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There were a lot of ways David Pastrnak and Hampus Lindholm were similar. One area they were not, however, was self-care practices. It’s not too hard to figure out who in the relationship is the high-maintenance one, his luscious hair alone gives him away instantly. His skin is smooth and plump with never a blemish in sight, and when he lets his beard grow out? It’s trimmed to perfection and is soft. It’s never itchy or uncomfortable, and when he shaves? The skin beneath it is soft and supple.
The guys always joke in the locker room about Pasta’s routine. Sometimes the jokes pertain to how he oils his scalp before practice to help prevent hair loss from the helmet. Mainly pestering him because while everyone else is content using the cheap soap and hair products the rink provides, he keeps a shower caddy with expensive shampoo, conditioner, body wash, face wash, and moisturizers. He even keeps a hair mask in there, and this goes for both the Warrior and TD Garden locker rooms.
Lindy was impressed, especially when joining the Bruins in March 2022. When they started dating just a few months later, and he found himself spending the night at his place more frequently, he was shocked to uncover drawers and shelves filled with products for everything under the sun.
Night after night, and morning after morning, Lindy watched as Pasta went through his routine, taking 30 minutes or longer. He never commented on the complicated steps nor the excess of products; he only snuck glances at his beautiful boyfriend as he lazily brushed his teeth next to him. They were still newly dating, and while they spent nearly every hour together, Lindy didn’t want to make Pasta feel insecure and uncomfortable being himself.
Lindy appreciated how his boyfriend cared for himself. It made Pasta happy, and Lindy also reaped some of the benefits. He especially enjoyed the feeling of his soft curls tangled in his fingertips and how his beard gently exfoliated his face as they kissed.
Lindy had never mentioned his own routine (of the absolute bare minimum) to his boyfriend, but Pasta knew. Pasta could tell from how Lindy aggressively “massaged” his face wash with his entire hand in up and down motions compared to Pasta’s gentle fingertips in a slow, circular motion.
He was curious about his boyfriend’s routine and decided it was about time he spent the night at his apartment. He plotted how to approach the situation as he sat through morning meetings. “Why don’t we change it up, grab some takeout after practice, and stay at your place tonight?” Pasta prodded his boyfriend.
“That should be fine,” Lindy said as he focused his attention on the laces of his shoes, trying to act normal and unphased.
Lindy wasn’t hiding his place from Pasta by any means. They always stayed at Pasta’s since he was a homebody and enjoyed being surrounded by his luxurious furniture and luxurious products. The first time Pasta had seen his apartment, it was quick; they simply stopped by for a few minutes so he could pack a bag and grab a toothbrush. His apartment was minimal, with no real décor. It was purely functional, not really a home. He was simply nervous for Pasta to see his boring apartment and definitely worried for him to see his lack of product and care routine.
Pasta was happy they’d decided to take two separate cars to Warrior that morning, so while he slipped back to his apartment to pack a bag, Lindy could pick up dinner and get situated at his place.
Lindy’s apartment was minimal, too minimal for Pasta, but it was simple, neat, the epitome of Lindy. He gave himself a tour of the place while Lindy laid out takeout containers, lit a candle, and put something on the TV.
…
Lindy became more comfortable with Pasta in his apartment as the night went on. Honestly, he didn’t know why he was so worried in the first place because Pasta was comfortable lounging back on the couch, knees spread, intently watching whatever game was playing on NHL network.
It wasn’t until Pasta lifted his head from Lindy’s chest and proposed getting ready for bed that he learned Pasta packed no products and intended to use Lindy’s. The nerves hit him again.
Pasta didn’t comment as he and Lindy used a dove soap bar and body lotion for skincare.
As Pasta curled up into Lindy’s side that night, he began scheming ways to introduce his boyfriend to self-care and luxurious products. He smiled to himself as the idea slipped into his mind: a presentation and demonstration.
…
Pasta could hardly focus during the morning skate and the meetings that followed. He was distracted thinking about how he got to go home and create a presentation on something he loved for someone he loved. He was also thrilled he would get to channel some creative energy into the PowerPoint. He was a very creative person who loved to design but rarely got to be creative in his spare time.
Pasta told Lindy to come over that night around 7 o’clock and said goodbye with a quick peck on the lips. Pasta could go home and have some fun setting up for his ambush on Lindy.
…
Lindy swiftly entered Pasta’s apartment with his spare key grasping a bottle of their favorite white wine in one hand and a duffle bag in the other. Pasta pressed a kiss to his cheek and dragged his boyfriend to sit on the barstool strategically placed between the island and couch with a perfect view of the PowerPoint on the screen. He was taken aback as his eyes grazed over the random objects and products taking up every inch of Pasta’s island. He rolled his eyes and laughed as Pasta stood between his knees, grinning ear to ear.
It was going to be a long night. He knew that much as Pasta cupped his cheeks, pressed a kiss to his nose, and said, “Welcome to David Pastrnak’s beauty crash course! You will have time for questions in-between topics.”
There was no use putting up a fight. Lindy just nodded and relaxed back in his seat as he watched his boyfriend turn on a bright LED light and shine it right in his face. Pasta stood back, placed his glasses on the bridge of his nose, and began to examine his boyfriend’s pores and skin.
“Okay so first we are going to discuss skincare. The five skin types are oily, dry, combination, normal, and sensitive. From my examination, I’m pretty confident you have combination skin because your cheeks are a bit dry, and you tend to break out on your chin. You’re shiny through the center of your face.” Pasta explained as he gestured to the image of combination skin displayed on the TV and began to rummage through products on the counter.
Lindy hummed and closed his eyes before being alarmed by steam hitting his face when he least expected it. He choked on the air as Pasta chuckled, pulled the steam away, and exclaimed, “We have to steam your pores to open them up to wash and use a mask.”
Of course, Pasta owns a facial steamer. Of course, he does.
“Okay, I think it’ll be easier if I just go through everything and explain what I did afterward because if I stop to explain between every step, I’m going to confuse that sweet Swedish brain of yours.” Pasta explained as he pumped a suspicious-looking gel onto his fingertips.
Lindy’s eyes widened and the corners of his lips curved into a soft smirk as he made eye contact with Pasta rubbing the gel between his fingertips. “Don’t start, Lindholm, I know what you’re thinking,” Pasta said sternly, but he giggled softly in harmony with Lindy.
Lindy just watched in amazement as Pasta went through all the skincare routine steps, he had curated based on his skin type. His boyfriend was so focused, furrowing his as he concentrated on trimming some overgrown hairs on Lindy’s brows.
Lindy hummed as Pasta’s gentle fingertips left his face, “Käraste, you were right this is relaxing.” Pasta smiled as his boyfriend’s eyes remained closed, noticing all the tension falling from his shoulders.
“Okay moje láska, I know you’re relaxed, but I need you to open your eyes so I can run you through the routine I curated for you.” Pasta said, gently brushing his fingers down his boyfriend’s neck.
Reluctantly, Lindy opened his eyes. Admittedly, he was ready for bed, and it was only 8 o’clock. Still, he opened his eyes and listened intently to his boyfriend as he explained what a cleanser serum, toner mask, moisturizer, and sunscreen meant for his skin. He also watched as Pasta flipped through a beautifully executed and designed PowerPoint, which he could tell Pasta had put a lot of time and effort into. He couldn’t help but smile thinking about how much this man loved him to curate a whole recommendations list for him and create a presentation and demonstration teaching him how to care for his skin properly.
As David wrapped up his skincare presentation, he made sure to have Lindy repeat back to him the most important aspects of the routine. Lindy sat up straight in his seat and recited, “I should only cleanse my face twice a day, so I don’t strip it. I need to chemically exfoliate with this-uh Paula’s Choice BHA thing twice a week, and do masks as needed. And, oh sunscreen! I can’t forget to apply sunscreen everyday even if I’m just laying around the apartment.”
Pasta nodded enthusiastically, proud that his boyfriend was retaining the information. Seriously, he was so proud he was grinning like he scored the overtime winner in a Bruins and Maple Leafs game. Still, as he flipped to the next slide, which said beard care, he said, “Please stop washing your face so aggressively. Your hands are liked sandpaper.”
“Beard care? What do you mean? That’s a thing?” Lindy questioned, absolutely flabbergasted his boyfriend was about to assign him a beard care routine. Lindy rested his elbows on his thighs and pressed the heel of his palms into his eyes.
Pasta pleaded with his boyfriend, “Moje láska, do you not remember that picture the Bruins posted on Instagram where your beard looked like pubic hair on your face? I promise it’s not complicated and will make you look even more handsome.”
Lindy is stubborn in all ways except when it comes to ensuring Pasta’s happiness, he conceded and rested back into his chair once more. He nodded as Pasta explained the difference between beard oils and beard balms and how they could be used alone or in conjunction.
“All I want you to do is wash, condition, and comb your beard every day. Have your barber trim it in-between shaves.” Pasta said concisely as Lindy nodded in response. “So, we already washed your beard, so we are just going to add a few drops of beard oil, comb the hairs out, and maybe trim a bit.”
Lindy was surprisingly into the beard routine especially after he glanced in the mirror and gave himself a little nod of approval. He was starting to think that Pasta had a method to his madness, which made him appreciate his boyfriend a little bit more, but they hadn’t gotten to hair care yet.
As Pasta flipped to the slide on hair care Lindy realized immediately he was in over his head. Pasta suggested shampoos and conditioners that were over $15 which in Lindy’s mind was a little bit crazy considering how frequently they wash their hair at the rink.
Pasta wasn’t demonstrating the haircare portion of the presentation and Lindy was immediately lost in translation. $50 shampoo and conditioners were one thing, but hair serums, leave in conditioners, oils, mousses, pomades, and specific brushes for different uses were too much for him to wrap his head around.
“Herregud,” Lindy sighed overwhelmed as David explained how leave in conditioner goes first, then a treatment spray, followed by serum and mousse before hitting it roughly with a blow dryer which Lindy has only seen at home in Sweden in Malin’s room and in David Pastrnak’s bathroom.
“Then rub some oil between your palms and just kind of rough it through your hair- oh that reminds me! You should oil your scalp before practice to prevent hair loss.” Pasta explained as he passed the bottle of argon oil to his boyfriend.
“Käraste, I love you, but I need a minute.” Lindy forced a laugh out to hide how much freaking hair oil was stressing him out. Pasta just ran his fingers through Lindy’s hair and gently kissed the top of his head, something he rarely got to do since Lindy had three inches on him.
Lindy yawned and leaned into his boyfriend’s chest, it was almost 9:30, Lindy didn’t know you could spend almost three hours talking about skin, beard, and hair care. Luckily, there were only a few more slides explaining different combs and brushes for styling with pomades. He leaned back and nodded to David to continue his presentation.
“Thank you moje láska for listening, I love you and I hope you know I will love you whether you or not you follow these routines.” Pasta said gently before pressing his lips against his boyfriends.
“I know Käraste, and I love you too. I’m sorry, I never appreciated all of this and all you do to care for yourself.” Lindy said, his gaze returning to the island filled with products and tools.
…
The next morning Lindy was surprised to find Pasta’s spot in bed empty. He groaned as he exited bed to search for shirt and sweatpants. As he walked into the kitchen to make some coffee, he saw Pasta loading the products into various leather toiletry bags labeled “skin,” “beard,” and “hair.”
Lindy assumed Pasta had begun packing for the road trip a day early, but he quickly realized he was far off when he saw the embroidered “Hampus” on each bag. “Käraste, I can’t possibly keep your products.” Lindy sighed.
“It’s my treat lásko, you know I make more money than you.” Pasta laughed, earning a laugh from his boyfriend in return.
…
That night, Lindy and Pasta decided to stay at their own apartments to prep for the road trip the following day. That night, when Lindy opened the toiletry bags and crowded the products on his small bathroom counter, he realized he was in way over his head. Immediately he retreated to his bedroom and texted Pasta.
Lindy: “I’m lost without you”
Pasta: “Check the back pocket of the skincare bag”
Lindy found the blue leather bag and pulled a piece of paper out of the back pocket. The note detailed every step of Lindy’s skincare routine in Pasta’s messy handwriting. Lindy immediately checked the other two bags to find similar notes, each respectively detailing his beard and hair care routines. Lindy smiled to himself as he followed up with Pasta.
“You know me so well.”