Post by TheTimeSweeper on Aug 13, 2009 1:07:04 GMT -5
Finally, the first chapter of the first part of my new trilogy fanfic is complete! =D Surprisingly for me, it didn't take long to write this, primarily because ideas for this story had been churning in my head for quite some time, (I think since late April), and I finally decided that I needed to do something with those ideas before I exploded.
Believe it or not, the idea for this trilogy fanfic came from an episode of Knight Rider, (the newer series), and the two of them have nothing in common! XD I was watching a recorded episode one day and decided right then that I wanted to write a fanfic using characters that are and will appear in these series of stories. The overall concept dates back to late 2006, but the idea for the trilogy itself didn't come until that day in April of this year.
This chapter is a little over 19 pages in Microsoft Word, the longest chapter of any fanfic that I have written to date. =) And I have 11 more chapters planned for the first part of this trilogy! XD
You Can’t Always Trust That Arrow
An original fanfic inspired by the Midtown Madness Series of racing computer and video games developed for Microsoft Windows by Angel Studios (now Rockstar San Diego), for the Xbox by Digital Illusions CE, and published by Microsoft.
Chapter 1: Beginner’s Luck
Welcome to the city of Chicago. I gotta say; I’m rather fond of this town, so please, try to leave it where you found it. – Midtown Madness commentary
You may think that you know the Midtown Madness series of racing computer games like the back of your hand. There really isn’t much to it; you win street races and obtain new cars. However, there’s a lot more to the games than anyone could have ever imagined. Vast worlds just waiting to be discovered by those who look in places where others didn’t even think to look before. One boy found the entrance to one of these worlds by accident and it changed his life forever. Our story begins roughly ninety minutes before the first day of freshman year in high school for him…
Wednesday, September 9, 2009 – 7:00 am
BRIIIIIING!!! BRIIIIIING!!!
“Uunnngghhh…”
A pair of eyelids slowly opened revealing hazel irises before they were instinctively squeezed shut. The amount of sunlight streaming in through the window at that moment was unbearable and a fifteen-year-old boy covered his head with a pillow in an attempt to blot out the light.
“Stupid clock… I should never have set the alarm for so early…”
TIME TO GET UP, YA LAZY DOOF! TIME TO GET UP, YA LAZY DOOF!
TIME TO GET UP, YA LAZY DOOF! TIME TO GET UP, YA LAZY DOOF!
“…Or recorded that message for when I ignore the alarm.”
The repeating message penetrated the soft exterior of the pillow all the way to the boy’s ears and he ended up throwing the cranial cushion at the clock in an attempt to shut the thing off. Luckily, it worked, and the boy got up from his bed and slowly made his way to the hall bathroom before going back to his room to get dressed. Today was the first day of freshman year and the boy wasn’t particularly looking forward to the start of 9th grade, but one thing would make the year worthwhile: hanging out and attending classes with his two best friends. He quickly dressed in his favorite attire – a bluish-black T-shirt with a fractal pattern of the Mandelbrot Set on the front, faded denim blue jeans, and dark blue and gray running sneakers – before taking the stairs two at a time down to the kitchen.
“Chase, don’t do that,” called his mother from the kitchen as he walked in. “You’ll scuff the hardwood.”
Chase rolled his eyes and sat down at the table.
“Alright, mom. I’ll try to be more careful next time.”
“Sounds good, and it’s great to see that you’ve been getting up early these past few days.” She set a hot plate of scrambled eggs and bacon in front of him before going to the refrigerator for the carton of orange juice. “I hope it’s because you’ve been preparing yourself for the months ahead and not to play those silly computer games of yours.”
Chase grinned as he speared some scrambled eggs with his fork. Truth be known, he had been getting up early for the past few days so that he could play one of his favorite computer games in the world -- Midtown Madness. He owned the first two games in the series for the PC and would like to own the third game, but he didn’t want to fork over the cash necessary to purchase the game and the Xbox console that was needed to play it. Luckily for him, one of his best friends owned an Xbox as well as the game and Chase had slowly been beating the game whenever he went over to his house. Midtown Madness 1 and 2 had already been beaten and Chase managed to unlock every available vehicle and race in both games and player difficulty settings. The main reason he had been playing Midtown Madness 1 recently was that he knew he wasn’t going to have much time over the school year to play it in addition to the fact that it was his favorite out of all three.
“They’re not silly, mom. Even though I’ve beaten both games already, I like to play them to help me practice for my driving test when I turn sixteen next year. Believe it or not, those games act as a perfect driving simulation complete with real-time traffic, working traffic signals, pedestrians walking down the sidewalks, and police cars on the lookout for speeders in addition to many other features. Any more realistic and I would be in a real car driving down a real street.”
“Aha, which is why it’s also good for you to be studying your driving manual to help you prepare for your exam. Even though your sixteenth birthday isn’t for another twelve months, you shouldn’t be spending too much time on those games.” His mother poured him some juice and he took a sip. “I know that it’s fun and all, but your manual is going to be a lot more detailed in its descriptions of various driving conditions and hazards than those games will ever be.”
Chase sighed and opened his mouth for another forkful of scrambled eggs. He knew that his mother was right, but he didn’t want to slow down his game playing despite the workload that would be put upon him in the coming year. Why did things have to be this way? If he could play Midtown Madness and its sequels all day long and not have to go to school, he would have gladly jumped at the opportunity. He quickly finished his breakfast and glanced at the microwave oven. The digital readout displayed 7:30. Just enough time for a half-hour playing session before his walk to school. After Chase loaded the dishwasher with his plate, utensils, and juice glass, he quickly ascended the stairs to his room and sat down at his laptop. He then double-clicked the desktop icon for Midtown Madness and the game started up. Soon he was cruising through the city of Chicago in a bright yellow 1999 Ford Mustang GT on the lookout for any available Ford Mustang police cars to mess around with. After a few minutes of searching, Chase hadn’t found a single car with the white and blue color scheme.
“Looks like it’s time to use an alternative measure then.”
He then held down the ctrl+alt+shift keys consecutively before pressing F7. A small text box appeared in the middle of the screen and Chase entered a cheat code into the box. Immediately, all police cars in the vicinity became visible as little red and blue arrows on the small map in the bottom right corner of the screen.
“Haha, time to wreak some havoc.”
Chase cracked his knuckles and, using the arrow keys, drove the Mustang towards the nearest police car. The Mustang sped by the car at over 120 mph and a pursuit was initiated with sirens and red and blue flashing lights. Chase led the police car onto the freeway and narrowly avoided head-on collisions while driving into oncoming traffic. Weaving in and out of all types of vehicles ranging from small compact cars to large transit buses, Chase hoped to leave the pursuing car far behind even as he managed to attract more police attention along the side of the freeway, but Chicago’s finest was nimbly weaving in and out of traffic just as good as he was.
“Uh-oh… I’m in deep shit now.”
Chase was flirting with disaster as he continued to drive down the wrong side of the freeway and he wasn’t about to give in to his reckless driving style just yet. The GT then jumped the concrete divider separating the eight lanes of traffic and continued down the road at breakneck speed. The pursuing police cars followed suit and Chase knew that he had to get rid of them somehow. He tried bumping a few passing cars which caused them to quickly slow to a stop forming a barrier in the middle of the road. A few cruisers crashed into the barrier and stalled out, but the rest managed to get through and continued their assault, even going so far as to repeatedly ram the Mustang GT from both sides in an attempt to perform a PIT maneuver and crash it.
“Why you… This calls for drastic measures.”
Just as two police cruisers were about to slam into the GT on both sides, one on the right and the other on the left, Chase hit the brakes hard and the Mustang quickly slowed to a stop. The two cars crashed into each other and spun wildly out of control, slamming into the concrete divider and coming to a jarring halt. In a quick, calculated move, Chase brought up the text box again and entered another cheat code. This one caused a loss of friction and the remaining pursuing cars slid down the road with no way of stopping. Chase whooped with joy as they disappeared out of sight, but his whoops of joy quickly changed to gasps of horror when he realized what time it was. The alarm clock on his night table read 8:10.
“Aw, shit! I’m going to be late for homeroom!”
Homeroom started at 8:20 and it would take him at least fifteen minutes to get to school even if he ran. He would have to really book it. Chase quickly shut down the game and his laptop before stuffing it and the power cord into his backpack. Luckily, his textbooks, notebooks, and pencils were already in there from the night before so he didn’t have to worry about those. After carefully making his way down the steps so that his mother wouldn’t scold him again, he left through the front door and ran down the sidewalk as fast as he could.
“Dammit! I guess Mom’s right. Perhaps I do spend way too much time on those games. But I love playing them! What am I going to do if I just give up on them? Heh, probably be more on time to my classes so that I don’t get sent to detention.” Chase laughed and quickly turned a corner. “Even though the high school has its own wireless Internet for students to use during study halls and lunchtime, maybe I should use that time for more productive studying. …Nahhhh…”
Chase was no slacker, but he wasn’t a straight A student either. He mostly got A’s and B’s with an occasional C, but spending long hours burying his nose in handwritten notes and textbooks was not something that he wanted to do. Thankfully, he never had to do any of that to get good grades, but it always seemed like his parents expected more from him even though he wasn’t a bad student. If only they would just ease up a little when it came to his gameplaying.
“Heh, but that’s parents for ya. Always getting on your back when it comes to grades and school. I can’t freakin’ wait until college; no parents bothering me about spending too much time on my laptop and playing my games. Just total freedom.”
A few more minutes later, he burst into homeroom, took off his backpack, and sat down at his desk, breathing heavily. The bell sounded just then and Chase sighed in relief knowing that he had made it on time.
“Ah, so good of you to join us, Mr. Gaditon,” said Mr. Matthews, his homeroom teacher. His tone held a bit of amusement as his eyes scanned over the out-of-breath boy. “I trust that the run over here was nice and refreshing?”
“Heh…the…only thing…that would…have made it better…would have been…if I wasn’t wearing my backpack,” Chase replied with quick gasps of air as he managed a weak smile.
Mr. Matthews chuckled at his remark and then turned to the blackboard with chalk in hand to write the day’s assignments. Chase’s breathing finally slowed and he slumped in his seat until he felt a tap on his shoulder. He sat up and looked around until he saw his two best friends, Tom and Ben, sitting on either side of him.
“Heh, breathe much, dude?” laughed Ben. “You look like you were running all the way from your house. Been playing that game of yours again?”
“Yes and yes,” replied Chase. “You know that I’ll always be playing the Midtown Madness games until I die. It’s a passion; I can’t just give something like that up.”
“Yeah, well, your passion almost caused you to be late on your first day of freshman year,” replied Tom, chuckling. “I can’t wait to see what you’ll do for graduation.”
Chase glared at Tom. “Haha, very funny. In case you have forgotten, laptops are allowed during study hall and lunch, so if I ever feel the need to play, which I probably will, I won’t have to worry about doing anything before class like this morning.”
“Maybe you should be focusing more on your studies during those time periods rather than those Midtown Madness games,” said Ben.
Chase rolled his eyes. “Who are you, my mother?”
Tom and Ben burst out laughing at that moment.
“Nah, I’m just messing with you and besides, we love the games just as much as you do,” replied Ben.
“Yep, and if it weren’t for me owning that Xbox and a copy of Midtown Madness 3, you would never have the excuse to come over to my house every weekend,” added Tom.
They both laughed and high-fived each other while Chase chuckled at his friend’s comments.
“Well, you got me there, guys.”
After homeroom let out, the first few hours of the day went by rather slowly. It was nothing but the usual run-of-the-mill events that define the first day of school, whether it is freshman year or senior year or anything in between. To say that Chase, Tom, and Ben were bored with the whole thing would be an understatement, so they were grateful for when lunchtime came.
“Could today go by any slower?” sighed Ben as he opened up his laptop and connected to the school’s wireless network. Chase and Tom were sitting across from him at a table each with their own laptops open. “I feel like I’ve been moving backwards all day so far.”
“That slow, huh?” asked Chase before taking a bite of his meatball sandwich. With his other hand, he quickly accessed the Internet and opened up his e-mail. “We’re only halfway through the school day. Think about how slow things are going to be before they let us out for the day. The agonizing expectation to be released from school; it’s gonna be slower than molasses in winter.”
Ben groaned and buried his face in his hands.
“Thanks a lot, dude,” he said sarcastically.
“My pleasure,” Chase replied, grinning.
“You know what else sucks?” asked Tom as he played a round of Solitaire. “That we don’t have as many classes with each other as we did in middle school. The only times we’ll get to see each other will be in the hallways between classes, at lunch, and during study hall and certain classes. It’s going to be boring as hell not seeing each other all the time.”
“Well, in that case, we’d better make the most out of the times that we will get to see each other, like right now,” replied Chase as he took another bite of his sandwich.
“So, making the most out of our time is going to involve us staring at our computer screens and playing games?” joked Ben.
Chase and Tom laughed.
“Only if it allows us to continue what we’re doing right now,” said Chase. “Besides, there’s nothing in this school that can truly keep us apart.”
“Yeah, I hear that.” Ben smiled and was about to dig a fork into his mashed potatoes when he nearly dropped it in surprise. “Whoa, hot girl at two o’clock.”
Chase and Tom swiveled in place to look in the direction that Ben was staring and were met with a breathtaking sight. A fifteen-year-old girl with long auburn hair that stopped at her mid-back and flowed over her shoulders ever so slightly just entered the cafeteria and was walking towards a table across from the three boys. A black hairclip on the side of her head kept most of her hair out of her olive green-colored eyes, but some locks played gently across her features. She was wearing a crimson red T-shirt over a long-sleeved black shirt that stopped at her elbows. A silhouette of a Volkswagen New Beetle was on the front of her T-shirt and she also was wearing faded blue jeans with white sneakers. She sat down at the table and took her laptop out from its carrying case before turning it on. All three guys were staring open-mouthed at her and Chase’s eyes were nearly bulging out of his head.
“…Who is she?” Tom asked his two friends.
Neither of them responded.
“I’ve never seen her before. Do you think she might be a transfer student from a different school district?”
They still didn’t respond.
“Helloooo! I’m asking a question here!”
Chase and Ben finally snapped out of their stupors, but didn’t bother to look at him directly.
“…Eh, could be…” mused Ben after a few seconds. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen her at the middle school and I definitely would have remembered the hair and the clip holding it in place.”
“Dude, a lot of girls that we went to school with had their hair in that style with the same color and even with that same hairclip. It’s not exactly unique.”
“Alright, so she must be a transfer student then. Either that or our eyesight is already going at fifteen. What do you think, Chase?”
Chase had still not turned around or shut his mouth.
“…Chase? Dude, if you don’t close your mouth somebody walking by is going to see how many tater tots they can throw in there before they miss. Actually, that would be pretty fun to do…”
“Ben…” started Tom. “Forget that idea. Obviously, our friend here has become so enamored with the new arrival over there that he has lost all ability to understand cognitive speech. Better give him the ‘wake-up call’.”
“Hmm, sounds good. Alright, Chase, it’s time for your love medicine.”
Ben then walked around the table and smacked Chase upside his head causing the teen to nearly topple forward onto the floor. Chase rubbed the back of his head and glared at his friend.
“Ow, geez! What was that for?”
“It doesn’t matter; it’s in the past!”
Chase and Ben turned to Tom with raised eyebrows.
“Heh, sorry. I couldn’t resist quoting that line from ‘The Lion King’,” laughed Tom. “It was too good to pass up.”
The two of them rolled their eyes.
“Sorry, dude, but you were practically drooling all over the floor,” said Ben. “Tom and I had to do something to snap you out of your daze. Otherwise, I was prepared to start tossing tater tots into your mouth to see how many I could get in before I missed.”
“You know, that actually would have been pretty cool to try,” replied Chase.
“I know! I would have done it too, if Tom hadn’t suggested the ‘wake-up call’. I like that procedure better than chucking tater tots into your piehole anyway.”
Ben grinned, while Chase rolled his eyes.
“Well, anyway, thanks for snapping me out of it. I don’t want to look like a fool in front of her.”
“We all don’t want to look like fools in front of her,” Ben added. “I take it you find her highly attractive?”
“Hell yeah I do!”
Chase uttered that statement a little too loudly, causing some nearby students to stare at him. His cheeks flushed red and he shrank down in his seat. The girl lifted her head up slightly to look over her laptop computer and smiled at the three of them.
“Nice one, dude!” laughed Tom. “Now, if only we had a microphone at the time hooked up to the PA system and hid it in your mashed potatoes…”
Chase turned and glared at his friend.
“Shut it.”
“Shutting it.”
Tom made a motion of sealing his lips and tossing away an imaginary key.
“Great, just great… Here I am staring at the new girl with my mouth hanging open and my tongue probably hanging out as well and then I embarrass myself by agreeing with Ben that I think she’s highly attractive loud enough so that I turn heads.” Chase put his chin in his hands and stared at his computer screen. “Anything else that’s going to make me look like an idiot at lunch today?”
“Well, if it’s any consolation, we embarrassed ourselves too by staring at her open-mouthed,” said Ben.
“And if it’s any additional consolation, she’s staring at you right now, dude,” added Tom.
Chase quickly sat up and cast a sideways glance at Tom.
“…She is…?”
“Yep, and from the looks of it, I’d say that she finds you attractive as well.”
Chase’s shoulders slumped. “Oh, yeah, sure. Thanks for leading me on, Tom.”
“Well, if you’re so sure, then why don’t you go talk to her and find out?”
Chase stared at Tom like he had frogs coming out his nose. After a few seconds, he finally spoke.
“…You really think I should?”
“Positive; if you like her that much, which it’s obvious that you do.”
“…Is she really looking at me?”
“Why don’t you see for yourself?”
Chase hesitated for a moment before turning around and looking at the girl. Sure enough, she was staring back at him over her laptop with those olive green-colored eyes of hers. She giggled when Chase flushed with embarrassment and he turned back around.
“Holy hell… You were right.”
“Told ya.”
“Dude, you should totally go over there and talk to her,” said Ben. “And when you do, can you get her number for me?”
“No, I will not get her number for you,” retorted Chase. “I will, however, go over and talk to her.”
“Good move, my man,” said Tom. “And when you get back, we want details!”
Chase rolled his eyes and slowly got up from his seat before making his way to the girl’s table. She saw him approaching and giggled slightly at how nervous he looked. He finally made it to the table and leaned against it.
“Uh…hi.”
The girl smiled and brushed a few strands of hair away from her eyes.
“Hi.”
“Uh, my friends and I noticed you walking into the cafeteria and we also noticed that we didn’t recognize you. Are you new here?”
The girl giggled again.
“Are you sure that’s all you noticed? I could see the inside of your stomach from way over here with how wide open your mouth was.”
Chase suddenly turned tomato-red and started a staring contest with his shoes.
“Relax, I’m only kidding!” the girl laughed. “However, your mouth was open wide enough so that I could toss tater tots into it until I missed.”
Chase managed a weak chuckle as his cheeks slowly returned to their normal color.
“My friends and I were just talking about that. Tom and Ben are their names. They’re over there.”
Chase pointed a thumb over his shoulder at them and they waved back.
“So far, so good,” noted Tom.
“Yeah, I just hope that he doesn’t choke,” replied Ben. “If he does, I got dibs on her!”
Tom just shook his head.
“Even from over here, they seem nice,” replied the girl, smiling. “And oh, I’m sorry! You asked me a question and I didn’t answer it. Yes, I am new here. Just moved from Chicago.”
Chase was becoming intrigued.
“Chicago, huh? I’ve always wanted to go there and see the Sears Tower, Soldier Field, Wrigley Field, Dearborn Station… Basically, all the great landmarks of the city. And you said you just moved from there? Funny, you don’t seem to have an accent.”
“Well, I didn’t always live in Chicago. We used to live in the suburbs of Philadelphia until my dad got a job transfer when I was very young, practically still an infant. Growing up in an apartment building in Chicago, but having parents that both grew up on the east coast, I never developed the trademark accent. When we moved here over the summer because of another job transfer for dad, I was very sad to leave Chicago. I grew up there and I had to leave all of my friends behind. I was really hoping I would start high school with them, but I can’t do that now.”
“I’m sorry that you had to leave your friends behind. That never is any fun. Tom, Ben, and I can try to make your stay here more enjoyable. Well, maybe I can. I don’t know so much about those two; couple of goofballs.”
The girl laughed and Chase was pleased to know that she had a sense of humor and that he could make her laugh.
“You’re funny and I like that about you, uh… Hmm, I don’t think I caught your name.”
Chase chuckled a little and was even more pleased to know that she found him humorous, hopefully in a good way.
“It’s Chase. Chase Gaditon. And I don’t think I caught your name either.”
The girl smiled and looked up at him.
“It’s Carrie. Carrie Anderson.”
Chase smiled back at her and ran a hand through his hair. “Pleased to meet you, Carrie.”
“Likewise,” she replied, giggling.
It was then that Chase noticed what was on her computer screen and his eyes nearly bulged out in shock. The screen was displaying a still back-view image of a yellow Volkswagen New Beetle. However, this car wasn’t just any old New Beetle. It was a car that Chase clearly recognized and was baffled that Carrie would even be interested in what he was seeing on her laptop. Chase stared slack-jawed at the pause menu screen for Midtown Madness and the yellow New Beetle that Carrie had apparently been driving before turning to look at her in astonishment.
“So…uh…you like Midtown Madness…?”
Carrie brightened and smiled up at him.
“To say that I like the game would be an understatement. I freakin’ love the game. I try to spend every waking hour of my life playing it.”
Chase looked like he was about to faint. He had never met a girl before in his life that was so enthusiastic about the game or any video game for that matter. Carrie noticed his expression and giggled.
“How about you take a seat before you kiss the tiles? After that shout-out you did earlier, I don’t think you want to send any more embarrassment your way.”
Chase blushed and eagerly pulled out a seat next to her before sitting down. Tom and Ben watched from their positions with wide eyes.
“Dude, he just sat down next to her,” said Ben. “I can’t believe he’s gotten this far.”
“Well, what do you expect?” replied Tom. “Chase just has that special charm that girls somehow find irresistible.”
“So, is this when he can get her phone number for me?”
Tom smacked his forehead in exasperation.
Meanwhile, Chase still couldn’t believe that Carrie was as much of a Midtown Madness fanatic as he was. There had to be some sort of an explanation as to why and the answer actually didn’t surprise him too much.
“Well, as any normal flashback story begins with the ‘it all started’ intro, it all started about three hours after we left Chicago. We had to stop for gas and road trip supplies at a Wal-Mart in a town we were driving through. The backseat where I was sitting with my younger brother was practically jammed to the roof with our stuff and even though I brought my laptop along with me in the car for the trip, I really needed to get out and stretch my legs. While dad got gas, mom and I decided to scope out the Wal-Mart for provisions. Josh, my brother, was engrossed with his PSP so he stayed in the car. So, mom went to the food section of the store while I went to the electronics section to look for any interesting games for my laptop and the rest of the journey to our new home. As I was looking through the computer games, I came across Midtown Madness in the discount section. Being a ten-year-old game, it didn’t belong with the other more recently released titles and it was only $9.99 – how fitting.”
Carrie giggled and continued.
“I had played racing games before – Josh is in love with the Need For Speed series and I’ve ‘borrowed’ a few of the titles – but I had never seen a game like it in my life. I couldn’t believe that it was ten years old and I had never heard about it. I was intrigued and started to read the details on the back and I gasped when I found out that the game’s setting was Chicago. My heart practically melted when I reminisced about all the great things I had done with my friends and family in that city – going to baseball games at Wrigley Field, football games at Soldier Field, riding the El Train starting at Dearborn Station, riding the elevator all the way to the top floor of the Sears Tower, having the time of my life on amusement park rides at Navy Pier. All those great memories came rushing back to me at that moment and I knew that I had to have that game. I never wanted to leave Chicago and now I didn’t really have to. I found a way to carry a virtual version of the city around with me at all times anywhere. I ran back to mom with the game and eagerly paid for it, knowing that exploring Chicago once again was only a few minutes away. I installed the game on my laptop back in the car and I’ve been playing and loving it ever since.”
Carrie finished her explanation with a smile and Chase just stared back at her with a look of appreciation and complete and utter happiness in his eyes. He never thought that he would ever meet a girl like this in his life and here she was sitting right next to him. This chance encounter could not be any more perfect.
“Judging by the look in your eyes right now and how you were staring at my screen earlier, I’d say that you are also a big fan of the game too, am I right?” asked Carrie with another smile.
“Wow, talk about perceptive,” thought Chase. He grinned broadly and announced, “I am a huge fan of the game and the series as a whole. There isn’t a day that goes by and I don’t spend at least a few minutes cruising the city or racing against computer opponents. I’ve unlocked every vehicle in the professional mode and in amateur mode except for the Panoz GTR-1 because you cannot unlock it in that particular mode. I know most if not all of the shortcuts and hidden locations on the map and I still keep uncovering new secrets every time I play.”
Carrie squealed with delight upon hearing this revelation and was very excited to learn that she and Chase shared common interests. Sure, she had shared common interests with her friends back in Chicago, but she had never shared something like this with one of her friends, much less a guy. She was so caught up in the moment that she almost forgot what Chase had first mentioned.
“Wait, wait a minute. Did you just say ‘series’? There are more of them?!”
“Yep, two sequels. MM2 for the PC and MM3 for the Xbox,” replied Chase.
Carrie didn’t hold back as she suddenly embraced Chase in a tight hug, overjoyed with happiness. He was at first shocked by the gesture, but hugged her as well.
“I can tell that you are very pleased to hear this news.”
“Are you kidding?!” she replied, breaking the hug. “I’m freakin’ ecstatic! I had no idea there were sequels to such an awesome game. Tell me everything that you know about Midtown Madness and its sequels; I want to know every little detail!”
Chase smiled and was inwardly shouting with joy.
“Alright, I’ll tell you everything that I know.”
Carrie squealed with delight again and got out a pencil and notebook from her backpack, but she had to put them away when the lunch bell suddenly rang.
“Aw, dammit! Lunch is never long enough,” she sighed sadly. “And just when things were getting good too.”
“Yeah, thirty minutes to eat and talk just doesn’t cut it,” sighed Chase. “However, I can still share my tips and tricks with you. Where would you like to meet?”
“Hmmm, how about at your house after school today?”
Chase’s eyes widened and he thought his ears were playing tricks on him as he stared at her.
“…Come again?”
“I said, how about at your house after school today?” Carrie giggled. “I’ll even walk there with you.”
“…Seriously?”
“Of course, silly. Unless you have something else in mind?”
“No, no, my house after school is fine. I just wasn’t sure that you wanted to come over to my house so soon after we’ve met.”
“That’s not going to be a problem, is it?”
Carrie giggled again and her eyes sparkled. Chase found himself being drawn into those olive green-colored orbs and he had to snap out of his staring before he leaned forward too much and bumped her head.
“No, not a problem at all. I’ll see you in front of the school then after the final bell rings?”
“It’s a date, but not really a date-date. Well, how about I leave that up to you to decide?” Carrie then slung her backpack over her shoulder before exiting the game and closing her laptop. “I’ll see you later, cutie.” She waved back to Chase with a smile and left the cafeteria with the rest of the students.
“Yeah, same here…”
Chase waved at her departing figure before he slowly made his way back to where his friends were sitting. He couldn’t believe what had just happened. He had just met and talked with the most beautiful and amazing girl he had ever seen in his entire life and she turned out to be the biggest fanatic of Midtown Madness he had ever met besides himself. On top of that, she was really excited when she found out that there is a Midtown Madness series and now she’s going to be walking to his house with him after school to learn more about the game and all of its ins and outs. He could search the entire planet and not find another girl like her. It was simply incredible.
“So, Chase, how did it go with her?”
Tom’s voice cut through his musings and Chase found himself at the table a lot quicker than he thought.
“Yeah, we want details!” added Ben.
Chase didn’t know what to say at first. Should he flat-out tell them that it was the single greatest experience of his life and that he was going to be walking home with her after school? Or should he act like nothing remotely interesting happened and have them write it off as another failed attempt to impress a girl? No, why the hell would he do that? He wasn’t the least bit embarrassed by Carrie and his friends probably already knew that something spectacularly awesome had happened. He knew he was smiling and his grin must have been stretching from ear to ear because Tom pointed it out to Ben.
“I’d say that it went very well judging by that grin of his, Ben,” said Tom as he cast his friend a sly look.
“Sure looks that way, Tom,” replied Ben, grinning. “So, Chase, buddy, did you get her number for me?”
Chase shook his head and steadied himself against the table.
“Nope. I got something better than a phone number from her though; a self-invitation to my house after school to discuss everything that is Midtown Madness and its sequels.”
Tom and Ben exchanged glances before staring at Chase with wide eyes.
“Are you serious?” asked Tom.
“Dead serious,” replied Chase as he crossed his arms.
“Dude, that is totally awesome!” shouted Ben as he got up from his seat and smacked his friend on the back causing Chase to stumble forward a little. “So, what’s her name? Where did she come from? Why is she so interested in the game?”
Chase steadied himself before he started to shut down and put away his laptop as he spoke.
“Her name is Carrie Anderson and she moved here from Chicago over the summer. She is so interested in the game because it acts as a way for her to relive the years that she spent there. She misses her friends and all that she used to do with them around the city. Now, with a virtual Chicago at easy access, she can visit the city anytime she wants to. As for why she’s interested in the sequels, having a way to explore other cities, albeit virtual ones, without ever having to leave your house would make anyone happy.”
“Who knew you would ever find a girl who would be interested in something like Midtown Madness?” replied Tom as he gave a thumbs-up to Chase. “Well, anyway, I think I can speak for Ben when I say that I’m happy for you. Whatever you did to get her attention, keep doing it.”
“All I did was just be myself and that got me so far as to have her walking home with me after school.”
“Then continue to be yourself and you’ll never lose her.”
“Heh, I can only hope. I’m starting to think that it might have all just been luck though. I mean, what are the odds?”
“It was nothing but a chance encounter. Beginner’s luck, if you will,” replied Ben as he casually draped an arm around his friend’s shoulder. “Would you have found out that she loves the game if you hadn’t gone over and talked to her?”
“Probably not…”
“And would she have invited herself to your house if you had never talked to her?”
“Again, probably not.”
“And who told you to go over and talk to her in the first place?”
“You did.”
“Exactly! So, it all comes back to me! And you owe me big time for not getting me her number!”
“Ah, shut up and leave the guy to dwell on his newfound happiness,” scolded Tom as he shut down his laptop and slung his backpack over his shoulder. “Again, we’re happy for you, aren’t we, Ben?”
Ben removed his arm from Chase’s shoulder and started to shut down his own laptop. “Yeah, yeah, we’re happy for you. Hey, just one question, dude. Did she mention anything about having a sister?”
Chase glared at him and Tom smacked his forehead in frustration.
“BEN!”
“Relax, guys, I was only joking!” Ben exclaimed as he put up his hands in defense. “Geez, I crack one joke and I have the whole freakin’ cafeteria against me.”
“Uh, in case you forgot, we’re practically the last ones in here and unless we all want to be late for class, we’d better get our asses moving,” Tom pointed out.
“Yeah, I hear ya.” Ben slung his backpack over his shoulder and tucked his laptop under his arm. “At least our next class is one that we all share. Last one there buys lunch for the other two tomorrow!”
Ben suddenly bolted from the cafeteria leaving his two friends standing by the table. Tom laughed and ran after him while Chase stayed behind, quietly thinking about his encounter with Carrie and the excitement of walking home with her later, before he too ran out of the cafeteria determined not to pay for lunch tomorrow.
--
That's all for now. =) I've already stretched the page enough as it is.
Believe it or not, the idea for this trilogy fanfic came from an episode of Knight Rider, (the newer series), and the two of them have nothing in common! XD I was watching a recorded episode one day and decided right then that I wanted to write a fanfic using characters that are and will appear in these series of stories. The overall concept dates back to late 2006, but the idea for the trilogy itself didn't come until that day in April of this year.
This chapter is a little over 19 pages in Microsoft Word, the longest chapter of any fanfic that I have written to date. =) And I have 11 more chapters planned for the first part of this trilogy! XD
You Can’t Always Trust That Arrow
An original fanfic inspired by the Midtown Madness Series of racing computer and video games developed for Microsoft Windows by Angel Studios (now Rockstar San Diego), for the Xbox by Digital Illusions CE, and published by Microsoft.
Chapter 1: Beginner’s Luck
Welcome to the city of Chicago. I gotta say; I’m rather fond of this town, so please, try to leave it where you found it. – Midtown Madness commentary
You may think that you know the Midtown Madness series of racing computer games like the back of your hand. There really isn’t much to it; you win street races and obtain new cars. However, there’s a lot more to the games than anyone could have ever imagined. Vast worlds just waiting to be discovered by those who look in places where others didn’t even think to look before. One boy found the entrance to one of these worlds by accident and it changed his life forever. Our story begins roughly ninety minutes before the first day of freshman year in high school for him…
Wednesday, September 9, 2009 – 7:00 am
BRIIIIIING!!! BRIIIIIING!!!
“Uunnngghhh…”
A pair of eyelids slowly opened revealing hazel irises before they were instinctively squeezed shut. The amount of sunlight streaming in through the window at that moment was unbearable and a fifteen-year-old boy covered his head with a pillow in an attempt to blot out the light.
“Stupid clock… I should never have set the alarm for so early…”
TIME TO GET UP, YA LAZY DOOF! TIME TO GET UP, YA LAZY DOOF!
TIME TO GET UP, YA LAZY DOOF! TIME TO GET UP, YA LAZY DOOF!
“…Or recorded that message for when I ignore the alarm.”
The repeating message penetrated the soft exterior of the pillow all the way to the boy’s ears and he ended up throwing the cranial cushion at the clock in an attempt to shut the thing off. Luckily, it worked, and the boy got up from his bed and slowly made his way to the hall bathroom before going back to his room to get dressed. Today was the first day of freshman year and the boy wasn’t particularly looking forward to the start of 9th grade, but one thing would make the year worthwhile: hanging out and attending classes with his two best friends. He quickly dressed in his favorite attire – a bluish-black T-shirt with a fractal pattern of the Mandelbrot Set on the front, faded denim blue jeans, and dark blue and gray running sneakers – before taking the stairs two at a time down to the kitchen.
“Chase, don’t do that,” called his mother from the kitchen as he walked in. “You’ll scuff the hardwood.”
Chase rolled his eyes and sat down at the table.
“Alright, mom. I’ll try to be more careful next time.”
“Sounds good, and it’s great to see that you’ve been getting up early these past few days.” She set a hot plate of scrambled eggs and bacon in front of him before going to the refrigerator for the carton of orange juice. “I hope it’s because you’ve been preparing yourself for the months ahead and not to play those silly computer games of yours.”
Chase grinned as he speared some scrambled eggs with his fork. Truth be known, he had been getting up early for the past few days so that he could play one of his favorite computer games in the world -- Midtown Madness. He owned the first two games in the series for the PC and would like to own the third game, but he didn’t want to fork over the cash necessary to purchase the game and the Xbox console that was needed to play it. Luckily for him, one of his best friends owned an Xbox as well as the game and Chase had slowly been beating the game whenever he went over to his house. Midtown Madness 1 and 2 had already been beaten and Chase managed to unlock every available vehicle and race in both games and player difficulty settings. The main reason he had been playing Midtown Madness 1 recently was that he knew he wasn’t going to have much time over the school year to play it in addition to the fact that it was his favorite out of all three.
“They’re not silly, mom. Even though I’ve beaten both games already, I like to play them to help me practice for my driving test when I turn sixteen next year. Believe it or not, those games act as a perfect driving simulation complete with real-time traffic, working traffic signals, pedestrians walking down the sidewalks, and police cars on the lookout for speeders in addition to many other features. Any more realistic and I would be in a real car driving down a real street.”
“Aha, which is why it’s also good for you to be studying your driving manual to help you prepare for your exam. Even though your sixteenth birthday isn’t for another twelve months, you shouldn’t be spending too much time on those games.” His mother poured him some juice and he took a sip. “I know that it’s fun and all, but your manual is going to be a lot more detailed in its descriptions of various driving conditions and hazards than those games will ever be.”
Chase sighed and opened his mouth for another forkful of scrambled eggs. He knew that his mother was right, but he didn’t want to slow down his game playing despite the workload that would be put upon him in the coming year. Why did things have to be this way? If he could play Midtown Madness and its sequels all day long and not have to go to school, he would have gladly jumped at the opportunity. He quickly finished his breakfast and glanced at the microwave oven. The digital readout displayed 7:30. Just enough time for a half-hour playing session before his walk to school. After Chase loaded the dishwasher with his plate, utensils, and juice glass, he quickly ascended the stairs to his room and sat down at his laptop. He then double-clicked the desktop icon for Midtown Madness and the game started up. Soon he was cruising through the city of Chicago in a bright yellow 1999 Ford Mustang GT on the lookout for any available Ford Mustang police cars to mess around with. After a few minutes of searching, Chase hadn’t found a single car with the white and blue color scheme.
“Looks like it’s time to use an alternative measure then.”
He then held down the ctrl+alt+shift keys consecutively before pressing F7. A small text box appeared in the middle of the screen and Chase entered a cheat code into the box. Immediately, all police cars in the vicinity became visible as little red and blue arrows on the small map in the bottom right corner of the screen.
“Haha, time to wreak some havoc.”
Chase cracked his knuckles and, using the arrow keys, drove the Mustang towards the nearest police car. The Mustang sped by the car at over 120 mph and a pursuit was initiated with sirens and red and blue flashing lights. Chase led the police car onto the freeway and narrowly avoided head-on collisions while driving into oncoming traffic. Weaving in and out of all types of vehicles ranging from small compact cars to large transit buses, Chase hoped to leave the pursuing car far behind even as he managed to attract more police attention along the side of the freeway, but Chicago’s finest was nimbly weaving in and out of traffic just as good as he was.
“Uh-oh… I’m in deep shit now.”
Chase was flirting with disaster as he continued to drive down the wrong side of the freeway and he wasn’t about to give in to his reckless driving style just yet. The GT then jumped the concrete divider separating the eight lanes of traffic and continued down the road at breakneck speed. The pursuing police cars followed suit and Chase knew that he had to get rid of them somehow. He tried bumping a few passing cars which caused them to quickly slow to a stop forming a barrier in the middle of the road. A few cruisers crashed into the barrier and stalled out, but the rest managed to get through and continued their assault, even going so far as to repeatedly ram the Mustang GT from both sides in an attempt to perform a PIT maneuver and crash it.
“Why you… This calls for drastic measures.”
Just as two police cruisers were about to slam into the GT on both sides, one on the right and the other on the left, Chase hit the brakes hard and the Mustang quickly slowed to a stop. The two cars crashed into each other and spun wildly out of control, slamming into the concrete divider and coming to a jarring halt. In a quick, calculated move, Chase brought up the text box again and entered another cheat code. This one caused a loss of friction and the remaining pursuing cars slid down the road with no way of stopping. Chase whooped with joy as they disappeared out of sight, but his whoops of joy quickly changed to gasps of horror when he realized what time it was. The alarm clock on his night table read 8:10.
“Aw, shit! I’m going to be late for homeroom!”
Homeroom started at 8:20 and it would take him at least fifteen minutes to get to school even if he ran. He would have to really book it. Chase quickly shut down the game and his laptop before stuffing it and the power cord into his backpack. Luckily, his textbooks, notebooks, and pencils were already in there from the night before so he didn’t have to worry about those. After carefully making his way down the steps so that his mother wouldn’t scold him again, he left through the front door and ran down the sidewalk as fast as he could.
“Dammit! I guess Mom’s right. Perhaps I do spend way too much time on those games. But I love playing them! What am I going to do if I just give up on them? Heh, probably be more on time to my classes so that I don’t get sent to detention.” Chase laughed and quickly turned a corner. “Even though the high school has its own wireless Internet for students to use during study halls and lunchtime, maybe I should use that time for more productive studying. …Nahhhh…”
Chase was no slacker, but he wasn’t a straight A student either. He mostly got A’s and B’s with an occasional C, but spending long hours burying his nose in handwritten notes and textbooks was not something that he wanted to do. Thankfully, he never had to do any of that to get good grades, but it always seemed like his parents expected more from him even though he wasn’t a bad student. If only they would just ease up a little when it came to his gameplaying.
“Heh, but that’s parents for ya. Always getting on your back when it comes to grades and school. I can’t freakin’ wait until college; no parents bothering me about spending too much time on my laptop and playing my games. Just total freedom.”
A few more minutes later, he burst into homeroom, took off his backpack, and sat down at his desk, breathing heavily. The bell sounded just then and Chase sighed in relief knowing that he had made it on time.
“Ah, so good of you to join us, Mr. Gaditon,” said Mr. Matthews, his homeroom teacher. His tone held a bit of amusement as his eyes scanned over the out-of-breath boy. “I trust that the run over here was nice and refreshing?”
“Heh…the…only thing…that would…have made it better…would have been…if I wasn’t wearing my backpack,” Chase replied with quick gasps of air as he managed a weak smile.
Mr. Matthews chuckled at his remark and then turned to the blackboard with chalk in hand to write the day’s assignments. Chase’s breathing finally slowed and he slumped in his seat until he felt a tap on his shoulder. He sat up and looked around until he saw his two best friends, Tom and Ben, sitting on either side of him.
“Heh, breathe much, dude?” laughed Ben. “You look like you were running all the way from your house. Been playing that game of yours again?”
“Yes and yes,” replied Chase. “You know that I’ll always be playing the Midtown Madness games until I die. It’s a passion; I can’t just give something like that up.”
“Yeah, well, your passion almost caused you to be late on your first day of freshman year,” replied Tom, chuckling. “I can’t wait to see what you’ll do for graduation.”
Chase glared at Tom. “Haha, very funny. In case you have forgotten, laptops are allowed during study hall and lunch, so if I ever feel the need to play, which I probably will, I won’t have to worry about doing anything before class like this morning.”
“Maybe you should be focusing more on your studies during those time periods rather than those Midtown Madness games,” said Ben.
Chase rolled his eyes. “Who are you, my mother?”
Tom and Ben burst out laughing at that moment.
“Nah, I’m just messing with you and besides, we love the games just as much as you do,” replied Ben.
“Yep, and if it weren’t for me owning that Xbox and a copy of Midtown Madness 3, you would never have the excuse to come over to my house every weekend,” added Tom.
They both laughed and high-fived each other while Chase chuckled at his friend’s comments.
“Well, you got me there, guys.”
After homeroom let out, the first few hours of the day went by rather slowly. It was nothing but the usual run-of-the-mill events that define the first day of school, whether it is freshman year or senior year or anything in between. To say that Chase, Tom, and Ben were bored with the whole thing would be an understatement, so they were grateful for when lunchtime came.
“Could today go by any slower?” sighed Ben as he opened up his laptop and connected to the school’s wireless network. Chase and Tom were sitting across from him at a table each with their own laptops open. “I feel like I’ve been moving backwards all day so far.”
“That slow, huh?” asked Chase before taking a bite of his meatball sandwich. With his other hand, he quickly accessed the Internet and opened up his e-mail. “We’re only halfway through the school day. Think about how slow things are going to be before they let us out for the day. The agonizing expectation to be released from school; it’s gonna be slower than molasses in winter.”
Ben groaned and buried his face in his hands.
“Thanks a lot, dude,” he said sarcastically.
“My pleasure,” Chase replied, grinning.
“You know what else sucks?” asked Tom as he played a round of Solitaire. “That we don’t have as many classes with each other as we did in middle school. The only times we’ll get to see each other will be in the hallways between classes, at lunch, and during study hall and certain classes. It’s going to be boring as hell not seeing each other all the time.”
“Well, in that case, we’d better make the most out of the times that we will get to see each other, like right now,” replied Chase as he took another bite of his sandwich.
“So, making the most out of our time is going to involve us staring at our computer screens and playing games?” joked Ben.
Chase and Tom laughed.
“Only if it allows us to continue what we’re doing right now,” said Chase. “Besides, there’s nothing in this school that can truly keep us apart.”
“Yeah, I hear that.” Ben smiled and was about to dig a fork into his mashed potatoes when he nearly dropped it in surprise. “Whoa, hot girl at two o’clock.”
Chase and Tom swiveled in place to look in the direction that Ben was staring and were met with a breathtaking sight. A fifteen-year-old girl with long auburn hair that stopped at her mid-back and flowed over her shoulders ever so slightly just entered the cafeteria and was walking towards a table across from the three boys. A black hairclip on the side of her head kept most of her hair out of her olive green-colored eyes, but some locks played gently across her features. She was wearing a crimson red T-shirt over a long-sleeved black shirt that stopped at her elbows. A silhouette of a Volkswagen New Beetle was on the front of her T-shirt and she also was wearing faded blue jeans with white sneakers. She sat down at the table and took her laptop out from its carrying case before turning it on. All three guys were staring open-mouthed at her and Chase’s eyes were nearly bulging out of his head.
“…Who is she?” Tom asked his two friends.
Neither of them responded.
“I’ve never seen her before. Do you think she might be a transfer student from a different school district?”
They still didn’t respond.
“Helloooo! I’m asking a question here!”
Chase and Ben finally snapped out of their stupors, but didn’t bother to look at him directly.
“…Eh, could be…” mused Ben after a few seconds. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen her at the middle school and I definitely would have remembered the hair and the clip holding it in place.”
“Dude, a lot of girls that we went to school with had their hair in that style with the same color and even with that same hairclip. It’s not exactly unique.”
“Alright, so she must be a transfer student then. Either that or our eyesight is already going at fifteen. What do you think, Chase?”
Chase had still not turned around or shut his mouth.
“…Chase? Dude, if you don’t close your mouth somebody walking by is going to see how many tater tots they can throw in there before they miss. Actually, that would be pretty fun to do…”
“Ben…” started Tom. “Forget that idea. Obviously, our friend here has become so enamored with the new arrival over there that he has lost all ability to understand cognitive speech. Better give him the ‘wake-up call’.”
“Hmm, sounds good. Alright, Chase, it’s time for your love medicine.”
Ben then walked around the table and smacked Chase upside his head causing the teen to nearly topple forward onto the floor. Chase rubbed the back of his head and glared at his friend.
“Ow, geez! What was that for?”
“It doesn’t matter; it’s in the past!”
Chase and Ben turned to Tom with raised eyebrows.
“Heh, sorry. I couldn’t resist quoting that line from ‘The Lion King’,” laughed Tom. “It was too good to pass up.”
The two of them rolled their eyes.
“Sorry, dude, but you were practically drooling all over the floor,” said Ben. “Tom and I had to do something to snap you out of your daze. Otherwise, I was prepared to start tossing tater tots into your mouth to see how many I could get in before I missed.”
“You know, that actually would have been pretty cool to try,” replied Chase.
“I know! I would have done it too, if Tom hadn’t suggested the ‘wake-up call’. I like that procedure better than chucking tater tots into your piehole anyway.”
Ben grinned, while Chase rolled his eyes.
“Well, anyway, thanks for snapping me out of it. I don’t want to look like a fool in front of her.”
“We all don’t want to look like fools in front of her,” Ben added. “I take it you find her highly attractive?”
“Hell yeah I do!”
Chase uttered that statement a little too loudly, causing some nearby students to stare at him. His cheeks flushed red and he shrank down in his seat. The girl lifted her head up slightly to look over her laptop computer and smiled at the three of them.
“Nice one, dude!” laughed Tom. “Now, if only we had a microphone at the time hooked up to the PA system and hid it in your mashed potatoes…”
Chase turned and glared at his friend.
“Shut it.”
“Shutting it.”
Tom made a motion of sealing his lips and tossing away an imaginary key.
“Great, just great… Here I am staring at the new girl with my mouth hanging open and my tongue probably hanging out as well and then I embarrass myself by agreeing with Ben that I think she’s highly attractive loud enough so that I turn heads.” Chase put his chin in his hands and stared at his computer screen. “Anything else that’s going to make me look like an idiot at lunch today?”
“Well, if it’s any consolation, we embarrassed ourselves too by staring at her open-mouthed,” said Ben.
“And if it’s any additional consolation, she’s staring at you right now, dude,” added Tom.
Chase quickly sat up and cast a sideways glance at Tom.
“…She is…?”
“Yep, and from the looks of it, I’d say that she finds you attractive as well.”
Chase’s shoulders slumped. “Oh, yeah, sure. Thanks for leading me on, Tom.”
“Well, if you’re so sure, then why don’t you go talk to her and find out?”
Chase stared at Tom like he had frogs coming out his nose. After a few seconds, he finally spoke.
“…You really think I should?”
“Positive; if you like her that much, which it’s obvious that you do.”
“…Is she really looking at me?”
“Why don’t you see for yourself?”
Chase hesitated for a moment before turning around and looking at the girl. Sure enough, she was staring back at him over her laptop with those olive green-colored eyes of hers. She giggled when Chase flushed with embarrassment and he turned back around.
“Holy hell… You were right.”
“Told ya.”
“Dude, you should totally go over there and talk to her,” said Ben. “And when you do, can you get her number for me?”
“No, I will not get her number for you,” retorted Chase. “I will, however, go over and talk to her.”
“Good move, my man,” said Tom. “And when you get back, we want details!”
Chase rolled his eyes and slowly got up from his seat before making his way to the girl’s table. She saw him approaching and giggled slightly at how nervous he looked. He finally made it to the table and leaned against it.
“Uh…hi.”
The girl smiled and brushed a few strands of hair away from her eyes.
“Hi.”
“Uh, my friends and I noticed you walking into the cafeteria and we also noticed that we didn’t recognize you. Are you new here?”
The girl giggled again.
“Are you sure that’s all you noticed? I could see the inside of your stomach from way over here with how wide open your mouth was.”
Chase suddenly turned tomato-red and started a staring contest with his shoes.
“Relax, I’m only kidding!” the girl laughed. “However, your mouth was open wide enough so that I could toss tater tots into it until I missed.”
Chase managed a weak chuckle as his cheeks slowly returned to their normal color.
“My friends and I were just talking about that. Tom and Ben are their names. They’re over there.”
Chase pointed a thumb over his shoulder at them and they waved back.
“So far, so good,” noted Tom.
“Yeah, I just hope that he doesn’t choke,” replied Ben. “If he does, I got dibs on her!”
Tom just shook his head.
“Even from over here, they seem nice,” replied the girl, smiling. “And oh, I’m sorry! You asked me a question and I didn’t answer it. Yes, I am new here. Just moved from Chicago.”
Chase was becoming intrigued.
“Chicago, huh? I’ve always wanted to go there and see the Sears Tower, Soldier Field, Wrigley Field, Dearborn Station… Basically, all the great landmarks of the city. And you said you just moved from there? Funny, you don’t seem to have an accent.”
“Well, I didn’t always live in Chicago. We used to live in the suburbs of Philadelphia until my dad got a job transfer when I was very young, practically still an infant. Growing up in an apartment building in Chicago, but having parents that both grew up on the east coast, I never developed the trademark accent. When we moved here over the summer because of another job transfer for dad, I was very sad to leave Chicago. I grew up there and I had to leave all of my friends behind. I was really hoping I would start high school with them, but I can’t do that now.”
“I’m sorry that you had to leave your friends behind. That never is any fun. Tom, Ben, and I can try to make your stay here more enjoyable. Well, maybe I can. I don’t know so much about those two; couple of goofballs.”
The girl laughed and Chase was pleased to know that she had a sense of humor and that he could make her laugh.
“You’re funny and I like that about you, uh… Hmm, I don’t think I caught your name.”
Chase chuckled a little and was even more pleased to know that she found him humorous, hopefully in a good way.
“It’s Chase. Chase Gaditon. And I don’t think I caught your name either.”
The girl smiled and looked up at him.
“It’s Carrie. Carrie Anderson.”
Chase smiled back at her and ran a hand through his hair. “Pleased to meet you, Carrie.”
“Likewise,” she replied, giggling.
It was then that Chase noticed what was on her computer screen and his eyes nearly bulged out in shock. The screen was displaying a still back-view image of a yellow Volkswagen New Beetle. However, this car wasn’t just any old New Beetle. It was a car that Chase clearly recognized and was baffled that Carrie would even be interested in what he was seeing on her laptop. Chase stared slack-jawed at the pause menu screen for Midtown Madness and the yellow New Beetle that Carrie had apparently been driving before turning to look at her in astonishment.
“So…uh…you like Midtown Madness…?”
Carrie brightened and smiled up at him.
“To say that I like the game would be an understatement. I freakin’ love the game. I try to spend every waking hour of my life playing it.”
Chase looked like he was about to faint. He had never met a girl before in his life that was so enthusiastic about the game or any video game for that matter. Carrie noticed his expression and giggled.
“How about you take a seat before you kiss the tiles? After that shout-out you did earlier, I don’t think you want to send any more embarrassment your way.”
Chase blushed and eagerly pulled out a seat next to her before sitting down. Tom and Ben watched from their positions with wide eyes.
“Dude, he just sat down next to her,” said Ben. “I can’t believe he’s gotten this far.”
“Well, what do you expect?” replied Tom. “Chase just has that special charm that girls somehow find irresistible.”
“So, is this when he can get her phone number for me?”
Tom smacked his forehead in exasperation.
Meanwhile, Chase still couldn’t believe that Carrie was as much of a Midtown Madness fanatic as he was. There had to be some sort of an explanation as to why and the answer actually didn’t surprise him too much.
“Well, as any normal flashback story begins with the ‘it all started’ intro, it all started about three hours after we left Chicago. We had to stop for gas and road trip supplies at a Wal-Mart in a town we were driving through. The backseat where I was sitting with my younger brother was practically jammed to the roof with our stuff and even though I brought my laptop along with me in the car for the trip, I really needed to get out and stretch my legs. While dad got gas, mom and I decided to scope out the Wal-Mart for provisions. Josh, my brother, was engrossed with his PSP so he stayed in the car. So, mom went to the food section of the store while I went to the electronics section to look for any interesting games for my laptop and the rest of the journey to our new home. As I was looking through the computer games, I came across Midtown Madness in the discount section. Being a ten-year-old game, it didn’t belong with the other more recently released titles and it was only $9.99 – how fitting.”
Carrie giggled and continued.
“I had played racing games before – Josh is in love with the Need For Speed series and I’ve ‘borrowed’ a few of the titles – but I had never seen a game like it in my life. I couldn’t believe that it was ten years old and I had never heard about it. I was intrigued and started to read the details on the back and I gasped when I found out that the game’s setting was Chicago. My heart practically melted when I reminisced about all the great things I had done with my friends and family in that city – going to baseball games at Wrigley Field, football games at Soldier Field, riding the El Train starting at Dearborn Station, riding the elevator all the way to the top floor of the Sears Tower, having the time of my life on amusement park rides at Navy Pier. All those great memories came rushing back to me at that moment and I knew that I had to have that game. I never wanted to leave Chicago and now I didn’t really have to. I found a way to carry a virtual version of the city around with me at all times anywhere. I ran back to mom with the game and eagerly paid for it, knowing that exploring Chicago once again was only a few minutes away. I installed the game on my laptop back in the car and I’ve been playing and loving it ever since.”
Carrie finished her explanation with a smile and Chase just stared back at her with a look of appreciation and complete and utter happiness in his eyes. He never thought that he would ever meet a girl like this in his life and here she was sitting right next to him. This chance encounter could not be any more perfect.
“Judging by the look in your eyes right now and how you were staring at my screen earlier, I’d say that you are also a big fan of the game too, am I right?” asked Carrie with another smile.
“Wow, talk about perceptive,” thought Chase. He grinned broadly and announced, “I am a huge fan of the game and the series as a whole. There isn’t a day that goes by and I don’t spend at least a few minutes cruising the city or racing against computer opponents. I’ve unlocked every vehicle in the professional mode and in amateur mode except for the Panoz GTR-1 because you cannot unlock it in that particular mode. I know most if not all of the shortcuts and hidden locations on the map and I still keep uncovering new secrets every time I play.”
Carrie squealed with delight upon hearing this revelation and was very excited to learn that she and Chase shared common interests. Sure, she had shared common interests with her friends back in Chicago, but she had never shared something like this with one of her friends, much less a guy. She was so caught up in the moment that she almost forgot what Chase had first mentioned.
“Wait, wait a minute. Did you just say ‘series’? There are more of them?!”
“Yep, two sequels. MM2 for the PC and MM3 for the Xbox,” replied Chase.
Carrie didn’t hold back as she suddenly embraced Chase in a tight hug, overjoyed with happiness. He was at first shocked by the gesture, but hugged her as well.
“I can tell that you are very pleased to hear this news.”
“Are you kidding?!” she replied, breaking the hug. “I’m freakin’ ecstatic! I had no idea there were sequels to such an awesome game. Tell me everything that you know about Midtown Madness and its sequels; I want to know every little detail!”
Chase smiled and was inwardly shouting with joy.
“Alright, I’ll tell you everything that I know.”
Carrie squealed with delight again and got out a pencil and notebook from her backpack, but she had to put them away when the lunch bell suddenly rang.
“Aw, dammit! Lunch is never long enough,” she sighed sadly. “And just when things were getting good too.”
“Yeah, thirty minutes to eat and talk just doesn’t cut it,” sighed Chase. “However, I can still share my tips and tricks with you. Where would you like to meet?”
“Hmmm, how about at your house after school today?”
Chase’s eyes widened and he thought his ears were playing tricks on him as he stared at her.
“…Come again?”
“I said, how about at your house after school today?” Carrie giggled. “I’ll even walk there with you.”
“…Seriously?”
“Of course, silly. Unless you have something else in mind?”
“No, no, my house after school is fine. I just wasn’t sure that you wanted to come over to my house so soon after we’ve met.”
“That’s not going to be a problem, is it?”
Carrie giggled again and her eyes sparkled. Chase found himself being drawn into those olive green-colored orbs and he had to snap out of his staring before he leaned forward too much and bumped her head.
“No, not a problem at all. I’ll see you in front of the school then after the final bell rings?”
“It’s a date, but not really a date-date. Well, how about I leave that up to you to decide?” Carrie then slung her backpack over her shoulder before exiting the game and closing her laptop. “I’ll see you later, cutie.” She waved back to Chase with a smile and left the cafeteria with the rest of the students.
“Yeah, same here…”
Chase waved at her departing figure before he slowly made his way back to where his friends were sitting. He couldn’t believe what had just happened. He had just met and talked with the most beautiful and amazing girl he had ever seen in his entire life and she turned out to be the biggest fanatic of Midtown Madness he had ever met besides himself. On top of that, she was really excited when she found out that there is a Midtown Madness series and now she’s going to be walking to his house with him after school to learn more about the game and all of its ins and outs. He could search the entire planet and not find another girl like her. It was simply incredible.
“So, Chase, how did it go with her?”
Tom’s voice cut through his musings and Chase found himself at the table a lot quicker than he thought.
“Yeah, we want details!” added Ben.
Chase didn’t know what to say at first. Should he flat-out tell them that it was the single greatest experience of his life and that he was going to be walking home with her after school? Or should he act like nothing remotely interesting happened and have them write it off as another failed attempt to impress a girl? No, why the hell would he do that? He wasn’t the least bit embarrassed by Carrie and his friends probably already knew that something spectacularly awesome had happened. He knew he was smiling and his grin must have been stretching from ear to ear because Tom pointed it out to Ben.
“I’d say that it went very well judging by that grin of his, Ben,” said Tom as he cast his friend a sly look.
“Sure looks that way, Tom,” replied Ben, grinning. “So, Chase, buddy, did you get her number for me?”
Chase shook his head and steadied himself against the table.
“Nope. I got something better than a phone number from her though; a self-invitation to my house after school to discuss everything that is Midtown Madness and its sequels.”
Tom and Ben exchanged glances before staring at Chase with wide eyes.
“Are you serious?” asked Tom.
“Dead serious,” replied Chase as he crossed his arms.
“Dude, that is totally awesome!” shouted Ben as he got up from his seat and smacked his friend on the back causing Chase to stumble forward a little. “So, what’s her name? Where did she come from? Why is she so interested in the game?”
Chase steadied himself before he started to shut down and put away his laptop as he spoke.
“Her name is Carrie Anderson and she moved here from Chicago over the summer. She is so interested in the game because it acts as a way for her to relive the years that she spent there. She misses her friends and all that she used to do with them around the city. Now, with a virtual Chicago at easy access, she can visit the city anytime she wants to. As for why she’s interested in the sequels, having a way to explore other cities, albeit virtual ones, without ever having to leave your house would make anyone happy.”
“Who knew you would ever find a girl who would be interested in something like Midtown Madness?” replied Tom as he gave a thumbs-up to Chase. “Well, anyway, I think I can speak for Ben when I say that I’m happy for you. Whatever you did to get her attention, keep doing it.”
“All I did was just be myself and that got me so far as to have her walking home with me after school.”
“Then continue to be yourself and you’ll never lose her.”
“Heh, I can only hope. I’m starting to think that it might have all just been luck though. I mean, what are the odds?”
“It was nothing but a chance encounter. Beginner’s luck, if you will,” replied Ben as he casually draped an arm around his friend’s shoulder. “Would you have found out that she loves the game if you hadn’t gone over and talked to her?”
“Probably not…”
“And would she have invited herself to your house if you had never talked to her?”
“Again, probably not.”
“And who told you to go over and talk to her in the first place?”
“You did.”
“Exactly! So, it all comes back to me! And you owe me big time for not getting me her number!”
“Ah, shut up and leave the guy to dwell on his newfound happiness,” scolded Tom as he shut down his laptop and slung his backpack over his shoulder. “Again, we’re happy for you, aren’t we, Ben?”
Ben removed his arm from Chase’s shoulder and started to shut down his own laptop. “Yeah, yeah, we’re happy for you. Hey, just one question, dude. Did she mention anything about having a sister?”
Chase glared at him and Tom smacked his forehead in frustration.
“BEN!”
“Relax, guys, I was only joking!” Ben exclaimed as he put up his hands in defense. “Geez, I crack one joke and I have the whole freakin’ cafeteria against me.”
“Uh, in case you forgot, we’re practically the last ones in here and unless we all want to be late for class, we’d better get our asses moving,” Tom pointed out.
“Yeah, I hear ya.” Ben slung his backpack over his shoulder and tucked his laptop under his arm. “At least our next class is one that we all share. Last one there buys lunch for the other two tomorrow!”
Ben suddenly bolted from the cafeteria leaving his two friends standing by the table. Tom laughed and ran after him while Chase stayed behind, quietly thinking about his encounter with Carrie and the excitement of walking home with her later, before he too ran out of the cafeteria determined not to pay for lunch tomorrow.
--
That's all for now. =) I've already stretched the page enough as it is.
What I can tell you though is that their lives are going to get a lot more complicated as the trilogy progresses. =)
