Gangster Cinderella

Chapter Fifty Six: Waiting On the Other Shoe to Drop

Sometimes when I'm flying down an empty street well past midnight on my bike, I would picture this moment that has seemingly imprinted itself in my heart. It's just Mikey and me entangled in each other's limbs as we simply stare at one another in pure beautiful awed amazement. It's that heart-racing kind of young love that is burning deep within my heart as I stare at this absolutely necessary person.

"You're so beautiful." Mikey would whisper as his hand gently covers my cheek.

That moment as I smile infectiously in our afterglow, that moment is what I chase after when I'm racing. In a way, he's my muse. Silently, I carry this feeling with me as I wait for the countdown. My uncle steps forward with a racing flag; "Three!" His voice bellows and bounces off the empty race track. "Two!" My heart gracefully race with anticipation. "One! Go!" And within seconds I'm already down the track ahead of them. All my thoughts go out of my mind as my body moves on pure instinct and habit. The wind whips through me as I make a turn. I don't bother looking back, I already know that I'm ahead of them. It's not that my ego is big, I'm simply faster. I see the finish line ahead of me. One thought is on my mind as pass over the finish line: I hope you can see this dad.

I bring my bike to a stop and prop it up with its kickstand and send a gloating smile in my opponents' direction, "And by the way being sexist assholes won't get you a date with any of the Race Queens." I turn and walk in the direction of the stands, "We should let the boys catch their breath." I snark to my uncle as I leave to go see my boyfriend.

"Damn it, you broke them Chieko!" My uncle complains as he looks at the empty shocked expressions on his student's faces.

"If they break that easily they weren't built for racing." I say to no one in particular.

"Chi-chan!! You were beautiful!" Mikey cheers as he hugs me close to him. "I love you!"

I smile at my own personal cheerleader and number one supporter. My heart fills to the brim with gratitude and love. "I love you too!" I say and absolutely mean it.

"But I didn't think that you'd already be racing on your first day of training." He states with a tone of confusion.

"Oh they don't, I just had to take those assholes down a peg. Show them the pecking order." I say with clear sadism in my voice.

"Damn girl, you're so hot when you sadistically mentally traumatize people!" (A/N: I ate a delta 8 gummy before writing this. I'm not sorry.) Mikey whispers in my ear.

"Not here Mikey." I chastise him.

"Mean." He complains.

"You were great out there!" Shikha cheers for me.

"I know right!" I confidently exclaim.

"It truly is amazing how your massive ego fits inside your helmet." Draken sarcastically remarks.

"It's not egotism if it's true!" I fire back.

"I personally think it's her massive ego that makes her a great racer. It makes her overly ambitious." Emma comments.

"I suppose that's true." Draken nods in agreement.

Mikey pulls me aside, "Are we having dinner at your mom's place tonight?"

"Yep! My mom is making lãu tonight." I tell him. Everything just seems so impossibly good. Ever since Kiseki was fired, it feels like I'm waiting in anticipation for the other shoe to drop. It all feels so pointless now but we're already knee deep in this stupid mess. It's too late to back out.

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Mikey and I are greeted by the welcoming smell of hotpot as we step through the door. My stomach rumbles at the thought of stuffing myself on hotpot.

"Weirdo." Mikey comments.

"What?! I didn't do anything!" I exclaim at the baseless accusation.

"No, but I know what's going on in that head of yours." A playful smirk effortlessly forms on his lips.

I find myself trying with every fiber of my being not to blush. But unfortunately for me, I can't hide the redness spreading across my cheeks. "Oh do you now?" I weakly challenge him. 

His hand gently touches my neck; the touch is so faint that it's merely the ghost of a touch. It's one of deep trust and casual warmth. "Yeah, I would sooner forget who I am before I'd ever try to forget you."

And that powerful declaration shoots right through me; leaving my heart quite shaken.

"Hey! Stop hanging out in the doorway and come inside!" Shikha chides us, snapping us out of our moment of intimacy.

Mikey pouts at this interruption but one peck on the cheek snaps him out of his sulking. "Come on, let's go eat." I pull him towards the table.

"Hey! Take your shoes off!" Shikha scolds us.

We shrug off our shoes near the entrance as we quickly make our way to the hotpot. I sit next to Mikey as I wait for him to finish picking food for his bowl. "Hurry up!" I pout at him.

"Don't rush me!" He retorts as he swiftly picks his last slice of pork.

He moves out of my way as I lean over to choose my ingredients. A strong sweet and sour scent warms my nose as the hotpot's vapors rise toward my face. I pick an equal balance of everything into my bowl.

"You seriously don't have a favorite with hotpot?" Mikey questions me with a raised eyebrow.

"I just want an equal balance of everything brought to the hotpot. I don't see what's weird about that." I return his teasing stare.

He smiles lovingly at me, "Weirdo."

"Says the guy who can't stand green peppers." I tease.

"You're being so mean to me~" he feigns dramatics.

Without warning the front door slams open to reveal uncle Hoang clutching a letter in his hand; his eyes dart around the room in total panic. "Chieko, where is your mother?"

"She went to her room to grab her cigarettes but what's happening? Why're you freaking out?" I question him.

His eyes squeeze shut; almost as though what he's about to say pains him. "Get your mom and sister, Mikey and I will wait in the kitchen."

I rush down the hallway, only to find my mom consoling Shikha as she cries in her arms. "...what happened?"

"...it's Kita. She confessed..." she covers her mouth to stop a sob from escaping her lips. "She confessed to killing your father."

I freeze like a deer in the headlights as the foreboding other shoe finally dropped.