Disclaimer: I don't own the Mighty Ducks. They belong to Disney. I only own my original characters. Any movies, actors, bands or songs mentioned here are not owned by me either. I'm just using them for my enjoyment.
Author's Note: I finally broke through my block. Sorry I took so long to upload this chapter but school got in the way. I'd really love to read any feedback you guys have. This chapter is dedicated to my loyal readers/reviewers. You know who you are. I thought this might make a new little Christmas/Hanukah present, even if it's belated. Enjoy the chapter :-p
The Way Things Might've Been
Chapter Seven
The car ride over to Connie's house had been the longest twenty minutes in Adam's life. All that mattered to him was that Natalie needed him and he had to get to her.
"I'll be back guys."
"Adam," Kenny grabbed his wrist. "Do you want me to come with you?"
Adam could tell that Kenny was worried about his little sister. He knew that if the figure skater asked her out that he would make a good boyfriend.
"No, it's okay. If I have to, I'll call you on the cell."
"All right. See you in a bit."
Adam went up to the door after leaving the car. He raised his hand to the door ready to knock when Leora Duncan answered it.
"Adam, good to see you got here so fast. Did you want me to get Phoebe or Vanessa for you before you talk to Natalie?"
"I'd appreciate that Mrs. Duncan, thanks."
Leora went in search for the older Banks siblings. A couple minutes later Phoebe came into the room.
"What happened? Is she okay?"
"She's calmed down a bit. But she thinks that boys wouldn't like her. But she's more worried that certain boys think of her as nothing but 'Adam Banks' baby sister.' She won't listen to me or Nessie. That's why we called you."
"Okay, go get her for me."
Another couple of minutes passed before Natalie came upstairs.
"Adam!"
She ran straight into his arms and started crying on his shoulder.
"Calm down baby. What's the matter?"
"I'll never get a boyfriend. All the boys at school won't like me because you're my brother and the one boy I do like probably likes someone else."
"Boy? What boy? Do I know him?"
Natalie nodded in his arms.
"Is he on my team?"
Another nod came from his sister.
"Is he one of the Minnesota Ducks?"
She shook her head no.
"Is he staying with us?"
She shook it again.
"Hum. Only leaves two options. And Portman would still at home if the ceremony wasn't this week. Is it him?"
"It's Kenny. I like him a whole lot Ads. But I don't think he likes me."
"I beg to differ. I'll prove it to you."
Adam pulled out his cell phone and looked up a number in his phone book. While waiting for the line to pick up Adam put the phone on speaker and raised a finger to his lips telling his sister to be quiet.
"Hello?"
"Kenny, its Adam. I got a question for you."
"Okay. Shoot."
"What would you do if your dream girl liked you back?"
"Depends. Is this your way of officially giving me permission to date Natalie?"
She quickly put a hand over her mouth to keep herself quiet. Her eyes were doing the opposite.
"If you really want to, then yes. You officially have my blessing."
"Is she there right now?"
"Nope, she went upstairs to freshen up. Did you want to talk to her on the phone or in person?"
"I'll be inside in a minute."
"All right. I'll be waiting for you." The line went dead as both boys hung up. "You better hurry before he sees those tear marks and figures you heard him."
"Thank you Adam. I love you."
"I know you do baby. I love you too."
She ran up the stairs to wash her face and make herself look as presentable as possible. Luckily she had chosen a dark t-shirt and some sweatpants as pajamas instead of the girly ones she had at home.
'I have to remember to thank my sisters later.'
On her way back from the bathroom she checked her breath to make sure it didn't smell too bad and decided she'd ask Jeremy – whose door was open with the light on – if he had anything that could help.
"Jer, do you have any gum on you?"
"Did you have anything to do with what Bella and Abby did to me?"
"What'd they do?"
"Nevermind Banks. Even if you did have something to do with it, you're too little for me to mess with. Here."
"Thanks."
She walked back downstairs with a little grin on her face.
'For once me being a runt came in handy.'
"I'll be waiting in the car."
"I'll be out there in a few minutes."
"You get five."
"Thanks man."
"Remember. You hurt my baby, then I hurt you. Unlike Goldberg, I won't need Fulton to help me."
"You don't have to worry about me. I'll treat her right."
"You better. Good luck, she's a bit of a handful."
Kenny laughed as Adam walked out the door.
"Hi." Her voice was shy, which was a bit unusual for her. "I hope Adam didn't give you too much of a hard time. He's just not used to doing the whole protective brother thing when it comes to me and boys."
"I would hope not. I mean…sorry."
"This is weird for me too. We've been friends for the past two and a half years. And now we both like each other. It's new and different."
"But in a good way."
Natalie's face lit up.
"Yeah. So, you were gonna ask me something. Or were you gonna wait till tomorrow?"
"See, I was thinking that you and me could go on a date. Maybe see a movie? After the ceremony in a couple of days? Or maybe we could go for a smoothie tomorrow after we all go skating? Totally your pick."
"Can I think about it tonight and let you know tomorrow?"
"Sure. Sleep on it. I'll see you tomorrow. Night Nat."
"Night Ken."
She walked him to the door and raised herself on her tiptoes and pecked him on the cheek.
"See ya."
"Sweet dreams."
And then he was gone.
The next day…
Dean Portman woke up an hour earlier than usual. He was a man on a mission. And if he had his way, the Portman family would be the proud renters – and hopeful owners – of the house the Hall family used to live in.
"Hello? Uncle Joey, it's Dean calling. How are you?"
"Things are good son. How are things there?"
"I'm fine. Thank you Uncle Joey."
"And the bambina? Has she had her baby yet?"
"No sir. It's still a little early for the belly to come into the world."
"That's good. What can I do for you this fine morning?"
"Well, I'm not sure if my parents have spoken with you about Kimmy."
"They have."
"Have they mentioned that my father is getting a promotion, and one of the possible locations for his position is Minnesota?"
"Yes, that came up in the discussion. We spoke more of it this morning."
"So then you know that we need to find a house as soon as possible?"
"That would be correct."
"Good. That's really good." He said into the phone while fiddling with the hem of his shirt. "I think I found the perfect place. How soon do you think you can get the paperwork done if I can get you some pics of the place?"
"Give me the address. I'll see what I can do."
"Thanks Uncle Joey. The address is 719 Orange Lane. The folks that own it are parents of a couple of friends of mine. Let me find you their number."
"They still live there?"
"They live in New York now but had to come back this weekend for a family thing."
"Okay, give me the number."
Dean hung up with his uncle after another half hour. He called Jesse to see about getting some pictures of the house to email his uncle.
"Thanks Jesse. Tell your mom and dad that I totally appreciate it. See you in an hour. All right, later man."
"Did you get ahold of them okay? I wasn't sure they'd still be in town today."
"Nah Fult, they're leaving tonight. But they said they'd stay long enough to sign any paperwork. Uncle Joey said he'd either fly in sometime today on the shuttle or fax over the papers. The pics are in case he can't find a flight."
"Good thing Jesse's parents hadn't rented the house yet."
"Sure was. Ma said she'd call me when Dr. Ambrose gave them the okay to bring Kimmy and the belly down here."
"That's good. She still getting out today?"
"As far as I know. But if she does, they'll probably go see her Ma to talk about the possible adoption. Ma wants to make sure everything's legit before they sign anything."
"Makes sense. But considering the situation I don't think your Aunt Nadia will say no."
"I don't doubt it either. The sooner the better. But to be honest, I think they should talk to her before Kimmy gets released, without her there. If she's in the same room as Aunt Nadia, that could make more stress and counteract the medicine they gave the belly."
"Ouch. Sounds like a disaster that needs to be nipped in the bud. Maybe you should call your parents and suggest this to them before Kimmy leaves the hospital."
"I'll do that. No sense in having them undo the work the medicine did last night just over a couple of papers."
"Bella, is this outfit date worthy?"
Jenny held up a pale pink sundress.
"Were you planning on wearing that to the rink? Because I think it might be too cold."
"Point taken. What about for tomorrow? For the ceremony at Eden Hall?"
"Do you have a little sweater to go with it?"
"There's a matching little thing that goes with it that's like a shawl. But I also have this little white sweater that's like a thin cardigan."
"Let me see both of them."
As soon as Jenny held both of the items up, Isabelle pointed to one of them.
"The white. It adds contrast in color. But we need to find you something cute for today."
"Wear this top with those jeans." Tammy pulled out a pretty yellow long sleeved baby doll top. "Pair them with a rainbow colored scarf and a cropped jean jacket."
"Thank goodness you're back. I think I'd be driving Connie and Bella crazy in a couple of weeks if you hadn't come home."
"Thank the administration at Eden Hall. If it hadn't been for the scholarship they gave me, I would still be in Cali." The blonde figure skater mused. "This is one thing I missed being away from here. Don't get me wrong. I had friends there. But not like this. Not like the Ducks."
"And now that you're back, you and Fulton can pick up where you left off before you were forced to move. I remember the day you left. Poor guy looked like he wanted to cry. Probably did once he got home. Told me that he wished he'd asked you to be his girl before you left."
"I landed myself a sweetheart. He was one of the things I missed most when I was gone."
"There were a couple of girls that wanted to date him this whole time. More after they beat Iceland. But he never paid them any attention. Said his heart was in California. But don't tell him I said that. His rep as a Bash Brother would be on the line if word got out that Fulton Reed was the sappy kind."
Tammy smiled thinking of Fulton.
"I can't wait to see him. Get dressed you two so we can go already."
Bella and Jenny laughed at her.
'That's two love struck girls. Add Natty and Nessie and you have the four musketeers.' Isabelle thought.
"I'll be down in a minute." Isabella said before grabbing a jacket. "Hurry up and get dressed Jenny. Your fella might get antsy waiting for you."
"Stop it Bella. You're gonna make me blush. Should I put my hair up or leave it down?"
"Down, that way he can play with the curls when he kisses you."
"Bella!"
"Okay, okay. I'll leave you alone now. Maybe I'll go tease Nat about Kenny."
"You're mean Moreau. We need to find you a boyfriend."
The hospital wasn't too bad for a Saturday morning. The maternity ward wasn't going crazy with midnight deliveries like it was used to.
"How are you this morning Kimberly?" Dr. Ambrose asked the teenaged mother-to-be. "Any cramps?"
"No doctor. Everything seems to be fine."
"Are you telling me the truth? Or are you just trying to get me to sign off on the travel plans?"
"Trust me doc. I'd rather miss Dean's scholarship thing than put my baby at risk of being born too soon. Last night scared me enough. Can we do another ultrasound to be sure? I want to see if the baby will stop being camera shy for a minute. Maybe we should have done this before Dean left town. I know he thinks that's the reason behind it."
Both women laughed until Kimmy grabbed at her stomach.
"Whoa. Easy there kiddo. We're not making fun of you."
"So do you think you've got another enforcer in there or a center?"
"I don't think this kid will be using a hockey stick Doc Ambrose. More than likely it'll be kicking a field goal or kicking the ball into a soccer net."
Dr. Ambrose got the ultrasound equipment set up as the two talked about the baby.
"Okay, let's see what we got. Looks like someone's sucking their thumb. Do you want a 3-D picture of this for the book."
"Sure. Any pictures we can get are good."
"All right. Let's see if we can get a better view. Nope, baby turned at the last second. This is one smart kid."
"Should be. After all, it's mother is smart as well as beautiful."
"What are you doing here Sean?"
"I came to see the mother of my child."
"You said this wasn't your kid. Forget the fact that you were the only one I was ever with!"
A loud beeping sound caught the attention of the OB/GYN. The alarmed look on her face didn't go unnoticed by Kimmy although Sean didn't catch it.
"I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
"But I'm the father."
"I don't care young man. I'll call for security if I have to."
"Fine." Sean said. "I'll go. But I'll be back later."
The door closed after him.
"What's wrong doctor? Is my baby okay?"
"Yes and no. It seems the baby gets distressed at the sound of his voice. Did you speak with him at all last night?"
"Yeah, he came to the window last night a little bit after I went to bed. But my baby wouldn't let me get any rest. Like it was telling me something was wrong. Then once the baby got settled after I spoke with my aunt and uncle I went back to sleep. It was after a while that I had the premature labor pains."
"Just as I thought. I need to speak with your guardians. In the meantime, I'm putting you on bed rest. No running around. If you go anywhere, you are to be sitting down. I only want you on your feet to get out of a car or to go to the bathroom. You'll need to be in a wheelchair for a few weeks as part of the bed rest so you don't get stir crazy. When will your guardians be back?"
"They said they'd be back in an hour or two. That was half an hour ago. I don't want you-know-who coming near me if it affects my baby."
"Don't worry, I'll let security know that he's not allowed in the hospital. We'll change your room number and put you under another name in case he gets through."
"Thank you Doctor Ambrose. Can you call Dean in Minnesota? I don't want him calling the hospital and not be able to get through."
"Don't worry. As soon as I get you settled he'll be the first person I call after Lorelai and Angelo. We'll take care of things. For now, I'm going to give you some medicine to help in case any labor pains come up again."
"Thank you again Doctor Ambrose. I can't tell you how much this means to me."
"Don't mention it sweetie. In the meantime, do you have a preference on the name I put in the computer?"
"Actually, I do. Dean's best friend's last name is Reed. The first name might be a problem."
"Well, is there an actress whose name you like or maybe a TV character?"
"I always thought Natalie Woods was very pretty. She was in 'West Side Story'. And that's my favorite movie."
"So do you want me to put Natalie in the computer or Maria?"
"Natalie. Natalie Reed has a nice ring to it."
"It sure does." The doctor noted as she wrote something down on her chart. "I'll let your family know when I talk to them."
"Okay. Thank you again Doctor Ambrose."
Angelo Portman was standing on a doorstep he hoped he wouldn't have to since that day four or five months ago. Lorelai was nervously standing by his side.
"Now or never. Twenty minutes sitting in a car just to stand here looking like idiots for not knocking."
"I'm ready if you are Lore."
She nodded her head. He raised his hand and finally knocked.
"What do you want?" asked the annoyed voice of Nadia Giambetti as she saw her sister Lorelai at her door. "My no good tramp of an ex-daughter finally come to her senses and get rid of that little bastard she's carrying in her gut?"
"No Nadia. Kimmy's fine. So is the baby. We came to talk to you about something else."
"You might be happy about this." Angelo started. "Or you might be angry about this. Depend on how you feel about Kimmy."
"Speak your business and be done with it."
"Fine Nadia." Angelo said. "Lorelai and me love that girl like our own."
"You shouldn't." his sister-in-law interrupted. "She brought shame to this family the moment she decided to open her legs for that goodfornuttin little bastard."
"Like I was saying," he started again. "we love her like our own. We wanna make her our kid. Officially."
"Where do I sign?"
Lorelai was surprised at her sister's reaction.
"You don't care? You don't want to argue? Fine! Sign right here."
She shoved the papers in front of her sister.
"Good riddance. You shoulda brought these papers to me sooner. As soon as you took her in." She made sure that every necessary line had her signature.
"There. While you're here, I might as well give you all the stuff you need as her new parents. Birth certificate, school records. It's all there. Even medical records. Take 'em to Joey so he can fix 'em for you with the brat's new name. She was always more like you anyway Lorelai. I'll make sure the rest of her junk is packed and have Joey's boys come pick it up."
"You don't have to do that. I'll do it myself. After I talk to Kimmy, see what she wants to keep."
"Fine. Just call me before you come over."
"Good-bye little sister. I'll be seeing you."
"You're finally doing right by her, Nad. You're doing a good thing here. Thank you for the papers."
"Good-bye Portman. Yous two better treat her right."
"We have been. And we always will."
After leaving Nadia's house, the Portmans went home to get something to eat and some clothes for Kimmy. They'd been at the hospital all night with the girl and were tired.
"All we need now is for our girl to accept then we can have Joey file the paperwork. At least she said yes to the move. The doctor gave me a couple of names of possible OB/GYN's down there that would be willing to take her on as a new patient."
They were interrupted by the phone ringing.
"Hello?"
"Mrs. Portman? This is Dr. Ambrose over at Northwestern Medical Center. We need to speak about something regarding Kimberly and her baby. How fast can you get a restraining order on the biological father?"
"That putz Sean was there? Is Kimmy okay?"
"The baby went into mild distress which has gone down. I've discussed bed rest with Kimberly. For right now, I'm trying to get her room changed while we still monitor her and the baby. As soon as the new room is ready I'll have her registered under a different name for security purposes."
"Thank you for letting us know. We're on our way right now. We'll contact my brother Joey. He's the family attorney."
"Very well, we'll be waiting for you."
"Thank you again Dr. Ambrose. For everything."
The summer sun was shining brightly in Minnesota. The air was crisp. You could tell that summer was almost gone by the smell of it.
A group of teenagers were heading towards the local skating rink. It was clear by the looks on their faces that they were having a good time, enjoying the end of summer.
"I can't believe we all have school in a week or two." Lucas Bombay said. "But what I really can't believe is that we're going to some preppy school."
"Cheer up bro." Charlie said. "As long as we all stick together it'll be all right."
"Luc, if it'll make you feel better I'll give you a piggy back ride the rest of the way."
Lucas looked at his sister.
"Thanks Abby. As fun as that might be, I'll pass on it."
"Fine. Then give me one since you're too chicken."
"Sisters. Can't live with them. Can't live without them."
"I heard that Luc." Abby said as she jumped on her brother's back. "Now giddy up horsey."
The two siblings heard their brother and friends laughing at them.
"Aww. They look so cute. I'm jealous."
"Of what? The brother part or the piggy back part?"
"Both, but mostly the brother part."
"Julie, I'm sorry. I forget sometimes that you don't have any brothers or sisters."
"It's okay. At least I have the Ducks." She said. "When I'm on the ice I'm home. You guys are my brothers and sisters. And I wouldn't have it any other way. Most days."
She said that last part so low that no one caught it. Or so she thought.
"Cat lady, I don't have any sisters either. If you want, you can be mine and Ryan's."
Julie smiled as she looked up at Fulton.
"You mean that Fult? You want me to be your sister?"
"Yeah. I always wanted one. Plus I'm pretty sure the other guys are tired of me stealing theirs." He said playfully. "This way when guys ask you out or try to mess with ya you can tell them they'll have to deal with your brothers."
She hugged him so hard that they fell over. Both of them were laughing when Ryan tried to pull them both up and they pulled him down instead.
"All right Gaffney. Quit roughing up my boyfriend. Although the thought of Fult with a little sister is adorable." Tammy saw the blush that came over Fulton's face. "Aren't you just a big old teddy bear?" she asked him while putting her arms around his waist. "You're just too cute when you blush. Isn't he Jules?"
"My brother sure is Tams." The goalie said pinching his cheek. "Just a big squishy teddy bear."
"A little help here fellas?"
"I gotchya bro."
Portman came to his rescue by grabbing Julie and putting her over his shoulder.
"Dean! Put me down!"
"Or what Gaffney?"
"Or I'll call Kimmy in Chi-town so she can come beat you up."
Portman laughed at Julie's comment.
"I'd like to see her try. She wouldn't do it though."
"And why is that?" Connie asked coming up beside them. "Is it because of 'the belly' or because she's a girl?"
"Neither Cons. It's cause she'd rather eat my famous garlic bread then beat up her favorite brother."
"Cousin." Someone corrected him.
"Brother, if she tells Ma and Pa yes."
"Is she doing better?" Ryan asked. "I wasn't sure if you talked to your folks this morning or not."
"Yeah Ry. So much that she's probably coming tomorrow if the doc signs off on it."
"Cool bro. That's really great news."
Just then Dean's phone started ringing to 'That's Amore' which was set for his mom.
"Hi Ma. How's it going?"
"Dean, honey things are fine. Just calling to give you an update."
"Oh okay. Hold on a second." He put the phone to his shoulder. "Go on ahead of me. I'll catch up in a minute. Okay Ma, I'm back."
"Kimmy's room has been changed."
"But I thought she was getting out this morning."
"She'll be getting out later today. If the doctor gives her the okay then we'll be leaving some time tonight. They're running some tests right now. I wanted to let you know in case you call the hospital. Oh and if you do call don't ask for Kimberly Giambetti."
"Why not Ma?"
"We don't want certain people trying to get information on her room so she's in the computer under a different name."
"You mean he found out she was in the hospital? Did he show up there?"
"Yes. He must've been waiting for me and your father to leave before going to see her. So now we're getting your Uncle Joey to file a restraining order."
"Bout time. What made ya do that?"
"Try not to get too angry."
"What did he do?"
"The baby went into distress. But everything is calm now. That's why they're running tests."
"Mutta fucking son of a bitch!"
"DEAN PORTMAN! Watch your language young man."
"I'm sorry Ma. Are Kimmy and the belly okay?"
"Yeah, for now. Anyway, when you call, ask for Natalie Reed."
"Let me guess. The chick from 'West Side Story' and my best friend's last name?"
"You know her too well. But yes. Doctor Ambrose was going to call you for Kimmy after she talked to us but she had a delivery to attend to. I'll have to let you go. I see your uncle coming down the hall. I love you."
"Love you too Ma. Say hi to everyone for me. I'll see you tomorrow."
"All right. Say hello to your friends for me."
"I will. Bye Ma."
"So are we gonna go pound some kid's head in after the ceremony tomorrow?"
"Nah man. The parentals are taking care of it."
"Let me guess. Uncle Joey?"
"Exactly. I'm pretty sure he'll fast track the order. Considering there's an unborn child that's at risk. I'm hopeful the judge will allow it."
"If not, I'm sure I can get my dad to help." Adam said. "I don't remember if he ever had any family law cases. But I'm sure he might know somebody that can look into it if he can't."
"Thanks Cake-eater. I appreciate that."
"Okay," Charlie cut in. "enough moping around. Let's go have some fun. Cause tomorrow we all have to be around a bunch of stuffy preps. Present company excluded."
"Thanks Charlie." The Banks siblings said in unison. "We love you too Captain Duck."
Everyone laughed and went inside the rink.
An hour had passed as everyone was hanging out on the ice.
"Hey Tammy, show me that spin again? I wanna see if I can do it."
"Abby if you try it you'll fall on your butt again."
"No I won't Lucas. You're just jealous because I was able to pick up on the Lutz and you weren't."
"No I wasn't. And to show you, I'll try to do the Lutz again."
The two had been at it for twenty minutes until the figure skater said something that caught their attention.
"See baby, this is why I'm thinking of quitting."
"WHAT?"
Tammy's slip of the tongue surprised everyone minus her little brother and Fulton. Tommy had been the one to encourage Tammy to think long and hard about whether or not she still wanted to play two sports or choose hockey full-time over skating. Fulton had just been a sounding board although he did promise to keep her secret until she had made up her mind.
"Don't get me wrong everyone. I love to skate, but lately my heart just hasn't been 100 percent into it. But hockey is another story."
"Yeah. I can't get her off the ice long enough for her to sleep or eat."
"To be fair little brother, it's all your fault."
"How so sis?"
"You made me play to get you to keep skating with me. I never did thank you for that."
"In that case, you're welcome."
Tammy let out a little chuckle as she grabbed Tommy into a bear hug.
"What am I gonna do without you Tommy?"
"I should be asking you the same thing. I love you Tams."
"I love you too baby brother."
Author's Note: All rightie folks. That's it for this chapter. Let me know what you think. Oh, please check out my poll. I hope ya'll liked this chapter. If not, then tell me anyway. Nite people ;-p
