As soon as the flag dropped, I hit the gas and floored it out of there. I didn't even pay attention to the other racers, just drove.
I hit the first turn without any problems. I flew around it and continued, falling in behind Tails.
"You're doing great, Amy," Nick said over coms.
"Thanks Nick," I replied, drifting around the next turn. Tails fell behind me and I was in third place, behind Sonic and Shadow. The familiarity of the ranking flashed me back to Monaco for a second, but I blinked and willed myself to concentrate.
"Are you ok Amy? You swerved a little there. Is the car handling ok?" Nick asked. I let out a long breath.
"Yeah, just lost focus for a second," I replied. I stayed a ways back from the two front runners; I didn't want events to repeat themselves.
Several minutes into the race, I started to slip again. My mind drifted from the present and I began to see the smoke, the flames, gasoline filled the air and I couldn't breathe...
"Amy!" a voice snapped me out of my reverie and I focused again; I was careening towards the wall. I jerked my wheel and almost spun out. I righted my car and kept going.
"I can't do this. There's no way I can do this!" I said into my coms, tears filling my eyes.
"It's ok, Amy. You just had a mishap..."
"No Nick! It's not ok! I'm falling to pieces and I'm not gonna finish this race! Starry was right!" I sobbed.
"Snap out of it Cupcake. If you're going to finish this race, you're going to need to stop crying and press that gas pedal a little more."
"Starry!" I sobbed.
"Yeah, yeah. Just focus. You're coming up on a hard hairpin turn. Take it easy; don't go too wide," Starry grumbled. I wiped my tears away and took a deep breath, gripping the steering wheel tighter. I jerked my wheel and hit the e-brake, drifting around the hairpin. My rear swung around wildly after the turn, but I righted myself and kept going.
"Nice drift. You've only got about 2 miles until the end of the track, so hit that accelerator and get your tail moving!" Starry barked.
"I don't know if I can--," I started.
"Don't think about last time. Just focus on the now. Get your tail to the front and you'll be fine," Starry cut me off. I let out a long breath and sped faster, gaining on Shadow and Sonic, who still battled for first. I let them fight, staying back to avoid the conflict. We were rapidly approaching the end and I saw the end line in the distance. Sonic and Shadow bounced around the track, swerving around each other.
"Now, Amy!" Starry shouted over come and I saw my opening. Gritting my teeth, I punched it and blasted in front of them. I glanced in my mirrors and saw their shocked and surprised faces. I grinned and flew towards the finish line. I could hear the roars of the audience as I quickly approached. I crossed it and the crowd went wild.
"Congratulations on our unofficial winner, Amy Rose! Following close behind her are Sonic the Hedgehog and Shadow the Hedgehog! We are awaiting the official results, but as of this moment, Amy Rose is the champion! What a comeback!" the announcer said jubilantly. I slowed down and began drifting donuts on the track. I was laughing in shock and excitement. The one thing that made the moment better was when Shadow passed me and gave me the smallest of smiles. I could've sworn he mouthed "great job" as he passed. For a moment, everything was amazing.
