Tribulation [h.s]

25

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Candy takes me to the makeshift pit enclosed by cement street blocks when the racers get set. We're so close to the cars now, and I can smell the burning of fuel as they roar to life. The air grows bitter as the night goes on, and I find myself digging my hands deep into my pockets, shuddering when the wind blows.

"Are you excited or what?"

I jump a little when Louis comes to stand beside Candy and me. "Uh," I shrug my shoulders. "I guess." I look back to the row of cars, my eyes landing on Harry's black Bugatti. His windows are tinted beyond the legal limit but, even though I can't see him, I can most certainly imagine his smirk when his headlights flash at me.

Louis scoffs before mumbling, "cheeky bastard."  Turning to Candy, he offers her a red flag he must have brought over with him. "Would you like to do the honors, Candy?"

Her eyes go wide. "Wh- are you kidding?!" She lets out a squeal and rips the flag from his hands.

"Please be careful, Candy!" My protest dies on my tongue as she jumps over the cement roadblocks and jogs over to the starting line. "annnd she's gone." I throw my arms up before letting them fall to my sides in a hopeless shrug.

Louis is laughing when I look back over to him, shaking his head in disbelief as he admires Candy from afar. I can't blame him. Candy is lively. She's eccentric — a free spirit — with infectious laughter and a sultry smile. Everybody can't help but look at her.

When she gets to the front line, she raises the red flag above her head with her other hand propped on her hip. "Are you ready?!" The crowd erupts with cheers and screams, and the racers rev their engines. Candy bites her lips and sways her hips in a teasing manner. The longer she waits, the quieter and tenser the crowd grows. A pin could drop right now, and everyone would be able to hear it. When the intensity seems to reach its peak, Candy winks. Then, she waves the flag.

The gust of air that lashes by me almost knocks me off my feet. In an instant, the cars are gone at once and disappear down the street, weaving in with the traffic in the city.  "Wait- they're racing on the main roads?"

Louis turns to me and raises a brow. "Where else are they supposed to race?"

"Not on the main roads where there's — I don't know — traffic, pedestrians, and cops!" I can already see it now; a car flipping over or a clueless tourist getting run over.

Louis shakes his head and chuckles. "Stop worrying, darlin'. Everything will be fine."

"Did you see that?" Candy comes scurrying back over. She steps over the cement roadblock, and Louis quickly steps forward and offers her a hand to help her. She accepts his offer and grabs his hand without much thought.

"Yeah, you did great," Louis says with a fond, bashful smile while looking down at Candy.

Candy turns to me, bright and giggling. "Are you having a good time?"

No. I'm stressed out that someone's going to die. "Uh, yeah! Yeah, this is so cool."  I cringe because I've never been a good liar but, luckily for me, Candy doesn't question me. She's caught that adrenaline high and is too caught up in the excitement of the race.

Louis rocks back and forth on his feet, looking a little nervous, but his smile never falters. "I got some beers in the back of my car," he says and points over his shoulder in the direction of where his car must be parked. "Would you like one?" The thing is, Louis isn't directly talking to me. He's looking solely at Candy.