Just a quick note: I refer to the RED engineer as Regan and BLU engineer as Dell so that whose talking doesn't get confusing with two Dells

Regan slumped against the passenger's seat of his dad's truck. His mind telling his body that it was too bored to even sit up straight.

"Regan," his mother calmly said, "I put you in a seat belt for a reason, don't negate it by slouching."

Grudgingly, Regan sat up, again. His mother never missed an opportunity to tell him what she did to protect him.

"Now, I understand that a hog weighing competition is not the most engaging thing for a twelve year old, but you know how important this is to your father."

Yes, hog weighing. Regan's father loved those animals more than his own son.

Regan diverted his eyes from his mother's: he'd acted like a toddler and threw a tantrum when his father said he had to go to the state fair again. The only benefit was that next year he would be thirteen and his dad would let him stay home.

Regan glanced quickly over at his father. The man had never really been there for him. Not so much in that he didn't spend time with Regan, but he was always so distant; often looking at his son like he was some sort of alien species.

The Texas Giant Ferris wheel rose up from beneath the cover of a nearby hill. Seeing it reminded Regan of the magic he had experienced that first time. That was all gone after seeing nine years of the same wheel spelling out the same fate.

"Alright," Regan's father said once the truck stopped, "here's fifty dollars, go play whatever you want, remember to eat lunch, and be back here by the time the fair closes."

Regan muttered a "thanks dad", took the money and once again wandered into the familiar fairgrounds alone.

"Mamma? Why isn't daddy here?"

Mrs. Conagher pursed her lips, "He can't come with us today, but he promised that he'll be home later this week."

Dell rubbed the edge of his goggles. He wasn't normally sentimental about objects, but the goggles were the only gift his father had ever given him, so he never really took them off.

"Oh... Why can't he be here now?"

Mrs. Conagher looked over at her son with the same sad eyes she always wore, "Same as always Dell, he's workin'."

Dell shrugged slightly, his father's absences just made his rare appearances more exciting. At least, that's what Dell kept telling himself. All the shrugging and indifference made Dell squirm a bit in disgust. Lying usually did that to him.

Suddenly, the top of the famed Texas Giant Ferris wheel appeared above the ridge of the mountain. The mere sight of it nearly made him forget his father.

"Look mamma! That's the Texas Giant! It's the tallest collapsible Ferris wheel in the world. Can I ride it mamma? Please?"

Mrs. Conagher smiled, "'Course you can. I got twenty dollars saved up, just for you. Remember, I got my jam contest so I can't go 'round the fair with ya. Y'ok with that?"

Dell nodded, "Yes ma'am." He wasn't really thinking much on walking around the fair alone, he was too entranced by the way the Ferris wheel grew in size as they drove closer to the state fair.

Regan stared down the rows of colorful stands and rides. After going to the same fair six years in a row, none of it seemed fun anymore. Now he hated everything. The bright reds and blues of the stalls. The corny music wailing through the speakers. Children running to catch up to families who actually bothered to spend time with them. With a sigh of exhaustion, Regan started off towards the Texas Giant.

The lines. Yet another piece of annoyance the fair provided. Regan liked to pass the time in them by trying to invent a new fair ride. While deciding what he would do with new ride, a boy shuffled up next to Regan.

"'Scuse me," the boy said nervously, "Have ya ever ridden this ride before?"

Regan glanced up at the boy. He was scrawny and thin like Regan, but looked more uptight. Tucked in shirt, long pants, and the strangest pair of sunglasses Regan had ever seen.

"'Course I've ridden it before," Regan replied.

"Oh."

After a brief moment of silence, the boy held up his hand in a wave, "My name's Dell."

"I'm Regan," Regan said absently.

Dell nodded, "Did ya know that this is the largest collapsible Ferris wheel in the US?"

"'Course I did. D'ya know what kinda motor it runs?"

Dell glanced at the base of the Ferris wheel. "Looks like a Motson six. Capable of around a hundred-twenty horse power."

Regan raised his eyes to meet Dell's. "Well, lookatchoo... How old are ya?"

Dell cocked his head slightly, "Twelve. Why?"

Regan crossed his arms. He wasn't sure if he should be impressed or insulted that a kid his age knew as much as he did.

"Figured you'd be older to know that."

"Oh. Well...I like engineerin' and mechanics. The way stuff works, it's...facinatin."

"Are y'all ridin tegether?

Dell jumped back, "I, uh, we... Yeah!"

Regan glanced between the perky ride attendant and Dell. "We're doin what now?"

"Awh, don worry hun, there's plenty a room for both a y'all."

"Look, we're not..."

The smile faded from Dell's face. Regan knew that feeling: rejection.

"...gonna be able to get on any other time taday. C'mon Dell, we're holdin' up the line."

A/N: Whoa, I just realized that there were no line breaks in the original version of this. I apologize to those who read this earlier for any confusion that was caused by this editing fail on my part.