Daynight Racer (Completed)

Chapter 14

Sitting in Obsidian was like meeting an old friend. Despite its age, the design of the car never felt old; the scent of the interior reminded Lyst of home; the sounds of the doors, the buttons, the engine purring in front of her, were like a lullaby in Lyst's ears, soothing her as she's shielded from the elements.

And Lyst was just about to take this old friend on a track day.

Exciting... she thought. I've never done this before...

She did a 360-degree walkaround of her beloved car, inspecting every nook and cranny to make sure it's in pristine condition. Putting on a simple grey helmet, she sunk into her comfortable driver's seat and turned the keys.

All six cylinders of the engine fired in perfect order. She shifted into first gear, and the car rolled onto the pitlane. With a gentle tap on the throttle, Lyst sped up and entered the track, ready to make full use of her available track time.

Lyst drove lap after lap, quickly yet cautiously. She started off with her normal driving style, and then slowly implemented what the engineer had told her to learn.

Gentler on your entry.

From full speed, Lyst braked into the corner, then gently eased off the brakes as the car prepared for turn in.

Squarer lines.

With one swift motion, Lyst turned the car into the corner, and straightened it out as soon as the car had turned in enough.

Gentler on the exit.

Feeling the grip of the tyres beneath her, Lyst smoothly pressed on the throttle harder and harder, not letting the tyres move around too much.

Of course, unlearning and relearning something isn't an easy feat. Trying to adapt to this driving style challenged Lyst's mind and instinct, and her lap times reflected that. Lyst found herself unable to beat the initial times that she had set when she first drove out.

But as she got acquainted with the new style, she came to understand how everything worked. Something in her clicked, and Lyst found herself recovering her pace.

"I think I got it," she muttered in excitement as her car crossed the start-finish line once more. Her timing gear indicated that she had just set a new fastest lap.

As the timer ticked, Lyst's track day was coming to an end. Nonetheless, she continued to work hard. Fastest lap came after fastest lap, and Lyst was pleasantly surprised to find her pace still strong after the countless beatings she had given Obsidian on the track.

"Sorry, buddy," she would say to her beloved car.

At the end of the day, Lyst returned home with an accomplished goal, a smile on her face, and a slightly dirty Obsidian, which she may or may not clean in the near future.

***

A month of intensive driver training, track days, and goofing around with Ashley passed in a heartbeat. In a few moments, Lyst was about to traverse across the English channel to France, and more specifically, to Magny Cours for the next race in the season.

Initially, Lyst wanted a long, relaxing leisure drive to Magny Cours, for it would be a spectacular road trip. But the team didn't want her to waste too much time and energy on the road, so they offered her a plane ticket. Of course, she couldn't turn down the offer.

As to where Ashley went, she had to stay home to take care of some 'personal matters', leaving Lyst all alone on the trip.

Or so she thought.

"Hey, grid girl!" a voice came from the back of Lyst's seat.

Lyst didn't even bother to waste a single joule of energy by turning around to see who called her. "Okay, you've returned to my bad side now."