-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Raymundo arrived at the house at 8:15 a.m. He found the children all revved up, finishing their warm-up routine. When they saw him, they all skated to him.
"Greetings, brother Mundo!" – said Twister.
"Good morning, Raymundo" – said the rest of the gang.
"Good morning, children! Sorry I'm late; I had to help Tito get out of the freezer. He was sorting the supplies when the door slammed closed. You should have seen him! He looked like an icicle when I finally opened it! It was hilarious!"
Otto and Reggie looked at each other. A mischievous smile appeared on their faces; knowing their dad, most probably it was him the one who got stuck in the freezer.
"Well, kids, let's go. It's time for the game."
The children got in the car and Ray started the engine. Although his station wagon was of a very old model, Ray had refurbished it when he bought it, long before the children were born, and had kept it in prime mechanical condition ever since. The car was full of cherished memories for Ray, among them the tender moments he spent camping in it with Danielle, his late wife, and he wasn't ever getting rid of it.
Ray headed for the parking lot. It was a short trip, about three kilometers long; nevertheless, Ray turned on the radio and inserted a tape.
"I just borrowed this tape from Tito, kids. I'm sure you'll like it!"
The children were expectant, anxious to listen to Tito's tape. They knew that Tito liked very much the same kind of music as they did; but their expectation turned into disbelief when they heard the first song on the tape:
"All the leaves are brown
And the sky is gray…"
"Well? What you think? Ain't that groovy? The Mamas and the Papas, one of the greatest bands of my youth!"
"Wow! Is it that old!" – said Twister both innocently and awed.
"Twister!" – said Reggie, poking his ribs with the elbow.
"Oooow! Whaaat?"
"In fact, that band was formed in 1964 by John Phillips, 'Mama' Cass Elliott, Denny Doherty and Michelle Phillips. They released 'California Dreamin' in 1966…"
As usual, Sammy seemed to have a permanent high-speed, wireless connection to the Internet inside his head, and was able to access all kinds of information from the major search engines anytime, wherever he was.
"Thank you, Squid" – interrupted Otto, bored – "We don't want to listen to the History Channel right now. Really, dad, don't you have something newer… say… from this century?"
"Why? Don't you like The Mamas and the Papas? But they're so groovy!"
"Sure, dad! They are… interesting; but we'd like to hear something heavier, you know, to get in the mood…" – intervened Reggie. She always knew how to use politics to soften her brother's incisive comments.
"Oh, well!" – Said Ray – "I guess every generation is bound to have its own tastes. Let's see what's on the radio."
Ray removed the tape from the radio and began shuffling the knob.
"Any station in particular you wanna hear, kids?"
"YEAH! KROQ! PUT IT ON KROQ!" – replied all the children at the same time. That station is very popular in Southern California because it transmits the latest musical novelties.
"OK, OK; I'm coming, don't yell anymore!"
Ray selected 106.7 megahertz on the FM radio, and a popular song from the Red Hot Chili Peppers came through the loudspeakers.
"Can't stop addicted to the shin dig
Cop top he says I'm gonna win big…"
"OH, YEAH!" - The children yelled in excitement; that was the kind of music they liked.
Ray heard them singing to the music and smiled. He was both nostalgic and happy. He really enjoyed seeing his children and their friends having so much fun together. He liked Sam and Twister very much; they were loyal friends to his children and had earned a place in his heart. Ray looked through the rearview mirror to see the kids chattering on the rear seats. It was a joyous scene for Ray, but something caught his eye when he saw Sammy; it was as if a halo of light was forming around the boy's head. Ray looked again, but the curious effect was gone; the only thing he could see was that Sammy was still pale, although not as much as he was in the morning.
"Maybe it was my imagination" – he thought.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
The team arrived at the Shore Shack some minutes past 8:30. Ray drove down the ramp and parked in front of the sports store he also owned; he was the official sponsor of Team Rocket, and the kids always used Rocket gear on their games, which gave them a professional look.
"OK, kids!" – said Ray, opening the door. "Get ready. You have a match in 30 minutes. Oh! Almost forgot it! There's something for you in your lockers".
Ray saw the children run to the dressing room; a mischievous smile was on his face. He had prepared a surprise for them; the kids had been doing very well lately, not only at sports, but also at school. Even Twister had just surprised everyone with a very nice B+ grade on his latest exam, in good part thanks to Sammy's constant after-school support to the gang; the children had made a good habit of going to the Shore Shack every afternoon after play and spend a couple of hours there studying and doing their homework. Their parents were really proud of them, and they all agreed with Ray that the children definitely deserved a small reward.
"WOOOW! SUPER! THANK YOU, RAYMUNDO!" – the childred cried excitedly from the back of the store; they had just opened their lockers and found their reward: a brand new hockey set and uniform for each one.
"There's nothing to thank, kids!" – Said Ray, gleefully. "You've earned it. You've made all of us very happy with your grades and your good performance in every aspect of your life. I'm very proud of every one of you! Keep up with that good job! Now, hurry; it's almost time for the game. We'll be cheering you from the grades. Go, Rockets!"
"Will? Who's Will?" – asked Twister, scratching his scalp, making Ray to chuckle. That boy was a real case!
"Not Will, Twister. We. Your biggest fans. Me, Tito, your parents, Sammy's mom, and all the friends from Ocean Shores. We wouldn't miss this game for nothing!"
"Ooooh... I get it!" - said Twister, grinning - "But then again, who is Will?"
Everybody rolled their eyes (Otto even slapped his forehead); evidently Twister didn't get it.
"Nevermind, Twist" – said Reggie, chuckling and patting him on the shoulder – "We can't make the audience wait. I'm taking over the girls' room; you go to the boy's room and change. We'll meet here in ten minutes,OK?"
"¡A la orden, chica Rocket!" - replied Twister, saluting military-style. He sometimes seemed to have seen too many movies. The children rushed to change while Raymundo left for the grades.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Inside the dressing room, Otto, Twister and Sammy were changing clothes into their new uniforms. Otto and Sammy were standing in front of their lockers, and had just taken off their shirts. The healthy suntan on Otto's skin contrasted markedly with Sam's paleness. He always had a very light-colored skin; in fact, it didn't matter how much he sunbathed; he would merely get a reddened skin for a while but never a permanent tan. But during the last week, Sammy was paler than usual, and that fueled Twister's puns.
"Look, Ottoman!" – Said Twister to his friend, pointing to Sammy – "There's a raw squid standins by you! What, are we making ceviche with him?"
"No way, man! I can't imagine eating that; seems a bit too gross! Yuk!" – replied Otto with a grin.
"Ho, ho. Very funny, guys!" - said Sam, slightly annoyed.
"Really, Squid" - continued Twister - "We have to do something about your paleness!"
"Yeah! Hey, Twist, maybe Sam is a vampire! Have you noticed the bags under his eyes?"
"Hmm... I don't know, Ottoman. I've seen him on the beach during dayligth, and he eats a lot of garlic each time we go to the Shack... Hey! I know! Perhaps he is a ghost! He's that milky white! Booooo!"
"Yeah; but ghosts don't eat like he does, brother!" – said Otto, patting Sam's belly.
"That's not funny, man!" – replied Sammy, removing Otto's hand from his tummy.
"Chill, Squid! We're just joking" – said Twister.
"I know, guys; but you can be so annoying sometimes…" – replied Sammy, putting his shirt on.
"Seriously, Sam. You're paler than ever. Are you sure you are OK?" – said Otto. – "Imagine, even Twister noticed!"
"Yeah!" – said twister, innocently – "Huh?" - He didn't get the pun; Sam and Otto rolled their eyes and continued the conversation.
"Nothing serious, Ottoman. I just haven't slept well lately. That's all." – answered Sammy, placing his street clothes in the locker. He didn't notice that his inhaler was left inside his jeans' pocket. - "Anyway," – he continued, closing his locker and walking out of the dressing room with the boys to reunite with Reggie – "in this moment I really feel like playing hockey with you, guys. I wouldn't be anywhere else; I can't wait to see how you kick Lars' butt!"
"Yeah! That's the spirit!" – replied Otto.
"¡No hay problema, brother!" – Added Twister, grinning – "We'll make them bite the dust. It's a promise!"
"Hello! Stop chattering, boys!" – Interrupted Reggie, who was already waiting for them outside the store – "Those jerks are already in the field, and we must hurry to meet them!
"C'mon, sis! Better say you're anxious to mop the floor with them!" – said Otto, winking to his sister.
"Well…" – answered Reggie, returning mischievously Otto's sign.
"Ok, Team Rocket! Let's go get them!" – said Sammy, extending his hand inviting the kids to their salute.
"Team Rocket! Woogie, woogie, woogie!" – replied all the children.