Pitbabe S2, Chapter 36 pg 3
Pitbabe S2, Chapter 36 pg 3
Dean invited me to hit the track for some timed laps. I agreed, thinking racing against someone might perk me up a bit, but I was disappointed. It didn’t feel that different. No excitement, just a slight adrenaline kick from instinct.
Then my eyes caught someone standing by the track. Around my tenth lap, I saw him holding his phone horizontally, looking like he was recording the cars on the track. It might sound dramatic, but suddenly my blood started pumping like I’d downed a top-tier energy drink. The dull scene brightened up, and driving, which had felt like going through the motions, started to feel fun.
Lap after lap of collecting data, I showed no signs of tiring. It was Dean who signaled to call it quits, even though I secretly wanted to blast through my checkpoint three or four more times.
“Hey! When did you get here?”
I know pretending I didn’t notice him watching isn’t exactly cool, but it just happened. When I saw his face, I wanted to act like I wasn’t too bothered. Deep down, I guess I hoped he’d show he cared.
“Been here a while,” Sonic replied casually, slipping his phone into his pocket without even thinking to show me the video he recorded. “Kim said you seemed out of it during practice, so I came to check. You don’t look off at all—lively as a horse.”
I mentally thanked Kim for his over-the-top concern, though I was a bit worried about what he might’ve said to Sonic to make him show up at the track when he’d said this morning he wasn’t coming. But if the end result is feeling this good, whatever. I don’t care anymore.
“I’m fine,” I said, trying to play it cool again, though I’m not sure if Sonic thought I was cool or not. After getting brutally rejected that day, my confidence took a pretty big hit. “Just bored, that’s all.”
“You’re not burning out again, are you?”
“Nah,” I denied lazily. “This season, I’m going for the championship. No way I’m burning out.”
“Gonna take down Phii Babe?”
“You think I can’t?”
Sonic didn’t answer right away. He let out a delighted chuckle. Honestly, just seeing him smile brightly and laugh like this warmed my heart. At first, I was terrified that after confessing (and him rejecting me), things would get awkward, that we wouldn’t be able to look at each other, and we’d drift apart. But looking at things now, I think we’ve got nothing to worry about.
“You can do it,” Sonic said with a wide grin, reaching out to pat my shoulder. “If you really want to win, why wouldn’t you?”
“But you laughed at me earlier.”
“Just thinking it’d be funny if Phii Babe actually lost to you.”
“Wanna see it happen?”
“Super eager,” Sonic teased with a playful grin. “Show me what you’ve got.”
“Just wait. This season, we’ll take on that North. Pitbabe will be the Pitbabe.”
This is the vibe I’ve missed. For others, I’m not sure what the team’s atmosphere feels like, but for me, X-Hunter is a cozy little home where my closest friends are. We live together, mess around, and get scolded together. We’re not the team’s top racers, but that’s never been something to feel down about. As long as we wake up to see each other and spend our days goofing off, that’s more than enough for me. It’s perfect.
But when I said we’d be champions, I meant that for real.
“North.”
“Yeah?”
“I’m heading back to Paris.”
I’ll admit, that sentence made my heart sink. The joy that was lifting me up suddenly faltered, nearly dropping me to the ground. But thankfully, it was only nearly.
“Why?”
“My work’s there,” Sonic replied with a faint smile, his eyes reflecting the same reluctance I felt. “I’ve been here a while already. It’s time to head back.”
“And this time… how long will you be gone?”
“Hmm… not sure,” he said, shaking his head slowly. “Maybe ten months. Or a year.”
“That long?”
“I’ve got dreams to make real too, you know.”
I know. I know that all too well. That’s why I’ve never held him back, not before and not now. I wouldn’t dare say, “Don’t go, stay with me,” even though that’s what I truly want.
I have my dreams. He has his.
The reason it stings is because our dreams used to be the same. That’s why it was so fun chasing them together. But when his dreams changed while mine stayed put, letting go became hard.
But I have to let go.
Because I love him.
“I’ll come visit you,” I said with a smile before pulling him into a hug. I’m sure I’ll miss this feeling a lot after this, so for now, I’ll soak it up as much as I can. “Get ready for me.”
“You better mean it. I’ll take time off and show you all of Paris.”
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