The stream of racers took their places at the starting line, waiting for the light to turn green. Shun drove up next to Kiki, giving her a nasty smile.
"Hey, girl! Shouldn't you be in the kitchen learning how to cook?" he spat.
"The name is Kiki," Kiki corrected before giving him a smirk. "And, sure, I'll cook somethin' up for ya. Hope you like piping hot defeat with a side of humiliation, fart breath, cuz that's what you'll be eating along with your words! Mwa-hahahahahaaa!" Shun glared at her and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. While Kiki turned her attention back to the lights, Shun held his hand up to his mouth and breathed into it. He sniffed and shuddered with disgust. The lights up above changed from red, to yellow, and then to green, and the racers were off.
"The race has finally commenced," Gundham said.
"Yeah...I hope she can hold up for fifteen laps," Kazuichi said, nervously pulling down on his beanie.
"She sure as hell can! Li'l chick's got a lotta fightin' spirit!" Mondo said. Kiki eased on the gas, slowly pulling ahead. But, Shun expertly swerved his way through the other racers, and sped ahead of Kiki. He pulled right in front of her, forcing her to brake and slow down, allowing the other racers to pull ahead.
"Nyeh!! That little jerk!!" Himiko screeched.
"Yeah! He totally did that on purpose!" Kazuichi shouted.
"Is he even allowed to do that?!" Kaito said. Kokichi remained quiet, his eyes glued to the screen with intense focus. Kiki tried swerving around Shun's kart, but Shun kept blocking her every move.
"Ha-haaa...I'm not letting you pass, little girl!" he taunted. The other racers were pulling ahead, leaving Kiki and Shun behind. "I'll keep blocking you until the final lap, and then I'll pull ahead of everyone else!"
"Are you kidding me right now?!" Kiki muttered under her breath incredulously. Suddenly, Shun's kart was shoved out of the way by another kart, allowing Kiki some room to pull ahead. She could see that it was Mullet as she drove by. He gave her a salute, and she saluted gratefully in return before speeding ahead.
"COME ON, CHIBI-KICHI!!!" Kokichi shouted, suddenly coming to life and startling Himiko.
"Huh...that Mullet kid definitely has a thing for her," Fuyuhiko said with a smile.
"GET OFF OF MY KART!!!" Shun screamed angrily at Mullet. Mullet pulled away, then sped ahead. Shun let out a frustrated yell as he jammed down on the gas. Kiki wove her way through the other racers towards the front of the line as they neared the first curve. She began to pick up speed.
"Why is she speeding up?! She should be slowin' down!" Kaito shouted.
"She's trying to drift!" Kokichi yelled in a panic, grabbing onto Himiko's shoulders while keeping his eyes on the screen. "Don't do it, Kiki!!"
"W-We told her not to!" Fuyuhiko stammered.
"Foolish girl! If she does it wrong, she will surely be sent to the hospital!" Gundham cried.
"Come on, Kiki," Kiki muttered to herself. "If you can do it on a bike, you can do it in a car." As she neared the turn, she spun the wheel in the direction of the turn. However, she spun too fast and too forcefully, causing her to spin out of control towards the wall.
"KIKIIIIII!!!!" Kokichi screamed, shaking Himiko vigorously.
"Nyeh! Nyeeh! Nyeeeeh!!" Himiko cried as he shook her. "Kokichi! You're gonna...give me...Shaken Baby Syndrome!"
"Huh?" Kokichi said, turning his attention to Himiko. "Oh! Sorry, HimiCocoa Bean!" He checked to see if she was okay. He stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "Is that better?" he asked, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"Nyeh...much," Himiko replied. Kiki screamed in terror as she spun out. The back end of her kart butted up against the wall. She could see the other drivers drifting expertly around the turn.
"Is this what you wanted to do?" Shun shouted at her as he neared the turn. He drifted around the turn, as well, and made a face at her as he passed by. "Stupid girl!" He straightened his kart out before speeding off.
"Uurrgghh!!" Kiki growled in frustration. She was unharmed, but she felt like crying.
"I-Is she still alive?" Kazuichi squeaked. He had pulled his beanie down over his eyes and was quivering.
"She's okay! She's okay," Fuyuhiko breathed in relief.
"Holy shit!" Mondo exclaimed, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead. "I thought she was gonna barrel roll outta there!"
"COME ON, KIKI!!! KEEP GOING!!!" Kokichi cheered, squeezing Himiko tightly. Kiki, now in last place, jammed her foot down on the gas and sped forward.
"Hell, yeah! She's back in the race!" Kaito said.
"But, she has quite a bit of catching up to do," Gundham said.
"She'll catch up," Kokichi said, eyeing the screen intensely as he clutched Himiko closer to his chest. "She's got fourteen laps to make up for it." As the race continued, Kiki slowly, but surely, began to catch up. She was now in 8th place out of ten racers. At every turn the boys would drift, overwhelming Kiki with jealousy. She truly felt like she'd be defeated. After seven laps, she came to the pit stop.
"Hey, guys," she said forlornly.
"Hey, what's up with that attitude?" Mondo demanded.
"Well...you saw what happened out there, right?" Kiki mumbled.
"We told you not to drift!" Kazuichi cried. "You scared us half to death!"
"I'm sorry," Kiki said in a small voice. She wiped a tear from her eye. Kokichi knelt down and lifted her chin up.
"The race isn't over, yet, Chibi-Kichi," he said firmly. "Save those tears for later. Right now, you gotta get back on that track and burn some serious rubber, alright? You've made some progress and you can still make more. You can do it, 'kay? You've got racing in your veins!" Kiki sniffed and gave him a smile through her tears.
"Okay, Kokichi," she said.
"Yeah, Chibi-Kichi! You go out there and kick some ass!" Kaito said. "We'll be right here cheerin' you on!"
"Show them that you may be but little, but you are truly fierce!" Gundham added.
"And show no fuckin' mercy!" Mondo cried.
"Especially that one kid," Fuyuhiko said. "If there's anyone you need to show who's boss, it's him." The others murmured in agreement. Kokichi smiled at Kiki and ruffled her hair.
"You got this, Chibi-Kichi," he said. Kiki gave him a brave smile in return and a hug.
"Aaaalrighty, then! Time to play 'Catch Me If You Can!'" Kiki said. The boys stood side-by-side, holding their fists out to her. She fist bumped each of their fists before revving up her engine again and flying back onto the track. As each lap passed, she climbed her way closer to front, now in fourth place.
"She's getting closer to first place!" Kazuichi cried.
"She's getting the hang of it," Kokichi said, still clinging tightly to Himiko. Kiki also became invigorated by her progress. She kept her eye on the third place racer in front of her.
"Hope you enjoyed third place, buddy, cuz you're not gonna be in it much longer," she muttered under her breath. She pushed down on the gas and inched closer toward him. As she did, she smoothly wove her way around him, as if she were merely changing lanes on a public road. The boy next to her raised his eyebrows in surprise. Kiki wiggled her fingers goodbye to him. "Tee-heehee...send me a postcard!" she said, then sped ahead.
"SHE'S IN THIRD PLACE!!!" Kokichi cried excitedly, squeezing Himiko tightly. Her face started to turn blue.
"Kokichi...I can't...breathe..." she said through a strained voice.
"Aaah! Sorry, Himiko!" Kokichi said, letting go of Himiko. He turned his attention back to the screen. Himiko felt lightheaded and dizzy.
"Nyeeeeh...why is the room...spinning...?" she mumbled before falling to the floor unconscious. By the final lap, Kiki was now closing in on second place, Mullet's position.
"Long time, no see!" Mullet called to her playfully.
"Hahaha, think you'd be okay taking my place in third?" Kiki called back to him with a wide grin.
"I dunno! I hear it's not as nice as second!" Mullet said.
"Why don't you try it out?" Kiki said. "You might like it!"
"No way!" Mullet said with a smile. "I'm not letting a cute face stopping me from winning this race!" Kiki blushed, then smirked.
"You got a way with words, Romeo!" she called to him. "But, do you have a way with wheels? " She slowed down her kart so that she was able to swerve behind him. Shocked, Mullet turned around. When he did, she was no longer there. He shifted his head back and forth, completely puzzled by how she had disappeared so suddenly. Then, he heard two squeaky honks. He turned his head to his left, where Kiki had suddenly appeared.
"Gotcha!" she said, then jammed down on the gas, pulling far ahead of him.
"Hahahahaha! Good one!" he laughed. "But it's not over yet!" He sped ahead after her.
"Whoooaaa!! Did you guys see that?!" Kokichi cried to the others. "Keep going, Chibi-Kichi!! Don't stop!!"
"Hell, yeah, girl!" Mondo cried. "Now that's how you drive!" Kiki was now in second place with Mullet close behind. He drove up next to her.
"That was pretty sick!" he said, impressed.
"Not sick...swicked!" Kiki corrected.
"Swicked!" Mullet repeated, giving her a thumbs up. "Hey, Shun is up ahead! Let's pass him up and show him how a real race is supposed to be won between real racers!" Kiki felt her cheeks grow warm, happy that to hear him consider her a real racer.
"Think you can keep up?" she called playfully to him.
"Try not to fall behind!" he responded with a wink. Kiki grinned, and the two gained in on Shun up ahead. They surrounded him on both sides. Shun eyed both of them with shock. "Mind if we join the party, Shun?" Mullet called to him. Shun glared at him, and then at Kiki.
"Get out of my way!" he yelled, ramming his kart into both of theirs.
"Okay, we'll get out of your way!" Kiki called to him. "We'd much rather be in first place anyways!"
"You moron! You can't be both in first place!" Shun shouted at her. "Jeez! This is why girls shouldn't be allowed to do anything!"
"Why? Cuz you're scared she'll beat you?" Mullet called to him.
"SHE'LL NEVER BEAT ME!!!" Shun screamed at the top of his lungs. He swerved into Kiki's kart.
"Hey! Cut that out, you maniac!" Kiki said, slamming her kart back into Shun's. Shun was about to swerve back into her, but Kiki moved her kart out of the way in time, causing a large gap between her kart and Shun's. Mullet filled the gap.
"Quit ramming into her, man!" he said to Shun.
"Shut up, girl-lover!" Shun spat.
"It's the final stretch, folks!" the announcer cried after the three racers up front passed the final curve before the finish line. "The three racers are neck and neck, but who will win?" Kiki jammed down on the accelerator. She pulled ahead slightly in front of the boys. Shun gritted his teeth and mashed the gas pedal, lining up with Kiki. Mullet pulled ahead slightly, causing the three of their karts to line up perfectly with each other once more.
"Oh, no! What's gonna happen?! What's gonna happen?!" Kazuichi cried, biting his fingernails frantically, his nails shooting off into the air. The boys stared at the screen so intently that none of them could even speak. They watched so intently that they couldn't even cheer as Kiki, Mullet, and Shun all crossed the finish line simultaneously.