"I would rather die of passion than boredom."

~ Van Gogh

"You're such a pig," Jonah said with a mouthful of pizza from across the kitchen island.

I shot him a fake smile, "Look who's talking." I grabbed a slice of Margherita pizza, lowering it onto my mouth.

The greasy and cheesy mixture swirled around in my mouth as I gulped down bite after bite. After cleaning up the mess at Stacy's party yesterday, Jonah and I forced her to pay for our dinner, even though she wasn't home. We ordered from most expensive pizza place we could find as some form of revenge. Of course, pizza didn't make up for Stacy's actions but it was better than her pretending like nothing happened.

Emily had already downed one slice when she turned to Melaine, beaming, "I can't believe you're getting married."

"That makes two of us, babe." Melaine smiled delightfully.

Before devouring my next bite, I asked, "Have you decided when?"

"Andy said his parents would come to meet Dad to mutually decide a date. But, I mean, Jenna says a spring wedding should be doable," Melaine explained.

Melaine's mother had passed away during childbirth, so it was only her Dad and her. Fortunately, Jenna, Andy's mother, was an endearing counterpart. She was kind and headstrong, the kind of woman you aspire to be. Emily and I had always admired her charisma and elegance. Andy's father, Mr. Decker, was a wealthy businessman, who was as kind as his wife despite being a powerful man.

"Are you pregnant?" Jonah asked with a smirk, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"Jonah, what the hell?!" I threw a dirty kitchen cloth at him in disapproval.

Melaine chuckled, "No, I'm not."

"You don't have to be preggers to get married, Jonah." Emily rolled her eyes.

"Jonah, go!" I sang, pushing him out of the kitchen. "He's such a pain in the ass." I huffed.

"I heard that!" Jonah yelled from the living room.

"You were meant to!" I shot back earning chuckles from Emily and Melaine.

"When does your break end? I'm gonna miss you two sluts all over again," Melaine asked with a pout.

"Awh, we'll miss you more, Melon," I responded. "I think it ends mid-August." I snapped my fingers in front of Emily's face, pulling her out of her trance, "Right, Em?"

"Ugh, don't remind me." Emily groaned, "Leaving Dan as friends was hard enough, how am I supposed to survive without him now?"

I coughed teasingly, "Lovesick."

She rolled her eyes, "Oh, please. Don't get me started."

"Ahan? Started with what?" I challenged her.

"How lovesick you are," Emily smirked and I scoffed.

I scoffed. "Dude, I'm plain sick. First, he said nothing was going on between us. Then, the whole Jonah thing happened. I mean, last night we were about to..."

Emily gasped, "About to what? Oh, my God. I knew you were boning in the bathroom!"

I scrunched my face up to communicate a disgusted look, trying to tame the butterflies fluttering in my stomach.

"Woah, seriously? You two kissed?" Melaine asked.

I lowered my head between my arms, groaning, "No, we didn't kiss. Nothing happened." I looked back up, "The point is, there's just too many mixed signals, you know? I just don't know what to think."

"Maybe he's just trying to protect you," Melaine added.

"From what? Heartbreak?" I asked sarcastically.

"That Kiara chick maybe." Melaine shrugged.

I shook my head, "He said not to worry about her so I doubt that."

"Maybe he's married." Emily guessed.

"He isn't married," Melaine rolled her eyes.

"He could be gay," Emily added.

Melaine and I scowled at Emily who quickly put her hands up in surrender.

"Anyway, you haven't heard from psycho bitch Kiara again, have you?" Melaine asked.

I replied, "Gratefully, I haven't."

"I wonder what the hell Tobias is mixed up in," Emily commented.

"Yeah, I wonder..." Melaine repeated, behaving rather suspiciously.

Emily continued, "Truthfully, Dan isn't too fond of him. But recently, he's tolerating Tobias. I think for your sake, but, I mean, we both know Dan can't even fake it for too long so..."

"You're being sus, Mel," I noted, making Melaine anxious.

"Spill the beans." Emily insisted eagerly.

"Andy is so going to kill me." She shook her head before saying, "Do you know exactly how Tobias and Andy are related?"

"They're cousins?" I confirmed.

"Well, it's this whole complicated family tree. So, you know how Mr. Decker's mom, Andy's paternal grandmother, married twice, right? So, Mr. Decker and Tobias' dad are half brothers...they have the same mom but different fathers," Melaine explained, pausing to sip her drink.

She continued, "Apparently, Tobias' dad wasn't the nicest kid on the block, always really troubled, hated Mr. Decker's guts. Anyway, Tobias' dad knocked up this girl and bailed on her when he found out that she was pregnant. He disappeared after that and hasn't been in touch with any of them ever since."

"Woah," Emily mumbled under her breath.

I was too stunned to react.

"When Tobias was born, Jenna found out about it. She being the kind soul she is, insisted that Mr. Decker should help the baby and his mom." Melaine sighed.

"So, Andy's dad helped them?" Emily asked.

"He did." Melaine nodded. "Got them a small apartment, financed them, even paid for law school for Tobias. But apparently, Tobias never knew about Mr. Decker."

"Shit," I whispered.

"Yeah, his mom never told him. He found out a year after her death. Found some letters, bank accounts, and stuff. He dropped out of college, cut Mr. Decker off. Tobias went completely under the radar after that."

"I can't believe this," Emily said, astonished.

"A few weeks ago, Tobias resurfaced. He contacted Mr. Decker and Andy for some kind of help." She clapped her hands together, "So, yeah, that's why he's in town. As far as I know."

I barely knew anything about Tobias, but I knew one thing: he would never come knocking for help unless it was the last resort or unless he had ulterior motives.

----

I observed my surroundings as we descended the car, snaking past the multitude of people to reach the makeshift starting line at the beginning of the street. We ventured deep to locate the boys, ultimately finding them engrossed in a conversation. We climbed into the open bed of Dan's truck to separate from the crowd.

"You ready, babe?" Andy grinned, planting a passionate kiss on Melaine's lips.

"Hell yeah!" Melaine hollered wildly.

Shortly after everyone exchanged greetings, Dan expressed smugly, addressing Andy, "I'm gonna gas you so bad, Decker."

"You're racing?" Emily questioned him.

"It's not the first time, Em. You know I do from time to time." Dan shrugged, "Do you not want me to?" he asked genuinely, staring into her eyes.

"No, it's okay." Emily shook her head, "Just be careful."

"You sure?" Dan confirmed, Emily nodded before hugging him.

As my eyes traveled to observe the vast hoard, they began parting like the sea to reveal a familiar-looking Impala. It slithered through the tumultuous ocean, coming to a halt behind the starting line. Out came Tobias, with ruffled hair and a magnetic expression. He walked with confidence, his back straight and his features austere.

The darkness of the night sky was illuminated by the blinding lights which overlooked the setup. Andy, Melaine, and Dan left to assemble their cars at the starting line where at least seven other racers were parked. To get a more definitive look, I leaned against the roof of the truck. A skimpy-looking girl holding checkered flags waltzed into the middle of the street to initiate the race.

The racers revved their engines in anticipation, until she screamed into the microphone, "Ready. Steady. Go!" And just like that, the street race began.

A rip-roaring sensation blossomed within me as Andy zoomed down the street in his 2019 BMW Z4 while Dan steered a 2015 Nissan GT-R. Tobias, on the other hand, was testing the limits of his '67 Chevrolet Impala. It wasn't the smartest decision, given its make but I was curious to see what the outcome would be.

When the cars disappeared out of sight with Dan in the lead, I turned to Emily. "Dan's wrecking them."

Emily bit the inside of her cheek nervously knowing how competitive Dan was. When the truck shook, Emily and I turned to face Natalya, Eric's friend. She climbed into the back of the truck and began conversing with us. I was too disinterested so I let Emily entertain her.

In the middle of their conversation, I zoned back in when she said, "Do you girls know that Tobias guy?" She fanned herself, letting out a low whistle. "Damn, what I'd give to eat him up."

"Aren't you screwing Eric?" I scoffed in a bitchy way.

Emily forced a smile, her face holding a mixture of shock and pride. She cleared her throat before asking. "Wait, you're Eric's girlfriend?"

"Nah, I don't date, honey. We used to sleep together." She smirked, "But I've got eyes for someone else now."

"You mean, Tobias?" Emily confirmed.

"Can you blame me?" Natalya twirled her hair around her finger.

I let out a low whistle. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Well, that's too bad, honey." I shot her a fabricated smile and then pouted, leaning forward to whisper, "I heard he's gay."

Natalya's jaw hung open in shock, "Really? How do you know?"

I reassured her, "I have my sources."

"Won't hurt to try, though. Maybe he swings both ways--"

I zoned out when I spotted the cars from a distance, slowly coming into view. I stood straighter to watch. It seemed like Dan and Tobias were in the lead, both of them struggling to pull an inch further. As they throttled neck to neck, I couldn't help but secretly wish for Tobias to win. Besides, Emily was rooting for Dan, Tobias needed the support. Dan was slowly gaining speed on Tobias and the crowd was cheering him on.

Each fraction of every second played in slow motion before my anxious eyes. It was as if they replicated the agonizingly slow formation of droplets on a faulty tap, building over several hours, until finally caving into gravity's pull, cascading down the drain. I exhaled deeply as I released my lower lip from the grasp of my teeth, unaware of how intensely I had been gnawing at it. The atmosphere was intense, my throat becoming dry. I squinted my eyes to observe the scene. They charged towards the finish line like a pair of hostile bulls, volleying towards a red handkerchief, only in their case it was a red flag.

My ears instantly caught the groans emanating from Tobias' car, the tires were sparking, the engine was shaking and all of a sudden, his car started inching forward, equating with Dan. It was hard to tell who won, when both of them tore past the finish line, ripping the banner like a bullet piercing through flesh. When they screeched to a halt, smoke surrounding both their tires, the crowd bellowed in celebration as it turned out that Tobias was victorious.

Is there anything this man can't do?

Natalya's sudden ear-piercing shriek almost made my brain glitch. I cringed, mirroring Emily's expression. Natalya hopped out of the truck, bolting in Tobias' direction.

"Talk about being pathetic," I muttered, my blood boiling.

"Wow, you're so pulling a Ross right now. It's like Tobias is your sandwich and Natalya is about to eat it." Emily made a wisecrack.

"That doesn't even make sense." I deadpanned.

"Your face is all crazy like his," she imitated Ross' psychotic expression, "'my sandwich'," she mimicked him before cracking up and I rolled my eyes.

She didn't seem to stop there, "Wait for it, the best part is, Tobias, isn't even your sandwich..." She slowly stopped talking when she realized how deadly my glare was. She gulped before quickly adding, "...yet, he isn't your sandwich yet."

At that very second, Melaine announced, approaching the truck, "That was wild!" She grabbed Andy into a passionate kiss before saying, "You'll still get victory sex, baby, don't worry."

"I'm a winner every day, babe." Andy beamed.

Dan, however, was extremely silent and on edge. Without saying a word, he slammed his door while climbing into the driving seat. I winced instinctively. His features were clearly inflated with anger. Emily shot me a worried look before following him inside through the passenger seat. Swiftly, I jumped out of the cargo bed, landing beside Melaine.

"He'll be fine," Andy stated. "Come on, let's get out of here." Shadowing Andy and Melaine, I slithered through the masses.

The abrupt roaring of an engine snapped me out of my trance, my curious eyes traveled across the width of the car to witness the one and only, Tobias Anderson, leaning against his precious Impala with his arm propped on the edge of the roof.

"Congratulations are in order, bro." Andy shook Tobias' hand before pulling him into a man-hug.

Tobias replied with a smug expression on his face, which was new to me, "What'd I tell you, man."

His captivating eyes flickered towards me for a moment before he ran a hand over his jaw and averted his gaze. For a moment I was stunned, he looked so attractive with his bright amber eyes and arrogant stature. Amidst the frenzy of the crowd, a gentle smile crept onto my lips.

I inhaled a deep breath, biting my lower lip trying to build up the courage for what I was about to do. My palms grew sweaty as I nervously began my journey towards him, my footsteps painstakingly slow at first but picking up the pace with each calculated stride until I found myself nearly face to face with him.

----

Apples or Watermelons?

Please don't forget to vote, comment, and share if you enjoyed this chapter.

Love, Ari