"I'm bored."
"What you wanna do?"
"I cannot believe this is my life. I cleaned dude. I never clean." Dom chuckled and looked at his girlfriend of five years.
"Well, we could…" He gave her a knowing smile. Letty raised an eyebrow and smirked.
"Ehh…we did it this morning. I think I'm set." Dom shrugged.
"Well you could always…." He kept insinuating
"mhhm, you would like that wouldn't you."
"Yes, I would." He smiled, Letty just sighed as she continued to surf through channels. "So, is that a no or a we'll see?" He pressed on. Letty rolled her eyes. She wasn't in the mood to fool around. She shrugged, and he started to lean in and kiss her neck.
"Dom don't you want to do something fun!" She said exasperated. Dom looked up.
"I thought we were just about to." Her eyes widened, and Dom grimaced realizing that his window of opportunity had just shut.
"Yo, yo, yo." She started, "We should go car surfing!" Dom hesitated; he had not done it yet, but knew it was becoming a trend of sorts.
"I don't know."
"Oh come on, its so much fun! It's like your fucking flying man. It feels amazing almost as good as racing, except you don't get money in the end."
"Yea or you could break ya neck."
"Hmm, that too. But I don't think its anymore dangerous then other shit we do." She countered. "Plus Vince isn't here to drive me." She paused "I could just do it myself…"
"No. You are not going to get on top of a moving car with no one steering it. Do you have a death wish or some shit?" Letty giggled.
"I think I can manage, dumbasses do it all the time."
"Yea and if you did it you'd be a dumbass who got herself killed."
"Ok, I won't go ghost riding, because you're going to drive so I don't kill myself." She smiled sweetly indirectly asking him once more.
"Aight, let's do it. You got my keys"
"Yes!" She exclaimed in victory. "I think you left them in the kitchen." He got up to find his keys as Letty began to put on her boots. It was warm sunny Saturday afternoon in LA. Everyone was out the house doing their own thing. It was strange Letty had stayed in, but she had been slightly preoccupied with Dom earlier that morning.
"We should do it on the highway by the coast."
"Yea there's less people and less cops." She agreed. "I'm ready!"
"Put on a jacket. It could get windy."
"Nah, I think I'm good. It's supposed to be eighty-five degrees all day."
"Letty just bring a jacket with you." He said sternly.
"Oh no! What will I ever do if the temperature drops to seventy-seven degrees." Sarcasm was obvious in her tone. "Anyone ever tell you you're kinda the most controlling person on the planet."
"Ha. Ha. Ha. Funny, people always say you're the controlling one."
"Hmm no, I'm pretty sure you try to dominate everyone and everything on a far more regular basis." Dom rolled his eyes.
"Are we doing this or not? Because if you wanna continue to talk shit Ima want get another beer and sit down on the couch." Letty shot him a warning look, and he stared her down.
"Let's go." She stated
"By the way, I'm still expecting a blow job after this."
"Ha, you tried it." She said with as much attitude as she could muster.
After a few minutes in the car their moods lightened from their small argument. Tupac's Me and My Girlfriend began to play on Dom's radio. "Oh that's my shit. Ima about to blast this." Letty smiled as she turned up the volume. Dom always said the song reminded him of her. She loved the song and felt it represented many aspects of their relationship. Letty began to sing along while dancing in her seat. It wasn't long before Dom joined in, "Lost in the whirlwind, ninety-six, Bonnie and Clyde, Me and my girlfriend, do one-eighty-five when we ride, Trapped in this world of sin, born as a ghetto child, Raised in the whirlwind - look for me."
"Damn man, they 're ain't eva' gonna be anyone like 'Pac! Fucking bullshit how that shit went down." Dom said once the song ended.
"Word, I still can't believe it. You know some people think he faked his own death B."
"Nah, he's gone. But hey he lives on through his music."
"It's fucked up how people just keep dying like this. We can't even party anymore without shit blowing up. Remember that time you almost got shot at Manny's party?" Letty gripped the hand she had been holding and kissed it. That night they had gone to her friend Manny's birthday party. One of the invited guests was a live wire and decided to take it out on Dom because he was "looking at him sideways". Dom is not one to not stand up for himself, and so found himself in an interesting altercation with a guy and a gun. The guy's friend intervened before anything could pop off, but it was enough to scare Letty. She was so scared that night that she did not leave his side for three days. She would follow him around holding and hugging him whenever she could. He had found it sweet that it softened her so much because he was a lot more willing to outwardly express affection.
"I know. It's the fucking drugs. It's taking over the neighborhood. People who you would think never would touch the shit are starting to smoke crack." Dom stated solemnly. They had had several friends die from drug related incidents where it be selling or using. Letty's best friend Simone moved to the east coast with her baby after rival gang members came looking for her boyfriend. She missed how things used to be, but at least she knew she had her family to depend on and how to handle herself.
"It's the only escape some people got, ya know?"
"Yea, or there's also the option on getting on top of a moving car going full speed." He said as he smiled.
"Mmm, there's no high that matches what this baby can give me." Letty said as she touched the interior of Dom's car. She had helped him work on his 93' Mazda RX-7, and she was the only other person who was allowed to drive it. It had come a long way from the original wreck it was when Dom purchased it. They would stay up late working on mods for it, and it has arguably become the fastest machine at the races.
Letty had her own car Dom had surprised her with two years ago for her birthday. She was initially pissed when he had gotten her the car because she had been working so hard to raise enough money for it, and didn't want to feel like one of those kept girlfriends. She was a woman of principle, but when she saw the disappointment she had brought to Dom's face she realized how unreasonable she was being and apologized. She loved him more than words could say.
Some people think that working and living with their significant other can get tiresome, but they worked best together; usually in a comfortable silence. They would annoy the hell out of each other, but most days were good. They allowed a lot of room for independence. They were not ever asking constant question about where the other is going or whom they are with. They could go hours without seeing each other and bump into each other while walking down the street. They weren't the type of couple to be on top of each other in that manner. They used to be, but realized soon enough it lead to unnecessary disputes.
"You ready?" He said as he pulled over to the break down lane.
"Fuck Yes! Let's do this."
"1 tap to stop, 2 taps for speed increase." Dom said as he helped her climb on the roof of his car.
"Got it."
"And don't fall off. We still haven't filled out the paperwork for health insurance." Letty laughed.
"Can you just please start this car."
"Fine." As Dom started the car Letty began to sense the excitement growing in the pits of her stomach as she lay face down hand gripping the handles on the interior of the car. He started off slow, and began to increase the speed.
"Wohoooooooooo!" She tapped the car so that he would go faster. When she realized he wasn't, she rolled her eyes wishing Vince had been her partner in crime on this adventure. He was always reckless and she loved that about him. Dom was only reckless when he was drunk. All other times he was playing daddy trying to be the voice of reason whenever they wanted to pull a stunt; especially if it involved her or his sister. However, she did reason that they were at a decent enough speed for her to get a thrill. She took in the scenery as wind whipped passed her face. She could see the ocean and all its beauty surround them. The feeling was indescribable as her senses began to heighten. He pulled over after about twenty minutes.
"That right there mi amor," she said as she pointed to the car "was the shit. You wanna go?" Dom thought about it for a minute and decided he wanted in on the action too. She smiled knowing he could not resist the adrenaline high and started up the car.
"Hey how fast were you going?" She yelled from the driver's seat.
"Fifty" He replied as he climbed on the hood.
"Ima try seventy. That's what me and V did last time."
"Ima kill Vince." Dom said slightly pissed off. Letty decided to start the car before he could think about it too much. She heard as he kept tapping the hood for the vehicle to go faster and she laughed to herself. She went again, and so did he. By the time they got back to the house Mia was in the living room reading.
"Hey Mi, how you living girl?" Mia looked up and smiled
"Hey. Livin' good, You?"
"Had the best day." Letty said as she turned to Dom.
"I wouldn't say it was the best, but it was pretty fun." Letty rolled her eyes. "You're such a romantic baby." She said sarcastically.
"Hmm what were you guys up to?" She enquired. Dom looked a little nervous not wanting to encourage his sister to pull off crazy stunts.
"Not much." He stated simply.
"Really? Then why did Letty have the 'best day'?"
"Because she was with me, obviously." Dom grinned.
"O God." Letty and Mia said in unison.
"You're always trying to be cryptic and shit for no reason." Letty said as she turned to Mia. "We went car surfing. It was fun, end of story. You see Dom was that so hard." Mia laughed.
"Let, you said you'd take me next time you went?" Mia didn't race like the rest of the crew. Not only because Dom disapproved, but because she just wasn't attracted to the scene and all the drama it seemed to cause them. She also did not like the idea of risking her life on a regular basis, and thought they were all a little crazy for doing it. However, that did not stop her from wanting to enjoy a good thrill.
"Were you around?" Letty asked snarkly.
"You could have called me." She countered.
"How? I did not know where you were." Letty paused, "I think we should get mobile phones." She hadn't really thought about but it seemed like an increasingly good idea.
"Yea me too!" Mia agreed.
"They cost too much money." Dom argued.
"O please. If we double up the bets at the races we could have them by next week."
"Yea that's if we all win, which hasn't been the case with Leon lately."
"You know his car has been acting up." Letty defended.
"Exactly we shouldn't be wasting money on things we don't need."
"I'm getting a phone." Letty stated.
"Me too!" Mia agreed. She had savings of her own from her job at the garage and bodega. Dom rolled his eyes.
"You best not come to me for money. 'Dom let me hold twenty dollars.'" He said; poorly imitating Letty.
"That only happens when I buy new mods for my baby."
"Whatever. All I know I'm not giving you money if you ask."
"You do that. It's the 90s man, you need to get with the times." She said as she made her way into the kitchen.
"Yo, guys, whose turn is it to cook?" Letty asked as she made her way to the fridge.
"I believe it is your turn missy." Mia informed her.
"God dammit." She whined. Letty hated to cook, she wasn't bad at it, but didn't like having to do it. Everyone loved when she cooked because they got eat Caribbean food that was very different from the local food options in LA. There weren't too many Dominicans and Puerto Ricans in echo-park. Most of the local latinos were Mexican whose culture differed greatly from her own. Dom and Mia, were part Cuban, but did not know much about the culture since their mom died when they were very young. She opened the fridge and found some plantains and marinated chicken. "Mia can you get me some more platanos. Ima make mangoo."
"How many?"
"Like two dollars worth."
"Ok. I'll run now."
"Thanks chica." She heard the front door close. Dom came up behind her and wrapped his hands around her waist while placing a kiss on her cheek. "Dom, can't you see I'm busy."
"Am I still gonna get mines later." He cooed into her ear.
"I'm not sure you deserve it." She flirted back.
"I've definitely been a good boy today." He said as his hands went up her shirt. She smirked.
"But I already gave you a treat today."
"Yea, but as I recall that was after I gave you a treat. I can do it again if you want me to. " He began to kiss and touch her as she tried to place the chicken in the pan.
"Dom…" She said warningly, but he didn't stop. "Don't get yourself worked up with no guarantee of a wind-down." When he continued she found herself responding to his touch. "Dom quit, your gonna start a fire." She said referring to the stove.
"I think I already did." He said a hand moved down the center of her body.
"Dom.."
"I love when you say my name like that."
"You need to stop."
"But you like it." He said knowingly.
"So. Don't you wanna eat?"
"O I could eat." He said insinuatingly. He attacked her again. Letty lost herself in the haze for a few moments, but then came to her senses.
"Ok, ok, ok. I'll take care of you later."
"You promise?"
"Yea, now get away from me."
"I wanna do it in the car." He said lustfully in her ear as he kissed her again. Letty smiled as a mind picture stilled in her mind. He knew how to turn her on. There is something about a shirtless Dom and the vibration of a purring engine beneath her that made the scenario more enticing.
"On the hood, in the garage, after dinner." She said as she bit her lip.
"Ok, it's a date." He stole one more kiss.
"Dom, that's enough. Go take a cold shower. The guys will be here soon and are going to be up my ass about getting them fed."
"One more." She giggled and granted him another kiss. This one was long and wet. He sucked her bottom lip as she licked his upper lip. When they broke away they looked at each other longingly, before Dom turned away to the living room.
"Dom, check scores for the Lakers, man. I know that new kid Kobe Bryant has been on point this season."
"O shit, I forgot we missed that game. I recorded it on the VCR. Ima just play it."
"Aight sounds good." Letty smiled. It had been a great day. Days like that came few and far between. It had been hard on them being so young to have all these responsibilities, but they were all in it together. That was all that mattered.