One thing Dino loved to do was dress his dog up, mainly because she was adorable and deserved all the love. Especially since she was a staffy, aka pitbull so people tended to be afraid of her even though she is an absolute sweetheart. So of course he had to buy her a cute little bright yellow hat she could wear to the carnival. That way she would be noticeable and it truly brightened up her smile. "You never saw a pup with a hat?" Dino questioned, turning to look at the other with a smile as he gently scratched Daisy's chin. "It's cute though right?"
" oh, i — " kal's attention shifts slightly. in truth, he hadn't been talking about the dog, but rather the combination of ice cream, pickles, and hot fudge that'd been making its way just behind her, but kal is nothing if not incredibly friendly — and purely academic conversations about sweet and salty food combinations can definitely wait in the face of cute dogs. a genuine smile is quick to spring to his face as his gaze is drawn toward the pup in question. " i definitely have, but they do look incredibly adorable. what's their name ?? "
Juliette walked with wide eyes taking in the sights of the carnival, they were one of the best things about summer. Food, rides, and games had the ability to turn everyone into kids again for a few hours. She came to a stop near the food vendors and replied to the voice that spoke. “I’ve seen worse things done with ice cream and funnel cakes.” The brunette paused. “Someone with an insane sweet tooth, funnel cake topped with kettle corn and maple syrup. I think I’m gonna try one.”
kal has to think about that one for a moment. maybe not his thing ( a bit too much sweetness, even for his own sweet tastes ) but — " the textures probably do go well together, " he admits after a second of contemplation. " you have to live large, sometimes, i suppose. " he concludes with a laugh. " i won't be joining you on this adventure, but i'll happily watch. " he gestures toward another heavily topped funnel cake making its way away from the vendor and into the crowd, " — you ever tattoo someone with some crazy food combo like that ?? "
“ Pass, feathers aren’t really my thing, ” Quinn responded, about to take another sip of the sugar drink, but deciding against it. “ I’m more of a frills kind of guy. ” He was joking, mostly, then surrenders the drink back to Kal. That drink might appeal to the kids, but Quinn wouldn’t want it again. “ Might try Speed later. I’m thinking more of playing balloon darts, ” he added, looking to the left, then to the right. Did the carnival this year seem . . . bigger? Possibly. “ What do you think — go with the balloon darts or something else? ”
quinn doesn't like the drink very much ; kal can read that as clear as day, but that's fine. they can find something more substantial later one after they've explored a bit more. he does accept it back, taking another sugary and cold sip because he isn't about to let it go to waste. " balloon darts, " kal nods sagely as they start moving in the direction of the row with all the games. " and you can win your very own rainbow boa. " though what they're going to do with two rainbow feather boas, kal can't say. " — c'mon, show me those snipe skills. "
Now that the warmer weather had seemed to really settle in, Owen found himself outside as much as he could. He went from spending days off on the couch to whatever outside activity he could get his hands on. And today's adventure was hiking with Lady. As he walked along the trails, he didn't see anyone around, and he grinned, leaning down to undo Lady's leash. He was always good about keeping her on it but if there wasn't people nearby, Owen would let her off to burn some energy. As soon as she realized she was free, Lady took off ahead of him. Running a few feet before she would turn back around and run to Owen, loud laughs falling from his lips at her antics. He watched as she did it a few more times before her ears perked up and headed off a bit further, a groan falling from his lips. Knowing that when she did that, it usually meant she had spotted someone. The last thing he wanted was for her to be a nuisance to anyone so Owen took off after her, rounding the corner to see her on the ground, begging for the belly rub from the person she had ran into- an apologetic look on his face as he approached them.
there are a few things kal misses about finland in the summertime —well, plenty of things if he thinks too hard about it— but right now it's the long, endless summer days and nature right out the backdoor. the mit mountains are beautiful, though, and kal finds himself venturing out when he has stretches of time and quinn is busy with other things. that's what brings him out today, packed light with a few snacks, a water bottle, and of course his sketch pad. having had enough of sketching, the present finds him wandering until a familiar sounding bark, and certainly familiar pup come trotting up to him, pulling a laugh of his own as he crouches to attend to the always loveable lady. lady, of course, means owen isn't far behind, and sure enough he rounds the corner too, prompting another smile from kal and a wave. " she seems as happy as you to be out in the good weather, " kal greets as owen draws closer, careful to enunciate well, pausing in delivering belly rubs as he stands gracefully much to the chagrin of the dog at their feet. " have you been out long ?? "
He might have been sidetracked the moment he laid eyes on the mini Ferris wheel, followed by the other ride called Speed. Both look fun, even though he’s thinking that for the latter it might be a good idea if he’s going to ride it with an empty stomach. Just to be safe. He was not-so-seriously contemplating, knocked back to the present when he felt the grab and tug on his hand. Kal, yes, he’s here with Kal. “ So it’s not gonna quench our thirst but just make it worse, ” Quinn remarked with a laugh, taking the rainbow fruit drink from Kal. “ Yeah, yeah, yeah. Here we go. ”
The drink tasted anything but fruity. “ Taste like cotton candy mostly, ” he supplied after drinking some, eyeing the colorful drink for a moment, then shrugging a shoulder. “ Do you even know where that came from, ” Quinn added, referring to the feathery thing hanging around Kal’s neck. “ You think it’s CLEAN? ” He did his best to keep a straight face, sort of.
kal laughs, nearly as bright as the carnival around them, before he rest his hand on quinn's forearm to steady himself, leaning in to take another sip of the drink still in quinn's hand. " don't worry — i'll make sure we stay hydrated, but we can have fun too. " he pats quinn's chest reassuringly as he pulls back, flashing that familiar wide grin.
with his sunglasses pushed back atop his head kal can easily meet quinn's gaze as he lifts a shoulder in a nonchalant shrug, unphased by the semi-convincing straight face he's met with. " sure i do — it's one of the prizes at that game with the plates and someone didn't want it. couldn't let it go to waste. i think it'd look great on you. " he does pluck at one strand of the boa though, pulling it briefly away from his skin before he lets go and it resettles with ticklish persistence. " is kinda hot though, so i might ditch it too — you figure out which one you want to go on first ?? "
ezekiel had lost his friend in the hoard of people that were walking the decorated streets of mit heights. the carnival had only just commenced, but the streets were already filled with people celebrating. he was lucky he had gotten a couple days off of uni and was determined to spend the majority of it having fun with his loved ones.
only he had lost said loved one and he wasn't necessarily panicking, ok maybe he was, but this place was huge and he did not come to this part of town nearly enough for him to be able to find his way back home on his own. "well, fuck."
with the remains of an ice cream cone dwarfed in his hand, kal stumbles across a familiar face. while he's acutely aware of his own short comings, he likes to think that he can recognize a person in need when he sees one — facial expression can be so telling, too. while his specialty may lie somewhere closer to distinguishing the different types of pain and discomfort —well— being panicked definitely is a certain type of that, only subtler. " hey es !! " kal greets cheerily, far from oblivious to the situation but content to deflect the energy a bit. " you look like you could use some sugar — great pick me up — besides me, of course. " that last part is a joke, the fact hammered home with a wide smile. " can i get you something ?? "
STARTER FOR : quinn mckenna ( @qviinns )
EXTRA : some part of the carnival
" oh my god, i lost track of you for a minute — " kal's hand grabs quinn's with little more preamble, dragging them through the hot and noisy crowd to a quieter place along the edges, a wide grin playing across his face as they come to a halt and he faces him again. " i found us frozen lemonade, " he declares happily, brandishing the very large plastic cup with his other hand — the colorful layers of the drink visible through the clear sides. " it's supposed to be like ' pride punch ' or something — blueberry, regular, and raspberry i think. who really knows, it mostly just tastes sugary. " the feathery boa definitely hadn't been around his neck when he left on his search for something cold and frozen, and kal's regretting accepting it in this moment. he's sweating and the feathers are sticking, but he's always had a little trouble turning down things handed to him. " so — " he continues on, after fussing with the boa for a moment, waving the cup for frozen lemonade again. " you wanna try it ?? "
tldr; kal was born to barbadian artist and finnish hockey player, grew up bouncing between the US and finland. he played hockey growing up and thought he was going pro until injuries playing college hockey got the best of him. instead, he got his masters' in sports medicine after finishing undergrad. he spent one year serving as assistant athletic trainer at university of michigan, before getting an assistant athletic trainer position with the san jose barracuda where he has now worked for three years.
— kalle lehto was globe trotting long before he was even born : conceived in bridgetown, barbados, spending much of the nine months in his mother's belly in the united states, before finally being born in rauma, finland. as for his parents : it'd been love at first sight between a talented barbadian mural artist adanna and a finnish hockey player arvo lehto, and the rest as they say, is history. they had kal rather young, but the young couple were more than up for the challenge.
— much of his childhood years where in finland, summers in barbados visiting family on his mother's side, looking for some stability in their lives as his father entered the nhl. somewhere around age 11, they moved more permanently to the united states, following his father whose career had stabilized at this point with the panthers.
— they spent a good few years in the outskirts of miami, before they moved north to boston when kal was 15, again following the trajectory of his father's path.
— kal took all this moving in stride, and maybe it was a little cool to grow up in and out of nhl dressing rooms. through this semi-tumultuous period of growing up, sports were the one thing that kept kal grounded outside of family. they helped him make friends, establish a place for him, and growing up playing pond hockey in finland, it brought many fond memories. and kal was good at it.
— he was recruited to play at the university of michigan, where he played, studied movement science at the school of kinesiology, and flirted with the idea of going pro one day just like his father. it wasn't so much of a pipe dream as a potential reality : drafted in the second round of his draft year, and recruited to UM. however, pro dreams ground to a halt in his junior and senior year, when injuries plagued and sidelined him, even despite the efforts of trainers and his own education. some things aren't meant to be and that's okay.
— the door was far from closed. kal ended up applying to the graduate sports med program at UM his senior year, keeping his options open and ultimately going that route. he knew if he were to go a trainer's route, that he wanted it to be in the hockey sphere and this afforded him the ability to do so. he received his nata certification not long after graduation.
— the summer after his graduate program, he was lucky enough to be given an assistant position with team finland at the ii.hf world championships ( maybe a little bit of nepotism was involved but we don't talk about it ). that summer, while he applied to a few positions, none were willing to hire and he ended up back in UM, filling a trainer role for the men's hockey team there.
— part way through the season, he heard through connections about a potential opening with the ahl san jose barrac.uda, and was always in conversations with management there before the opening was even posted. his initiative paid off, and by the time the next summer hit, he was given an assistant athletic trainer position with the san jose barrac.uda, as much a stepping stone to the nhl as it is for players.
PRESENT DAY.
— kal just wrapped up his third season with the san jose barrac.uda ( ahl affiliate to the san jose sh.arks ), serving as their assistant athletic trainer. however, he has only been living at mit heights and golden view for two years. however, he definitely visited mit heights frequently in his first year !! while summers are usually spent completely in finland, he's decided to stay in the states this time to attend some sports medicine conferences and seminars to continue his learning and network as well.
— living in mit heights may seem a little obtuse for someone working in san jose most of the time, but it's not a bad drive. 45 minutes to an hour and it has lovely coastal views — and ofc he drives a hybrid. he likes that peace ( and affordability ) of mit heights, and being a little removed from everything is nice too. he lived in san jose his first year with the barracuda and it was fine. but when quinn told him about mit heights and they made some haphazard plans to move in together, well kal never really looked back. this will be his first full summer in mit heights but he's really looking forward to it !!
— without the responsibility of the season to keep him busy this summer, kal has queued up a whole slew of things to do ( besides his conferences and seminars ), primarily : part time deck-handing on ferries and tour boats, and volunteering with youth hockey camps and summer hockey leagues.
— in the rest of his free time, he'll be dedicating a little more time to his usual hobbies : sketching, karaoke, rock climbing, hiking in the mit mountains, keeping his workout schedule, and trying every pastry at frangipane and pretty much every sweet in mit heights.
— always always always starts his day with a specific workout at the gym or a run ( he has a schedule based on the days ). it gets him in a good mood for the day and he likes to stay in good shape.
— kal likes to be out a lot. while he's come to enjoy time at home more now that he lives with quinn, he still gets restless and likes to be outside as much as possible. in finland during the long summer days, it's not uncommon for him to not step foot inside unless the sun is down.
— while kal likes routine, he's not afforded much of it during the season, or rather, he cycles through several different ones depending on what his responsibilities for the day are : a routine for game days, a routine for practices, a routine for player's days off but he still has to go in to prepare and organize things, a routine for off days... it's a good thing he's so organized. organized chaos for sure.
MISC.
— citizenship : united states & finland
— skills / hobbies : sketching, singing, playing the guitar, rock climbing, hiking, sailing, multi-lingual, cooking, hockey, soccer, chasing after dogs
— languages : fluent in finnish (first language), english (second language), and spanish (product of living in miami) ; able to muscle his way through bajan ; understands enough german and swedish to not be totally lost — languages are by far one of the things he entertains himself with on the long bus trips to games, by which he means he watches tv shows and movies in said target languages.
— for someone so easy-going, it comes as a surprise to some that kal is so organized. his trainer's kit and room is always impeccably neat and well-stocked. he was quickly put in charge of placing supply orders because he always had a good grasp of what was needed and when. his apartment is also clean and organized. he can't stand coming home to a messy apartment after roadtrips. his positive trait is he never leaves dishes in the sink.
— good at cooking and often does so for himself ( & quinn ). he makes a whole range of healthy and well-balanced meals with caribbean, asian, latino, and scandinavian influences. while he's not a dietician, he knows his way around nutrition well enough. protein heavy dishes tend to dominate his dinners for quinn and himself. when he has the time, he likes to make his own bread. spring rolls are his go-to snack. pickled herring is his second.
— kal doesn't do any formal dancing, but he is coordinated. he likes club dance floors and is never one to stay on the sidelines sipping a drink unless the company is good.
— can, will, and does slay at karaoke. he also has a tendency to sing in the shower and doesn't sound half bad. while he doesn't ever think he has interest in becoming a musician, he does play guitar as well. it's good for campfire nights.
— kal comes across incredibly boyish when people first meet him : from his easy-going demeanor to his smile to his unruly curls, it's probably the first word that comes to mind. it's true that kal tries to take life not so seriously : he likes to have fun and he's not shy in admitting that. indulgent in that if he wants something, he will have it : his college years were mixed with plenty of hookups and parties and nights out.
— active, adventures, athletic : they all go hand in hand. kal's not one to remain still for very long, loving his job as a trainer and not always knowing what the next day or week might bring. he likes being challenged, and that shows in his hobby of rock climbing too : loving figuring out the best run to take in a physical setting. he loves to try new things, and he'll do anything at least once even if it doesn't sound like a great time.
— but other times, he leans too much into being active and physical. another thing about kal is he's a worrier. he has a tendency to fawn though he does an admirable job at keeping this buried and professional when on the job. when it comes to those he cares for though, he can't help but be concerned, always ones to text and call and reach out first.
— but he's never been one just to assume that things would just be handed to him in the hockey world just because his father played and now works in it. he's always put everything into whatever he does, to the point of being obsessive over it. it surprises some how serious kal takes things underneath that infectious smiles and relaxed posture.
— he's good under pressure too : calm & capable even when things start going south. it's one of the things that made him a good defenseman when he played, and one of the things that will make him a fantastic athletic trainer in his career ahead. though he's been fortunate to not have faced any extremely serious injured players that have involved a stretcher or trips to the hospital, his skills remaining sharp when faced with the unexpected have come in clutch again and again.
— kal is resourceful too, never one to back away from something because he didn't have the right tools to do it. this means he's often one to try to fix broken things himself : with a mixed bag of results. he probably should leave the plumbing issues for an actual plumber. but they say a lack of tools breeds ingenuity and some of his college dorm experiences definitely reflect that. on the job, though he always tries to be well stocked, it means he's able to quickly read situations and figure out a solution with what he has. perhaps in another world, he would have made a fantastic paramedic.
— kal can't help but be curious about other people's business, maybe defining him as a bit nosey. he's not one to want to start drama, but boy does he love to hear about other people's drama and gossip. he's not overly aggressive in this, not one to pry forcefully, but he's always going to listen and ask some very well-placed questions.
— a problem solver what it comes to everything else, it all balances out when you take into account kal's escapist & avoidant tendencies. he doesn't like conflict, to the point where he's been taken advantage of because of it. he's not always the best at seeing when he's being used and it's lead to some less than ideal situations. as he's gotten older, he's definitely gotten better at being an advocate for himself, but it doesn't change that fact that he likes everyone to like him and able to rely on him — even if maybe he should take a step back and take care of himself first.
APPEARANCE.
— 5'11" ; tall by average metrics, short by hockey player metrics
— 192 lbs, a strong build — he likes to stay in very good shape.
— black, loosely curly hair, long enough for the curls to have definition and look unruly ; medium tone skin ; dark brown, friendly eyes ( reference )
— demeanor : good & strong but relaxed posture, quick to smile, welcoming, someone who would hold the door for you or pick up something you dropped, tries to make people feel comfortable in his presence, non-threatening despite his muscled stature
— modifications : pierced ears, though he doesn't wear earrings on the job ; no tattoos ; varies miscellaneous scars
— style : practical but fun, mostly whites and neutrals but doesn't shy away from colors or patterns when the opportunity arises. probably wears too many tank tops / muscle tees. loves a good sneaker, admittedly partial to converse in every color but white is classic. not much into fancier dress but cleans up very nice. has a few bespoke suits.
OOC.
hello everyone !! i'm ollie and i can't wait to get things started 💕 i haven't written anything out wanted connection-wise but please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any ideas. i will reach out as i read intros and am inspired. i'm also very open to going off chemistry and seeing what happens.
janainaart
theartofmadeline
areudirty
yousharknotpass
pixelskylines
gummygunk
annaxmalina
