knock next time | sidney crosby
Pairing: celebrini!reader x sidney crosby
Prompt: when your younger brother and his best friend, Mack and Will, decide to surprise you at your Pittsburgh apartment, they get more than they bargained for
requested!
Growing up in the Celebrini household was never a dull moment, especially not as the oldest child. It was rinks, practices, someone yelling about losing their hockey bag, yelling over who took the last piece of dessert. But it was also full of love, that was always a given. And there was no one you loved like your siblings.
That’s part of the reason these last 11 months have been so hard. Not because your family is scattered, not because you live in Pittsburgh, which is approximately 3,000 miles away from your brother, but because you’ve been hiding something from them all.
That something?
Sidney Patrick Crosby.
You roll out of bed, trying to wiggle your way loose from Sid’s grasp. He just groans in response, pulling your body flush against his.
“Sid.” You whisper with a morning voice and a giggle. He groans again, his eyes still closed as his lips find your temple, then your cheek, then your lips. You kiss him back like a woman possessed, it happens every time Sidney kisses you. But you manage to pull back, even though your body is screaming at you to jump his bones right now and worry about coffee, and the headache you’ll get if you don’t have any, later. “I’m going to go start some coffee.” You whisper, your voice sultry in your boyfriend’s ear.
“Looking like that?” Sid questions you, his eyes raking over your bare form. You stand, your back towards him as you turned your gaze over your shoulder, his eyes staring at your ass.
“Come find me after your shower you hound.” You joke, stealing his penguins shirt off the ground, making sure to bend over very very slowly. Sidney groans as you leave the bedroom laughing, the soft glow of the morning casting your apartment in a golden glow.
You love Pittsburgh, at first you wondered what the hell you were doing as you spent your first night alone in the apartment. Your entire family had helped you move in, buying furniture, building the furniture, and listening to Mack and Aiden argue over the furniture. But it’s been two years since then, and almost a year since you and Sid have been attached at the hip. But that also means, it’s been almost a year of lying to everyone you love. Especially Macklin.
Macklin was your rock, your little brother who you looked after your entire life. And now he’s in San Jose, now he’s 19 and playing his heart out with his best friend Will Smith. Will, who you’ve also adopted like a little brother.
You smile thinking about them, about how excited they are to be coming to Pittsburgh in a few weeks. The family dinner was nearly impossible to plan with everyone’s schedules, but they all found a way, and that is the night that you’ll be introducing them to Sid.
It’s not like they don’t know him, or know of him. Macklin knows him in a ‘I’ve played against you and looked up to you my entire life’ kind of way. But you want them to know Sid, not Sidney Crosby the hockey player, Sid the boyfriend who basically lives with you. The boyfriend who refuses to let you drive anywhere, the boyfriend who redid your spare room so you could continue to write your novels from home, the boyfriend who cares more about you being a famous author than he does about being a famous hockey player, the boyfriend who has never once let you feel anything except larger than life.
These thoughts fill you with ideas for your next book, and it’s not like you haven’t based characters off Sidney’s actions before. The ideas fill your head as coffee starts brewing, and as the shower turns on from deeper in your apartment.
A little while later you grab your designated mugs, still deep in thought as you smile. But the peace of the Pittsburgh morning died. It died in the way that at 7:14am, your apartment door unlocks. And Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith enter your apartment with wide smiles.
“Surprise!” Mack yells, his smile fully on display, a drink carrier with three coffees in his hand, as Will smiles behind him, a brown bag clutched in his.
“Mackie.” You state, shock settling deeply around you. Your eyes blow wide as everything clicks.
The pair of shoes by the door which are obviously not yours, the bottle of men’s cologne on your countertop, the Pittsburgh Penguins shirt you’re wearing, which is way too big to be yours and houses CROSBY 87 on the back in big gold letters, and of course, the sound of someone in the shower. Of Sidney. Your boyfriend. Your secret boyfriend. Your very secret and very naked boyfriend.
“What?” Mack asks, his wide grin fading just a bit as he sees your shocked face. But that’s not the only thing he notices. His eyes scan your place, they catch the shoes, the bottle of cologne, the shirt that is way too big and way too worn covering your body. And of course, he clocks the sound of the shower turning off.
Will chokes as he realizes too, but it’s Will who’s eyes go wide when he realizes who’s shirt you’ve got on.
“Is… is someone here?” Mack asks quickly, his eyes going wide as he stares into your still wide eyes.
Your soul leaves your body, and you stay quiet not knowing what to say.
“Mack-“ Will says but you interrupt.
“Mackie, just-“ you start, but it’s too late. Too late because there’s the sound of the door opening, the sound of rustling, and the sound of footsteps coming closer to the kitchen.
And then it happens, Sidney Crosby walks into the kitchen. One of your white fluffy towels hanging dangerously low on his hips, and another towel drying his hair which is dark and dripping down his muscular back and chest.
“You better hope this hickey goes away before practice tomorrow otherwise the guys are going to-“ Sid stops when he realizes, he didn’t just say that to you. In fact, he said that to three people, two of which, are your little brother and honorary brother.
Macklin stares at his idol, Will stares between the two of you. Sidney just stares at Macklin. For a moment, nobody moved, and nobody spoke. Until your brother, to no one’s surprise, loses it.
“WHAT THE HELL!” Macklin exclaims, Will taking the carrying tray out of his best friend’s grasp as Mack starts waving his arms around.
“Oh my god.” You whisper, a hand going to your forehead while Sid’s hand tightens on the towel around his hips, like he remembered how he looks, and who it is standing in front of him.
“Is-“ Mack starts, green eyes so wide as he stares between you and Sid. “Sidney-“ he starts talking again but it’s like he can’t get out a full sentence.
“Morning, Macklin.” Sidney says, you can tell he’s a bit nervous by the way his muscles move. But he’s also still relaxed, like he’s not letting himself freak out.
“MORNING?” Macklin repeats. “Morning? You’re in my sister’s apartment basically wearing a fucking hand towel and you say morning?”
“It’s a regular towel.” You say, a bit offended that he insulted your fluffy white, and insanely expensive, towels. Behind Mack, Will now fully loses it. He sets everything down on the entry table and covers his mouth with his hand. His shoulders shaking as he tries to turn away.
“Will!” Macklin exclaims, turning around to watch his best friend try not to double over in laughter. “Stop laughing!” Macklin exclaims, but that only seems to make him laugh harder.
“I’m sorry,” Will says, waving a hand in front of him. “I’m sorry this is just the funniest thing that’s happened to me all year.” He says, wiping under his eyes as he continues to giggle.
“Sid.” You whisper, and your boyfriend’s gaze shoots over to you immediately. “Maybe go put some clothes on?” You say, and Will busts out with a new fit of giggles.
“Isn’t that a little hard when you’re wearing his shirt?” Will asks, and Macklin makes a pained noise as he really takes that fact in. You stare at Will as threatening as you could as Sidney awkwardly scratches the back of his neck as he tries to contain a laugh from Will’s comment.
“I’ll be right back.” Sid says, his smile unable to be contained as he turns down in the direction of your bedroom.
—
It didn’t take long for Sidney to come back in a pair of sweats and a black t-shirt. The shirt hugs his arms perfectly, and you have to drag your gaze away before your little brother notices. But Sidney does, he always notices. And he gives you a wicked little smirk before turning his attention back to your little brother.
“Macklin-“ Sidney starts as he sits down next to you on the couch, the younger players standing in front of the tv, facing the both of you like they are parents who caught you guys doing something bad.
“How long?” Mack asks, and for the first time since entering your apartment and finding out your secret, he sounds hurt instead of angry.
“A while.” You say with a slight wince.
“A while?” Mack echos. “How long is a while?”
“Just under a year.” Sid finishes, and his hand takes yours. His fingers interlinking with your shaking ones. “We were going to tell you.”
“When?” Mack asks.
“Dinner.” You say immediately, and you want to crawl into a hole as you see your brother’s face.
“Like the family dinner?” Will asks from beside Mack as you nod.
“Why didn’t you-“ Mack starts but stops himself as he really takes you in. Takes in the way you and Sidney are, the way he knows that if he were to raise his voice again Sidney would step in front of you, the way his hand is wrapping around your slightly shaking one. The way Mack knows that keeping this from him all this time must have been killing you. “I’m not mad, Y/N.” He finally says, the tension dropping slightly from his shoulders. “I just-“ he pauses, his fingers running through your hair. “Why didn’t you feel like you could tell me?”
That carved a part of you open. Not, why didn’t you tell me? But, why didn’t you feel like you could tell me?
You see him clearly for the first time since he walked in, your younger brother. Your younger brother who has done nothing but support you your entire life. Your younger brother who looked at you for years like you hung the stars for him.
“Because it was new at first.” You finally say, staring at Mack, your hands still squeezing Sidney’s. “And I didn’t want the world to know, we didn’t want the world to know. With both of us in one form of the media we just wanted something that was… ours.” You explain. “Plus, he’s Sidney Crosby, and I have the Celebrini name.”
That fact causes your boyfriend to shift you more into his side, and your brother for the first time looks like he might understand why you kept it secret.
“I didn’t want people to assume stuff because of who we are.” You say, motioning towards you and Sid. “And, I didn’t care what they would say about me if they found out, I still don’t. I just care about him.” You say, and everyone stills.
“Y/N.” Sid whispers, his voice so soft.
“So you hid him because you love him?” Will asks, the joking smile replaced with a genuine one.
“Yes.” You say, and you feel the familiar press of a kiss to your head.
“I’m sorry this is how you found out.” Sidney says. “But I’m not sorry that you know. And I’m definitely not sorry for all the time I’ve gotten to have with her.”
“Oh my god.” Mack says, finally sitting down on the couch.
“So you’re like, in love in love.” He says, laughing for the first time today.
“Yeah Mackie.” You say with a laugh. “We’re in love in love.”
“Fuck.” Mack says, laughing loudly now. “Do I have to pretend I don’t know?” He asks suddenly.
“Just until dinner.” You say, hoping he’ll agree. It’s quiet for a second until Mack nods and agrees.
“So!” Will says, clapping and bringing all the attention to him. “I’m exhausted and I cannot keep the comedy up unless I’m fed.”
Sidney lets out a genuine laugh before he agrees.
“I’ll start something up.” He says, letting go of you but not without a soft kiss.
“Oh god. Right in front of me.” Mack complains, but you see his smile before he covers his face.
“I have more questions.” Mack says, as he follows Sid into the kitchen and rapid fire asks everything he can possibly think of.
How did you guys meet? Who made the first move? Do you live here? Do any other hockey players know? Do the Penguins know?
Sid meets them all with honesty and laughter, and his answers make Will fake a groan with how sweet they are.
“I love her, Mack.” He says finally once Macklin seemed to exhausted all his questions. “I have for a long time, even before we started dating. I know that probably sounds like a lot, and maybe it is.” He confesses, but he keeps talking. “I loved her before I had any right to. Before I knew if she’d ever look at me that way, before I knew if this could be anything more than me hoping she’d text me back, or finding reasons to ask about her day, or noticing every time she laughed at something I said and trying not to make it obvious that it melted every wall I’ve ever had.”
Your breath catches as you hear it, and Sid turns his attention to you for only a second before turning back to your brother.
“She loves you very much Macklin. I need you to know that this secret wasn’t because she didn’t trust you, and it wasn’t because she wanted to keep you out. But she wanted to protect it until she knew how to show it to the people she loves most, which is you. Both of you actually.” Sid says, pointing to Mack and then to Will.
Your heart clenches as Will sits down on the couch now too, smiling a bit as he hands you the coffee he and Macklin brought in.
“Can I ask something?” Macklin says to him, and Sid just nods, stirring batter in a bowl. “Are you guys worried about, I mean, I’m not trying to be weird, but are you guys-“
You cut him off before he could finish. “The age difference?” You ask, one eyebrow rising.
Macklin nods, looking a bit sheepish at that question, but you understand.
“No.” Sid says with warmth but also with confidence. “I mean we know people will talk, but people aren’t in this relationship.”
Your heart warms at that. That no matter what, no matter the age or the circumstances that fans can and will put you through, no matter any of it you know Sidney Crosby is yours and yours alone.
It doesn’t take long for the four of you to settle down, to laugh, eat, and the boys to all chirp each other.
You’re standing in the kitchen, watching the three of them talk, and for the first time in a very long time, you let yourself breathe.
Because Macklin Celebrini, your little brother who used to cry at the thought of you growing up and moving out of your parent’s house, is sitting with the man you love more than life itself.
Sidney catches your gaze from across the space, and he gives you a wink before chirping your brother and his best friend back.
I love you, you mouth at him.
I love you more, he mouths back.
