"Ride or Die"
Street Racer, Ara, teams with a famous racing company to earn money for her ill mother.
Since the racing industry is discriminative towards female drivers, she disguises her identity as a male driver known as AJ.
Her rival, Park Jimi...
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The clacking of Namjoon's dress shoes hitting the marble floors echoed through the walls of Jae's car garage. Being the respectful man he was, Namjoon keeps his head down, hands balled into fists beside him as he walked up the floating staircase with a purple light illuminating each step from underneath the steps. For he did not want to look up and see Ara's butt as her hips swayed up the stairs.
Jae led Ara and Namjoon away from the crowds of people and into the privacy of his car shop. The three remained quiet as the muffled music of the outside street race bounced off the walls. Namjoon was too focused on the ticking of his wrist watch and his loud thoughts to even notice when Ara spoke to him.
Namjoon looked around the room, a place Hoseokie had never taken him before. He had asked Hoseok to take them to a private room, yet there was nothing private about the room despite there being no one besides them. The glass walls allowed the surrounding buildings a good view into the floor.
The room was lit under the moon and the purple lights Jae installed in the room. Due to the colored lights and the white furniture, the entire room seemed to be painted purple, setting the mood for the secretive discussion they were about to have.
Ara sat on the glass half-ball hanging from the ceiling while the two men sat on the white leather couch.
She crossed her leg over the other, leaning into Namjoon who held a confident posture, yet his eyes were coated with nervousness as his mind constantly went over everything he had prepared.
"I'm all ears." She lifted her fine brows, signaling for the man to begin.
Namjoon intertwined his fingers together, resting his forearms on his knees before he began to speak. "I own Light Speed Motorsport."
Ara perched her head up, raising her brows in surprise at what Namjoon has just said. He seemed nervous, yet the second he opened his mouth, he seemed like a true businessman. All signs of nervousness dissipated in the air.
"I thought the owner would be a fat, old man with grey hair." She said, eyeing Namjoon from head to toe. "But here you are. About my same age, and nothing about you seems to be anything but delicious." Ara smirked, licking her lips at the eye candy sat in front of her.
"Ara," He said her name, mimicking her action as he eyed her down. "Twenty-three year old street racer. According to your personal record, your father is Eun Jisung. Billionaire entrepreneur for the development of motor engines designed for speed racing. But he left you and your mother for another family in The States."
Ara narrowed her eyes at Namjoon, her her hands curling into fists at the mention of her father. She listened carefully, wondering how he had received this information.
Did Jae tell him?
Her gaze met Jae as he rested comfortably in the couch, arms on the headrest and legs part. He smirked a her, cocking a brow up as his head shook a definite 'no' to her unasked question.
"He left you the mansion along with three of his cars in the divorce. The Audi R8 you drive is your father's. One of a kind engine model made specifically for racing." He finished.
Her lip twitched in disgust, the mention of her father was a bitter topic she hated discussing with strangers. She hated the way people assumed the events of her life, thinking she was nothing but an abandoned girl with daddyissues.
"What is it you want?" She asked, wanting to move on from the topic at hand.
"The point is that I've been watching you Ara." He stared into here eyes, waiting for any kind of reaction. When she didn't reply, he continued, lips twitching into a mocking smirk.
"Your technique is impeccable." He stressed. "I've never seen someone drift and change gear so perfectly in a very long while. It's exactly what we need at the company."
"You want me to race for you?" Ara lifted a brow, a smile forming on her face in amusement.
Her heart raced within her heart. The anger she felt when her father was mentioned was washed away and replaced with confusion.
Namjoon nodded eagerly, his mood lifting when he saw her smile. "You'd have everything: Cars, fame, the victory."
She scoffed, standing to her feet and she paced around the room. "I don't race to win. For a man who seemed to have known everything about me, you still know nothing about me." Her smile was gone, replaced with a sorrowful expression at the words she would speak next. "I'm sorry, Namjoon, but I'm not the racer you need."
If there was anything that Ara desired more than having a real family, it was being a profession sport's car racer. But like had a way of destroying those desires.
She shook her head, making her way towards the exit when he spoke again, his words glueing her to the floor.
"Hae Dani, diagnosed with Kideny Failure and has been on dialysis for five years while she waits for a kidney transplant. Your mother." He sighs softly.
Ara closes her eyes, every single muscle in her body frozen in it's place as he pokes at the most sensitive aspect of her life.
"Ride or die." Namjoon spoke again. "You ride for the money. Without it, she dies."
That was it.
Namjoon had a way with words that left her speechless. It was like he had taken her tangled thoughts and perfectly translated them into coherent words that helped her understand what she was thinking.
