Disclaimer: I only own characters you do not recognize.
Ok this one is going to be long. Hopefully everyone reads it. It has plenty information (at least I think so). Read and review it :)
-Kita
Chapter 57-I Appreciate You
No POV
"So Dom, where are we goin'?" Mia asked him, crossing her legs in the Mazda. Dom looked over at her and smiled. Her continued to drive down the strip until the beach spot was visible. "No really, Dominic. You're creepin' me out bro." She said, arching an eyebrow at him.
"We're just goin' out Mi. Wait and see. You'll love it." He replied.
He drove the straight strip until her could see the Lancer pulled over. He pulled over behind it.
"Ok what's goin' on Dom? Why is Brian here? I thought he was at the store." Mia said, starting to worry about the events that were happening.
"Get out the car Mia." Dom ordered, opening his door. Mia did as she was told. She walked around to the other side other Rx-7 where Dominic was leaning against it. Dom pulled the walkie-talkie from his pocket and spoke in it. "We're here." He said. Seconds later, Mia's prince charming Brian stepped out of the Evo, flaunting a 1000 watt smile.
"Thank you Dominic." Brian thanked, walking up to them.
"It wasn't easy. She asked a lot of questions." Dom said, scratching his hairy chin. Brian laughed and took Mia by the hand over to their picnic area. Dom nodded and jumped back in his car, speeding off.
Brian's POV
Things were going perfect. I still didn't mention the real reason we were out here. I just told Mia that I wanted to have a romantic dinner with her. Just us on a beach with her favorite meal. It was around 9 P.M. We were cuddled up in each others arms, watching the waves of the ocean splash viciously. It was amazing how much we could talk about in such a short amount of time.
Fifteen minutes later...
The anticipation was killing me. We were now talking about when Letty first moved to the neighborhood and how her and Letty first became friends.
"She always down the street playing with her toy cars in the driveway. She was always weird though. I guess that's why my brother liked her." She said, causing us both to laugh.
I couldn't do it anymore. I couldn't wait.
Mia began to shiver. I guess it was getting a little chilly outside.
"Get up." I said, helping her off the sand.
I slipped off my black blazer and flung it around Mia's shoulder. I pulled her closer into my arms as we watched the dark star-lit sky.
"Oh look, shooting star." Mia said, pointing to the star that was flying across the sky.
Now was the time. I had to do it now.
I took a step back from Mia, trying to gather all my thoughts. When she opened her mouth to speak, I stopped her.
"Don't. Just listen." I said, putting one finger over her lips. "Mia, from the day I met you, I knew you were something special. I didn't come to the store everyday for the case, I only needed to come once. I just wanted to be in your presence because you gave off such an amazing vibe. Your smile is what I wanted to see everyday. When I left for Miami, I didn't only come back to L.A to get in Dom's good graces again. I came back for you. I love you Mia. More then anything. I gave up everything in my life because I loved you. Before I met you, my life was the same routine everyday; get up, go play cop, go home to an empty house. But when met you, you changed everything. You brought so much excitement, as did the rest of the Team, to my life. Now I don't have to come home to an empty house because I have you. I wanna keep you forever Mia. I'm never gonna need anyone else as long as I have you." I began, pretty much just rambling off everything on my mind. Her eyes were watering and her hands were shaking. "What I'm tryna say is ... Mia will you be my wife?" I asked, bending down to one knee. I pulled the box from my pocket and opened it, showing off the 5-karat diamond ring with two smaller diamonds on each side of it.
She put both of her trembling hands up to her mouth to catch the scream that she was threatening to release. She stood silent for a minute. My heart began to pound. Maybe I wasn't so sure of her saying yes.
"I ... I don't know what to say." She struggled to get out.
"Say yes." I encouraged her.
She remained silent, tears pouring down like rain. I was losing all my faith the longer this took. I needed her to say something. Silence is worst then a 'no'.
"Of course I'll marry Brian Earl O'Conner." She yelled, pulling me by my hands to my feet. She slung her arms around my neck and I picked her up, twirling her around in the air.
"I'M THE LUCKIEST MAN IN THE WORLD!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.
xxx
Sasha's POV
I was lying in my bed, not sleeping, but just staring at the ceiling. I called Letty about an hour ago and we decided that when she got out the hospital, we'd talk to the doctors about pulling the plug on Ma. It felt horrible to say it like that. But I didn't want her to suffer anymore.
I shrugged off the thoughts of my dieing mother. Thoughts of the Team flooded my mind. I miss Le, I thought. I wished he was still around. Me and him grew close over the years. He was always sweet and he kept me laughing all the time. He was fun to play basketball with. Even though he was way better then me, he always let me win.
I sat up suddenly and grabbed my cell phone from the dresser. I flipped it open and punched in Leon's number.
"Ello?" A gruffy voice answer the phone. He didn't sound the regular Leon. He sounded ... hurt.
"Leon?"
"Sasha? What do you want?" Rude ass.
"I just wanted to talk to my Slick but if you want to be a jackass I'll hang up."
"Don't hang up. I'm sorry. Things are just rough right now." He sounded truly sad.
"What's goin' on Le?"
"Bianca left me."
"I'm on my way."
I hung up before he could protest. Leon was my Slick man. Only because he thought he was as smooth as a baby's ass. He was a sweetheart though. He treated me and Diana with the utmost respect when we first came here and he was the first who wanted to get to know us. Just because Dom was mad at him, it didn't mean I had to be.
I ran over to my closet and pulled out my Ecko hooded sweater. I slipped it on and grabbed the keys to Portia from the table. I left my room and hopped down the stairs.
"Off to somewhere?" Vince asked, his husky voice scaring the hell out of me. He was sitting on the sofa playing PS2 with Rome.
"Goin' to see Leon." I said simply, stopping at the bottom of the stairs. I knew there were going to be more questions.
"Why? Does Dom know?" He replied, putting the game on pause.
"Like I said, I don't need Dom keeping tabs on me. And I miss him. I'll be back soon." I responded, opening the front door. Vince let out a growl but I ignored it. I bounded down the porch and out to the driveway, where Portia had been parked. When I pushed the button to open the door, Brian's Evo pulled up.
"Wait! Look Sasha!" Mia yelled, running over to me at full-speed. She waved her hand in my face.
"Damn girl you gon' blind me with that ice. Congratulations!" I cheered, squeezing her into a hug. I looked over at Brian and nodded approvingly. "Well I gotta go. I'll be back later." I said before she could stop me.
xxx
No POV
Roman, Dominic, and Vince were all downstairs on the couch, watching a wrestling match and drinking Corona's. They looked like they had been best friends for years. Like they grew up in the same home. They were all very much alike; aggressive, intimidating, overprotective, jealous.
When Mia and Brian walked in the house, they both looked as if they just come home from the most rocking party of the year. Mia was laughing as she stumbled through the front door.
"Roman, you and Lily can have our rooms tonight. We're gonna take the other house." Mia said, winking at Brian as she ran up the steps, heels in hand.
Dom looked at Brian menacingly. He didn't want to think of the things his baby sister and her fiancé were going to be doing in a house alone. He knew she was very much a grown woman, but to Dom, Mia would always be his 11 year old Baby Doll.
"Oh Dom back off it. I'm officially engaged so I'm going to celebrate." Mia said from the stairs, taking notice of the look on Dom's face. She made her way down the stairs, Letty's backpack on her shoulders.
"Just lookin' after my Baby Doll is all. You take care of her Brian. Or I'll loosen the leash on the Coyote's neck." Dom threatened, nodding at Vince. He now stood in Brian's face.
"No need. She's in good hands. Yo Rome, you gonna be good?" He asked, looking over Dom's shoulder at Roman, who was looking through one of the car magazines on the coffee table. He nodded and continued to flip the pages of the book.
"I'll be back earlier enough to cook breakfast for you grease monkeys." Mia said, kissing Dom on the cheek. She waved her goodbyes to the other men and left the house.
Dom took his seat back on the couch, staring blankly ahead of him. All he could think of was his family. How much they had grown over the years right before his eyes. He was almost mad that he didn't stop and cherish every moment they had together. Each person had matured right in his home and he had been to caught up to fully take in what each person brought to his life.
Mia...His baby sister Mia was now a very grown, mature young lady. She had given up all her hopes and dreams to stay home and take care of him. He never thanked her enough for being there for him. He pushed her hard enough all through life to go to college and do something with her self. He never wanted her to stay there and be the mother to nine adults. He wanted her far away from here, doing big things. He knew somewhere inside her, she wanted to leave. But she always told him that her home was here. She didn't belong anywhere else. She said she couldn't leave Dom even if someone paid her millions to. He loved his sister very much. More then anyone could describe. Mia was the only reason family Dominic had left and vice versa. He lost his hero, his father, and he didn't want to lose Mia, his princess. But now she was all grown up. She's engaged to a good man and did all the school she could put herself through. He respected that. He loved his Mia.
Letty...He was extremely happy that he had Letty. He hated himself for the accident that caused her to be away from him so long, but he was happy that she pulled through it all. He knew she was a fighter. Everyone knew that. Yes, she was very dominant, but she had a loving, caring side that could break even the hardest man. Dominic knew he had done her wrong so many times. He could never forgive himself for that. Letty was the one woman in his life who would stick with him throughout everything. The deaths of Letty's parents and his father; the cheating; him going to Lompoc; the excessive racing; the partying; his arrogant behavior. Letty rode it out with him. From the day she first came over to play with Mia to the first time they kissed; Dom knew they were meant to be together. They were so much alike it was scary. They both had their dominant, territorial sides, but both also had sensitive sides. They just didn't like to show them much. But lately, Dominic had been showing Letty his gentleman, husband-like side in front of everyone. He didn't care. He just wanted Letty out of the hospital and home with him until she was ready to give birth to the beautiful being they created.
V...Vince was another person who meant a lot in Dominic's life. Since that day in elementary school, the day they first fought, Dominic knew they'd be best friends forever. The way they had enough pride to become good friends afterwards was incredible. Vince stuck it out with Dominic through everything. He gave up his dreams of being a musician because he couldn't find it in himself to leave Dom there. He wanted to stay in that garage, under those cars, covered in grease for the rest of his life. It was Dominic who got Vince hooked to the cars in the first place. After school, he'd always drag Vince to his father's garage to watch Anthony and his employees work. Once they made it to high school, the boys were working in the garage. Vince continued to play his guitar, but wasn't so interested in pursuing it. He gave it up for me, Dom thought. Throughout the years, Vince and Dom had their differences. They fought constantly about things. But at the end of the day, they'd work on a car, which always seemed to bring them together. Cars were what brought the friends this close and would probably be the reason they remained close. The day of the hijackings was one of the scariest moments of Dom's life. He panicked when he saw his best friend's body fly from the front to the passenger side of that 18-wheeler. He had never been so scared in his life. He wanted to be able to grow wings and fly over to that truck, pulling Vince off. He hated himself for that day. For getting Vince into so much shit. For putting him through months of physical therapy. He was sorry for that. He never told Vince, but Vince could tell.
Jesse...The mad scientist was the key to all of Dom's glory and success. If he didn't show up that day looking for a place to work and sleep, then Dom probably wouldn't be the King Kong of races. Dom had gained a sense of protectiveness over Jesse when he turned 14. That's when he learned the extent of Jesse's A.D.D. Jesse always come home after school, upset over it. He hated that he prevented him from hanging out with the other kids or even meeting girls. Nobody would have anything to do with him because he was "weird". Dominic knew letting Jesse under the hood of a car anytime he needed to was good therapy for him. He never seen anyone work so hard on something. When Dom was having a rough day and Jesse knew about it, he'd always do something to cheer Dom up. Whether it was act like a complete nutcase or just tell him corny jokes. Dom treated Jesse like his son and Jesse didn't mind. He loved the attention he got from Dominic. Dom hated himself for getting in bad with the Trans. If he didn't Jesse wouldn't have got shot during that drive-by. Hell there wouldn't have been a drive-by. He was blessed that Jesse survived it and was able to get back out there, living a normal life. If life in the Toretto home was normal.
Leon...Oh Leon DeMarcus Owenz. Dom knew the fight he had with Leon was blown way out of proportion. They both said things they shouldn't have. But he hated how Leon changed when he met Bianca. The lady kept him from his baby brother for Christ sake. Dom knew he had already forgiven Leon. It was all about pride though. He had too much of it to just swallow it and let Leon back in. Leon crossed the line; he put a woman over family. That was a rule for the Toretto men. Never put a woman before the family. That woman might be there for him for awhile, but his family would be permanent. He wasn't sweating it though. He knew Leon was just making a mistake he'd have to learn from later. He still considered Leon a great friend. Leon was like a brother to Dominic. He knew Leon was a keeper in the garage when he saw Leon change engines of Dom's Mazda in a little under seven minutes. That hadn't been done in DT AutoMechanics before. Dom needed Leon back in the house. Not just for the garage, but for Jesse. He knew Jesse needed his big brother and it was partially his fault Leon was away.
And Brian...Even though he hadn't known Brian long, he considered Brian a key essential to their little family. Yes, Brian did betray the Team and hurt Mia doing it, he got back into law enforcement one last time to help them. To clear their records and his. Brian came back to L.A. and helped them get their lives back together. He and Vince were the ones who went to Baja, Mexico to recover the lost Team members. He brought them back. Just like the first night he met Dom. He brought him back. Brian was Dominic's savior over countless amounts of times. He made his baby sister the happiest Dom's ever seen in his life. He cherished Brian for that. He was happy that finally a good guy came around to love her. Not saying Vince wasn't a good guy, he just wasn't the right good guy.
Even his (sorta) new Team members were characters. He loved that he found Sasha for Letty. And for Vince. He was happy that he found for Diana for Jesse. Both girls had so much energy and it lightened the Team's "play hard, work harder" lifestyle. He loved that Sasha kept Vince grounded. She changed Vince's outlook on life. Diana's spunky energy mixed with Jesse's energy was just insane. The two were a force to be reckoned with. She completed Jesse and made him happy. Dom wanted nothing more then that.
Dom's family truly made me a different man over the years. He played many roles as his family grew. He was ruler; protector; leader; brother; Father. He cherished his family and he was truly proud of them all. He appreciated each person, but never got the chance to tell them how much.
xxx
Dom's POV
I was scared from my thoughts from a loud yell from the top stairs.
"Rome." Lily called, regret in her voice.
"What? Now you talkin' to me?" He answered, looking over his shoulder.
"Quit bein' an asshole and come here. I need you to rub my belly." She begged. He huffed and said his goodbyes.
Me and Vince were left on the couch watching some weight-loss informercial. Vince chugged down the rest of his Corona then stood.
"Well brotha I'ma hit the sack. You don't mind if I crash in the basement do ya? Don't really feel like goin' home knowin' Jesse's not in yet." He asked, juggling the empty bottle in his hands.
"Vince have I ever minded if you crashed here? Go 'head." I said, now standing with him. We said our goodbyes and Vince started for the basement. "Hey V?" I called after him.
"Yeah? He asked, turning around.
"You do know I appreciate you right?" I asked, my hands stuffed in my pocket.
He smiled. "I know D. I know." He said, walking through the kitchen door.
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There's 57. Super long I know. I kinda got carried away. Read&review though.
--Kita