CHAPTER THIRTY
haven't had a dream in a long time
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𝐖hen Josephine turned nine years old, her father, Jack Toretto gave her a key replica of his famous stock car he used on the tracks. He told her that once she was old enough, she was going to be the one to take the wheels from him. That she was going to surpass him, become an even better racer, faster, stronger, and little Josephine, well, that was all she ever wanted. She wanted to be everything about her dad. His biggest fan, as he liked to think.
That was the last birthday that she spent with him. After that he died, and the car she was supposed to have burnt to nothing along with him in it. Since then she vowed not to want something more than she should.
As for her mother... Josephine couldn't remember much about her, truth to be told. Milena Toretto died after she bore the youngest of them. That was all she knew and all her brothers ever told her. The topic of their mom often becomes a passing thought in the Toretto home. It was as if they were scared, maybe even terrified, or maybe the mere mention of the once beautiful and kind mother's name would bring them to tears.
All she had of her mom was the stories people had told her. And her eyes. Every time they look into her eyes, they see the strong woman they knew and somebody that Josephine merely sees as a stranger. Because she didn't know her. Josephine and Mia never got to know Milena and maybe that was the root of their bittersweet feelings about their mother.
Sometimes, she hated those people who told her stories. It was unfair. It was unfair that they had all of those memories with her own mother and she didn't even know what she sounded like or how she looked like in person. The pictures and stories will never be enough and perhaps that's why it makes it so hard to look at them.
It never ends. It only starts every single time like whenever she looks at her hands, she thinks of her father. When she stands in the mirror, her mother looks back. Josephine had never known her mother. So maybe she had never known herself either. Because behind everybody's stories was their mother's story. But where does hers begin if not with her mother? Doesn't it should be?
How could she be a mother when she didn't even feel the love of one? It terrified her so much that it was almost sickening. Her pregnancy scared her more than she could admit. And in these dying times, Josephine so badly wished that her mother was by her side, telling her that she was going to be a great mother or whatever parents say when their daughter's pregnant and all that. She wasn't quite sure.
"What're you thinking, baby?" Her thoughts came to an abrupt stop when she heard Brian O'Conner's voice next to her, sounding gentle and kind as always. She looked at him, azure eyes warmly gazing back at her.
"What if I become a bad mom?" Josephine blurted out before she could think. Immediately, his face pulled into a small frown, disagreement clear on the lines forming on his forehead. She shook her head quickly, dismissing it with a dry chuckle. "Never mind that."
"Jo... Look at me," Brian said lowly, carefully trailing his hands on her shoulder to make him look at her. Her lips quivered, noticing the way he was staring at her like she was the best thing that ever happened to him in his whole life. "You're going to be such a great mother, Josephine Toretto."
"How do you know that?'
"Because I know you."
Josephine pursed her lips, her usual bravado momentarily giving way to vulnerability. She realized just how much she truly loved this man in front of her. Even after all the things they had endured, he was the only thing that remained constant in her life. She let out a quiet laugh, a beautiful sound that subconsciously made Brian smile widely as he stared at her so carefully, so lovingly that even the goddess of love would be jealous. His thumb brushed against a single teardrop on her cheeks.
"I'm scared, Brian," Josephine admitted.
"I know," Brian murmured. He grabbed her closed fist and raised it to his lips as he pressed a gentle kiss on her knuckles. "I know you are. But you have nothing to be scared of, Jo. You will be the greatest, the most beautiful, and kind mom in the world. Trust me. I just know."
"I love you." Josephine smiled softly. She squeezed his hand that held hers and leaned over with a deep sigh like her words weren't enough for the feelings that she had inside growing in her chest.
"I love you, Jo," Brian whispered. He looked at her and he just loved her, and it terrified him. It terrified him what he would do for her. "We're in this together, all right? I got you, and I know you got me, too."
Sensing the unspoken desire, Josephine closed the distance between them, her hand moving to cup Brian's cheek. His hands instantly touched the back of her head, fingers tangling through the strands of her hair. Their lips met in a soft, genuine kiss━a tender exchange that spoke volumes without uttering a word. He can kiss her over a bottle of beer and dance with her under the headlights of their cars and Brian O'Conner wouldn't want anything in the world but the woman in front of him.
The crew's day began very early in the morning. They kept practicing with more cars to avoid detection from the cameras but then realized that not a single car could evade them. At this point, Han made a comment that the only way they were going to beat the cameras was with invisible cars. As for Dominic Toretto, he had claimed that he knew just where to find them, and by where━he meant their current enemy's backyard. Cop cars.
Dominic brought Brian, Roman, and Han to grab those said cars, and Gisele took them to the police station, dropping them in the parking lot. They came back not long after, boisterous laughter and rambunctious playful smacking along with it as they exited four 2011 Dodge Charger PPVs.
Apparently, the guys raced with each other in the cars━a million-dollar quarter-mile race━and Brian had won. The other two didn't think so though, claiming that Dominic let off the throttle at the line. The man let him win. Obviously, Brian didn't take that too well. That revelation seemed to dampen his mood, which most of them only laughed at.
It was extremely late at night when Brian found Josephine hunched over the hood on one of the 2011 Chargers they had procured from the police parking lot. There were flecks of black paint on her denim jumper over the white top she wore courtesy of repainting the body of the car, and they spread through her forearms as she fiddled with the engine. Warmth clouded his expression as he decided to stand next to the car, watching her quietly.
"Hey," Brian called, his tone a little quiet in the middle of the night. The others had already left, probably back at whatever cave they found themselves in. Jo briefly looked up, raising an eyebrow at her partner. "You're so beautiful, you know that, right?"
Josephine broke into a grin at his sudden compliment. The way she was practically buried nose-deep into the hood of the car like a raccoon looking into a trashcan━Josephine wasn't quite sure where he pulled that from. She raised her hands, showing him how dirty it looked from touching car parts with her bare hands. "Covered in soot and oil from head to toe?"
"Covered in soot and oil," Brian repeated softly. He went over to her, taking a tool that she made him grab. He cleared his throat, eyes trained on her as she worked on the car. "I've been thinking..."
Josephine abruptly looked at him with a quiet gasp. "Oh, no."
"Jo," Brian groaned slightly although he did end up smiling with her anyway. "Names. I've been thinking about names, for our baby."
Our baby. Josephine almost banged her head on the raised hood of the car when she straightened up abruptly. She gulped ever so slightly, glancing at him in the corner of her eyes. He stood patiently beside her, constantly handing her the tools she needed. She hasn't thought about it. Names, I mean. Maybe she just didn't have enough time. Or maybe she was too busy being scared that she forgot she was actually to have a baby━a real human being that would grow and become its own person.
"Yeah?" Josephine cleared her throat. She plastered a shaky smile that he didn't seem to notice as he pondered over his thoughts. Maybe parenthood wouldn't be so bad because she had Brian. "You have any?"
"A few," Brian shrugged. "Olivia, if it's a girl."
"What if it's a boy then?"
"Maybe━Maybe, Jack."
Josephine paused. She took a deep breath, her lips quivering at the mention of her dad's name. She put down the wrench on the nearest table, brushed her dirty hands on her pants, and turned to Brian. There was a faint wistful smile on her face, and she nodded ever so slightly. "I like that. I really like that."
"You do?" Brian asked genuinely. "I just... I thought it'd be nice to name our kid after somebody great. Someone that meant a lot. But if you have any more ideas━"
"I like Jack for a boy," Josephine reassured him. There was a sad twinkle in her eyes Brian caught on before she spoke. "I think Juliette would be nice for a baby girl. We can... We can call her Letty."
"I like that," Brian agreed softly. "Whoever they're going to be, I just know they'd live up to their names."
The streets of Rio had become something that Josephine was familiar with. Every turn, every alleyway, everywhere where her car could fit, she had memorized them in the back of her head. So her family didn't have much of a choice but to let her go when she decided to buy them a nice meal before the night of the heist. All dressed up and ready to go at the local markets in the favelas, Josephine took the keys to the '71 Skyline and left with a few 'be careful' from her friends and family.
It was supposed to be a peaceful grocery time, where she would buy all the things the team had written on a piece of paper and get back home afterward. Really. Nothing was so hard about that. All she had to do was leave the cooking to them. She had already bought half of what was written, all thrown either in the trunk or the backseat, along with a few cases of beer when something went wrong.
Honestly, it was infuriating. But then again, Josephine should've known by now. Trouble follows them everywhere they go.
Fortunately, Vince was there to save the day when he suddenly appeared out of nowhere and swept her away from the crowd. He warned her that Reyes's men had been tracking her for some time now, and luckily enough, he stuck to his instincts and realized that those guys meant harm to her. So Josephine pulled him along to her car and brought him back to the warehouse because she trusted her friend.
"You know I'm not completely defenseless, right?" Josephine muttered, constantly glancing at the side mirror of her car to see if Reyes's men were gone. She flashed him the gun strapped to her lower thigh hidden underneath her black sundress.
Beside her, Vince took a deep breath and laughed quietly as he shook his head in disbelief. "Of course, you're not, Jo."
"Thanks," Josephine said genuinely, the older man giving her a small apologetic smile. Despite everything, Vince was still family. "For saving me back there."
Vince nodded. "You would've done the same for me."
As soon as they arrived, Josephine marched into the warehouse with a reluctant Vince behind her. He didn't seem all that comfortable, knowing the last time he'd faced them━he was trying to steal something important. The first person she saw was Roman and he was working on the other Dodge Charger PPV when he noticed Vince and gave him a long hard stare. Josephine merely ignored him as she walked past.
Then Brian noticed them. He abruptly put down the drill he was holding and stood up from the ground where he was working on the wheel. His expression turned hard, his jaw clenching in disbelief as he furiously marched forward in their direction━well, Vince's direction. Josephine blocked him, putting a hand on his chest to stop him from launching at Vince again.
"Hey, hey. Wait," Josephine said urgently, tearing his hard gaze off Vince as Brian looked at her with a frown. Behind them, Roman had stopped what he was doing, quietly assessing the situation to watch out for Brian's back. "Reyes's men were waiting for me at the market. Vince saved me. Okay?"
His head snapped towards the quiet man who merely nodded bashfully as if it wasn't such a big deal. Besides, Vince would do anything for Jo. At least that's one thing they all shared. Brian seemed to calm down, taking his sweet time to glower at the man before he decided to let it go. He sent a glance at Roman's way, the latter already prepared to back him up, but he realized that the guy wasn't the bad guy.
"You hungry?" Dom's voice cut through the tense silence, which made the three of them look at the man who was next to Han organizing some engine parts. The pair had been listening to them quietly from the start.
Vince hesitated. "Yeah, sure."
"Good," Dom said plainly, looking at his childhood friend across the room. "'Cause you're saying grace."
Realizing the moment, Brian sent a nod of acknowledgment at Vince before giving him a civil handshake that the latter gratefully took. "Thanks, Vince."
"Now, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Josephine teased her partner as soon as Vince went to meet with Dominic and the rest of the team. Roman had gone back to what he was doing before when the situation had been diffused. His loyalty to Brian━she respected it.
"Are you okay?" His eyes flickered to her, the blues in them swimming with worry as he quietly studied her face to see any damage. His fingers uneasily played with the gray string that was once his tied around her wrist. "They didn't hurt you, did they?"
"I'm good," Josephine reassured him, touching his arm and giving him a reassuring squeeze. "Vince got to me before they did. Besides, I carry a gun, remember?"
Brian chuckled silently and pressed a kiss on the corner of her lips. "I didn't know you could get any more hotter, baby."
"Oh, you have no idea," Josephine whispered playfully, brushing her lips against his once more to take him into a full kiss. Once they broke it off, she tugged on his arm. "Now, come on. I brought food and I'm really hungry."
"After you, princess," Brian grinned, intertwining his fingers with hers as she dragged him outside the warehouse to grab the groceries in the car.
"Call me that again and I'll sabotage your car, blondie," Josephine scoffed although the expression on her face said otherwise. The lightness in her eyes and the way she practically glows whenever he's around her said enough.
His heart skipped a beat, vaguely remembering how she said the same thing all those years ago. "Always threatening my cars, huh, princess?"
"As long as it's yours, baby." Josephine winked at him.
In times like these, Josephine began to appreciate her little life more. The smell of food hung in the air, coming from the grill where Santos and Leo were cooking what she brought from the market. Around a small table behind them were Roman, Tej, and Han, people with different backgrounds uniting with similar hobbies. They talked and joked and laughed as they exchanged banters and beers and cheap whiskey with each other.
A couple of feet from them, Gisele Yashar delved into the serenity of putting together pieces of firearms like a puzzle. Meanwhile, Dominic was taking his alone time with his 1970 Charger when Vince joined him. Everything was as normal as it can be. But the thought of tomorrow made it a little somber, the consequences lingering in the air. In twenty-four hours, their lives would change. Josephine still hadn't decided what to make of it.
"You know..." Josephine trailed off, watching from the corner of her eyes as Han quietly approached Gisele holding two bottles of beer. Her lips pulled into a soft smile. "Those two are gonna be unstoppable together."
"Oh, yeah. Definitely." Brian followed her gaze, eliciting a small chuckle from him. He wrapped his arms around her as she sat on his lap, leaving soft kisses on her exposed shoulders, making the girl smile at his affection.
"We're less than twenty-four hours from the biggest celebration of our life." Roman suddenly announced as he picked up a few bottles of cold beers before trudging towards the couple who held each other closely. He put them down on the table next to them. "You all need a refill. This is serious stuff."
"Nah, I'm good, man." Josephine shook her head with a slight chuckle, letting Brian take the beer instead.
"Cheers, baby," Roman insisted, pushing his own bottle toward them for a toast.
"No, really." Josephine politely pushed away the beer and placed it on the table. She gave him another shake of her head, her lips curving into a bigger smile. "Thanks, anyway."
Brian smirked ever so slightly, glancing up at his friend as he clinked bottles with him. "No, she can't."
Roman paused. He looked at them with clear confusion. At first, he didn't seem to figure out why the couple were so adamant for Josephine not to drink alcohol. The pair tried to hide their amusement, Brian taking a swig of his beer while Josephine remained seated on his lap with Brian's free hand on around her waist. Josephine was trying not to laugh at Roman's facial expression as he slowly figured it out.
"What do you mean?" Roman frowned, still not processing all of it.
"She can't," Brian muttered, gazing softly at her face which made Josephine break into a fit of uncontrollable smiles that her eyes almost disappeared.
"What do you mean she can't?" Roman trailed off. "What is..." Then he stopped and stared at the pair. Completely dumbfounded.
Josephine merely smiled sweetly at the man, and Brian decided to answer his confused silence by touching her belly and slowly caressing them. His blue eyes twinkled as he looked at his childhood friend whose mind was turning with ideas as he looked at Brian. Then at her stomach. Then back at the blond, and then it clicked. Roman almost dropped the beer he held as he gaped at the pair. Even the other guys behind him were looking at them now with confusion.
"Are you serious right now?" Roman exclaimed in surprise and excitement. Instantly, he broke out into a large grin. Brian laughed, the corner of his eyes crinkling as he wrapped his arms around Josephine again. He shot Dom a question look from afar. "Is that the reason you let him beat you in the quarter-mile race?"
At this point, everybody had already heard him and they all gathered around the couple with growing amusement and genuine happiness for the couple. Josephine felt like a huge weight had just been lifted off her chest. It felt nice to let it out. To let everybody know. It was even better when she could clearly see they were overjoyed with that news and she had to hold onto Brian a little tighter to keep her emotions controlled. Pregnancy was making her feel a lot more emotional than usual, it was a bit annoying.
"That was a baby gift," Roman declared fervently, which made Brian halt from kissing Josephine who only chuckled at his perturbed reaction.
"No, that's messed up," Brian interjected.
"Oh, God," Josephine mumbled, burying her face onto his neck as her boyfriend became defensive over his win. She laid her head there, suddenly wishing Mia was there. Her sister would've definitely sided with Roman on this. "Just let him have it, man."
Brian pointed a warning finger in Roman's direction. "No, you're not taking that from me."
"Wait, wait, hold on a second." Tej approached them, standing beside Roman. They all turned to the genius when he began to vividly demonstrate his bold question. "So, did he just smack the ass or did he grab and hold onto it?"
Brian slapped a hand to his face in embarrassment, his ears turning red as he shook his head at his friend's antics. Josephine let out a boisterous laugh, tapping Brian's hand that settled on her abdomen. She looked at Tej with a smirk and playfully wiggled a finger at his face: "Nuh-uh. Too much information, Parker."
"Congratulations," Gisele smiled and she threw an arm around her neck and pulled her into a hug. Brian slipped out from behind her and exchanged a bro-hug with Han who also congratulated him. "This is amazing, Jo."
"I know," Josephine said quietly, hugging her a little longer. She never thought Gisele would become such a big part of her life but she was glad she did. "Mia should be here."
Gisele squeezed her shoulder gently, giving her a reassuring nod. "You'll see her soon."
"How can you keep this a secret?" Roman whined loudly, the two best friends sharing a teasing moment. "It's ya boy. Why would you keep something like that away from me?"
From a distance, Dominic watched them with a genuine smile on his face. Brian, who noticed him, shared one last exchange with the others before he decided to join the man in his little world. It truly made him happy despite the few missing faces that should've been there at this moment. A bittersweet thing it was. But either way, Dominic knew they were up there watching them proudly, cheering them on from the sidelines. Like always.
"Baby gift, huh?" Brian mused with a slight grin as he glanced at the brother of his partner.
"I have no idea what they're talking about," Dom muttered, pretending to be confused.
Brian merely smiled. "Oh?"
"What happened to the pull-out method, man?" Tej exclaimed playfully, earning a few shakes of heads from the only two girls in the room.
Dominic ended the day with a good note and a few toasts. For once in their lives of chaos and disorder, the group of misfits found solace in each other's presence. The impending events became something that tied them together. Like a family. And in that room, full of cars and friends and family, they made a silent promise to themselves. They were going to make it out alive and hopefully maybe with a shit ton of bankroll.