Wildly Driven

Chapter 42

"Scar!" Calvin cooed. I hadn't seen him since I had twisted my leg. "How's your leg now? Robert said you had fallen down?"

"It's back to normal." I answered giving him a small smile. "I'm as good as new."

"Great!" He clapped his hands together. He looked at Robert for which Rob shook his head sideways as a no. Calvin's nod at Robert's action was barely noticeable. "So, ever since your last game," I held my breath, scared to hear what he had in store for me. "you are getting invited into a lot of other races, Scarlet."

"That's good, right?" I asked, my hands folded in resemblance to a prayer.

"It is!" Calvin smiled. He buttoned his blazer as a chilly wind blew our way. "But, let me be honest, Scar. The last game was merely luck." I bowed my head low. It sure was. "You need to get smarter and faster." He clicked his fingers. "I've asked Bert to double your practices and I hope you comply with whatever he has in mind for you."

I nodded my head, my mind already thinking dirty.

"I hope to see you in the top kiddo." He patted my shoulders. "I'm probably going to hook you up in another two weeks."

"I'll get her ready by then." Robert interrupted and I released the breath that I was holding.

Calvin gave us both a smile and wandered off to Dan checking on what he was doing. My heart bet faster than usual and I put my hand on my head, trying to breath properly. Robert smiled at me and massaged my shoulders, encouragingly.

"Come on, soldier." He pushed me towards the far end of the track where a set of tires were already placed. We stood in front of them as Luke joined us from behind. "Before we start, I need you to know that two months have already passed from your ultimatum."

"I know." I said, my voice low.

"You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else." Luke added, sensing my nervousness.

"Can you lift one tire?" Rob asked, ignoring Luke. He pointed to one of the tires that were kept in front and tilted his head towards me.

I shrugged, though I knew I would not be able to even lift it by a millimeter.

"I've seen you drive in traffic and in races." Robert started as I went again to try lifting it. "I'm sure you can handle that, especially the being in the game part. But - "

"The one in which you played was a simple one." Luke said. "The next ones, the steering wheel is not going to be smooth for you to turn around. You need to get yourself stronger for it."

"And hence," Robert lifted the tire up like it was a piece of paper. "You need to practice."

"Hey, relax." Luke snorted, sensing my anxiety. "It's going to be fine."

"You also need to watch videos to make sure how things are going to be in the actual races." Robert interjected. "Racers from different countries and different backgrounds have different techniques to compete. You need to learn them all and groom them to make them your own."

I felt like I was going deep into it. This was what actual racing was all about. The ones I had before were just warm-ups.

"I know, honey." Luke said putting his hand on my shoulder and looked at me with a sympathetic smile. "It's a lot to take in. But with your time given, it's going to be like a crash course."

I took a deep breath. "I'm ready. Let's get this done."

"I like her, man." Luke said to Robert who only nodded at him, looking my way. "You can do this for like half hour and then go watch the game."