The aftermath of the relay lingered like the scent of ozone—electrifying, impossible to ignore.
Back in the tuning bay, Avery couldn't focus. She stripped down the magneto core twice, rebuilt the stabilizer thrice, and still her thoughts drifted.
To Reyna.
To the way she moved in sync beside her on the track.
To the way her breath had hitched, just slightly, when Avery had stepped close.
"Distracted?"
Avery jolted. Reyna stood in the doorway, arms folded. Her tone was teasing, but her eyes were focused.
"I'm working," Avery muttered, returning to the bench.
"With your face flushed and your hands shaking?" Reyna walked in, fingers brushing over the half-assembled engine. "You can admit it. The relay got to you."
Avery scoffed. "I'm just surprised we didn't crash."
Reyna laughed softly. "You underestimate our rhythm."
There it was again. That subtle flirt. Not overt. Not innocent either.
Avery stood straighter. "Reyna, what are we doing?"
Reyna tilted her head. "Fixing your bike."
"That's not what I meant and you know it."
Reyna didn't speak for a moment. Then she stepped closer.
"When I first saw you," Reyna said, voice lower, "I thought you were reckless. Arrogant. A flash-in-the-pan kind of rider."
"And now?"
"Now…" Reyna stopped just in front of her, their bodies almost touching. "You're in my thoughts. When I ride. When I sleep. When I breathe."
Avery's throat dried. "And what do we do about that?"
Reyna reached up, her knuckles grazing Avery's cheek. "We stop pretending we're still enemies."
The door hissed open behind them.
Nova.
Her eyes flicked between them. Cold. Calculating.
"Sorry to interrupt," she said, though her tone suggested the opposite. "We've got company. A rival gang is challenging for your circuit rights, Reyna."
Reyna's gaze hardened. "Let them. We'll crush them."
Nova's lips twitched into a warning smile. "They're not just here to race. They want blood. And they're bringing an old flame of yours."
Reyna froze.
Avery caught the shift. "Who?"
Nova hesitated, then said a name that hit Reyna like a punch.
"Valk."
Avery didn't know who that was.
But judging by Reyna's silence, this wasn't just another rival.
This was a ghost.
And ghosts had a way of setting everything on fire.
---