deciphered

downtown tokyo I

"I'd love it if you came to my race tonight. It's the largest one in Tokyo."

You placed your right hand on your heart, clutching the fabric of your shirt while letting out a half sincere mutter of endearment, laughing directly after. The sound of a loud cackle echoed through the phone on the other side as you tilted your head, staring straight into Iwaizumi's eyes.

"Aw. I'm flattered, Hajime. I'll support you no matter what, anything for my favorite cousin." You smiled brightly at him, showing off the front of your teeth with the edges of your mouth curled up; the same smile you always gave him when you both were younger.

He shyly chuckled and grinned through the video call, rubbing the back of his neck with his left hand. "I'm so excited to finally see you again. It's been so long since we were kids."

"Yeah it has," you replied, placing your phone back on your desk while propping it up behind a water bottle. As you looked back to your laptop, your hand scribbled down another drawing from your organic chemistry lecture slides carelessly onto your notebook.

Iwaizumi's mother was your father's older sister, which made you first cousins. The two of you would play and hang out all the time until a disagreement between your aunt and your father made it impossible to see him anymore, completely disconnecting you both for years. Over a decade had passed by since you had last seen him, recognizing he was not the same cousin you once knew during childhood.

He was always into cars ever since he was younger, given your father was a car guy himself—showing off his prized 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer to Iwaizumi, always letting him help fix the car alongside your help. He explained he was studying to be a mechanic at the University of Tokyo, and that street racing was a side hustle that he was a part of to earn some extra cash for tuition.

"So when I get there, where should I go? I've never really been to a street race before," you asked while writing down the last bit of information from your lecture onto your notebook.

Iwaizumi looked up and pondered for a moment before replying, resting the crook of his hand beneath his chin. "You can be my special guest for the race, so you'll be able to stand with the guys in the Brawlers pit. I'll make sure one of the Seijoh boys can keep you company."

You weren't sure what he meant—while squinting your eyes, you made a confused face, showing you weren't very knowledgeable in his street racing lingo. "Brawlers pit? Seijoh boys?"

"Oh yeah, sorry about that. Don't tell my mom, but I've been initiated into the Seijoh Brawlers. Have you heard of them?" Iwaizumi's eyes quickly widened as he held his breath, making you skeptical of his intentions.

"No," you immediately replied, cocking your left eyebrow up. "Are they like the best racers or something?"

"Yeah kind of. The Seijoh Brawlers are part of the top five gangs associated with the street racing scene in Tokyo." Iwaizumi shamefully explained while looking down from the camera.

You looked up at your phone with an astonished expression, pursing your lips to the side of your face. Scolding him through the phone, you pinched your eyebrows together. "Gangs? Hajime, come on. How'd you get yourself involved in something like that?"

"Please, don't tell your dad or my mom," Iwaizumi begged through the phone. "They're my boys—my ride or dies."

You smiled at his remark, chuckling under your breath as you glided your pencil along your notebook, the graphite leaving tiny smears on the paper. "I won't, don't worry. I haven't really talked to my dad in a while anyways."

"I hope so because if I win this race, I get about a million yen in cash. This is a huge deal for me, it could help pay for university." Iwaizumi placed his phone closer to his face and zoomed in the camera. You could tell how he was excited about tonight as he smiled brightly through the screen, peering straight at your face.