Garry sat beside the women's bed holding her hand. His brothers and sisters had always come to visit, but he stayed the longest. Even when they dragged him off to bed, he snuck back just to see her, and she let him stay. She started coughing, and he quickly stood up. "Mom! Do you need water? I'll go get you something to drink right-"

She gripped his hand and giggled. "I'm fine Garry. It was just a cough." She said trying to calm her son. "If I need anything, I'll be sure to ask."

Garry didn't look very satisfied, but he sat down anyway. "Promise?" He asked. He knew how she liked to act tough, and he didn't want her trying to push herself.

She nodded. "I promise." She said amused at how protective he was. Ever since she'd gotten sick he'd hovered over her like a hawk. "Stop worrying about me. I'm the parent here, remember? So, how was school today Gar? I heard you had a game. Did you win?" She asked curiously.

He frowned. "We crushed them."

She could see the disappointment in his eyes. She had missed the last couple of games he'd gone too, but according to Gideon he was still just going through the motions. "Did you go out with your team? Celebrate?"

"No." He said looking even sadder. "I don't… I don't think they like me very much. The coach always makes them pass me the ball, and I think their mad about it."

She pouted. "Humph! I don't care what your coach says. Don't you be a ball hog. Your teammates are there for you to rely on. If he has a problem with it, tell him to take it up with your mama." She said pumping her fist.

He sighed. "Okay, but I don't think it'll help. They still just don't like playing with me. I heard some kids saying it wasn't even fair I was on the team. This stinks. I already hate I can't find anyone to play with, and now other people hate it too? Why am I still playing?"

"Because you love basketball." She said simply. "C'mon Garry. I know you're having a rough time, but it'll get better. There was a time when I thought nobody could beat me either. Then I met your father." She said patting him on the head.

"He's a Gumball." Garry said. "We're all good at everything. If the only hope I have someone in the family, I may as well give up now."

She flicked his forehead. "Hey, hey, I told you not to be arrogant. Besides, for all you know your new sister could end up being ten times better than you." She said rubbing her stomach.

He looked down at her stomach. "I hope so…"

"Garry, the world is a big place. You'll find someone who's as good as you. Maybe even better."

He scoffed. Someone better than him? "I'd love to see that…"

Candlehead smiled as she dribbled to the left. Garry followed after her, a smile of his own. She moved forward and rushed past him, but he quickly caught up. Candlehead kept trying to dribble around him, but Garry followed her step for step. She kept running down the court and moved around Gloyd, who was too stunned by the two to even move.

In the second Garry had to move around her teammate, she jumped up and went for a dunk. Just as she was about to slam the ball in, Garry leapt up and slapped it away. The ball went flying towards Patrick who caught it. He looked totally confused. What we he supposed to do? Go for the hoop?

Garry started running down the court, and Candlehead ran after him. Patrick threw the ball down the court towards Garry, just before Swizzle could knock it from his hands. Garry caught the ball and quickly made his way to the hoop. He brought his hand back and flicked the ball, but Candlehead jumped forward and smacked it down.

The ball went flying into the stands, and Rancis had to duck to avoid being hit. He sat back up and scowled. "Why is everyone always trying to hit me in the head with the ball?!" He snapped.

The next play Garry made his way towards Candlehead with a smirk. "Ha-ha! I can't even remember how long it's been since I really got to play! I hope you can keep up!" He said rushing forward.

Candlehead looked just as happy. "Good to see you're finally having fun! I'm having a blast too!" She said running beside him. "This is the first time I've really wanted to win something! It feels so weird! But I really want to win!"

Garry laughed. "Amusing! But as good as you are, I have no intentions of losing!" He said before jumping up and flicking the ball at the hoop. It hit the backboard and went in. He landed and turned towards her. "I'm a Gumball after all…"

Candlehead got the ball back and ran down the court. "I'm not a Gumball! I'm a Heat!" She said as Garry cut her off. "But I don't plan on losing either!" She said jumping up as high as she could. Garry looked surprised as she shot a jumper. It sailed through the air and went through the hoop.

Garry looked at the sight stunned for a few seconds, and then laughed. "Yeah, that's right, don't make it easy." He said running his hands through his hair. "Let's do this!"

The next few plays were just them going back and forth. They matched each other step for step, shot for shot, dunk for dunk. When Garry shot a three, so did she. And when Candlehead dunked the ball, he answered right back with one of his own.

The score, which had been relatively low before, was suddenly shooting up. It was now 64-40, and it was only getting higher. "Man, I can't believe it. They're really going at it." Minty said.

"Seriously. There's no way those two are high school level players." Tea said.

Larry watched as Candlehead jumped up and slammed the ball with both hands. She hung off the hoop for a few seconds before dropping down, and immediately got ready to defend. "I must admit, I'm surprised she has what it takes to push Garry. But I'm afraid it may still be a lost cause. Simply matching him will only keep the score even. They need to beat him."

Garry scored once again and Cindy couldn't help but smile. It'd been such a long time since he looked happy to play basketball. So long since he'd had fun. Sydney looked just as pleased. But as happy as he was for his friend, he was still on Candlehead's team. And he wanted to win.

Candlehead moved down the court towards Garry and he spread his arms ready to block her. "Candlehead!" She glanced over and then saw Sydney behind her. Beezy looked surprised. Everyone had been so into Garry and Candlehead's one on one, they'd pretty much forgotten they were in the game.

The green haired girl bounced the ball back towards Sydney who quickly shot the ball and scored a three. "Nice!" Candlehead said running over and high fiving him.

Garry looked at the two in shock. "W-what the heck was that?!"

"I passed." Candlehead said simply.

"I can see that you passed, by why?! You could have scored yourself!"

"But it's easier with teammates."

Garry gritted his teeth. "You… why would you rely on a team when you can do it yourself? It doesn't make any sense?" He said genuinely confused. "I don't get it."

The others stood beside Candlehead. "Then we'll just have to show you." She said smiling.

Garry once again went to block Candlehead. She jumped up to shoot the ball, and Garry jumped up to block her, but then she suddenly threw it to the side. Gloyd ran by and caught the ball. Manny scowled. Gloyd was way too quick for him. Garry quickly ran over as Gloyd prepare to shoot, but the brown haired boy suddenly threw it at the basket.

Candlehead jumped up and slammed it in the hoop. Garry turned back with an annoyed look on his face. What was he thinking? He couldn't risk taking his eyes off Candlehead, not even for a moment.

On the next play, Garry rushed down the court. So what if she was suddenly using her teammates. He could score all by himself. Candlehead cut him off and he got ready to move around her. She managed to keep up and he smirked. Her reflexes were good, but he was still faster. She wouldn't be able to keep up with him for-

"Garry! Behind you!" The ball was suddenly knocked from his hands. He looked back and saw Swizzle behind him. When had he snuck up behind him? Had he really been so focused on her that he didn't notice him?

Candlehead caught the ball and started dribbling down the court. He quickly went after her, but right as he was catching up, she threw the ball behind her. Dough caught it and smiled. "Thank you!" Garry growled and turned to stop him, but Candlehead blocked his way as Dough ran by and scored with a layup.

"Nice one!" Candlehead cheered.

Garry couldn't believe this. Dough? Dough of all people scored? What was going on here? "Hey, ball hog." He turned and saw Jimmy scowling at him. "If their double teaming you, pass the freaking ball." He said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Me and Patrick were totally open. You could have-"

"I don't need to pass." Garry said annoyed. "I can score myself."

Beezy looked concerned. "Garry, we know your good, but even you admitted Candlehead was skilled. Even if you can take her by yourself, the entire team is-"

"Is nothing. I'll still win. I'm a Gumball." Being a Gumball meant being born a victor. Winning was as easy as breathing to them. So things were getting hairy, he'd pull through. He didn't need any help.

Garry stared at the table with a dead look in his eyes. The rest of his family sat around him, all looking tense. Though no one looked as bad as he did. No one said anything. There were no lively conversations about school, no food flinging, and no laughing. The only sound that could be heard were the cries of the baby.

He gripped his fork. Sister or not, he had a hard time looking at her. She looked just like their mother. Those bright pink eyes and cotton candy like hair, all they did was keep reminding him of her.

"So Garry, how was school today?" His father asked. He didn't answer. He just kept jabbing his food with his fork. His father sighed. "Garry, you're too old for me to tell you not to play with your food."

"Then don't tell me…" He muttered. His father scowled, but let it go. After the week he'd had he couldn't blame the boy for being irritable. "I'm quitting the basketball team."

Everyone suddenly stopped. "What?" His eldest sister said in disbelief. "But Garry, you love basketball?! Why would you suddenly want to quit?!"

"Suddenly? I thought it was obvious I've wanted to quit for a while now." Garry said bluntly.

One of his brothers growled. "Are you kidding me?! You snot nosed little brat! Didn't you promise her that you'd keep at it?! Now that she's gone you're just going to go back on it?!"

Garry glared at him. "She promised she'd get better. But that obviously didn't happen. So we're both liars. She broke her promise, I should get to break mine."

"You little-!"

Before his brother could charge at him, his father raised a hand. "Calm down Gimlet. Your brother is obviously in a very delicate state right now. He's saying things he doesn't-"

"I mean every word." Garry said getting up. "I'm done with basketball, and I'm done pretending like we're some happy little family. The only thing that held any of us together, that let us tolerate each other, was her. And she's gone."

He turned to leave, but felt a hand on his shoulder. And turned and glared at the person.

Gideon.

"Garry. We all understand the pain you're going through. She was a mother to all of us. But isolating yourself is not the answer. If you'd just let us-"

"Don't offer me any help." He said shaking his hand off. "I don't need help…"

Garry rushed towards the hoop. Gloyd and Swizzle stepped in his way. Manny and Patrick were both open, and both looked ready to receive a pass. Garry scowled. Did they think he needed help? He jumped back to go for a fade away, but the ball was slapped from his hands. The others cheered as Candlehead passed it to Sydney.

They quickly made their way down the court, and Dough shot the ball into the hoop. Garry looked furious. He didn't get it. He didn't get any of this?! Why was she passing the ball? She didn't need them. She was so much stronger than them. So weren't they supposed to be holding her back?

He felt shove from his side and turned to see Manny. "What the heck?! I was open! We could have gone for a three! C'mon Garry!"

"I… I don't need help." He said looking down at the ground.

Jimmy grabbed the front of his shirt and yanked him forward. "How is it that the ones who play one on one sports are more willing to work together than the guy who excels at a team sport?!" He said lifting him off his feet. "Look at the freaking score Garry! Their only five points behind!"

Garry glanced at the scoreboard. Sure enough, it was 70 to 65. "I didn't care what you were doing earlier cause we were winning! But you keep playing like this and they're going to catch up and pass us!"

The two white haired boys stared each other down. Garry suddenly shoved him away. He turned and walked towards the other side of the court. "Just… don't get in my way."

Jimmy looked just about ready to charge at him, but Beezy held him back. "Calm down Jimmy. If he's not going to work with us, we'll just have to play tighter defense."

"Bah!"

Garry got the ball and dribbled down the court, determined to score. Candlehead was standing in his way just like before. He knew he could get past her. He just needed to be faster. He just needed… he glanced back and saw Gloyd coming up from behind. He scowled. He could get past Candlehead. He could outmaneuver Gloyd. But he couldn't do both. Not at the same time.

An angry scowl made its way onto his face. "Fine…" Garry moved forward and looked like he was going to try and speed past Candlehead, but suddenly he threw the ball to the side.

"What?!" Gloyd said shocked. Manny looked surprised, but reached up and caught the ball. Before anyone could every think to move towards him, he quickly shot a three and scored.

"Wow… he passed." Vanellope said surprised.

Cindy and Sydney both looked stunned. They shared a glance. Had Garry really just… let someone else score? Gumballs were all arrogant. They loved doing things themselves. But out of all of them, Garry was the most stubborn. So to see him rely on someone else to score, it was shocking.

Garry grunted. "Stop standing there shell shocked. We're on defense." He said running back. "And Manny…" He called as he ran past him. "Nice shot."

Manny's eyes widened. "Uh… thanks?" He said confused.

Swizzle tilted his head. "Huh? So he's passing now?"

Candlehead smiled. "Now we really have a game going. C'mon guys! This is going to be a blast!" She said running forward.

Garry had once again managed to get the ball. He rushed forward before throwing the ball over to Jimmy. "Nice one Gumball!" Jimmy said catching the ball. Dough tried to stop him, but he jumped up and dunked the ball.

Candlehead smiled as she headed towards the hoop. She threw the ball behind her to Sydney and then jumped up towards the hoop. Sydney quickly threw the ball up towards her, and she caught it behind her head. She slammed the ball in with both hands. "Yeah!"

Beezy moved forward towards the hoop, but Sydney got in her way. She smiled and kept moving, and when he tried to catch up he crashed into Jimmy. "A screen?" Jimmy smirked as Beezy kept going and made a layup.

"Wow, this is really… fun." Vanellope said. Both teams were playing so well. The game was moving so fast. It was exciting. Like she was watching a real basketball game. "C'mon Gloyd, you can do it!" She yelled.

"Go for it Jimmy!" Crumbelina cheered.

"Dunk on em again Candlehead!" Rancis shouted.

The score was almost even. 78-76. Cindy looked at the clock. There was less than half a minute left. Swizzle also noticed and frowned. "Game's almost over guys, its due or die."

Candlehead who had the ball looked surprised. She turned back to the basket. "I got it!" She said dribbling forward. Patrick and Manny both stepped forward to block her, but she easily slipped past them. She jumped up and for ready to dunk.

"No way!" The green haired girl looked surprised as Garry suddenly jumped in front of her. "I'm not going to lose! No way!" He shouted reaching up to block her.

Candlehead frowned. She'd crash into him before she got high enough to dunk the ball. She lifted her arms and Garry got ready to smack the ball away, but to his surprise she threw it behind her. "What the-?!"

The ball flew back towards Dough, who had been following behind her the whole time. Garry gritted his teeth. He hadn't noticed Dough running behind her. He'd been so focused on stopping her. Dough smiled as he reached out to grab the ball, but right before he caught it another hand slapped it away. "Nice try." Jimmy said scowling.

The ball bounced away, and the clock counted down the zero. Cindy blew her whistle. "Game's over. Garry's team wins." She said waving her hand towards the white haired boy's team.

Garry stood looking surprised, while Candlehead just sighed. "Aw man, I thought we had you for a second. Oh well, It was a good game, right?"

He kept staring for a few more seconds before suddenly feeling an arm around his neck. "Not bad Gumball! I didn't take you for an athlete in any form! But you ain't half bad!" Jimmy said chuckling.

"Nice one fearless leader." Manny jabbed his arm, and Beezy and Patrick both smiled and patted him on the back.

Garry looked around at them surprised, but then scoffed. "Good game? Hmph, of course it was. I was playing in it. There was no question it'd be a good game." He said turning to leave. "With that being said, I've proven my point, and I'm leaving."

Swizzle frowned. "Wow, what a freaking jerk. Even after all that he's still as arrogant as ever."

Sydney and Candlehead however were both smiling. "Well, he's still arrogant as ever, but I think this is more about pride. He's just too stubborn to admit that he actually had fun." Sydney said managing to catch the smirk on Garry's face. "Still, we played a really good game. Good job Candlehead."

She smiled as the others came around and congratulated her. "Seriously, you should try out for basketball with jumps like that!" Jubileena said.

"Not bad CH." Swizzle said.

"What the heck type of leg exercises are you doing? I need to try it." Jimmy said impressed. She giggled. Everyone was happy. Everyone seemed to have fun, and that's how she'd wanted it.

Garry walked home with Sydney and Cindy walking behind him. "You have fun?" Cindy asked with a smirk on her face.

"No."

"I think you did. I mean, you were smiling weren't you?"

"No."

Sydney chuckled. "We could see it Garry."

Garry scowled. "I didn't have fun, I just… uh." He ran his hand over his face. He just couldn't believe it. Someone out there was able to play against him, and was in his class. If she could do it, then maybe others could too? A smile slowly began breaking across his face.

"See, you're smiling again!" Cindy said pointing.

"S-shut up!"

Candlehead hummed happily as she, Taffyta, and Rancis walked home. The other two watched their green haired friend with a worried expression. She finally seemed to notice their silence and looked back at them confused. "You guys okay?"

"Are you?" Rancis asked. "Candlehead, you know it's okay to be… sad after losing right?" They had heard her say how badly she wanted to win, so it was hard to believe that she was so fine with losing.

She nodded. "I know…" She said looking down. "But we all had fun, so it's…"

Taffyta walked over and put an arm around her shoulder. "Dang it, you don't have to be so cheerful all the time you know." She said. "It's okay to be bummed out."

Candlehead stared at her friend, but suddenly growing teary eyed. "I… I wanted to win." She said wiping her face. "I know I said having fun was most important, but I wanted to win so bad…" She said crying.

Rancis patted her shoulder. "Yeah, losing sucks." He said remembering his fight with Jimmy. "But don't worry, you'll get him next time."

Taffyta smiled. "Yeah, you're just getting started." She said patting her friend on the back.

Candlehead nodded. She was going to practice. Maybe she'd even go out for the team. And next time, she was going to win for sure!

A red haired boy sat on his bed and watched a video on his laptop. The video showed a green haired girl dunking on a white haired boy. A smile broke across his face. "Hmm, you've been up to some interesting things huh Garry? Finding some interesting people too."

He closed his laptop and stood up, before running a hand through his blood red hair. "I'll have to stop by and pay you a visit…" He said throwing his jacket on. He picked up and phone and started dialing a number. "Time for a family reunion…"

A/N: And there's the end! I know that ending was ominous, but we won't be seeing Garry's siblings or family for a little while. I like to space out the events between character. We've got some chapters on Jimmy, some on Garry, and next up will probably be Larry. Though I doubt his will be as long.

After that I'll start focusing a little on Vanellope and the others, and possibly introduce some new characters. I don't want to make this all about MY oc's. I want to give some backstory to the others too.

In case you were wondering, Garry's mom passed. I didn't want to make a huge thing out of it, YET. It'll be kind of the focus on the Gumball family reunion. But it does kind of explain why he's so bitter towards basketball, and in general.

And in case you're wondering, I did get the title for this chapter from that guest reviewer. I heard it, and I was like, that's just gotta be the title. So thanks... Guest...