Sunshine

Sam's comment made Aaron grin, and he shook his head. "I can always throw left-handed or with my eyes closed to even it out," he teased. 

Seeing their food had come, he eased down to sit, putting his foot up on an empty chair to relieve his knee. Taking a bite of an onion ring, he nodded his approval. "These are really good." Actually, any break from the same old food at the Elite tasted like heaven. Sam brought him something different every once in a while, but he still got tired of the frozen meal routine. This greasy batter... was divine. 

"Would not have guessed you would know a bar this well," he mused as he looked over at her. "Most clean-cut loners aren't attracted to this atmosphere." She'd been a mystery from the start, and he felt like he still hadn't figured her out. He finished a second onion ring before he stood back up again, grabbing the darts. This time he used his left hand, and only two out of three made the bullseye, although the third came very close. He cocked his head at Sam. "Better?"


Zan chuckled and nodded. "Okay." As the breeze blew a lock of Destiny's hair across her face, he reached out with just a finger and tucked it behind her ear, brushing her cheek as he went. Then letting his hand drop, he turned to go back inside, grab the leftovers, and head out the front door. "I'll text ya," he mentioned over his shoulder. "Good night."

It didn't take him long to get home, throw his keys on the table and put the leftovers in the fridge. It was quiet, but he was a bit relieved Jett wasn't here again. He spent the next couple hours in front of the television before finally calling it a night. As he sat on the edge of his bed though, once again he was in the same position he'd been in that morning. He ran his thumb over the locket, his mind taking him back years. His conversation with Destiny had stirred something up inside of him today. Something he'd been afraid to face for far too long. He'd lived off his guilt and remorse and grief now for over three years. He didn't know how to live without it. But... he'd realized today that sunshine really did exist elsewhere. He just had to pull himself up out of the valley to be able to see it.

Reaching over, he opened up the nightstand drawer just as he had that morning. But this time, he slowly set the locket inside, then closed it again. Perhaps Destiny was just a fleeting moment in his life... but he knew now that his heart could be touched again.

He shut off the light and settled down under the covers, sighing deeply. Tomorrow he had to work in the morning, then he'd tackle his car all day again.


"Somebody's gotta do something." Eli looked at Hunter and Ryan as they stood around Hunter's car at the edge of the race scene. The crowd was partying heavily tonight, but it was quieter out here on the outskirts. Hunter hadn't raced tonight, but they'd watched two novice races, one of which Thunder had won - which, by the unwritten rules here was quite illegal. Everyone knew once a driver won three "newbie" races in a row, or within six weeks, he or she had to move up in the ranks and could no longer compete with the new drivers. The same rules applied to the next level, the "novices," who then had to move up with the "big boys" after their three wins. The three-level system gave the inexperienced a chance to learn and compete before being forced into battle with the seasoned drivers, and it had always worked well. If a driver continually lost over and over, there was a chance he'd be allowed to fall back into a lower level again, but only by vote of all regular drivers. And Thunder certainly hadn't been losing, not had there been a vote.

Eli told them about the last race as well, and Zan's accident. "His sidekick asked me to help avoid a fight, so I did, but standing around doing nothing isn't gonna solve this."

Hunter sat on the hood, and leaned back, thinking. The glow from a nearby burn barrel outlined his face. "Got something in mind?"

Eli shrugged. "Maybe. If you two and Zan ganged up on him out there, he wouldn't stand a chance."

"You mean just start making him constantly lose?"

"Something like that. Humiliation will drive a man out on its own." Eli glanced at Ryan. "It would take three drivers though. Two wouldn't be enough."

Hunter also looked at Ryan, searching her face. He knew she hadn't yet been ready to race. Was Eli pushing her to fast? "We could always convince one of the others."

"Could... but you three are the better drivers. It's gonna take some fancy footwork out there."

"Zan isn't even all that great," Hunter argued. 

"Maybe he wasn't... but when you two aren't here, he's been giving the whole pack a run for their money. He hadn't even won his three novice races before he decided to join the big boys, and he's been trying his hardest ever since. Not to mention, Thunder's creamed him twice in a row now." Eli shook his head. "Poor guy can't afford to fix his car - I don't know how he's gonna make it work."

Hunter sighed. "Maybe he needs a couple mechanics and a guy who knows how to paint to help him out."

Eli quirked an eyebrow. "Maybe." He looked back to Ryan. "What do think think, Speedy? Any bright ideas in any of this?"