8-Julian
Daytona International Speedway
I run through the trailer, sticking the wine glasses and breakfast plate in the dishwasher. My clothes still sit on the living area’s floor, so they go in the hamper. A pair of women’s panties are discarded in the trash. I stare down at them before placing several paper towels over the evidence.
Lily won’t care; if anything, she’ll call me a name and change the subject. The only judgment is mine. A tight coil of disgust sits in my stomach. That, and something else I don’t recognize. Lily is finally coming, and all I know is she doesn’t need to see them.
Quals and practice are done, so the evening is mine.
Ours.
Lily: I’m here, and I’m lost. Dad is with Boone at an owner’s meeting.
Julian: Where are you?
Lily: Lost.
Julian: Describe your surroundings.
Lily: There are cars everywhere. Also, men in funny-looking suits.
Julian: Could you be a little more vague? Like, tell me the color of the sky.
Lily: It was a long day. I’m doing the best I can.
Julian: Stay still. I’ll find you. Don’t move.
This might take a while. Between the garage and pit road, there was already a lot of territory to search. Daytona also had its own damn lake, too, which only added to the track’s size. She won’t move; I could trust Lily with that. All the activity might trigger her anxiety. She’ll wait for me.
I dial her number and head outside. “Stay on the line with me. Do you see any RVs close by?”
“I’m surrounded by them,” she says, except her voice doesn’t come from my phone.
I find her leaning against my RV, an overnight bag on the ground next to her. “How did you find me?”
“Sarah led me here. I didn’t think you would mind since Dad is in a meeting. I can’t get into his RV right now.”
“Tell her thank you for us both.” I grab her and twirl. “We have plans tonight,” I say after setting her back down. “It will be a late night.” With her here, it will be a great one.
Lily’s eyes bulge at my statement. She undoubtedly pictured some video games and an early evening with me racing tomorrow. It’s the first time someone has come to cheer me on in three years. A guest for me, and I’m not squandering it.
“There’s a race tonight, and we have two tickets. You’ll enjoy it.” I grab Lily’s bag before leading her back inside. “There’s plenty of time to track down your dad.”
I’m tempted to invite her to stay with me instead, but Pete Webb wouldn’t appreciate my offer. He would assume it’s some elaborate seduction technique rather than what it actually is - a chance to spend time with my closest friend. Lily denies it, but he still harbors suspicion towards me. Plus, asking her would cross a boundary I don’t wholly understand. Lily trusts me to the point our friendship keeps growing deeper and more intimate. An overnight stay would muddy all of that.
“Are you hungry?” I ask her instead.
“Isn’t it a tradition to eat hot dogs during races? We should do that.”
No idea. “It is now.”
∞∞∞
“We really are going to a race the old-fashioned way,” Lily says with faint amusement. She sucks on her straw before sitting in one of the empty chairs.
She rubs her arms, perhaps conscious of the evening breeze for the first time. We may be in Florida, but it gets cold even in February. I drape a jacket over her shoulders and accept her thanks. Lily almost always wears a top that bares some of her stomach and a short skirt; this evening is no exception. Experience tells me she doesn’t consider herself particularly attractive, but her clothing choices tell me she’s at least partly aware of her body. Great legs and a better body, all wrapped in an incredibly sexy package. All Lily lacks is confidence.
“I wanted you to have the real experience. You’ll be at my box tomorrow, which is great, trust me. It also isn’t quite the same thing.”
“I’m going to spy on your radio the entire time.”
“Don’t report on my foul mouth.”
“Oh, that’s the first thing I’ll do.”
“Don’t threaten me with a good time.” I drape an arm across her shoulder and stretch out. The Saturday night race isn’t as busy, giving us room to form our own little bubble. “I used to race in Xfinity once; did you know that? Full-time for three years.”
Lily looks at me across her soda cup. “You sound like you still want to.”
“Not full-time; that would be an incredibly dumb move. Part-time or even quarter-time would be a blast. Trucks, too. Other series.”
“Does our boss know that?”
“Boone? Never spoken to him about it.”
“You should. He’s ambitious, and if he thinks your ambition will help him, he’ll agree,” she says. I study her, and she shrugs. “Well, it’s true. People don’t notice me, so I listen. Maddie talks in front of me all the time without realizing it. He wants to push the company into another series this year.”
That’s news to me. The new rookie starts tomorrow, giving Rivers Motorsports a third driver in the Cup Series.
“Damn. I should send you undercover more often,” I say. Lily is giving convenient information. I’ve been mulling over the plans for a while, wondering whether to approach him. If he’s planning expansion now, it may be an excellent time to start a conversation. “How was school this week?”
Lily unconsciously rubs her legs. Her styled hair is in a loose bun, so she can’t pull at it. “Switching to childhood education might be the first intelligent decision I’ve made in a while. It turns out school assignments are less of a chore when you aren’t miserable the entire time. Someone explain why I thought a business degree was a good idea.”
“Can’t help you there since I don’t get it myself.” For me, there was only racing. That’s all I’ve wanted to do since I was old enough to understand what it was. My father taught me, and once, I planned to do the same with my kids. That was a dumb fucking plan. “You’ll be a great teacher. Keep it up.”
Switching majors also means another year of her at the office with me, and I’m selfish enough to want that. Lily is the closest friend I’ve had in years. Sarah Rivers and I were friendly enough to hang out in the break room and not much else. Lily enjoys my company for its own sake. We get along, and if someone were to ask me why, I couldn’t answer, only to say we gel in some odd way that I don’t quite understand.
“You think so?” she asks.
“If you can handle me, you can handle a room of screaming brats.”
Lily leans back and narrows her eyes, pretending to inspect me. “You’re not…. horrible.”
“Wow, thanks. Now, drink your soda, and let me watch the race.”
She snorts and promptly ignores my instructions. “Hoping to learn a few things?”
“Yes, actually, I am.” I point at the Xfinity cars. “See how they drive around that oval?” she nods. Her eyes shine, and I feel an urge to stroke one of her cheeks. Instead, I pull my arm from her shoulders to keep both hands fully rooted in my lap. “I’m thinking of copying that same strategy tomorrow. You think it’s worth a shot?”
“I think whatever helps you achieve your goals is worth a shot. You have a lot of ambition in you, Julian. Let’s show the world you can pull it off.”
Lily says that while watching the track instead of paying attention to me. It wasn’t glib or insincere. I’m subjected to a fair amount of empty flattery, mostly from women seeking an evening’s entertainment. Lily said it straight out, with hardly any thought.
“There’s one more thing to show you before the race ends,” I say.
“What’s that?” A fan a few rows above us notices me and alerts his friends. Lily smiles sadly while they congregate around us, all requesting an autograph or offering a compliment over one of my wins. She moves down a few seats to give them room and probably to give herself a breather from so many strangers.
One of my rules is to stay until the last autograph is signed and the final handshake is offered. Like every other sport, NASCAR survives because of its fanbase, and I’m no exception.
“That was my first time seeing you as a superstar,” Lily says as she moves back to her seat. “I always struggle with the spotlight, and you make it seem easy.”
“That’s because it isn’t. See all these grandstands?” I point at the large number to both our left and right. “They’ll cheer me on now and then, boo, if they decide it’s warranted. I constantly stress over my performance, especially knowing every mistake is picked apart and talked over.”
I expect an apology, and instead, Lily grabs my hand and squeezes.
“There’s something else I want to show you,” I say, leading her the dozen or so rows down until we’re next to the track. “Wait for it.”
The speedway is more than loud. The engine roars travel through the ground and into the concrete, and their energy moves through the air. Once a person experiences it live, they become fans for the rest of their lives.
I stand behind her, knowing they’re getting close.
“What are we doing?” she asks.
The cars come. Their speed tears through the space between us and them. Lily loses her footing and falls against me. I grab her waist, steadying us both.
“Well?” I ask once her trembling stops.
“That was exhilarating,” she says. “Let’s do it again.”
Most of her hair escaped their clips. The coat I let her borrow hangs off one shoulder, and her eyes nearly glow.
“One more time. Make sure you hold on to me when they get close.”
She circles my chest, the cars stream past, and I hold her up again.
“Again?” I ask.
“Don’t let me fall.”
“I won’t.”