Hello! I am back and just 1 more month until Cars 3! Finally, testing and big projects are almost done! And I think I met my goal of messing with some of your guy's emotions. And also
LAST WEEK OF SCHOOL FOR ME! :D So anyway let's get onto some reviews!
Also next chapter is going to take longer because I need to do a lot of research on NASCAR. And after 365 long days I HAVE FINALLY AGED ANOTHER YEAR! Ok, maybe I am a little to excited about a silly birthday :b
LivvyLeopard: Mwhahaha! I wanted to toy with your emotions, that was actually one of the first things I had planned for this story. Before I even started writing it I had this part pretty much planned out in my mind along with the crash….for now.
(Guest) Sam Fraser: Ehhh, honestly I haven't planned that far ahead but I don't know if I'm going to make that much of a news story about the crash. Now for Mater getting into a fight, I don't think I'm going to do that….he's to much of a loving guy to get into a physical fight.
(Guest) CarsGeek24: Thanks for that! I didn't really think I was good at writing, there's definitely room to improve but I didn't know I was good :)
(Guest) MR Brown: Oh wow, I don't even know what to say! That really means a lot from me and you probably just made my week!
(Guest) Parria: Aww I didn't mean to make you cry…..well I kinda did but I'm glad you found it emotional.
Cristalstarmochi: I don't hate you at all, after all the genera of this story is drama! :D
The next couple of days were very dull for Sally, she stayed extremely quiet and when she had to talk she only spoke in short sentences if even that. Most of the time she spoke in one or two words. The townies were going crazy about it, well mostly Flo. Flo was like the mother figure of the entire town. She had this sometimes really creepy instinct of knowing what was going on between cars or when someone was being troubled. As soon as she saw someone who was not their normal self, she would be getting to the bottom of it and there was no stopping her. This day was no exception either to her super instincts. Flo was about to serve Sally her daily oil she saw that Sally wasn't her normal talkative self, she immediately swooped into action.
"Honey, what's wrong?" Flo curiously asked while pulling into the booth next to her. Sally quickly perked up and put on her normal customer greeting smile.
"Oh it's nothing, I'm fine, trust me. Uh, I think you have some customers waiting for their food to be served." Sally pointed with her tire to a couple pulling into the cafe trying her best to change the subject.
"Nuh uh, nope, you're hiding something and I can see it as clear as day sugar. Not to mention everyone else can see that you have something else on your mind. Now how about you let me finish these orders and you can tell me about it if you want." Flo replied in her sassy tone before heading off.
"Oh...ok." Sally mumbled to what seemed to be herself, she really didn't want to talk but went inside with Flo anyway. A couple minutes later Flo and Sally were behind the cafe secluded from anyone else.
"Ok sweety, now what seems to be buggin ya?" Flo's sassy voice now changed to a motherly tone. Sally could feel everything that had been going on the past couple of days swell up in her throat before speaking.
"Oh Flo, I don't know where to even start!" Just like that it started pouring out of her so fast that Flo could barely keep up, and Sally couldn't slow down or stop either. "It's just awful! Lightning and I wanted to have children so badly but now it most likely will never happen and I don't know what to do! It feels like I have a permanent dagger stuck in me and it's tearing a hole deeper and deeper inside me! It hurts me to the point where I just want to curl up and cry for days." Flo looked at her quietly and gave her a sad expression.
"Honey you've got to slow down, I barely understood you but I heard enough. And I'm so sorry, I know exactly how you feel about this." Flo sympathetically said while giving Sally a gentle nuzzle.
"You do?" Sally asked looking up from the ground.
"Well of course I do. Why do you think my baby Ramone and I never had kids? I was devastated when I found out but luckily I found children of my own." Flo stated not as toned down as before.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't put two and two together...wait a minute, you have kids?" Sally asked with a surprised look. She had never seen a younger car in town besides her and Lightning who happened to be the youngest residents in the town. Flo gave a soft chuckle and continued.
"Well of course I did! All of you are my kids, who else do you think keeps this town running and in ship shape. Certainly not Sheriff or Lizzie that's for sure!" Flo looked in front of her to see Sally obviously not finding very much comfort in Flo's words. She was tearing up slightly and shut her eyes tightly while nodding to the ground.
"Yea but I would have loved to see a tiny car growing up here. I would have wanted to comfort him or her when the needed to, tuck them in and read them bed time stories, those tiny baby squeals..." Sally felt that no words could express how she was feeling deep down inside.
"You could always adopt," Flo, now looking off in the distance spoke up. "Ramone and I wanted to adopt but we didn't have that kind of money back in the 60s. You and Lightning are able to afford that. It may not be a child of your own or even a baby but at least you will have someone to take care of. Just promise me this, you won't let this stop you or get in the way of your life. You need to get over this, it's just a simple block in the road. I know you can do it, you're strong."
"That….that's actually not a bad idea." Sally's mood lightened, maybe she was going to have her child after all. "Thanks Flo, you're the best! And thank you for being there for me, you really helped." Sally gave her one last hug before speeding out of the cafe.
Meanwhile Lightning was at Willy's Butte practicing for the upcoming season. Usually racing got his mind off of things he would rather not think about. However today was the exact opposite. The faster he went, the more his mind became filled with thoughts. One moment his mind would be solely on Sally and how she was coping, the next would be on the new Piston Cup rookies. Both of them found a way to worry him as he kept on racing around the dirt track. Something seemed a little fishy about the new racers, especially Jackson Storm. Lightning and the other stock cars kept on hearing about him left and right, but no one had actually seen him. Usually a new rookie's image would be exploding everywhere at this time. The most anyone knew about him was that he had blank paint, grey eyes, and was from the ever so rich Storm family. Mr. Storm was a modification doctor and Mrs. Storm was a celebrity actress. Lightning remembered the announcement in the newspaper that Joanna Storm had given birth to Jackson when Lightning was eleven. They had said that he was to be their protégé and had to be the best in whatever he did. He saw pictures of Jackson when he was a toddler and when he was around seven or eight but manufacturer knows what he looks like now. Lightning snapped out of his thoughts as he went spinning out of control off of the track.
"Whoa whoa whoa! AhhhHHHH! Lightning screamed as he fell down the cliff smashing into the cacti. "Ow ow ow OWWW!" Next thing Lightning knew, he was covered bumper to bumper in cactus. Groaning in agony and humiliation, Lightning turned on his car phone that was installed in under his engine.
"Tow Mater's towin', need a tow? Because Mater's heeeree to help ya!" Mater's voice echoed through the phone.
"Uhh, hi Mater...can I get a little help?" Lightning mumbled out of embarrassment.
"Shoo Lightnin' ya fall in da cactus again?! You ain't done that in a darn year!" Mater laughed obviously finding humor and delight in Lightning's struggles.
"Yea yea. Can you just give me a tow? And would you please stop laughing!" Frustrated, Lightning tried to reverse himself away from the cacti that was stuck to him only to fall back into the pile.
"All right buddy, I'm a comin." Mater said before hanging up and heading to Willy's Butte.
One tow, with a lot of embarrassment later, Mater and Lightning were heading back into town. The dirt softly crunched beneath their tires as they drove across the dirt road that led back to main street. Lightning continued his thoughts about Sally and Jackson from where he left off. He looked at the ground deep in his own world before Mater spoke out of the blue.
"Hey Lightnin, You all right pal?" Mater tapped his friends tire trying to get his attention. Lightning quickly looked up to mater before speaking.
"Uh, yea yea...I'm fine." Lightning gave Mater his 'celebrity smile.' while giving a slightly annoyed expression.
"Ah who am I kidding," Lightning gave up, he had to tell someone what was on his mind. He used to just bottle it up and take it out on his pit crew, but now he had cars he could lean on. "I'm just….scared, nervous, worried, even a little stressed." Lightning sighed as they drove around the last corner.
"Well, what's wrong?" Mater asked before stopping in front of his junk yard.
"I know that a lot of these things are perfectly normal, but they just feel so wrong! I have this pit in my gut from the new rookies. Especially Jackson, his history and his possible behavior now make me a little bit uncomfortable. Not to mention I'm tearing myself to pieces worrying about Sally and how's she's accepting the fact that we can't have a kid. Heck, she's acting the same way she did when Doc died! But you wouldn't understand any of this." Lightning quickly regret that last sentence and winced back thinking he went a little to far. Mater had been in serious situations before, for Pete's sake he saved millions of lives with a bomb strapped to him! But this felt different to him on not a physical level but an emotional level. Mater gave a warm smile showing he wasn't offended by Lightning's rude remark.
"Listen here, you ain't go nothin' to worry 'bout. Dem rookies out there ain't gonna do anythin' bad to ya. And right before I gotcha I saw Mrs. Sally all in smiles when she went back to ta cone. I know fer a fact ya still got it in ya, just show everybody who's still got it." Mater ended while stomping his tire on the ground. Lightning was some what blown away by Mater's words. Sometimes Lightning wondered if Mater wasn't given enough credit for his advice.
"Now I's is sure Mrs. Sally'll be waitn' for you so ya better get a move on." Mater pushed Lightning out of his junk yard before waving goodbye.
"Thanks Mater, I really owe you one." Lightning gratefully said before driving causally to the Cozy Cone. When Lightning pulled up, he was surprised to see Sally softly smiling as she did some paperwork. He opened the door and the chime of the bell rang crisp and clear throughout the lobby. Sally looked up and smiled at his presence.
"Uh, you ok Sal? Do you want to tell me something?" Lightning drove next to her and stared at her paperwork.
"Actually yes, I do have something I need to tell you." She paused for a moment before quietly continuing, "We might just be able to have our child after all. Flo suggested we could adopt. I know it won't be our own but it's better than nothing!" For the first time in four days Sally spoke with enthusiasm. Lightnin's eye's widened in surprise and excitment.
"That could actually work! This is great, the paperwork and legal stuff would be a pain in the bumper but it's worth it. Now I promise you," Lightning leaned in closer to Sally, "As soon as the racing season's done we could get all the papers to adopt." Instead of responding, Sally gave a gigantic hug only to receive one in return.
"So, Stickers," Sally changed the subject feeling as if the other one was dragging on longer than it needed to. "When do you start your next season? Isn't next month, or is it this month?"
"It's next month, I'm surprised you haven't memorized my schedule yet! You'd think after ten years it would be like second nature." Lightning chuckled. Sally smirked and punched him playfully.
"And I'm surprised you haven't memorized when our anniversary is, last year you almost forgot if it weren't for Flo and Ramone!" Lightning's whole hearted laugh turned into an awkward chuckle.
"Yeaaaaa. Well I got to go help Sheriff with some speedsters, heard the DRH (Delinquent Road Hazards) have grown up but have brought some new trouble makers along with them. Anyway, love ya Sal!" Lightning called out as he left the lobby and started making his outside the town to meet up with Sheriff. Maybe Mater was right, maybe I don't need to worry about this year. I think things will head in the right direction now.
LONGEST CHAPTER EVER! whew! I wanted to get this done before my birthday ended so I would have enough time. But let me tell you, this chapter was extremely hard to get a nice flow to it, I changed Sally's meeting with Flo 2 times, Mater's meeting with Lightning 1 time, and the ending like 3 times! Well have a nice day, or rest of the night depending on where you are!