"Scar!" Calvin cooed. I hadn't seen him since I had twisted my leg. "How's your leg now? Robert said you had fallen down?"

"It's back to normal." I answered giving him a small smile. "I'm as good as new."

"Great!" He clapped his hands together. He looked at Robert for which Rob shook his head sideways as a no. Calvin's nod at Robert's action was barely noticeable. "So, ever since your last game," I held my breath, scared to hear what he had in store for me. "you are getting invited into a lot of other races, Scarlet."

"That's good, right?" I asked, my hands folded in resemblance to a prayer.

"It is!" Calvin smiled. He buttoned his blazer as a chilly wind blew our way. "But, let me be honest, Scar. The last game was merely luck." I bowed my head low. It sure was. "You need to get smarter and faster." He clicked his fingers. "I've asked Bert to double your practices and I hope you comply with whatever he has in mind for you."

I nodded my head, my mind already thinking dirty.

"I hope to see you in the top kiddo." He patted my shoulders. "I'm probably going to hook you up in another two weeks."

"I'll get her ready by then." Robert interrupted and I released the breath that I was holding.

Calvin gave us both a smile and wandered off to Dan checking on what he was doing. My heart bet faster than usual and I put my hand on my head, trying to breath properly. Robert smiled at me and massaged my shoulders, encouragingly.

"Come on, soldier." He pushed me towards the far end of the track where a set of tires were already placed. We stood in front of them as Luke joined us from behind. "Before we start, I need you to know that two months have already passed from your ultimatum."

"I know." I said, my voice low.

"You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else." Luke added, sensing my nervousness.

"Can you lift one tire?" Rob asked, ignoring Luke. He pointed to one of the tires that were kept in front and tilted his head towards me.

I shrugged, though I knew I would not be able to even lift it by a millimeter.

"I've seen you drive in traffic and in races." Robert started as I went again to try lifting it. "I'm sure you can handle that, especially the being in the game part. But - "

"The one in which you played was a simple one." Luke said. "The next ones, the steering wheel is not going to be smooth for you to turn around. You need to get yourself stronger for it."

"And hence," Robert lifted the tire up like it was a piece of paper. "You need to practice."

"Hey, relax." Luke snorted, sensing my anxiety. "It's going to be fine."

"You also need to watch videos to make sure how things are going to be in the actual races." Robert interjected. "Racers from different countries and different backgrounds have different techniques to compete. You need to learn them all and groom them to make them your own."

I felt like I was going deep into it. This was what actual racing was all about. The ones I had before were just warm-ups.

"I know, honey." Luke said putting his hand on my shoulder and looked at me with a sympathetic smile. "It's a lot to take in. But with your time given, it's going to be like a crash course."

I took a deep breath. "I'm ready. Let's get this done."

"I like her, man." Luke said to Robert who only nodded at him, looking my way. "You can do this for like half hour and then go watch the game."

I nodded at him.

All three of us stood in line with one tire in front of us. Robert to my right and Luke to my left. Both of them showed me how I should be balancing the weight of the tyre. Robert told me to make sure that I was using my shoulder strength to lift it rather than my forearm.

By the time I had gone with it for the first five minutes, I was sweating and parched for water. Though both of them denied me of water, Luke was looking at me in pity. When he got me water, not able to bare my trouble, he got an ear full from Robert telling him that he was spoiling me from his affections.

I ignored him and went ahead to drink it. "I'm only allowing you this once, Scarlet. Don't make this a habit." When I ignored him, he snatched my bottle and placed it away. "I'm your tutor here, and you will make sure that I'm obeyed."

My hands were aching already and I was scared to imagine the pain that followed the next day. The pizza that I had eaten not so long ago, seemed to have vaporized into thin air and my stomach grumbled about its absence.

"Very good." Luke smiled at me, patting my back when I had completed his half hour. "Not too bad for a beginner."

"Stone!" Robert called me. "No water for another half hour."

"I hate you!" I cried as Luke laughed at my childish behavior. "I can't believe you are making me go through hell."

I wanted to curl up and cry, not only because I was dragged into this, but I was treated mercilessly here. I wondered if Hitler was better than him. The Robert with whom I had pizza just a few hours ago was long gone. Now, he was the guy with determination making sure that his pupil followed what he had in mind.

"Can I go home, Rob?" I asked, hoping against hope. I knew it was ten and I wanted to go home and sleep my pains away.

"Not yet, sweetheart." He smiled. "We have the game to watch, unless you want to watch at home."

"Yes!" I said, grabbing the opportunity as quickly as possible. "I'll watch at home. I will! I will!"

Robert laughed as Luke kept all the tires just the way it was before we started practice. "Okay, you seem tired. I'll grab the DVDs and then I'll drop you home."

I wanted to give him a duh look, but instead I gave him a relieved smile. I was not looking forward to walk back home after going through the torture chamber.

Robert jogged towards Calvin's room to get the DVD while Luke stood with me giving company. Now, I knew why Rob had removed his jacket earlier. Even with the cold wind blowing at us, I wanted nothing more than an ice bath.

"He's different around you." Luke observed. The guy who barely spoke with anyone was now commenting on Robert's behavior with me. "He never smiles around here."

"Oh," I said, not knowing what to say for that.

"And it's a good thing." He shrugged.

Robert called us, muttering what we were doing there, instead of waiting for him by his car. I rolled my eyes at him, circling my index finger at my forehead looking at Luke when Robert was not watching me.

Luke laughed at my childish antics.

"What are you giggling at?" Robert thundered, before getting into the seat. "Get in."

I sat in without another word. I didn't want to get into his bad books today of all days since I was wondering if I would get a concession of the game-watching tonight. But to my despair, he was still fuming by the time we reached home.

I used my spare key and got in. Dad had already curled up and I didn't find it in me to wake him up by switching on the lights. Robert followed closely behind me. When I reached the stairs, I turned to look at him. The half moon threw dim light around his face as he looked expectantly at me.

"Can we do this tomorrow?" I whispered, scared that I might wake my Dad.

"Babe, trust me, you need this." He smiled at me. "Let's get your laptop powered up. Meanwhile I'll make something to fill our stomachs."

At the mention of food, I was ready to do anything he wanted me to do. I nodded my head and went to my room dutifully and powered my laptop. I changed to my night dress and waited for him to come.

To my agony, he brought salad with him and a glass of hot water, of course, and placed it next to me. He had become my fitness trainer and I hated him for it.

He removed his shoes and sat next to me. He put the pillows behind his head for support and leaned on it, pulling the laptop with him. He patted the spot next to him and opened his arms wide making space for me.

Without thinking, I went in and sat next to him, cocooned in his warm embrace, resting my head on his chest. He massaged my arms and it left like heaven.

"Oh, baby." He murmured. "It's all going to be okay. Just give it some time, okay?"

I nodded my head, my eyes closed, already wrapping up my day.

"Baby." Robert warned. "Just one game and then you can sleep."

I heaved an audible sigh. Robert put the DVD in and the game started playing. It was some Italian racer in his first race. My eyes were burning in need of sleep and after the racer had started his car, I zoned out, not able to grasp anything that Robert was saying. After a few grunts that I threw at him, Robert understood that I was hopeless.

"So, what's that method called?" Robert asked, clearly testing me if I had been listening to him or not.

"Yeah," I said, my eyes closed.

Robert only chucked at me. "Okay, babe. Let's have a cheat day today. Get some sleep."

I smiled snuggling closer. He wrapped his hands around me and brought me closer to him. I felt him kiss my head and then my cheek, before he rested his head on mine.

---

My muscles were sore. It ached every time I tried to move. Even a small gesture seemed to be so difficult that I wished for people to understand my language which were purely by my facial expressions.

As if the stupid tyre rolling everyday was not enough, Robert made sure that I was running five kilometers every morning before dawn. I had thrown tantrums at him for being such a brat in my life since he was not only torturing me, but was also playing with my daily sleep cycle.

"You are creeping me out, Scar." Monica circled around me like a mother hen. "Are you really sure you are okay? Shall I call a doctor for you? You look so pale."

I rested my head on the table that I had put a reserved sign on. I had booked the table for the day, keeping all my study materials on it and making myself study. But it was going down the drain.

"I knew I shouldn't have let you go out with that guy with black hoodie the other day." Monica muttered, still standing near me as if I was a doll ready to break. "He hasn't done anything to you, has he?"

I heaved a sigh and looked at her. It had been exactly three days since we started the drill sessions. I had somehow endured the late night tyre rolls, but the jogs at early in the morning was too much. It was not fair because when I ran like a old dog, taking breaks to catch my breath, he joined next to me like a super model.

As if my physical torments were not enough, I spent the nights watching crazy driving skills of famous people, trying to etch them all in my memory, hoping that one day in the distant future, I might find a similar situation so that I could follow their footsteps.

"I'm fine, Monica." I sighed. Even my voice seemed to have become tired of all the workouts. "Really."

"I highly doubt that." Monica said. "Wait, I'll call Mom to put some fine shit into your head."

I laughed at her, but then stopped suddenly, my muscles ached. There were only two hours of class today and before my cycle of unfortunate-events began, I wanted to complete all my school work and hopefully catch on with some sleep.

Thankfully, the shop was pretty empty and there was nothing much to do, except wait for the customer and their orders. I had dumped all my assignments on the table and started to work on it while Monica had sat with her phone in hand, glaring at it every now and then.

When Monica called for her mother, Mira came running down the stairs that led to her apartment. With her forehead furrowed and her hairs spread in all directions, she seemed like the mother duck looking for her lost duckling in the lake. When she saw me leaning on the chair, with a small pencil in my fingers, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"What happened to you, dear?" She asked. Not waiting for my response, she went ahead to put her palm on my forehead to check if I had caught the local fever. "You look pale."

I heaved a sigh. No matter what I said, I was sure the paleness in my features wouldn't go unless I took some serious rest or got used to the tiring schedules - both of which were not in my near future.

"I'm just tired." I smiled weakly.

I stood up and stretched. I had been in the same position for almost two hours scratching my head over the algebraic formulas and techniques. I picked up my water bottle and went towards the water can to get it refilled. I wanted to stretch and crack my knuckles, but I was scared that it might actually break this time.

"Why are you tired again?" Monica asked suspiciously. The CIA officer in her had awakened and she wanted to know each and every detail, searching for dirt on me.

"Was someone catching you?"

I rolled my eyes.

"Monica," I drawled. "I'm not a psychic killer, if that's what you are assuming me to be."

"Scarlet," Mira said, with a nervous smile and started to defend her daughter. "Monica didn't mean that. She actually cares for you."

"But you didn't answer my question." Monica said, crossing her arms against her chest.

I heaved a sigh. They needed to know. After all, they were my second family. In such a short period of time that they had known me, they had taken me under their wing, making me feel like I was just one of them. I had kept all my secrets bottled up from them all these times, that it didn't seem fair to them to keep them in the dark anymore.

"You guys need to sit down for this." I gestured.

I took my sweet time in filling the water bottle and then took a big sip formulating the the best way to disclose my actual reasons. By the time I turned around to face them, they had taken the chairs and were looking at me like kindergartner kids waiting for their teacher to tell them the ghost story the teacher had hyped about.

I heaved a sigh and took the stage, ready to start the story of my life.

"You guys know that my Dad is... was a racer, right?" I asked, clutching the water bottle in hand. "Well, he sort of had an accident two months ago and now the doctor says he may not be able to race anymore." I took a deep breath. "He's in a wheelchair and since he was the only source of income... so you know, I took up this job."

Mira gasped while Monica covered her mouth with the new information.

"Dad's manager was very kind, though." I continued. "He said he could train me in racing to earn more money in a short period of time. With my Dad's medical bills, I said yes."

"So you are a racer?" Mira's voice was barely audible.

"Aspiring to be." I smiled. "So, this training session is the one to blame for all my tiredness."

"I don't know what to say." Monica said, her eyes still wide, trying to take in all the information that I had poured on her. "Are you okay?"

It was one of the questions that I desperately wanted someone to ask me. Even when all those decisions were made for me, I had never once consulted. But now, when the question was directed towards me, I was not able to answer her in truth.

"Of course, I am." I beamed. 

"So the guy who was there waiting for you, for the previous week is from that field?" Monica asked.

"Yeah," I said, walking towards them. "He's my mentor."

"I think he is here now." Mira said, looking out the window. "Is that him? The one with the hood and dark goggles?"

I looked at the window and noticed that Robert had indeed come to see what I was about to. I wondered how he had known that I would be here at this time of the day.

"I can't believe that you are going to race." Mira said her eyes glistening. I understood her point of view, after all, she had lost her son in an accident.

"Oh, Mira." I said, hugging her. "Nothing is going to happen to me."

"I have some scared vermillion in the house." Mira said all of a sudden. "Wait, I'll get it. It is going to protect you from all evil."

I smiled at her motherly affection. "Get it then."

When Mira had gone upstairs to get the powder, Monica walked to me. "Be careful out there, okay?" I nodded at her. Monica's vision alternated between the guy in the black hoodie and me. "It's one hell of a field. You cannot trust your own people there."

"I know." I said, agreeing with her completely. "I'll just speak with him and come."

Monica nodded, but kept a close gaze at my movements.

Robert, who always seemed immersed in his phone whenever he came to pick me up, was now alert and a small smile played on his lips.

"What makes you here?" I asked, crunching my eyes from the afternoon sun. He had worn his signature dress, what I called the pick-me-up outfit, since he usually wore the same thing when he came to the shop. "And how did you know that I was here?"

"You should be a police officer." He said, pocketing his phone. "You sure are good at observing."

"Learnt from the best." I beamed.

"Yeah, I'm a good coach." He said, making a small gesture to bow. "I think I should start asking for a raise now."

"Ha-ha." I rolled my eyes. "Very funny."

Robert put his hands behind my shoulder. "Anyway, ready? Where's your bag?"

"What makes you think, I'm coming with you?" I asked, glaring at him.

"Because I have a surprise for you." He smiled, pulling me to him.

I shuddered at the word surprise. It only made my life take a different route. I wondered what it was this time.