The next morning Valentino has to be pulled out of bed by his friends. "Come on champ, we'll be late for the race. "Right, the race." He was too drowsy to function. One of them got him in his pants, someone else helped him pull his shirt over his head, they were all multitasking and all he had to do was sit back and try to sober up quickly. A big day ahead. "Bye Mrs Rossi." They wave, while shuffling her son out of the door and into one of the cars. "Did we get everything?"

"Think so." The nod.

"Don't forget my lucky turtle." Valentino said as he came to in the backseat. "Lucky what?"

"Lucky turtle." Uccio, his best friend, said. "It's a plush toy. He never races without it."

"Err...okay, where did you put it?"

"It's on my nightstand."

"Okay, you guys go ahead, we'll meet you up later."

"Okay." Uccio drives them away, on the road towards the circuit.

*

"The italian championship, that's where he'll be." At Lydia's house, Anthoine and I were flipping through the channels, trying to find something good to watch on TV. Lydia on the other hand was feeling overly enthusiastic. "I say we go there."

"And why would we wanna do that?" I said, still trying to get last night erased from my memory. "So you can apologize to Valentino, so that you guys can start dating again." I stop the flipping. "Why do I gotta be the one to say sorry."

"Yeah babe, it is obvious that Naomi is the victim in this." Anthoine ads on. The term victim didn't sit too well with me. "Oh, hush up Anthoine, you want her to be happy don't you?"

"I am happy!" I protest. "Happy hanging out with you guys." Lydia takes a seat beside me, "Look, I think Valentino was right when he said that you've got your guards up all the time. How else would you explain saying what you said, when you said it? You ruined a perfect moment." She squealed. "So you're on his side then." I mumble. "Anthoine?"

"I'm with you."

"Don't be silly I'm not taking anybody's side, because there is no side to take. Clearly for some reason you freaked out last night, who could blame you, now I wanna help you make things right again."

"Why?"

"Because it is clear that Valentino likes you and you him."

*

Valentino was clearly a crowd favourite. There were banners, posters, flags and caps, sporting either his name or race number. "How are we feeling?" Uccio asks, entering Valentino's tent.Valentino was all dressed up in his leathers, his yellow helmet resting on the ground in front of his chair. "I'm all good, I just need a minute to myself." He rested his back against the chair. "Are the boys here yet?"

"They should be here any minute."

"Good because I need my turtle."

I should tell you that in order to get to the racing circuit, one has to cross a bridge. It's a small bridge that is only meant to be crossed by foot. After parking the car, Valentino's friends are seen pushing past the people headed towards the circuit, they were on a delivery so of course they believed to have some kind of priority. They shouldn't have. There comes a time in everybody's life when we accidentally push the wrong people, in this case a giant biker, who wasn't gonna take any crap from a bunch of scrawny teenage boys. They pushed and so he pushed back , resulting in the person responsible for holding the plush toy dropping it over the edge of the bridge in order to support himself as he stumbled.

"Err...we have a problem." Valentino's pre race ritual was disrupted by one of his friends entering the tent. He looked like he'd just spotted a ghost. "Problem?" Uccio frowns. His friend looks at Valentino anxious, before stepping forward and mumbling something inaudible into Uccio's ear. "Dropped it!" Uccio shouts. "What do you mean they dropped it?"

"Don't worry the others went down there to try and fish it out of the water, it's stuck between rocks so they'll most definitely get it." Valentino couldn't help but to butt in. "Get what?"

"They better get it before the race starts, Valntino never goes on without it."

"Goes on without what." Uccio is the one who has to break it to him. "They guys dropped your turtle."

"What!" Valentino shoots up to his feet. "Apparently it ended up in the river below the bride."

"The river!" Angrily he looks to his friend, who tries to shy away into a corner. "But like he said they're on it. Don't worry." Uccio taps him on the shoulder for Valentino to sit back down again. Valentino feels the unbalance shift in his body, he couldn't help but to be suspicious. Usually the turtle brings him good fortune, what is gonna happen to him now? What if he crashes out in this race? That's it, he has to forfeit, maybe this was a sign. Valentino was ready to head to the stewards. when the rest of his friends tripped over each other as they stumbled into the tent, baring one soaked plush toy.

"You got it!" Uccio applause. "Yeah, you should have seen it, she just dove in like it was a swim relay or something."

"Who dove in?" Uccio frown?"

"That girl."

"What girl?" Valentino said, raising a brow. "That girl who lives up your road, your friend with the sicilien accent." Valentino is left calculating. "Come on Vale you have to get ready." He is being shuffled out of the tent, leaving his calculations for later. It was time to race.