Chapter 20: DESTRUCTION
-Past-
Vince slammed the wrench down and threw his head into his hands. He was tired. He was done. He felt like he had aged three years in the last couple of months. It wasn't easy. Taking care of the girls. Taking care of the garage. The shop. Paying the bills. As much as everyone helped out, he was struggling. He was racing more than ever now, trying to make all ends meet, even if it meant going crazy.
He stood up and walked into the office, slamming the door shut behind him, leaving Leon and Jesse staring after him. He fell into the desk chair and sighed, throwing his feet up on the desk and leaning back into the chair. Vince had pushed them all away, focusing on the tasks at hand. He was angry. He was tired. He was lost.
Mia and Letty had become thick as thieves after graduation. The summer had allowed them to spend a lot of time together. They had to, V was always out working and earning money- one way or another. Amira was another story. He felt that he owed her more than he owed everyone, but he was too scared to do anything about it. He owed her everything- he should've been sitting in jail right now too. But she took the heat. She risked going to jail for him.
He did her dirty work. He took on that responsibility for her. He felt guilty. Dirty. No matter how much he scrubbed and no matter how hard he worked, he still felt guilty. Dirty. All he could do was drown himself in his work and when that wasn't good enough, buy a bottle and drown his sorrows in it. He owed it to her.
He watched as Amira began summer courses at the local college, while working on a nasty coke and drinking habit. They hadn't spoken since that night she came home high as shit and marked by another man. He knew he didn't have a right to say anything to her about that- she was no longer his. And she proved that to him every time she had the chance. Always picked up different men at the races, but she never dared to bring any of them home. He knew he couldn't complain. He spent all his time worrying about Mia and Letty, knowing that he owed it to Dom and forgot all about her.
She loved school and working at the garage. He figured that as long as he stayed out of her way, she would be good. She would be able to finish up and get as far away from his fucked up self as fast she could. So she could be somebody. So she could be free from his dirt. From his guilt.
He watched her, like a hawk. For now, her habits were under control. They didn't interfere with her school work or with her shifts down at the garage. Usually on the weekends. Almost always when he woke up next to a skank from the races. He could tell, because the next day he would find her silent. Silent and staring off into the distant.
That's exactly how Vince found himself a year later. In that same position. Feet up. Leaning back in the chair. Except this time, there was a bottle of whiskey in his hands and the shop had been closed for hours. This time, he was at the local bar. Usual routine for him. He was self destructing before everyone's eyes.
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Vince rolled over and kissed the latest skank he brought home before pushing her off the bed and telling her to hit the road. The bimbo flipped him off and got dressed, leaving his room in a hurry. He got out of bed and slipped into a pair of basketball shorts before heading towards the bathroom. On his way back, he stopped in front of Amira's door, contemplating if he should knock.
How would that conversation go? He knew it would go bad. There was no way in hell it would be good. Not after avoiding each other for almost a year. They both played a hand in that. They both made sure they didn't cross each other's paths, while giving the other no reason not to. Letty and Mia rolled their eyes every time they watched them walk on eggshells around the other. They also watched their best friends become lost in their own little worlds.
They didn't intervene, knowing that within a few months, Dom would be back. "He'll fix everything," Mia told Letty as she watched Amira leave the house, knowing that she wouldn't return for days. "I hope he fixes both of them," Letty said, nodding towards the basement. The girls embraced in a hug, knowing that soon their rock would be back. Soon they would be a family again.