So I know the theory goes that it's better to write for one's self and have no public and all but I still like to know what the dozen and a half still reading this think. If you could drop a review or just a few words, (I think I'll even just take hi at this moment), I'd appreciate it.

Anyway, onward and upwards.

Chapter 32: Bad News

Once practice had concluded on Thursday, Lizzy got a call from her aunt who invited her to dinner. They finished the spaghetti that Casey had made and then sat down on the couch with cups of water. "It's not that this isn't nice, Aunt Casey, but can I ask why? It's not often you invite me over for dinner on a random Thursday, without Charlie," Lizzy said facing her aunt.

Casey swallowed. "I love you. You and Charlie have always been my number ones. I'm sorry I didn't see that when I married my now ex-husband. I should have seen that," Casey said.

"It's alright, Aunt Casey. I wasn't here all that often and I know you liked him."

"But when you were around, he wasn't very nice to you. I want you to know that I'm dating someone. It's different because he's not in town often and I've been wary that he might have a girlfriend in every town but I'm certain that he doesn't. I would do everything in my power to protect you and Charlie as well as my own heart. I would never fully put it out there without making sure it wasn't going to get shredded."

"You trust this guy?"

"Yes. I'm still a bit wary but I mostly trust him."

"Will you introduce him to us?"

"Charlie has already met him and they get along. The rest have met him too. I will introduce him to you, I just don't want to damage what we have," Casey said.

"What you have with him? You think—" Lizzy started.

Casey shook her head. "What I have with you. I don't want to hurt you. Having Alicia in your life was bad enough but I haven't always been there for you and that compounded the issue. I will not allow my relationship with him interfere with my relationship with you. You deserve an aunt who's going to be there and I want to give you that."

"But if he makes you happy—"

"It means next to nothing if you don't trust him."

"This could be all for naught, Aunt Casey. I could love him."

"Yeah, I doubt that. I'm already 75% sure you won't."

"Then help me understand why you like him so much."

Casey smiled and described him to Lizzy. "And to top it all off he's willing to wait until you're mostly okay with us before he proposes."

"I'd say that's all pretty great. I would worry about this becoming permanent as well because he doesn't visit for longer than a month, but if you think it will work, then I can't stand in the way."

Casey considered her niece's words. "Lizzy, what's the most obvious thing I haven't told you about him yet?" Casey asked.

"What he does for a living? What he drives? His relationship with his parents?"

"All good questions, but no. What's the first thing you typically say to a person?"

"Usually? Hello or some form of greeting."

"And then?"

"Uh ... introduce yourself?" Lizzy asked. It was the best she could come up with.

That seemed to be the answer Casey was looking for. "Which involves?" At least partially what she was looking for.

"Your name?" Lizzy questioned. Then it hit her, part of the reason that Casey hadn't told her the man's name. "Do I know him? If I were to run an internet search, will I find him to be dangerous?"

"Of course not. I ran a background check the first time I ever met him. Lizzy, please don't take this the wrong way."

"How long have you been dating?"

"Eight months."

"Oh, and you trust him? Feel like this is the next step?"

"Yes. I'm sure he'll propose soon."

"And I'm just supposed to accept it?"

"No, honey," Casey answered. She shook her head and took Lizzy's hand. "I'd be worried if you did. We won't get married until you're okay with this. You have good instincts and I trust them."

"Have you—does Fulton know?"

"I think Charlie told him and I'm certain you'll end up telling him before the night is out."

"What if I'm never okay with it?"

"He's done so much good, Liz. Don't you feel like people should get a second chance?"

"Does he really need a second chance?"

"Technically in your book, it'd be his third."

Lizzy stared at her aunt. That could be multiple people but the way her aunt was watching her meant only one. Lizzy's heart instantly sank, especially when she thought back to everything her aunt said to describe the man. "You don't ..." Lizzy trailed off praying she was wrong.

"The first time in peewees, the second when he coached Team USA, and now."

"No. Anyone but him."

"Lizzy."

"He broke your heart."

"I know. It hurts but you can't help who you love."

"That's why he's been here? Why he was at the game the other week?"

"Yes."

"Okay." Lizzy stared at her lap for several long moments. Casey wanted to say something but wasn't sure what to say to help her niece. This wasn't how she wanted to explain her relationship with Gordon to her niece but she knew that it had to be explained and her niece held a grudge almost as big as her love for the man. There had to be a way to help her through this. "I need to go, Aunt Casey. Class in the morning and all."

"Of course." Casey agreed. Casey stood and offered Lizzy a hand. Lizzy swallowed and allowed her aunt to pull her to her feet. Casey wrapped Lizzy in a hug and held her close for a few moments.

Lizzy returned to the dorms just as confused as when she left her aunt's. The drive hadn't helped her clear her head one bit. She made her way up to the second floor and opened the door to make her way down the hall to Fulton's room. For a moment she paused outside of Adam and Charlie's room to talk to Adam as he too had once resented the man both for benching him and for pulling him from the Hawks, but then she realized she really didn't want to see her cousin. It wasn't that she thought he'd rub it in; she just didn't want to hear him defend the man. She quickly knocked on Fulton's door before she could talk herself out of it.

"Fulton!" she whimpered hoping against hope that she wouldn't interrupt whatever he was doing. She heard a muffled curse from inside then a few soft words she couldn't fully understand before Fulton answered the door.

His face screwed up in confusion. "Liz?" he asked gently.

She looked at him and swallowed, then she looked past him to see Aly on his bed. "Oh, I'm interrupting. I'm sorry, I'll go."

"Liz," Fulton's hand shot out and caught her wrist before she could turn to leave. "What's wrong? Please, talk to me."

"No. I'll go. It's not important."

"Sissy," he whined softly. He could tell she was hurting and wanted nothing more than to wrap her up in his arms and protect her but he knew it would put him in an awkward place with his girlfriend behind him.

"You seen Port?"

"Library, working on a paper."

"Thanks." She sniffed and pulled back stretching Fulton's arm.

"Tomorrow. Breakfast. The whole story. Okay?"

"Okay," Lizzy agreed. Fulton dropped her wrist and Lizzy bolted off for the library. She found Portman with his headphones on, working on a report at a table in the corner. She sat down across from him and tapped her finger on his book just in front of where his finger was scrolling along the words. He looked up and shut off his music.

He slipped his headphones down to hang around his neck and studied her for a moment. "You look ... honestly? Terrible," he said.

"Thanks, Port. That's exactly what a girl wants to hear," Lizzy snarked.

"Come on, Mav, that's the best part of our relationship. I tell it like it is and you don't get offended and vice versa. Now spill it."

"I just interrupted my best friend on a date. I feel terrible."

"Adam's on a date?"

"No. Fulton."

"Fulton's more like a brother than a friend and I'm sure it's fine. What's really bothering you?" He could see that though she felt bad for interrupting Futon, it was something else entirely that was making her feel terrible. Especially when he noticed a spark in her eye he often saw when she was angry.

"I just came from dinner at my aunt's, Aunt Casey—"

"You have another aunt in the area? I thought she was the only one."

"Right, anyway," she took a deep breath and slowly let it out, "You know that Bombay and I have had problems in the past. My cousin gets attached to that man and he gets hurt."

"Fulton, Charlie, and I discussed that," Portman stated.

"Did they tell you my aunt was seeing Bombay while he coached Charlie's team here?"

"You mentioned that."

"They broke up not long after he made the minors and Charlie was heartbroken. Of course that meant that I had to hear all about it at least once a week on the phone and God, it broke my heart. My aunt was kinda heartbroken too. Then Bombay came back for Team USA and when he became Captain Blood, Charlie was really hurt again."

"I think we all were and again when he left us here with a new coach."

"My aunt's dating him again. The last thing I want is for them to get hurt again and she says it's serious this time but ..."

When she didn't go on, he prodded a bit. "I will never, ever say you caring about them so much is a bad thing, it's one of the things that I love so much about you. It makes you, you."

"You think I shouldn't—"

"Care as much? Absolutely not. Again, I love that about you. Do I think you should guard your heart? Yes. Do I think you should crack the wall around it? Just a little bit. Give Bombay the same chance to prove himself either way that you gave to McGill. You ended up being right about McGill and I know it hurt, but at least you gave him a chance to change. Shouldn't Bombay get that chance?"

"One last time?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe. And if he hasn't changed?"

"They've been dating eight months; your aunt didn't go into this blind."

"But it's never been permanent and they haven't had to spend more than two weeks together on a consistent basis. He's never been in the same place for more than two weeks."

"You want him to do well?" Portman asked, taking her hand.

"I don't want to see that heartbroken look on my cousin's face when it goes bad. Listen to him cry and complain when Bombay leaves again. I can't take it again. I'm not strong enough."

Portman watched her for a moment. "I think you are strong enough, but maybe it's not about being strong enough, maybe it's about finding who you can lean on. Maybe it's about a lesson you need to learn. I'm not saying you don't know everything, you're one of the smartest people I know, I'm just saying that maybe there is something to learn here."

"Maybe you're right." Lizzy nodded and smirked. Portman swallowed hard and squeezed her hand. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and looked at the screen then began to clean up.

"Walk with me back to my dorm?" he asked.

She nodded. "If you're done here."

"I was just giving Fulton time with Aly. He texted and said the movie's over. Come on, we haven't hung in forever."

"Ok and thanks for making me feel better. I know—"

"You're still my friend and I'd have done it for Julie or Connie too."

"Still. Thanks." She smiled at him. Soon they reached the dorms. "You can find your way from here."

"Just come upstairs with me for a minute?" She couldn't help but fall for his frown and follow him upstairs. As they approached the room, Portman held out a hand stopping Lizzy in her tracks. It didn't take long for her to realize why. Fulton was talking to someone.

"I know it's not about trust, she's my sissy and she trusts me, but maybe she feels bad about needing me," he was saying inside his room. There was no response and a few seconds later they heard why. "I didn't say that, Mom. I will always be here if and when she needs me but that—"

Lizzy looked up at Portman held his hands up innocently. He knew instantly that she thought he had set her up. That was the furthest thing from the truth. He could only hope she saw that.

Then Fulton was back speaking on the phone. "Yes, ma'am. I just gotta—No excuses, yes, ma'am," Fulton said. Lizzy looked at Portman again and this time he shrugged. Fulton said his goodbyes and Portman let Lizzy into the room. The minute she stepped into the room Fulton's head snapped up, his eyes falling on her face, and he looked broken. He was sitting on his bed, his arms resting on his legs, hands cupped tightly around each other. "Please, talk to me," Fulton said.

"Aunt Casey is dating Bombay," Lizzy said softly. It was a statement but it was loaded with emotion.

Fulton swallowed not moving. "How'd you find out?" he asked lightly.

"She told me at dinner."

"How can I help?"

"Tell me that being scared it okay. That I'm not crazy for how I feel."

Fulton nodded and Lizzy moved to Portman's bed and sat down on the Mustang's comforter. Then Fulton went on to tell her a lot of what Portman had. Once he was sure she was mostly ok, he stood from his bed and got her an oversized, on her, sweatshirt. It was then that she realized Portman was nowhere to be found. Fulton also pulled out a pair of shorts and tossed them to her. As she changed into them, he dug through his desk drawer and came up with a chocolate bar then pulled his bottle of water from his backpack. He handed both to her. "Sit. Eat. Please," Fulton coaxed. She plopped down on Fulton's bed this time and scarfed down most of the chocolate bar and half the water. "So how'd you get in here?" Fulton said.

"Port brought me up," Lizzy said.

"The first time."

"Oh. I have a key."

"Perks of your fancy boyfriend?" he asked, leaning back against his desk.

"No. I think they screwed up when they installed the locks. Both this floor and the first, probably the third as well, use the same key to get through the floor door. Room keys are different but floor keys are the same."

"Maybe you just got lucky."

"Me, Guy, Julie, and Connie all have master keys?"

"Possible."

"Not probable."

"So are we okay?" Portman asked from the doorway.

"Not as upset but still a little scared. I can't go through that cycle of pain again but I'd be a selfish brat if I kept my aunt from love just because I don't trust the guy," Lizzy said.

"Do you think it would help if you could talk to him?" Portman asked.

"I doubt it could hurt more," Lizzy answered.

"Onto better topics ..." Fulton prompted.

"I apologize for earlier. I didn't mean to interrupt anything with Aly," Lizzy apologized.

"If we really didn't want to be interrupted, I wouldn't have answered the door."

"I know you weren't happy about it."

"Honestly, I didn't like being interrupted but I'd accept it from you almost anytime. When we heard your voice I—we knew you needed me more. How's Riley?"

"Don't change the subject," Lizzy demanded. Portman remained silent but moved across the room and sat down on his bed.

"Seriously, Gator, we're both fine. She's the one who told me to answer it. I was barely able to talk her out of trying to make me come after you."

"Why would—"

"Because as much as my girlfriend like seeing you get a taste of your own medicine, she knows when you need me and won't stand between that."

"Oh. Okay. Kyle is fine by the way."

"Good, now move your butt. I need to cuddle with my best friend," Fulton demanded. Both Lizzy and Portman looked at him for a moment but Lizzy shook her head and made room for him next to her on the bed. He plopped down on the bed and pulled her into his arms. Lizzy snuggled back into him and her body slowly relaxed.

Lizzy got to breakfast earlier than the rest of the team the following morning and was almost instantly joined by Aly when she sat down.

"Everything better now?" Aly asked.

"Better as in not as bad," Lizzy answered.

"Can I do anything?"

"Not really. I have some personal issues with my aunt's boyfriend and she's asking that I work through them. All in all, not unreasonable but difficult."

"Do you want to talk? You sounded hurt last night and Fult refused to go after you. I can't believe he wouldn't go after you."

"I was hurt. Not because of Fulton. That boy can do absolutely no wrong. I think had he come after me, I would have lashed out and I don't want to do that to him. We talked after you left but I'm not sure it helped any." Lizzy shook her head as she chewed her biscuits and gravy.

"You're not going to ask about Fulton coming after you?"

"You said he refused to come after me. I took that to mean that you asked him to, but he convinced you out of it."

"Was I wrong?"

"No. It's good to see you backing me."

"You don't even want to know why I'm not upset?"

"Fulton said that you wanted him to come after me. You and I have had a bit of a rivalry and on a good day you push back and I respect that. Do you want me to ask why it was your idea he came after me or why you pushed him to when you and I do have that rivalry? You know I'm important to Fulton. You could be playing him by making him think you care about me or even with the rivalry you care and we both appreciate that."

"Oh."

"Aly, I know you care and I'm grateful. Be warned, if you are playing him, hell hath no fury. I will take you out and Fulton won't be any wiser."

"Okay. Are you sure there isn't anything I can do?"

"Yes. At this moment, there is nothing you can do."

"Okay." Aly left it at that and Lizzy was grateful. She wasn't sure there was anything more she could explain and if there was, she wasn't sure she wanted to explain it to Aly.

Thanks to everyone for reading this. Glad you've continued on. Big question, will Goldberg be in the next chapter? Only one way to find out.