Chapter 8

Monday morning found Leon hard at work inside the garage. He'd arrived at DT just as the sun was rising up and over the Hollywood Hills, bathing the city of LA in early morning sunshine and hinting at the hot and sticky, sweltering day to come.

A week had passed since that "chance" encounter at the bakery where Lara worked. One week since Leon had seen her, or even spoke to her. And at the rate things were going, it didn't seem very likely that he ever would again.

From the moment he'd first seen her again, he hadn't been able to function properly. It wasn't just that he'd been awakened by dreams of her nearly every night. Nor was it the fact that she had the starring role in all of his fantasies and daydreams. Well, at least that had only wreaked havoc upon his sleeping patterns. No, he'd be functioning perfectly well if not for the fact that during every waking moment his thoughts were constantly occupied by images of her, turning 'round to face him as she'd done that day--long, dark hair tied back away from her face...loose strands escaping, falling into those stormy gray eyes... that tall, graceful body he remembered so well...the soft, gentle swells of those curves he'd held, caressed, loved...

When they'd first become intimate, she'd constantly bemoaned the excess bits of flesh around her hips and thighs; suddenly so adamant about beginning a regime of health and fitness, until he'd palmed her hips, pressing light kisses to the very places she hated, trying to show her how much he loved every bit of her, no matter what she thought of herself. Eventually, he'd begun to suspect that her tirades were no longer as much about her "being fat," as they were for show. He'd laughed when he first realized what was going on, and Lara had only smiled that beautiful, toothy smile of hers as he'd gently pressed her back upon his bed and shown her just how much he appreciated her body.

Leon caught himself smiling as he installed a set of forged pistons in the supra he'd been working on all morning. Most of the girls he'd hooked up with over the years were naturally confident and well aware of their many positive attributes. Lara, on the other hand, had always been slightly self-conscious in the boy department, never quite sure of her actions or the signals she was sending out to guys. Although he thought he'd told her often enough, Leon supposed she'd never fully been aware of how deeply she affected him.

Thoughts like these had plagued Leon for months after Lara had gone back home to New York, leaving him wondering if the reason she'd left him was ultimately because she really hadn't know how much he'd loved her.

Leon shook his head. No, she'd known.

Feeling the familiar anger bubbling up inside of him again, he pushed himself away from his work and reached for his beer, taking a long, hard pull before getting back to work.

No matter that he thought he'd put all this shit behind him...just seeing her again brought it all back again--the love, the pain, the loneliness. On some level, he realized that she'd still had school to finish and that her mother and her grandmother were expecting her to come home at the end of the summer. And after all, Dom had told him that she was only visiting and not to get too attached. But still. He'd really thought that if he just told her how he felt, she might've changed her mind and stayed with him. And now that she was back...he didn't know what to feel. Either way, he couldn't stop thinking about her...

"Leon?"

Leon bolted upright, banging his head against the hood of the car. "Ow--the hell..." he cursed. He'd found himself doing that a lot lately.

"Leon, what are you doin' here so early man?" Dom asked, an amused smirk tinging his features as he pushed the garage door all the way open to get the work day started.

Moving away from the supra, Leon rubbed his forehead agitatedly, only adding to the smattering of grease already there. A frown darkened his face as his green eyes shifted towards Dominic, regarding him steadily in the morning light.

"You alright, man?" Dom asked, one dark eyebrow quirked in curiosity as he stepped closer to Leon, folding his thick arms across his broad chest.

"Fine."

"Uh...right. Well, it's just you, me and Jess today, bro. Let's getting some stuff ready for Ava's birthday party this weekend."

Leon nodded and got back to work. Moving to slide underneath the supra's chassis, he found his thoughts wandering back over the past few years as he checked the oil and brake fluid.

After all that shit with Tran and Brian had gone down a few years ago, Brian had disappeared. Leon remembered with an almost startling clarity how tense those few days had been while he and Letty waited for the others to show. Dom and Mia were supposed to join up with them as soon as they found Jesse, but things hadn't gone according to plan. With Vince taken to hospital and Jesse near dead, they'd turned back and the four of them had stuck close together, unwilling to leave their friends behind.

And when a few weeks had passed and no charges in connection with the hijackings had been laid against any of the them, they'd all decided to take the opportunity afforded them and try to change their lives around. No more jacking trucks, no more illegal bullshit. They still went to a couple races every once in a while and kept in touch with the street scene with DT still up and running strong. They went to Race Wars pretty regularly for the thrills and some extra cashola, but they weren't the centre of the scene anymore, and Dom had been reduced to a sort of local legend; he was no longer 'King of the Streets.' Surprisingly enough, that hadn't seemed to bother him all that much.

After the accidents, Let had found out that she was pregnant. Thankfully, she hadn't lost the baby, but the scare had been enough to make Dominic take a step back and re-evaluate his life and the decisions he'd been making since he'd gotten out of prison. Leon had never seen he and Letty so happy.

Vince was still into cars and racing like the rest of the team, but after nearly losing his arm to that 18-wheeler (and also due to the fact that he'd finally snagged Mia), his infamous temper had cooled--to a degree, anyway--and the next thing they'd known, Vince was announcing that he'd always wanted to learn how to build and renovate houses and he'd gotten a job with a small, local construction company. After a year of working for JDH Housing, his boss had admired his drive and dedication so much so that he'd been offered a leg-up in the company and was now a part-time foreman. Although Leon missed working with his buddy, he was happy that he'd found something he really enjoyed. And he was doing really well with it, much to Mia's delight.

Shortly after Vince and Mia had started dating, Mia had ditched the idea of med-school and had instead decided to work towards getting her teaching degree. She was now teaching grade 7 at the local middle-school.

Jess and himself were still working at DT with Dom and Letty, though Letty had also taken on the management of Toretto's market. She'd hired a couple of college students to help run the store, while the rest of them focused on keeping DT running smoothly and bringing in more business.

Things had been going great for all of them, despite the different directions their lives seemed to be going in, what with Dom and Letty having Ava and now getting married, and Vince and Mia starting their own family, while he and Jess had moved out of the fort into an apartment of their own. And yet, in spite of all these life-changing events, Leon felt like he was stuck in a rut. Lately, he'd been entertaining thoughts of doing something else for a while. Maybe taking a vacation or going back to school. He wasn't sure what exactly was causing these feelings; he just felt like something was missing.

Inevitably, his thoughts returned to Lara. He wondered when he'd see her again...if it'd be soon...or if he even ever would. With a weary sigh, Leon slumped back on the creeper and resigned himself to another wasted day.

---

It was nearly lunch-time and things had been slow and steady, though things were bound to pick up at any moment.

"Mia!"

Spinning around on her stool, magazine splayed across her lap, Mia came face-to-face with one very angry-looking Lara.

"Uh..hey" Mia stuttered, reaching for her bottle of apple juice and taking a quick sip, "how's it going?"

"Hmm, let me think," Lara growled dangerously, pausing for emphasis, "it's going like crap!"

Mia flinched and eyed her cousin curiously, wondering why her eye was twitching like that. "What's the matter?"

Marching further into the store, Lara leaned over the counter, knuckles white from the death-grip she had on the countertop. "Mi--if you weren't pregnant, I'd kill you! I can't believe you sent Leon over to my work like that!"

Mia rolled her eyes and closed her magazine to devote her entire attention to her cousin, "Oh gosh, not this again."

"What are you talking about?" Lara asked, some of her anger dissipating as she nervously shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

"The day Leon went to the bakery and saw you, he came back to our house all pissed off with me for meddling in his life." Mia snorted, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning back against the wall, "I think he was probably more pissed that it seemed like you didn't actually want to see him again."

Lara didn't know what to say to that. Of course she'd wanted to see him. Ever since she'd left LA that night so long ago, thoughts of him had never strayed far from her mind. But there were...reasons...why she hadn't been to see him. "Mia, of course I wanted to see him. I know it's been five years, but deep down I always hoped that somehow we'd end up back together again..."

"Then why don't you just go and talk to him? He's not seeing anyone. And I know he still cares for you, hun."

"You know why I can't do that. I shouldn't even be here talking to you right now..." Lara trailed off, her voice lowering conspiratorily as she looked around her.

"Oh, please," Mia sighed, suddenly frustrated. She knew that Lara and Leon had issues to work out and that they needed to get to know each other again. After all, they'd both changed so much. But they were making a bigger thing out of it than it was. "Lala, we're here for you. You know that, hun."

"It's not myself I'm worried about!" Lara cried, startling Mia into silence. "If he finds me who knows what lengths he'll go to just to hurt me again? My mother's dead because of him, Mia! She tried to take us out of his way and he came after us."

"I know--" Mia started, but was cut off.

"We were just trying to live our lives away from him. What if he finds me, huh? And he comes after you and Dom...or Leon."

"They'll find him, sweetie," Mia soothed, pushing herself up and out of her seat and groaning softly at the extra bit of effort that simple movement required, "And you don't have to worry about us, ok?"

Motioning for Lara to come around the counter, Mia waddled over to her, embracing her tightly. "We know how dangerous he is. I know what could happen, but are you honestly going to live your life scared and always looking over your shoulder? Are you gonna give up a chance at getting Leon back? You guys were so good together. You couldn't have forgotten."

"I didn't forget," Lara whispered, her face still buried in the crook of Mia's neck. "But who says he even wants me back anymore? He's probably had loads of girlfriends and...and it's been so long."

Mia released her from her hug and went back to her seat, propping her aching feet up on the counter, "The way you keep going on like that is starting to make me think that maybe you don't actually want him anymore. Yes, it's been a while and time changes people. Experiences change people. But there's no reason why you guys can't at least try again, if that's what you both want. And if there's nothing there. IF there's no more spark between you two, then you can just be friends, right?" Mia reasoned, tilting her head to look her cousin in the eyes. "Maybe you guys could be truly happy again if you could just get past all this insanity. You both deserve happiness and I know you still love each other. So just talk to him, okay?"

"But Mia--"

"It's your choice, Lara," Mia stated matter-of-factly, gently pulling out of the hug and plopping herself back down onto her stool, already reaching for her magazine.

An all-encompassing silence, save for the occasional slurping sound of Mia sipping on her apple juice, filled the store as Lara stood debating with herself.

Leaning back against the countertop, she motioned towards Mia's general direction, "What're you doing reading those greasy tabloids, teach?" She smirked as Mia stuck her tongue out at her.

"I'm on leave." Silence reigned again for a moment, before Mia raised one dark eyebrow challengingly, in the manner of her older brother, "If you want to talk to him, he's at the garage." She grinned triumphantly as Lara took one last look at her before promptly spinning on her heel and bolting out of the store.