A/N: hello my friends:) I apologize for the delay in getting this chapter posted, but real life has definitely reared it's ugly head at me this past couple of weeks:(

I wanna give a massive shout out to Kathyrnplove, who has had a chapter marathon:) I'm glad you're enjoying this so far;)

so without further ado...it present to you the next chapter:)

Disclaimer: I do not own Skins, because if I did, it seriously would have been Naomily every episode, for seven seasons;)

Chapter 14: Regrets, Apologies and Winning

Effy sat at a café, sipping on a cup of coffee. She had made arrangements with Panda to meet with her and Naomi.

She knew she was early, an hour early to be exact, but it was a habit for her now. It was part of who she had become. She had spent a considerable amount of time in therapy, trying to figure out how her life had been turned upside down. She felt as if she had made a lot of progress over the past three years, but there were days when doubt and fear would set in.

Effy had known Panda since they were kids. And she had come to realise that she had never treated the blonde the way she deserved to be treated. Effy knew that she had taken Panda for granted, and it was something that now, grated on her nerves.

It wasn't until the whole fuck up with Freddie that she really took notice of the friends in her life. To be honest, she didn't have many, only Panda at first, but then there was Naomi.

Sure, Naomi started out as a body for her to fuck. But the she turned out to be different than anyone else she'd ever known. Naomi was smart, she could hold a conversation, even if Effy wasn't much for talking back then, but that didn't stop Naomi from trying to get her involved in things.

Effy knew that there was never any future for them as lovers. That wasn't how either of them worked, but Naomi was more determined about that fact than Effy was. Naomi was able to keep Effy at arms length, not getting too close, not getting close enough for feelings to take hold, anyway. But that had been fine for Effy, because she hadn't been capable of those feelings anyway.

For awhile, it was nice for the three of them to hang out, go clubbing when neither Naomi or Panda was on the tour, they would spend days just hanging out, and Effy felt a companionship with her two friends.

Until it all went tits up, and she met Freddie McClair. She had no idea that he knew Naomi. She had never mentioned him, so Effy was totally clueless that he had tried to hook up with her.

Effy let those thoughts run through her head as she took another sip of her coffee, and sat to wait for Naomi and Panda.

"Why can't you just come with us?"

Emily sat at Naomi's kitchen table, nursing a cup of tea, looking through a tennis magazine. At Naomi's question, she merely looked up at her, and then over to Panda, who had just walked into the room.

"Do I really need to answer that, Naomi?" Emily asked, amusement in her voice. She'd be lying right now if she said she wasn't a tiny bit jealous, but she pushed that feeling deep down. "You know this is something that you and Panda have to do."

"C'mon Emsy, it'll be fine." Panda said. "You don't have to sit with us, but just be there to offer moral support."

Naomi smirked at Emily, nodding along with Panda's statement.

"How old are both of you?" Emily stood up to refill her cup, giving them both a look of disbelief. "You guys can do this, yeah? She obviously wants to apologise, so don't you think she deserves the chance?"

Naomi squirmed under Emily's glare.

"Yeah, you're right." Naomi mumbled under her breath.

"What was that, Naoms?" Emily asked, not catching what was said.

"I said you're right, but don't gloat about it, yeah?" Naomi told her, obviously upset that Emily was being rational. "Can't you just show up at the café in like, a half hour? All casual like?"

Emily laughed at the whining she heard in Naomi's voice or the look on Panda's face. She couldn't help herself.

"Fuck off then if you don't wanna help." Naomi said, Panda just looked confused. "I thought you were our friend?"

"You're making her sound like she's the Big Bad Wolf, Naomi!" Emily stated gently. "She's just a normal girl, looking to make amends, from the sound of it, so just, ya know...try, yeah?"

Naomi looked at her and wondered why she had to be so practical. She knew Emily was right, of course she knew it, but it didn't make the her feel any better about it. Naomi wanted to stay mad at the other girl. She wanted to hold on to that anger, but standing in front of Emily, she knew she had to try and let Effy explain herself.

"Fine! Fine!" Naomi huffed out, holding on to her annoyance for as long as she could. She quickly turned to Panda. "Panda, can you wait out in the car for me? I'll be right out."

Emily watched Panda walk out of the room, before turning back to Naomi. "What's really going on, Naomi?"

"I don't know. I just don't want any chance to forgive her to quickly, you know?" She explained, sounding a little bit defeated, making Emily's stomach to flutter.

Emily reached out and wrapped her arms around the blonde, giving her a gentler version of a Fitch hug.

"It's going to be alright, Naomi, you have to believe that. You have to be open to what she tells you, or you'll never move past what happened."

Naomi nodded her head, as she buried her face in the crook of her neck, taking in the scent that was totally Emily. "I know you're right, but it doesn't make it any easier."

"That's why you have to be the bigger person, Naomi. Holding on to that much anger is not good for you, and as long as she's around, you'll just get angrier." Emily pointed out. "And in the long run, how is that good for you?"

"Alright! I get it, Ems." Naomi pulled away from the petite girl, but not before giving her a quick kiss.

The two of them walked out the front door together. Emily was going to head over to the sports complex to help her dad, so she was headed to the bus stop.

"Call me when you're done, yeah? We'll get in some training, okay?"

"Okay, see you." Naomi replied, getting into the car.

Emily watched as the blonde started the vehicle and pulled out onto the street.

As she walked toward the bus stop, Emily thought about all the possible outcomes of Naomi and Panda meeting with Effy. She had an odd feeling about the brunette, something she couldn't put her finger on. Effy made her nervous, but she didn't know why.

She knew there was the obvious reason. Emily didn't know how Effy felt about Naomi. Did she have feelings for Naomi? Had she been in love with her? And if so, was she still in love with her. Or had she really been scheming with Freddie, trying to get Naomi into bed with him?

Emily didn't really know what to make of her, but she was going to keep an eye her, that was for sure.

Effy was getting more nervous with each passing second. She noticed that Naomi and Panda were about five minutes late. She started to fidget with the sugar packets on the table and shredding napkins into neat little piles.

Anxiousness. Another byproduct of her breakdown. Before, when she was younger, she was fearless and didn't give a fuck about being on time anywhere, she had guys and girls lined up for her. Drugs, alcohol, dancing and debauchery! That's who Effy Stonem was. That's not who she was now, though, and she still couldn't figure out if that was a good thing or not.

Effy bowed her head in defeat, convinced that neither girl was going to show up. She took a last sip of her coffee, gathering up her things and was about to stand up, when the bell over the door sounded. She looked up and saw Panda first and then Naomi.

Effy felt relief start to flood through her until she remembered that they hadn't even spoke yet. Nothing was resolved at all, but just the fact that they were here was a good sign, right?

Effy stood as the two of them neared her table. "You guys came?" She breathed out, sounding afraid almost.

"We said we would, Effy." Panda replied. "We don't say things we don't mean."

Effy sucked in a breath at the barbed statement. She knew she deserved whatever they decided to give her, but it still hurt, a lot.

"Fine." Effy swallowed thickly, nodding to the two girls, acknowledging that she understood the silent meaning behind Panda's words. "Please, have a seat."

When all three girls were seated, the waitress came over to get their orders. Naomi and Panda ordered tea, while Effy asked for another cup of coffee. Once the girl left, Effy looked to her two ex-best friends.

"I want to thank both of you for taking the time to talk to me." Effy started out, keeping her voice business-like, remembering to breath in and out. "I realise that it couldn't have been easy to come here, what with Naomi thinking I used her, and me totally abandoning Panda."

Naomi scoffed and Panda sat there, tight lipped, but watching her.

"What was the point of this, Effy?" Naomi asked bluntly.

"The point, Naomi, is to apologise, and try and explain my side of things." She stated, looking the her in the eye. "I'm taking this moment to apologise to Panda."

Effy turned her head to look at Panda, suddenly hit with the realisation that she had missed the perky blonde. Tears started to prick her eyes, but she held them in.

"Pandora, I am so sorry that I left you. I took your friendship for granted and I took you for granted." Effy told her, sincere in her words. She turned to look back at Naomi, saw the way she clenched her jaw, knowing that she was trying to hold back her biting remarks.

Panda shifted uncomfortably in her seat, already feeling herself start to soften toward Effy. She didn't want that. She wanted to stay mad at her, but she had always had a soft spot for her.

"I know that neither one of you have any reason to forgive what happened, but I need to explain my side of things." Effy told them both, then took a sip of her drink, steeling herself for their disbelief.

"I met Freddie after I met you, Naomi. I know you will find this hard to believe, but that's the truth. I had no idea that he knew you, or that he wanted to sleep with you." She paused for a moment, looked at Naomi to gauge her reaction. "By that time, we were almost done with the physical side of our relationship. He was funny, kind and treated me as if I was someone important."

"Yeah, right!" Naomi scoffed.

"Please let me finish before you continue to judge, Naomi." Effy stated, not harshly but with a firmness that the blonde had never heard from her before. "You need to know everything."

"Go on, Effy." Panda said quietly, trying to be as neutral as possible. "Continue."

Effy cast a grateful glance at her, before taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. "I was fucked up back then, and I think you both know that. Freddie figured out who I was because he saw you leaving my house one day." She said, looking at Naomi, and saw that she had her attention now. "He followed me, found out things about me and approached me in a coffee shop one day."

Effy stopped because when she thought about that time in her life, it made her feel sad and useless.

"We started talking, and it kinda went from there. I explained to him that I wasn't looking for anything, that I was just coming out of a relationship," again, she glanced at Naomi, "he asked me about it, and I talked about you. I told him how you and I would never be anything more than friends, but I was still devastated by that, because I wanted to be close to someone. And you...what I had with you, was the closest I'd ever been with anyone." Effy told her, feeling tears prickle at her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Not here, and certainly not in front of Naomi.

"What exactly did he say to you?" Naomi demanded.

"He told me he understood what I was going through, said he'd just been in a similar situation, so he knew what it felt like. I explained how we were still friends, and that I was grateful for that, but he...," she trailed off, not sure how to explain the rest.

"But he what, Effy?" Panda asked, looking over at Naomi, to see her reaction. "What did he do?"

Effy felt so ashamed at having to admit this to anyone, especially Panda and Naomi. She took a sip of her coffee, trying to ease the dryness that suddenly coated her throat.

"It started out small, you see. Little comments here and there, about how he was the only one who could understand me, and that no one could love me better than him." Effy paused and closed her eyes so that she wouldn't have to see the pity coming from anyone. "He played upon my illness and used it to isolate me, from my family, friends and from both of you."

"What illness?" Naomi couldn't really tell if Effy was telling the truth or not, but she had to admit that the brunette sounded sincere. "If you were sick, how come we didn't know about it? We used to spend loads of time together and you never said a word."

"It started out as Major Depressive Disorder when I was a teenager. I was able to manage it properly, with my parents' help, which is why it was never an issue when we were together, but Freddie had a way of using that against me. He made me believe I didn't need to take my medication."

"But why would he do that?" Panda asked quietly, unable to believe that someone could be that cruel.

"Because Freddie McClair is an egotistical asshole." Naomi spat out, questions racing through her mind. She couldn't seem to pick one to ask, because they all seemed important.

"Why you?" Panda was also having doubts about the girl in front of her. "Why did he single you out? Why not me? I was friends with Naomi as well."

"Because you hadn't slept with Naomi, Panda." Effy told her. "I had, and that's what he wanted."

"Alright, so Freddie played on your illness, manipulated you, but what did that have to do with me?" Naomi asked.

"Because you turned him down, Naomi. And not just once either, but multiple times." Effy replied, feeling tired all of a sudden. "You bruised his overinflated ego, and that didn't sit too well with him."

Naomi picked up her drink, feeling tired herself and confused. "So when did you find out about this? If you weren't in on it, how did you find out?"

"It wasn't until after you confronted me about it." Effy told her, looking into ice blue eyes. "I went to him, to ask him if what you said was true. At first he denied everything, he told me that you were trying to come between him and I, and that I shouldn't believe anything you said."

"Why should I believe you now?" Naomi asked harshly, but she couldn't help herself.

"Because, Naomi, I've never lied to you." Effy glanced at the blonde, begging her with smokey blue eyes to believe her. "Ever!"

"Fine, I'm not saying I trust you, bu-,"

"I'm not asking you to trust me, Naomi! I'm asking you to believe me. You never gave me a chance to prove myself after fuckwit Freddie screwed things up! How could I show you that I had nothing to do with his plans when you wouldn't even fucking look at me, let alone talk to me?" Effy screamed out, causing heads to turn and stare at the commotion, while Naomi and Panda looked at her as if another head was growing out of her neck.

She sat there, slightly out of breath, face blushing at the display of emotion that was so out of character for her. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to stave off the panic attack that was threatening to break through. She did not want to embarrass herself any further in front of the two girls.

"You never gave me a chance." Effy repeated, quieter this time, opening her eyes. "I'm sorry, for everything that happened between us, all of us, and I know I can't make it right. I can't erase the past and make it better for us. But I miss you both so much."

"If Freddie had you under his control, what changed?" Panda wondered aloud. "How did you break free from that? From him?"

Naomi had wondered the same thing, but was glad that it was Panda asking the question.

"After things blew up between Freddie and Cook, he had no use for me, really. Not that he didn't try to hang on, he just didn't have that tight of a grip. He loved the control he had over me, but not enough to deal with me without my meds and he knew that if I was on the pills, he wouldn't have any control whatsoever." Effy finished her second cup of coffee, singled the waitress and ordered another.

"When you guys stepped away, I went off the rails. My mum and dad couldn't help me anymore, I was too far gone." She explained, sadness in her voice and a faraway look in her eyes. "It was Tony who helped me. I had been gone for about three weeks, just totally disappeared. Tony found me and brought me home, helped me get clean. I had been taking every drug that had passed my way, drinking, shagging anyone who smiled at me. It was terrible." Effy stopped talking, as her memories of that time invaded her mind.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Effy." Panda said, feeling guilty all of a sudden, not really knowing why.

Effy shrugged, cleared her throat. "It wasn't your fault. I had already walked away from our friendship by then, so I only had myself to blame."

Naomi still had one more question, one more thing she wanted to talk about, but was hesitant to ask, so she ignored it for the moment.

"This is a lot of information to take in, Effy." Naomi stated with a sigh. "I just don't know what to believe."

"I understand that, I really do, but think about this, in all the time that we hung out together, did I ever lie to you?" Effy asked her.

Naomi thought back, and realised that, no, Effy never lied. She shifted in her seat, trying to hold on to her anger at the other girl. She glanced at Panda and saw that she too, was feeling the conflicting emotions.

"Look, I just needed the both of you to listen to me, and to apologise. I've done that, so I will thank you for taking the time to come here." Effy started to gather her things, having done what she set out to do. As she was sliding out of her chair to stand, Naomi stopped her by placing a hand on her arm.

"Effy, wait please?"

Effy stopped and looked down at the hand on her arm, then looked into Naomi's eyes before sitting back down.

"Look, it's a lot to take in, yeah?" Naomi stated, waving to get the waitress's attention. When she came over, she ordered two sandwiches to go and another cup of tea. "I need time to work it all out in my mind. I need to talk to Cook and...,"she trailed off, not wanting to bring up Emily in front of Effy.

"I understand, I really do. I know that we can't go back, that's not what I'm asking for." Effy looked nervous still, but she stopped fidgeting.

"What exactly are you looking for, Effy?" Panda asked her.

"I'm just hoping that you guys could let me back in, even if it's just a little bit." Effy told them, looking more fragile than before, if that was even possible. "I know we may never get back to what we were, but a little bit would go a long way for me."

Naomi and Panda look at each other, not wanting to give in, but both of them knowing that what Effy said made a lot of sense.

"It's a lot to ask, Effy." Panda told her quietly. "I think I may need some time to think things over, yeah?"

Effy nodded, knowing that everything that happened now was in their hands. She did what she set out to do, and right at this moment that was good enough for her.

"I'm gonna walk back to the house." Panda stood up, looking at Naomi, as she laid down her share of the bill. "I'll meet up with you later, Naoms."

"Do you want to head over to the FFSC? Emily and I are gonna train today, you can join us." Naomi didn't like how quiet Panda had gotten since they came in.

"Yeah, that sounds good. I'll see you there later." Panda turned to go, but stopped. "It was good to see you, Effy."

Naomi and Effy both watched her walk out, and it made Naomi's heart clench at the way she bowed her head as she walked away.

She turned to look back at Effy, noticing that she was still watching Panda out the window. She was unguarded and Naomi saw the regret in those smokey blue eyes.

"She's changed." Naomi stated simply, causing a flush to break out on Effy's face.

"I see that. I know that's my fault."

"Yeah, it is, but like you said, you can't fix it. You can't erase it and make it better." Naomi told her, as the waitress came over with her order and the check. "You have to understand that what you're looking for won't happen overnight."

"I realise this! I'm not stupid, Naomi." Effy snapped out.

Naomi sat back in her chair, folding her arms across her chest, glaring at her. "I didn't say you were, I'm merely pointing out a fact." She had the satisfaction of watching Effy wilt under her glare, something that never would have happened in the past. "Look, I've got to go." She said, gathering her stuff.

Effy watched her. "You're going to meet Emily?"

Naomi's hackles raised at the question and the way she said Emily's name. She though about what Emily told her the other day, how Effy asked the red head out.

Naomi did her best to calm herself, before she did something stupid, but the jealousy that settled in the pit of her stomach was making her twitchy.

"Um...yeah. We train together, so...," Naomi tried to hide the panic she was feeling, because she didn't know if Effy still had the ability to read people like she used to.

Effy nodded at her and gave Naomi a speculative glance, as if she understood what was going. Naomi shook off that idea that the other girl might know about her and Emily.

"She seems like a very interesting girl." Effy stated, sipping what was left of her coffee. "Rather beautiful, as well. Do you know if she's seeing anyone?"

Naomi had to stop herself from growling at Effy to back off. She tossed a few excuses around her head, settling on Emily's old favourite.

"She doesn't date during tournaments." Naomi remembered Emily telling her that she uses that excuse a lot to draw attention away from her personal life. "She likes to focus on the game."

Effy nodded, looking a little crestfallen at Naomi's response. "Sure. It makes sense, I guess." She replied, her gaze falling to the table, and Naomi breathed a sigh of relief, thinking she had successfully thrown Effy off. "Is she gay?" She asked, hoping that she would get an answer.

Naomi was reeling. The jealousy had upped in intensity, and she knew she had to get out of there. Quickly.

"Look, Effy. I appreciate you wanting to make things right, I really do, but I don't feel the least bit comfortable talking about my friend with you." Naomi pointed out, trying not to let her emotions show. "Now, I've really got to go, so...,"

"Right. Shit! Sorry, Naomi." Effy said anxiously, cringing at the sound of her voice, hearing the weakness in it. "Thank you for coming today."

Naomi threw some money on the table, nodded at Effy and got up and left. She walked quickly to her car, and made her way towards the FFSC, an image of Emily with Effy in her head, leading all her doubts and fears to the front of her mind.

She knew it was irrational, knew that it was silly to think it, but she was honestly afraid of Emily running off with Effy.

Katie was bent over at the waist, trying to catch her breath. She didn't think it would be this tough of a match when she walked onto the court this afternoon.

She was playing Yaroslava Shvedova, who at 5' 11", towered over her small frame. Katie berated herself for that thought, because it's not like it's anything new. Besides Emily, there was only a small handful of players around her height.

She kept Gina's instructions in her head the whole time she was playing, but she had really been expecting to breeze right through today. It's not as if Slava had a stellar playing record. The woman was ranked sixty-five, and has only won one WTA tournament. But she was definitely giving Katie a run for her money today. Sure, Katie was ahead, 7-6, in the first set and 5-3 in this current set.

'Damn this girl could play!' Katie thought to herself, as she toweled herself dry.

Up in the players box, sitting with Rob and Kieran, Cook, Naomi and Emily sat watching the action.

Cook's match was earlier in the day, which he sailed through in two hours, sending home a very young Chinese boy, who was playing in his first Wimbledon. JJ's match was after Katie's, so he was down in the locker room, getting ready, and Gina was waiting on him.

"C'mon Katie, one more game and you got it." Cook whispered, earning grins from Naomi and Emily.

"She'll win." Naomi stated confidently.

"What makes you so sure? Katie's win/loss record against players taller than her is 9-24 this year." Emily told her, laughing.

Naomi smiled at the red head, before turning her attention back to the court. "She'll win, because she beat me the other day."

Cook and Emily both turned and stared at her in shock at what she just said.

"She what?" Emily asked, impressed to say the least.

"During our practice, she beat me." Naomi responded, as if it happened every day, which it didn't. Gina had been pairing Naomi up against Katie and Emily since they came to London, and while Emily was pretty much tied with the blonde, Katie still had a hard time beating her.

"Where was I?" Emily asked, trying to think. "How did I miss that feat "

Naomi laughed quietly, looking at her. "You and Panda had gone to talk to your agents, remember?"

Emily thought back to one day last week. Naomi was right, Panda's agent and her and Katie's agent had shown up for a meeting. Katie was just starting her practice match with Naomi, so Emily said she'd talk to him for them both.

"She never said a word about beating you." Emily told her. "Normally that's something she'd boast about."

"Yeah, well...she did accuse me of being too easy on her."

"Was ya?" Cook asked, taking his eyes off the court to look at Naomi. "Was ya taking it easy on her?"

"Fuck no!" Naomi scoffed. "I don't play that way and you know it, Cook."

"Just checking, Blondie." He laughed at her. Cook knew it wasn't in Naomi's nature to "go easy" on anyone, but he found it amusing that Katie thought she had.

The three of them turned their attention back to the court, and watched as the older twin served for what she hoped was her final game.

Katie hit the ball, watched as it flew over the net and sailed straight for Slava, who hit it back effortlessly. Back and forth, the two girls battled.

Ten minutes later, Katie was down by two points, with the score at 15-40. She kept trying to figure out what she was doing wrong, as she bounced the ball to steady herself before tossing it up.

She remembered the words that Gina told her, about forgetting everything else except the game and her opponent. She thought about how she played against Naomi, and tried to her best to do the same things against Slava.

Katie finally tossed the ball high, knowing that she had to jump as high as she could to hit it at it's apex, making sure that it sailed over the net and not into it. Once she struck the ball, she put herself in the next position to volley the ball back to the other player.

While Katie didn't have the height of most of the players on the tour, she had an ungodly amount of strength and it showed in her returns, as she made her way from side to side and back to front of the court. She had seemed to get her second wind, and was determined to run her opponent all over her patch of grass.

A few minutes later, Katie had tied up the game, at 40 all, and it was her advantage, meaning she only needed one more point to win the match. Standing at the baseline, she took a moment to glance around, catching sight of Cook, Emily and Naomi sitting in her players box. She smirked as she locked eyes with Cook and felt herself blush a little bit, as she thought about what the two of them had gotten up to last night, but she pushed those thoughts away.

Katie stared down the court at her opponent, bouncing the ball a couple of times, and wiped everything from her mind except the game, as she tossed the ball. Her goal was to hit the ball as deep as possible, as often as possible, to wear Slava out.

It seemed to take forever, but in fact was only five minutes later, when Katie hit the ball one last time, sending it toward the top corner, when Salva had made the mistake of running up to the net.

The taller girl stared at it in disbelief, as she watched it sail past her head and then drop, knowing that there was no way in hell she'd be able to return it.

"Game, set and match, Miss Fitch!" The chair umpire stated, as Katie's players box erupted in cheers along with the crowd.

"YES!" Katie shouted out, realising that she had just won the match. Granted it was only her first match of the Championships, but she had fought harder than any other match she'd ever played.

Both players met at the net, exchanging handshakes and a hug, and then made their way over to the umpire, shaking her hand as well.

As the Kazakhstani player left the court, Katie took a moment to wave to the crowd.

As she did, Cook jumped up from his seat in the players box. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" He told Naomi and Emily. "That is top quality tennis right there!"

Emily laughed at him, rolling her eyes at the boy. "I think you're judgement is a bit clouded, yeah?"

"Fuck that, Red! Katiekins is one of the top three players on this tour, if not the best." He replied, smirking at the younger twin, causing Naomi to snort with laughter.

"And I suppose the way she fills out her little white outfit has nothing to do with your way of thinking, right?" Emily smirked back at him and watched as his smirk widened it a full on toothy smile.

She had known last night that Katie and Cook had slept together, she could see it all over her sister's face, but somehow this was different because Katie didn't regale her with all the dirty details. Normally that would have been fine with Emily, because she really had no desire to know what Cook was packing and how he used it, but it was odd, because it showed that Katie had deep feelings for him. So Emily didn't push the issue and kept quiet as they applauded her sister.

The three of them waited with Rob and Kieran, as Katie showered and changed. She had a press conference to do, but then she and Cook had a day off, so Katie was hoping to convince him that they should get out of the city for the day. She knew there was a charity event tonight, and they were all required to attend, but after that, who knew.

After leaving the locker room, Kieran ushered her to the press room, and she watched as Yaroslava Shvedova finished her time with the reporters. As the two passed each other, the taller player stopped to congratulate Katie again, giving her another hug.

Twenty minutes later, Katie and Kieran were leaving the All England Lawn and Tennis Club. She was starting to get tired now, and with it, grumpiness was setting in.

"Why do they feel the need to keep harping on about the same fucking thing?" She asked the Irishman, as they walked to the car.

"Now Katie, calm down." Kieran said, knowing how irritated the older twin could get, having been on the receiving end of a "Katie Fitch Rage", Emily's words not his, once or twice in the past two weeks. "They like to be thorough, that's all."

"Thorough my ass! They just wanna run on about how short I am! I know I'm fucking short! Everyone knows I'm short!" She yanked open the passenger door, sliding into the seat and fell silent.

As they drove, Kieran became concerned about her silence. "Katie? What's the matter, lass?"

"Nothing." She replied, with a pout. Kieran almost laughed at how small and childlike she looked.

"C'mon now, tell Uncle Kieran what's wrong, luv." He prodded her, wanting to clear the air before he got her back to the complex. "Something's on yer mind. Is it Cook? What's the little fucker done now?"

Katie whipped her head around to stare at him, mouth opened in shock at his words. "What? How'd you know about me and Cook?" She asked, afraid of the answer.

"You're taking the piss, right? If you two are so much as in the same room together, the sparks fly! You'd have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to see it." He stated as if it was no big deal. "It's the same with Naomi and Emily." He said.

Katie was floored by the Irishman. He always seemed so unattached to everyone around, unless it involved training, and then he was all business. She cleared her throat before saying anything else.

"Yeah, well, it's nothing to do with Cook, so...,"

"So what is it?" He asked again. "Don't tell me you're one of those sore winners! I hate those mardy fuckers. They don't realise that you're supposed to wanna win!"

Katie broke out into a full laugh, as she listened to Kieran rant about it. "No!" She said through the giggles. "It's not that either. It's my mum." She said, as she ceased laughing.

"What about her?"

"Have you ever met my mother?" Katie asked, unsure of how much he knew. "Do you know what she's like?"

"Of course I know her. I've known her mum since before you were a twinkle in yer dads eye." He smirked at her, before going on. "She was always a tight assed snob."

She laughed again. 'Yup, he knows her.' She thought to herself.

"It's just that, it was fine for her not to be at Eastbourne, but this is Wimbledon! It's strange to not have her here, ya know?" Katie explained, her voice sounding so small.

"Don't worry lass, everything will work out. Yer mum and dad will be fine." He told her, hoping he was right. "They just need to work on a few things, that's all."

Katie nodded her head in agreement. "Kieran, I want to thank you and Gina for everything the past couple weeks."

He stayed quiet as he drove the last bit to the complex. He parked the car, but didn't get out right away. "Katie?"

She had her door open and a foot on the ground, when he spoke her name. "Yes?" She turned around to look at him.

"It's been a pleasure working with you and Emily. Your dad and I have been planning this since I started training Naomi." He confessed to the older twin. "It t'was yer mum who put an end to it back then. I tried telling her that if we combined all our knowledge along with yer dad's sports training skills, then we'd have tennis players that would never be beat, but she had her own plan for you two." He shook his head, thinking about how Jenna would get so mad whenever him and Rob would bring it up.

"Why do you think she never wanted do this?" She asked him, unable to fully understand her mother. "I've never played better."

"That's something you have to ask her, Katie, but I just wanted you to know." He told her and received a smile, then he got out of the car, with Katie following behind him.

She put all thoughts of Jenna out of her head, as she went into the locker room to put her stuff away. None of the others were here yet because they stayed to watched JJ's match, so she went out looking for something to keep her occupied until they got back.

She walked into the weight room and caught sight of James wiping down the benches, so she picked up a cloth and went to help.

"Hey Kay." He greeted her with a smile. "Congratulations on your match."

"Thanks, Perv." She smiled back at him. "Why didn't you come?"

"Well, Margaret Weston was in today for her session," he explained, a gleam in his eye, "you know I can't pass up an opportunity to ask her out."

Katie laughed at him, his persistence was legendary. But she knew that Margaret Weston was dating a promising young politician, and there was talk about a proposal. She highly doubted that her brother was going to get his leg over with her.

"C'mon, let's get this done." She said, turning her attention to the weight benches and getting to work.

James was quiet for a few minutes, lost in his own thoughts before he spoke again.

"Emily's sleeping with Naomi, isn't she?"

"Christ! Are those two wearing a sign?" She huffed out in annoyance. "How did you know?"

"Well, Emily's pretty obvious whenever Blondie's around."

"What'd ya mean by obvious?" Katie asked, trying to remember if Emily had acted any certain way around Naomi.

"Really, Katie? Like you haven't seen?" James scoffed at her question. He knew that his sisters thought he was just a dumb kid, and maybe they were right, but he still noticed things. "I knew she had a thing for Naomi, I called her out on it the other day. I just want her to be happy, ya know? Both of you deserve it, and I know neither of you have been for a while, so...," he trailed off, and seeing the look of astonishment on Katie's face made him feel like a major twat. He was expecting to be laughed at, but what he got was an armful of his older sister as she crushed him into a Fitch Hug.

"Thank you, Jamie." She said quietly, feeling tears well up. "It's nice to see you're growing up."

"Yeah, well...I caught Emily and Hillary once when I was younger, so I'm hoping I'll be able to catch her and Naomi this time around." He replied with a smirk and a wink.

"Fucking eww!" She said, swatting him upside the head. "You're a fucking prev, you do Know that, right? You sick freak!" She walked away, leaving him standing there laughing at her.

He could hear her mumbling as she walked out of the room. That was always a sure fire way of getting his sisters to leave him alone. He had no intention of spying on Emily, he outgrew that phase years ago.

"Not saying I wouldn't mind catching Naomi in the shower, though." He said to himself as he went back to work wiping down the equipment, so he could get home and get ready for the party tonight.

Katie slammed the door to the office, causing Kieran to jump and look up from paperwork he was going through.

"Are you still in a mood? I thought we had this shite sorted?" He asked her, as she reached into the mini fridge, grabbing a water.

"James!" She huffed out, sitting down in the chair next to him. "He's a freak and mum and dad should have left him on a doorstep when he was a baby!" She told him what James had said.

This caused Kieran to laugh, and after a few minutes, Katie joined him. They laughed so hard, Katie had tears in her eyes.

"What's so funny, Katherine."

The voice behind Katie made her shiver, and she stopped laughing as she stood up and turned to face Jenna Fitch.

"Hello, Mum."

Well, there you have it! C'mon! You all knew we couldn't keep Jenna away for too long:)

thoughts, comments... Loved it? Hated it? You know what to do!

I will take this time to apologize, because it might take me a while to update next. Like I said real life has slapped me in the face this week, in the worst possible way, but I will do my best to update as soon as possible:(

Marci