V | Glady's Patties

All three of them cowered, and Halle's hand flew over her mouth to suppress a startled yelp.

"That's what's going on," Sameer answered. "Violence tends to follow after too many losses."

"What the fuck?" Sage burped. "And this is the 'profession' you wanna get into?"

"The game is the game. Plus, I think the money makes it all worth it." He shrugged, fidgeting with the volume knob.

"The game is the game." Sage mocked, staring at the side of his face. "Who do you think you are?"

"The next street racing champ," he said cooly.

"Whatever." Sage leaned against the headrest. "Just get us as far away from that shit as possible."

Soon, the crunch of the dry Earth beneath the tires was muffled by Sameer's choice of music.

Halle buckled her seatbelt as the siblings sang along, looking out her window and getting lost in the web of stars caught in the nighttime sky. She couldn't help but to wonder if everyone else had gotten away unharmed.

I sure hope so.

Police sirens rapidly approached them along with flashing red and blue lights. Sameer reduced his speed, only to release a relieved sigh when both vehicles zoomed past, already in pursuit of the commotion that they'd left behind. Their urgency gave Halle a slight measure of solace, and made the ride almost feel normal.

A blinking sign to a rinky-dink diner came into view eventually, and Sage belched into her fist again. "Pull over up here. I need some food to settle my stomach."

"Fine." Sameer pivoted to the left, joining the other two cars in the otherwise empty parking lot.

Halle hopped out of the backseat, and walked over to the metal guard rails in front of the vehicle. Below the cliff, there was an ominous unfinished highway with faded signs that made her shutter.

"You had to pick the creepiest diner in the middle of nowhere, didn't you? We were gonna be back in town in like, twenty minutes," she complained.

"I held out for as long as I could." Sage palmed her stomach and scurried through the translucent glass doors. The other two followed.

Glady's Patties was a piece of work. The inside of the restaurant smelled of old grease and stale coffee grounds, and the walls were discolored due to the years of cigarette smoke. A thin puff of air whooshed out of the seats when Halle and Sameer scooted into a booth.

And to think, I'd just been at one of the nicest steakhouses in the world hours ago.

She picked up the stained menu and skimmed over the print until Sage teetered back from the restroom. She chose the seat next to her brother.

"Okay, water, two milkshakes, and three large batches of fries." The elderly waitress popped her gum as she dotted her I's. "Is that all?"

"Yes, ma'am." Sameer cheesed.

"Alrighty then, honey, coming right on up." Gladys nodded, and walked away.

"So, are you two ready to thank me for saving your lives yet?" He looked pointedly at the women, his hands clasped on the table.

Sage ignored the question, perking up at Brezdin's name on her phone screen.

"Hi, baby," she swooned, her voice now as airy as cotton candy. Sameer sucked his teeth.

"Yes, actually. Thank you, Sameer," Halle earnestly responded. "You seem so unphased by the whole ordeal though."

"Well, you know I..." Sameer's voice faded, and his eyes became fixated on something behind Halle's head. She turned to follow his gaze, only to be met with the sight of two people entering the restaurant.

"In and out," Chiko grumbled. "I don't have all night."

"You talkin' all this shit just to order something too." Izzy rolled his eyes, dragging his feet across the welcome mat.

"Hello there, gentlemen," a waitress with a plump waistline merrily greeted them. "Is it for here or to go?"

The Fontaine brothers responded in unison with completely opposite answers.

"To go,"Chiko restated, glaring at Izzy. "We don't have time."

"Okie dokey. Well, I will try to make it quick! What'll it be?" She jotted down their orders before making her way to the kitchen, while another employee rang them up.

"Aye, you need to learn how to let loose at least a little bit." Izzy folded his arms, and casually surveyed the area. "Never seen somebody win big just to still be the Grinch... in the summertime."

"And you need to tighten up. We barely even need to be stopping." Chiko thought about leaving his brother behind when he saw him pull over to this lonely diner, but ultimately decided against it, not wanting anything to go down in his absence. Plus, he was hungry too.

"Relax, they went the other way. Looks like a few others had the same idea as us though." Izzy jutted his chin towards the trio in the middle booth.

If Halle thought her appetite had vanished at Heated Prime, it was all but obliterated when she found herself locking eyes with both men waiting by the bar. She quickly turned her back to them and pretended to find something interesting on her phone, silently praying for her friend to hang up.

Sameer, on the other hand, took the attention and ran with it... literally. Sage rose from her spot, never missing a beat in her conversation with her boyfriend, and allowed him to exit the booth before sliding towards the window. He strutted forward, his bravado comically exaggerated to everyone in the restaurant.

"Wassup, you went hard tonight." He extended a friendly hand towards Chiko first and then Izzy. "When y'all gon' add me to the gang? Do I need a million dollar car first or what?"

"Preciate it." Chiko chuckled. "Ain't no gang though."

"Yeah, you gotta be kinfolk to ride wit' us. How old are you, anyway? And what's your name?" Izzy's arm returned over his chest to intertwine with the other.

"Money-making-Meer at your service. I'm eighteen." Sameer rubbed the stubble on his chin proudly, and the Fontaine brothers shook their heads with amusement.

He wasn't the first kid to be enamored with their lifestyle and he surely wouldn't be the last. While it was somewhat flattering, they preferred the youth to want more than being forced into shootouts over large sums of money and bruised male egos.

"Listen, living fast ain't always what it's cracked up to be. Do the college thing. Be normal. Looks like you got folks that care about you." Izzy's focus landed on the two women behind the young man. He liked what he saw, honing in on the one with longer hair. "Right?"

Both women's faces lit up at the sight of their food arriving at the table, and Sage finally ended her phone call with an audible kiss towards the receiver.

Hallelujah. Halle sighed.

"I mean, of course but I —" Sameer started.

"Good!" Izzy tucked his bottom lip between his teeth, and Chiko's eyes narrowed enough for his eyelashes to kiss his cheeks when his brother walked away to approach the booth. "Hello, ladies. It seems like y'all have a rather ambitious... family member on your hands?"

Sage moved a curl off of her face before taking a sip of her water, adjusting her body when Sameer slumped next to her. She was used to the ole indirectly-fish-for-information-in-order-to-flirt-better trick. "Yeah, my baby brother is really something."

Izzy studied the pendant hanging around her neck, a sage green butterfly that meshed well with her brown skin. "I guess it's not hard to try to go after what you want when you got a sister who's clearly set a nice example."

"Thank you." She coyly looked to the ceiling. "My man tells me that all the time."

"Oh word?" He straightened his posture, his interest now decreased, and flickered his eyes to a silent Halle. "Don't I know you?"

"No." She didn't bother to meet his eyes, choosing to dip another fry in her milkshake.

Technically, Halle was telling the truth. He didn't really know her. They'd only met once before.

Chiko stuck his hands in his pockets, observing her body language. She clearly wasn't keen on having any conversation with either of them. The way she cowered and rubbed the back of her head told it all. "That's the girl from the froyo spot. Hailey."

"Oh, yeah." Izzy nodded, backing away. "That's where I know you from."

"It's Halle." She whipped around briefly to scowl at Chiko, and he smirked.

Of course he remembered her actual name, but couldn't resist the opportunity to get a reaction out of her. He still wanted to test the waters.

"Right. My bad, Halle." Chiko lowered his voice, shamelessly admiring her lips. His eyes traveled all the way down to her bust before they finally returned to meet her softened expression.

Halle faced forward, trying to ignore the heat building in her stomach. Mr. Imperfect was a master at speaking without opening his mouth.

"Order up!" The waitress sat two plastic bags of food on the counter, breaking Chiko's trance.

He and Izzy retrieved their items and headed for the foggy doors without looking back. Emergency sirens nearing from the east sent a cold dread through Chiko's veins and they scurried away from the light pouring from the diner to make themselves less visible.

The ambulance sped past the parking lot, and Izzy's chest deflated with an exhale. "Alright, bruh. Next time, I won't stop. That was too close."

"Man, let's just go. It probably won't be long until twelve rides back through here," Chiko ordered, unlocking his car doors. His face remained neutral, but his mind was racing a mile a minute as he slowly reversed out of the spot.

If he doesn't survive, self defense shouldn't get me in too much trouble. If he does survive, maybe he'll learn how to aim better.

~

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