Chapter 36
Two days after Mikio and Izumi's wedding Gavin got some news that had him a bit troubled. He had left without telling his fiancée that he was leaving and went to Akina for a few runs down the pass, but it didn't help settle his mind at all. It was a little past two in the morning when he noticed a set of headlights flashing in his rear view mirror. The buzz cut blonde pulled over and came to a stop after noticing it was the Night Wolves' one and only white S15.
"What has you pulling me over tonight Makato-kun?" Gavin said as the black haired man stepped from the S15.
"I should be asking what you're doing at Myogi at two in the morning," Makato answered with a chuckle, "You were headed this way when I spotted you so I spun around and came after you."
"I honestly didn't know I was, been running without thinking about where," the buzz cut blonde replied seeming a little distant, "Had too much else on my mind."
"Well, sounds to me like you should be in Akina," the Night Wolves leader said with another small chuckle.
"I was there, I think it was around midnight, scared the hell out of a couple of the Street Kings for sure, but it didn't help, I think I've lost touch with my mountain."
"Well I'll race you tonight, being the fastest active downhiller in Gunma, let's see what your professional training can do against the title holder. And if that doesn't help clear your head, maybe you should talk it over with Reiko."
"Reiko knows about all of it, she doesn't understand why it's bothering me as much as it is; to be honest I'm not sure why it bugs me so much, so let's race and we'll see what comes of it," Gavin said shaking his head before climbing back into his FD.
When the two cars reached the summit Gavin let Makato do the count before they launched onto Myogi's only uphill corner in the downhill course. The FD's power allowed the car to slip into the lead as the S15 struggled to keep up. When Gavin finally let out of the throttle at the first hairpin a serious gap had opened between himself and Makato.
As he slid through the first hairpin he watched the S15 nose dive and then slide out in an attempt to close the gap. It worked temporarily. Through the next two hairpins the gap closed almost completely because Gavin was watching Makato more than the road.
'He's cleaned up his lines since the last time I watched him,' Gavin thought as he watched the white S15, 'Got some new moves too.'
As the FD flew into one of the faster sections of the course the S15 managed to stay on its bumper. When the two cars reached the next hairpin Makato slid along the inside when Gavin started to slide out of the best line, taking the lead from the FD driver.
"Crap, I really must be bad off to make a mistake like that," Gavin muttered as he pushed the FD closer to the S15's rear bumper.
Makato and his S15 began to open the gap slightly through the next few corners. As he did this he braced for any attack that might come from the higher powered FD, but nothing came till they cleared the next set of hairpins. The 20B roared to its peak through the faster section and was easily able to pass the S15, flying around the next hard left at nearly suicidal speeds. Gavin was pinned to his seat by the g-forces as he prayed the car would stick to the proper path as he continued down the pass. The leader of the Night Wolves immediately picked up the change in pace as this friendly run down the pass turned into a true race for the final section of the downhill course. The S15's engine roared to its peak as well and started closing the gap millimeter by millimeter any place it could.
As the two cars flew into the last hairpins in the course Gavin's lead was only a couple of feet as Makato fought hard to keep up. Going through the first hairpin the FD hit a slick spot in the road causing it to slide out further than it should allowing Makato to once again take the lead spot. The S15 stayed out in front of the FD as they both cleared the second hairpin, but the FD moved alongside turning the next hard right corner into a game of chicken to see who would brake first and let the other take the fastest line.
'Come on FD, don't let me down now,' Gavin thought as he watched Makato's S15 fall behind him right before the corner.
The toreador red machine turned nearly sideways right before the corner allowing it to slow down enough before the buzz cut blonde corrected the angle and flew through the corner with the throttle pinned to the floor as he shouted out in triumph before the last left hander. Makato watched with a wide smile on his face as he tailed the FD around the last corners of the course to the line.
Once the two men were out of their cars in the lower parking area Gavin seemed a little less than happy about a victory over the Night Wolves leader.
"You had a decent idea Makato and it was fun racing you, but it didn't help clear my head," the FD driver said as he leaned against the toreador red machine.
"So unload, what has you so worked up that you're in Myogi three hours before a training session?" the black haired man asked leaning on his own white S15.
"My Dad's been reposted, my parents are going back stateside, problem is I'll be getting dressed for the first race of the season when they're getting on the plane," Gavin said with a hint of sadness in his tone.
"Dude, they're your parents, they know you love them, but you've lived out of their care for how long? And for the last two years at least your team has been your family," Makato said sounding slightly angry at the other man, "I'm not going to tell you that missing that send off is a good thing, but I'm sure they know why you can't be there," he added sounding a little calmer.
"But the fact that it's bothering me so much is what's making things difficult, I just don't understand why I feel like they're never coming back," the buzz cut blonde responded, "I know they are, they've already promised that they'll be here for mine and Reiko's wedding and even the championship race, even if we aren't in the running."
"How old were you when you came to Japan?" the Night Wolves leader asked sounding slightly confused now.
"I was thirteen when we moved to Japan, I was nineteen when I left the base and moved to Shibukawa."
"You've never been more than a phone call and a few hours' drive from them. This is the first time they'll be in a completely different place on the map isn't it?"
"Yeah, if you don't count vacations at Grandma and Grandpa's house in a different state that is."
"See there it is, you've never been too far from family, now they're going to be in a different country and you're feeling like you have no one left to turn to if things go shitty right?"
"When the hell did you get all psychoanalytic?" the buzz cut blonde asked with a chuckle as his mood started to lighten.
"I'm a business major with a psych minor, thought you knew that," the Night Wolves leader replied with a small chuckle.
"How would I know that? I barely know what to expect from you anymore, especially after that stunt you pulled at Myogi on New Years with Takako," Gavin replied seriously.
"Okay the thing with Takako was just funny as hell, we both enjoyed the faces you guys made but I was warned later not to do it again without warning," Makato answered with badly contained laughter.
"So what's the deal with you two right now anyway? It's been a couple months since new year."
"We're just friends, after I unloaded to her the night of the rematch races about my old man she and I started talking more outside the race scene. I honestly wouldn't mind if it turned into more, she's a sweet girl, but I think the age difference might get in the way."
"What age difference? I thought you two were close to the same age."
"Well I let you get away with calling me with the wrong honorific since you didn't know how old I really am and because you guys were so much better at the whole racing thing, but I'm older than Taniguchi-kun and I don't mean Kitamura either," Makato answered with a small chuckle, "I didn't even know Takako is only twenty-two now until after the rematch races against that team from Saitama."
"How much older? Because if you're in your thirties you look good," Gavin said with a chuckle of his own.
"Almost, I'm twenty eight and I graduate from my college courses two days before the season starts, so I'll still be there," the black haired man said sounding a little nervous about confessing his true age.
"Well, as Frank Sinatra might say, as long as you're young at heart," the buzz cut blonde laughed.
The two men went their separate ways thinking about what the other had said and contemplating a few ideas of what might come to pass. When Gavin arrived at his apartment, Reiko was standing in the living room in her nightgown and robe with a phone in hand and a worried look on her face that quickly shifted to happiness and quicker still to pure anger upon seeing her fiancé in one piece.
"Where were you?" the curly black haired young woman said as calmly as she could muster to hide the fury that was in her eyes, "You go out at near midnight, stay out till almost three in the morning without your phone and without telling me where you were going. You had me scared to death when I woke up and you weren't here."
"Reiko, I just needed to clear my head, I've been driving all over half of Gunma with no destination in mind, ended up going to Akina then Myogi where I ran into Makato," Gavin replied apologetically as he stepped toward her, she took a step back as he did, "He offered a friendly run down the pass and we talked a bit in the lower parking lot after, that's all that's happened tonight, if you don't believe me call Shou and Makato."
"I already did, Shou-san said you were at Akina around midnight and scared two of his guys, I just got off the phone with Makato-san and he said he didn't see you till an hour ago," Reiko said starting to show a little anger, "It's not that far to Myogi and no one knows where you were."
"Honey, I don't even know where I was, I didn't know I was at Myogi till Makato told me," her fiancé responded showing his own annoyance, "If you're thinking I was out running around on you, think twice and then think again, I've NEVER cheated on my girlfriends, even if they cheated on me and I would most certainly never cheat on the woman I JUST asked to marry me and love more than all of them combined."
"I never said that."
"But you were thinking it. Reiko you've known me for next to five years and three girlfriends, I'm loyal to a fault and you know it, I love you Reiko, I would rather cut off my leg than hurt you because that would hurt me less."
"I hate it when you do that," the curly black haired young lady said quietly while looking at her feet, "Always when I find a reason to be angry with you, you remind me why I love you in the first place."
"I'm easy on the eyes, what can I say?" Gavin said jokingly trying to lighten the mood a little.
"It's more than that, you're always so damn willing to do for others before yourself, you'd never think twice of leaving this apartment and moving into some house that's way too big for just us on some hill in the middle of nowhere if I asked you to," Reiko said leaving most of her earlier anger out of her still quiet tone, "Blow off training to go see a movie with Tatsuo and Mikio, or just going out to a mountain because some team leader asks to see a trick you pulled one night."
"Just remember this, I won't leave you till the day you ask me to," the buzz cut blonde said finally able to take her in his arms and hug her close, "Should that day come, know that I will probably die of heart break."
"Why do you love me?" Reiko asked quietly into his chest.
"I don't know, there are so many reasons I fear to list them for I don't want to leave any out, but I know it's real because having you angry at me just now was agony," her fiancé answered in a whispered tone, "Tomorrow night I'm turning my phone off and staying right here for the night."
Two hours later Gavin showed up at Ryosuke's school looking a little worse for wear. Ryosuke told him to get some sleep in the motor home after getting ready and that he'd be on third run since Mikio was there. A journalist was trackside just after training officially started to build profiles for his publishers to put in a special issue of the magazine as well.
Reiko took the first round with the NSX and was doing the standard ten warm up laps along the throttle course alone. Tatsuo was chasing her in the FD while Nika was getting interviewed and Mikio was helping out in the garage area. Nika answered the questions as best she knew how, leaving the fact that Tatsuo and herself were living together out for the sake of not having to explain their current situation as they'd previously agreed.
"So, Mr. Reynolds, since you're not in the car right now, mind giving me a few minutes of your time?" the reporter asked politely as Gavin stepped out of one of the bedrooms.
"Can you walk and talk? I need a cup of coffee," Gavin asked jokingly as he walked past the journalist.
"I'll do my best, so the standards first," The man said with a chuckle, "Name, age, birth place, hometown, and relationship status."
"Gavin Reynolds, I just turned 24, I can't remember where I was born, Shibukawa is home, and I'm engaged to Reiko Sasaki," the buzz cut blonde said pouring a cup of coffee, "You want a cup?"
"No thank you. Would you mind explaining the comment about your birthplace?"
"My Dad is in the air-force, we moved a lot when I was younger because of that is all. I remember most of the places we lived, just can't remember which place I was born."
"I see, and does your fiancée call Shibukawa home as well?"
"You can ask her that when she comes off the track," Gavin said not liking the tone the reporter had used.
The rest of the interview Gavin answered as honestly as he was willing, eventually thinking of the reporter as an idiot for not making the connection that his fiancée was the other GT500 driver before Reiko came in wearing the team's red, blue and gold fire suit and hugging the blonde before informing him that Mikio was on his tenth lap of 20.
"You must be the future Mrs. Reynolds," the reporter said with a chuckle.
"That's me alright, I hope Gavin didn't give you too much trouble," Reiko said leaning on the blonde slightly as he held her.
"Well, how should I put your name in the magazine ma'am?"
"Reiko Reynolds," Gavin answered with a small chuckle.
"May as well, I have no intention of leaving him, or asking him to leave," the curly black haired young woman said with a smile as she turned to face the reporter.
"What does that mean exactly?"
"He told me last night that even though he may be willing to do things for others, he would never leave me unless I asked him to and that if that day ever came he would die of heartbreak," Reiko replied with a wide happy smile as she repeated Gavin's words.
"That's very romantic of you Mr. Reynolds. Can I ask if you'll change the names on the cars before the season starts to match your relationship?"
"If we have time to get all the paperwork filled out to change her license and the registered names with the commission then yes it will get done before the season, if not it will probably be done before the second race," Gavin replied with a smirk at Reiko's surprised face, "Our team manager and owners are trying to straighten things out as we speak."
Once the reporter was done with the two of them Gavin took his seat in the GT500 NSX, floating on cloud nine as he'd just pulled the biggest surprise he'd ever had in mind. Ryosuke noticed the difference in the young man's driving as the blonde broke the current GT500 track record in his second lap, easily catching and passing the GT300 FD that Nika was in at the moment. Everyone with a radio in their ear could hear him quietly humming a tune that no one seemed to know.
'If this is what he's like when he's really on his game, we haven't seen him drive yet,' Keisuke thought as the NSX cleared the first corner of its third lap as a red and gold blur.
Gavin was in the seat tapping the wheel lightly as he drove without thinking about his lines or how fast he was going. His mind was completely on the good mood he was in thanks to his being able to surprise Reiko as he flew through the long s-turn. When he cleared the long straight after the s-turn he backed off the throttle and allowed the car to coast around the long u-turn that preceded the long two hundred and seventy degree right handed loop turn.
"Mr. Reynolds, feel free to continue the show you were just putting on any time," Keisuke's voice came through the radio with a chuckle as the blonde came out of the long u-turn.
The NSX's engine screamed out as the blonde young man floored the throttle till about halfway through the loop, where the engine noise died away. The red and gold machine slid off its line slightly before the engine once again screamed and the tail slid out in a wickedly fast drift that Gavin managed to switch the angle on and slide clear through the left handed u-turn after the loop. By the time he'd gotten the car back under his control he was glad the radio hadn't picked up his swearing.
"I didn't do that, I'm coming in early, the tach dropped to zero before spiking, my foot never left the throttle," Gavin said slowing way down allowing the FD to close the gap.
"Understood, we'll get the spare out," Keisuke said snapping his finger a couple times sending the crew members into high gear to go get the other car, "Having any trouble since?" he asked as the NSX on the track entered the first of the long straights just behind the FD.
"No but I'd feel better if I could take a shorter route, I'm going to up the pace, see if it does it again; I may have just pulled all the fuel away from the pump with the G-forces," the buzz cut blonde said with a chuckle.
"These tanks are designed so that can't happen Mr. Reynolds, you've been told that already," the spiky bleach blonde said with a chuckle, "But if you're willing, give it a go."
With that the engine of the NSX once again screamed to its peak and flew through the right handed hairpin at the end of the straight, closing the gap that had built up between it and the FD. There was a slight hiccup as he cleared the left handed v-turn after the second long straight, but nothing happened at the last right handed u-turn. He had no further trouble through the last three long corners of the course, but when he was about to enter pit lane, the NSX stalled completely right at the entrance and refused to restart. Once the crew had managed to get the car off the track and to the first box in pit lane Gavin climbed out and switched into the spare for the remainder of his laps, setting two more track records. While the mechanics worked on the first line car, Tatsuo was being interviewed by the journalist.
The day continued as it always did when a record was set by one driver, the others were pulled into the competition and new records were set by all at some point during their remaining laps. The reporter wasn't allowed to talk to anyone but Fumihiro until after the training session was over with to make sure no one was distracted at a possibly critical moment.
Once the training session was called to an end Keisuke and Takumi kept the journalist at bay, answering questions about their last seasons as drivers in the series they had now become team managers in. Mikio was the first out of the motor home forcing him to talk to the journalist for a few moments before he could sneak away back to his honeymoon on the coast.
"Mr. Reynolds, now that training is over what do you think happened to your car?" the reporter asked as the blonde stepped out of the motor home.
"I'm not sure, but we've been using these cars to train in for nearly a year so my guess is that at this point we've just started wearing out some of the parts that don't regularly get changed out, the fuel pump in this case," Gavin answered with a chuckle, "Things like this happen once in a while, nothing can predict it so why worry about it?"
"Very good outlook on the event. Your manager tells us that you're not always the first one setting the records like you did today, can you say who has started more of these record setting days?"
"Not really, it's hard to keep track of who sets what records since there are five of us, two cars and two sets of records."
"Now that you mention it, your team's test driver, Mikio Taniguchi was driving in both cars today, is there a reason behind that?"
"It started out as a way for him to get quick mechanical training after coming back when we were just students here, then we just kind of fell into the habit of letting him drive," Tatsuo answered honestly from behind the reporter, "He's actually the one that started the last record day we had."
"You and your teammates seem very calm about having someone from the press here, most team drivers are a little bit standoff-ish about being interviewed," the reporter said as he turned off his tape recorder after a couple more questions about the team in general.
"Well, being raised in a military family you get good at hiding nervousness," Gavin chuckled, "And Tatsuo here has always been a diplomat, he knows how to talk to people."
"Yeah, Nika and Reiko are the same way as I am, Mikio…" Tatsuo paused for a moment to think, "I'm not sure why he's so calm today, must be married life," he said with a laugh.
"I have to ask, completely off the record, Tatsuo-kun did you know that your future brother in law here is working to have your sister's name changed on the cars?"
"I had absolutely no idea," the black haired man answered with a shocked smile.
"Had to come out sometime, especially since it may not get done before the season starts," Gavin said with a smile of his own and a small shrug.
"Oh I talked to my boss, he said I should tell you that we can't legally print Ms. Sasaki's name as Reynolds unless you're already married, I'm guessing you've heard the same thing from the FIA about her license," the reporter said with an apologetic tone, "Might I recommend a small legal wedding by a judge before the season, just to get rid of some of the red tape?"
"I'm going to recommend the same thing Mr. Reynolds, FIA says no go on the name change without a legal document saying her name has changed," Ryosuke said from behind the reporter, "Can I at least know what brought this idea to me this morning?"
"Reiko and I had a fight last night, first one, hopefully the only one about the subject, thought this would be a good way to prove I was sincere," the buzz cut blonde said nervously.
"Wait, you mean to tell me this was a plan to get back in my sister's good graces? Gavin I should smack the hell out of you," Tatsuo said seriously, "You couldn't get out of her good graces unless you cheated on her."
Gavin's whole body tensed up and his eyes went wide for a split second, but it was long enough for Tatsuo to notice. The black haired man's attitude shifted after seeing this.
"You didn't," the man said in an unbelieving tone and looking as though he was ready to beat his teammate into the ground, "Please tell me you didn't."
"I would never Tatsuo, you know better, but she was thinking it up till I came home at three o'clock this morning," the buzz cut blonde replied with an equally serious tone, "I was out driving, nothing more."
Ryosuke pulled the reporter away while Tatsuo interrogated Gavin about everything he'd done the night before. The reporter left after informing Fumihiro that if they managed to get Reiko's name legally changed before the magazine went to print he'd change the name and relationship status of both drivers in the article and that the photographer would be by a little later that day.
Gavin took a few laps on the F1 course with the donated black Toyota Supra while Tatsuo chased him in the donated orange S15 after being convinced of his teammate's innocence. While in the cars the two men discussed what Gavin should do about his plan to change Reiko's name on the cars, coming up at the same ends of just going ahead and doing the quick and easy ceremony before the season. At least then Gavin's parents would be available for the ceremony and wouldn't have to come back until the championship race saving them money and his father's authorized leave time.
When they came off the track David Crandon was standing trackside with Ryosuke and Keisuke, Reiko and Nika were with the photographers and no one could get Mikio on the phone to get him back to the training facility. Tatsuo immediately made a call from his cell phone; the bleach blonde not only answered but said he'd be there as fast as the law allowed.
"Now why doesn't he jump like that for us?" Kyoko asked with a sarcastic tone.
"He never put the school's number in his phone, he didn't know who was calling," Tatsuo answered with a shrug before going with Gavin to the motor home to meet the photographer.
When Mikio finally got back the photographer had just enough daylight to take a couple pictures of the whole team as well as a few of just the five drivers and the cars for the school's main hall at Keisuke's request and payment. The students left going over what was said to the journalist and where to have dinner before going home for the night.
Two weeks later Makato Fujimoto, leader of the Myogi Night Wolves, was checking out a special edition of the very magazine that the Takahashi Racing Team was interviewed by. He wasn't surprised when Nika and Tatsuo only claimed a dating status, but when he caught sight of the married status of both Reiko and Gavin he nearly fell off his S15's hood. Takako pulled in just in time to see the little blunder of her friend and got out of her R34 laughing before he simply pushed the magazine into her hands. Makato called Shou Enomoto, leader of the Akina Street Kings, who in turn called Matsuda and the leaders of all the Gunma teams to get them to the Takahashi Racing School to see what the article meant. The leaders of both the Akagi Blue Fire and the Usui Sparks had seen the article and were just as curious as Makato. The members of the 3R3, still showing little interest and a great deal of resentment towards the team, refused to join in.
Gavin was just turning the NSX over to Mikio when he watched a silver R32 lead a whole string of cars into the parking area, quickly recognizing them all as the lead cars of every major street team in Gunma. The buzz cut blonde went to the building's locker room to get Reiko while the drivers of that line of cars just watched the training session.
"I guess you're here to ask about the article?" Izumi asked from the observation tower as the Gunma team leaders came closer.
"That and to see the training grounds, the article gave the address that no one else would," Shou laughed looking up at the woman.
"Well, Gavin and Reiko can show you around while answering your questions," the auburn haired young woman said pointing to the couple walking up behind the group, "Just be sure at least Reiko gets back before Mikio finishes his laps."
"So, why weren't we invited to the wedding?" Makato asked after noting the wedding bands on both Gavin and Reiko's hands.
"Not many were, Mikio, Izumi, Tatsuo, Nika, my parents and hers," Gavin answered with a half a smile, "It was a civil ceremony to get it legally done as quickly as possible, we're still waiting on her new FIA license, but we've already changed the names on the cars, her driver's license and the title to her RX-8."
"It was also mostly to go ahead and be married before Gavin's parents went back to America," Reiko added with a smile, "We are still talking about having a show wedding for the families and friends, just not sure when, if it happens at all."
"Well do be sure my boyfriend and I are invited to that," Takako said snaking an arm around Makato's.
The only eyes in the parking lot that didn't get wider were Gavin's while Makato just tried to keep a straight face. When everyone recovered from the initial shock Gavin simply held out a hand which Makato shook.
"Young at heart eh, Makato?" the buzz cut blonde said with a wide smile causing both men to bust out laughing and confusion to yet again befall the rest of the people there.
Reiko was called back to the cars leaving her husband to lead the group around the school. The buzz cut blonde continuously answered questions about the school as he led them through the building but no one in the group could utter a sound when he showed them the donated cars from David's team and the other two Super GT cars. After seeing the Gunma team leaders off Gavin rejoined the training session as though none of them had been there until Keisuke and Takumi asked for an explanation.