AN: I'm so sorry this took soooooooo long :( I moved house, went on holiday and my ISP decided to jerk me around so I was without internet access for like a month... it was horrible :( anyway here's the next chapter, hope you like it since it took so damn long to get here. I did get a bit sappy in this one though and be warned it continues in further chapters but I have my reasons as you will discover at a later date if my ISP behaves itself.

As always the biggest of hugest Thank you's to my beta Maria 656 and all my wonderfull reviewers

The ride was silent, only broken by the occasional directions Max gave him. She cursed when they ran into a traffic jam, muttering something about being late. The herd of traffic moved on and Logan was instructed to pull up in front of a house just as the clock struck ten past twelve. The house looked old but sturdy, grey cement steps leading to a wide porch that surrounded the front door. On the third step sat a miserable looking little girl, her navy blue baseball cap was pulled on backwards to reveal her light hazel eyes. Her waist length brown hair hung around her shoulders from the cap's brim and her black t-shirt had "Girls kick butt" scrawled across it in bright blue lettering. The outfit was finished by a pair of blue surfer shorts and some white sneakers that had seen better days. Wordlessly Max got out of the car, biting back a wince as she rounded the car. The moment the girl saw Max emerge, her melancholy demeanour shifted as a huge grin spread across her face and she ran towards Max. Max knelt down slowly so she was the same height as her ecstatic friend, holding a protective arm around her abdomen. What Logan saw next shocked him more than it should have; Max reached out and pulled the girl into a tight one armed squeeze before pulling back with a slight wince to look the little girl in the eye.

"Hey Tam, Mrs Daniels know you're out here?" Max smiled through the pain; if there was one thing Manticore had taught her was to ignore her pain, it was all in her head, just push it aside and move on.

"Yeah, I told her I'd be here waiting for you," Tamzin smiled, then turned serious remembering that she was supposed to be mad, "You're late; I thought you weren't coming."

"I know and I'm sorry Li'l Bit. Traffic was a nightmare."

"It's OK, you're here now," The little girl looked up at her and smiled, "Let's go." Without any prompting she grabbed Max's hand and dragged her to the car. Tamzin jumped in the back seat and secured herself with the seatbelt. When settled, Max noticed the questioning look Tamzin was giving Logan, who she seemed to have just noticed.

"Tamzin, say hello to Logan, he's a friend of mine." Turning to Logan she said, "Logan, this is Tamzin."

"Boyfriend?" Tamzin asked, making both Max and Logan's cheeks colour slightly.

"No, just a good friend," Max clarified.

"Nice to meet you Tamzin," Logan said, having nothing else to add to Max's reply.

"So what do you want to do today, Li'l Bit?" Max asked, deftly changing the subject.

"Oooo, can we go to the beach Max? Please? I got my stuff…" Tamzin patted the backpack that sat on the seat next to her.

"Sorry Tam, I fell and hurt myself so I'm on the injured list today. Wanna do something else? A movie maybe?"

"Yeah, sure…whatever…" Tamzin mumbled. One look in the rear-view mirror at the young girl's disheartened face and Logan's heart melted.

"How about a picnic on the beach?" he proposed; he used to do it all the time when he was a kid. Tamzin perked up and Max shot him a quizzical look. Probably 'cause I mentioned food, he quipped mentally.

"Really?" the young girl asked, eyes full of hope.

"Sure, we can pick up some burgers on our way and I'll be happy to take Max's place as lifeguard. Just for today of course!" he added.

No argument came from Tamzin, having got what she wanted, and Max gave in with her usual shrug.

After a quick stop at Burger King they drove to Max's house; everybody was at school leaving it empty. When they arrived, Tamzin wasted no time in bolting up the stairs to change into her swimming costume, then dashing back downstairs eager to head outside. Max had gone upstairs to change out of her jeans, boots and shirt and entered the kitchen to find Logan and Tamzin in fits of giggles, burgers waiting on the table next to three folded beach towels. Max, now in a white tank top, surfer shorts with black flames and a pair of flip flops, had to admit the sight of Logan's bare chest, all the way to the waist of the pair of Krit's swimming shorts she had given him to wear, wasn't exactly the worst sight in the world.

They made their way outside where a healthy lawn stretched in front of them for about a hundred meters or so before being severed by the white sand that eventually lead to the sparkling blue ocean. As suspected, the beach was deserted except for the lounge chairs that sat in a row looking out at the water. Max wasted no time in securing her favourite one, opening the umbrella attached to it and settling back down. Logan distributed their burgers before they got too cold and each person munched away happily, while Tamzin quite energetically told them about her day at school the day before. To pass the half hour it would take for their food to digest, Tamzin occupied herself by building a sand castle, close enough to the water that the sand was nice and wet but far enough so that the waves wouldn't wash it away. This meant Max and Logan could talk without fear of being heard, but the two simply sat watching the nine year old play. Max laid back, sunglasses obscuring her eyes, a gentle protective hand on her injury. Logan sighed from the chair next to her, and she rolled her eyes before lazily opening one in curiosity, not that he could see.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing," he lied. Max pushed her glasses down her nose and looked at Logan, saying nothing, just waiting.

"Fine," he relented. "I was wondering how you two hooked up. Tamzin's a great kid."

"Yeah, she is," Max replied, looking almost wistful as she remembered how she had met Tamzin about a year earlier. "I got into some trouble at school a while back and I was forced to do community service. They figured the best way for me to learn responsibility was to look after a kid, so they signed me up to be a 'Big Sister'. So I was placed with Tamzin; that house we fetched her from is a foster home. Her parent's dumped her there when she was three and she's nine now. We hit it off straight away and ever since, every Thursday, I go pick her up and we hang out for the day or the weekend, whatever." Max, with a small smile tugging at her lips as she watched Tamzin play.

"I gotta tell you Max, when you said you had an appointment this morning, this was the last thing I was expecting."

"Why?" Max asked, with a bit more venom than she intended. "Because I'm the stubborn, hard-ass soldier who doesn't give a shit about anything or anyone but herself?"

Logan hung his head. When she had refused to help him, he had indeed thought along those lines, but now he knew better. A day spent in her company made it clear that wasn't the case; she had just bitten a bullet for her best friend after all. He was about to tell her as much when she cut him off.

"Save it," she said sadly. "I care, I probably care too much and that's my problem. They always told us emotions were a weakness; beat it into our heads over and over about how dangerous emotional connections are. I care about my family and friends but the thing I care about most is being free to enjoy life with my friends and family," she paused to take a shaky breath, then continued. "People think I have the perfect life, parents that love me, a cool bunch of friends … money. Truth is, I'm always running. Constantly looking over my shoulder, waiting for the day they finally catch up with me and take away everything I care about."

"I wish there was something I could do," he said earnestly.

She offered him a weak smile. "This is something even the great Eyes Only can't fix."

"I'm sorry," he breathed. He wanted to tell her she was wrong, that everything was going to be alright, comfort her, but he knew nothing he could say or do would change what they both knew to be set in stone. They lapsed into silence, each lost in their own thoughts until Tamzin bounded towards them, her sand castle lying in ruins behind her.

"Is it half an hour yet?" she asked Logan sweetly.

"Only twenty-seven minutes," he replied looking at his watch. "But I think we can risk it. I'll race you there!" he exclaimed, running towards the water with Tamzin charging after him.

For hours they splashed and swam and raced and splashed some more, all under Max's watchful eye, just in case. The duo collapsed onto their chairs wet and exhausted, Logan's bare chest heaving with every breath he took.

"Max … " Tamzin said after a little while, as a thought suddenly popped into her head.

"Yeah, Li'l Bit?" Max promted.

"How will you play in the finals tomorrow if you're on the injured list?"

"Don't worry about me Tam, I'll be fine. It'll just hurt a little that's all."

"You're not seriously thinking of playing tomorrow?" Logan asked incredulously.

"And why not?" Max asked, calm as always.

"You know damn well why!"

"It'll be fine by tomorrow."

"And what if it's not?"

"Then that's a pity, 'cause I'm playing." Her voice was still calm and steady as Logan practically fumed.

"Then I'm coming to make sure you don't collapse!" he said sternly, sounding like an over protective parent. Max had a feeling that if it was anyone else she would have kicked their ass; after all, she didn't need a babysitter. But Logan was different; why, she had no idea. Regardless, she shrugged off his concern with her usual uninterested shrug.

"Whatever floats your boat."

The sun was setting by the time the group decided to return to the house. They found Jondy and Original Cindy already there; Krit was off taking full advantage of his parentless freedom with some random female Max was informed. Since Original Cindy was spending the night, Max decided to spend some down time with her girls. She thought she saw something like disappointment flash across Logan's features, but it was gone in an instant. Not like he expected me to stay at his place forever. Get a grip girl! You're imagining things. Logan left with a promise to get Tamzin home safely and a reminder that he was going to be there tomorrow. Then he was gone and Max braced herself for the affect his shirtless presence would have on Jondy and OC. They always make such big deals out of these things.

Max, Jondy, and Original Cindy sat in the lounge watching their third consecutive movie. Instead of the outright barrage of questions and insinuations Max had expected, the pair filled her in on life at school and Sketchy's latest conquest. Sketchy, being his usual self, fell flat on his face and was drowning his sorrows in beer at Crash under Herbal's prophetic supervision. Eventually the subject turned, as Max had expected, to Logan.

"You two seem to be having fun," Jondy noted.

"And hot boy ain't that bad looking under the shirt neither," Original Cindy added. "For a fella, of course."

"Just what are you two trying to say?" Max asked, knowing what the answer would be.

"C'mon Sugar. Just admit you're feelin' him, ain't no shame in it." Cindy said.

"I'm not 'feelin' Logan, he's just a good friend."

"Uh-huh, sure. That's why he was your personal human pillow and you shared his bed with him two nights in a row." Max looked at Jondy, stunned, as did Cindy for that matter.

"I dropped by yesterday night to see if you needed company," Jondy explained with a hint of amusement in her voice. "And found the two of you sleeping quite peacefully in his bed."

"I felt bad about making him sleep on the couch," Max replied defensively. "We aren't like that."

"Uh-huh." Now it was Cindy's turn. "If you had seen the look on Hot Boy's face when we dragged you in all bloodied up. Like he wanted to hunt them playas down and kill them his own damn self."

Max was astonished. "Really?"

"Yeah," Jondy confirmed. "We know he likes you, we can tell by the way he looks at you. We also know you like him and you've only known the guy for a week. You've got to admit that's a first for you Maxie."

"Question is," asked Original Cindy in all seriousness. "What are you going to do about it?"

"What can I do?" Max asked in frustration.

"You could start with stepping up to the real and admitting it, or your little head is going to explode."

"Admitting what?"

"That you like him!" Jondy pushed smiling; she had never seen her sister so unsure of herself.

"Fine! I like him," Max relented. "Are you happy now?"

"Almost," Cindy said a wicked gleam in her eye.

"Almost?" Max asked uncertainly; that look never meant anything good.

"First you gotta tell me what you're going to do about it."

"That's easy, Nothing." Max said happily.

"Nothing?" Jondy exclaimed. "Why not?"

"I'm through with guys, Darren was the last straw."

"Darren was an asshole," Cindy reminded. "And you and me both know Logan is no asshole."

Although Jondy wanted to know who Darren was and what he had done to her sister, she could tell it was a touchy subject and this was neither the time nor the place. They sat in silence for a while before realization finally dawned on Original Cindy.

"Ah! I get it," she said. "You're just making excuses 'cause you're scared."

"No, I'm not!" Max answered, a bit too quickly.

"Oh yes you are, you're scared of getting hurt again. You're scared that if Logan gets to know the real you he won't like what he sees." Max hung her head and Jondy realized the other reasons behind it.

Although Logan knew what they were, he didn't know what they were capable of and Max had a right to be scared. Relationships were never a strong X5 trait; emotions were a weakness and you had to avoid emotional attachment at all costs. It was hard not to let their inner soldier control their lives, habits were hard to break, but Jondy knew this was too good for Max to let go. She put a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze.

"Max, making excuses isn't going to change what's right in front of you. You know as well as I do all that emotional detachment crap they taught us is a bunch of bull. We know you and we love you, let someone else have the chance."

Max looked at Jondy, then at original Cindy, sighed heavily and gave in.

"What should I do?" Her sister and her best friend smiled.

"First you gotta tell him. I know he's gonna be at the game tomorrow …" Original Cindy said.

"Then the ball is in his court," Jondy finished.

"Tomorrow it is," Max announced, a nervous feeling already claiming a firm hold on her stomach.

Harley high the next day ...

The crowd filed into the bleachers and the field buzzed with conversation. Inside the changing room the Harley Hawks sat ready. One final practice during lunch had assured Max her team was ready for this. Jondy walked in wearing her Brisbane cheerleading uniform to wish everyone luck although she had to cheer for the other team. Not far behind her came Raz, Bailey, Herbal, Sketchy and Original Cindy.

"Good luck Boo," Original said, giving Max a quick hug.

"May Jah's grace shine upon you my sister," Herbal offered.

"Yeah, kick some ass Max!" Sketchy yelled, a bit too over enthusiastic. He gave the team what was supposed to be a smouldering, sexy look before striping of his shirt to reveal the words 'Harley Rocks' painted in the Harley navy blue across his chest.

"Thanks Sketch," Max giggled as he flexed his nonexistent muscles. "I had no idea you were such a big hockey fan."

"Are you kidding? Girls playing all rough, bumping into each other and getting all sweaty. My version of heaven," he smiled.

"I hate to break it to you Sketch," Raz smiled, figuring out why he was so excited. "But field hockey is a non-contact sport; you're thinking of ice hockey, Dude."

The disappointment was clear on his face as he turned wordlessly and walked out the door followed by the others who wished Max luck and left. Original Cindy and Jondy held back, and Max lead them off to the side for some privacy.

"He here yet?" The nerves she felt for the game were increasing knowing what she had to do after it.

"Haven't seen him Boo," OC said calmly.

"He'll be here. He said he would," Jondy reasoned, that was just going to have to do for now. "How are you?"

Max lifted her shirt to expose the clean white bandage on her abdomen. She gently pulled the tape away from her skin to expose her stitched up wound which was now just a horizontal slit.

"The stitches should hold," Jondy said as she examined the wound. "You sure you can play?"

"Yeah," Max nodded. "Just feels like someone's punched me in the gut. I can deal."

With an understanding nod the two women left, knowing there was no talking her out of it. The announcer's voice boomed from across the field; Max covered her injury, fixed her shirt and turned to her team smiling.

"We've worked hard, now it's time to play hard. This isn't going to be a walk over, so remember what we've practiced and play your hearts out. They're just another team and win or lose I'm proud of each and every one of you. Now, let's go kick some ass!"

With a roar they gathered their sticks and marched to the field where they were greeted with another roar of appreciation from the home crowd. The Brisbane Bears followed behind them, their black uniforms completing their daunting appearance. For now Logan was pushed out of Max's head, there were more important things to worry about. Each team took their positions on field staring each other down, the referee's shrill whistle blew and the battle of the titans began. Just as she thought, the Bears' defence was solid and their offence relentless, almost scoring twice in the first five minutes. Max however had planned for this, closing down certain strikers with well placed defenders and being just a little too fast for the Bear's defenders to stop. Very quickly each team had racked up three goals apiece which made both step up their already overworked defence.

Neither was willing to relent under the pressure, which fired up already fragile tempers. After an especially hard tackle that sent Corrin flying, Anita, the left back, protested only to be shoved by the unremorseful Brisbane player. From then on things started getting rough. Warnings were flying out of the referee's mouth as fast as she could give them; players were on the floor half the time. She had no choice but to let the game continue; the final had to be played and both teams were equally involved in the uproar. Dangerous balls flew into arms, legs and torsos with sickening thuds. A fist fight erupted after an illegal tackle by a Brisbane player, which Max had to physically break up and Anita got sent off as a result of it.

The half time whistle blew just as it seemed a riot was about to break out on the field. Max stalked off the field, her side throbbing from a hard ball that had bounced straight off her stick into her injury. A quick glance at the crowed revealed Logan who had a worried look on his face. That nervous feeling was back in full force, but his gaze left her when he had to answer his phone. He offered her an apologetic smile before setting of for the parking lot, talking hurriedly into his phone, brow knitted in concentration. Max couldn't decide if she was relieved or disappointed to see him leave. One final glance at his retreating figure and Max squared her shoulders to deal with her team. Logan's going to have to wait. She returned to the locker room to find her team looking like they had just come out of a bar brawl, each scowling with various bruises on various appendages. If she had anything inspirational left in her now would be the time.

"We're getting slaughtered," Loren, the midfielder, announced before Max could say anything.

"And we're almost out of substitutes," Corrin added sounding hopeless, "We can't keep this up, Max."

"You don't have to," Jondy's voice interrupted. She appeared from behind the lockers and moved to stand next to Max. The pair looked indomitable, Max having received barely a scratch in the on field altercations, "If you all step up to defence and leave me and Max as strikers, we'll take care of the rest."

A murmur spread through the team before Natasha voiced their opinion. "Thanks for the offer Jondy, but you're one of them".

"And they are playing dirty," Jondy replied calmly. "And I don't like dirty. It's your call, but the rules say nothing about an exchange student playing."

"You won't be too popular at school if you do this," Corrin noted.

"I'm graduating in a month, what do I care?"

"But only two strikers … you two sure you can pull this off?" Loren asked.

"Max?" Jondy urged, a knowing smile already on her face.

Max held out her fist and Jondy touched hers against Max's. A slow smile played on her lips. "Let's kick some Brisbane ass, Jon!"

A newly inspired team filed out of the changing room, their plans talked over and set in stone. Jondy held Max back. "I saw that hit you took," she said. "You up for this?"

Max looked at her sister and the concern in her eyes. She knew why Jondy had done what she had done. She wasn't in this alone, she never would be. "Hurts like a bitch!" Max smiled. "But not so much I can't make a few Bears cry. C'mon or they'll start without us."

If the Brisbane Bears were surprised to see smiles on the Hawks' faces as they filled onto the field again, they were blown away when they saw Jondy appear in full Harley kit. One of their cheerleaders playing for the opposing team? The confusion never ended as Harley clocked up two more goals not halfway through the second half. Desperate but futile measures were taken to try and get through the now impenetrable Harley defence, whose players constantly switched positions. Max and Jondy weaved effortlessly through the defence to put in three more goals which hammered the final nails into the Bears' coffin. Both Max and Jondy knew they could have got more but decided that the Bears had suffered enough. The final whistle blew accompanied by another roar from the crowd as they spilled onto the field to celebrate with the team. Max and Jondy were lifted into the air as the Harley school song was chorused around them. If Max's side was hurting she didn't notice as she was too caught up in the chant herself. When her feet found the ground her friends rushed to her side, jumping and smiling and singing.

"That was soooo much better than ice hockey!" Sketchy bellowed as he high-fived Max and Jondy who both had smiles plastered on their faces. As Max looked at each face a flicker of recognition floated through her glee and she searched the crowd for Logan's face; when she didn't see him her heart sank, but that's not what worried her. What worried her was the feeling that gripped her stomach, the same feeling she had about Eva, Jack and most recently, Original Cindy. Logan was in trouble; she knew it and she had to help him.

Learning from the last time, she took a calming breath and asked to borrow Raz's phone. When Logan didn't answer the dread set in once more. She ran to the parking lot, stopping briefly to return Raz's phone and tell Jondy that she had a feeling and to cover for her. Max straddled her baby, thanking every deity she knew of that she had been stubborn and rode it to school today. Max gunned the engine and sped towards Logan's house; it was as good a place as any to start searching.

She killed her engine when she found his Range Rover sitting in his driveway, the driver's side door swung open, his phone lying unchecked on the passenger seat. She walked cautiously towards the front door which stood ajar, but once she heard a gunshot fired from inside the house all caution was thrown to the wind as she sped into the house. In seconds she was in the living room but stopped dead when she was greeted with a man's leather-encased back facing her; clearly showing on the stranger's neck were the black lines that identified him as her eldest brother.

"Zack?" Max asked softly. As he shifted his position to face her, she saw the gun in his hand trained on Logan, who sat awkwardly against the wall, his face bruised, glasses missing and his arm sticking out in an odd position. Tearing her eyes away from Logan, the strangers green eyes confirmed that it definitely was Zack.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Her voice was harsh; all joy in finding her brother fading in the circumstances.

"Fixing your mistakes," he said simply.

dun dun dun, cliff hanger!!!!! which you probably hate me for but I will try my hardest to get the next bit up really fast.