Chapter X: Let the Races Begin!

Akira's arm felt like it was ready to fall out of its socket with how Pinkie had been yanking on it to drag him all around the room for a second round of introduction in getting him to know everybody on a first name basis and to learn a little bit about themselves. All were open with him, making Akira feel like he was becoming a part of a group. And, to his surprise, some of them had reveal that they themselves had also moved to the city, thereby making them empathic towards him. Riley admitted that she cried in class on her first day while she introduced herself because she thought about her hometown and how much she missed it. Violet also told him of how her family had to move just about every year because of her father's work, but after a while decided to stop and settled in the city for good a couple of years ago. Kairi said that she moved to the city when she was much younger because her hometown was destroyed by a fire and her family came to the city. Teresa, one of Pinkie's best friends and whom she called "Twlight", talked about how she objected to the move when her father took a teaching job at one of the universities in the city. It was with time that they all began to warm to their new home and they love it because of the friends they'd amass and assured him that not only would he make plenty of friend, but had already have. Hearing all of it made Akira feel included, as if he joined a special club.

However, when asked about what his old home was like, Akira couldn't get himself to answer their questions regarding it. The problem was that he felt empty about the home he had left behind, that he couldn't even feel angry at it. It was as if it only existed in his dreams, in that it no longer held much importance to him anymore. He found it to be disturbing.

"Hey, are you okay?" Pinkie asked him.

Having met with everybody, he and his introducer stood off at a corner of the room for a little brake. She seemed worried for him. "I'm fine," he said and smiled to reinforce it.

She seemed to buy it as she smiled back at him. "Okay," she said. "Now then."

"What?" Akira asked, unsure of what was happening.

"Out of everybody in this room, who do you like the most?"

Like a punch to the gut, Akira stumbled back as his eyes went wide from behind his glasses. "W-What?" he said, flabbergasted by the question.

"Out of everybody in this room, who do you like the most?" she repeated herself, her smile pushing out her cheeks, letting her pearly white teeth shine.

Thinking that it must be a joke, Akira started chuckling, albeit nervously, but as she continued to smile at him without reacting accordingly, he realized that she was serious with her inquiry. "Uh, don't you think it's a bit early for me to make that kind of assertion?" he asked.

"Oh, come on. Please? Pretty please?" she pleaded with him. "Don't worry, your secret's safe with your dear, old Aunt Pinkie. I'll stuff it in a box and bury it so no one can find it. That's a Pinkie Promise!" and held out her right pinkie finger in front of him.

But, Akira was still hesitant in taking the bait. "But, why do you want to know who I like the most?"

"So I can set you up on a date, duh!"

His face turning pale, Akira's mouth dropped. "What?" he said, stepping back like he was trying to escape from a predator, but found himself literally up against a wall. "Set me up? On a date?"

"Yeah!" she smiled so innocently. Akira tried to say something, but she shushed him with her finger on his lips. "Oh, don't sell yourself short. I know that a cute, smart, and totally awesome gamer such as yourself can catch any eye in this city! Within legal boundaries, but, hey, who says that love isn't blind!"

"But-"

"So, tell me! Who do you like the most? And, don't worry, I won't be hurt if you don't say it's me, okay?"

Feeling that there was no way of avoiding this lunatic girl and her curiosity, Akira's eye start to wonder around the room, looming over each and every person. The truth was that, after meeting everybody, the real challenge was choosing who he like the least. Yet, the feeling's so basic that he thought it would be unfair both to himself and to the person in question. How could he make such a decision? But, he wanted Pinkie to just leave him alone that he was willing to go along with it if it meant making her stop with the foolishness.

Looking around more, his eyes finally settled on someone on the other side of the room. Hiro. And, he was conversing with Penny, his aforementioned childhood friend. And, they seemed to be enjoying each other's company as they laughed together over something shared between them. Looking at Hiro more closely, he looked so relaxed and his smiling face reminded him so much of Tadashi's, and the thought made his heart skip a beat.

"Hmm?" Pinkie turned her head to look behind her. "Oh, is it Penny that you like?"

"Huh?" Akira snapped himself out of his daydream, looking at pink-haired girl.

"I guess that would make sense, if not a little predictable, since she is the first one to introduced herself to you and you must have felt very comfortable with her because of that. But, I do know that she isn't interested in anybody at this point and she is super awesome and fun to be around! I say you've made a very good pick!" She gave him two thumbs way up. "Come on, let's go talk to her!"

"N-N-N-No!" Akira cried out, feeling like he's on a runaway train with the brakes inoperable. Agitated, his brain scramble for what he needed to say to stop whatever it was from happening. "I mean, I do like Penny. She's very nice, but-"

"But?" Pinkie said, confused as she looked back again. "Oh, so it's Hiro that you like?" Akira slapped himself in the forehead with both of his palms. "How did I not see that? How silly of me! It would make even more sense since the two of you did come in together, which gives the impression that the two of you know each more. And, technically, he is in the room, so-"

"WILL YOU SHUT UP!?"

His words echoed around the room, in which it went silent as everybody stopped with their conversations to turn their attention to its source while Akira covered his mouth, air-tight, with his hands, his eyes wide open in shock. He could feel every pair of eyes all converged onto him, trapping him on the spot. His body went stiff, unable to get his legs moving as if everybody's eyes we're holding him down with their glares. He looked around and he found Hiro and Penny, both also looking at him, both wearing expressions that he could interpret. Did they find him odd? Maybe a little crazy? It was becoming excruciating for him to see that he had to go through with it all over again.

"Pinkie, what's going on?" Riku appeared, walking forwards them with a stern look on his face.

Pinkie, looking quite nervous, turned her head back at Riku as if she knew that she was in big trouble. "I…I didn't mean it!" she said, looking very upset while tears well up in her eyes. Then, she quickly turned to Akira and bowed low, her head hovering above the floor. "I'm very, very, very sorry for making you nervous like that! You're right, sometimes I really don't know when to shut up!"

"More like always," Riku commented and sounding quite harsh with it.

Akira, feeling responsible, bowed down to her. "No, I'm the one that should be apologizing! I shouldn't have yelled at you like that! You were only trying to help!"

"No, no. I'm the one who should be sorry! I was just forcing you answer one of my stupid questions!" Looking up, she grabbed onto his hands, her eyes pleading for him. "But, please, don't think that I'm only doing this for my own enjoyment! I really do want to help you out! It's just that you look so sad and…I mean, I didn't mean to suggest that-"

"No, it's fine, Pinkie, really," Akira said, sounding reassuring as he squeezed her hands. "I…I really appreciate what you were trying to do. But, I don't think right now is the best time for me, you know."

"Yeah, that's fine," she said, finally smiling. "But, don't hesitate to ask me for any advice when it comes to the dating scene, okay? I'm available 24/7."

"Okay. Thank you, Pinkie," smiling back at her.

With an accepting nod, she let go and backed away. As she left, Akira let out a sigh, glad that things had deescalated so quickly. She's a little crazy, but Akira's still liked her nonetheless.

"Okay, show's over!' Rikue called out and everybody turned their heads away from the scene, resuming with their conversations as if what happened never occurred. "You okay, Akira?" he said.

"I'm…I'm good," he answered, still feeling awkward. "I'm sorry about-"

"Hey, it's done," he said, smiling assuredly. "Mind if you come with me? I'm still setting up the race. I could use the company."

"Uh, sure," Akira said.

As if to show him that the invitation was genuine, Riku placed his arm around his shoulders and the two started walking together. Akira, still embarrassed by what just happened, kept his eyes on the ground, not wanting to make any eye contact with anybody. Now, they must all think I'm some kind of weirdo he thought.

Reaching the other side of the room, Akira found that they were quite separated from everybody as Riku walked around the black console board. It looked like something from a cheap sci-fi TV show as the white-haired boy started working on it. Curious, Akira walked over the side and watched in silence.

Six separate screens lay in the middle, each one showing both racetrack and the karts themselves. All lit up green, it was relaying information on the functionality of the machines, showing that everything's in good order with no problems detected, such as the steering wheels and the petals. A separate screen on top showed an options menu, with a list reading off as different attributes such as number of laps, items, AI difficulty and several more judging by the shortness of the scrolling bar. Amazed by its ornateness, Akira thought it a little much for a game as innocent as Mario Kart.

"Despite its looks, it's made to be more accessible for the public to play," Riku said. "Even dear old Grandma can join in on the fun. Course, I know a few that can be pretty hardcore."

"It's a bit much to take in," Akira said, but still find it fascinating.

"Man, can you imagine how crazy people will get once they see this? You'll have to beat them off with a stick just to get the chance to play it."

"I know one who's going to flip out once they see this," Akira said, imagining GoGo going gaga with one look at it with her eternal love of the franchise.

Riku smirked and returned to his work. "So, you really don't have anything like this in Bowling Green?"

"Nope," Akira answered. Then, he heard the question again in his head and realized that something wasn't right about it. "Wait, how do you know I'm from there? I never mentioned that." Riku looked back at Akira, remaining silent. "Or, did I?"

"I know who you are," he whispered, only loud enough for Akira to hear.

"What?"

"You were on the news a month ago. You moved here to live with your sister because of troubles you had in your old school. And, that you nearly took your own life."

Feeling his like his body was frozen stiff, being gripped with fear, Akira could only look at Riku as the white-haired boy looked back at him with an indifference. He knows? he thought. "W-Where did-"

"A news channel I follow on YouTube," Riku said. "They were covering your story. They even had a picture of you so I knew who you were the moment you walked in. I honestly never expect to run into you."

His throat felt like it was tightening up that he was unable to form any words while he stared at Riku, still amazed that he would even know about it.

As if sensing his uneasiness, Riku reached over and patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, I don't think any less of you because of it. I just can only imagine how shitty if must have been for you in that situation."

"Yeah, it was…really not fun," Akira said, chuckling at himself for such a mundane description of the worst time of his life. "Does everybody here know me?"

"Maybe a few. It's a huge channel, so it managed to garner tons of views."

"I knew that the local news covered it. I never thought that it'll be that big."

"Does that Hiro kid know?"

"Hiro?" Looking back at the boy genius while he continued conversing with Penny, Akira knew that Tadashi had told him some things based on what Hiro said earlier. "Not the whole story," Akira said.

The white-haired boy lifted his eyebrow, as if unsure by what Akira meant. "Would you like for him to know about it?"

"I don't think he even cares," he said, looking back at Hiro as he continued to smile at Penny and he felt a jab in his heart.

"Would you like to consider him as a friend?"

"Friend? I…" he let out a sigh. "I really don't know. I mean…we've just only met this morning all because his brother, Tadashi, set the whole meeting up without my knowing. In fact, I actually consider Tadashi to be more of a friend than Hiro, only because I know him longer. And, way nicer than Hiro."

"Does he come off as a jerk?"

"Yeah, he does," Akira said with no hesitation, which Riku chuckled at his honestly. "But, I think there's more to him. I mean, he's the one who invited me to come along to the arcade. And…I think we managed to have a bit of an understanding with one another from earlier. Plus, I don't know why, but…I can't help but to think that he feels just as lonely as I do."

"He doesn't look all that lonely from where I'm standing."

"I mean, before that," Akira said as he pointed his thumb at the aforementioned pair. "Even with his brother, who I figured he's really close with, he still keeps himself distant."

"Sounds like to me he has a bit of a superiority complex."

"I thought so, too. But, I don't know. I just know that I don't dislike being with him, at the moment."

Riku nodded as if it was a satisfying answer. "Sounds reasonable," he said. "Alright, we are good to go." Stepping away from the console, Riku started walking through the middle of the room. "The final race is about to begin! The last six racers, make your way to your karts!" Turning around to look at Akira, he patted his shoulder. "Good luck, Akira."

"Thanks," Akira said, appreciating the gesture.

Heading for his ride, the other karts were quickly being claimed. "Alright, time for me to kick some butt!" a girl with long, rainbow colored hair named Rachel shouted, looking eager to get the race started.

Next to her, Sora hopped into his seat from the back, looking just as excited with Chole taking the kart next to him. A small cadre of girls surrounding the boy started cheering for him, and he waved to them to acknowledge their support in his win. He wasn't the only one as just a many started cheering for Rachel, clearly both of them were the favorites, though Chloe had a few supporters herself.

Hiro took the middle kart, stepping in while Penny grabbed the one on his left. With the one on his right vacant, Akira took it and got himself familiar with the controls again as he strapped himself in.

"Hiro! Akira!" a voice pulled his attention towards where Penny sat where she waved to the two boys. "May the best racer wins!"

They both waved back at her, Akira looking forward to the challenge. Then, to his surprise, Hiro looked at Akira and held out his hand towards him. Akira reached out to grabbed it and shook. "You may have been lucky before, but I'm intending on going into the finals!" Hiro said, a cocky smile on his lips.

Akira could help but to chuckle at his bravado. "We'll see," he said and the two released their handshake and turned their attention to the giant screen in front of them as the game introduced their first track, "Mario Kart Stadium."

It appeared rudimentary with a few turns on an otherwise short-looking track, with the exception of the part where it went inverted, curving onto its side as it raised above from the ground. With the racers set up behind the checkered line, the Lakitu dropped down with it lights and begin with its countdown.

"3…2…1…GO!"

Stepping on the gas in the middle of the countdown, his kart blasted off at the start, hurling him forward along with everybody else down the heavily lit path. The turns were easy enough to navigate with plenty of speed boosters to propel him farther. However, the racers were packed together, making it hard for Akira to get much further in the line, straddling him in between 3rd and 4th Place, and he was unable to get any of the item boxes with the other racers ahead nabbing him first before he could the chance. The only things that he could get were coins and there were plenty of them scattered all over the track, but they held no apparent use as far as he was concerned.

Driving along, he quickly reached the part where the track turned on its side up in the air and his speed was unimpeded with the change of scenery. It was some sort of anti-gravity mechanic added to the game, seemingly used for mostly aesthetics, but he quickly found it to be a neat idea. As the racers started to separate each other, giving him some room to breathe, Akira speed onward, following the paved track as it curved up into the night sky while it exploded with fireworks, a brief moment but it was exhilarating for him. Coming back down, he managed to get an item box and as he came off from the track, he was surprised to see some sort of paraglider activating from the top of his kart. He sailed through the air just above the track and wasn't sure what he needed to do as he watched himself landing back onto the ground and just continued on.

He scored a Green Shell, which was good enough for him as he sat in 4th Place. The next racer just in front of him, Akira waiting for the opportune moment. The racer, whoever it was, crossed his sights and he slammed his palm in the middle of the steering wheel. He watched the shell as it launched from him and glided straight ahead, aiming for its target. It made a direct hit, stopping the racer literally in its track, and Akira sped by into 3rd Place at the start of the second lap.

"Crap!" he heard somebody yelled, but he couldn't pinpoint who it belonged to, or if it was connected to what he did.

It didn't matter anymore as he pressed on, his competitive side taking over with the next racer in his sights. Going at top speed, he activated the drifting mechanic, just slightly pushing down on the brake to give his kart a bit more torque in his turn around the curve and, then, blasting off into a straight line to shorten the distance. It was so satisfying for him to pull it off like that. He got a red shell, a much more reliable item, and was ready to use it until he heard siren blasting off. He immediately recognized what it signifying.

"Oh-oh," Akira said, glad to not be in 1st Place with the dreaded Spiny Shell, or Blue Shell as it was commonly known, flew by him like a missile. Akira could see where the 1st Place racer was at up ahead and could see them starting to slow down, a common trick in the game to bait the racer behind him to take his spot before the shell reached him. However, Akira could see the 2nd Place racer also slowing down as well. With the two racers next to each other, the Blue Shell appeared above them and slammed down, enveloping them into a huge, blue blast.

"Damn it, that idiot!" Hiro yelled at the screen, which Akira assumed to be one of the unfortunate racers caught in the blast.

The opportunity presenting itself, Akira slammed his foot on the gas and he sped forward as fast as he can, passing the still two crashed karts and taking 1st Place for himself. He became excited by the tables getting turned in his favor, until he heard another siren. Surprised by how sudden it came, he was ready to activate his red shell to stop whatever it was from getting to him, but he she got struck by a red shell himself, sending him tumbling off the road and into the grass and losing a few coins in the process. Staggering back onto the track, he watched helplessly as his place dropped with each passing racer.

Getting back into the race, he noticed that he wasn't going as fast as he was before. It was subtle, but there was a notable chance in his speed. Going along the race, he picked up a few more coins and found himself going a little bit faster and he realized their purpose. He figured that they could give him the edge. Now undeterred by his setback, Akira pressed on with the race, managing to get back into 3rd by the start of the 3rd and final Lap of the race.

He followed the track with familiar ease, grabbing some kid of horn as his item. Again, unsure of its use, he held on to it, getting closer to the racers ahead. With a slam on his steering wheel, the horn let out some sort of soundwave and caused the racer to spin out of control. Excited by the item's usefulness as he moved into 2nd Place, Akira set his sight for 1st. He was running out of time, but he's getting a little closer. Almost there…

A siren sounded off and, before he could do anything, he got sideswiped again by a red shell, knocking him out long enough to be sent back to 3rd once again. Frustrated, he moved on, hoping to regain his lost spot before the end, but was unable to get any closer. He crossed the finish line, finishing at 3rd. It'll do, he figured, as it was the first race out of four, meaning that there would be more chances for him to catch up.

With the final racer crossing the finish him, the result screen appeared as follow. Rachel's in 1st, followed by Sora in 2nd. Their victories made the crowd cheer enthusiastically in their favor and they both look pleased with the result. With Akira in 3rd, he got a few compliments on his performance. Hiro, coming in 4th, was understandably displeased with the results, followed by Chloe in 5th, then Penny in dead last. Looking at the red-headed girl, she didn't seem all that upset about it. In fact, she looked very happy as he stared at Hiro while the boy genius slumped in his seat with a sour looked, his cheeks puffed and his arms crossed. Akira couldn't help but to chuckle at the pouting Hiro. I guess even Einstein would have his moments Akira thought.

The next racetrack appeared, its name "Bone Dry Desert." And, as the name imply, it's set in the desert. There appeared to be plenty of twists and turns and even a couple of forks, possible shortcuts Akira figured.

"3…2…1…GO!"

Blasting off, Akira got himself into 2nd Place and grabbed an item box for a change, giving him a green shell. Continuing down the meandering track, the racer ahead of him crossed his path and he tossed it. It made a direct hit, getting it to spin out of control to allow him to grab 1st Place for himself.

"Crap!" he heard somebody screamed, immediately recognizing it as belonging to Rachel. "You're going down, new guy!" she called out to him, but he detected a sense of good humor in the tone. She's competitive, but she wasn't going to let it get in the way of a good time. In fact, he suspected that she enjoy a good challenge.

The turns were more unforgiving, having him to turn the wheel left to right and vice versa on a whim while activating his drifting, careful not to veer right off the course, as he would lose precious speed, or to run completely off the track, losing precious time. It was a balancing act that constantly change with each new take of the track laid ahead of him. He also kept in mind in collecting coins to bump up his top speed.

Passing the Bony Piranha Plant, he took the right at the fork and it carried him into the anti-gravity part, putting him on his side while he rolled past several speed boosters. At the end, he flew over a gap, his paraglider popping out from the top to carry him to the other side. Landing back onto the road, the dreaded sound of an approaching Blue Shell along with the flashing red screen surprised him. However, him being so far ahead of the pack and it still early in the race, he pressed on and take the hit, as much as he hated it as he had no options. It appeared over him and slammed down, taking him out for a few seconds. He lost most of his coins, so his speed took a big hit and he could see the racers on the map quickly catching up to him. He remained in 1st as he crossed the line, entering Lap 2, but he knew that he was a long way off from finishing the race. Plenty of things could still go wrong for him.

Another siren and his screen blaring red warned him of another approaching Blue Shell heading for him. Amazed at his bad luck, the only thing he had for his protection was a Banana Peel, which would not do him any good. However, the next racer was getting closer, so Akira decided to hand 1st Place to him along with the approaching Blue Shell. But, the racer seemed wised to his tactic as they slowed down quickly enough for the Blue Shell to bypass them harmlessly and still aim for Akira, exploding his kart again. He let out a groin of annoyance at his misfortune and watched the racer he tried to trick swerve pass him, taking away his lead. The other racers also caught up and sent him all the way to the back of the line into 6th Place. But, he was not giving up.

Swerving around the turns, he picked his speed back up with the coins, able to quickly pass the next two racers as they had some trouble navigating the course, getting into 4th Place. The next one was just ahead of him and, in a change of luck, Akira got a Red Shell. He immediately used it against them and got 3rd Place.

He took the right path again and blasted off with the speed boosters to cover the distance of the next racer coming up in his sights. He picked up a Banana Peel and immediately had it dragging from behind his kart for some protection. He employed his drift one again, hoping for an extra boost of speed to help close the distance, but the racers were proficient with the drifting as well, making it harder for him to get closer as he went into the 3rd Lap.

For the rest of the race, Akira was only able to get closer, but not by much as he concentrated on staying on track and not falling behind. Coming in 3rd again would put him more in a disadvantage when it came to winning the whole thing, but losing his place will hurt his chances even further, so he decided not to risk it.

He was beginning to settle for 3rd until the last part of the track when he saw the racer up ahead make a hard-left turn that took them right off the course. Sensing an opportunity, Akira, careful with his steering, activated his drift and quickly released his brake to boost across the finish line, seeing himself covering so much ground that he managed to catch up with the racer ahead of him, but he only finished in 2nd Place.

In the end, Hiro came in 1st, with Akira in 2nd then Chloe in 3rd, Rachel in 4th, Penny in 5th, and Sora coming abysmally in 6th. He could see Riku berating the spiky-hair boy for his poor performance, which Sora looked absolutely sheepish. Rachel also wasn't happy about her performance as well. Hiro, on the other hand, looked at his result with pride as his car made its victory lap.

"Nice job, Hiro," Akira said to him.

Hiro turned to him, smirking at him. "Not bad yourself," Hiro said.

The score tallied came to Hiro tying with Rachel for 1st with 24 points, then Akira at 2nd with 22, then Sora in 3rd with 19, Chloe at 4th with 18, and Penny in last with 15. It was still anybody's race, but there were clearly favorites, with Rachel and Sora receiving plenty of cheering despite what happened. However, it seemed that Hiro managed to gain a few admirers for himself as he heard a couple of people remarking on how Hiro could win and go into the finals.

"Come on, Akira! You can do it!" Recognizing that shrilling voice, Akira turned his head to find the pink-haired girl jumping, her hands hidden in pom-poms like a cheerleader at a football game. "Come on, everybody, say it with me! A-KI-RA! A-KI-RA! A-KI-RA! WOOOOOO!"

"Pinkie, you traitor!" he heard Rachel screaming.

"Sorry, Rainbow Dash, but I think Akira has what it takes to win!" Pinkie said.

"Rainbow Dash?" Akira asked her.

"Oh, just a little nickname I gave her. Cute, huh?" she said, reminding him of another silly person who like to give out silly nicknames. "FIRECRACKER, SALAMANDER, SIS-BOOM-BA! A-KI-RA, A-KI-RA, RA-RA-RA!"

While sweatdrops appeared on his head as he looked back at the screen, a little embarrassed by her out of control antics, nonetheless felt invigorated by her motivation. It was nice to have somebody actually cheering for him. With the next race being introduced, he steeled himself for the upcoming battle.

"Shy Guy Falls" was its name and it's the most insensible track thus far in the game, looking like it came from Inception. It looked as though it incorporated waterfalls into the track itself, which was actually pretty cool Akira thought.

"3…2…1…GO!"

Blasting off once again, he was met with some tight turns with no guardrails that would keep him from falling off, so he had to be careful with his speed as well as with his drifting, which he came to enjoy doing so much of. Driving on, he was careful not to oversteer and kept his drift going much longer than he thought that he could and found to this surprise that he could snake, or to continuously drift, and the blue flame from underneath his avatar's back wheels changed color, first to yellow, then to pink. Curious, with a straight line ahead, he released his drift and blasted off for quite the long distance that put him into 1st Place far ahead of everybody.

The crowd let out a roaring cheer, Pinkie being the loudest, exhilarating Akira to the core. Turning one more time, he found himself going up a waterfall with boosters coming down with it. He drove over as many of them as he could, rocketing him up the falls with each blast from his exhaust until he reached another turn over a wooden bridge that send him back down another waterfall. Keeping himself in 1st, Akira felt a little wiry. It was still very early in the race that anything could happen to him.

His screen started flashing red along with the blaring of the sirens. "Like that, for example," Akira said, cursing himself underneath his breath. Cosigning to his fate as he had nothing to protect himself from the Blue Shell of Death, he was so far ahead that it shouldn't do much to his lead except only letting the others to catch up to him. He pressed on, ignoring the warning and finding it quite the nuisance as it bothered his concentration. Onto dry ground, the Blue Shell appeared above him and slammed down, blasting him once again. It was funny how one would hate the items only when they were used against yourself, but that was what made this franchise so much fun for him, the unexpected results along with the tension of what could happen that help turn the game into a near level playing field.

He still retained his 1st Place as he approached the checkered line, heading into Lap 2, passing all of the cute Shy-Guys as they work tirelessly in the mines. He drifted along the track, doing it almost as flawless and blasting off to strengthen his lead once again. Grabbing an item, he got three Banana Peels and immediately activated them and they circle his vehicle as he blasted up the waterfall. He thought that it would give him extra protection and felt relatively safe, at least for the more common items, and he came back down the waterfall and flew onto dry ground without any problems.

Then, a siren blared and he felt prepared for a regular red shell coming for him, only for it to bypass his banana defense and make a direct hit, spinning him out of control. Surprised and horrified by the fatal flaw, Akira continued to press on, hoping that it was just a fluke. But, before he could move on, another red shell struck him and he toppled over himself. And, a third one connected, sending him into another tumble.

"Oh, come on!" he screamed at the screen, stunned by the cheapness of it as other racers sped by him, dumping him into 3rd Place. He let out an infuriating growl as he continued driving, couldn't believe the bad luck he encountered.

In the 3rd and Final Lap, Akira felt a little tense about regaining his 1st Place back and did not navigate the tight corners as well as he liked, nearly falling off from the track. He needed to calm himself and constantly grabbed item boxes, hoping for something that would help him out. He threw Bob-Bombs ahead of him, but the racers swerved around them safely as they exploded and he had to watch out for discarded banana peels. Running out of track, it was becoming hopeless that Akira could regain his 1st Place that he had for the first two laps.

"There's got to be a way," he thought and looked at the transparent map on his screen and noticed something peculiar.

There was an extension of the track that seemed to stop in the middle, disappearing into nothing near the end of the track. Curious about it, he wondered if it was some sort of short-cut. Gliding off the waterfall and back on the ground, Akira decided to risk it to see what it could be. Approaching it, he activated his drift and veered right to where it indicated on the map. As he thought, a ramp waited for him and flew across the gap, cutting in front of the racer that was ahead of him and taking 2nd Place for himself.

The crowd cheered and he wondered what it meant, but when the checkered line appeared in front of him and the 1st Place Racer was nowhere in sight, he knew that he had lost. Crossing the finish line, he settled for 2nd Place once again.

In a comeback from the last race, Sora came in at 1st, then Akira in 2nd, followed by Hiro in 3rd, then Rachel in 4th, Penny in 5th, and Chloe in 6th.

"Aww, you were so close!" Pinkie cried out. "I mean, you were in 1st Place for like two/thirds of the whole thing!"

"But, it only matters at the very end," Akira said, getting a little exhausted as he slumped back into his seat.

The score tallied up and the whole room went into a clamor to see Sora, Hiro and Akira tied for 1st with 34 points each, followed by Rachel with 33 points. Chloe had 25 and Penny ended up with 23, which meant that they had no chance of winning even if they ended up winning the final race so they had to abstained. But, with the four remaining racers essentially tied up, the winner would be decided by the winner of the final race. From what Akira can gather from all of the excessive chatter around him, this was the closest race thus far.

"But, you can still win this!" Pinkie said, springing back to life.

"I don't know," Akira said. "The others are so good."

"And, so are you!"

All in all, Akira did very well. But, Rachel, Sora, and Hiro each won a race while he seemed to get bad luck when it came to him keeping his spot in 1st Place intact. Hearing many people around him talking about who could win, people were still going for either Sora or Rachel as the safe bet while Hiro's name got passed around a bit as the dark horse.

"Don't tell me that you're thinking about quitting, are you?" Pinkie whispered.

"No, of course not!" Akira said, feeling offended by the notion. "I'm just saying that I might not win this."

"Think like that you'll most definitely won't win," another voice said from the other side of him. He turned towards the voice and found a beautiful girl with red and gold locks of hair. With a black leather jacket and a green shirt, even his fashion sense told him it was quite the odd combination, but it seemed to suit her well.

"Hey, Sunset!" Pinkie greeted her.

"Pinkie, for the last time, it's Sandra," the girl said, looking annoyed with her.

"I know, I know."

Letting out a disgruntled sigh, but a hint of a smile still appeared on her lips for a brief moment, Sandra turned her attention back to Akira. "Anyway, you're handling of the game is quite impressive, especially with the drifting. Out of everybody, I believe that you have the best control."

"Thanks, but it's those shells that will most likely do me in," Akira said.

"Well, luck, good or bad, has always been a factor in these games. But, I'll gladly give you a tip." She leaned close to him. "You know that horn item? If you get it, hold on to it and use it when you most need it. It will destroy anything."

Akira was surprised by this information. "Anything?" he asked.

She nodded and stood back up. "Other than that, you got this. Just need to push a little harder," she said and gave him a quick wink and walked off into the crowd.

"She's one of the finalists in the race," Pinkie said. "Also, she may seem really nice now, but before, she used to be one nasty queen bee in our old school."

"Really?" Akira said.

"Yeah, but now she's one of the nicest people. Course, nobody really knows why she changed so suddenly like that."

Akira found it curious until Riku appeared from the crowd. "Alright, has everybody placed their bets in? Well, it looks like Rachel is the favorite to win, with a 3-to-1." A loud cheer erupted in the room, which Rachel waved to the crowd in thanks. "Followed by Sora with a 4-to-1." An equally loud cheer erupted with Sora pumping his hand in the air. Kairi, standing next to him, reached down and gave him a big hug. "Then, Hiro with a 10-to-1." A smaller, yet a more boisterous group, cheered, which Hiro seemed to appreciate as he smiled. "And, last but not least, Akira with a 25-to-1."

Pinkie, all by herself, exceeded everybody's as she jumped into the air. "A-KI-RA! A-KI-RA! A-KI-RA!" The boy didn't know whether he was moved or embarrassed by the display.

"Well, to those few brave souls, you know that you'll either be winning big or going home empty-handed," Riku said and turned to Akira. "No pressure, of course, Akira."

While the group chuckled, Akira gulped, feeling unnecessary weight on top of his shoulder as he thought about the people that he would cause problems if he lose. His hands quivered on the steering wheel as Riku left to get the final race ready and the people began talking in excitement about the final race. Akira felt like vomiting.

Then, felt a hand on his shoulder and, magically, felt a little better. Turning back, to his surprise, Penny stood next to him, smiling.

"You feeling okay?" she said.

"Um…a little," he said, chuckling a bit.

"Don't worry about it," she said. "Just do your best. I'll be cheering for you."

Akira stared at her hard, confused by what she said. "Cheering, for me? But, what about-"

She placed her finger on his lips, stopping him and winked at him. "Good luck," she said and stepped away. "A-KI-RA! A-KI-RA! A-KI-RA!" she chanted, which Pinkie joined in and it was just the two of them.

It was becoming more surreal, him being in a secret room participating in a racing tournament while being cheered on by a couple of people that he had only just met. He turned to Hiro, wondering what his reaction was to have his friend cheer for Akira instead. The boy genius never even looked back at him, his full attention was on the screen in front of him, looking ready for the next race to begin. As the screen started showing the final track, the crowd went wide, knowing that they were in for a show. Still hearing the two girls chanting his name, Akira felt invigorated. He felt that he could actually win this, not because he felt that he can, but because other people believe that he can.

The final track was a nostalgic one, "Royal Raceway" from the N64. With the final four racers at the starting line, the Lakitu dropped down to begin the countdown.

"3…2…1…GO!"

Blasting off from the starting line, Akira found himself in 2nd Place, but all four of them were clunked together and he found himself switching between 2nd and 3rd with the winding turns, which Akira had to be careful with his drifting and steering as he might not have enough room to maneuver. At the last tight turn, he saw Rachel flying right off the track and into the water, inciting loud groins from the crowd at something like that could cost her the race. Finally, Akira found himself in 1st Place again with his boosting and him collecting coins. But, knowing what was at stake, nobody would be settling for less as they would fight for the win.

He grabbed every item box that he can, activating the worthless ones quickly so he could get the one that he really needed. On the ramp, he boosted along and flew across the lake to land on the other side, capping his coin count to ten upon his landing. He coasted along the track, never letting up on his drifting and, finally, got the horn that he had been searching for. Keeping himself in 1st, he hoped that it would not happen, but at least he would be prepared for it, if what Sandra said was true. And, if that was the case, it could be a one-time use.

The others were still keeping up with him and the people were cheering for their favorites. But, he ignored all of that, not letting himself to be distracted by it as he entered the 2nd Lap. Looking on the map, Rachel seemed to have come back into the race with the help of Bullet Bill, but Akira was still ahead of the pack with his horn in his hand, ready for it to come his way. Then, just as he anticipated it, the sirens called for the encroaching Blue Shell, ready to take him down, but he was ready for it to do its worst. His hand over the middle of the steering wheel, he waited for it to appear, keeping his speed constant as he weaved through the track with ease. Then, appearing above him, he slammed his palm down earnestly, maybe a little extra hard to make sure that the game registered the input. The Blue Shell instantly disintegrated, leaving him untouched by it as he raced on without incident. As he expected, it was a one-time use with the horn disappearing, but it saved its life. However, with the race only half-way done, it was far from over.

The others were still catching up to him thanks to the items they acquired and Akira kept on grabbing items himself, hoping for the horn again, but it proved to be such a rare item as he got only mushrooms, green shells, and a Squitter. But, he made it through the 2nd Lap without incident and reached the 3rd Lap with a little confidence that he might win this.

Making his way through the tight turns, the siren sounded off and he knew that a red shell was coming for him. As he made the last tight turn, he saw it coming at him from the side, frightening him. It caught up to him and knocked him hard, sending him careening into the water. He slammed his fists on the wheel in frustration as the Lakitu fished him out and watched helplessly as the other racer sped by him, knocking him into last place. The crowd voiced their disappointment, adding to the demoralization of the event. With only less than a lap to go, there didn't seem much of a chance for him to win this.

It's not over yet he thought and slammed down on his gas petal, still seeing the others up in front of him as they fought for 1st Place. It'll only matter at the very end.

He quickly gathered more coins, capping them at ten to get the most speed that he could get. Him being in last place meaning more chances of getting better items, like the Golden Mushroom, which he spammed to give him the boost that he needed to catch up, climbing up the ramp and across the pond. On the other side, he got to them, but still hung in the back and he was losing time. In just a few seconds, the race will be over.

He began his drifting, riding along the paved track, keeping himself in the middle of it as best as he could. He watched the flame turned color, from blue to yellow, then yellow to pink. He might come in last place, but maybe…

Making that final turn, the finish line lay in front and Akira let off out of his drift. He blasted off like a rocket, going much faster than he anticipated. The other racers, heading for the finish line, looked as though they were literally standing still as he made his way forward, meeting them just before the checkered line. And…

1st Place!

The crowd let out a humongous roar as his screen flashed his name as coming in 1st Place, followed by Hiro in 2nd, then Rachel in 3rd, and Sora in 4th. Tally up the points, Akira came out on top with 49, making him the winner of the entire cup.

Stunned by the unexpected victory, Akira slumped back into his seat, exhausted with his heart still beating hard in his chest, only for his exhilaration to be refueled with the happiness in his win. "A-KI-RA! A-KI-RA! A-KI-RA!" the crowd behind him chanted, with everybody joining in with Pinkie as she jumped into the air, screaming the loudest.

She ran to him from behind, wrapping her arms tight around his neck in a squeeze as she lifted him off from his seat. "THAT WAS AWESEOME!" Pinkie screamed. "I KNEW YOU CAN DO IT!"

"Thanks, Pinkie," he said, feeling thankful for her undying support. "Um, you can let go of me now."

"Oh, sorry," she said and quickly released him but still acting giddy.

He climbed out of his seat and the people still cheered for him as they close around to congratulate him on his unprecedented win. Being the center of attention for something like this, it reminded him of how people at his old school would cheer for their sports team on a win, congratulating them. He would clap along, but only in the background and out of respect and he would often imagine what it would feel like for him to be in that sort of position. Now, with that dream coming true for him, he felt like crying for joy.

"Hey, new kid." Turning around, Akira found Rachel and Sora standing next to him, both of them smiling. "That was a doozy winning like that!" Rachel said. "You showed a lot of guts by never giving up and giving it your all to the very end! I like that in a man," she said and good-heartily punched his arm. He flinched from the pain, but it felt oddly nice.

"Thanks," Akira said.

Sora walked up and held his right forearm up in a diagonal. Akira stared him, unsure of what it meant until he saw Hiro, still sitting in his kart watching from behind, held his forearm up the same way, indicating to Akira of what he needed to do. Akira copied him, holding it across from Sora's and waited. Then, Sora bumped his forearm into his, smiling amusingly as he dropped his arm. "We'll get you the hang of things around here," he said and patted Akira on the shoulder. "My sentiments are the same. That was freakin' awesome what you just did there!"

Akira smiled and nodded to him. "Well, you guys really put me on my toes the whole time. It just only made the victory all the more sweeter."

"Just don't let it get to your head, new kid," Rachel said, smirking. "I'm expecting a rematch from you."

"Anytime, anywhere," Akira reply, which Rachel nodded approvingly of the remark.

"Well, that's the end of that," Riku said, walking up to the front, giving Akira a pat on the back. "Nice job, Akira. That was a hell of a win. Even I was on the edge of my seat at that very last moment."

"Even the stoic Riku can have his butthole puckered up, huh?" Rachel said, chuckling.

"Well, at least I know that I'll be getting a slightly more interesting race with him being in it," Riku said, wrapping his arm around Akira shoulder. With his face becoming flushed by how close boy was to him, Akira looked at him and discover that Riku looked quite handsome with the rugged, yet still boyish face. Again, his heart began to race again and his legs felt a little wobbly that he thought that they might collapsed under the weight. He started taking in deep breaths to prevent it from happening.

"Hey, you okay?" Riku asked.

"I'm…I'm good," Akira said, his face still heating up.

A noise chimed in and Akira instantly recognized it as it being "Hunter's Chance" from Final Fantasy IX. "I need to take this," Riku said quickly, stepping away from Akira. "Excuse me, guys." Taking himself away from the group, Riku went into the back of the room, pulling out his phone and began talking quietly on it.

As the group started to talk more amongst themselves, Akira found himself by himself once again. It seemed like his five minutes of fame had ran out. Then, he found Penny going up to Hiro, which incited his curiosity about earlier that he wanted answers.

He walked up to them, which quickly Penny caught him. "Hey," she greeted and held out her hand to Akira. "Congratulations, Akira."

"Thanks, Penny," he said, taking it in appreciation. Then, he looked at Hiro as the boy looked up at him indifferently. "That was a good race, Hiro."

Hiro nodded and held out his hand to him. "Yeah, that was," he said, and genuinely smiled. Satisfied, Akira reached out and the two boys shook. "Um, hey, Penny, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What is it?" the girl said, curious.

"Why…did you want to cheer for me? I thought that you would be cheering for Hiro."

"Oh, um…" the girl clammed up, looking unsure on what to say.

"She must have thought that you'd end up winning," Hiro said quickly, as if to help her out. "I mean, she did bet on you."

Akira looked at the girl, surprised. "You…betted on me?"

The girl, first looking displeased at Hiro, then uneasily at Akira as if she realized that a mistake had been made. "Uh…yeah."

Then, Akira looked at Hiro, who looked oddly unaffected by the new. "And, you're not upset about it?"

Hiro only shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal. Then, Akira, feeling uneasy as the notion began to form in his mind that made the whole experience felt cheap, looked at the boy sternly. "Hiro-"

"Everyone, can I have your attention?" Riku called out, silencing the entire room as everybody turned to the white-haired boy. "Due to unforeseen circumstances, I'm afraid that the Final Cup will have to be postpone." A loud audible groan was casted out from the crowd. "Sorry, I just got a call and it's important that I take care of it immediately."

"Don't worry, I can race in your place," Sora said.

"And risk losing because of your poor driving skills? Fat chance," Riku said. "Besides, I want a opportunity to race the other finalists."

"Well, we need to schedule it so that everybody can be here," Sandra said.

"Oh! Oh!" a young girl with red hair named Alicia called out. "How about on opening day, when the game will be first revealed? That way you guys can give a demonstration!"

Clamor immediately began over the great potential of it and even Riku seemed intrigued by it. "For once, a plan coming from you that actually makes some sense," Riku said. "Alright, two weeks from now, on the game's schedule debut, that's when we'll have our Final's Cup. In the meantime, we can hone in our driving skills, make it even more exciting for the public." With that, Riku moved forward, marching quickly for the door. "See you then, Akira," Riku said, patting him on the back on his way out.

"What the hell is that all about?" Hiro asked, looking suspiciously at Riku as he walk out of the room.

"Don't know, really," Penny said. "Well, with the Finals put on hold, what do you guys want to do?"

"How about he we get out of here?" Hiro said, hopping out of his kart. "I want to see if that Prescott jerk has stopping playing out of sheer boredom."

"What, on BlazBlue? I wouldn't count on it," Penny said, turning around.

Feeling as if the initial conversation was being ignored, Akira followed the two, not wanting to it to be put aside. "Hey, wait," he called out to them and the two looked back. "Look, Hiro, I don't know what you think of me, but I don't want you to feel sorry for me unless you actually mean it."

Hiro, looking confused, looked to Penny. "What are you talking about?"

"Did you lose the race on purpose?"

"No," Hiro said, laughing as if the notion was the dumbest thing he had ever heard. "If I did, then that was too close of a call. I may have an IQ over 250 but even I wouldn't be able to pull something like off."

"Oh," Akira said, feeling stupid for even thinking. "S-Sorry, I thought that-"

"No, it's fine," Penny said. "I can understand why you thought it odd that I would cheer for you instead of Hiro. And, you did win the race, fair and square."

"But, I'm still confused as to why you went for me instead of Hiro."

"Yeah, about that, Penny. Did you really have to do that, betting against me?" Hiro said, now looking at Penny with a raised eyebrow loaded with suspicion.

"Look, I'm sorry, Hiro, that I didn't go for you instead, but I just thought that Akira's got the edge over you," Penny said, not sounding at all concern for Hiro's feelings as the boy genius seemed to have detected it. "And, because of that, I got five times of free credits! Oh, yeah! High five, Akira!" Holding her hand up in the air, Akira gave her what she wanted, with some enthusiasm in it. "Come on, I'm gonna buy you something nice as thanks!" she said, holding on to Akira's arm as she pulled him along with her, leaving behind a grumpy looking Hiro as he followed them from behind.

Akira, unsure what was happening, looked at the girl holding onto his arm as she smiled at him while she led him out of the room. Man, what a day he thought, wondering if the day would get any wilder.