#Mathew Barzal writing
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a/n + disclaimer: first of all, she's BACK and she finished a fic! second, nobody show this to Barzy, okay? we don’t need his ego inflating as I compare him and his level of fame to that of Justin Bieber lolol. anyways, after listening to Hailey’s recent interview, I just thought this would be a fun one to write – something different! this is an interview from the perspective of the reader, who is married to Barzy.
please note: a few select parts of this were transcribed directly from Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy interview with Hailey Bieber from September 28, so I want to give that credit – those portions are in bold. all in all, this should not be read or regarded as the actual interview! I’m also not claiming it as my own – this is fanfiction based on a public interview. photos were pulled from public Instagram (specifically Mat’s and Hailey’s) and Pinterest accounts. also, be nice to people. like damn. if this interview taught anybody anything, I hope it’s that.
warnings: based on an episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast which I know a lot of people hate (I am certainly not a fan nor a regular listener but wanted to hear Hailey's perspective on this), swearing, alcohol, mention of depression / anxiety / dark thoughts – don’t read if any of these trigger you
word count: ~5,500
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“Think I’m just gonna take a drive, you know? If that’s okay,” Mathew said tentatively. “Listen to it on my own.”
You nodded, your breaths shallow, and wondered if he could sense your unease. Then, as he grabbed his keys and set his gaze on you from across the room, you knew beyond a doubt that he could. Of course he could – he’d been your reflection, the balance on the other side of the scale of your life, for more than seven years now.
Mathew came closer to where you sat on the sleek sofa and caged you in with one arm leaning against the back and the other resting on the arm of the couch. He studied you for a moment before speaking.
“You gonna be okay here without me? I can stay if you w-“
You shook your head quickly, pulling the cuffs of your crewneck down to cover your trembling fingers.
“I’ll be okay, Maty,” you interrupted, your voice soft but sure. “Promise. You do what you need to do.”
He nodded slowly, raised his hand to tenderly stroke his thumb along your jawline, and kissed you softly.
“I love you,” he said, as quiet as he’d ever been, yet still at his most firm and convincing. “Nothing in the world is ever going to change that. Nothing. Just… just know that, okay?”
You nodded and brushed back the soft curls that had fallen onto his forehead.
“I know that,” you assured him. “I’ll see you when you get back.”
—
You couldn’t immediately open the YouTube app on your TV after Mathew left. It took you five minutes of pacing to simply press the button to power on the screen. After another five minutes of procrastinating by tidying up around the kitchen, you forced yourself to return to the couch and pull up the app.
You had finally faced your fears last week and had sat down with an acquaintance, Zoe Rodriguez, to comment at last on a topic that you had never before discussed publicly – your personal life.
But this was far more poignant than just a casual chat with a random friend. Zoe just so happened to be the host of one of the most popular, most-watched, most-listened-to pop culture podcasts in the world. The hour-long conversation took place at Zoe’s studio and consisted of details about your upbringing, your professional projects, and – the reason that probably something like 99% of listeners tuned in – your relationship with Mathew.
And now, after agonizing over its release for days on end, it was time to face the music. Or, in this case, to face the video version of the podcast episode. Which was also being featured as a long-form article with exclusive photos on Zoe’s blog. (So 2022.)
You closed your eyes for a moment and prayed silently, primarily, that Mathew wouldn’t be hurt by either the interview or any backlash from it, and secondly, that it might, indeed, deliver some semblance of the peace and freedom you had envisioned when you had agreed to the whole thing in the first place. Next, you curled into the arm of the couch, your toes tucked between the velvety cushions, the long stem of your glass of red wine secured between your two middle fingers. You took a generous gulp of your favorite merlot, set your lips in a firm line, and breathed in deeply. Then, you reached for the remote again, and this time, finally pressed play. Zoe’s familiar voice filled the air, and photos of you, of Mathew, and of the two of you together – which you had also seen upon briefly scrolling through the corresponding blog post earlier today – flashed onscreen as she introduced the podcast.
Zoe [playfully]: “Mrs. Barzal, thank you for meeting me today to do this.”
You [smiling]: “Of course. Thank you for having me!”
Z: “I wanted to tell you, I know you always do the black, rounded nails with no sparkle, and so to channel my inner you, I did the same thing for this interview. You inspired me.”
Y [clapping]: “Ah, I love it! When people tell me I inspire them to do anything when it comes to like fashion, beauty, anything really, I always say that’s the biggest compliment, so thank you so much.”
Z: “So, let’s get into it. You are married to one of the most famous athletes in North America, and by far one of the most famous figures in the NHL, Mathew Barzal.”
Y: “Yes, I am.”
Z: “What are your favorite things about Mathew?”
Y: “Oh, god, I could go on for so long and this could get really cringey and embarrassing, so I’ll try to keep this short and sweet [giggling]. I think the biggest thing I always tell people is that he’s literally my best friend in the entire world. Like, there is absolutely no one else I would rather spend my time with, even if we’re just snuggling on the couch doing absolutely nothing. And we’ve truly grown up together. We were friends for a long time before anything else, and like… [wistfully] I just love him… He understands me more than anybody ever has in my whole life, and I think that goes both ways. He’s just my guy. He’s the most amazing person with the sweetest soul, which probably not a lot of people know. He’s super romantic and thoughtful. And he’ll probably tease me to no end for saying this but he’s always had this quiet confidence which I find really, really sexy [wiggles eyebrows].”
Z: “I mean yeah, not to make moves on your man, but I would definitely have to agree with that! And I also love how the two of you are honestly just very down to earth for who you both are and the worlds that you come from.”
Y “Thank you! I appreciate you saying that because, yeah, that is not always the perception of us. And it sounds obnoxious to even try and defend, to be like, ‘no, wait, I swear we seriously are normal and boring!’ But it’s true. Like we love just eating super greasy New York pizza and drinking beers in our living room doing puzzles and watching trash TV. That’s just who we are and that’ll never change.”
Z: “Okay, well now you have to divulge what trash TV you’re watching.”
Y: “Shit, he’s gonna be so pissed at me for blowing up his spot like this [laughing]. But I’m gonna do it anyway. We both love watching Love Island. That’s probably our number one most watched trash show together. Like we wait with bated breath for each episode! So lame. And we also love Real Housewives. That one’s harder to keep up with because there are so many of them now, but we always send each other the memes and stuff on Instagram [throws head back in laughter]. My favorite is Beverly Hills; he likes New York. So dumb but it’s just fun.”
Z: “No, I love it! We all need our mindless TV shows to binge. Now, were you into hockey before you met Mathew? Did you follow it?”
Y: “Honestly, no. I grew up in a family where the NFL was like our religion. My dad did watch the occasional Rangers game – which Mathew loves when I say, as you can imagine – especially on weeknights when we were just chilling after dinner. But no, I was not a big hockey gal. Didn’t know much about it, couldn’t name more than like, ten players in the league probably until Mat and I got together. Things will still happen, like penalties or plays where I’m like having our friends explain to me why that’s not allowed [chuckling]. Which, again, has been yet another misconception, with people thinking I was some kind of puck bunny, skate chaser, going after him because he’s an athlete, which was simply not the case. So yeah, another incorrect perception there. But I know we’ll get deeper into that later.” [smirking]
Z: “Yeah, speaking of which… Now, I have to change the subject-”
Y: “Oh, god, here we go [readjusts in the chair].”
Z: “No, no, I know how you feel about this. I know you don’t like talking about it, but we’re just gonna rip the bandaid off, okay? You can do it.”
Y: “Okay [deep breath]. Go. I’m ready.”
Z: “So, since the very beginning of your relationship, you, in particular, have had a rough go of it from so-called ‘fans.’”
Y: “Mhm.”
Z: “Could you speak on that?”
Y: “Yeah, it was not a fun thing to deal with as an eighteen-, nineteen-year-old, I will say that. Of course it’s not fun now either, but I have learned how to cope. But in the beginning it was just so intense, and I had no idea where it was coming from, or why. I remember first seeing shit on social media, which we all know is just a toxic vortex for the most part, and just being like, ‘wait, what? What did I do? Why don’t they like me?’ As a teenager, most people want other people to like them, and when that’s not the case, they obsess over it. It can really weigh on you, and you just wonder what you can do, or maybe even shouldn’t have done, so that people like you more. And that is certainly what was happening those first few years. Like all the ‘bunny blogs’ as people call them, and even some like legit media members were so horrible and nasty about us-”
Z: “About you, specifically. You can say it.”
Y: “Well, yeah. That’s true. Mathew got some of it too, though. And again, we’ve known each other for so long, and we were just kids in the beginning. Like, literally kids! And there was definitely some, like, cocky, asshole, entitled behavior going on on both of our parts which came across negatively to people. For him, he was just a little immature when he first came into the league, just like anybody in that position, and he was maybe acting out a bit because he was so young, with all this brand new money, and you couldn’t really tell him anything for a while. But he comes from a wonderful family and he is very grounded at the end of the day, so he quickly grew up and moved on from that. And for me, it was just being on my own in New York City, with a little distance from my family finally, trying to chart my own course and create my own name, and that certainly contributed to this ‘I’ll do whatever I want with whomever I want’ attitude for me which also came across poorly and didn’t necessarily speak to who I really was. But again, we were both just still growing up. We still are! So yeah, I think that contributed to some of that toxicity and negative energy about our relationship early on.”
Z: “And I also personally feel like, with Mathew being who he is – I mean, let’s face it, he was a heartthrob, and still is – and especially playing in a major market, there was probably at least a portion of his fanbase that felt some sense of entitlement, especially maybe among young women, when it came to him and who he dated.”
Y: “Yeah, I definitely think that’s the case. And I think from day one, there were people who supported us, but there were also a ton of people who were angry that he picked me. Like, ‘why do you get to be with him? Why do you get to marry him?’ And I’m like, ‘I don’t know! We fell in love.’ There was times where I can confidently say, like, I don’t think we knew it was gonna be each other. Several times. So like, I can’t say that at 18 years old, I knew 100% that that was my husband. I didn’t know. I didn’t fucking know.”
Z: “No matter who he ended up with though, fans were never going to just be like, ‘oh, yeah, she seems cool! Go Mat!’”
Y: “Yeah, that’s true. Whether it was me, or some sweet, random girl who grew up two towns away from him in BC, or the most perfect celebrity or athlete in the world. No one, in the fans’ minds, would have ever been good enough, no. For whatever reason, the universe determined that we were going to find each other.”
Z: “Right. Like you didn’t ask for this. The two of you just happened to be living in the same city, you met each other, you fell for each other and, boom, little did you know you’d wind up together.”
Y: “Yes, exactly.”
Z: “And how has being married to Mathew, with him being who he is, like we’ve already discussed, affected you?”
Y: “[wincing] Yikes. That’s a tough one. Again, I don’t like to focus on the negative, as you can probably tell, because there are so many wonderful things about being with him, being married to him. Like, I get to spend my life with the absolute best person I know, and I fucking love that. And we get a lot of amazing opportunities and exciting things that come our way because of who he is, who we are, where we live. But it is not always a walk in the park like people think. I have had some really dark days where I wondered if it would be better if I had never met him, or if I was never even here, which pains me to say now because that is no longer the way I feel at all. I’ve been open with him and with my inner circle about those dark, heavy feelings, and thank god, they just embraced me during that time with completely open arms and never shamed or guilted me for the way I was feeling. They encouraged me to just take a step back and not become so wrapped up in it that I couldn’t see my life for what it truly is. And lots, and lots of therapy – it works wonders, people! And don’t get me wrong, there are still times where I do wonder what it would be like if we both just worked normal jobs. Like if I ended up becoming a veterinarian like I always dreamed about and he was like, a salesman or a carpenter or something. I do think about that, what it would be like to not be under such scrutiny for things we say, things we do, places we go, or even just being us. Or what it would be like for people to just not care about us, you know? [chuckles] I sometimes think that that would be really nice. But I also always say, I never wonder what it would be like to be with somebody else. Like I know that he’s it for me, without a doubt. And I get it – we’re in the public eye, and people want to know what’s going on with us. It’s just something that I’ve had to learn to deal with, and to just decide how much of myself and my relationship that I do want to share.”
Z: “Speaking of which, could you tell me a little bit about how social media has impacted you? Maybe both as an individual and your relationship?”
Y: “Yeah, the thing I always say to my family and close friends is that it feels very foreign and bizarre for everyone and their brother to feel as though they have a say in my relationship. First of all, because they don’t. Let’s just make that very clear. Mathew and I do not take the public’s opinion of us into consideration at all when we think or talk about our relationship and what steps to take next, or what decisions to make moving forward. And it’s also weird because… why do people get so invested in a relationship which isn’t even theirs? That’s what has always been so strange to me. Just because we cherry-pick moments of our lives that we choose to share on social media or through the media, whether that’s magazines or interviews or whatever, doesn’t mean that people actually know us. Again, I understand people recognize us as public figures, but why do they go out of their way to go on social media and let us, and the entire world, know what they think of us? Like, to be quite frank, I don’t care that people were pissed when we got together at 18 and broke up at 20 and got back together at 21 and then almost immediately got engaged and married. Did I ever envision that happening? No, I absolutely didn’t. Can I understand that people were shocked or surprised? Yes, totally. I definitely get that. But why were you angry? That has always thrown both of us for a loop. Because who were the only two peoples’ lives who were actually impacted by that decision? His, and mine. That’s a choice we made together, without anyone else’s influence, and it’s one that we are super proud of. Because it might have seemed crazy to the outside world, but it felt right to us at the time, and it still does to this day. So, as much as is humanly possible, we’ve just refused to let other peoples’ negativity impact the way we view ourselves or one another or go about our relationship, as hard as people might try.”
Z: “And to that point, at the start of this relationship, people were even questioning your motives for wanting to be with Mathew. People were saying that you were only with him for the fame, or the money, or that you sought him out, sought this life out, purposefully, with these questionable motives at the front of your mind. Can you speak to that specific perception of the relationship and how that felt to you?”
Y: “You know, the funny thing about that one to me is, I came from a well-known family, and every single one of my family members will tell you that since I was a little girl I would say, ‘when I grow up, my husband is gonna be a nurse or a professor and I’m gonna be a stay-at-home mom, and we’re gonna live in the middle of nowhere and have a bunch of kids!’ Like, I never wanted this life. I never wanted people to know who I was or where I lived or anything about me, really. I was always jealous of my friends who did have that. So when I heard that narrative about Mathew and me, of course it wasn’t fun, because like I said, as an eighteen-year-old, you do care a lot about what people think of you and how you’re perceived. But eventually I was just able to laugh it off knowing that anybody who really, truly knows me, knows that that is so far from being the case. And it took plenty of therapy sessions and discussions with Mathew, but I realized that no one will ever know the way that this relationship came to be, because it was behind closed doors. And that’s okay. I actually came to love that fact. Because as much as people think they know, they really don’t. Again, the only people who know how it happened and what our intentions were are Mathew, me, and those closest to us who we’ve trusted with that information. And no one is ever going to be able to take that away from me, or from us – not that, nor anything else in my life. So now I realize that that’s a beautiful thing.”
Z: “Tell me about how things have changed for you in these past couple of years since you’ve put in the work, and explain why you say things have gotten better for you.”
Y: “Yeah, I definitely think things have improved over the last couple of years, and part of that probably does have to do with the fact that I’ve spent a lot of time working on my healing and my inner peace. But overall, for the most part, people are nicer. As you know, there were several years there where I just didn’t share anything with anyone. Even my friends from high school or, like, my sister’s friends or parents’ friends would be like, ‘is she okay? I haven’t seen her post anything in forever. She, like, fell off the face of the earth.’ And that was a product of that scrutiny and that pressure being so intense for a while. I thought, well, if I don’t share anything, and if Mat doesn’t share anything about me, then they can’t hurt me. I didn’t want Mathew to post me on any social media outlet, at all. Not for my birthday, not for our anniversary, nothing. And whatever I did post was very guarded, very cryptic, and many times I would just take it down, like, hours later after overthinking it. And eventually I did realize that that was actually really hurting him in ways I couldn’t even comprehend at that time, until we both just opened up and got brutally honest about the way we were both feeling and how the other’s behaviors were hurting each other. And that was like a wake-up call. Like, ‘hey, this is not all about you, and this is something your partner wants to do to make you feel loved, so snap out of it.’ It took me a long time and a lot of work to get over it and let him show me off because he’s proud of me. And you know what? I’m damn proud of him too, and now I let people know it. I’m ashamed to say I used to be scared to post when he, like, hit a milestone or made the national roster or something. And now I’m like his professional hype woman, and when people have nasty things to say about it, we just tune out the noise, because at the end of the day, none of that matters. The only thing that does is how we feel about one another. And now I feel like I can be vulnerable and be my truest, most authentic self with my audience. And in 99 cases out of 100, they have been so incredible to me, and to Mat, too. Like, I have people who love the beauty line who have never watched a hockey game in their life before finding me, now they’re posting Mat on their story and tweeting to him like, ‘yes, king, you’re going to the playoffs, we’re so proud of you!’ And I just think that’s the sweetest thing ever. And I felt like actually taking the step to, even though at times it was really uncomfortable for me, being like, ‘I’m proud of who I am, and this is my personality.’ And like, this is gonna sound probably so corny, but to me, I’ve always felt like I was just a girl from fucking New York… [covers face] Oh my god, this is gonna sound so cringe! I grew up, to me, I felt like, very normal… I’m from a small town called Nyack which is outside New York. And I woke up every day and I was homeschooled and I did ballet! [giggling] And I feel like I’ve remained that same person. And of course life has changed drastically, but at the core, I feel like I’m proud of who I am. I know I’ve always been the same person, and I feel very rooted and very grounded. And I grew up very grounded and rooted. And of course I came from a famous family, that’s the reality of my life. Can’t change that either. And I just feel like people didn’t really know me or know my story or know the kind of person I was. People don’t know what kind of friend I am. People don’t know what kind of daughter I am. People don’t know what kind of sister I am. But I know.”
Z: “Speaking about your family, your friends: as we wrap up, tell me, who are the people in your circle who you lean on? Who do you trust no matter what? Who is there for you, other than Mat, when you’re having a bad day, having a tough time?”
Y: “First and foremost, my parents. I feel super fortunate that the two of them are truly some of my very best friends. They still live in the home I grew up in outside the city, so when I’m feeling overwhelmed in the city or even on the Island or I just need to get away, that’s where I go. It’s like my sanctuary. My mom and I love to cook and bake together, and my dad and I love taking the dogs for long walks in the woods by our house, and when it’s nice we go fishing. See, there’s another thing people probably don’t know about me! I can fish even with these claws. [chuckling as she holds up her fingers to display her signature black acrylic tips] And Mathew and I each have one sister. They’re both out on the West Coast so we don’t get to see them as often as we’d like, but we both talk to them pretty much every day. And when I need to vent or cry to somebody, my first call is to one of them. And I feel really lucky to still be best friends with a couple of girls from my hometown who I’ve literally known for like twenty years now. I won’t call them out here, but they’re on my socials from time to time. They’re my rock. And finally, some of the veteran wives on the team have become my very best friends, including Sydney [Esiason, daughter of New York Jets great Boomer, wife of Islanders enforcer Matthew] Martin, Kristy Cizikas [wife of Casey], Meg Bailey [wife of Josh], and even more. I’m really close with that group in particular because, one, Mathew is really close with all their spouses on the team and two, because for better or worse, they and I have gone through very similar things, so they’ve helped me through a lot. I know I can lean on them for support and come to them with anything because we’re all in the same boat, you know? Plus they all have the sweetest babies, so getting to go over to their houses and play with them and cuddle with them always lowers the blood pressure!”
Z: “If you could say something to the public, which this is obviously giving you the opportunity to do, what would you say?”
Y: “To all of my supporters, I think I’d just say thank you. Thank you to those of you who have always supported me and been lovely to me. Thank you for giving me a continued platform and a voice which allows me to, hopefully, do things that matter, things that can make a difference. And I’d also say, to those people who have not always been so nice or those who do not like me, first I’d say, that’s okay. I don’t need you to like me, truthfully [snickers]. Like, that’s okay and that’s your prerogative. Second, I’d say… I’m not going anywhere. [laughing hysterically] Just kidding… kind of! But in reality, I’d just say, don’t forget that there is a real person on the other side of that screen you’re staring at while you make these mean comments. A real person with emotions and problems and shit going on in their life that you have no idea about. I would just encourage people to keep that in mind next time they go to make a comment or post a nasty video. And overall, just be kind to each other. We don’t have enough kindness in this world, and it can be a really cold place to be. So be a light and just try to make the world around you a better place, even if it’s just your little corner of it. You’ll be happier – I promise.”
—
As Zoe wrapped up the interview onscreen, you held your breath, hand pressed to your chest, waiting for the anxiety, the dread
But you didn’t feel anxiety, though. No, not in this moment. You weren’t nervous or scared or wishing you could take it all back, like you fully anticipated you would feel.
Instead, you felt pride. And that feeling alone was enough to make you smile.
Then, you did another thing that would have terrified you two years ago, especially after a public appearance: you opened your Twitter mentions and began to scroll.
Of course, there was still the occasional troll who popped their ugly head in to spew hate throughout your mentions. But overwhelmingly, almost exclusively… it was love. And, even more importantly, respect.
nobody should receive hate for who they love. we love you, @/yourusername!
wow, I honestly had no clue @/yourusername went through all of this. what a strong person, but she shouldn’t have had to endure that. kudos, gf!
y’all just jealous you ain’t who barzy chose, and it’s time to get over it. shoutout @/yourusername for baring her heart!
I’m glad @/yourusername said things are better now, but damn.. people suck. keep being you, bestie!
we should all be so lucky to have @/yourusername grace us with her being.. @/barzal97 especially you, homeboy. we <;3 you guys!
The feeling of a smile spreading across your face while using social media felt foreign, but you embraced it – another reminder that things were, in fact, different now, better now.
You stood up, stretched your arms to the ceiling, and let the smile grow on your lips and the gratitude bloom in your heart before you took your empty glass to the sink. You peered at the clock and wondered when Mathew might return and how he might be feeling at this very moment.
By way of distraction from obsessing over his arrival, you sat at the kitchen counter on your laptop, attempting to begin sifting through the barrage of emails that had filtered in within just the last several hours since the interview went live. Just as you were wrapping up a response to your agent about one of the many requests for additional comment (never going to happen, you thought to yourself as you shook your head), you heard the familiar sound of the lock on the front door clicking open.
This is it.
You steeled yourself, closing your eyes and taking a deep breath from your belly, and you waited. Against all your rationale, you waited for him to be upset, or offended, or angry, or, far worse than all of the above, disappointed. You could crawl out of your skin at the idea of disappointing him.
His footsteps came nearer, and you couldn’t bear to turn around and face him, not yet. But he didn’t need you to. He wrapped his arms around your waist from behind, his chin settling on your shoulder. As you relaxed into his touch, you rested your hands against his forearm.
Neither of you made a move for a beat, and suddenly you heard soft sniffling in your ear. Concern washing over you, you reached back to sink your nails into his hair. He tucked his face into your neck, and it was only then that you felt a warm wetness on your skin. Your heart beat faster, panic coursing through your veins.
“Bubs… are you okay?” you whispered.
You wriggled loose in his grasp just enough to turn on the barstool and meet his eyes. He immediately cupped your face in his long fingers, a newfound admiration in his teary gaze.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m just so fucking proud of you,” he finally choked out. “To open up and be vulnerable the way you did… that takes so much strength and so much courage. I just, I admire you and I respect you so much, baby. I love you, you know that?”
His eyebrows were knit together, desperate to make you understand how much he meant every single word. You knew he did — you felt it deep within your soul, could see it in his warm chestnut eyes. You pressed your hand against his and nodded.
“I do know. And I love you so much.”
—
later that night…
#my writing#hbb interview fic#mathew barzal#mat barzal#mathew barzal fanfiction#mathew barzal fanfic#mathew barzal fic#mathew barzal writing#mat barzal fanfiction#mat barzal fanfic#mat barzal fic#mat barzal writing#m.barzal
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if you're still interested writing from the drunken confession prompt can you pls do "I can't wait for the room to stop spinning, so I can focus on your face again." With barzy but with the reader being the drunken one pls 😭
3.) "I can't wait for the room to stop spinning, so I can focus on your face again." with Mathew Barzal
"What the hell, Sydney?" Mat practically barks out, his hands shooting forward so he can steady you when Sydney all but dumps you into his arms.
You're absolutely wasted.
And it's not even one in the afternoon.
Sydney rolls her eyes, and from behind her, Mat can see her husband and his teammate, Marty, rolling his own eyes at his wife's lack of coordination. "Will you relax? She's fiiiiine!"
At Sydney's tone, and your sudden lack off coordination, Mat frowns, tightening his grip to keep you upright. "You two said you were going for brunch."
His tone is slightly accusatory, and it makes you scrunch your nose up in dissatisfaction. "We did!" You all but whine, and Marty sighs from his doorway.
"They went to that one café with the bottomless mimosas." Marty explains, barely breaking a sweat as he helps to keep his wife standing.
"They were amaaazing!" Sydney gushes, and you giggle from within his embrace.
"Sooo delicious!" You agree, and Marty sighs.
"She's been fine since I picked her up," his teammate tells him, "No nausea or sickness or anything, but I brought her straight home before these two could start brunch hopping."
Mat nods, letting out a small breath as he glances down at you, an amused smile crossing his lips when he finds you already looking at him with those big, beautiful eyes of yours and a toothy grin.
"Thanks man," Mat says, quickly shaking his teammates hand before pointing a finger at his wife. "And you! No more brunch."
Sydney whines a little more as Marty drags his wife back towards their car. Mat shuts the door behind him, turning to you and laughing a little when he finds you're still looking at him with that same grin.
"How are you feeling, princess?" He asks softly, brushing some hair out of your face.
You shrug, eyelids blinking slowly at his face. "Fine," you say, then frown a little, "A bit dizzy, I think."
Mat frowns now too, carefully putting one arm behind your back and the other behind your knees before lifting you bridal style. "Let's get you some water then."
"Mkay," you say dismissively, humming quietly to yourself as Mat walks you both toward the kitchen. He can feel your eyes glued to his face as he goes, and he hides the smirk threatening to cross his face.
He places you on top of the kitchen island, careful as he steps back, and he sees you blink at him, smiling, before your eyes blow wide and then squeeze shut, your body swaying a little.
"Whoa there," he says, placing his hands on either side of your face, steadying you, watching as your eyes do that slow blinking thing again. "Are you okay?"
"Mhm," you say, eyes still shut. "A little bit more dizzy."
"From me carrying you?" He assumes.
You try to shake your head, but Mat's hands keep you still. "Dunno baby."
"How many mimosas did you have?" He asks through a laugh, thumbs rubbing gently at your cheek bones.
"Can't count now, baby," you say, "trying not to be dizzy."
"I'm sorry princess," he says, pressing a gentle kiss to your forehead. "I didn't mean to make it worse."
Your mouth opens like you're going to say something, but then it closes again, and your mouth forms a little pout, and he swears he can start to see tears beginning to coat your lashes.
He presses forward, hands still steady and holding your face. "Baby? What's wrong?"
"Too dizzy to open my eyes, room's spinning," your voice wobbles the way it does when you're about to start crying, and Mat can feel himself start to panic.
"Do you want water?" He asks, "I can get you water but I'd have to move to the sink."
"No, I don't want that." You pout more, and Mat's heart starts to fracture.
He presses another kiss to your forehead. "What do you want then?"
"Wanna look at your face."
It's quiet for a second, and then your words click in his head, and Mat starts to laugh. "What?"
"Wanna see you," you explain. "But I'm worried if I open my eyes, I won't be."
"Cause you're too dizzy?" He manages to ask through his chuckling.
You nod slowly, and then the tears that threatened to spill from your eyes start to disappear, and a small, pleased smile crosses your lips, posture straightening a little.
"I can't wait for the room to stop spinning, so I can focus on your face again." You declare happily.
It only makes him laugh more, and he presses his palms into your cheeks a little, delighting in the way they squish a little and your mouth exaggerates the pout that forms.
"Why do you want to see my face?" He asks playfully.
"S' pretty," you manage to say through the squish. "And I love it, love you."
"I love you too, princess." Mat punctuates his statement with a kiss to your squished up lips, then slowly lowers his hands from your face to your shoulders. "Now, how about that water? And some Advil. Definitely Advil."
#mathew barzal#mat barzal#mathew barzal x reader#mat barzal x reader#writing challenge#mendeshoney masterlist
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baby daddy | mat barzal
summary: in which you get dental work done and have some very interesting things to say to mat.
warnings: none just lots of fluff!!
a/n: I got some dental work done this week and it inspired this short and sweet little fic.
enjoy!
xoxo nina
“Baby! I’m so glad to see you!”
Mat chuckles as he walks towards you, waving at the dental assistant next to you.
“She’s totally fine to eat and drink as normal, but will probably be out of it for a few hours,” the woman grins before looking to you. “Go home and rest up okay?”
You grin and nod at her, “My baby daddy is gonna take me home.”
“We don’t have kids,” Mat is quick to interject with a snicker as he looks to you. “Unless you’ve been hiding something from me.”
You pause, thinking with furrowed brows, “Future baby daddy then.”
Mat laughs as he wraps an arm around your shoulder, steering you out of the dental office, “Okay baby, whatever you say.”
You stop walking and Mat turns to look at you, “What is it pretty girl?”
“Do you… Not want to have babies with me,” you can’t help the tears that well up in your eyes, mostly a reaction from the drugs they’d given you during your dental procedure. “I thought we were going to get married and have babies!”
Mat quickly pulled you into his arms, pressing a kiss to your head, “I want everything with you my love. But you’re also very high right now and I don’t think this is the time to have conversations about marriage and babies.”
“O-okay,” you sniffle as Mat opens his car door and helps you in. “But you still love me right?”
“I’ll always love you baby,” Mat smiles and kisses your cheek. “Now let’s get you to bed.”
+
As the morning sunlight pours into your bedroom you groan you quickly bury your face in Mat’s chest. He mumbles sleepily and hooks his arm around your waist.
“How ya feeling baby?” Mat asks, his voice muffled by your hair.
“Like I got punched in the face,” you groan and snuggle further into Mat. “Was I a pain in the ass yesterday?”
Mat chuckles but doesn’t say anything, prompting you to lift your head and look up at him, “Mathew…”
“You said some very interesting things,” Mat smirks and you let out a groan. “All good stuff. Like when you called me your baby daddy.”
“I what?!” you screech and Mat laughs. “Oh my god that’s so embarrassing. Jesus…”
Mat pulls you close and kisses you softly, “It was really endearing, especially when you were crying and asking me if I wanted to marry you and have babies with you.”
You pull yourself away from Mat to scream into your pillow. His hand finds your back as he laughs, pulling you up to look at him.
“All good baby, I actually loved it,” Mat smirks as he presses a kiss to your forehead. “And I can’t wait to be your husband and baby daddy.”
#mathew barzal#mat barzal x reader#mat barzal imagine#mat barzal fic#nhl fic#nhl imagine#nina writes#mat barzal
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Sing Your Heart Out as Your Ex Watches || Mat Barzal
Summary: Singer!reader performing at the NHL All Star Game while their ex watches.
Word Count: 851
Warnings: jealousy from an unnamed ex who plays in the NHL, slight mention of said ex being a bad boyfriend (please let me know if you find any more that i should add)
Maleeha's Masterlist
a/n: this short little fic was inspired by this post by @islesnucks and was quickly written (busted it out in an hour)
this is gender neutral. hope you enjoy this! feedback is appreciated
LIKES ARE GREAT, REBLOGS ARE BETTER ♡
You were an up and coming singer, and was pretty well known in the hockey world. Growing up a hockey fan had a big influence in your life; your most famous music video included you wearing some hockey gear, grabbing the attention of hockey players, fans, and organizations.
You were already connected to the hockey world with your boyfriend, Mat Barzal, being a well known hockey player for the New York Islanders. Unfortunately, you were also connected to the hockey world through your ex... who also played in the NHL.
You had been broken up with your ex for two and a half years and you had been with Mat for a little over a year. You couldn't have been happier with Mat, he was everything your ex wasn't: sweet, respectful, kind to your family and friends, the list could go on and on. So when you were confirmed to be at the NHL All Star weekend before your boyfriend was, he couldn't have been prouder.
A few weeks later, the All Stars were announced and Mat's name was listed as one of the players; it was your turn to be proud of him. However, upon reading the list of players who would accompany Mat as All Stars, you frowned at the sight of your ex's name. You brushed it off as your joy that Mat was an All Star overpowered your sadness that your ex was also an All Star.
Since you were performing, you were listed as one of the four celebrity captains. You of course drafted your boyfriend as your first pick resulting in the fans, both yours and his, going wild in person and over social media. Your and Mat's names were all over social media the entire weekend with your ex's name sometimes following your names as he seemingly didn't even try to hide his jealousy that you were happily with Mat. Your ex's obvious jealousy didn't bother you at the time, you were secure in yourself and your relationship as was Mat.
Your and Mat's names appearing on social media only increased on the Saturday, when you were behind the bench that Mat sat upon. Clips of you strategizing play and semi-flirtatiously bossing Mat around were all over the tags relating to the both of you and the NHL All Star Game.
You were set to perform after the second game of the day before the third and final game of the day. At first, you were excited to perform, however, as the All Star weekend went by, you were increasingly getting nervous about performing in front of your ex. As you were getting ready with your backup dancers in the arena's home team locker room, you realized how un-ready you were to perform in front of him. Your backup dancers noticed your nervousness and one of them texted Mat that he needed to come to calm your nerves. Once Mat arrived, you didn't look his way as he expected, signaling that you were lost in your thoughts.
"Hi." He said after cautiously approached you and sitting next to you, worried that he would abruptly break you out of your thoughts.
"Hi." You repeated, a slight smile accompanying your greeting as you met his gaze.
"What's going on in that pretty head of yours?" He asked, gently grabbing your hands and holding them in his as if saying 'you can't avoid this conversation'.
"I have to perform in front of him." You didn't have to say his name for Mat to know that you were talking about your ex. "Him being here wasn't bothering me Thursday, or yesterday, or even earlier today, so I don't know why I'm worried."
"I do," You looked at Mat, confused as to how he knew, but you didn't. "You're worried because it's the first time you perform in front of him since you broke up with him. And I completely understand that." Mat paused, allowing you to talk if you wanted to, but your silence showed him that he could continue. "But you know what? He's been jealous this whole weekend. He can't stand how well you're doing for your singing career without him by your side."
"And he can't stand that I have a boyfriend who's better than him in every way." You added, causing Mat to giddily smile and blush. You took a deep breath, your hands still in Mat's, before adding, "I can do this."
"Now that's the positive self talk I want to hear!" Mat squeezed your hands before letting go, standing up to lean down and give you a chaste kiss on your lips. "I want you to go out there and sing your heart out while your ex watches. Relish in the glory because you've earned it."
"I have?" You asked, standing up in front of Mat.
"You have," he reassured. "and that's all your work that allowed you to get to this point." With one last kiss - the good luck kiss as Mat called it - he was gone, re-joining his NHL peers on the ice waiting for your performance of a lifetime.
——————————
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#maleeha writes#mat barzal#mathew barzal#mat barzal x reader#mathew barzal x reader#mat barzal imagine#mathew barzal imagine#mat barzal fanfic#mathew barzal fanfic#mat barzal fanfiction#mathew barzal fanfiction
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what about a little utah hiking blurb with barzy for the summer series? I just know that man would hike shirtless in slutty 5in inseam shorts and would be the real view to look at the whole time👀
come along the world trip
Can I make this smutty? Please? Please? Oh well I did. I'm sorry I turned into a slut thinking about this.
word count: 1.6k warning: smut!!! 18+
📍utah, usa with mat barzal
Abs. So many abs. This man in front of you had abs for days and you weren't even ashamed to stare. You knew he enjoyed it. From where you were sitting on your big rock taking a break from your hike you could perfectly see the beautiful mountain range and your boyfriend Mat drinking some water. The sunlight hit his chiseled abs and when he squirted some water over himself, he wasn't the only one getting wet.
"You can do more than just look, you know." Mat walked closer to where you were sitting when he saw you staring. His body above you blocked the sun which made it easy to look up at him. His smirk was wide and he wiggled his eyebrows knowingly.
You were in the middle of a hike in Utah, where you were spending a few of days with your friend group. You had rented a big house in the middle of nowhere and just spent your days hanging out by the pool, going hiking or doing some other outdoor activities. Todays hike was long and unfortunately for you you were hiking with mostly professional athletes who were making this look way easier than it was. Didn't help that Mat took his shirt off pretty much right when you started walking and that his tiny shorts kept riding up exposing his thick thighs. Multiple times Mat told you he would be more comfortable if you walked in front of him, but the view of looking up at his ass definitely was worth saying no to him.
"You wish." You patted him on the shoulder as you stood up and followed your group who was done with the water break.
"Wait!" Mat caught up to. "Can't walk faster than me. How else are you supposed to check out my ass?"
He laughed as he made a show of walking faster and sticking his butt out a bit.
"Stop!" But you couldn't help but look and let your mind wander to what you would be doing later on at night in bed. "Mat!"
"Oh, come on, admit it." He turned around and grabbed your outstretched hand to pull you into him. "Admit that you're horny as fuck on this hike," he whispered harshly in your ear as you stumbled backwards.
"Seems to me you're the one that's horny as fuck." He shrugged as he tightened his arms around you and you could feel his erection rub against your lower abdomen. "Huh."
He looked around his shoulder making sure your friends were far enough away and thankfully they just turned a corner. He quickly slammed his lips on yours and pushed his tongue into your mouth for a desperately needed kiss. Who was more desperate in this moment was unclear but you kissed each other with fiery passion. His hands wandered to your ass pulling at you while your hands desperately pulled at his sweaty hair. "Mat! Not here."
"No one is here," he mumbled in between kisses. He moved you further back until your back hit a boulder. "You know you want me to fuck you right here against this rock."
Your core clenched at his words, wanting exactly what he just proposed. Your head was spinning and your entire body tingled with excitement. You never thought you'd be into public sex, you barely liked kissing him for more than a few seconds in public, but right now the idea already had you chasing a release. "Oh god," you moaned as you dug your nails into his scalp. Mat chuckled against your neck, then sucked on it.
"Tell me." He wrapped a hand around your thigh and lifted your leg to wrap around his hip to get a better angle to grind into your core. "Tell me how much you want it, baby."
"Oh, Maty." Your head fell back. "I- I wa-"
"Barzy?! (Y/n)?!" Your friends voice interrupted your moment and you froze.
"Uh- We're okay!," Mat yelled back. "(Y/n) twisted his ankle, we're just taking a break. We'll catch up."
"Good. We were already making bets on whether or not you were fucking based on the way you were eye fucking each other earlier." You both bit your lip to keep from laughing and thankfully the boulder was hiding you from the compromising position you were in.
"Nope, no fucking here."
"You need any help, (y/n)?"
"All good, thanks. Already feels better," you yelled back and pinched Mat in the bicep, trying not to laugh.
"Alright, see you later."
The moment was now ruined, so you took a few moments to collect yourself and then tried to catch up with your friends.
***
"Oh my god!," you screamed as Mat seemed to pick up his pace driving into you. You held on to his shoulders as you threw your head back against the shower wall when your body started to tingle with an orgasm fast approaching.
After you had gotten back from your hike, Mat immediately pulled you into your bedroom and in for a shower where he made up for the moment that was ruined earlier. While the shower wall wasn't exactly a boulder, him fucking you against it had the same effect. The second you were wet enough (both meanings) he hoisted you up against the wall and sat you on his thick thighs and entered you with such force, you thought you were being ripped apart. And that feeling didn't stop as he was gripping your ass and thrusting his thick cock into your tight pussy.
"Fuck, don't stop." Your lips found his neck and wandered up to his earlobe, which you bit into when he hit your g-spot. "Oh, god, I'm gonna cum. Maty!"
"Do it," he grunted. "Cum for me, baby."
Your toes curled and your entire body started shaking as your orgasm washed over you. He set you back down on your feet once you stoped shaking, but he never once stopped touching you. His hands wandered up and down your body, his lips kissing you with such desperation like he was starving. Your hand snuck between you and grabbed his cock, pumping it a few times earning moans and grunts from him that made you wet all over again. Thankfully, he didn't make you wait long. With a swift maneuver, he had you turned around and your hands against the wall.
The water from the rain shower head trickled down on you, a refreshing treat from the extremely hot weather just outside.
"Mathew," you whined, when he didn't immediately touch you, but that was soon remedied when his hand slapped across your ass. You gasped, feeling and reveling in the burn it left. "Again."
He complied, rubbing the area afterward and sliding his fingers through your wet folds. "You like that?" He spanked you two more times before he grabbed and turned on the detachable shower head and handed it to you. He guided it to your waiting and throbbing pussy and with your help angled and held it just above your clit. Your head dropped in pleasure and your muscles already started shaking.
"Oh, fuck yes," you moaned when he gripped your hips and slid his cock in between your folds.
"So fucking horny for me," he groaned, continuously teasing your entrance. "You were really going to let me fuck you against that boulder, huh? My girl."
"Yes. Yours." With one quick thrust he entered you, making you almost lose your balance. Your entire body tingled and waves of euphoria crashed over you with every thrust of his thick cock massaging your core. The water stream against your clit had you shaking and screaming Mat's name so fast you could barely feel the orgasm coming.
"Uh, uh, keep it there," Mat demanded as the shower head started to slip out of your hand and off your clit. The sensation was too much to handle.
"I can't," you answered breathlessly when your orgasm subsided. "Too much."
His hand snuck around your body and grabbed you lightly by your throat pulling you back to meet his chest. "You can handle it, right? You love my cock in this tight pussy of yours, eh?"
All you good do was nod as he whispered into your ear and continued to pump into you. "Good girl. And you're gonna take my cum so well, eh?"
"Yes! I want it." His other hand came to your sore clit that was hurting as he rubbed it quickly to coax a third orgasm out of you. "Oh, god, Maty, I can't-"
Your pussy tightened around him as his swelling cock getting ready for his release. Your hand found the back of his head, pulling at his wet hair. "Fuck, baby. I can't get enough of you."
His hips sped up, sliding impossibly deeper into you as you arched your back for him to do so. And that was what it took for your body to start convulsing in his arms again. Mat's grip around your hip tightened and with a few more hard thrusts he emptied himself inside you with loud grunts. He thrust in, stayed, and then pumped you full of his cum until you felt it began to leak out, getting washed away by the water. He kept releasing while that rush took a hold of your body, miking his cock until you both fell back against the shower wall spent and tired. After catching your breath, Mat pulled you in for a long and tender kiss. "I love you so fucking much."
#mat barzal#mathew barzal#travel with me summer 23#mat barzal smut#nhl smut#nhl fics#nhl imagines#nhl writing#nhl imagine#new york islanders
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girl at home | mat barzal | part 5
pairing: mat barzal x fem!reader
summary: you’re eighteen when you find yourself pregnant after Mat leaves for hockey. nearly eight years later, Mat finds out about your daughter and you have to deal with the consequences of not telling him about her.
warnings: swearing, angst, food, fluff, not edited
word count: 2.3k
authors note: it's my bday tmw and i am going out of town for the weekend so i wanted to get this posted!! also, i have no idea how pr management works so i def got everything wrong so pls don't yell at me lol
i feel like this chapter is just like a roller-coaster that went off the tracks and blew up and someones trying to put it back together with tape from the dollar store so im sorry but i hope yall like it anyway and don't hate me pls <3
send your thoughts or come yell at me about this story bc I LOVE hearing from you guys!! It feeds my writing soul. thank u all for the love on this story so far and lmk if you wanna be added to my taglist. also thinking about doing some smau for this fic and wondering if you guys have any ideas or suggestions?
if you asked to be added to the taglist and didn't get tagged it's cause you didn't show up when i searched for you! so shoot me a msg and we can figure it out. also if you want to be added or taken off the taglist please let me know <3
requests are open. masterpost masterlist taglist form ask box
You didn’t think the situation with Mat’s statement could get any worse. You were already being pestered by your mom, your friends and even other parents at the day camps Nora attended. Mostly everyone knew that it was true that Mat was her father at that point so the statement caused questions to rise. Ignoring everybody’s opinions about it was easy but six simple words from Nora were what broke you.
“I thought Mat was my daddy,” she said softly while eating breakfast one morning. She had been quiet since the day before but it continued when she woke up the next morning. You thought maybe she was just moody and tired but it ended up being much more than that.
It took you a minute to answer, trying to figure out where she might have heard or been told that. It wasn’t that surprising that she might have gotten the impression that he was her dad considering how much time Mat had been spending with the two of you or she overheard a conversation. Kids are very perceptive but you couldn’t see how anyone would directly tell her about the public statement and you had been very careful about what you said around Nora and told everyone else to do the same.
Apparently someone didn’t get the memo.
You had two options. You could lie to Nora about what was going on or you could explain it in the best way you could to her. Lying to your daughter was the last thing you wanted to do but figuring out the easiest way to explain it so she would understand was hard. How were you supposed to explain that yes, Mat is her daddy but he was a fucking idiot and told the world that she’s not even though he said he wanted to be in her life. It would have been so simple to take the easy way out but it wouldn’t have been fair to Nora so after she finished her breakfast, you sat her down.
“You’re feeling a little confused, huh?” you asked, watching her fiddle with a loose string on her sweater.
She nodded, still not looking up at you and not offering her thoughts. It was a bit alarming because she was usually a chatterbox, even when she was upset about something. She would let you know exactly what was wrong.
“Who told you Mat was your daddy?”
She finally looked up at you, and the tears threatening to spill from her eyes made you both angry and upset. You were ready to find whoever told her and scream at them but her answer stunned you.
“I heard you talking to Jaxy,” she whispered. “I wasn’t trying to listen but I was coming out to get some water and you said that you were mad at Mat.”
She didn’t elaborate on what else she may have heard which was unnerving because you probably said a lot of things about Mat that night when Jax came over to talk to you about it. You hoped she didn’t stay long enough for your breakdown where you had cried for thirty straight minutes.
She sniffled, wiping a couple tears away. “I don’t understand.”
Your heart broke but you still struggled with how to explain everything to her. Telling her in the beginning was probably a better idea but you were so caught up in your own thoughts and feelings, you ignored the person who should have been your number one priority the entire time.
“Mat is your daddy, baby,” you said. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”
I’m sorry I kept you a secret.
“How come everyone is saying he’s not?”
Mat should have been the one to answer this question because it was his doing, but you hadn’t spoken to him since the night he was at your apartment and the two of you argued. He had texted you the day after but you ignored it because you didn’t know what you would say when given the chance.
“Well, sometimes people make mistakes and Mat said something he shouldn’t have,” you explained, hoping it was enough and it seemed to be enough at first but then she hugged you tightly.
“I love you mama,” she said and before you could reply, she quietly asked, “Do you think Mat loves me?”
“I’m sure he does,” you told her and it took everything in you not to cry.
. . .
Liana: dinner at our place @ 6. bring nora and don’t be late!!!
You’re tempted to decline the request and just stay home but you’ve been promising Liana and Nadia that you would actually visit instead of dropping Nora off and leaving like you’ve been doing. Avoiding Mat is becoming increasingly difficult. It’s been two weeks since he released the statement and a week since your conversion with Nora. She’s been asking a lot of questions, ones that you didn’t plan on having to answer so soon. You expected her to be angry with you for not telling her but she took your confirmation that Mat’s her dad with ease.
So it didn’t come as a surprise when her first question was whether Mat would be at the Barzal household for this dinner. You hadn’t bothered to ask Liana, mainly because you knew it would definitely impact your decision to agree to go.
“Did you know that Zoe’s mom and dad aren’t together either?” She says during the drive to the Barzal’s.
You do know this but you humor her. “Really?”
“Yup. Zoe said she spends weekends with her dad and stays with her mommy during the week,” she explains and then moves on to a different topic. You’re a little curious why she would talk about her friends’ living arrangements but when you finally pull into the driveway, your question is answered.
“Do I have to stay at Mat’s on the weekend?” She asks and if you hadn’t already parked the car, you would have hit the brakes.
“No,” you say a little too quickly and sharply because she frowns.
“How come?”
You don’t answer her question right away, getting out of the car and walking around to the other side. She’s already unbuckling her seatbelt by the time you open the door and she’s still frowning.
“Just no, Nora.”
“But Zoe does!”
You can’t explain custody agreements to a seven-year-old so you say the first excuse you can think of.
“He doesn’t live here,” you say, taking her hand and begin walking towards the house. She’s dragging her feet, clearly not happy with your response.
“Do I have to call him dad?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Just ‘cause,” you say, stopping at the door and turning to her. Her arms are crossed and she’s giving you the look that says she won’t let up until you give her an answer she wants.
“Do you want to call him dad?”
She pauses, looking down at the ground and frowning. After a moment she shakes her head.
“No, but Miss. Jones says you’re not supposed to call your mommy and daddy by their first names ‘cause it’s disrespectful.”
“It’s not up to Miss. Jones,” you say gently. “This is new, and you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”
After a moment, she mutters a quiet “okay,” and then: “do you think Nadia has ice-cream for dessert?”
“Guess we’ll have to go inside and ask,” you reply and raise your fist to knock on the door but it swings open before you can. Liana is waiting on the other side with a big smile on her face. Nora runs straight to her and giggles when the older girl picks her up and swings her around.
“C’mon in,” Liana says, ushering you inside. So far there’s no sign of Mat so some of the tension leaves your body. After putting both yours and Nora’s shoes aside, you make your way to the kitchen. Nadia is puttering around, juggling a million things but she still smiles softly when she sees you.
“Can I help with anything?”
“You can keep me company,” she says and points to a chair. “Sit down and update me on what you’ve been up to.”
You know that you can’t argue with her so you sit and chat idly with her. She doesn’t bring up anything to do with Mat and you’re not sure what to think about it. You almost slip up and ask if he’s going to be here for dinner but decide not to. You haven’t seen him around since you arrived, so he’s probably out. Maybe with a girl.
Not that you care, obviously.
Mike eventually pokes his head in the kitchen to greet you and ask how you’ve been. He offers to set the table but Nadia shoos him out of the kitchen, rolling her eyes fondly.
“Don’t get married, they’re nothing but trouble,” she jokes but there’s a smile on her face that lingers even after her husband leaves. You always admired their relationship, and were certain that you and Mat would be like it some day but it wasn’t in the cards.
Soon, Nadia calls everyone to dinner. Nora immediately asks why Mat isn’t here and there’s an awkward silence until Liana breaks it.
“He’s busy,” she tells Nora and that must be enough because she just nods and starts eating dinner. Nothing else is said about Mat but just as you’re all finishing dessert, you hear the door open and close and there’s only one person you figure it will be.
Mat walks into the dining room, clearly caught off guard by your presence. Nora hops off her chair and darts over to him, wrapping her arms around his legs and starts chatting excitedly. He’s trying to give her all his attention but his eyes keep flickering to you.
When Nadia and Mike get up to start clearing the table and Liana asks Nora if she wants to go watch a movie, you realize that the three of them planned this. It’s almost like you’re kids again, fighting about something stupid and needing his parents to help fix the problem.
Mat looks at you a little helplessly when the room clears and it’s just the two of you. There’s no way you can yell at him with his family and Nora in the next room and you realize that was also probably planned.
“Can we talk?” he asks and you really don’t want to, but you realize that eventually you’re going to have to talk to him so you nod. You follow him out the back door and the two of you sit on the porch steps in silence until you finally break it.
“Why didn’t you come to me about what PR wanted to do? We could have figured out something together.”
He shrugs, looking at the ground. “I didn’t think to ask you about it. I just wanted to fix everything before it got complicated. I wasn’t thinking.”
“Yeah, no shit,” you mutter. “That’s something you’re great at. You don’t think before you do anything.”
You jump when he stands up suddenly and turns to face you. He’s angry but so are you.
“No, fuck that. You can’t just expect me to do everything right, when a month ago, all I had to worry about was hockey. I can’t be number one dad overnight! You didn’t even tell me about her for six years!”
You’re a bit taken off guard by his sudden outburst but you can do anger too.
“That is the exact reason I didn’t tell you about her, Mat. Hockey is always going to come first in your life,” you snap. “And I didn’t ask you to be a number one dad, all I asked was that you be sure you wanted to be in her life before you committed to anything because this is exactly what I was worried about.”
He falters a little, probably not expecting you to return the anger.
“I didn’t want to post what they asked me to,” he says, sounding defeated. “But I didn’t know how to say no. When PR tells you to jump, you jump.”
You’ve no idea how public relations in hockey works, it’s possible that they would have posted the statement without asking Mat but you’re so damn angry. You’re angry but you don’t know who you’re even supposed to be mad at now.
“You should have come to me,” you say again. “That’s how co-parenting works, you know.”
His mouth twitches. “That’s what we were doing?”
You can feel the anger slowly dissipating. Mat’s shoulders aren’t as tense and he plops back down on the steps so you sit next to him, letting your shoulders and knees knock against his.
“Well, you are her dad,” you admit. “And she is very concerned about her future living arrangements.”
He looks at you a little confused but there’s a small smile spreading across his face.
“Does she know?”
“Yeah,” you tell him. “She’s smarter than you expect sometimes.”
“She gets that from you,” he says, poking your arm.
You roll your eyes fondly. “Well she had to get her brains from someone.”
He huffs but it sounds more like a laugh. You watch him look at the ground, brows furrowed and deep in thought.
“I fucked up, didn’t I?”
Here’s the thing that a lot of people don’t know about Mat: he doesn’t forgive himself easily. It’s something you learned the hard way when you were younger and dating.
So you know he will beat himself up over this until you forgive him.
“Yeah, but we both did.” You bump your knee against his until he looks up at you. “We can fix it, but we have to do it together.”
He holds out his pinky finger. ”Co-parenting, right?”
You hook your finger around his and nod, letting yourself relax for the first time in weeks. It’s going to take time, hard work, and you’re both going to have to learn how to trust and communicate better again but you're sure you’ll get there.
“Together,” you agree.
tag list: @literatureluster @dasiysthings @barzyblogbabe @diary-of-jj @heatherawoowoo @fallinallincurls @topguncultleader @shadowsndaisies @lovinbarzal @whatthepuckisgoingon @alilstressyandlotdepressy @teapartydreams @keiva1000
#hockey imagines#allies writing#nhl fanfiction#hockey fanfiction#nhl imagines#hockey imagine#mat barzal x reader#mat barzal imagine#mat barzal fic#mat barzal fanfiction#mathew barzal imagine#mathew barzal x reader
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bad reaction pt. 2 - mat barzal (au #2)
part one has been dubbed the 'bad reaction mat fic', so here's the second au of part two loll. here's the first au of part two! this kinda sucks, but it's not supposed to be a happy ending so yeah
gif not mine!
it was quiet. too quiet.
you peered an eye open, trying to listen to any sound of noise in the apartment. you couldn't.
suspicious, you got to your feet, making your way down the hall and into your son's room. finding it empty, you suppressed a groan.
if he was awake and not making noise, it meant something was happening. something you wouldn't be happy about.
you silently headed down the hallway and towards the living room, mentally preparing yourself to clean up whatever mess nico had made this time. he was a rowdy kid. always making noise, breaking lamps, or creating messes.
but he had a heart of gold.
"nico," you called out your son's name a little hesitantly.
"in here, mama!" he responded.
you followed his voice to the living room, stopping in your tracks at the sight on the t.v. screen.
it had been years - six years - and that time had seemed to do mat well. he hadn't shaved recently, growing out a bit of scruff, and his brown eyes were just as lovely as you remembered.
he was in the middle of giving an intermission interview, answering the reporter with the standard responses.
"he shoots... he scores!" nico's voice broke your trance.
nico had taken the broom from the kitchen and was holding it as if it was a hockey stick. the tennis ball he was using as a puck slammed into the leg of the coffee table, adding another dent.
you shook your head to yourself, reaching for the remote to turn the t.v. off.
"no, mama wait!" nico called out. "i wanna watch the hockey game."
"it's a repeat, bubba," you told him. "the islanders already won. besides, i thought you didn't like hockey."
"i changed my mind," he shrugged simply. "but leave it, i wanna watch."
despite your heart aching at the sound of mat's voice - no matter how monotone it was - you gave in to your son's wishes, leaving the game on. insisting on turning the t.v. off would only make him suspicious.
the last thing you needed was for anyone to find out who nico's dad was.
--
tags:@woodruff-edwards , @austinbutlerscaresme , @svechnikovvv , @hockeyboysarehot , @emptyflowerpots , @mysticaldonkey , @lam-ila , @babydollmarauders , @starjoyyy , @kjohnson-91 , @gavinbrindley, @hischierdevils , @jackhughesily , @panarin10 , @equallyshaw , @power2myheart , @lynnismypseudonym , @beccaiscold , @akengii , @hischierhaze, @cinnamonpancakes , @mitchymainer , @lifeofpriya , @marshmallow-babe, @hughesx3 , @emsully2002 , @starsandhughes , @huggy-hischier73 , @doglady5678 , @thatoneblog , @exonct07 @hughesmedicine , @qwanelledingele , @mindless-rock , @ireadthensuetheauthors , @huggy-hischier94, @slaythehousedownboots , @diary-of-jj , @youunravelme
#mathew barzal#mathew barzal one shot#mathew barzal x reader#mathew barzal imagines#mathew barzal imagine#mathew barzal#mat barzal x oc#mat barzal#mat barzal imagine#mat barzal imagines#mat barzal oneshot#new york islanders x reader#new york islanders imagines#new york isles#naqia writes!
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Welcome to New York - M. Barzal
Here's just a little thing I wanted to share!
It’s been years since you’d seen him last. You still remember that final party the weekend before he left for his first official training camp with the New York Islanders, the true real last time you saw him. You remember giving him a small hug, holding him tight as you wished him luck, a promise to keep in touch soft on your lips. He was one of your closest friends and maybe more, but that never happened, and you wished for nothing but the best for him.
Now, all these years later, sitting in your small condo, right along the Long Island Rail Road, easy for your commute into Manhattan each day, you hold your phone, the weight heavy both in your hand and on your heart. You lost touch with Mat during his rookie season, but who blames you or him? He was busy being the rookie sensation he was, and you were continuing your education. Even during the summers when you were home, little to no contact occurred. You saw each other from a distance, but nothing ever came of it.
Now, with a job transferring you to the Tri-State area, you can’t help but think about Mat. His mother thought so, too, because she sent you a text, full of Mat’s contact information, hoping you’d get in contact with him and rekindle that friendship.
How would you even go about reaching out to him? There was no way it should have been this difficult, though, right? It was just Mat. He was literally just some guy, so what was the point in freaking out about it? In the worst-case scenario, you could just brush it off, claiming his mother made you reach out to him.
Without thinking, you sent off a small text. You started with a small “hey,” continuing with your name, and a refresher on how you knew him (just in case), before following up with a,
I recently moved to Long Island for work, so your mother gave me your number. I would love to grab dinner when you’re free and catch up. Let me know!
It took you four attempts to figure out if you used too many formal sentences, a weird amount of exclamation, or had the appropriate tone. By mentioning his mother, it was obvious this was a no-stakes situation.
After an extensive amount of contemplation, you sent the text. Whatever. He could ghost you, for all you cared, but it didn’t matter. The text was sent. If his mother asked, you could say you tried, and it wasn’t like there were any extreme expectations on your part. It is what it is.
That is until your phone (perpetually on silent) lit up, signaling a text. He responded.
Welcome to New York! I’m happy my mom gave you my number because I’d love to catch up. Let me know when you’re free and we’ll figure something out.
You smiled at his words and tried to ignore the warmth bubbling in your stomach.
It sounded like a new soundtrack was waiting for you.
#claudia writes#mathew barzal#mat barzal#mathew barzal x reader#mat barzal x reader#mathew barzal fic#mat barzal fic#nhl fic#hockey#op: 2024
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Black and White - Mat Barzal x Reader
Hockey Masterlist
Warnings: Swearing, mentions anxiety, almost pg13
Words: 1385
Summary: After attending one of the isles’ many fundraising events, a simple walk in the park turns into a moment the two of you will never forget.
A/n: I’m like 90% done with finals and so I’m filling this anonymous request as a result. I hope y’all like this quick little fic and as an update there’s a fluffy Zegras fic in the works.
“Thank you for coming with me tonight,” Mat says from behind a fleeting scoop of bubblegum ice cream. The Islanders fundraising gala was fun and all but Mat and I dipped out before closing remarks in favor of grabbing ice cream before Baskin Robbins closed. So now we’re walking around a random park, black tie attire, in the cold Long Island night.
“You don’t have to thank me, I’m your girlfriend. Being your plus one is part of the gig, and I’m more than happy to do it.” Mat lets go of my hand to lift his arm and gesture me over. I gladly accept the warmth as I’m nearly freezing from walking around at night in a light coat while eating ice cream. He hugs me into his side and kisses my cheek gently. I breathe a small laugh as his lips are still cold.
“How do you know if you want to marry someone?” Mat asks out of nowhere. I hesitate for a second, jarred by his candidness.
“Are you asking me specifically or like the general ‘you’?”
“I’m asking you specifically.” I pause to collect my thoughts and Mat watches me carefully.
“...Well…I think for me specifically…I want an equal relationship where I feel like I lean on them as much as they lean on me for support. I want someone who respects my boundaries and knows I’m their partner and not their therapist. Whoever it is will get along with my family and at the very least tolerate my friends,” we share a small laugh amidst the tense moment. “I want someone who understands how I give love and helps me understand how to give them love and- why are you looking at me like that?” Mat barks out a nervous laugh. He takes his arm off of my shoulders and messes with his hair a bit. One of his nervous habits that I’m not sure he realizes he has.
“Do you think… I meet those requirements?” I hesitate but only because I’m trying to remember everything that I said.
“Yes, I think you do.” Mat smiles relieved before taking my hand in his own once more, placing a kiss on the top of it. We continue through the park, heading back to the car when a sudden flash of light catches our attention. Looking to the source, we see that a gazebo covered in christmas lights had previously not been lit. I snap my head around to look at Mat and the look on his face tells me he already knows just how excited I am about it.
“I don’t know how I didn’t notice this before!” I say as I’m pulling Mat along with me. His pace was too casual for the kind of urgency this sight has instilled in me. As we get closer, someone stands up and I stop in my place. I don’t want to impose on someone else’s time with the pretty lights. Opening my mouth to speak, I immediately cut myself off when I recognize the not so unfamiliar stranger.
“Beau?” I ask when he turns around. He looks at me, slightly panicked. “What are you doing here?”
“Oh my god, no way!” I hear a woman’s voice from behind me and Mat. I turn around to see it’s Emma emerging from a weird angle. She’s coming at us from behind rather than from the parking lot or from the shops.
“Long time no see,” I joke, happy to see our friends despite just spending the last three hours with them. “What’s up? Are you guys also on a walk… at the same park?” Beau and Emma share a look before she gestures him over to where she’s standing.
“Yeah, I was telling him about this gazebo because I drove by one night and the lights were just so pretty I wanted to show him.”
“Gotcha. Well if you want, I can take some cute pictures of the two of you!” I offer happily and Emma and Beau share another look.
“That… would be great, thank you! Beau?” She looks at him and nods over to the gazebo. He looks at Mat with the most confused look I’ve ever seen.
“You okay?” I ask as Emma hands me her phone. She has to physically walk over and grab Beau which snaps him back into reality.
“Yeah I’m good,” he replies quietly and walks into the gazebo. Emma barely poses and I’m about to snap the third photo when she breaks away and walks over to get her phone from me.
“That should be good, thank you.”
“Are you sure? I only took like three-”
“Yeah, no, we’re good! Your turn!” She says urgently and nudges me toward the gazebo. I decide not to push back and when I turn to beckon Mat over, he doesn’t follow.
“I’ll hold your coat so you can get outfit pictures first.” I reluctantly nod and then shrug off my jacket. Why is everyone being so weird?
“You gotta hurry because I am FREEZING!” I instruct Emma and she laughs before nodding.
“Copy that.”
“Okay, I want full fit and shoes for some and then just waist up in the others,” I speak quickly before posing and trying not to shiver violently. “Fuuuuuucckk it’s so cold.” All three of them laugh at my dramatics. Mat shakes his head amusedly and then hands my coat to Beau so he can get in the pictures. He wraps an arm around my waist for a few pictures and Emma snaps approximately two before putting on her director hat.
“Okay, Y/n stay where you are. Mat can I have you stand to the side of her but take a tiny little step back?”
“How should I pose without him…?” I ask skeptically. I don’t think I can see the creative vision and I hope Mat is also a little lost so I don’t just look like an idiot. When I turn to see if he’s also puzzled, I don’t get the moment I’m hoping for. Rather than sharing a confused look and laughing about it, I find him placed just out of my line of sight on one knee with one hand tucked into his jacket pocket.
My eyes go wide for a millisecond before welling up so full of tears that I can no longer see. I hold my right hand over my mouth to keep myself from crying harder. Mat has small tears in his eyes as he holds a small velvet box the color of the Isles signature blue.
“Y/n… you are the love of my life. I remember the first time you came over to my apartment. It was date number four. I made us dinner and you went to the bathroom and when you came back you were very anxious.” I laugh through my tears as I recall the evening and how the story went.
“You were acting weird the entire night and when I asked what was wrong, you were silent for a minute before asking if I “actually” used 3-in-1 shampoo. I laughed so hard I nearly cried and from that moment on, I knew you were endgame.” His simple word choice makes me laugh and the swelling of emotions in my chest makes me forget just how cold I was before.
“Y/n Y/l/n, will you marry me?” I begin to sob so uncontrollably that I can’t speak so I just nod an emphatic yes. Mat smiles brightly before taking the ring out of the box and sliding it onto it’s permanent spot on my left hand.
I don’t even wait for him to stand up before grabbing his face and kissing him with the passion only two people madly in love could ever know. He kisses me back and places his hands on my waist. Emma and Beau cheer and I remember they’ve been here the whole time.
“You motherfuckers! You knew, didn’t you?” They laugh at my outburst and confirm my suspicion. Mat rises to his full height and when he’s standing I playfully shove his chest. “That’s why you were being so weird today!”
“How does it feel to be engaged, man?” Beau asks and Mat huffs a long sigh.
“I don’t know, I think I blacked out.”
#NHL imagine#NHL hockey#NHL x reader#nhl fanfiction#Mat Barzal#Mat Barzal fanfiction#Mat Barzal fanfic#Mat Barzal fic#Mat Barzal writing#Mat Barzal imagine#Mat Barzal oneshot#Mat Barzal one shot#Mat Barzal fluff#Mat Barzal smut#Mat Barzal angst#Mat Barzal x reader#Mat Barzal x y/n#Mathew Barzal#Mathew Barzal fanfiction#Mathew Barzal fanfic#Mathew Barzal fic#Mathew Barzal writing#Mathew Barzal imagine#Mathew Barzal oneshot#Mathew Barzal one shot#Mathew Barzal x reader#Mathew Barzal x y/n#Mathew Barzal fluff#Mathew Barzal smut#Mathew Barzal angst
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Somewhere only we know
A one shot
Something fun about Mat and Leighton. A lot of people seem to like reading about them so I put this together. I didn’t write about when she turned down his proposal, or any of the flashbacks in Ashes and Wine. All new material for you. Hope you enjoy🤍
Leighton tapped her pencil against her notebook and glanced at the clock. There was still 10 minutes of class left and her teacher had been droning on and on about algebra and she just didn’t care.
It was a rainy, windy Wednesday and she was ready for school to end so she could go home. She glanced out the window, and then turned when she felt a pair of eyes on her. The boy who sat three seats behind her in the next row was looking at her.
She’d never actually spoken to him but she knew vaguely who he was. He was extremely handsome, beautiful even she thought as she really looked at his face, and settled on his eyes. They were a warm shade of hazel, fringed in dark eyelashes. She stared at him for a second before she smiled and then turned back to her teacher.
She didn’t really know anything about him, not even his name, except that he wasn’t from Covington like everyone else. Kentwood was big, but not that big. The minute he’d arrived girls had been all over him, and it wasn’t hard to see why. He was storybook handsome, tall with a shock of dark hair, it was easy to see the appeal. Even she had been mildly interested but she wouldn’t fight the girls at school.
Now her best friend, Ginny might have and if she really wanted him the others would stand no chance. Ginny was the It girl, both at school and in town. Her long red hair, and her charm had broken many many hearts, and boys had literally fought over her a time or two. But to her knowledge Ginny never showed any interest in him.
Ginny herself was waiting for Leighton at her locker, long red hair pulled up in a ponytail. When she saw her she smiled.
“Hey? Do you wanna do homework tonight?”
“Sure.” Leighton turned to put her books in her locker and saw the boy from her Math class passing her. She locked eyes with him for a second before she turned to look at Ginny.
“Do you know him?” She said nodding in his direction as he made his way down the hall and turned the corner.
“Not really. He’s in my History class. I think his names Mat or Mike or something. Shannon always tries to flirt with him and he always ignores her.”
“Hmmm.”
“Why? Have a crush?” Ginny waggled her eyebrows and Leighton waved her off.
“No. Just curious is all. He sits behind me and I realized I don’t even know him. He’s cute though.”
Ginny nodded “He is. Anyways, meet me by my locker and we’ll walk out together. See you in an hour.” She called as the bell rang.
**********
“Hi.” Ginny said smiling as he sat down across from her in the library “I’m Ginny.”
“Yeah I know. Mat.” He pulled out his notebook and a pen and looked at her. He’d heard her name a thousand times since he’d started school. There wasn’t a single guy on his team who hadn’t asked her out at least once, and she hadn’t said yes to any of them. But what he did know about her, was she was friends with Leighton, the girl he’d been drooling over in Math. By fate they’d been paired together on a history project, which gave him an in to find out some more about what he thought was the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen. As they chit chatted about their history project, Mat found that she was extremely easy to talk to, and decided to approach the subject.
“So your friend, the blonde…she’s in my math class I think?” He tried to phrase it like a question, but as it came out of his mouth he realized how awkward he sounded.
Ginny stopped writing and her eyes moved slowly up, before a small smile spread across her face “Leighton?”
“Mhmmm.” Mat said not meeting her eye. He didn’t wanna give himself away so he continued to write in his notebook.
“And you’re telling me this for-?”
“No reason, I uh-just making, you know. Conversation.”
She was quiet before she started to laugh “Conversation? That’s the lamest line I’ve ever heard and I’ve heard a lot.”
She was smiling widely, large white teeth on full display before she pushed her hair over her shoulder “I’m assuming your interested in her?”
“I mean-I don’t-“
“Your cute.” Ginny said shaking her head “Getting all nervous and weird over a girl you haven’t even spoken to yet. She’s single you know.”
Mat bit his lip before he spoke “Does-does she even know who I am?”
Ginny nodded “Yeah she just mentioned you yesterday.”
Mat felt his face get hot and his mouth fell open, “She did not.”
“She did too. She asked me what your name was.”
“Great so she didn’t even know my name.” He grumbled. Talk about embarrassing.
“Leighton doesn’t get involved in all the girl gossip around here. Your groupies-“ she said nodding over his shoulder to the table of girl’s whispering behind him “Spend all their time worrying about boys. She’s not like them. Or me for that matter.”
“She really doesn’t have a boyfriend?”
“Hard to believe huh?” Ginny said, eyes flicking up to meet his. They were large and green, like a cat sizing him up. Though she was making conversation with him, he could tell she didn’t totally buy into his interest in her best friend.
“It is. Girls like her are usually spoken for.”
“Well she’s not. But before you go getting any crazy ideas, just know that if you hurt her in any way shape or form, I will slit your throat, and sit happily in a jail cell for the rest of my life. I’ll be in prison, you’ll be dead and Leighton will meet someone else and replace your stupid ass. Got it?”
He chuckled and shook his head “Got it.”
**********
“Do you know Mat Barzal?” Ginny asked while they did homework. Leighton glanced up and shook her head as she sharpened her pencil.
“I don’t think so?”
“Dark hair? Sits behind you in Math?”
“Oh yeah. The cute one. What about him?”
“He’s my history partner and he asked me about you.” Ginny was smiling as she pulled out a notebook and opened it.
“Really? What about me?”
“Maybe you should find out for yourself.” Ginny said airily, eyes twinkling.
“Are you trying to set me up?”
“Not at all. But you said yourself you thought he was cute. And now he’s asked me about you? Sounds like fate to me.”
Leighton rolled her eyes “Fate? In highschool? Give me a break.”
*********
“So tell me about yourself Mat Barzal.” Leighton said as they began their walk home. The weather was warm, but breezy and her hair was moving very gently with each step, sun shining off of it as it moved across her shoulders and down her back. Ginny had set up a meeting during lunch, and when he’d offered to walk her home, she’d accepted and here they were.
“There’s not much to know really. I’m from Canada, I play hockey and I suck at Math.”
She chuckled a little “I suck at Math too.”
“Liar. I saw that A you got on your last test.”
She glanced at him and smiled a little “Reading my grades over my shoulder? Sneaky.”
“Hey whatever it takes to pass. You sit too far in front of me to cheat.” She laughed and shook her head.
“Maybe we’ll have to change that…” she glanced over at him “For the sake of your grades.”
“Your too kind.”
“So what’s Canada like? I’ve never been.”
“Canada is…we’ll Canada is Canadian if you know what I mean.”
She shook her head and quirked and eyebrow “I don’t follow.”
He told her all about home, his family, and how he came to be in Seattle.
“I play for the thunderbirds. You should come sometime.” He glanced over, hoping he hadn’t noted her out of her skull but she was looking at him interestedly.
“I mean sure. I’d love to. I mean I don’t know anything about hockey but I’m down to learn.”
“Really? It’s a date then.” He froze and looked over at her, realizing he’d said the word “date” without meaning to.
She was blushing and hoisted her backpack over her shoulder “A date?”
“I mean-uh-“ he chuckled nervously “Not a date, I guess or I mean if you want it to be a date it can be, totally up to you, no pressure or anything I-“
“It can be a date.” She started to slow down and he realized they were standing in front of what he presumed was her house. It was huge, deep green with black shutters and plants covering the porch and front yard. A black picket fence with a gate was between the yard and sidewalk and she had one hand braced on it.
“This is me.” She nodded behind her.
He felt a little sad. What might have been the best walk of his life had ended and he had to say goodbye to her before he was ready.
“Well I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?” He said leaning forward smiling hopefully.
“You will.” She smiled sweetly and he leaned forward. She thought for a second he might kiss her, and wouldn’t have minded if he did but he hugged her instead, and made his way down the sidewalk.
She flew up to her bedroom like a tornado and propelled herself into her bed with a small scream, before pulling out her phone to text Ginny.
**********
“So you and Mat Barzal huh?” Shelly asked as they changed back into school clothing from gym class. Several of the girls within earshot turned and looked at her interestedly.
“What?” She glanced at Ginny who shrugged.
“Oh come on. It’s all over school.”
“Is it? Interesting.” Leighton avoided their eyes. She wasn’t embarrassed, but she was surprised that everyone knew about it so soon.
“How’d they find out?” She whispered to Ginny.
“I’m not sure. But I guess I’m not the only one who saw you guys kissing under the bleachers.”
Leighton didn’t really care, but she also wasn’t sure she wanted everyone to know about them making out under the bleachers. It was kind of personal. Though there had been lots of kissing on Katie’s porch at the party after the game, no one had seen it. So they thought they’d been indiscreet when they spent lunch hour together under the bleachers.
“It was bound to get out eventually.” Ginny said as she pulled her shirt over her head and sat to slide her sneakers on.
“I know but still. It hasn’t even been 4 hours.”
“I wouldn’t worry. By tomorrow everyone will have forgotten about it and they’ll be talking about how Maddie White gave Jessie Smith a handjob in the parking lot during 5th period.”
“Ew. Did that actually happen?”
“I don’t know, but for you I can start that rumor.”
Leighton laughed and shook her head “Nah. save it for another day.”
“Just tell me when.” Ginny wiggled a foot into her shoe and glanced up “I owe her for when she told everyone I had sex with Mike Phillips on the football team bus after school.”
“But Ginny you actually did that….”
“I know but the bitch could have kept it to herself.”
Leighton shook her head and grabbed her backpack, hoisting it over her shoulder. She could feel the others staring at her as she followed Ginny out of the bathroom. Once out of earshot Ginny turned to her.
“It wasn’t a secret right? You and Mat?”
“I don’t think so. Just not sure why it’s such interesting news.”
“You know why. You may not see it, but boys are just as interested in you as they are in me, but for different reasons.”
“I don’t know about all that.”
“I do. But Mat’s different. He likes you, not me. Not even a little bit actually. It’s kind of nice to be honest.”
“What do you mean?”
She shrugged and chose her words carefully “It’s been so long since I had a guy who was a real ‘friend’ and not just a friend for the sake of getting in my pants. It’s nice to talk to a guy not have him look at me like I’m a piece of meat is all.” She smiled a little and turned to Leighton “He’s a good guy Leighton. Trust me.”
They parted ways so Ginny could make her way to 4th period and Leighton could grab her stuff from her locker for study hall. She opened it, tossing her gym bag inside, and shuffling through books that she needed to work on homework when she felt a presence next to her.
“Hey.” Leighton turned to find Mat leaned against the locker next to hers, smiling. She felt her cheeks get red and smiled back at him.
“Hey.”
He glanced around at the others in the hallway. Everyone was staring at them, whispering and watching interestedly as they talked.
“So I guess everyone knows…” he trailed off eyes moving back to her.
“It would seem that way.”
“It would. Well since they already know-“ he took two steps forward and kissed her right there in front of her locker, during the busiest part of the school day. If there were rumors before, there definitely would be now. When they broke apart she could hear giggling from several people and she let her head fall into his shoulder.
“I figured I might as well confirm what everyone already knows.” He was smiling widely, hazel eyes twinkling with mischief. They spoke for a few more moments before he kissed her again and made his way to history, where he would be seated with Ginny, and Leighton headed off to do homework, knowing she would be getting nothing down with that kiss still on her mind.
*********
“Can a guy just kiss his girlfriend without it being a state occasion. Jesus.” Mat threw himself down next to Ginny and huffed.
“He could if his girlfriend was less hot and popular but you decided to date high class so it’s your own fault.”
“I guess I can live with it then.” He took out his book, and Ginny smiled at him.
“Don’t act like you aren’t enjoying this.”
“Enjoying what?”
“Enjoying all these fools envying you for having the hottest girl at school glued to your lips.”
“I mean….” He trailed off and though he tried, he couldn’t fight back his smile “A little I guess.”
“More like a lot.” She laughed and shook her head “It’s all over your face. Of course your enjoying it. Who doesn’t want to date the hottest girl at school?”
“I thought you were the hottest girl at school?”
“Depends on who you ask.” She shrugged “But it doesn’t change my statement. Look around you. Every guy in here would love nothing more than your demise so they can be next in line.”
“That’s dramatic. Next thing you’ll say is they wanna challenge me to a duel.”
“Better hope you have a hockey stick on you at all times.”
************
“Wait wait-“ Leighton pulled away from him gasping and pushed him back. He still had a hand on either side of her waist.
“What are you-“
She wiggled out of her shirt, tossing it aside as he leaned back down to kiss her. His own shirt went next and just as he was about to slide her leggings off, a car door from outside startled both of them.
“Fuck fuck fuck.” He whispered, hearing the voices of his billet family from the driveway. Leighton yanked her shirt on and fixed her leggings.
“What do we do?” she whispered grabbing her shoes.
“Uhm.” He glanced around “Closet. Closet.” She hurried inside and closed the door just as a knock sounded on his door. He took a deep breath and opened it.
“Hey.” He smiled at his billet mom who looked at him questioningly.
“What happened to you? You look a mess.”
“Oh I- uh I went for a run. Just a little out of breath.”
“Right. We’re watching a movie before we go to bed. Do you want to join us.”
“Oh no thanks. I’m gonna go to bed I think. I have practice early.”
“Okay. Well goodnight.”
He hated lying to them, as they were housing him when he really needed them to, but he couldn’t make Leighton stay in the closet while he watched a film with them. When he heard her footsteps descend the stairs and disappear, he locked the door and crept to the closet.
Leighton was holding a hand over her mouth “Now what? How am I going to get out of here?” She was smiling as she whispered. Mat pulled her from the closet and turned off the lamp leaving them in the darkness.
“You can sneak out when they go to bed. But for now. It’s just us.”
She could barely see him in the darkness, but she felt his hand on her hip, fingertips just brushing below the hem of her leggings.
“We’ll just have to be quiet.”
**********
“Okay now smile!” Leighton’s mom called, camera outstretched in front of her. Mat wrapped an arm around Leighton’s waist and leaned towards her smiling. Leighton’s parents backyard was packed with their friends and their friends parents, all posing for prom photos.
Mat’s parents had come all the way from Vancouver for this event, and had finally gotten to meet Leighton’s mom and dad.
She looked beautiful.
When she’d descended the stairs Mat had completely forgotten how to breathe, think or speak and had simply stared at her open mouthed until he managed a small “Wow.”
Though he seen her now in various stages of dressed and undressed, she’d really outdone herself this time. Her dress was long and black, straps hanging from each shoulder, a long slit up one leg. When she moved, the light caught tiny shimmers across the fabric.
“You look amazing.” He whispered in her ear. She turned to smiling.
“You said that already.”
“Did I? Well get used to it because I’m going to keep saying it.”
She blushed and turned eyes searching for Ginny. She was some feet away, smiling with Tyler, Mat’s teammate who looked contact high in photos. Ginny would let him down easy after prom, and he would be crushed but for tonight, he looked elated to be posing with Ginny in her short Emerald green prom dress.
“Guys having the time of his life.” Mat said with a chuckle. Ginny stuck a leg out, making him blush and glanced at Mat and Leighton, waggling her eyebrows.
He gripped her hand and raised it to his mouth, kissing it and together they walked to join their friends in the limo.
************
“I love you.” Leighton said quietly from in front of him. They were wrapped up in the bed of her dads truck, propped on a pillow. They’d been sitting in silence for a while, the only sound being the noises of nighttime animals. She’d been running her fingernails up and down his arm, listening to his heartbeat through his shirt.
For just a while it seemed like the rest of the world was gone, and only they were left. It was an incredible feeling and one he could never get enough of.
“When we’re old and grey, promise me we’ll come back to this spot.” She leaned sideways and looked up at him, smiling sweetly
“I’ll take you anywhere you want to go.”
#hockey fanfiction#lets chat#nhl fanfiction#hockey tumblr#nhl fic#hockey fic#hockeyblr#hockey imagine#mat barzal imagine#mat barzal#mat barzal fic#mathew barzal#hockey blurb#hockey fandom#hockey tag#hockey fluff#hockey writing#nhl blurb#nhl imagine#nhl writing#nhl fluff#nhl x reader#hockey x reader
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can you do prompt “i just wanted to say thank you for protecting me” for mat barzal where he gets in a fight at a game and you find out it’s a player was talking bad about you
finallyyy i'm able to post this!! i was very excited with this request honestly, this plot is just so *chefs kiss*
I Did It For You
warnigns: language, angst
word count: 1,5k
The drive back home from the game against Boston was weird, to say the least. Mathew drove with both his hands gripping the steering wheel as if it was going to run away, and you couldn’t look at him, not like that. You turned your head to your right, taking in the view of the streets of New York that you were so used to by then.
"Are you going to ignore me the rest of the way?" You asked him, expecting a sincere answer. Instead, you got only more silence. "Fine." You reached for the radio, turning it up to eleven.
Of course your relationship with Mathew wasn't perfect. You fought from time to time, both of you being a little too stubborn for your own good. This time, though, it was different. It was like he had completely disregarded all of your feelings, and you didn't want to turn out like one of those WAGs that let themselves be treated badly by their boyfriends and husbands. You knew your worth, and if Mathew didn't apologise… Well, you'd have to have a serious conversation about it.
"I didn't really have an option." He muttered, you could barely hear his voice over the music, so you tuned it down and asked him to repeat, which he did, his tone a little more impatient.
"Mathew, you lashed over the guy. You were the one picking a fight. He hadn't done anything." His jaw clenching when he heard you call him by his actual name, instead of one of the many nicknames you had for him.
You had lost count of how many times the two of you had had that conversation. Mat was never one to pick fights at games, even though it was fairly common for other players to do so. Actually, most of the times someone tried to pick a fight with him the rest of the team jumped to his defence, and Mathew came out of it unharmed.
That was exactly how you wanted it. It was a foolish thought, but in your opinion, his face was just too beautiful to be beaten up for such stupid reasons. Thought, now you looked at him and his black eye. The one that as soon as the other player took his fist out, immediately started to swell and darken. Being stubborn like he is, Mat didn't even let you drive home.
Besides the fact that you didn’t want to see your boyfriend beaten up, you’ve actually always had a pretty settled opinion on unnecessary fights in hockey games, and until now you thought Mathew shared it with you. You started to question it half an hour ago when you saw him skating towards an unaware player and landing a right hook on him before the man could even know he was beside him.
The other player’s helmet went flying off on the ice, and he instantly dropped his gloves at the same time Mathew did. Your boyfriend held the other by the jersey, bringing him closer and hitting him right in his left eye with his bare first shut. The Boston player closed his eyes in pain, but quickly opened it again to fit Mathew in rage. Mat didn’t even see anything happen before his sight went black, but when he heard the player say something no one else could hear, he hit him in the nose with such force that the other player dropped down to his knees, both hands covering his nose as the camera showed to all the arena the blood on the ice in front of him.
“Sure.” He spit before taking a turn left and entering the garage of your shared apartment. In silence, he parked the car, turned off the radio and got off, leaving you sitting in the passenger seat.
“Do you have to be such an asshole about it?” You walked fast to catch up with him as he made his way towards the elevator and pressed the button. “You know I get like this because I don’t want your career to end because of a stupid right hook.” Mathew didn’t say a word as he got inside the big cubicle and pressed the button to the 24th floor, looking at its ceiling as if you hadn’t said a word. “Damn it, Mathew. You act like such a child sometimes.” You crossed your arms in front of your chest, and cursed the heavens for that elevator being so old and slow.
All you wanted to do was get home, take a hot shower and lay in bed to ignore everything that happened. Though you knew that was not going to happen, because your boyfriend was hurt and you were going to take care of him like you always do. Yes, you were mad at him, and yes, you wanted to make his other eye black too, but no, you weren’t going to do that and neither were you going to let him take care of his bruises by himself. The boy didn’t even know where you kept the first aid kit.
The door opened, and you took the keys off of your purse, quickly walking towards the 24B door and opening it, going inside the apartment and leaving Mathew to close it by himself. You made your way slowly to the bathroom, took out the first aid kit from the cabinet behind the mirror and walked back to the living room, where you saw Mathew sitting down on the couch staring at the wall with no expression on his face.
“I’ll do it.” He said, when he noticed you holding the kit as you made your way around the couch.
“I’m mad at you, but I won’t just leave you to fix yourself.” You spat out.
“I said I’ll do it, y/n.” His tone was harsher this time, and also louder. You had never heard him talk to you like that. You stared at him like he was someone you didn’t recognise.
“Then fucking do it yourself.” You threw the kit over the couch next to him and busted out the room, making your way to your ensuite.
“You want to know why I hit him like that?” Mathew got up from the couch, turning to you. You stopped on your tracks, not even turning back to face him.
“Honestly? I don’t think I even care anymore.” You mumbled, looking down at your shoes.
“I fucking did that because of you, y/k.”
You frowned, trying to understand what he had just told you. How could that be your fault? He had massacred another player and he had the audacity to say it was because of you?
“How on Earth could that be my fucking fault?” You grunted, turning to face him with bloodshot eyes.
“I didn’t say it was your fault, I said I did it because of you.” You couldn't bear looking at his swollen black eye. Infact, you couldn't bear looking at him anymore. You motioned to turn around before Mathew stopped you with his words. “He called you a slut.”
You stared at him blankly, confused and perplexed. Before you could even understand his words properly, Mathew continued.
“In his own words, he said: ‘Go back to that fucking slut of yours’. I wasn’t about to let him call you that and walk free.” Mathew picked up the kit from the couch, and stormed out of the living room into your bedroom, leaving you by yourself in the poorly lit living room to think about what had just happened.
“Yeah, that was a bad one, y/k.” You told yourself as you sat down on the couch.
You heard the shower being turned on, and imagined how painful it would be for Mathew to wash his face with those bruises. You got up, walked over to your bedroom and sat down on the edge of the bed, taking the kit he had left over it in your hand and opening it. You took out everything you would need to clean and bandage his bruises properly, and patiently waited for your boyfriend to leave the bathroom.
Soon, Mathew stood at the door frame, drying his hair with a towel. He looked at you with no expression in his face as you noticed the bruises on his naked chest. You wondered if his legs, covered by his grey sweatpants, had any bruises on them as well.
Quickly, he sat next to you on the edge of the bed, placing his hands over his thighs as you both eyes the black and blue shades that painted his knuckles.
“I just wanted to say…” You started, your voice cracking when he turned his head to face you and stared into your eyes with his own dark ones. “Thank you for protecting me.”
Mathew's hurting hand made its way to your right cheek, making you feel its heat. He brought your faces closer to each other's, your foreheads touching only slightly.
“Always.” He whispered.
#nhl imagine#nhl fic#hockey fic#hockey imagine#nhl fluff#hockey#hockey fanfiction#nhl writing#mathew barzal#mathew barzal imagine#new york islanders#nhl angst
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so happy you’re back & hope your well!! as mats birthday was a yesterday how is the secrets universe?? how did they celebrate mats birthday🥰🥺
I’m so glad you asked 🥰
Obviously Mat is playing at Worlds right now, and as we know, he had a pretty great birthday on the ice — scoring to tie it up, assisting on the gwg in OT, and being named player of the game.
What he didn’t know was that you were about to make his birthday even better off the ice.
You, London, Mike, and Nadia had traveled to Finland together to watch Mat play. The morning of his birthday started with your 21-month-old baby girl waking up just minutes after you did. With Mat still sound asleep, you took the opportunity to stealthily carry her into the bathroom and explain the importance of the day to her.
“Lon, do you know what today is, honey?” you asked, combing her still-baby-soft hair in the mirror.
“Ummmmm…” she began dramatically before a huge smile crossed her face. “Hockey!?”
You couldn’t help but laugh. “Yes, babe, you’re right. Today is a hockey day. But do you know what else? Today’s Daddy’s birthday!”
She gasped, smacking her little palms against the marble. Again with the dramatics — you couldn’t think of where she had possibly gotten them from.
“Daddy birthday, Daddy birthday!” she babbled again and again. After finishing your morning routine, you set London back on the tile and opened the bathroom door.
“Okay, ready? Go get Daddy and tell him, ‘happy birthday!’” you instructed. London nodded, then took off, bounding across the floor as fast as her tiny bare feet would take her.
She ran to Mat’s side, got inches from his face, and repeated, “Daddy birthday! Daddy birthday!” His eyes snapped open, London’s greeting surprising and delighting him all at once.
“Thank you, angel!” he said, his voice enthusiastic though thick with sleep. He lifted London up onto the bed and enclosed her in a crushing embrace, kissing her face all over as she squealed. You sat on the edge of the bed next to Mat and bent down to kiss him.
“Happy birthday, my love,” you said, nuzzling your nose against his cheek as he grinned contentedly.
“Thank you, doll,” he replied warmly.
The morning celebration didn’t last long, as Mat had a game to prepare for. Little did he know that after the game, win or lose, you’d arranged for the trainers to bring out a cake and candles once the guys were back in the locker room (and decent). When they gave you the cue, you sent London into the room ahead of you as the guys began to sing “happy birthday.”
London clapped and giggled with glee as the guys delivered their spirited, if horrendous, version of the song. When London finally spotted Mat in the crowded room of guys his age, she again bolted toward him, throwing herself into his waiting arms just as the group reached its last notes, with you just a few steps behind.
The trainers stopped in front of Mat with the cake and he reached for you by the beltloop, pulling you into his side and squeezing your hip. He beamed up at you from his seat in front of his locker, then looked down at London, perched on his knee, and pressed a kiss to her soft black hair.
“Make a wish, baby,” you whispered, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.
He beamed, glancing around the room and shaking his head lightly. “I’m not sure what else I could wish for,” he admitted.
But he closed his eyes and made a wish anyway.
Later that night, back at the hotel after a lovely birthday dinner with his parents, you sneakily greeted Mat wearing a red lace bodysuit, perched on the bed as he emerged from the shower, rubbing a towel over his wet head. When he saw you, he stopped in his tracks and scanned the room. A bottle of Veuve in a bucket of ice, two glasses, a tray of chocolate covered strawberries, massage oil on the nightstand… and no London to be found.
“Where’s the baby?” he asked skeptically as he neared the bed.
You sat up on your knees in front of him, caressing his shoulders. “With your parents,” you explained, trailing a finger down his chest, hooking it in the chain around his neck. “Aren’t Gigi and Papa just the best?” you asked as you leaned in, looping your arms around his neck.
He nodded slowly, trailing his hands from your shoulders, down your waist, and resting them on your ass.
“The best,” he emphasized, leaning in for a searing kiss. “Like I said…” he murmured, stealing another peek at your attire, “what more could I wish for?”
(hope you enjoyed! and thank you — I’m doing well and I hope you are, too ☺️)
#m answers#secret universe#mathew barzal#mat barzal#happy birthday mat#mathew barzal blurb#mat barzal blurb#mathew barzal writing#mat barzal writing#mathew barzal fanfiction#mat barzal fanfiction#mathew barzal fanfic#mat barzal fanfic#mathew barzal fic#mat barzal fic#requests#blurbs
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for the drunken love confessions prompt, can you please do something with #20 🫶🏼
20.) "You're so perfect. How can anyone be so perfect? Maybe you're just a dream." with Mathew Barzal
"Oh god, he's wasted" you say, breathing out a laugh, eyes following along as Ethan all but manhandles Mat back to the table.
From beside you, Lenasia snorts. "Good luck getting him home."
You turn to where she's sitting and gently rocking Gracie in her arms. "This is technically your fault, you know," you tease the bride. "He's drunk because of you."
Lenasia shrugs, and you both watch, amused, as Ethan gathers both of Mat's unruly hands in his own, trying to guide Mat into his chair beside you. "It's my wedding, everyone should be drunk."
"Ease up bud," Ethan tells Mathew, handing him a glass of water. "I don't wanna hear about your hangover in the morning."
Mat scoffs, but takes the glass anyway. "M' fine," he says, and as he leans back in his chair, he seems to finally notice that you're sitting beside him, and a large smile grows on his face.
You frown a little, knowing exactly what's coming next, while Lenasia smirks and Ethan barks out a laugh.
"Well hello there beautiful," Mat drawls, "are you having a good night?"
"I am," you say, raising a brow as Mat's eyes start to slowly roam over your face. "You seem like you're having fun, too."
"I am now," he agrees, offering you his 'good boy' smile. "Now that I'm looking at the most expensive piece of art in the world."
The groan that escapes you is muffled by the laughs of the bride and groom, and your head snaps to them, eyes narrowed. "Don't encourage him."
"Don't boss the bride and groom around," Lenasia chastises, "That's illegal."
"No it isn't," you say, scrunching your nose, and Mat makes a soft sound.
Your attention diverts back to him immediately, to where he's got this fond look on his face. "You're so pretty."
You huff, ignoring the flutter of butterflies in your stomach. "You're drunk."
"You're still pretty," he muses, setting the glass down on the table and turning his body towards yours.
"Thank you," you say, watching carefully as Mat leans forward, resting his elbow on the table as he leans closer to you.
"You're such a great wedding date," he says, thinking out loud. "It's like you're almost too great, you know?"
"Here we go again," Ethan mutters, and Lenasia nudges him with her elbow, careful not to disturb Gracie in the process.
"You're nice," Mat drawls, then gestures to Lenasia and Ethan, "All my friends like you, you like all my friends-"
"Well she's my bridesmaid, so I sure hope so." Lenasia mutters, and you shoot her a look, ignoring her snickering.
"And you're a total bombshell," Mat continues, eyes crinkling at the corners as his smile stretches across his face. "You're so perfect. How can anyone be so perfect? Maybe you're just a dream."
"Oh yuck," Ethan murmurs, and Lenasia elbows him again.
Mat reaches for your hand then, thumb rubbing the back of it in gentle circles. When his thumb hits your ring, his motions pause, and the smile on his face instantly drops, his brows furrowing in confusion.
"You're married?!" He asks, completely shell shocked.
You sigh, exasperated, and Lenasia and Ethan burst out laughing beside you, Gracie bursting into her own fit of giggles just from observing her parents.
"I am," you say to Mat patiently.
"To who?!" He exclaims, head snapping up to look at you. "Who is he?"
"I'm married to you, Mathew." You say, grabbing his left hand and holding it up in front of his face so he can see his own wedding band.
His jaw drops. “You are?"
"For two years now," you confirm, dropping his hand and reaching for his glass of water. You hand it to him, wrapping his fingers around the glass and pushing it to his mouth. "Now drink up, I don't want to have to explain this to you for a third time tonight."
#mathew barzal#mat barzal#mathew barzal x reader#mat barzal x reader#mendeshoney masterlist#writing challenge
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"do people want barzal/keller? or barzal/keller/matthews?"
darlimg have you considered barzal/keller/matthews/marner? 👀
I LOVE THE WAY YOUR MIND WORKS!!
saw this ask last night but didn’t have the time to answer it, but it sparked inspiration so later i started writing the four of them (mitch included) in my notes app, and now i am OBSESSED and will be continuing to write them
#🫡🫡 thank u for ur service#💌#fanfiction#writing#mathew barzal#mitch marner#auston matthews#clayton keller
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Disney Magic || Mat Barzal
Summary: A trip to Disney World with Mat and a few of your shared friends results in some mutual confessions.
Word Count: 2,761 (i got carried away with this one)
Warnings: none (please let me know if you find any that i should add)
Maleeha’s Masterlist
a/n: here’s my entry for the summer fic exchange 2k23 hosted by the lovely @wyattjohnston! this was written for @tinyhockey! i hope you like it cam! this was so much fun to write!
also, the poutine part of this fic is very much based on when i had to share a bowl of poutine with my cousin when she was 7. it’s a childish thing to do and i thought it would fit our favourite man-child perfectly
this is gender neutral. hope you enjoy this! feedback is appreciated
LIKES ARE GREAT, REBLOGS ARE BETTER ♡
Every summer, you and a few of your friends went to Florida to go to Disney World. It was one of your favourite places to go to and you liked to bring along as many of your friends as you could, so that they could experience the happiness that is Disney World. Your most recent trip to Disney lined up perfectly with the beginning of Mat’s off-season and luckily, you had been able to convince him to partake in your Disney trip with four of your mutual friends.
Your trip was five days long and planned so that you and your friends would tackle one park a day, with a day off in the middle to hang out at the hotel you were staying at and browse around Disney Springs. On the first day of the trip, you had to spend the entire day in Epcot, your favourite park. Your favourite ride in the park was Soarin’, so that was the first ride you went on. Everyone in your group, besides Mat, had been to Disney World before, so they all knew how great Soarin’ was, but Mat was a little hesitant to go on the ride, thinking it was lame.
“I don’t wanna go on it!” Mat whined, giving you a fake pout. “The line’s so long and the ride is gonna be so slow.” You glared at him in fake annoyance, determined to get him on the ride.
“Mathew,” you scolded him as if you were a parent scolding their five-year-old child. “you are going on that ride. You’re gonna like it.” He opened his mouth to complain more, but you cut him off before he could even begin. “Trust me, you’re going to like it. I thought Soarin’ was lame before I went on it, but I ended up loving it.”
Mat stayed in his spot, acting like a stubborn child. When your other friends realized what was going on, they joined you in convincing Mat to go on the ride, but Mat being the stubborn man-child that he is, you and your friends resulted in physically dragging him into the line.
Once you got to the ride, you and your friends placed your belongings under your seats, cringed at the people who took their shoes off, and sat down together in a row of seats. As your row began to go up into the air, Mat looked down to look how far up your seats would go.
“Don’t look down, it ruins the magic.” You said, leaning over to whisper in his ear. As you turned your gaze back towards the screen in front of you, Mat reached over the armrest between your seats, grabbing your hand in his and squeezing it to acknowledge what you had said.
Throughout the ride, you found yourself glancing over at Mat, enjoying watching him be fascinated by Soarin’. When the ride was over, you let go of Mat’s hand to retrieve your belongings from underneath your seat, missing the feeling of his hand in yours.
"Did you like it?" You asked Mat once you exited the ride.
"It was fine." He quickly answered.
"Don't lie to me." A slight smirk appeared on your face as you watched Mat come to terms with that yes, you were right and yes, he did enjoy the ride.
"Alright, fine. Yes, I liked it."
"I told you so!" You teased as he dramatically rolled his eyes.
—————
After you went on Soarin’ you and your friends decided to do your second favourite thing at Epcot: hopping around from country to country to eat as much as you could. You first took a short walk over to Canada, where you got poutine from Le Cellier Steakhouse. You and your friends weren’t overly hungry, so you all decided to buy three orders of poutine so that two people could share one bowl and you ended up having to share with Mat.
While you were eating, you noticed that you didn’t have many cheese curds in your poutine. At first, you thought your bowl didn’t have as many as you thought it should, but then you realized that Mat had been hoarding them on his side of the bowl.
“Mat, why are you eating all of the cheese curds?” you spewed out without taking any breaths in between your words.
“I like more cheese curds with my poutine!” He defended himself.
“And I like a normal amount of cheese curds in my poutine! Give some back to me!” Mat dramatically pouted for a bit before begrudgingly giving you half of his pile of cheese curds.
You knew the last place you wanted to eat at was La Crêperie de Paris in France. You and your friends always ate dessert crêpes there before heading back to your hotel for the night. After eating the crêpes, you spotted Aurora, your favourite princess. Someone was next to her, but you thought it was a cast member until you were closer to her and realized it was Prince Phillip. He was rarely in Epcot with her and you were beyond excited that you would finally get a picture with both of them in Epcot.
You and your group had a conversation with both Aurora and Phillip before taking a selfie of all of you and then each getting individual pictures taken with them.
You were the last person to get your picture with them and right before you left, Mat spurted out “Wait! I wanna get a picture with you and them!” Aurora, standing next to you, smiled and gestured for him to stand between you and Phillip.
“Is he your prince?” Aurora asked politely. You were too stunned at her statement to speak, while Mat was laughing.
“No.” He answered for you. “Not yet, at least.” He said quieter as he grabbed your hand for the second time that day before one of your friends took a few pictures.
—————
The second day of your Disney trip was spent in Magic Kingdom. You started the day by going to meet Rapunzel and Tiana, your favourite princesses after Aurora. As you and Mat talked to Rapunzel, she spoke about how she liked to paint with Eugene and commented that you and Mat should do the same one day since 'it's just so much fun!' After Aurora's comment from the day before, you couldn't help but think that Rapunzel also thought you two were dating. But alas, you took your picture with her and Mat wanted one with you, just like he had in Epcot.
When you got to Tiana, you told her about the time you tried to make beignets and how they didn't turn out well, so you fed them to Mat because you didn't want to waste food.
She responded with "Don't worry, whenever I mess up my cooking, I give it to Naveen." Okay, maybe you brought that one upon yourself.
After meeting a few more characters, you went on the rides which were your favourite part of Magic Kingdom. You had to force Mat onto Small World since he claimed that he didn't want to go on it to avoid getting the song stuck in his head, but you got him on the ride after he stated that he always found himself having a difficult time saying no to you. You might have also creeped him out a little when you all went on Haunted Mansion as you said every line and sang every word throughout the ride.
Before leaving to go to the hotel, you had to get a bowl of popcorn, which Mat kept eating out of despite saying he didn’t want any popcorn. And of course, it wasn’t a trip to Magic Kingdom without watching a parade. You and your friends sat lined up on the sidewalk as you waved to all the characters that passed by.
—————
In the middle of your Disney trip, your group took a break from the parks and went to Disney Springs. You started your day by sleeping in; you all were exhausted from your two days at the parks and finally got some well-deserved rest. Mat wanted to go in the hotel’s pool after breakfast, but you scolded him and told him that he needed to digest before going in, so you and your group piled into one hotel room and played a few chaotic rounds of uno.
After twenty minutes, Mat and two of your friends left to change into their bathing suits and go into to pool. You and your remaining two friends decided to stay inside and continue playing Uno. About forty minutes later, Mat and your friends who went swimming re-entered the hotel room you were in, playfully threatening to get water on the three of you as they were sopping wet. Your two friends gave up after a minute or so, but Mat was very determined, chasing you around the room before engulfing you in a bear hug, resulting in some of the water that was on him getting onto you.
After you and half of your group got dry and changed, you all played a few more card games that you had brought before eating dinner at the hotel. You are enough food to make sure you were full, but not too much so that you would be able to eat something from Gideon’s Bakehouse in Disney Springs.
You and your friends made your way over to Disney Springs, not really planning on buying anything, but just going to browse around and enjoy the atmosphere. You kept an eye out for any plushes or dolls you wanted since you enjoyed collecting them. When you got to World of Disney, you spotted an Aurora doll that you didn’t have. As you walked around the store, you kept glancing over at it, but you constantly broke your glance whenever you saw the price tag, which was well over what you were willing to spend.
After leaving World of Disney, a few of your friends left to go to the washroom, including Mat, or so you thought. What actually happened was that Mat went back into the store and bought the Aurora doll for you. When he came back, he was holding the box behind his back to hide it from your sight.
“Mathew, what did you buy?” you asked.
“Oh, nothing.” He played it off. “Just something for you.” You rolled your eyes at his statement.
“How many times have I told you that you don’t need to buy me anything?”
“Yeah, I know. But you couldn’t keep your eyes off of this so I had to get it.”
“No, you did not.” You said in disbelief.
“I did and don’t tell me to return it or that it was too expensive because I really want you to have it because you deserve it and you’re a great person and I lo- like how much you get excited about these type of things.” Mat rambled.
Before you could say anything in response to his rambling, one of your friends noticed what happened.
“Awww that’s so cute Mat!” They exclaimed.
“Who knew Mathew was a softie.” Another added.
—————
The fourth day of your trip to Disney was spent entirely in Animal Kingdom. You got to the park early so that you could eat breakfast at Tusker House. The POG juice (passion fruit, orange, and guava juice) served during breakfast was a must-have and you needed to get Mat to like it as much as you did.
The very first thing you did after breakfast was speed-walk your way to Flight of Passage. You loved this ride; it was so immersive and made you feel like you were actually flying on a banshee. Before going on, you explained to Mat how the ride worked and to not look down or to the sides, just as you had when you went on Soarin'. However, just like when you went on Soarin’, you broke your own rule and looked to your right where Mat was sitting and enjoyed watching him gleam with joy as the artificial wind blew through his hair.
The only mistake you made while at Animal Kingdom was bringing Mat to Finding Nemo the Musical. You loved going to watch the show, it was a cute musical and was inside an air-conditioned building, what’s better than that? You realized your mistake when Crush’s song “Go With the Flow” occurred. You looked over to Mat, only to see him dancing to the song and smirking mischievously. Knowing him, he was going to sing that song for the rest of the day and that’s exactly what he did. Every ten minutes or so, Mat would dramatically, and badly, sing the one line of the song he knew: “go with the flooooowwwww”.
You ended your day at Animal Kingdom with… more singing from Mat. You and your friends always see the Festival of the Lion King which resulted in everyone singing “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”. Mat being Mat, sang that the entire way back to the hotel, annoying you and the rest of your group.
—————
The last day of your trip arrived faster than you expected. You got up early, and you planned on getting to the hotel late. You started off the day by waiting in the long, endless line for Rise of the Resistance. You and your friends who you usually go to Disney with were completely fine with the wait. Yes, it was hot and humid, but you all knew how to keep each other entertained in line. Mat, on the other hand, complained about everything: the heat, the humidity, the fact that he wanted to sleep in, the fact that he couldn’t sit down anywhere, but your least favourite complaint from him was that ‘the ride’s not gonna be worth the wait.’ Lo and behold, once Mat got off the ride, he told you that he absolutely loved it and wanted to ride it again. As much as you wanted to, you knew you couldn’t go on the ride again unless you didn’t want to go on all the rides you wanted to go on.
After Ruse of the Resistance, you went on Toy Story Mania. You were paired with Mat since he begged to go with you. Throughout the ride, you kept glancing over to Mat and watched as he blasted targets with his tongue stuck out of your mouth in concentration. You, of course, beat him by a lot resulting in a lot of whining from Mat and a lot of bragging from your end.
You went on more rides, and saved a break for lunch at Woody’s Lunch Box, until the evening, when you went to go watch Fantasmic. It was a must-do for you every time you went to Hollywood Studios and you weren’t planning on skipping that on your most recent trip. Throughout the show, instead of glancing over to Mat, like you did for other rides and attractions, you kept your eyes glued to the show. You cried once Mickey appeared at the top of the mountain, resulting in Mat making sure you were okay and a few teasing comments from the rest of your friends.
“They cry every time Mickey appears on that mountain.” One of your friends told Mat after Fantasmic ended.
“I love how excited you get about every Disney-related,” Mat admitted to you. “I love-” he cut himself off before quietly adding “you.”
“We should give them some space.” Another one of your friends said, before teasingly laughing and guiding everyone else away from you two. “We’ll meet you at the hotel.”
“You love me?” You asked. Mat nodded, humming to reassure you that what he said was true. “I feel the same about you, but I don’t know…”
“You don’t know?” Mat asked, prompting you to continue your thought.
“I don’t know if I want to be in a relationship with you.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’d be my first relationship and all first relationships never end well.”
“That’s not true.”
“Name one first relationship that lasted.” Mat stayed quiet. “Exactly, you can’t think of anyone.”
“I’m not going to hurt you.” Mat softly said. “If that’s what you’re afraid of.”
“Yeah, that’s what I’m afraid of.” You admitted.
“I promise you, I’m not going to hurt you,” Mat stated, looking you in your eyes as a way of telling you that he was serious. “Alright?”
“Alright.” You thought for a few seconds before adding “Can you be my boyfriend?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
——————————
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The fic ideas that Barzy fight gave me 👀
#mat barzal#not entirely sure I want to go down the fic writing road again#but this man gives me thoughts#Jen rambles#mathew barzal
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