[Willex, takes place in my JatP On Ice AU, post main storylines. Basically all you need to know for this is:
1. Alex (along with the rest of Sunset Curve + Nick) plays for the NHL team, the LA Phantoms.
2. Willie works for the team as a mascot handler, but ALSO works for the arena itself as an usher.
TWs for pre-game anxiety (nothing super intense but it's there), brief mentions of non-hockey fights, smoking, and people rushing the floor at a concert.
Lastly, everything Willie talks about in this are things that actually did happen to me/my coworkers at a show last month. This is mostly a vent fic for me. It just seemed more entertaining to write it from a confused Alex's pov than Willie's. Okay, enjoy!
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Alex is doing dishes when the first text comes in.
Willie
6:13 pm
Oh dear. Chris just gave us full permission from the higher ups to not be nice tonight.
Alex frowns down at his phone, quickly wiping off his damp hands to text back.
Alex
6:14 pm
Wait where are you at tonight?
Willie
6:14 pm
Access control to the floor, yuck. GA pit too.
And it’s a small show. Like under 8k small.
Alex
6:15 pm
Weird. I guess good that you’re not actually ON the floor?
Willie
6:16 pm
Guess so. Oh also, I heard they had to tell them to turn it down during soundcheck because they were literally shaking the building XD
Alex is a bit of an anxious person. That frequently surprises people to learn, given that he gets paid to strap some knife blades to his feet and go throw his body around at high speeds for ⅔ of the year. Willie has known basically since they first met though. Maybe since before they met technically, given that Alex was having a panic attack during their first sort of conversation.
Willie is certainly more anxious than he lets on. But the amount of flippancy and humor that he approaches some situations with worries Alex sometimes. Joking about being in a building that was literally being shaken by rap music for example.
Alex
6:17 pm
That sounds… loud.
Did they turn it down?
Willie
6:18 pm
Probably, I guess we’ll see once the concert actually starts.
Gtg, apparently they’re bringing some VIP folks down in a sec.
Go get rest, you got a big game tomorrow! <3
Ah right. Alex is pretty sure he’s looking forward to tomorrow. It’s their first game in the regular season, against the Dallas Stars. That first game energy is always fun. All the guys are raring to go after how preseason went. Alex himself is ready to get back into the flow of games and practices after 4 and a half months mostly off. But there’s always that thread of anxiety before games, especially at the start of a new season. Alex feels good about his place in the lineup, but you never really know how things will go until the puck drops.
And it will be a longer day than usual with all the press stuff. Alex is admittedly more worried about Willie than himself in that respect though. They have whatever the rap concert is tonight (Willie couldn’t remember who it was when they talked about it this morning), and then they have to be at work to help Spoopy at like noon tomorrow. Thankfully, they both have the afternoon and evening off the day after. Plenty of time to unwind. Alex has already been going back and forth with Carly and Jaden about movie night options.
“Alex come on, it’s tradition!” Luke yells from the living room.
“Are you gonna keep your tongue out of Bobby’s throat this time?” Alex hollers back.
He hears Luke start to protest before presumably having the air knocked out of him by someone’s elbow. Alex rolls his eyes, grabs the last bag of popcorn, and heads into the living room.
“I thought you liked having me back, Mercer,” Bobby teases from his spot on the floor, leaning back against the couch between Luke’s legs.
“Between the pipes, yes,” Alex retorts. “Sucking face on my couch when we’re trying to watch Ted Lasso not so much.”
“Hey, if it’s a package deal, I’ll take this setup,” Jack interjects from an armchair.
“It’s not your couch though,” Alex points out.
“Nah I’m with Jack,” Reggie decides. “And it is my couch.”
“Sorry dude, sounds like you’re outvoted,” Nick laughs. “You’re the one with a problem.”
“That’s not… okay,” Alex sighs, flopping onto the floor next to Bobby with a dramatic huff. “Let’s just start.”
“That’s what I’ve been saying for the last 20 minutes,” Luke exclaims.
“No way, not till the dishes are done!” Jack protests. “Remember 2 years ago? We started without cleaning up dinner and then got shut out by San Jose!”
Reggie nods and points at Alex’s defensive partner. “Got a point.”
“Well it’s done now so let’s get going,” Nick declares, grabbing for the remote.
Alex chuckles at his friends’ antics and settles in for the first episode. He tries not to glance at his phone too often. Willie doesn’t usually text much once shifts start until his break. It’s probably fine. Right?
—
Willie
9:01 pm
I think these guys are going for UFCs ejection record.
I’ve been yelling at people for like 4 hours straight
Also why are ALL of the tour staff smoking down here???
Alex almost drops his toothbrush when he sees the messages. He doesn’t remember a ton of specifics about the UFC event back in the spring, but he remembers Willie talking about a lot of fights happening outside of the ring.
Alex
9:03 pm
Are you okay???
What’s happening???
Willie
9:04 pm
Yeah im good
But i think theyre already at like 40+ ejections and the main dude hasnt even gone on yet
I’ve seen security manhandle at least a dozen off the floor already
Alex winces sympathetically as he reaches for the dental floss. Being totally honest, he’s not sure what the ‘normal’ amount of ejections is for concerts at the arena. But that sounds like a lot.
Alex
9:06 pm
Yuck, sounds nasty. You on break now?
Willie
9:07 pm
Yep
Someone in the locker room turned their radio over to the security channel so we’re all just listening to them call out ejection and incident numbers from command
Oh damn.
They locked the doors upstairs.
Alex
9:09 pm
????
The minutes tick by. No response from Willie. Alex finishes brushing his teeth. He does his (admittedly short) skincare routine. He says goodnight to Reggie and crawls into bed. Willie finally texts back.
Willie
9:31 pm
Sorry that was probably ominous sounding
Got distracted talking to coworkers
Headed back out, ttyl!
Get lots of sleep!!!
Alex stares at his phone in the darkness. The messages don’t change. A little nervous, Alex goes to the LA Times page. Sometimes they have live update articles going when crazy stuff like this happens downtown.
Nothing.
Not hugely shocking, it’s late on a Tuesday night after all. Still, not knowing what’s going on is a little disconcerting. But Willie is right, Alex does need to sleep. Or at least try to. The arena security has always been pretty good, everyone speaks highly of them. It’s probably fine. Alex turns on his night time playlist, tucks his phone under his pillow, and closes his eyes.
—
Almost an hour later, Alex groans and rolls over for the tenth time. Why is it that he can never get to sleep before big games? (Yes, he’s well aware that anxiety and insomnia often go hand in hand, but seriously?) He pulls his phone back out to restart the playlist (his sleep timer had done it automatically almost 10 minutes ago), just as it buzzes with more texts from Willie.
Willie
10:43 pm
Okay. I think we’re good now?
Still the occasional idiot with a screenshot, but I think stopping the show for half an hour while security swept the floor scared everyone a little straighter.
And they pulled Cait and Craig off the floor thankfully, so they’re here with me now.
Remarkably the main dude actually started on time???
Alex blinks slowly, his half-asleep brain struggling to comprehend the messages.
Alex
10:45 pm
They stopped the show?
What happened?
Are you okay?
Willie
10:47 pm
Wait no you should be sleeping!!!
Go night night hockey boy!
[Sleepy Kitten Gif]
Alex
10:48 pm
Been trying, insomnia is a bitch.
Answer the question???
Willie
10:51 pm
Real
It’s fine now I think. A bunch of people apparently rushed the floor all at once. Security stopped the opener’s set so they could sweep the floor and get all the people without tickets off.
Pretty sure we’ve broken at least 60 ejections by now.
Still not anywhere near UFCs record of like 200 though
Sucks to suck suckers!
Alex
10:53 pm
Babe I don’t think that’s the flex you think it is…
But like. Are you okay?
Willie
10:55 pm
Yeah im good
Hopefully theyre done soon though
Ready for everyone to be out of here
Myself included
Alex
10:56 pm
That’s good. Text me when you get home?
Willie
10:57 pm
Only if you go honk shoo now! You got a game tomorrow!
Alex chuckles, Willie’s light tone making him smile even with how tired they must be.
Alex
10:59 pm
I shall return to attempting slumber.
Goodnight Willie, get home safe <3
Willie
10:59 pm
<3
Alex restarts his playlist, takes a deep breath, and tucks his phone away again. Willie is fine. Tomorrow will be fine. He can sleep.
He’s not going to claim he has the best response to the dozen or so texts he wakes up to the next morning though.
Willie
11:15 pm
Why are they still goinggggg???
Craig left early, hope he gets lots of sleep.
11:22 pm
When I tell you these guys are going to be paying a MOUNTAIN of fees for this…
11:31 pm
Apparently people were rioting outside after they locked the doors???
I guess that explains the security call earlier to not engage with something. That’s outside, that’s on the cops.
11:36 pm
Cait and i are trauma bonded now
11:53 pm
Youch yeah the arena is definitely gonna have some workers comp claims to deal with after tonight
But its finally overrrrr!!!
Security is making all of us cover our uniforms and hide credentials before we go outside
11:59 pm
Made it back to my car
12:29 am
Finally home. Hope your night was much chiller than mine <3333
Thank you so much to everyone who sent me prompts to help me reach my 2024 writing goal. As of about five minutes ago, I completed it!!! I wrote an average of 500 words every day for 366 days, and you guys were SO great and helpful in me getting there. To celebrate, my final writing of the year is 5 snippets about some of our favorite blorbos celebrating New Year's Eve together. I asked five friends to pick the pairings, so I'll tag them next to their snippet. If you're still waiting on a prompt to be filled, I do plan to get to them in the New Year, but probably with way less haste. You guys are awesome, thank you so much for reading my work!
Julie & Flynn: for @joyandthephantoms
“Okay!” Julie says decisively, settling herself up against the headboard of her bed with her notebook poised in her lap. “Who wants to go first?”
Flynn, lying on her stomach down the bed from her, feet kicked in the air as she taps her pen against her own notepad, says, “You, cause I’m still working through some of mine.”
“Well, hurry up cause it’s almost midnight.” Julie holds her notebook up like a hymn book and begins to read. “First of all, my word for the year is!” Pause for dramatic effect. “Ease.”
“Ooh, love it. Very Eat, Pray, Love. Go on.”
Damien & Mark: for @starchemist
“So, uh,” Damien says, voice low and gruff in the dark of the hotel room. They’re lying tucked up against each other, Mark’s back to Damien’s chest, Damien’s arm wrapped around him. The Ball Drop, still about forty minutes away, is playing softly on the TV, but they’ve been much more focused on each other than Times Square.
“Yeah?” Mark says when he doesn’t go on, barely a whisper.
“New year usually means, like. New you, and all that bullshit. Resolutions. Airing your grievances and whatever.”
Mark turns his head to look at him. “I’m not telling anyone about us.”
“Oh, thank God.”
Willie & Alex: for @skeletaltoad
Their friends started counting down about a minute and a half ago, because Reggie gave a whole speech on December 23rd about how “it’s really not fair that the last ten seconds of the year are the only ones that get recognized, when really we’ve been counting down since midnight on last New Year’s Eve” etc etc and wouldn’t shut up until they agreed to start the vocal countdown at 90.
Willie and Alex haven’t been counting with them. They’ve been sitting on the floor of the Molinas’ living room, holding hands and staring into each other’s eyes, preparing themselves for their first New Year’s Kiss.
Nick & Carrie: for @queenofthequillandink
At 10:00, her dad goes to bed, so Carrie sets Nick up on the couch in the den with about fourteen blankets and The Holiday on streaming.
At 11:00, she paints his nails a festive shade of pink and orders a large pizza with everything for them to share.
At 11:30, they make twin hot fudge sundaes with about a million toppings each.
At 11:45, Carrie puts the Ball Drop on and makes fun of Ryan Seacrest, as per tradition.
At midnight, they ring in the new year. A year of healing, of friendship, of peace. Still by each other’s sides.
Caleb & Adam: for @staystrange
“How’s the party?” Adam says on the screen, a red solo cup in his hand.
“Loud,” Caleb says, rubbing absently at his chest, and they both know he doesn’t just mean the volume. “I wish you were here.”
“I know, me too. We’ll ring in next year together.” Adam glances over his shoulder, and Caleb can hear someone (probably Caitlin) shouting from the next room. “I’m being summoned for the count down.”
“You’ll come back to kiss me, won’t you?”
Adam smiles at him— the tiniest smile ever, which means it’s the most real. “Of course I will. Happy New Year, babe.”
ways i'd like nick danforth-evans to become canon or to be acknowledged by canon
- actors who look incredibly similar to chad and ryan play two characters called chad and ryan
- corbin bleu and lucas grabeel play nick’s dads but their names are never mentioned
- corbin plays nick’s dad called ryan and lucas plays nick’s dad called chad
- julie goes to nick’s house and sees a framed photo of chad and ryan and says “oh, do you like high school musical?” and nick goes “what? those are my dads.”
- nick’s dads have written c + r in a heart somewhere
- nick drops one of his fedoras and the name ryan is written inside. when questioned, he says it’s one of his dad’s old ones
- nick straight up says “my dad’s names are ryan and chad and they look and sound like ryan and chad from highschool musical”
- nick just mentions he has two dads and then sacha carlson looks directly into the camera and winks
