Author's Note: Hello! I'm new to Fanfiction, and this is my very first fanfic for Speed Racer: The Next Generation. I'm really excited! Anyway, this takes place after the screen fades to black when Speed shares his first hug with his long-lost father, the legendary Speed Racer in the season 1 finale, "The Secrets of the Engine, Part 3," and before the opening scene in the season 2 premiere, "The Return, Part 1." Basically it's what I think happened after they hugged and how they found themselves at the track in the beginning of the first episode of Season 2. Oh, and it's in Speed Jr.'s POV and it's a oneshot. Also "The Great Escape, Part 3" and "The Secrets of the Engine" trilogy will be referenced a little.

ENJOY!

Disclaimer: I do not own Speed Racer: The Next Generation in any way, shape, or form. I'll have to leave that to Nicktoons and Lionsgate.

My Father

If I said that these past two weeks were totally dull and boring, I would probably be lying. It most certainly was not! It was the complete opposite. My friends and I managed to finish the Mach 6's gasless engine, my father's dream, with the help of my dad's old friend, Dr. Andre Cheskov. Although I had to risk my face getting melted off by going 820 mph in order to get the engine to activate. Luckily, I managed to survive that. Then during the Mid-Winter Marathon, the engine wouldn't cooperate AGAIN! After Lucy, Conor, and I managed to get past that little bump, I almost got smeared by Annalise and the dork twins, Jared and Jesse, but then X, my older brother, turned around to help me. I don't think I'll ever be able to repay him for that. Then I won the Mid-Winter Marathon. Life was great! No, it was better than great!

However even though we finally brought my dad's gasless technology to the world after who knows how long, the surprises still weren't over for me just yet. As I walked Dr. Cheskov to the entrance of the Academy to say good-bye and thank him, he revealed to me that he was actually a guy named Wilson Sparkolemew, an old friend of my dad's like he said he was. Apparently, he had to go into hiding as well when I was a baby. I never actually did realize how much the gasless engine caused our whole family to go into hiding for so long. I was too happy about our accomplishments with the Mach 6 that I wasn't even freaked out about it at all. Plus, it was still pretty cool to get to know one of my dad's friends from back in the day. We finally stopped to look up at the statue of my father and the Mach 5. We shook hands, and I watched him leave the campus to go back to Russia.

"Have a safe flight!" I shouted to him. "Keep in touch!"

I found myself alone with my dad's statue. I smiled at it wishing that my real dad could have been there to see me in action…maybe even help us with the engine when we were having problems. I had never been so happy to be the son of Speed Racer. I got the privilege to bring my dad's gasless technology to the world with the help of my friends and family. We finally changed the world…with the help of an engine.

"We did it, Dad," I said to the statue. I couldn't believe I was actually talking to it, but at that point I didn't care if I looked like a dork talking to it. "We brought gasless technology to the world."

"And you ran quite a race today," someone suddenly said. I took my eyes off the statue and looked to my left. There was a man standing in the shadows not too far from where I was.

I couldn't see him very well. I was scared and confused at the same time. Who was this guy? The only thing I knew about him was that he was the same man who came to my dorm one night warning me that X and I were still in danger…whatever that meant. I hoped that this wasn't one of Zile's tricks to get rid of me and take the Mach 6, especially not after all that work we put into it. I didn't know what to do…run, call for help? I then realized that I couldn't do either of those things. If it was someone who worked for Zile I was not going to give them the satisfaction of frightening me. So I decided to be the tough guy. This guy in front of me avoided my first attempt to find out who he was, but I was not about to let it happen the second time.

"Who's there?" I asked him. I got ready to run after him in case he tried to leave again. I was not going to let him off the hook that easy. I mean this guy warned me that I was in danger. I deserved some answers from him, right? Of course, I did!

I was so revved up by this "mysterious stranger" that I did not expect what came flying at me next. The man actually stepped into the light revealing himself to me. I didn't recognize him at all. Although there was something nagging at me that I should have known him. He looked oddly familiar, which was extremely weird because I never actually saw his face until now. This guy looked to be older than my uncle Spritle. He had black hair with some gray streaks, but what really caught my attention was what was on his racing jacket. It had the number 5 on it. The number 5 looked exactly like it did on the Mach 5, my dad's famous race car.

"Hello, son," he said to me with a huge grin on his face.

That had to be when it actually smacked me across the face. The number 5...the man calling me "son!" It all made total sense! This man…was MY FATHER! My father was actually standing right in front of me. After all those years, my dad was here. He came back! I was so happy! I gave him a huge smile right back to him. "DAD?" I was finally able to say.

Neither of us said anything. We just kept smiling at each other. I couldn't believe I was actually standing with my dad. It almost didn't seem real. I was afraid that it was all a dream that I would soon wake up from, but Dad proved me wrong when he put his hand on my shoulder. It felt good to have my father with me after all those years in the orphanage. I was able to tell that the both of us were unsure of what to do next. There wasn't exactly a manual on long-lost father/son reunions. I was so happy and emotional at the same time that I couldn't speak. However as soon as I felt tears forming in my eyes, I decided to make the next move. I stepped forward and hugged him. He hugged me back. After all this time, I was finally hugging my dad! He was actually here hugging me! I was able to feel a few tears rolling down my face as I buried it into Dad's shoulder. I then felt him hug me tighter. I wasn't sure how long we were standing in that position, but I knew one of us had to say something.

"I can't believe you're here, Dad!" I finally said still hugging him. "You're really here!"

"I am here, Speed," he said. "We're together again." We finally pulled apart and continued to stare at each other. "Look at you. You've really grown up. You and your brother have made me very proud of you."

I smiled even bigger at what Dad just told me. He was proud…very proud of X and me. I mean I know I've heard it from Uncle Spritle many times before, but it felt…different…but in a good way to hear it from Dad. I knew this had to be one of the best moments of my life, and nothing was going to change that…ever. "Thanks, Dad," I finally said.

"You're welcome, son," Dad said. "Now, how about we take a walk? We clearly have a lot to catch up on."

"OK, I know one place where we can go," I said.

We then walked to the Mach 6's garage. I was so excited to show Dad all the hard work that Lucy, Conor, and I put into it ever since I got to the Academy. Plus, it was a good chance for us to have some privacy. The last thing I needed was Conor freaking out that Speed Racer had finally returned and was in the garage. Dad and I had a great conversation on our way to the garage. We talked about everything that happened when I got to the Academy even when Uncle Spritle told X and me that we were brothers. I wanted to ask him questions about where he's been all this time, but we were having such a good time that I didn't want to ruin it. I just promised myself to wait for the right moment to ask or just to let Dad bring it up whenever he wanted. Finally we reached the garage. I punched in the security code and opened the door. There was the Mach 6 looking better than ever especially with the gasless engine.

"So, this is the famous Mach 6?" Dad finally asked clearly sounding impressed with it.

"Yep, complete with the gasless engine and everything," I said, "and it's all thanks to you, your friend, Dr. Ches-uh…Sparky, my friends, and me that gasless technology is now possible."

"It's wonderful, Speed. You and your friends did an amazing job."

"Thanks, Dad. I just hate that I didn't really get to show it off today." We both knew that I was talking about when I fell in last place because the chamber didn't have enough power because of the track's environment and when Annalise almost practically killed me. I was lucky I won when I did because I was running out of oxygen.

"Well, we're here, now, and no one else is around," Dad said after a while. "What do you say we take it down to the track and see if it actually works perfectly without all those setbacks that you had during the race?"

I thought about it. It was a great idea, but we're not allowed on the track unsupervised. Then again I had Dad with me. That should count as supervision…parental supervision. Plus, I would get to show Dad that I inherited his racing skills. "OK, let's do it!" I finally said.

Dad went ahead to the track to wait for me while I got my racing suit on and drove the Mach 6 out onto the track. I was so excited! Dad was finally going to get to see me race…with his gasless technology. Things were definitely looking pretty good for Dad and me. I finally got to the track. Dad was at the starting line waiting for me on the side. I opened the window as he walked over to the car.

"Now, let's see what this engine can do, son," he said. I could have sworn my heart soared when I heard him call me "son" again.

"Trust me, Dad," I said to him. "You won't be disappointed."

He smiled at me and got off the road to give me room to drive. Next thing I knew I took off from the starting line. I was right! The engine worked perfectly as I practically flew around the school's track. The gasless engine was flawless! We actually brought my dad's gasless technology to the world. It was a HUGE success. Soon I was coming close to the finish line, and there was Dad waiting for me. I always dreamed of the day where I would get to show him how well I can race, but this was even better. I finally stopped the car, and Dad walked over to me. The smile never left his face for a second. I could tell that he was impressed. I opened the window.

"The engine works perfectly, Dad," I said to him feeling impressed myself. "What did I tell you?"

"Pop the hood," Dad said to me. "Let's have a look."

I immediately punched in the security code to unlock the hood of the Mach 6. Then I jumped out of the car and followed Dad to the front where we opened the hood. There was the gasless engine, finally finished. I couldn't believe I was showing Dad the gasless engine he worked so hard to design only to have me and my friends finish it years later. It almost didn't seem real at all. I began to think that I was dreaming again, but I wasn't! It was real!

"Wow, sure is a thing of beauty," Dad said staring at the engine. I knew that he was impressed even though he thought of the idea of not having cars that polluted.

"Sure is," I said. We stared at it some more for a while. Next thing I knew we were having the conversation that was waiting to pop out at any moment ever since Dad and I reunited.

"I'm sorry I was away for so long, Speed," Dad said. I knew that was my cue to start asking the questions.

"Where have you been? Were you kidnapped…in prison? And why return now?" I asked him. Those were only a few of the questions that I had for him. "Man, I feel like I have a million questions to ask."

"And I feel like I have a million things to explain," Dad said. I could tell that we both knew he was right about that. There was a lot that needed to be explained. "What's important now, though, is that we're back together as a family…thanks to the gasless engine."

Now, I was officially confused. The gasless engine? How could the gasless engine be responsible for reuniting our family? Not that I had a problem with it because I didn't, but what could an engine do to reunite our family? "I don't get it," I finally said to Dad. "I mean the gasless engine is awesome and everything…but what does it have to do with you returning?"

His expression changed. Did I say something wrong? I could tell that this wasn't an easy topic for him to talk about. I could understand why though. He disappeared for a really long time, and no one knew why only to come back saying that the reunion was only possible because of the gasless engine. "It just wasn't safe enough for me to return until the gasless engine was finished, Speed," he finally said.

Of course, that still didn't make any sense. I knew that people would be after Dad and our family because of the possibility that the gasless engine could ruin them, but it still didn't make sense that he waited until the gasless engine was finished to return. "Well, why not?" I asked him.

Dad just sighed and put his hand on my shoulder. "It's more complicated than you can even imagine."

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter now," I said as we looked back at the engine. "Like you said, we're back together as a family again, and that's what's important."

"That's right, Speed," he said smiling at me, "and I promise that I will always be there for you and your brother."

"I know you will," I said. "I mean you came to my dorm in the middle of the night warning me that X and I were some kind of danger and then you finally reunited with me."

"Wait, you knew that was me in your dorm that night?"

"Well, I didn't know it was you at first, but there was the fact that you and the man in my dorm both stood in the shadows when talking to me and the fact that you both had the exact same voice." I then put a hand to my chin as if I was pondering something. "Hmm…" I added as I smirked at Dad.

Dad laughed. "OK, then, smart guy," he said as he held his hands up as if he was surrendering. "You've caught me."

The two of us laughed together. I couldn't believe it. I was reunited with my dad for about an hour or so and the two of us already were bonding and laughing together. This was turning about to be the best night of my life. I promised myself that I was never, ever going to forget my reunion with my father.

"I'm really glad you're here, Dad," I said to him.

Dad smiled at me. "I'm glad I'm here, too, Speed," he said.

I hugged him again. This was definitely going to be one night that I will always cherish forever…the night when I finally reunited with my father. We could finally do all that father/son bonding that every other kid in the universe has had with their dads. The whole time Dad and I shared another father/son hug I thought about how the three of us—Dad, X, and I—could finally be a family again. We could goof off together on the weekends, race together for fun in the desert, and go on trips together. Yeah…things were definitely looking up for the Racer family!

Well, there you have it! Hope you guys liked it! Reviews are much appreciated. Thanks a lot, guys!