Chapter One: Change Of Coast
Palm City, FL
THE FOLLOWING DAY…
A few hours after the sun rose, the purple Nissan sped onto the bridge leading to her destination, and was instantly overcome by the view the downward slope had given her. It was a clear day, which meant that even from the outskirts of the city, one could still clearly make out the city skyline with all its skyscrapers and buildings. Once she reached the downtown core, she pulled up her contacts from her phone using the aftermarket infotainment screen in her dashboard, dialling her aunt. She didn't pick up this time, so she left a voicemail after the unceremonious beep.
"Hey, Aunt C. It's RJ, I just reached the city. Send the address to that garage for me when you can? And hit me back once you get this. 'Kay, bye."
With that, she drove. Sure enough, minutes later her phone vibrated with a new text message from her aunt.
'62 Greenwood Street, Eden Shores. Lucky for you, it's close to the beach so you can get your beach party cherry popped.'
She chuckled down at the message as she navigated through the grid of city streets and alleys until she arrived in Eden Shores, feeling the coastal beach breeze through the open window. Minutes later, she pulled up at the address, stopping in front of the closed garage door. She lifted the door using her own strength since it was an older door, and once it was open she guided the purple Nissan inside. Once she parked it into a spot, she got out again and pulled the door closed, and opened her hood, looking over her engine, a three-liter turbocharged V6 that had been yanked from the shell of Aunt Charlotte's former project car, a Buick Grand National. The two had spent weeks transplanting the engine from the Buick into the Nissan, and replacing the Buick's with a beefy V8 from a Corvette. She closed the hood after she finished looking over the clean engine bay, and kicked back for the remainder of the day until nightfall.
THAT NIGHT...
Rachel was already out of her garage a bit after night came, grabbing some food from a beachside bar. Once she got her food, she sat at the pier and ate before heading back to her car as a flashy Subaru with neons rumbled past in typical Subaru fashion. She opened her phone, scrolling to her street racing social network app. Using that app, racers from all over the country could post videos of their escapades, photos of their vehicles, and buy and sell modifications to each other, all in one, with the best parts being that it has a functionality that taps into police frequencies to allow users to listen in on them, helpful in pursuits, and the police are completely oblivious to the app's existence. She scrolled through its various menus, looking for someone to race, posting up a challenge to any nearby racers in the social feed.
Sure enough, her phone buzzed not ten minutes later, when a Black girl around her age who posted up with a BMW M3 responded to the post.
'You're on, I'm heading to you now.' The woman's response read.
Rachel leaned on the hood of her Nissan, and a handful of minutes later, the sounds of a turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine filled the distance, gradually growing louder as the night lights reflected from the gleaming paint of the Nissan as it sat, idling beneath her. Within the following thirty seconds, the BMW driver pulled up in the parking spot beside her.
"You Rachel? Name's Billie." The other woman asked as she got out of her car, looking over toward Rachel.
Rachel gave a nod, "That's me. Nice wheels."
"Back at you," Billie smiled, "Anyway, let's cut to the chase. You challenged, I accepted. First car to reach the downtown core wins?"
"You're on," Rachel nodded, getting into her idling Nissan, while Billie did the same with her BMW.
Both cars rolled out of their beachside parking spots, and back out onto the main road, in front of a red light. As they waited, Rachel's phone buzzed, with a call from Billie through the street network. She answered.
"Figured I'd hit you up in the app,if we're takin' our own separate routes, we'll get separated."
"Right, good idea."
"Route's uploading now, should see it any second now. On the green light, we shred outta here."
Sure enough within seconds, the route popped up on Rachel's phone, and she pressed play on her music.
[The Prodigy/RZA's Breathe plays through her sound system.]
The light went green, as both cars rocketed forward, with Rachel's 180SX less than a car door's length behind the violet BMW, finding traction as it spun its wheels.
Damn, my launch control technique failed, Rachel thought as the cars picked up speed and the city and its flashing lights surrounding them because no more than blurs in their windows. Billie's BMW gradually began to extend its lead, but Rachel was not about to give up, in her Buick-powered Nissan. She floored the gas pedal and reached under her seat with her right hand, unscrewing a bottle of nitrous oxide to give her a surge of forward momentum. The car flew ahead of Billie in the BMW, turbocharger spooling up noisily as Rachel re-tightened the nitrous bottle, saving the rest in case she needed to use it again.
"Too early, rookie!" Billie laughed through the phone speaker, catching up easily. As the race through the neon-flooded city progressed, weaving in and out of traffic, Rachel's police scanner buzzed and she switched audio channels.
"Officers near Eden Shores, civilians report two cars racing. No make and model yet, keep an eye out." The dispatcher radioed.
"On it, Control," A gruff male voice replied, "In the area now."
Switching audio channels again, Rachel called out to Billie through their phones as they sped onto the bridge leading to the outskirts of the downtown district.
"Yo, we got cops in the area, stay sharp!"
"Thanks for the heads up!" Billie replied, and not ten seconds later,a grey police Charger was tucked behind a building, waiting. The second both purple cars roared into his view, the lights and sirens came on. Reflexively, Rachel switched audio channels again.
"Control, send backup, I'm on 'em! I'm on 'em!" The officer giving chase barked into his radio with the equivalent of a rabid dog's energy.
"Backup's a ways out, hang tight." Dispatch radioed, "Do NOT lose them or it's your head."
"These cops aren't messing around," Billie remarked after Rachel returned to Billie's audio channel, the Charger still on their tail.
"Gotta shake him before his pals get over here," Rachel said, one eye on the road ahead and one on her mirror, watching the officer.
"Got an idea. My car's heavier. You take the lead, I'll… nudge 'em off us."
"On it," Rachel said, pulling ahead as Billie dropped back behind her. In her mirror, Rachel watched as Billie pulled up alongside the Charger, rearing up her car and sideswiping him. Metal crunched and bits of paint fell onto the road, and the Charger was out of commission, its gearbox damaged in the spin.
"That handles that!" Billie chuckled, as Rachel completed the route first, skidding to a stop in the parking lot of the nearest downtown Outrun Gas.
"Well, that was fun," Billie snickered again as both drivers came to a stop in the parking lot and got out of their respective cars.
"You're pretty good," Rachel remarked, then eyeing the BMW's scraped side, "But that's gonna take a bit to buff out."
"Eh, don't worry about it." Billie shrugged, turning to look at Rachel as she leaned on the front fender of the BMW, and Rachel leaned on the hood of her Nissan, "You got a crew?"
"Me? Nah, why?" Rachel asked, puzzled.
"Was thinking… you're good behind the wheel, and maybe we could, y'know, roll together, start our own crew?"
"Oh! Uh, I would but I'm never in one place long enough to really establish myself. Hopefully Palm City's different."
"Respect. I'll be watching out for you on the streets, though," Billie chuckled, her phone vibrating. She pulled it out and checked it, then stood, no longer leaning on the car, "Alright rookie, I gotta jet. Take care of yourself."
"Back at you," Rachel nodded as Billie got into her BMW and drove off into the night, the city lights bouncing off the purple and black wrapped BMW, as its engine noise roared into the distance. Once the car was out of sight, Rachel got back into her own car to find an e-transfer to her account, with a message from Billie.
'Have some cash for the win. Good luck out there.'
Once she checked the message, she pocketed her phone and journeyed through the city, back to her small Eden Shores garage.
If I'm gonna make it in this city, I'm gonna need a new car soon. Can't afford it now, but it's on my list of things to do.
