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As Jack Campbell stared down the player on the breakaway, he prepared himself in the net. Brock Boeser was coming in hard and fast, puck gliding along the ice in front of him. When Boeser shot the puck, Jack stretched his glove toward it. As soon as he did, he felt something in his shoulder snap in the wrong direction. Instead of catching the puck, Jack fell to the ice and groaned in pain.
The puck hit the crossbar and deflected into the mesh above the glass, causing the referee to blow play dead. Jack barely registered the sound of the whistle as he listened to the screams of pain from his shoulder echoing in his ears.
A moment later, Jack felt something touch his uninjured shoulder. Jack looked in that direction and saw the trainer there, her medical kit beside Jack’s head.
The trainer knelt down, opening her medical kit and grabbing a pair of medical gloves.
“Tell me what’s wrong, Soupy,” she said, slipping her hands into the gloves.
“My shoulder,” Jack said, using his blocker to make a move toward said shoulder. “It felt like something snapped when I reached for the puck.”
“Can you sit up? It’ll be easier to look at if you aren't laying on the ice.”
Jack did as instructed, trying his best to keep as much pressure off of his injured shoulder as he could.
The trainer looked at Jack’s shoulder, manipulating it in every direction. Jack hissed and groaned in pain as she did, feeling his muscles constricting violently.
“I think you snapped your latissimus dorsi muscle,” the trainer said, grabbing Jack’s arm and holding it against his chest. “You need to come out of the game and get examined further.”
“Fuck,” Jack grumbled.
The trainer helped Jack stand and held Jack’s arm steady as they slowly made their way off the ice. The crowd and all of the players cheered for Jack as he disappeared down the tunnel toward the dressing room.
Jack and the trainer bypassed the dressing room and went straight for the medical room. Once inside, Jack was surprised to see his boyfriend, Mitch, sitting on the exam bed.
“How did you get here so fast,” Jack asked, sitting on the bed as Mitch moved over to allow Jack some room.
Mitch shrugged as he helped the trainer carefully remove Jack’s equipment.
“I’m sick, not slow,” Mitch said, voice raspy.
Mitch coughed a moment later as if to prove his point.
Jack rolled his eyes as he carefully laid back on the bed, arm held tightly to his chest. The doctor walked into the room a moment later, wheeling the ultrasound machine behind him.
“Shall we see what the diagnosis is, Mr. Campbell,” the doctor asked, wheeling the ultrasound machine to Jack’s bedside.
The doctor squirted some gel onto the probe, turned the machine on, and gently moved the probe across Jack’s shoulder and upper arm.
Jack grimaced in pain as the doctor moved the probe, his shoulder feeling extra tender from the swelling. Mitch had taken to grabbing Jack’s free hand and was rubbing along Jack’s knuckles to keep him calm. Jack pulled their hands up and kissed Mitch’s knuckles softly in thanks. There was no need to hide their affections because everyone associated with the team knew they were dating.
“It appears the trainer was right,” the doctor said as he turned the machine off. “You have a torn latissimus dorsi muscle.”
“Fuck,” Jack swore. “Does that mean a sling?”
The doctor nodded as he walked across the room toward the cabinet. He reached into one of the drawers and pulled out something that looked akin to a pillowcase.
“You’re going to need to wear this until you can get seen by a specialist.”
The doctor walked back to Jack and carefully inserted Jack’s arm into the sling. Mitch was rubbing Jack’s other hand the entire time, trying to keep Jack calm.
“Try to keep strenuous activity to a minimum,” the doctor said, glancing between Jack and Mitch. “I’m entrusting that you will keep him safe, Mr. Marner.”
Mitch nodded as he glanced at the doctor.
“Yes, sir,” Mitch affirmed, voice raspier than before.
The doctor smiled as he and the trainer walked out of the room. That left Jack and Mitch sitting there, staring at each other. They burst out laughing a moment later. Mitch was the first to stop laughing, looking at Jack with tears in his eyes.
“Mr. Marner,” Mitch wheezed and coughed, out of breath from both laughing and being sick. “What am I? My father?”
That sent them both into another fit of laughter as they sat there.
Jack’s shoulder was screaming at him as his chest heaved up and down from laughing as hard as he was but he couldn’t be bothered to listen to what his shoulder was screaming. Sitting there, laughing with Mitch, was giving him too much joy to want to care.
As he and Mitch continued to laugh, Jack caught a glimpse of Mitch’s eyes. They were tired and foggy, an indication that Mitch was sick. Underneath that, Jack saw something else. Mitch’s eyes showed a look of genuine fondness. They showed a love Jack had never seen from Mitch before. It was at that moment that Jack knew that Mitch was the man that he was meant to be with.
“I love you, Mitch,” Jack blurted.
Mitch stopped laughing and stared at Jack owlishly. There was a brief moment of silence before Mitch coughed to break it. Mitch pounded on his chest with one hand as he covered his mouth with the other.
When Mitch regained his composure, he cleared his throat a couple of times before looking at Jack again. Jack was smiling awkwardly at Mitch, hiding his face somewhat behind the sling.
“I love you, too,” Mitch said, voice strained. “I just wish the circumstances were different.”
“What do you mean?”
“I always wanted to kiss you after one of us said ‘I love you’ for the first time. I can’t do that while I’m sick.”
Mitch coughed violently into the crook of his elbow, rubbing his temples as soon as he dropped his arm.
“Fucking head is killing me,” Mitch mumbled, closing his eyes.
Jack sat up on the exam bed and grabbed Mitch’s chin with the hand on his good arm. Mitch opened his eyes, looking at Jack curiously.
“Kiss me,” Jack said, leaning forward.
“Soupy, I’m—“
“I don’t care. I’m already going to miss a bunch of games with this shoulder injury. It doesn’t matter if I get sick. Kiss me, Mitch.”
Mitch nodded, leaning forward to meet Jack halfway. Jack smiled into the kiss, sucking gently on Mitch’s lower lip. Mitch groaned before abruptly pulling back from the kiss. Jack was confused until Mitch coughed into the crook of his elbow again.
Jack gently squeezed Mitch’s shoulder, leaning forward and kissing Mitch’s forehead. Mitch glanced up at Jack. Jack’s heart seized at how dishevelled Mitch looked. Mitch’s hair was askew and stuck to his forehead. His face was flushed, though his cheeks and his nose starkly contrasted that by being rosy in colour. Mitch’s eyes were watery and bloodshot. His entire face appeared to be glistening with sweat, giving Jack the impression that Mitch had a fever.
“Come here, sweetheart,” Jack said, holding out his good arm.
Mitch slid into Jack’s embrace, resting his head in the crook of Jack’s neck. Jack placed his hand on Mitch’s upper arm, soothing it up and down. Jack whispered some sweet endearments into Mitch’s hair, hoping to calm Mitch down.
“‘m cold,” Mitch mumbled, voice raspy and strained. “Warm me up?”
Jack kissed the top of Mitch’s head as he pulled Mitch closer to his body. Mitch sighed, his breath cold against Jack’s neck. Jack felt a shiver run through his body as he soothed his hand along Mitch’s upper arm again, squeezing gently for good measure. Mitch hummed, though he pulled back abruptly.
“Mitch? Is everything alright,” Jack asked, looking at Mitch with concern.
Mitch shed his suit coat, draping it over the railing of the exam bed. He hastily unbuttoned all of the buttons on his dress shirt before taking it off and draping it over the top of the suit coat. Mitch sighed and ran a hand through his hair, shaking his hand when it came out drenched in sweat.
“Hot,” Mitch mumbled. “I’m hot.”
“In more ways than one,” Jack replied with a smile.
Mitch chuckled, though it quickly turned into a coughing fit. He rubbed his chest when he was done coughing, sighing.
“That made me feel a little better. Thank you.”
Jack leaned over and kissed Mitch’s temple. Mitch smiled softly before dropping his head onto Jack’s shoulder. Jack brought his hand up, running it through Mitch’s hair. Mitch hummed, nuzzling in closer to Jack.
“Thank you for taking care of me,” Mitch mumbled.
Jack smiled, pressing a kiss into Mitch’s hair.
“Anything for the man I love.”