Hi again everyone. Thanks a lot for the reviews. I'll try to update this particular fic on a weekly basis, unless I run out of ideas, so expect the next chapter of this fic this upcoming Sunday or Monday. Oh, and to whoever gave the suggestions, sorry, I don't think I'll be using Freddy Kruger or Jason or any other of those guys, especially since this isn't that kind of a story.

You know, it seems that this fic just may end up "Twisterish" after all. I seem to keep writing stuff dealing with him. This entire chapter is focusing on him, and for it, he's just recalling past events. Not a lot of dialogue since it's only him…and I guess some Twister x Reggie hinting from Twister's side. As I mentioned earlier, I do kind of like this pairing, even though it may not happen for this fic. That's just the angst part of me writing, I suppose. lol I just really like the concept of Twist having a thing for Reggie. I always have.

Anyway, for the next chapter, I'm not sure what I'm going to use just yet. I'm still trying to figure out how to bring out what exactly is bothering Otto and why he's been so resentful towards his friends without exactly spoiling it. Oh, and to whoever it was who said it, no, he is not having a "teenage crisis". Something is actually bothering him, and he just wants to be the best at all of the sports he participates in He's always been that way, it's just more extreme now. Also, it has nothing to do with a dead friend. I couldn't use that anyway, unless I had your permission, mike2000. lol

Now, as always, I do not own anything dealing with Rocket Power. Klasky-Csupo has that honor. Now, on with chapter 2, and please don't forget to leave ideas or suggestions to make this fic better

Chapter 02: Twister's Thoughts….

It was now the middle of the day, practically, and Twister's Spanish class was nearly over. The boy was a bit concerned, as Otto had missed Biology earlier that morning, but at the same time, he was a bit peeved at his "best bro". His mind kept wandering back to his walk with Sam and Reggie earlier that morning, and how bummed Reggie seemed to be, even though she wore a smile, but to him, it didn't seem genuine. He also thought back to the promise he'd made her and how he would try, again, talking with Otto and the slight joy and relief he heard in her voice. It was nice to hear that and hoped to hear it again after succeeding in his quest. He actually really missed seeing Reggie happy, and lately, all of the stress had been wearing her out.

Rocket Boy had started acting strangely towards them about two weeks ago. They all figured that it would blow over, but as the days were going by, he was growing more and more irritable. Even their street hockey practices had become a bit of a chore, given how overbearing and tense it now was. Otto was acting very self-absorbed, hogging the puck, for example, and trying to score as many goals as possible.

The last practice they had was about a week ago. Otto had grown so frustrated over the fact that he couldn't get any shots past "Stonewall" that he shouted a few obscenities, tossed his stick down, nearly breaking it, and skated off in the direction of the Pier. Normally whenever Sam managed to block all or the majority of Otto's shots, he would praise the blonde on a "job well done" and then brag about how they were all "unstoppable with Sammy in the net".

When he and Reggie caught up with him, leaving the surprised, slack-jawed Sammy behind, he told the two of them coldly to leave him alone. After that fiasco, Reggie apologized to Sam, and suggested that they practice without her brother and to wait until after he calmed down. Unfortunately, that day hasn't come, and it was really worrying Reggie. Otto wasn't caring about the team, which was definitely a first. They also had an upcoming match that next week against Lars' team, and his team had definitely improved. His team was always tough competition, but this time, the Rockets would have to play their extreme best if they wanted to have a shot at winning the championship.

'Can't he see that he's bumming Reg out?' He leaned back in his desk chair. 'He's being all selfish! It's worse enough that he's giving the Squid and me a rough time, but he shouldn't act that way towards Reggie. We gotta figure out what's going on with him!' The boy looked up at the clock. It was nearing 12:30. 'Aww man, it's almost lunch time and Otto still isn't here! Where the hell is he? He never ditches without telling me first! How can I talk to him if he's not around? If I can't talk to him, then it'll disappoint Reg.' A dreamy look made its way to the freckled boy's face. 'I miss her nice smile. I miss seeing her happy.' The more he thought of how much Otto was upsetting Reggie, the more upset it made him. 'Dude, wait…why am I so concerned about Reg anyway? She can take care of herself…but-'

"MAURICE RODRIGUEZ!" a female voice shouted for the fifth time.

His thoughts finally broken, a lady stood in front of his desk, causing Twister to nearly jump out of his seat. The students around him giggled over the dazed boy.

"Um, yes Señora Cortez?"

"I said that I want you paired up with Oswald for your class project!"

'Oswald? Oh yeah, Otto!' He scratched his head in confusion, wondering what she was talking about. "Class project?"

His curly black-haired, petite-sized teacher gave out a groan as she smacked her forehead. The other students around the ever-so-loveable Twister were still giggling quietly. "Have you not been listening to me these past 10 minutes?!"

"Um, I think I was," the boy responded meekly. He then grinned sheepishly, his ears going red due to the embarrassment he was currently feeling. 'Please don't give me a detention for not paying attention, please don't give me a detention for not paying attention, please don't g-'

"Oye Maurice," she sighed as she returned to her desk. Before she could say anything more, the lunch bell rang. All of the students rushed out the door. Twister was about to leave, until he was stopped. "Oh no you don't, Maurice! You stay right here!"

She pointed to one of the free desks up front. Twister inwardly groaned and took the seat.

"What is the matter with you?" the woman asked in a surprisingly calm voice. He was expecting her to yell at him. "You haven't heard a word I've said to you all class, have you?" Knowing he couldn't lie his way out of it, he shook his head. "You rarely pay attention, and yet, you're probably one of the best students in this class."

Twister knew that already. He hated the fact that he was, and preferred to keep that little known revelation secret. He didn't want anyone to know. He felt that he had an unfair advantage over the others in his class, especially since his parents spoke fluent Spanish as well as his brother, so he was used of hearing and speaking it whenever at home. He had a bit of trouble when it came to some of the grammar rules since the dialect was slightly different from what his family spoke and it was much more formal and not as natural. For example, his class taught the "vosotros/vosotras" verb form. The only people who generally used that form were those from Spain. During class, though, he played dumb so as not to look too smart on the subject. He even had to help Otto with his Spanish homework at times, which was definitely a first. It was rare that Twister could help anyone with their homework since he was the one who usually needed the help. He was pulling a 95% average in this particular course without even trying.

As for his other courses, he had a high grade in Health/PE, which was normal for him and Otto; his Biology grade could've been better, as he had a D for it; for English 10, he, surprisingly, had a high C, which was probably due to his viewing the stories he was forced to read from the perspective of a cinematographer and a director; for Geometry, which was probably his worst subject, he had a low D and was considering asking Sam to help him again; for History, which he found to be pretty boring and pointless, he had a low C, and for his Cinematography course, he had an A. *That course really helped him out since he was in the Audio Visuals club; a club he'd been a part of since his Elementary school days.

"Anyway, for your final project, I want you and your partner to give a five to ten minute speech about what you like about Ocean Shores, and why. The entire presentation must be given in Spanish. You can make it a dialogue situation, you and your partner could have a casual conversation, just as long as the flow is natural, or anything else you'd like. You're also required to use visuals."

'Awesome!' Twister inwardly cheered. Using visuals meant that he could go around filming different parts of Ocean Shores, showing what he enjoyed doing most. A puzzled look then appeared on his face. "Okay, but why do you want me paired up with Otto?" He was curious because, normally, teachers would purposely keep the two of them apart since they never actually got any work done. They would always end up goofing off by going surfing or shredding up Madtown, and then beg Sam to help them at the last minute.

"Well, he's one of the weakest students of this class, and since you're so good with the subject, I figured that maybe you could help him. I also know how the two of you are the best of friends and will probably definitely have a nice natural conversation." She smiled. "You usually can't see Oswald walking down the hall without you right by his side."

Twister nodded weakly. He wasn't sure if he really considered Otto a friend or not, at the moment. To him, friends didn't treat friends like crap and tell them to stay out of their lives for no reason. A true friend wouldn't keep something so upsetting to himself and cause the misery of others. Twister felt a bit upset over Otto's actions since he now felt that Otto didn't trust him. Twister usually told him everything...well, almost, like with any person. Either way, he would still share important things with him. He folded his arms and inwardly scoffed. 'Some best bro…'

"I also know that you two live in the same neighborhood, so you could probably take his homework to him since he missed class."

"Home…work?"

"Maurice!" She pointed towards the stack of papers that were piled up on his desk. Twister sat in the very last row and in the very back of it. Since he was so distracted over Otto, he hadn't even noticed that they had been passed back to him.

"Oh yeah, those papers."

"Is Oswald sick today?"

"Um, um yeah…he's sick. Very sick!" He slightly frowned. 'He has to be sick with the way he's been treatin' Reg…..and-and me and the Squid too! Yeah! Um, maybe he's sick in the head! Yeah, that's it! He must be!'

"Well, hopefully he'll get better in time for the surf competition this weekend. I hate to say it, but the school is relying on him to win the competition for our school's surf team. We're going for a record for the most consecutive wins and it's a state competition!" His teacher rose from her seat, a lunch bag in hand. "Well then, Maurice, you better hurry along to lunch."

Glad that his interrogation was over, Twister headed back to his desk to pack up the papers and also slipped his hat back on. He made his way to the cafeteria, still in thought over what exactly was going on with Otto, and trying to figure out why he was more upset over the way he was treating Reggie than the way he had been treating him or Sam…

x x x

Author's Note

Note 1: I didn't know that Twister was in the AV club until I saw the ep where Twister was mad at Otto for calling him a "chicken" after he beefed it on the half-pipe. I'd seen the episode before, just never noticed that he said he needed to film for the AV club, until I saw it a couple of days ago (this ep has always been a favorite for me, too). He also mentioned it in the Snow Day ep, about how his best grade was in AV and Art. Nice contradiction there. Seems Twist shouldn't call Sam a nerd, given that stereotypically, AV members are usually associated with being "nerds".