One For The Road

58: Together

The Daytona 500 was the premier event of the NASCAR Cup Series, and it was the perfect way to kick off a new season and a new beginning for me.

Everything was different, but I never minded a change in scenery. I was born for the road, and that was its nature. It took me from place to place, and while those places were great, the in between was also worth remembering. The Sacrilege house in London, Ontario was just a stop for me, but it was there that I found the fuel to keep going.

Like I promised, I invited Annie and Drake to watch, and when they showed up with their infield passes, I ran up to them.

Months had gone by since I had seen Annie in person, and she looked absolutely stunning with a genuine smile and new glow about her. She was always beautiful inside and out, but she looked healthier mentally and physically ever since she left Canada for a small New York town.

"Katie," Annie said before wrapping me up with a hug.

I smiled, but her arms weren't responsible for the way my chest was squeezing my heart to death.

"So are you excited for this? Nervous?" she asked.

The glitter in her bright brown eyes had only gotten brighter since the last time I saw her.

"Mostly excited. I'm sure I'll feel right at home as soon as I get in the car, but I've peed at least six times in the past two hours." I laughed. "You guys want to see my car?"

I led them over to the fourteen, my new team number. Although I liked the paint scheme on the ninety-five better, I couldn't complain. Everything else was an upgrade, and it wasn't anyone's fault that I looked like a traffic cone in orange.

My starting position wasn't nearly as bad as it could be in ninth, especially at a place like Daytona, which had a lot of similarities to my personal hell of Talladega.

Drake didn't care so much what was on the outside of the car but the inside, just like with his robot friend Sacrilege.

He peered in the window. "Is it true that the drivers all wear diapers?"

I shook my head. "I don't. I just pee in the fire suit when I absolutely have to."

"Oh." He paused for a moment. "That's kind of gross."

"What else am I supposed to do when I'm trapped in a boiling hot car for four hours?"

"That's fair." He leaned into the car, and even though I probably wasn't supposed to let him do that, it wasn't going to hurt anyone.

"So how's everything, Annie?" I asked.

Back in New York, Ohio, and Ontario, there was sure to be plenty of snow and cold wind, but Florida had its perks, even if we were only there for a weekend.

"Being an international adult student sucks, but I'm happy I did this. It's an improvement over being the domestic servant for two man-children." She laughed.

Drake pulled himself out of the window. "What?"

"Nothing. Go back to looking at the car," Annie said and waved her hand.

"I really wasn't expecting it to be this hot in February. Do you want anything to drink, Annie?" Drake said, and Annie asked for a water. He left to go get them.

I laughed. "At least Drake has a real job plus the robot fighting, for fuck's sake."

She nodded and turned her eyes to the ground.

"I'm happy for you, Annie. You deserve the world," I said.

"Thanks, but I really miss having people to care for. At least I always had that with him."