Had Zach not known they were standing on the empty parking of a large roadside fast food place, he’d have mistaken it for a fair or festival. The biker gang, who he’d learned were called the Greymalkins, had managed to spread the word surprisingly quickly and a festive atmosphere had taken over the parking lot. Among the spectators were racing enthusiasts, but also a considerable amount of other gang-members. Arguments had already erupted over who’d get to race next, while others were placing very one-sided bets against Zach, but most were simply sharing drinks or relaxing near the boombox somebody had set up.

Zach wasn’t feeling it, he sat on his motorcycle and quietly watched more spectators approach. Some by car, some by bike and he thought he even spotted some bicycles and a skateboard. He drummed the handlebars and nervously looked at the street lights receding into the distance. They had never looked that ominous before.

“You can lose,” Yuki said trying to comfort him, “I will not think less of you for it.”

“I guess you won’t,”| Zach replied, leaning down on the handlebars, “But you know, I kind of want to try.”

“I think the correct expression here is, ‘your funeral,’. You could come clean, Zach. Maybe they will laugh.”

Zach considered what she said, then shook his head, “Nah, I’m doing it.”

“You do not have to impress me, Zach.”

“It’s just a little street race. How bad can it be?”

“That depends if they cheat…”

“Hm?”

“Have you ever been hit with a pipe wrench?”

“...Oh.”

“Hey, Is that?”

Zach followed her eyes and saw a familiar orange car pull up to the parking lot.

“The General Pee,” Zach agreed, “Why is Sawyer here?”

“Well, you said he likes to drive, what did you say, like a moron? It makes sense he would like street racing.”

“...Makes sense, I guess.”

“Hey, you two!”

Zach and Yuki looked up to see they were being approached by a girl a little older than them. The girl, who appeared to be of Latin American descent, had a mess of wild curls dancing around her head and was dressed in several layers of torn denim. Zach hoped the damage wasn’t from gliding across the asphalt.

The newcomer brought her hand up in greeting, “Sup girls?”

Zach waved back nervously, unsure how to reply and in the end decided on a suspicious ‘hi?’

“Hi,” she echoed, “I’m Valerie. Call me Val if you want. We’ll be racing today.”

Zach started to say his name, but quickly recovered and introduced himself as ‘Saki’, to which Yuki giggled in response.

Valerie put her legs on either side of the front wheel, then leaned down on the handlebars from the wrong side to study Zach’s face.

“You into girls at all?” she wanted to know.

“She is mine,” Yuki said, the jealously dripping from her words.

“Just checking,” Val said, stretched and grinned, “You know how those girl bars get.”

Zach, who hadn’t the foggiest, gave her a blank nod as an answer.

“You any good?” Val wanted to know, which was Yuki’s cue to step in and put a protective arm around Zach’s shoulder, though not replying at all.

“I wouldn’t know,” Zach said, “It’s my first race.”

“Oh, you’re brave to go up against me,” Val grinned, “I promise I won’t cheat then.”

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

She bent down, pulled a knife from one of her boots and tossed it to the ground, “See? Unarmed.”

Zach glanced at the steel that seemed to flicker in the street light, wondering if the orange covered up how pale he felt he had turned.

“We were supposed to bring weapons?”

“You wouldn’t be the first to try something stupid during a race,” Val said and took off her denim jacket to show off a long scar she had on her arm. She pulled it back on, then grinned, “Anyway, I’m going to check my bike. You should make sure yours is okay too.”

“Thanks Val,” Zach replied and noticed an annoyed glance from Yuki. He hastily finished the name, “Erie. Thanks, Valerie. Good luck>”

“Don’t waste your good luck on me,” Val grinned over her shoulder, stopping only briefly to blow him a kiss, “You’re the one who’s going to need it.”

“You think she is cute?” Yuki demanded when she was out of earshot.

“Does it matter? She’s gay…”

“But do you…”

“Hey!” a familiar voice said and Zach had trouble hiding his relief, “Cool bike. My little bro has one just like that. Same color too. … You friends of his girlfriend?”

“How should I know,” Zach shrugged, “I don’t know your brother.”

“Fair enough… Hey, you think you’re gonna win? Should I bet on you?”

Zach shook his head, “No idea.”

“Getting your focus on?”

Zach nodded.

“Fine fine. I’ll leave you to it then.”

Sawyer was about to walk away when he suddenly seemed to notice Yuki, “Hey. You look a lot like his girlfriend, but she has longer hair…”

Yuki raised her brows and simply smiled, inviting him to continue talking. Sawyer didn’t, leaving the two alone again.

“Are you ready, Zach?” Yuki asked when they were alone.

Zach let out a long sigh, “I suppose.”

“Let me give you confidence,” she said, lightly put her hands on his shoulders and stood on her tip toes to kiss him, then stepped back and stuck a teasing tongue out at him.

“Thought something was missing,” he grinned.

“Just… Come back in one piece,” she said, “Then I’ll give you the rest.”

“And if you win,” she started, finishing her sentence with nothing more than a wink.

Zach glanced at Valerie, back to Yuki, then breathed in deep, talking to himself, “I can do this. I can do this…”

“Racers!” a fat man, who had been bombarded to official for the occasion, yelled at Zach and Valerie, “Please get over here so we can go over the ground rules.”

Zach got off his bike, put his hands in the pockets of his riding suit and sauntered over, noticing he was one of the few there who actually used the protective gear. He glanced over his shoulder to see Yuki take a side-saddle seat on his motorbike and armed with the knowledge that at least somebody was watching it, he turned his full attention to the official who very patiently started to explain the course.

Zach was glad to discover the course was very simple. It consisted of following the highway, making sure to keep an eye out for people along the road waving green glow sticks. Turn back on the off ramp to the next high way and the first one back to the parking lot in one piece would win.

“Just let me know when you’re ready,” the fat biker said, “Though don’t wait too long. You never know when the cops show up.”

“Ah,” Zach said, “Cops...great.”

He crossed himself as he returned to his bike, wondering which saint kept idiot drivers save…