Chapter Two
I drove beside Mom at another one of my father's races. After what Ethan said about Dad retiring soon, it got me thinking. I want to be here for all of his last races. I know I said I could never see him retiring, but he can't race forever. "Hey, Little Red." Mom greeted, using my nickname.

"Hey." I smiled, staring at the track as the racers zoomed by, echoing around us. I could almost feel the wind blowing against us.

"So, what made you want to come to Ohio today?" She asked, trying to make small talk over the roaring crowd.

"Don't know. Just felt like coming." I replied, shrugging my tires. Mom didn't need to know my reasons. If I told her, she would just tell me not to worry and etc.

"Well, I know your father loves seeing you out here supporting him." She stated, a soft smile present on her face. I nodded my head as my blue eyes caught sight of a new racer.

"Mom, who's that?" I asked. I had never seen him before and I had been coming to races almost my whole life. I've seen racers come and go, but this guy looked different. He almost sent shivers down my spine just looking at him.

"Umm, I don't know." She mumbled as she drove closer into our pit. I followed behind her, confused by her sudden change. Usually Mom was never worried about other racers.

"Flo, do you know who #20 is?" Mom asked, gathering the attention of the rest of the town. (Literally.) Everyone looked towards the screen, seeing the sleek black car near the back.

Everyone began talking over each other, all of them saying they'd never seen him before. Before we knew it, the yellow flag was waved and Dad came rolling into the pits, a smile plastered on his face. "Guido!" He cheered.

Guido quickly got to work as everyone else did their jobs. We didn't think Dad needed to know about the new racer. "Doin' great out there, Stickers!" Mom cheered.

"Thanks, Sal." He smiled as Guido pushed him away. He winked at my mother as he zoomed off, taking his place in the lead. I wanted to watch my dad, really, but something about that #20 made my stomach hurt. No matter how hard I tried to keep my eyes on my father, I kept finding myself watching that black and blue car.

"McQueen is in the lead, Swift in second, and Weathers in third as we enter the final turn." Bob announced, making me turn to look back at my father and all of his friends. Their smiles were wide as they tried to pass my father.

"This is going to be another great win for McQueen!" Darrell added. Soon, I watched #20 move up towards the front, passing every singe car. In the last second, he passed my father, taking first place. "Unbelievable! Lightning McQueen has been passed, taking second place!" Darrell shouted.

The crowd began to roar, sounding like a jet plane. The place was going insane as the racers made their way off of the track. Cars were freaking out, all of them confused about what happened. #20 was in last place just a few laps ago. How did he win?

"Darrell, we haven't seen someone pass the finish line with that kind of power since the young Lightning McQueen." Bob added, giving us a more informative response. All of us turned towards the awards stand, watching #20 take his place.

We drove close to my father, ready to get some answers, but he looked just as confused as us. "Bobby, Cal, who's that?" Dad asked as his friends drove up behind him.

"That's um, Jackson Storm. He's part of the New Generation of racers." Bobby answered. Camera flashes were everywhere as everyone tried to get a shot of Jackson. We watched as Dad drove to him. "Hey, good race out there today." Dad congratulated, like he always does.

"You have no idea how nice it is to finally beat you." Jackson replied, ignoring my father's compliment. Dad slight chuckled and looked at Jackson.

"Thanks. Wait. Did you say meet or beat?" He smiled, hoping Jackson meant the first one.

"I think you heard me." Jackson replied, his lips in a tight line. Dad raised his eyebrows (or what would be) in surprise. He wasn't expecting that.

"Hey! Can we get some shots?" Someone shouted towards the back.

"Yes! Take lots of pictures! McQueen here has been my inspiration for a long time," Jackson explained. He looked towards my father, his facial expression changing. "And I mean a very, long time." He explained as he bumped my father's tires.

"Jackson!"

"Jackson, over here!"

"Jackson! Can we have some more photos?" Interviewers shouted as Jackson happily drove away from my dad. Soon, he was left alone. We drove beside him, ready to congratulate him on his second place.

"Good job, Dad." I started, since the rest of them acted like a skid steer had their tongues. I smiled at him, hoping he knew I was being serious. He looked at me, joy being brought back to his eyes.

"Thanks, Stel. I'm glad you came today." He grinned, sincerity present in his voice.

"Me, too."

xxx

"Tell me again why you aren't watching this with your parents." Ethan demanded as he set up the tv in his garage. I paced around the room, trying to find something to keep myself busy until the show started.

"Look, I love my parents and all, but sometimes they can be a bit overbearing. Plus you're my best friend. Who else would I watch it with?" I answered, making him shrug his tires.

The show started, making my oil pressure rise. God, I was so anxious. "Welcome to Chick's Hot Picks with your host, me, Chick Hicks, your favorite and forever Piston Cup Winner." The green car gloated, almost making me want to gag.

"But enough about me. Let's talk about my old buddy Kachow's recent race. I would like to bring in our number cruncher, Natalie Certain!" Chick smiled as a dark red car drove up beside him.

"Thanks, Chick." She greeted, her tone saying she felt otherwise. It almost looked like she was glaring at him.

"So, how did Jackson Storm win? He was at the very end for almost the whole race." Chick questioned, asking the question everyone in the country was thinking.

"One reason Storm won is his ability to hold the racing line every single lap. Storm's in a class of his own. A big reason for that, training on the newest cutting edge simulators." Natalie explained.

"What would that have to do with Kachow getting second place?" Chick asked, obviously rehearsing his lines. They sounded too well thought out to be coming out of his mouth.

"These machines create a virtual racing experience so real, racers never even have to go outside." She answered. I turned to look at Ethan, whose face was scrunched up in confusion. Never go outside?

"These simulations must be top notch then, huh? What do they help offer these Next Generation racers that Kachow isn't getting?" He asked, somehow managing to ask questions rattling off in my brain.

"These Next Generation racers have 2% lower drag pull resistance, 5% increase downforce, 1.2% higher top speeds," she replied. She turned towards the camera, her eyes locking with mine. "Veteran racers have almost no chance competing with these high tech-"

The tv went black and I looked back at Ethan. "What was that for?" I exclaimed, upset that he shut it off. I wanted to see the end. I had to see the end.

"She's just rambling off a bunch of stupid statistics a computer added for her. I don't want you to listen to it." He replied, his voice sounding cold.

"I'm not a baby, Ethan. I can handle what she was going to say." I fired back, raising my voice. This was one of the reasons I didn't want to watch this with my parents. They would have done the same thing.

"Stella, I don't want you watching it." He snapped, glaring at me, but he knew I wasn't afraid to shout. He knew I could raise hell without meaning to, something else I gained from my father.

"Why? Do you think I'm still a child? That I'm going to cry watching something some lady thinks she knows everything about?" I began shouting.

"No!"

"Then why did you shut it off? You wouldn't do it unless you had a reason, Ethan." I growled. His face softened as I began to slow my breathing. Like usual, our fights were short and to the point.

"Look, Stella. I know you can handle it. I know you," he stated, driving closer to me. "I just... I don't want you to think that your dad doesn't have a chance. I don't want you thinking that just because Natalie said it would happen that it would."

I looked down, letting this process through my head. I let my temper get the best of me. God, Ethan always does everything to protect me and my feelings. What was I thinking just shouting at him? "I'm sorry." I stated.

"It's okay. I know this is tough to handle. I mean, your dad's racing career is on the line, Stel." He replied, sympathy clear in his eyes and his voice. I nodded my head and headed towards the door.

"I'm gonna head home. Thanks for letting me watch this over here with you." I softly smiled, hoping he knew that I would be okay.

"Do you want me to drive you home?" He offered. I shook my head.

"I just want to be alone right now, E. Thanks, though." I replied, heading out of the door. I heard him follow me out and stop at the end of the driveway, watching me head towards the Cozy Cone. My parents built a little house on the other side of the parking lot for us.

I drove by the office, hearing the tv still running. I glanced in, wondering what they thought of the show. Dad was so close to the tv that my eyes began to burn. Mom was looking back and forth between him and the tv. Man, this really was getting serious. "Turn it off, Sal." He mumbled, backing away.

Mom turned it off, sending them into darkness, their only light coming from the lamp behind Mom. Dad was frowning as he stared at the floor. Thoughts must have been filling in his head. "Let's just head back to house. I bet Little Red is anxiously waiting to see you." Mom softly smiled, hoping to coax him out of the office.

Shoot. I wasn't in the house at all. Quickly, I turned towards the house, trying to get inside before anyone saw me. Faster than fast I was in and patiently waiting for them to come in any second. "Hey, sweetheart." Dad greeted as he entered the house.

"Oh. Hey, guys! Where'd ya go? I haven't seen ya for a while-"

"Stel, we watched you race us back to the house. No need for the acting," Mom interrupted with Dad trying to hold his laughter in beside her. My mouth hung open as I looked to Dad for help, but he was useless. "Where were you?" She added.

"I was just at Ethan's." I answered as they drove closer to me. Mom looked into my blue eyes, checking to make sure I wasn't lying, not that I would.

"Okay. Just watching a movie?" She asked, this time sounding more like herself. She must have noticed that I was in fact telling the truth.

"Yeah." I lied. Wow. I guess I do lie.

"Sounds like fun," Dad yawned, joining in on our conversation. "Well, I'm gonna hit the hay. Night, Stella." Dad smiled as he headed towards my parents' bedroom.

"Night, Dad. Night, Mom." I replied, heading towards my own room.

"Night." Mom mumbled as she headed towards the kitchen. She was probably going to finish up her paperwork. Mom is Dad's lawyer and now that everything seems to be going crazy, she must have to start filling out new papers.

I was just about to fall asleep when I heard them fighting. My parents hardly ever fight unless it's something important. I leaned towards their wall, trying to hear what they were saying. "Lightning, it'll be okay."

"No, Sally! It's not okay. According to the rest of the country, I'm going to retire this year! Now that there's new racers here, I'm just a veteran!" Dad argued back. I furrowed my eyebrows, taking in his side.

"Lightning, nothing is set in stone. You haven't signed the retirement papers. This was just one race! Two people have been fired, that's it! You'll be okay." Mom replied, trying to calm him down.

"Everyone else thinks differently! After this year, there won't be anymore veterans. Next year, all of the racers will be rookies." Dad fired back.

"Not necessarily. Besides, what does Natalie Certain know? All of her statistics are just estimates." Mom argued. Everything was silent.

"Sally, I'm just scared. What if this really is my last year?" Dad softly replied.

"This won't be your last year, Stickers."

~~~~~~~~~~