Paul restarted the movie after their needs were satisfied. It didn't take long for his lover to fall asleep with his head lying comfortably on Paul's lap. The brunette half-watched the movie while threading a hand through Ryan's hair. They hadn't been able to get up to much when Paul was in the hospital; needless to say, both men were pleased at the turn of events. There were to be no more long nights of silently praying for Ryan to arrive at the hospital safely. He always insisted it was a stupid idea to make the trip when the man was practically asleep on his feet.

Even though it was incredibly sweet of him…

A small smile grew on his face as he glanced down at his sleeping teammate. He had muted the volume on the television a while ago, distracted from the action-packed scenes by Ryan's soft, even breathing. Paul closed his eyes and opened his ears; he took the time once more to reflect on how things had changed between them.

When they had first met, they weren't necessarily on good terms. They were on opposing teams at the time, fiercely competitive on and off the ice. The teams traded barbed remarks, verbally trying their best to trip each other up. This went the same for Ryan and Gaustad.

Paul had unofficially met him during one of Ryan's runs. Paul was quick to think he was a forward with his speed and agility. He had been so shocked to see Ryan decked out in heavy goaltender gear that night on the ice. His immediate thought was, 'That man definitely has a unique way of doing things.' Of course, this didn't just apply to hockey as he would soon realize.

He remembered it vividly…

~.x-x~

Paul walked down the halls of the school aimlessly, mentally preparing his mind for the night ahead. As he turned another corner, he came across an amazing sight. There was a man leaning against the wall with one foot propped up against the stone. His head was tilted a bit in Paul's direction, but his stunning brown eyes were unfocused. The man had a thin, wiry built- a built that Paul recognize as one that contained surprising strength and agility. He had never seen that shade of brown before, and there was a curious, steely glint in them that Paul felt instantly drawn to… more so than his handsome facial features. His own eyes intently drank in the sight, not knowing if he would ever see it again.

"Hey, Ryan!" Paul stiffened and felt a mortified blush creep to his cheeks. 'What am I doing? I'm not a stalker, I'm not!' he mentally badgered himself. 'But… he looks so cool. I wonder what his name is? And why is his jersey so familiar…? Ah, damn it! I am not admiring him, I'm really not!' The man blinked when he was called out of his musings, and he was now staring, puzzled, at Paul. "Did you…?" he trailed off, staring over Paul's shoulder in realization. He turned slightly to look at an approaching guy wearing the jersey of a Spartan hockey player. 'So… his name is Ryan? But why did that Spartan say his name? Wait… no, he can't be…'

"Ryan, get your ass back to the locker rooms. The coach wants to talk to the seniors." The man glared at the couple when they didn't react. "Kyle, can you give us a second?" Ryan asked, his eyes brightening a little in anger.

"I think-"

"He'll be in a bad mood if we don't go now," Kyle said with a frown, then swiftly turned on his heel to walk away. Ryan rolled his eyes and muttered an obscenity under his breath as he pushed off the wall to join Kyle. He glanced back at Paul curiously before he turned the corner to head to the locker rooms, and was surprised to see Paul also staring at him intently… so intently…

~_Flashback.x-x~

He was brought back out of his musing by Ryan shifting in his sleep, burrowing deeper into Paul's lap. He gave a small murmur of contentment as he did so. Paul chuckled, gently mussing the hair on his lover's head. The movie ended very soon after that with Ryan still sleeping soundly, so Paul used the remote to shut off the television, turned his head into a more comfortable position, and drifted off to sleep with a hand resting on Ryan's neck.

The clock chimed twelve times at noon, startling Paul awake. He could feel a slight kink in his neck, and his thighs were numb from the weight of Ryan, but he couldn't have been happier. He smiled fondly down at the lump snoozing on the couch and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Ryan," he called softly. "Time to wake up." No reaction. With a smirk playing on his face, he lightly rubbed the cartilage of the man's ear for a few seconds before leaning down to lick it.

With a shudder, one of Ryan's eyes opened hazily. "'M up, I'm up," he grumbled, turning onto his back with his head still on Paul's lap. He stretched languidly, arching up off the couch a little. He then stared expectantly up at Paul, blinking a few times. Paul replied to his unasked question, "It's noon. I know you don't like to sleep late, and we can't have you out of it tonight, can we?" Ryan yawned, rubbing the rest of the sleep out of his eyes. He rose into a sitting position and leaned against Paul's shoulder. "Your lap was pretty comfortable, you know. Better than a pillow," remarked Ryan, glancing at Paul out of the corner of his eye. As expected, his face flushed at the compliment.

"You're so-" Paul was cut off by Ryan's lips moving expertly against his own. In seconds, the man had smoothly straddled his hips, arms thrown around his neck. Paul's mind was wiped blank as Ryan slowly grinded their hips together. Ryan's tongue darted out to lick his lower lip, and Paul complied immediately, opening his mouth with a quiet moan. Their hips rocked with every subtle push of Ryan's tongue; the desire for more climbed steadily.

Yet deep in his mind, Paul wondered what had brought it on, what triggered the sudden action. It was welcomed, yes, but there was something to it. His love, for whatever reason, was desperate-- and all he could do was comply and clutch possessively at Ryan's shirt.

Ryan eventually pulled away enough to give them both room to breathe. Paul blinked a few times, trying to regain his bearings. Ryan noticed and smiled slightly; it was nice knowing that only he could make his lover's mind turn to mush like that. "What… what are your plans for today?" Paul asked haltingly.

"I have to go talk to Ruff about a few things," Ryan said with a frown as he slid off Paul's lap and straightened his shirt. 'I need a shower and change of clothes before I do anything…' he thought. He'd fallen asleep in the clothes he had worn the day before, and it was rude to meet with people dressed like that. Plus, he just liked being clean.

Paul frowned at Ryan. He always seemed on edge whenever he went to talk to the coach… but strangely, he always came back looking a bit happier than what he left. "Okay," Paul sighed, shifting to cross his legs. Ryan stood and looked down at Paul searchingly for a few seconds. "Hey, I won't be gone long," Ryan said, leaning down to gently kiss Paul's lips. He turned to leave, and tossed over his shoulder an: "I'll be back before you know it."

Sighing, Paul leaned his head back to stare blankly at the ceiling, dimply recognizing the sound of Ryan's SUV growling to a start. He ran a hand through his hair and muttered, "He could've at least stayed for breakfast…" He stretched out his legs and stood up to walk to his bedroom. Unlike Ryan, he enjoyed sleeping in late, especially after long nights.

He dreamed a dream he'd dreamt before…

~x.//Dream Sequence.x.x~

Paul watched him walk away, only knowing two facts: that his last name was Miller, and that he was a Spartan hockey player. His eyebrows furrowed as he remembered those strong, handsome features, the interesting glint in the man's eyes. Paul wanted to meet the guy again, that was for sure. And if he really was a Spartan hockey player, that meeting would happen sooner rather than later. 'With that build, he's probably a forward…' A hand clapped on his shoulder, and he turned to mumble a greeting at his teammate.

"What are you staring at?" Shawn asked, noticing the lingering far away look in Paul's eyes. 'If he's a forward, we'll probably meet face to face soon…' Paul slowly blinked, but didn't react otherwise. 'But he's a Spartan… the enemy…' Shawn waved a hand in front of Paul's face. "Hello? Earth to Paul! Come in, Paul," he called, peering into Paul's unfocused eyes. "Oh…" Paul said, blinking a few times to see Shawn standing in front of him. "Sorry… I was lost in my thoughts for a minute." Shawn snorted, and his eyes twinkled with barely suppressed amusement. "Tell me about it. Are you okay now?" Paul nodded, a blush creeping into his cheeks. "Um… yeah, I'm fine," he insisted.

"If you say so," Shawn shrugged. "We only have one day before the championship game. I hope whatever you were thinking about so much just now won't distract you on the ice." He grabbed Paul's arm and started to pull him down the hall stubbornly. "And we have practice now, so if you value your ears we should get back to the lockers." Placing his thoughts of the man named Miller aside, Paul pulled his arm out of Shawn's loose grip and moved to walk at his side.

'I can't let that guy distract me from my… no, our goal. We've worked so hard for this! We have to win the championship.'

~x. Break.x.x~

He eagerly took in the game being played out before him. Both teams were performing top notch, and Paul wouldn't be surprised if either of them won: the scored was tied 1-1 in the second period. He reached for a towel to wipe off the considerable amount of sweat shining on his face, and took a few sips of his cool water.

Much to his pleasure, he did get to see Miller again… just not on the terms he had wanted. Water bottle still raised to his lips, his eyes sought out the opposing goaltender, drinking in his every movement. He looked surprisingly perfect in his gear, as if the position was made just for him. Paul's gaze was finally interrupted by his coach yelling over the din of the audience for him and a few others to get on the ice.

Hopping over the bench, he felt his skates hit the ice. Before he had time to move to the center of the ice, the puck was passed in his direction. Rolling his eyes, he swiftly moved towards the blue line with the puck. He shot it to a teammate headed into the Spartan zone, and took his place in front of the goaltender. Paul felt himself being shoved to the side a little; he looked down to see the thick goaltender glove still resting on his hip. Miller was looking intently at the punk racing toward him. Paul had been blocking his line of vision.

His eyes narrowed as he took back his position. The puck flew en route for him, so he quickly turned to put it behind Ryan. In that moment of weakness, someone shoved him right into the goaltender knocking both of them into the net. There was a collective gasp, and Paul blinked a few times, disoriented.

Before he could get up, someone else shoved him out of the net. "Kolin, that was not funny!" said Miller, climbing to his feet in a huff. He was glaring from behind his mask at what Paul presumed to be his teammates. Out of the line of fire, Paul shook the cobwebs out of his head and got to his feet. The goalie took off his helmet to argue with the suddenly sheepish defensemen, and Paul felt his breath catch in his throat.

Paul would be the first to admit he didn't know much about Miller, however… he now knew that the scowl he was sporting looked strange on his handsome face. His eyes narrowed in on the goaltender's moving lips. No sound came from them. Suddenly, the rink seemed very silent, then a loud, continual beeping came from somewhere above the stadium.

Beep… beep… beep…

~x. of Flashback.x.x~

BEEP!

Paul jerked awake with a hoarse yell, and rolled out of bed with a painful thud. "Huh?" he asked, confused. "Beep…ing? Why?" He heard suppressed chuckles, and looked up. "Ry…an?" Ryan nodded, his lips pursed to keep the laughter in his mouth. He crouched down for a closer look at Paul. "Why are you on the floor?" he asked innocently.

Paul sat up and rubbed his forehead with squinted eyes. "You made me fall, you jerk…" he whined with a frown that closely resembled a pout. Ryan cooed and softly chuckled, reaching over to muss Paul's hair. Paul blushed and looked away, his lips twitching into an involuntary smile.

Ryan's hand moved to Paul's chin, and he moved it so that he could stare directly into his lover's eyes. Paul's blush died at the intensity he found in those beautiful brown eyes. "Don't… don't get yourself hurt, okay?" Ryan asked in a murmur. "Not again… I don't know what I would do… if you got hurt again." Ryan's eyes abruptly became guarded, but before Paul could puzzle over it Ryan's hand retreated and he stood up. "Go take a shower. I'll cook us up some food."

'Ryan…' Paul thought to himself, still sitting on the ground like a fool. 'You're the only one who can make me feel like this, so… if there's something you're not telling me, I'd like to know before anyone else.'

--------------------

AN: Ok, so yes my beta and I both know that Paul never went to college but I must say. If we did not include that small flash back scene I think it would of ruin the story. So yeah as said by someone from Yahoo! Answers Paulie your getting a 'Edumcation'