When You Least Expect It

Euphoric

"What time are we leaving tomorrow?" I hear Wes ask Vance. I hadn't heard of any plans for tomorrow, so this piques my interest. I listen for Vance's response.

"We wanna leave by noon."

"What's going on tomorrow?" I hear myself ask.

"Oh." V starts then pauses, "CarChella is this weekend."

"What's that?"

"It's an all weekend car show." Vance answers.

"Sorry Victor," V says softly, "We didn't even think to invite you. We invited you the first year but you declined and we've been going every year since."

Man, have I really been that detached? I don't even remember them asking me about going the first time.

"You guys should totally come though, there's plenty of room!" V adds.

"Where is it?"

"Down at the shore." V starts to talk excitedly, "They use the stadium. A big stage is set up with live music and the lot is filled with tons of cars. The food vendors are to die for."

It sounds like a good time and with no real plans for this weekend, I glance toward Jade, "You interested?"

"Hell yeah! I just have to be back in time for the lunch shift on Sunday."

"We could stay for the day?" I look at Jade and shrug, she nods her approval. "Count us in." I confirm.

"Yesss!" V bounces excitedly and begins to ramble. "We can spend the day at the beach and then the night comes alive with music and cars. It'll be so much fun!"

A sleek car rolls up, a guy half hanging out of the window, "Let's go bro!" All of our attention is pulled towards the car, I glance around the group and Wes is the only person to move. He kisses Taylor and moves towards the guy. I can only assume this must be his first opponent of the night.

They have some words and Wes gets into his car, pulls away and disappears.

"Who wants to race?" Vance says with a clap, his eyes on me.

"Alright, you sure?" I bait him.

"Whooo weee. Bring it big boy." Vance jokes.

"Big boy is right." I move forward and put Vance into a headlock. We shuffle and fight, his struggle making me laugh, man I miss this shit. I release him and he puffs out his chest, straightening out his shirt. "You lucky." His bravado makes me cackle, stealing my breath. "Let's do this." he pushes on my shoulder.

I glance back at Jade who's smiling wide, it's like a shock to my heart. She mouths, "Good luck."

I return a smile and add a wink. Vance is already in his car so I quickly jog to my Mustang. It's been a while since I've raced but it's like riding a bike. It's ingrained in me.

We pull up behind the queue line, Vance revving his BMW causing loud backfire. I do the same, though mine is deeper and louder, the stang springing to life beneath me. I can't help the smile that overtakes my face. I missed this and I hadn't really realized how much until this moment.

It takes some time until we reach the front and I'm a little nervous. My palms are sweaty and my heart is pounding. I take a few deep breaths to help with my nerves. The cars in front of us line up and within seconds are off. I watch their tail lights glow at the end of the strip. We're motioned forward and I guide the Stang to the starting line. Vance revs from my right, I glance his way and rev my engine in return.

The amber light from the tree in the center illuminates, pulling my attention back to the race about to go down. The third amber bulb lights up and I'm getting ready to go, foot down on the clutch. As soon as the light turns green, I'm off the clutch and on the gas. The roar of my exhaust fills the interior of my car and I shift into second gear, then third, four, and fifth. The world around me blurs by and I'm approaching the finish line. I glance down at the speedometer. 110. "WHOO!" erupts from my mouth. My heart is pounding with adrenaline. That was incredible! Euphoric!

Crossing the line, I let off the gas and begin to slow down. Vance is behind me and I know I beat him down the strip but didn't see the actual times on the boards. Kicking his ass would be icing on the cake. I grab my time slip from the guy at the booth and head back towards our group, parking at an open space.

V rushes over, the group trailing behind her. As soon as I open my door, she's in my face. Giddy like a little girl on Christmas morning. "You destroyed him!"

"Yeah?"

"Hell yeah!"

Vance pulls in a car over and exits his car, "Ayeee boy! You still got it!" He rounds the front of the car next to me and engulfs me in a hug. "How did that feel?"

"That was incredible!" I gush, knowing I probably look like fucking Willy Wonka with a crazy expression. He pats my shoulder, "Welcome back bro."

My eyes land on Jade who's watching me intently. I can't tell what she's thinking but I really want to know. Did that excite her as much as it did me? Knowing she watched me race has me feeling even more triumphant. Do I want to impress her? Yes. Should I care? No. But I do. 

Holy Moly.

It's been a long time since I've written anything involving this story, every creative cell in my body entirely disappeared. My characters disappeared, abandoning me. I burnt out mentally. Trying to get them back has been hard, almost impossible. As a creative person, I worked on another hobby hoping a small break would help. 

While this isn't a huge chapter, it's something! It's got me moving in the right direction and my goal is to finish up this story! Those who have stuck by and have been patient with me, I cannot thank you enough for your support. I cannot express how guilty I feel, so many people wanting an update and I cannot apologize enough.

If you didn't see that I was invited to be a part of a holiday anthology during December, you can read that short chapter revisiting Chase and V. https://wattpad.com/story/292627906

all my love.

xoxo