12. Eloise
12
ELOISE
“I still can’t believe you thought I was fucking Nate.” Margot shudders, her face squishing up like she just ate a lemon. “Gross, dude.”
I downshift and follow the bend in the road. The sun dips low on the horizon, only a few minutes away from setting completely.
“He’s not gross.” I huff, rolling my eyes and checking the rearview. We haven’t seen a single car behind us in ten minutes. Nerves flutter between my ribcage, winding around the bones and pulling taut.
“I mean, yeah, he’s hot. But he’s like a hot, older estranged relative or something,” she mutters, changing the song again. “Like a third cousin.”
I give her a strong side-eye. “That doesn’t even make sense. And will you stop messing with my playlist? It’s curated for a reason.”
She huffs her annoyance. “Louie, I love you, but your music taste is fucking wild. Like, what is this playlist? Bush, Nirvana, Taylor Swift, the Pixies, Sabrina Carpenter, and Fleetwood Mac. What are you gonna play when you race? Because you need something hype, and . . . I don’t honestly know if this assortment will get the job done, ya know?”
“You’re a pain in the ass sometimes, ya know ?” I mock the last two words. “Don’t worry about what I listen to. I got it.”
Abruptly, *NSYNC fills the car, barely heard over my sister’s laughter. “Oh my god, sis, you should drive to Bye Bye Bye . I can just picture you smoking all of ’em, and then when they catch up, you’re on the other side of the finish line, blasting some boy bands.”
My mouth curls up into a reluctant smile. I can almost see the image, but I’m too nervous to think too much about it. If I’m not careful, I’m going to talk myself out another ten times in the next five minutes. I’ve agonized over this for the last forty-eight hours. Guilt eats away at my stomach about everything these days.
But as much as I can appreciate boy bands, they don’t give me the energy I’m gonna need for this. It’s been a long time since I raced in this kind of setting. I need something with more edge to get me into the zone.
“It’d be funny, for sure. But I don’t need to win. I just need to be in the top twenty-five. And that’s not the song I had in mind.”
“You’re gonna win, and I swear to god if you play some gamma wave bullshit, I’m refusing to get out of the car. I know you like it, but it mellows you out too much. We need you amped up and ready to squash these other drivers like an atom under a supercollider.”
“That science class you’re taking this semester is really paying off, I see.”
“Yep,” she says, popping the p. “Sure is. Now, stop deflecting.” She switches to another song, and I think about adding it to the playlist. It has all the things I look for in a driving playlist: good beat, something I can shout-sing if the mood strikes, and high energy.
I cave. I know she’s gonna give me some shit about my choices. I don’t know if it’s a sisterly thing or a Margot thing. Probably both. “Go back to my playlist. It’s the most recent one I made.”
“Damn, Louie.” She whistles under her breath as she scrolls on my phone. “Okay, these could work.”
My brows hit my hairline. “That’s it? You’re not gonna make some offhand comment about being stuck in the grunge era, or it’s not just a phase or whatever else.”
She looks up from my phone and stares at me for a second. “I mean, I can if you want me to, but I figured I’d be nice today. Ya know, since it’s a big race and all.”
I turn onto dirt tire tracks in the middle of a grassy field. Trees line one side of the makeshift road, stoic sentinels to the generations of people passing through. They’re tall enough that I imagine they’ve been here for a hundred years, providing shelter and harboring secrets.
It’s a straight shot into a wooded area, a little over a quarter mile from the street. Vibrant streaks of orange and pink fill the car before we drive between two tall trees, their branches stretching toward the car. A hushed darkness blankets us, but it’s not the frightening kind.
My headlights pierce through the shadows, illuminating the path ahead. The beams dance over the undergrowth on either side of the dirt road. Wildflowers cluster in pockets next to the road, the same ones that I saw swaying in the field.
It doesn’t last long before the woods open up to the clearing. The moon hangs low and full. Its silvery light bathes the landscape in an ethereal glow, spotlighting the scene in front of us.
It still takes my breath away, just a little bit.
I’ve been to The Alley a couple of times before, but just as a spectator. And never during anything that has to do with the Gauntlet. I have no idea how many people are in the race tonight or how many people just showed up to watch the show.
The clearing is alive with activity, the energy practically crackling in the air. Cars and trucks are parked haphazardly across the grass, their headlights cutting through the dusk like a patchwork quilt of light. People mill about, some huddled in groups, others leaning against their vehicles with an air of practiced nonchalance.
Avalon Falls Alleyway, now just called The Alley, stands proudly on the opposite side of the clearing. I don’t know what happened to the original owners exactly, but I do know that it sat abandoned and vacant for decades before the Carters reclaimed it for their own.
I don’t know much about the Carters except that they run The Alley. A crew in their own right. Not exactly Seven Pines’ enemies, but not besties either. I stay out of all that stuff, anyway. I like to think I’m Seven Pines adjacent , not that I’ll ever tell Nate that. Or, fuck, Levi. There are only a few things in life that truly frighten me anymore, and Levi Walker is one of them. The leader of Seven Pines got his reputation earnestly, and I don’t ever want to get on the bad side of The Hook . I’ve heard the stories of how he used pieces of someone as bait for one of his infamous fishing expeditions.
Margot flicks me in the shoulder, jolting me out of my head and back into the present. “Hello, Earth to Louie. You still with me?”
I blink, refocusing on the scene before us. “What? I’m right here.”
The Alley pulses with life, a stark contrast to its abandoned past. Strings of lights are draped between poles, bathing the area in a warm, inviting glow. The excited chatter of the crowd fills the air, punctuated by bursts of laughter and the revving of engines.
Food trucks line one side of the clearing, their delicious scents wafting through the air and mingling with the sweet fragrance of wildflowers on the breeze. The savory aroma of grilled burgers and the sugary scent of funnel cakes make my stomach rumble, despite the nerves fluttering inside. I can’t remember the last time I ate. That can’t be good.
“Good. Get your head in the game, sis,” she says, her voice taking on that no-nonsense tone.
I fall in line behind a string of vehicles that look souped up and ready to race. Personalized paint jobs, custom rims, and I swear I can feel the thrum of their engines through the soles of my shoes. My own car feels pedestrian in comparison, even though I’ve spent countless hours tuning it and optimizing the engine. At the end of the day, it’s still an older model. It was brand-new when my dad got it, but he’s been gone for over a decade now.
Besides, I knew the Alley would attract some serious competition.
But fancy cars only get you so far. It’s the driver that makes the difference.
My hands tighten on the wheel as I inch forward, the ground crunching under my tires. Nerves flutter in my stomach, a swarm of angry hornets pausing to sting me every few seconds.
“I’m trying,” I murmur, glancing around at my competition.
“You’ve got this, I know you do.”
I dip my chin in a sage nod. “I’ve got this.”
“Hell yeah, you do,” she says, clapping a couple of times. “Fuck ’em up, Louie.”
I can’t get in my head yet, though, not until Nate gets here. I can’t focus until I know that my sister is safe. The crowd here is bigger than I expected. People fill both stadium stands, spilling into the grassy areas around the track. They huddle in close groups, drinking and laughing and eating.
“As soon as you kick their asses, we’re getting tacos and tequila to celebrate,” Margot crows.
I slide her a disapproving frown. “You have school tomorrow.”
She scoffs, huffing a laugh. “Like I’ve never gone to class hungover? C’mon, Louie.”
I turn to face her completely. “Please tell me you’re joking.”
Her eyes sparkle as she looks me dead in the eye and lies through her teeth. “Okay, I’m joking.”
I move up in line a little bit, sighing and leaning my head back against the headrest. “You know what? That’s a problem for tomorrow. Our current problem is that Nate is fucking late. Again .”
She messes with the music again, switching the song to something heavier. “Problem solved: sister duo crush the Gauntlet’s pre-qualifier.” She drags her hand across the air as she says it, like she’s picturing the headline.
I’m already shaking my head. “Oh, hell no. Not a chance.”
“Well, if Nate doesn’t get his ass here in the next five minutes, it’s gonna happen, sis. So get right with it now, hm?”
Someone raps against the passenger window, and Margot and I yelp in unison. I press a hand to my chest as Margot rolls down her window all the way.
“You’re late, and Louie is pissed ,” Margot sing-songs. I can tell by the smug tone in her voice that she’s smirking, eating up every second of me possibly laying into Nate again.
“C’mon, Margot, you and I both know that Thorne can’t stay mad at me,” Nate says around a low chuckle.
“Eat shit, Nate. My sister is a total badass, and she can do whatever she wants.” She pushes open the car door, hard enough that I hear Nate’s muffled grunt.
Okay, so maybe they’re really not hooking up.
I don’t bother smothering my smile. I can’t help it if I enjoy seeing Margot talk a little shit, even if it is to my oldest friend.
Before she closes the passenger door, she leans in and points right at my face. Her dark eyes bore into mine, intensity and sincerity blazing like a goddamn furnace. “Fuck ’em up, Louie. You’re a badass, don’t fucking forget it.”
I shake my head a little bit. “I won’t. Thanks for the pep talk, sis.”
“Anytime, sis,” she says as she steps back and closes the door.
Nate braces his forearms on the car, leaning in the open window. “You good, baby?”
My smile falls into a frown instantly. “Don’t. Not now.” I jerk my chin toward my sister standing behind him. “Watch her back, okay?”
His brows rise toward his hair. “She’ll be fine. She’ll tear the balls off of anyone she doesn’t want within reaching distance. I’m more concerned with you.”
“Well, don’t,” I murmur, looking out the windshield. “I’ll be fine.”
He backs out of the open window, tapping the car twice. “Yeah. You’ll be alright.”
“Keep her safe, Nate.” I don’t look at him when I say it, but I can still feel his gaze on me.
“I will, Eloise.”
The cars shift forward, and I follow them, rolling up my window and starting my playlist over from the top. It’s time to get my shit together.
I’ve got a race to win.