Summary: Reader is Evgeni Malkin's younger sister who's a figure skater, moves to Pittsburgh to be closer to her brother in the midst of her career reaching it's peak--unaware that she'll fall in love with her brothers best friends.
WARNINGS: SMAU mixed with some actual writing, set in 2007 about two years after Sid got drafted and became iconic, use of Y/N, slight broken English since reader isn't fluent in English like Geno at the time, inaccurate details about the 2000s.
A/N: i tried my best to make it as 2000s as possible lmfaooo, i did as much research as possible for the 2000s slang and vibe....HOPE YOU GUYS LIKE THIS IDEA!
FACECLAIM: Aliona kostornaia.
(A/N: okay so just pretend the internal monologue is in Russian, reader can’t speak English as fluently)
The rink smelled like cold air, metal, and that faint burnt trace the Zamboni always left behind. Fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, too harsh, turning the ice into something almost painfully dreamlike.
A scratched-up CD player by the boards blasted something tinny, probably ripped off LimeWire, skipping once before catching again.
Evgeni Malkin leaned against the boards, arms folded, trying (and failing) to look unimpressed.
“Is crazy,” he muttered. “She do this for… six hour already.”
Beside him, Sidney Crosby shifted awkwardly, hands shoved into the pockets of a hoodie way too plain for someone on the verge of becoming that guy. He squinted out at the ice.
“…She’s your sister?”
Geno nodded like it was obvious.
“Da. She is… how you say…” he waved a hand, searching, “…too much.”
Out on the ice, You were was practicing intensely. It looked like a a trance, a beautiful yet painful trance.
Sid straightened without realizing.
“…Yeah. Okay.”
Geno smirked, catching it.
“She think she big star already,” he teased, pride tucked underneath. “Maybe she is.”
The music cut off with a sharp click. Silence, except for blades carving ice.
Geno pushed off the boards, tapping them twice.
“Hey, Y/N!”
His voice echoed.
“Come. I show you something.”
Sid already looked like he regretted everything.
“Wait—no, you don’t have to—”
Too late.
Geno was stepping onto the ice in his shoes like rules didn’t exist, jerking his head at Sid.
“I introduce. Is important. You both same age, same… big deal people, da?”
Sid ran a hand through his hair.
“I’m not a big deal—”
Geno ignored him completely, using Sidney as balance to make it to you across the ice with no skates.
idiot brother, you roll your eyes fondly.
“What you want, your head is crack open.” You spoke up bluntly, skating up to Sidney and Geno and motioning to Geno’s lack of skates.
You have met most of the hockey friends Geno has made so far, and Sidney was by far the most recognizable. Not just cause Geno talks about him 24/7, but also cause Sidney is literally Canadas golden boy at the moment.
Geno didn’t flinch at the insult, if anything, he looked proud.
“Ah, see?” He shot a grin towards Sidney, nudging him harshly. “She is very nice girl, very polite.”
you sigh loudly, vocalizing your annoyance. And Sidney let out a quiet breath through his nose, as if he’s been holding it.
you look at sidney from top to bottom, a harmless observation but in his eyes it seemed like pure judgement. you tend to be a expressive as Geno sometimes, not afraid to voice your thoughts and feelings.
he looked somewhere between amused and terrified as you guys stared at each other, an amazing start am I right?
Geno waved a hand between you two like he was presenting two objects.
“This is Sid. Sidney. From Canada,” he said, like that explained everything. “He… how you say… hockey golden boy now, everybody crazy.”
Sidney visibly winced at that, as if someone had just yelled an insult at him. You knew all about the stuff people call him, but seeing him in person….he looked like a dork.
“Geno—okay, no— don’t-“ he stuttered and cringed, yea your right….a huge dork.
And this—” Geno pointed at you, unnecessarily dramatic, “—is my sister. Y/N. She think she is queen of ice.”
you groan internally at that, shooting Geno a warning glare than closing your eyes for a few seconds to hold yourself back from rudely excusing yourself. Figure skating practice was already stressing enough, you didn’t have enough patience for this.
there was a beat of silence, no talking between you three and just the sound of Umbrella by Rihanna coming from the rinks overhead speakers.
Sidney rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, stepping a little closer but still keeping that cautious distance. he was turning red from embarrassment, he couldn’t even look you in the eye as Geno stood there expectingly.
“…Hi,” he said, simple, a little awkward but not fake. “Uh—your brother’s been bragging about you for, like, ten minutes straight.”
Geno scoffed.
“I say truth.”
Sid glanced back at you, then out at the ice you’d just been tearing apart.
“That jump just now, was that a triple axel?” he asked, a little more focused now, curiosity cutting through the awkwardness. “I mean…I don’t know a ton about figure skating, but… that didn’t look easy.”
Sid shook his head slightly, then looked back at you again, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“…Still. It was kinda insane.”
There’s a pause, not uncomfortable, but not smooth either. Very early-2000s, slightly clumsy, nobody quite knows what to do next.
Geno clapped his hands once, loud.
“Okay. You talk. I go not fall on ice in shoe, da?” He said, finally letting go of Sidney to go get skates.
and before either of you could stop him, he turned and very confidently started (or attempted) to walk back across the rink.
and immediately slipped, and glided to the boards on impact.
“I am fine!” He called out.
you and Sidney just turned to each other in sync, both of you carrying the same exasperated expressions.
“So, Y/N right?” He attempted to make conversation.
“Hm, am I?” You replied dryly, ruining his attempt in seconds.
you could see Sidney visibly go blank at that, he was probably slowly coming to the conclusion that you’re exactly like Geno.
you sigh tiredly, not having the heart to continue being harsh to him. He’s adorable honestly, the type of guy you’d see as a male lead in a rom-com.
“Thank you, is triple axel.” You spoke up, thanking him for his comment earlier. Axels weren’t easy, everyone knew that, so gratitude was accepted.
your English wasn’t that good, so you had no idea what to say or how to do small talk. You had just moved to Pittsburg, wanting to be closer to Geno as your career gets bigger and more promising.
“Your hockey guy, the one they call “crybaby Crosby.”” You added bluntly, mentioning a harsh nickname people have used on him.
way to go Y/N, way to go.
Sidney’s jaw dropped slightly, not in a way he seemed offended, he just didn’t expect to hear that. He could tell you weren’t trying to be rude, unlike Geno your new to socializing.
Despite that he looked disappointed, which he probably was. Maybe he had hoped you knew him for something good, not….that.
“…Yeah,” he said after a second, shifting his weight on the ice. “People call me that.”
No denial. No defense. Just… flat honesty.
For a moment he glanced away, dragging the toe of his skate lightly across the ice. like he was thinking about how much to say, and then deciding not to make it a whole thing.
“It’s mostly guys who don’t like losing,” he added, a small shrug. “Or, uh… fans, very passionate fans on opposing teams.”
There’s the tiniest hint of humor there. Dry. Understated.
“Fans that don’t like you?” You raised a brow.
Sid huffed out a quiet laugh at that, shaking his head before looking back at you.
“You don’t really ease into conversations, huh?”
It wasn’t criticism. If anything, it sounded a little impressed.
there were a few beats of silence again, just the two of you awkwardly like idiots.
“I’ve seen you skate. Not in person…just clips. People talk.” He paused, like he didn’t want to oversell it, then added anyway, “You’re kind of a big deal.”
You could see a flicker of something more genuine there now, not just polite conversation, not just Geno forcing an introduction. But two young athletes looking out for each other…
Two people, same age, both getting pulled into something way bigger than they probably expected.
Sid tilted his head slightly, glancing at your skates, then back up at you.
“…How long did it take you to land that consistently?”
You’ve has been skating since you were a baby, similar to hockey players whom start young. But landing consistently took you some time, it wasn’t easy.
But maybe your coaches training made it easy, she’s strict as hell.
You hummed, taking a second to remember.
“Is took time.” You replied simply, not bothering to continue talking. Your not as talkative as people would think, the complete opposite of Geno who’s rambling 24/7.
You rubbed your eyes as you watched Geno skate back up to you guys, he was now wearing skates thankfully. Your eyes hurt from being in the rink all day, everything being so bright and white. and unlike Hockey players, figure skaters can’t even wear helmets.
You just lightly smacked Geno on the arm, no context whatsoever other than pure sibling behavior.
“He talk like I bite, scared Canadian.” You said bluntly, referring to Sidney.
Sidney had a quick reaction, his head snapping towards you like a puppy that just heard his owner yell at him. Wow, he almost looked hurt.
“I go, bye.” Then you skated away.
Goodness, that’s the weirdest interaction you’ve had all year.
Geno barely reacted to that, just glanced at the ice like yeah, that checks out, then looked between you and Sidney with a crooked grin.
“See? Very friendly. You like her.”
Sid let out a short breath, watching you skate away like the conversation had been a commercial break.
“…Yeah,” he muttered, half to himself. “Super friendly.”
There was a pause. He didn’t look away right away. He just stood there, eyes following you across the ice as you picked up speed again, like nothing had happened.
Geno bumped his shoulder.
“You scared,” he said bluntly.
Sid shook his head, but there was a faint smile there now.
“I’m not scared.”
“Mm,” Geno nodded, unconvinced. “You talk like you go to dentist.”
Sid laughed under his breath at that, finally dragging his attention back.
“She just—” he stopped, searching for the word, then gave up with a small shrug. “She’s… intense.”
Geno’s grin widened.
“Da. Is Malkin.”
Out on the ice, you cut into another jump. faster this time, sharper, like you were taking something out on the ice without even realizing it.
Sid watched for another second, quieter now.
“…She didn’t even hesitate,” he said, almost to himself. “Just walked up, said that, and left.”
“Is efficient,” Geno replied proudly.
Sid huffed a laugh.
“Efficient,” he repeated.
Another beat and then, without really thinking about it he asked.
“…Does she always train this late?”
Geno glanced over.
“Always. Coach is…” he made a face, searching for the word, “…how you say… scary woman. No mercy.”
Sid nodded slowly, like that explained everything.
“…Yeah. Makes sense.”
There’s a shift now, something small, but noticeable. The awkwardness didn’t go away, but it settled into something more… curious.
Sid tapped his stick lightly against the ice, eyes flicking back to you again.
“…She’s gonna burn herself out if she keeps going like that.”
Geno just shrugged.
“Or she become best.”
He said it like those were the only two options.
Sid didn’t answer right away.
cause he knew Geno was right. You either become the best, or you burn yourself out into a failure.
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A/N: geez that took me two days.
