The streets were pitch dark that night, with streetlights faintly reflecting off the body of the black motorcycle speeding down the road.
Karel took a deep breath as the night wind started to seep through the gaps in his helmet, sneaking its way to his skin.
His hands swiftly twisted the throttle, making the bike accelerate, causing his jacket to flutter slightly.
As he neared the location, he began to ease off the throttle bit by bit, allowing the bike to slow down.
"Whoa, finally the boss is here!" Raka shouted enthusiastically, waving at Karel before extending his hand for a fist bump.
Karel, still on his bike, had no intention of getting off. He couldn't wait to race; he remembered actively racing when he was still a student in his past life.
"Let's start right away. You race against me" Karel said, looking at Raka while adjusting his helmet, tightening the strap.
Since this was an area owned by his family, only his friends were present, so there was no risk of unnecessary trouble.
Karel also wouldn't agree to race on public roads because it was too dangerous for the public.
However, sometimes his group would race on the streets, battling against other groups, but occasionally the original owner of his body would be reluctant to join. Because he think they're not on the same level.
"Alright" Raka replied with an eager grin.
Their sports motorcycles lined up side by side, and the roar of the engines created a loud noise.
"Go!"
After hearing the signal, Karel quickly twisted the throttle. The rear wheel spun briefly before gripping the asphalt.
As he approached a sharp turn, Karel swiftly shifted his body weight, leaning the bike into a sharp angle.
Suddenly, he felt his phone vibrating in the pocket of his jeans. He clicked his tongue in annoyance, then pressed the brake pedal, and the screech of the tires echoed as the bike's wheels gripped the asphalt.
The black motorcycle came to a sudden stop, leaving tire marks on the road surface.
Quickly, Karel removed his helmet, took his phone from his pocket, and pressed it to his ear.
"..."
"I will be there soon" he said, then quickly shoved the phone back into his pocket carelessly.
Without bothering to put his helmet back on, he started the engine and sped off with a worried expression.
The engine roared loudly as the motorcycle zoomed away from the racetrack, heading toward the main road.
o0o
Raka's eyes gleamed behind his helmet as the finish line drew nearer.
Feeling the victory almost within his grasp, he pushed the throttle harder, giving it his all.
Finally, with the roar of the engine growing louder, he sped past the finish line and claimed first place.
"Huhh, finally I beat Karel" he thought to himself, knowing that if he said it out loud, Karel's followers would surely beat him up.
Overjoyed, he raised his hand and, with a wide grin, walked over to his friends, giving high-fives one by one.
"Here, I brought something refreshing" Ervin said, handing him a bottle of cola.
"Wow, you're rarely nice to me" Raka responded cockily, though he accepted the cola with a cheerful smile.
Standing next to his bike, he took a satisfying gulp of the cola before striking a cool pose with his arms crossed over his chest.
He had prepared that pose for when Karel arrived.
However, after a few minutes passed, he began to feel that something was off.
Ten minutes passed, and the excitement on Raka's face began to fade, replaced by confusion.
"Why hasn't the boss shown up?" he asked, puzzled.
His friends began exchanging glances, some hiding smirks.
"Sit down, bro. Aren't you tired from standing?" Ervin said lazily, noticing Raka still striking his pose.
"No, you're the one who's tired" Raka shot back.
But after thirty minutes, his legs started to tingle, and he began to shift uncomfortably.
His hands were also restless, swatting away the mosquitoes buzzing around his ears.
The atmosphere around the track started to quiet down. One by one, members of the group left, leaving Raka and Ervin alone.
Ervin, already bored, finally stood up and walked toward his bike.
"Where are you going? You're such a bad friend, leaving your boss hanging" Raka complained.
"He heading home. There's an something" Ervin replied, starting his bike and riding off, leaving Raka all alone on the track.
Hearing that, Raka's face immediately soured.
"F*ck" he muttered angrily, feeling mocked.
o0o
Meanwhile, Karel, who had been engrossed in playing a game on his phone, suddenly felt a sneeze coming on. Roughly, he wiped his nose with his index finger.
He quickly resumed the game, but his eyes inadvertently glanced toward the bed in front of him, where a figure was lying.
The person, who had been sleeping, was now trying to sit up.
Seeing this, Karel quickly tossed his phone onto the sofa beside him and walked over to the bed.
"How did I end up here?" a hoarse voice from the man in the bed asked.
"You're awake? I'm leaving now" Karel said, turning to walk out of the room.
However, his steps stopped when a voice halted him.
"Wait."
Hearing those words, Karel's lips curled into a slight smile. But even though the smile appeared, he hesitated to turn around.
Not long after, he felt his body tense up when suddenly he felt a warm embrace from behind. The muscular arms, though weak, held him tightly.
"Damn, my heart" Karel cursed to himself, feeling his heart race uncontrollably.
"Don't go" the hoarse voice, typical of someone just waking up, whispered in his ear, accompanied by a strong smell of alcohol on his neck.
"Let go" Karel tried to struggle, though he didn't use all his strength.
But the more he tried to break free, the tighter the embrace became.
Arthur tightened his hold, as if afraid to lose the person in his arms.
Arthur had long tried to keep his distance from this young man. He thought that by staying away, the feelings that had started to grow would simply disappear.
But the more he tried to distance himself, the stronger his longing for the person in his arms became.
This was something that had never happened before. Usually, he could forget about people just by burying himself in work and company documents.
However, after these past two weeks, he couldn't resist his feelings. Even though he had tried to stay busy with his documents and even worked overtime, he still couldn't push the image of this young man out of his mind. Even in the midst of his busyness, thoughts of him continued to haunt him.
Eventually, when his work could no longer distract him from his feelings, he turned to alcohol, hoping it would help him forget.
But instead of forgetting, alcohol only worsened things. Under the influence, his desire to hold Karel became irresistible.
How long would Karel forget their memories?
But misfortune struck Arthur. When he was driving while drunk, his focus wavered, and he lost control.
The car sped up, and before he even realized what was happening, it crashed into a tree with a loud thud.
Fortunately, no one was injured in the accident, except for the car, which was severely damaged by the impact.
o0o