Charlie's POV:
I made my way up the stairs and down the hall to Adam's room. I knocked on the door and didn't get an answer. I tired the door knob and found the door locked. 'Smart guy', I thought to myself. I knocked on the door again.
"Adam, its just me. Please let me in," I called out. Just when I thought I was going to have to go get Jesse to unlock the door I heard Adam undoing the lock on the other side of the door. He opened the door and let me inside.
"Are you okay?" was the first thing out of my mouth as I shut the door behind me.
"Yeah, I'm fine until Portman gets a hold of me. I don't know what I was thinking," Adam said.
"You're not the only one. You took us all by surprise."
"Portman's going to kill me when he gets a hold of me," Adam said worriedly sitting down on his bed.
"You're over reacting," I told him although I wasn't completely convinced of that myself. A few minutes ago Portman had indeed looked like he could kill Adam. "He'll cool off."
"What he said about Alex, what he was applying... no one has ever made me that mad in my life. I don't know what got into me. I don't go around just hitting people." Adam was saying. I could tell he was upset over the whole incident.
"No, that's my job," I said jokingly trying to get him to smile. It didn't work. I went back to being serious. "Portman was out of line. He made even me mad, and although I don't think I would've had the nerve to actually punch him but I was going to say something before you took a swing at him. By the way how's your wrist?" I asked him. From where I was standing it looked like it was a little swollen.
"It hurts," he admitted quietly. I knelt down in front of him so I could get a better look at it.
"It looks swollen I told him. Maybe we should go have it looked at," I said concerned because it was the same one he had injured a few years ago at the Junior Goodwill Games.
"No, it doesn't hurt that much," Adam said. I knew that he just didn't want to try to explain the injury to anyone.
"Well I'm going to go at least get some ice for it," I told him with a sigh. As I stood up and started leaving the room the door opened and Jesse came in followed by Averman, Connie, Guy, Dwayne, Russ, Luis, Goldberg, Julie and Ken.
"You okay Adam?" I heard Jesse ask as I made my way to the small kitchen that we had in the dorm on the first floor. It basically had just counter space, a sink, a refrigerator and a freezer that everyone in the building shared. I passed Fulton on my way down the steps.
"Where's Portman?" I asked him.
"Still out walking. Adam?"
"He's upstairs. It looks like he injured his wrist punching Portman though. I'm going to get some ice to put on it."
"That doesn't surprise me," Fulton said casually. " He got Portman good. I could already see a bruise starting on his jaw. Who would have ever thought Adam had that mean of a right hook," Fulton said with a half smile as we headed back upstairs to Adam's room.
"His family has the money. He could always get plastic surgery and change his identity and Portman will never know who he is," I could hear Averman saying as we approached the room.
"Averman, you're not helping," Jesse told him.
"Sorry," Averman said as Fulton and I walked into the room. I handed the makeshift ice pack I had made to Adam who applied it to his wrist.
"So exactly how pissed off is Portman?" Adam asked looking at Fulton.
"Yeah, are we going to see another fight," Russ said. We all just looked at him. "I'm just asking what we all want to know," Russ said in his defense. We all just chose to ignore him and Fulton answered Adam's question.
"He isn't too mad anymore. I managed to calm him down quite a bit and make him see that his last comment about Alex was going over the line. I think it might still be a good idea for you to avoid him the rest of the night though just to be on the safe side."
"Oh, I plan on it," Adam said.
"I think by tomorrow he'll have forgotten about it," Fulton said, "or at least as much as he can with the bruise he's going to have."
"I'm not apologizing," Adam said. "I can't because I don't feel at all sorry. He never should've said what he said. He had it coming."
I don't know about the others but I was surprised to hear those words coming from Adam. Adam was always so forgiving. I could just see Adam apologizing to Portman for hitting him and Portman breaking his nose. I knew then that Portman had really hit a nerve with Adam and I knew for sure that Adam liked Alex as more than just a friend.
Adam's POV:
On Wednesday morning I purposely got up late. I was trying to avoid running into Portman. It worked because by the time that I got to the cafeteria most of the Ducks had already finished eaten and had left. I sat down at the table where Charlie, Connie, Julie and Scooter were still sitting.
"Running a little late aren't we," Scooter said as I sat down with my tray.
"Yeah, I over slept," I told him. Connie and Charlie didn't look at all convinced.
"Adam, I don't think you need to keep hiding from Portman. He didn't seem mad at all this morning at breakfast," Julie told him.
"Yeah, well I think I stay away from him for a little bit longer just to be on the safe side," I told her. Poor Scooter looked completely confused. I don't think anyone had filled him in on what had happened after the game last night.
"How's your wrist?" Charlie asked me.
"It'll be okay," I told him. I had wrapped it in an ace bandage this morning as it was still a little sore. "Most of the swelling has gone down."
"I bet Portman wishes he could say that," Connie said. "His jaw is still swollen and it's a wonderful shade of black and blue."
"Are you the one who hit him?" Scooter asked finally putting the pieces of our conversation together.
"Yeah, Adam nailed him good last night," Julie said.
"Why?"
"Portman said something about Alex that was out of line," Charlie told him. With Scooter also being friends with Alex I don't think he wanted to go into details and start things up again.
"You know Adam, Alex can take care of herself," Scooter said.
"I know that," I said. "He just made me mad. He never should've said what he did. Besides she wasn't there or she probably would have clobbered him herself."
"You're probably right. She nailed Riley in the locker room after our first practice last year when he said girls shouldn't play hockey. Coach Wilson laughed when he found out how Riley got the black eye," Scooter said. Charlie, Julie, Connie and I all laughed.
We talked until we had to leave the cafeteria in order to make our first class. I had only one class with Portman in the morning. Luckily I arrived at the classroom after him and as he was already sitting in the back where we all normally sit I purposely found a seat in the front of the classroom as far away from him as possible.
At lunch time I sat with Shane and Alex so I could avoid him. I was surprised when Charlie came over and joined us. The conversation was a little strained at first. I know I was worried about how Shane and Charlie would get along and I think the both of them were wary of each other. Before long though Shane and Charlie were talking about how the football season was going and had discovered that they liked the same team.
I found myself glancing over at the table where I normally sat with the rest of the Ducks. I saw Portman glance over my way a couple of times during his conversation with Fulton. I just hoped he wasn't planning on ways to get even.
"Earth to Adam," Charlie said as he waved his hand in front of my face.
"Yeah what?" I said bringing my attention back to my table.
"Alex was asking us if we could help her go through some of the stuff from her old house that they stored up in the Larsons attic when she moved in with them," Charlie told me. "You up to it this afternoon."
"Yeah, sure," I told them. "What time."
"We're going to meet in front of the academic building as soon as classes let out this afternoon," Alex said.
"Okay," I told her.
"Are you okay Adam? You seem a little spacey."
"Yeah, I'm fine." I told her. I certainly didn't want to go into what happened with Portman. There was no way I was going to tell her what Portman had said about her. I just hoped Charlie would keep his mouth shut too. Luckily he did.
The four of us chatted until the bell rang and then Alex and Shane headed off for their science class. Charlie and I headed over to where we usually sat to meet up with Dwayne, Connie and Russ who we had class with. I was glad to see Portman and Fulton had already left the table.
Together the five of us headed out of the cafeteria. As soon as I left the cafeteria though I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around to see who it was and found myself face to face with Portman.
Note: Okay, I'm going to leave it there so you can all wonder what Portman is going to do. Bankiesbabe99 -thank-you for your continual reviews. I appreciate it and I'm happy you enjoyed the end part of the last chapter with Portman. Crazy4nc128 I'm sorry I'm confusing you. I never actually said Charlie liked Alex other than as a friend but I guess maybe you could come up with that if you read between the lines (you guys have all been hoping they get together in the reviews so maybe that is what is confusing lol). Adam does definitely like Alex but that is all I'm saying about the pairings for now. Glad you liked the prank! Anee918 - I'm glad you enjoyed the prank and seeing Adam standing up to Portman and yes you're right that Adam defended Alex because he's in love with her. I'm glad you're enjoying the side stories and I will tell you I plan on getting into one more but you'll have to wait to find out about that one (probably the next chapter but no promises). Thank-you all for your reviews!
I made my way up the stairs and down the hall to Adam's room. I knocked on the door and didn't get an answer. I tired the door knob and found the door locked. 'Smart guy', I thought to myself. I knocked on the door again.
"Adam, its just me. Please let me in," I called out. Just when I thought I was going to have to go get Jesse to unlock the door I heard Adam undoing the lock on the other side of the door. He opened the door and let me inside.
"Are you okay?" was the first thing out of my mouth as I shut the door behind me.
"Yeah, I'm fine until Portman gets a hold of me. I don't know what I was thinking," Adam said.
"You're not the only one. You took us all by surprise."
"Portman's going to kill me when he gets a hold of me," Adam said worriedly sitting down on his bed.
"You're over reacting," I told him although I wasn't completely convinced of that myself. A few minutes ago Portman had indeed looked like he could kill Adam. "He'll cool off."
"What he said about Alex, what he was applying... no one has ever made me that mad in my life. I don't know what got into me. I don't go around just hitting people." Adam was saying. I could tell he was upset over the whole incident.
"No, that's my job," I said jokingly trying to get him to smile. It didn't work. I went back to being serious. "Portman was out of line. He made even me mad, and although I don't think I would've had the nerve to actually punch him but I was going to say something before you took a swing at him. By the way how's your wrist?" I asked him. From where I was standing it looked like it was a little swollen.
"It hurts," he admitted quietly. I knelt down in front of him so I could get a better look at it.
"It looks swollen I told him. Maybe we should go have it looked at," I said concerned because it was the same one he had injured a few years ago at the Junior Goodwill Games.
"No, it doesn't hurt that much," Adam said. I knew that he just didn't want to try to explain the injury to anyone.
"Well I'm going to go at least get some ice for it," I told him with a sigh. As I stood up and started leaving the room the door opened and Jesse came in followed by Averman, Connie, Guy, Dwayne, Russ, Luis, Goldberg, Julie and Ken.
"You okay Adam?" I heard Jesse ask as I made my way to the small kitchen that we had in the dorm on the first floor. It basically had just counter space, a sink, a refrigerator and a freezer that everyone in the building shared. I passed Fulton on my way down the steps.
"Where's Portman?" I asked him.
"Still out walking. Adam?"
"He's upstairs. It looks like he injured his wrist punching Portman though. I'm going to get some ice to put on it."
"That doesn't surprise me," Fulton said casually. " He got Portman good. I could already see a bruise starting on his jaw. Who would have ever thought Adam had that mean of a right hook," Fulton said with a half smile as we headed back upstairs to Adam's room.
"His family has the money. He could always get plastic surgery and change his identity and Portman will never know who he is," I could hear Averman saying as we approached the room.
"Averman, you're not helping," Jesse told him.
"Sorry," Averman said as Fulton and I walked into the room. I handed the makeshift ice pack I had made to Adam who applied it to his wrist.
"So exactly how pissed off is Portman?" Adam asked looking at Fulton.
"Yeah, are we going to see another fight," Russ said. We all just looked at him. "I'm just asking what we all want to know," Russ said in his defense. We all just chose to ignore him and Fulton answered Adam's question.
"He isn't too mad anymore. I managed to calm him down quite a bit and make him see that his last comment about Alex was going over the line. I think it might still be a good idea for you to avoid him the rest of the night though just to be on the safe side."
"Oh, I plan on it," Adam said.
"I think by tomorrow he'll have forgotten about it," Fulton said, "or at least as much as he can with the bruise he's going to have."
"I'm not apologizing," Adam said. "I can't because I don't feel at all sorry. He never should've said what he said. He had it coming."
I don't know about the others but I was surprised to hear those words coming from Adam. Adam was always so forgiving. I could just see Adam apologizing to Portman for hitting him and Portman breaking his nose. I knew then that Portman had really hit a nerve with Adam and I knew for sure that Adam liked Alex as more than just a friend.
Adam's POV:
On Wednesday morning I purposely got up late. I was trying to avoid running into Portman. It worked because by the time that I got to the cafeteria most of the Ducks had already finished eaten and had left. I sat down at the table where Charlie, Connie, Julie and Scooter were still sitting.
"Running a little late aren't we," Scooter said as I sat down with my tray.
"Yeah, I over slept," I told him. Connie and Charlie didn't look at all convinced.
"Adam, I don't think you need to keep hiding from Portman. He didn't seem mad at all this morning at breakfast," Julie told him.
"Yeah, well I think I stay away from him for a little bit longer just to be on the safe side," I told her. Poor Scooter looked completely confused. I don't think anyone had filled him in on what had happened after the game last night.
"How's your wrist?" Charlie asked me.
"It'll be okay," I told him. I had wrapped it in an ace bandage this morning as it was still a little sore. "Most of the swelling has gone down."
"I bet Portman wishes he could say that," Connie said. "His jaw is still swollen and it's a wonderful shade of black and blue."
"Are you the one who hit him?" Scooter asked finally putting the pieces of our conversation together.
"Yeah, Adam nailed him good last night," Julie said.
"Why?"
"Portman said something about Alex that was out of line," Charlie told him. With Scooter also being friends with Alex I don't think he wanted to go into details and start things up again.
"You know Adam, Alex can take care of herself," Scooter said.
"I know that," I said. "He just made me mad. He never should've said what he did. Besides she wasn't there or she probably would have clobbered him herself."
"You're probably right. She nailed Riley in the locker room after our first practice last year when he said girls shouldn't play hockey. Coach Wilson laughed when he found out how Riley got the black eye," Scooter said. Charlie, Julie, Connie and I all laughed.
We talked until we had to leave the cafeteria in order to make our first class. I had only one class with Portman in the morning. Luckily I arrived at the classroom after him and as he was already sitting in the back where we all normally sit I purposely found a seat in the front of the classroom as far away from him as possible.
At lunch time I sat with Shane and Alex so I could avoid him. I was surprised when Charlie came over and joined us. The conversation was a little strained at first. I know I was worried about how Shane and Charlie would get along and I think the both of them were wary of each other. Before long though Shane and Charlie were talking about how the football season was going and had discovered that they liked the same team.
I found myself glancing over at the table where I normally sat with the rest of the Ducks. I saw Portman glance over my way a couple of times during his conversation with Fulton. I just hoped he wasn't planning on ways to get even.
"Earth to Adam," Charlie said as he waved his hand in front of my face.
"Yeah what?" I said bringing my attention back to my table.
"Alex was asking us if we could help her go through some of the stuff from her old house that they stored up in the Larsons attic when she moved in with them," Charlie told me. "You up to it this afternoon."
"Yeah, sure," I told them. "What time."
"We're going to meet in front of the academic building as soon as classes let out this afternoon," Alex said.
"Okay," I told her.
"Are you okay Adam? You seem a little spacey."
"Yeah, I'm fine." I told her. I certainly didn't want to go into what happened with Portman. There was no way I was going to tell her what Portman had said about her. I just hoped Charlie would keep his mouth shut too. Luckily he did.
The four of us chatted until the bell rang and then Alex and Shane headed off for their science class. Charlie and I headed over to where we usually sat to meet up with Dwayne, Connie and Russ who we had class with. I was glad to see Portman and Fulton had already left the table.
Together the five of us headed out of the cafeteria. As soon as I left the cafeteria though I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around to see who it was and found myself face to face with Portman.
Note: Okay, I'm going to leave it there so you can all wonder what Portman is going to do. Bankiesbabe99 -thank-you for your continual reviews. I appreciate it and I'm happy you enjoyed the end part of the last chapter with Portman. Crazy4nc128 I'm sorry I'm confusing you. I never actually said Charlie liked Alex other than as a friend but I guess maybe you could come up with that if you read between the lines (you guys have all been hoping they get together in the reviews so maybe that is what is confusing lol). Adam does definitely like Alex but that is all I'm saying about the pairings for now. Glad you liked the prank! Anee918 - I'm glad you enjoyed the prank and seeing Adam standing up to Portman and yes you're right that Adam defended Alex because he's in love with her. I'm glad you're enjoying the side stories and I will tell you I plan on getting into one more but you'll have to wait to find out about that one (probably the next chapter but no promises). Thank-you all for your reviews!