Just a chill song I really like :) ^^^^
Chapter Three - The Revival of Lola
Fixing the car was easy but it would have gone by swifter if it hadn't begun to rain as soon as Danny and Ray reached the car. Ray didn't mind the rain but he didn't want his only leather jacket getting wet, nor did he want Danny soaked. So, after handing her his jacket and phone, both Danny and Aubree retreated to the dry safety of Lola. It was pouring now and the pitter patter of rain hitting the roof echoed through the small car.
Danny was worried about Ray getting so wet and possibly sick all for a car he wasn't even being paid to fix, but she couldn't help but be grateful for the chance to breath properly again.
The man was stifling.
Of course though, just as she anticipated, the comforting silence didn't last long.
"That is not Kyle," Aubree stated, craning her neck in a desperate attempt to get a better view of him around the hood. Danny couldn't help but smile.
"I know. Kyle was busy so he came instead. I don't know if he's actually a mechanic though."
"With looks like that I don't think it really matters," Aubree mumbled, probably unaware she had even said it out loud. "Well," she spoke up again and Danny knew she was talking to her purposely this time. "Lets hope he doesn't mess up my car."
"You mean more than it already is?"
"Listen bitch-"
Danny laughed loudly as Aubree's cheeks puffed, ready to defend Lola. The conversation lulled into a comfortable silence and while Aubree got lost in the glowing screen of her phone, Danny's attention drew towards the jacket in her hand. She ran her thumb across the smooth fabric and folded it over her legs. The jacket was worn and smelled strongly of his after shave mixed with the musky scent of cigarettes. To Danny the jacket looked huge but she'd seen him in it and knew it fit him well. For the life of her she couldn't figure out why she had such an urge to be so cliche but she couldn't help but want to try it on. If he didn't even want it getting wet clearly it meant something to him.
She imagined it would be nice to be wrapped in it. Maybe just as nice as it would being wrapped in his arms....
"Whats his name?" Aubree asked, snatching Danny back to the present and the car they were in.
"Um, I'm not sure. He was with a few friends and I think one of them may have called him Charlie," Danny said with a shrug. There was a clanging sound from outside the car and Danny looked through the windshield. Most of the hood covered him from the girls' view but he was tall and she could see the top of his body when he stood up straight. His bronze hair was thick and dark on his head and he lifted a hand and combed his fingers through the wet mane, pushing it out of his face. The muscles in his bicep clenched and unclenched at the slight movement and it didn't go unnoticed by Aubree or Danny. His eyes found the girls over the hood for a brief moment before he leaned forward, disappearing completely from their sight.
"I've never cheated on Brandon before," Aubree blurted and Danny's head snapped in her direction as she tried to hold back her laughter. It sounded like the girl was confessing in church or something.
"And why are you telling me this?"
"I'm not, I reminding myself how good I've been and how good I need to continue to be. He's just so....wet." Aubree looked like she was drooling now and, even though Danny was laughing, she couldn't blame the other girl at all.
Danny was convinced that even blind women would stop to stare at Ray if he were to walk by.
The hood slammed shut and Ray wiped his hands on his jeans before walking around to the passenger side of the car. Danny rolled the window down for him and he gripped the sill and leaned forward. He was close enough now that Danny could see every microscopic detail of his face. His eyes were dark and danced between the boundaries of the colors blue and green, his lips full and a nude pink, and his jaw structure was immaculate. Water dripped from lips, chin, and eyelashes and Danny watched, completely focused as she followed the trail from the corner of his head past his eyes, up and over his lips, under his chin, and down his neck until it disappeared beneath the collar of his shirt.
For her to be so focused on water her mouth was incredibly dry and she found herself repeatedly licking her lips.
She inspected his arms next and deduced that they were strong from physical activity and work. The skin was smooth and slightly tanner than the rest of him and those sexy veins guys had decorated his forearms and Danny was tempted to trace one with her finger. His hands were large and, though she couldn't describe how this made sense, turned her on.
She didn't have a fetish for hands or anything like that but the hands on the young man in front of her looked skilled and big. There were mysterious bruises on his knuckles but even those Danny found attractive.
"Give it a try."
He was speaking to Aubree but his eyes remained on Danny, watching her shamelessly as she took all of him in. Danny tried to hide it, but Ray saw the shiver pass over her skin as he spoke and he was glad the feeling was mutual. It was muffled due to the rain and the windows being up, but while he was working under the hood he could distinctly hear her laughter and it was the most angelic noise he'd ever heard. It was light and carefree and it did things to him a simple laugh shouldn't have been able to do. It was teasing and sweet and whenever he had the chance he found himself watching her through the crack between the hood and windshield.
Aubree turned the key in the ignition and cheered excitedly when the engine roared to life. "Oh my god I love you!" she yelled, clapping her hands together and hugging her steering wheel. "What was wrong with it?"
"The transmission is going out. It should ride for another week or two but expect this to happen again. I'm thinking you need a new car."
"Ha! That's exactly what I keep telling her!" Danny gloated, sticking her tongue out at Aubree who flicked her off in return. She smiled and turned her attention back to Ray and it was only then that she realized he was still standing in the rain.
"Oh God you're soaked. Here, get in the back." Danny unlocked the backseat but Ray didn't make a move. He didn't want to get the seats wet but he knew the real reason for his hesitation was because he liked the close proximity between them.
"I should really be going. I've got a train to catch."
"Well hop in! The least we can do is give you a ride," Aubree said, her tone of voice making it clear she wasn't taking no for an answer. Resisting the urge to lean forward and kiss Dany, he moved and slid into the backseat, nearly too big to fit. His knees hit the back of Danny's chair and she scooted forward as Aubree pulled away from the curb and back into Chicago traffic.
"So whats your name?" Aubree asked as she drove towards the Blue Line.
"Ray."
"Danny you liar! You said it was Charlie!"
"I thought it was!"
Ray wanted to interject and explain that it was a nickname but for the first time since receiving it, he was ashamed of it. He was the youngest person active in the Mafia and a lot of the older bosses often teased him and called him a kid, saying he was as innocent as Charlie Brown. Now, the once harmless nickname was the name behind countless attacks and deaths and was one that was feared in the underworld. He didn't regret it, he was actually proud of it at times, but for some reason, he didn't want Danny to know that.
"Well, Ray, thanks so much for fixing my baby. I'd give you some cash if I had any on me. If you want I can just drive you to wherever you need to go. That way you won't have to take the train and you'd at least be benefitting from the car you fixed too."
"The train is fine."
"Well we've got to repay you somehow," Danny insisted, turning in her seat so she could face him. Ray perked up some and Danny smiled softly, her cheeks flushed.
"Your name is Danny?" he asked.
"Oh! My name's actually Daniela but everyone just calls me Danny. This here is Aubree."
Aubree smiled at him through the rearview mirror and Ray nodded, his eyes focusing back in on Danny. He studied her for a while before he remembered his jacket was sitting in her lap. Ray hadn't had a very good relationship with his father and the man had been dead for years now, but the jacket was the last thing Ray had of him and he couldn't bring himself to part with it. It was his dad's favorite.
The bastard.
"So where was Kyle?" Danny asked, not noticing his silent plea for the comfort of his jacket once again.
"Who?"
"Kyle. The guy who owns the mechanic shop? Do you work for him? What was he doing?"
He was busy cleaning piss off the floor and crying.
"Kyle was occupied. I don't work for him."
Danny and Aubree shared a knowing look. Ray clearly wasn't one with words.
The rest of the ride was done in silence, Bastille singing softly in the background. No words were spoken but Danny could feel Ray's eyes still on her and when she would turn, hoping she could sneak a quick peek at him, she was always caught and blushed profusely before turning back around in her seat quickly. It was childish and like playing a game of peek-a-boo but Danny couldn't help herself and the last time, when she stuck her tongue out at him, she was happy to see him smile softly back in her direction. His chest bouncing once as he made a sound between a chuckle and a scoff.
Aubree pulled over in front of the nearest Red Line station and Danny felt a sense of dread wash over her when she realized this would be where they parted. Ray got out of the car and before Danny realized what she was doing she was getting out of the car too. They stood in front of each other, Ray clearly waiting for her to say something since she had been the one to get out, but Danny just stood there awkwardly, her mouth opening and closing like a fish. She could hear Aubree snickering from in the car and knew she should hurry up and say something but, after deciding to get out, her brain had completely abandoned ship and it was every man for themselves.
She couldn't think of anything and the more she stood there the more she wanted to be hit by a car or shot in the head. Anything that would get her out of this situation.
Eventually, it was Ray who came to her rescue, the ghost of a smirk on his pink lips as he looked down at her.
"Thank you, but there's no need to walk me in."
"Um no, no of course not. T-Thanks again for the help with the car. I didn't mean to make you leave your friends."
"It's fine. I wanted to help."
The corner of Ray's lips twitched as he fought to hold back a wide smile. The rain stopped on the drive over and his hair was drying in messy curls and his shirt clung to his chest. Even after being so wet Danny could still smell his aftershave and feel the heat radiating from him. His attractiveness still floored her but now that she'd managed not to swallow her own tongue, she could at least speak normally.
"Then all I can say is thank you. I'll see you around Ray."
Ray nodded slowly, his lips parting as his tongue darted out to wet them. Just like Danny a moment ago, he was simply staring now and he knew he should have said something but no words came to mind. He knew what he wanted to say and what he wanted to happen next but he couldn't force himself to make any of that reality.
In a last desperate attempt to be closer to her somehow, Ray took a step forward and reached out, clasping a strand of her dark hair between his fingers. It was soft and silky and he was tempted to reach for her cheek next but the gasp that slid through her lips and the blush that painted her cheeks was enough for him.
Now he knew at least that he wasn't the only one affected.
"Have a good evening Daniela." In an instant, Ray was gone leaving Danny standing on the sidewalk breathless and her heart pounding. He disappeared inside the station and Danny swallowed before composing herself as best she could and climbing back into the car.
Aubree was on her immediately.
"Oh my gosh Danny why didn't you get his number?!"
"Because I was too focused on trying to breathe properly!" Danny shrieked, dropping her head against the dashboard with a defeated groan. Aubree laughed and pat her back gently before pulling back into traffic. "That was soooo embarrassing! He probably thinks I'm some fish mouthed dumb freak or something."
"I doubt that sweetheart. You're super cute and he was all over you. Besides, he can hardly judge anyone's speaking ability with all his one-word monotone answers."
"It doesn't matter anyway. I probably won't ever see him again."
"Oh you're seeing him again Daniela Grant. In fact, you're seeing him again this weekend." Aubree said and she seemed way too confident for Danny to take her seriously. Danny had lived in Chicago all of her life and she'd never met anyone as......well as dominating as Ray. She doubted she'd be lucky enough to meet the boy a second time. So, even though she wanted to believe Aubree, she couldn't do anything but laugh.
"I wouldn't bet any money on that Aubree."
"Maybe not money, but I'd bet a sexy brown leather jacket and an iPhone."
At the mention of the jacket, Danny jerked forward and looked down at her feet where, sure enough, Ray's jacket sat with his phone sitting on top of it. Shoot! She'd forgotten to give that back to him when he left.
For a moment Danny was freaking out and felt terrible about taking his things but, as Aubree smiled and reassured her that this was a good thing, Danny couldn't help but believe her. This hadn't exactly been the way she wanted it to happen, but this was basically a guarantee that they would in fact meet again.
And when they did, well Danny would be prepared.
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And chapter three is complete! How was it? I don't have much to say in this author note but I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please don't forget to comment and vote :)
edited 4/15/18