PITST♡P

Ch1: Wrecked

Alhaitham's phone buzzes on the table next to him.

"Hello?"

"Sir, your car's ready to be picked up. Would you like us to handle it?"

"No, I've got it. It's just at the headquarters, right? Usual spot?"

"Well.. no, we couldn't arrange that."

He sits up a little straighter. "How come?"

"The mechanic quit. He was offered a better job elsewhere. I think he works for Diluc's team now."

Alhaitham lets out a slight sigh, a bit upset that no one thought to tell him that his mechanic quit. "That's alright. Where'd you take the car then?"

"We dropped it off at another mechanic's place. I can send you the address if you still want to pick it up."

"Sure thing. Thank you."

He hangs up and checks his phone. His manager had texted him the address. Grabbing a coat, Alhaitham heads out to pick up his race car. Meanwhile, he has to drive his beat-up civilian car. He didn't really see the purpose in buying a flashy car, his worked just fine and it didn't draw attention to him.

Arriving at the mechanic shop, Alhaitham steps out of the car and heads in. The shop is fairly busy with mechanics working on all sorts of cars. Inside, it smelled strongly of petrol. The sound of drilling and hammering echoed throughout the spacious shop. It was an average auto shop, so Alhaitham wondered if anyone here had any specialty when it came to race cars.

People were busy at work, rushing past Alhaitham without a second glance. He looked around to see if he could find his car without having to trouble any of the mechanics, but he had no luck. You would think a race car would be easy to spot, right?

Deciding to ask around, Alhaitham approaches a mechanic, tapping him on the back. "Excuse me, I'm here to pick up my car."

"Not a problem, what kinda car?" the mechanic asks, putting down a wrench.

"A stock car."

"Oh yeah, we have that one in the back. Nice thing, that car; has a V8 engine and can hit 200 miles per hour. I wish I coulda worked on it."

"Who worked on it?"

"One of our newer mechanics, Kaveh. He's a bright one, I'll tell you that."

A frown tugged on the edge of Alhaitham's lips. "And does this 'Kaveh' have any experience working on stock cars?"

"You know, I don't know. You might wanna ask him that when you see him."

"Believe me, I will."

With guidance from the mechanic, Alhaitham heads to the back of the auto shop where he finds his car. Gently, he runs his hand along the pristine hood that was once scratched up. Whoever he was, this Kaveh guy did a great job.

Alhaitham takes a seat to wait for Kaveh to return to the car so he can get his keys and thank him for his work. A minute turns into a couple minutes turns into half an hour. Beginning to suspect that Kaveh isn't going to show up, Alhaitham gets up and finds the mechanic from earlier.

The mechanic from earlier is conversing with a striking man in his mid-twenties. A smudge of dirt is visible on his cheek, and he is awkwardly attempting to tie back his tousled blond hair while holding a wrench. His eyes meet Alhaitham's, causing him to freeze for a moment before walking over, taking the wrench from the man's hand.

"Let me hold that for you," Alhaitham says, a little quieter than intended.

"No, I got it. I'm fine, really," the man says as he tries to take the wrench back.

"It's a pain to watch you struggle, please just let me carry this for you."

"Is that supposed to be an insult or a kind offer?" he says with a frown, tying up his hair with much more ease now that his hand was free.

"I didn't mean it to be an insult. I just rather help you than watch you struggle."

The blond opens his mouth to say something back to Alhaitham, only to be interrupted by the mechanic, who's probably tired of having to watch this back and forth.

"Alhaitham, this is Kaveh," the mechanic says, motioning to the blond man taking the wrench back from Alhaitham.

"So you're the guy who worked on my car then? Do you have any experience when it comes to stock cars?"

"So you're the guy who managed to wreck that car that badly? I should be asking you if you have any experience when it comes to driving because sheesh! I've never seen a car look that bad! For a race car driver, aren't you kinda supposed to be a professional driv–"

"You didn't answer my question," Alhaitham says, his eyes slightly narrowing.

"Yes, I worked on your car. And, no, I don't have any hands-on experience with stock cars, but I've studied them. I did the paint job and the repairs."

"Isn't someone else usually supposed to do the paint job?"

"Yeah, but I happen to know a thing or two about art," Kaveh says, smiling a little.

Alhaitham nods, following Kaveh to the room where his car is being kept. Looking over the work done on it, his expression softened a little. This mechanic was clearly skilled in both auto repairs and art. Running his hand along the side of his car, Alhaitham looks over at the mechanic.

"Thank you for your work."

"It was no problem, but please be safer next time."

"No promises."

"Mr. Alhaitham–"

"Please, just call me Alhaitham. No need for formalities."

"Okay then," Kaveh says, "Alhaitham, please drive safer next time."

"I'll consider it."

Kaveh sighs and tosses him the keys to his car. He catches them and gives Kaveh a little smile as he gets into his car. Impressively enough, it worked just like before. Kaveh was a talented mechanic, so much so that Alhaitham briefly considered rolling down his window and asking him to work for his team. Then, he realizes that he's not desperate enough to ask the first mechanic who fixed his car. With that, he drives away.