A/N: I know I neglected this story for far too long but I think I finally know where I want it to go. I still don't own Miracle.

This is Your Time-Chapter Five

Jack's POV

Anna pulled her car into her parents' driveway. I wasn't surprised by the fact that Herb and his family lived in a pretty nice house. They had a two car garage and there was another car parked in the driveway. Anna took one look at the third car and shook her head. "Kelly, I'll walk you in to say hi to Mom, but I'm going to be really brief."

Kelly nodded as she climbed out of the backseat where she'd been sitting with Rizzo and me. "Bye, Mike, Jack, Dave, and Jimmy; it was nice meeting you guys."

We all said good-bye and told her that it had been nice meeting her too. Then she headed into her house with her sister. "They don't look like sisters," Rizzo said. "Anna has really dark hair and Kelly's a blonde."

"Plus their names are very different," Silky remarked from the trunk.

"They are only half sisters," Jimmy pointed out. "Anna probably takes after her dad's side of the family."

"Well, Kelly's got to take after her mom. For one thing, Herb isn't a blonde and for another thing, she seems so cheerful and outgoing," Silky said.

"Anna's like that too," Jimmy commented. "Maybe it's something they both picked up from their mom."

"Could be," Rizzo said. "But they don't look like sisters. Jack's sisters don't all have the same hair color but you can tell they're sisters."

"My sisters also have the same two parents; Kelly and Anna have different fathers."

"True story," Jimmy sighed. "It must be weird having stepparents."

We never got any further with that discussion because as he said that Anna came storming out of the house closely followed by Kelly and a boy I assumed must be their brother, Danny. Kelly opened the car door next to me and said, "I can sit in the middle if you prefer."

I climbed out, she climbed in, and then I got back in the car again. Danny climbed in the trunk while this was going on. Kelly threw her backpack in the trunk with her brother. Anna turned the car back on and sighed. "Kelly, Danny, we'll have dinner with the team and then we'll go back to my place. You guys can stay with me until Mom says the coast is clear."

"Okay," Danny mumbled from the backseat.

"Fine," Kelly sighed. "Just make sure Mom knows I don't like this, not one bit."

"I'm pretty sure she already knows that, kiddo," Anna told her as she backed the car out of the driveway.

"Then why does she let this keep happening?" Danny protested. "She says she won't let her back into the house but every single time she shows up on the doorstep, Mom lets her in and feeds her and gives her money. Dad tells her not to do it but she still does it. Anna, she's letting her mess up our lives."

Anna gripped the steering wheel tightly and sighed. "Kelly, I don't know why this keeps happening. She may be my sister, and I do love her but God help me; she is an idiot. And this time she has just about taken the cake."

I had the distinct impression that now was not the time to be asking questions. The ride back to campus was short anyway. When we got to the dorm, we took the groceries inside and Rizzo, Jimmy, and Silky went off to hang out with some of the other guys. I stayed in the kitchen to help Anna put the groceries away and also because I was on dinner duty that night. Meanwhile her younger siblings went off to play with some of the guys from Minnesota.

As we made dinner, Anna seemed stressed out. She was practically attacking the vegetables in the salad she was making and when she moved on to making the chicken pies we were having for dinner, she was just attacking the chicken too. I looked at her as she furiously stabbed the chicken as she attempted to dice it. "Do you want some help?" I asked her. "Or if you need some time alone, I can finish up dinner and you can go for a walk or something."

She slammed the knife down on the counter and just stared at me. She almost looked like a mad woman. Her hair was a mess and her face was red; she looked frustrated and flustered at the same time. And the eyes staring up at me looked so desperate. "I need to keep my hands busy," she protested.

"Go borrow one of Jimmy's tennis balls and throw it at something for a while. I promise you it is better stress relief than maiming food."

She smiled faintly and nodded. "I just don't know what to do. I feel helpless."

I gripped her shoulders firmly and looked at her. "Oh Anna, talk to me. Tell me what's wrong."

"It's her," she said. "She's back and she says she needs more than just money this time."

"Who are we talking about?" I asked. I had a sneaking suspicion she was referring to her younger sister I'd heard a couple of the Minnesota guys mention. Abigail was supposed to be Hell on Wheels according to Rob. She'd broken his heart when she was seventeen and he was twenty. "And that," Buzzy had said. "Should tell you something about her; she knows how to manipulate people to her will and she loves men but only when they do what she wants."

Anna clenched her fists and her jaw before looking up at me again. "My sister, my baby sister, I was supposed to protect her but then she discovered boys and I couldn't protect her anymore; she wouldn't let me. She didn't want to be protected even though I told her they'd use her. She just let them. And then she started using them back. And now she has whatever she wants. She uses them, gets what she wants, and then moves on."

"Abigail," I whispered. "She was a year old when your dad died." Rammer had told her that piece of information.

"Abby," she said. "And she was fourteen months old. She doesn't remember him at all. I was four years and eight months old and I remember his face; I remember the curves of his face and the way his nose wrinkled when he laughed. She only knows what he looks like from photographs and she didn't love him; she didn't know him well enough to love him. But she still says that Mom betrayed him when she married Herb. She calls Kelly and Danny mistakes. Herb is great for Mom; Daddy knew Herb and he liked him. Before he died, he even told Herb to keep an eye on Mom. He wouldn't want her to be sad and lonely; he would want her to be happy. I'm sure he's glad that she remarried and has two amazing kids with Herb. Kelly and Danny are great; they're not mistake. I don't know where she gets off calling the best things that could have happened to us 'mistakes'." Tears were pouring down her cheeks and she was clinging to me as if for dear life. "I don't know where we'd be if it weren't for Herb. He took care of us even before he married Mom. Sure my grandparents all helped but he was the one who was able to be physically there for us. Dad's parents lived in Boston and Mom's parents live up near Duluth. They visited and sent checks and presents but it was Herb who took us ice skating so Mom could have some time to herself. It was Herb who took us to see Santa Claus at Marshall Field's every Christmas. When Mom worked late and couldn't pick us up from the babysitter's house, Herb or one of his players would come pick us up. And when we were little, Abby called Herb 'Daddy.' But then she found out about her 'real dad' and Herb became lower than dirt to her. He was a thief and I don't know what all else. She's so ungrateful."

"She's a parasite," a voice said from the doorway.

We both turned to see Rob McClanahan standing in the doorway. "Kelly told me everyone's favorite angel was here."

"I imagine she didn't use quite those words," Anna replied. Her voice was rough from crying and ranting but she still seemed sure of herself.

"Actually I believe she probably picked up her exact words from Herb, but that's just a guess since they involved the words 'slut' and 'skank' and 'tramp.'"

"Yep," Anna said shaking her head. "That would be Herb's influence."

"I just want to tell you I'm sorry she's showing up again now," Rob said. "And also, I'm probably going to be spending more time at my parents' place until she leaves town again."

Anna nodded and told him that was fine as he turned and left. "My stinking sister destroyed him," she told me. "He was my best friend back then-maybe he still is; I'm not sure anymore-and she destroyed him. She broke his heart and left him crying and drunk on the floor." She looked up into my eyes again; I was falling in love with those bright blue eyes. "I want to hate her. I know she's my sister but I want to hate her so much. Jack, is that wrong of me? She keeps hurting people I love but I still love her. I want to hate her but I can't. I still love her because she's my baby sister."

"That's not wrong," I told her. "You're supposed to love your sister. You don't have to like her or agree with her decisions. But you should love her at the very least."

"I just want her to stop hurting my family. She's tearing us apart and she doesn't even care."

"I'm sorry." Once the words had left my lips they sounded stupid and futile. And she started crying again. I held her tight in my arms. I loved her and I wanted to protect her from her sister. I wanted her to be safe.

"Jack, you're too good for me," she said suddenly. "I have such a screwed-up past. I dress like a boy. You deserve someone normal, someone girly and pretty."

"What if that's not what I want?" I asked her. "And what's normal anyway? It's just a label that society puts on people. I'm one of eight kids from a crazy Irish family in Boston; do you think I'm normal? I promise you that I'm not normal. I grew up in a three-bedroom house in Charleston, Massachusetts. There were eleven of us living in that house. Eight of us kids, Mamma, Dad, and my crazy grandma; I didn't have a normal childhood."

"But Jack, I'm not pretty," she protested. "And you should marry a pretty girl. You're this good looking hockey player and you need a pretty girlfriend. Hockey players are supposed to have gorgeous girlfriends."

"I happen to think you are gorgeous," I replied. "And I have known a lot of women in my day and I think you are a beautiful girl. Stop worrying about clothes and Rob's stupid comments and just focus on the good. I think you're gorgeous."

"You don't have to lie to me. I'm a big girl; I can take tough news."

I shook my head and stared at her. "Are you crazy? I honestly like you for you. I'm not playing games or anything here. I'm being serious. I find you amazingly gorgeous and if you don't believe me, I'm sorry. I know a lot of people have told you you're not pretty but they're just idiots who don't know what they're talking about."

"Look at me," she demanded. "I'm wearing old, ratty jeans that fit me anymore and a sweatshirt you could fit five of me in and I never put any effort into my hair or anything like that."

"And you also have gorgeous blue eyes, lovely brown curls, a smile that could melt ice, and the sweetest personality of anyone I know. You, Anna O'Leary-Brooks, are an amazing girl and I don't know why people seem to insist on telling you otherwise."

She looked at me. "I don't understand you. Like last night, you could have danced with any girl in that bar but you danced with me. I'm starting to think you really like me, Jack O'Callahan."

I smiled at her. "Well, that would be because I really do like you, Anna O'Leary-Brooks. You're a fantastic girl and I'm proud to know you."

She looked me in the eye. "What are you trying to say?"

It was now or never. "I'm trying to ask you to be my girlfriend."

"Okay but we really need to finish making dinner now."

So we finished making dinner and our chicken pie was a big hit. And after dinner, Anna and I had a talk about our relationship. "So we're dating now?" she asked me.

I nodded. "Yeah, but we should probably keep this quiet for a while. I don't want to create issues or anything."

"Fine by me," she replied. "And Jack, can we take things slowly for a while?"

"Define slowly."

"No premarital sex, just go slowly on everything for a little bit; we can go on dates and all but I'm nervous about this and also I don't want to screw up the team or anything. Plus I'm worried about my makeover."

I smiled at her and kissed her nose. "We'll go slowly. I promise."

"I appreciate that. Are we still on for Mass tomorrow morning?"

I nodded. "Yeah, if you can still pick us up."

"I'll be here at 8:20," she said before hugging me. "Jack, I hope you know you're amazing. I'm glad I met you."

"So am I, Anna; so am I. Have a good night and I'll see you in the morning."

A/N: I'm back. I hope you guys like it. And be honest with your reviews.