Once In A Lifetime

Chapter 2 - The Dead of Night

Immediately I began to ignore the fact that Declan was insanely cute. His piercing hazel eyes seemed to stab me through the heart. I walked over to my car and got in, buckling up and rolling down my window, "You ready, hot shot?" He kept his hands in his pockets as he bent down at the drivers window, "Bring it."

Letty went over the road and took her spray paint out of her bag, drawing a line across the street. "Do we at least have a road closed sign to put up?" she asked. Jules laughed, "Don't be worried, even if they get caught doing this Darcy knows how to speed away." This Declan guy on the other hand, I'm not sure. He may have the newest 10-speed automatic but that doesn't mean he has street smarts." I smirked to myself. My friends always knew how to make my nerves settle down.

Declan and I drove up to the line, he began revving his engine. I rolled my eyes, I know Victor can take him. I don't care if he had a Nissan Skyline like Paul Walker had in "The Fast and The Furious", I know how to race. If there was anything to feel good about myself, it was driving. I used to be so insecure about myself: my body, my face, my style. But I changed a few things, I lost quite a bit of weight within a year, I got a whole new look, and did my makeup different. I love who I am, I just wish someone else did like I do. I know my friends and family do, but Ethan pretty much ruined the whole "in love" idea for me. And yes, I also know I shouldn't let a guy change my perspective of romance, but he really messed with my head. Right now that doesn't matter, what matters is me and my car. I was so ready to beat this new guy, he had no idea what was coming.

Letty threw her flannel over the right shoulder, standing in front of me and Declan's cars, directly in the middle. She had a smile on her face and nodded at me, I smiled back and put my car into gear. She threw down her shirt and yelled "GO!"

Declan clearly was trying to show off as he pressed on his gas pedal, speeding off and leaving a cloud of smoke. I rolled my eyes and I gassed on mine, not going as fast. I saved the real speed for last. We flew through the sharp curves and dodged animals that tried crossing. I turned my radio up, music always helps me concentrate. His tail lights were so bright, almost blinding me. But I wasn't going to give up. I refuse to lose, Victor can take that camaro. I just know it.

There's a fine line between fast, and smart. When you're racing, you have to know exactly what you're doing. You need to be intelligent about the road and know how to drive. Speed is another thing, it's not just about being fast. I wish people understood that, rather than attempting to show off when in traffic.

Going around the last curve, I passed Declan. I never look at the other driver or try to antagonize them, that's too distracting. But I could feel him staring a hole in the side of my face. I ignored it and kept speeding up, I could see the mechanic shop up ahead. I smirked as I saw my friends waiting for me, jumping up and down and clapping. Next thing I knew, Declan went right past me. I could hear his engine roaring as it went by. I shrugged my shoulders and whispered to myself, "You did it too soon, scaredy cat."

Within the last few seconds, I pressed on my gas pedal. Victor went flying, I was so proud of my car. I've been working on him for so long and it's definitely been worth the time and money. I went past the painted line, and drifted to a left turning stop, just to show off a tiny bit. I smiled getting out of the car as I saw Ethan's jaw drop. He went over to Declan and hit his shoulder, "Dude, seriously? How did you not beat that piece of crap?" I raised an eyebrow and walked over, crossing my arms. "I hope you're referring to me as a 'piece of crap' and not my car, asshole," I said with a slight anger tone in my voice.

Ethan sighed in an obvious manner and looked at me, "Both, princess." I rolled my eyes, looking over at Sid. He shook his head and mouth, "Don't do it." I nodded and looked back at Ethan, "You were never worth it." Declan smiled at me and held out his hand, "You won, fair and square. I respect that and your car is very nice. Just like Dom Toretto said 'It doesn't matter if you win by an inch or a mile, winning is winning.' And that's just what you did."

I could feel my cheeks reddened, and a big smile come across my face. That was so nice of him to say, and that he thinks my car is nice? No one's ever said that before, expect for Jules and Letty of course. But for some reason when Declan said it, it just made me feel good inside. I held out my hand and shook his hand, "Thank you, I appreciate it." He smiled back at me, keeping my hand in his, "We should do this again sometime, maybe you could show me how won."

"It's all about the knowledge of what you're doing, and knowing your car personally," I said as I let go of his hand and grinned. Ethan huffed loudly, "Great, now my new friend and ex are friends. That wasn't my plan." I looked over at him and stepped forward, "Next time, how about not having a plan and just having fun? Don't be a dick, we're all friends here," I looked over at Delcan, "Welcome to the crew, Declan. See you around?" He smiled once again, looking over at his car, "We'll definitely be back."

I went over to Letty as she smirked at me, "Well he's a hotty. Did you get his number or did he get yours? I need details!" I laughed and leaned on her car, "Letty! You just heard the whole conversation? How about you go get it?" Kyle looked over at me, "Hey now! I have ears." I smiled at him and shook my head, "Damn, I'm sorry, I forgot." He furrowed his brows at me and shot me the middle finger. I did it right back as Letty laughed, "You two are idiots. I gotta get home, Jules and I are having a marathon of Spongebob and mom's making us some drinks. You wanna come, Darcy?" I smiled at her, "Thanks babe, but I'm gonna head home and get some work done on Victor. I'm sure he's a bit worn out from tonight and he's in need of some fluids. You guys have fun and I'll see you sometime this week?"

I hugged her and Jules, then walked over to my car and started him up. Sid came over, knocking on my window, "Want me to follow behind you? I have plans with Ethan and Kyle tonight but I can cancel if you need anything." I shook my head and kissed his cheek, "I'm good, you be safe. I'll see you at your place soon okay?" He nodded and rubbed my hair, "You got it, pipsqueak." He went over to Ethan. I could see him staring at me and he lightly smiled and mouthed, "Bye." I nodded at his way, then drove off.

On the way home, I started singing to myself. My windows were rolled down and my sunroof was up. I sighed to myself. I didn't miss Ethan, but I did miss us getting along. Ever since we broke up, there's just been a war zone between us. He always got so angry when I spent time working on my car. I always invited him to come over and help, but he'd say stuff like "That doesn't sound like fun," or "But we always do that." It became stressful. He knew my dreams and what I loved doing. I know I'm the one that drifted from our connection, but that didn't give him the right to do what he did. He cheated on me, with the girl that gave me such a hard time in high school. He knew the rivalry between her and I, but she threw herself all over him throughout school. Even in front of me, that's just how she was. I guess eventually he gave in since I never gave him that kind of attention. Before I knew what he did, I tried to fix what we had, but he never tried back. The relationship became too one-sided, and I didn't deserve that. The day I went to go call things off, or suggest trying to fix it, I caught him in his living room with Aubrey. It broke my heart. He stopped and started apologizing to me, I didn't say anything back. I just walked out, and left. I was gone from town for about 3 weeks. Mom, Sid, Letty, Kyle, and Jules knew where I was. But Ethan didn't. I knew he'd try to come after me, but I didn't want that. I was done.