Rise from Fire and Steel

Then Jack lowered his voice, “We only tampered with Lewis’s gearbox.

“It would slow the car down, nothing more.”

Alanna nodded. “That’s true.”

She took out her phone again, unlocked it, and opened our chat window.

I still hadn’t sent her a message.

A passerby returning from the scene walked past them, his face pale with shock.

“It was horrible. That driver died so miserably.

“His whole body shattered. Falling from two hundred meters…He looked like someone who had been thrown into a compactor.

“There’s barely anything left that resembles a person.”

Unease flickered across Alanna’s face.

“Should I drive over and take a look?” Jack asked.

Alanna struggled inwardly, then answered coldly, “No. Why would we look? It’ll ruin my appetite later.”

Their car sped away, and the two of them pushed the matter out of their minds.

They finally stopped in front of a restaurant.

The owner seemed familiar with them from the moment they entered, greeting Jack with a warm smile.

“Brought your girlfriend again, I see. We’ve got a new dish today—your girlfriend will probably love it.

“Want to try it?”

Alanna said nothing.

She seemed completely used to being called his girlfriend.

Jack replied, “Sure, man. And bring two bottles of the good liquor. We’re in a celebratory mood today.”

“And the kind your girlfriend likes, right?”

“Right.”

“Just a moment.”

Smiling, the owner asked a server to lead them to a private room.

The ease with which they moved suggested they had visited more than once or twice.

Yet when I once suggested eating here, she resisted, telling me the food was mediocre.

What had she been thinking then?

Was she afraid the owner would see us together and realize her fiancé was me?

Or was she afraid that sitting across from me would taint the sweet memories she held with Jack?

I didn’t know, and most likely never would.

After eating and drinking their fill, Alanna grew tipsy and began sharing everything that had happened lately.

She rambled about small things, like how I bought a new game console for the house, and large things, like our arguments, and how I refused yesterday to give up the championship for her.

I had never known she could talk so freely.

Jack listened patiently, then looked at her gravely.

“I didn’t want to say this, but I don’t think Lewis loves you,” he said quietly.

Alanna froze.

Jack continued, “No one understands men better than another man. Only when a man doesn’t love enough does he hesitate between a championship and the woman he loves.

“If she were truly the one he cared about, what man would choose the trophy?

“As for me, I never would. If I liked someone, forget the championship—even if it cost me my entire life or my future, I’d choose her without hesitation.”

Alanna’s gaze wavered. “Anyone you like must be very lucky.”

Jack reached across the table and took her hand.

Their eyes locked, and in the soft, smoky atmosphere, Alanna’s face flushed as red as a boiled lobster.

“Alanna,” he said, “don’t marry him. Be with me.

“You helped me win the championship, even if it meant betraying him.

“Maybe he won’t say anything now, but after you marry, he’ll definitely use this against you again and again.

“But I’m different.

“We’ve come all this way together, and you’ve helped me so much.

“I’ll treat you well, no matter what it costs me.”