The Games and a talk with Coach
. Disclaimer: I don't own the Mighty Ducks. Although I wouldn't mind owning Charlie, or Portman. Or for that matter anyone of them, except Averman; he is annoying.
A/N1: Hey, here is the next Chapter. I hope you enjoy it. Please Review, if you can. And for all of you that are able to review: Thank you. Oh, and I am hoping that this chapter will be longer that the last one. I didn't realize until I re-read it and the length disturbed me so I told myself that I would have this one longer.
A/N2: By the way I am not taking all the credit for this chapter or this story. It was my idea and I am the main one writing it but C-chan96 has helped out a lot by being able to write out ideas and checking my work. She has probably written about half of this chapter that you are about to read. And I want to thank her very much for it. THANKS CHELS I APRECIATE IT!!!!!! *Hugs Chels*
Responses to Reviews:
Jennygrrl: Thanks, I am glad you liked it. Enjoy this one.
Banks99: Yeah, I know there are, aren't they? Don't worry I have it planned for a while and it isn't going to end for a while. So in other words, there is a lot more to come. The Ducks' reaction is in this chapter towards the end, so that should be fun. Hope you enjoy.
Death To All Rubix Cubes: *giggles * I have to agree that would be nice wouldn't it. I am glad you enjoyed it. I hope you enjoy this chapter, please review if you can. Talk to you soon.
RaspberrieSundae: I think that you thinking it is being cute is great. That was what I was going for. I'm glad that you liked the part where he distracted her; that part was really fun. I hope you like this next chapter. Please review if you can. Talk to you soon.
Kshyne99: I know! Isn't it awesome? This chapter was very fun to write and I am glad you enjoyed it. I hope you like this chapter. Talk to you soon.
Jenny: I am glad you like it and Charlie/Julie. Here is the next part; I hope you like it, and if you can please review. Talk to you soon.
Banksiesbabe99: LOL, I am glad that you liked this chapter along with the whole story, and also the part where he fakes her out. I had a lot of fun on that part. Thanks for reviewing, and I hope you enjoy this chapter. Talk to you soon.
Alright now to the Chapter, I hope you like and please review if you can. Thanks!! Talk to you soon.
-Chapter 3-
The next day, after waking up early and getting ready, Cassie took Julie and Charlie to the airport, staying with them until it was time for them to board the plane. They hugged her and told her goodbye before turning to board the plane. When they sat down in their seats, which Bombay had promised would be together, Charlie looked over at Julie and noticed that she looked kind of pale.
"Jules, you okay?" He asked her softly.
She looked over at him with a confused look on her face, "What?"
"Are you okay? You look kind of pale." He told her.
"Oh yeah, I'm okay I guess." She said and then looked back at him, "I'm just afraid of flying."
"You are?" He asked her.
"Yeah, it's not the height I'm afraid of; it's the pressure in the plane." She said and then thought about what she said, "Okay, I'm not afraid of flying. It's just the air pressure hurts my ears."
"Oh, okay." He said. "Have you tried chewing something? Like gum or peanuts or something?"
"Yeah, it helps some...but not much. It helps for a little bit but not for long, and I can't chew for four hours...my jaw gets tired." She said, laughing a little bit.
"Well that sucks." He said, "Is there something I can do to help?"
"No, I'll be okay." She said, even though he could tell she was already not feeling very good.
"Okay, but if you change your mind tell me, alright?" he asked her.
"Well, we could always talk. I mean this is a four hour flight and talking would help me not think about how I feel." She said.
"Okay, we can talk." He told her and then realized that they were moving and were about to take off.
He looked over at Julie to see how she was doing and saw that she was squeezing her eyes shut and leaning her head back. He reached over and grabbed her hand with his and interlaced his fingers with hers. She opened her eyes and looked at him for a minute and he smiled at her, which won him a grin back. She then laid her head back waiting for the plane to level out. After it did finally level out and Julie's head stopped spinning, Julie let out a sigh and smiled brightly at Charlie. The boy grinned back, giving her hand a conforting pat before looking out the window. He was happy because he got window seat. There had been much dispute over it, but Charlie said she could have it on the way back. Julie willingly agreed, just happy to be able to see him again.
When the 'seatbelts' light flashed off, the two children heard a seatbelt click behind them. A head of curly read locks peeked over the back of their seat.
"Hello. Not feeling well, New Girl?" Averman asked, grinning jokingly at the blonde girl.
Julie's mouth twitched ever-so-slightly as she raised her eyebrows with frustration. She never even looked back, refusing to acknowledge the boy's presence. She could remember Charlie saying something about this guy...He was the jokester. She figured if she ignored him, he would go away...
Charlie turned back and gave Averman a warning look, saying 'not right now.' Charlie didn't want Julie getting in a bad mood. He knew she had little tolerance for annoyance, and Averman was just one of those...well, annoying people.
"Not acting much like a 'Cat,' now are ya? Meeooww! Phht! Phht!" Averman said with a childish grin, batting his hand at the top of her head. He was making annoying, exaggerated cat sounds and hissing.
Julie let out a sigh and massaged her temples. Her head hurt and she didn't feel like retaliating. Glancing over at Charlie, she could see him telling Averman to shove it. Or, at least that's what Julie liked to imagine he was saying. She figured it was probably more along the lines of 'cut it out and bother whatever poor, unsuspecting soul got stuck next to you.' Close enough. Charlie was too nice to yell at anybody...
After a few second of silence, Charlie turned to her with a bright smile, as if nothing had ever happened.
"Well, Julie Anne Gaffney. I think I owe you a long, drawn-out conversation." Charlie said with a charming smile before the two friends launched into a lengthy talk, lasting the rest of the plane ride.
They talked about school and how she had skipped a grade. They talked about hockey and how he had originally started playing hockey because his friends from school were on the team. She told him that friends was one of the reasons she had started, but the main reason she started was the fact that since they had moved there, her dad had started getting mean and rough with her. Hockey gave her a reason to get out of the house and away from him.
By the time she had finished telling him about her dad, they were about to land and her ears had started to pop and hurt again. Charlie saw her wincing, and he once again reached over and grabbed her hand, giving her something to hold and squeeze when she needed to. Finally, the plane landed and stopped, so they were able to get off.
Once they all got off the plane and into the airport, Bombay stopped them and told them to go and get their bags and circle up again afterwards. They nodded and started off to the luggage pickup where Charlie, being the little gentleman that he was, offered to carry Julie's bags for her. She smiled her acknowledgement before walking up to the pick up area where Charlie got his bags off. After she told him which ones were hers, he got hers also.
When they had all gathered back around, Bombay looked at them and smiled.
"Alright guys, lets go get settled in our dorms and have a good night sleep. After all, we do have a big day tomorrow: practicing in the morning and then the game tomorrow night." He told them and they all cheered.
He then led them to the bus and they road to there dorm buildings. When they arrived at the dorms, Bombay told them who they would be rooming with and what room they would be in. Julie smiled; he said that she and Connie would be together, despite the fact that everyone already knew that. She didn't know this Connie girl, but she knew Charlie had told her how nice she was. The last names he called out were Guy and Charlie, which made Julie laugh again. Charlie was her best friend and Charlie had told her that Guy was Connie's boyfriend. Julie smiled fondly as she thought of Charlie. Her best friend. Her confidant. He knew more about her than she knew about herself. The one friend she had known since diapers, and managed to keep in contact with. She could hardly believe it was him. Never in a million years did she think she would ever see him again.
Not a whole lot had changed about him since she had seen him. Well, relatively speaking. His blonde hair had darkened to a light brown, but his eyes were the same. He was still taller than her, but Julie didn't mind. He was still Charlie. Her Charlie.
She was broken out of her thoughts when Charlie came up to her and wrapped his arm around her, "Want me to help you take your bags to your room, Julie?"
"AHH!!! You scared me, Charlie." She said glaring at him, "Yeah, sure. What room are you and Guy in.?"
Charlie laughed, "Just as I thought...You weren't listening, were you?"
"No, not really...but that doesn't answer my question." She said, smiling a little bit.
"We're about three rooms down the hall from you." He said and she grinned real big.
"Cool! Well lets go. I want to get to know Connie better, and I need to call my mom and tell her I'm here, and I'm safe." She said and he laughed. "What?"
"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking that Connie talks more in a day then I think you have in about a year." He said and she hit his arm playfully which made him laugh more.
"Bite me, Charlie." She said and pretending like she was ignoring him.
He laughed, but didn't say anything back to her. Heaving the bags onto his shoulders, he led her on to her room. When they got there, he opened the door and let her in, following behind her before setting her luggage down. He looked around and saw that it was a nice room, and that Connie wasn't there yet. He looked back at her and smiled at her, already laying on one of the beds.
"Well, here you are. Do you want me to wait until Connie gets here, or will you be okay?" He asked her.
"Stay." She said smiling, "Unless you need to get to your room."
"Nah, Coach told me I could stay with you for a little bit." He said grinning at her devilishly.
When she saw the look on his face, she immediately sat up and started backing away from him. She forgot she was on the bed and fell off it on the other side. He took this as his chance and pounced on her and started tickling her relentlessly. She started screaming and trying to pull away from him.
"Charlie stop, ahh stop." She said through laughter, but he kept tickling her and laughing.
They were having so much fun that they didn't hear Connie come in and put her things down. She cocked her head to the side and walked over to her roommate and captain.
"Charlie? What the heck are you doing to Julie?" She asked softly and Charlie jumped about three feet in the air and off of Julie.
Julie blushed about five shades of red and hide her face in the mattresses of the bed. Charlie smiled innocently at Connie and smiled.
"What are you talking about Connie? Julie and I were just playing one of our favorite games. Seeing who make the other laugh the hardest. She usually wins since I am usually the one tickling her." He said to a very confused Connie.
"But...how is that one of your favorite games if you have just known each other about three days?" She asked and Charlie laughed.
"Oh yeah, you don't know. I forgot." He said, smacking himself on the forehead before looking back at Connie. "You remember me talking about that girl that I grew up with that moved to Maine about five years ago?"
"Yeah, you always talked about her the most right after phoning her. But what does that have to do with you and Ju...... OHH!" Cone said as it dawned on her, she turned to Julie who was still hiding, "You're that girl, aren't you?"
"Yes." Came the muffled reply.
"Awesome!!" Connie squealed and Charlie laughed.
"Well, I think I'll leave you two to bond. Have fun and don't scare her much, okay Connie?" He said laughing and her _expression.
"Yeah, I'll try my best." Connie said, and he smiled.
He then walked over to Julie and poked her in the side, making her squeal. He whispered something to her and then stood up. Julie grinned and watched him leave, but just as he was going out of the room she remembered something and stood up.
"Wait Charlie, don't go yet!!" She called and he quickly turned back around and walked back in the room.
"What is it, Julie?" He asked.
"Can you wait until I call my mom and dad?" She asked, "Please."
"Sure, but don't you want to talk to them by yourself?" He asked her walking closer to her.
"Not if my dad wants to talk to me." She said and he nodded in understand- meant.
Connie grinned and decided to go see the rest of the team. "Hey guys, I'm going to go say night to the rest of the team and leave you two alone to call Julie's mom."
"Okay Cons, thanks." Charlie said to her, smirking when she disappeared behind the door, "What she really meant was that she was going to say goodnight to Guy."
Julie cracked up and swatted him on the arm, "You're so mean."
He laughed, "Yeah, yeah I am...but I'm telling the truth."
She laughed and went to the phone and picked it up and dialed. A few seconds later, her mom picked up and answered the phone. Julie smiled at Charlie, who was sitting next to her, knowing he was going to be listening.
"Hey Momma...I miss you too and I'm sorry that I didn't call sooner, but you will never guess who I met up with at practice last night...How did you know?...Oh, well that's cool...Yeah, it was really great... He was? Oh god, I'm sorry Momma... He isn't there, is he?...Oh good...I'll try to call you tomorrow, but I really don't think I will because I have practice in the morning; then we have something that we have to be at, and then tomorrow night we play our first game. But the next day I have off, except for practice, so I'll call you after practice... Okay...I love you and miss you too, Momma...Tell Jessie that I love and miss him too...Okay, talk to you when I can...bye." Julie hung up the phone and looked at Charlie who was looking at her.
"Well, that seemed to have gone well." He said.
"Yeah, it did." She said. "Except my dad is made at me for not calling sooner...but I didn't get a chance, and coach called and told them I would be with you guys. I just don't get him anymore."
"Yeah, from what you have told me about how he has changed I don't get him either." Charlie said, "But it didn't sound like you had to talk to him."
"I didn't; he was at work. My mom just told me that he was mad, but not to worry about it. She wouldn't let him do anything because she knew that I was going to be busy." Julie said.
"Well, that's good." He said and smiled at her.
"Yeah." She said, smiling back.
They didn't say anything for a few minutes, just sitting in silence. Charlie looked over at Julie after a minute and smiled. She was having problems staying awake. He got up, pulling her up with him, and gave her a hug.
"Why don't I go and let you get ready for bed. I'll tell Connie when I get to the room that she can come back, and then you two can talk a little and get to know each other." He told her.
She whimpered cause she didn't want him to leave, but after a minute she nodded against his chest and he kissed the top of her head.
"Okay then. I need to go, so I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" He said, pulling away, and she nodded again.
"Bye Shortcake." He said backing away.
She laughed; she hadn't been called that in a long time. Probably because Charlie was the only one that was allowed to call her that. If anyone else called her that, they got their ass kicked.
"Bye Chip." She said, and returned the smile.
He laughed at her return of the use of his nickname, and then turned around to walk out of the room, down the hall, and to his room. He knocked on the door to let Connie and Guy know that he was coming in and opened the door.
He saw that Connie was stretched out on one of the beds and Guy sitting on the floor next to her; they were in a deep conversation about something. However, when he came in, they both looked up from their conversation and greeted him.
He told Connie that Julie was getting ready for bed and that she wanted to talk. Connie squealed and jumped off the bed. She bent down and gave Guy a quick kiss, and then turned to Charlie and hugged him. She then left the room and skipped to her and Julie's room.
When she came to the door, she stopped and had to calm herself because she remembered that Julie seemed to be pretty shy and quiet. When she opened the door and walked in, she saw Julie sitting on her bed reading something. Connie didn't know what to do because she didn't want to scare her, so she just shut the door and walked over to her own bed. Julie looked up when she heard someone in there and smiled at Connie.
"Hi." Connie said returning the smile.
"Hi." Julie said quietly.
Connie walked over and sat down on the other bed, across from Julie . At first they carried out the average small talk. Nothing too deep; just the normal 'Hey how are you? Good? Me too.' But as it began getting later and they began to feel more comfortable with each other, they began to loosen up.
"So is Guy your boyfriend?" Julie asked before she could stop herself, instantly blushing and covering her face. She had forgotten this wasn't Charlie. She couldn't just ask anything. "I'm sorry, that just came out." Julie apologized, peeking through the fingers of her hand.
Connie laughed. "It's not a problem. Yeah, I guess Guy's my boyfriend."
Julie smiled and removed her hands from her face. "How long have you known each other?"
Julie asked, figuring from the reaction that it was safe grounds. You could never really tell.
"A really long time. Kindergarten, probably. He's really sweet." Connie said, leaning against the headboard of her bed and pulling a pillow on to her lap.
"He seems sweet. Everyone seems to be nice; or at least have POTENTIAL to be nice." Julie said.
Connie nodded. "So...how long have you and Charlie known each other?" Connie asked, blinking her brown eyes with curiosity.
Julie smiled and let out a half-laugh. "Since...well, forever. I think we knew each other before we were even born...Our moms were really close friends, so Charlie and I had always done everything together. He's definitely what I would categorize as my best friend, and I missed him." Julie said with a fond smile.
Connie smiled impishly and leaned forward, hugging her pillow. "Do you like him?"
Julie's head bolted up, her cheeks heating up. "Wha-what?" she asked, startled. She looked like a deer in headlights.
"You heard me. I asked if you like him. You know, LIKE like him." Connie said, waving her hands for emphasis.
"N-no. No, it's not like that." Julie stuttered, positive that her face was probably scarlet by that point. "He's just my friend."
Connie nodded with her eyebrows raising in disbelief. "Suuure. Uh-huh." Connie said teasingly. Julie threw her pillow at Connie's face. "I do not like him!" she protested. "I don't! We're just friends!"
Connie giggled and blocked the pillow with her own. "I think you're protesting WAY too much! DENIAL!" Connie said through laughs as Julie took the fallen pillow and began whacking Connie with it.
"I'm not in denial!" Julie said, though she was hiding a smile at that point.
Connie grinned at they launched into a full-fledged pillow fight, all the while exchanging their position on whether or not Julie was secretly in love with Charlie Conway.
Later, long after Connie had fallen asleep, Julie lay under the covers, tucked in her bed.
What Connie had said had been weighing on Julie's mind, whether or not she would admit it. She was convincing herself that she COULDN'T like Charlie. It would just be...She just couldn't! Her hand traced along the rim of her suitcase; she then dug her hand in and pulled out a small framed photo.
She held the framed picture in front of her face and traced around the edges. It was still the same silver color as it had always been, and she constantly ran her fingers long the inscription.
'Whether close of far away, we will always be best friends.'
It still had the same picture of her and Charlie before she moved to Maine.
She ran her thumb across the picture, straining to see their childish faces smiling into the camera. With a content smile, she placed the framed picture back into her suitcase and snuggled in her covers, falling to sleep.
The next morning Julie and Connie woke up to the guys singing loudly in the entertainment room. Julie cracked up laughing as soon as she realized who one of the main singers was. "What are you laughing at?" Connie said with her eyebrow cocked.
"Charlie is singing." Julie told her trying to calm down.
Connie laughed and listened, "Oh my gosh, you're right."
Julie laughed, and then got out of bed, looking at Connie.
"I guess we ought to get up out of bed and get dressed." She said.
"Yeah, we should." Connie agreed.
They got up and started getting ready for the day. A few minutes later, they were dressed and ready to go. They got their bags and walked out to the activity room where the guys were still singing loudly. When they saw Connie and Julie walk in, they greeted them loudly. Connie just rolled her eyes, and Julie looked like she was about to run away. Connie looked at her and saw she was about to freak out and turned back to the guys.
"Not so loud guys, you scared her." Connie said and patted Julie on the shoulder.
Averman laughed, "She is a true cat, isn't she? Quick to react to things but easily scared."
Charlie, who had been standing behind Averman when he said that, hit him upside the head with his hand.
"What was that for, Spaz?" Averman asked, rubbing his head.
"'Cause you are being mean." Charlie told him.
"No I wasn't! I was just stating a fact." Averman replied back.
"You're right, you were stating some facts about cats, but you missed one important fact. When a cat is challenged, it can be very tough. " Charlie said, "And what I've heard about her, she is the exact same way."
Averman tried to say something but nothing came out. Charlie grinned and looked over at Julie and gave her a wink. She grinned real big back at him.
Just then, Bombay walked in. They turned to him and waited to see what he was going to say. "You guys ready to practice?" he asked.
"YEAH!!!" They all cheered.
"All right then, lets go." He said and led them out of the dorms and on to the bus.
Julie and Connie sat together because Charlie was sitting with Adam, and Connie didn't want to leave Julie to sit with someone she didn't know.
"I told you that you liked him." Connie said.
"What?" Julie asked.
Connie laughed, "I think he likes you too."
"How can you tell?" Julie asked her.
"I saw the way he winked at you awhile ago, and how you smiled back at him." Connie replied.
"But we're just friends." Julie insisted.
"Friends don't wink at each other that way, Julie." Connie told her.
"How do you know?" Julie asked her.
"Guy winks at me the same way Charlie winked at you all the time." Connie said.
"Oh.." Julie said, "...but we're not like that."
"God, you're stubborn." Connie laughed, "But that's okay; you'll both come to realize it soon."
Julie didn't have a chance to reply because they had arrived at the rink, and they had to get out of the bus. When Julie got up out of the seat and turned her back to Connie, the latter smirked.
They all got their bags and went to the locker room and changed. When they finished changing, they started heading to the ice. Julie was lagging behind cause she had different pads than she was used to, and she was thinking about what Connie had said to her.
She was so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't realized that she was on the edge of the ice. She took her first step onto the ice and her foot slipped out from her, and she was going down on her back before she knew what was happening.
"Julie!" Charlie yelled and skated towards her as well as Connie.
She was trying to sit up when they got there, and Charlie bent down and helped her.
"Are you okay, shortcake?" He asked her.
"Yeah, I think so. I was thinking about some things and didn't realize I was at the ice." She said and then started looking around for her helmet and stick. "Where's my helmet and stick?"
"Here they are, Julie." Connie said picking them up and handing them to her, "You sure that you're okay?"
"Yeah; thanks Connie." Julie said and smiled at her new friend.
"Come on shortcake, let's get you up so that we can warm up." Charlie said and pulled her up all the way.
Once she was up, Julie smiled at Charlie, and they started their warm up laps. Just when they were about to take a knee so that Bombay could talk to them, Averman came skating by Julie and knocked her down with immature glee. Charlie who had been skating behind her had to swerve to the right to avoid falling over her. He stopped as soon as he was around her and went and helped her up.
"You okay, Julie?" He asked her.
"Yes." She said frustrated.
"Haha! Charlie has a crush on the klutzy new girl." Averman laughed, and he skated back towards them.
Julie, who had had enough of him before he said that, dropped her stick and helmet and went after him. Charlie tried to catch her but she was too fast, so he watched as she caught up with him and checked him into the boards . "I'm sick of you teasing me. You don't know me so what right do you have to tease me and pick on me?" She yelled at him
"Ohh, I'm scared." Averman said with a goofy grin on his face.
Bombay and Charlie were standing close by on they ice, watching this in amusement. However, the amusement quickly faded to worry and anger when Julie went to check Averman again, and Averman sidestepped; she slammed in to the boards, hitting her head hard and falling to the ice. Bombay and Charlie quickly skated over to her and Averman who was laughing, not fully understanding the magnitude of his actions.
"Averman, I have had just about enough of you knocking Julie down. You have been pestering her too much. And know it looks like she is going to have to miss tonight's game. I hope you are happy." Bombay said.
Julie got up slowly and snarled at Averman. Charlie saw this and quickly pulled her closer to him. Averman saw how mad she was and coughed, hiding a childish grin behind his hand, which earned him a fierce glare from his coach and captain.
"Yeah, I think I am." Averman said jokingly, none it making a connection in his brain. "Besides, I don't pester people; I just tease them."
"Averman, you've been bothering her. She is obviously, and rightly so, very ticked off at you. Charlie told me a few minutes ago that she doesn't get this way unless someone or something was really bothering her. Now I want you to apologize to Julie and go change; if she isn't going to play tonight, neither are you because you're the reason she is hurt." Bombay told him.
"How would Charlie know?" Averman asked, with wide blinking eyes, "And why aren't you punishing her?" he added with a pout.
"Well, Charlie would know because he has grown up with her. The reason she isn't one of the original Ducks is her family moved to Maine five years ago. But her and Charlie have kept close contact with each other. As for punishing her, no; I'm not because there is no reason. You are the one that started it, and don't bother arguing with me because I saw it all with my own eyes. So I suggest you go and apologize to her right now." Bombay told him.
Averman looked over at Charlie, who was looking at the cut on Julie's head. "You know her?" Averman asked him.
"Yep, just like Coach said." Charlie snapped back, mad that he had knocked her out of the first game by teasing her.
"Oh, okay." Averman said and skated over to Julie. He looked at her for a minute, "I'm sorry Julie." He said not really meaning it, and skated off.
Bombay, Charlie, and Julie all watched him go knowing that he hadn't really meant it, but not caring at the moment. Bombay turned to Julie and winced when he say the cut on her forehead.
"Come on, Julie; let's get you to the locker room and cleaned up." He said softly to her so as not to scare her anymore that she already seemed to be.
"Okay." She said, "I'm sorry Coach."
"It's okay, Julie. I'm not mad at you; you didn't do anything wrong. You were just defending yourself. He is the one I'm am upset with." He told her and smiled at her.
She smiled in relief, happy to know she wasn't in trouble. When they got to the bench, Charlie helped her in, and then looked at Bombay for instructions.
"Why don't you finish up with practice, Charlie. Then you can see her after." Bombay told him.
"Okay, Coach." He said, and then winked at Julie.
She tried to grin, but was having problems because her head was starting to hurt real bad.
"You two are really close, aren't you?" Bombay asked her.
"Yeah, we are. He has always been there for me; even when we were apart." Julie said, "And I really missed him."
"Yeah, he really missed you too; he would always come to practice telling us about your last phone call. I'm really happy to finally get to meet you." Bombay told her.
"I'm glad to meet you too; Charlie always talked to me about you." She said and winced as he finished cleaning her cut. "And not always in a nice way, at first." she added with a grin, trying to ignore the slight pain.
"Is that so?" Bombay asked with a humored grin.
She smiled, wincing slightly. "Yeah. But once you transformed from 'evil lawyer-dude who's real mean' to 'wonderful, spectacular coach who should marry my mom so she won't marry evil Scott,' then he only had pleasant things to say." she said with a wide grin.
Gordon let out a chuckle, remembering how his relationship with his players had changed over the years.
After a few minutes, Gordon had finished his first aide job.
"Okay, well you're done." He said, "You're not going to feel like finishing practice, are you?"
"No." She said. "Can I tomorrow, though?"
"Probably depends on how you are doing." He told her and she nodded, "All right then, do you think you can get to the locker room okay?" He asked.
"Yes." She said.
"Okay, I need to stay out here and make sure no more fights break out." He told her, smiling. She giggled and headed to the locker room to change.
Meanwhile, with Charlie and the other Ducks...
"Hey Charlie, is she the one you would always talk about talking on the phone with?" Jesse asked, and the others listened.
"That would be her." Charlie said.
"She's cute." Fulton said and the other guys nodded.
"Yeah, she is, isn't she?" Charlie said. "Hey, hands off Fulton." He said, a hint of protectiveness hinting through his voice.
"Why? Is she your girl?" Fulton asked, which caused Connie to choke on the water she had just gotten a drink of.
"No, she is just real shy and quiet. I don't want her to get hurt." Charlie said quickly.
"UH-HUH." The rest of the team said and skated off. Charlie rolled his eyes and followed them.
However, his eyes did trail to where the locker room would be if he could have seen it.
He didn't like Julie...He just...couldn't...
Ok that is it for now, I hope you enjoyed it Chelsea and I had a lot of fun writing it. Please review and tell us what you think. Talk to you soon.
. Disclaimer: I don't own the Mighty Ducks. Although I wouldn't mind owning Charlie, or Portman. Or for that matter anyone of them, except Averman; he is annoying.
A/N1: Hey, here is the next Chapter. I hope you enjoy it. Please Review, if you can. And for all of you that are able to review: Thank you. Oh, and I am hoping that this chapter will be longer that the last one. I didn't realize until I re-read it and the length disturbed me so I told myself that I would have this one longer.
A/N2: By the way I am not taking all the credit for this chapter or this story. It was my idea and I am the main one writing it but C-chan96 has helped out a lot by being able to write out ideas and checking my work. She has probably written about half of this chapter that you are about to read. And I want to thank her very much for it. THANKS CHELS I APRECIATE IT!!!!!! *Hugs Chels*
Responses to Reviews:
Jennygrrl: Thanks, I am glad you liked it. Enjoy this one.
Banks99: Yeah, I know there are, aren't they? Don't worry I have it planned for a while and it isn't going to end for a while. So in other words, there is a lot more to come. The Ducks' reaction is in this chapter towards the end, so that should be fun. Hope you enjoy.
Death To All Rubix Cubes: *giggles * I have to agree that would be nice wouldn't it. I am glad you enjoyed it. I hope you enjoy this chapter, please review if you can. Talk to you soon.
RaspberrieSundae: I think that you thinking it is being cute is great. That was what I was going for. I'm glad that you liked the part where he distracted her; that part was really fun. I hope you like this next chapter. Please review if you can. Talk to you soon.
Kshyne99: I know! Isn't it awesome? This chapter was very fun to write and I am glad you enjoyed it. I hope you like this chapter. Talk to you soon.
Jenny: I am glad you like it and Charlie/Julie. Here is the next part; I hope you like it, and if you can please review. Talk to you soon.
Banksiesbabe99: LOL, I am glad that you liked this chapter along with the whole story, and also the part where he fakes her out. I had a lot of fun on that part. Thanks for reviewing, and I hope you enjoy this chapter. Talk to you soon.
Alright now to the Chapter, I hope you like and please review if you can. Thanks!! Talk to you soon.
-Chapter 3-
The next day, after waking up early and getting ready, Cassie took Julie and Charlie to the airport, staying with them until it was time for them to board the plane. They hugged her and told her goodbye before turning to board the plane. When they sat down in their seats, which Bombay had promised would be together, Charlie looked over at Julie and noticed that she looked kind of pale.
"Jules, you okay?" He asked her softly.
She looked over at him with a confused look on her face, "What?"
"Are you okay? You look kind of pale." He told her.
"Oh yeah, I'm okay I guess." She said and then looked back at him, "I'm just afraid of flying."
"You are?" He asked her.
"Yeah, it's not the height I'm afraid of; it's the pressure in the plane." She said and then thought about what she said, "Okay, I'm not afraid of flying. It's just the air pressure hurts my ears."
"Oh, okay." He said. "Have you tried chewing something? Like gum or peanuts or something?"
"Yeah, it helps some...but not much. It helps for a little bit but not for long, and I can't chew for four hours...my jaw gets tired." She said, laughing a little bit.
"Well that sucks." He said, "Is there something I can do to help?"
"No, I'll be okay." She said, even though he could tell she was already not feeling very good.
"Okay, but if you change your mind tell me, alright?" he asked her.
"Well, we could always talk. I mean this is a four hour flight and talking would help me not think about how I feel." She said.
"Okay, we can talk." He told her and then realized that they were moving and were about to take off.
He looked over at Julie to see how she was doing and saw that she was squeezing her eyes shut and leaning her head back. He reached over and grabbed her hand with his and interlaced his fingers with hers. She opened her eyes and looked at him for a minute and he smiled at her, which won him a grin back. She then laid her head back waiting for the plane to level out. After it did finally level out and Julie's head stopped spinning, Julie let out a sigh and smiled brightly at Charlie. The boy grinned back, giving her hand a conforting pat before looking out the window. He was happy because he got window seat. There had been much dispute over it, but Charlie said she could have it on the way back. Julie willingly agreed, just happy to be able to see him again.
When the 'seatbelts' light flashed off, the two children heard a seatbelt click behind them. A head of curly read locks peeked over the back of their seat.
"Hello. Not feeling well, New Girl?" Averman asked, grinning jokingly at the blonde girl.
Julie's mouth twitched ever-so-slightly as she raised her eyebrows with frustration. She never even looked back, refusing to acknowledge the boy's presence. She could remember Charlie saying something about this guy...He was the jokester. She figured if she ignored him, he would go away...
Charlie turned back and gave Averman a warning look, saying 'not right now.' Charlie didn't want Julie getting in a bad mood. He knew she had little tolerance for annoyance, and Averman was just one of those...well, annoying people.
"Not acting much like a 'Cat,' now are ya? Meeooww! Phht! Phht!" Averman said with a childish grin, batting his hand at the top of her head. He was making annoying, exaggerated cat sounds and hissing.
Julie let out a sigh and massaged her temples. Her head hurt and she didn't feel like retaliating. Glancing over at Charlie, she could see him telling Averman to shove it. Or, at least that's what Julie liked to imagine he was saying. She figured it was probably more along the lines of 'cut it out and bother whatever poor, unsuspecting soul got stuck next to you.' Close enough. Charlie was too nice to yell at anybody...
After a few second of silence, Charlie turned to her with a bright smile, as if nothing had ever happened.
"Well, Julie Anne Gaffney. I think I owe you a long, drawn-out conversation." Charlie said with a charming smile before the two friends launched into a lengthy talk, lasting the rest of the plane ride.
They talked about school and how she had skipped a grade. They talked about hockey and how he had originally started playing hockey because his friends from school were on the team. She told him that friends was one of the reasons she had started, but the main reason she started was the fact that since they had moved there, her dad had started getting mean and rough with her. Hockey gave her a reason to get out of the house and away from him.
By the time she had finished telling him about her dad, they were about to land and her ears had started to pop and hurt again. Charlie saw her wincing, and he once again reached over and grabbed her hand, giving her something to hold and squeeze when she needed to. Finally, the plane landed and stopped, so they were able to get off.
Once they all got off the plane and into the airport, Bombay stopped them and told them to go and get their bags and circle up again afterwards. They nodded and started off to the luggage pickup where Charlie, being the little gentleman that he was, offered to carry Julie's bags for her. She smiled her acknowledgement before walking up to the pick up area where Charlie got his bags off. After she told him which ones were hers, he got hers also.
When they had all gathered back around, Bombay looked at them and smiled.
"Alright guys, lets go get settled in our dorms and have a good night sleep. After all, we do have a big day tomorrow: practicing in the morning and then the game tomorrow night." He told them and they all cheered.
He then led them to the bus and they road to there dorm buildings. When they arrived at the dorms, Bombay told them who they would be rooming with and what room they would be in. Julie smiled; he said that she and Connie would be together, despite the fact that everyone already knew that. She didn't know this Connie girl, but she knew Charlie had told her how nice she was. The last names he called out were Guy and Charlie, which made Julie laugh again. Charlie was her best friend and Charlie had told her that Guy was Connie's boyfriend. Julie smiled fondly as she thought of Charlie. Her best friend. Her confidant. He knew more about her than she knew about herself. The one friend she had known since diapers, and managed to keep in contact with. She could hardly believe it was him. Never in a million years did she think she would ever see him again.
Not a whole lot had changed about him since she had seen him. Well, relatively speaking. His blonde hair had darkened to a light brown, but his eyes were the same. He was still taller than her, but Julie didn't mind. He was still Charlie. Her Charlie.
She was broken out of her thoughts when Charlie came up to her and wrapped his arm around her, "Want me to help you take your bags to your room, Julie?"
"AHH!!! You scared me, Charlie." She said glaring at him, "Yeah, sure. What room are you and Guy in.?"
Charlie laughed, "Just as I thought...You weren't listening, were you?"
"No, not really...but that doesn't answer my question." She said, smiling a little bit.
"We're about three rooms down the hall from you." He said and she grinned real big.
"Cool! Well lets go. I want to get to know Connie better, and I need to call my mom and tell her I'm here, and I'm safe." She said and he laughed. "What?"
"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking that Connie talks more in a day then I think you have in about a year." He said and she hit his arm playfully which made him laugh more.
"Bite me, Charlie." She said and pretending like she was ignoring him.
He laughed, but didn't say anything back to her. Heaving the bags onto his shoulders, he led her on to her room. When they got there, he opened the door and let her in, following behind her before setting her luggage down. He looked around and saw that it was a nice room, and that Connie wasn't there yet. He looked back at her and smiled at her, already laying on one of the beds.
"Well, here you are. Do you want me to wait until Connie gets here, or will you be okay?" He asked her.
"Stay." She said smiling, "Unless you need to get to your room."
"Nah, Coach told me I could stay with you for a little bit." He said grinning at her devilishly.
When she saw the look on his face, she immediately sat up and started backing away from him. She forgot she was on the bed and fell off it on the other side. He took this as his chance and pounced on her and started tickling her relentlessly. She started screaming and trying to pull away from him.
"Charlie stop, ahh stop." She said through laughter, but he kept tickling her and laughing.
They were having so much fun that they didn't hear Connie come in and put her things down. She cocked her head to the side and walked over to her roommate and captain.
"Charlie? What the heck are you doing to Julie?" She asked softly and Charlie jumped about three feet in the air and off of Julie.
Julie blushed about five shades of red and hide her face in the mattresses of the bed. Charlie smiled innocently at Connie and smiled.
"What are you talking about Connie? Julie and I were just playing one of our favorite games. Seeing who make the other laugh the hardest. She usually wins since I am usually the one tickling her." He said to a very confused Connie.
"But...how is that one of your favorite games if you have just known each other about three days?" She asked and Charlie laughed.
"Oh yeah, you don't know. I forgot." He said, smacking himself on the forehead before looking back at Connie. "You remember me talking about that girl that I grew up with that moved to Maine about five years ago?"
"Yeah, you always talked about her the most right after phoning her. But what does that have to do with you and Ju...... OHH!" Cone said as it dawned on her, she turned to Julie who was still hiding, "You're that girl, aren't you?"
"Yes." Came the muffled reply.
"Awesome!!" Connie squealed and Charlie laughed.
"Well, I think I'll leave you two to bond. Have fun and don't scare her much, okay Connie?" He said laughing and her _expression.
"Yeah, I'll try my best." Connie said, and he smiled.
He then walked over to Julie and poked her in the side, making her squeal. He whispered something to her and then stood up. Julie grinned and watched him leave, but just as he was going out of the room she remembered something and stood up.
"Wait Charlie, don't go yet!!" She called and he quickly turned back around and walked back in the room.
"What is it, Julie?" He asked.
"Can you wait until I call my mom and dad?" She asked, "Please."
"Sure, but don't you want to talk to them by yourself?" He asked her walking closer to her.
"Not if my dad wants to talk to me." She said and he nodded in understand- meant.
Connie grinned and decided to go see the rest of the team. "Hey guys, I'm going to go say night to the rest of the team and leave you two alone to call Julie's mom."
"Okay Cons, thanks." Charlie said to her, smirking when she disappeared behind the door, "What she really meant was that she was going to say goodnight to Guy."
Julie cracked up and swatted him on the arm, "You're so mean."
He laughed, "Yeah, yeah I am...but I'm telling the truth."
She laughed and went to the phone and picked it up and dialed. A few seconds later, her mom picked up and answered the phone. Julie smiled at Charlie, who was sitting next to her, knowing he was going to be listening.
"Hey Momma...I miss you too and I'm sorry that I didn't call sooner, but you will never guess who I met up with at practice last night...How did you know?...Oh, well that's cool...Yeah, it was really great... He was? Oh god, I'm sorry Momma... He isn't there, is he?...Oh good...I'll try to call you tomorrow, but I really don't think I will because I have practice in the morning; then we have something that we have to be at, and then tomorrow night we play our first game. But the next day I have off, except for practice, so I'll call you after practice... Okay...I love you and miss you too, Momma...Tell Jessie that I love and miss him too...Okay, talk to you when I can...bye." Julie hung up the phone and looked at Charlie who was looking at her.
"Well, that seemed to have gone well." He said.
"Yeah, it did." She said. "Except my dad is made at me for not calling sooner...but I didn't get a chance, and coach called and told them I would be with you guys. I just don't get him anymore."
"Yeah, from what you have told me about how he has changed I don't get him either." Charlie said, "But it didn't sound like you had to talk to him."
"I didn't; he was at work. My mom just told me that he was mad, but not to worry about it. She wouldn't let him do anything because she knew that I was going to be busy." Julie said.
"Well, that's good." He said and smiled at her.
"Yeah." She said, smiling back.
They didn't say anything for a few minutes, just sitting in silence. Charlie looked over at Julie after a minute and smiled. She was having problems staying awake. He got up, pulling her up with him, and gave her a hug.
"Why don't I go and let you get ready for bed. I'll tell Connie when I get to the room that she can come back, and then you two can talk a little and get to know each other." He told her.
She whimpered cause she didn't want him to leave, but after a minute she nodded against his chest and he kissed the top of her head.
"Okay then. I need to go, so I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" He said, pulling away, and she nodded again.
"Bye Shortcake." He said backing away.
She laughed; she hadn't been called that in a long time. Probably because Charlie was the only one that was allowed to call her that. If anyone else called her that, they got their ass kicked.
"Bye Chip." She said, and returned the smile.
He laughed at her return of the use of his nickname, and then turned around to walk out of the room, down the hall, and to his room. He knocked on the door to let Connie and Guy know that he was coming in and opened the door.
He saw that Connie was stretched out on one of the beds and Guy sitting on the floor next to her; they were in a deep conversation about something. However, when he came in, they both looked up from their conversation and greeted him.
He told Connie that Julie was getting ready for bed and that she wanted to talk. Connie squealed and jumped off the bed. She bent down and gave Guy a quick kiss, and then turned to Charlie and hugged him. She then left the room and skipped to her and Julie's room.
When she came to the door, she stopped and had to calm herself because she remembered that Julie seemed to be pretty shy and quiet. When she opened the door and walked in, she saw Julie sitting on her bed reading something. Connie didn't know what to do because she didn't want to scare her, so she just shut the door and walked over to her own bed. Julie looked up when she heard someone in there and smiled at Connie.
"Hi." Connie said returning the smile.
"Hi." Julie said quietly.
Connie walked over and sat down on the other bed, across from Julie . At first they carried out the average small talk. Nothing too deep; just the normal 'Hey how are you? Good? Me too.' But as it began getting later and they began to feel more comfortable with each other, they began to loosen up.
"So is Guy your boyfriend?" Julie asked before she could stop herself, instantly blushing and covering her face. She had forgotten this wasn't Charlie. She couldn't just ask anything. "I'm sorry, that just came out." Julie apologized, peeking through the fingers of her hand.
Connie laughed. "It's not a problem. Yeah, I guess Guy's my boyfriend."
Julie smiled and removed her hands from her face. "How long have you known each other?"
Julie asked, figuring from the reaction that it was safe grounds. You could never really tell.
"A really long time. Kindergarten, probably. He's really sweet." Connie said, leaning against the headboard of her bed and pulling a pillow on to her lap.
"He seems sweet. Everyone seems to be nice; or at least have POTENTIAL to be nice." Julie said.
Connie nodded. "So...how long have you and Charlie known each other?" Connie asked, blinking her brown eyes with curiosity.
Julie smiled and let out a half-laugh. "Since...well, forever. I think we knew each other before we were even born...Our moms were really close friends, so Charlie and I had always done everything together. He's definitely what I would categorize as my best friend, and I missed him." Julie said with a fond smile.
Connie smiled impishly and leaned forward, hugging her pillow. "Do you like him?"
Julie's head bolted up, her cheeks heating up. "Wha-what?" she asked, startled. She looked like a deer in headlights.
"You heard me. I asked if you like him. You know, LIKE like him." Connie said, waving her hands for emphasis.
"N-no. No, it's not like that." Julie stuttered, positive that her face was probably scarlet by that point. "He's just my friend."
Connie nodded with her eyebrows raising in disbelief. "Suuure. Uh-huh." Connie said teasingly. Julie threw her pillow at Connie's face. "I do not like him!" she protested. "I don't! We're just friends!"
Connie giggled and blocked the pillow with her own. "I think you're protesting WAY too much! DENIAL!" Connie said through laughs as Julie took the fallen pillow and began whacking Connie with it.
"I'm not in denial!" Julie said, though she was hiding a smile at that point.
Connie grinned at they launched into a full-fledged pillow fight, all the while exchanging their position on whether or not Julie was secretly in love with Charlie Conway.
Later, long after Connie had fallen asleep, Julie lay under the covers, tucked in her bed.
What Connie had said had been weighing on Julie's mind, whether or not she would admit it. She was convincing herself that she COULDN'T like Charlie. It would just be...She just couldn't! Her hand traced along the rim of her suitcase; she then dug her hand in and pulled out a small framed photo.
She held the framed picture in front of her face and traced around the edges. It was still the same silver color as it had always been, and she constantly ran her fingers long the inscription.
'Whether close of far away, we will always be best friends.'
It still had the same picture of her and Charlie before she moved to Maine.
She ran her thumb across the picture, straining to see their childish faces smiling into the camera. With a content smile, she placed the framed picture back into her suitcase and snuggled in her covers, falling to sleep.
The next morning Julie and Connie woke up to the guys singing loudly in the entertainment room. Julie cracked up laughing as soon as she realized who one of the main singers was. "What are you laughing at?" Connie said with her eyebrow cocked.
"Charlie is singing." Julie told her trying to calm down.
Connie laughed and listened, "Oh my gosh, you're right."
Julie laughed, and then got out of bed, looking at Connie.
"I guess we ought to get up out of bed and get dressed." She said.
"Yeah, we should." Connie agreed.
They got up and started getting ready for the day. A few minutes later, they were dressed and ready to go. They got their bags and walked out to the activity room where the guys were still singing loudly. When they saw Connie and Julie walk in, they greeted them loudly. Connie just rolled her eyes, and Julie looked like she was about to run away. Connie looked at her and saw she was about to freak out and turned back to the guys.
"Not so loud guys, you scared her." Connie said and patted Julie on the shoulder.
Averman laughed, "She is a true cat, isn't she? Quick to react to things but easily scared."
Charlie, who had been standing behind Averman when he said that, hit him upside the head with his hand.
"What was that for, Spaz?" Averman asked, rubbing his head.
"'Cause you are being mean." Charlie told him.
"No I wasn't! I was just stating a fact." Averman replied back.
"You're right, you were stating some facts about cats, but you missed one important fact. When a cat is challenged, it can be very tough. " Charlie said, "And what I've heard about her, she is the exact same way."
Averman tried to say something but nothing came out. Charlie grinned and looked over at Julie and gave her a wink. She grinned real big back at him.
Just then, Bombay walked in. They turned to him and waited to see what he was going to say. "You guys ready to practice?" he asked.
"YEAH!!!" They all cheered.
"All right then, lets go." He said and led them out of the dorms and on to the bus.
Julie and Connie sat together because Charlie was sitting with Adam, and Connie didn't want to leave Julie to sit with someone she didn't know.
"I told you that you liked him." Connie said.
"What?" Julie asked.
Connie laughed, "I think he likes you too."
"How can you tell?" Julie asked her.
"I saw the way he winked at you awhile ago, and how you smiled back at him." Connie replied.
"But we're just friends." Julie insisted.
"Friends don't wink at each other that way, Julie." Connie told her.
"How do you know?" Julie asked her.
"Guy winks at me the same way Charlie winked at you all the time." Connie said.
"Oh.." Julie said, "...but we're not like that."
"God, you're stubborn." Connie laughed, "But that's okay; you'll both come to realize it soon."
Julie didn't have a chance to reply because they had arrived at the rink, and they had to get out of the bus. When Julie got up out of the seat and turned her back to Connie, the latter smirked.
They all got their bags and went to the locker room and changed. When they finished changing, they started heading to the ice. Julie was lagging behind cause she had different pads than she was used to, and she was thinking about what Connie had said to her.
She was so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't realized that she was on the edge of the ice. She took her first step onto the ice and her foot slipped out from her, and she was going down on her back before she knew what was happening.
"Julie!" Charlie yelled and skated towards her as well as Connie.
She was trying to sit up when they got there, and Charlie bent down and helped her.
"Are you okay, shortcake?" He asked her.
"Yeah, I think so. I was thinking about some things and didn't realize I was at the ice." She said and then started looking around for her helmet and stick. "Where's my helmet and stick?"
"Here they are, Julie." Connie said picking them up and handing them to her, "You sure that you're okay?"
"Yeah; thanks Connie." Julie said and smiled at her new friend.
"Come on shortcake, let's get you up so that we can warm up." Charlie said and pulled her up all the way.
Once she was up, Julie smiled at Charlie, and they started their warm up laps. Just when they were about to take a knee so that Bombay could talk to them, Averman came skating by Julie and knocked her down with immature glee. Charlie who had been skating behind her had to swerve to the right to avoid falling over her. He stopped as soon as he was around her and went and helped her up.
"You okay, Julie?" He asked her.
"Yes." She said frustrated.
"Haha! Charlie has a crush on the klutzy new girl." Averman laughed, and he skated back towards them.
Julie, who had had enough of him before he said that, dropped her stick and helmet and went after him. Charlie tried to catch her but she was too fast, so he watched as she caught up with him and checked him into the boards . "I'm sick of you teasing me. You don't know me so what right do you have to tease me and pick on me?" She yelled at him
"Ohh, I'm scared." Averman said with a goofy grin on his face.
Bombay and Charlie were standing close by on they ice, watching this in amusement. However, the amusement quickly faded to worry and anger when Julie went to check Averman again, and Averman sidestepped; she slammed in to the boards, hitting her head hard and falling to the ice. Bombay and Charlie quickly skated over to her and Averman who was laughing, not fully understanding the magnitude of his actions.
"Averman, I have had just about enough of you knocking Julie down. You have been pestering her too much. And know it looks like she is going to have to miss tonight's game. I hope you are happy." Bombay said.
Julie got up slowly and snarled at Averman. Charlie saw this and quickly pulled her closer to him. Averman saw how mad she was and coughed, hiding a childish grin behind his hand, which earned him a fierce glare from his coach and captain.
"Yeah, I think I am." Averman said jokingly, none it making a connection in his brain. "Besides, I don't pester people; I just tease them."
"Averman, you've been bothering her. She is obviously, and rightly so, very ticked off at you. Charlie told me a few minutes ago that she doesn't get this way unless someone or something was really bothering her. Now I want you to apologize to Julie and go change; if she isn't going to play tonight, neither are you because you're the reason she is hurt." Bombay told him.
"How would Charlie know?" Averman asked, with wide blinking eyes, "And why aren't you punishing her?" he added with a pout.
"Well, Charlie would know because he has grown up with her. The reason she isn't one of the original Ducks is her family moved to Maine five years ago. But her and Charlie have kept close contact with each other. As for punishing her, no; I'm not because there is no reason. You are the one that started it, and don't bother arguing with me because I saw it all with my own eyes. So I suggest you go and apologize to her right now." Bombay told him.
Averman looked over at Charlie, who was looking at the cut on Julie's head. "You know her?" Averman asked him.
"Yep, just like Coach said." Charlie snapped back, mad that he had knocked her out of the first game by teasing her.
"Oh, okay." Averman said and skated over to Julie. He looked at her for a minute, "I'm sorry Julie." He said not really meaning it, and skated off.
Bombay, Charlie, and Julie all watched him go knowing that he hadn't really meant it, but not caring at the moment. Bombay turned to Julie and winced when he say the cut on her forehead.
"Come on, Julie; let's get you to the locker room and cleaned up." He said softly to her so as not to scare her anymore that she already seemed to be.
"Okay." She said, "I'm sorry Coach."
"It's okay, Julie. I'm not mad at you; you didn't do anything wrong. You were just defending yourself. He is the one I'm am upset with." He told her and smiled at her.
She smiled in relief, happy to know she wasn't in trouble. When they got to the bench, Charlie helped her in, and then looked at Bombay for instructions.
"Why don't you finish up with practice, Charlie. Then you can see her after." Bombay told him.
"Okay, Coach." He said, and then winked at Julie.
She tried to grin, but was having problems because her head was starting to hurt real bad.
"You two are really close, aren't you?" Bombay asked her.
"Yeah, we are. He has always been there for me; even when we were apart." Julie said, "And I really missed him."
"Yeah, he really missed you too; he would always come to practice telling us about your last phone call. I'm really happy to finally get to meet you." Bombay told her.
"I'm glad to meet you too; Charlie always talked to me about you." She said and winced as he finished cleaning her cut. "And not always in a nice way, at first." she added with a grin, trying to ignore the slight pain.
"Is that so?" Bombay asked with a humored grin.
She smiled, wincing slightly. "Yeah. But once you transformed from 'evil lawyer-dude who's real mean' to 'wonderful, spectacular coach who should marry my mom so she won't marry evil Scott,' then he only had pleasant things to say." she said with a wide grin.
Gordon let out a chuckle, remembering how his relationship with his players had changed over the years.
After a few minutes, Gordon had finished his first aide job.
"Okay, well you're done." He said, "You're not going to feel like finishing practice, are you?"
"No." She said. "Can I tomorrow, though?"
"Probably depends on how you are doing." He told her and she nodded, "All right then, do you think you can get to the locker room okay?" He asked.
"Yes." She said.
"Okay, I need to stay out here and make sure no more fights break out." He told her, smiling. She giggled and headed to the locker room to change.
Meanwhile, with Charlie and the other Ducks...
"Hey Charlie, is she the one you would always talk about talking on the phone with?" Jesse asked, and the others listened.
"That would be her." Charlie said.
"She's cute." Fulton said and the other guys nodded.
"Yeah, she is, isn't she?" Charlie said. "Hey, hands off Fulton." He said, a hint of protectiveness hinting through his voice.
"Why? Is she your girl?" Fulton asked, which caused Connie to choke on the water she had just gotten a drink of.
"No, she is just real shy and quiet. I don't want her to get hurt." Charlie said quickly.
"UH-HUH." The rest of the team said and skated off. Charlie rolled his eyes and followed them.
However, his eyes did trail to where the locker room would be if he could have seen it.
He didn't like Julie...He just...couldn't...
Ok that is it for now, I hope you enjoyed it Chelsea and I had a lot of fun writing it. Please review and tell us what you think. Talk to you soon.