Life's Full of Little Surprises
Disclaimer: I own absolutely none of the 'Mighty Duck' characters or the rights to the "Mighty Duck" franchise, that honor belongs to Disney. So I would appreciate that I wouldn't get sued over something I don't own.
Summary: Dani's life couldn't be going better. She has finally made it to the Olympics, doing the sport she loves the most. But... after arriving in Minneapolis, Minnesota things change. First she is constantly badgered by her brother, then she falls for one of his friends, and, of course, there is always a stalker!
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firexelement- I am ecstatic that you think that the last chapter was funny. Yes, Adam is falling pretty hard; I tried to make it interesting, I am happy you thought it was funny. Thanks for reviewing!
pipsqweek91- Randomness is always fun, that's why I needed to have some at the end of my last chapter. It's true, Adams mouth is getting away from him, it will happen later as well. Glad you like!
mickEmousina- Hero? Me? Really? COOL! I don't think anyone has told me that before, but I don't mind. I agree that RENT (the movie) rocked; but, as you said, things are rarely better then the original (be it a movie, book, play, etc). The characters are starting to be like friends of your's? I tried to stay as true to the movies for the characters that were already there, but the OC's are based off of a person or people I know. What a coincidence.
BrokenAngel1753- Happily, I haven't stopped this story. It's nice to know that you want to read more of it. I hope you enjoy the rest of this story.
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Fulton was up at 6:00 in the morning on Friday, but he wasn't sure why. He had been up since about 5:45 and he couldn't get back to sleep; Dean's snoring, which normally never bothered him, wasn't helping either. He figured that he might as well get dressed, because there was no way he was getting back to sleep.
After Fulton was fully dressed there was a knock on the door. "Who the hell is up at this time on a Friday. And why are they knocking on someones door?" He mumbled to himself, rather disgruntled. He walked over to the door, yawning, and opened it, "Dani? What are you doing here?"
"Hi Fulton." Dani replied. "Dean's not up yet, is he?" She asked, then she answered her own question, "Oh, of course he isn't. He's never up this early. Can I come in?"
"Uh, why?" Fulton asked, perplexed.
"Family tradition." Dani replied, simply.
"Okay." Fulton said, confused, "How did you even know where our room was?" He asked, raising his eyebrow.
"Tammy told me."
"Oh." Now Fulton was really embarrassed. He was, very quickly, turning a bright shade of red.
"No!" Dani said, "I am not a dirty minded person. I do not think about things of that nature! Chill!" She had a very incredulous look on her face. "Honestly man. I don't even want to think about that."
"What exactly did Tammy tell you?" He asked, now very pale.
"She told me that you had gotten your mother a necklace for a 'graduation' of sorts, and that you asked her if she thought your mom would like it." Dani said.
"Oh, okay." he said as he moved over to let her in the room.
Fulton hadn't noticed that she had a back pack with her. She stood over Dean's sleeping form and shook her head. She put the back pack down and reached into it, pulling out a CD player and a plain white box. Fulton was very confused about what was going on. Dani placed the earphones of the CD player over Dean's ears and pressed play. The effect was instantaneous: The music was so loud that Fulton could hear every word clearly, it was The All-American Rejects 'Dirty Little Secret', Dean shot straight up and fell off of his bed, pulling the earphones off of his head.
"WHAT THE HELL!" He screamed. Fulton had to hold in his laughter, which was hard because it was a genuinely funny scene. "Dani?"
"Yes, Deany-Bear?" She asked with a twinkle in her eye.
"First of all, don't call me that around any of my teammates." He stood up and began to gather himself back together. "And second of all, what the hell?" He picked up his blanket and threw it back onto his bed.
"Tradition." She said simply. He looked confused and then she handed him the white box that she had pulled out of her back pack, "Happy Birthday." She said sweetly.
He looked at the box, to Dani, and back to the box, "It isn't lethal, is it?"
"You'll just have to open it up and see for yourself." Dani told him with a small sigh, and placing her hand on her hip.
"Okay." He told her as he broke the tape that held the two sides of the box together. He threw the top of the box on his bed and followed it with the tissue paper, pulled out a fantastic black leather jacket, then he just gawked.
"Oh my God!" Fulton exclaimed, "Dude, can I have you sister."
That made Dean come back to life, "What?"
"I mean... what I meant was... that sounded wrong." Fulton said, trying to find that right words for what he meant.
"I think I get it." Dean said. Then he returned his attention to his sister, "Thanks Dani-Girl; although, you can try and find another way to get my attention."
"And break tradition? Never!" Dani joked. Then she hugged her brother, "I better get going or Coach will kill me." She picked up her back pack and walked to the door. "Bye Dean, See you Fulton." Then she was gone.
"That has got to be the greatest jacket I have seen in my life!" Fulton said.
"That's my Dani-Girl."
"Question: Dani-Girl? Deany-Bear? Something I should know?"
Dean scowled, "It's a nickname. And if you ever call me that or tell anyone about it, I will have absolutely no problem maiming and killing you. Got it?"
"Okay, okay. I get it." Fulton said as he went back to getting ready.
(----)
"Man, what is the matter with you?" Max asked at the end of the day, "You look like someone died and you had to get rid of the body at two in the morning so no one will see." Everyone looked at him, "I would guess."
"He got an interesting wake-up call this morning." Fulton said, laughing.
"It wasn't funny." Dean scowled again.
"Hey, at least you got a completely awesome jacket out of the whole thing. Come on man, you have to admit that." Fulton told him.
"True." Dean agreed.
"Oh, right. The tradition." Max said, finally comprehending what was going on, "What song did she wake you up with this time? I hope it wasn't more of that pop-fluff crap that she used to use."
"No." Dean said, "It was The All-American Rejects."
"Dirty Little Secret?" Max asked.
"What else would you expect?" Dean said, shaking his head, "The only problem is that now I need to figure out some way to top her."
"Maybe Tammy will show you where their room is." Fulton suggested.
"No. The evilly-waking-people-up-at-the-crack-of-dawn thing is Dani's shtick. I just have to buy her something that she will freak out over. Now all I have to do is figure out what she wants." Dean said.
"Try shoes." Connie suggested.
"Shoes?" Dean asked.
"Every girl loves a good pair of Jimmy Choo's for a special occasion." Julie finished.
Dean raised his eyebrows, "Do you own a pair of Jimmy Choo's?" He asked. He didn't expect a tomboy like Julie to own a pair of Jimmy Choo's.
"Sometimes I go with my dad on his business trips during the summer and I need to look professional." She told him, "It isn't like I wear them all the time."
"You don't wear what all the time?" Scooter asked, slinking up behind them.
"Jimmy Choo's." Julie said.
"Aren't those a brand of shoes?" Julie and Connie nodded, "I think my little sister owns a pair."
"Scooter," Dani came up to the group, "Your little sister is five. What is a five year old doing with a pair of Jimmy's."
"Nuh-uh. I'm five and a quarter." said a small voice. Dani looked down and, sure enough, there was the small, excitable, copper-haired little girl she met when she and Tammy had to speak to Dean Buckley and the Alumni an hour ago. "Scooter, can I have some hot chocolate when we get home?" She pouted out her lower lip.
"Louise, it isn't even cold yet." He told her.
"PLEASE!"
Dani moved over between Julie and Connie, "He's going to cave in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1." she counted down with her watch.
"Okay, you can." Scooter said. He gave a defeated sigh and shook his head. "Louise," He said, "Go say good-bye to mom and dad, and then we'll go. Okay."
"Okay Scooter." Louise replied and ran off at top speed.
"She's not going to sleep tonight." He mumbled to himself.
"I'm guessing that the fact that you are the biggest push over in the world is the reason that she has a pair of Jimmy's." Dani said, "Is it just for her, or are you a push over for anyone else."
"I plead the fifth." He said
"You never told me you had a little sister." Julie said.
"You never asked." Scooter replied.
Julie opened her mouth to speak but Charlie cut in, "We'd all love to see Julie kick your ass and all, but we have practice and we are cutting a little thin on time."
(----)
After practice, the Ducks managed to agree to meet at the diner that Charlie's mom worked at at noon the next day. Charlie and Adam were about to leave when Adam walked passed their coaches office and heard a loud thump. Charlie was already waiting for him outside, but he figured that Charlie could wait a little longer.
"Coach?" He asked as he knocked on the door.
"Come in." Said a frazzled voice from inside. Adam opened the door and saw that his coach was searching for something in his desk, "Got it!" Coach Orion said.
"Coach? You okay?" Adam asked.
"Banks? I'm fine."
"Are you sure? You look a little...what's the word I'm looking for?" He asked
"Spread?"
"That's it." Adam told him.
"Well," Orion started, "I have to file a lot of papers for work, then I have to take that mountain to my brother," He pointed to a large stack of papers on the table next to the door, "and I have to do all of this in less then 30 minutes so that I can pick up my daughter from her physical therapy on time!" He heaved a large sigh and placed his head in his hands.
"Why don't I just take those up to your brother? It's the room the girls are using as a classroom, isn't it?" Adam offered.
"I'd appreciate it."
"Sure." Adam said. He picked up the papers and left the room. He walked up the stairs and up to the door of the extra room. To his immense surprise, Adam could hear someone inside, sort of singing along to a song he didn't recognize; so he knocked.
Dani came to the door, "Hey." She said and smiled. She had a plate of crackers in her hand.
"Hi," He began, momentarily forgetting why he was there, "Uh, my coach asked me to bring these for yours." He told her, indicating the paper he was holding.
"His desk is over there." She told him, pointing over her shoulder to the other side of the room, "Just put them there and he'll be bound to find them."
"Thanks." He said.
"Not a problem." She said as he passed her and put the mountain of paper on her coaches desk. "Saltine?" She offered.
"No thanks. Does it get confusing having two Coach Orion's around? We never see yours, but they have to talk sometime." Adam asked, trying to not be nervous.
"I just call yours 'Sir'. That's my solution for everything." Dani said, wondering where that question had just come from.
"I heard you singing." Adam said.
"You did?" Dani exclaimed, "Oh no. I hate it when people hear me sing!"
"I thought it was nice. You have a good voice." He told her, trying desperately not to blush. A battle he was losing quickly.
"Oh, thanks." Dani said, blushing a little herself, "There's that corn-fed honesty again." She said jokingly. Adam cleared his throat and mumbled a small 'thanks'. "Un-salted Saltines."
"Huh?" Adam asked.
"I was thinking about the world's biggest oxymoron's. One of them has to be unsalted Saltines; I mean, they have the word 'salt' in the name."
For the first time since he walked into the room, Adam looked up and looked Dani straight in the eye. There was a knot in chest and his stomach was contracting. What happened next was unexpected to both of them. Adam lost his inhibitions, leaned forward, and kissed Dani. She was surprised, but she didn't pull away.
The moment, no matter how long it seemed to either of them, was short and broken abruptly. Adam seemed to get his ability to think back and pulled away, "Dani. I'm sorry, I didn't mean... I have to go." He turned around and rushed as fast as humanly possible out of the door.
When he got to the entrance to the rink, he rushed out the door and passed Charlie, "B-Banksie?" Charlie called.
"Let's go!" Adam called back and he and Charlie made there way to Charlie's apartment.
(-----)
"Adam! Banksie! Stop!" Adam had been pacing around the living room for the better part of an hour. Charlie had grabbed Adam's shoulders to get him to stop pacing, "Man, chill. What is up with you today?"
"Nothing." Adam lied.
"Sure." Charlie replied, sceptically. There was a knock on the door, "That's Terry and Jesse. Sit down and chill out."
Charlie went to get the door, and Adam whispered, "Yeah, chill out. Easier said then done. If Portman finds out he is going to kill me!"
"Cake-eater!" Jesse called as he entered the room, "What's up man?"
"The ceiling." Adam said, tapping his fingers nervously on the arm of the couch. He was tapping his foot and doing whatever else possible to release some of his anxiousness.
"What's up with him." Terry asked, looking Adam up and down.
"I don't know." Charlie told them, "He's been like that ever since he left the rink at school. He was fine right after practice, then I went out to wait for him, and he ran out of the building like he was being chased by a pack of wild dogs or wolves or something!"
"What is up with you?" Jesse asked, holding down Adam's tapping arm with his hand, "Stop that, your making me jumpy, and I don't even know why you are so hyper."
"Okay, look. If I tell you guys, will you solemnly swear to never tell anyone, EVER. Especially nobody on the team." Adam looked around, "You can't tell Scooter either, he might tell Julie."
"Sure cake-eater. What the hell is going on?" Terry asked.
"Okay look, after practice I was doing a favor for Coach Orion, and it involved going to the room that the Figure Skaters use as a classroom." Adam began.
"And?" Charlie urged.
"I'm getting there." Adam retorted, sourly, "Anyway, Dani was there and I started talking to her..."
"So that is why you took so long!" Charlie said. He, Terry, and Jesse suddenly looked much more interested in where Adam's story was going.
"Well. We were talking and, I don't know how it happened, but the next thing that I knew, I was kissing her."
"Thank GOD!"Jesse yelled out.
"It's about time." Charlie said.
"Go cake-eater. Go cake-eater!" Terry said, "Good for you!"
"NO! No, not good for me." Adam said, exasperated. "I am screwed over!" He placed his elbows on his knees and placed his head in his hands.
"Why so glum?" Jesse asked, "You just kissed a gorgeous girl, who you have a huge crush on. She didn't pull away or anything, did she?"
"No, I did."
"Gah! Idiot!" Terry said, "If a girl doesn't pull away, it's usually a good sign. A very good sign!"
"Look guys, I told you before, it's apparent that Portman is really protective of her. If he finds out, I'm as good as dead!"
"IF!" Jesse said, "If is not a definite. He might not ever find out."
"Hi boys." A voice called from the hallway.
"Mom's home." Charlie said.
"We can tell stupid." Jesse said.
Charlie's mother walked passed them with two bags of groceries and into the kitchen, "Hello Terry, Jesse. I wasn't expecting you two to be here."
"It's okay that they're here, isn't it Mom?". Charlie asked.
"Of course." She replied. Then she pulled out a can of pasta sauce, "But, all four of you have to help me put these away." She told them.
"Mom, where is..." Charlie began to ask about his stepfather.
"He is visiting his parents in Mississippi. I told you that his mother was sick, didn't I?" She asked.
"Oh yeah. I forgot." Charlie replied. He walked into the kitchen and began to unload the groceries along side his mother, "Hey, you three have to help to!"
"We're coming." Terry said.
As Adam walked into the kitchen he heard Casey say, "Let's see, pale, jittery, terrified-yet-ready-to-touch-the-clouds look. You put a move on Dani didn't you, Adam?"
"Huh?" Adam asked confused. He looked around to Charlie, Terry, and Jesse; they looked just as confused as he felt, "How did you...?"
"Female intuition." She said, pulling out a box of crackers. "What?"
"Nothing." Adam said, "It's just that Dani was talking about oxymoron's and she said that one of the biggest oxymoron's was un-salted saltines, because they have the word 'salt' in the name."
"I'd agree." She said.
"Wait a second." Charlie said, "You went from talking about crackers, to kissing. I like your pace Banksie!"
"Charlie!"
"Sorry Mom."