Unchartered Waters ✅

Chapter 135: The Note

Chase glances at the piece of paper as he gets out of the truck that morning.

It didn't seem real. It didn't seem fair. There were so many things flashing through his mind - from the way the night had gone, to Alex's feelings in the morning, to the feelings they both had about the future, to his frantic concerns of the weekend ahead.

He walks through the hallways of Hendrick Motorsports, just like he had done plenty of times before, but this felt so much different. It was almost like his own future was written on the page in his hand. Instead, it was his friend's future and the uncertainty it carried with it. What would happen in the weeks, months ahead? What if the healing didn't go as planned? Everybody just assumed 24, 48 hours of rest, combined with some mental exercises, and you got better. What if that wasn't the case?

He makes his way to the end of the hallway, knocking on the door as he eyes the man in the office. He knew this was the person who held the keys to all of their futures. He knew his future was pretty safe, given the sponsor relations and his statue in the sport. However, it didn't mean he wasn't concerned as he knew Alex wasn't all the way at his level just yet. What if the content of the piece of paper changed the outlook for the future?

A glance up from the desk, followed by the motion to enter was all Chase needed as he followed the orders given - this wasn't someone that you didn't listen to when warranted.

"Alex told me to pick this up and drop it off," Chase simply states as he places the piece of paper on the desk. He knew he probably didn't need to say anything, and maybe he made it more awkward by saying something. However, he still cursed Ryan for suggesting he follow these steps as he didn't want a connection drawn, and didn't actually want to leave the house that morning.

"Thank you for picking it up," Rick replies as he takes it, reading it over quickly, before setting it aside. He knew it'd get to the right people once Chase was out of the office, and business handled accordingly. He hated to go through a similar situation once again, but it was part of being a racecar owner. At least they had the pieces together to handle it solidly. "Did he say anything about how he's doing?"

"Not really. I asked him how he was - he said he had a headache, supposed to see a specialist soon." The comment made Chase pull his phone out, sending a reminder text to Ryan to ensure the message was sent today. He didn't want any delays, knowing Alex deserved the best care they could arrange and the quicker handled, perhaps the quicker the nightmare would be over.

"Hopefully it is not too serious and he can get back in the car soon. I know he's probably hating it right now." Chase nods his head in agreement, having heard those emotions last night. 

"Listen Rick, I don't want to overstep boundaries, but we need to talk to NASCAR about this. There's a reason why there's crush zones built in racecars at all levels of motorsports. There's a reason why you want certain bars to fold certain ways. It's why there's certain specifications for clips even at the short track level. They wanted to make the back end of the cars stronger so we weren't wrecking them as easy, able to continue unlike the previous car. But it's too stiff and rigid as eliminating those zones, you're pushing the full force on the driver. That's why those rear end hits have hurt a lot of guys more this year than other years." He then takes a deep breath, not realizing till he was done about the rant that he had essentially delivered his boss. It certainly sounded like someone over stepping boundaries - caring too much, fear over what happened - or perhaps Chase was just reading into it too much with what was going on. 

"If you have concerns, you realize you can talk to them about them. They have stated they will listen to the drivers and understand their concerns and address them if they see fit. And Chase, not to float the boat, but they're probably going to listen to someone like you saying it over someone else. Give them a call and say the same thing you told me." Chase almost let out a sigh of relief, glad Rick hadn't questioned any bit of his motives, but yet gave him direction to go with those comments. Perhaps Rick was feeling the exact same emotions in this moment in watching what his driver was going through. 

"I have never been one to do that. I mean, I don't like to tell them what to do because I can assure you that they can do a better job than I ca-"

"But sometimes things are missed because nobody tells them what is going on. Denny has made similar comments to you but he whines about everything." Chase couldn't help but chuckle in response, having heard many of Denny's various opinions over the years. "So if more guys start saying those words - whether public or to them - then maybe they will actually take it seriously. The sooner a change happens, the better for everybody's safety if you're right in what you're saying." 

"Alright. I'll do it." Chase just hoped he didn't grow cold feet when it came time to dial the number. "I'll see you around."

"Okay. Good luck this weekend. Give me a reason to smile." Chase nods his head in response, hoping for the same thing as it'd be a nice change of pace given the most recent weekends.