Ike's head jerked to the left as the car swerved, his wavy blue hair falling into his eyesight. He had to wait for the turn to be done to blow it out of his eyes. The scenery of sleet and snow came into view finally. The teen let out a chilled breath of relief. He saved himself from falling off once again. If it wasn't for his quick thinking, he'd be-
"IKE!" Ike jumped and gripped onto the steering wheel. His gloved hands were stone, and hurt with any contact. "Answer me, son!"
The boy glanced down at the RV Radio installed where the navigation system should be. Just like him, Ike's father thought he should guide Ike, on the road and through life. Ike rolled his eyes as he turned on the radio and grabbed the walkie-talkie.
"Whaaat?" He whined loudly.
"Don't what me, boy!" Greil snapped back. "I can see you from the top, and that shouldn't be!"
Ike shrugged, "You can see me from the Lodge, big whoop, dad."
The teen imagined his father gritting his teeth, seething with rage. "Ike," he started, failing to sound calm, "this is a test drive only. You need to slow down."
"Slow down?" Ike was dumbfounded. He was driving in a Ferrari 458 Italia, one of the fastest cars out there. Plus, like his father said, it was a test drive. When testing a car, you try to reach its limit; why would he slow down?
"Ike Marcellus Radke! Slow that death machine down, and get on the right side of the- look out!"
Ike snapped back to reality, bright headlights blinding him. It took a few long seconds, but he finally found his sense and swerved to the right. The car's right headlight smashed into the icy mountain, but Ike was okay.
"You idiot, you could've died!" Ike knew his father was probably pacing rapidly. "I won't say it again- slow down!"
Ike heaved a loud sigh. This was ridiculous- it was a test drive for god's sake! Slowing down would leave the teen incomplete, like he didn't do the test right. Whenever he tested out a new car for a race, he would always push the car to its limit. Yet those tests were done in the summer. July didn't have any snow falling, any sleet and ice everywhere. It was the first time Greil bought his son a car in winter, so the scenery and Ike's procedures didn't mix. He had to give up.
After turning off the RV, Ike slowed to a halt. It was all over, he failed. If only his father let him keep going. Yelling only distracted him, not help. Ike guessed his father would know that, knowing him for all his life. Wasn't he wrong.
A loud horn made Ike jump in his seat. There was nothing coming towards him, he was finally in the right lane. So he looked in the rearview mirror, and he found a large truck coming towards him. No problem, he thought as he struck the key into the ignition. He could just start the car and drive all regular up the mountain. Then he'd sit at the ski lodge and drink hot chocolate like a failure…
If only the car would start.
Ike frantically kept turning the key, the engine sounding each time. Just when he thought the car was going to start, it just shut down. The teen grew nervous with each horn the truck bellowed. He was only a few feet away, and the damn Ferrari was stuck in place.
"Damn snowstorm!" Ike cursed, recalling the dreadful snowstorm from last night. It all happened the way it did for Greil. A crazy snowstorm the day before he went out driving. He drove like a maniac until the car blew out. Moments later, he was hit, nearly thrown off the mountain.
And Ike was due for the same fate.
Ike awoke quickly by his own screams. He had to cup his hands over his mouth to stop, forcing himself to take deep breaths. All around him, his black sheets were drenched. It wouldn't surprise him, but he was sure he didn't soil himself.
The boy removed his hands, his deep breaths ceasing. He was absolutely still, blending in with the darkness.
Always, he thought, always that dream. The accident happened two years ago, and it always came back to haunt him. This year, though, it was coming back to back. It has to do with the next race, he figured, on King Mountain. Still, it was happening in November, almost two months away, during thanksgiving break. No snow, no sleet, no ice. Just him, leaving everyone in the dust as he sped past in his Audi Quattro. That was his latest car, and it was custom made just for the mountain road.
Ike looked down at his digital clock, large red numbers reading out 3:27 AM. This was the earliest his dream woke him. Last time, Greil woke him and embraced the boy until he fell back to more pleasant dreams. That was two days ago, before Greil left again. Without thinking, the boy hugged himself for a few moments, wishing his dad was there. Instead, he was all alone in their Suburban villa, General Greil Radke across the seas.
Swinging his legs over the bed, Ike's feet planted on the blue carpeted floor when the time turned 3:30. The boy moved the drench covers off him and stood, yawning loudly. He trekked over to his bedroom door and stepped out, walking until he reached the bottom of the stairs. His eyes became occupied with a picture. It was of a white haired girl, maybe around seven. She was smiling brightly, showing off her lost tooth in her hand. Ike recalled that day, her excitement about being able to meet the Tooth Fairy. The teen let out a sigh.
"Mist…" His sister hadn't died. She was just staying with their aunt, being trained to become a doctor. Usually, Ike wouldn't even give the picture a second glance, but Mist was coming back to start her freshman year at James Wasson High School. In a few more days, he would be big brother again.
"Summer went by so fast, Ike yawned to himself. Back in June, he was cruising around in the Audi R8 Spyder, him and his friends hitting on any girls they saw fit. The teen remembered all the parties at Link's house, the beach, Roy's eighteenth birthday at Mario's Pizza Palace. Junior year was next week, and he couldn't wait.
Ike reached into the pantry, grabbing a pack of mini raisin bagels. He was too scared to return to slumber, too restless to stay inside. Using the excuse of needing orange juice, he made sure his cell was in his pocket before heading outside.
The crisp rural air blew his hair in the breeze as soon as he stepped out. It seemed to be below sixty, but the boy didn't find it cold at all. He walked over to the driveway, his favorite car parked there. The moonlight shun off the royal blue car, making it shine like the first day Ike laid eyes on it. The boy wasn't one to name his cars, but he considered his Ford Mustang GT to be a best friend. After two years of racing, he used Bluebelle the most.
Ike let his left hand trail across the hood. It felt waxed, just as he left it yesterday. Surprisingly, he didn't feel the stickiness of that relish stain anymore. Why Link would eat a hot dog over Bluebelle's hood, he'd never know. He grabbed the car door and swung it open, being greeted by his radio. The car let out the guitar riff of Pyro by Kings of Leon. He slid into the driver's seat and swiftly turned it down, hoping the bass didn't startle the neighbors.
The music calmed his nerves as he placed the bagels in the back, taking his mind off the dream. Listening to the song as he began to pull out, his thoughts drifted off to school. He had talked to Roy and Link about their upcoming Junior year. Of course, they would be at all the upperclassmen parties again, but they'd be the ones throwing them. Ever since freshman year, they'd just been a part of the cool crowd. Well, they didn't know each other right off the back. Roy was the ultra-smart and cool Class President, Link the all-out party jock, and Ike was the loner. Ike chuckled as he remembered how they all met.
It was in Auto Shop. During class, everyone was calm and working on an old 1987 911 Cabriolet, until a hung over Link came in. He didn't even belong in the class, so nobody knew why he came in until he swung at Ike. Ike, being a hothead before he asked questions, responded with a tackle and two punches to the face. A phone call later, Roy entered the classroom and tore them apart as everyone else stayed far away from the wild kicks and punches. It took a while, but Roy finally dragged the two out into the hallway and literally threw them against the wall. They all had the same build, so it was pretty shocking for know-it-all bookworm Roy to pick up two times his weight.
When asked why he attacked Ike, Link slurred, "The stupid prick is cooler than me! Samus said so, and I hate guys that are cooler than me!" Ike just busted out laughing. Me, cooler than Link Smith? That was a laugh, he thought. It was the stupidest thing in the world, even if it was true, for Link to attack him for that. So they messed each other up for nothing! Soon, after thinking, Roy laughed too. Then, not even just because he was hung over, link joined in, laughing the loudest.
As Ike saw it, it was just fate for that to happen. Well, maybe not exactly like that, but they were somehow supposed to meet and become friends, like they were today. After both their suspensions, the two began talking, and then Roy talked to them as well. From there, they were brothers to the end.
Ike reached the mini-mart quicker than he anticipated. It was a ten minute drive, and the boy hadn't noticed the song changed to Beyond Beautiful by Aerosmith. He shut off the car completely, taking the key out of the ignition and stepping back into the chilled air. Damn, he thought, so cold for summer.
The teen was greeted by a ring as the mini-mart's doors slid open. "You think with fall weather being outside, they'd shut of the air," Ike grumbled. The first thing that caught his eye was a long brown braid. It flew past him in the blink of an eye, and it took him a moment to figure out who it belonged to. Goosebumps grew on his arms, and at first he thought it was from the central air. Ike couldn't stay in denial, though- it happened every time he laid eyes on Zelda. There she was in the third aisle, picking up a colossal amount of Pringle cans at once. She was so frantic trying to clean up the mess, Ike nearly found it cute. Why is she doing this by herself, he wondered. As he suspected, there at the counter was a blond, her eyes closed and her head rested in her arms. Nothing new- Samus was sleeping on the job. For once, Ike thanked the girl for it. She gave him a chance to interact with Zelda.
Almost instantly, Ike dashed towards Zelda and kneeled, grabbing many Pringle cans at once. The brunette looked to Ike with a slight smile. "T-thanks, but I got it." Her soft, kind voice made Ike's heart grow lighter.
"I-it's alright," Ike looked up and flashed his perfect smile, "I don't mind helping…" That smile, it made all the girls who saw it blush, even just a little. Greil told Ike that if he ever wanted a girl, he should use that smile.
Zelda looked down for the rest of the time, both in silence as they picked up cans. The same they happened as they began to restock them on its shelf. Ike felt he had to say something, anything.
"So…" Ike timidly began, "How'd this happen..?"
The brunette turned one of the labels towards her and answered softly, "Oh, umm, I-I was in the back when someone knocked these down." She looked up at Ike, but blushed at his smile and turned her gaze. "Thank y-you, Ike."
Ike shrugged. "No problem, Zel…" He studied the girl one more time, just like he always did when he saw her. Zelda looked so different from Eight Grade. He'll never forget how she looked, wearing pigtails and large rimmed glasses. Even then he found her pretty. Then, when Ninth came, and she walked in with no glasses and a long brown braid flowing behind her, the boy couldn't get her out of his mind. He still wondered how a girl so shy and gorgeous could end up with a guy like Marth Lowell.
Ike's blood boiled even thinking about his rival. Roy always joked that if anyone ever looked up Douchebag, you'd find a million pictures of Marth. The blue-haired boy wasn't just the typical pig that claimed he was king of the world, he was worse. Plus, no matter how many times Ike beat him, Marth called himself a "Racing God." Well, Ike thought, he's persistent, I'll give him that. Last year, the teen claimed Zelda before Ike had the chance. It wasn't a long relationship, though. Halfway through the year, Zelda broke away, fed up with Marth's actions. Ike was dumbfounded that she found out how he really was just then. The public breakup was priceless; Marth's face still lingers in Ike's head when he needs a laugh. Even with the open chance, the boy hadn't confronted Zelda romantically. As far as he knew, he was still in the friend zone.
"Did you need something, Ike?" Zelda said softly.
Ike scratched the back of his head, trying to remember his cause for coming. "Oh, yeah, o-orange juice! I'm here for that…" The boy looked down at his shuffling feet, thinking about the four unopened cartons of orange juice in his fridge.
Zelda pointed behind her. 'Right next to the apple juice." Ike nodded his thanks and, half-heartedly, walked towards the fridge of juices. Why was it so hard to start a simple conversation? The teen could talk, flirt, and even lie to any other girl easily. But with Zelda, he seemed like a little boy who was lost for words. Ike felt so stupid.
As he walked over to the counter, he found a smirking blond awaiting him. Ike rolled his midnight eyes. "Go back to sleep, Samus."
"Don't get mad at me," Samus grabbed the juice carton and rang it up. "I wasn't the one looking like an idiot trying to talk to Zel."
Ike put on an angered look. "N-no! I'm just tired, is all. I can start a conversation with Zelda whenever I want."
Samus raised an eyebrow with a look that read unbelievable. "Then start one now."
The boy rubbed his arm and lied, "I don't wanna."
Samus just laughed in his face. "I can't believe the almighty 'Racing King' Ike is scared to speak to Zelda Knight!" The blond rested her chin on her hand and continued to laugh.
Ike scowled and snatched the juice carton off the counter. "Easy for you to say," the teen grumbled, "You two are like sisters." It was true. You couldn't catch Zelda or Samus without each other unless they had different classes. They got the same jobs, did the same things- they basically lived in each other's houses. Rumor has it that they were twins separated at birth. That made it harder for Ike to like Zelda in secrecy. The boy didn't even tell Samus; she just accused him of liking her until he just admitted it.
Ike looked over at the brunette with a longing look. He still couldn't figure out why he couldn't say something worthwhile to her. There she was, restocking the inventory alone, no Samus there to make things more uncomfortable. This was his chance! The boy took a deep breath, swallowed down his fear, but he couldn't get his feet to move.
"Look, Radke…" Samus got Ike's attention with her annoyed tone. "Either you stop looking at Zel with that creeper look and talk to her, or you leave."
The blue-haired teen heaved a sigh. "I'm outta here then, I guess." Ike began to walk out until a horrid sight stopped him in his tracks. There, standing on the hood of Bluebelle, was the blue devil himself.
Sheesh! That took a while. Hey guys! It's Sophisticated Ignorance, formally known as Lee Draqin. As you can tell, this is my story debut with that pen name. It's going to be staying for a while so get used to it! I know I REALLY need to update my stories, and between school and stuff, I'm gonna try to find time for that. Now that I've practiced more in my writing, I'm going to be doing chapters longer than 500 words (Damn my short attention span). They may not be as good as my cousin Riv's (Astrial Assailant now :3), but at least I'm trying. Thanks for reading! -SI