segs says, quiet in the darkness.
"I don't know either," Tyler says. "But you can talk to me. Or Fred, or your mom, or, I don't know, a sympathetic bartender."
Segs laughs a little, and it's a good sound to hear. "Sympathetic bartender, huh?"
"Hey, whatever works."
December 2014
Segs seems to get better as the season goes on. He tells Tyler stories about hanging out with his teammates, and more than once he has to get off the phone because one of them is in the background yelling, "Seggy, come on. We're waiting for you."
Then, a couple weeks before Christmas, while Tyler's still laughing at one of Segs' locker room prank stories, Segs says, "My therapist says it's good that I can rely on you."
Tyler stops laughing pretty quickly. "Yeah?" he says. "Your therapist, huh?"
"Yeah," Segs says. "There's a list, from, like, You Can Play and the PA. I picked one off of there."
"You've seemed happier," Tyler says carefully.
"Yeah, I guess," Segs says. "It sucks sometimes, but I guess it's going good. I'm making progress or whatever."
"Good," Tyler says. "That's- I wanted you to be happy."
"Oh," Segs says, a little bit of a laugh in his voice, "was that what that kick in the pants was about?"
"Yeah, you dick," Tyler says, laughing a little himself, "that was what it was about. You can always rely on me for that."
"Yeah," Segs says, turning serious again. "I can."
Notes: If you're looking for something particularly realistic, this is not the story for you. This is the melodramatic variation on the TBrown outsider pov TSegs sexuality crisis story I keep saying I refuse to write.
Story on AO3
August 2013
Tyler spends most of his time up in Canada with his family, but he drives down to Toronto to stay with Segs for a couple of days. One of those days is a Thursday, and some of the boys have been texting them about maybe going out later. Tyler doesn't outright say no, because if that's what Segs is up for, they can do that, but he does suggest that they could just stay in and chill.
Segs seems pretty cool with that, so when he goes to take Marshall out for a walk before they figure out what they're doing about dinner, Tyler declines to go with him.
"Lazy," Segs chirps him.
Tyler flips him off without heat and waits until he's sure Segs and Marshall are gone. He probably has about fifteen minutes before they get back, which is more than enough time for him to go grab things from upstairs, get the couch set up downstairs, and pull the blinds closed.
Tyler's chilling on the couch when Segs gets back, talking to Marshall until he gets the door open. Then he looks around. "Why's it so dark?"
"Movie night," Tyler says. "You can choose what we watch." He points at the stack of DVD and Blu-ray cases by the TV. "I already ordered pizza. It'll be here in a bit."
Segs throws him a smile and goes to look at the stack of movies. He turns around with cases in both hands. "There's no way you own these."
"Nope," Tyler says. "Borrowed them from your sisters."
"You planned this."
"Yep." Tyler's totally justified in feeling smug about it.
Segs puts in a disc and smiles at Tyler, his cheeks all round and flushed with it, when he sits down on the couch.
Tyler hands over the remotes and settles in to watch.
They pause it when the pizza gets there, and Tyler gets up to answer the door and sign his credit card receipt.
"I would've gotten that," Segs says.
"I got it," Tyler says. He grabs some paper towels and Gatorade from the kitchen and puts the boxes down between them. They demolish the pizza, with Segs feeding bits of pepperoni and sausage to Marshall because he's well trained but also totally spoiled.
Tyler gets up to put the leftovers in the fridge, and he turns the air down a little while he's up, because he's seen Segs eying the blankets Tyler brought down from upstairs, and it's still a little too warm to get under them.
Tyler sits down a little closer to Segs when he gets back to the couch, and he's pretty much waiting for it when Segs lies down and puts his head in Tyler's lap.
Tyler puts one hand on Segs' shoulder and runs his other hand through Segs' hair so he knows it's cool. Segs smiles at him and settles down to watch the rest of the movie.
Marshall whines at Segs a while later, and Segs lets him up on the couch with him because, again, Marshall is completely spoiled.
Tyler gets up to switch discs when the movie's over, and Marshall isn't the only spoiled one because Segs grumbles about having to move his head so Tyler can stand up.
The apartment's cooling down, and after Tyler sits down again, Segs puts his head down in his lap and tugs one of the blankets off the back of the couch. Marshall doesn't want anything to do with that, and he jumps down and wanders off to find something more interesting than humans and their blankets. Segs laughs at him, then tugs at the blanket until he's mostly covered by it, except for his head and his shoulder.
Tyler puts his hand on Segs' shoulder and rubs it gently while they watch the beginning of the movie.
Tyler gets tired of sitting up after a while, and Marshall is still doing whatever it is he does when he's not curled up against Segs, so Tyler makes Segs pick up his head and stretches out between him and the back of the couch. It's a good thing the couch is so deep; they end up pressed tightly together, but there's enough room for both of them, Tyler a little farther up the couch so Segs can rest his head on Tyler's arm and Tyler can still see the TV. He can also see Segs' smile, just a tiny curve of his lips that means he's happy.
There are still a bunch of things in the stack of movies, but Segs is half-asleep already by the time they're done with the second movie, so Tyler turns off the TV and runs his hand down Segs' side.
"You're not going to be happy if you sleep on the couch."
Segs turns his head into Tyler's arm. "Don't want to move."
"Just up the stairs," Tyler says. "You don't even have to open your eyes if you don't want to."
Segs grumbles, but gets up. Tyler stays right behind him up the stairs; it's possible Segs really didn't open his eyes, and Tyler doesn't want him to fall.
"You should stay with me," Segs says when they get to his room. "The bed's big enough."
"It really isn't," Tyler says. He strips down to his underwear anyway and gets into bed with Segs. The bed probably isn't big enough for both of them, but they fit on the couch, and they fit together here, Segs curling up to Tyler like it's a given that Tyler will be okay with it. It's only going to be a problem if Marshall tries to get in bed with them too.
"Awesome movie night," Segs mumbles. "Thanks."
Tyler lets himself feel a little bit smug about that - he totally knows what Segs likes - and says, "Anytime."
Segs is quiet for a little bit, and then he says, "I fucked up last season."
Tyler just rubs Segs' arm because he doesn't know exactly what to say to that, and because it seems like just the beginning of whatever Segs really wants to say.
"What if I fuck things up in Dallas?"
"You won't."
"What if I do?"
"Don't," Tyler says. "Work hard. Play your game. You'll be good."
"You really think it's that easy?" Segs asks after a couple of moments of silence.
"You're a second overall draft pick," Tyler says. "Yeah, it's that easy."
December 2013
The only days Tyler and Segs' breaks overlap are Christmas Eve and Christmas. Tyler actually has to fly out on Christmas, so he gets his dad to make a stop on the drive to the airport, detouring through Brampton so they can spend half an hour with Segs and his family.
The first ten minutes are all about everyone saying hi and hugging and shit, and then they abandon the families and go up to Tyler's room.
Segs flops down on his back across the bed, and Tyler lies down next to him, close enough that they're touching all down their arms.
"How's Dallas?" It's not like they haven't talked since the season started, but he thinks he might get something out of Segs in person that he hasn't been saying on the phone or over Skype.
"Everything's bigger in Texas," Segs says, "except hockey."
Tyler hmms. "Your stats are good. I've watched a couple of games, and your playing is good."
"No one cares," Segs says. "Not there."
It's more bitter than Segs usually is.
"Are you making friends yet?"
Tyler feels more than sees Segs' shrug. "Not really."
Tyler turns over, props his head up on his hand so he can look at Segs. "You okay?"
Segs smiles at him, and it mostly looks real. "Being home is good," he says. Then he rolls out of bed and goes over to rummage through a pocket in one of his bags. "I have something else for you." They exchanged gifts with the family downstairs - Segs gave him a dark green Stars snapback he'll never wear, and he gave Segs a bright orange Flyers tee he'll never wear - but now Segs drops a couple of pieces of metal into his hand and lies down next to him again.
Keys. They're keys. Tyler holds up his hand.
"Building," Segs says, pointing. "Apartment. The place in Dallas."
Tyler closes his hand around the keys. "You know I'm not going to be in Dallas anytime soon."
"Well," Segs says, "if you ever are."
When Tyler settles in again after hooking the keys onto his keychain, Segs scoots closer and puts his head down on Tyler's shoulder. Tyler wraps one arm across Segs' chest and they just lie there for a couple of minutes until Tyler's dad calls, "Tyler, we need to go," up the stairs.
Segs walks down the stairs with him, and Tyler hugs the rest of Segs' family before he catches Segs up in a tight hug that's going to have to last until the summer.
April 2014
The Phantoms don't make the playoffs, and neither do the Flyers so Tyler doesn't even get called up to be one of the Black Aces for their series. Dallas makes the playoffs, though, and Tyler keeps an eye on that for a couple of games before he decides it's worth buying a plane ticket.
He doesn't tell Segs he's coming, just flies in the day before Segs has an afternoon away game, figures he can hang out at Segs' and watch the game, and be there when Segs gets back. They're two and one, so he'll be able to see at least one home game.
Tyler lets himself into the apartment, and Marshall comes running to see him, which means someone else is there. He says hi to Marshall, then goes in the direction Marshall came from. The place has an entryway that's more or less hidden from the living room it opens onto.
The handful of people spread out over the living room - Fred, Brandon, Brendan, another dude Tyler thinks he's met but can't place - look up at him.
"Man," Fred says after a second, "what are you doing here? Segs didn't say you were coming." He gets up to hug Tyler.
"He didn't know I was," Tyler says. "It's a surprise." He says hi to everyone else, and they all promise not to spoil the surprise.
"Don't know where you're going to sleep," Brian, the other dude, says. "We're taking up pretty much all the space."
"I can crash in with Segs," Tyler says, "if no one else is."
They aren't, and they all kind of look at him kind of strangely, but no one says anything when Tyler retrieves his bag from the entryway and finds Segs' bedroom.
They chill and order food, and they gather around to watch Segs' game the next day, all of them vocal about it, and settling into grouchy mostly quiet when the Stars lose.
The conversation, later, turns to Segs getting back, because Fred's been messaging with him about the state of his flight.
"If no one goes to get him," Fred says, "he'll get a ride back. I think, like, two of his teammates live in the building, and another one's down the street."
"I'll go," Tyler says. He gets Segs' keys from Fred, along with directions on how to get to the car and then where to go once he gets to the airport.
He knows he's in the right place by the other people hanging out and waiting, obviously guys' wives and kids. The team comes through in their suits, bags slung over their shoulders or rolling along behind them, breaking off from the neat line stretching into the building into a jumble of people greeting each other.
Segs doesn't see Tyler at first, so Tyler gets a minute to look at Segs. He looks tired, more than even a full season and a loss should account for.
Segs looks up, obviously looking to see if anyone came to get him, and he smiles a little when he sees Tyler, and then walks right to him, letting go of his bag for a hug. Tyler's willing to hold on as long as Segs is, which seems to be a long time.
He only steps back when someone says, "Got a ride, Seguin?"
The lack of nickname can't be good, but Tyler just pulls Segs' keys out of his pocket and holds them up.
"Yeah," Segs says to his teammate. "Thanks."
Tyler hangs onto the keys and makes Segs get into the passenger seat. "You can navigate."
"The one thing this place has going for it," Segs says, "is awesome burritos."
"Burritos," Tyler says, "sweet."
Segs directs him to a place that's pretty packed. Segs takes off his tie and jacket, unbuttons his collar and rolls his sleeves up. He's still dressed way nicer than anyone else in the place. Everyone else is dressed more like Tyler, jeans and t-shirts.
They slot into the end of a line at the counter, and Tyler reads the menu as they wait for their turn to order. They order burritos and a couple of beers and find an empty table. They talk while they wait for their food, and a little more while they're eating. They don't talk about hockey or Segs' teammates at all.
The other guys chirp them a little for not coming straight home, and for getting food without them.
Segs flips them all off and goes to his room, then comes back in shorts and a striped t-shirt.
It isn't that much longer that they order more food anyway, and they lie around the living room eating and playing video games.
Tyler's sitting on the floor, legs stretched out in front of him, Xbox controller in his hands, when he realizes Segs isn't just lying on him, he's actually asleep with his head in Tyler's lap. Tyler hands his controller off and nudges Segs awake.
"You don't want to sleep on the floor," Tyler says.
"Comfortable," Segs mutters.
"You'll be more comfortable in bed. Come on. I'm going with you." Tyler hauls Segs up, and they go to bed, Segs crashing the moment they get into his room and Tyler taking time to brush his teeth and change out of his jeans.
Segs turns toward him when he gets into bed, and this isn't just cuddling up to him. Segs wraps his arms around Tyler and clings to him.
Tyler rubs Segs' back until Segs falls asleep and loosens his grip.
*
Tyler wakes up before Segs in the morning. He leaves Segs to sleep and goes to figure out if there's food for breakfast. He's not really expecting anyone else to be up yet, but they are, all of them gathered around the kitchen watching the coffee maker drip.
Tyler bypasses them and opens the fridge. There are eggs, some bacon, enough for all of them.
"So," Brendan says while Tyler cracks eggs into a bowl, "you notice things are fucked up here?"
"Seriously," Brandon says, "he hasn't Snapchatted me chicks about to suck his dick in, like, the whole time he's been here."
Tyler doesn't have to contribute to the conversation, because Brian and Fred both protest that as a measure of well-being, and they all shut up when Segs stumbles out of his room, not quite tripping over Marshall.
Tyler gives Segs the first plate of eggs, and deputizes Fred to make protein shakes.
Segs looks at his plate, and up at Tyler with a smile that's more real than anything Tyler's seen since he got here. "Thanks."
Tyler smiles back at him, and makes more eggs for everyone else.
*
Segs has a light practice, and another one tomorrow, but no game and allowed to be home for two days, so they go out that evening, to a bar in the neighborhood, which means they run into some of Segs' teammates, who all come over and introduce themselves.
They all hang out together, and Segs seems to relax about it after a while, enough that when Benn gestures Tyler outside with him, he doesn't feel like he needs to stay in Segs' orbit.
"If I'm going to talk to one of you about Seguin," Benn says, "should it be you?"
Tyler squares his shoulders and crosses his arms across his chest. "What about him?"
"He's great on the ice," Benn says, "but he's not much for working on off-ice chemistry. This is only, like, the tenth time I've been out with him in Dallas."
Tyler rubs his forehead. It doesn't really sound like the Segs he knows, but he also know Segs hasn't made friends here. "Yeah?"
"Yeah," Benn says. "We'd all like to hang out with him more, if he wants to."
Tyler nods. "Got it."
Benn nods back at him and lets him go back inside.
*
Segs comes home after his late morning practice to hang out with them before he has to go check into a hotel with his team. While everyone else argues about what to eat, Tyler says, "Give me your phone," to Segs.
Segs hands it over without question, and Tyler copies Benn's phone number out into his own phone, then sends him a text. This is Tyler, Seguin's friend. We're ordering food. Come over if you want. Bring whoever you think should come with. He holds the phone up so Segs can see what he's written.
Segs sighs, but goes with it, and they wait for Benn and a couple of Segs' other teammates to show up before they order food.
There's a lot of milling around and jostling for places to sit after they split up the food, but Tyler claims a chair, and Segs sits on the floor in front of him, leaning back against his legs. It's not exactly getting him to be friends with his teammates, but Tyler figures he needs the security for whatever reason and lets him get away with it.
*
The Stars drag it out, but lose at home in the last minute of the seventh. It's disappointing for everyone. Segs' family is there, so there are a lot of people to fuss over him. After his family's done, the rest of them take him home and get him too drunk to think about it anymore. It doesn't take as much as it used to, but he still wakes up hungover and miserable.
Tyler takes pity on Segs and brings him Gatorade, painkillers, and toast in bed.
Segs leans against him and takes tiny bites of toast. "I can't remember the last time I was this hungover."
Tyler figures that's as good an opening as any. "You haven't been partying as much this year," he guesses. "Brandon says you haven't Snapchatted him girls this year."
Segs chews on a bite of toast, then another. "I haven't hooked up with girls this year."
Tyler blinks. "You haven't gotten laid since last summer?"
Segs' shoulders go tight. "I didn't say that."
Tyler rewinds the conversation. "Oh," he says. "Are you being safe?"
"No one here cares about me," Segs says. "I'm not going to be outed."
"I meant are you using condoms and staying away from assholes," Tyler says, "but that's good too."
Segs finishes his piece of toast. "Can you come to Toronto?"
Tyler has to look at his phone to figure out what the date is. "I'm training in Philly again," he says, "but I can come up for a week, maybe two."
*
Tyler waits until the night before he's headed back to Glens Falls to pack up for the summer move to Philly before he sits Segs down and says, "I'm saying this now, so if you're pissed at me, I'm leaving anyway. You're not happy. Benn said he and the guys are willing to be your friends and you're not trying. You didn't want to go to Dallas, but you're stuck with it, and you need to learn how to deal with it." He sighs. "I want you to be happy, dude. And if that means," he waves a hand, "whatever it means, then cool. I don't care if you're only hooking up with guys now or whatever. But figure it out."
Tyler's been sleeping in the room what was his when he lived here, but that night Segs pulls him into his room, and they curl together in Segs' bed.
"I don't know how to fix it," Segs says, quiet in the darkness.
"I don't know either," Tyler says. "But you can talk to me. Or Fred, or your mom, or, I don't know, a sympathetic bartender."
Segs laughs a little, and it's a good sound to hear. "Sympathetic bartender, huh?"
"Hey, whatever works."
December 2014
Segs seems to get better as the season goes on. He tells Tyler stories about hanging out with his teammates, and more than once he has to get off the phone because one of them is in the background yelling, "Seggy, come on. We're waiting for you."
Then, a couple weeks before Christmas, while Tyler's still laughing at one of Segs' locker room prank stories, Segs says, "My therapist says it's good that I can rely on you."
Tyler stops laughing pretty quickly. "Yeah?" he says. "Your therapist, huh?"
"Yeah," Segs says. "There's a list, from, like, You Can Play and the PA. I picked one off of there."
"You've seemed happier," Tyler says carefully.
"Yeah, I guess," Segs says. "It sucks sometimes, but I guess it's going good. I'm making progress or whatever."
"Good," Tyler says. "That's- I wanted you to be happy."
"Oh," Segs says, a little bit of a laugh in his voice, "was that what that kick in the pants was about?"
"Yeah, you dick," Tyler says, laughing a little himself, "that was what it was about. You can always rely on me for that."
"Yeah," Segs says, turning serious again. "I can."