~*~
I took a deep breath as I entered my history class. I looked around and saw Charlie in his regular seat in the back, trying to sweet talk some poor defenseless intellectual girl who was trying her best to ignore him.
"Conaway." I hissed in his ear making him just about 5 feet and making the girl beside him sigh in relief.
"Cake-eater! You made it!" He said gesturing to the seat beside him. I knew exactly why. He wanted all the details about my trip over state lines. "We told your morning teachers that you went off campus with your dad to some snooty restaurant and ate some bad caviar last night. We told them that you were going to try to make it to your afternoon classes."
I smiled. "Thanks man."
Connie ran into the class in a hurry and dropped her books onto the table in front of us. "The girl. . . Josie. . . I saw. . . I saw. . ." She whispered between pants.
"You saw Josie what?" I asked my attention flying to Connie.
She took a deep breath. "I was at my dorms and I forgot my textbook on my desk so I got it and when I came out I saw Josie and her father screaming at each other again." She whispered. "He knows about Wisconsin. Dean Buckley went to her room before classes this morning and she wasn't there so I guess he notified her father and I guess he has connections."
I blinked nervously. "Does he know about me?"
Connie bit her lip and nodded. "But they don't know who you are. They just know she had a boy eating breakfast with her."
"You don't think she would tell her dad about you; do you?" Charlie whispered to me.
I remembered she said I was the only person who really knew her, so I went with my gut. "No. She wouldn't. I don't think she would tell him anything."
~*~
Guy followed me all the way to the girl's dorm convincing me not to go.
"Germaine, I know we have practice in like twenty minutes but this is a little bit more important." I snapped at him.
He immediately shot something back. "Banksie, I get it, you like her. Out of any of the ducks, I'm the one who gets it." He puffed along behind me. "I have been after Connie for years and I would do anything to prove to her I'm not an idiot."
I looked back at him. "I'm not after Josie."
He rolled his eyes. "If you're not after her, then why did you go across state lines to her hometown to visit her dead partner and find an old box in a tree?"
"Because I couldn't turn back after she told me." I shrugged getting closer and closer to her dormitory.
"She didn't sit you on a bus, get halfway there and then tell you did she?" He asked skeptically.
"Well no. . ."
"She didn't have a gun to your head."
"No."
He caught up to me and stopped me in my tracks. "In fact you were still on the grounds when she told you where you guys were going. You could have gone back to bed. Face it Adam; you want her and you can't stand the fact that you don't have her."
I swallowed. I didn't want to face the facts that he placed in front of me. They scared me. Sure I had had a girlfriend before and all, but I had never really been attracted to a girl like this before. Like it made absolutely no sense; she would yell at me, begin crying because of me; why would I want to like a girl who couldn't help being hurt or hurting when in my presence.
"I still have to help her." I stated trying to push past him.
Guy stood his ground. "Missing practice and getting kicked off the team and kicked out of school is not the way to help her. She needs you in school with her."
I shrugged. "Even if I do lose my scholarship my dad will pay for me going here, so Guy, get out of my way." I urged stepping to my left and then stepping to my right only to have him follow me blocking my path.
He dropped his arms. "Even if you do get past me, how are you expecting to get past the teacher on duty making sure no guys into the dorms without a girl with them?"
I stopped and bit my cheek. I hadn't thought about that. "She's probably in the Dean's office with her father. If she needs me she'll come to my dorm."
Guy grinned. "Exactly! Let's go to practice."
~*~
I stepped out onto the ice with everyone else to get warmed up.
"Banks! Over here." Coach Orion called from the bench.
I slid over to him and stopped in front of him. "Yes coach?"
He looked me up and down. "You feel ok?"
"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" I asked confused. Why would he be asking that?
He smirked and crossed his arms. "You didn't eat bad caviar. Why weren't you at your morning classes Banks?"
"Shit." I quietly cursed. "I . . . slept in?" I offered as a response.
He shook his head. "Banks, it's impossible that you slept in. On the weekends for God-sake, you're out here before I am. Try again."
I bit my lip. "Would you believe me if I said I was finishing a project I forgot to do?"
He shook his head. "How about the truth, Banks? You're a really bad liar."
I looked down at my skates.
"Ok, I'll tell you where you were." He states. My eyes jerk up nervously. "I found out that you were the only person who actually spoke to Miss. Best. Then I remembered seeing you comforting her when her father and she had that argument yesterday after practice. Today, both of you were missing from your morning classes. You have an excuse, you ate something bad. But I saw you in the library with Conaway tutoring him when you should have been with your father eating that bad caviar. So I put two and two together and guess what I got."
I swallowed nervously. "Dairy state?"
He nodded. "I have decided that I won't tell the Dean about it as long as you don't do it again."
"Do you mean skip classes or go to Wisconsin?"
Coach Orion scoffed as a smile crept across his face. "Go warm-up Banks."
~*~
The guys looked at me suspiciously all through practice as if I were some sort of scandal. I could tell they wanted to know what exactly happened desperately. I wasn't supposed to be the person they were all wondering about; I was the person everyone affectionately called Mr. Perfect. They all knew if drove me nuts.
"Would you just ask me and stop staring at me like that!" I yelped as I collapsed on the bench tired from the practice we all endured. Everyone else went silent and avoided my eyes.
"Sorry partner." Dwayne spoke up with his friendly southern twang. "It's just really outta character for ya."
Russ nodded and added. "Yeah man. That's more like Charlie's job to skip classes or Mendoza's to chase a girl over state lines." Russ smirked dodging an elbow pad from Luis and a glove from Charlie.
Everyone continued to awkwardly change in silence again.
"Seeing no one else is going to ask;" Ken started, biting his lip nervously catching everyone's attention, "what happened?"
I smiled looking at the nodded heads of the rest of the team. "Nothing; really."
"Aw! Banksie! Come on!" Portman groaned at her pulled off his shoulder pads. "Come on tell your Bash Brother!"
Mendoza shook his head. "I don't care what you say. No girl comes to your dorm at midnight and takes you across state lines for nothing."
I stopped smiling. "How did you know she came at midnight Luis?"
The eyes of the team fell onto Averman, my roommate.
"Hey! Don't look at me; I didn't do anything! You just really suck at sneaking out!"
~*~
Guy and Connie followed me back to my dorm. I honestly wanted to either have some 'me' time or to go check up on Josie, which I probably would need Connie or Julie to get past the teacher on duty. Unfortunately, when Connie heard my 'story' as the ducks called it; she couldn't help bombarding me with questions.
"So she fell on you?" She asked, letting out a giggle. I shot Guy an apologetic look; I knew he wanted to take her out someplace alone, without any Ducks around. I suggested Wisconsin, but. . .
I nodded, sighing; wishing the interrogation would end.
She continued. "And there was a pause before either of you moved to get up?"
I stopped in front of my door and frowned, unsure of where this was going. "Yeah, so. . ."
Connie sighed and griped Guy's hand, pouting. "They had a. . ." she paused to sigh again. "Moment."
Guy burst out laughing. "A moment?"
"Stop laughing!" she yelled, hitting him in the gut only making him have a fake serious face that couldn't help but grin. "They didn't have a moment. They had a. . . "She paused again smiling. "Moment; you know, when everything clicks. Adam you had a . . . moment."
"You sure?" I asked as my key hit the lock, only to find it was unlocked in the first place. "Weird." I muttered under my breath.
She scoffed as I opened the door. "Positive. I'm a girl; I know moments."
Guy stopped in his place with his jaw dropped. Connie's eyes followed his and bit her lip.
"Hi Adam."
I spun around to meet with a pair of familiar eyes, only redder.
"Josie? How did you get in here?"
She bit her lip and tossed me her father's platinum card. She shrugged. "Something I picked up a while ago I guess." She sniffed.
Guy coughed uncomfortably and Connie shifted nervously. "I think we'll leave now. . ." Guy announced as he inched toward the door.
"Don't! I kind of need all the help I can get." She yelped nervously.
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A/N: Other Chapter. Wow. . . Reviews last chapter were scarce. I'm hoping *hint hint* there will be more reviews *hint hint* this chapter. This chapter was kind of written in two parts because I was separated from my computer. But I still expect reviews from you people. Because this is basically no point of me writing it, if I don't know that you guys aren't reading it.
REVIEW!!
~ToOdLeS! 3 3 3 3
I took a deep breath as I entered my history class. I looked around and saw Charlie in his regular seat in the back, trying to sweet talk some poor defenseless intellectual girl who was trying her best to ignore him.
"Conaway." I hissed in his ear making him just about 5 feet and making the girl beside him sigh in relief.
"Cake-eater! You made it!" He said gesturing to the seat beside him. I knew exactly why. He wanted all the details about my trip over state lines. "We told your morning teachers that you went off campus with your dad to some snooty restaurant and ate some bad caviar last night. We told them that you were going to try to make it to your afternoon classes."
I smiled. "Thanks man."
Connie ran into the class in a hurry and dropped her books onto the table in front of us. "The girl. . . Josie. . . I saw. . . I saw. . ." She whispered between pants.
"You saw Josie what?" I asked my attention flying to Connie.
She took a deep breath. "I was at my dorms and I forgot my textbook on my desk so I got it and when I came out I saw Josie and her father screaming at each other again." She whispered. "He knows about Wisconsin. Dean Buckley went to her room before classes this morning and she wasn't there so I guess he notified her father and I guess he has connections."
I blinked nervously. "Does he know about me?"
Connie bit her lip and nodded. "But they don't know who you are. They just know she had a boy eating breakfast with her."
"You don't think she would tell her dad about you; do you?" Charlie whispered to me.
I remembered she said I was the only person who really knew her, so I went with my gut. "No. She wouldn't. I don't think she would tell him anything."
~*~
Guy followed me all the way to the girl's dorm convincing me not to go.
"Germaine, I know we have practice in like twenty minutes but this is a little bit more important." I snapped at him.
He immediately shot something back. "Banksie, I get it, you like her. Out of any of the ducks, I'm the one who gets it." He puffed along behind me. "I have been after Connie for years and I would do anything to prove to her I'm not an idiot."
I looked back at him. "I'm not after Josie."
He rolled his eyes. "If you're not after her, then why did you go across state lines to her hometown to visit her dead partner and find an old box in a tree?"
"Because I couldn't turn back after she told me." I shrugged getting closer and closer to her dormitory.
"She didn't sit you on a bus, get halfway there and then tell you did she?" He asked skeptically.
"Well no. . ."
"She didn't have a gun to your head."
"No."
He caught up to me and stopped me in my tracks. "In fact you were still on the grounds when she told you where you guys were going. You could have gone back to bed. Face it Adam; you want her and you can't stand the fact that you don't have her."
I swallowed. I didn't want to face the facts that he placed in front of me. They scared me. Sure I had had a girlfriend before and all, but I had never really been attracted to a girl like this before. Like it made absolutely no sense; she would yell at me, begin crying because of me; why would I want to like a girl who couldn't help being hurt or hurting when in my presence.
"I still have to help her." I stated trying to push past him.
Guy stood his ground. "Missing practice and getting kicked off the team and kicked out of school is not the way to help her. She needs you in school with her."
I shrugged. "Even if I do lose my scholarship my dad will pay for me going here, so Guy, get out of my way." I urged stepping to my left and then stepping to my right only to have him follow me blocking my path.
He dropped his arms. "Even if you do get past me, how are you expecting to get past the teacher on duty making sure no guys into the dorms without a girl with them?"
I stopped and bit my cheek. I hadn't thought about that. "She's probably in the Dean's office with her father. If she needs me she'll come to my dorm."
Guy grinned. "Exactly! Let's go to practice."
~*~
I stepped out onto the ice with everyone else to get warmed up.
"Banks! Over here." Coach Orion called from the bench.
I slid over to him and stopped in front of him. "Yes coach?"
He looked me up and down. "You feel ok?"
"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" I asked confused. Why would he be asking that?
He smirked and crossed his arms. "You didn't eat bad caviar. Why weren't you at your morning classes Banks?"
"Shit." I quietly cursed. "I . . . slept in?" I offered as a response.
He shook his head. "Banks, it's impossible that you slept in. On the weekends for God-sake, you're out here before I am. Try again."
I bit my lip. "Would you believe me if I said I was finishing a project I forgot to do?"
He shook his head. "How about the truth, Banks? You're a really bad liar."
I looked down at my skates.
"Ok, I'll tell you where you were." He states. My eyes jerk up nervously. "I found out that you were the only person who actually spoke to Miss. Best. Then I remembered seeing you comforting her when her father and she had that argument yesterday after practice. Today, both of you were missing from your morning classes. You have an excuse, you ate something bad. But I saw you in the library with Conaway tutoring him when you should have been with your father eating that bad caviar. So I put two and two together and guess what I got."
I swallowed nervously. "Dairy state?"
He nodded. "I have decided that I won't tell the Dean about it as long as you don't do it again."
"Do you mean skip classes or go to Wisconsin?"
Coach Orion scoffed as a smile crept across his face. "Go warm-up Banks."
~*~
The guys looked at me suspiciously all through practice as if I were some sort of scandal. I could tell they wanted to know what exactly happened desperately. I wasn't supposed to be the person they were all wondering about; I was the person everyone affectionately called Mr. Perfect. They all knew if drove me nuts.
"Would you just ask me and stop staring at me like that!" I yelped as I collapsed on the bench tired from the practice we all endured. Everyone else went silent and avoided my eyes.
"Sorry partner." Dwayne spoke up with his friendly southern twang. "It's just really outta character for ya."
Russ nodded and added. "Yeah man. That's more like Charlie's job to skip classes or Mendoza's to chase a girl over state lines." Russ smirked dodging an elbow pad from Luis and a glove from Charlie.
Everyone continued to awkwardly change in silence again.
"Seeing no one else is going to ask;" Ken started, biting his lip nervously catching everyone's attention, "what happened?"
I smiled looking at the nodded heads of the rest of the team. "Nothing; really."
"Aw! Banksie! Come on!" Portman groaned at her pulled off his shoulder pads. "Come on tell your Bash Brother!"
Mendoza shook his head. "I don't care what you say. No girl comes to your dorm at midnight and takes you across state lines for nothing."
I stopped smiling. "How did you know she came at midnight Luis?"
The eyes of the team fell onto Averman, my roommate.
"Hey! Don't look at me; I didn't do anything! You just really suck at sneaking out!"
~*~
Guy and Connie followed me back to my dorm. I honestly wanted to either have some 'me' time or to go check up on Josie, which I probably would need Connie or Julie to get past the teacher on duty. Unfortunately, when Connie heard my 'story' as the ducks called it; she couldn't help bombarding me with questions.
"So she fell on you?" She asked, letting out a giggle. I shot Guy an apologetic look; I knew he wanted to take her out someplace alone, without any Ducks around. I suggested Wisconsin, but. . .
I nodded, sighing; wishing the interrogation would end.
She continued. "And there was a pause before either of you moved to get up?"
I stopped in front of my door and frowned, unsure of where this was going. "Yeah, so. . ."
Connie sighed and griped Guy's hand, pouting. "They had a. . ." she paused to sigh again. "Moment."
Guy burst out laughing. "A moment?"
"Stop laughing!" she yelled, hitting him in the gut only making him have a fake serious face that couldn't help but grin. "They didn't have a moment. They had a. . . "She paused again smiling. "Moment; you know, when everything clicks. Adam you had a . . . moment."
"You sure?" I asked as my key hit the lock, only to find it was unlocked in the first place. "Weird." I muttered under my breath.
She scoffed as I opened the door. "Positive. I'm a girl; I know moments."
Guy stopped in his place with his jaw dropped. Connie's eyes followed his and bit her lip.
"Hi Adam."
I spun around to meet with a pair of familiar eyes, only redder.
"Josie? How did you get in here?"
She bit her lip and tossed me her father's platinum card. She shrugged. "Something I picked up a while ago I guess." She sniffed.
Guy coughed uncomfortably and Connie shifted nervously. "I think we'll leave now. . ." Guy announced as he inched toward the door.
"Don't! I kind of need all the help I can get." She yelped nervously.
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A/N: Other Chapter. Wow. . . Reviews last chapter were scarce. I'm hoping *hint hint* there will be more reviews *hint hint* this chapter. This chapter was kind of written in two parts because I was separated from my computer. But I still expect reviews from you people. Because this is basically no point of me writing it, if I don't know that you guys aren't reading it.
REVIEW!!
~ToOdLeS! 3 3 3 3