So once again, wow, thanks for the reviews. I'm a horrible reviewer. I mean, I do, but I never really know what to say. It usually just consists of 'Update soon!' Anyway, I'm glad you guys are enjoying the story. Here's chapter two!

Oh, and here's a little list for everyone who's expressed concern in remembering all the characters. I know there's a lot of them. Sorry!

So here we go:

JACK O'CALLAHAN + MARISSA JENKINS

BUZZ SCHNEIDER + ERIN MCCLANAHAN

BAH HARRINGTON + AVA TYLER

DAVE SILK + ASHLEIGH BEAUCHAMP

MARK JOHNSON + SARA PALMERS

MIKE RAMSEY + VALERIE DEAN

ROB MCCLANAHAN + ANN-MARIE KENNEDY

JIMMY CRAIG + LAINA KENNEDY

MIKE ERUZIONE + MERCEDES MONTOYA-CORTEZ

MARK PAVELICH + CATALINA DOMINGUEZ


"Sara, come on. I really gotta go."

"Mark-"

"Sara, I'll call you tomorrow."

"Mark Johnson! I swear to God, if you hang up the phone to go to a bar…"

"What?" He asked as if he had no clue as to what was happening.

"Ugh, God, you make me so mad sometimes!"

"Sar-" Johnson was cut off as a frantic knocking started on his door. "Just a second, there's someone at the door."

"Mark-" the redhead was cut off as Johnson threw the receiver down onto his bed.

"Hey Mac." The center greeted as he opened the door.

"Magic." Robbie smiled in greeting "You ready to go?"

Mark grimaced as he heard his girlfriend yelling through the phone. "Give me a minute." He wandered over to his bed and picked up the phone tentatively. Mac grinned as he openly listened to Johnson's end of the conversation. "Sara. Sara, listen to me. No. Come on! Sara…" There was a long pause and Mac's grin widened as he heard some muffled yelling over the phone. Mark blushed when he noticed Mac was listening and turned away from his teammate. "Listen Sara I know I've been a jerk. No! Come on, one of my teammates is standing right here… Yeah I know. I love you too. Okay. Bye." He hung up the phone and turned back to Mac, whose grin at that point was huge, and slightly creepy. "What?" He asked self consciously, shifting his weight from one side to the other.

"Girlfriend?" the Minnesotan asked, raising an eyebrow.

Johnson's blush intensified as he nodded "Yeah."

Mac laughed and slung an arm about his friend's shoulders. "She reminds me of my sister."

"You haven't even met her." Johnson protested as Mac steered him towards the bar where everyone had decided to meet.

"I heard her." Mac said succinctly, "She reminds me of my sister."


"Hey! Rizzo!" Mac greeted. Johnson offered a wave to the Bostonians and Ralph Cox, who was sitting at their table. "Hey guys," Mac greeted everyone at the table full of Minnesotans. "You guys all know Magic?"

Erin rolled her eyes as her brother clapped a hand on Buzzy's shoulder. "We did all meet him earlier Robbie."

Mac ruffled his sister's hair and grabbed himself a beer. "Ha ha, little sister."

"Whatever." Erin stuck her tongue out at him. Then turned to Ava, who was happily perched on Bah's knee. "You wanna go sit with Ashleigh for awhile?"

"Sure." The raven-haired girl turned and kissed her boyfriend soundly on the mouth. "I'll be back, eventually." Bah nodded and watched as the two girls left for the Boston table.


"Is that alright with you, mother?" Erin and Ava both jumped out of the way as OC stormed past them. They turned their attention away from the angry blonde to Coxie as he commented on his friend's behavior.

"It's no wonder he's got so many penalty minutes."

"What's going on?" Erin asked, sliding into OC's recently vacated seat. Ava nodded as she pulled another chair up to the table.

"OC's got some unfinished business over there." Silk said distractedly, for the second time that night.

Ash was sitting between Silk and Rizzo, helping her boyfriend with his psychology test. She smiled at Erin helplessly, "He doesn't like your brother very much."

Erin snorted. "I don't blame him… But why? Have they even really met?"

"'76." Cox said draining his glass. "I'm going to grab another drink, does anyone want anything?"

"I could go for a beer." Ava smiled. "Just let me go grab some money-"

"Don't worry about it, sweetheart." Ralph winked at her. "I've got it covered."

"That's my kind of man!" She said it just loud enough for Bah to look over at their table. The brunette winked at her boyfriend and blew him a kiss. She laughed when he shook his head and mouthed 'shameless' at her.

"You and Harrington, eh?" Cox asked sliding Ava her beer.

Ava accepted the drink and cupped his cheek. "There'll always be a place in my heart for you, Mustache Man."

Ralph winked and wiggled his mustache at her suggestively. "I knew I liked you." He held his hand out to her. "Ralph Cox."

"Ava Tyler." Ava shook his hand and introduced herself. "Nice to meet you Ralph Cox."

"You guys have never met before?" Erin asked, a smile on her lips.

"Never." Ava grinned and slung an arm about Coxie's shoulders. "But I like his style."

"Be still my heart." Cox said, dramatically placing a hand over his heart. Everyone at the table laughed, including Silk, who had finally given up on his test.

"So?" Ash asked once the laughter subsided. "What's happening tomorrow, since the roster's been chosen and all?"

Rizzo shrugged. "Well, we have to get our tests back to the Coach, but other than that I'm not really sure."

"If I know Herb at all," Erin said, taking a sip of Ava's beer, "Training'll start tomorrow."

"Really?" Silk groaned, laying his head on the table. Erin nodded.

"You signed up for this, baby." Ash said poking at his prostrate body.

"I know." He groaned again. "That's the sad part." A new song started on the jukebox, causing Silk to shoot up from his prone position. "If hell begins tomorrow we should dance tonight!" With that said he grabbed Ashleigh's hand and led her to the crowded dance floor.

"Well," Erin said slowly "that was random."

Ava nodded her agreement. "But it was a good idea." She turned to Cox "What say you, my mustached friend?"

Cox grinned and held out a hand to the brunette. "I say, let's cut a rug."

Erin looked at Rizzo expectantly as they left the table "Rizzo?"

Rizzo sank back in his chair a little bit "Yes?"

The brunette gave him her best pout "Please?"

He cleared his throat nervously "Don't you, umm, have a boyfriend?"

"Who? Buzzy?" She waved a hand dismissively "You could take him."

The Italian coughed, choking on his beer "What?"

Erin laughed, "I'm just kidding Rizzo." She smiled, tugging on his arm, "Please? Dance with me?"

"I don't dance!" The big man protested.

"It's easy!" Erin grinned, "I'll show you."


"Looks like you two are losing your girls." Dave Christian said, gesturing to where Erin and Ava were dancing.

Buzz laughed, seeing Erin attempting to show Rizzo, who compared to her was a giant, how to dance. "Nah, Erin likes her men short."

Everyone laughed at Buzzy's self-deprecating comment. Usually he wasn't so glib about his height, but at this particular moment he was more than halfway drunk.

Bah shrugged as everyone turned to him. "I'm not worried. Coxie wouldn't last a minute with Ava's mother."

Conversation stopped suddenly as Erin, Ava, and the rest of the Massachusetts table came up to the table. Erin kissed Buzz lightly and wrinkled her nose at his alcohol breath. She took a seat on her brother's lap and motioned for Rizzo to take a seat next to them. Silk looked around the table apprehensively and tightened his grip on Ashleigh's hand. Ashleigh, taking her boyfriend's hint, yawned dramatically "You know guys… I'm kinda tired."

Erin took pity on her friend and her boyfriend and played along. "Maybe you should head back to the hotel."

Silk nodded. "I'll take you back, baby."

Ash nodded and smiled at everyone at the table. "I'll see you guys tomorrow."

Erin and Ava both said goodnight to the couple, while the guys either nodded or smiled.


Silk let out the breath he didn't know he was holding as he and Ashleigh left the bar. "You can't avoid them forever."

"I know." Silk said despondently, pulling his girlfriend tight against his side. "But is it so bad that I'd rather spend tonight with you?"

Ashleigh shook her head "You must think I'm really dumb…"

Silk chuckled and kissed the blonde's temple. "You know that's not true. You do go to Harvard after all."

Ashleigh pushed at his shoulder half-heartedly "Dave!"

"Oh, crap!" He stopped suddenly.

"What is it?"

"I left my test in the bar." He looked at her apologetically.

"Go get it."

Silk kissed her forehead "You'll be okay?"

Ash smiled at him. "Of course. I can see the hotel from here."

"I'm sorry." He apologized. He dug in his pocket for a minute, before triumphantly pulling out a key. He handed it to her. "Room 418. I'll meet you there, okay?"

Ash nodded as he kissed her again. "Go." She shooed him. "I'll help you out with it when you get back."

Silk nodded before turning and running back towards the bar. "I'll be right back!"

The blonde girl hurried towards the hotel, no matter how safe Colorado Springs supposedly was, she wasn't one to take unnecessary risks. When she reached the front parking lot of the building she saw a forlorn looking Jimmy Craig staring into space. "Jimmy!" She called to the goalie as he turned to go back into the hotel. "Jimmy!"

Jim turned around when he heard his name being called. "Ashleigh?"

The blonde smiled at him as she reached his side. "Hey!" She wrapped her friend in a hug. "How are you?"

"Good." He said noncommittally. "What are you doing here?"

"I go where Dave goes." She shrugged as they entered the hotel. "Now, why don't you tell me how you really are?"

Jimmy shoved his hands into his pockets and grinned wryly at her. "I never could get anything past you, could I?"

She smiled back at him and bumped him with her hip. "I am a psychology major."

"I really don't want to talk about it."

Ashleigh nodded as they reached the elevators. "I'm here when you do."

He nodded back at her. "Silky's a lucky man."

Ash grinned, but blushed slightly. "Thanks."

"You know," he said as they got off the elevator on the fourth floor "if you still need someone to psychoanalyze OC came back here in a horrible mood."

She grimaced "I know, I was there when he left the bar. I wasn't going to brave talking to him until he'd talked to Marissa. Do you know if he has?"

Jimmy shook his head "No, but his room's right next to mine, when you do decide to talk to him."

"Okay." She grinned at him as they stopped in front of his door. She hugged him after he had unlocked the door "Let me know if you need anything."

Jimmy grinned and kissed her cheek. "You'll be the first to know, Ms. Beauchamp."

"Night Jimmy." She said, rolling her eyes.

"Night Ash."

She waited until his door closed to leave. She stopped in front of OC's door and raised her hand to knock, but changed her mind. Jack was temperamental, to say the least, and while she knew without a doubt he'd never hurt her she'd much rather leave him to his girlfriend when he was in one of his moods. She'd talk to him tomorrow, she decided. Then she made her way down the hall to room 418, she'd just bide her time and wait for Silk.


OC dialed the number for what seemed like the hundredth time since he got back to his room. Why wasn't she answering? "Come on, Marissa." He muttered as the phone rang. "Pick up."

"Hello?"

"Marissa?"

"No, this is Natalie. Can I help you?"

"This is Jack." Frustration was evident in his voice. "Where's Marissa?"

"Just a second, I think she just got home."

"Jack?"

"I don't like your roommate." He said bluntly.

"What?"

"I don't like your roommate." He repeated. "She never remembers who I am."

Marissa laughed. God, he thought, it was amazing how just her laugh made him feel one hundred times better. "Jack?"

"Sorry, what?"

"I was just saying that she does it on purpose."

"She forgets me on purpose?"

"No." She laughed again. "She pretends to forget you, 'cause she knows it annoys you."

OC grunted, "So where have you been anyway?"

"I had a gig." She answered simply. "What's wrong with you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Jack O'Callahan." Her voice had that motherly quality. "I know when something's wrong with you, now spill. Was it tryouts? Did you not make the team? 'Cause I'll come down there and kick that coach's ass till he sees reason!"

Jack chuckled feebly "No, tryouts went pretty good. I'm in the final 26."

Marissa squealed, "I told you! I told you that you would make it!"

He smiled a little at his girlfriend's excitement. "Yeah, I know you did."

"So what's the problem then?" She asked when she calmed down.

"Rob McClanahan."

"Rob McClanahan?" She asked, she was silent for a few moments, obviously thinking to herself. "'76." She finally sighed. "Jack, sweetheart, that was three years ago."

"I know that!" He said angrily.

"Don't you dare get mad at me."

"I'm sorry." He sighed. "Winning that game was really important to me." He paused for a second, "I just- it makes me so angry sometimes! I was so close and he just took it away!"

"I know."

"I barely got through the day without beating his face in." He sighed again.

"So hit him."

"What?"

"Hit him. Just once. Get it out of your system, you know it's the only thing that'll make you feel better."

"Marissa-"

"Come on, Jack. I know you."

OC shook his head and settled back on his bed. "So tell me about this gig of yours."