20
Caleb
I wait in front of the hospital, but Adelaide bolts up to me. Dad and Leah follow along. Adelaide embraces me. It's been so long. It's been so long since she did that! She really does have her heart set on the family. Zachary was wrong.
Adelaide always has her good intentions, but she tends to get everything wrong. Sometimes, it can hurt us. However, I can forgive her. She's my sister, and I pity her. She's had it bad for the last six years. It all began from learning from Dad's crash, and it broke her heart.
Zachary has always done things for us, but he can be harsh on Adelaide. Well, that happened when Adelaide kept dreaming about being a racer in the Fabulous Hudson Hornet racing legacy. Adelaide probably made Zachary like this. I'm not sure. They don't really like each other as much as they used to. Well, at least, we can be together.
"You're alive! I'm sorry for everything! I shouldn't have betrayed everyone! I was awful! You're going to hate me for this! You might hate me!" Adelaide says.
"It's okay, Adelaide. It's okay. I knew you were good, but you have your ways," I say.
"I'm sorry, but I needed some alone time."
"Alone time?"
Alone time? Why alone time? Maybe, she needed it, she probably wasn't fine for a while. Also, everything became unfair and a disaster when Adelaide left Charleston for her alone time.
"I thought you might hate me after that race in Charleston. I thought everyone would," Adelaide says.
"Ad, no one's gonna hate you for a mistake. It was an accident, and I'm fine. I just…missed you," I say.
"I'm here now, okay?"
Leah approaches me, but she parks further away from me and Adelaide. Does she hate me? To be fair, Leah was awful, and I can pity her. However, Adelaide's back! She's back! She's back!
Everyone calms down. At least, no one is mad at her. She's gone through so much trouble for us. She'll never betray our loyalty. She always loved us but in a weird way. However, it doesn't matter.
It doesn't matter. It's all about being there for her. I'll always love her no matter what. Good thing she's back and feels sorry. There's still good in her all along. The light has to be. The light has to be in her: Those good intentions and her noble heart.
"Thanks, Leah, for bringing Adelaide back to us," I say, "But it's not enough."
"What? I helped your father. You said that you can forgive me." Leah says.
"You have to be helpful by doing what's right for your sake. You can't just do it because they told you."
"Oh, well, I gotta apologize to Cruz, Bye."
Adelaide and I reunite, but Zachary stares at me with narrow eyes. How could you, Zachary?! I thought we three have to stick together! I really thought you knew better than putting our sister, anyone in our family, or putting our family friends down, Traitor!
Zachary always said awful things about her at home. I never told Adelaide. That would be mean and cruel to her. Sometimes, Adelaide teases Zachary. I guess Zachary felt offended. This isn't fair, Zachary!
I find it odd that Adelaide and Zachary act like this around each other. It's not normal! No wonder why Mom and Dad favor me instead of those two. Well, they used to favor me and Zachary. Now, they just favor me, but they don't like me humiliating competitors who aren't Storm or Hicks. That's them I guess. I still don't get Zachary.
"I'm sorry, Zachary," Adelaide says to Zachary.
"Stop brainwashing Caleb, Adelaide! You're selfish, and what you did was selfish!" Zachary says to Adelaide.
"I've changed, Zach! I said I was sorry!"
"Well, what you did is still selfish nonetheless!"
"Just stop it! I've already dealt with enough!
Zachary and Adelaide don't utter a word. Adelaide almost cries. She drives away, but Mom and Dad stop her. Dad and I park beside Adelaide, but Mom approaches Zachary. That's what you get, Zachary! Now you have to pay the price!
Zachary's good! I swear he's good! He's driving Adelaide crazy! Adelaide's gone through a lot after Charleston Five Hundred, and that's alright. Well, Adelaide's been like that for the past six years, but it's still alright. However, Zachary shouldn't treat her like that. He shouldn't treat Adelaide like this at all.
"Zachary, that's enough! Who do you think you are?!" Mom says to Zachary.
"Who do you think she is, Mom?! She's nothing but a selfish scoundrel! She doesn't belong in this family!" Zachary says to Mom.
"Yes, she does!"
"No, she doesn't!"
"Yes, she does!"
"No, she doesn't! She does-n't!"
Mom and Zachary continue on arguing. It's nothing but an endless cycle of "no's" and "yes's." The argument keeps on going for an hour. It's too much to bear, and I can't handle this. Adelaide is probably disturbed by this too and is staying beside me, but Dad stops the argument.
"Do you understand what she's been going through?" Dad asks Zachary.
"Well, she's not loyal to this family! All she cares about is finishing some racing work! The racing world made her that way! They think she's so perfect! What about us?! We're just her dirty little workers serving her! Thank goodness I can get whatever I want while Adelaide can get everything she deserves!" Zachary says to Dad.
"So you're saying she deserves to be miserable while you're having everything?" Mom says to Zachary.
"While the racing world worships her, I can be favored at home! Besides, the racing world can worship and glorify little miss perfect daddy's girl in New York, and she'll be perfectly happy there! When she's not in the racing world, she'll understand how I feel when she puts me in line! When she's in trouble, I could win!"
"Zachary James McQueen! None of you are perfect! Sure, you have your problems, but none of you should nitpick on them and tear eachother apart!" Mom says to Zachary.
"Fine, whatever. Do what you want, but she's still a selfish little brat! She's not a McQueen! She's not my sister, she's not Caleb's sister, and she's not your daughter! She's a brat, a monster!"
Adelaide attempts to run away, but I follow her. Leah and Cruz approach us, but I turn away from Leah and let Cruz continue. Cruz stops Adelaide before she runs away again. Poor Adelaide.
Adelaide doesn't deserve this treatment. She forfeited her race fair and square, and Sara's taking that privilege away from her. Who knows if things could get any worse for Adelaide or all of us? We'll never be glorious. We're just peasants in Sara's eyes. Zachary needs to apologize to Adelaide.
"Anyways, Adelaide. Have fun in New York! Don't come home crying to us! You can run away to Thomasville whenever you want! Everyone's going to love you and worship you while we have nothing!" Zachary says to Adelaide.
Adelaide reverses herself, steers, and glares at Zachary, but Adelaide tears up. However, her tears don't eat her up. She approaches Zachary, but he drives away. I drive toward Zachary, but Adelaide stops and looks at me in pity.
I'm starting to pity Adelaide more. Everything's nothing but cruel and unfair for her. She's had it really bad, and now, she paces around screaming "I have to race in New York?!" Adelaide ran away and came back, but Zachary shouldn't blurt it out that way.
"I have to race her in New York?" Adelaide says.
"It's true. It was on the news," I say, "You have to win or else…"
"Or else what?"
"We're banned from racing!"
"Caleb, I don't want to race in New York. Can't they have Leah race Sara?! I'd rather go home and pretend that Charleston never happened!"
"Sara said that Leah cheated, and she said that winners can't forfeit."
Adelaide, I'm sorry it has to be this way. Sara didn't give you a choice or will. You're going to be out in a racetrack of torture alone with her. We can't race against anyone, and no other racer can help on the track. You're on your own. However, we'll watch as you race.
"It's probably a scam! I need to see Mademoiselle Renault!" Adelaide says.
"Mademoiselle Renault was fired," I say.
"Fired? How can they fire a business owner? Who would do such a thing?!"
"I don't know. No one knows, but they threatened her to fire us. If she didn't do it, she would be fired in the process. She chose to not fire us."
"And she was fired? Who's the new owner? Also, she could've just fired me. It wouldn't matter."
Adelaide couldn't process all of this. It's true. It's true. Everything's true. Mademoiselle Renault's fired, and Dinoco and Rusteze are doomed. No owner, no sponsor. No sponsor, no racing? Oh dear, who'll take the job?
"Yep, she was fired. I don't know the owner," I say, "Adelaide, you shouldn't get fired from racing. You love this, and your dream came true."
"But look at what happened at Charleston! Look at what happened to you! I didn't deserve to win because of that accident! It's basically the fans praising Chick Hicks for winning and crashing the King and then booing at Dad for losing and saving the King!" Adelaide says.
"Actually, the fans did the other way around. I got respect from them, and they probably didn't respect Chick," Dad interrupts us.
"It's just a hypothetical situation! It didn't really happen! Besides, my 'win' in Charleston is basically like getting praised for a bad deed!" Adelaide says to Dad.
"It's not. You won fair and square. That crash was an accident like other crashes, and yeah, I hope Sterling doesn't run Dinoco-Rusteze while Brielle's gone," Dad says to Adelaide.
"Or someone like him," Cruz says.
Sterling, Sterling, Sterling. Who's Sterling? Who was this owner? Who was this businessman? Hmmmm…Did Sterling own Dinoco and Rusteze at that time? Where was he anyways? Should I care about where he is?
"Who's Sterling?" We say.
"A fraud! He believed that he was a fan of mine!" Dad says.
"He believed that I was a trainer and only that. He brainwashed your dad!" Cruz says.
"When was this?"
"Twenty-one years ago." Both of them speak at the same time.
This might be risky. Adelaide's going to be alone on the racetrack while we watch Sara kill her. Adelaide going to race Sara Stephans is going to be risky. What if Adelaide's in danger?! Sara banned me, and the doctor said "no."
I travel with Mack along the roads. We don't talk to each other. I'm sidelined, and no other racer can race against Adelaide. I traveled to New York with Mack. However, it wasn't necessary to travel like this. Mack doesn't rush. No racing, no trailer.
Leah and I make it to pit road, but Sara and Henry approach us. Oh, no. Sara and Henry look at us with an intimidating smile on their faces. Don't crash us during our non-race season. C'mon, I have just recovered!
"If it isn't for the wussy boy! Don't you like being sidelined?! Oh, you don't? Your sister's on her own! She can't forfeit her win! She WAS the winner! Leah CHEATED and somehow tied with her!" Sara says.
"You were the one that made—" I say.
"Don't make assumptions about me! I clearly didn't do it! I'm too innocent! Leah's a nasty brute who hates you! She had to get her way to cheat! Also, how's Mademoiselle Renault? Oh wait, she retired! She's crazy!"
"You were the one that did it?!"
"I can do whatever I want, and the racing world shouldn't have peasants on my racetrack!"
Sara, don't you dare call my family peasants! We're not peasants, and I swear we aren't! You're probably calling yourself one and making us look bad! Adelaide and I worked hard to got ahead! We've been here before.
"Caleb, please calm down. Also, please don't interfere with her," Leah says.
"Listen here, you trash bag! You disrespected my family, and you're already had Leah hurt me! A child! That's child abuse! You're just trying to make everything easy for you because you're privileged! You just want everyone else suffering!" Caleb says.
"I'm not a trash bag! I'm a money bag! You're the one who's a trash bag! Anyways, I gotta go! They're waiting for me! Besides, I can talk to the press and have you shut up!" Sara says.
"Well whatever, you dirty little lying scumbag! You made Adelaide race alone without her consent! If she thinks she lost, then she lost! If she thinks she won, she won! You're making her miserable, you Karen! You and Henry are just selfish!"
"Caleb, let me handle her," Leah says, "Sara, You should stop mistreating Caleb like that! You should apologize to this poor child for this!"
Sara approaches us, and Leah parks there frozen. She backs up away from Sara, and Sara keeps on bullying Leah. Leah's got to stand up to Sara and stand up for me. Her loyalty has to prove it.
It could be true Sara made Leah like this, but I don't know Leah as much. Sure, she helped bring Adelaide back, but did it prove her worth? Did it prove anything? She's gotta learn how to be nice this time. She can never be a true friend of mine.
I've always counted on my family and family friends, but I never trusted anyone outside of home. Well, I trust Mademoiselle Renault. She treated us fairly, and she said goodbye to me after she lost her job. However, I can't trust competitors. I can't trust their evilness towards my family. Maybe, Leah was good all along. It's that nasty Sara Stephans! She's probably been on the TV possibly rejoicing Adelaide's soon to be loss.
If it was true, Leah deserves better than that, and she deserves to have a true friend. Sometimes, broken friends need second chances. If it isn't true, I don't know what to do. If Leah was happy with Sara, it's on her. Sara and Henry deserve to mess with someone else instead of my sister and family.
"Well, if that's how it's going to be, Leah, you can go become a peasant! You're a traitor!" Sara says to Leah.
"They're not peasants! You just want to get rid of them because of some aspect you hate about them! It's not a problem! The only problem is you and Henry! You wanted me to hurt an innocent kid for your success! He's not just an innocent kid! He's the—" Leah says to Sara.
"Son of a peasant, and look at you! You're them! You're a traitor! You're a PEASANT! You're friends with a peasant; therefore you're a peasant!"
"I don't care if I'm a traitor or not! I technically betrayed myself just because the racing world hates those McQueens, but Adelaide's speech inspired me! I learned the wrong lessons in school! What you and Henry learned is wrong! They deserved respect, and what do you give them? All you do is treat them like they're nothing, a waste of space!"
"I don't care, Traitor! Anyways, I gotta race!"
Sara and Henry leave, but Leah parks still and cries. Her trunk faces me, but she reverses and steers. Poor Leah. Leah deserves staying beside me, guarded. At least Leah will feel alright.
Leah probably felt traumatized enough by all of this. Maybe, she was just innocent all along. I stay beside her. She's gotta be alright. She'll be safe and sound. Can she be a McQueen or a family friend?
I wish for Leah to have the true friend she deserves. Sara's nothing but a monster, a real one. Sara deserves to lose in the New York Five Hundred, Sara deserves to get a taste of her own medicine, and Sara deserves to go home and think about what she did.
Sara should learn to live in a town that's like my home! She's got to learn her lesson. My family friends are not peasants, and they're rich in heart. Sure, my family happens to be rich, but we stay loyal to the friends we have and not chase those with the same status. Sara will be cursed with loneliness and hate forever.
"I'm sorry, Caleb. Sara made me this way! I had to follow her! I didn't have a choice, but I do now! I do now," Leah says.
"It's okay, at least you stood up to her," I say.
"I had to. You were in trouble. I'm sorry for disrespecting you in my debut, and I'm sorry for hurting you."
"It's okay."
Leah, it's okay. You're okay. It's Sara. Look at what Sara did to you! You stood up to her! You can't go back. I guess I was right about Leah being unhappy around Sara. She deserves better than this. She deserves better than having Sara as her friend.
"Is something wrong? Mom says.
"She must've written the letter," I say.
"Who and what letter?" Dad asks.
"The letter that got Mademoiselle Renault fired. Also, Sara Stephans must've written it."
Leah and I drive towards the front of the pit stop. No more Sara Stephans. The yelling's over. Leah and I won't be traumatized by this awful racer. I guess I was wrong about Leah. It's all Sara's fault.
The race begins, and Adelaide and Sara accelerate and follow the asphalt. Good luck, Adelaide. You've gotta win, Adelaide. Sara shouldn't hurt you. Sara will do anything to play dirty. Sara's dirty deeds will probably eat her up.
I'll find a way, but I can't help her on the racetrack. Sara will kill me too. She'll do whatever it takes to get rid of all of us. "We're 'peasants' on the racetrack." We're not. It's Sara. She's a peasant: a peasant at heart. She has the heart of an evil competitor. Sara has no sense of respect, remorse, or humility. She just humiliates and hurts everyone until they disintegrate into dust.