Maurice is Missing!
Epilogue
The Names
We both skidded to a stop after hearing that voice.
"Did you hear that?" I asked. Red nodded in response. I cupped my hand over my mouth. "Maurice!"
"Twista!" He sounded closer. We walked forward.
"Maurice!" Red yelled.
"Twista!"
I grinned as I broke out into a run.
"Maurice!" I yelled.
"Twista!"
We were almost at the end of the fence.
"Maurice!" The redhead yelled.
"Twista!"
We soon came to a fork in the road.
"Let's split up." Red said to me. "I'll go this way!" He ran down the left path, yelling out my brother's name. I took the right path.
"Maurice!"
"Twista!" He sounded really close now. I decided to give it one more shot.
"Maurice!.!.!"
"TWISTA!.!.!" His voice roared. I went around the corner and found him! He was standing between two people: A purple haired girl and a blond guy.
The girl was about my height. She was wearing a green bikini. For some weird reason, she was wearing a pair of sunglasses in her hair. The blond guy was a little shorter than the redhead. He was slim. He was wearing a pair of glasses and a pair of Hawaiian swimming trunks. They were holding Maurice's hands. I sighed as I walked forward.
"Maurice… Finally, I found you."
"Twista!" He yelled, swinging around like a monkey. I rolled my eyes as I grabbed his hand and held on tight. The girl and the guy held each other's hands. I guess they're a couple. Too bad. The blond is kinda cute. I mentally slapped myself. I almost forgot about that redhead. He's practically my boyfriend. We've already been as physical as a normal couple.
"Thanks for finding my brother." I said to them.
"Oh it was no problem." The girl said.
"Yeah. We've been taking care of him for a few hours." The guy said.
"By the way, the name's Lars." I held out my other hand. The girl took it and shook.
"I'm Reggie and this is Sam." She gestured to her boyfriend. I shook his hand as well.
"Well, I guess we'll be going." I said, walking away. "Let's go, Maurice." I said icily.
"Twista!" He yelled. I glared in response. He shrank back.
"Listen, don't be too hard on him, ok?" Reggie said. "He just wanted to have fun."
"He's not so bad." Sam added. I scowled at them.
"Take care of him for twenty-four hours and then tell me he's not so bad." I started walking again. "Thanks again."
"No prob." Sam said.
"Bye Twister." Reggie said, waving.
"Bye Weggie! Bye Sammy!" Maurice yelled back cheerfully. I raised an eyebrow and turned towards the couple again.
"Uhhh… His name's Maurice."
"Twista!"
"Ugh!" I slapped my head.
"By the way, have you seen my little brother?" Reggie asked.
"What's he look like?" I asked, doubting that I actually saw him.
"He's a little taller than Sam, he's wearing purple swimming trunks and sunglasses, and he's got red dreadlocks." She answered. Wait a minute… She couldn't be talking about that hot guy?
"Yeah, I saw him." They looked relieved at my answer. "He went that way." I pointed down the path he took earlier.
"Finally! Thanks a lot!" Reggie yelled, bolting down the path. "Come out, Rocket Boy!" The rest of us blinked.
"I better get moving." Sam said, moving away. He waved at Maurice. "Bye Twister! See you around!" He started running.
"His name's Maurice!" I shouted after him.
"Twista!" I glared at my brother.
"Let's go. Just you wait until Mom and Dad get through with you." He put on a look of extreme fright as I roughly dragged him back to the wave pool, where this whole mess started.
I wonder if I should go with those two and thank that boy for helping. Nah! I'm sure we'll see each other again, especially after that experience in the closed off area. We better, anyway. Besides, I wanna get Maurice back to our parents so that I could spend some time swimming before I change for the fireworks show. Another thing, why did those two call Maurice that name? And why was he so nice about it? I shook my head. I'm not in the mood to try to figure him out. I had a crappy day.
After much struggling on Maurice's part, we finally made it back to the wave pool. Like earlier today, the water was calm. People were once again swimming and splashing each other. I dragged my brother through the beach chairs. As I walked, I looked at Maurice. He was crying softly at the impending threat of my parents. When they find out he ran away from me, they're gonna scream at him. About time if you ask me. He never got yelled at whenever he does something wrong. It'll be a nice change of pace. I then thought about what that girl said. My expression softened.
Maybe I shouldn't be so harsh. After all, he only wanted to have some fun. He's never been here before. He looked back at me. He was sniffling and whimpering. Maybe I should just go into the wave pool with him and forget this ever happened. I stopped and held my chin, considering my options. Maurice looked at me curiously. A few seconds passed before I gave him an evil grin.
Nah!
"Come on. We're almost there." I said as I continued. We soon made it to our parents. I shoved him towards Mom. "Here! Take him!" They both looked at me strangely.
"Lars? What are you…?" Mom started confusedly.
"Do you know what I had to go through?" I shouted coldly. "He ran away from me! I just spent the last few hours trying to find him! Take him and keep him away from me!"
And with that, I turned and marched towards the pool. They're probably pissed at me, but I could care less. I walked into the pool and started swimming when I got far enough in.
I sighed as I floated on my back. There are times that I like to be alone. Although I'd much rather be with other people, it's great to be able to take it easy and not have to worry about little brothers running away or crazy boys flirting with me. I sighed again as I closed my eyes. Now I can enjoy peace and tranquility.
A few minutes passed before I floated into someone.
"Well, fancy meeting you here." I opened my eyes and stared into the eyes of my potential lover. I stood up and faced him.
"Hey. I never got to thank you for helping me find my brother."
"No prob. So you got to him after all, huh?" He asked.
"Yeah. He was with your sister and her boyfriend."
"So you met them?" I nodded.
"They were looking for you." I said. He shrugged in response.
"Well, I never saw them. After I tried to look for Maurice, I decided to come back to you, but you were gone. So I came back here and then you bumped into me and I said, 'Well, fancy meeting you here.' And then you said—"
"Alright! I got it!" I interrupted before he repeated everything again.
"Hey. If we found your brother, that means we can be together now, right?" He asked excitedly. I rolled my eyes.
"Yes, it means we can be together." I said, crossing my arms. He cheered and embraced me. He moved in to kiss me when I put my finger to his lips. He gently sucked on it before pulling back with a questioning look.
"What's the matter?" He asked.
"Before we seal the deal, I want to know your name. We've been flirting all day and we even made out, so it's only fair that I find out before we go any farther." He separated with a pout, but nodded.
"Yeah. You got a point. I completely forgot that I never told ya my name. It's—"
"Attention. Wishing Waters will close in ten minutes." A voice said over the P.A. "Our annual fireworks show will begin shortly after eight o'clock." Everybody started moving out of the pool, including the boy. I grabbed his arm before he went any farther.
"I still didn't get your name." I said with a grin. He turned to me with a smirk of his own.
"It's Otto." He said.
"Thank you." I let go of his arm.
"So, you going to the fireworks show?"
"Of course. I never miss it."
"Well save me a seat, ok?"
"Sure."
"Then it's a date. I'll see ya later." He gave me a kiss on the cheek before walking away. I held my cheek and smiled after him. Otto, huh? Figures someone like him would have a name like that.
Later…
I was fully dressed as I sat on the field across the street from the park. Lots of people were around, getting ready to watch the show. I was sitting on a blanket Mom and Dad brought. They were sitting elsewhere with Maurice, who was still crying. After getting yelled at, my parents grounded him for two weeks. My parents and the other people that were near them covered their ears to drown out my brother's extremely loud crying. I snickered. I guess I got my revenge after all.
I stared up at the starry sky and sighed. What a day it's been. I lost my little brother, went through an experience and a half trying to get him back, and even fell in love. Speaking of love, I wonder where Otto is. I hope he'll be able to find me.
Pretty soon, I felt something land on the blanket next to me. I turned and found myself staring into the eyes of the auburn haired boy. He was wearing a yellow shirt and a pair of burgundy shorts. The strange part was he was still wearing his sunglasses…at night! How can he see?.! Oh well, as long as he's here, I don't care.
"Otto…" I breathed happily. He grinned at me.
"Thought I wasn't gonna be able to find ya, huh?"
"Well, the thought did cross my mind, but then I remembered that you'd be able to find me, no matter what." I said matter-of-factly.
"How? Animal magnetism?" He joked. I chuckled as I sat up.
"Nope. This." I picked my hat off my head. He gave me a confused look. "My mom got me this hat when I was little so that I would never get lost. It's the same thing with Maurice's hat."
"Speaking of which, what happened to him?"
"He's with my parents."
"I hope he didn't get chewed out too badly." Otto said with concern. I crossed my arms.
"He deserves it if you ask me."
"Come on. You don't mean that. I bet he's a good kid."
"He screams every time you say his name." I reminded.
"Yeah right!" He scoffed. "He doesn't scream all the time! What about at school?"
"Mom and Dad were called in at least five times last year."
"Ohhhh…" He blinked at me. He shrugged. "Ok. So I guess he does scream all the time. Let's just forget about it and chill til the fireworks start."
"Good idea." I said, getting ready to put my hat back on.
"Wait." He said. I turned to him. "Keep it off." I raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
"You look cuter without it." He replied with a grin. I blinked confusedly.
"I look cute without it?"
"That's right." He nodded. He leaned in close. "You're beautiful when you're not wearing it." I felt my face turning red after hearing that. I faced him and moved in close. He did the same thing and our lips met. We stayed in that position for about a minute before separating.
"I love you. You're the most handsome boy I've ever met." He said. I gasped. That's exactly what the guy from my dreams says to me! My eyes watered. He really is that special someone!
"Oh Otto… I love you too." I moved to embrace him. He moved to hug me too when…
"Hiiiii!.!.!" A high pitched voice yelled. We backed away from each other and turned to Maurice, who sat between us. I glared at him.
"Maurice! What are you doing here? You're supposed to be with Mom and Dad!"
"Twista!" He yelled at me before grinning. "Mommy let me come here to sit with you."
"Hiya Maurice." Otto said, patting his head.
"Twista!" He yelled. Otto raised an eyebrow.
"Why does he do that?" He asked me. I shrugged.
"I have no clue."
"Hmmmm…" Otto held a hand to his chin. He faced Maurice. "Maurice."
"Twista!" My brother yelled. The redhead stroked his chin.
"Twista?"
"No! Not Twista! Twista!" Maurice yelled. I must've looked utterly confused at the exchange. What was he going on about? Otto thought for a few more minutes before speaking.
"Do you mean Twister?"
"Yay! You got it!" Maurice giggled as he hugged my boyfriend. I raised an eyebrow.
"Huh?"
"Well, whaddya know! That's he always screams that word out! He wants to be called Twister, not Maurice!" Otto said, chuckling. Maurice snuggled into his chest.
Heh. So that's it, huh? He wants to be called Twister. That's why Reggie and Sam called him that earlier. It's also why he was always screaming whenever someone called him by his—WAIT A MINUTE!.!.!
I grabbed my brother by the back of the shirt and made him face me. I glared at him. "Let me get this straight. The reason you've been screaming that word for the last five years was because you wanted people to call you Twister!.?.!"
"Yep!" He yelled with a grin. I gaped at him.
"This has been going on for five years?" Otto asked with an eyebrow raised. I dropped Mau—I mean—Twister and turned to him.
"Yeah. Ever since he was able to talk. In fact, it was his first word."
"Dude! Didn't you go to a psychiatrist or something!.?"
"We would've, but Dad doesn't believe in psychiatrists." I replied. Otto's eyebrow went higher. "Don't ask."
"Fine, but you'd think someone woulda figured it out before me, right?"
"Actually, your sister and her guy kinda already had it figured out." I said before turning to Twister. "And why didn't you say anything in the first place? You saw everybody covering their ears every time you screamed at them." He shrugged.
"You never asked." I glared at him for that one. I looked ready to choke him.
"Heh. Whatever. So now we know, right?" Otto said. Twister and I nodded. "Good. Now let's sit back. The fireworks are about to start, anyway."
As soon as he said that, the lights dimmed. The crowd cheered as the sky was lit up in different colors. The first few fireworks were your basic ones. But soon, there were explosions shaped like stars, diamonds, and any other shape you could think of. There were also skateboards, surfboards, waves, and pretty much anything you can think of. The shapes and designs appeared in different colors. Twister watched the show with a huge grin.
Halfway through the show, my little brother fell asleep and lay in Otto's lap. We both looked at him before smiling at each other. I moved over and put my arm around my boyfriend. He leaned in close as we continued watching. And to think, all this was caused by my brother getting lost. I gotta make sure I thank him properly someday. Maybe me and Otto can take him to Hawaii when he gets older so he can meet some hottie. But for now, I'm just glad to be with my brother and my love.
THE END
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Post-story Conversation
"And…cut!" I yelled, walking on the set. "That's a rap, people! Great job!" All the extras on the set walked off, conversing with each other. Only Lars, Otto, and Twister remained.
"So, wanna go get some dinner?" The brunet asked the older redhead.
"Hey! I helped find Twist, remember?" Otto said. "I thought you wanted to skip dinner and get to the good part." Lars blushed at that.
"Uhhh… Well…"
"Oh! Speaking of Twister…" I said walking up to them. I snapped my fingers, causing Twister's body to glow brightly. The light got bigger. When the light dissipated, he was back to his normal size and age. He was wearing his normal clothes again. He opened his eyes.
"Oh man… What a dream…" He groaned. He looked up and smiled at Otto. "Hey Ottoman…"
"Ummmm… Hey Twist." Otto blinked at him.
"Good night…" The other boy yawned. He snuggled into Otto's lap and started snoring.
"Hey!" Lars yelled. He grabbed Twister and growled at him. The smaller boy gave him a nervous chuckle.
"Heh, heh… Hi Lars." His older brother sighed and tossed him over his head.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!"
°CRASH!.!.!°
Otto raised an eyebrow as Lars stood up with him.
"So, about that dinner…" The brunet said. Otto sighed.
"Fine, but you're paying." He walked off, holding Lars' hand.
"What!.?" Lars yelled as they left the set. "We agreed! You were gonna pay if you found Twister!" They continued arguing with each other. I looked after them while scratching my head.
"Weird…" I turned to the camera. "Anyway, that's it for now! See ya next time!" I waved at it.
