The sun was high up in the sky, a cloud barely noticeable in the blue. People always talked about how the sun never seems to hide in Havana, Cuba. Today, I was witnessing it.
Tree after tree passed by the car as a sharp right turn came into view, meaning we were close to the destination.
"What do you think?" The man next to me, Brian, asked, making me turn and look at him. "Beautiful, I still can't believe I'm actually here," I said, my eyes looking around in amazement.
"Better than Florida?" My cousin asked, making me smile and look over with a nod, "Defiantly."
Brian O'Conner was my cousin, only holding 3 months over me. We've been close ever since my mom passed away at age 9. Even at 34, we still were the best of friends. If it wasn't for him, I'd still be in Florida, working on cars and living by myself.
I got a call a week ago from Brian, telling me that his friends and he were off to Havana, Cuba for a vacation. He asked if I wanted to join him; of course I accepted.
Though I only ever met Dominic Toretto, Mia Toretto, and Roman Pearce, I knew who everyone else was.
Turns out a friend of Dominic's, or Dom as he likes to be called, invited everyone over for the 4th of July. Brian, taking it as an open invitation, decided that he needed some quality time with his cousin.
"You'll enjoy this," Brian said, glancing over to me before focusing back on the road. "It's a secure location, big house, friends all around. You'll be fine here."
Brian knew the situation I was in and, although he would never actually say it, he knew that I was worried leaving Florida.
At his words, my smile fell and my excitement seemed to die down some. I didn't want to talk about him. I wanted to just enjoy this 4th of July weekend and be happy.
Figuring Brian needed some type of acknowledgment that I heard him, I mumbled out, "Yeah."
In the corner of my eye, I noticed Brian look over at me, clearly seeing the mood change. He quickly tried to fix his words, "Tonight is fireworks, and Dom's cousin Fernando promised he'd show us all the hot spots for racing."
At the sound of racing, my smile quickly returned and my body almost jumped with excitement. I was always into cars, seeming to gain that from my grandfather. Brian was actually the one who introduced me into Street Racing though, only to find that Florida had very little races.
You can guess that I'm defiantly getting into some races while I'm here.
"There's the Bella smile I love so much," Brian said, using his nickname for me. I looked over, seeing a giant smile on his face which made me lightly push him.
Suddenly, the trees on either side of the road disappeared, revealing giant houses. Behind the houses, you could spot the water, seeming to rise and fall with the faint wind. Each house we passed was dressed like a mansion, thousand dollar cars parked in the driveways or on the side of the road.
People walked around in shorts and tank tops, some even wearing just their bikinis. My own attire was made up of jean shorts, a tight pinkish-reddish tank top, and white converses. My dark brown hair was up in a loose and messy bun, the open windows pushing any strains back.
Brian slowed his car down as we approached a white, mansion like house. On the side, not connected, sat a giant white garage. A couple of cars either parked themselves in the driveway or on the side of the road.
The one that caught my eyes was the one that Brian parked next to in the driveway. A black 1970 Dodge Charger. In Florida, they look for those types of cars on the road, just hoping to book them.
My attention went back to the closed garage in front of me, my nerves seeming to get the best of me as I started to play with my ring that sat on my right hand. Brain knew me well enough to know what that action meant.
"Hey," He said, grabbing my attention, "They'll love you. Don't worry."
My cousin opened the driver-side of the car, slipping out of it while I paused in the passenger seat. Sucking in a deep breath, I turned my body around, grabbing my jean jacket that I threw in the back when Brian picked me up from the airport.
I climbed out of his car, closing the door behind me. Although my bags were still in the trunk, Brian nor I paid any attention to them at the moment.
Brian, as if he'd been here before, led the way to the side of the garage. I got a quick climbs of the water, a beach pulling itself away from the water and up towards the garage. Luckily, the house and garage seemed to sit on a hill; deck like stairs leading from the back of the house down towards the water and sand.
The house next to us had a cement path leading from the side door all the way to the garage door, where we were standing at.
Opening the door, I expected to walk into a dark, car filled garage. Instead, I was met with something completely different. The back of the garage opened, like it to had its own door. A deck was built into it, letting you walk out and look over the water. Instead of a bunch of cars, I came face to face with a group of people standing around talking and decorations for the 4th of July.
A large counter top stood against the wall to the right of me, food and other things piled on it. In the middle of the room sat a large picnic table, a red and white cover over it. Clearly two or so had been pushed together to create it.
The ceiling held hanging, bright lights, making the pictures on the walls light up. Each picture held a different car, some holding even different people.
Five people stood in the garage, some I recognized while three I didn't.
Dom was talking with two guys while Dom's sister, Mia, was talking with another girl by the counter. It wasn't until Brian walked in did everyone turn towards us.
"O'Conner," Dom's voice said with a smile, causing my own head to turn at the sound of my own last name. It wasn't until Brian walked over to him with a smile did I realize he wasn't talking to me. I watched as Dom clasped his hand with Brian's before doing a usual bro hug.
A beer sat in one of hand of two of the guys, Dom being one of them.
I watched as Brian hugged the other man, shaking hands with the last one. Mia and the other girl walked over, Mia giving Brian a kiss on the cheek while the other girl shook his hand. Words were exchanged but I was too far away to hear them.
Crowded places weren't a bother to me as much as they once were, but when you really only know one of the people, you're not sure what to do. Immediately, my fingers started to twist my ring.
Dom seemed to notice my awkward stance and grabbed Brian's attention, nodding over to me. Quickly he nodded over, "Bella! Come here."
My feet moved me across the cement floor over to the large group, my hands awkwardly in front of me. It wasn't until I stopped next to Brian that I dropped my hands.
"You remember Dom and Mia, right?" Brian asked, as if he didn't recall that I had already brought them up in multiply conversations in the past.
"Yeah," I nodded, causing Brian to look at the two Toretto's. "You guys remember my cousin Isabella? The one that lives in Florida?"
Mia smiled wide, "Yes, of course." Her arms immediately found their way around me, pulling me into a hug as she said, "It's so good to see you again." I lightly hugged her back, pulling away to come face to face with Dom.
Even though it was probable about a year or so ago, Dom hadn't changed one bit. His muscular arms in a white tank top made my mouth gap slightly. I remember meeting Dom the first time and quickly thinking he was good looking. But, at the time, I couldn't act upon my thoughts.
I don't think I could now.
"Hi," I said with a smile, my hand stretching itself out. Dom took it, creating a small shock before he shook it lightly with a smile, "It's been awhile." His hand pulled away, losing the shock as his head turned to Brian, "Looks like I'll have to stop calling you O'Conner."
Brian laughed at the comment, causing a small chuckle to leave everyone's lips. Once the laughs died down, Brian introduced me to the other three. "This is Hans, a friend of ours," Brian said towards the chines guy in front of me. I shook his head, looking at the other two strangers.
"This is Fernando, Dom's cousin, and his wife Camila," My cousin introduced me. My hands shook both of theirs, my mind recalling that this was their home.
"You have a beautiful home," I said, making Camila smile. "Thank you. I've been trying to get this one here to clean this garage for months. It wasn't until I told him who all was coming did he finally clean it out," She said, bumping her arm into Fernando who shrugged.
Dom spoke up, "Don't let him fool you. If I know my cousin then he's probable shoved everything into a closet in hopes no one opens it." Everyone laughed at his comment, Fernando nodding in agreement before laughing as well.
I was caught off guard when Dom spoke to me, causing my head to look at him. "Can I get you something to drink?"
"Sure, what do you have?" I asked? Fernando spoke up behind me with a wide smile, "It's Cuba, baby! You name it, we have it!" I couldn't help but chuckle at his comment.
"Ah, I guess I'll have a Corona," I said, turning my attention back to Dom. He smiled as he walked over to a row of coolers that laid against the wall. "A girl after my own heart," He chuckled, my feet following in sync with his. I stood by him as he bent down, swiping up a Corona from one of the coolers.
Dom sat his drink down on the closed cooler, opening the new bottle before handing it to me. Our fingers brushed against each other, causing the shock to run up my arm again.
"Thanks," I said to him, taking the bottle and taking a swig of it. The taste ran down my throat, seeming to rush my body back to life.
"Bella!" I heard a voice yell behind me, making me quick turnaround to find Roman Pearce standing in the garage doorway. He walked over, completely ignoring Brian as he made his way over to me. He swiped me in his arms, a laugh leaving my lips as he picked me up and spun me around.
Roman always looked at me like a cousin, since Brian made sure to tell him I was off limits.
Between Brian and Roman, people in Florida seemed to forget my actual name and just call me Bella. Which is fine until you meet someone new and they ask "Is it from Twilight"?
I was sat back on my feet, my joking side coming out already, "Hey Roman. I see your still chasing after those burgers," I said, patting his stomach. My comment made everyone chuckle, Dom's deep laugh behind me making me remember he was still there.
Roman's smile dropped, his arms extending as he looked around, "Man. I haven't even been here five minutes and I'm already getting the O'Conner comments."
This didn't help his case, instead, it made everyone chuckle once again.
Another man walked in, immediately getting greeted by my cousin and Roman. I didn't recall who he was, but when Dom whispered to me his name, I called the mention of him.
"That's Tej Parker."
I nodded, my mouth making a "ah" motion as Brian walked the man over. "Tej, this is my cousin Isabella," Brian said, using my full name once again. Up until now, I would think he had forgotten my actual name.
Tej and I shook hands, a "hey" coming from him before he turned to Roman, blaming him for something. They both seemed to disappear behind me as I made my way out the garage and onto the deck.
Finally, I got a full look at the water and sand below me. Some kids with parents were outside on the beach, some even copying us with parties on decks. It sounded so lively, no one seeming to have a bad day today.
The water lightly swam up to the sand, seeming to follow the same pattern over and over. It was so peaceful, beautiful. I would give anything to pull my car up and start fixing on it with nothing but the waves as background noise.
"What do you think?" A voice said behind me, making me turn to find Dom. "Better than the Florida view?" He asked, walking over to join me. He copied me in holding onto his drink, sitting it on the wooden railing before us.
"Ten times better. When I see this place it makes me reconsider not moving out of Florida," I said, my eyes returning to the open water.
In the corner of my eye, I noticed Dom's eyes on me. At first, it was nothing but the waves and kids laughing that held noise between us. Then, Dom broke the silence, "Where would you want to live?"
"Right here," I said, my eyes never leaving the water. "Races almost every night. Beautiful views every day. Why wouldn't you want to move here?" I seemed to ask, but wasn't expecting an answer.
"Brian told me you were a racer. Didn't know there was that many races in Florida," Dom comment, making me turn and look at him. "There's not, but once in a while someone will try to host a race or two. They only get about two, maybe three races in a night before the cops show up. I've quickly learned to be the first one there and the first one out."
Dom seemed to nod in agreement. "So, I'm to assume that you'll be joining us this weekend with races?"
I looked at him confused, not sure what he meant fully by that. He must have read into it because he let out a small chuckle before answering. "Tomorrow is some street races. We've already got plains to go out there. Sunday is the famous Race Wars, and since we started it, it's only fitting that we show up."
Recalling the name Race Wars, I pushed myself off the wooded railing and fully turned to Dom. "Wait, you started the Race Wars?"
"Have you been to one?"
"No, but I've heard a lot about them. It was always a huge thing on my bucket list to go to one. I didn't know they had one here, or that you were the ones that started it," I commented.
Dom nodded slightly, "About two years ago I started it. It started off small, but since then it's gotten bigger and bigger. You should come check it out."
I held my drink up, smiling, "Wouldn't miss it for the world." Dom smiled at me before clanking his beer with mine, both of us taking a sip before looking out at the water once again.