"Get your asses up here you hooligans otherwise I'm gonn-"
"Calm down Uncle," said Way, while putting on his racing suit, "You're gonna scare 'em."
"Huh, scared?" scoffed the older, fixing his headphones and mic, "They're scared of me? Honestly Way, if they were scared of me even to the extent of a pinch of salt, I promise I could have managed this garage ten times better. Them being scared? Huh! I can't- Look!Look! Look at those two- YOU'RE GOING TO BREAK THAT CAMERA STAND, YOU TWO UGLY LITTLE DUCKLINGS!"
Way chuckled while putting on his shoes, watching the garage owner drag two boys by their ears from one corner of the garage and then make them stand in front of him. He was fuming.
"What did I say about that stand, hm?" asked Alan, looking furiously at the culprits.
"Eii Uncleee~ We forgot ours at the condo," whined one of them, "Please let us use this one?"
"Yes! Yes!" piped up the other, making cute puppy eyes, "Please...Please...Pleaseeeee?"
"Last time I allowed you two to use it, you broke it!" cried Alan in frustration, "This time-"
"We won't," came the reply, as both the boys stood in a salute position, "We won't break it, we promise!"
"Hope so," Alan scoffed, as he picked up his laptop and some necessary items, "Now c'mon! The race is about to begin."
"But Babe-"
"Ugh you guys know what he's doing, don't you?" smirked Alan, "Let him do his meditation, c'mon!"
The uproar was furious, as the majestic cars of the two teams were displayed on the track field, getting tested for one last time. Amidst the tumultuous screams of fans and supporters and the simultaneous commentary, the racers made their entry, the dashing youths, determined and strong. Way felt a little nervous, as he approached his car. His eyes fell on Babe's, and he couldn't help but wonder how long he'll take.
"Way?"
No response.
"Way?"
No response.
"Shia! Eii Way!"
A slight hit on his head made him jolt out if his daydream. He quickly whipped his head to his side, only to see Alan standing beside him, looking annoyed as always.
"Honestly speaking Way...your age old 'very secretive' affection for your best friend will never suffice by ogling at his goddamn car if you don't-"
"You know I can't, Alan," Way replied with a sigh, getting on his cap and his helmet, "I'm ok with how it is."
"You're not and I know that," Alan replied, helping the tall boy with his racing gloves, "You never dared to cross the line of friendzone since the day you realised your feelings. It's been ten years that you're hung up on him, Way. You neither confessed nor moved on. Remember one thing, friend. If a car doesn't accelerate, it will never move forward. If you keep driving tardily, it will be nothing but a waste of time. Now good luck!"
Way hummed in response, completing with a sigh. A sudden wave of applause made him look up only to see his best friend, The PitBabe, walking into the track, waving to his fans. Babe came up to his car, and with a quick smile and a high five to Way, put on his equipments and sat inside. The latter took his position too. Soon went the green lights, the flags were waved and then began the race.
It was the usual, Babe being the first, Way coming second. Red Racing was once again foaming with jealousy and anger, and this time Winner didn't even have the chance to lash out on Babe, because, as soon as he emerged out of his car, his mates surrounded him in excitement.
"And this is our KING! PitBabeeee!" screeched North and Sonic, as they brought the phone closer to Babe's face, showing the online fans on their YouTube channel the dashing visage of the racer. Babe smirked and turned away, looking a little disgusted.
I
"Nice race, Babe," commented Alan, but soon noticed his disgust, "What's wrong, Babe? Feeling off?"
"Nah! What's wrong with me?" replied the one addressed, "It's known to everyone. PitBabe always wins."
"Yes! Yes!" came the enthusiastic cheer from Dean.
"Hey what's wrong with your friend?" Alan chuckled at Way, who was standing with his back against his own car, looking lost in thoughts.
"Eh what else do you think, Uncle?" smirked the tall lad, "The Alpha he made out with...there was definitely something wrong with him."
"Smelly," muttered Babe, making a face of disgust. All the boys started laughing.
"Always complaining," replied Alan, laughing, "Either too big...or too small...too strong...or too weak...too smelly...or too bland. Never satisfied, are you? At this rate, you've definitely forgot how many times you were railed by such a diversity. How many this month, huh?"
"Did I ever ask you how long you've kept that old ass of yours single, huh?" retorted Babe. Soon there was a huge round of crazy laughter and teasing, as Alan stood all quiet, drowning in his own sea of embarrassment.
"Okay! Okay! Guys," Way came to the rescue, "Let's celebrate his win tonight, shall we?" He wrapped his arm around his best friend's neck, as Babe suddenly attacked him with a kiss on his cheek. Way's expression changed all of a sudden, yet he managed to shrug it off before someone noticed it
"Sure, drinks on me," suggested Alan, "Now c'mon-"
"Hold up! Lemme go change in the locker room," spoke Babe, "My suits smell like shit! I'll join you all soon, okay? See y'all! Bye! "
* * *
"Drink up! Drink up! I'm so fucked up all I want is you~"
"Ugh these two," muttered Alan, rubbing his forehead in his palm, as North and Sonic kept on blaring out lyrics after lyrics, getting themselves drunk as if there was no tomorrow. Way just smiled and drank out of his cup, occasionally chatting with Dean. Alan couldn't drink much, as he was the one who'd be driving the boys back to their condos, so he sufficed his urge with a single shot only.
"By the way, hey," Alan called, grabbing Way's attention, "Where were you in the afternoon? You didn't come to the meal with us?"
"Uhh I-" Way suddenly looked very uncomfortable, "I-I was...at my apartment...h-had some stuff to d-deal with..."
The sudden lack of confidence and the weird stutter in his voice had convinced Alan that he was lying and he wasn't ready to buy his lie.
"But where-"
"Where's Babe, Uncle?" asked Dean, as he noticed here and there, still no sign of the boy.
"Dunno," replied Alan, "He must be-"
"Pit Babeeeeeee~"
The three of them turned around to see Babe walking into the bar, but surprisingly, he wasn't alone. Beside Babe, stood another boy, a little shorter than him, thin and lanky. The round rimmed spectacles stuck to his nose and the innocent look on his face gave off a typical 'nerdy' vibe. But Babe into nerds? That was something new.
"Who's that Ba-"
"Guys, meet Charlie," announced Babe with a smirk, "My new buddy."
"Hello I'm Charlie," the boy bowed, "I hope you all will take care of me."
"Ahaaa new boy!" North cried, "How long do you think he'll last, Nic?"
"Uhhh 3 days?"
"I bet 4-"
"Haha not even 2!"
"Okay guys stop," said Alan, "It's time to enjoy the night. Let's do it before- Way you alright?"
"I-I...I'm not feeling well," declared Way suddenly, grabbing everyone's attention, "I'll go home."
"B-But-"
"Don't worry Alan, I'll take the cab," Way replied hastily, quickly scrapping his things off the table, "See you tomorrow, bye!"
"But Way..."
Before they could say something more, the boy had already walked out of the pub door. Everyone went back to their merriment except Alan. He was the only one to notice Way, who, according to him, didn't look sick. He had noticed the boy fidgeting with his phone for a long time, and there was a sudden something that he saw in there that had made him go pale and nervous, not sick. Alan wondered what could it be.
* * *
Way stumbled upon the door of his apartment, fumbling with the keys. His chest felt heavier than usual, breath erratic, eyes stinging with tears. Another panic attack was on its way and he knew if he didn't grab his pills, he would be fucked.
No sooner did he open the door, than he ran inside into his room. Scuffling through the shelf, he took out his medicine box, took the pill on his palm and quickly gulped it down by the water at his bedside table. The boy then collapsed on the cold tiled floor, breathing heavily, his chest twisting in pain. Slowly...very slowly...he started getting back to normal...his breath rate coming back in line. For a few moments, he felt peaceful, until-
"Finally your back, Way."
------------
Who's that?
Let's find out in the next chapter!