Not for you (FIN)

Hector turned the car around and drove on.

"What you're doing out here in the middle of nowhere?" He asked.

"Ah," I sighed, "nothing. Some friends of mine played a joke on me."

"Friends that play jokes on you are not nice. Especially if those jokes let you end up in the middle of nowhere."

"You're saying it."

We drove on for quite some time, again passing the way that lead to Letty's house. I took a short look at the yard; the cars were all gone. Shit, they were probably already searching for me.

"Say, Hector, how fast can this car go?"

"Very fast but still not as fast as I would like it to, why?"

"Just because I'm interested. Show me."

He did; no man could ever resist that request.

Some time later he stopped at a small diner.

"What are you doing?" I said.

"I'm hungry."

"Hector... I need to get to that airport."

"Yes, after you've eaten something. You look like you could use it. Or at least had something to drink." He said and got out.

I groaned, but got out too, picked up my bag and went after him. If I was lucky, the guys would just search the streets for me. It was also unlikely that they would assume I had already gotten that far.

I followed Hector into the diner and to my surprise and quiet approvement he picked a table that was situated at the very back where we wouldn't be seen the moment someone got in but nevertheless could still see who was entering the diner.

"I suggest you go and see the restrooms." He said before I could sit down.

"Why should I want to see the restrooms?" I wondered.

"Well, a look at the mirror should tell you why." He replied dryly. I shook my head and did as he told me.

Shit! He had been right. From the 'work' in my trailer and the dusty road I was covered with dirt, dust and sweat all over. My hair was an absolute mess; even beyond the point I usually tolerated. And my knee... I didn't even dare looking at it.

I washed my face and arms as thoroughly as possible, braided my hair into a tail, then pulled up the leg of my trousers which was basically soaked with encrusted blood. Shit. The temporary bandages were also soaked and sticky. I peeled them off which was a bit painful as they were stuck firmly to the wound; and peeling them off resulted in the wound starting to bleed again. The area around the wound was hot and red, and I knew that at least parts of the wound had gotten infected; but there was not too much I could do about it.

I wrapped a small towel around my knee, pulled the trouser's leg back over it, washed my hands again and returned to the diner.

Hector was just about to put his cell phone away when I got back to the table where a sandwich and Coke were already waiting for me. If I hadn't been busy thinking about my hurting knee I would have wondered where he knew my preferences from.

"Got a call from your girlfriend?" I jokingly asked and sat down.

"Sort of." He said.

"Ah, she's jealous?"

"Not really. We're beyond the point where she would be jealous in any kind of way. Had enough of that with her former boyfriend, you know?"

"Yes, I can sort of relay to that." I said and thought about Dom.

"So, tell me more." He was leaning on the table. "How did you get on that road."

"Ah, long story. Don't think you're interested."

"Oh yes, I am." He said, giving me something that reminded me much of the typical 'Vince' stare.

"Well, to make it a bit shorter, there was a guy I was interested in. Wanted him as a friend, but he looked too gorgeous for his own good. One evening we both got drunk, and... well, you know what I want to say. Next morning I didn't think that this was such a good idea any more, and tried to get away, just to be locked in my trailer by..." it took me a moment to find the right expression for what Michael was now, "one of his friends. Well, they brought my trailer to Mexico with me still locked in it to visit one of their... friends. I broke out of the trailer after spending almost the whole day in it and am now about to get back where I originally came from."

"And where would that be?"

"Well, Germany. I'm going back to Germany."

"Wow, that's far! But didn't you say that some of your friends played a joke on you?"

"Well, yes, they once were my friends. Or at least I thought so. But ever since they locked me in that trailer and kidnapped me I'm not so sure." I emptied half of the Coke in one shot.

"Perhaps they just, you know, wanted to talk that over? Especially the guy who - what did you say - looked too gorgeous for his own good?" He snickered a bit when he said it.

"I'm not interested in talking that over."

"But perhaps he's, you know, in love with you?"

I almost spat the Coke out that was in my mouth. "Hector, that man's in love with no one."

"Funny", he said, taking a sip from his own beer, "you know, many people used to say the same about my girlfriend. She's gorgeous too and when I got to know her ,or rather when I got together with her, my friends, too, said that she couldn't love anyone."

"No, that's not the same. You see, his friends are playing along and try to convince me that he's in love with me or something."

"Well, perhaps he really is?" He said.

"No, he's not."

"But if he was?"

"He's not."

"But if..."

"HECTOR! Stop that shit, you have no idea what you're talking about." I said, so close to jump up from the table and walk away.

"Well, I just think that you should take the possibility into consideration."

"Not really." I said and took another sip from my Coke, emptying it. I waved at the waitress, she signaled that she would soon come over.

"And even if he was in love with me, do you think he would have the right to, you know, just kidnap me?"

"Did he lock you in that trailer?"

"Not really."

"What the hell is your problem then?"

"Just something that I smelled on him." I grumbled.

"Beg pardon?"

"You don't want to know, trust me." I said.

"And what about your car? I mean, you want to go back to Germany without it?"

I froze.

"Hector..." I said slowly. "How on earth would you know about my car? I didn't tell you anything about..."

At that moment, the waitress came over. "Hector!" She greeted him with a warm smile. "Sorry, you were so busy with the phone, I didn't greet you properly before. How are Letty and the baby?"

I stared at him, he stared at me. The waitress decided that right now wasn't a good time to take my order and went away.

"You're... Letty's boyfriend?"

"Husband, actually. We got married two years ago when she was pregnant."

"Then you are..." One of my hands grabbed the strap of my bag.

"One of the people who are searching for you, Dana. Yes."

"Shit!" I shouted, jumped up and ran out of the diner.

Just to see Brian's car stop right in front of me. Dom and Brian got out.

"Get into the car, Dana." Brian said with a stern expression.

"And if I don't? You're going to kidnap me again?"

Dom ran his hands over his face. He looked as if he had been crying. "Fuck, let's just talk this over, baby."

"Don't 'baby' me, Toretto!" I spat. "Just tell me where my car is, I'll get home myself!"

"You can't keep running all the time, you know?" He said, slowly walking towards me.

"Why not? You should know best, one can run for a long time!"

"Please, just get back to Letty's house with me. Just let me explain something, and if you don't like the explanation, I'll personally drive you and your trailer back to your car and let you go."

I laughed. "Don't take it personal, but I would prefer if you wouldn't drive me to my car."

"Then I'll drive you. I promise." A voice said from behind me. Hector had just gotten out of the diner.

"Get into the car, Dana." Dom said, his eyes pleading. "Please... get in. We were worried out of our wits when you were gone, with all that blood in the trailer..."

"Just a scratch on my knee, that's all." I said and saw him looking down at me, his forehead wrinkling when his eyes stopped at my knees.

"Is that blood I'm seeing there?" He asked.

"Yes, that's blood you're seeing there, but it's none of your fucking business!" I shouted and looked down myself. Shit, by now even my shoe was stained.

"Well, as it's obviously my fault that you've been locked in that trailer, I'll take the blame for that wound, too. Please... get in, that has to be looked up. Please." He extended his hand.

Hector behind me, those two before me. There was no way I would escape.

"Talk to you? And if I don't like the taking, Hector will take me back to my car, right?"

"Right." Hector said, and Dom and Brian nodded.

I considered for a moment, then shrugged. "Well, I guess it's also okay if I drive back with Hector then?" I said and went to his car. When I turned around, Brian and Dom were already sitting in the Skyline, waiting. Hector just shrugged and opened the doors.

The distance back to the house was covered in complete silence. Just when we were about to turn into the way that lead to the house, Hector said something.

"Please, just listen to him. It's important to him. Never saw him so upset before, and I've been knowing him for many years."

"Well, it's important to me to have my freedom. No one kidnaps me." I grumbled.

"You're just as stubborn as he is."

"Possible. See, just another reason why this would never work."

The car stopped.

Dom came over and leaned to the roof on my side.

"Walk with me?" He said, his face hidden behind his sunglasses, never looking at me, as it seemed.

"Don't have much of a choice, right?" I said, not looking at him either and got out. Ouch, that knee hurt badly when I bent it.

He walked towards some trees behind the house. From the corner of my eye, I could see Letty storming from the house, just to be caught by Hector. I stood for a moment to watch her.

"Good lord! Where the hell have you been, girl?" She shouted.

"Just exploring Mexico a bit." I shouted back and went after Dom who didn't stop for a second.

"Dom, this is ridiculous!" I said when I was still running after him as we arrived by the trees. "I can't walk so fast, my knee hurts! You have something to say? Say it now or I'll turn around and go!"

"Just a bit more... see, there's that big tree. Let's sit there." He said with a strained voice, not looking at me but still marching forward.

"I don't want to fucking walk around! Tell me what you have to say so that I can go!"

"Please... He hung his head and was still not turning around to look at me. "Just these few yards. Please. I don't want the others to hear what I have to say."

Something was wrong with the way he walked. I blamed it on my eyes which had been in the sun too long, but to me, it looked as if he was shaking while he walked.

He had already reached the tree and disappeared behind it. I just sighed and walked after him.

I found him sitting, leaning with his back against the trunk; his face hidden between his knees, his hands busy with a piece of grass that was ripped apart.

"So, Dom, what the hell do you want to tell me?" I said.

"Sit. Please."

"I bet you didn't use the word 'please' as many times in your whole life as you did today." I snorted and sat beside him.

"Perhaps I have a reason for it."

"And what would that be, oh Fearless Leader?" I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Look at me." He said; his head still between his knees.

"I am looking at you."

"That's good, because I would like to know if this is what you wanted to see?" He said, lifted his head, looked at me and took the sunglasses off.

"Well, only if you tell me that you've hidden a cut onion between your knees." I replied, staring at his face. He had obviously cried, and not just a bit; some tears were still rolling down his face. "What the hell did you cry for?"

"Well, you, perhaps?" He said, dried his face with his forearm and looked at his knees.

"Sure."

"Hell, I thought I had lost you. I thought I would never see you again. When we opened the trailer and saw the blood on the floor, I almost freaked out when the others wanted to open the bathroom door. I was scared that you had fucking killed yourself in there and I so didn't want to find out if they were right!" He shouted, still looking at his knees.

"You think I would kill myself for you? Not for you, Toretto, not for you." I chuckled, but it didn't come easy.

And finally he stared at me.

"What do you want, Dana?"

"Right now? My car, my trailer, a plane." I said.

"You sure?"

"Totally."

"What has changed since last night?"

"Just about everything!" I spat.

"Tell me why."

"Well, besides the fact that I hate to be kidnapped there was something I smelled on you."

"Explain."

"The way you're asking tells me that your buddy Vince already told you."

"Maybe, but perhaps I want to hear it from you?" He said.

I just stared at him, the way his head was resting on his knees and watched another tear rolling down his cheek and I had strong difficulties to suppress my hand from going up there and just wipe it away.

"Well, just so you can double check that information, I know you lied to me last night about that 'didn't look at anyone else' shit. See, I wouldn't have even just twitched if you had said nothing, but finding out that you lied was too painful."

"I didn't lie." He said.

"Ah fuck Dom, you did. See, that evening when I told you and the others what happened to me, you came late into their camp. Vince joked around about you 'running around and shit', and I just noticed a smell on you. Never had smelled that before, and only once later: And that was after last night. You had sex that night, and I don't think that it was with someone you didn't look at."

As soon as I had finished the sentence, he started to laugh. He laughed so much that he was about to fall to the floor.

And I got angrier with each laugh that came from his mouth.

"You think that's funny? Fuck you, Dom, I'm going home." I shouted and got up, but he caught my hand, still laughing.

"Yes, I do think that's funny, and as soon as you hear why you'll roll on the floor too, I promise." He said.

"And why should I do that?" I said, staring down at him.

"Just because you're wrong. And so freaking right at the same time that it's really, really not funny any more. But before I tell you about that, I have another question. Sit, just for a moment more, please."

"No, I'm standing very well." I said, feeling that the wound on my knee had been torn open again from the jumping up; a wet feeling was spreading downwards from it and a hot pain radiated through my whole leg.

"Okay, then I'll get up too." He said, turned around and pressed both hands to my shoulders, trapping me at the trunk of the tree. "Just a question, Dana; and I hope you can imagine that: If you wouldn't have smelled whatever you smelled, how would this morning have ended? What would I be for you now?"

"You don't really want me to say that." He couldn't be serious!

"Oh yes, I do. Please, tell me."

"Well, I'd say that we would still not have a relationship but also not a one night stand. Something in between perhaps. A bit more than friends, a bit less than a couple. To be honest, I have no idea, Dom." I said.

"Good. Given that this was the case, would you completely disagree on the possibility to turn this - thing in between - into something more, given that we would have the time?"

"I wouldn't exactly disagree, but as we don't have..."

I was silenced with a thorough kiss on my mouth.

I tried to push him away, but it just didn't work; his hands were still firmly pressing my shoulders to the tree. At the same time I found that kissing more and more comfortable, and funny enough, as soon as I didn't try to push him away any more he let go of me all by himself.

"You better have a damn good explanation for that smell." I said, my voice still raw.

He snorted, shook his head. "Actually, I do. Don't know if you will exactly love me for that explanation, but yes, I do. Come with me." He just started to walk back to the house and held my hand, so that I was practically dragged behind him.

"What the hell are you doing now?"

"Oh, I'm going to show you something."

"Can't you, like, just tell me?" I said, trying to keep up with his pace, but with my hurting knee that was almost impossible.

"No, I think that's something you need to see to believe it. And damn, I have brought myself into that situation, so I need to make up for it." He winked; all of a sudden being giggly like a girl. What the hell did he have on his mind now?

When we were almost at the house, he stopped.

"Go to your trailer." He said. "I have to clarify something in the house, but I'll be with you any moment."

"I don't want to go into the trailer with you!"

"Who said anything about you going into the trailer? No, you just stay outside."

"HAH?"

"Just go. Please. Ah, this word's gonna have a record today." He said laughing and walked to the house.