Yay for fast chapters! 3 And more yay for reviews! 3 I love you guys-no bad reactions so far-and here's another chapter for appreciation~ :3

D8 How will our favorite protagonists survive? Will they get back together or will their love continue to fall apart? And who's this silly little Frenchwoman that's squeezed herself into the equation? Find out now in Chapter Fourteen.

Chapter Fourteen

The team avoided Marlene that day all through the next, unless she approached them or if what they need from her is urgent. Breakfast, lunch and dinner was out of the question; she had skipped both meals that day and all three the next. Before long she was looking thin, her gaze scant and empty. She was like a shell of her former self. As Lightning took a shot at cheering her up, he asked her to join him in a search for things for Sally. She reluctantly and weakly agreed, but everywhere she looked she was reminded of times with him, and ended up more hurt than ever as they returned empty-handed. Grief-stricken she returned to work on her article, trying to bury her sorrows in her work, only to write up a blank because the whole article seemed to revolve around him.

Francesco, on the other hand, couldn't seem to take Marlene off his mind, and thought up of ways how to get back on track with her. Giuseppe had put him in that frame of mind, and it worked better for him than being sad all day. But as paths cross, stares exchange and tension spikes the air, Marlene just sadly passes by, leaving Francesco with another bout of heartbreak.

Then there it is: the day of the final race of the World Grand Prix. As the racers line up in the grid, Francesco looks over to McQueens pit out of habit, only to find a laughing Marlene alongside two joyous twins. She seemed to have gotten over their spat four days ago, and turned to face forward, but noticed Lightning laughing along and commenting on his radio.

"Now, Francesco," a familiar voice sounded on his radio, "you must focus."

"Don't worry, Giuseppe," he growled determinedly. If she can get over it, so can I. "I will."

As the red lights turned green, the racers zoomed away, once again leaving the crews to watch in the live-streamed TV's. By then, Francesco was still second, Lightning right in front of him. And although it was only the first lap, Francesco wanted to secure himself in first place. Before long, his focus cracked into frustration, and Marlene broke into his thoughts.

No! he thought. I mud focus! He shook himself, and pushed the pedal to the metal, pouring on speed. He wanted to win. There was nothing more important in the world that meant more to him now. Other than winning the World Grand Prix? You would have to absurd to even think that of Francesco now. For him. For Giuseppe. For his Mama. For the glory of Formula Racer. He easily passed his rival, who was stunned by Francesco's performance that day.

"Whoa, looks like Francesco's pouring it on today," Brent Mustangburger noted.

"I haven't seen him go this fast this or last year," David Hobbscap mused, wide-eyed.

"Francesco, what are you doing!" Giuseppe exclaimed, alarmed. "Remember what happened to you when you were nine!"

But the warning came to late. His engine overheated under the stress and he buckled. His Italian fuel, flowing freely into his engine, leaked into parts it shouldn't be leaking into, and under the high, hot temperature of the overheated engine it combusted, flames erupting from behind him, smoke flowing from his exhausts and from any other opening they can find. He skidded to a halt, and the over racers fought to avoid him, burning rubber as they swerved around him. Lightning, on the other hand, had screeched to a halt as he made a U-turn, racing to see to his friend. This was the first time he saw his friend in agony in the truest sense of the word. His teethe were gritted hard, like he was preventing a scream from passing through, and his eyes were shut tight, until he opened them again, but only quarter to halfway.

Somewhere, he knew that Finn and Holley were scrambling around, trying to figure out if Axlerod had gone and done things all over again like last year, but Lightning had the gut feeling there was no such thing. Francesco had really bust his engine this time, electromagnetic beam or not.

As he watched his friend go through the pain helplessly, Lightning shut his own eyes, and knew that Francesco's pain wasn't so bad, because an otherworldly sound had pierced his eardrums. Marlene had shrieked.

"Whoa; it seems that Francesco has just had an accident! Flames and smoke behind him doesn't look too good for his condition," David Hobbscap's voice reported through the speakers.

"Some of them had screeched to a halt, awaiting orders, but McQueen even turned around to see what happened."

"Hold on folks: a dark silver car wit ha headset has just raced out of the pits and onto the track!" Darrell Cartrip exclaimed.

"Marlene, wait!" Tia's voice sounded in he rears over the radio, then squabbling and arguing, then the whistling of the wind as she raced away.

"Is that and Audi R8?" All the cameras focused tightly on Marlene as she drove headlong. "Mind you, the only R8 known to be here is Marlene Stevenson, rumored to be Francesco's new lover."

"I heard they've had a spat; we haven't seen them together since two days ago."

"Well, that doesn't matter now."

She drifted to a halt beside the two friends and lifted the radio mike. "Why isn't there an ambulance?" she asked breathlessly. When no one answered she shrieked, "Someone call and ambulance right now!" As the rest of the cars scrambled away, she moved to Francesco's side.

"Marlene," he murmured, wincing. He felt elation surge through his lines, but couldn't move out of the pain his butt was in.

"Don't try to talk," she whispered back. "You'll be fine."

"How dare you!" a French accent screeched. The Lightning turned to face a furious Nadine just yard in front of the two lovers.

"Oop, there egos the neighborhood," Mustangburger murmured as they watched.

"How dare I what?" Marlene challenged, eyes blazing with fearless ferocity.

"How dare you show your miserable face here and side by my Francesco?"

"Francesco belongs to himself," she roared, all softness gone.

You tell her, love, Francesco wanted to say, but could only wince in the volume of her voice. Talk about shouting beside him. Yeesh.

Nadine thrust her bumper to Marlene's. "I am his petite amie. I am his one and only love. No one else. Is that clear?" she growled eyes blazing.

"Let's leave him to decide who he wants, then you can badmouth me all you want," Marlene spat dangerously. "And this is not the time to fight over him."

"But I will be his petite amie," Nadine vowed.

The ambulances arrived, and the three cars backed away. As the van took Francesco, Marlene set her headset down.

"I have to go; you never know when I'll be needed," she said to her red friend, who nodded, and started for the white and red cars. A tire blocked her path.

"You're not going anywhere."

She turned to see Nadine's hard eyes. Instantly Marlene's fury escalated. "If you had any care or love for him, you'd hurry to wait for the doctor's verdict, wouldn't you?" She smirked evilly. "Wouldn't want to make a negative impression now, would we?"

Nadine looked up thoughtfully, her tire to her chin. "Not really, but I don't want you to-" By the time she had lowered her eyes from the overcast sky, Marlene had gone.

Marlene muttered something under her breath as she quickly followed the ambulance. As the fury ebbed, the worry caught up, and she settled by the emergency room, almost shaking in exhaustion and anxiety.

God, I don't want him to die, she prayed. Please don't let him die.