my middle finger salutes you

“That’s a freaking rad idea! What do you have in mind for them?” He nodded along to Tam’s words, feeling every one of them deep in his soul. “Hope you keep that nonjudgmental mindset the day comes around you see me wearing any of those just for good times sake.” Matt replied happily, lifting his arms out with excitement. “Cause we had to finally close this crazy-ass decade and start off the new roaring 20′s with a bang of cool people.” He then smiled at them. “Oh, believe me, he’s gonna love you when he meets you. We’d be more than happy to have you hang out at home some time; his record collection puts anyone to shame.”

“I’m thinking something kinda like halo lights, but instead they make the headlights look like they’re angry. You ever seen those Jeeps with the decals over the lights to make ‘em look like they’re frowning or something? That’s the look I’m going for but in a more subtle way. A little illusion if you will.” Tam chuckled and shrugged. “Hey, I just might have to join you in that case.” They raised a brow and nodded, a small smile crossing their lips. “That actually sounds really cool man, I’d love to see that.”

“Take all you want, I’ll beg.” She bit down on her lip with a little giggle. “We’re just two ridiculously attractive people finding their way up to each other; I dig this fate thing. Gabriella, everyone calls me Bella… you can call me however you’d like as long as I get your name and a nice little number to go with it.” She nodded along to the explanation. “Hey, I totally get it; nothing beats having some solo time so you can actually focus on your work.” Bella smiled and kept looking around, now taking some steps towards the other cars. “What’s your favorite thing you’re working on around here?”

“You know, this is a nice change, usually I’m the one coming up with the one-liners. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Bella, I’m Tam. And if you’ll hold out your hand I’ll write the number.” They pulled a pen from their back pocket and wagged it in front of her. Tam sighed and looked around before pointing out a shiny red Challenger. “The guy driving that gave me free range to do anything I wanted so long as I made it fast and loud. I definitely don’t think he’ll be disappointed. Most people who come to me leave satisfied.” They winked.

Phillip tried his best to focus completely on Tam’s words, and not just because there was potentially life-saving information in what they were saying too. Following their gestures to the bars above them, it was just seconds later that they were taking off at the start of the race. Everything around him was moving so fast, it was hard to really take in everything that was going on but Phillip had to admit Tam knew exactly what they were doing in the moment, actively sprinting towards the finish line… but a second place finish was the end result. Tam joked about his lack of being lucky tonight, which Phillip sheepishly shrugged his shoulders at even though he knew they weren’t being serious… or at least not completely. “Still, I’m sorry if I cost you this race in any way, Tam.” He didn’t know what sand bagging was, but from every indication it couldn’t have been legal. He also fully believed Tam would be capable of breaking the opposition’s nose. “You know, if you’re worried about setting a good example for me, don’t worry… break away.” He laughed. “If you think he pulled something to cheat to win that race, he deserves it anyway.”

“What? No.” Tam shook their head and flashed Phillip a smile. “Don’t be stupid jughead, you didn’t cost me this race. That prick pretending his car was qualified is what cost us the race. We’re obviously the better racers... and take that helmet off, you’re safe now.” They laughed as they weaved through the crowd that had come out onto the street in order to congratulate the winner. “When he brings the damn thing to my shop in a few days I’ll make sure to something that’ll show him how I feel about this race. Don’t worry, I won’t do anything illegal, but I’ll make sure he never lies about what’s under his hood again. Besides, after that awful burnout he can’t go much longer without needing a mechanic and I’m the best on the island.” They sighed. They hated losing more than most things, but they were trying not to make a big deal of it. “Any other ideas for tonight?”

“I’ll put in a word with Santa so he’ll get ya something wicked.” Matt grinned, unable to hold back his laugh after their reply. “It definitely fucking was, I had– a phase I never really walked out off…” He trailed off as he looked at himself with a silly grimace; he turned up towards Tam. “That I do! Got a couple spares, if you decide you want one; I’m your guy.” He put a hand to his chest as he smiled brightly at them. “You had me at Queen; damn, your music taste’s just as badass as you. Heroes, legends… they’ll never die! Man, even my grandpa has the biggest crush on Stevie.”

“If you would that’d be awesome - I’ve been looking at some mean-looking lights for my motorcycle.” They chuckled. “Don’t worry, I remember my days of black eyeliner and too many over-sized hoodies. I’m definitely not judging.” Tam raised a brow, a pleasant smile crossing their face. “Hey thanks, you’re not too bad yourself. Oh man, who wouldn’t have a crush on Stevie? She’s a goddess. Your grandpa sounds like someone I can get along with. Why haven’t I met you before?”

“It came with the suit.” The man replied, perfectly neutral. “Turning it on sounds like it’s drowning; the clicking doesn’t stop until it’s turned off but it gets worse when you involve the clutch.” Richard spoke gravely, standing out of their way as they inspected the car. “Once it took its sweet time working so I could bring her over, I realized the steering wheel gets stuck and the brakes might as well been traded off for dying cats.” He sighed, settling his hands in his pockets. “I’m probably dead right now.”

“I need to get one of those suits.” Tam chuckled. “Mind if I pop the hood? This sounds like a classic case of a flooded motor. Do you like to race people at the stop lights? That’ll usually do it - mashing the pedal too hard too quickly. But it’s okay, we can’t all be expert street racers like myself.” They grinned. “In all honesty I’ll have to take a look inside to really be able to tell what’s going on with everything else. Got anywhere else to be? If you don’t mind sticking around I might be able to diagnose and fix the problem all in one day. Only because I like your suit.”

Louie smiled at Tam as he came to a stop next to them, dropping the last box on the floor beside them. “We’re all set right?” He asked excitedly. “Can’t wait until is dark and this place goes from old storage unit to party central.” He said happily, eyeing the other to see their reaction.

@tamcalhoun​

“That should be it. Good job.” Tam grinned, their eyes scanning the bare area. “You have to play it cool my friend. If you arouse suspicion we’ll be shut down before we can ever start setting up. Speaking of, you only invited your friends who won’t snitch about what goes down, right?”

The guy blinked a couple of times as he took in his surroundings, stopping right in his spot and turning away from the object. “Damn do I owe you, thanks!” Matt laughed softly. “You gotta admit, the fall could’ve been pretty funny.” His smile grew bigger at their compliment. “Means a lot and– well, I just play whatever I crash into in the YouTube or Spotify rabbit holes, I’m on a Dustin Kensrue binge right now…” Matt shook his head, getting back on topic. “I’m perpetually stuck in the mid 2000′s, though, cause the reason I’m celebrating my little heart out is cause My Chemical Romance is back together.” He placed a hand to his chest and looked at Tam with the utmost joy. “And I’m shutting up now, how about you? What floats your musical, merry boat?”

“Consider it my good deed for the year.” Tam shrugged. They took in the man’s appearance and overall energy and decided that they didn’t necessarily dislike being around him which was more than they could say about most others. “Spotify usually has some pretty good songs to throw at you, I’ll agree with you on that one. But 2000′s were like peak emo-music in my opinion. I heard about that, I’m debating whether or not I should get some tickets... I’m gonna assume that you’ve already got yours?” They chuckled. “Oh... classic rock and hip hop is usually what you’ll find me listening to. Queen, Elton John, Stevie Nicks, Tupac, Biggie... the greats, you know?”

“You and me both,” she said with a slight grimace, but mostly just a regular smirk. Andrina slid her hand along the counter as she walked back to the door. “It’s all bad blood, but it’s a hell of a lot of fun, ain’t it.” Winking, she stepped outside to drive her car around back. Once it was parked where it needed to be, she got out of the car, her hand patting the hood. “For the record, if you told me you couldn’t work on my car, I would deck you.”

“Damn right.” Tam walked through the shop and out into the garage. Putting their hands on their hips they laughed. “And I’d stand there and take it because you’d have a good reason for doing it. Now, what’s the problem? Making weird noises or something? You know, they say Chevys don’t last very long.” They teased.

“With that logic, I’ve no grounds for an argument.” He smirked at them. “As you’ll inevitably learn, Tam, I always am.” The man laughed at the remark, shaking his head. “Wasn’t even gonna ask. The reason I’m here is, well…” Rick sighed, making a small motion with his head as to lead them to the outside of the shop. “I’ve had a hard time turning this guy on and I don’t feel like getting sued by the car club when I did nothing wrong. Could you give it a look?”

“Arrogance isn’t very becoming on you.” Tam opened their mouth to respond with another jeer but their curiosity got the better of them. Raising a brow, they quickly crossed to the doors and let out a long whistle. “It’d be a pleasure. What do you mean by hard time turning it on? Is it riding smoothly? Any clicking sounds after starting up?” They’d gone into full mechanic mode, unconsciously moving closer to the car.

“Well, let’s hope you’re asleep and I can get my car fixed for free.” Andrina smirked, leaning forward against the counter. After a moment, she tilted her head toward the window, where you could see her old Chevy Camaro sitting outside. “Feel like checking her out too?”

“Andie, you’re incredibly beautiful without a doubt, but I need to be able to pay my rent next month.” Tam looked out the window and whistled. “I’d really love to, but seeing as I’m a Mustang driver and that’s a Camaro... there’s all kinds of bad blood.” They chuckled and nodded. “Drive her around back, I’ll meet you there.”

“Well, I–em,” Jane cleared her throat before tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear. “I was just walking through the city and thought I’d pop in. I don’t know why, as I don’t own a vehicle…” she trailed off, “Do you work here?”

“Two things: first, you don’t own a car? Second, you’re interested in an old mechanic shop?” Tam laughed, not in a mean way, but truly finding the situation funny. “Yeah, I work here. I’m Tam.” They wiped their hands on their pants before holding one out to the woman.

“Oh, goodie.” Her eyebrows raised a bit as she laughed, stepping in to the coffee shop. After a moment, she turned to face them and walked backwards to the counter. “So ya just like this all the time, then? Ya must’ve been quite a fun child to be around, didn’t ya?”

“I actually was. My childhood was a lot different than my adult life. Shit happens and it shapes you, blah blah blah.” They shrugged, slightly amused by the girl but not wanting to show it. Reaching the counter Tam put in their order and motioned to Angel. “She’s with me. Just don’t put too much sugar in whatever she orders. She’s like, twelve.” They chuckled and pulled out their wallet, waiting for Angel to order.

“I’ve heard of premium customer service, but you just blew them all out of the water.” Rick laughed, pulling the sunglasses off his face. “I know you.” He pointed to them with a little smile. “If you’re able to fix cars the way you run your mouth, I’ve got something for you.”

“What can I say? When a heartthrob walks into the vicinity I have to acknowledge them.” They tilted their head and nodded. “Unfortunately you’re right - I know you, too. I can do a lot more with my mouth than just run it but you don’t get that kind of, what was it? ‘Customer service’. What do you have for me, hot shot?”

“Morning, sunshine. I’ve got great news for you if you wanna pinch yourself… or me.” Bella grinned, resting her hip on the side of one of the cars. “Truth be told? I saw you coming in here and I literally couldn’t help myself.” She chuckled, looking around for a few moments before focusing back on them; she shot Tam a wink. “You singlehandedly roped me in… but I must say your job might be the coolest thing ever too.”

“Be careful what you ask for, I just might take you up on that offer.” Tam grinned and slung the towel they’d been drying their hands on over their shoulder and crossed their arms. “I tend to have that affect on people; I am glad that you decided to drop by, though. What’s your name, gorgeous?” They shrugged and took a look around as well. Truth be told, the place was a mess in the eye of a mechanic, but they could see how it might come off as impressive to others. “It ain’t too bad - you can’t really beat having the whole place to yourself most of the time so I can’t complain.”