Chapter Text
Driving Blind (Spy Racers)
Chapter 1: The Incident
In the initial panic, Layla froze. In those few seconds she took to process, to register, to breathe, she froze. Then, at the panicked cries of her fellow agents, she snapped into reality. The agents - adult agents- were trapped in a closed room. Smoke billowed out from the destroyed ceiling, causing tears to run down her cheeks as it filled her vision. A shelf or something of the sort had fallen in front of the door, which only swung outward, effectively locking them inside. (A fire hazard…)
As Layla choked, she struggled to move the heavy shelf. Her trembling hands couldn’t get a grip. With a frustrated hiss, she forced her muscles to work. Her arms shook as she righted the shelf. It went falling the other way with a loud crash. Flames licked the walls, caging her in horrific heat. The doorknob was jiggling frantically, people on the other end begging and banging on the solid steel. Layla made a grab for the doorknob, screeching as the metal burned her hand. She ripped the door open as fast as she could, coughing. Before she knew it, people were barging past her, shoving and pushing and sobbing to get away from the hungry fire. The ravenous embers and pluming smoke knocked Layla down, bringing her to her knees. Head spinning, the young spy began to shuffle to turn around and crawl away. Frantically unzipping her jacket and pulling her shirt over her nose, she whimpered pathetically, her coughing and tears preventing her from seeing. Finally recovering enough strength, she opened her eyes just enough to see the stairs. She was so close…
“Help! HELP! Don’t leave me in here! Someone!”
Layla wanted to cry. Of course someone was still in there.
“Comin’,” Layla managed, still hacking, getting up shakily onto her feet. Quickly entering the room, she stumbled, blindly looking for the voice. “Where are you?!”
“Over here! There’s a pole thingy on my leg!”
Layla swiftly went to assess the situation. The girl calling for help indeed did have a metal pole on her leg. Layla chewed her lip as she tried to lift it off, huffing. It barely budged.
“Look, ya gotta help me,” Layla ordered, gesturing wildly. With the flames closing in, and the smoke filling her lungs, she could hardly get a word out. The girl had her eyes squeezed shut and tears running down her face, both from the fear and the fire, probably, but she nodded and attempted to help Layla lift or push the pole off of her leg. It eventually clanked to the side and Layla took the girl’s hand hurriedly. The exit had been completely consumed by flames.
Layla grabbed the girl by her collar and forced it over her face. She squeaked in surprise, trying to adjust her glasses. Layla looked over at the giant cavity in the wall, trying to think fast. The night sky looked like it was glowing orange. The girl squeezed Layla’s hand, quaking in fear.
“What do we do, Layla Gray?” she whimpered, burying her face in Layla’s shoulder. She looked significantly younger than her, maybe a year or two. Layla felt a rush of protectiveness go through her, but even so, she couldn’t fight the fire with her fists.
“We gotta jump,” Layla concluded, looking down to see agents scampering about down below. The familiar roar of an engine made her heart leap in her chest. Tony! Yes! “Look, Ah know this is scary, but ya have’ta trust me. He’ll catch you, okay?”
The poor girl looked pale, like she was going to be sick. “B-but, I’m scared of heights.” Down below, Tony scrambled to get out of his car.
“Layla!” He shouted.
“Tony! Can you catch her for me?!” Layla shouted back.
“I got her, you next!”
Layla gently squeezed the girl’s hand. “What’s yer name, sweetie?”
“Layla,” she replied.
“Yeah?”
“N-no, my name is Layla too,” she clarified.
“Oh, well, Layla, here,” Layla took off her own jacket and put it around Little Layla’s shoulders. “This’ll help ya be strong. Now, Tony down there is gonna catch ya, you’ll be nice and safe.” The heat licked at Layla’s bare arms. She wiped the tears from Little Layla’s eyes, compassionately. “He’s big and strong. He’s got ya, okay?”
Little Layla nodded, looking shyly down at Tony, who had his arms raised. “Okay.”
“On three, okay? One… two… three!” She gave Little Layla a soft push, and she went down without any issues. She yelped loudly, but Tony caught her solidly.
“Got her!” Tony said, crading the girl gently against his chest before setting her back on her feet, caringly. “You next, cowgirl, come on!”
Layla took one step forward, fully intending to jump. She trusted Tony to catch her. But, before she could move, the ground burst into flames underneath her. A shriek left her mouth as a blinding flash of light threw her back. It was like everything within her just shut down at that moment, everything except her ears, which were ringing loudly. It faded slowly, and she was left with nothing.
When Layla woke up, she thought she was dead. Voices were all distorted. She could hear people all around her, clamoring and chittering, their voices like nails on a chalkboard. The mechanical noises of hospital machinery was obvious and equally as obnoxious. It was like her eyes were glued shut. She tried to open them, but could barely even flutter her eyelids. It was upsetting not knowing what was going on. She didn’t have time to be angry though; she soon began to succumb to her exhaustion. Everything was quiet again, as was her fearful mind. How did this all happen? It was beyond her knowledge. She just saw people in need of rescuing and she rescued them. It was simple to her, because Layla knew her true nature- Layla was kind, Layla was heroic, and Layla helped people. That was just what she did. But she couldn’t predict the future.
Waking up again, this time to silence and stillness, was isolating. Layla laid there, feeling her eyes open slowly. The cold wind of some sort of vent hit her in the face and she blinked rapidly. Why was it so dark in here? She couldn’t even see her hand in front of her face.
“Guys… guys! She’s awake!” Frostee shouted, voice full of excitement. It sounded like he was right next to her. Several shrieks of laughter and cheers of joy broke out all around her and she was violently smooshed by several affectionate people. After grunts of protest from Layla, everyone began to back off.
“Give her space. You okay, Layla?” Echo asked, still slightly giggling.
“Everythin’ hurts,” Layla replied, rubbing her aching forehead. “Could someone turn the lights on? Ah can’t see y’all.”
There was momentary silence from everyone else. “Um, the lights are on,” Tony said.
Layla was quiet for several seconds. “Are y’all tryin’ to pull my leg? Now’s not the time, ya know.” Even as she spoke, she couldn’t help but feel a block of ice form in her stomach. Her heart began to pound in her chest. “Seriously, where are y’all?” She reached out for someone and eventually found Cisco’s hand. She knew it was his, as it was giant compared to hers and very calloused.
“Layla, we’re not messin’ with you, we promise. The lights are on,” Cisco told her, squeezing her hands in his big one. Layla blinked rapidly, feeling her eyelids move but yielding no results. She took her hands away from Cisco’s and rubbed at her eyes.
“Then why can’t Ah see any of you? Do Ah got my eyes in the back ‘o my skull er what?!” She had been half-joking, but the realization dawning on her made her feel like she was going to vomit. She knew they were right about the lights too… she could hear the electric buzz of the overheads, along with the gentle purring of the vents.
“Easy, Lay, breathe. We’ll go get the doctor,” Tony said, placing a grounding hand on her shoulder and squeezing it softly. Layla heard the scooting of chairs and frantic shuffling of feet, along with Frostee and Cisco harshly whispering “She’s blind!” “What are we going to do?!” and then Echo shushed them as they went out in the hall. Layla grabbed Tony’s hand as she heard him stand up. He had been sitting closest to her.
“Wait! You can’t leave me here!” She begged, fearfully. “Ah don’t know where- Ah don’t know how to-”
“Hey, relax! I won’t leave, I promise,” Tony reassured. She could hear him sit down in his chair and scoot it closer to her. It made an awful grating sound across the floor that she didn’t like. She must've flinched because Tony squeezed her hand harder and muttered an apology under his breath.
“Ah can’t see,” Layla whimpered. “Tony, Ah can’t see..!” She felt like her throat was frozen. She couldn’t breathe.
“Easy, easy. We’ll figure this out. It’ll be okay,” Tony said, entwining his fingers with hers and gently putting their palms together. Layla squeezed her eyes shut and just prayed to any god that this was all a bad dream. She sobbed and buried her face in Tony’s chest.
“Ah can’t be blind, Tony… Ah’ll never be able to drive again…! Ah won’t be a spy!”
“That’s not true. Remember when Julius lost his sight once? He got it back, remember?” Tony tried to reassure her, stroking her ponytail with his hand. The comforting gesture only served to make her cry even harder. “I’m sorry… I can’t even begin to imagine what you’re feeling right now…” His voice was laced with sadness and sincerity.
“What’ll happen to the team? Will Ah be kicked off the group? Ah just- y’all are- Ah love y’all so much, Ah can’t leave you guys, please- ” Layla muttered hopelessly, clinging to Tony’s jacket, tears streaming down her cheeks as she cried uncontrollably. He curled his arms around her, squeezing her tightly to his torso.
“We won’t kick you out, Layla. We love you so much. Everything will be okay as long as we’re together, okay? You hear me?” Tony whispered into her hair. She could feel his hands shaking.
It was a few seconds later that the door swung back open, casting the air in the room with a cold whoosh. The doctor’s shoes made a clicking noise on the marble floor. “Oh, dear…” Her voice was soft and sweet, not really a voice Layla had been expecting. Layla felt her body flush with anxiety and she curled tighter into Tony’s embrace.
“Can you fix me?” She asked the doctor. “Please?”
The doctor sighed. “We’ll have to wait and see, honey… My name is Dr. Martinez, but you can call me Anita if you’d like. I’ll be working with you. For now, I’m going to explain what’s going to be happening.” She paused momentarily. “Would you like Agent Toretto or any of your friends in the room with you? As you are still a minor, they need your consent to be in the room with you.”
“Yeah, Ah do,” Layla replied. “Ah want ‘em in here.” She felt her lower lip tremble again.
Her friends were at her side as Dr. Martinez began explaining procedures. Layla could hardly process what was happening. Everything was going by so fast, she could hardly even hear what the doctor was saying. Her friends were asking a lot of questions and the only answers Dr. Martinez could provide were still undecided or indefinite. But, Layla knew one thing for sure: She was completely blind. And she was so scared, more than she had ever been in her entire life. How on earth was she supposed to go about the world with no eyesight? She wouldn’t be able to drive, work technology, or be a spy. She was completely useless to the agency now. Everything she used to do would be off the table now as well. She wouldn’t even be able to go back to any of her old hobbies. Her life had slipped away so fast…
“...It’s true, the agency has never once been faced with one of their agents being blinded before. Usually agents who gain a disability, such as deafness or needing a walking stick can be accommodated for, even if it means changing their job for their safety, but blindness…” Dr. Martinez was saying when Layla managed to tune back in somehow.
“There has to be something that can be done,” Echo was arguing desperately.
“Yeah, don’t you have some sort of high tech mobility aide that can help her see again?” Cisco added on. “The agency has to have something like that!”
“I can help with the research! Actually, I think it’ll be even faster if you give me the project and let me make something,” Frostee chimed in, an edge of anxiety in his voice.
Hearing her friends jump to her defense made her feel warm inside, but knowing that there was probably nothing to be done drained any joy right out of her. “Guys, cool it…” she croaked, throat still clogged from sorrow. Tony, still with both arms around her, squeezed her a little, tightening his grip briefly, maybe to try and soothe her again.
“Layla’s right. This is a lot to take in. Especially for her,” he said, taking control of the room. Everyone quieted down, filing the room with a tense sense of foreboding.
“Yes,” Dr. Martinez agreed, after a few silent moments. “All the answers will come in time. For now, let’s be here for Layla. I’ll always be here to medically assist you. Do you need anything else, Layla?”
Layla thought for a few seconds. “... Ah’m tired.”
“Okay. You can go back to sleep.”
Gradually, she was approached by each of her friends and hugged. “We’ll be here for you when you wake up, okay?” Echo said. “We’ll get through this together.”
“You’ll be okay. You’re Layla Gray!” Frostee said, cheerfully.
“I’ll be sure to make you some real food later. Hospital food is gross,” Cisco promised.
“We’ve all got your back, okay? If you need us, we’ll be right here,” Tony said lastly. “We love you so much, and a little hardship isn’t going to change that.”
As Layla was left alone in her hospital bed, her mind continued to run in circles of fear. She’s blind. She’s blind and she can’t drive.
Getting out of the hospital 2 days later, after testing and testing and testing, Layla felt like a passenger in her own body. Nothing felt real. She kept on thinking she was going to wake up and it would all be over and she’d see again. But, no. It was reality. Hoping this was a nightmare to wake up from wasn’t working anymore.
“Come on, I’ll drive you to the garage,” Gary said gently. It was weird hearing his voice without his friendly face to accompany it. “Or maybe you want to go somewhere else first?”
“No, Ah’m fine. Thanks,” Layla replied quietly. Sitting in the passenger seat, she felt her hands shaking. She put them on her knees to try to steady them. Her stomach couldn’t seem to settle, even though she was finally exiting the smelly, noisy hospital.
Getting driven by someone else to the garage was sort of embarrassing. That was one of the things in her life that was noticeable the most. The second thing was that she had misplaced her phone, but it wasn’t like she’d be able to use it. She had tossed and turned over the fact that her life was now rapidly changing, but she hadn’t been able to consider everything that might be different. She was scared of the future. How could she live without her eyes?
“Almost there. Are you doing okay?” Gary asked. Layla couldn’t tell how he was feeling from the tone of his voice.
“Do Ah look okay?” Layla asked, her voice trembling uncharacteristically. She played with her ponytail, tugging at it between her fingers.
“Yes, absolutely. You look amazing, Agent Gray,” Gary reassured. “You have nothing to worry about.”
Layla had a lot of things to worry about, but she was glad her looks weren’t one of them. She was grateful for Gary being here, and she was also excited to see her friends again. As Gary pulled the car up the driveway, Layla felt happiness bubble in her chest as she heard the collective shouts of her friends through the open window. Even though they had been visiting her consistently for the past few days, she still missed them incredibly when they were gone. As soon as she stepped out of the car, she was vigorously smooshed , causing her to smile for the first time in a while.
“Howdy, y’all… Ah’d say it’s nice to see y’all, but uhh…” Layla shrugged. Everyone burst into hysterical laughter.
“This is it! Layla’s first blind joke!” Cisco exclaimed heartily, squeezing her hand. “Am I going to need to write these down?”
“We’re so glad you’re here,” Echo interjected, rubbing her cheek against Layla’s affectionately. “We missed you.”
“Really? You visited me in the hospital, guys,” Layla replied.
“But it’s not the same,” Tony said. “We have so much to catch you up on.”
“Jeez! Ah was only gone for half a week! What trouble could y’all have gotten into without me?!” Tony, Echo, and Cisco smooshed Layla again, causing her to squeak with the intensity of their snuggly hugs. It was then that Layla realized a key member of their troup was missing. “Hey… where’s Frostee?”
Layla then perked up at the sound of quickly approaching footfalls on the pavement down the street. “I’M HERE!!! I’M HERE!!!” Frostee yelled, before slamming his whole tiny body into Layla, nearly knocking her over. “Sissy and I have been working on a way to cure your blindness! I lost track of time at home, I’m so sorry..!”
“It’s no trouble, kiddo. Y’don’t haveta go through all that fer me,” Layla said, hugging Frostee back tightly.
“Oh, but I do, actually. You deserve better than this. You saved so many people that night,” Frostee replied. He was so short compared to Layla that he had to rest his head on her stomach. If Layla could do it, she would have rolled her eyes.
“And none of them were very grateful apparently. None of ‘em came to visit.”
“That’s not completely true,” Tony said. Layla half jumped out of her skin as he had moved behind her without her noticing. She heard Echo chuckle and blushed from embarrassment. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean to spook you.”
“Ya didn’t,” Layla lied. “And what did you mean? Did someone aside from y’all try to visit me?”
“Yes. A junior agent named Agent Stone. Remember the girl you had me catch?”
“Yeah. Layla,” Layla grinned thoughtfully. “Is she okay? She’s safe right?”
“She’s fine. But she seems to think that your injuries are her fault. She’s been coming by the garage,” Tony explained. Layla’s mood immediately shifted to sour.
“What? Well, where is she now?”
“She’s working, I believe,” Gary said, coming to Layla’s side and placing a hand on her shoulder. “Would you like me to call her down?”
Layla clasped her hands together nervously. “No, Ah don’t wanna interrupt her work day. Could’ja tell her to come to the garage after her shift is over? Ah wanna make sure she’s alright.”
“Of course I can. Oh, and, Ms. Nowhere is waiting inside the garage. She wants to talk to everyone,” Gary informed the group. “Do you need help, Agent Gray?”
Layla shook her head. “Ah’m fine, Ah know how to walk,” the junior spy replied, a little bitterly. The group walked up the driveway and into their home base. The familiar smell and feel of the garage caused Layla to relax some. She could picture it clearly in her mind.
“Layla?” Layla perked up at the sound of Nowhere’s voice.
“Yes, Ah’m here,” Layla answered.
“Hey, I’m glad you’re back, kid.” Nowhere paused and approached her charge. Layla could hear her shoes clicking against the marble floor. The young girl felt nothing but utter surprise as her normally stern boss wrapped her in a warm hug. “You feeling okay?”
“Not at all. But, Ah’m happy to be back,” Layla answered honestly, immediately resigning herself to sinking into Ms. Nowhere’s embrace, mostly from shock. Everyone else appeared to share Layla’s sediment, as they all had lapsed into complete stunned silence. When Ms. Nowhere pulled away, Layla felt a twinge of sadness from her. It was in her voice and the way she moved. Oh no, does Ms. Nowhere think this is her fault too? Layla thought, hesitant to make any remarks about it.
“Alright everyone, listen up. The head of the agency is calling in to assess the situation. I want everyone on their best behavior, understood?!” Nowhere barked. Ah, there she is. Layla immediately took refuge on the couch, crossing one leg over the other. She felt Tony sit next to her. She knew it was him because she could smell his favorite cologne. It was… a little strong today.
“Jeez, Toretto, what’s with the smell today? You tryin’ to kill me with Rough Mountain Blizzard ?” Layla whispered, playfully swatting his arm.
Tony chuckled. “I’m not wearing more than I usually do. And it’s Tough Mountain Blizzard, not rough.”
Layla rubbed her nose with her sleeve, trying to block the scent out. “Damn, are you sure? Ah can’t breathe,” She muttered. Tony hummed in response, but said nothing else. Layla heard the monitor in front of them turn on with a strange whirring noise. A distorted crackling came through, rather abruptly. She remembered hearing this when the big cheese had called in before, but she didn’t expect it to screech so much. Layla covered her ears and yelped. “Augh!!” Ow! That hurt!
“What’s wrong?” Ms. Nowhere asked, alarmed at Layla’s reaction. Layla suddenly felt silly for reacting so strongly as the pain and surprise passed.
“N-nothing. Ah’m sorry,” Layla quickly apologized.
“You sure?” Tony said, seeming equally as shocked as Nowhere.
“Yes. Ah’m sure.”
A few moments of silence went by, and Layla cautiously uncovered her ears. Soon, an auto-tuned voice came through the screen. “Ah, good morning, Ms. Nowhere. And good morning to the team,” the boss said, sounding rather pleasant compared to the last time they had interacted with him.
“Good morning, sir,” Ms. Nowhere replied, politely. It was always funny and extremely odd to hear the tough, strict, and occasionally scary Nowhere respond to one of her authority figures.
“Good to see you all, as always. Now, first thing’s first, I’d like to commend Layla for her heroic acts at the burned agency building. Good job, Agent Gray.” Echo exhaled a breath of excitement for Layla and punched her lightly on the shoulder. All of Layla’s friends made some sort of noise in proud agreement. Layla let herself smile too, squaring her shoulders and taking it in pride.
“Thank ya kindly. Ah just did what anyone would’ve done,” Layla admitted, trying not to sound too boastful. She didn’t want to sound vain.
“Very humble, Agent Gray. The agency thanks you as well for your acts of kindness and heroism. You saved 18 lives that day.”
Layla gasped. “What? Ah did? 18?” She didn’t think there had been that many people in that room! She had counted maybe 7 or 8, but not 18!
“The room was overcrowded that day, as too many people had been assigned to a shift taking place in that particular room. The doors also swung outward, with shelving surrounding it, which was a dangerous fire hazard. As for the cause of the fire, our arsenic detectives aren't sure about that yet. Though we suspect it might be from a fried wire somewhere on the property. The fire spread through the offices’ papers and wooden structures, and maybe some gas tanks that had been left carelessly out in the open. There could have been many different causes, as said before…” the boss explained.
“That makes sense! Who’d just leave gas cans unattended? Does no one care about fire safety? The whole building could have collapsed with everyone inside!” Cisco said, exasperated.
Layla crossed her arms. “Ah’m gonna have to agree with Cisco here. Even Ah had a lot of trouble just getting to that room,” She agreed.
“Not to mention the emergency locks had already been activated. It slowed me down trying to get in to help,” Echo chimed in. “The emergency locks are supposed to open automatically when hit with smoke, but they didn’t. They clearly hadn’t been looked at carefully.”
“Yes, yes I know. These problems have been dealt with,” the boss replied to them all, dismissively. “As for Layla’s injuries, hm- her blindness, yes, we will-”
“Sir, if I may interrupt?” Frostee requested.
“Yes, Agent Benson?”
“I’ve been working on something that can help with that. The prototype isn’t ready yet, as we have only had a few days now, to work on it, I mean. But, I think that with proper pacing and resources I could help Layla restore her s-”
“Agent Benson, I admire your resolve to help your friend, but please leave this matter to our top scientists. They’re doing their best to assist Layla with this professionally.”
Layla felt her body run hot as the boss cut Frostee off. She was going to open her mouth to retort against him, tell him to let Frostee finish, but Ms. Nowhere spoke first.
“With all due respect, sir, Frostee is our top scientist. I see no reason why he can’t collaborate with yours. It’s better to have more eyes on this, right?” Nowhere said, rather calmly. She was keeping her cool really well so far, which Layla didn’t actually find surprising. Ms. Nowhere was a good, kind person at heart, but she was also resourceful and tactical. Losing your temper with your boss probably wasn’t the best move.
“Well… yes, I suppose that's true. But, Agent Benson is not only a minor, but he’s also several spy ranks too low for us to incorporate him into the project. He can’t work on anything to help Agent Gray, by law of this agency, as anything being tested on her has to be approved by an official. Anything that may damage her further is not to be risked,” the boss explained. That was a good reason, that last point, but Frostee being a minor or his rank being lower made no sense to Layla whatsoever. Layla knew Frostee could help and she most certainly did not want to stay blind forever.
“Well then, what am Ah supposed to do? Just sit and do nothing?” Layla asked, trying not to raise her voice, but it was already getting difficult.
“Yeah, I agree. Layla needs this, and fast. Frostee can do it! Hasn’t he made amazing things for the agency already? A sight restorer could be useful for all of society!” Tony added, jumping both to Layla and Frostee’s defense.
“Yes, he has, but so have a lot of people at the agency. Agent Gray will unfortunately have to, indeed, sit and do nothing for now,” the boss demanded.
“What?! But, that ain’t fair! Ah risked life and limb to save those people! And now my sight is gone because of basic safety violations! And you’re tellin’ me to wait?! This is your fault!” Layla hissed angrily, trying to keep herself from cussing the boss out. It proved to be near impossible.
“Agent Gray!” Ms. Nowhere yelled, stamping her foot. The loud clack of the heel made Layla flinch. A hush fell over the enraged junior spies.
“Ah’m sorry for yelling,” Layla apologized immediately. But, she didn’t apologize for what she said, nor for her outrage. All of it was true.
“It’s okay, Agent Gray. Just lower your voice. Now, sir, if you don’t mind me asking, what is to happen to Layla? I think you owe it to her to tell us what the plan is,” Nowhere stated calmly, sighing. It was clear she was annoyed, but Layla couldn’t tell if it was at her outburst or at the boss. She balled up her fists in her lap, but let Tony take her hand gently in his own. She squeezed his hand back in appreciation.
“Yes, of course. The plan is for Layla to be tested regularly at our agency clinics. Dr. Martinez is the one overseeing her as a patient. We’ll be doing everything possible to… help her drive again. But, in the meantime, Ms. Nowhere, she is not to drive until our say so. Understood?” The boss said gruffly, pointedly at Ms. Nowhere.
“Yes, sir,” Ms. Nowhere replied. Layla squeezed Tony’s hand again, in frustration.
Layla couldn’t operate in her home apartment anymore. Even though it was a one room apartment, with modest rent (for LA at least), she was now blind and living alone without aid, which was a no-no. Layla couldn’t help but feel a horrible sense of guilt when Tony’s mom offered the guest room in the Toretto household to her.
“Oh, darling, I’m a nurse. I think it’s in your best interest to stay here,” Jess Toretto said softly, doing the subtle mom pushy-ness that moms were so good at. It almost pained Layla to not see her sweet face.
“W-well, Ah don’t want to be a bother…”
“Pish-posh, sweetie, you’re never a bother, you’re practically an angel on earth!” Jess reassured, helping Layla unpack her clothes into the wardrobe. The roar of her car from the driveway alerted her to Tony’s return. It rattled the house, causing tremors to run down Layla’s arms. Man, she missed her car…
She could hear Tony come in through the front door. “Layla! I put your car in the driveway!” Tony called from the main foyer.
“Thanks!” Layla yelled down the stairs. It wasn’t like she was allowed to drive it, so she didn’t see the point. It was most likely going to sit in the driveway doing nothing. She felt like she was neglecting an old friend.
What made this worse is that all other agents around her were referring to her blindness as “the incident”. It annoyed her to no end. She’d rather just be fired than have to go sit and listen to older dudes talk about her like she wasn’t there.
“Thanks again, Ms. Toretto,” Layla said, listening to the sounds of Jess closing and opening drawers as she organized Layla’s things.
“Of course, angel. Now, jeans and pants are in the bottom drawer, shirts on the top, bras, underwear, and socks are in the middle one. I put your jackets and shoes in the closet.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” Layla had been saying a million thank-yous in the past week.
“Oh, just call me Jess, sweetie. You’re welcome to stay as long as you need, you know?” Jess pat Layla’s shoulder as she passed her. “Tony and I will be making dinner. We’ll call you when it’s done, alright?”
“Alright, sounds good,” Layla replied, smiling at her friend’s mother. Jess “mm’d!” sweetly and left the room, closing the door behind her. From the gentle chill in the room, Layla knew the sky was dark. She could hear cars going down the street nearby, the tires gliding on the asphalt gracefully. Tomorrow, Layla was going to have Tony drive her to the garage and they were going to be assigned missions… not her, of course. What Spy Racer didn’t drive? Even Frostee could drive now. She tried really hard not to be bitter. After all, she knew her friends loved her. But, what use was she now? To the agency? To life? To herself? Nothing, she suspected.
But… she wanted to try to help. Layla avoided giving up after all. It didn’t look good for her image. Even if she were to be blind forever… she wasn’t going to give up, she decided. Now that she was in the safety of the Toretto household, she did feel a bit better. She’d go down for dinner in a few minutes, and she could hear the sounds of her friends arriving for her housewarming party downstairs.
Tomorrow was another day.