That afternoon, at a well-known seaside restaurant in Ritou, Collei, Seele, Beidou, Pela, and March sat down at a large table, eagerly awaiting their food to arrive. The ambiance of the restaurant was warm and cozy, the sound of waves crashing gently against the shore adding a relaxing backdrop to the casual conversation. March, ever the one to stir up a conversation, broke the silence.
"Hey, Collei, is it true you've been driving on Yougou for the past five years?" March asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
Collei smirked slightly. "Yeah, sounds about right. It's been that long, give or take."
March leaned in closer, her expression mischievous. "But why all the secrecy? I thought we were really close friends!"
Collei sighed, a faint hint of hesitation crossing her face. "If I mentioned it at all, my father would have gotten into trouble. You know how things are."
March nodded, her expression softening. "Fair point. Five years ago, we were starting junior high. Back then, it always seemed like trouble had a way of finding us no matter what we did."
Beidou, always with a knowing smile, chimed in. "But since junior high, you've been driving every day on Mt. Yougou. Snow or rain, it didn't matter. What mattered was that you drove."
Collei responded quickly, a touch of pride in her voice. "Yeah, before dawn. Nobody was on the road at that hour. No big deal."
Beidou waved her hand dismissively, a smirk on her face. "I didn't mean it like that, Collei. I meant the corners! Weren't you scared of them at all?"
Collei paused for a moment, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "At first, yeah. But after a while, that fear just... vanished. I got used to it. When I first started, I noticed the tires slipped a bit, for reasons I couldn't explain. But I adapted to it. It took about six months before I could control it properly."
Seele snapped her fingers, a grin spreading across her face. "So in about a year, you had the downhill mastered, right?"
Collei nodded, a faint chuckle escaping her lips. "I guess you could say that. Driving the same route every day for my dad got pretty boring. So, I started finding ways to break up the routine. Like testing how close I could get to the guardrail without hitting it."
March gasped, her eyes wide. "That's insane! Why would you do something like that?!"
Collei shifted in her seat, her face a mix of amusement and nonchalance. "I wouldn't call it insane. And besides, I never wrecked. At my best, I could get about a centimeter from the guardrail without touching it."
The rest of the group was stunned, their eyes widening as they processed just how skilled Collei had become at driving on Yougou.
But Beidou's brow furrowed slightly as a new question formed in her mind. "There's one thing I don't get, though. How do you manage to drive a truckload of tofu up Yougou so quickly? If you drive too fast, the tofu's gonna slosh around and mess up your haul."
Collei tapped her chin again, thinking for a moment. "Well, on the uphill, I don't really go fast. So the tofu doesn't slosh around too much. My dad would put a cup of water in the cupholder to show me how the tofu behaves. If I could drive without spilling the water, then I knew I was good."
At that moment, the food arrived, and the group thanked the waiter, eagerly digging into their meals. The sun was beginning to set, casting an orange glow across the restaurant, signaling the end of a relaxing day.
Seele, ever the inquisitive one, raised her hand and brought the conversation back to its earlier topic. "About that water cup... How do you not spill it when you're driving uphill at such high speeds?"
Collei leaned forward slightly, using hand gestures to explain. "Well, the first few times, yeah, I spilled the water everywhere. It only took the slightest rough input, and boom—water all over the place. But after a while, I got the hang of it. Dad used to tell me, 'Roll the water around the cup.' I was confused at first, but I eventually understood what he meant."
March scratched her head, clearly puzzled. "Roll the water around the cup? What does that even mean?"
Collei grinned slightly and demonstrated with her hands. "It's all about the surface tension of the water. It can only stretch so far before it spills. So what you do is roll the water around the edge of the cup, keeping it from sloshing too much. Took me a while to get it down, but eventually, I was able to drift without spilling the water. It seemed impossible at first, but now I can do it consistently."
The entire table stared at Collei, their eyes filled with awe. They had never realized just how much skill went into her driving.
Beidou leaned in closer, a teasing glint in her eyes. "Drifting without spilling? You can actually do that?"
March, now even more intrigued, grabbed Collei's collar with a playful but serious expression. "You better not be lying to us, Collei. You hear me?"
Seele quickly tapped March on the shoulder. "Settle down, March! People are looking."
March looked around, her face turning a shade of red as she realized that a few curious patrons were now eyeing her. She quickly sat back down, clearing her throat as the restaurant returned to its normal buzz of conversation.
Pela, who had been quietly observing, finally spoke up. "The primary control point of any car is its center of balance. That's where it all starts. It's not easy to master a car's balance, and for Collei to drive without spilling the water means she's mastered the Eight-Six's center of balance. Forget about drifting—that's a whole new level."
Beidou's eyes widened, her voice filled with excitement and admiration. "Collei, can I ask you a big favor? Can I ride with you on the Yougou downhill before we head home?"
Collei's eyes widened in surprise. "I... uh... I guess so. Sure."
Beidou immediately punched the air in triumph, grinning from ear to ear. "Yes! Thank you so much, Collei! You don't know how much this means to me!"
The group resumed eating, and March, in her usual mischievous way, secretly grabbed a cup of water from the counter and placed it in the Eight-Six's cupholder. As they all finished up and headed to their cars, Collei noticed the cup sitting in the holder and turned to March with a look of displeasure.
"Seriously, March?"
March blushed slightly, but she was unapologetic. "Come on, Collei! I've gotta see if you really can't spill it!"
Collei sighed, rolling her eyes. "Fine, March. Just don't get too excited."
Pela and March strapped themselves into their seats as Collei started the car, the engine purring to life. They began their drive back toward Yougou, with Seele and Beidou following close behind. The thrill of what lay ahead was palpable, and even the quiet evening couldn't dampen the excitement.
As night quickly settled in, the group was back at Yougou, at the summit. Beidou, fully geared up, was practically vibrating with excitement, ready for her ride with Collei.
Seele leaned in from the passenger side window, her eyes glinting with amusement. "Look at you, all nervous and sweating," she teased, her voice light but laced with playfulness.
March bounced up and down in the backseat, her heels clicking against the floor with a rapid rhythm. "You are so lucky, Beidou!" she exclaimed, practically bursting with excitement. "This is going to be amazing!"
Beidou, finishing her preparations with a confident grin, gave a thumbs-up. "I know, right? This is gonna be epic!" she said, her voice full of anticipation.
Collei, sitting behind the wheel, glanced over at the passenger side, her smile wide and reassuring. "Come on, guys, it's just a downhill run. It's not like we're going to the moon," she said, her tone lighthearted. "Now, let's get this show on the road!"
Beidou's eyes sparkled as she turned to face Collei, clearly more than ready. "Right on! Let's go!" she shouted, excitement flooding her voice.
With a final wave toward March, Seele, and Pela, Beidou called out to them with a grin, her tone playful but challenging. "Now, back off, you losers!" she teased, the words leaving her lips like a challenge.
In an instant, the car launched off, the engine roaring as it hurtled downhill into the night. March leaned toward the window, watching the Eight-Six disappear into the darkness. "She's going to have the time of her life," March said, a hint of awe in her voice.
Inside the Eight-Six, Beidou's mind was already racing. "I'm gonna figure out her technique, and then seal it for myself to use!" she thought, a determined glint in her eyes.
As the car approached Turn 1, Beidou's excitement quickly morphed into nervous anticipation. Her grip tightened around the door handle, her knuckles going white. "Hey, whoa! Aren't we going a bit too fast?" Beidou shouted, her voice rising in alarm. "Collei! Brake!"
Without warning, Collei expertly drifted the car through the first turn, the rear of the Eight-Six swinging dangerously close to the guardrail. Beidou's heart raced as they shot through the turn at breakneck speed, the car mere centimeters from the barrier.
As they sped into Turn 2, a tight right-hand hairpin, the unmistakable chime of the Eight-Six's speed limit warning began ringing in Beidou's ears. The speed was over 100 kilometers per hour.
Beidou's eyes widened, her grip on the door tightening. "The speed chime! We're over 100 kilometers per hour!" she shouted. She glanced ahead, her heart skipping a beat. "And we're headed straight for the next corner!"
Collei, unfazed by the warning, slammed on the brakes with expert precision, shifting the car down from fourth to second in a single, fluid motion. The car's tires screeched as she initiated a braking drift, sending the rear of the Eight-Six sliding around the corner with breathtaking grace.
Beidou's stomach lurched as the car's tail swung out, inching closer to the guardrail with every passing moment. Her eyes locked on the barrier, her pulse quickening. Collei, calm as ever, glanced over for a split second, then gave the Eight-Six a subtle but playful tap against the guardrail. The sound of a light scrape echoed inside the car.
In that moment, everything seemed to shift for Beidou. The rush of adrenaline flooded her senses, and everything felt sharper, clearer. She stole a glance at Collei, who remained cool and collected, her focus unwavering as she pushed the car even faster down the hill.
But as Collei braked hard for the next corner, the intense g-forces proved too much for Beidou. Her vision blurred, and before she knew it, she passed out.
Back at the summit, the group waited anxiously for Beidou and Collei to return. The mountain air was crisp, the anticipation palpable. Then, suddenly, Pela's sharp ears caught something. "Whoa, I hear engine sounds," she said, her voice tinged with curiosity. "Are they back already?"
The sound of the Eight-Six's engine grew louder, and March's face fell as she noticed the headlights in the distance. "It's too early for them to be back. Something must have happened," she said, a note of worry creeping into her voice.
As the Eight-Six finally pulled into view, Collei expertly maneuvered the car to the side of the road and brought it to a stop. The headlights dimmed, and she immediately turned on the emergency hazards.
March, Pela, and Seele rushed over to the driver's side window, their faces filled with a mixture of concern and curiosity. But what they saw inside left them all in stunned silence. There, slumped in the passenger seat with a relaxed, dreamy smile on her face, was Beidou. Drooling slightly, she was completely passed out.
March quickly opened the driver's side door and leaned in, checking Beidou's condition with a glance. She then turned to Collei, her voice a soft whisper. "At what turn did this happen?"
Collei stayed silent for a moment, her face betraying no hint of worry. Then, she held up three fingers.
March's jaw dropped. "Three?! She passed out after Turn 3?" Her voice was a mix of disbelief and awe.
Pela and Seele leaned in to take a closer look at the cup holder, noticing something even more impressive. Not a single drop of water had spilled from the cup.
Collei sighed softly, her voice barely above a whisper. "What do we do now?"
Seele snapped her fingers, a sudden idea forming in her mind. "I got it! Collei, you follow me. Beidou can rest at my place for the night. Pela can sit behind."
Collei nodded in agreement, hopping out of the car to let Pela take her place in the back seat.
As the group began to prepare for the journey back down the mountain, Collei turned to Seele with a puzzled expression. "How are we going to get her out of the car?"
Seele simply shook her head, a mischievous smile tugging at her lips. "I don't know yet. But we'll figure something out."
The group set off, driving back through the streets of Yougou. The cold night air whistled through the mountain roads, carrying the sounds of the winds echoing in the distance. But this wasn't the end. No, this was just the beginning for Collei. The downhill ace of Yougou.