Control Me

Chapter 12

"3...2...1.. Go!" 

Sage slammed his foot against the gas pedal and sped off next to his opponent. Before Chase's accident, he taught everything Sage needed to know when racing. His techniques, his thinking, his swift moves, all of it in case he had an accident. It was worrisome at the time thinking Chase would believe he'd be hurt before the actual crash but Sage took it to heart and learned everything he could. He could remember Chase's words he said in his room when Sage went to check up on him after his tenth race where he was almost hit. 

"Sage... in case anything happens to me, I want you to learn how I race. Today's race, and many others, made me realize I'm not indestructible. I want to keep our crew winning and if something happens to me, you should takeover. Do it for me and promise me, you'll win... for everyone."

Sage looked into his sullen eyes and nodded. "I promise."

From that day forward, Sage took in everything Chase had taught him. He was his prodigy and with his knowledge, he won every race against other crews for Chase and everyone he cared for. 

He sped along side the Aston Martin and slowed down his breathing. Its like foot race but in a car. You race what's in front of you but still be cautious of who's next to you. Breathe in, breathe out. That's it tiger. 

As Chase's words echoed in his head, Sage's sharp focus zeroed in on the road ahead of him and he felt as if he was running on the asphalt. He pressed the gas pedal more and made a swift turn around the circling road. His peripheral vision caught the driver trying to speed up in front of him and Sage shifted the gear to two in order to maintain his fast speed. 

It's a mind game Sage. It's all about ego and tricks with these guys. Play with them, find their weakness, and let'em have it!

It was the second round and Sage won the first. The driver next to him was getting antsy, he could feel it. The second round is where they'll start being nasty from your first win. Let them win the second and their ego will fail them. 

Sage moved his gear back into drive and pushed on the pedal further but let up on the gas a little to have the driver go ahead of him. He stayed in that position for a minute and drove around the asphalt with his opponent who didn't speed up but stayed in his pace. That's it, fall right into my trap. 

Third round. The last round, the driver thinks he won. His ego made him weak. Finish him. Sage hit the gas harder as he zoomed past his opponent and caught his surprised face as Sage drove in front of him and cut him off from seeing the road. He switched his gear once more and as he heard the rumble of his opponent's car gain on him, Sage slid back into his lane making the other driver jerk his car in surprise. These guys don't realize that it's not about how fast the car is Sage, it's about the technique. The drive. We have it, they search for it. 

He drove around the track towards the starting point and finished the race in victory skidding to a stop with dust trailing after him. Sage pulled up to his crew and grinned to himself thanking Chase for his wisdom. I did this for you partner. Thank you.

As he got out the car, he heard and saw the cheers of his team. 

"Woo! He did it! I always knew he could." Zay said, cheering for Sage's win. Sky moved her binoculars from her face and laughed at Zay's enthusiasm. She walked with him to Sage's car following close behind with Tony. 

"See I told you he had this. He's so excited." Sky said. She totally freaked out. She hadn't seen that kind of driving since Chase and when Sage almost lost the final round, she panicked. It was like freaking out with Chase all over again. She kept trying to be positive as she watched the race through her binoculars but it was hard when all she thought was: Don't die. Don't die. Please don't die.