~ Outside The Speedway ~ (Lightning McQueen x OC)

Chapter 1

The championships are in one week.

The Piston Cup has been my dream ever since I was five. That day, I swore to myself that I would become the first female racer to ever win the competition.

Now here I am, thirteen years later, on July 8th, arriving at the Los Angeles International Speedway in California.

I drive my sister's car into the racers lot, parking it where all the other cars are. Behind me, my sister, Sally, drives the truck into my parking spot in between the other racer's trucks. I step out of the car, breathing in the fresh, California air. The smell of gasoline and burnt rubber hits my nose, stinging it slightly. But it's nothing new to me. It's actually somewhat comforting.

I shut the car door behind me and walked over to the truck. Surprisingly, no one's around. Just a few trucks are parked in the lot, the rest of the spots are empty. Sally jumps out of the truck and runs over to me. She doubles back, opening the truck door again, and pressing something on the inside. The back flap of the truck opens up, sending itself downwards slowly, revealing what was on the inside.

I smile largely in excitement. My racing car.

The sleek, white Lexus sits steadily on the inside. The lime green and light blue painted stripe design on the side doors fade out as it reaches the back of the car. A few stickers trail horizontally across the top of the rear wing; and on the doors, forming columns. The number 75 is painted in black on the hood, sides, and rear. There were a couple of shapes painted on in groups around the car, mostly triangles, in hues varying from light grey to black. I couldn't be prouder of the paint job Ramone did on the Lexus back in Radiator Springs. He said that the best looking cars reflected off of their drivers. According to him, the lime green symbolizes my confidence, the light blue my professionalism, and the white my purity and sympathy towards other racers; even if I extremely dislike them.

Which includes Lightning McQueen. My biggest rival in the racing world.

We're both the youngest out there, at 18. Most racers are above the age of 20, but because of the talent we both showed at the auditions in New Jersey years ago, we got in. From the day we met on that speedway, we've been enemies ever since. Both trying to become the youngest racers to ever win big-deal competitions.

Sally interrupts me from my thoughts, "Come on sis! You don't want to miss out on the hours and hours of practice I will never understand, but will help you beat everyone else! So get your car, and come on!" She starts running toward the giant entrance of the speedway. I shake my head and roll my eyes with a smile.

I walk over to the side of the truck and press the white button. My car slowly rolls out of the truck, and onto the asphalt. I run my hand over the smooth hood. This car has gotten me through a while worth of training, and I trust that it'll help me win this race too.

I unlock the doors and slide in. The fresh smell of a new car somehow still lingers on the inside. I close the doors and turn on the ignition. I hear the familiar rumble of my car starting up, while the dashboard and buttons light up. A few seconds later, I take the wheel and drive into the arena.

The speedway was much bigger than I expected. The oval-shaped track was huge, and the stands even larger. It didn't look this big on the outside though. The power of illusion really plays a number of tricks on me. I can see some cars already racing each other on the track, including Chick Hicks, the biggest wannabee trash talker around. I park my car on the grass in the middle of the track and step out. The hot sun beats down directly on the arena, so I unzip my white racing jacket to the bottom. I don't dare to take it off though. I wouldn't want to be mistaken as a crazy, girl super fan again that just happens to own a race car and has access to the track before the race.