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sensitively-taken · 2 years

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death valley — jay park

synopsis. death valley—the heart of southern Seoul’s street racing scene. it’s filled to the brim with drug dealings, murder, and very, very hot people. at least, that’s all what you’d thought, until you’d stumbled across the valley yourself one friday afternoon. that day, filled with anticipation and fear, a certain biker named Jay—and his trailing crew—taught you that death valley wasn’t as half bad as you’d initially thought.

pairing(s). biker/racer!park jongseong x gender-neutral!reader ft. enhypen, winter x karina (aespa), & taehyun (txt)!

genre(s). action, fluff, humour, romance, street racing au, (implied) uni au.

warnings. alcohol consumption, food consumption & mentions, illegal gambling, illegal/street racing, mentions of drugs, profanity, reader gets slightly inebriated but not quite drunk, and suggestive dialogue. rated PG 15.

word count. 19.5k (19505) ik this is scary but BEAR w me!!

taglist. @soobin-chois @hyuckworld @soobverse @svnoofy @my5colors please fill out this form (or send me an ask w your groups) to be added to my permanent taglist!!

listen to! spotify link OR death valley, fallout boy ⭑ roots, imagine dragons ⭑ back door, stray kids ⭑ jopping, superm ⭑ all in, stray kids ⭑ vroom vroom, charli xcx ⭑ zombie pop, DPR IAN ⭑ desire, ATEEZ (it sucks ik 😭 i’ll edit it as soon as i have time)

notes. ik this is late (by ONE day or u can simply reverse ur clocks 💆‍♀️💆‍♀️) but she’s a bit massive ngl 😭 don’t think dirty i didn’t even remember her being this long (i thought she was 15k MAX) but she’s a whole wopping 19.5k!!!! almost 20k!!! that’s insane! but don’t let the word count scare you 😭 i promise biker!jay is worth it kfsdkfjska and you will love him in this. just trust me!

other, more practical notes to include that pertain to the plot: 1. pls don’t do anything reader does in this fic i BEG 🙏🙏🙏reader is v head empty & has the power of Fanfiction & Main Character Syndrome on their side. pls do not attempt anything in this fic. stay away from strange men in leather in fact!

2. reader is heavily implied to be queer and easily attracted to different ppl 😭 so reader is gonna FLIRT (or at least try to)

3. i don’t condone heeseung’s behaviour AT ALL. he is despicable and downright evil. i just wanted to have a “Bad” character to balance things out.

and that’s it!! i’ve rambled too much & you probably want to get ahead to reading the fic so i won’t stop you! enjoy!! ♡♡ feedback & reblogs are welcome and appreciated!

I – Death Valley Bad

Death Valley was the heart and soul of southern Seoul’s racing scene.

Every Saturday night, there were two main races held there. One held for the bikers and the other held for the drivers. Usually, people attended the bikers’ race. It was cheaper to bet on a biker, there was less exhaust in the air to tire out everyone’s lungs, and its tracks were only a walking distance from the abandoned subway station—which just so happened to be the best hiding location in case the police caught wind of a night’s events. Those who managed to get past the fear of being arrested and crossed the kilometres to the racers’ track either never returned to the bikers’ track or came back but never spoke of what they’d seen. Also, the cars apparently carried cocaine, and the drivers would kill without a second thought if someone tried to steal some.

At least, that’s what you’d heard when you’d moved to Seoul.

Lee Heeseung, the cute little brunet who’d been showing you around your university, had made sure to let you know of the famous valley. His eyes had been wide, and he’d been making crazy hand gestures, but you’d still got the point.

Death Valley bad.

So, why on Earth were you in the infamous valley? That’s what you’d been wondering for the past couple of minutes, on a good ol’ Friday afternoon.

You fanned your face and tried to turn on your phone, only for it to remain blank. “Fuck.”

Of course, your phone had to turn off right when you found yourself in an unfamiliar and dangerous place. You didn’t know who was up there laughing right now, but you hoped your misery was worth something to them.

You slumped down against the walls of the abandoned subway and cried. Well, you didn’t exactly cry. But you did wallow in self-pity for the next ten minutes or so.

“Woe is me, for I am stuck in the middle of nowhere and the only people who can help me are probably criminals.” You finished off your tiny piece of monologue with a dramatic sigh, before wiping a fake tear from your cheek.

Then, you stared blankly at the graffitied wall across you and the gravity of your situation suddenly dawned on you. Sure, wallowing in self-pity and quoting long-dead poets was fun, but if you didn't do something quick, you didn’t know who–or what–you could encounter. It wasn’t a Saturday night—thank fuck—but the bikers and racers were probably tinkering away in their little workshops somewhere nearby and could happen upon you soon. If you didn’t want to become Death Valley Kebab, you would have to do something and you’d have to do it fast.

With a grim look on your face, you decided that something was going to have to be hitching a ride with one of the bikers. Yes, yes, they were criminals, but criminals were better than cannibals or whatever it was that had been scratching against random pieces of scrap at the other end of the tunnel.

Hoisting your bag on your shoulders, you took a deep breath in and took the first step out of the weird comfort of the subway. The air outside of the subway was less stale, the floor was a mixture of gravel and dirt, and you could practically hear the tumbleweeds rolling away in the distance. You could feel the sun beating down your back, and your throat dried up immediately. You were already regretting it. But, you were still in one piece and that was all that mattered.

“See, _____? That wasn’t so bad.”

With less fear in your system now, you continued your journey towards the bikers’ tracks. You had absolutely no idea if you were heading in the right direction or not, but you were hoping—and maybe even praying—that your body would find a way to sync up with nature, so you would magically stumble upon your destination.

Considering your luck, that was not what happened. Instead, your legs tired out quickly and your feet grew tired of walking across the terrain. It was just land out for miles, no matter what direction you looked in, so you slumped down and had a pity party again. This time, there was no fancy monologue or dramatic acting. It was just raw fear slowly filling up your heart, as you noticed the sun was starting to set.

“Oh, no.” Any hope in you withered at the sight of the sun dancing to the west. “No, no, no!”

You clasped your hands together and clamped your eyes shut. “Hey! Whoever the fuck is up there, or out there–I don’t care for the specificities right now–I am not your strongest soldier. If this is going to be 127 Hours: The Sequel, please just kill me now before a boulder rolls in and snaps half my arm off.”

A rolling tumbleweed was your only response.

A sigh escaped your lips and your shoulders drooped. “Well, I guess this is how I go—”

The roaring, unmistakable rev of a bike interrupted you, and you whipped your head around. Your eyes widened incredibly as you took in the sight in front of you. Bike was an understatement for the monster resting under a very hot rider; it was more of a superbike, or whatever a biker would call something that… scary. Its wheels were huge, and its black body glinted under the sun—grey steel complimenting it. There weren’t many details besides the blocky ’03 lining the second wheel, but its simplicity suited it. The bike in front of you was an absolute beauty.

And the biker? The biker was beauty transcended. He had short, auburn hair that framed the soft edges of his face, blurring them out to create a soft gleam over his face, while some other pieces of his hair curtained his face and smothered the piercing gaze of his dark brown eyes. His nose was long, sharp, and sloped; hooked at the very end to form a sharp curve just above his pouty lips. They formed two barely-noticeable, but adorable peaks, and his bottom lip rested softly against the shape of the top. The rest of his face was carved to the gods and his face was so smooth that you were almost sure he was made of glass. He raised one of his dark eyebrows and yelled, “Who are you and what are you doing out here?”

You swallowed and got to your feet in a daze. “Uh, I c-could ask you the same question.”

The hot biker got off his vehicle in one swift motion, and you nearly fainted from how much the action affected you. You took a step back, as he took two steps closer to you. He frowned at your response—eyes focused on your shoes—and took two more steps forward, prompting you to take two steps back. He repeated his movements, and you did too with a nervous smile on your face.

His gaze flickered between your feet and your eyes. “Am I scary? Jungwon’s always said I am, but I didn’t believe it till now.”

“Jungwon?”

“Oh.” The stranger took a step closer to you and scratched his chin in thought. “I’m guessing you’re not from around here.”

“Yeah, I just moved here for uni.” You nearly slapped your hand over your mouth the second the words left your mouth. It was almost like you were begging to get kidnapped, considering how you’d just told a criminal—a very hot one, but still a criminal—you’re unfamiliar with the area. Now, he was going to take the opportunity to kill you, harvest your organs, and probably sell them on the black market–and probably for a cheap price you were completely sure your organs were worth more than.

He didn’t do any of that. Instead, his eyes widened and a little smile formed on his lips. “Suwon National?”

You nodded rapidly, but then your eyes narrowed. “Wait a minute… how have I never seen you around campus before?”

He rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet, and the movement drew your eyes to his clothes. You’d always thought bikers wore all black leather—to show off their bikerness or whatever—but this biker wasn't dressed like that. He was wearing plain, regular blue jeans with a white tank and a huge, red bomber jacket. There weren’t any tattoos on him either—at least, none you can see—causing you to blink in surprise.

You realised you’d missed his response when he laughed lightly, and his eyes crinkled up into little crescents. Avoiding his gaze, you asked, “Sorry, what was that?”

“I’m taking a gap year.” He shifted on his feet and glanced at the watch on his wrist. “I should probably get going, but it was good to—”

“Wait! You can’t leave,” you paused, realising how that sounds, and continued with a softer tone, “I got lost out here, and I need a way to get back to the city. Is there any way you could give me a ride?”

His eyes were apologetic before he even said anything, and you got a sinking feeling in your stomach. “I’m so sorry, but I can’t. I’ve got some races tonight, so I need to get ready.”

Swallowing deeply, you casted your eyes to the ground and nodded slowly. Tears were pricking the corners of your eyes, as fear filled your heart. Out of the corner of your eye, you could spot the sky blending into an orange hue and the sun dipping deeper along the horizon. You had to bite your lower lip to stop yourself from full-on crying in front of the hot biker.

“But,” he scratched his chin in thought again and you whipped your head up, “I can drive you to the tracks, and after the races, someone can probably drive you home.”

“R-really?” You were sure you looked stupid, gazing at a random stranger with hopeful, glossy eyes. And, you probably shouldn’t have gotten any closer to the actual races of Death Valley. But, being stranded out in the middle of nowhere would do a number on anyone, and—as you’d said earlier—you were not the strongest soldier.

“Sure.” He smiled widely and gestured to his bike. “I mean, as long as you don’t mind squeezing up there with me. My bike isn’t built for two people; sorry about that.”

You shook your head, wiped your cheeks, and laughed with relief. “Thank you so much… Wait, what’s your name?”

“Sunoo.” He made his way back to his bike, gingerly helping you get on it. It’s much higher than it looked apparently. “Yours?”

You waited for him to settle into his seat in front of you before you wrapped your hands around his waist. He revved once, turned back to smile at you, and quirked an eyebrow. “_____.”

Sunoo studied your face for a moment. “Well, _____, I suggest you hang on tight. Crabbers’s built for speed.”

He turned back to the front, revved again, and then you were off. Your hands instinctively tightened around his waist at the sudden feeling of being pulled forward, and he laughed in response. At first, your eyes were squeezed shut—you reasoned that if you were going to die by falling off a bike, you’d rather not witness it—and all you could feel was the rush of the wind against your ears. Then, with soft encouragement from Sunoo, you opened your eyes.

The sun was almost set, and the sky was a beautiful mixture of oranges, reds, and yellows. The terrain and the sky melted into one colour, as Sunoo sped along the empty expanse. Coupled with the wind blowing in your ears, and the roar of the bike, the whole experience was completely different from anything you could’ve imagined. But, it wasn’t unwelcome. No, instead, it made your heart pound in a good way and made you want to throw up your arms and whoop and yell. Riding a bike was nothing like you’d expected it to be, but you found yourself looking forward to your next ride.

Maybe Death Valley wasn’t so bad.

II – A Whole New World

Death Valley may not have been bad, but it was certainly scary. More specifically, its inhabitants were.

Sunoo was leading you through Death Valley’s Garage, where some bikers were getting ready for some races, and your knees were already shaking. His bike, Crabbers, might’ve been a monster, but he was a little monster, compared to the absolute beasts the bikers were examining. Some had handles that looked like they’re made for giants, some wheels could’ve probably knocked you out with one roll, and there were more mods that you hadn’t even known could be added to motorcycles. It was, like a friendly Disney princess once said, a whole new world.

What scared you the most, though, was the bikers. Some of them rocked the stereotypical biker look you had of bikers in your head—leather jackets or vests, bare and chiselled chests or low-dipping tanks made to reveal cleavage, dark leather pants, combat boots, and tattoos everywhere. Some didn’t and had different tastes. Others had a mix of leather and boots, along with other elements you’d never thought bikers would wear—like a neon pink tank you’d spotted on a particularly smiley biker. But, what they all shared was varying degrees of intimidation on their faces. It could’ve been because you were in a new environment and you were scared, but you were almost certain they were all glaring at you.

“Why do you look so scared?”

You nearly jumped at the sound of Sunoo’s voice from right next to your ear. Shooting him a sharp glare, you responded, “I’m not scared.”

He moved his face from right beside yours and laughed. “You so are. You looked like you were about to faint when you saw Taehyun.”

“Taehyun?”

He jabbed a thumb in the direction of a muscular man in one of the corners of the garage. He was one of the people sporting the stereotypical biker attire—but a more extreme version of it. Taehyun was shirtless and had a pair of leather shorts on. There was a towel placed around his neck and his muscles bulged and shifted around, as he helped someone else with their bike. You had to avert your gaze to stop yourself from passing out right then and there.

Noticing your reaction, Sunoo smiled teasingly. “Taehyun’s one of our mechanics. He usually sticks to the cars, but both the racers and bikers are using these tracks for the races today since this isn’t a formal event.”

You nodded along to his every word but paused at the end. “Not a formal event? What’s this then?”

The smile on Sunoo’s face grew and his lips met the shell of your ear again. He whispered, “You’ll see.”

For a moment, you were undeniably flustered. The next, you slapped Sunoo’s chest and rolled your eyes, while putting a considerable distance between you two. You crossed your arms over your chest, the sound of his laughter loud and clear. “I’m here to find a ride home, not flirt. Behave, Mr. Kim!”

“Mr. Kim?” He raised an eyebrow, a slow smirk spreading on his lips. “I like that.”

You groaned. “You’re like an annoying little brother. Well—more like a friend’s little brother, who hits on you just because he’s starting to get a little attention.”

“I’m pretty sure I’m older than you, so the whole scenario cancels out. Also, that is extremely specific, and you don’t seem like the type of person who’s experienced that.”

“I don’t care if you’re older than—Wait a minute! I so have.”

Sunoo threw his head back in laughter, and you stopped and stared at him with the fiercest glare you could muster. You were determined to stay mildly annoyed at him, but his laughter was contagious and your lips started to twitch up into a smile. He may have been one of the most annoying people you’d ever met, but he was also one of the most endearingly annoying people you’ve met.

He sobered up from his laughter with a sigh and put on a tour guide voice, “Good evening, folks—well, folk. I’m Kim Sunwoo and I’ll be guiding you around the infamous Death Valley Garage. During this tour, you’ll be able to familiarise yourself with the bikes, the people who ride them, and some basic motorcycle terms. So, let’s—”

At that moment, your stomach growled loudly, and both you and Sunoo blinked at it for a few seconds. Then, you offered him a sheepish smile and he returned one of his own.

“I was getting a bit ahead of myself, wasn’t I?” Sunoo scratched the back of his head, while you shook your head profusely. “You’re probably starving after being out there for God knows how long.”

You shook your head again, with an embarrassed smile on your face, only for your stomach to growl again. Scowling, you spared your stomach a fierce glare, before looking up at Sunoo’s amused face. “My stomach’s a bit dramatic. I’m not that hungry… but it would be nice if I could eat something.”

He whispered, “Your stomach seems to take after you.”

“Sorry?” You levelled your glare in his direction.

“Nothing.” He threw his hands up in surrender at your gaze and pretended to busy himself with his watch. Then, he actually noticed the time and let out a horrified screech. “Oh, no! _____, I’m late again! Jake’s going to eat me.”

Right then, a vice grip latched onto his shoulder and you saw Sunoo visibly gulp.

The person behind him was a tall, lanky figure–so tall and lanky that you were almost convinced he was a phantom ghost. The all-white leather, which directly contrasted his long, dark hair, didn’t help with the image you had in your head at all. One of the only other things that stood out to you besides his hair was the mask that hid half of his face. It was a black, fabric one, with a blocky HOON printed on it, which you assumed was part of his name. There were also his eyes. His fierce eyes were enough to scare anyone. Right now, they were narrowed and focused on the back of Sunoo’s head, but you could still feel the full intensity of his gaze.

You gulped as well and mouthed a quiet ‘good luck.’

“Jake won’t eat you,” the person said, voice muffled by the mask, “but he definitely isn’t happy.”

Sunoo gulps again and turns around to face the scary man. “Sunghoon.”

“Sun—”

Before the man, Sunghoon, could even finish saying Sunoo’s name, your stomach growled again. This time, three pairs of eyes stared at it—two frantic ones and a confused one. You hoped and prayed with everything in you that the ground would open up and swallow you whole.

Sunoo, however, sighed with relief and pointed at your stomach accusingly. “Right, Sunghoon, I was just, I was just helping _____ out here and I lost track of time because of that ferocious beast.”

“What? You’re calling my stomach a ferocious beast? Have you not seen Crabbers?”

“Don’t bring Crabbers into—”

Sunghoon cleared his throat, and the two of you realised he was still right there and Sunoo was still very much in trouble. You took a step back from Sunoo, and he turned back to face Sunghoon.

The scary biker nodded in your direction. “It’s nice to meet you, _____. Good to see Sunoo finally has someone else to pester.”

“Excuse me?”

“But, I’m going to have to borrow him for a bit because he’s late.” He fixed Sunoo with a glare. “Again.”

You muffled a laugh when you heard something close to a whimper escape Sunoo’s mouth. “Of course, it’s no problem. I just need to know where I can get some food.”

The biker whipped his head around and stared at you with betrayal. He mouthed ‘traitor,’ and you just shrugged innocently in response.

There was a mischievous light in Sunghoon’s eyes, as he started steering Sunoo away from you. You couldn’t see it but you were almost sure there was a smirk on his face when he yelled, “Go to the shack at the other end of the garage. Tell the owner that our favourite cutie, Soonie, sent you to get a free meal!”

“Sunghoon!”

You couldn't hold back your laughter anymore, so you rushed off in the direction Sunghoon directed you in. Sunoo’s glare was burning holes through your back, but you blocked it out by skipping and humming to yourself. There was nothing but a door between you and your well-deserved meal, so it was easy for the biker’s dramatic huffs and puffs to fade into the background.

Death Valley’s inhabitants were scary, most definitely, but Sunoo was probably the least scary of them all.

III – Ms. Kim

Where Kim Sunwoo was lacking, his sister made up for it with ten times the quality.

You were sitting across from Kim Minjeong, “Winter,” and silently picking at the remains of the meal she’d served you. Seated under the shade of the shack, you’d tried not to shiver under her intense gaze—and if you did, you blamed it on the fans positioned close to you. Instead of returning her gaze, you focused on the structure around you.

True to its name, the shack was really just a shack. It was small, had no name adorned on it, and Winter was the only person manning it. There was a spacious, plastic counter separating you and her, and high chairs lined your side for customers—like yourself—to sit on. The inside of the shack was dimly lit, and you couldn’t see too much of what was on the other side, so all you could do was stare at the menu in front of you. It was either that or trembling like a baby in front of Sunoo’s sister, so you went with the former.

The brunette was quiet, serious, and very, very scary. Her personality was a polar opposite from the dramatic and whiny biker, and you couldn’t help but notice the differences between them. The only trait they seemed to share was their mischievousness, seeing as she’d had a good laugh for a couple of minutes when you’d given her Sunoo’s nickname.

“Are you scared of me?”

Your eyes widened at the sound of her question, and you whipped your head up from your plate. Your eyes widened even more when you realised her face was not too far from yours and there was a small smirk on her red lips. Clearing your throat, you shimmied a bit away from the counter. “N-no. Not at all, no.”

She picked up on your nerves and smiled a little. Moving around to prepare a drink with a name too long for you to remember, she said, “I’m not a scary person. Honestly, most of the people here aren’t. I get why you would think that—illegal racing doesn’t exactly have the best reputation—but just think of us as members of a little club.”

“A club? So, that means anyone can join?” You rested your chin on one of your hands.

“Yeah,” Winter mixed the drink in a strainer, “But, you can’t just say you want to race and get in. You have to try out first. Oh—and you have to get past Jake’s… radar, for the lack of a better word.”

At the sound of the name, your ears perked up. He was the same person Sunoo had said would eat him, and from what you’d heard of him, he didn’t sound like the nicest person ever. A tall, muscular biker with a harsh gaze appeared in your mind, and you shivered at the image of him you’ve conjured.

Winter noticed your response and laughed. “I’m assuming you’ve heard some other things about Jake.”

You nodded. “He sounds scary.”

“He’s not.” Winter snorted, pouring the drink she’s been mixing in a tall glass, and added a straw to it. She slid it over to you. “He’s just a bit strict about things and has a nasty temper.”

“Strict?” You tentatively swirled the drink around in its glass, admiring the way the sun’s ray compliments its yellow hue, before taking a sip. It was sweet, citrusy, and reminded you of the long stretch of the beach on a warm summer day. You could practically hear the waves crashing against the shore when you asked, “So, there are rules around this place?”

“Of course, there are. If they weren’t in place, half the people here would already be behind bars.” She smirked a little at your wide eyes. “What? You think these kids know how to keep themselves in check?”

“I mean, no,” you paused to take a sip, “but when I think of criminals I think of, like, the drug dealing, and murders, and, I don’t know, the big, bad criminal stuff. Not, rules.”

Winter bursted into laughter, eyes scrunched up and head thrown back. Calming down from her laughter, she wiped a tear from her eye and took a deep breath in. “You’re very funny, ____. I see why Sunoo likes you.”

“Thank you?” You finished off your drink with a loud sip and relaxed into your seat. You were already feeling fuzzy and warm, and the tension you’d felt when you first got here was ebbing away. Resting your chin on both hands now, you leaned in closer to Winter. “Y’know, I like you, Ms. Kim. Very straight and simple to the point.”

“Very straight and simple to the point?” She chuckled at your mistake, as you spluttered in embarrassment, and pushed a stray hair behind her ear. “That’s kinda ironic.”

“Hm? And why is—”

The rest of your question was cut off by the entrance of a woman. Judging from the helmet in the crook of her arm, and some of her stereotypical attire, she was a racer. She walked in with a pep in her step–her long, dark hair bouncing behind her with her movements–and somehow captivated your eye. You were about to ask Winter to introduce you to her—liquor made you bold apparently—when she leaned in and planted a kiss on the barista’s lips.

“Oh.” You averted your eyes from the two of them, giving them a bit of privacy, as Winter’s previous words sunk in. A laugh escaped your mouth. “It is kinda ironic.”

The racer pulled away from Winter at your words and extended a hand in your direction, a soft smile on her face. “Hi, I’m Karina.”

“_____.” Thrusting your hand into hers, you noticed how warm it was and the tight grip of her hand. She was the type of racer you’d imagined when Heeseung had first told you about Death Valley, so you giggled nervously and blurted out, “You don’t have coke in your car, right?”

Karina and Winter blinked at you blankly for a few seconds before they burst into laughter. You laughed along nervously until Heeseung’s wide eyes appeared in your mind, and you cleared your throat. As the two regained their composure, taking on more serious looks on their faces, the same tinge of fear you’d felt back in the garage resurfaced. You laughed again nervously.

“Yes, there are a good couple grams of the stuff in the trunk,” Karina deadpanned. “You want some?”

“N-No. I’d like to keep my head attached to the rest of my body, thank you very much.”

A pause followed, and then Karina let out a sharp, “What?”

“I think Heeseung might’ve gone a bit overboard with his mumbo jumbo.” It was supposed to be a whisper meant for Karina’s ears only, but you picked up on Winter’s words and barely held back a gasp. “_____’s been scared shitless this entire time, and that pesky man probably has something to do with that.”

The racer nodded and smiled reassuringly in your direction. “I was being sarcastic. Even if I wanted to do coke, Jake runs routine checks for hard drugs. We’re only allowed alcohol and weed.”

“Uh, huh.” You nodded along to her words but made a mental note to never get near any of the racers’ cars—just in case. “But, what’s this about Heeseung? How do you even know him?”

Karina and Winter exchanged glances, before Karina whispered something in Winter’s ear and slinked out of the back of the shack. Your eyes followed her as she left, and she turned back to give you one last smile. You were about to return it when Winter cleared her throat. She gave you a knowing look, and you smiled guiltily.

“Heeseung is uh… Well, it’d be best if he explained it himself.” Winter picked up your empty glass and disappeared into the dimly lit part of the shack. When she returned, she had a pair of keys in her hand and a smirk on her face. “He’ll be here in a couple of minutes, so I’ve got to get going. It was great meeting you, _____.”

“He’s here?” Your tone was incredulous, but you couldn’t help it. You two couldn’t be talking about the same Lee Heeseung who’d looked like he was about to wet his pants when he’d told you about Death Valley. From his franticness alone, you could’ve sworn he’d never be caught dead anywhere near this place. “What do you mean he’s here?”

Winter winked. “You’ll see.”

Then, she took off in the same direction as Karina, leaving you alone with your thoughts.

Lee Heeseung? Here? That didn’t make any sense. ‘Lee Heeseung at Death Valley’ was practically an oxymoron because everything Death Valley stood for was what Heeseung had warned you against. It wasn’t easy for you to just forget how wide and shaky his eyes had been, and the urgency that’d been in his voice. And, even if you somehow could, acknowledging what Winter had said would’ve made you focus on the thought that bothered you the most; if Heeseung was here, then what did that mean?

You shook your head. “She’s probably got the wrong Heeseung.”

The notion soothed you a bit and managed to quell the chaos in your mind, so you laid back and sighed. A quick nap, before meeting the totally-not-Lee-Heeseung Heeseung sounded very appetising to you, and your body seemed to agree as it didn’t take you long to fall asleep.

The last thing you thought of before you were deeply asleep was a completely ridiculous image of Lee Heeseung riding a motorcycle.

IV – Totally-Not-Lee-Heeseung Heeseung

Winter had not had the wrong Heeseung. Oh, but how you wish she had.

Standing in front of you, in the flesh, was Lee Heeseung. His ash brown hair was fully visible to you, as it wasn’t being hidden under a beanie for once, and was unruly styled. Multiple strands fell in front of his eyes and framed his face, adding an edge to his face that wasn’t there before. Instead of a comfy, matching set of a hoodie and sweatpants, he was wearing a pair of dark leather pants, a black dress shirt with enough buttons left undone to leave little to the imagination, and army boots that give him a little more height. He was trying to catch his breath, as beads of sweat ran down the side of his face, and all you could do was blink at him with your mouth hanging open.

Leaning back to wipe the sweat off his forehead, he let out a loud laugh and winked. “You should probably close your mouth. We wouldn’t want you to catch flies, now, would we, dear _____?”

“Shut up.” Your mouth was closed now, and you had the fiercest glare you could muster on your face instead. Getting up from your seat by the shack and stalking close to Heeseung, you crossed your arms over your chest with as much intimidation you could put into the action. “Lee Heeseung, you have less than five minutes to explain what the hell you’re doing here, before I dice you up into a little, Death Valley kebab.”

He smiled a little and raised his hands. “_____, I know you’re mad but—”

You snorted.

“Okay, more than mad but,” Heeseung scratched the back of his head, “well, it’s business.”

“Business?” You took a step closer, causing the brunet to take a step back. “What type of business makes you lie to people so that they think everyone at an illegal racing ring is going to kill them?”

“When you say it like that, it sounds horrible.”

You increased the intensity of your glare.

“Well, it is! But, it really is business.” He took a step back and raised his hands before you could get closer to him. “I’m Death Valley’s bookie and PR manager. A while ago, Jake decided I should use reverse psychology to recruit watchers and racers and well, it worked better than expected. Apparently, it’s in human nature to see how much shit we can get into without dying. I don’t know, something like that, but that’s what I understood from what he said. He talks a lot.”

Jake. That name seemed to keep popping up everywhere, only adding more details to the very scary image you had of the individual. At this point, you would do anything, if it meant you didn’t have to come across him at any point in time, because you’d prefer to go home in one piece with your heart and sanity intact.

Humming, you raised an eyebrow. “So, the whole innocent, scaredy-cat thing was an act? That was all to trick my puny, little human brain into coming here?”

He nodded, a cocky grin on his face. “Of course, _____. I’m a great actor, and there’s absolutely nothing in the world that can—”

“Oh, my—Heeseung, a spider’s crawling up your leg!”

Immediately, Heeseung screamed and jumped away from his spot, and you were barely able to hold back your laughter. He frantically checked where he’d been standing, cursing all spiders underneath his breath while he did, and finally sighed when he couldn't find anything at all. Then, his eyes widened, and he whipped his head up to you. He tried to hide it but there was a faint blush dusting his cheeks as he pointed an accusing finger at you.

“Hey! That’s—th-that’s…” he spotted the laugh you were trying to hide and flushed further, “that’s just an example of my acting skills! Mhm!”

“Totally, Hee. You deserve an Oscar for that performance. I’m honoured to have witnessed it,” you deadpanned. You clapped slowly, as Heeseung’s face just got redder and redder with embarrassment.

The flush in his cheeks cooled slightly, while he scratched the back of his neck. “Okay, I deserved that. And, more than that.”

Nodding, you ushered him to continue.

“And, well, I probably shouldn’t have gone overboard with the… the advertising, even if it was funny to see your gullible reaction.”

A sharp glare.

“But, that’s beside the point! I shouldn’t have lied about the coke and cops and everything else.” He was avoiding your eyes at this point, the only thing keeping him from bowing at a sharp ninety-degree angle being his last shred of pride.

Arms still crossed and face stoic, you took a few steps closer to him. You glared down at him in silence for a few moments, before you conceded. As much as you would’ve liked to remind him that you’d thought you were going to die—which may or may not have been avoided if you’d taken Heeseung’s words with even the tiniest speck of salt—you had to find a way out of the ‘Valley, and Heeseung was looking like a promising prospect.

You nodded. “I mean, I guess I forgive you.”

“You guess?” His eyes finally met yours, and they were wide with incredulity.

“Well, you see, Heeseung. Since someone subconsciously tricked me into getting lost out in the middle of nowhere, so conveniently close to illegal racing tracks and hours away from the city, I don’t have any way to get home!”

Heeseung’s eyes grew wider, and there was some guilt hiding behind his shock. “Oh.”

“Oh, indeed.”

A heavy silence fell between the two of you, as you processed the panic you’d felt bubbling up inside you the past couple hours and he… well, at least, seemed to appear deeply guilty for what had happened. It felt like the silence was going to stretch on for a couple more minutes when Heeseung perked up and made a loud noise of excitement. He closed the distance between you two and took a firm grip of your shoulders, a wide smile on his face. “_____, I think I’ve found the perfect solution to your problem.”

Instantly, your arms unfolded, and any sign of hostility fell from your face. “Really? Do you have a spare bike lying around somewhere that I can ride?”

“No,” he said flatly, with a disapproving parent look on his face, “Even if I did, I wouldn’t give it to you because one; I don’t want blood on my hands and two; I don’t want your blood on my hands because I feel like you would hold it over my head for the rest of my life.”

“True, true.” You stepped closer to him and raised an eyebrow. “Well?”

A slow smirk took over Heeseung’s lips, and you suddenly became very aware of the lack of space between you and him. As you stared into his eyes, you could feel some tension charging the air, and something within you stirred with excitement.

The brunet’s breath fanned over your lips as he whispered, “How do you feel about a bet?”

V – Niki’s Puppy

Death Valley was home to some of the most peculiar people you’ve ever met. There was Sunoo, who harboured a strange love for his vehicle, Heeseung, the PR manager with questionable morals, and the Jake figure who you hadn’t met yet—and never wanted to, if you wanted to go home in one piece. But, the two individuals in front of you had your brows furrowing narrower than they had the entire day and your jaw hanging fully open.

The first thing that caught your eye was the taller figure’s attire. He was wearing a leopard print dress shirt with a singular button undone, a plain pair of black leather jeans, and a huge, tan fur coat. His eyes were covered with a bulky pair of dark sunglasses, his fingers were adorned with colourful bejewelled rings, and his blonde hair was cropped and styled in a way that reminded you of a stereotypical mob boss. Along with his attire, there was an air around him that exuded dirty money, illegal dealings, and everything else that came with the two.

The second thing that caught your eye was the collar on the brunet behind him. It contrasted heavily against the rest of his plain outfit—a grey tank, standard blue jeans, and a basic pair of sneakers. The collar was pink, glittery, and signed with the words ‘Niki’s Puppy.’ The wearer seemed more than unhappy to wear it, but it was on him anyway—which was the main reason your eyebrows were digging creases in your forehead.

“Jungwon lost a bet again?”

Ripping your eyes away from the strange duo, you glanced at the bookie next to you with incredulously wide eyes. His face was relaxed, exasperated almost, like there wasn’t a literal mob boss and his… puppy standing in front of you.

You faced him, jabbing a thumb in their direction, and whisper-yelled, “Am I the only one who’s confused here? Or, is this some normal Death Valley occurrence?”

“Is this normal? No. But, it happens often enough for everyone around here to get used to it.” Heeseung gestured at the throng of people finding their seats along the gravel tracks.

Exactly like he’d said, no one was stopping to stare at the two with a slack jaw like you were, so you closed your mouth and cleared your throat. “But, but—how?”

“I am right here,” the Mob Boss said, and you could imagine him rolling his eyes behind his shades. “And, I am not a ‘this.’ I’m Nishimura Riki, aka Ni-ki, aka Death Valley's Designated Number One Biker–trademarked. But, you can call me nothing because I do not wish to be perceived by the likes of you.”

“The likes of me?” The creases in your forehead were now filled with a hint of offence, and the sound of Heeseung’s laughter didn't help. “What is that supposed to mean?”

He held up his hands and gazed at the multiple gems on them instead of responding, causing Heeseung’s laughter to continue. Even the apathetic ‘puppy’ behind him had a ghost of a grin on his lips that didn’t express much but still managed to rile you up a bit.

You crossed your arms over your chest. “Heeseung, why am I here in front of this—this phoney drug lord and his… pet?”

Niki let out a scoff, and a little chortle escaped the lips of the man behind him.

Sparing Heeseung a glance from the corner of your eye, you could tell he was trying to keep his laughter in at the sight of Niki’s obvious pout. The gesture soothed you a little, and you lowered the intensity of your glare. You didn't lower it completely, though—the Mob Boss’s insult had stung more than you’d like to admit.

The bookie extended a hand in your direction and the other in the duo’s direction. “_____, meet Niki and Jungwon. Niki and Jungwon, meet _____. These two will be your personal escorts for the night and will also check to see if you’re lying about the results of the bet or not.”

Right. The bet. You’d nearly forgotten about it, with all the chaos going on around you, but now the terms of the bet were clear as day in your mind. It was a simple bet—one that favoured you no matter the outcome. If you weren’t the least bit entertained by the first race that was about to start, Heeseung would have to leave early–missing the second and third race–to drive you home. If you were entertained, however, you'd have to wait for all three races to end for him to find a racer—yes, a car racer, the people you had promised yourself you’d stay away from—to get you home. Either way, you would end up with a favourable outcome, but you had an incredibly competitive spirit. And Niki, despite annoying you, was certainly adding fuel to the fire burning within you.

It was your turn to smirk, as Niki started complaining about the whole ordeal to Heeseung, but you tuned him out as you imagined your incredibly smug–and incredibly embarrassing–victory dance you were going to put on. The taste of victory was already on the tip of your tongue and nobody, not even Niki, could get in your way.

VI – Mr. Nishimura’s 43%

Correction: Niki couldn’t get in your way, but he certainly tried.

As Jungwon and Niki had led you to a set of bleachers close to the tracks, there’d been palpable tension in the air. Unlike the tension between you and Heeseung that’d been charged by some form of unidentifiable electricity, that tension had been charged by Niki’s sharp glare on your back. When you’d tripped on your way to the lowest bleacher, you’d been convinced it had something to do with the whiny Mob Boss and that was just a taste of what he had planned in store for you.

Were you scared he was going to kill you before the night ended? Yes, most definitely. But, were you a petty person with a strange need to prove people wrong? Also, yes.

So, instead of letting his glower and haughty attitude get to you, you decided to strike up a conversation with the two of them. You yelled, loud enough to be heard over the chatter and intermittent bike revs, “So, Heeseung mentioned a bet?”

Sitting on the bleacher right behind yours, you could hear Niki’s exasperated sigh. He still relented, probably because he didn’t mind the attention, and mumbled, “Jungwon bet that I would fail my Math CSAT with less than 40%.”

You held back a snort, barely. “So, you didn’t fail?”

“Nope!” His voice was cheery—finally clear of the previous contempt that had been there, but the irony wasn’t lost on you. The snort escaped. “I failed with a 43%.”

“So, let me just get this straight,” another snort, “Jungwon is wearing that collar because you failed your Math CSAT with 3% more than he bet?”

“Mhm. He also has to address me like I’m his boss!”

“And, is this a regular occurrence?”

“I mean, he doesn’t always bet on my test grades, but he always loses.” Niki laughed heartily, and his age shined through as he said, “That’s kinda lame, don’t you think?”

Before you could even respond, the subject himself interrupted you two with a harsh cough. “The race’s starting, Mr. Nishimura.”

The low rumble of several bikes revving at the same time drew your attention back to the tracks and, true to Jungwon’s word, the bikers were getting ready. The tracks held multiple lanes, and about a dozen racers were walking their monstrous bikes to the starting line. Of the dozen racers, you recognised Winter, who winked at you when you waved and yelled, and Sunghoon. They, along with the others, were gearing themselves up with their helmets and other safety wear, moments away from participating in the first illegal race you were ever going to witness.

The crowd was watching the bikers as well, hooting and cheering for different people. All their yells melted into one supportive chant that had your heart beating along to their tune, pumping adrenaline all the while. It was hard to breathe with all the exhaust in the air, and the lack of air conditioning had you sweating buckets, but you pushed all that to the back of your mind. The race was about to start and something was telling you it was going to be a life-changing event to witness.

Niki tapped your back, startling you out of the excitement building up inside you. You didn’t have to turn around to see the smirk on his face as he said, “Remember, _____, there’s a bet going on. Crack even the slightest smile, and you’re kissing victory away.”

You gulped slightly and took a few, deep breaths, preparing yourself for what might just be the hardest thing you’d ever do.

VII – Death Valley’s Ace

“Well?”

The race was over and, just as you’d thought, it’d been quite a life-changing experience. It’d started and finished in less than ten minutes, but it had felt longer as time stretched on with every turn of the wheels. Winter, Sunghoon, and one other biker had taken the lead the entire time, which had eventually turned into Winter and Sunghoon fighting toe to toe. Finally, Winter took home the winner’s title after an impressive acceleration past the finish line. The utter happiness that had stretched her lips as she’d embraced Karina resonated within you, but—being the competitive person you were—you’d kept all of that, and any other emotion, tucked deep down inside.

However, Niki had the eye of a hawk on you the entire time, and you weren’t sure if your stoic, disinterested acting had been enough to convince him.

So, here you stood, gaze bouncing between the student and the bookie, waiting for Niki’s judgement with bated breath.

Really, you were fine with either outcome, but the certain look on Heeseung’s face when you’d struck the bet and Niki’s jabs throughout the race had fuelled a determination to win that surprised you. Now, the intense feeling of all or nothing had your heart racing and your palms sweating. Could you survive if you didn’t win? Hypothetically, yes. But, then, everybody would have to suffer through your second rendition of Shakespeare and you didn’t think anyone wanted that.

You bit your lower lip, as Niki began to speak.

“_____ wins.”

For a moment, both you and Heeseung were frozen with shock, and then you blinked once, twice, and let out a big whoop. Next, you subjected Niki, Heeseung, Jungwon, and anyone within your vicinity to the horribly lame, but well deserved, victory dance you came up with earlier. While everyone cringed visibly, the fire in you was finally quenched and you could look forward to the rest of the races with less nerves.

At least, that’d what you thought, until Heeseung sighed and pulled out a ring of keys. “Well… I guess I’ve gotta drive you home now.”

You froze again, this time remembering all the terms of the bet. So caught up in your need to win, you’d forgotten that Heeseung would drive you home if you won. And, you had won, so that was what he was supposed to do. Except…

“Uhm, Heeseung.”

He hummed a response, avoiding your gaze by fanning himself with his hand.

“You don’t have to drive me home—well, at least not now.”

Heeseung fixed you with incredulous eyes, Niki’s gaze was obviously on you despite his tinted shades, while Jungwon laughed to himself. You realised, partly in horror, that he knew you’d beenacting all along. Naturally, you expected him to say anything, but he stayed quiet, watching Heeseung and Niki freak out beside him.

“But, you can’t!” Niki pointed at you, with a firm frown on his lips. ��A bet’s a bet, and you can’t break the rules. You won, unfortunately, so now Heeseung has to drive you home. That’s how bets work, _____, in case you weren’t aware.”

Heeseung recovered from his shock quick enough to say, “I mean, there weren’t any witnesses when we struck the bet, so… And it’s not like we shook on it or anything.”

The student shook his head in disapproval and muttered, “Typical Heeseung.”

“Oh, shut up,” Heeseung’s eyes widened with a realisation, and he was so excited he looked like he was about to explode, “This means I can finally hand Sunoo’s ass to him. Hell yeah!”

“Sunoo’s racing?”

His eyes widened once again with another realisation, one that caused him to whisper something in Jungwon’s ear and rush off in the direction of the garage. Niki’s look of disapproval followed him all the way there, while Jungwon gave a little wave.

You raised an eyebrow. “Where’s he going?”

For the second time that night, Jungwon spoke, but it was a low murmur of, “To get ready for the second race. And, to kick some ass.”

Niki frowned at Jungwon, probably because he broke one of the terms of their bet by speaking of his own volition, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he rested a hand on his hip and sighed tiredly, “The second race is just a bunch of losers trying to one-up each other. They do it all the time, even though there’s only ever been one winner.”

“One winner.” Behind Jungwon and Niki, most of the crowd was dispersing in the direction of the exit. The only people left were Karina, Winter, Taehyun, and some other mechanics. Most of them were either sitting on the bleachers and jeering some bikers on from the sides or conversing between themselves. Your gaze travelled back to the duo, asking distractedly, “And who may that be?”

“Park Jong—”

“Jay,” Jungwon said, cutting off Niki with a ghost of a smile hovering on his lips. His eyes remained focused on you, ignoring the irritated blond beside him. “Jay Park; Death Valley’s ace. He can bike, he can race, he can dance, he can sing—he can do it all. And, he does it all with a cheerful smile on his face and hearts in his eyes that rival the most lovestruck anime lead. Striking the hearts of everyone, he wins race after race and reminds bikers everywhere that, while he’s around, there will be no other ace. Why? Because the one true ace is Park Jongseong.”

You almost expected a drop-dead gorgeous man to walk in after that monologue with long, wavy hair flowing behind him and a heart-wrenching OST playing in the background. But no one walked up behind Jungwon, much to your dismay, and you spared his blank face a glance. “You would make a good news presenter. Or, an entertaining emcee. Ever considered a career in either?"

He nodded shortly and smiled a little, sneaking a glance in Niki’s direction. “I’m actually the emcee for tonight.”

“What? But, Jake said—”

Almost like someone up there enjoyed toying with Niki and his feelings, the roar of a loud bike interrupted him. Time slowed a bit, as the three of you threw a glance in the direction of the tracks and spotted the appearance of a new person. They were seated on a motorcycle that oddly resembled the one from Grease, with some modern twists on it. The body of a classic Honda CL77 had been heavily modified to accommodate larger-than-life tyres, high handles, and an engine with the roar of a lion—not to mention the other mods you weren’t sure were totally legal. The biker, themselves, was clearly out of breath, resting on the handles of the bike as they tried to somewhat catch their breath. Then, with a heavy inhale, they raised their head, flipped the visor of their helmet, and yelled, “Sorry I’m late! Lecture ran a bit long.”

Then, you blinked and it was like time was back to normal. Some of the other bikers approached the newcomer with large smiles on their faces, others waved, while you were standing next to Jungwon and Niki with wide eyes. The biker removed their helmet, revealing a short mane of dirty blond hair, and you swallowed visibly.

Your thumb shook a little, as you jabbed it in the biker’s direction. “Who is… who is that?”

Jungwon noticed your obvious… interest in the newcomer, but he didn’t comment on it. Instead, he cleared his throat and started, “Jay Park; Death Valley’s ace. He can bike, he can race—”

“We get it!” Niki flicked a strand of hair out of his line of sight, huffing, before crossing his arms over his chest. “Why don’t you just eat his entire boot, while you’re licking it, hmm?”

“Are you jealous?” Jungwon raised an eyebrow, face otherwise blank.

“No.” He shifted his weight onto his right foot, and you could imagine an eye roll behind his glasses. “I’m really not. I just think I should be the one you’re talking about like that since you lost the bet and all.”

The brunet smirked. “So, you’re jealous?”

“Oh, my—I am not jealous. I,” he faltered, realising how worked up he was getting and cleared his throat with a dismissal wave of his hand, “You should go get in the booth. Jay and Heeseung will be ready soon.”

Even though Jungwon snorted, he didn’t comment further on the topic. Instead, he swivelled in your direction and cocked his head. “Well? Time to bet.”

“I think _____’s too busy ogling Jay to think straight at this point.”

You smacked Niki’s chest lightly, mumbling a low, “Shut up.”

He stared at his chest, blinking for a few moments, before he threw his head back with a dramatic sigh. “What did I ever do to deserve—”

“For the following Death Valley race, meant to serve as a display of duelling egos, the lineup will be the same as always,” Jungwon says dryly, cutting off the blonde. He ignored Niki’s gasp and continued, deadpanning, “That lineup consists of Sim Jaeyun, Park Sunghoon, Kim Sunwoo, Lee Heeseung, and Park Jongseong. As a newcomer, you’re required to bet to watch an informal race. Otherwise, I’ll have to kick you off the premises.”

“Really?”

“No,” he cracked a grin, “But I’ll blindfold you so you can’t see anything.”

You laughed nervously, eyes flitting in Niki’s direction. “Is he joking or…? I have a feeling he’s not joking.”

Niki shrugged, and you took that as a sign to start considering the lineup.

Out of all the names he’d mentioned, there wasn’t one you didn’t recognise. First, there was the infamous Jake—the man you’d heard so many rumours about that you’d just assumed he was some scary figure. Because of that, you mentally crossed him off your list without a second thought. Next, there was Sunghoon. While the few words you’d exchanged with him had been pleasant, you’d noticed how a few of his mistakes in the previous race had cost him victory. So, with that in mind, you crossed him off your list as well.

That left you with Sunoo, Heeseung, and Jay. All three seemed promising enough to win, judging from what you knew. Riding with Sunoo had given you a taste of his skills, skills you were sure would improve in an actual racing setting. Heeseung, while you hadn’t had any experience with his biking skills, seemed to have a lot of knowledge on motorcycles and their ins and outs. That was definitely promising, among a list of extremely skilled bikers. And Jay’s reputation clearly preceded him, judging from the way the duo had talked about him.

You massaged your temples, groaning. “I don’t think I’ve ever had to make such a hard decision in my life. This is too much for me.”

“Well,” Jungwon tsked a little, “Time’s ticking.”

You spared the tracks a glance one more time. Jay wasn’t there anymore; he’d probably disappeared off into the garage to get ready for the race. But, Heeseung was back, laughing loudly and boisterously with some of the bikers you didn’t recognise. Closer to the bleachers, Sunoo was receiving what looked like a scolding from Winter and Karina, obvious due to the red tinge to his ears. He caught your eye, flushing further when he realised someone was watching, and you laughed quietly to yourself.

Finally, you looked back at Jungwon, with your mind made up. You fished out a wad of money, placed it in Jungwon’s outstretched hand, and leaned in. A name slipped past your lips, raising Jungwon’s brows a little, but he still nodded and accepted your money without a comment.

A whisper of a name was all that was needed to get your heart racing like it’d been earlier. But, this time, there was no crowd—at least, not much of one. It was just a select group of people, the tracks, and some bikers. Despite that, your heart was still beating, like it was getting ready to jump out of your chest, and you were smiling widely.

Despite your initial resistance to Death Valley, you’d found yourself anticipating your second race featuring none other than Death Valley’s ace himself.

VIII – WatchMojo’s Top 10 Romantic K-Drama Moments

Just a few minutes later, all the bikers were lined up at the starting line and ready for the second race of the night. From your seat on the highest bleacher, next to a grumbling Niki, you had a clear view of the array of motorcycles and their riders. However, the people weren’t the ones who’d piqued your interest, the vehicles were. They were loud—even the ones with a gentle purr instead of a roar—bulky, and scary, and you loved it.

You loved it so much, in fact, that you nearly missed Jungwon’s introduction.

“Welcome once again to Death Valley: Uncensored; a bimonthly race where five bikers with inflated egos drive motorcycles around to see whose ego will be ridiculously inflated for the night!” Jungwon’s sardonic voice came from the speakers surrounding the bleachers, startling you for a moment.

As two of the bikers, Sunoo and Heeseung, glared at the booth a few metres behind you, you remembered that he was speaking into a mic up there and not hovering around you. A deep breath you didn’t realise you’d been holding in slowly escaped you.

“As usual, this is MC Jungwon—here to add some commentary to the sound of tyres turning.”

The sound of a bike revving followed his statement.

“Thank you for that,” he remarked dryly, cleared his throat, and continued, “Without further ado, let’s get into the introductions now.”

There was a bit of a buzz from the audience at that—some slow clapping, hollers, and even cheers. And, of course, a giant whoop from you as well.

Niki visibly cringed and put a noticeable distance between you and him. He grimaced, muttering, “What did I do to ever deserve this?”

“Hey, I—“

“Starting from the edge closest to the audience, we have the man who puts the ‘death’ in Death Valley. He has a dark gaze to match the strict persona he tries—but fails—to put on. His skills are impressive but not as impressive as his students who’ve surpassed him. Yes, give it up for… Sim Jake!”

All night, whenever you’d heard of Jake, you had conjured up an image of a tall, intimidating figure with insane muscles that could snap you in half in a heartbeat. However, the smiley man who flipped up his helmet’s visor to jokingly glare in the direction of the booth was not like that at all. Yes, his leather vest did reveal frightening biceps, but he was more toned than muscular and just not scary. You couldn’t even remember how you had found him scary, as something inside you melted over his gummy smile.

As if she’d been reading your mind, Winter smirked knowingly from the bleacher below yours. You returned an embarrassed grin.

“To Jake’s left, we have Mr. Fast and Furious. Fast to describe his speed and furious to describe his mood. The only thing that can make Mr. Furious a little less furious are a pair of skates and… well that’s it. He rides his bike with the grace of a swan and I wouldn’t be surprised if he twirled atop it one day. It’s Death Valley’s favourite glider—Park Sunghoon!”

Sunghoon, clad in all-black leather and a flipped down helmet visor, flipped Jungwon off and you swore you heard some muffled giggles from the other bikers. When he moved in their direction, though, the giggles quickly died down. You muffled a laugh of your own.

“Moving on quickly, next up is Death Valley’s drama queen himself. With the looks of royalty, and the temperament to match, he parades around like a monarch. That is, until Crabbers’s involved. Then, he’s the humblest servant with more than enough patience to serve. Mhm, it’s none other than Kim Sunwoo!”

Sunoo didn’t take much offence to his introduction. Instead, he gave a stiff wave, similar to the ones the royals gave, and nodded gravely in all directions. He only paused his dramatic imitation of monarchs to give his bike a friendly pat. Winter and Karina snorted audibly at his actions, causing him to cough slightly in embarrassment.

“Thank you so much for that, Your Majesty.” A short pause followed, filled with the bikers’ laughter and probably an eye-roll from Jungwon. “Then, we have Lee Heeseung. Yes, the sly and shady businessman with shadier business practices. Is he hiding some of our earnings from us? Probably. Will we ever find out? Only time will tell! Only Lee Heeseung can leave us with this much suspense.”

You’d already concluded that Heeseung was a shameless man, but his somewhat proud reaction further confirmed that. He nodded in acknowledgement, two hands placed over his chest, and a sharp glint in his eyes. Flipping down his visor, he gestured for the non-existent applause and cheers to come to an end with dismissive waves of his hand.

“Finally, last but not least, Park Jongseong!”

A stifling silence followed Jungwon’s enthusiastic shout, as the biker rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“This is when you’re supposed to clap. Clap.”

A slow clap rose from the audience and some of the bikers, while Jay continued to make flustered movements.

Meanwhile, Jungwon seemed to be satisfied with the applause and continued. “The man I’m about to introduce is a very important person. Not only is he one of the best bikers in the ‘Valley, but he can race, cook, dance, and sing as well. Even with his many talents, he chose to race and decided to grace our presence here. We should always be grateful to him for choosing such a… such a wonderful place, among all the other options out there. Give a big round of applause for Park Jongseong!”

This time, the claps were louder and more enthusiastic and even a few whoops were heard—from someone you would forever vehemently deny was you. The biker looked like he’s about to melt from all the praise Jungwon gave him, but your smitten self thought every bit of it was well-deserved.

But, you didn’t have much time to dwell on Jay’s adorable mannerisms because Jungwon swiftly segued into the main section of the introduction.

“Now, that we’re well acquainted with all the racers, we can get on with the main event of the night—the races. In the first race, the five participants will bike around the usual, circular track three times. Then, the winner and the closest runner-ups will go head to head in a car race around the tracks five times. As usual, the prize for these races is nothing, except bragging rights.” A snort escaped the audience at that. “Anyways, the race will begin soon. Racers, get ready.”

Even though there weren’t any prizes, the bikers checked and double-checked their motorcycles one last time like the race determined whether they lived after this night. It almost seemed like it truly was a life or death situation, considering the tense atmosphere in the air. But, really, it was nothing more than a friendly race between a group of close friends, making their actions seem a bit dramatic. You couldn’t say much though; just a few moments ago you’d lied about your emotions just to win an inconsequential bet.

And, you weren’t complaining either. Their serious nature charged the air with a certain type of electricity that built up an increasing amount of anticipation in you. Your hands were sweating in the best way, your heart was beating faster, and you couldn’t rip your eyes off the five bikers lined up. Was it a life or death situation? No. But, was your heart pounding like it was? Certainly.

Everyone around you seemed to catch onto the shift in the atmosphere—even Niki, who’d been disinterested the entire time. He leaned forward on his knees, as the last couple of bikers got back onto their bikes, lips pursed in anticipation. As Heeseung finally got on his vehicle, a blanket of silence settled over the bleachers.

The bikers were ready for the race, and so were you.

“At the sound of the horn, the race starts.”

A couple of bikes revved, and you wiped your sweaty hands against your thighs.

“Ready?”

Subconsciously, you nodded in response, gripping your thighs tighter.

“Set.”

There weren’t many seconds left now, but there was still time for your heart to considerably race up. Your eyes never left the tracks—they couldn’t, the rough gravel had a vice grip on you. You were so focused on waiting for the blare of the horn that your body froze. The only part of you that wasn’t left paralysed in anticipation was your hands, which repeatedly clenched and unclenched in their spot on your thighs. Even breathing felt wrong in the few moments leading up to the loud blow of the horn. You were biting your lower lip, nibbling away at the skin there. Just any second now, any second now, any sec—

The horn went off.

It was a loud sound that reverberated from the speakers surrounding you, shocking you for a moment. Then, your eyes snapped away from the gravel to the bikers speeding off on the track.

You couldn’t tell who was in the lead and who was lagging behind. To you, it was just a blur of tyres, cool steel, and the night sky blending into one dark body. It was a beautiful sight, watching them race off into the night without a care in the world. Even from your seat on the bleachers, you could taste the humid air on your tongue and feel the wind tickling the tips of your ears.

Just as they disappeared from your sight, probably off to race a part of the track further away from you, Jungwon’s voice came through the speakers. “And now, unexpectedly, Heeseung is in the lead! There’s quite some distance between him and the person behind him, Sunoo. These two seem like the most promising prospects for grand winners for now, with no signs of someone catching up to them.”

Where you were, aside from Jungwon’s narration, it was quiet. You were clenching your thighs, and biting your lower lip, even though all you could see was the starry sky. There wasn’t even the roar of a bike or two to remind you of the presence of the bikes. Yet, somehow, it still felt so… loud. It was almost like you were on a bike yourself, with the gentle and constant hum of the engine blaring in your ears. The wind wasn’t blowing, not in the slightest, but you could imagine its harsh drag against you as you rode a motorcycle beside the bikers. You almost snorted aloud at your thoughts, considering how you’d gone from fearing Death Valley and all it meant to imagining yourself in a race of your own.

So immersed in your thoughts, Jungwon’s urgent voice shocked you when he spoke again. Not like the horn had, but enough for you to yelp and earn a look from Niki.

“Oh—Oh! It seems that just as Heeseung and Sunoo are approaching the end of their first lap, a third racer’s closing in on them. It’s—wait a minute,” a few rustles came through while you all kept your eyes peeled for any sign of the third person, “Oh, wow, who would’ve—Coming up in third place is Jay!”

Just as Jungwon yelled it, the three of them came into view once again. It was hard to tell who was in the lead, no matter how hard you kept your eyes peeled. All you knew was that it was a close tie between who started their second lap first, as all you saw was a blur of greys and blacks crossing the finish line.

“Wow, I don’t think it’s ever been this close,” Niki yelled over the noise of the motorcycles.

All he received from you was a low hum. You were busy trying your best to keep up with the three, even as they got further and further away. You couldn’t help losing sight of them when they blended into the night sky once again. As they did, the remaining two started their second lap, Jungwon commented on it, but you were too busy thinking about who would win the race to pay attention at that point.

Your money—a small amount of your money, but still your money—was resting on the shoulders of one of those three. Similar to before, it wouldn’t really harm you if you lost those few notes, but, your wallet and you would prefer it if you held onto them for a bit longer. You started nervously biting your lower lip, anticipating the start of the third and final lap.

“... The trio in the lead are approaching the starting line once again! As they start their final lap, the race will get incredibly intense. All eyes will be on them, thoughts filled with the obvious question: Who will win? Will it be Heeseung? Sunoo? Jay? Time will only tell when—Oh, here they come!”

With the three nearing the starting line, it got louder once again. The sound of the tyres turning against the gravel, the explosive engines running, and some cheers from the crowd were all accompaniments to the last lap between the three. The loud pounding of your heart and the blood rushing in your ears were also accompaniments, which you were honestly surprised no one else could hear.

Your eyes were darting around quickly, you were worrying away at your bottom lip, and they crossed the starting line once again. This time, different from the other times, their individual bikes were easier to distinguish. Or, perhaps, your eyes were adjusting to recognise them. Either way, you finally noticed Heeseung was lagging behind Sunoo and Jay—something you hadn’t seen coming. However, Sunoo and Jay remained toe to toe for the most part. You were sure Jungwon was giving commentary about what you were seeing right now, and adding clarification, but you couldn’t focus on that. It was just you, the bikes, and the tracks. Everything else faded into the background, as their bikes blended into the sky for the last time this night.

A tap from Niki broke you from your haze, although reluctantly. You raised an eyebrow in question, still peeking at the tracks from the corner of your eye.

“Who did you bet on?” The blonde stroked his chin dramatically, smirking. “You seem nervous.”

“I’m not nervous, I just,” a quick glance at the tracks, “I’m just really immersed in the race.”

He didn’t budge though. Instead, he singsonged, “_____’s going to lose a bet. _____’s going to be a loser.”

“Shut up, I—”

“You bet on Sunoo, right?” He pouted in mock pity, before grinning widely. “You should’ve bet on Jay, you loser. Everyone knows he always wins.”

“I…” You trailed off slowly, as time seemed to slow down for the second time this night.

Everything was as clear as day to you. The smooth curves of Sunoo’s bike, the grey steel on Jay’s, the ripples of the wind against their loose clothing, and the chequered line they were racing towards. One moment, it seemed like they were head to head, almost an equal tie. Then, with a loud rev that rivalled the volume of the blood rushing in your ears, Jay accelerated across the finish line first.

With loud clapping, whoops, and a standing ovation from the audience, time returned to normal. Sunoo crossed the finish line probably not a second later, and so did Heeseung not too long after. Jungwon was saying something from the speakers, but you couldn’t hear all of that. You were just staring at Jay—somewhat amazed and somewhat terrified—with wide eyes and a slack jaw. Almost like he felt your eyes on him, he moved his head in your direction, and you freaked out immediately. He might not have even been staring at you, but you still made an effort to calm yourself down just in case he was.

The sound of Niki gagging interrupted you. “Oh, my God. Get a fucking room, please. I’ve been subjected to enough suffering for one day, _____, don’t make it worse.”

“I wasn’t even doing anything,” you retorted, but your words were chewed. In your mind, you were still replaying the moment when Jay had turned in your direction and internally swooning over it. Your eyes widened as you realised Niki’s judgemental gaze was still on your obviously flustered state, and you coughed. “Is staring at someone a crime now?”

“Actually, yes. I’m not the smartest person on Earth, but even I know staring at someone like that can be grounds for harassment. At least… I think.” He shrugged. “I don’t know. Half our laws are fucked and the others aren’t even upheld properly.”

You nodded solemnly. “True.”

He nodded along with you, until he realised what he was doing and groaned. “Yes, but that’s not the point! Instead of staring at him like a creep, why don’t you go down there and congratulate him yourself?”

“Congratulate him?” Your eyes grew wide, whipping your head in Niki’s direction. “Uh, no, thank you. I’d rather admire his skills from here, a good distance away from him.”

“Why? Is it because you lost your money because you didn’t bet on him? And now you’re too embarrassed to face him?” There was a smug grin on his face and a teasing tone in his voice, and you’d never wanted to throttle someone more.

You smiled sweetly, clenching your teeth. “I didn’t lose my money. Actually, I—”

“_____!”

“Huh?” Your mouth worked faster than your brain, clearly, because you realised a second after your reply that the person who had called you was Jay himself. You stifled your gasp with a bite of your lower lip and settled for a short wave instead.

Niki giggled at your awkward movements, earning a slight smack from you. He groaned. “Hey, _____! You can’t hit me, I’m a minor.”

You snorted, turning in Niki’s direction, but you tried to hide it with a cough in case Jay was still looking. “That shit only works on Twitter, you idiot.”

Before he could respond with something, you felt a light tap on your back. For a few seconds, you were frozen, scared that Jay had somehow managed to creep up on you in a couple of seconds. Then, Niki, recognising your dilemma, told you it was Jungwon and you released a breath you hadn’t known you’d been holding in.

“Oh, my God, Jungwon,” you exhaled, turning around, “I was so scared you were Jay.”

“I’m not,” he deadpanned, “but it’s funny you mention Jay actually.”

With a smirk on your face, you raised your nose slightly in the air. “You’re here to give me my money back, right?”

He nodded, pulling out your notes from his jeans’ pocket, but there was a suspicious smile forming on his lips.

“What?”

“What do you mean ‘what?’” Jungwon feigned innocence, but the smile was still on his face.

You accepted your money with narrowed eyes. “There’s something else, isn’t there? Is there a catch? Hidden terms and conditions? That’s false advertising, you know? I can sue you with my… my three 5,000 won bills.”

His smile only grew wider, while he shrugged.

“No, you can’t just shrug like that! You have to tell me.”

“Well, since you practically begged to know, I’ll tell you.” He leaned in closer, cupping his hands around his mouth like he was telling you some sort of important secret. You leaned in as well, eyebrows furrowed. “Since Jay came late, no one bet on him except you. So, now, he’s convinced you’re a good luck charm and he wants you to ride with him for the final race. To secure his victory and all that.”

You paused. “Never mind, you didn’t have to tell me. I want to go back to before I knew that.”

Niki hummed. “So, that’s why Jay called you.”

“Yeah, I called you before that, but it’s like you have Jay tunnel vision or something.”

Niki giggled again, but you didn't smack him this time. Rather, you buried your head in your hands and slumped down into your seat. The scene was reminiscent of when you’d thought you were going to die in the abandoned subway and decided to have a meltdown before thinking of a way to get out of there. You could’ve laughed at the irony of how you’d come full circle in just a couple of hours, but you chose to mumble obscenities underneath your breath instead. It was way less productive, but much more cathartic and that was exactly what you needed.

However, Jungwon didn’t let you finish. He poked you halfway through and murmured, “You should probably look up, _____.”

“No,” your voice came off as a whine, but that was the least of your worries when your kinda-crush-but-not-really-because-you-only-met-him-a-few-minutes-ago wanted you to ride in his car with him, “I’m going to keep my face glued to my legs, and my ass glued to this bleacher for the rest of my life. Or, until the bleacher rusts and falls out from under me. I don’t know, whichever one comes first.”

“Uh, I think you should really look up. Like, now.”

“Mm-mm. I’m fine here.”

“_____, it’s—”

“_____, right? Is everything okay?”

That, specifically that voice, made you freeze. You’d only heard it twice before, from a distance and in a loud yell, but you could still recognise that deep timbre. Looking up into Jay’s dark eyes, filled with warmth and concern, confirmed your suspicions all at once.

Immediately, you unfroze—your eyes widened, your hands flailed, and you lost your balance on the bleacher.

Your stomach flipped and you squeezed your eyes shut, as you felt yourself falling backwards at a worrying speed. There was no railing to stop your fall, so it was just you hurtling towards the ground with your eyes closed.

That was, until a pair of toned arms wrapped around you, wrapping around your waist and supporting you from behind. Your eyes flew open, meeting Jay’s once again. You stifled a gasp.

The muscles of his arms were very apparent against you, tensing and flexing against the small of your back. His fingers, strained with the effort to keep you suspended midair, shifted across the tiny patch of skin that’d been exposed during your fall. He was pressed against you in other areas, body moulded to yours, as he kept moving his hold on you. You didn’t understand what he was doing—you were much more preoccupied with your near-death experience and now your drama-worthy rescue—until he murmured, “Grab my chest.”

Your brain short circuited.

You almost stammered out a confused question until your gaze finally left his eyes, and flickered down to the rest of his face. He was biting his lower lip furiously, jaw clenched and sweating buckets. Coupled with the way you could feel his arms shifting and tensing against you, you realised your weight was putting a strain on his arms. You almost felt embarrassed for it, and for being in this situation in the first place, but you also realised commenting on it wouldn’t help anything. Instead, you disregarded what he had said and looped your arms around his neck, pulling yourself close to him as you did.

Averting your eyes from his flushed face, you asked, “Is that better?”

He nodded, grunted, and muttered, “Brace yourself.”

In one huge movement, Jay tensed his arms against your back and pulled you forward. The change in position had you toppling again, this time forward, but he was ready. His arms never left your back, instead he used his hold on you to pull you against him. Slowly, his arms moved from low against your waist to circle you in a hug.

You felt his chest heaving against yours, probably from the effort he put into holding you up. But, he didn’t let you feel guilty for it at all, as he stepped back to stare earnestly into your eyes and asked, “Are you okay? Do you need anything? That could’ve been quite the fall.”

You were stunned, eyes still wide and shaky from the fall, and you couldn’t seem to muster any words.

But, of course, Niki always had something to say. Holding onto Jungwon, he pretended to throw up. “Jungwon, please, erase what I just had to witness from my eyes.”

“No can do.” The brunette shrugged off Niki’s hold from him, a grimace on his face. “I honestly wish I could though.”

“Uhm, hello?” You whipped your head in their direction, eyes narrowed. “Are we forgetting that I could’ve died back there?”

“You were not going to die, _____.” Niki rolled his eyes, gesturing towards the area behind the bleacher. “One, these bleachers aren’t that high off the ground. Two, there’s literal padding all around the ground in case people like you decide to lose their balance and re-enact a WatchMojo Top 10 Romantic K-Drama Moments.”

Jungwon nodded along to his words, while you spluttered quietly. The sentence you managed to put together was still somewhat disjointed, but it managed to get out properly and that was all that mattered. “Well, I-I, I thought I was going to die, so, same difference!”

“Not same difference, _____, it’s—”

Jay’s loud chuckle cut off Niki. The loud sound disrupted the two of you, eyes softening from their harsh glares at each other at the sight of the smile on his face. Instantly, you couldn’t even remember what you’d been arguing about with Niki, instead, his wide smile and scrunched-up eyes were all that were on your mind. A fond smile pulled at your lips, one you tried to smother, but failed.

Jungwon noticed it and snorted lightly. He mumbled, “So down bad that you’re playing limbo with the devil at this point.”

“Hm? I didn’t get that.” Jay’s eyes grew wide with confusion, and his expression had the same effect on you as the last one.

This time, you were more careful and hid your upturned lips, simultaneously clearing your throat. “An… inside joke.”

The look on Jungwon’s face said he was considering telling Jay the truth, but he just shook his head to himself and sighed instead. His gaze moved from you to Jay with an arched eyebrow. “Well, Jay? You came here for a reason, right?”

“Oh—right,” Jay somewhat sobered up from his laughter but there was still a soft smile on his face as he focused on you, “_____, I’m really thankful you bet on me. Honestly, I was kinda bummed out earlier cause I thought there’d be no one betting for me. So, thank you for that.”

His eyes were sparkling—with earnest, pure gratefulness—but, to you, stars were swirling in his eyes. They were plentiful and bright, shining brighter than any full moon could. You were sure you could’ve even connected the stars to form constellation upon constellation. His eyes, bright and starry, had quickly become your favourite feature of his, making it hard for you to avert yours before he caught onto your obvious fondness of him.

But, you managed and chewed out a soft, “Yeah, it’s no problem. I was actually trying to save my money, and you seemed like the best bet, so… yeah, I bet on you.”

“Well, I’m glad I could help, _____. Feel free to bet on me anytime! I can’t promise I’ll always win, but I can promise I’ll do better, knowing you bet on me.” He ended off with a flirty wink and a little bout of laughter, and you were sure you were about to melt into a puddle right there and then.

Niki groaned. “Oh, my God, please, for the love of God and everything good, get a room before I get one for you!”

“We’re not—”

“Sure.” Jay sneaked a sly glance your way, something shy of a bashful smirk on his lips. “I just need _____’s permission first. I can’t exactly whisk someone off into my car without warning, now, can I?”

Oh, right.

Just moments ago, Jungwon had told you why Jay had wanted to talk to you in the first place, but the entire nearly-dying thing and Jay’s arms around you and Jay’s eyes—Jay’s eyes—had managed to infiltrate your mind, pushing the memory of it away. But, now, you remembered. Jay, the very pretty man in front of you with stars in his eyes, wanted you, the average uni student with no filter who had mini-meltdowns at any minor inconvenience, to ride in his car with him because he believed you were good luck.

You literally couldn’t believe it.

Sensing your hesitation, Jay raised his hands up and clarified what he said. “I mean, not for anything weird or something like that! I’d just, if you’d be comfortable with it, like someone else in my car with me when I race. Kinda like a good luck charm, y’know? Only if you’re comfortable though.”

“I…” You trailed off, considering your options. On one hand, you could say no and go home with your heart intact. You’d never thought of yourself as a hopeless romantic or someone who believed in love at first sight, but if you stayed close to Jay for any longer, you would have to reconsider your perspective on love. Then, on the other hand, you could ride with Jay in a race and potentially have the experience of a lifetime.

You were about to make your decision when Niki let out a loud scoff. “_____’s going. No protesting, you’re going to thank me later. Both of you.”

“I was going to say yes, anyway,” you replied with a roll of your eyes, but there wasn’t much effort put into it.

Jay smiled, a sight you were getting used to seeing but somehow still couldn’t get enough of. “Really?”

“Yeah.” You returned a smile of your own, then cleared your throat and put on your best telemarketer voice. “For the small price of a million won, you can consider me your own lucky charm for the night. But, since you asked so nicely and you have a nice smile, I’ve decided to give you a full-price discount.”

“Well, lucky charm,” Jay extended his leather jacket-clad elbow to you with a crooked grin, mimicking a posh British voice, “I think it’d be best if you were introduced to our ride of the night, now, wouldn’t it?”

You locked elbows with him, a smile growing on your face. “Yes, I think that’d be best, Mr. Park.”

“Mr. Park?” He arched an eyebrow, leaning into your face. “Please, call me Jay.”

“And, you can call me—”

“Dead,” Niki grit through clenched teeth. “At least, that’s what you two will be if I have to watch this for any longer.”

Without another warning from Niki, elbows intertwined, you and Jay scurried off towards Death Valley’s Garage. A third race was waiting for Jay, ready to determine whether he would go home with the title of the grand winner or not, and you were more than ready for it as well.

IX – Expensive and Illegal

From all you’d seen of him, you had expected Park Jonseong to be a cocky biker with an ego larger than life, but he was nothing like that at all. You hadn’t been talking to him for long—the distance between the tracks and the car section of the Death Valley Garage wasn’t much—but you were already learning more about him. He was a second-year business management major at Suwon National as well, who had moved from Washington, USA for university. One thing had led to another and here he was now, the ace of a decently popular illegal biking ring. His softer, mellower personality—at least, compared to everyone else you’d met so far—was the complete contrast of what anyone would picture from that description, but somehow it fit him. The only part of his personality that fit the cocky biker image you had of him in your head was his tendency to crack flirty, but still bashfully ‘Jay’ jokes.

And that was all he was doing now. He was leading you through a separate part of Death Valley Garage, lined with cars you weren’t sure were legal, and cracking jokes all the while. Most of them were lame and cornier than anything, but seeing him smile was something you found yourself enjoying more and more.

Jay smiled particularly wide as he made his way to a sleek, grey car with a smooth and modern design. He patted the hood of the car gently, a fond look in his eyes, before looking back up at you. “Here’s our ride for the night.”

“Wow, it looks…” you trailed off, fully taking in the car.

It looked brand new and spotless, the top coat of paint still fresh and untouched by anything. The moon’s rays reflected off the shiny, glossy grey covering most of the car’s body, complimenting its cool hue. From where you were standing, you could see a few details Jay had probably added—a thin, black line tracing the edges of the car, a custom-made licence plate printed with his name, and a tiny print of something you couldn’t see along the inner border of the hood.

It screamed many things at you, but it mainly screamed two things. You spared Jay a glance. “It looks expensive and illegal.”

He laughed. “Yeah, it is—well, it was legal before I got it modded. It’s a newer model too, so it wasn’t easy getting my hands on it.”

Your eyes widened, as you whistled underneath your breath. “A newer model? You must be fucking loaded if you can afford this. How much does racing pay?”

“Actually, I got it from a race. Everyone bet their cars instead of money, and I won so now this baby’s mine.” He pulled out his key, pressing a button to unlock the car, which replied with a smooth beep. “I don’t think I ever raced as hard as I did that day. I mean, this is a 2021 edition of a Genesis G70 we’re talking about. The horsepower on this thing alone is insane, and…”

The rest of Jay’s words went in one ear and out the other. You didn’t mean to blank out, you were genuinely trying to pay attention to his words, but the terms he was using weren’t words you were used to at all. Instead of actually taking in his words, you nodded along to his words now and then, staring at his lips.

He paused, snapping you out of your daze. As you realised he’d caught onto your staring, a smug smirk stretched his lips. “Are you even listening to me?”

Suddenly, the floor was very interesting to look at, and you studied the skid marks on the concrete floor instead of Jay’s face. You mumbled, “No, but if it’s any consolation, you’re really pretty.”

“Hm, what was that?”

You considered repeating the words to him, but the faint sound of running engines and chatter reminded you of where you were. You shook your head and gestured for Jay to get into the car. “Ah, never mind. You have a race to get to, remember?”

Opening the driver’s door, he corrected you with a soft smile. “We have a race to get to. You’re my good luck charm, don’t forget that.”

A smile was itching to break out on your lips at that, but you resisted the urge and ducked into the passenger’s seat of the car instead.

Eyes widening, you marvelled immediately at the interior. Just like the exterior, it was mainly made of cool tones. Cream leather covered the seats, and even parts of the gears, complimenting the all-black controls in front of you. The same modern look the outside carried was maintained throughout the inside; the main touch-screen monitor and seamless buttons were just two, among many, of the gadgets the car held.

While you were admiring the interior, Jay slipped into the car, and you couldn’t help but think the design complimented him. His simple, yet effective outfit made of a plain, white tank, dark leather pants, and a dark leather jacket contrasted well against the car’s cream seats. And, then, his dark hair tinged with gold highlights complemented the touches of grey on the controls. He looked like he was in his element–he was in his element–checking and double-checking the height and position of his chair like it was something he’d been doing since he was born.

You wouldn’t be surprised if he had been doing this since he was born.

With a final adjustment of his chair, he buckled in and started the car with a simple press of a button. There wasn’t the roar you expected from a car this powerful, but the sound that followed was more of a soft hum. Along with it, the monitor came to life, a melodic tune playing as it did. A soft, robotic voice came from the monitor, causing a light smirk to lift Jay’s lips.

Finally, the car was ready, and it seemed like the racer was too.

Jay checked his seat adjustments one more time and shifted the gear into drive, keen eyes set on you. “Are you ready, lucky charm?”

The nickname sent a thrill down your spine, and you just wanted him to call you that over and over and over again. Instead of saying all of that though, you returned a smirk of your own, blood rushing in your ears. “Ready.”

X – Kisses and Starry Eyes

Your heart was beating faster than it had probably ever beat in your life, and you weren’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

You gnawed on your lower lip, shooting Jay frantic glances. “I know this is insane, considering you’re the one racing and all, but I feel like I’m going to pass out from how nervous I feel.”

“Don’t worry about it. The nerves are normal before your first race,” he said, laughed, and glanced out his window.

You two were at the tracks once again, sitting inches away from the starting line. On your left was Sunoo, sitting in a small but ferocious-looking black car. And, on your right was Heeseung, who’d gone above and beyond with a red Ferrari. From where you were sitting, you couldn’t see either of them but you could imagine the serious looks on their faces. That image and the already-fluctuated adrenaline in your bloodstream were setting your heart rate at a number you didn’t think any doctor would want to see.

It didn’t help that you kept imagining scenarios where Jay lost and blamed his loss on you. You knew he wouldn’t do that—at least, you hoped he wouldn’t and didn’t think he would from what you’d learned about him—but that didn’t stop the scenarios from playing over and over in your head.

Hands trembling, you chewed away at your lower lip furiously, until Jay placed his hand over yours. Your eyes left the track to look at him, meeting his soft, narrow eyes—those eyes with the stars and constellations in them. Eyes locked with his, you exhaled a deep breath you hadn’t even known you’d been holding in.

His thumb rubbed comforting circles over your hand. “Do you wanna get out of the car, _____? I don’t want to force you to stay if you don’t want to.”

You were shaking your head before he even finished. Inhaling deeply, you tried to focus on the sound of your slowing heartbeat, instead of all the chaos going on around you. “No, I’m good. I just, I think I just got a bit nervous for a second and freaked out. Let my thoughts run wild, that’s all.”

Jay’s eyes searched yours. “You’re sure?”

The previous nerves you’d felt were ebbing away quickly, adrenaline and excitement taking their place. You chalked them up to a brief moment of panic at the reality of the moment settling in. But, now that you’d acclimated to it, Sunoo and Heeseung’s presence wasn’t intimidating anymore but motivating. And, the scenarios of Jay losing only added to why you wanted him to win. Even though you were almost always worried or nervous when it came to your firsts in Death Valley—your first time in Death Valley Garage, your first time in the shack, your first, kinda, participation in a race—those feelings always gave way to growing anticipation that stirred up your stomach in the best way possible.

You squeezed his hand back and grinned. “Of course I’m sure. I mean, I almost died less than an hour ago, and, here I am, still breathing. If that didn’t knock me out, I don’t think a race will.”

“Good to know you’re fine.” He rolled his eyes, smiling softly.

“Yeah,” you murmured, gazing into his eyes.

They were soft and warm, filled with stars you could connect like the ones in the night sky. The brown pools of his eyes were deep, deep enough for you to want to fall into them and explore them for as long as he’d let you. He blinked, and his lashes met the apples of his cheeks in a way that suits his face perfectly. When he opened them again, he was still staring at you with so much warmth that you hadn’t known a person was capable of conveying through their eyes—until now.

God, you really loved his eyes. And, you wished you could stare into them forever.

But, unfortunately, you couldn’t. A loud beep from Sunoo’s car startled you, drawing your eyes away from his.

Jay cleared his throat, looking outside the window, but you could still see a light flush had spread across his cheeks. It was adorable, and you were about to verbalise that when Jungwon began his commentary for the third and final race.

“Welcome back everybody to this evening’s race.” Even though his voice was muffled through the car, it was loud enough to distract you two from what had just happened. At least, somewhat. In the back of your mind, you could still see the stars in Jay’s eyes. “No fancy introductions or monologues are needed this time. We’ll just get right into it.”

You were about to clap, but a glance at your hands reminded you that Jay’s hand was on top of your left hand. His hand rendered you unable to clap, something you were not at all upset about. Smiling to yourself, you settled for a low whoop.

“As we all know, in an unexpected turn of events, Jay came first in the last race. Even though, technically, it wasn’t that unexpected since that’s what always happens, but—tangent.” Jungwon muttered something underneath his breath, before breezing on. “Anyways, Jay took first place, Sunoo took second, and Heeseung took third. So, now these three will race head to head around the track five times in their cars.”

Along with your tiny whoops, the yells of the audience followed, which Jungwon didn’t let last for too long.

“Are all the racers ready?”

Sunoo beeped enthusiastically and Heeseung did as well, but Jay faltered for a moment.

He glanced at you, before looking at his hand on yours. With a low ‘oh’, you were going to remove your hand from under his, but he intertwined his fingers with yours and raised your hands.

You raised a curious brow. “What are you—“

Jay cut you off with a chaste kiss on the back of your hand, eyes focused on you the entire time. He gave you a soft smile. “For good luck, _____.”

He dropped your hand gently back in your lap afterwards, but you could still feel his lips on your skin. Even as he placed both hands on the wheel and beeped, the touch of his lips lingered on the back of your hand. You could only watch him sober up for the race with wide eyes, speechless and incredibly flustered because of his actions, while the moment replayed in your head over and over.

You couldn’t even fully process what had happened because Jungwon sped on by at the sound of Jay’s beep.

“Everybody, get ready. At the sound of the horn, we go.”

You spared Jay a glance, mind still reeling from the kiss. His jaw was tense and his eyes were focused on the tracks ahead of him. If he was nervous, you couldn’t tell because he spent the few moments before the horn checking and double-checking the stats the car was giving him. The only sign he may have been feeling a bit nervous was his tightened grip around the wheel, but it could’ve also been him remaining prepared for the fateful sound of the horn.

You, too, in a way, prepared yourself for that horn. If you hadn’t been sure before that kiss, you were sure as hell now. You liked Jay. In what capacity and to what extent, you didn't know yet. But, you were more than willing to take that journey with him to find out.

“Ready?”

That was, after he won this race.

“Set.”

Out of the corner of your eye, you spotted Jay relax his foot against the accelerator, earning a gentle hum from the car. The hum built up into a purr, as his foot pressed harder against the pedal, but not hard enough to set it into motion. No, his foot remained relaxed against the accelerator, ready to race off into the night.

And, then, the horn went off, and so did the two of you with the sound of the car’s roar in the background.

Fast.

That was all you could think at first, as the barren land around you blended into one big blur. The moon chased the two of you, quick on your heels but it just wasn’t fast enough. Jay’s foot never left the accelerator, never giving the car the chance to slow down. It was just fast, fast, fast, fast, fast, faster.

You couldn’t keep up with all the motion all around you, so you closed your eyes instead and savoured everything else going on.

With your eyes closed, you could focus more on what you heard and all you could hear was the sound of the engine getting louder and louder. It wasn’t just a roar, now, but a howl and an ear-deafening one at that too. Occasionally, the sound of the wheels turning against the gravel reached your ears, or the sound of either Sunoo’s car or Heeseung’s accelerating cut through to you. But, it was mostly just the engine filling your ears—loud, explosive, roaring, and thrilling. The car was loud, so loud that you couldn’t even hear yourself think, but it riled you up in a way you never thought it would.

You were tempted to open your eyes again, to see how many laps you guys had completed, but the energy in the car was addicting in a way you couldn’t have predicted. On Sunoo’s bike, the thrill it had given you was more apparent—with the blows of the wind or the revs that had vibrated throughout your entire body. But, with the car, though it was more subtle, you could almost feel the hum pulsating through it. That hum sent a different, but pleasant vibration through your body, almost like the car was channelling its energy through you. The energy was almost too much for you to handle, running from your heads to your toes.

You couldn’t handle it anymore. Throwing your hands up, you screamed and shouted absolutely anything and everything that came to your mind. Jay was probably staring at you like you were crazy, but you didn’t care—at least not that much. This, this, was the true meaning of living in the moment, you realised, so happy and full of joy.

A laugh fell from your lips, and you opened your eyes once again when Jay joined in. It was like that moment before, when you had got lost in his eyes, but this time the space between you two was charged with so much electricity and your combined laughter was flooding your ears. You were glad he couldn’t lock eyes with you this time, his gaze flickering between your wide smile and the road, or else you would’ve probably combusted from just how much you were feeling right now.

There wasn’t much on your mind besides the roar of the car, the energy vibrating through you, and Jay’s laughter, but the only coherent thought you could think was that you wanted this to go on and on and on and on.

And then it was over.

With a last press on the accelerator, Jay crossed the finish line and you were brought back to your present reality.

The audience was yelling, Jungwon was announcing Jay as the winner, and he was smiling widely at you. You realised your heart was beating fast, so incredibly fast, as you smiled back at him—overwhelmed by all the emotions you were feeling. You wanted to pull him into a hug, scream, do anything, but you just sat there, wide-eyed and smiling like an idiot.

He closed nearly all the distance between your faces, hands cupping your cheeks and wide smile never faltering. “Can I kiss you?”

Instead of responding with words, you closed the rest of the distance and planted your lips on his. There was a messy clash at first, of lips and teeth and tongue, but then your hands found his neck and his found yours, as your lips moulded together. Your mouths moved against each other quickly, but somehow gently, like what was happening between you two was sacred. To you, it felt like it was when you pulled back from him, panting heavily but smiling widely.

It was the end of the first race you’d ever been a part of and you knew one thing for sure; the thrill that racing gave you was indescribable and incomparable to anything else—except, for, of course, Park Jongseong.

Epilogue — The Kiss

What happened after the race was all a blur, as your mind was filled with ‘Jay, Jay, Jay, woah, that was a cool race, Jay, Jay.’ The man, himself, breezed through congratulations with a wide smile on his face and a hand wrapped around your waist. He never took all of the credit, even though he did all of the driving, and always responded with a humble, “It was just my lucky charm.”

More than a couple people picked up on the shift between you two—Jungwon gave you a thumbs up, Heeseung winked, and Niki huffed a quiet, “I told you you’d thank me,”—but neither of you brought up the quick kiss that had happened in the car. There were more important things to focus on like bragging about how good of a driver Jay was since he wouldn’t do it himself.

That didn’t mean you weren’t thinking about the kiss–certainly not. Throughout the rest of the night, which wasn’t all that long, your mind strayed to it every now and then. When everyone moved over to the shack for drinks, that Jay humbly declined, you thought about the kiss. When you drank a bit too much, and the drinks encouraged you to get a little bolder with your attempts at flirting with Jay, you were thinking about what you had to do to get his lips back on yours. Even now, half-asleep in the passenger seat of another one of his cars you were mumbling to yourself about kissing Jay. In the back of your head, you were glad he was too busy talking to Sunoo to hear the embarrassing retelling of your kiss.

“Here’s _____’s dorm number,” was what Sunoo said, and you could hear the sound of rustling from beside the car.

“And, how do you have this?”

Sunoo scoffed jokingly. “You’re not the only person who’s talked to _____, y’know. We’re actually best friends if you didn’t know. And as _____’s best friend, it’s my duty to threaten to beat you up if you do anything funny. Got it?”

“Wow, such good friends, but you found _____’s address through a random sticky note.” Jay laughed, and then there was more rustling that you assumed was him taking the note from your bag you had left with Sunoo earlier.

“Shut up,” he laughed as well, but there was a hint of embarrassment in his voice. “Just get going already. You and _____ probably have papers to write, or whatever you uni people are doing these days.”

Jay snorted. “That’s going to be you next year, you know? It’s just a year of freedom before you’re shackled by due dates again.”

Sunoo made a weird noise, one that resembled a shiver but not quite. “Please, do not remind me. I’m avoiding hell personified for as long as I can, and I don’t need you reminding me of what I barely escaped.”

“Right, right.”

A yawn followed Jay's reply, some shuffling, and murmured words you couldn't hear. Then, he slipped into the car beside your sleepy form with a loud slam of the car door. Jay adjusted your head from its cramped position and to a more comfortable one, humming underneath his breath while he did. As he did, his breath fanned against your neck, eliciting a soft shiver from you, and he paused.

“_____, you’re awake?”

You didn’t reply, just sluggishly moved your head in what was supposed to be a nod, but probably didn’t come across as one.

“Oh.” You could tell he was embarrassed from the shy laughter that followed, something you found adorable, but he tried his best to cover it with a cough. “Sorry, I was just adjusting your head, so you wouldn’t wake up with all sorts of kinks in your neck.”

Again, you made your weird nodding motion and received a relaxed sigh from Jay in return.

You were almost asleep now, barely paying attention to what was going on around you. The most you registered was Jay clicking his seatbelt into place, turning the car on, and setting out on the road. Besides that, you were pretty much asleep and snoring away. The slight rocks of the car only lulled you further to sleep, making it harder for you to stay awake—not that you were fighting it. Before you’d even realised it, you’d drifted off to sleep with images of the race and the kiss on your mind.

When you opened your eyes again for a brief moment, you weren’t sure where you were. Judging from all the street lights around you, you weren’t at your uni’s dorms yet, but you were back in the city, which was good. You squinted at the sight of Jay in the seat next to you. He was driving with one hand on the wheel, and the other was playing with the radio to find a good song to listen to. Your eyes drifted closed again, just as he finally settled on a song and began to sing along to it with his deep register.

The next time you opened your eyes, you and Jay were parked in front of your dorm’s complex. His hand was on your shoulders, trying to gently shake you awake since he hadn’t noticed you’d woken up, and his lips were right in your line of sight.

Voice heavy with sleep, you whispered, “I’m awake.”

He moved back, surprised and embarrassed like he’d been when he’d found out you’d been awake earlier back at Death Valley. His cheeks had a light flush to them, but he stayed quiet as you rubbed the sleep out of your eyes. It was only when you placed your hand on the door that he said something, but his words were rushed. “I can help you back to your dorm, _____.”

You were still sleepy and slightly tipsy from the drinks you’d had, but you waved him off with a hand. “It’s fine. I can handle a walk back to my dorm, Jay. I won’t die… I think.”

Jay’s signature smile came back, and you were glad to see it one last time before the night ended. You returned one of your own, just grinning at him stupidly before you slipped out of his car. Before you closed the door, you waved. “Bye, Jay.”

“Uh, bye—Wait!” As you slammed your door and started making your way home, Jay got out of his side of the car in a hurry. He caught up to you quickly, grabbing onto your arm. Turning you around, he studied your face earnestly, eyes focused on yours. Even though you could tell what he wanted to do, there was the slightest bit of hesitation on his end.

You smiled, pushing a stray lock of hair out of his face. “Do you want to kiss me?”

He deflected with a question of his own, flushing slightly. “Can I?”

“Hm,” you hummed in mock thought, raising an eyebrow. You were only teasing him, though, because you dropped the act with a laugh, looped your arms around his neck, and leaned in closer to him. Shrugging, you replied, “Well, what are you waiting for? Kiss me, you idiot.”

And, that he did. He wrapped his arms around your waist, closing the remaining distance between you two, and met your lips. Different from the kiss earlier, this one was much softer. It only lasted a few seconds and conveyed nothing more than affection between you two. It was quick and sweet—just very Jay-like.

When you two parted, he was smiling the widest you'd ever seen him smile this night, and the stars were back in his eyes.

You returned a smile of your own, loosening your grip around him. “See you around?”

He squeezed your waist one last time, before letting go. Jay nodded, eyes shining. “See you around.”

With Jay’s starry eyes on your back and butterflies in your stomach, you made your way home once again. Your thoughts and emotions were a mess, filled with all the events of the night, especially the more recent ones. But, an overarching feeling filled you as you turned back once more to still find Jay’s eyes on you.

You smiled.

You couldn’t wait to return to Death Valley once again.

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