It was the clock, ticking so very loudly in the waiting room of the almost empty hospital. A worried mother sat with her young son, anxious of the events. Casey Conway's brother was in a car wreck, along with his wife and small daughter. Casey was close to her brother. He helped her and her son through the troubled times when her husband first left. Charlie sat by his mother, staring at his dirty sneakers. He too had been close to Calvin Conway. Life felt so unfair at that moment. Two great people died, leaving a girl orphaned. She was only eight, still practically a baby to Charlie, even though he was only three years older than her. Charlie took care of his little cousin. He taught her everything. Her name was Cooper Beth Conway; however, most people just called her 'Cooper-Bee' or just Cooper. She was short and had long, caramel hair. Her eyes were blue and always wide with curiosity. She loved to learn. Cooper always looked up to Charlie as an older brother. He babysat her often, and when he did, he'd take her to the duck pond. Of course, he'd hit around a few pucks here and there, but the majority of the time was him teaching his small cousin how to balance herself on the ice. He loved his little cousin, and hoped one day, she'd play hockey, just like him.

With a snap back to reality, a nurse came and escorted the Conways back to Cooper's room. Charlie chewed his lip nervously. He was indeed nervous for his cousin's well being. Well, he knew that his mom would end up taking her in... He was just worried about her health. They opened the door to the room and there she laid. The little girl was tucked under the covers of the bed, her left leg stuck out and in a huge, metal brace. Cooper's left leg had been mangled in the accident. Her hair was all in her face, yet she was sleeping peacefully. Casey went up to her first and pushed her hair aside. She nervously kissed the girl's head, before turning back to Charlie. "Charlie, sit with Cooper for a moment. I need to speak with her doctor." With that, his mother left. Charlie sighed and dragged a chair to her bed side. He plopped down in it and grabbed her hand into his, being sure to be gentle. Charlie bowed his head, soft coughs echoing his chapped lips. He couldn't believe what all was going on. Two hours ago, he was just horsing around with the local kids at the duck pond. They all had a few months before they could all play in the pee-wee league of hockey, so they were all practicing and enjoying the weather. The last place he thought he'd be was the hospital. In a brisk moment, he let his eyes look up to his cousin's face, her blue eyes barely open and staring at his.

"Hey... Hey, Coops... How ya feeling?" He asked, plastering a fake smile on his face. Cooper stared at him for a moment or two, before closing her eyes.

"Charlie, can we go ice skating?"

It had been almost three months since the accident. Everything had calmed down. Cooper adjusted almost perfectly to the changes. It was rough the first few nights when she came home from the hospital. She missed her mother and father, and the house they lived in. Now, Cooper talked about her mother and father almost rarely. She walked with a limp now. It was very noticeable; however, her skating was perfect. Cooper enjoyed playing hockey now. All of Charlie's friends liked her playing too, and they made sure to not be rough. After all, she was the practical baby of the group. Cooper glided the ice with a delicate manner, letting her caramel wisps blow in the breeze behind her. The top of her head was covered in one of Charlie's baseball hats, the bill facing backwards. She loved wearing Charlie's clothes. They made her feel secure. Charlie didn't mind either. He actually enjoyed having Cooper around all the time, even if she got on his nerves a little bit. All girls were at that age. Charlie sure did love her and that was for for sure.

Cooper rounded the corner of the pond, her small hockey stick gliding the puck gently. She faked it once, then twice, before knocking it right into the goal, right under Goldberg. A large smile appeared on her baby face as she skated right up to Charlie and hugged onto him.

"Did ya see that, Charlie? I gots it in the goal!" She exclaimed cutely. Charlie just chuckled and lifted her a little.

"Good job, Coop. That was clean."

Cooper smiled widely and bounced softly. Suddenly, a nice, black limousine pulled up onto the snowy bank of the pond. The team huddled together, Charlie's hands firmly grabbing on Cooper's shoulders and pulling her to himself. Cooper, having the attention span of a small goldfish, zoned out after a man walked up in a large trench coat. Soon enough, the team was scrimmaging against each other. Cooper was playing Ace, as usual. The reason she was so good at it was because she was little. She was short and could maneuver her way around the big kids. It was a clean sweep and the puck slid right under Goldberg's leg. Feeling proud, Cooper giggled a little, before noticing the older kids on the team dropping their gear and going over to the car, beating and rocking it. Being the well behaved one, Cooper just watched. She was good and she knew right from wrong. Snow trickled down on the little girl's head. She liked snow. With a slight hiccup, she stuck out her tongue and caught a few of the small pieces, before following the rest of the team inside the limo. Cooper ended up on Bombay's lap, staring up at him curiously. He just kinda stared back, his heart practically melting in cuteness. Suddenly, a smell filled the car, causing Cooper to gag helplessly. Bombay, scared she was going to get sick, pushed her onto Averman, who just yelped.

"Awe man, it's my mom! And she looks pissed!" Charlie exclaimed loudly, silencing everyone in the car. Within moments, Casey was yelling at Bombay, Cooper and Charlie just watching. Charlie knew his mother was very, very protective of him and his little cousin. They were all she had. After apologizing, the Conway kids and their guardian started walking to their home, which was just a pathetic apartment complex five minutes up the road. Cooper was struggling, like she always was. She never could manage to trudge herself all the way up the hill, do to her having a weak leg, so Cooper always just paused to take breaths. Charlie and Casey just knew to walk a little slower now that they had Cooper. After about a third of the way up, like always, Cooper would end up being carried the rest of the way to the apartment. Casey scooped the girl up in her arms swiftly and hurriedly made her way to the second story apartment, Charlie following shortly behind.

"Charlie, I'm going to start on dinner. Do you mind getting her out of those clothes and into some dry ones?"

She asked this question every night. Charlie always did. He grabbed the young girl's hand and pulled her lightly to the room they shared. It was always messy, because neither of them enjoyed cleaning. Instead of just making her take off everything one at a time, Charlie, being an absolute pro, now just simple laid her down and pulled off everything. It was a lot quicker than him trying to get everything off with her standing up. Cooper always obeyed. She listened to Charlie, and thought of him as her authority figure. Soon enough, Charlie managed to get everything off, including the old ball cap.

"What do you wanna wear tonight, Coop? I dunno what of your pajamas are clean, but you can wear them dirty." He shrugged, going over to her side of the closet. Cooper sat up on the bed, in which they shared, and whimpered. It sounded so pitiful.

"Charlie?"

Charlie turned and walked back instantly, knowing something was wrong if she ever sounded like that. He was an expert on Cooper. He knew everything about her, mainly because he had been taking care of her. Just that sound of pathetic mumbling sent Charlie into a protective mode. He sat on the bed next to her body and threw an arm lightly over her shoulders.

"What? What is it? Is it your leg?" He asked quietly. Cooper sniffled a little, before answering.

"Can... Can I wear... Your old one?" She pointed to the jersey he was wearing. With a sigh, he nodded. Once again, Charlie's clothes made Cooper feel safe. They helped tone down her anxiety. Charlie hopped off the bed and went to his side of the closet, pulling out his very old "Youngblood" jersey. It was still big on him, and it completely swallowed Cooper, but if it stopped her from having a fit, Charlie didn't care.

"Arms up, kiddo." He stated. Cooper raised up her thin arms and Charlie slid the oversized jersey onto her body. Cooper then hopped off the bed and giggled.

"There's a game tomorrow! I wanna be a starter! Can I be a starter, Charlie?"

He chuckled and rubbed the top of her hair.

"It's whatever the new coach thinks. If I were the coach, I'd put you on starter."

Cooper nodded a little, before sniffling.

"Kids! Dinner!" Casey exclaimed from the kitchen. She set the table neatly, before filling all the plates up with the various items for dinner. Tonight, they were having Salisbury steak, with mashed potatoes and green beans. They had this meal about once a week, because it was cheap and everyone ate it. Leftovers also lasted for days. The kids entered the room. Casey giggled softly when she saw Cooper in Charlie's old jersey and lifted the little girl up into her arms.

"What're you doing wearing that old thing? You have tons of cute pajamas. I should know, I wash them."

Casey set Cooper in her usual chair. The chair she sat in had a booster seat in it, since the eight year old was so small. Charlie took his seat at the end of the table, and Casey sat in her seat across from Cooper, everyone digging into their dinners.

"How was work, mom?" Charlie asked, his mouth chomping on green beans.

Casey sighed, "Busy. Like always. How was school today?"

The Conway kids both shrugged. Charlie was in the sixth grade, taking all honors courses. He was very smart for his age. He enjoyed science and math, and the daily recess game of street hockey with his friends. Charlie liked school fine, but he'd rather be on the ice. Cooper was in the second grade and because of the trauma from the wreck, she was put in the alternate class, full of the kids who needed certain attention. Her day at school was spent coloring and playing with play-doh, and once a week, a therapy dog would come in. Cooper liked it okay, but she wished she could see Charlie during the day. Sometimes, she'd get to see him. They'd pass each other in the hallway or even see one another at assemblies.

"I gots ta watch a movie today." Cooper stated, her fork struggling to stab a bite of steak. Charlie chuckled and leaned over to help her get the piece of meat onto the fork.

"What movie?" Casey asked, her eyes glancing up to the little girl.

"A Snoopy One!" She exclaimed loudly. Cooper liked watching 'The Peanuts Gang'. It was one of her favorites.

"I remembers when Momma and Daddy watched it with me!"

Suddenly, the room silenced. Casey's hands shook for a brief moment, before tears began to spill from her eyes. With that, the single mother left the room. Charlie sighed and stood up, losing his appetite.

"Finish up so we can go to bed, Cooper." Cooper obeyed, before yawning. She always got so tired at around eight or so. Just by noticing the girl's tired expressions, Charlie just lifted her up into his arms. He wasn't built at all, but Cooper was tiny. Anyone could carry her if they really wanted to. He navigated through the messy living room. It always had things in the floor, mainly the kids' backpacks and hockey gear. Charlie bounced her just a bit in his arms, before entering their bedroom. It was fairly dark outside, the setting sun the only light filling the room. With ease, he gently tossed his cousin onto the bed, before turning on the bedside lamp. Cooper relaxed on her bed as Charlie tucked her in the thick comforters.

"Charlie? Can we go the rink early? I gots ta practice my hits."

With another sigh, he nodded.

"You need to go to sleep, okay? It's getting late and you have to be well rested, kid. Lay down and go to sleep."

Cooper sighed softly, mimicking her cousin, and rested back, before yawning again.

"You have to promise me something though, Cooper."

"What, Charlie?"

"If your leg starts hurting, you tell me right away, okay?"

The younger Conway nodded obediently, and proceeded to close her eyes, "Goodnight, Charlie."

"Goodnight, Cooper."

Once he realized that she was settling down, Charlie turned and changed into sleeping clothes, before turning off the light and going to bed.