A/N: Here's chap 9!! I can't believe school starts next week. That SUX! I hope I finish this soon or else I'll get busy and forget. It should be finished in two more chappies (unless I have another crazy idea and go off on a tangent or something). Anyway, please R&R. Oh, I almost forgot, just a rating reminder: This fic is PG-13. If you're under 13 turn back now! :::grins evilly:::
Chapter 9: Clouded Thoughts
Twister stared at the bottle in front of his face as the thoughts raced through his mind. He'd never even had the urge to drink alcohol before. It wasn't because of his parents giving him "stay away from drugs and alcohol" speech, or the boring school assemblies that tried to enforce the same thing. He'd just never had a desire to. Until recently, he was high on life and didn't need things like that to feel good. Sometime during the past twenty-four hours his life had dramatically changed though. Now, he could easily see himself doing a lot of things that he wouldn't normally do.
"Sure, bro." He took the bottle from David.
After fumbling with the cap, he finally twisted it off and took a sip. The taste wasn't really what he expected. It was harsh and somewhat sour. He wrinkled his nose and forced himself to swallow. When he looked up he saw Autumn, David and Chris staring at him.
"So, what do you think?" Autumn asked.
"Good." He lied and took another sip. He was surprised that the second taste wasn't as bad as the first.
"First beer, huh?" Chris asked. "Don't worry. It's weird at to begin with, but it grows on you after a while."
"Do you do this a lot?" Twister took a gulp this time. He was starting to feel relaxed and a little light-headed.
"It's the only thing exciting to do around here. We don't have all the killer hangouts like you guys in Ocean Shores." Autumn said.
"Yeah. It's pretty dead here." Twister agreed. He looked around and realized that they were the only people on the beach now that the sun was starting to set. After a few more gulps, he was surprised to see that his bottle was already empty. "Got any more?" he asked.
"Sure thing bro." David said and tossed him another one from the cooler.
Twister suddenly realized that he wasn't even thinking about Reggie. He no longer had the sick feeling in the pit of his stomach that had been gnawing at him for most of the day. Her face appeared in his mind briefly, but he just shrugged it off. Right now he didn't care about her, Lars, or anything else. The beer had given him a sense of confidence so he causally slipped his arm around Autumn's waist.
********
Lars rang the doorbell at the Rocket's house. He was bored and wanted to see what Reggie was up to. He really just wanted to see her face again. He couldn't believe that things were finally starting to go his way. He felt a little guilty because he knew that Twister still cared about her, but then again, Twister was never concerned about his feelings.
Otto answered the door and scowled at him. "What do you want, Lars?"
"Out of my way Rocketdork, I'm here to see Reggie."
"Not a chance" Otto said smugly.
"Is she home, or what?" Lars asked impatiently.
"Yeah, she's home."
"So why can't I see her?" Lars was becoming very annoyed. He really hated to deal with Otto.
"Because I don't want your loser ass anywhere near her." Otto said calmly.
"What did you just say to me shrimp?"
"You heard me! I know you're only interested in one thing and I'm not about to stand by and watch while you try to take advantage of her." Otto stared challengingly up at Lars, who stood a good five inches taller than him.
"Man, you are more whacked than Twister!" Lars laughed. He couldn't believe that Otto was actually trying to start a beef with him when they both knew that Lars could easily pound him into the ground.
"Listen to me," Otto said through clenched teeth, "Stay away from her."
Lars's eyes flashed with anger. He didn't take crap off of anybody, especially not a self-centered brat like Otto Rocket. He grabbed him by the shirt and lifted him clear off the ground so that they were eye to eye. "No, you listed to me dork. I've been waiting for this for a long time and you're not going to screw it up. Is that clear?"
"Let go of me." Otto snarled and kicked him hard in the knee.
"Son of a bitch" Lars grunted and released the shirt causing Otto to fall hard on the floor.
Before he was able to pick himself up, Lars grabbed his arm and twisted it painfully behind his back. Otto groaned in agony. He clenched his eyes shut and waited to hear the sound of snapping bone that would surely come at any second.
"I don't think you heard me the first time Rocketdork…"
"What's going on?" Reggie's voice interrupted. The both looked up to see her frowning as she came down the stairs.
Lars released Otto's arm and stood up. 'Your lame-o brother was just trying to start some shit, but everything's okay now, right Rocketdork?" He looked down at Otto who was still on the floor rubbing his sore arm. Otto glared at him hatefully.
"What did you say to him Otto?" Reggie demanded.
"What's your deal Reggie? Why are you hanging with this loser? " Otto asked, finally getting to his feet.
"He's not a loser and it's none of your business!" she said angrily.
"I'm making it my business. I can't believe you! It's Lars! What are you thinking?"
I'm so damn sick of you always telling me what to do. I can think for myself Otto!" She shouted.
"I guess you can, Reg. Just like you did yesterday when you decided to bail on Twister and hang with the shoobies. All that thinking is what started this shit!"
Reggie's eyes darkened with anger. Otto's words had hit a nerve. "Get out of my face and STAY OUT MY LIFE!" she screamed. She grabbed Lars's hand and headed toward the door.
"Fine. Do what you want Reggie. I'm done worrying about you. I still think your making a huge mistake though!"
"I DON"T CARE what you think Otto! She slammed the door behind her. Otto watched through the window until she and Lars disappeared out of sight down the street.
*****
Just as Twister was finishing off his third beer, Autumn announced that they needed to be heading home. When he stood up, the ground immediately started spinning and he stumbled.
Autumn grabbed his arm to steady him. "Are you okay?" She looked concerned.
"I'm fine, just lost my balance. "
She took his hand and led him back to the sidewalk. Chris and David kept walking, but she suddenly stopped, causing Twister to clumsily bump into her. "Go ahead, I'll catch up!" She said.
"Okay, Later bro." They called to Twister.
"Yeah, later." He replied.
"I'm really glad you came tonight." She said. "It was great seeing you again."
"Yeah, we have to do it again soon." He slurred.
"I'll call you tomorrow and we'll go surfing or something. Be careful going home." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.
A huge grin crept across his face. His thoughts were hazy and one phrase kept repeating over and
over in his mind. "Autumn?"
"Hmmm?"
"I love you."
She giggled. "You barely know me Twister."
"I know, but I love you." He was totally convinced of what he was saying in his alcohol-clouded mind.
"You're in no condition to discuss this now. We'll talk about it tomorrow."
"Okay, we won't talk about it then." He pulled her close and kissed her deeply. His brain was too fuzzy to think so he just let himself become completely consumed by the kiss. He ran his hands up and down her back passionately then dared to let them drop below her waist. He only backed off when he felt her hand pressed against his chest, gently pushing him away. Even though his mind was not all there at the moment, he knew that he'd stepped over the line.
"S-sorry." He stammered. He felt his cheeks growing hot.
"Your drunk, Twister." She said. "It's a good thing to cause if you weren't I would have slapped you! Go home and get some rest."
"I'm really sorry." He repeated, feeling like a complete jerk.
"It's okay." She assured him.
"I'll see you tomorrow then." It came out as more of a question than a statement. He wouldn't be surprised if she never wanted to see him again.
"Sure. I'll call you. Goodnight."
"Night." He watched until she caught up with David and Chris who had nearly disappeared from sight.
He put on his blades and headed home. He barely got fifty feet before he fell, scraping his leg on the pavement. "Damn." He muttered without emotion as he watched the blood begin to trickle from the wound. He stood up shakily and nearly lost his balance again. "The hell with this." He took off his bladed and decided that it would be safer to walk home.
*****
An hour later, Twister finally reached his driveway. He was startled when a voice spoke behind him.
"Where've you been, bro? It's like 10:30." He turned and saw Lars coming from the direction of the Rocket's house.
"Sunset Beach."
"By yourself at night? Mom and Dad would freak if they knew. Hey, what happened to your leg?" Lars pointed at the cut that was still oozing blood.
"I fell." Twister muttered.
Lars laughed. "You fell on your blades? Please tell me that you were trying to pull of some insane move. You haven't fallen since you were like nine!"
"No, I just fell. Leave me alone."
"What's wrong with you man? You're acting whacked." Lars asked.
"Nothing."
"Your eyes are all glazed over and freaky looking." Lars moved in to take a closer look. Suddenly he got a whiff of the alcohol on Twister's breath and eyes became wide with the realization of what was going on. "Shit! You've been drinking!"
"I had a few beers." Twister confessed.
"Are you crazy man? Are you totally whacked? Mom and dad are going to have my ass! Get in the house and don't make a sound!" He grabbed Twister's arm and shoved him though the door. Luckily it seemed that their parents had already gone to bed. Lars didn't breath again until Twister was safely in his room with the door closed.
"Oh man. This will be all my fault if they find out." Lars kept repeating.
"Why will it be your fault?" Twister asked.
"I don't know. I just will. Somehow I'll get blamed for not watching out for you, or some lame shit like that." He cleaned blood off Twister's leg with a damp washcloth. "I can't believe you did this dork!"
"Yeah, me either." Twister muttered. His eyes were starting to grow heavy.
"Listen" Lars said as he rummaged through Twister's drawer for his pajamas "DO NOT leave this room and take the chance of mom and dad seeing you. They'll totally kill us both. Got it?" When no answer came, he turned around and saw that Twister was already asleep.
A/N: This chap was really weird to write cuz I have no idea what its like to be smashed. I've seen my older sister enough though so I have a pretty good idea. It was also weird cuz I can't really picture Twister drinking, but I kinda wanted to make the story fit w/ the song. Lemme know what you think.