"Allie!" Portman called through the sea of students making their way to lunch.
She didn't hear him as she kept walking towards the cafeteria.
"Move!" Portman ordered several people as he shoved his way through the crowd desperate to catch up to her.
"Allie!" he yelled again.
This time she heard him as she turned around and was slammed hard into the row of lockers by a group of guys.
"Sorry" one of them called as they passed her.
"Its okay" Allie replied rubbing her shoulder.
"Watch where you're going" Portman yelled after them.
"Hey we said sorry" one of the boys protested.
"Portman, leave it. I'm okay" Allie scolded accepting the hug he was offering.
"Nice shirt" Portman looked down and realised she was wearing one of his old Team USA polo shirts.
"Yeah I know, someone broke into your room and stole my hoodie. Oh look you're wearing it!" Allie laughed.
"Sorry, I had to leave quickly this morning" Portman apologised leading her back into the crowd.
"Its okay, Fulton said your mom was here" Allie smiled when she felt Portman grab her hand.
Portman's eyes lit up "Yeah mom and Sarah are moving here, how cool is that? Means I wont have to go back to Chicago for the Summer. I can stay here with you" he replied in an almost giddy tone.
"Who's Sarah? Is that your sister?" Allie asked remembering Portman had mentioned something about having a sister.
"Yeah, she's coming to the Ducks practice later on. She's really excited about it" Portman continued in the same tone.
Allie almost burst out laughing. She had to admit it was really weird seeing Portman so excited about something. It was a nice change from his depressed mood the other day.
Allie was taken aback when Portman suddenly stopped and grabbed her shoulders bringing her in for one of the most passionate kisses he's ever given her.
Allie smiled when they pulled apart "Wow what was that for?" she asked.
Portman glanced to his right "Just reaffirming to a particular person that you are my girlfriend"
Allie glanced over to where Portman had just been looking and saw Danielle standing there with her mouth hanging open.
"What's she been doing now?" Allie asked wondering why Portman cared so much about what this girl thought.
"Um you'd better get away from her for this. I have a feeling you'll rip her arms off and beat her with them" Portman whispered leading Allie outside.
"Can we get food first?" Allie asked staring longingly at the lunch line. She was starving after that brutal English lesson.
Portman laughed "Yeah alright"
They got in line and waited for their lunch.
"Ew that looks disgusting" Allie whispered to Portman when she saw what was being served. It looked like a giant pile of lumpy grey mush.
"What the hell is that?" Portman whispered back looking for the sign that told students what the special was.
"Tuna Surprise! That's really gross" he answered his own question.
Allie decided to forego the tuna and grabbed a sandwich and a pudding. Portman decided even he wasn't game enough to eat it and got the same as Allie.
They passed the Ducks table and Portman announced to them that they were going outside. The Ducks decided that they were going to come too and they all headed out to the front lawn of the school.
Portman decided it would be a good thing if the Ducks found out at the same time as Allie about what Danielle had told his mother that morning. There would be more hands to restrain Allie when she wanted to go and beat the crap out of Danielle. She was hard to control when she got mad as he found out the other night when she really wanted to go after that friend of Danielle's.
"So what's the big occasion?" Averman asked pushing his glasses up. He looked up at Portman expectantly.
"Oh you guys may as well know whats going on" Portman started pulling Allie into his lap.
"Oooh sounds big!" Connie replied leaning forward slightly. Julie and Adam gave each other a smirk. Connie was a big sucker for gossip.
"Well my mom came here this morning. She and my little sister are moving to Minnesota" Portman announced beaming.
"That's great man!" Charlie replied. He felt that as the leader of the Ducks he should at least say something.
"Yeah" the others agreed.
"Okay now the other thing and guys get ready to restrain this one" he pointed at Allie who gave him a "what the hell?" look.
"Um well Danielle told my mom that she was my girlfriend and my mom believed her. What's worse is that my mom likes her" Portman replied wrapping his arms around Allie to stop her from moving.
"WHAT THE FUCK?" Allie yelled causing several Ducks to jump. Averman and Luis looked petrified of her. They'd never seen her get so angry before.
"Its okay baby I set her straight immediately" Portman tried calming her down.
"That's not what I'm pissed about" Allie replied through clenched teeth.
"What a bitch!" Connie blurted out. Adam recognised the steely look in her eyes. She only got that way when she was mad.
"I'm gonna go sort her out" Linda was fuming also.
"No you're not" Charlie grabbed a hold of his girlfriend.
"Let me go Charlie!" Linda protested.
Portman was glad that he brought the Ducks along.
"Portman why did you always pick the crazy ones? Well not you Allie, but that Danielle is positively psycho" Goldberg asked.
Portman shot Goldberg a filthy look. He knew this was his entire fault.
"But you're mom's moving here, that's great!" Ken tried to steer the conversation back to the good bit.
"Don't change the subject Ken!" Julie spat out. She was furious at Danielle too.
"If I see her I'm going to rip her fucking throat out" Allie threatened scaring most of the Ducks at how serious she looked.
"She's not worth it Allie" Fulton patted her arm trying to sound soothing.
"No but it'll be worth seeing her squirm" Connie answered. The other girls agreed.
Fulton let out an exasperated sigh. Now they had four girls to calm down rather than one.
"Oh guys I told my sister that she could come to practice. That's okay right?" Portman tried his luck at changing the subject. As much as he wanted Danielle away from him, Allie going to jail for murder wasn't worth it.
"Yeah man that's cool" Charlie said quickly. The males Ducks agreed. The girls weren't paying attention.
"Do you think her head will explode if you squeezed it hard enough?" the male Ducks were horrified to hear Julie ask.
"Hopefully" Allie replied. She wasn't usually this bitchy but she was so mad at the lengths Danielle would go to.
"We should lure her into the workshop and stick her head in the vice, see if it works" Connie suggested. The four girls laughed as the boys watched them in shock.
"You're kidding right?" Adam was brave enough to ask.
The girls all stared at him as if he'd just sprouted a second head.
The bell rang before the girls could answer.
"I'll see you guys later" Allie called as she stood up and gave Portman quick kiss on the forehead. "Have a good practice" she whispered as if everything was normal.
Portman stared after her as she calmly walked back into the building. The other girls followed suit.
"Remind me never to piss any of them off. I like my head in one piece" Averman spoke up watching the girls leave.
"Don't worry they're not going on a murderous rampage" Charlie tried reassuring before adding quietly "at least I hope not"
Danielle had wisely managed to stay out of Allie's way for the rest of the day. She had earned an ear bashing from both Connie and Linda when they saw her heading to class but she was glad it wasn't anything physical.
She spotted Portman walking towards the office and decided to talk to him instead.
"Hi" Danielle ran up along side of him.
"What do you want?" Portman snapped not in the mood for her games.
"You" she replied simply flashing him a smile. It was the smile he used to say he loved.
"Well you can't have me" Portman replied wondering whether he should have just let his girlfriend tear strips of off her. At least she might leave him alone then.
"I always get what I want" Danielle tried her hand at sounding seductive. She ran her fingertips along his arm for effect.
"Will you just go away? Find some other poor bastard to harass" Portman hissed removing her hand from his arm.
"But I don't want anyone else, I want you" Danielle wasn't getting the message.
This is getting ridiculous Portman thought trying to work out how to put an end to it without getting anyone into trouble.
He spotted his mother and sister waiting for him outside Dean Buckley's office.
"I've gotta go now for the last time, stay away from me" Portman said firmly as he walked towards his family.
He smiled when he saw Sarah jumping up and down on the spot chatting excitedly to their mother. She had the same brown eyes as Dean did except she had her mother's straight hair whereas Dean inherited his father's curly hair.
"Bean! Its about time!" Sarah yelled down the hallway ignoring her mother's warning to be quiet.
"Sorry got held up" Portman apologised dropping his hockey bag.
"Come on lets go!" Sarah tugged on his hand.
"Are you coming mom?" Portman asked.
His mother shook her head "I have an appointment with the real estate agent. A rather nice house has come onto the market on the other side of town, take care of your sister, I might be late" she explained before taking off down the hall.
Portman sighed, his mother never really showed much of an interest in his hockey. She hadn't even seen one game, not even during the Goodwill Games when her only son was representing his country.
"Come on!" Sarah was getting impatient.
"Alright!" Portman laughed picking up his hockey bag. He lead her out of the building to head for the rink.
"I saw you with that girl again, are you sure she's not your girlfriend?" Sarah teased as they walked.
"NO! she's the most annoying person I've ever met, next to you of course" Portman teased back. Sarah loved it when he called her annoying.
"Good! Why does she keep trying to touch you then?" Sarah asked. She'd noticed that the girl kept trying to grab her brother's hand or hug him whenever she got within a foot of him.
"Cos she's psycho. She'd better not cross Allie otherwise she'll be in big trouble" Portman was half thinking aloud.
"Who's Allie?" Sarah asked intrigued.
"My real girlfriend. You'll actually like her. She's really cool" Portman smiled.
"If you're her boyfriend then I doubt she's that cool!" Sarah replied cheekily. She loved teasing her older brother about girls, it always got a rise out of him.
"Watch it shorty" Portman warned as they reached the rink. He had to laugh at the unconvincing glare she was giving him.
"I'm not that short. I'm taller than most boys my age" Sarah protested. It was true; she had their father's height just like Dean did.
"Yeah except I'm seven years older than you so that makes me bigger!" Portman laughed opening the door for her.
"Yeah a bigger jerk" Sarah muttered under her breath.
Portman stopped and stared at her. When did his little sister gain such a sarcastic vocabulary?
"C'mon Portman you're late" Coach Orion barked as he emerged from his office.
"Coach, this is my little sister Sarah. Is it okay if she watches practice? The other guys have agreed to it" Portman introduced his sister who stared up at Coach Orion in awe.
"Hey I know you! Didn't you play for the Stars a few years ago?" Sarah's eyes glowed with recognition.
"Yes" Coach replied surprised that a girl her age would recognise him.
"She's a bigger hockey nut than Charlie and Adam combined" Portman explained.
Coach Orion nodded "Portman on the ice in five" he ordered.
"You" he pointed at Sarah "Come with me" he led her towards the rink.
"Yes Sir!" Sarah cried happily as she followed Coach Orion to the rink.
Averman's gonna love her Portman thought as he recognised the same level of humour in her sentences as he saw in Avermans.
He watched the pair enter the rink before he moved on to the locker room to get changed for practice.
"Hey that sounds really good, you should perform when you're mad!" Hayley sat on her bed watching Allie.
"Okay just leave that bitch by the door before I go on stage" Allie laughed feeling a little better after she'd exploded to her best friend. Hayley had, nevertheless, been stunned at what Danielle had been doing.
"Are you nervous?" Hayley asked. She knew Allie had never done anything like this in front of people before.
Allie nodded "Yeah but I'm trying not to think about that" she replied. She hadn't even told Portman about the performance yet. She knew he would only want to come and see it and she wasn't sure she was ready for that.
"Ah don't worry about it, if you sounded even half as good as you did then you'll be fine, no you'll be better than fine!" Hayley replied truthfully. Allie was going to knock the music snobs dead tomorrow.
Allie nodded hoping Hayley was right.
"So what did the other girls actually say to that nasty ho?" Hayley asked trying to change the subject. She'd heard that Connie and Linda had bailed Danielle up after lunch and gave her a good 'talking to'.
"I'm not sure but I heard it was really bad, we'll ask Linda when she gets back" Allie glanced at their other roommate's empty bed wondering momentarily where her friend was.
"Wanna go through it again?" Hayley asked sensing that Allie was starting to get bored with all the talk about Danielle.
"Yeah may as well" Allie replied picking up her music book again. The more practice she got the better she'll feel tomorrow.
"Do we have to go to this thing?" Portman asked gruffly admiring his new jacket.
Coach Orion had surprised them at the previous nights practice by issuing them with their Varsity Lettermen Jackets. They were now officially the cream of the crop in Eden Hall's hockey world.
"Dean Buckley reckons that it'll look better for the school if the State Champions are seen supporting their fellow students" Julie mimicked Dean Buckley's speech from yesterday.
"I wish Allie could come too. Then at least it'd be interesting" Portman pouted. He hadn't seen his girlfriend since lunch yesterday and he was anxious to show off his jacket to her. His sister had absolutely fallen in love with it.
"Yeah and you'd both be on detention for making out in the audience" Julie pointed out laughing. Things between her and Fulton were starting to get a little better but she hadn't seen Jesse since he visited her over a week ago.
"Come on guys quit bitching, at least we get out of lessons" Charlie spoke up.
"Yeah!" the others agreed with a smile. Getting out of class was always a welcome thing.
"Are you guys ready to go?" Connie asked. She'd been appointed by Dean Buckley to ensure that the team made their way to the auditorium in time for the little 'concert' that was happening that afternoon.
"Yes Miss Connie" Averman answered sounding like a little kid answering his school teacher.
"Lester don't make me line you guys up" Connie threatened using his first name.
Averman winced at the use of Lester. He hated it. He'd told the teachers at his elementary and middle schools his name was 'Dave' cos he thought it sounded better but because of the Junior Goodwill Games, everyone now knew his name was actually Lester Averman.
"Yeah come on Lester!" Portman hooted slapping Averman on the back.
"Ow! Be careful with the merchandise!" Averman joked.
"Guys lets go already!" Connie put her foot down. They were hopeless to get organised sometimes.
"We're coming!" Fulton pushed the others into line.
The Ducks entered the auditorium glad to find that three rows of seats had been reserved for them. They sat down in any order they felt like glaring at the ever so annoying JV team who were seated across the aisle from them.
"Dude my mom's here" Portman nudged Fulton and pointed to the lady sitting with Dean Buckley.
"That's your mom? Why's she sitting with the Dean?" Fulton replied staring at the lady in the expensive looking navy blue business suit. It suddenly occurred to him that he'd never really heard Portman talk about his family or his life in Chicago.
"Beats me, I hope she's not gonna become one of those PTA moms" Portman groaned.
"If I could have your attention please…." The person acting as MC started and the Ducks snapped to attention for a change. They felt rather important in their new lettermen jackets.
"Okay I think I'm gonna throw up" Allie complained as Hayley fiddled with her hair. She'd heard the rumble of people on the other side of the curtain and was surprised to see the auditorium almost full of students and parents.
Needless to say it hadn't done her nerves any good.
"You'll be fine, you're awesome!" Hayley tried to reassure her friend as she ran the straightening iron through her friends hair.
"Easy for you to say, you get to stay back here and not be seen" Allie replied "Or heard!" she added.
"Allie?" the music teacher butted in.
Allie and Hayley turned to look at her
"You're up next, good luck" she finished.
"Oh great!" Allie turned to Hayley once the teacher was out of earshot.
"Relax! Okay there you're all done" Hayley announced putting the iron down.
Allie glanced at herself in the mirror. She looked like your average preppy student in a pair of black suit pants and a fitted cream shirt. At least Hayley had fixed her hair so she actually looked decent.
"Up next we have a talented musician from our Junior class, please welcome Allie Taylor"
Allie heard her name being called and after a quick hug from Hayley she proceeded to walk onto the stage.
Holy shit! She was dying on the inside. This was going to be harder than she thought.
She'd organised some kids in her music class to act as her band. After paying them $50 each they'd enthusiastically learned the song she was about to sing.
Signalling to the band to start she picked up the microphone and waited for the intro…..
Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same
Will it make it easier on you now
You got someone to blame
You say...
One love
One life
When it's one need
In the night
One love
We get to share it
Leaves you baby if you
Don't care for it
Did I disappoint you
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without
Well it's...
Too late
Tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We're one, but we're not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
One...
Have you come here for forgiveness
Have you come to raise the dead
Have you come here to play Jesus
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much
More than a lot
You gave me nothing
Now it's all I got
We're one
But we're not the same
Well we
Hurt each other
Then we do it again
You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Love the higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can't be holding on
To what you got
When all you got is hurt
One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should
One life
With each other
Sisters
Brothers
One life
But we're not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
One...life
One
She finished the song to the sound of applause. Finally cracking a smile she relaxed as the audience told her she didn't suck at all.
Then she caught Portman's eye and saw him staring at her in shock. She wasn't sure whether he was happy or mad. The smile faded from her face as she saw him stand up and leave the auditorium.