"Second Chances for First Impressions"

There are times when you look outside and see the weather and it's almost as if it's reflecting your own state of mind. Tino was experiencing such a time as the dark grey skies that hung over Bahia Bay that morning seemed to speaking to his own state of well being. It had been several days since he had hesitantly revealed his feelings to Tish, being careful not to lend to much to the years future that he had spent missing her, and though she had not outright rejected him she had not accepted him either. Unaware of her own true feelings for Tino she had requested some time to reflect and examine them; leaving Tino with little to do but wait for what he was sure would be a kind hearted but ultimately painful rejection. Now, unwilling to spend any more time alone in his room staring at the ceiling he had taken his mothers suggestion and gone down to the boardwalk, hoping to avoid the guys for a while so he could try and figure out where this whole situation seemed to be heading and what he would do if Tish did finally reject him. His intent had been to wander aimlessly but soon enough he found himself in the same stretch of boardwalk he always spent his weekends at. When he was younger, well now he supposed, he had never thought much about it but as he got older he had always wondered if there was something special about this stretch more so then the rest of the boardwalk. Even discounting the snack shack the stood just off to his right he knew there was a reason they had always chosen this spot to hang out at, he just never known it. He had not intended to stop like this and was about to continue on farther down when a hand on his shoulder caused him to jump and squeak slightly.

"Oops, sorry about that, didn't mean it, honest. Hi Tino" a voice said

Turning, Tino was mildly surprised to see that it was Dot Cardigan who was removing her hand from his shoulder. It had taken him a moment to place a name to the face he hadn't seen in years but then he supposed that wasn't true, not yet at least. As he recalled, he and never Dot had never really been friends, more of acquaintances but he knew she had had a crush on him at one some point past, Tish had used that to her advantage back when he had first met Tasha, hoping that Dot would distract Tino from Tasha. Since that incident Tino hadn't really spoken much to Dot, she had been nice enough but he had never really had a desire to get to know her and honestly her laugh had always kind of grated on him a bit.

"Oh, Uhhh, Hi Dot, what's up?" Tino replied

"Oh nothing just out walking for some exercise, So where's Carver and Lor and Tish?" She asked happily

"At their homes most likely, I just decided to take a walk myself you know, to clear my head and ya exercise also"

"That is so neat Tino, hey maybe we can walk together" she asked eagerly

"Gee thanks Dot but I…"

Tino paused and thought. He had been spending a lot more time alone lately and he didn't seem to be getting any closer to figuring anything out so he might as well take Dot on her offer, maybe a new face would do him some good and she did seem to really want him to say yes.

"Sure Dot, might as well since were both out here" Tino replied

"Great, it'll be fun you'll see, we'll laugh and talk and maybe we can go to funville and play some skeeball and..."

It turned out she was much as he somewhat remembered her, upbeat and eager. She continued talking as they walked further down the boardwalk, nattering on seemingly oblivious to the world around her and him. She told him all about how great her school year had been going, how her parents had just agreed to let her host her first party and how much fun it would be, all about her pets and how she had gotten each one… Tino had become so accustomed to her talking as they walked that when he finally realized she hadn't been saying anything for a few moments but instead staring at him concerned he was a bit taken back

"Are you ok Tino? Usually your a lot more joking and upbeat but you've haven't said anything since we started walking together" Dot asked

"I'm ok, it's just you know, personal stuff, life and like that"

"Is it about Tish? Did you tell her you like her and she rejected you?" Dot asked without the slightest hint of reservation

"What? How does everyone know that" Tino asked, frustrated by the seeming availability of that information

"Do you remember when Tish told me you like me? I was so happy, I had had a crush on you for a while and you were finally going to return those feelings. And I got so nervous when I was talking to you that day, I just kept saying stupid stuff and laughing and I kept screaming at myself to shut up, that I was scaring you off but I just couldn't shut up. And you just seemed to ignore me, blow me off, and for a while I tried to believe that you were just playing hard to get, that if I kept trying you'd eventually come around and when that never happened I was crushed. It hurt a lot, I thought I had finally had my chance and I lost it, and for a while I was inconsolable. My parents kept trying to cheer me up with speeches about how I would get over it and there were more boys out there, that one was from my mom more then my dad, but I didn't want to hear any of that, I just wanted to be left alone and be sad. But they were right Tino, I did get over it and I realized you didn't set out to hurt me, you just didn't feel that way about me. I've seen the way you look at her Tino, I saw the way you looked at her then, the way you always were willing to go the extra step to make her happy, it was the way I used to look at you. And now you look like your whole world just came crashing down around you and you don't know what to do, it's exactly how I looked when I thought you rejected me. You're hurt and confused and you don't know what to do, but take it from me Tino, the world does go on"

"Wow Dot. I had no idea; I mean I knew you liked me but I never knew I was that important to you, I'm sorry for what happened."

"Don't worry about it Tino, like I said I've learned to deal with it and you didn't intend what happened."

"That's good, but my situation's a bit different, Tish didn't reject me, at least not yet, she hasn't given me any answer honestly. I poured out my heart to her and she asked for some time to think about what all of it meant and what I meant to her. She hasn't rejected me yet but I'm worried she will, I'm worried I ruined our friendship with this"

"Well I cant make her decide any faster and yes everything might change now because of what you've told her, but I promise if you need a new friend after it all happens I'll be here for you" Dot replied happily

"Thanks Dot, that means a lot, it's kind of nice actually to have someone who knows what I'm going through"

Tino realized he actually felt slightly better after that, having someone who could identify with him made it seem as if he wasn't so alone. This new commonality between them Tino decided that he should make the effort and try to learn more about Dot, there was more to her then he had first or ever really thought. Turning off the boardwalk they soon came to the often visited Pizza Place, which today seemed to be run under the theme of Pizza: The Movie. Having little else to do Tino offered to treat Dot to a pizza, if only to cement this new possible friendship. As they entered and took a table, all the lights dimmed and a voice seemed to drift down from the ceiling

"In a world gone mad, hunger is everywhere and lawlessness rules. Only the perfect team can restore peace and harmony. He's a hard edge meat from New York who plays by his own rules, she's a by the book dairy product from the mid-west, together there the worlds only hope, they are Pepperoni & Cheese, two loan toppings striving to clean up pizza everywhere. Coming soon to a table near you"

"Well I must say that was more inventive then usual" Tino replied

"I wonder where he gets all the money to keep changing everything like this everyday" Dot asked

"I don't know, I always figured he had hit the lottery or maybe this is really a cover for some secret spy meeting place and they have to keep changing the façade every day to keep the evil spies from catching on"

"HA, that is so funny. Yah, And Pizza: The Movie is the signal to go ahead with the plan to invade Cuba"

As the day went on and they received and ate their pizza, Tino was surprised to find himself in better spirits then he had been since everything with Tish had happened, he was having a fun time and Dot was a lot deeper and more fun to hang out with then she first seemed. Ya she came of a little ditzy if you just talked to her for five or ten minutes but spend enough time with her and you couldn't help but feel as cheerful and she always acted. All to soon though Tino realized he had to get home, the sun was setting and the street lamps were going to come on soon.

"Uhhh Dot I have to get home soon, my mom will start to worry if I'm not back before the street lights come on and you don't want to know what kind of food she makes when she worries, it's even worse then when she isn't worrying. I had a real fun time today, thanks for helping to take my mind off the rest of my problems." Tino said

"Your welcome Tino, and I had a great time to, I learned a lot more about you today, I was right you are smart and funny when your not so worried and stressed out. Don't forget you can always come hang out with me if you ever need a day like this again" Dot replied as she started towards her own home

Tino made it home just as the street lights out side his own house came alive, thankfully he had taken that shortcut through the alley instead of taking the main streets home. His mom had made a witty remark about him cutting it so close but when she noticed the better spirits he seemed to be in she relented and told him to get read for dinner. Tino was less then thrilled with the dinner, tomatoes stuffed with rice and bean paste but he suffered through it as he had so many other odd concoctions. It was after dinner, as Tino was preparing for bed that his walkie-talkie squawked to life

"Big C calling Little T, come back good buddy"

"Carver I want a new name, or do I have to start calling you pickle toes?" Tino said

"That's a big negatory on the pickle toes J.D." carver replied

"J.D.?" Tino asked

"Junior Dready"

"That's better, now what's up carv" Tino asked

"Just wanted to let you know were all meeting at funville tomorrow morning at 9, Lor signed us up for a pool tournament"

"Well I'm sure between the four of us we shouldn't lose to badly"

"You kidding? With Lor on our team were going to be unbeatable. Anyway got to go, my pop's been on me lately about using this thing after I'm supposed to be asleep. Big C signing off"

"Night Carv" Tino replied

Tino knew he would see Tish tomorrow and he hoped that after everything he had gone through today maybe it would be a little less tense between them, he wouldn't rush Tish for a decision; he could wait now, besides they need all the concentration they could muster to win tomorrow. The last think Tino thought as he drifted off to sleep was of that quote that Tish had known that allowed Lor to take those $10,000 free throw shots, "It's not whether you win or lose its how you play the game". Tomorrow, win or lose, Tino would see just how well he and Tish would play the game.

Authors Note – Hey look I updated really fast this time. You can thank a 20 hour work day with a lot of free time there thrown in. I know I sound like a broken record at this point but once again I hadn't intended this chapter to turn out the way it did, it was supposed to be just a short walk for Tino and a brief appearance by Dot, but once again it got away from me and took on a life of it's own and I was just transcribing what happened. This one you'll notice is a bit longer then my normal length; once I started I just couldn't stop. Hope everyone enjoys what I wrote; let me know how you think I did on Dot, since we hardly see much of her it was hard to get a bead on her personality. On a side note, I want to plug the new Weekenders C2 group I made. Partial credit goes to BeeKay who suggested I do it. Check it out and if any of the authors want me to remove your story just let me know. Well as usual please keeping reading and reviewing, and keep up the honest criticism, it's harsh but needed. Also look for an update to Awakenings soon I expect a lot of reviews for it from the people who read this story. Till next time, later days.

"Don't player hate the slash fic, it's amazingly well written and very light on the actual slash"