If this book is the book I think it is, I will never get my self-respect back. Gage will never shut up about it, Brandon probably won't want to be seen with me anymore, and Rhett… actually I don't think Rhett's gonna mind, BUT that is besides the point.

Maybe I can move to an uncharted location on an abandoned island somewhere and go into hiding?

"No." I thought to myself, shaking my head. "Stop being overdramatic. It's not going to kill you if they know."

Right. Embarrassment is painful, but it's not the end of the world. I've been through MUCH worse.

Wyatt goes to slam the giant book down on my workshop desk, knocking a bunch of tools to the floor in the process -thanks man, looking forward to cleaning that up-. He then reaches back for the spinny chair Brandon is sitting in (still backwards) and wacks it with one muscly arm, sending it spinning toward the desk. I watch the poor blonde boy crash face first into the book with a loud 'THUMP' and a small 'oof'. Ouch. Is Wyatt always this rough with the guy he calls his "best friend"? We may need to have a private talk about that later, him and I.

"Brandon! You're a book-ish fella. Help me work this thang!" Wyatt nearly yelled with delight.

Brandon pulls his face out of the book, the rest of the team gathers around, curious to see what Wyatt has dragged in. Except me, of course, I already know what's in there… and I'm not standing around for the rest of them to find out. I pivot on the back of my skates and try to roll out of there before it's too late. Unfortunately, it's already begun.

"What in the world?" I hear my cousin say, with genuine bewilderment in his voice.

"Don't turn around.", I think.

I hear Rhett gasp as I make my way out the door.

"Wheelie, you're so cute!" he says.

MA STAI SCHERZANDO!? He started with the toddler pictures!? OF ALL THE-

Nope. Just keep rolling.

Dust nuggets.

She rolled out the door.

I really thought this one would work.

"Wheelie, you're so cute!"

That roped my brain back into now. I look over to see the pudgy excuse for a man called Rhett Ruddington, hunched over Gammy's scrapbook. He has his eyes stuck on the first picture on the page, a picture of me and li'l Wheilemena (I call 'er li'l Willy) covered in mud, one o' my favorites, …one he shouldn't be starin' at the way he is. I take the opportunity to snatch the book out from under him.

"Git your filthy mitts offa my Gammy Gram's scrapbook, Ruddington! It ain't yours to read!" I say, slidin' the book back over to Brandon and me. "Gammy says this is for posterity only!"

I honestly got no idea what "posterity" even means, but I ain't about to let HIM know that.

Brandon starts to flip through the ol' scrapbook, (I don' think Gammy'll mind if he looks, the boy's practically second kin). He does his Brandon-y thing of going through each page real slow like, as if he's readin' all the tiny words at the bottom of each photo. Gotta wonder how a fella does that, I can barely see all that blurry scribble.

"Wow…" he says, obviously amazed by the sheer awesomeness of all the contents. "What… is this?"

I take him under my arm and pat him on the back. He wheezes from the pat (I forget, he's a fragile boy).

"This li'l buddy, is all the memories of me and Willy. From when we were kids!" I proudly announce. "We used to do everthang together!"

It's true. I met Willy and no her no-good dodger of a cousin when I wasn't but much higher than a colt on a carrier. She used to follow me around every which-way and where, with only so much as a pair of skates to get around. Took a good heap o' tumbles in the process. Each time I would be there to get 'er outta whatever mess she rolled herself into. We were closer than a hammer is to a horseshoe on an anvil. ..and I wouldn't trade those days for nothin'.

Unfortunately, it don't seem like Willy feels the same. I really thought showing her some ol' memories would do something, like make her remember how close we used to be, but…

"There certainly are a lot of these." Brandon says, bringing my attention back to the book.

I was 'bout to respond, but GAGE had other plans. Pushin' Brandon outta the way, he started snapping pictures of the book with his phone.

"-and yet…" he said, with a dumber than dumb kinda grin on his face, "...not nearly enough! Wheels is gonna flip when I show this to Aunt Pearl!"

I think about knocking him straight to the ground, but he backs away from the book and looks around before I can swing.

"Uh, speaking of her, where'd she-"

He doesn't get to finish, as a very loud ring goes off in the room. Screens come down from the ceiling and I see the ceilin' lights flash purple-y.

"WARNING. WARNING. CODE PURPLE." the room beeps. "IMMINENT IMAGIDANGER. PLEASE REPORT TO THE GARAGE ROOM."

Hallelujah! A Code Purple! I crack my knuckles in excitement. Nothin' like a good catastrophe to put me in a good mood! Looks like Willy's gonna hafta wait a li'l while.

I got a day to save!

Surprise!

You didn't really think I was gonna do the ENTIRE episode from one character's perspective, did you?

No sirree! Part of the fun of first-person writing is controlling what the audience can see. I want you all to get the best view for every circumstance of this adventure, so we're gonna be POV-hopping all the way through!

Can't wait to show how Team Hot Wheels operates! I might be a little bit biased, but I think it's really fun.

See ya in the next chapter!