Here is the second chapter (clearly). I know, it is ungodly fast for me, I pretty much ignored all my work that I needed to get done for yesterday (but somehow I did finish it? weird). Anyhow, my muse is still going real strong, so we'll see how long it lasts.
I apologize for my lack of details in the race scene... it's not something I generally write, nor something I have experience with. Nor is my knowledge of cars particularly great. Lastly, I live just south of Quebec, Canada, so my second language is French. Je ne sais pas espangnol très bien. J'ai regret.
Ever since Dom left, Letty was a bit different. With her injuries, and Vince and Jessie's close brush with death, the group was far from skipping out of the country anytime soon. As soon as she was released from the hospital, nearly a week after being admitted, her mother had gotten sick.
Originally the group had made plans to meet down in Mexico when everyone was ready. Between her still healing body, her friend's slow recovery, and helping to get her mother back on her feet, finding Dom was the furthest thing from her mind.
Mia shared the occasional letter with them, they knew he was fine and still out there. That was enough for her; if he was okay, then she could just worry about the problems closer to home that she had more control over.
Oddly, other than the lack of Dom's presence and the hijacks, her life did not change too much. When she was not racing, or at a party, she could be found in the garage, working away on some car, with her family, or at Mia's with the rest of their team.
The cops had come around at first, looking for Dom. But after a few weeks when it became apparent that he was not coming back, they had finally left.
Most people would think it strange, how quickly she seemed to get over Dom. They did grow up together; his sister had been her best friend since they were both babies, and she had had a clear interest in him since she was ten and he was in high school.
However, it was both more and less complicated than anyone knew.
Three days after the race Letty and Vince were adding the final decal to the side of the freshly-painted Nissan. It looked like new, and if one had not seen for themselves, they would never have guessed it had gotten wrecked.
"You racing tonight?" Letty asked.
"Nah, I think I'll just give her a work out. Maybe tomorrow," Vince answered, as he grabbed a rag to polish up the already spotless car.
"Might be a good idea. Getting beat again so soon... not too good for the confidence," Letty said, patting him on the shoulder. He turned with a glare, which she returned evenly. "Oh please."
"Dude, that kid was suicidal. Almost got hit at least six or seven times, wasn't even fazed. Cutting off oncoming traffic."
"It's called racing. Part of the sport."
Vince ignored the jab.
"What are you up to tonight then?" He shot back.
"Dunno. Mia was talking about going clubbing. Haven't decided yet."
"That could be fun."
"What happened to the work out?"
Vince rolled his eyes.
"I'm not goinna drive her around all night. I can meet up with you two after."
Letty nodded.
"I think Leon's going. Jessie's working on… some project on that computer of his."
"Typical."
"Yeah."
There was not much else the pair wanted to say, and the silence that fell between them was a simple one. They sat, lost in their thoughts, for nearly 15 minutes before they both decided to clean up their work spaces. They retreated back to the house, Letty taking a shower as Vince settled in front of the TV. When she was done and dressed she crashed next to Vince on the couch, who had settled on watching the Godfather. The pair sat in a comfortable silence until Mia and Leon got back after closing up the store.
Emma wandered around the small house, not knowing what to do before she got ready for work. Her dog, an english sheepdog named Tye, followed at her heels obediently. When she stopped pacing or changed directions, so did he.
The house was scarily spotless. Her roommate and best friend, Kyle, was a clean freak. He did a total clean up of the house at least two or three times a week.
Eventually she made her way out to the large, two car garage out behind their house. The whole layout was quaint, it was set on a hill off one of the main roads, giving the illusion of seclusion. The driveway wound all the way around the house out to the back, next to the pool and small yard.
The house itself was small and blue with white trim and shutters. With one bedroom, two bathrooms, and a live-in basement, it was the perfect size for all it's three occupants. The garage was almost the same size as the house, but that was what had made her buy it in the first place.
She walked through the open door. A set of stairs led to a small, open loft one level up, but aside from riding gear it was empty. There were an assortment of bike parts lining the walls and in boxes around the garage. With a fully equipped tool chest, there was never a need for a mechanic.
The ground level was where her main goal was. A dozen different bikes were parked in their own little area of the garage. Her two road bikes were parked side by side, and her three off-road bikes, two 250s and a 125, were at the opposite end of the garage. Kyle's bikes were in their own little area. They had both grown up on a dirt track, following around Emma's dad, who had been a professional motocross racer.
Emma walked over to her newest toy, an ATV, and clambered on, shifting side to side. She had not had a chance to drive the little 350 yet, she had only picked it up the day before.
She had moved onto inspecting the engine when she heard the tell tale sounds of tires. Tye ran out of the garage to meet Kyle's truck in the driveway, nearly attacking the man when he climbed out.
"Easy pal," Kyle said, petting the shaggy dog on his head. Kyle wandered over to the open garage door, and leaned on the frame.
"Figures you would be in here."
Emma rolled her eyes.
"I want to get this baby down before I finally ride tomorrow. You coming with me?"
"I didn't get the day off for nothing," he replied. Between the two, there were now three ATVs. Kyle had his own 500, while Emma owned a 750 and her new one.
"I can't wait to actually try a jump."
"Just don't go crashing it already."
"I can fix it if I do," she answered back.
Her father had died the year before, leaving his only child with the small fortune he had made throughout his career. A couple bikes that they still owned had been his. When she had announced her plans to move far away from the north eastern state, Kyle had immediately jumped at the chance to leave as well. The pair packed up the two trailers and were on their way across the country within the month.
Upon reaching California, they had eventually found their way to Los Angeles. Shacking up in a pet-friendly motel at first, it was a week before they found a suitable house. Emma had no problem paying for it outright, and they were fully moved in shortly after.
That was nearly four months ago. Kyle had quickly found a job at a busy restaurant, with only utilities and personal finances, it was not hard to make enough money to live. It had taken Emma slightly longer to find her own job, but with a year and a half of bar tending experience, she was finally employed at a slightly upscale night club downtown.
"Shouldn't you be getting ready?"
Emma looked at the clock that was hanging from the wall, and waved him off. It was nearly eight, and night was slowly starting to set in.
"I already showered."
"So you're going to work in sweats and a tank top?"
She gave him an annoyed look.
"It'll take me fifteen minutes to get changed and fix my hair."
"And then another fifteen to get there."
"Which means I still have a half hour of time to kill."
Kyle had been brought up in a military family. If his room was not spotless, he was not allowed to go anywhere until it was; similarly, if he was not at least ten minutes early for everything, he was late. As much as she loved the kid, it drove her crazy.
She could not complain about the house always being clean, however. The basement and her bathroom were the only part of the house that looked lived in. Of course, Kyle never went down there, so he did not need to know that they were not as clean as the rest of the residence.
"Well, it's your career at sake not mine."
Emma wanted to laugh, but she controlled the urge, instead settling on shaking her head.
"I think I will somehow live if they fire me for not being five minutes early."
Thanks to her dad, she had more than enough money to live for several decades without working. The need to stay busy had made her decide to retain her status as working class, though.
Emma sighed, getting to her feet.
"Fine. I will go get ready and then leave. Does that work for you?"
"Yes actually, it works nicely."
He was such an old maid sometimes. Nevertheless she followed Tye and him into the house, making her way downstairs. Emma had merely draped a white and blue dyed blanket from the doorway at the bottom of the stairs, for just a little more privacy since the door at the top of the stairs, connecting to the kitchen, was almost always open. The room was fairly large, falling under the upstairs bathroom, dining room and living room. Her bathroom was next to the stairs, directly under the front part of Kyle's room and part of the kitchen.
Her room looked open with the lack of furniture. Aside from her bed, she had a desk, a bookshelf, a small bed for Tye (not that he ever used it), and her rather large entertainment system. Her walls more than made up for the emptiness, however. The most prominent theme throughout the house, especially true for her room, was motocross. Images and advertisements were the remaining memories she had of her dad.
The name 'AJ Morgan' was displayed proudly on almost every picture.
With a sigh she grabbed the outfit she had picked out for work and changed. The perks of working in a night club: party clothes were an acceptable uniform.
Emma pulled on her leather, mid-calf doc martens which completed her choice look for the night. Moving from her bed to the bathroom, she grabbed the hairspray. Styling her hair was not difficult; it fell to the middle of her back in tight, light-brown waves. The product just helped keep it presentable throughout the night. Finished she returned to her room and grabbed the light, brown duster that was hanging over the back of her unused chair, she slipped it on and made her way back upstairs, flicking off the lights when she reached the top. Kyle glanced back at her when she entered the room before shaking his head and returning to making his dinner.
She rolled her eyes at his blatant disapproval of her choice of attire, he really was an odd sort. He partied as much as the next 25 year old, but when it came to work he could not get out of the idea that it it should be strictly professional.
Emma accepted the plate of food he held for her, grabbing a cup and the pitcher of water from the fridge before settling at the small table.
Emma was in charge of groceries and coordinating meals for the pair all week. Depending on schedules, they took turns making the food. She bit into the Caesar salad gratefully.
"Thanks bud."
Kyle simply nodded as he put down Tye's bowl before joining her. The three ate, with occasional banter between the two. Although he could not talk, they treated Tye as though he was a person, including scolding him for getting bits of dog food on the kitchen floor.
"It was senior day," Kyle was explaining, as Emma nodded with an amused expression on her face. Oh woe was the man who had to wait on table after table of the elderly all day.
She finished quickly and rinsed her plate before loading it into the dishwasher.
"See you in the morning," she said, before she paused at the door.
"What time are we heading to the tracks tomorrow?"
"I was thinking one. You're usually up by then. We can grab something for lunch on the way out of town."
Emma nodded in agreement, before opening the back door and shutting the screened part behind her. She made her way along the stone walk way, assisted by the back porch light and the light at the front of the garage. She reached up to pull the garage door shut before she climbed into her Jeep Wrangler, pausing to search for her keys in her pocket. Due to the constant heat, she had taken the roof and doors off the vehicle, and they were safely being stored in the garage. Kyle helped her put them back on when rain was in the forecast, but for the moment she was in the clear.
She made her way through town, pulling into the alleyway that was next to the club. Downhill and in the back of the large brick establishment was a small parking lot for employees. She parked and climbed back out of her car, using another key to let herself in the back door. It was a well lit cellar, the lounge as the staff tended to refer to it. There were several large armchairs and couches set up around the room that they could relax on during their breaks, as well as a private bathroom and a small kitchen area.
She slipped her keys back into her pocket, and took off her jacket, hanging it on one of the free hooks. She walked up the staircase, exiting the door that was next to the restrooms, making her way back to the main part of the club and over to the bar.
"What the shit is it tonight? Did I miss some sort of holiday announcement?"
Melissa was a rough girl with several piercing and tattoos. She was typically the one to lose her temper amongst all her coworkers. Emma could not complain though, seeing as she did not take her anger out on the younger girl too often. Which was good, because the pair worked together nearly every time Emma was on the clock.
"Liss, we work in a club, as in raves, parties, loud music, lots of alcohol. You'd think you'd be used to this by now."
"Zip it kid, and get to work," the dark haired girl said, pushing her along the counter. She crossed to the far side of Jenny, a small blonde from the valley who worked with the pair on Mondays and Wednesdays. Managing tonight was Gale, one of the two owners of the club. He was a big guy who would probably make a better bouncer than any of the bouncers they had. She sent a wide smile across the counter, her deep blue eyes meeting the brown of her first customer.
"What can I get for you tonight, sir?"