Chapter 59 -
Dom awoke to a ringing telephone. He got up with a groan and went to answer it. He was expecting one of his team calling from the garage to find out where he was. He didn't know what it was about Torrie, but that girl could sleep any time. Normally Dom couldn't but for some reason while Torrie was asleep he could sleep with her. No matter what time of day it was. He wasn't overly impressed with himself for taking half a day off to just sleep, but he couldn't help it after the fact.
"Hello?" He answered the phone a bit sharper then he'd planned but he was still mad at himself for falling asleep and at whoever for waking him up. Perverse he knew but he wasn't in the mood to care.
"Can I speak with Dominic Toretto please?" A strange Voice asked.
"This is Dom Toretto, what can I do for you?" He was intrigued now. He had no idea who it could be.
"This is Rod Morgan and I'm calling from the New York City Community College. We are looking for someone to teach a four week program on Rotary Engine repair and rebuilding and we got your name as someone who would be very qualified to tackle the job of teaching the program. Would you be interested?"
Dom was literally floored. Someone wanted him to teach other mechanics how to work on rotary engines? He knew he was a good racer, and he'd known his old RX-7 had gotten some good press in the past, but not enough that a school in New York would have gotten his name as someone who was qualified enough to teach a course. "Well, I don't know. I'm really interested for sure, but I have two businesses and a family to worry about too. You say I'd be gone for a month?" Dom really didn't know if the garage could afford to be without him for a month and he really didn't want to leave Torrie for that lenth of time.
He thought of taking the job and brining her with him but he dismissed the idea right away. The garage really couldn't afford to lose two people. Dom would have to go alone if he took the offer. He couldn't decide without speaking to his team.
"Yes, you'd be here in New York for one month. We understand about your other responsibilities, would you like some time to think about it? The course is slated to start in two weeks and we still don't have anyone to teach it, but of course you can take a day or two to talk it over with your family and get back to us. If we find anyone else in the mean time we'll just let you know. Would that be acceptable?"
"Yeah, that'd be great. Where can I reach you?" Dom asked then wrote down the number he was given. He hung up with a polite good-bye for the other man and headed back into his room. He looked at Torrie sleeping in a little ball in his bed. How could he leave her for a whole month? He couldn't stand it when she went off with her own father for a few hours. He didn't know if he could take it if he didn't see her for 4 whole weeks.
He decided he'd have to have a team meeting to discus the whole situation. He didn't want to turn down the opportunity but he didn't want to miss out on his team or his life here in California for a whole month either. He leaned over Torrie and shook her gently by the shoulder. He hated to wake her up, but she had to be at this team meeting. His absence would effect her more so then anyone almost. "Baby girl, wake up." He called softly.
"Did I fall asleep Dom? The last thing I remember is doing the oil change on that Acura." She whispered out, still half asleep. Dom sat down on the bed beside her and brushed hair off her face.
"So you don't remember falling asleep under the car with a wrench clutched in your hand?" Dom asked with a fond smile. Torrie woke up more.
"No. I'm so sorry." She looked up like he might be mad at her for falling asleep on the job.
"Don't be sorry baby. I tried to get you to go home from the get go to sleep, remember. Besides I fell asleep with you so we're even. But you gotta get up now, we need to have a team meeting."
"Bout what?"
"I'll tell you when we get to the garage and we have our meeting Tor. Come on." Torrie got up and tied her hair up. She went down to find Dom. He was on the phone.
"Yeah Mia, just close up for now and go to DT. We need to have a family meeting so you need to be there, bring Chris down with you."
"It's that important Dom?"
"Yeah it's important. I'll see you there in a few ok?"
"Sure." Dom hung up the phone.
"This is so important we need to have Mia close the store? I'm getting worried."
"Don't baby, it's nothing too major. Come on, the sooner we're all together the sooner you find out what this is about."
"Ok, you'd better drive fast Dom." Torrie winked at him and headed out to his car. She briefly wondered when she'd become content to let him drive all the time but she didn't really care at the moment so she didn't say anything. They arrived at the garage and walked in.
"We wondered where you went off to Dom." Letty looked up from the car she as working on.
"Yeah, sorry 'bout that. I fell asleep too." Dom looked sheepish. "We need to have a team meeting guys." He called out to his team.
They all assembled in the back area where they had couches and looked up at Dom from their seated vantage points.
"Now, I got a phone call while I was at the house." Dom started to tell them. "And they want me to go teach a course on rotary engine repair and rebuilding in New York. I wanted to talk to you all to see what you think because I'll be gone for a month if I do it." Dom looked around at the team. Everyone looked excited about the idea of their team leader getting to do such a thing but Torrie. "You don't like the idea Tor?" He asked her.
"I think it's a great chance for you Dom, but I'll miss you. A whole month?" She was on the verge of tears thinking about not having Dom in her life for a whole month.
"I won't go if you don't want me to baby. That goes for any of you. If anyone thinks it's not a good idea or the garage can't stand to be without me for a month tell me now and I won't go. It's not something I already have my heart set on." But Torrie could see he was lying and he really, really wanted to go and teach this course. She felt small for holding him back from something he really wanted to do and the rest of the team was busy telling him to go and do it.
"Go baby. You should do it." Torrie told him and tried to look upbeat about it.
"You sure Torrie? I don't have to go." Dom could tell by the look in her eyes she didn't want him to go.
"I don't want you to go because I'll miss you baby, but I think you should go if you want to do it. It's just a month and then you'll be home. I'm sure the time will go by really fast and you'll be home before you know it. When do you leave?" Vince and Dom shared a look and Dom knew Vince was telling him to go because they'd be able to take care of Torrie while he was gone.
"Ok, then I'm gonna call them and tell them I'll do it." Dom smiled. Maybe he could teach. He couldn't race on the tracks like he'd always dreamed but maybe he could hold classes of his own in California if this went well. It could open up a whole new career option for him. He really wanted to do it. He did call and took the job. He had to be in New York in exactly two weeks.
The two weeks went by in a blur for Torrie. She wasn't looking forward to the time when Dom would board an airplane and leave her life for a whole month. Vince tried to cheer her up but it didn't help. Dom couldn't even bring her out of her funk. He tried to reassure her the night before he left.
"I'll call you every night, I'll be 3 hours ahead of you, so when I call you at 12 my time it'll only be 9 here but I'll still call every night."
"Ok Dom. I'm gonna miss you so much." She said and promptly broke down into tears.
"Don't cry baby. Don't cry or I won't be able to leave you. I can't stand it when you cry baby." Dom tried to shush her. He really did hate it when she cried. She didn't cry that often and it really meant she was upset when she did.
"I don't want to cry, I'm not trying to make you guilty or make you stay but I'm gonna miss you."
"I'm gonna miss you too but like you said a month'll go by before we know it and when I come back we'll all take that vacation. I already told Mia not to book any appointments for the two weeks after I come back."
"You mean it Dom? Just us and the team for two whole weeks with no work to worry about?" Torrie stopped crying for that news.
"Yep, it's all taken care of. Surprise!" Dom laughed.
"I love you Dom." It was all she could think of to say.
"I love you too baby." He pulled her close for a sweet kiss and they went to bed. The next day they all drove to the airport to see Dom off on his plane. As they watched it fly away Torrie and Mia both cried on each other's shoulders. They were going to miss Dom a lot. They went to the garage and put in a full day's work then went home.
As soon as 9 rolled around Torrie was sitting by the phone for Dom's call. He didn't disappoint her. He was having a great time and the course was going well for the first day, he told her all about it. She just listened to him talk. It was like she was trying to get her whole days worth of Dom fix out of one 20 minute phone call. They said their good-byes and hung up. That was the pattern for the whole first week Dom was gone. He missed Torrie and his team a lot but he was also having such a great time he didn't have time to dwell on it too much. Torrie on the other hand was just doing her same old routine only normally she'd see Dom all day at the garage. She missed him all the time.
During the second week he started to ask her to come out to visit him. He was finding it harder to be without her then he'd anticipated and he thought if she flew out for the weekend it would be easier to take the last two weeks. She kept saying no every night but he asked every night. She thought it would make it worse, to go and see him then have to go home after 48 hours and miss him even more for a further two weeks. He finally won her over on Thursday however because she couldn't take it anymore. She hated to hear Dom beg for anything, well, almost anything she thought with a smile, and she really missed him. They made plans for him to pick her up at the airport at 8 on Friday after her plane landed.
Dom awoke to a ringing telephone. He got up with a groan and went to answer it. He was expecting one of his team calling from the garage to find out where he was. He didn't know what it was about Torrie, but that girl could sleep any time. Normally Dom couldn't but for some reason while Torrie was asleep he could sleep with her. No matter what time of day it was. He wasn't overly impressed with himself for taking half a day off to just sleep, but he couldn't help it after the fact.
"Hello?" He answered the phone a bit sharper then he'd planned but he was still mad at himself for falling asleep and at whoever for waking him up. Perverse he knew but he wasn't in the mood to care.
"Can I speak with Dominic Toretto please?" A strange Voice asked.
"This is Dom Toretto, what can I do for you?" He was intrigued now. He had no idea who it could be.
"This is Rod Morgan and I'm calling from the New York City Community College. We are looking for someone to teach a four week program on Rotary Engine repair and rebuilding and we got your name as someone who would be very qualified to tackle the job of teaching the program. Would you be interested?"
Dom was literally floored. Someone wanted him to teach other mechanics how to work on rotary engines? He knew he was a good racer, and he'd known his old RX-7 had gotten some good press in the past, but not enough that a school in New York would have gotten his name as someone who was qualified enough to teach a course. "Well, I don't know. I'm really interested for sure, but I have two businesses and a family to worry about too. You say I'd be gone for a month?" Dom really didn't know if the garage could afford to be without him for a month and he really didn't want to leave Torrie for that lenth of time.
He thought of taking the job and brining her with him but he dismissed the idea right away. The garage really couldn't afford to lose two people. Dom would have to go alone if he took the offer. He couldn't decide without speaking to his team.
"Yes, you'd be here in New York for one month. We understand about your other responsibilities, would you like some time to think about it? The course is slated to start in two weeks and we still don't have anyone to teach it, but of course you can take a day or two to talk it over with your family and get back to us. If we find anyone else in the mean time we'll just let you know. Would that be acceptable?"
"Yeah, that'd be great. Where can I reach you?" Dom asked then wrote down the number he was given. He hung up with a polite good-bye for the other man and headed back into his room. He looked at Torrie sleeping in a little ball in his bed. How could he leave her for a whole month? He couldn't stand it when she went off with her own father for a few hours. He didn't know if he could take it if he didn't see her for 4 whole weeks.
He decided he'd have to have a team meeting to discus the whole situation. He didn't want to turn down the opportunity but he didn't want to miss out on his team or his life here in California for a whole month either. He leaned over Torrie and shook her gently by the shoulder. He hated to wake her up, but she had to be at this team meeting. His absence would effect her more so then anyone almost. "Baby girl, wake up." He called softly.
"Did I fall asleep Dom? The last thing I remember is doing the oil change on that Acura." She whispered out, still half asleep. Dom sat down on the bed beside her and brushed hair off her face.
"So you don't remember falling asleep under the car with a wrench clutched in your hand?" Dom asked with a fond smile. Torrie woke up more.
"No. I'm so sorry." She looked up like he might be mad at her for falling asleep on the job.
"Don't be sorry baby. I tried to get you to go home from the get go to sleep, remember. Besides I fell asleep with you so we're even. But you gotta get up now, we need to have a team meeting."
"Bout what?"
"I'll tell you when we get to the garage and we have our meeting Tor. Come on." Torrie got up and tied her hair up. She went down to find Dom. He was on the phone.
"Yeah Mia, just close up for now and go to DT. We need to have a family meeting so you need to be there, bring Chris down with you."
"It's that important Dom?"
"Yeah it's important. I'll see you there in a few ok?"
"Sure." Dom hung up the phone.
"This is so important we need to have Mia close the store? I'm getting worried."
"Don't baby, it's nothing too major. Come on, the sooner we're all together the sooner you find out what this is about."
"Ok, you'd better drive fast Dom." Torrie winked at him and headed out to his car. She briefly wondered when she'd become content to let him drive all the time but she didn't really care at the moment so she didn't say anything. They arrived at the garage and walked in.
"We wondered where you went off to Dom." Letty looked up from the car she as working on.
"Yeah, sorry 'bout that. I fell asleep too." Dom looked sheepish. "We need to have a team meeting guys." He called out to his team.
They all assembled in the back area where they had couches and looked up at Dom from their seated vantage points.
"Now, I got a phone call while I was at the house." Dom started to tell them. "And they want me to go teach a course on rotary engine repair and rebuilding in New York. I wanted to talk to you all to see what you think because I'll be gone for a month if I do it." Dom looked around at the team. Everyone looked excited about the idea of their team leader getting to do such a thing but Torrie. "You don't like the idea Tor?" He asked her.
"I think it's a great chance for you Dom, but I'll miss you. A whole month?" She was on the verge of tears thinking about not having Dom in her life for a whole month.
"I won't go if you don't want me to baby. That goes for any of you. If anyone thinks it's not a good idea or the garage can't stand to be without me for a month tell me now and I won't go. It's not something I already have my heart set on." But Torrie could see he was lying and he really, really wanted to go and teach this course. She felt small for holding him back from something he really wanted to do and the rest of the team was busy telling him to go and do it.
"Go baby. You should do it." Torrie told him and tried to look upbeat about it.
"You sure Torrie? I don't have to go." Dom could tell by the look in her eyes she didn't want him to go.
"I don't want you to go because I'll miss you baby, but I think you should go if you want to do it. It's just a month and then you'll be home. I'm sure the time will go by really fast and you'll be home before you know it. When do you leave?" Vince and Dom shared a look and Dom knew Vince was telling him to go because they'd be able to take care of Torrie while he was gone.
"Ok, then I'm gonna call them and tell them I'll do it." Dom smiled. Maybe he could teach. He couldn't race on the tracks like he'd always dreamed but maybe he could hold classes of his own in California if this went well. It could open up a whole new career option for him. He really wanted to do it. He did call and took the job. He had to be in New York in exactly two weeks.
The two weeks went by in a blur for Torrie. She wasn't looking forward to the time when Dom would board an airplane and leave her life for a whole month. Vince tried to cheer her up but it didn't help. Dom couldn't even bring her out of her funk. He tried to reassure her the night before he left.
"I'll call you every night, I'll be 3 hours ahead of you, so when I call you at 12 my time it'll only be 9 here but I'll still call every night."
"Ok Dom. I'm gonna miss you so much." She said and promptly broke down into tears.
"Don't cry baby. Don't cry or I won't be able to leave you. I can't stand it when you cry baby." Dom tried to shush her. He really did hate it when she cried. She didn't cry that often and it really meant she was upset when she did.
"I don't want to cry, I'm not trying to make you guilty or make you stay but I'm gonna miss you."
"I'm gonna miss you too but like you said a month'll go by before we know it and when I come back we'll all take that vacation. I already told Mia not to book any appointments for the two weeks after I come back."
"You mean it Dom? Just us and the team for two whole weeks with no work to worry about?" Torrie stopped crying for that news.
"Yep, it's all taken care of. Surprise!" Dom laughed.
"I love you Dom." It was all she could think of to say.
"I love you too baby." He pulled her close for a sweet kiss and they went to bed. The next day they all drove to the airport to see Dom off on his plane. As they watched it fly away Torrie and Mia both cried on each other's shoulders. They were going to miss Dom a lot. They went to the garage and put in a full day's work then went home.
As soon as 9 rolled around Torrie was sitting by the phone for Dom's call. He didn't disappoint her. He was having a great time and the course was going well for the first day, he told her all about it. She just listened to him talk. It was like she was trying to get her whole days worth of Dom fix out of one 20 minute phone call. They said their good-byes and hung up. That was the pattern for the whole first week Dom was gone. He missed Torrie and his team a lot but he was also having such a great time he didn't have time to dwell on it too much. Torrie on the other hand was just doing her same old routine only normally she'd see Dom all day at the garage. She missed him all the time.
During the second week he started to ask her to come out to visit him. He was finding it harder to be without her then he'd anticipated and he thought if she flew out for the weekend it would be easier to take the last two weeks. She kept saying no every night but he asked every night. She thought it would make it worse, to go and see him then have to go home after 48 hours and miss him even more for a further two weeks. He finally won her over on Thursday however because she couldn't take it anymore. She hated to hear Dom beg for anything, well, almost anything she thought with a smile, and she really missed him. They made plans for him to pick her up at the airport at 8 on Friday after her plane landed.