Twilight isn't mine, but the idea is. I was inspired to write this after a marathon of Fast and Furious. All the songs on the soundtrack helped me create this, so you should check them if you don't know them.
Many thanks to my dear friends m0t0b33 and TeamAllTwilight for the pre-reader and beta work.
And to you, my readers and followers, thank you! I wish I had the time to answer you, but we can discuss stuff in my facebook group. ;)
Jake answered his phone promptly. "Ed, my man! How's Chicago?"
"Jake, you fucking imbecile!" Edward yelled.
"Whoa. Oh…"
"Oh, indeed. How could you give Bella that? Are you fucking insane? On that matter, how could you sign me up to that?"
"We discussed, man. You know tons more about racing than me. And now I know how."
"What?" Edward felt faint. Who could have told Jake? He slumped in his chair, biting the inside of his cheek.
"You know what, Speedy." Jake's voice was dripping with sarcasm.
"Who? Jake, it's really… I never thought it was important to give you details on my life."
"Don't worry. When I went to sign myself in for the competition…there was this guy. He was impressed with my car and asked who took care of it. I explained to him, and when he asked about you, I gave him a brief description."
Edward felt sick. "And then you decided to sign me into that?"
"Well, it's only fair. You always lost when you competed against Ben Badass. Ring any bells? I thought with Mach One you'd win. I swear, it wasn't a jerk move…I mean, I wasn't trying to be a jerk. I thought I was helping you."
"Ben Badass?" Edward felt bile rising in his throat. Bella's head shot up and in that moment he realized that she knew of him. Ben was the one who put Brady in the hospital. Ben was the worst opponent out there—not only aggressive but very cunning and always with an ace up his sleeve.
"Jake," Edward said quietly. "Mach One needs much more than it already has. I need to come back and finish the job. Uh…also, could you send me the files unfilled? I'd like to compete as Speedy."
"Got it. Wait. You're competing!"
"That's what I said, you fuckwit! I'll call you about what you need to buy and the time we're coming back. There's more to this, I can't tell you over the phone."
Once he hung up, Edward turned to Jasper, telling him everything Mach One needed to make it perfect to compete against Ben's car. He had no idea what car the fucker would have, but he always managed to have a better one.
After discussing in detail everything, they commonly decided to put these dark thoughts aside and try to have a peaceful Christmas. It was only two days away.
When they emerged from his room, ready to hit the mall for last minute shopping, they were stopped by Esme. She insisted to feed them, and tried to talk more with her son about his future plan. He told her he didn't want to hear anything about the race until after Christmas. It was immature to ignore the problem, but he wished for a couple of days of normalcy.
Before leaving, Edward explained his plan on a quiet Christmas to his father, Emmett and James. They accepted his request. James handed his sister a badly wrapped box, telling her to open it on Christmas morning. He was leaving to spend the holiday with his girlfriend. As Bella hugged him, she whispered that he could invite Vicky to live with them, in Fredonia. She realized what was to love someone and the need to be around them.
The youngsters drove to the mall in two separate cars. This time Bella stayed with Edward, holding his hand as much as shifting the gear allowed them. James had given her some money, but she had no idea what she could buy him, and it would be nice and polite to get his parents something too. She was going to live there until summer if everything went well. She couldn't afford thinking of anything happening to her boyfriend. It would crush her.
"The stereo works," she noted delighted, suddenly hearing the beat of music.
"Yeah, Jazz gave me this CD."
"I like this song," she said, humming along with the singer.
"Bam Bam," Edward told her, grinning.
"Huh?"
"High Speed Chase by Bam Bam. It is on one of the Fast and Furious movies' soundtrack."
"Oh, that's why it was familiar."
Edward chuckled. "Glad I could educate you on that matter. I'm surprised you didn't see my true self sooner. I tried showing you trough movies."
"I told you, I suspected you…but I had no idea it was so bad."
He winked at her, stopping at a red light. Another song from the Fast and Furious movies soundtrack started. His eyes twinkled. "My favorite!" He upped the volume, tapping his fingers to his steering wheel.
DRAH! 2 Fast...
DRAH! 2 Furious...
I'M TOO FAST FOR Y'ALL MAYN!
Bella gave him a look between amusement and awe. She'd never seen him so free and relaxed, nevermind singing.
As the light turned green, his phone vibrated. "Can you take this?" He gave Bella his phone.
"It's a text from Jasper. He's wondering what got into you."
Edward turned his head and waved toward the car next to him. "Tell him to roll his window down at the next red light."
It didn't take long until they stopped again. Edward leaned over his window. "Our song, Jazz. Hear out the best lines ever!" Edward upped the volume more just as his favorite part came.
With the pedal to the floor, radar in the GRILLE
TV in the middle of my STEERING WHEEL
It's my car's birthday so we BLOWIN THEM CANDLES
More speakers in the trunk than my ride can handle
Jasper started laughing, shaking his head. Looking back out the windshield at the empty road, Jasper raised an eyebrow at Edward. Despite knowing better, Edward nodded. The next stop was about two hundred feet away.
"Edward!" Bella said in a warning voice, realizing his intention.
He picked her hand from her lap and kissed the top of it. "You won't even know it happened. Besides, let me warm up."
Shifting the car into a lower gear, he rumbled the engine and the second the green light came on, he peeled off. His eyes narrowed on the lights showing green at the next intersection. He could hear Jasper's Mitsu catching up on him and suddenly he regretted not having his old Betty—the modified version. As he neared the intersection, Bella gripped the edge of her seat, staring wide-eyed ahead.
"It's yellow! It's yellow, Edward! DON'T!"
Adrenaline spiked his blood as he floored the gas flying through the yellow light. He pulled over next to a bookstore, pushing the hazard lights on, his eyes on the rear-view mirror. Jasper was stuck at the light.
"I think I'm going to be sick," Bella mumbled, rubbing her stomach.
He turned his eyes on his girlfriend. She was deadly white and looked like she had aged ten years.
"Oh, fuck. Bella, I'm an idiot."
She opened the door and promptly emptied her stomach on the sidewalk. Cursing himself for his stupidity, Edward left he car, rounding to her side and crouch in front of her, ignoring the acrid smell of vomit.
"Baby," he whispered, cupping her cheek.
"Didn't you see the cars coming from the other sides?" she moaned.
"I had time. Look. We're okay."
"I'm not." She was shaking like a leaf.
"Are you fucking nuts?" Jasper shouted from behind him, making Edward jump startled. As he turned to face his friend he noticed a crowd had gathered. They had probably seen him speed too. "Get back behind the wheel. We're still going to the mall, and if you go above forty miles per hour..."
"What? Why?"
Jasper silently pointed to Bella who had slumped in her seat. "Show's over," he muttered to the crowd, heading to his car.
"I'll drive slowly," Edward assured his girlfriend once he was back behind inside. "I really am sorry."
"I really hate speed. I'll probably stay under the covers, praying for you when you'll be competing."
He didn't say anything, though he hoped she'd be there cheering on him. His flavor of the week usually cheered on him in his previous races. Thought, he'd accept her reluctance, knowing what happened to Brady, and Bella's dislike of high speed.
When they arrived at the mall, Alice whisked Bella away, glaring murderously at Edward. He started walking aimlessly with Jasper at his side, hoping for something to catch his eye.
"Don't overthink this, man," Jasper groaned, exasperated. "Think of something she likes and doesn't have."
Edward glared at his best friend. "I bet she likes that too." He pointed to the bag in Jasper's hand, which was holding nice lingerie for Alice. "But we're not in that stage…and even if we were, I'd be mortified to get her something like that. I already know too much about your love live."
Rolling his eyes, Jasper led Edward through another area of the mall. "Music. Movies. Books. Even clothes. Whatever. Nail polish. Seriously, Edward. Girls aren't as complicated as you think. The smallest thing makes them happy."
"Come in here." Edward suddenly rushed into a store. He knew that Bella probably didn't own thicker pajamas. As he browsed, nothing catching his eye, the saleslady approached him.
"Can I help you?" she offered, smiling at him.
"Uh, yeah. I'm trying to find something nice and warm for my girlfriend." He sounded stupid. Nice and warm? He cringed.
Jasper snickered beside him.
"For a teenager I recommend these." The lady took him to the other side of the store. Edward had to admit, these pajamas looked a lot better. "Do you know her size?"
"Nope. I guess…she's like you?" He eyed the woman confused. "Not sure, really."
"Definitely an eight," Jasper joined their conversation. When he got odd looks, he shrugged. "I live with Alice. I know this shit."
Between the three of them, Edward managed to select a coral one with a teddy bear on the front. Seeing the print, he immediately knew exactly what else Bella would love. After paying, he dragged a bewildered Jasper after him. It didn't take long to find a toy store.
"Dude, what are we doing here?"
"Buying a present. I can't believe I didn't think of this sooner. She loves stuffed toys. She has tons of them."
"Jesus. Are you joking, now?" Jasper scratched the back of his head.
"No. Either help me find something nice or go outside and wait on the bench."
His friend chose to wait on the bench, and also call the girls and tell them to meet in fifteen at the food court.
Edward felt lost in the sea of toys and fussy children, but he patiently inspected the plush animals, wanting to buy Bella something nice—something she didn't already have. Teddy bears, dogs and bunnies were overrated. Even panda bears were not the right things. As he dodged children whining to their parents about one toy or another, he finally found the right one. Making sure there was no kid around to step on, he rushed to the shelf and picked the medium sized white baby seal. He loved it, and it was soft and simply perfect for Bella.
At the cash register, the guy even offered him a paper bag for it. Thanking him, Edward left the store feeling happier.
"Done? What did you get?" Jasper jumped off the bench.
"A baby seal," Edward answered, grinning. He placed the bag with the pajama over the plush toy so Bella wouldn't see what he got her. "When are we meeting the girls?"
"In five at the food court."
"Good. Go ahead. I want to get something to Mom and Dad, oh, and Emmett and Rose… Fuck." Edward frowned, looking agitated. "Do you think I should get something for James, too?"
"Duuude!"
"What? Bella's my first girlfriend."
"True, but I'm not one to give you advice. Alice's parents hate me."
Edward sent Jasper ahead to meet the girls, promising to join them as soon as he was done freaking out. Shopping for his parents wasn't that difficult—he knew what they liked—a nice pen for his Dad, along with a chain for his glasses because he always lost them, and for his Mom an apron and mitten set with Christmas motifs. It wasn't much, but they'd love it. For Emmett and Rosalie, he decided to get them a house warming gift since they had just gotten married. For what he found, he needed more money so after a quick call to his father and explaining his intention, Carlisle wired more money to Edward's card telling him to sign the gift as The Cullens. That left James, but he was already too late so he decided to worry about it later.
His friends had already ordered when he joined them. Edward was glad to see Bella had bought him a hamburger and fries.
"Thanks," he whispered, leaning to kiss her cheek. "Got everything?"
"Barely. Just Jimmy and you left."
"Me?" His eyebrows shoot up. "What about the sweater?"
She turned pink, and studiously sucked from her Sprite. Edward decided to leave it be. "I didn't get your brother anything either."
"Why would you?"
"Because we're dating…and I think it's normal to do so…and I want to stay on his good side."
"Then let's brainstorm and get him something together—as a couple."
He beamed at her, taking a bite form his hamburger.
After eating, they separated once more, but this time Edward took Bella with him, and Jasper took Alice. As they wandered about looking for something to get James, Bella realized they should get something for Jake and the gang. The mere thought of more shopping and more money spent made Edward groan and think how much he hated this.
For James they settled on a framed award reading BEST COP IN ARIZONA STATE. Edward hoped he'd see the humor in that. As for their friends from the Reservation, they bought matching long sleeved shirts with a snowman printed on the front and on the back three puddles representing the melting of the snowman, or so Bella and Edward though. It was a funny idea. The only difference between all shirts was the color.
It was dark outside when they left the mall, but they were all content for buying what they had planned.
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