Chapter 32 - Tears in the rain.
The rest of her first two weeks in Japan seemed to pass in a blur of dinners out, meeting people, having Japanese business associates of Harry's give her gifts, some of them very expensive, but Harry told her that was a custom here and to refuse to accept was rude so she needed to buy a new suitcase to get the stuff all home, swimming and carrying on with Harry, shopping, and more modeling of imports. Every major mag in Japan wanted to do a spread on her, some bigger then others. Harry surprised her because he'd shipped her car over so they could do the spreads on her with her own car in them. And he made sure they knew that she'd built it and painted it. Kat had the best time. All these magazines wanting to do articles on her and let her do her own modeling was a big confidence booster. She hardly had time to miss Leon from her life. She thought of him sometimes in her downtime, but she didn't have much of that.
One night she went for a walk on the beach that was right behind the hotel. It was very windy that night. She turned into the wind and it whipped her hair straight back behind her. She curled her toes into the warm sand and held her arms out to the sides like she was flying and leaned into the wind. It was almost like she was totally weightless. The water looked like a piece of black velvet with diamonds randomly tossed onto it. In that moment, with the wind holding her up and the warm sand under her feet she was happy. Then she thought to herself how nice it would have been to share this trip with Leon, how she wished he was there and made herself cry. The wind took the tears and flew them off her cheeks and then they were tossed to the 4 corners of the earth on the breeze.
She lay in the sand then and looked up at the stars. They were so beautiful. She wondered if there was anyone else on other planets looking up at a star that was earth thinking about the same things she was. She did the math and realized it was about lunchtime back in the USA. She wondered what everyone back home was doing. She lay in the sand for more time then she should of but yet not nearly enough to get things straight in her mind before pulling herself up and heading back to her room.
Leon looked out the window of the shop around lunch time and saw that the day that had dawned clear, sunny and perfect had since clouded over and it was pouring down rain. It hadn't even been supposed to rain that day. Leon muttered to himself about the stupid weatherman and ran out to close the windows on his car as Dom and Vince did the same thing.
They ended up staying three weeks in Japan. Harry was ecstatic over the results. He got all his deals and the Racer's Edge was going to have a lot of exclusive products. She got pre releases of some of the mags and was totally shocked at how she looked. Embarrassed too, but pleased in a way. She looked like a professional model. Well, not really pretty enough to be one in her mind, but she looked good. And the skyline looked great. They shipped it home a week before they left so it would be waiting for her when she got there. On the plane ride home she was relaxed and happy. She wasn't looking forward to the inevitable meeting she was bound to have with Leon, but she figured she could get through that now. She'd grown in these three weeks. Knowing that she could make NIRA, and that people thought she was pretty and girly enough to model cars, and not just her own had restored her confidence.
"You ready to be home sweetheart?" Harry asked her when they were almost home.
"Yep, I am. I've grown Harry."
"Yes you have. You're a lovely young woman, who's goin' straight to the top of the import scene in LA when she gets home. You've got it made. Just don't forget me and the Racer's Edge when you're famous." Harry smiled at her. He hadn't told her because he didn't want her to flip, but her and her car were both going to be on the cover of 'Import Tuner' and she was getting invited to Hot Import Nights to show her car. It needed some work to be perfect enough but Harry'd help her. He'd tell her after they landed and she couldn't run back to Japan. She was going to want to, he figured.
"Fat chance. I'ma put the Racer's Edge logo right on the front of the car, right where the front plate should be."
"You'd do that?"
"Harry, if it wasn't for you I wouldn't have a chance at NIRA."
"I hope you feel the same way after I tell you what I need to tell you."
"What's that?"
"Wait till we're in the car." She barely contained herself till they had his Mercedes out of long term parking.
"Well."
"You're gonna be on the cover of 'Import Tuner' with your car, and featured in it. And you and Sean get full credit for the build. Oh and your invite to compete in 'Hot Import Nights' when they hit LA is in the mail." Harry waited for the blowup. He figured she'd be pissed at him.
"I'ma be in 'Import Tuner'?"
"Yep."
"And invited to compete in 'Hot Import Nights'? Not just be there but compete?"
"Yep."
"Holy shit." She squealed in delight.
"You're not mad."
"Hell no. I mean, Dom's not banned out of a magazine or a car show, but he's never been asked to do either and I get to do both." She was happy even if it meant that she had to be the center of attention.
"You got a shot at a first or second at import nights too, but your car does need some work. But Brian and I'll help you with it. We'll get started right away. Import nights is right after race wars."
"But I wanted to compete in the desert this year Harry." Kat looked slightly crestfallen at the thought of missing wars.
"Well, go ahead. Just don't mess up that paintjob. Oh and you're stereo and ICE need to be upgraded, but I'll sponsor that for you, since you promised me a sweet spot for my logo on your car."
"Harry. I think I love you. You are awesome."
"Aw thanks. See if you still feel that way when I'm making you slave over your paint finish and stuff for the show. You have a first in you and I don't want to see you sell yourself short."
Kat wanted to surprise the guys so she changed into the outfit she wore for the car modeling then they headed to her house. She bounded out of the car and up to the front door. Harry got out of his car grinning at her enthusiasm. She threw open the door and called out.
"Guys, we're home." They came out of the backyard.
"Kitten!" Sean exclaimed and opened his arms to her. She ran into them and gave him a hug, then got a hug from Stacy and Kale.
"What the hell are you wearin' girl?" Stacy asked.
"I wanted to show you what I did." She said enigmatically and then held out the copies of the articles that she already had. Kale took the stack and started to look.
"You're in all these magazines." Kale looked puzzled.
"Yep, they wanted me to model for them, and Harry had the skyline flown over so it could be featured. Thank god those are all Japanese magazines and they don't get sold over here. But Harry and I have some even better news, but it can't leave this house yet." She gave them all her stern look, then cracked up at the look on their faces.
"What's the better news Kitten?" Stacy asked, he wanted to let her be happy before she found out he'd decked the punk.
"I'ma be in 'Hot Import Nights' with my car, and on the cover of, get this, 'Import Tuner'!" She squealed and did a little dance. "Harry somehow hooked me up while I was in Japan."
"No way!" Sean couldn't believe it.
"Wow." Kale was surprised.
"Tell them what else Kitten." Harry reminded her.
"Oh yeah, how could I forget, the best part of all is, If I beat Dominic, I got NIRA. Harry got me all the sponsors I need if I prove I'm the best in LA. And to do that all I gotta do is beat Dom."
"That's great!" Sean shouted and hugged her again. "So I guess you had a good trip then?" He asked rhetorically. She just nodded anyway. "I'ma wash my car now." She said and ran off to change.
The rest of her first two weeks in Japan seemed to pass in a blur of dinners out, meeting people, having Japanese business associates of Harry's give her gifts, some of them very expensive, but Harry told her that was a custom here and to refuse to accept was rude so she needed to buy a new suitcase to get the stuff all home, swimming and carrying on with Harry, shopping, and more modeling of imports. Every major mag in Japan wanted to do a spread on her, some bigger then others. Harry surprised her because he'd shipped her car over so they could do the spreads on her with her own car in them. And he made sure they knew that she'd built it and painted it. Kat had the best time. All these magazines wanting to do articles on her and let her do her own modeling was a big confidence booster. She hardly had time to miss Leon from her life. She thought of him sometimes in her downtime, but she didn't have much of that.
One night she went for a walk on the beach that was right behind the hotel. It was very windy that night. She turned into the wind and it whipped her hair straight back behind her. She curled her toes into the warm sand and held her arms out to the sides like she was flying and leaned into the wind. It was almost like she was totally weightless. The water looked like a piece of black velvet with diamonds randomly tossed onto it. In that moment, with the wind holding her up and the warm sand under her feet she was happy. Then she thought to herself how nice it would have been to share this trip with Leon, how she wished he was there and made herself cry. The wind took the tears and flew them off her cheeks and then they were tossed to the 4 corners of the earth on the breeze.
She lay in the sand then and looked up at the stars. They were so beautiful. She wondered if there was anyone else on other planets looking up at a star that was earth thinking about the same things she was. She did the math and realized it was about lunchtime back in the USA. She wondered what everyone back home was doing. She lay in the sand for more time then she should of but yet not nearly enough to get things straight in her mind before pulling herself up and heading back to her room.
Leon looked out the window of the shop around lunch time and saw that the day that had dawned clear, sunny and perfect had since clouded over and it was pouring down rain. It hadn't even been supposed to rain that day. Leon muttered to himself about the stupid weatherman and ran out to close the windows on his car as Dom and Vince did the same thing.
They ended up staying three weeks in Japan. Harry was ecstatic over the results. He got all his deals and the Racer's Edge was going to have a lot of exclusive products. She got pre releases of some of the mags and was totally shocked at how she looked. Embarrassed too, but pleased in a way. She looked like a professional model. Well, not really pretty enough to be one in her mind, but she looked good. And the skyline looked great. They shipped it home a week before they left so it would be waiting for her when she got there. On the plane ride home she was relaxed and happy. She wasn't looking forward to the inevitable meeting she was bound to have with Leon, but she figured she could get through that now. She'd grown in these three weeks. Knowing that she could make NIRA, and that people thought she was pretty and girly enough to model cars, and not just her own had restored her confidence.
"You ready to be home sweetheart?" Harry asked her when they were almost home.
"Yep, I am. I've grown Harry."
"Yes you have. You're a lovely young woman, who's goin' straight to the top of the import scene in LA when she gets home. You've got it made. Just don't forget me and the Racer's Edge when you're famous." Harry smiled at her. He hadn't told her because he didn't want her to flip, but her and her car were both going to be on the cover of 'Import Tuner' and she was getting invited to Hot Import Nights to show her car. It needed some work to be perfect enough but Harry'd help her. He'd tell her after they landed and she couldn't run back to Japan. She was going to want to, he figured.
"Fat chance. I'ma put the Racer's Edge logo right on the front of the car, right where the front plate should be."
"You'd do that?"
"Harry, if it wasn't for you I wouldn't have a chance at NIRA."
"I hope you feel the same way after I tell you what I need to tell you."
"What's that?"
"Wait till we're in the car." She barely contained herself till they had his Mercedes out of long term parking.
"Well."
"You're gonna be on the cover of 'Import Tuner' with your car, and featured in it. And you and Sean get full credit for the build. Oh and your invite to compete in 'Hot Import Nights' when they hit LA is in the mail." Harry waited for the blowup. He figured she'd be pissed at him.
"I'ma be in 'Import Tuner'?"
"Yep."
"And invited to compete in 'Hot Import Nights'? Not just be there but compete?"
"Yep."
"Holy shit." She squealed in delight.
"You're not mad."
"Hell no. I mean, Dom's not banned out of a magazine or a car show, but he's never been asked to do either and I get to do both." She was happy even if it meant that she had to be the center of attention.
"You got a shot at a first or second at import nights too, but your car does need some work. But Brian and I'll help you with it. We'll get started right away. Import nights is right after race wars."
"But I wanted to compete in the desert this year Harry." Kat looked slightly crestfallen at the thought of missing wars.
"Well, go ahead. Just don't mess up that paintjob. Oh and you're stereo and ICE need to be upgraded, but I'll sponsor that for you, since you promised me a sweet spot for my logo on your car."
"Harry. I think I love you. You are awesome."
"Aw thanks. See if you still feel that way when I'm making you slave over your paint finish and stuff for the show. You have a first in you and I don't want to see you sell yourself short."
Kat wanted to surprise the guys so she changed into the outfit she wore for the car modeling then they headed to her house. She bounded out of the car and up to the front door. Harry got out of his car grinning at her enthusiasm. She threw open the door and called out.
"Guys, we're home." They came out of the backyard.
"Kitten!" Sean exclaimed and opened his arms to her. She ran into them and gave him a hug, then got a hug from Stacy and Kale.
"What the hell are you wearin' girl?" Stacy asked.
"I wanted to show you what I did." She said enigmatically and then held out the copies of the articles that she already had. Kale took the stack and started to look.
"You're in all these magazines." Kale looked puzzled.
"Yep, they wanted me to model for them, and Harry had the skyline flown over so it could be featured. Thank god those are all Japanese magazines and they don't get sold over here. But Harry and I have some even better news, but it can't leave this house yet." She gave them all her stern look, then cracked up at the look on their faces.
"What's the better news Kitten?" Stacy asked, he wanted to let her be happy before she found out he'd decked the punk.
"I'ma be in 'Hot Import Nights' with my car, and on the cover of, get this, 'Import Tuner'!" She squealed and did a little dance. "Harry somehow hooked me up while I was in Japan."
"No way!" Sean couldn't believe it.
"Wow." Kale was surprised.
"Tell them what else Kitten." Harry reminded her.
"Oh yeah, how could I forget, the best part of all is, If I beat Dominic, I got NIRA. Harry got me all the sponsors I need if I prove I'm the best in LA. And to do that all I gotta do is beat Dom."
"That's great!" Sean shouted and hugged her again. "So I guess you had a good trip then?" He asked rhetorically. She just nodded anyway. "I'ma wash my car now." She said and ran off to change.