migraine.

                      i want to drive away – in the night, headlights call my name. 

       ‘ You’re real sure, huh? Alright, let’s make it more interestin’. How much you willin’ to put on this race, aside from your rep? I’m talkin’ hard cash here, so don’t gimme no small number. We ain’t idiot teen boy racers. ’

      “More than y’ probably think.” the mention of cash being laid down, however, catches his attention. “Depends on how much you’re willin’ to put down for yourself. I got a few stacks I can put down.”

       ‘ You’re real sure, huh? Alright, let’s make it more interestin’. How much you willin’ to put on this race, aside from your rep? I’m talkin’ hard cash here, so don’t gimme no small number. We ain’t idiot teen boy racers. ’

      “More than y’ probably think.” the mention of cash being laid down, however, catches his attention. “Depends on how much you’re willin’ to put down for yourself. I got a few stacks I can put down.”

        ‘ Yeah, I’m not sure accepts is the right word here. Maybe don’t call him that to his face– he might actually kill you if you do. ’ He shrugs. ‘ Good, though! Good! Don’t back out just ’cause I beat your ass, though. ’

      “Yeah. That makes more sense.” there’s a scoff a few seconds later. Perhaps years of experience has him feeling rather cocky.  “You beat m’ in this race an’ I’ll eat my own shoe.”

“A custom?” By the surprise in her voice and the look on her face, she was impressed by that. “Wow, way to go. That’s so cool! Keep it up, I’m sure she’ll turn out great either way.” Had to respect people knowledgeable and patient enough to customize their own bikes. “Eh, I have a car license, but never owned a car. Before this baby here I had a basic Honda which lasted me a long while, admittedly. Always liked bikes over cars.”

“Yeah she isn’t much but she’s gettin’ there.” he still beamed with pride and opened his phone so he could find a picture of his progress on the bike, showing it off to her. “Here she is.” her comment on liking cars over bikes however, made him chuckle. “Ah. I like really fast cars. No particular reason. Safer than bikes for certain parts of my job.”

         ‘ We call him the Chihuahua but his real name’s Dean. He runs a garage, sorta. Maybe he gets people to acquire expensive cars for him in some not so legal ways. Maybe he’s my boss. Maybe he’s lookin’ for more guys who know their ways ’round cars instead ’a ones who know how to drive and steal ’em. ’

        “Who th’ fuck just accepts th’ name Chihuahua.” the same could almost be the same as Lane but he’s not going to get into it. He’ll focus on the meatier part of the conversation. “I’ll think about it.” he offers. “I’ll give y’ an answer after our race.”

        ‘ Huh. ’ Luke spends a couple of minutes looking like he’s thinking really hard. Eyes narrow and everything. It’s almost funny. ‘ You lookin’ for work? I know a guy, sounds like he’d be interested in you. ’

      “M’always lookin’ for work.” he admits, but he likes to get a little more information before just jumping into a job. “Who’s th’ guy?”

         ‘ Are you serious? Like, are you fuckin’ with me right now? ’ he says, unable to stop himself from laughing. Holy shit! ‘ You give these to all the boy racers ’round town? ’

      “Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up.” he gives a roll of his eyes. “I do actually. I do custom jobs for cars. Brings in some extra cash.”

She laughed quite a bit to that comment and switched the motor off again. “If I weren’t already married to my job, I’d probably marry this bike. I’m sure there’s a state where you can do that–” She strapped her helmet on whilst chatting. “You got a bike of your own?”

“I do actually.” he answered, the smile still glowing on his face. “Not as good as this one but M’givin’ her some slow tune-ups. She’ll be a custom in no time.” it keeps him busy. “I got two cars too. Bit of a vehicle buff.”

        ‘ Hey, can we have a little trust here? Can you trust me? I know what I’m doin’, I’ve only been arrested like– tw– fif– I know what I’m doin’! You gotta number? Gimme your number, I’ll call you when it’s good to go. ’

      “No I cannot trust y’. The first sign of trouble I see an’ M’gone, mate.” he smiles though. A bit condescending but still a smile. “Here.” opens his wallet offers what looks to be a business card. “Number’s on there.”

         ‘ Look at you! Some kinda genius, damn! But, no. I mean, yeah, but no. I wanna see how good you drive. By racing me. I gotta get a car first but I totally wanna do this. I know guys, I can set it up real easy. What d’you say? ’

     “...Okay.” there’s a nod to join the reply. “If you can get everythin’ set up for it then I got no problem in kicking your ass in a race. Just make sure nothin’ goes wrong, yeah? I got enough on my record.”

“So worth it,” she assured the stranger, while slipping a leg over the seat and taking the left handle. “Listen to this.” She twisted the key to switch the motor on and gave a kick to fire up the engine, letting the bike roar with a sound like thunder. All the time, she had the biggest grin. What a nerd.

The sound of the engine had him sucking in a sharp breath of air. He felt the roar through his bones and, oh boy, he loved it. “God damn.” he shook his head, a wide smile on his features. He looked like a kid in Disneyland, really. “If I could marry a sound... that’d be it.”

         “Oof.” Nothing like dog kisses to brighten a day, right? He crouches to give the little guy better access ( and a few scratches behind the ears ). “Hey there, fella.  ——  No need, he’s lovely. Scout, was it?”

     “Yeah. Scout.” he nods, letting the dog get the attention he so desperately wanted. “Ha, he looks sweet an’ lovely now but I can tell y’ he’s anything but.” he’s teasing mostly. The worst thing the dog does is chew on the couch pillows. 

The exclamation has her looking up with arched eyebrows, before a proud smile replaced the expression of puzzlement. “Just turned 8 months. Worked long and hard for this bad girl.”

      “Damn.” he chuckled while letting out a small huff of amazement. His arms crossed over his chest, an attempt to keep his finger from touching chrome. “I can tell she’s worth it.”