Chapter 11: Men or mice
"Go on then Nolo" Dan urged as he shoved a reluctant Nolo that much closer to the corner of the corridor the lounge room could be found on. The girls were planning a bonding night and were taking over the lounge, none of the men would need the room but it was the principle of it; the girls should have made sure it was ok not just take it over for the night. The men were suddenly threatened when the women metaphorically pissed on the room; claiming it at theirs, that was a big blow to the men's masculinity and they needed to show them who was boss.
"But why me?" Nolo moaned resisting against the ever pushing Dan.
"You drew the short straw so go already" He huffed getting closer to the end of his wick, Nolo should man up and Dan was just the man to make him do it. With one more hard shove Nolo lost his balance and stumbled forward hitting the wall in front of him with a bang.
Hoping no one but Dan saw Nolo quickly picked himself up from the floor rubbing the sore side of his head that made contact with the hard wall; along with rubbing what was left of his pride.
"Nolo is that you?" A sweet voice asked slightly worried. Embarrassed that someone saw his tumble Nolo turned the way he was just shoved determined to run past Dan before he could be caught but sadly luck was not on his side. In three strides Dan had rugby tackled Nolo and had successfully pinned him against the wall without any chance to escape.
"Suck it up Pasaro…" He snapped now reaching the end of his wick "…you have two choices right now you can go out there and be a man…" Dan gestured towards the corner with his chin hoping this tactic would work "…or you could leave and be a mouse, your choice" No man should question another mans masculinity that was hitting below the belt, Dan was trying to do this for Nolo's own good and by the look on Nolo's face it was working.
Nolo's hazel eyes blazed as they looked up into Dan's grey, a look of intense determination on his face.
"Let go of me otherwise I can't give the girls a piece of my mind" Nolo demanded now more determined to show just what he thought of the girls. With a triumphant smile Dan stepped back to allow Nolo room to march over to the woman who called out; it was Hope. With Dan's watchful eye Nolo stormed round the corner and into Hope's line of sight, Hope was trying to pin something onto the door of the lounge but was having great difficulty; as soon as Nolo reached her said girl took a step back to admire her work, Hope's head tilted to the side so she could give her work a critical eye.
"What do you think?" She asked sweetly giving Nolo what she called her alluring smile; he fell for it hock, line and sinker. Pinned to the door was a piece of paper with the words 'No boys allowed, painful removal of testosterone if you dare enter' beautifully written. With Nolo now making contact Dan left with out being noticed confident Nolo would come though for the men.
"That's pretty…" Nolo sutured as a slight blush graced his cheeks. As soon as the words fell out of his mouth Nolo hastily tried covered his mouth but thought better of it, maybe he could charm his way into Hope apologizing for the women taking over the room "…just like you" Nolo said a moment later as he leaned against the wall making the muscles he had to stand out.
"Nice try lover boy…" Hope purred offhandedly as she repined the paper to the door "…that won't work on me" Nolo stood there opened mouthed as he gaped at the Angel twin. How was it possible she could deflect his charm? No women had ever resisted his charm, what was going on? Had he lost his touch?
"No really the handwriting is really neat, I just have a scribble" Nolo defended trying the charm one more time.
"Like I said won't work with me and this is messy" Hope repeated once again pinning the hand made sign onto the door.
"Man you are one suborn chick" Nolo muttered under his breath, thinking up another plan of action.
"You both made it" Hope happily chirped as she once again pinned the sign onto the lounge door, Lani and Karma had now arrived for the girl's night; this was his last chance. Hope seamed to be in her own little bubble that included Karma and Lani as she ignored Nolo beside her. One thing you never did was ignore Nolo Pasaro.
"But what if we need something in there?" Nolo protested wanting to make his presence known as his hand waved towards the closed door.
"Then deal with it" The woman said stubbornly back at the Latin racer as she looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Nolo's mouth open and closed a few times as he tried to think of a snappy come back but nothing came to mind. Seeing he had lost this fight Nolo stomped away from Hope, swept passed Lani and Karma with a hot head muttering to himself about thick headed girls.
XxX
"So how did it go?" Dan asked as Nolo reached the group of huddled men in the Teku garage area. The Metal maniacs were in their area doing their own thing along with, Banjee who was talking with Monkey as they flitted around the cars, Tork was with Pork Chop as they talked about the good old trucker days and last but not least Wylde was sending glares across the large space between him and his brother as his fingers busily worked on his car.
"Sorry guys" Was all Nolo had to say.
"Man we need to do something about those women" Alec thought out loud looking in the direction the catwalk and the room the women were in could be located.
"I tried guys, I really did but I came face to face with the thick headed twin called Hope Angel" Nolo sighed as he looked down at his shoes, his masculinity taking an even heavier blow. Wyldes glares moved from Kurt to Nolo when the racers words finally drifted over to the Metal Maniac garage but everyone were to busy in thoughts or doing their own thing to notice the subtle change.
"You better take that back" Wylde hissed towards Nolo while talking a menacing step towards the Latin racer.
"What are you going to do about…" Nolo sneered back "…tell your little girlfriend that Nolo said a very bad thing about her" Nolo teased as he looked towards the raven haired racer.
"She is not my girlfriend…" Wylde bellowed as he stormed across the large gap that separated him and Nolo "…and that is the last straw you punk" It was a good job Nolo dodged the first swing Wylde aimed at him, by the force of the swing he could have ended up with a broken nose or even a cracked jaw.
"Calm down buddy" Shrimp soothed trying to block the next fist heading Nolo's way.
"Someone's getting pretty angry over a girl he's not even dating…" Nolo spat, his hazel eyes dark pools as they glared at Wylde "…maybe little Markie has his first crush, how cute" Nolo mocked in a baby voice as he stepped forward ready for the challenge. Wylde let out a primal roar as Rekkas and Drew came running over hoping to stop Wylde doing something he will regret later, Wyldes vision reddening as he lost his temper.
"Tame it Wylde" Tork bellowed as he marched over with Pork Chop and Jet right behind him on his flanks; Monkey had jumped into the boot of his car scared at Wyldes roars.
"Vert, Alec get Nolo out of here" Kurt advised as he watched from the side lines of the testosterone clash, if he physically went over to stop the fight Wylde would turn on him and it would just get worse for everyone around.
"Let's go eavesdrop on the girls" Alec suggested as he tugged on Nolo's arm hoping he would move but to no avail.
"Not until I…"
"No now Nolo" Vert stressed not wanting to see his team leader as flat as a pancake along with being black and blue from head to toe. Nolo took the hint much to everyone but Wyldes relief and stepped back sneering at the angered raven haired racer.
It took Pork Chop gripping Wylde from behind, Rekka and Drew holding one arm, Tork and Jet holding Wyldes other arm and Shrimp shoving Wyldes chest to prevent the young racer moving forward so he could get his hands on Nolo. Vert and Alec managed to get the Latin racer to the ramp leading towards the catwalk before Nolo ran back to his car almost thumping his head for his forgetfulness.
"Mustn't forget this" Nolo said more to himself as he gripped the recorder in the glove compartment of Synko.
"Get off me…" Wylde growled looking the way Nolo had just left still struggling to get out of the six man barrier "…you should have let me beat the snot out of him when I had the chance"
"Not until you calm down" Tork warned gripping that much harder when Wylde struggled more. Suddenly with out warning Wylde stopped moving when Tork's words had sunk in.
"Really…" Wylde exclaimed happily "…I can really beat the snot out of him once I've calmed down…" Wylde seamed to bounce on the spot as he smiled at Tork; he actually smiled "…thanks Tork you're the best" All six men let go in shock and looked at him open mouthed as Wylde happily strolled back to his car; getting back to the work he was doing before as everyone looked at him like he had two heads.
"He has been spending way too much time with the Angel twins'"
XxX
Nolo, Vert and Alec were quietly tip toeing towards the closed door of the lounge hoping the loud laughter from within would cover any noise they made.
"Truth or Dare" A voice that sounded like Mel's shouted when the three boys had nearly reached the door, just what they wanted now they could record the girls spilling their deepest darkest secrets. With an evil smile Nolo pressed the button and held the small recording device in his hand closer to the door, not wanting to miss anything.
"If you had to repopulate the planet with any male in the Acceledrome who would it be?" They guessed Hope asked. The prefect topic, just what they needed for blackmail material.
They knelt down beside the door knowing they could be there for a long time and being extra careful about it but Vert being Vert bashed the wall. There was a soft bang as Vert's elbow came into contact with the wall; Alec hastily shushed the blonde racer hoping they would not be discovered. The room was quiet for only a moment; they hoped it was while the girls waited for the first one to answer. They let out a deep sigh of relief when someone started talking.
"Well I don't know…" Dani said hesitantly starting off "…I mean Wylde, Tork, Jet and Nolo…" As soon as Nolo's name came up the racer looked rather smug "…are hot…" Nolo's smug smile became bigger; he knew he had not lost his touch "…but I hear that they prefer a bit of male attention then female if you know what I mean" Nolo let out a shocked gasp as Alec and Vert looked at him, their eyebrows raised. If that is what the girls really thought of him no wonder Hope buffed him off.
"Hay dude you should have said" Vert whispered.
"Good for you dude" Alec added with a hushed voice. Nolo just glared at them as he mouthed at them to shut up.
"And Monkey is so dreamy" Mel drifted off. Vert made a sound of degust earning a look from Alec; who would want to be with Monkey that just seamed wrong.
"I know I would love to get my fingers in Pork Chops wild mane of red hair while I scream out his name in the throws of passion" Amelia said her voice dripping with lust. Nolo and Vert looked at each other in degust as Alec's eyes glazed over. After a moment the young racer shivered at the mental image in his head making a small noise that was similar to a mouse being stepped on.
Alec almost fell over as he shivered so hard but managed to right himself before he made any noise; that was one of the plus points of being forced to do gymnastics as a child.
"What about Vert?" Karma asked. Vert looked up wanting to see what the girls thought of him, a small smile on his lips.
"Too blonde" Mel said with degust making Vert's smile fell.
"Yer, he would be like 'Where do I put this?'" Faith giggled from behind the door. Vert looked down at his crotch almost down heartedly as footsteps echoed in the hall. Nolo and Alec looked up to see Kadeem walking towards them. They tried to hush him with hand gestures and he must have got the message as he moved quieter.
"The same would go for Shrimp" Hope said with a giggle.
"But it's more sandy so he would get away with it" Dani laughed.
"I hear Rekkas very good in bed" Esmeralda pointed out.
"Would that be from personal experience or word of mouth?" Faith asked, Esmeralda
"Could you imagine what Kurt would be like?" Karma asked. This picked Vert's attention; this would be good to hear.
"He would be like 'Don't mess my hair. I just styled it'" Hope mocked. Alec covered his mouth to hide his laughter.
"What are you doing?" Kadeem asked and was instantly hushed by the three younger males.
"Some of us want to know what their getting up to in there" Said Nolo in a hushed voice.
"So we are recording this to show the others" Vert whispered interacting towards the recorder in Nolo's hand.
"Keep quiet or they will hear" Alec warned.
"Taro?" Esmeralda asked questionably.
"Been there done that" Lani said off handedly. Nolo looked to the other three males, all of them nodding in confirmation.
"I'll take you word on it..." Karma said as Nolo looked down at the recorder "...what about Drew?" No one answered but the men still lent forward to make sure they were not missing anything.
"I would so do Banjee and Skeet given half the chance" Mel said as Vert looked up at Kadeem who opened his mouth to talk; he was quickly hushed by Nolo.
"You could do it on the dance floor with Shirako…" Dani began excited. Nolo and Vert both smiled knowing what lines she was thinking along.
"…it would be to the beat of the music, you would need to find a fast paced song though" Mel finished.
"I found out Alec is very flexible…" Lani said. Alec looked towards the door glad someone knew about one of his hidden talents "…if that helps anyone"
"So different position potential then" Amelia said giggling "Sky's the limit" Alec had a huge smug smile on his face as he looked at the others, dancing on the inside as he had got off lightly. Vert looked at Alec with a 'don't be so snug look' which caused Alec's smile to grow bigger.
"Dan?" Someone asked.
"He shags anything that stays still long enough" Lani protested in degust. Kadeem covered his mouth to prevent the laugh from breaking free.
"What about Krakatoa or Kadeem?" Dani asked loudly.
"I hear that guys of a particular heritage have larger parts then other men do…" Hope began. All four men looked down at the waists, their heads tilting to the side checking, Vert and Nolo looked at each other before giving Alec and Kadeem a half glare.
"…so would they fit?" Faith finished.
"That leaves one man" Karma said. The four boys leaned closer to the door as the room took a deep breath in.
"TEZLA" The girls shouted as one shocking the four males crouched outside the door.
"WHAT!" Nolo exclaimed in shock as all four boys stumbled back, all of them falling onto the floor at the same time and landing with an almighty bang. Knowing their cover had been blown Nolo, Vert, Alec and Kadeem scrambled onto their feet and ran as fast as they could trying to get out of sight before someone came out the room.
XxX
Wylde looked back at his car with a smile on his face, he was rather happy with the work he had done to Spinebuster but Nolo had spoil his good mood by rushing back down the slope into the garage areas.
"You guys have to have a listen to this" Nolo called out as he ran towards the group of males gathered in the Teku garage, Vert, Alec and Kadeem right behind him out of breath. The Metal Maniacs watched on as Nolo fiddled with something in the middle of the large gathering, looking closer Wylde noticed it was a recorder, Nolo pressed a button and all the men leant closer so they could hear what had been caught.
By the time the tape was finished Kurt looked taken back, Shirako seamed not to care but had a small smile on his face, Dan looked insulted, Banjee had a smug smile on his face along with Skeet and Rekkas, Drew showed mock anger but laughed at the look on Jets face; it looked like someone had just ran over his cat, Krakatoa was looking down at his crotch and Shrimp was laughing hysterically. Banjee was laughing at what was going on and ran over to the Maniacs once he had the recorder in his hand.
"Listen to this" Banjee laughed as he rewound the tape and pressed play. The girls' voices came on as they talked about the guys; there was an occasional hush but the voices could be clearly identified. Pork Chop looked at his team leader shocked once Dani had finished talking with Wyldes deep laughter filling the air.
"Isn't it obvious bitch" Tork mocked in the most camp voice he could muster earning a deep chuckle from the muscled red head beside him.
"It's me guys…" Monkey hushed once his name came up. Pork Chop slapped Monkey on the back with a smile once Mel put in her pennies worth "…someone likes me" Monkey declared loudly as he danced around the group happily. Pork Chop looked at the device in Banjee's hand once his name came up; he looked away again as the heat of a blush crept up his cheeks. Taro just looked like he normally did once his name came up and he walked away once Lani basically said he was not worth it in an offhanded way.
"Now that is good…" Tork laughed deeply enjoying himself "…If half of that is true then I will eat my shirt"
"So…" Monkey piped up looking at Tork sadly "…you don't think they mean what they said?" Monkey asked down hearted as he looked at the floor, scuffing his feet.
"That's not what I meant Monkey" Tork kindly said as he clapped the smallest Maniac on the back "I just know they were wrong in some aspects, for one I'm not gay and from Wyldes reaction he isn't either"
"That's right Monkey man, I know from the way she said it Mel does have the hots for you" High pitched laughter suddenly filled the air stopping the fun and laughter in its tacks, all the men turned at the noise to see Faith and Hope strolling down the ramp happily talking to one another.
"Hi guys" Faith greeted trying to keep a straight face, some of the men gave them big smiles while some just gave them dark looks from the corner of their eyes.
"Oh Monkey what's wrong?" Hope asked rushing over to the saddened racer as Faith made her way towards Moonlight Temptress, they passed most of the male racers on the way and both girls mentally noted it was like walking into the lions den.
"Nothing" Monkey said in his most cheery voice he could muster but the girls saw right though the fake happiness.
"Don't be upset Monkey Man" Hope soothed wrapping her arms around him as she used Pork Chops nickname.
"What's up then?" Faith asked kindly; she was heading towards her car but stopped when she saw the saddened Monkey, instead she came over also wrapping her arms around him.
"He thought Mel meant what she said but now he is not so sure" Pork Chop offered as he stood beside them; this was unusual for Monkey normally he was happily bouncing around, Pork Chop looked on worried for his friend as the girls held him tighter. Monkey had his head resting on Hopes shoulder, her brown hair falling slightly into his face but it did not prevent Pork Chop from seeing the wink Monkey sent his way. He was so shocked Pork Chop started to laugh, that was the happy Monkey he knew.
"Why are you laughing Flame head? Faith asked annoyed, stepping away from her sister and Monkey to stand between them and the deeply laughing Pork Chop.
"Your friend is in pain and all you can do is laugh at him" Hope exclaimed shocked as she moved Monkeys head to rest above her heartbeat causing Monkeys smile to grow even bigger; Pork Chop laughed deeper seeing the smile on the small racers face causing Hope to pull Monkey that much closer to her. Monkey held tighter onto Hope and nuzzled his head into her chest acting like he was really upset, Hope responded by holding him even tighter to her.
"Take a closer look at Monkey" Wylde said nodding towards the now very happy racer; for some reason he wanted to rip Monkeys head off and wipe that smug smile off his face. Confused Faith turned to see what Pork Chop and Wylde were seeing; Monkey with a big smile on his face as he rested his head on Hope's bust.
"You cheeky bugger" She laughed as Hope looked down.
"Where you even upset?" Hope asked with a smile as she half shoved Monkey away from her.
"Only for a moment…" Monkey cheered looking rather happy with himself "…thanks for cheering me up I needed that" Before the girls had a chance to catch him Monkey ran and took cover in his car Rollin' Thunder; the girls just stood there laughing.
"Monkey 1, Angel twins 0..." Faith laughed rushing back to her car to get what she came for; which was really nothing but the boys didn't need to know that. Faith pretended to pocket something before calling over to her twin "…come on twin, we need to get back"
"Can you give Monkey something for me?" Hope asked the closet person which happened to be Wylde standing next to her. 'That worked out well' She mentally thought as she looked up at Wylde.
"Depends what it is" Wylde replied looking down at the younger twin.
"This…" Hope whispered as she leaned onto her tip toes and gave Wylde a kiss on the cheek "…and tell him that was a freebie. Next time he won't be so lucky" With a smile and a wink Hope ran off after her sister, as she ran something small and light purple fell out of her pocket, bouncing a few times before settling on the hard ground; Wylde went to call her back but she had already tripped up the ramp and was out of sight.
Wyldes brown eyes looked though his dark glasses to see no one else had noticed the small device and had gone back to their own thing now the twins had gone. So deciding to do the right thing he picked up the small device that turned out to be her phone and went to return it to its rightful owner.
XxX
Finally Wylde reached the lounge room and noticed the sign, glad he wasn't going in Wylde raised his hand to knock when a soft voice said his name, intrigued Wyldes fist hovered in the air as he listened.
"Well I'm on a different team so I wouldn't know" Karma voice said as it drifted though the door. 'What would Karma not know?' Wylde asked himself.
"Why did you want to know?" Was the next thing he heard and it sounded like Lani said this. Getting confused Wylde thought though all the possibilities.
"You never told me that" Faith said shocked bringing Wylde out of his thoughts again only to go right back into them.
"I knew them both in the World Race…" Lani began. 'This is to weird' Wylde thought 'What is going on in there?'.
"Do you…" Faith started kindly. That was when Wylde walked away not wanting to know the rest of the question. Whatever was going on in there was their business; if anyone of them wanted him to know then they could tell him.
A small smile made it's way onto Wyldes face as he thought this, he had really changed a lot since he meet the Angel sisters; before he would have listened and then barged in either making fun of them or using the information he had heard for blackmail. Deep chocolate brown eyes looked though dark tinted glasses to the small purple phone clutched tightly in his hand; that could wait until tomorrow. For now Wylde went back to his room to think up a plan for returning the phone back to it's rightful owner.