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This was it. It was happening today. Sean was nervously pacing around the living room thinking about it. He had planned this day for months. He wanted everything to go according to plan. He wanted this to be perfect for Johnny. Johnny meant everything to him; if everything went according to plan, Johnny would love Sean more than he already did.
Sean caught a glimpse of the clock. He swallowed thickly. Sixty minutes until Johnny came over. Sixty minutes until they were leaving together to get this whole operation started. Sean wanted to smack himself. He played professional hockey for a living. There was no way he should be as nervous as he was over something like this. This was nothing compared to playing in front of an arena full of fans and tens of thousands—if not more—on television. Yet, here he was. Freaking out. He needed to get a grip or the night would be ruined.
Deciding he needed to calm his nerves, Sean went to the Xbox and cued up Call of Duty. He sent a quick text to the team group chat to ask if anyone was up for a few rounds with him. TJ, Matt, and Noah all responded with a thumbs up. Sean smiled and grabbed his headset from the drawer on the television stand. He connected it and went to sit on the couch.
When the Xbox chimed in that TJ, Matt, and Noah were online, Sean sent them a party invitation. TJ was the first to say anything after accepting the invitation.
“Sean, hey,” TJ said. “Are you nervous?” Sean swallowed. TJ was one of the few guys that knew what was happening today. By some miracle of God, Matt and Noah were two of the others. The only other one that knew was Gio; the captain knew everything.
Sean nodded before he realized TJ couldn’t see him. “Yeah, extremely.”
“It’ll be okay, bud,” Noah said. “Johnny loves you. Nothing bad will happen.”
“Noah’s right, Sean,” Matt reassured. “Johnny is head over heels for you. If it goes poorly, I’ll personally phone USA Hockey and tell them he doesn’t deserve to be on any national teams anymore.”
“Jesus Christ, Chucky. That’s a little much, don’t ya think?” Despite the protest, Sean chuckled.
“If he’s gonna be an ass, it’s not,” Matt huffed.
Sean chuckled again and started to set up the game. When everyone was situated in the Call of Duty lobby, Sean started shaking. He inhaled and exhaled a few times to steady himself. When the match started, Noah and Matt started bickering with each other about who would go in which direction to kill the enemy team. That made Sean feel a little better; he had something else to focus on to keep his mind occupied.
Shooting enemy soldiers had brought down Sean’s stress levels; he could finally focus enough to have a calm head. He was thinking rationally about what was going to happen later. He knew Johnny loved him. That meant nothing bad would happen. Everything would be fine.
Right as Sean shot an enemy, the front door opened and shut. He briefly looked away from the screen to see Johnny in the entryway. Johnny smiled when Sean waved at him. Turning back to the screen, Sean cursed when he realized he had been killed. TJ was mumbling something about ‘always carrying the team’ but Sean ignored it and rushed around to kill more enemies when he respawned.
Johnny slid onto the couch and slipped his arm around Sean’s shoulder. Sean shivered and nearly dropped the controller.
“I have to go after this round, guys,” Sean mumbled.
“Alri—GODFUCKINGDAMMIT,” Noah cursed. “Sorry. I fell off the map. Alright, that’s fine. Is Johnny there?”
Instead of answering with words, Sean hummed.
Three wolf whistles echoed in Sean’s ears. Sean felt his face heating up and starting to turn red. He desperately hoped Johnny didn’t notice. He wanted to hold out on this surprise for as long as he could. That way, it would be even more special when the moment came.
“Good luck, Sean,” Matt said. “Remember what I said before. I wasn’t joking.”
TJ scoffed. “Don’t pay any mind to Chucky. He’s all talk. Seriously though. Good luck. You deserve this to go well.”
When the match ended, Sean said his goodbyes and exited out of everything. When everything was put away, Johnny was smiling at him when Sean sat back on the couch.
“Who were you playing with today?” Johnny asked.
“Chucky, TJ, and Noah,” Sean replied, trying not to sound nervous. He was wringing his hands together and sighed. Johnny cocked his head. “I was thinking we could go to dinner at your favourite restaurant. We haven’t been on a date in a while because the season has been hectic and I thought it would be nice.”
Johnny smiled and nodded. “Yeah, Sean. That would be great.” He leaned over and kissed Sean. Sean melted into the kiss and grabbed the lapels of Johnny’s jacket, tugging him in closer. When the two pulled apart, they were panting and smiling like idiots. Sean felt his heart swell with hope and anticipation for what was to come later that night.
“Let me go grab socks and then I’ll be ready to go.” Sean motioned to his bare feet. Johnny made a silly face and shook his head lovingly. Sean chuckled as he padded down the hallway to his bedroom.
When he opened the sock drawer, he did grab the socks like he said he would. There was also a little red box hiding at the back of the drawer that he grabbed. He exhaled and stuffed it in his pocket. He slipped the socks on before he padded back down the hall to the living room.
Sean quickly put his shoes and jacket on before he gave Johnny a quick kiss on the cheek. Johnny smiled and kissed Sean on the cheek in return. The two were all smiles as they walked out to Sean’s car.
On the drive to the restaurant, they remained silent only listening to the radio. Sean was somewhat grateful for that. He wasn’t sure if he could keep the surprise in if Johnny asked any in-depth questions about why they were going on a date today.
When they arrived at the restaurant, Sean turned to Johnny. “You don’t have to worry about anyone bothering us. I rented the whole place for the night.” He felt heat creeping up his face as he spoke.
Sean noticed that Johnny’s face turned a sweet shade of cotton candy. Johnny leaned over the console of the car and sweetly kissed Sean. Sean smiled into the kiss and grabbed Johnny’s face to steady himself. When the two pulled apart, they rested their foreheads against each other for a moment. Johnny chuckled and grabbed Sean’s hands.
“Thank you, babe,” Johnny said, smiling. “A private date with you at my favourite restaurant is all I could ever ask for.”
Sean blushed, squeezing Johnny’s hands. He leaned up and kissed Johnny’s forehead before they got out of the car. Since the restaurant had a private parking lot and no one else would be there thanks to Sean, the two held hands as they walked in. It felt gratifying to Sean to hold Johnny’s hand in public. He hoped sometime shortly it would be possible to do it in a setting where it was more visible.
As they were seated, Johnny started skimming over the menu. Sean already knew what Johnny would order; Johnny always ordered the same thing every time they came here. Sean glanced at the waiter. The waiter nodded. Sean had made sure to talk to the owner of the restaurant and have her inform whichever waitstaff were working that night of what was happening. The cue was to bring out a bottle of Johnny’s favourite wine as soon as he ordered his usual dish.
“I think I’m ready to order,” Johnny declared, placing the menu on the table.
Sean nodded, waving the waiter over. Sean ordered first, ordering his usual; chicken pesto with garlic bread.
“I’ll have what I normally have; steak and potatoes with carrots,” Johnny smiled.
The waiter smiled and walked to the kitchen to hand their orders in. Not two minutes later, he returned with the wine Sean had been planning for. Johnny cocked his head when it was placed on the table but said nothing. The waiter uncorked the bottle and poured each man a glass. Sean smiled as the waiter walked away.
Sean went to take a drink of the wine but spilled it on his shirt. “Fuck,” he cursed as he looked down at himself. He looked over in the direction of the waiter and mouthed for napkins. The waiter nodded and brought over a handful.
When the waiter walked away, Sean blotted the wine on his shirt. After he was satisfied with his clean up job, he turned to look at Johnny. Sean froze when he saw Johnny. Johnny was beside Sean, on one knee, holding a ring.
“Johnny...” Sean’s voice caught in his throat.
“We’ve been dating for a few years and playing hockey with you is amazing. Loving you is even more amazing. When I picture my life after hockey, I picture myself living in Canada somewhere with you and our kids. Sean, you make me happy beyond my wildest dreams. If you feel the same, will you marry me?”
“Yes!”
Johnny grinned and placed the ring on Sean’s finger. Sean pulled Johnny up by his shirt collar and brought him into a kiss. The kiss was soft and tender and made Sean feel whole. When the two separated, Johnny was crying and so was Sean.
“I love you so much, Johnny,” Sean said, grabbing Johnny’s wrists. He rubbed them softly, marvelling at the way Johnny shivered at the contact.
“I love you too, Sean,” Johnny replied, grabbing Sean’s wrists and reciprocating the motion.
“There’s one thing I should mention though.” Sean dropped Johnny’s hands.
“What’s that?”
Sean reached into his pocket and placed the box on the table. Johnny looked at the box, then at Sean. Another grin washed across his face. He reached for the box and opened it. He took the ring and slipped it on his finger. Leaning over, he kissed Sean’s cheek. He chuckled as he examined the ring on his finger.
“I have one thing to say about this,” Johnny said, slipping back into his seat.
Sean tilted his head. “That would be...?”
“Great minds think alike.”