Lap 4

The days since my meeting with Luna dragged on with nothing interesting happening whatsoever. To be honest I was bored out of my mind with nothing to do, all I could do was wait until my first day as a bus driver came. However, as I minded to myself, I decided to do a little digging in these street racers Luna told me about. I had heard that they’re actually a small time gang on the south side of town where cops don’t usually patrol. It started out small with just a handful of people and over time they had grown. Those who don’t affiliate with the gang tend to stay mostly indoors since it’s too dangerous to roam outside. Which is understandable since you never know when a car will come speeding down a pedestrian area going 80mph.

I had just got done from a morning run and breathed a sigh of relief as I entered the parking lot. I wore a pair of athletic shorts, runners, and a skin tight tank top. I held my arms over my head and took deep breaths to collect my oxygen as I walked through the doors of my apartment. Harley was listening to music and didn’t notice me walk in until I neared her desk and she looked up.

“You know, this usually is the time that most people stay sleeping,” I joked.

“Yeah, then why are you up so early?” Harley asked.

“I’m the school bus driver, that’s why.”

“Fair enough, so today’s your first day?”

“Yep, I mapped out the route during my runs so it should be pretty easy to follow.”

“That’s why you’ve been running these past few days? Wow, you seem to be pretty committed to this bus driver gig.”

“And I’ve got you to thank for it,” I said as I walked past her.

“You still owe me for that run we’re supposed to do together!” Harley called out.

“Maybe this weekend, depending on how my job goes!”

About a half hour later, I was dressed and on my way to the school to begin my new job. I pulled into the staff parking area and parked my car. I looked once more in the mirror and fixed my hair and smiled.

“Show time,” I said as I got out of my car and headed over to where the bus was parked.

The bus looked like your run of the mil bus and looked as slow as it did big. I opened the double doors and looked inside to see the rows of seats just waiting to be filled by the students I was gonna pick up. I sat in the driver’s seat and put the key in the ignition. Not only was this thing big, but it was loud too as I got a feel for the steering.

“Alright, old girl, let’s see if you can be nice to a former street racer like me,” I thought out loud.

I pulled out of the driveway and drove up to my first stop for the day. I made it to a small neighborhood where there was already a group of teens waiting for me. Most of them already looked dead tired from waking up early as I pulled up and opened the double doors. They climbed aboard the bus, said their good mornings, and took their seats.

Alright, so far so good.

“Hey mister,” I heard one of the teens call out. “You don’t look like any of the staff, are you new?”

“Yep, I was hired as your new bus driver last week, name’s John Doe,” I replied.

“John Doe? Sounds fake,” the teen said.

“Yeah, I get that a lot,” I chuckled.

I made it to my second stop which was closer to the downtown area. More kids were waiting for me, and among them were a few girls who I recognized while arriving in town. They were the same girls who were admiring my car and I saw that the rainbow head teen looked half asleep while her friends looked wide awake. I opened the double doors and watched as they piled in and saw the three girls walk up the small steps.

“Hey, I know you!” The rainbow head said. “You’re the guy we met a while back!”

“We meet again,” I smirked. “How was the rest of your summer?”

“Well shoot, partner, didn’t expect to see ya so soon,” the country girl said.

“Neither did I, funny how life works sometimes.”

“Um…hello again, sir,” the shy girl whispered.

“Morning, go on and take your seat.”

She nodded as she joined her friends as they sat right behind me as I pulled away.

“So how did a guy like you, who drives a sweet looking car like that, end up driving a school bus of all things?” the rainbow head wondered.

“Eh, it seemed like an easy gig so I took it,” I shrugged. “Didn’t really feel like flipping patties over a grill.”

“Makes sense, I guess, so what’s your name mister?”

“First of all, I’m only 30 years old so being called mister makes me feel old. Second, name’s John Doe.”

“John Doe? That can’t be your real name, isn’t that what people who don’t have names use?”

“I get that a lot, but rest assured it’s my true name,” I chuckled.

“But-”

“Leave the feller alone, Dash, if he says it’s his name then leave it be,” the farm girl said. “My name’s Applejack by the way, partner.”

“Whatever, I’m Rainbow Dash, remember it,” Rainbow said.

“I’ll certainly try.”

“Um…my name is Fluttershy,” the shy girl whispered.

“Come again? Can’t really hear you because of the bus,” I said as I stopped at a stop light.

“My name is Fluttershy,” she said a bit louder.

“Fluttershy?” I said and she nodded as she hid behind her hair. “Huh, well met then.”

I had made a few more stops and had only two more to go. The bus looked like it was a little over half full and the kids were all just conversing amongst themselves as I drove. My drive then led me to a street that was near the shopping district and there were more kids waiting at the stop. One of the teens looked like some kind of fancy and all posh as she held a tiny mirror and was doing her makeup. She had snow white skin, sapphire blue eyes, and her hair was all quaffed with purple curls. She wore a light blue top and a purple skirt with three diamonds sewn on it, and purple high heel boots.

Next to her was a girl who was hopping in place and had the brightest smile I’ve ever seen. She had light pink skin and her hair was a darker pink and looked aas poofy as cotton candy. She wore a blue and white top and a pink skirt and light blue tennis shoes. I pulled up to the curb and opened the double doors for them as they and the other kids stepped inside.

“Good morning darlings, it is good to see you all again after a delightful summer!” The white skinned girl said in a posh tone.

“Hey, Rares, good to see you again,” Rainbow waved. “What did you do over the summer?”

“Oh, I traveled to France with my family!” Rarity said cheerfully as she sat with the others. “It was such a wonderful experience! My mind has been bustling with new ideas for new clothes.”

“HIYA!” The pink girl chirped, seemingly appearing out of nowhere and in my face.

“Uh…hey?” I said.

“You’re new! I don’t remember you from last year, what’s your name? I’m Pinkie Pie! I like parties, cake, cookies, cake, my friends, cake, balloons, cake-”

“Pinkie! Let the man drive! We’re gonna be late for school!” Applejack snapped.

The pinkie girl, named Pinkie Pie, giggled and hopped to her seat and sat with the other girls. I shook my head and stifled a laugh at the energetic display of the kid as I drove away and continued my route.

“I don’t believe we have gotten acquainted, sir,” the posh girl said.

“He’s the new bus driver, apparently,” Rainbow answered.

“Yep, name’s John Doe, pleasure to meet you,” I said as I looked in the rear view mirror with a smile.

“Oh my, well he does seem like a gentleman,” the posh girl giggled. “I am Rarity Belle, darling, an equal pleasure to meet you as well.”

“It’s also nice to meet you, Pinkie Pie,” I said, glancing at the hyperactive pink girl.

“I still find it hard to believe that someone like you, who owns a sweet car like that, would stoop to being a bus driver of all things,” Rainbow chortled.

“Rainbow Dash! Don’t be so rude!” Rarity shrieked. “Whatever vehicle Mr. Doe drives has got nothing to do with why he has agreed to become our bus driver.”

“Oh yeah?” Rainbow smirked as she pulled out her phone and tapped it a few times. “You wouldn’t be saying that if you saw him driving this.”

Rainbow showed Rarity her phone, with Pinkie leaning in to also get a good look, and went slack jawed. No doubt she was showing her a picture of my Aston Martin and looked at me like I had an extra head or two.

“This is your car?” Rarity asked.

“Yep, bought it myself with almost all of my savings,” I lied, knowing full well I still had plenty of funds from street racing.

“Wowie! That’s an Aston Martin! The engine must be a 4.0L 3982CC V8 FI Turbo!” Pinkie said, making us do a double take at the girl.

“How the hell do you know about engines?” I asked.

“My sister is a bit of a grease monkey, she’s always trapping herself in the basement cause she’s working on a car she’s building. During meals, she always mutters to herself and never realizes that we can hear her. You’d be amazed at how much she talks to herself about cars, so it all kinda stuck!”

“Huh, go figure,” I hummed as I arrived at my next stop.

“Forgive me, Mr. Doe, but something grand such as an Aston Martin is, shall we say, uncommon to own here in Canterlot City. And, given your newfound profession, I am hesitant to believe you could own such a vehicle.”

“Wow, and you tell me not to be rude,” Rainbow scoffed.

As the next batch of kids climbed into the bus, I smirked as I reached into my pocket and pulled out my car keys. I tossed the keys behind me, making Rarity yelp as they fell into her lap, and her eyes went wide once she saw the Aston Martin logo on my car key.

“You believe me now? That key’s real, and the car is parked in the lot back at the school,” I said with a shit eating grin.

“We can actually vouch for him ownin’ the thing, Rarity,” Applejack said. “Rainbow, Fluttershy, and I met this feller on the way back from visiting mah relatives when we went to visit my little cousin. The thing is much prettier in person and the sound of the engine is somethin’ else, let me tell ya.”

“It’s a very nice car, or at least, that’s what I think,” Fluttershy said.

Rarity seemed to be at a loss for words as she gazed at my car key. As she handed it back to me, she had stars in her eyes and a wide smile.

“Oh my goodness! You must allow me to bear witness to this magnificent vehicle! I have always wondered what an Aston Martin looks like in person!”

“Sure, you and everyone else can see it once we get back to the school,” I shrugged as I tucked my keys back in my pocket.

“You sure are a strange guy, Mr. Doe, what did you even do to afford a car like that?” Rainbow wondered.

“I was part of my old man’s family business,” I lied, hoping they’d buy it. “He gave me the job when I was only 14 or 15, about you girls’ age, and I’d been saving up ever since. I bought and customized that car with every penny I earned.”

“Wow, and where did ya say you came from?” Applejack asked.

“Rockport City.”

“What?!” They all gasped.

“Holy crap! You’re from Rockport?! That’s like, crazy far away!” Rainbow said.

“Gracious, darling, not to mention that the news has been reporting nonstop about the incident a few weeks ago,” Rarity added.

“Are you talking about that street racer guy?” Rainbow asked.

“I also heard about it on the news, it was super wild!” Pinkie chirped.

“And plum dangerous too,” Applejack said. “To think a guy could cause that much damage all by himself, it’s sorta unbelievable if ya think about it.”

“It must have been quite difficult to live in such a city with all those speed crazed brutes, Mr. Doe,” Rarity said.

“Eh, kinda,” I lied again. “But I mostly kept to myself.”

“What made you move all the way to Canterlot? If you don’t mind me asking,” Fluttershy asked.

“A fresh start,” I shrugged. “Got tired of all the damn noise and wanted to just do my own thing. I didn’t just wanna move to the next town over so I decided to go the extra mile and travel across the country. Things seem pretty chill here, and I already have a nice looking job to boot.”

“Are you sure ya can handle drivin’ a bus load of noisy kids for the rest of your life?” Applejack jokes.

“Might as well get used to it,” I chuckled. “Besides, you girls seem alright so I’m not complaining.”

“You may come to regret that,” Rainbow chortled.

“We’ll just have to see then, won’t we?”

The girls laughed as I neared the last stop of kids to pick up. One, among them, caught my eye and she looked like a bit of a punk girl. She had light tan skin and fiery hair and light teal eyes. She wore a black leather jacket with a shirt that looked like a two toned color sun on it. She also wore a light blue skirt and boots and she had an annoyed scowl on her face.

“Aw no, it’s her,” Rainbow sighed.

“Just don’t pay her none,” Applejack sighed.

I pulled up to the curbside and opened the doors for the kids. As they piled in, the punk girl climbed up the steps and glanced at me before scoffing and walking to the back of the bus.

“Well, she’s certainly a character,” I commented before shutting the doors and driving away.

“That’s Sunset Shimmer,” Pinkie said, not sounding as bubbly at the moment. “She’s also kinda new to town like you but…”

“She’s a total jerk,” Rainbow said bluntly.

“That seems a bit harsh,” I said.

“Well it’s true! I once offered her to come play soccer with me and she said she wouldn’t waste her time doing something pointless!”

“I’m kinda with Rainbow on this one,” Applejack said. “Girl seems more sour than a fresh picked granny smith apple on a daily basis.”

“Where’d she move from?” I asked.

“That’s the perplexing part about her, no one really knows,” Rarity said.

“I’ve tried to ask her where she’s from and if I could throw her a Welcome to Canterlot City party, but she said it’s a waste of time!” Pinkie huffed.

“And that’s also why she’s a jerk! Everyone always enjoys Pinkie’s parties,” Rainbow said.

“Well in my opinion, I think you kids should just leave her be. She obviously has her own reasons for keeping to herself and giving you all the cold shoulder. If she’s not comfortable talking about it or opening up, then that’s her deal.”

“But wouldn’t she be happier if she had a friend?” Flutterhsy asked.

“Sometimes people come from places where friendship is more of a liability than a necessity,” I sighed. “Take me for example, in Rockport those street racers made it hard for people to get by without worrying about if a car would come speeding down the street. Not to mention if their friend or neighbor was a street racer themselves and they didn’t want anyone to know about it. That Sunset girl may be bitter, but maybe she has her own reasons why.”

“You sure talk pretty wisly for a bus driver,” Rainbow said.

“I learned it from my old man,” I said with a smile.

The rest of the trip back to the school was uneventful as I just minded my own business as the kids talked amongst themselves. I soon came to a stoplight and waited for the light to turn green. As I waited my phone began to ring and I pulled it out to see it was an unknown number. I was hesitant to answer, but I figured it was just some telemarketer trying to sell me something.

“Hello?”

“Hey…it’s Mia.”

My heart stopped for a moment and had to take a moment to collect myself before speaking.

“How the fuck did you get this number?” I muttered so the kids wouldn’t hear.

“Relax, I did some personal digging and managed to find your new phone number. I’m using a burner to call you so you don’t have to worry about being tracked.”

“You shouldn’t have called me, Mia, did Cross put you up to this?”

“No, I’m actually calling you from home. Cross has no business what I do in my personal life.”

“Still doesn’t explain why you called me.”

“I just wanted to see how you’re doing, wherever you are.”

“Mia…don’t.”

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t act like you care, not after you lied to me.”

“I didn’t mean to lie to you, I wanted to tell you but-”

“Save it, no lame excuse you come up with will justify how you used me to get to the Blacklist. Whatever sort of relationship we had is done, and you’d do well to remember it. I gotta go, and if you have any sort of respect for me and possibly also yourself, don’t call me again. I shouldn’t even be talking to a cop like you in the first place,” I said bitterly.

There was a brief silence over the phone until I heard her sigh.

“I’m just glad you’re out of Rockport and away from the life you were raised in, goodbye.”

The line cut off as she hung up and I tucked my phone back in my pocket. I didn’t expect to get a call from Mia, of all people. I half expected it to be Rog, but he insisted he wouldn’t contact me for a good long while. I still remember how Mia and I met, when I had just made a name for myself as a street racer and she approached my car to ask for a ride. Mia wanted to see what it was like up close to be in a fast moving vehicle like my BMW and I obliged by showing her what it could do. I guess that’s what made her have a thing for me, and me her, but that all doesn’t really matter anymore since I’m no longer a street racer. The light finally turned green and I pressed the gas pedal to go. Suddenly, three cars came zooming by, startling me and the students. The cars looked to be a bright blue Ford Mustang with tribal decals on the side, an orange Nissan 370Z with a flame design, and a white Lexus SC 430 with racing stripes going down the middle.

“Holy crap! What’s with those guys?!” Rainbow yelped.

“This is a pedestrian area! Why are those brutes driving so fast?!” Rarity shrieked.

“I’m gonna call the cops!” Applejack said.

“Don’t bother, they’re long gone by now,” I said, raising my hand as I continued to drive.

“Plus, I don’t think those guys were driving fast on accident.”

“What do you mean…?” Fluttershy mumbled, still startled by the sudden drivers.

“I have a hunch, I just hope I’m wrong.”

The drive was mostly silent as I turned the last corner towards the school. My mind kept going back to those tricked out cars that zoomed past us and the way the decals looked. I hoped they were just a group of dumb kids showing off thier rides, but as I neared the school my suspicions were unfortunately corect. The three sports cars were all parked on the side of the street and leaning on the hood each one was a young adult. One was a guy with long red hair and wore torn jeans and a black shirt, next was a guy with half his blue hair shaved off and wore black jeans and a blue shirt, lastly was a guy that had a green mohawk and looked like your typical wannabe tough guy punker. They all seemed to be staring at something in the parking lot as I pulled up to the curb to drop the kids off, only to see that they were eyeing my car and they were giving it dirty looks.

“Hey, it’s those cars!” Rainbow pointed out.

“Who are those guys?” Pinkie wondered.

“They look scary,” Fluttershy whimpered.

“Those aren’t just any normal people,” I said as I parked the bus.

“They’re street racers, and they’re only here to cause trouble.”