CRIMSON DONOVAN

"Why did you insist on picking me up today? Are we going somewhere?" I question Ayla who was driving the both of us to an unknown destination after school today. This week was almost at its end. I was baffled at how fast the time flew.

"Yep, we are going to visit The Garage."

"The Garage? You mean the place where Drexel and Archer work at?"

"Yeah. Since Rowan doesn't know about the boys' street racing, I cannot bring her with me because they are getting Drex's car ready for the race tomorrow," Ayla lets out a dejected sigh. "I absolutely hate having to hide things from Rowan. All because we can't have her knowing about street racing. She is my best friend and we tell each other everything. It kills me to hide these things from her."

I've never had a best friend, I think to myself; someone who knows all about you, someone who you share secrets with, someone who is with you through happy and sad times, someone who embarrasses you in front of your crush, someone who is ready to defend you from all the bad...

...I had always been connected to my family, but after moving back to America, those connections started to fade. I wondered what it would be like to have a best friend, and if I would make one here.

It must be nice to have a best friend like that, I ponder as I look at Ayla who was silently sulking at her driving seat. We finally reach the famous mechanic shop in the town. "Oil 'em up?" I inquire as the neon name board flutters red. "Yep, here we are," Ayla announces, getting out of the car.

The Garage, or 'Oil 'em up!', was a contemporary and sleek mechanic shop with a spacious ground floor featuring numerous vehicles, maintenance and repair stations. On the upper floor, there was a main office, waiting areas, and a dedicated worker's area. It was evident that the shop was bustling with activity, as Ayla mentioned that everyone from around the town, even the wealthier people bring their vehicles here for service and upkeep.

"Uncle Emmett; Drexel's Uncle that is, and his best friend; Uncle Danny, established this garage ten years ago and since then, it's been going strongly. However, with Uncle Emmett's declining health, Uncle Danny has it hard to maintain all this alone. So, Drexel started working here with Archer too," relates Ayla as she takes me inside the shop as the scent of motor oil, chassis grease, and fuel permeates the air.

She looks around and her face brightens when she sees Archer who is spraying a beautiful metallic blue into a car. 

"Hey Arch!" she waves to get his attention. 

He removes his mask and waves back, "Ah, so you brought her?"

"Hmm?" I slant my head confusedly. Ayla lightly pats my shoulder, "I brought you here for a reason." Before she could elaborate further, Archer leads me through the busy workshop and opens a door at the back, revealing a yard-like area filled with tires stacked against trees, broken engines, and rusty metal parts. It appeared to be a storage space for unwanted items from the garage.

But what puzzled me even more was the scene before me. Drexel was pushing a large tire on the ground in circles, lost in thought with a glistening face under the scorching sun. "Um...what's he doing?"

"He's been at it since morning," Archer explains with a dejected sigh. "He always does this the day before an important race. Normally, he'll only do it for an hour at most, but today's different. No matter how much we tell him to rest, he won't listen."

"Why is he even doing this?" I ask, my words laced with concern.

"It's sort of an exercise for him. He strategizes and plans for the race, considers his weak points and thinks about how to improve his car to fit the track. But now I'm worried he might pass out," Archer exchanges a look with Ayla before saying, "Crimson, you're our last option."

I blink repeatedly as Ayla explains, "He doesn't show it, but tomorrow's race has had him on edge since this morning. We've tried everything to get him to rest, but he fended off our efforts. So now, you need to tell him to stop and rest. Do something to take his mind off the race."

I stare at her incredulously. "Why...Why do you think that I can make him stop?" I ask, still unsure of how I could convince him to rest when his closest friends couldn't. 

Ayla and Archer nudge me towards Drexel. "Give it a try," they whisper. They share a secret look before innocently grinning at me when they see my glare. I shake my head at their scheming.

Whatever.

I turn to face Drexel, who is pushing the worn-out tire along the concrete with a dazed expression, looking towards the sky. I momentarily pause when I see how handsome he looked at that moment-focus, Crimson. This is for Drexel.

I straighten my shoulders, plaster a smile and walk beside Drexel, trying to match his pace. I clear my throat to catch his attention, but when that fails, I gently poke his arm with my finger. Drexel startles and jumps back, causing the tire to slip from his grip and twirl onto his feet. "Ouch!!"

I hear snorts, muffled giggles, and the sound of a high-five coming from behind me, followed by Archer's whisper; "See? It's already working."

Ignoring them, I help Drexel move the heavy tire out of the way. Drexel turns to me with a flushed face and sheepishly rubs the nape of his neck. "C-Crimson, what a surprise to see you here."

I suppress a smile at Drexel's flustered reaction. "Ayla brought me here. She and Archer said that you've been rolling that tire for quite a long time without taking a break," I explain.

Drexel's gaze flickers over to the pair far at the doorway, and he scowls at them before turning back to me. "You...you're coming to the race tomorrow, right?" he asks, his tone tinged with nervousness.

I notice the anxiety in his dilated pupils, and I wonder if he always gets this nervous before a race. He always struck me as a confident person, especially during the race that Ayla and I followed them to. "Yes, of course. I wouldn't miss it for the world!" I say enthusiastically.

Drexel seems to stagger slightly at my words, while Ayla and Archer hoot and squeak in the background. "Drexel, are you okay? Are you nervous about tomorrow?" I ask gently. Was tomorrow's race special or different from his previous ones?

Drexel takes a deep breath and looks away, his previous nervousness now replaced with a calm demeanour. "Me, nervous? It's nothing, really," he says dismissively. "I'm just planning ahead. It's a new track, so I've been combining all the advice everyone gave me to make a solid strategy. I couldn't rest without organizing my thoughts."

"I see." 

Do something to take his mind off the race. 

"Hmm...ah! I've been wanting to have a job lately, but I don't know any good places that I could work at. Do you think you could help me find a job?" I ask him.

Drexel's eyes fill with puzzlement and his lips compress.

 "Why do you need a job?"

"Because I'm bored at home."

A deafening silence encompasses the area. Even the giggles from the two behind me quieten down. Drexel stands still while staring me down. I could say that I was living up to my name as I felt my face heating at the attention. 

"What?" I mumble.

"Scarlet, there are other ways you could occupy yourself with at home. Why do you need to exhaust yourself with a job because you are bored?" Drexel questions, his previous anxious and mortified self seemed to have disappeared as he questioned me. I realise he calls me 'Scarlet' when he is either teasing or scolding me. 

"It's Crimson," I drone.

Drexel rolls his eyes at my correction and continues, "Sit by the lake and read some books! Hang out with the girls and do all the girl stuff that you do! Make some of those Korean food you made for us the other day! Go on walks! Jed showed you how to make water bombs, you can do those! You can-!" 

I interrupt him by placing my hand over his mouth, effectively silencing him.

"What are you, Google?" I inquire sarcastically. "I want a job because it feels good to make your own money, and again, I'm bored. I thought I could ask for your guidance, but it seems like Ayla will have to come with me since you're not interested in the idea."

As I begin to walk away, Drexel calls out, "Wait! Hold on!"

Archer and Ayla exchange a smirk and wink at me. "You did the job. Thanks," Archer whispered, patting my shoulder. I couldn't help but mentally congratulate myself for being able to distract Drexel from his 'strenuous exercise'. I struggle to contain the grin that was threatening to spread across my face. However, the most important thing was preventing Drexel from getting sick or experiencing body pains, as that tire had weighed a ton.

"I'll go with you. Two girls shouldn't go job hunting alone when there could be tricky people everywhere. Let's go," Drexel says, pushing past Archer and Ayla(did he pinch Archer's arm there?), before disappearing inside.

Ayla latches onto my arm, giggling and making mysterious contact with Archer. "Why are you guys so giggly today?" I ask, feeling a little irritated. I move closer to Ayla and whisper in her ear, "Did Archer confess to you or something?"

"WHAT!?" her shrilly shriek could be heard in the whole garage, but Ayla just looked at me with wide, horrified eyes. "Why did you ask me such an embarrassing and never-happening thing?" she asks bashfully in a quiet voice only for me to hear.

"You've never been so giggly. So that was the only reason I could think of," I mumble. As Ayla slaps my hand, I can't help but wonder if my own behaviour around Drexel is as obvious as hers around Archer. Do I act like her when I think of him? I hope not. I've been careful to keep my growing feelings for Drexel hidden, at least as much as possible. I don't want anyone to know about my crush on him, which seems to be getting stronger every day.

Drexel interrupts my thoughts by removing his gloves and announcing to Archer, "I'm taking your car."

"Sure," he tells him with a smirk and my eyebrows furrow at both his and Ayla's exasperated behaviour today. 

"What is happening with you all today? By God, if you both really did get together, heaven is about to fall, jangnam anida(no kidding)," I murmur to myself but Ayla gives a whine indicating that she had heard me. It feels good to tease her at times.

As revenge, Ayla retaliates by pushing me into the car that Drexel had opened for me, earning a warning scowl from him. I stick out my tongue at her (I undoubtedly liked the fact that Drexel chose to defend me at least that way- little victories, little victories) and superciliously huff a little with my nose in the air. "Little girls you are," Drexel talks under his breath as he sits behind the steering wheel.

"Honk them away," I instruct him, gesturing to Ayla and Archer who were at the front, waiting for us to drive away. 

"We don't want to go to jail now, do we?" Drexel smiles at me –ugh, that smile- but he gives them a honk, not a very loud one, but loud enough for them to jump on their feet, alarmed. Drexel and I laugh at the yelling figures behind us, and before I knew it, we were already headed toward the central town.

If only I had known how strict Drexel was about job hunting, I would have taken him up on his offer to make water bombs with Jed instead.

DREXEL GENESIS

Finding a job for Crimson proved to be as hard as finding rocking-horse poo.

In the span of just one hour, I had managed to convince Crimson to reject more than ten job offers. I couldn't help but feel like an overprotective elder brother (or maybe an overbearing boyfriend – a guy can dream, right?)but I didn't trust these places to be safe for Crimson. As soon as she had walked into these stores, looking excited and eager to find any job available, some of the owners had been too flirty, male workers had been eyeing her up for too long, and some girls had even given her green eyes the whole time.

Crimson's enthusiasm had clouded her judgment, and I was relieved that I had decided to come with her. She seemed confused when I immediately shut down certain job offers, but I had mentally made a list in my head:

-No male bosses of all ages (the number of pedophiles I met was unbelievable)

-The majority of workers should be female

-Said females should not give killer vibes

-Lesser the male worker population, the lesser the chance of Crimson getting hit on

As we reach the last stop, I realised that there were no more shops left. Crimson looks visibly upset and complains, "I think they were perfectly fine, Drexel! That shoe shop was a good choice, I could have done all the cashier work seamlessly!"

I don't want to ruin her mood further, so I refrain from telling her that the manager had looked ready to cheat on all his wives and mistresses when he had looked at the innocent and oblivious Crimson. I had glared at him strong enough to make him sweat waterfalls and I had dragged Crimson away before she could even contemplate the idea of working there. Them pedos everywhere, I'm telling you, man.

"You don't have that sixth sense when it comes to things like this," I tell her, my voice filled with anger and disgust from the earlier incident. 

"So, you have it?" she retorts.

"Yes, I do. That's why I accompanied you. I don't know why I didn't think of it before, but I know just the place for you," I say, stopping at the local bakery shop that was widely famous for its delicious cakes.

"Oh! It's that place! 'Bakes and Cakes'! I bought cake for you all on the 'laundry day'," she exclaims and steps out of the car.

"Stay here, I'll see if they want to hire," I tell her before entering the shop. As soon as I walked in, the warm aroma of freshly baked goods filled my senses. "Heavenly as always," I think to myself.

As soon as I confirmed with the friendly middle-aged bakery owner that she was hiring, I hurry outside to tell Crimson the good news. But I look around, noticing that Crimson was missing. Eventually, I spot her next door in a flower shop, admiring a bunch of yellow tulips with a lost expression. Was yellow tulip her favourite flower?

The overpowering scent of the flowers in the neighbouring shop made me hesitant to approach her, as my sensitive nose would not be able to tolerate it. Despite that, I approach her cautiously, not wanting to startle her, and gently place my hand on her shoulder. 

"Crimson?" I say softly.

She jumps slightly and turns to face me, her honey-brown eyes looking a little misty as she met mine. I couldn't help but reach out and tuck a stray red curl behind her ear. The way she looked at me made my heart race. 

If I could master the courage, I would confess my feelings to her after tomorrow's race. It was why I spent hours practising today, planning and imagining different scenarios in my head.

But she did not look so good right now. 

"Are you okay?" I ask, still lost in her gaze. 

She takes a deep breath and pastes a reassuring smile on her face. 

"Yeah, I'm fine. Oh, are they hiring at the bakery?"

"...Yeah. They need a dish washer in the kitchen...," I prolong, not exactly comforted by Crimson's words.

"That's great!" I watch as she bounces into the shop, feeling a sense of relief that she's found a safe and suitable job. Before she goes in, she turns to look at me, "You don't have any problems here, this time?" she asks defiantly.

A small smile encases my face. "Nope, there's no problem at all."

hELLOOOOooo

I love these moments between Crimson and Drexel and how their friends support them!

Also, there was a talk about best friends....doesn't seem right for her to not have a bestie...

Who do you think her best friend will be? 

(Very Difficult hint: Best friend is already mentioned in the previous chapters😏😌 hehe.)

Also, I tried something new by introducing both POVs in one chapter. I had to do that one or else the next chapter would be unnecessarily long!

Get ready for the race or should I say THE ULTIMATE DIRT RACE OF LOVE next chapterrrr!!!!!

What are your predictions about it? What do you think will happen between Kash and Drexel? Who will win? Let me know in the comments!