December 28, 2020

Rauma, Finland

"Rauman Lukko's Jimin Packalen has a secret talent that keeps him busy between games and on long road trips."

The puck sails down the ice, before a rather small player branding the Rauman Lukko colors of blue and yellow, zips after it, scooping the small black disc against the blade of his specialized blue Nexus One hockey stick. The signature logo, which contains a lock with the date "1936" on it and the initials of the team "RL" are inside it and are surrounded by a "U"-shaped leaf design.

The player's head snaps up, just in time for him to lock his light steel-blue eyes with the opponent that bares down on him. A bulky defenseman with dark beady eyes. The kind that are meant to strike fear, but the player doesn't feel fear. Only determination. The guy lowers to the ice, glaring intensely at him.

Jimin Packalen, number forty-seven for the aptly-named Lock team out of Rauma, Finland, manages a slight smirk at the corners of his mouth as he digs into the ice. He spins around the beady-eyed player and picks up speed.

Jimin launches for the goal, zeroing in on the goalie that comes out, bracing for him. "Come on, bite." He grunts to himself and cuts around the goal, tapping into his unbelievable speed as he rounds the back of the net.

Then before the goalie can get back and slide across, Jimin cuts around the far side, cradling the puck against his stick's blade. He sends it skillfully off his backend and, without hesitation, buries it into the tangle of net.

"Yeah! That's what I'm talking about!" Jimin shouts, jumping into the air with one hand gripping his stick and the other, punching upward in a gloved fist.

"I thought ladies couldn't play hockey," the goalie snarls, throwing his stick to the ice in frustration.

Jimin lands back on the ice and twirls around like a figure skater. After three turns, he halts in place, slapping his stick against the ice and his "Guess, you've never seen this good of a player with multi-talents before?" He shoots the goalie a wink.

The bulky defenseman, he'd deked around rudely bumps into him, sending him sprawling to the ice on his gloved hands in shock. "Hockey players have grit and size. You are not once. You're just lucky."

Jimin hears the sounds of skates cutting across the ice as his teammates rush to support him. He pushes himself back up to his skates and brushes his arms off, before grabbing his stick once more.

"Maybe, but at least I can put the puck in the back of the net."

His linemates are getting into the face of the defenseman and goalie. It kickstarts the rest of the players to come together as well.

Jimin tucks his stick under his arm and then unclips his helmet and removes it to reveal straw-like, wispy, silvery-blue hair locks. He removes one of his gloves from under his arm that is holding the stick and helmet and runs a hand through the sweaty strands.

"Oh, come on boys, just teaching Jimi-Boy about the appropriate size for a hockey player," the bulky opponent snaps as two Lukko players shove at him. "He should take it as a compliment that I didn't bump into him harder."

Jimin shakes his hair out and then puts his helmet back on his head.

"J, you okay?" a gruff voice asks as he clips the headgear on.

Jimin nods, stuffing his hand back into his glove and tossing his eyes. "It is what it is. Gotta be jealous of my speed and stickhandling." He then turns on his skates and heads for the home bench. "And my sick dancing skills on skates."

He stops at the bench door, awaiting a teammate to open it for him to get in. One of his linemates, Arttu Lyonen, skids to a stop behind him and puts a hand on his shoulder to halt him from entering momentarily.

"Yeah, but maybe tone it down a little bit. Opponents are going to target you and we can't keep standing up, taking penalties for you," Arttu chuckles, giving his shoulder a gentle, friendly squeeze. "That's not to say, don't stop scoring amazing, highlight reel goals, but watch the cellys...at least tone them down a little."

Jimin shrugs his hand off and turns to him. He looks into his chocolate eyes, which are full of friendliness now, unlike a few minutes ago when he was glaring down the opposing defensive player.

"They're too..." Jimin flicks his gloved hand into the air with a flourish. "...glamorous?"

"Feminine," Arttu sighs and leans forward to hold the door open. "They're girlish...but it's okay, I mean, the celly is supposed to be unique to the player. But maybe I can help you out to...perfect it? Make it a bit more...manlier, you know?"

Jimin slides into the bench and sits down next to Arttu. "Well, you know, my back-up plan if hockey wasn't to work, was to be a dancer."

"Arttu, quit stifling the Pretty Boy's creativity and dance skills. To be honest, they're refreshing and cool," a smoky-sounding voice states, coming from a player leaning across to address them. "Keep being you, Jimin."

Jimin flashes him a smile and wink. "Thanks, Vili."

The game continues before them as the clock winds down in the final period and in the game. The score is 4-1, thanks to two goals from the stick of Jimin Packalen. Jimin finds himself zeroing out, his focus finding a spot behind the boards.

A young snowy-blonde haired woman sits just behind the glass. Her mid-back length hair is in waves at the ends as it cascades down around the sides of her face, shaping it nicely. She has a Rauman Lukko team beanie on top of her head and a warm, angelic smile on her face. She is clapping her hands in excitement and shouting out the inaudible chant, "Let's go Lukko!"

Jimin takes in her outfit, a long plush, soft-looking white long-sleeve sweater shirt with a pair of white leggings that run into cute white fur boots with two puff balls that dangle off of the tops of them. A Lukko-themed scarf is wrapped loosely around her neck, matching the beanie on top of her head.

For a brief second their eyes lock with one another, her sapphire blue ones and his steel-blue (almost gray) ones. Her eyes sparkle and her smile melts his racing heart that pounds against his chest underneath the jersey.

But as the moment happens, it fades and she turns to a brunette man that sits beside her. This man has luscious brown waves styled on top of his hair. His deep amber brown eyes shine under the neon fluorescent lights of the arena.

Jimin recognizes him. Loose jean jacket over a plain white shirt, black pants, youthful look and all.

It's the popular pop music singer that is all over the radio, Robin Nieminen.

The white haired girl puts a hand on his thigh and enthusiastically points up at the Jumbotron that dangles above center ice.

Jimin's eyes flick up to see video footage of them displayed with a giant welcome greeting text within the square frame. He smiles at her young energy and beauty. Then he slowly frowns, his eyes narrowing in on the hand on Robin's thigh.

Robin's head snaps up to look at the Jumbotron. He slowly smiles and turns to grab the blonde. His lips press against hers and the crowd cheers and "awws."

"Bro, we need to get you a girl like that," Arttu remarks, slapping Jimin's thigh with his hand. "She's pretty, isn't she?"

"And lucky," Jimin finds himself sighing dreamily.

"That's true, dating a legend like Robin Nieminen, the pop singer extraordinaire!"

Yeah, pop singer extraordinaire...

Jimin's eyes fall from the kissing couple footage and back to the glass across from him. To the real people.

The two finally part and the blonde woman jumps up and down and turns back to the action on the ice, resuming in her cheering. Robin looks at her, a smug grin on his face and then his hand slowly intertwines with her fingers.

Jimin bites his lip and gets up to his feet.

I'll dazzle her with another goal. She'll have to take notice of me!

"Line change! Jimin, go!" the coach shouts out behind him. But he sounds like he's in an airtight tunnel as Jimin's focus is on the girl cheering behind the glass.

Let's go, Jimin!

Jimin shakes his head and hops the boards, taking to the ice once again.

"Hey, get your mind away from the girls and back to the game, Jimin!" Arttu scolds. "She'll be backstage after the game with her boyfriend, Robin anyway. No rush to dazzle her or impress her."

Arttu launches after the puck, leaving Jimin behind.

He has a point.

Jimin skates off after him, shaking the distraction from his mind as best as he could. He had a game to play. He had another goal to score. He couldn't be blindsiding his hockey career by a lovers-stare, sending goo-goo eyes at a female fan who didn't even know him and was happily in a relationship with an amazing singer.

For that, Jimin couldn't blame her for hooking up with the pop sensation singer, Robin Nieminen.