~ Zoie's POV ~
"Holy guacamole!" Zoie squealed. "That was so crazy!"
Zoie got into the car, in the passenger seat, and Asher got into the driver's seat. They just came back from the race track and Zoie still couldn't believe what she just witnessed. She thought she would just be watching some cars race against each other, but Formula D was more than that. These cars not only race, but they had to do it in style. Cars were drifting so close to each other, you couldn't help but hold your breath. Every time they make a turn, Zoie sat on the edge of her seat and bit her nails. Sometimes there was only an inch in between these cars. And it's not uncommon that they'd crash into each other. It was all about speed and precision. Down to a tee.
"Like, how do they do that?" she continued. "How do they know they're not gonna crash?"
"You don't," he replied. "You just gotta believe in your skillset,"
Zoie turned to him with an intrigued look. Meanwhile, Asher kept his eyes on the road. They had a long drive ahead and it was late at night.
"So, this is what you wanna do, huh?" she asked after a while of silence.
Asher replied with a shrug.
"Can you even do that?"
Asher's lips curved into a smirk.
"You wanna see?"
Zoie was absolutely intrigued. She nodded her head and Asher picked up the pace. The car was racing down the empty street. The speedometer kept climbing and climbing. Zoie felt like she was on a roller coaster ride. Her hands gripped her seat tighter and her body fell back with the pressure.
"Hold on tight!" he said.
And suddenly, the car stopped and spun to its side. Everything was happening so fast. Zoie's eyes were wide open, but all she saw were blurs of light. The car did a whole U-turn and Asher picked up the pace. They only stopped for a millisecond and they were soaring down the streets again.
"Woah!!" Zoie gaped when she finally caught her breath. This whole time, she was holding it in. "Oh my gosh, that was so much fun! How did you do that?!"
"It's pretty simple," he replied. Zoie's breathing was labored, but Asher still looked as cool as ever. "You just gotta get the car's wheel to throw off its weight while you're turning,"
"What?" she frowned. "That doesn't sound simple,"
"It's just muscle memory," he said. "After you've done it a couple of times, you'll get it,"
Zoie kept looking at Asher. It was compelling to see someone so passionate about something not a lot of people care about. Especially for someone like him who doesn't seem to care about anything. Zoie realized that maybe this racing thing is what gives him excitement. A purpose for living. And we all can use some of that.
Asher was now hitting the gas pedal again. The car roared into the night and Zoie was afraid that it might explode. He kept going and going and going until--- SWISH! The car drifted around and around until they made a 180 turn. Zoie was spinning and spinning and all the blood in her veins were racing. Once Asher finished the move, he floored the gas pedal again and off they went. Zoie's heart and mind were bursting in the air. She was screaming and laughing uncontrollably. If she didn't know any better, what she felt was like an orgasm!
"It's pretty fun, huh?" Asher turned to her. He was laughing too.
"Oh my God!" she squealed through labored breaths. "That was so crazy! It felt like I was flying!"
Zoie was panting, catching her breath. Asher let out a smile as he kept staring at her.
"Do you wanna try it?" he asked suddenly.
"Me?"
"Yeah, I can teach you if you want?"
Zoie didn't even wait for a beat before yelling, "Yes!"
Asher let out a chuckle and said, "Alright,"
Maybe it was the adrenaline racing through her body, but Zoie had no fear at this moment. Asher slowed the car down and pulled over on the side of the road. He then went outside to the passenger seat and Zoie scooted over to the driver seat. Zoie was literally jumping in her seat. She put her seatbelt on and so did Asher.
"Okay, so, how do I do this?" she asked, looking around the steering wheel and gear lever.
"Start by going down and picking up the pace. Make sure you have control over the gas pedal," he said.
"Okay..." Zoie hit the gas slowly and carefully.
The car started picking up pace and she continued hitting the pedal until the car went soaring in speed. Zoie felt the rush of excitement as the car sped through the night. Asher turned up the radio's volume and the music was blasting. All of this made her heart beat like a bullet train. It was such an exhilarating feeling. She felt like an astronaut blasting off into the moon.
"Now I'm gonna pull the handbrake and you make a turn at the same time, got it?" Asher yelled over the music.
"W-wait!"
"At go! 3, 2, 1, go!"
"Asher!"
"Turn!"
Asher pulled the brake and pushed Zoie's steering wheel to the right. Zoie followed his lead and threw the steering wheel harder. The car skidded and screeched until it made a 180 turn. Once it came to a full turn, Asher dropped the handbrake and the car went flying down the road.
"Oh my God!" she squeaked. "I did it!"
"You did it," he agreed, nodding his head in approval. "How'd that feel?"
"That was so much fun!" she exclaimed. "I wanna do that again!"
"Woah, okay, I think we've had enough for now. We don't wanna burn the tires," he laughed.
"Can we get new tires and do it again soon then?"
"Ha-ha, you better watch out," he warned. "At this rate, you're gonna wanna be a Formula D driver,"
"Then you better watch out," she said. "I'm gonna be your competition!"
Asher turned to her and a big smile formed on his face.
"You know, if you like drifting that much, maybe we should build this car up," he said. "Make it a manual transmission, it'll feel better,"
"Manual transmission?"
"Yeah. You'll have more control over the engine and a way smoother drift,"
Zoie's eyes lit up like wildfire. Who knew that cars could be so exciting?
"We should totally do it!" she squealed. "I wanna do it!"
"For real?" Asher narrowed his eyes. "Your dad won't mind if we mess around with his BMW?"
"Don't worry," she said with a wink. "It'll be our little secret,"
Asher was looking at her with a look she couldn't decipher. His head was cocked to the side and a smirk was playing on his lips. Whatever that look meant, he seemed very pleased about this. Zoie flashed him another smile before turning the radio's volume up. The music blasted even louder and Zoie floored the gas pedal.
Sometimes and very rarely, there are moments in life when the moments felt bigger than life itself. This moment right now. Being in the car with him, the music playing loudly as they're racing into the night. It was one of those moments.
She felt... infinite.
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~ Asher's POV ~
Asher was on a mission.
The very next day, he went to a nearby garage and started getting new parts for the car. He worked on that car tirelessly day and night. He didn't want anyone else touching that car except him. It was going to take several days before the car's upgrade was fully done. Asher wanted to make sure it was finished before Thanksgiving break because they'd be flying out to New Jersey on Thursday morning.
Several days had passed and finally, on that Wednesday afternoon, Asher felt like the car was ready. He had upgraded the engine, added a manual transmission, and got the carsnew tires that were more fitting for drifting.
Zoie stood next to the car as Asher was hunched over the engine, tightening up some of the screws. Once he was done, he stood up and admired his handiwork. He pulled out a dirty towel from his back pocket and wiped his hand. He was wearing a black wife beater and jeans, and sweat was dripping off his forehead. Zoie took a step closer and wiped the sweat on his face with a clean towel.
"Thanks," he said.
"Sure," she replied.
Asher realized that Zoie was standing so close to him. She was gently wiping the sweat off his neck with that towel. He found himself glancing down, noting her beautiful face and the cleavage on her blouse. All of a sudden, Asher felt nervous like he was five years old again and a pretty girl was sitting next to him at lunch.
"O-okay, I think that should do it," he said as he pulled away.
"Do you think it's gonna work?" she asked.
"There's only one way to find out," Asher held the car key in his hand.
Zoie's lips curved into a smile. With playful eyes, she grabbed the car key from him and raced over to the driver's seat. Asher let out a chuckle and followed her, sitting in the passenger seat. The next thing he knew, Zoie drove the car out of that garage. They were heading to the backroad that was usually empty at night.
As the car rode down the street, Asher hit the volume button on the radio and a rock song began to play. Zoie tapped her finger along with the music and Asher tapped his foot following her. The singer on the radio had this husky voice and he started singing:
"Today is a winding road that's taking me to places that I didn't want to go"
"Today in the blink of an eye, I'm holding on to something and I do not know why I try"
"I tried to read between the lines"
"I tried to look in your eyes"
"I want a simple explanation"
"For what I'm feeling inside"
"I gotta find a way out"
"Maybe there's a way out"
Asher found himself stealing glances at Zoie. For the past several weeks, things had been... kind of amazing. There was this unspoken energy that exists between them. He always felt giddy and excited whenever she was around. He thought about her all the time. From morning until night, all he wanted to do was spend time and be close to her. And luckily for him, she apparently liked cars too.
Asher remembered the way she laughed when he first showed her how to drift the car. She had such an infectious laugh. You couldn't help but laugh when she laughs. Watching her smile made him smile too. If he could just make her laugh like that at least once a day, he'd consider himself pretty damn lucky.
"Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer"
"Do you know you're unlike any other?"
"You'll always be my thunder, and I said"
"Your eyes are the brightest of all the colors"
"I don't wanna ever love another"
"You'll always be my thunder"
"So bring on the rain"
"And bring on the thunder"
Asher swallowed hard at the lyrics he heard. Her voice was the soundtrack of his summer. He could listen to it over and over again. And then her eyes... don't even get him started on that.
"Are you ready?" Zoie spoke suddenly, breaking his train of thought.
They had arrived at the road where they liked to practice. It was long and empty, and no cops were around.
"Ah, yeah," Asher replied. "Go for it,"
A smile curved up her lips as Zoie hit the gas pedal. Asher kept his eyes on her and not on the road. It was always fun for him to watch how excited she gets. Zoie let the speedometer keep going up and up until--- SWISH! The car skidded and screeched into a turn. Her hand then swiftly changed the gear and she picked up the pace again.
Damn! This girl is on fire!
Zoie was laughing happily at her successful drift. Meanwhile, Asher's jaw fell open in shock and adoration. He had never seen anything sexier.
"Wow!" she squealed. "This feels even better than before!"
"It's almost like a real racecar, right?" he beamed.
"Totally!" she agreed. "But, you know what it's missing?"
"What?"
"A name,"
"A name?"
"Yeah, and I think I know the perfect name for this car,"
Asher raised an eyebrow. She had a playful smile hanging on her face.
"What is it?" he asked.
She turned to him, with bright eyes and that gorgeous smile, saying, "Thunder,"
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- - - - - - To Be Continued - - - - - -