Note from the author:
Before you dive in, I just wanted to say a few words. Mainly just let you know that this is my first attempt ever at writing this kind of story. So be gentle! The song at the end is "Best in Me" by Sherwood in case you wonder. And I wanted to thank TRCIII for your fabulous editing and input. Comments are very welcome. Happy reading!
~~<3~~
James sat at the kitchen table with his notes sprawled all over, staring at his Calculus 2 homework. He knew he was in trouble. The test was in 2 weeks and he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing.
'Fuck it. I'll just get CJ to explain it to me,' he thought, as he collected his useless notes. The best thing about this school was CJ, or Callie Jo, as the rest of the world knew her. Only her best friend, James, could get away with calling her that.
The two had grown up living next door to each other, and despite the fact that James Connor was a grade ahead of Callie Jo Davison in school they were best friends. James and his older brother, Nick, spent a lot of time at her house while his mother was at work. The boys' father had walked out on them soon after James was born and had kept little contact with his former family. Nick spent most of his time with CJ's three older brother's who were more his age. Both she and James had been what you might call "happy little accidents," so there was a six-year difference between the pair and their older siblings. As the duo grew older, they became very protective of each other.
CJ was often unhappy when James dated a girl she didn't personally approve of and that of course meant the relationship would be short-lived. James always explained to CJ's boyfriends the repercussions of hurting her. Many times, their classmates would make the mistake of thinking the two were dating and then were left only to wonder why they weren't. James and CJ never even gave that a second thought; they were practically siblings and the idea of dating their brother or sister just wasn't appealing.
After graduation, James went off to a college in northeastern Texas that he hoped was far enough away from their hometown of Wichita without leaving him completely isolated from his family. CJ also ended up at the same university after her graduation. After James' freshman year, he decided he wanted to get an apartment instead of a dorm room and naturally his first choice for roommates was CJ. She gladly agreed because most of the girls' dormitories had community bathrooms and didn't have very many singles, and CJ liked her space.
James decided that now was as good a time as ever to take a study break and make some dinner. CJ would be home from her last class soon, so he decided to make her favorite: his signature-seasoned chicken and spaghetti. The instant she walked through the front door, CJ could smell all the spices and herbs James was using to make his homemade meal. She smiled and thought that if he wasn't so damn hell-bent on becoming an architectural engineer, he could make a nice living as a professional chef. When dinner was ready, the pair sat on the couch in the living and watched Sports Center, informing the other about their day during the commercial breaks. Growing up with basically 5 brothers gave CJ a very hearty appreciation for the world of sports, so this was nothing out of the norm.
"Hey, CJ, can you help me with my Calc 2?" James asked, as they finished cleaning the dishes.
"Yeah, sure. But only if you help me with my Comp 1 paper. I may be a borderline math genius but English and writing just ain't my thing."
"Obviously. Whatever happened to your one-woman mission of proving to the world that Kansans don't talk like hicks? You are clearly failing, kid."
"That was never a mission; it was more of an ill-conceived idea. Besides, it's not like you care how I talk because you talk exactly like I do. So shove it, will ya?"
James just shook his head as he got out his homework and explained his predicament, which CJ was quick to fix; in turn, James edited CJ's paper and made suggestions to enhance it. By the time 11 P.M. rolled around, both were happy with what they had accomplished and decided to watch a little television before heading to bed. Neither had any classes the next day, so they weren't in any hurry. After debating whether to put in a movie or not, James announced he should actually be heading to bed.
"Why? It's barely midnight. What do you have to do tomorrow?"
"Well, funny you should ask. I'm going to go race in a weekend competition. Did you want to come along? It's been a really long time since you've watched my motocross races live. Aren't you tired of just watching videos?"
"I was going to go home for the weekend but watching you race sounds much better than babysitting the army of brats…I mean, uh, my nieces and nephews. Where's the race at?"
"About an hour south of Dallas, so we should leave around 8 in the morning to get there by noon. Chad is going to ride down with us, too."
"Sounds like a plan. We'd better head for bed then. See you in the morning!"
James got off the couch and headed towards his room with CJ following him down the hall to hers. He didn't expect to sleep very well; he never slept well before a big race and this one was going to be very big. A lot of new sponsors were going to be there and James needed new ones since the contracts with his others expired. He also finally had a chance to try to get his pro card. One stupid mistake two years ago kept him from getting his card and also kept him from racing for a few months since he severely broke his leg. Right before he fell asleep, he made a promise to himself that he would win that race and make CJ drive down there since he needed all the rest he could get.
~~<3~~
Chad, James's one-man pit crew and closest guy friend, arrived at the house just before 7 to start packing the trailer. James had most of it ready the night before so it was a quick finish and the guys went into the house to make breakfast as they waited for CJ to finish getting ready. She finally emerged from her room at about a quarter 'til 8 and the boys were awestruck. She had finally figured out how to manage her unruly red curls and had them falling just below her shoulders and was wearing a tight—but not overly tight—Fox Racing shirt James had given her for Christmas one year, paired with some of the shortest jean shorts the guys had ever seen her wear.
Callie laughed, "What? You guys haven't seen a girl before? Shut your traps, we got a long drive ahead of us so let's get rolling." With that she did a little spin, showing off the perfectly curved figure on her 5 foot 7 inch frame. "Jeez!"
"It's not that we haven't seen a girl, Cal. We just haven't seen you! Wait, that's not what I meant. You just look different today. No worries, though, you look great!" Chad managed to say, as Callie sat down to eat some toast and bacon with them at the table.
