Chasing Lights

Chapter 12: Cotton Candy

I wasn't dumb. I didn't miss the way some employees looked at me — none of them disrespectfully, though. They weren't stupid enough to make it seem like they wanted to get me in bed. Instead, their glance held curiosity and intrigue, like they were wondering what exactly I was doing here.

Bet they wouldn't have done that if I had a dick...

"Thanks for the hard work, Florence." Felipe appeared in my sight, shooting me a cheeky grin as he pulled his helmet over his head. He liked to flirt, but I also knew his boyfriend found that rather amusing than anything else.

"Sure thing." I laughed. "Have fun out there."

"Oh, I will. Hoping for some rain."

Felipe was the sort of driver who loved to race in the rain. It was hard keeping the car on the asphalt when it poured, but some drivers had more talent than others in that aspect. He was one of them.

Sliding into his Mona Lisa, as he called his vehicle, Felipe drove out of the garage. He just got into the pit lane when my dad's car appeared behind him, his head instantly whipping in my direction.

I couldn't see him with his visor down, but I could only imagine how hard he was grinning when he waved at me like the proud dad he was.

Shaking my head, I waved back at him, not missing the countless curious glances thrown my way.

Dad never tried to jeopardize my career — in fact, he supported me fully with every step I took. I would've started this journey much sooner if it went his way. That would've meant using his name to get my experience, though, which was the opposite of what I'd wanted to do.

He respected that, but I also knew he was super excited about having me on board now, even if we didn't see each other as often as I'd hoped. The internship needed a lot of attention, and I barely found time to call Amara with everything going on lately. She didn't even know about the mimosa incident yet.

Boy, that one would be fun to tell...

"Oh no..." Jin muttered with a roll of his eyes, gaining my attention.

I turned to look at him. "What's going on?"

His gaze fell at the garage back entrance, brows furrowed and a sigh leaving his throat. I followed his glance, scrunching my nose at the sudden smell of cotton candy in the room until I spotted a blond guy standing in the doorway, puffing out a cloud of smoke.

The mere sight had me baffled — what the fuck did this guy think he was doing?

"Dude," I called out to him, "what the fuck are you doing? This is a workplace!"

He looked up at me, his boyish features twitching with joy as he ran his eyes over me. "I know. I work here."

"You what now?"

Glancing over at Jin, I hoped for some sort of explanation, but he already turned around while muttering, "Goddamn child..."

"I. Work. Here." He rolled his eyes at me, disregarding Jin and taking another drag of his e-cigarette. "Is that so hard to understand?" I could barely comprehend his words as he spoke while puffing out another awfully sweet-smelling cloud of smoke.

"All I see you doing is acting like a child while the grownups are working," I quipped back, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

"Oh!" His laugh echoed through the garage while he pointed his smoking device at me, wide eyes showing some sort of realization. "You must be Florence Nyx!"

I didn't know what it was, but something about this guy's attitude made me want to punch him straight in the face. Still, I somehow managed to walk up to him, wiping my hand on my overall before I stretched it out in his direction. "That would be me. Hello."