‘Goddammit, this kid got caught in a mess… again.’

A sigh of frustration escaped from the lips as Kwon Eunbi was busy pacing around her home office at a modest townhouse she’s living in. Her palm was resting on her forehead, closing her eyes in scrutiny as she was trying her best to figure out on whoever that was coming after the youngest driver.

The leader of Seoul’s IZ*ONE Racing Group wasn’t a stranger to Gangnam’s infamous reputation as the red-light district. The city was known to hold various clubs, massage parlors, restaurants as the day-time front; however, many owners of these establishments resort to host underground events-- attracting those that seek out for fame and power through corrupt means.

Wealthy businessmen, foreign investors, celebrities, high-profile professionals; Eunbi has met all sorts of people in her line of work as the CEO of Woolim Corporation. The establishment serves as a real estate to the public eye, following up a solid reputation as one of the most trusted firms in ethical business practices through South-East Asia.

And that was cited on the official papers.

Eunbi knew far too long in the industry to know there was more to the title beyond a public good standing. She knew her role as an influential business figure only served as an elaborate front to appease her investors-- mainly to keep them at bay from her actual operations as a leading street racer. Fortunately, her efforts are still intact with her personal assistant on the side to maintain the facade, all thanks to the out-of-the-world beauty the latter has emitted.

But enough of that; there wasn’t any time to reminisce the past as Eunbi needed to get back into focus on getting to the bottom of Yujin’s mess, along with reaching out for reinforcements as the woman brought out her smartphone to contact them in a conference call.

It took a few ringtones before the call came through.

“Yah! Choi Yena, Lee Chaeyeon!” The eldest hollered. “We have an emergency!”

Multiple sound effects and feedback were heard through the phone speakers, followed by a loud voice resembling of an adolescent duckling.

[ “Unnie, I’m in the middle of a game match here-- make it fast!” ]

An exasperated sigh followed as a response to Yena’s antics.

[ “Never mind Yena, Eunbi-unnie,” ] Chaeyeon answered. [ “What’s the matter?” ]

“Yujin needs help.”

[ “Huh?” ] The feedback from Yena’s end of the phone went silent as the eldest heard bed sheets rustling. [ “Our Ahn-pup needs help?” ]

[ “By the sounds of it, seems pretty serious. Mind filling us in?” ]

Immediately, Eunbi briefly explained the situation to both girls that their young driver has reported earlier, all in while grabbing her keys from the table before making her way down to the underground garage lot with her phone in hand.

“Yujin ended up accepting the race challenge by a Lamborghini driver. They brought his friends along as an advantage to secure the win,” the leader concluded.

[ “What the hell!?” ] Yena quacked. [ “Who do they think they are, tryna cheat through races!?” ]

[ “That’s ironic, coming from someone who uses cheat codes in video games,” ] Chaeyeon deadpanned, trying to hold back from laughing.

[ “YAH, only in single-player games!” ] the former retorted. [ “That doesn’t hurt anyone, man. This is street racing we’re talking about here!” ]

‘This is getting us nowhere,’ Eunbi thought as time was ticking by and her patience was starting to run thin.

“...Are you two done bickering?” The eldest asked, rolling her eyes as her voice raised slightly to get her message across.

[ “... Sorry, unnie.” ]

The woman hummed as she opened the door into her personal lot. There were two cars: one that’s used for corporate work, and the other is her beloved blue Honda Acura NSX.

“Anyways, I called both of you to help Yujin out on the mess,” Eunbi said as a small beeping sound was made, unlocking the car before getting inside. “Any questions?”

[ “Do we know where Yujin is heading?” ] Chaeyeon spoke first.

“She was held up at a railing crossroad last time I checked.”

As soon as the woman shuts the car door, a moment of awkward silence sets in.

[ “Um… Last time you checked?” ] Yena pressed in an effort of breaking off the tension.

Oh, no.

Eunbi’s mind started to race through the memory bank as the eldest had to think fast on her feet, before ending up humiliating herself for the lack of foresight into the issue at hand.

‘Come on, Kwon Eunbi. Think harder!’

In a miraculous timing, Eunbi finally remembered IZ*ONE’s adorable mechanic’s request on recalling their cars into the auto body shop for the latest upgrade.

“Yes, but remember; we have an easier time tracking each other now, all thanks to Nako and Wonyoung joint effort into upgrading our GPS navigation system,” she answered with a smug on her face.

[ “Ahh, that’s right. I almost forgot about that.” ]

[ “Saaame.” ]

The woman sighed in relief, thanking the celestial beings above that none of the drivers noticed her inner panic.

She wasn’t about to get clowned on. Not today.

“Any other questions?”

[ “Uhh… What about our girls?” ] Yena asked. [ “Do they need to get involved, too?” ]

“That’s your guys’ call, really,” Eunbi said. “But if you really want to save yourselves from getting an earful, then you should know it by now; I’m not responsible for your relationship troubles.”

[ “Good point. We’ll get them to go with us.” ]

“Alright then,” the woman hummed. “Now are we on the same page?”

[ “Yes!” ] Came an affirmative response.

Eunbi smiled as she turned her keys over the ignition, booting up the car engine and navigation system before pressing a button to open the garage shutters in front of her.

“Good.” The eldest concluded the call, swiftly mounting her phone on the dashboard and buckling the seat belt on before driving off.

‘Let’s get it!’

///

Meanwhile, a certain tiny mechanic was busy tinkering around underneath her Toyota Sprinter Trueno AE86 at her own auto-body shop-- laying on a wheelboard on her back and toolbox placed nearby the area.

Yabuki Nako knows her passion for automotive vehicles on the road, specifically with the ones for street racing.

The Japanese native grew up in a time where the car culture was in its peak. Car enthusiasts and street racers alike would form car meets at the top of the famous sacred mountains, mainly to hang out and show who’s boss down the touge terrain.

As a child who’s been fascinated with fast cars, it was something exciting to be a part of the community.

Unfortunately, Nako fell short into participating the said car meets as her stature and age prevented her to drive a vehicle, let alone a sports car.

It wasn’t her fault though; she was still in school at that time.

That was when Nako decided to show her passion behind the scenes instead-- right at the automobile salvage yard, to be exact.

The aspiring mechanic would always find herself making her way to the yard every day after school, scouting around the heaps of metal scrap for a totaled car that wasn’t completely decimated.

Her burning desire for fixing