Lala sized up her competition while leaning against her car, a cherry red 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS. It was her pride and joy. Jack Toretto had given it to her father and he kept it for Lala. Unsurprisingly, Dom wanted to see if she'd throw up slips with him so that he could get his hands on the beast. The two would be racing each other in a few days to do just that.
"You sure you know how to handle that?" A man's voice sounded from nearby causing her to look over. He stood with another shorter guy wearing a mesh shirt and loud pants. Lala hadn't known their names in the moment - Johnny Tran and Lance. "A beauty like that needs a lot of love and somebody who can handle her properly."
"I can handle her just fine, baby. Why don't you worry about your boy here who lost his last three races." She nodded to the shorter one and pushed her hair out of her eyes with her sunglasses.
His face hardened at the disrespect sent to his cousin and stepped closer to her. "You might wanna watch who you disrespect like that, Viper."
Lala let out a sarcastic laugh at his statement. "Look, cabrón, you can stand here and keep talking shit or get behind the wheel. I'll smoke your ass out either way."
A short ten minutes later, Lala was stepping out of her car feeling $4k heavier. Letty crossed her arms while walking over to her sister.
"Who did you race?" She asked with a raised brow.
"Some jackass in a Honda, couldn't stop running his mouth." Lala shrugged and put the money into her fanny pack. Letty shook her head, patting her on the back before starting over to her own car.
Suddenly, Johnny grabbed her wrist, she didn't know much about him personally - just that she'd raced with him a few times before he started running his mouth today. What she did know is that he was mad as hell about his loss. Plus it wasn't the first loss he had to Viper, he had yet to win against her over the years. Lala knew she could handle herself if it turned into anything violent but for now she let it slide.
Letty looked over her shoulder from her car and spotted the unwanted touch immediately. "Take your hands off of her before I break your face." She shut that shit down.
He glared at her, not letting go. "I got something for Viper." His anger was prominent, seeping into every last word of his sentence.
"Tran, get your hands off. Now." She said again and pulled Lala away from him. The two walked over to where Dom stood with Leon and Vince. In a low voice she spoke to her. "You stick with one of us from now on, okay?"
"No objections from me." She matched her older sister's tone.
Leon looked her up and down swiftly before twirling the toothpick he had in his mouth around with his tongue. "I'll be back, I gotta pull the Jetta up." He jogged off to the Jetta and drove it up to the stretch. She watched him go with a small smile before facing Dom again.
"Word on the street is that these guys aren't laying down anymore." She told him and he furrowed his brows in confusion. "What? I have connections."
Vince crossed his arms over his chest, "you don't think we should do it?" He asks and the others all share looks.
"No, personally the way I see it - do what you have to do. No matter what he gotta be safe about it. I'd hate to see anyone go down for something like that." She squeezed Dom's hand in a sisterly way and turned to walk off with Letty before Leon and Brian rushed over to where they stood.
"Yo! Heads up, bro. We got problems." Leon said to Dom and Lala looked at him then at Brian. His face showed that Leon hadn't been exaggerating. Letty came over to them and stood at her sister's hip.
"What?" Dom asked him not in the mood for a fight or having to get some wannabe racer to cough over his lost money.
"Jesse." Was all Leon said and Lala scanned the area for the Jetta before she saw him hauling out of there as if he was on fire.
She looked at Leon and Brian. "Where's Jesse going?"
"He just raced Tran. For slips." He informed them and Dom cursed while rubbing his forehead.
"I just raced Tran five or six sets back. He's not happy from that either." Lala turned to Letty and she gave her a 'well shit' look. Before she could even ask where he could've gone, Johnny Tran himself pulled to a stop in his Honda and jumped out. She was tired of seeing his arrogant face.
"Where's he going?" His voice angry and demanding respect from the group in front of him. Dom stepped forward along with Vince and Leon.
"He went to the car wash." He lied not so smoothly to the frustrated man. Lala turned her head when a smirk threatened to come out. She glanced at Brian, but he somehow ended up on the other side of the slowly forming crowd. Even if anything jumped off - he couldn't get to her fast enough. He sure as shit would try though.
"Whatever. Go fetch my car." Johnny demanded.
"Go fetch your car?" Dom questioned and looked at the others by his side. Lala spoke up from between Vince and Letty.
"We're not on your block. You better watch who you talk to like that." Her glare at him was enough to get his blood to boil. It was bad enough that he just kept continuously losing to Viper but now she was also disrespecting him in front of everyone just like she had disrespected Lance.
Dom motioned with his arms for his crew to fall back over to their camped out set up. Leon walking in front by Vince, Letty and Lala behind them, and Dom bringing up the rear.
"Toretto!" Johnny bellowed in desperation and anger. The name call out made Dom stop in his tracks and turn to him. "SWAT came into my house! Disrespected my whole family...because somebody narc'd me out. And you know what? It was you!"
The false allegations and disrespect thrown his way in front of everyone, especially his family, made Dominic Toretto see red. He lunged at Johnny Tran and a full fledged fight broke out between the two racers. This was a fight everyone wanted to see so naturally the crowd multiplied and started shoving forwards.
Lala's eyes went wide and she looked around quickly for somebody she knew that she could get out of this circle with but it was all random racers and racerats. She tried getting to Letty but was shoved from behind causing her to whip around to hit the person but Brian had taken care of that already. He grabbed her and pulled her to him and off to the side. She held on as if her life depended on it. Yes she could protect herself but everything felt like it was moving way too fast for her in that crowd.
Soon enough security and Vince got Dom off of his foe and started yanking him to the RV. "I never narc'd on nobody! I never narc'd on nobody!" He yelled back at the man still laying on the ground before his friends got him out of sight.
Lala let out a breath she didn't realize she was even holding and let go of Brian. She stepped aside even though he continued to just stare down at her, his eyes unreadable. Eyes that she used to know every emotion of. Eyes that looked at her with love, sadness, anger, pity, joy...you name it. "Brian, was that because of you?"
His sigh was enough of an answer for her. Brian had given Tran up in hopes of more time for Dom's crew. He was losing his grip on this case and his superiors knew it. If Lala wasn't here, maybe it'd be easier for him. He reached out and gently picked up her necklace from her chest. The gold chain held the small and simple ring that he had gotten her with his first check from the station. His thumb ran over the circle and without looking up from the ring, he spoke. "You still wear it? After everything...do you still...?" He trailed off but she knew what he was asking.
Lala nodded slowly and before she could say anything, Letty yelled for her to come over to the RV. "I-I gotta see what she needs." She walked in her direction before pausing and turning back to him, "we need to talk later." Without waiting for a reaction she went to Letty and the others.
-
A few hours passed by and Lala was currently looking for Brian but couldn't find him. She assumed he'd be hovering around Dom and the others but once she got to the crew standing by their cars, he wasn't there either. He probably snuck off with Mia. She was trying her best to cope with their existence.
"We need a favor, bird." Letty turned to her sister with a pleading look. It caught Lala off guard and she really hoped they weren't asking what she thought they were going to ask, she was hoping they would sit this job out.
Dom looked at Lala. "I know that we haven't gotten a chance to talk about this job in detail yet since you were just supposed to be a backup tonight but we need you to come with us. We're down a man without Jesse."
"I got your back." She swallowed hard, forcing a smile, while Letty slung her arm over her shoulder. Everything about tonight felt off to her as if she could sense it in the air.
"You'll ride with Letty and Vince to the site and then switch to the backup car we got. They will explain formation and your job to you on the way to the cars." Dom explained to her.
"Okay, sounds good. When do we leave?" Lala asked just as Mia came stomping over to them, begging Dom to listen to her pleads not to go.
Dom sighed softly, "Mia."
"I have respected you and I haven't said shit. Now I am asking you not to go!" She grabbed her brother's arm with tears in her eyes. It hurt Lala to see the younger girl so upset despite the conflicting feelings with Brian.
"I'm doing this for both of us." He tried reasoning with her to no avail, Dom held both of her arms in his grasp with a sad look on his face. She was beyond hurt and fed up with the risks her brother wanted to constantly take.
"Don't give me that crap. You're doing this for you." She yanked away from his grasp and looked at the others who awkwardly stood aside while she had her emotional freak out on them. "Why are you insisting on doing this? Dom, please, just don't." He kissed the side of her head before going over to his car and getting in. Leon got in the passenger seat of Dom's ride while Vince got in his and Letty waited by the passenger door.
Mia looked at Lala and frowned. "Please, Lo. Please."
"I'm sorry, Mi. I got eyes on them." Lala said while squeezing her hand lightly before climbing into the back of Vince's car, the three racing off into the night behind Dom.
Brian chose that moment to make his appearance. "Mia, what's going on?"
Mia sniffled and kept walking, "What?"
He gave her a look while keeping stride with her, "you know what I'm talking about."
"No I don't." She rolled her eyes while moving.
"You always have tears in your eyes when Dom drives away?" Brian pushes the topic and Mia glares at him.
"What's the matter with you?" She asks and he pushes yet again.
"What's he racing off in the middle of the night for? You know about the trucks?"
"No, Brian! What trucks? Jesus Christ." He grabbed her arm and she looked at him as he contemplated telling her the truth in his head. "What?"
Brian stepped up and looked her in the eyes. "Listen to me. Mia, I'm a cop." He confesses just as Lala gets in earshot.
"What are you talking about, Brian?" Mia asks him in confusion and slight annoyance, "What is this?"
Brian's face softened as he looked at her. "Ever since the first time I met you, I've been undercover. I'm a cop."
He could visibly see her heart breaking by the second. "Oh, you bastard. You bastard." She shook her head as tears began to well up and she turned to walk away.
"Mia." He grabbed her arm.
"Get off of me, Brian!" She yanked away from him.
"Mia! Listen to me! Everything I ever said I felt about you was real. I swear to God." He started, "You have to believe me, Mia but this isn't about you and me. Your brother's out there to pull a job. We're running out of time."
"Those truckers aren't laying down anymore. Maybe they'll make it through tonight, but every single law enforcement agency in California is coming down on them." He continued to desperately beg for her help. "If you don't want anything to happen to your brother, to Letty, to Leon, to Vince - you have to get in that car with me right now and help me. Mia, you are the only person that can help me right now."
"Please, Mia. Please help me." He begged.
This is the last time I'm helping Brian. Mia thought to herself.
"Fine, let's go." She led the way over to the orange Supra and got in the passenger seat. Brian drove away from the event and she sat there silently.
After about ten or so minutes, Mia spoke up. "Lo is with them, you know."
Brian's grip on the wheel tightened and his jaw clenched. "What are you talking about?" He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, pure adrenaline rushing through his veins. There's no way she would've joined the crew, she would've told him that. Right?
"You listed off everyone else but her. Lo is a part of my brother's crew now, she joined the other day." She spoke and leaned her head back against the headrest. The car increased in speed and she side eyed Brian. "What happens now? You take them all to jail and you move on with your life?"
Brian stayed quiet as he drove.
"You're a coward, Brian. A damn coward." Mia spat her words at him and took out a map from the glovebox.
All the two could do was silently hope everyone would make it out of this alive.