Chapter 13. New Car
Rio De Janeiro, Abandon Wearhouse
"Dom, stop."
Severa tried to shoo him away, but he refused to move, insisting on playing with her hair like when they were kids. His fingers gently combed through her locks, a small, nostalgic smile on his face.
"Come on, Sev. It calms you down," Dom said, his voice soothing. She huffed and tried one last time to detach his hands from her head, but given the size of his body versus hers, it was a losing fight.
"Merlin! You are a child in a man's body."
Dom chuckled, unfazed by her words. "Maybe so, but you love it." He paused, his hands stilling for a moment. "Remember when we used to sit in the back of my dad's old truck and you'd let me braid your hair? We were just kids then, but those were some of the best times."
Severa's irritation melted away as memories flooded back. "Yeah, I remember. You were always so patient, even when I complained about your terrible braiding skills."
"Hey, I've improved since then," Dom protested, feigning hurt. He started to gather her hair into a braid, his touch gentle and deliberate. "See? Much better now."
Severa sighed, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "I suppose I'll allow it this time."
Dom grinned, finishing the braid with a flourish. "There. Perfect. Just like old times." Severa rolled her eyes when she heard Mia shout from across the warehouse from one of Tej's computers.
"Got it, we got it!" They all got up and gathered around Mia, staring at the security cameras on the screen.
Han leaned over Mia's shoulder. "Yo, that's some high-end shit right there. Marker optics, 100-degree field of view." He shook his head and glanced at Dom. "Ten-second oscillation."
Brian, who was sitting next to Mia, shook his head. "Yeah. That's a narrow window, man." Severa nodded. Ten seconds was a small time window. In her mind, the only thing that could get past that would be a broom or a not-notice-me charm, or maybe a—
She was snapped out of her thoughts by Gisele's voice. "Can't we just tap in and replace the image?" Before Severa could process her words, Tej was quick with an answer.
"Nah, it's hooked up to a digital sync. They'd know we were in the system. The best we could do is peek."
Severa bit her lip, trying to think fast but was quickly knocked out of her train of thought by Roman. "We're gonna need some real fast cars to get through this." Han nodded.
"Not just fast. We got a hard right and a hairpin, We're gonna need somethin' agile." Severa couldn't think of anything that didn't involve her magic, something she was saving for a last resort.
Suddenly, Dom stepped forward, his eyes straight ahead. "You guys mock up a track," His eyes landed on Brian. "O'Conner, let's go get some cars." Brian nodded as the two turned ready to leave, but Severa was faster.
"Me too." Dom sighed and shook his head. "Severa—"
"Dom."
She stared at him, not uttering a single word. Dom glanced at Mia, who was shaking her head. If there's one thing he knew from growing up with Severa, if she cut you off by saying your name and nothing else, she was giving you a warning not to argue.
Dom sighed, relenting. "Fine. But you're gonna need to change."
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Rio De Janeiro, Street Race
Severa sat in the backseat of Dom's car as Brian and Dom sat in the front. As Dom kept driving, Severa noticed the loud music, the nice cars, the girls in short dresses...Dom had taken them to a street race.
"Seriously, Dom?" Severa asked, her voice tinged with a mix of amusement and exasperation.
Dom glanced at her in the rearview mirror, a smirk on his face. "We need the right cars for the job, Sev. And there's no better place to find them than here."
Brian nodded in agreement as Severa shook her head, at least she listened to Edith when she told her to wear something short.
They parked and stepped out of the car, the thumping bass of the music vibrating through the ground. People were everywhere, chatting, laughing, and showing off their rides. Brian walked up to a blue car and pointed at it.
"How about that? All motor, no tuning issues. I always wanted one of those." Severa leaned a bit closer to the car when some guy piped up.
"Held the record on the Avenida three years running." Severa saw how Dom's face shifted into a smirk as the guy kept going. "You got a lot of balls to bring your problems here, Toretto. Not to mention, a cop."
Severa raised a brow. Who the hell was he talking about? Neither of them were cops, right? Just as she glanced around, Brian piped up. "Yeah, we can keep that on the low." She didn't even have time to understand what the hell was going on before the guy spoke up again.
"Word on the street is a lot of people are lookin' for you two," Severa blinked as the guy just looked over her, She wasn't that short. "What? You didn't think we wouldn't recognize you?"
Dom chuckled slightly. "Well, we're kind of counting on it." He nodded at the guy's car. "That little coupe may run the streets around here," he turned and pointed at his own car, "but this monster has never seen a set of taillights—ever."
Severa watched as the two men stared each other down, the tension thick in the air. She turned on her heels and made her way back to the car, ready to wrap up in a blanket as it was freezing out there. Dom walked over to the car, heading for the driver seat while Brian stayed back.
"Dom? What's going on?" Severa asked, her voice filled with curiosity and concern.
He looked up and smirked. "He wants to race car for car."
Brian stepped forward, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "We could use another solid car."
Severa sighed, knowing there was no talking Dom out of a challenge. "Alright, just be careful."
Dom nodded, his expression serious. "Always."
The crowd gathered around the makeshift starting line, the atmosphere electric with anticipation. The two cars lined up, engines revving, the roar echoing through the night.
"Ready?" The Flag girl's voice boomed out the microphone. "Set... Go!"