***Steve's POV***

I get the sense that we're unofficially grounded. After the completely pathetic game Team Canada just played against Sweden, the coaches "suggest" that we go to our rooms and get some rest before tomorrow's practice. The unspoken message is that if we stray from our rooms, there will be hell to pay.

It could be worse. We could be in six-person rooms like in Nagano. Now, we each only have one roommate, and mine is currently attacking the wall with his shoe, muttering "Stupid *thwack* fucking *thwack* Mats *thwack* Sundin *thwack*. Stupid *thwack* fucking *thwack* Tommy *thwack* Salo."

I walk over and place a hand on his arm. "Brendan, stop that. Do you want to be like Team USA and get a rep for destroying property?"

He glares at me, but does stop his wall assault. "Not like the wall feels it. It's not going anywhere. Just like Tommy fucking Salo." He kicks the wall and lets out a hiss of pain.

I roll my eyes. "Know what?"

Shanny sits down on his bed, rubbing his injured foot. "What, O captain my captain?"

I sit down next to him. "You get entirely too angry over things."

He crosses his arms. "I'd say I have a right to be angry. We're playing like shit, and there's no excuse for it. This could be our best chance to win a medal, and we're pissing it away!"

I sigh. "You think YOU'RE angry about that? You could be back for the 2006 Games. I almost certainly won't."

Brendan shifts. "Well yeah, but..."

I hold up my hand to stop him for saying anything else. "I swear to God, Shanny, if you mention missing the penalty shot one more time, I'll...I'll..."

He smiles, slightly amused. "You'll what?"

I grin back. "I'll make you shut up."

His smile turns into a smirk. "And how are you planning to do that?"

The way he looks at me makes me feel like 1998 again, like we're sitting alone in our room after losing the bronze medal game, like I've waited until everyone else left to get drunk to talk to Shanny alone. I remember that night, about how he looked at me with the same expression of amusement trying desperately to cover up despondency and guilt. I remember what happened that night, and deep in the pit of my stomach I know that the same thing will happen tonight. I guess there's no sense in fighting destiny. I lean over and press my lips against Brendan's.

He relaxes into the kiss for a few moments, then slowly breaks apart from me. "That works." He laughs shakily. "I thought we were gonna leave that in Nagano."

Ok, so apparently, I made the wrong move. "I'm sorry. I thought it was worth a shot."

He slips his hand into mine and I gently squeeze his fingers. "It's not that I don’t want to," he whispers, "it's just that...I hate to see you cheating on your wife. For me. You know?" He looks down.

I squeeze his fingers again. "Brendan? If I tell you a secret, do you promise to keep it?"

"Cross my heart, hope to die," he mutters.

"Me and Lisa have...we've gone our separate ways romantically."

Brendan just stares at me, opening and closing his mouth like a fish. "But...but...you’re still married..."

I nod. "We still like each other, just not like that anymore. We've got a pretty good arrangement going..."

"Oh." Brendan swallows, then looks up at me. "Will you kiss me again?"

I oblige, and he pulls me down so that I'm lying on top of him on the bed. "You're awful presumptive," I laugh.

He shrugs. "You kissed me first." We kiss a bit more, then I feel hands under my shirt, pulling it off. I remove his shirt too, and start to press kisses to his neck.

Some would say what we're doing is wrong. Not just because we're two men, but because we don't love each other. Don’t get me wrong, Brendan is one of my closest friends, but we just aren't made to be partners in a relationship. We do this to forget, to distract ourselves from what's going on in the outside world. We do it because it makes me feel like I'm doing something useful and because it's the only way to get him to sleep without over-analyzing his performance in the game.

A soft moan distracts me from the thoughts and I feel Brendan move underneath me. I bring my kisses lower and lower, brushing my lips across his chest. He twines his fingers in my hair and gently pulls up my head. "Just do it," he rasps. "Please Stevie. Just fuck me."

I kiss him roughly and start to work with the button on his pants. He moves his hands from my back so he can help me. Once he's undressed, I remove my own pants. I don’t usually like to take things so fast, but when you’re having sex for the purpose of amnesia, fast is what usually does the trick.

I reach over to the table by the side of the bed and grab a bottle of hand lotion. I squeeze some onto my hand. "Mmm, fruity," Brendan comments.

I roll my eyes with him as I spread the lotion around to warm it up before sliding a finger into him. I wait for him to relax, then add another. He whimpers, "Come on, please, faster..."

I remove my fingers and slowly enter him. Almost immediately, he rocks his hips against me. We settle into a rhythm, rocking back and forth. Brendan's breath starts coming in gasps and it's not too long before he comes, bringing me over the edge with him.

We pull apart, and I lay down next to him and he curls up against me. "Thank you," he whispers sleepily.

I pull him closer. "No problem. Besides, you're much more fun to be around when you've actually gotten some sleep rather than stayed up all night worrying."

He laughs. "Hey Stevie? So...are you with anyone now that you and Lisa aren't together?"

I shake my head. "No, I've been doing the single thing for awhile."

He yawns. "You should find someone, not be alone. You should talk to Boyd."

No way did I hear that right. "I should do WHAT?"

He blinks at me sleepily. "Talk to Boyd. He likes you."

"Did you take a hit to the head today?" I ask.

Brendan just smiles. "Fine, don't listen to me. Have a boring love life. I was just trying to help."

I just shake my head, and within minutes, Brendan is asleep. However, I find that now I'm the one who can't sleep. Shanny's words echo in my head. Boyd doesn't like me, he can't. It would just be...it can't be true. It can't.

Right?

Everything old is new again, everything under the sun
All of our fears come true again...
- Barenaked Ladies, "Everything Old Is New Again"

Part 3 | Part 5