Work Text:
Peace floated around in the town, everywhere except Willy's Butte. Since the 2007 racing season was approaching quickly, Doc started training Lightning at the very start of the day. If Lightning weren’t up by early morning, Doc would bang his door and drag him by the hair to start. He was not joking around. Lightning at times, didn’t enjoy his training, but he knew it was for the best. Doc knew what he was doing, and Lightning fully trusted him.
As Lightning finished the last 5 laps, Doc talked to him over his walkie-talkie, “Kid, you’re doing good. Sun’s setting though. Finish that last lap and you’ll be finished.”
Lightning didn’t give him a response. He dashed through the last lap and came to a complete stop in front of Doc. He stopped the engine and then crawled out of his car. He then settled his helmet on top of the car’s hood.
“How did I do this time?” He asked. Doc nodded, as he swallowed a piece of his food.
“You’re improving. We need to work on your shifting though,” Doc then sat down on the log and handed him a container of food. “Here. Flo packed us a meal. I knew you’d be too hungry to physically go to the diner.”
Lightning threw his towel down, and sat beside Doc, “Thanks Doc. With your torture, my knees feel like they are going to pop.”
“It’s not that bad. Quit exaggerating.”
Lightning saw heaven with Flo’s tacos that she had prepared. He never missed out on anything she cooked. He took a bite out of his food and spoke with his mouth full.
“You know, one of these days, Flo’s has got to teach me how to cook without burning the stove.” He then swallowed, and took another bite, “I’ve tried so many times as a kid, but my brother has always had to help out or else our tiny house would be down.”
Doc laughed. “You should tell that to Flo before you burn down her house.” Lightning chuckled.
Peaceful silence grew over them. All they needed was a break. Lightning’s legs felt like giving up, especially since they were cramped into a small space for a long time. He hated the most when his leg would fall asleep while driving.
“So, how do you like it here?” Doc asked, dipping his taco in the small container of sauce.
“Oh, it’s been great. Except for the training. I dread training,”
Doc rolled his eyes, “Lightning, you can’t be serious-”
“I was joking. I know if I wanna get better I needa train. It won’t just come to me like that, you know?”
Doc nodded. He then looked at the young, blonde man beside him. He always wondered how Lightning came to be. Since his time here, he hadn’t come clean about his backstory. He never shared much about his family or himself.
“So, when are you gonna tell me more about you, kid? Where’d you grow up?” He asked.
Lightning looked at him and pointed toward the west side, “I grew up outside Fredericksburg in Texas. Miles off Austin in the middle of nowhere.”
“Really? I thought you’d grow up in like a city or something.”
“No, I grew up on my uncle's farm. The loneliness was killing me.”
Doc chuckled, “That’s ironic. You're back in the middle of nowhere again.”
“I know, I find it funny,” Lightning smiled. He finally found comfort in the peace of silence. Even if life was fun in the fast lane, he was happy to return.
“How was it back there?”
Lightning shrugged, crumpling his paper towel into the container, “It was, you know, usual farm stuff I guess. I would help out with harvests and the cattle,” He closed the container and settled it between him and Doc. “It wasn’t always like that.”
Doc raised his left brow, “How come?”
“Well, back when my father was still around, we lived near Waxahachie. Money was a big issue when I was a kid. My dad, if I can still call him that, became a drunk. He’d always pick out the coins that I would save in this coin jar that I had to buy beer,”
Lightning rested his arms on his knees. He sighed, continuing his story, “My mother would always get mad at him. He was the worst, and always took out his anger on all of us.”
Doc looked at him, saddened.
“I was just six. I was six and had to see that man bring down my whole family.”
“I’m so sorry Lightning-”
“Please don’t apologize. It’s already been done.”
Doc gave him an empathetic look. He had no idea how much Lightning struggled, and it hurt him that he couldn’t do anything about it. Because once again, it has already been done.
“My dad, he…he wasn’t always like that. From how far my memory can take me, he was good when my brother and I were younger,” Lightning furrowed his eyebrows, shaking his head slightly, “The only thing I remember is him taking us fishing in this one lake when I was 4. I…I can’t remember anything else.”
“It’s okay, Lightning. You were just a kid to remember that much.” Doc said, patting his back. Lightning only stared at the distance in thought. “How many siblings were you in total? You mentioned you had an older brother-”
Lightning quickly replied, “We’re five. We are five siblings in total.”
“Where do you take place between your siblings?”
“I’m the 2nd eldest,”
Doc nodded. He didn’t bother Lightning as he was deep in thought. His dark blue eyes wandered through the scenery in front of them, never looking back at Doc. Lightning had not spoken about his truths to him yet. The only person who knew was Sally. In general, he’d only give small talks about it, but never full details. It was such a topic that hurt him to remember but had to be said.
“What happened to your father after, if you don’t mind me asking?” Doc said softly. For once, Lightning looked back. “I would like to know your story, Lightning. I’m all ears.”
Lightning gave him a small smile, which faded as he turned back, “Well…after the birth of my youngest sister, things changed drastically.”
“How so?”
Lightning inhaled deeply, “Her father didn’t love her mother.”
Doc looked at Lightning, confused. Lightning turned back to face the older man, hoping he’d get it. It then dawned on Doc what the young man meant.
Her father didn’t love her mother.
“Lightning…”
“Yeah. It’s an…unfortunate situation that had to happen.”
“Your mother’s a strong woman.”
Lightning smiled at the thought of his mother, “She has always been. She cared for the five of us dearly. My mother did not deserve the way she was treated. She’d tell me how awful our father was to her before we were all born but changed when their first son was born. She thought he would stay as a good man, but he fell back to being his old self once again,”
“She was deceived,” Doc said, sighing with sorrow.
“Sadly. But she still fought. She fought to get us out of Waxahachie.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, I lived in there until I was around six or seven. While my mom was pregnant with my sister, money became tight. Our dad got fired from his job, and there was no form of income. My aunt would always send us money, which was a blessing. My mom always told him to stop wasting money on whatever crap he bought and to pay attention to his kids. This actually started years before. Him leaving us, coming back late, hopping from job to job, hitting all of us, you know, all that. Anyway, my mom always threatened him she’d leave him but he got violent whenever she did, so she got silent. It carried on like that until my sister was born.”
“What’s her name?”
“Charlotte. We call her Lottie though,”
Doc smiled and nodded.
“When she was born, my dad literally became non-existent. By this time, he had gotten another job. He would only come once in a while to drop off money and to visit his “daughter.” Not even she considers him as her father anymore. It continued like that for months, until he came back and stayed for once. He didn’t do much, only sulked around. The house was under his name and paid the bills, so we technically couldn’t really kick him out.”
“Was the police ever involved…?”
“Not really. My mom stayed silent which is something that has always pissed me off. The only reason she wouldn’t was because she would get threatened.”
“I see that happening a lot. It’s sickening,”
Lightning nodded, “It really is.” He grabbed a stick nearby and started drawing on the ground, “Well, once Lottie was about 5 months old, my parents got into an argument. It was probably the most violent one they’d ever had. My mom had called her sister, my Aunt Elsie, to see if she could ever move into her family farm. When my dad found out, he got furious. I remember it clearly, even if I was just seven years old. My mom rushed us to go out, so my older brother, who was nine at the time, took the baby and we all just ran out. Our dad tried to stop us, but we managed to get out,”
“And your mother? Did she get to you all?”
Lightning stopped breathing. He remembered that horrific night all too well. The picture of his young mother all beaten up haunted his head. Lightning tried to hold back his tears as he continued.
“She managed to get out. She was just…I can’t. I can’t say it,” Lightning trembled, pushing his tears back.
Doc placed an arm around him, “Kid, it’s alright. Don’t say it. You don’t have to relive it again just to tell me,”
“But you have to know,”
“Take your time,”
Lightning let a few tears go, but no sound came out of his mouth. He felt numb, only the tears running down his cheeks but nothing else. He remembered the same shade of red on his mom’s face, and how similar it was to the auburn locks of hair his mother held. The beauty was taken advantage of.
Lightning let out a sigh, as he rubbed his left eye, “After that, we ran to our neighbor's home, which was actually a good friend of our mom. She took us in, called the police, and we stayed there for some time. The police arrested my dad, but we all stood in the same spot. Just helpless. The police pitched in some help, interviewed us, that kinda thing. But, you know, they left as well. So then, my mom called her sister, and they finally came to pick us up. My uncle, I remember, hugged us all, and I had never felt so relieved. My Aunt Elsie started crying upon seeing us all, especially Lottie. We then said our goodbyes and thank you’s to our neighbor, and took off in my uncle's van to Fredericksburg, where I remained there my entire life until I left.”
After Lightning finished, they both sat there in silence. For Doc, he reflected on Lightning’s story, and how strong the kid was. For Lightning, he mourned his mother even though she was well alive. He sat in silence for his mother.
“I’ve never been back to that town since then. If I’m being honest, I haven’t been in Texas since I left. I only go when I race there but…that’s about it.”
Doc nodded, “You have every right not to go back. You were too young to experience any of that,” He then let go of Lightning, giving him some space, “What about your family though? Have you talked with them?”
Lightning let a deep breath out, throwing the stick into the patch of grass near them, “No…I haven’t. I just can’t bare seeing them again. The last time I saw them was two years back before I officially started my first racing season.” He rubbed his forehead with his eyes closed, “My uncle was the one who helped me get into the racing academy. I was a very troubled teenager and had a heck of an interest in racing. So my uncle helped out I guess, so I could make something out of my life. Once I got accepted, I never looked back. I was so caught up with being the best because for once, I thought if I won people would accept me. I regret being like that. I wanted to be at the top so my mom would have something to be proud of. I would always run off with friends, do random shit out on the streets so I could get away from home. I remember my mom being so worried about me, which I regret making her feel.”
“I think she would be proud of you now, wherever she might be. She would be proud that you made it out of your troubles and achieved so much more,”
Lightning smiled. It was a genuine smile, “Hopefully. I haven’t spoken to her. When I was at the academy, I spoke to her once in a while, but not much. When I started racing, that's when the bond broke off,”
“I don’t have to stay like that, Lightning. I know she would be happy to see you,”
“I guess so. She still probably lives back home with Charlotte,” Lightning then let out a soft chuckle, “I don’t even know what’s up with my other siblings. I suck at communicating.”
“Kid, you gotta try reaching out or something. I can’t stay like this.”
“I guess.”
“Quit saying ‘I guess’. This is not an ‘I guess’ situation. This is serious.”
Lightning laughed, “I suppose.” Doc rolled his eyes, packing their empty containers in the bag they had been packed in. “I just…need to get myself together. Then I’ll reach out. I don’t think I’m emotionally prepared yet.”
“I understand, rookie. Don’t take long though. Do it before it’s too late,”
“Why, you’ll run away?” Lightning looked up at Doc who was standing.
“Why would I ever run away?”
“It’s because I would also like you to meet my family,”
Doc paused, and looked at him confused, “Why’s that?”
Lightning stood up, facing Doc, “Because your family to me now. It’s only right that I do,”
Doc smiled, “Then I’ll gladly meet them, son.”
As he turned away, walking towards the 95, Lightning had the biggest smile on his face. He was happy with his life right now, surrounded by people who cared about him.
“Besides, I would also want my mother to meet Sally.”
Doc quickly faced him, “You're on that stage now? Are you meeting her parents as well?”
Lightning laughed softly, “We have talked about it briefly, but haven’t really done much about it.”
“I see. Well, I think that’s a nice idea. I’m sure your mother will love Sally,”
Lightning’s cheeks flushed slightly, “She will.”
Doc nodded and handed the keys over to Lightning. “Take the car to the garage, will you?”
“I always do,” Lightning grabbed the keys from Doc’s hand, and crawled back into the car.
Doc then met him at the window, “I have to talk to Mater to see if he has pieces for some repairments I need to make. I trust you enough to bring this car back to the garage safely, alright?”
“You got it,”
“‘Kay then. I better not see anything different from what it is now,” Doc walked away, but quickly faced back as Lightning started to stroll off slowly, “And please for heaven's sake, don’t speed up. The roads aren't a race track!”
“I know!” Lightning shouted. He then drove off with the car, leaving Doc behind.
As he drove, he reflected well on the conversation he had with Doc. It was a life-spilling conversation. His heart felt relieved to get the story off his chest, as it was buried for many years. He finally had found people who he could trust, and would not betray him. He had found a man who to him, was like a father he never had. He found a best friend who always made him laugh and let him be his true self. He had found a woman who loved him for him and opened his eyes to the world. For Lightning, he considered himself to be the luckiest man in the world. Even if his past was full of distraught and misery, he arose from his troubles and made it big. He made his dreams come true and only had another one to complete.
To reunite with his mother and the siblings whom he walked with throughout the suffering.