It was only an hour after the school bell rang on Friday that the gang were back at it. Outside the Rocket's house, the goals were set up. The skates on all of their feet. Everything was set. On one side, Jorge stood wearing his goalie gear, while Anna and Harmony both in front of him. On the other, Sam stood still in goal as Twister and Reggie stood ahead. They all looked on as Rick and Otto stood in the middle, ready to begin. Otto quickly gets in one more friendly jab at his friends on the other side.

"You're going down. Can't beat us. We've been playing for years..."

Rick looks up at Otto and gives a competitive smirk

"We'll see about that..."

They stare each other down for a few seconds before tapping their sticks and starting the game. Early on, the game went the way of the Rocket Gang. Otto scored a few goals by maneuvering around Rick for position near Jorge. Anna and Harmony struggled to keep up with the speed of Reggie and Twister, leaving Rick in poor positions. On one play, Rick faces Otto and Twister as he approaches Sam guarding the goal. As he goes to shoot, Twister tries to swipe the puck away and hits Rick on the ankle. He falls to the ground fast, clearly in pain. Twister quickly got down towards him.

"Rick! Man, I'm so sorry. Please tell me you're okay..."

The rest of the gang quickly came to Rick. He takes his time getting up, but seems in tact. He wipes the dirt off of himself, trying not to act hurt. He put his hand on Twister's shoulder to comfort him.

"I'm iight. Don't worry about it, Twist. You good, my man. Let's get back to it."

The game finished the way it started, with the Rocket Gang in complete control the whole way through. It was clear everyone knew it was a friendly game, as they all laugh and joke around afterwards inside the Rocket's house. Twister and Reggie finish putting all the hockey gear back in the garage. Otto starts the trash talk in quite the cocky tone.

"Told ya we'd win! The best there ever was!"

The other kids roll their eyes at Otto as Rick, who still seems frustrated at himself, responds.

"Calm down, Otto. Your ego might break the roof..."

A hearty laughter is heard from the group as Rick looks up at the clock in shock.

"It's already 5:30? Shit...I gotta practice for the tournament."

Otto speaks up before Rick walks out the door.

"I'll be there in 30."

Rick nods back as he grabs his skateboard swiftly and heads out the door. After another few minutes of chatter, Twister and Reggie walk back into the room. Twister looks around before speaking up.

"Where's Rick?"

Sam was the first to look up at Twister from the couch. He was watching TV with the rest of the group with him, Anna and Jorge taking up the couch. He responds in a dull voice.

"He went to the skate park."

As Twister leans towards the wall, with all the other seats taken, he shares his disappointment.

"Aw man..."

Jorge looks over, quick to explain his fast departure.

"He just wants to get some extra runs in. Probably really nervous about his first skate tourney."

Everyone nods in agreement for a few seconds. Reggie, who had stayed quiet since Rick left, looks over to her brother in surprise. She waits for him to meet eye contact with her before she threw a question at him.

"Isn't this where you usually go, "I'm not nervous at all.", or "Nervous? Ha! I've already got this in the bag"?

Otto, who was previously staring off into the distance unaware of the conversation, brings his attention back to Reggie. As he looks up, he realizes everyone in the room is glancing towards him. He quickly recovers in time to respond to Reggie in his old fashion.

"Me? I'm not nervous! Why would I be?"

They all look unimpressed by Otto's answer, yet not surprised at his cocky behavior. Reggie saw an opportunity and continues to throw doubt at Otto.

"You don't think Rick just might beat you?"

Otto quickly and almost disgustingly diminishes the idea.

"Not a chance! He's still learning. I'm the best!"

Otto's mind starts to run as he looks around the room. Did his friends really believe he'd be beat by a kid who arrived just a few months ago? He'd been doing this his whole life. As Otto laid deep in thought, Sam went with Reggie on the subject.

"Rick's gotten pretty good dude..."

Otto, becoming nervous, jumping to the defensive.

"He ain't gonna beat me! I'm telling you!"

The look on the others faces said it all. They all look at Otto in surprise as he became so adamant on defending his stance as "The Best". Otto notices the awkwardness, and finds a reason to flee.

"I'm gonna get some extra practice in too."

It takes only a few seconds for Otto to grab his gear and forcefully slam the door. The group grows silent. The outburst was something some had been used to, while the others had yet to grasp how common an occurrence it was. Harmony, the most worried of the group, quickly voices her concern.

"Is he gonna be okay?"

Reggie shows her frustration over Otto's actions in her answer.

"He's just being a baby..."

As most of the group went back to watching TV or talking to each other, Reggie notices Twister walk up next to her and speak a question.

"What if Otto...actually thinks Rick can beat him. Like, could he?"

Reggie gives a hearty laugh as she responds.

"I sure hope so!"

Twister's reaction veers the other way. He seems concerned. He looks at the door and thinks to himself. He knew Otto had the skill to be the best. He always believed that. At the same time, Rick was good. Really good. Could Otto actually lose? Maybe Rick was just as good...or even...better? And how much would that crush Otto? Could his bro lose to this dude? There was just something about Rick Twister couldn't get a grasp on. After thinking, he took a step to the door. He stops, shakes his head and heads back to the others to watch TV...

Otto skates as fast as he can down the street towards the skatepark. It's late, and usually the park closes before this time. However, Friday nights gives for late skating, an opportunity Otto nor Rick could pass up with the tournament just over a week away. As he got to the park, he looked in surprise as it seemed oddly quiet. Only three other kids were skating, one of them being Rick. He sees Rick skating in the bowl and watches until Rick notices him. They greet each other as usual and tag-team to work on some grinds. Otto's technique is clearly stronger on the grinds, which seems to be Rick's weak point. As Otto perfectly lands a crooked grind, Rick goes to copy his move. Unfortunately, Rick's timing is off, and he falls off, twisting his already hurt ankle in the process. Otto quickly goes to help him up.

"Geez, man. You hurt again?"

Rick seems in more pain than earlier, looking at his bruised ankle as he speaks.

"If I wasn't so fff...clumsy, I might actually be able to do one stupid move..."

Rick limps his way over to the bench as Otto follows. Rick continues to beat himself up over the injury he just suffered.

"I'm a week away from this tournament and can't go one day without screwing something up. I don't have a chance in hell..."

Otto tries to calm Rick down.

"You can't just give up, dude. I need someone to compete against."

Rick looks up at Otto in confusion as he answers.

"Give up? I'm not giving up. Just pointing out the obvious. I can't grind. Every time I try, I bust an ankle or a rib or some stupid shit..."

Otto looks over at the rail, then back at Rick before giving his advice.

"Grinding is all balance. You gotta focus on balancing your weight on the skateboard. If you're not 100% focused, you'll screw it up every time."

Otto looks at him for a second. It was clear to him Rick was far from focused on anything. His mind seems scrambled. Out of sorts. He thought Rick getting together with Reg would bring him stability, yet all it brought him was more dismay. Rick didn't seem any happier than he was before the relationship. It came as a modest surprise, due to how happy Reggie was about it. Even though Otto wasn't exactly "balanced", he seemed much more than Rick. Otto became curious.

"How are you and Reggie doing anyway? She doesn't tell me anything, and you've been quiet as hell of late."

Rick continues to stare at his ankle as he responds.

"It's going. We've been too busy of late to hang out, but it's chill..."

The hesitant and vague answer from Rick threw Otto for a loop, but he wasn't someone to pry on someone else about their life. Rick takes an attempt to get back on his feet to continue practicing, yet it's clear he is still struggling greatly. Otto intervenes as soon as he can.

"Dude, you gotta ice that and rest it for the night."

Rick sits back down on the bench in frustration. Otto goes back to skate for a while, working on a various amount of moves. Rick sits and watches, contemplating things. His mind had been racing like crazy of late and had used practice as an excuse to shut up the madness in his head. Sitting there just forced him to face it head on. He was never good at handling life. This was just another series of events he wasn't prepared for. He had to try and talk himself through this once again. But...how? Just as he starts to get deep in thought, Otto returns from his practice session.

"You ready to head back?"

Rick snaps himself out of his trance quickly to respond.

"Yeah! Let's go..."

As they head out, they both realize Rick's pain has not subsided. He's still grimacing as they head back up to their house. Otto tries to help Rick out as much as he can, yet Rick's stubborn, trying to push through the injury and get home. As they get about half-way there, Rick begins to break the silence.

"Yo, you been iight lately, man?

Otto has a quizzical look on his face as he responds.

"Yeah...why?"

Rick takes a few seconds before continuing.

"Well you've been acting...a little odd lately."

Otto's face grows in confusion as he stays back, making sure Rick doesn't fall too far behind.

"How so?"

Rick stops his skateboard, motioning for Otto to stop his. Otto realizes Rick's concern is serious, making him grow even more nervous than before. Did he find out? And how? As he thinks this, Rick speaks his quarry.

"Okay, so when I first came here, you were always the first one gun-ho to do shit. Now it almost seems like you're TRYING to avoid doing stuff with the rest of the group. Sure, it hasn't been avoidance with me per-say, but with Twister and the others. Is something up?"

Otto's nerves show all over his face, as does Rick's. While Otto's eyes wandered uncontrollably when he was anxious about the situation, Rick's face hit the ground and his hands go into his pockets, almost like a turtle retreating to its shell to avoid danger. The awkwardness overcame them, as they continued to bike the way back to the others. As they got near the house, Otto stops once again. He knew he had to try and let something out.

"Look. With the big tournament coming up and all the drama everyone else is dealing with, I'm just holding in what I can. I'll be fine."

Rick's curiosity peaks.

"Holding in? Like a secret?"

Otto's eyes go back to moving back and forth swiftly as he responds.

"Sort-of? I mean..."

Rick doesn't wait for Otto to finish before he responds.

"Secrets are lethal, dude. You think you can hide them forever. Keep them apart from those around you so they're not hurt. I get that. But they'll eat away. Over time, you start to lose your mind over it. You can't hold that shit in without it making you go nuts. Trust me. I know..."

Otto nods. He knows everything Rick says is true. He just had no idea how to handle the situation. Who in the world would understand the secret he was hiding? And how could he do it without it spreading? Twister would never forgive him. That being said, he knows Rick is right. That's the worst part of it all. He tries to come up with a respectable response.

"I feel you. Thanks man."

Rick smirks as he answers.

"No problem, dude."

As Otto walks to the house, Rick takes his time, gingerly walking. Before entering the house, he goes back into his wallet. He takes the picture in his wallet out one more time, looking at it. He shakes his head, taking a deep sigh and returning the picture into his wallet.

"No. Not yet..."

Rick walks towards the house as Reggie opens the door to greet him, helping him back inside. It was funny how similar the kids problems were, even if they didn't realize it. The only one to even have their secret come out was Anna. They paved way for a lot of the issues. None of them wanted to hurt each other by revealing the "dark parts" of their lives they had not opened up. It was scary. They all knew there would come a point where those secrets would be no more. For almost the entire group, the problem of having to hold them in from the others was clear as day. They all dealt with it, in one way or another. They weren't ready for their secrets to be revealed. It was a lesson approaching them soon. Eventually, as the saying goes,"The Truth Shall Set You Free"...