The One That Got Away?

"Hello." Sidney said while walking towards the door, carrying coffee and his hockey bag on his way to practice. He had a placid look on his face, completely void of emotion as he looked at Lorie. He was being pleasent out of respect that Lorie was Maegan's sister. The fact of the matter was he was furious at himself and her, as well as being completely embarrassed.

"Hi." Lorie replied her eyes flicking up to meet his for a brief second, her face a blank page as well. Just as quickly as they came up they shot down the manuscript in front of her. In the time that had elapsed since that awkward night, Maegan had acquired a new editing job at a firm in Pittsburgh and began leasing a new car. She became more independent, leaving the house when she wanted to. Two weeks since that night Lorie had come home from dinner with James and everything changed. Lorie was upset with herself for facilitating any sort of feelings between the two. Even though it was hard for her to manage the emotions and the overwhelming feelings she had for Sidney, it was even harder for her to deal with the cold wall he put up whenever she was around. His feelings towards her were stronger than she anticipated and she couldn't have handled the situation any worse. Rejecting him was embarrassing, but to accept him would have gone against everything she believed in, and betrayed her "sister", if you could call Maegan that?

Sidney walked out of the house and Lorie let out a large exhale releasing all the ice and tension floating between the two. Lorie was happy with where they were previous to her refusal. The most painful aspect of the entire situation was the fact he wouldn't speak to her let alone look at her. Sidney was a constant in her life, a rock, in all the madness of the move and having to coexist with her sister. Suddenly, he was gone, and she alone again. James had called and texted but he hadn't asked her out again. She was surprised to find herself upset that he hadn't followed through. He seemed like a carefree guy, but he seemed serious in regards to her. James was sweet and kind and the perfect guy for her, but she was so conflicted. Se felt like Maegan and Chantal, with so much sudden drama. Lorie was lucky if anything exciting happened annually, but now her life was jam packed with drama.

Maegan came trotting down the stairs several minutes later with her hair slightly askew, and a sly smile on her face. Lorie peaked up beneath her glasses and peered up at Maegan. She had a pair of short shorts on and a tight, pink cami. Her hair was in a bun and her makeup had already been applied.

"Morning." Lorie mumbled as her sister poured coffee and got out the creamer.

"Morning. Man can Sidney kiss? Well I guess you wouldn't know, but I'm telling you, that man is something else!" Meagan enthused brushing her fingers across her lips smiling brightly at Lorie behind the rim of her coffee mug.

"I guess I wouldn't know would I? What's on the agenda today?" Lorie asked ignoring the dig and happy that Maegan was in a decent mood.

"Mama is coming in for a visit and we have to meet with the wedding planner today. Dress shopping begins tomorrow, and I expect Chantal to arrive sometime in the next few days. I'm so excited aren't you?" Maegan replied.

Lorie was shocked, honestly shocked. What happens to cynical and mean Maegan? The Maegan that loved to tear Lorie down? Why was she treating Lorie like a friend, someone she actually cared about?

"Do we need to pick her up at the airport?" Lorie inquired.

"Yep at 3. I was thinking we could do lunch?" Maegan asked. The world must have stopped rotating on its axis! Meagan inviting her to lunch? What is this Maegan and what did she do with the ice queen in her place yesterday?

"Sure if you want to. I can cook dinner tonight if you want me to?" Lorie offered.

"That would be perfect! Thanks for asking!" Meagan cheered. "I'm going to go get dressed then we can go get our nails done before visiting Sid at Consol. Kay?" Meagan asked smiley and bounding up the stairs. Lorie's jaw dropped to the floor. What in the heck was that?

Lorie finished her cup of coffee and walked upstairs to get dressed herself. She pulled on a pair of jean shorts and a plain black t-shirt before running a brush through her hair. Lorie grabbed her purse and trotted downstairs to wait for Maegan. When she came downstairs she looked fit for a day out on the town. With her tight pink skirt and billowing top secured by a gold belt. She had on four inch ankle boots and a gold hippie headband adorned her forehead. She looked incredible.

"Ready sis?" Meagan asked.

"I suppose." Lorie replied cautiously unsure of what the day entailed.
~
"Sid!" Meagan called out as she walked into the dressing room after practice. Sidney's head automatically snapped in the direction of Maegan's voice as it carried throughout the room. All he saw was leg. Meagan's long tanned legs in a pair of high heeled boots. Behind her another set of legs followed, but he was shocked to find he was more attracted to that set. What friend had Maegan brought with her? He could tell they were a dancer or some sort of athlete's legs. They were perfectly toned and sculpted. He looked up and was completely shocked to see that the legs belonged to Lorie. He had never seen Lorie in anything but pants. He was glad for the reveal of skin, because her legs were something to ogle at. Every red-blooded male took notice of her, openly gawking as she walked by. Sidney's blood boiled. How dare they look at her, something that was his. Wait...what?

"I brought Lorie along, I hope you don't mind! We had a girls day and did sister stuff! Ooh and look! Lorie got her first set of fake nails! We also got lunch! It really has been fun!" Meagan announced drawing attention from all corners of the room. She dragged Lorie's hand for Sidney's inspection showing her the dainty french tips that now covered her nails.

"They look very nice." Sidney commented causing Lorie's cheeks to flush a red.

"Thank yo-"

"Lorie! Hi!" James said coming over and throwing his arm around her shoulders. Sidney's jaw clenched at the sight of his teammate touching Lorie.

Lorie turned and gave him a quick but thorough hug.

"Hi James." Lorie smiled sweetly. "How are you?"

"I'm great! It seems like a lifetime since I've seen you!" James said and he and Lorie broke off into a new side conversation. Sidney struggled to listen in to their conversation while Maegan talked his ear off about her mom's imminent arrival. What he did hear was James asking her out to a carnival coming in two weeks. His attention honed in on her for her answer to James' proposition.

"Um... If I'm not working sure. It sounds like fun!" Lorie replied sounding extremely cheery. Not once had Sidney been the cause of that beaming light from Lorie. He hadn't caused her to smile so wide it hurt and looked at him in general happiness without bounds. Was James a good option for her? She seemed happy? Or was what he feeling and the situation in too serious for that aspect of their relationship to develop? Was he willing to sacrifice her happiness for stolen moments?

"We have to get going!" Maegan announced, threading her arm through Lorie's and began dragging her out of the room. Sidney picked up his bag, tipped his head at James(trying to al least act civil) and waved to the guys as her followed his fiancé and her sister to go pick up their mother. "Oh, Lorie I couldn't help but overhear! I think you should totally go out with James!" Maegan enthused. Sidney's teeth began to ground and his jaw began to ache from how tight his mouth was shut.

"I think it may be fun. But nothing is set in stone, we'll probably end up as friends." Lorie replied. There's his girl- wait, not his Lorie.

"You and James will be the cutest couple. And he's so sweet!" Maegan countered. Lorie looked up to her big sister and smiled.

"You think so?" She asked apprehensively.

"I know so!" Maegan replied squeezing Lorie's upper arm in a comforting gesture.

Sidney observed the two sisters from afar. If he hadn't seen them over the past three weeks they would seem like any normal siblings. Yet just yesterday, neither of them would touch the other with a ten foot pole. Now they're interacting and actually doing things together. He didn't feel bad having perspective feeling for Lorie with Meagan and Lorie in a bad place as sisters, but what was he supposed to do now that they were showing a bond? He couldn't handle tearing down the progress the two were making.
~
On the way to the airport Lorie and Maegan made small talk and Sidney remained oddly silent, letting the sisters fill the void. As he approached the airport he prepared himself to see Maegan's mother again. She was over the top and didn't mind speaking her mind on topics she didn't agree with. Sidney hadn't met Chantal, but if she was anything like her mother, he wasn't sure if her could handle all three women at once.

"Mommy!" Maegan called as she hopped out of the car, throwing herself around the older woman. Maegan's mother, Summer, was incredibly beautiful, a trait her daughters received. Summer Jhonson had blonde hair that fell strait down her back and was professionally highlighted. Her physical apperance was in great condition and her apparel screamed of a rich and lavish lifestyle. Not to mention the giant rock sitting on her finger, blinding all those who looked at it.

"Darling!" Summer smiled at her daughter. Summer grabbed her hand and examined the ring closely smiling in approval. The mother and daughter were obviously close, sharing a bond most didn't have. Sidney glanced over at Lorie and couldn't miss the agony and longing in her gaze. It was evident that she missed her mother dearly, and longed for a connection like Meagan and Summer shared

"Sidney!" Summer smiled and motions her arms for a hug. He smiled and kissed her on the cheek. She squeezed him tightly and took a deep breath.

"It's so nice to see you again." Sidney said pleasently. He liked the woman in moderation.

Summer's gaze landed on Lorie. A critical gaze scraped Lorie up and down assessing the girl in front of her.

"Lorie, you don't nearly look as wide." Lorie's stepmom commented.

"Mom!" Meagan said and Sidney's eyes nearly popped out of his head. He was seething with rage, who in the hell was she to make those sorts of comments? He looked at Lorie and the transformation occurring him was alarming. No longer did he see the sweet compassionate Lorie. No longer was she happy and open. Her eyes glazed over in a cold film, cold as ice. If this was how Lorie treated Maegan when she was younger he understood the resentment she seemed to have for her sister. A flash of hurt appeared in her cold eyes before they held nothing kind or emptional in them.

"Summer, how nice to see you." Lorie replied in a level tone. "Took a break from back home?"

"Nice to see your whit is somewhat intact? How was it being fired?" Summer replied with equaling menice.

"Absolutley delightful." Lorie replied.

"Why don't we just head back to the house?" Sidney asked trying to diffuse the bomb about to go off between the two. Lorie gave him a tight smile and proceeded to stalk off toward the car.

"Such a retched girl that one. No wonder her mother died, couldn't bear to be around her any longer." Summer commented to Sidney as they walked to the car.

"That's not necessary mother. Lorie's changed." Maegan said soothingly. Sidney remained quiet trying to reign in his temper. He really didn't want to deck the old lady in public. He had never seen her behave so awful even when she did decide to not like someone.

The drive home consisted of Maegan and Summer talking about wedding details and Chantal's absence of a boyfriend. Apparently, it was an atrocity and needed to be remedied immediately. Lorises quiet and blank, as she had been ever since Summer arrived in town. The two quietly chatted until a bomb was dropped on the group.

"Actually Thomas will be coming in town soon." Summer announced. Sidney felt sweat beginning to form on his brow hearing that his fiancée's father was coming into town. He had called and asked for her mom'a blessing, after Maegan expressed that her stepfather and her weren't close. Now the man was coming and he was nervous, what if he wasn't happy that Sidney wasn't traditional? Could he forbid a marriage? And god only knows what would happen if her found out that Sid had feelings for Lorie.

"Daddy's coming?" Lorie's eyes sparkled at the mention of her fathers name.

"It's what I said isn't it?" Summer snapped, but Lorie seemed so happy even Summer's cruelty couldn't touch her. She was excited to say the least that she would be seeing her father. She loved him and in many ways he was one of the last connections to her mother. He still do some of the things he and her did, and kept the same routines that they had established over their marriage. She ached for her mother but had always shared an unbreakable bond. Things were finally starting to look up.
~
That night Summer went to bed and Maegan went to sleep early, leaving Sidney and Lorie alone. Lorie was huddled on one side of the couch flipping through a manuscript and marking in red pen, annotating in different places. Sidney was nursing a beer watching some show he seemed to like on his reclining chair. They were coexisting without having to speak to one another. He didn't necessarily want to continue going on that way but he didn't know how to address the elephant in the room. What was he supposed to say? Sorry I came onto you the other night, when I'm engaged to your sister? It didn't seem right.

"Wacha' reading?" Sidney asked looking at Lorie's frantic scribbling.

"A manuscript from work." Lorie replied flickering her eyes up to meet his.

"Any good?"

"It's okay, I guess."

"I just wanted to say-"

"Don't worry about it. The past is in the past." Lorie cut him off not looking up. Sidney wasn't sure what to say or how to reply to that.

"So, that was an interesting reaction between you and Summer." He commented.

"You noticed that?"

"It was kind of hard to miss."

"We never clicked. Part of it was my fault, I didn't want my dad to marry her because I felt like he was replacing my real mom. I wasn't ready to accept he could move on that quick. She wanted to be the replacement. She insisted I call her mom and tried to force me to stop talking about my mom as if she never existed. It was just a year and I wasn't ready to accept that, I couldn't understand how she could expect me to just forget her. I loved my mom so much and it hurt so much that I couldn't grieve how I wanted to do." Lorie explained, her eyes drifting between Sidney and the manuscript.

"I can't imagine."

"It wasn't easy growing up, but we all have struggles right?"

"True, but I come from a loving family growing up. Sure, there was the occasional family spat, but nothing overly serous."

"Before my mom passed there was love in my house. My parents had a passionate and often hostile love. They loved deeply but fought with just as much passion as they loved. But when they were happy it was like nothing could touch our family. We loved one another, it was almost perfect. But, then reality hit, and you can fill in the blanks." Lorie said with a far away look in her eyes.

"You turned out alright." Sidney smiled and Lorie's cheeks flushed.

"It made for good book material." She joked, but Sidney sensed there was some underlying emotion he couldn't catch on to.

Conversation seemed to loll as Lorie went back to editing the manuscript and Sidney watched his tv program. About twenty minutes passed until Sidney looked over at Lorie to discover she had fallen asleep. He brushed a lock of hair off her face and pulled her into him, so her head rested on her lower abdomen. She rotated so her head was facing his stomach and nuzzled until she could find a comfortable position. Sidney absentmindedly ran his fingers through her soft hair until he became tired. She sighed and her breathing evened out into a steady rhythm. He couldn't help but think about how natural it felt to have her so close to him, how domestic and right it felt to be snuggled up on the couch together. She fit in all the right places and complimented him better than anyone he had ever met. He savored her sweet smell before he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to bed.