Did...he just lose? No, of course not. But one such as Jackson might have believed his own denial so he could avoid the harsh reality that was in the form of a yellow car. Grey eyes stared off into space, the shrill screams of adorning fans cheering on Cruz Ramirez. She won. He lost.
And it wasn't how he wanted it to be. He should've gotten that win. He was so close, with her naive mind wrapped around his tire and so many wins under his belt, he was so CLOSE. And yet, here he stood all by his lonesome. Racers crowded her and congratulated her for the win. And not one person even thought much of Jackson. Oh, how he wanted to just drive up to Cruz and hurt her so bad. But he didn't. Despite his "loss", he still had an image to attain. Turning slowly as the crowd he once faced slowly disappeared from his field of vision, he headed on back to his trailer. Calm and collected.
Gale waited for Jackson to arrive back, a big grin on her face. He emerged from the crowd with the most grim look on his face. She could tell something was up with him.
"So how'd it go, baby?" , sweet ol' Gale asked, turning a bit as she watched him head for the back of her. No answer. Not even a glance. He was in his mood again. She opened the hatch of the trailer for him and waited for him to safely get in before closing it back. With a heavy sigh, Gale left the stadium in silence.
With the exception of Jackson's road tunes playing, he was as quiet as a mouse. Gale remembered after each race, Jackson would just pile into the back and just chat with her. Their conversations often ranged from the races he won and dimmed down to just casual 'how have you been'. She was hoping for the latter. But she couldn't understand why he'd be so upset. She saw him get in second place! So...isn't that good enough?
Oh, right. This was Jackson Storm we're talking about. Jackson's life was solely on coming out on top. No second place would satisfy him. He needed to be first. At everything he did. And it was time he knew the truth of it all.
"Second place, huh? Not too shabby. But it sure don't have much perks like first place, right?" , she started the conversation. She had to think like him in this moment. The music turned off followed by the accompanied silence. And then he spoke.
"It isn't, Gale. And little miss costume girl gets to race for stupid Dinoco! She doesn't deserve it!" , his voice raised.
"Oh, she doesn't?" , Gale retorted.
"No she doesn't!" , and right back goes Jackson.
Silence again. And then a soft chuckle. It belonged to Gale.
"The way I see it, with all that smack talk you gave her, you gave her the upper hand."
"...what the hell does that mean?", Jackson sounded more pissed than he was before, "I didn't let her win. I KNOW I got into her head! You should've seen how pathetic she looked."
"And yet, she won in the end. And you're the pathetic one." , Gale's voice grew serious. She could hear Storm mumbling a few curses under his breath.
"I don't have to hear this..." , and just like that, Jackson went on to ignoring Gale. And she wasn't going to have it. Coming to an abrupt stop, Jackson's face kissed the cold, steel door of his trailer. Hard.
"Now listen here well and clear, young man. Winning ain't everythin—"
"WINNING IS EVERYTHING!" , Jackson interrupted in a loud voice, "Maybe not to you, but to me winning is everything!"
"It isn't!" , Gale shouted back.
"Then tell that to my parents. Tell that to the hard years of them pushing their expectations on to you and telling you that you have to be twice as better as the next guy! That the world doesn't want losers!", his voice began to crack through his speech, "Tell that to all the busted tires and scratches I endured just to come out on top! Tell that to all the kids who laughed and said I'd be nothing like them! Tell them that—"
"Enough", Gale spoke in her usual calm tone. She listened to Jackson repeat "It's not fair" over and over through all his tears and sniffling.
"Baby boy...don't let no one tell you that you're nothing. You are something. You're Jackson Storm. Fans love you. I love you. And ain't no amount of losses will ever make me or those fans of yours love you any less." , she cooed to him. Jackson looked up, eyes filled to the brim with tears as she continued listening.
"Winning doesn't make the person. It's the efforts that do. And I saw you try your hardest. As did Cruz. All that talk you gave her pushed her to believe that she could do it."
"Sniff...whatever...", Jackson mumbled.
"And didn't all that negativity in your life push you to do what you're doing today?"
Jackson said nothing. But he knew Gale was right. He was just like Cruz when he was young. Lack of confidence in himself. People telling him he couldn't do it. And here he was, a professional racer in the making. He was even the first rookie to win the Piston Cup. And he was proud of that.
"I...guess you're right. It's just one loss...there'll be other races..." , Jackson's mood seemed to perk up in that moment.
"That's the way to think.", Gale's smile returned to her face, "Just do your best and you'll do fine."
"Hah. I am my best."
Gale rolled her eyes and laughed softly. At least he's feeling better than before. And still as egotistical as ever. But that's what made him, well, him.
"So...Gale...how've you been?"