Chapter Text
“... And in the red lane, coming from Bonesborough, Ohio, Amity Blight in Abomination!” Skara’s voice boomed throughout the stadium, and Amity decided to give the crowd what they wanted with a few quick revs of her engine. “Nashville, make some noise and get ready for your Monster Truck Madness Racing World Finals because we’re going green!”
Barely a second or two later, the starting light reflected her words, and Amity slammed on the gas. This was it; if she pulled this off, she'd have won the racing finals for three years in a row. She shot out of the starting gate and down the ramp covering the seats, a feature that had proved itself to be so popular at last year’s World Finals that it had been made a focal point of the track this year. And, after the closure of the old World Finals stadium in Las Vegas, the higher ups at Monster Truck Madness decided to start having different cities host the World Finals every year. Last year was Orlando, this year it was Nashville.
The track, which had been dubbed a “Drop-in St. Louis Style” track, saw Amity and her opponents race down a long straight ramp all the way across the stadium and over a low rolling jump right in the middle, then split off and race back along the outside before making another sharp turn to return to that central ramp and cross the finish line. As Amity barrelled down towards the track proper, she saw that, regretfully, her opponent had gotten off the line faster and held the lead for now. No matter, she had beaten this person dozens of times, and she could certainly do it again.
When they split off, Amity handled the corner masterfully, heading into the second straightaway with all the confidence that a five-time world champion deserved. She rushed down to the other end of the track as fast as she could, but when she rounded the second corner, she saw that she had unfortunately done little to close the gap between herself and her opponent. She crossed the finish line almost a whole second after the other truck, and her punishment for losing this final race was to watch the other driver spin around in a dizzying donut.
When at last their truck came to a stop, Amity nudged forward and bumped one of their tires with her own, the monster truck equivalent of a stick tap from her old hockey days. Her opponent had done a fantastic job tonight and deserved the recognition for their win, though that was far from the only reason that, despite losing the race herself, Amity was still happy with the end result.
The much bigger reason came moments later when the driver climbed out of her truck, helmet already off, and threw her hands up in the air. And gods, Amity could barely think of a better sight than Luz beaming ear to ear as she celebrated her first ever Racing World Finals victory. In fact, Amity found that she couldn’t just sit by and watch her pumping her fists in the air alone. Amity climbed out of Abomination and dropped down onto her front tire, hopping over to Azura and climbing up on top of the truck to give her girlfriend a big hug from behind. Luz must not have heard her coming, because she let out an excited, “Oop!” when Amity wrapped her arms around her waist and lifted her up in the air.
“Ohhhhh, I’m so proud of you!” Amity exclaimed. “You did amazing out there!” Luz started laughing as Amity held her up and when she put her down, Luz turned to face her with that infectious smile and pulled her into a brief, chaste kiss. The crowd roared at the sight; the two had grown to become quite the power couple in the monster truck scene over the last year, and their complete inability to go more than fifteen minutes without some kind of display of affection played a large role in that fact.
This year there was a proper podium just to the side of the ramp leading down onto the track, and Amity accompanied her girlfriend on her way up to it, her arm wrapped around Luz’s waist as she continued to soak in applause from the crowd. Amity could barely take her eyes off Luz, only glancing forward every now and then to make sure she was still headed the right way. There was just something so absolutely beautiful about Luz’s smile, the gleam in her eyes, or the way she laughed with delight. And that was all to say nothing of the way her expression softened any time she glanced back at Amity. Any time they made eye contact, Luz had this look that only Amity got the privilege of seeing. It was one that said that for all the love that Amity held in her heart for her girlfriend, Luz felt the exact same way for her.
Any doubts that might have been lingering in her mind about what she had planned for tonight vanished whenever she saw that look.
They reached the podium and Amity stepped up onto the second place spot just to the right of Luz. On the other side of her, Hunter stood tall. He’d had an impressive streak right up until the semi-finals, and had still given Luz a run for her money right up until the end. It felt really good to Amity to share the podium with two of the people that had been so influential in helping her turn her life completely around.
Gus approached the podium with Skara right behind him, who was holding a comically massive trophy. He waved at his three friends before the cameras turned on and his demeanor shifted ever so slightly. It was still friendly, but in a more professional and less personal way. “Luz No-ce-da,” he chanted, emphasizing every syllable of her beautiful last name, “Congratulations on your first ever Racing win at the Monster Truck Madness World Finals! How are you feeling right now?”
“I’m on top of the world, Gus,” Luz said. “Winning last year’s freestyle was an unreal experience, but my heart has always been, at least competition wise, in the races, and winning this is a dream come true for me. And I’ve got a feeling it won’t be the only one tonight!”
Gus chuckled and asked, “Are you planning on winning tonight’s freestyle as well then?”
“I’m always here to win,” Luz replied confidently, “But even more than that, I wanna give all the people who took the time to come out here tonight the show that you all deserve! Nashville, I love you all, and I’m so glad I get to share this win with every single person out there in the stands! You’re the reason I’m standing right here today, and there’s nowhere I’d rather be than here!” The crowd roared at that, and even Amity found herself caught on by the infectious enthusiasm and started clapping and cheering for her.
Gus asked a few more questions and Luz answered them with aplomb. Long ago, when dating Luz was something new and exciting, Amity wondered if there would ever come a day when she wasn’t so absolutely enamored by every little thing she did. But now, after just over two wonderful years with her, there were no signs of that slowing down. Amity was still smitten by nearly everything Luz did, she was just better at keeping herself under control these days. It was easier to suppress all of her wonderfully gay thoughts for Luz when she knew that every night she’d get to go to bed cuddled up with her and then, far from any prying eyes, she was free to simp for her girlfriend as much as she pleased.
When at last Gus had nothing left to ask Luz, the cameras stopped rolling and the four friends chatted for a brief moment before Hunter asked Gus if he had seen the new Cosmic Frontier movie and the two women quickly excused themselves to go park their trucks. The walk down saw Amity praising Luz endlessly for her win. She really had been giving it her all against Luz, but the other woman had ultimately come out the better driver tonight, and Amity loved that for her.
When they got their trucks back to the pit, the two were greeted by a very excited looking Willow, who wrapped both of them up in a bone crushing hug. When she finally let go of her friends after nearly suffocating the couple, she said, “Congratulations, Luz! I always knew you had it in you!” Not a moment later, a hand appeared seemingly out of nowhere to ruffle Luz’s hair. Amity saw that it came from none other than Azura’s crew chief, Viney. The woman was even taller than Amity and built like she’d spent her childhood throwing bales of hay every weekend.
“Yeah, is anyone really surprised?” Viney asked. “You’ve been on fire this whole tour, You earned this win.” Luz smiled and thanked her, but Amity could tell that she was getting a little bit overwhelmed from everyone coming her way to congratulate her. She did a good job of hiding it, but Amity had seen her at her highs and at her lows, and she knew that the little squint she made when someone started talking to her or the way that her shoulders kept slightly bunching up meant that she was feeling a bit crowded in. Of course, she’d never actually say that to any of the people around her.
“Hey honey, I got a text from Dad earlier that said he and the twins wanted to see me after the races. You wanna come with?” Amity asked. Luz agreed to the idea instantly, and Amity could see a quick flash of gratitude in her eyes.
“Wait,” Viney said, “The twins are here? Like, including your sister?”
Amity playfully rolled her eyes. “Yes, Viney, Emira’s here.”
“Can you tell her I said hi?”
“Sure, I bet she’ll be happy to hear you were thinking about her.”
“Wait, does that mean she-”
“ Nooooope, I am not getting any more into this. You wanna find out, you go talk to her,” Amity said sternly. She wasn’t annoyed, she just did not want to get roped into all that. Before Viney could get anything else in, Amity and Luz started walking off toward Alador’s suite, arms locked together. Luz let her head fall against Amity’s shoulders and Amity unwound her arm from Luz’s so she could hold her by the waist and pull her in tight. Luz let out a gentle hum, and Amity just couldn’t resist kissing the top of her head.
“Thanks for pulling me out of there,” Luz said. “I really appreciate how happy they all were for me but, it just got to be a little… much, but I didn’t wanna make them think I wasn’t grateful or happy to see them or anything.”
“I getcha,” Amity said. “But don’t forget it’s okay to just ask for what you want. You deserve to be as happy and comfortable as everyone else around you.”
“I know, it’s still just kinda hard sometimes. I’m working on it though, I swear!”
“I know you are, Honey,” Amity said, “And I’m so proud of you. I love you so much.”
“Yo más,” Luz replied, and Amity could almost feel the cheeky grin on her face. Amity rolled her eyes; as much as she wanted to defend her honor, the last time the two got in an “argument” about who loved the other more… well, Amity didn’t want to repeat that while they were in public.
So instead, she decided to change the subject with something she’d remembered she wanted to tell Luz. “Hey, did you see that the final chapter of that Hecazura rallycross AU got posted?”
“Oh my god, it did!?” Luz exclaimed. “I can’t wait to read it!”
“Wanna read it together when we get back to the hotel?” Amy asked.
“You know it!” Luz replied, and they spent the rest of the walk to Alador’s suite guessing just how it was going to end. When they got to the door, Amity knocked on it and was greeted by a very enthusiastic Edric.
“Hey, there you are!” He exclaimed, “And look, you brought Luz!” Amity greeted Edric with a hug before making her way into the room, where Emira was quick to pull her into a hug of her own.
“Mittens, it’s so good to see you!” she said as she squeezed Amity almost as tight as Willow had.
“Glad to see you too, sis,” Amity wheezed, and from behind her she could hear Luz giggling at her suffering. After all, they’d been through together, this was what it came down to? Luz laughing at her suffering? Well, two could play that game. “Hey, Viney wanted me to let you know she said hi.”
Almost instantly Emira let go. “She did? Can I go talk to her?”
“Of course…” Amity began, and from behind her, she heard Luz pout.
“Noooo, if Viney gets distracted, and she will, then who knows if Azura will be good to go when the freestyle starts?” Luz groaned.
Well, that was all the revenge Amity needed. “...You can go talk to her after the show is over,” she finished. Now it was Emira’s turn to pout a little bit. “Oh, don’t worry Em, she’ll be happy to see you either way,” Amity said with a pat on her sister’s shoulder. It felt incredibly satisfying to be the one teasing Emira for once. And, now that she had successfully repelled the twins' relentless assault on her, Amity was free to see the rest of the suite. Her father was standing there in the middle of the room with a sheepish grin.
Amity had only seen him in person a few times since the last World Finals, and especially that first meeting was fairly awkward. How could it not have been, with Odalia weeping crocodile tears for the whole divorce trial, right up until the judge ruled that Alador would be keeping just about all their combined assets and they became very real tears. She’d run into him a few times since then: She and Luz went back to Bonesborough for Thanksgiving (Though she much preferred the holidays when they went back to Gravesfield. Luz’s mom had been an absolute joy to meet), and despite retiring, he and the twins still made their way to the occasional show to see Amity perform.
“Hey, Dad! How’re you doing?” she asked, greeting him with a hug.
“Hey there, Mittens! I’m doing good! How are you?”
“Never been better,” she said confidently. “It’s been really nice today, finally being at a World Finals where I can just… enjoy myself and enjoy seeing all the other racers out here.”
“You look like you’re enjoying it,” he chuckled. “Great job on those races, by the way.”
“Thanks,” Amity replied. “So how have things been back home?”
“It’s been good! Your brother and I finished getting everything in his Sanctuary back together, and we got it registered with the county as a protected wildlife area.” He looked sheepishly away for a minute before adding, “We’re also going to do the same with the track. Nobody is using it anymore and grass is already starting to grow all over it, so…”
Amity let out a small sigh. “I’m gonna miss that track. But you’re right, if nobody’s using it, it’s better to have it find some new, better use.”
Alador nodded. “It feels kind of good to put all that behind me. I can’t look back at driving Abomination anymore without feeling like I let you all down, and I can’t fix the past, but this feels like a good way to start moving forward.” Alador let out a soft chuckle, looking at Amity with pride. “Besides, Abomination is all yours now, I don’t need to hold onto relics of the time before that.”
Amity felt herself tearing up a bit at that. “Thanks, Dad. You don’t know how much that means to hear.” She pulled him into another hug. “We’re all proud of you. Me, Ed, and Em.” She looked back to her twins, who were in an animated conversation with Luz. “Ed especially won’t stop talking about how much you’ve been helping him ever since he moved back in.”
Alador smiled, and Amity swore she could see the faintest hint of a tear pooling in the corner of his eye. “I’m glad to hear that. I just want to do right by all of you after everything that’s happened.” Their moment was interrupted, however, by the sound of the door to the suite opening. Amity whipped her head around, wondering who else could possibly be here, only to see it was none other than-
“Darius!?” She exclaimed. “What are you doing here!?”
“Good to see you too, Amity,” He said in his typical dry, sarcastic tone. He was holding a rather large plate of stadium nachos that surely must have cost a small fortune and set them down on a nearby table.
“No no, it’s cool to see you, I’m just…”
“Surprised?” Darius offered.
“Yeah, that works,” Amity said. “I just… didn’t know you two were talking again.”
“We started talking after you showed what Odalia had been doing behind my back,” Alador explained. “I started wondering, ‘what else did she do? How far back did it go?’ And eventually, I decided to reach out to him. I thought we needed to at least try to sort things out.”
“And I’m guessing since you two are both in the same room and it’s not on fire that you did?” Amity asked, and the two men shared a look. It wasn’t dissimilar to the kind of look she and Luz would share whenever they were on similar wavelengths, and things started clicking together for her.
“Oh, you could say that,” Darius said with a smirk, and Amity was almost certain she knew where this was going. She could barely contain her excitement as Alador spoke up.
“I just told the twins this earlier today, but Darius and I have been spending a lot of time together lately, and we’re both serious about making things work this time, so we’re taking the next step in our relationship and we’re… making it official!”
“Oh gods you two are dating I’m so happy for you both!” Amity nearly squealed as she pulled them both into another hug. Darius seemed wholly unprepared for the sudden physical contact, but he loosened up when Alador put an arm around him. When she broke the hug, she noticed that behind her, Luz had gotten distracted from her conversation with the twins and was staring at her with that lovestruck look she got on her face whenever she was just... watching Amity, the one that could just about always make Amity melt just by seeing it. Emira put a hand on Luz’s shoulder and gently patted it as Amity said to her girlfriend, “Did you hear? Dad and Darius are seeing each other now!”
“That’s awesome, amor!” Luz exclaimed, walking over to Amity and taking her hand. She then turned her attention to Alador and Darius. “I’m happy for you guys. Amity told me a little bit about what happened between you guys, and it’s really cool to see you sorting everything out and finding something special along the way.”
“It’s really nice. We spent so long on bad terms with each other, and now I get to see a whole new side of Al that I never would have if I kept holding on to a pointless grudge,” Darius said. “It’s something kind of hard to explain.”
“Trust me,” Amity replied, glancing over at her girlfriend, “I understand better than you think.” Luz started giggling at that, and her laugh was so infectious that soon Amity was joining her, leaving Darius looking very confused until Alador leaned in and whispered something in his ear, presumably the context of Amity and Luz’s relationship that he was missing. After the two womens’ laughter died down, the group all fell into an easy and cheery conversation. Although for Amity, it would quickly turn into one of her worst nightmares.
She was catching up with Darius about how the last year had been for both of them when she looked over and saw her dad and Luz deep in conversation - bordering on argument - about the fastest way to change a steering column. The worst part too was that the twins, despite never once having shown any interest or knowledge in mechanics, were egging both of them on as if they knew what they were talking about. If Amity didn’t break this up, she knew that the two would be at it all evening, and they needed to be getting back to their trucks soon.
Thankfully, Amity was incredibly good at exploiting Luz’s greatest weakness: her crippling bisexuality. All she had to do was politely excuse herself from her conversation with Darius, and after they each shared their well wishes for each other, she snuck up behind Luz and wrapped her arms around her girlfriend’s stomach. That alone wasn’t enough to stop her, though she did put her hands right on Amity’s, so Amity would still count that as a win for her.
“Hey honey,” she said sweetly to Luz, “We probably should get back to the track. Freestyle is gonna be starting soon.”
“Oh shoot, is it already time?” Luz asked, then turned back to Alador after Amity hummed in affirmation. “Sorry, but we gotta get going. This isn’t the end of this though!”
“It won’t be until I can make you see reason,” Alador replied with a chuckle. The two said their goodbyes to Alador, Darius, and the twins and took their exit, ready for the biggest freestyle event of the year.
+========O^O========+
Standing from the sidelines, Amity was awestruck as she watched Luz tear up the track in Azura. She flowed cleanly from jump to jump, flying back and forth across the arena much faster than most of the other contestants had been tonight. So it should have come as no surprise to Amity that she’d have the same approach when she went straight for the backflip ramp, but at the same time, nobody was ever brave or stupid enough to run up to those at full speed. Part of the technique to landing a backflip was being able to get enough rotation to land back on all four tires, and the only way to do that was by taking a slow approach and stepping on the gas right as your front tires hit the start of the ramp.
But Luz was having none of it, it seemed. She got a running start down the center of the track and lined herself up, coasting for just a bit as she made her final approach. Then, while still going almost twice the speed of any other driver, she slammed on the gas and sent Azura sky high. Amity couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Azura must have gone forty or fifty feet into the air, way higher than any backflip she had ever seen. Usually, when someone went with that much speed, they didn’t have enough rotation and ended up crash-landing right on the roof of their truck.
But not Luz. For a split second, Azura hung high in the air, its back tires pointed up towards the dusky sky at the apex of its arc, and Amity felt her heart rise just as much. She couldn’t breathe and she couldn’t look away as the Good Witch started to come down. Luz landed hard on her back tires, but she was still going, and the second she saw those tires start to spin again, Amity and the rest of the audience collectively found both their breath and their voices, and the whole stadium completely erupted in shock and amazement for what an incredible feat Luz had just pulled off.
Her run didn’t last much longer though. Luz was running out of time, and she must have known it, because she kept her energy just as high as that flip for the rest of her time, flying right over a ramp with an old school bus buried halfway into it, just waiting to be destroyed. Oh well, Amity would take care of that. After that, she whipped around and flew over a low ramp just a little too fast. She landed with a bit of a wobble, and when she tried to turn away from the stadium wall that she was rapidly approaching, Azura couldn’t stay on all four tires. Luz flipped over right in front of the backflip ramp that she’d just wowed the crowd with.
For a moment, all was still, and while Amity was sure that Luz was just getting her bearings after rolling twice, there was still that part of her that always got worried whenever she crashed. Her fears were put to rest a few moments later when Luz crawled out of the window of her truck and hopped to her feet, running out to the center of the track to celebrate and await her score, all while pumping her fist and cheering as she did. When she finally made it to the middle, she crouched down to catch her breath right as Skara called out, “Your score for the Good Witch Azura is…” For a tense few seconds, there was silence in the stadium. Everybody knew that she had to take the lead with that run, but by how much?
Finally, the score came up on the board, and Luz jumped up in the air. An eight point nine! Even from far away, Amity could see the exhilaration on her face, and Amity was grateful for the sound of the crowd cheering so nobody around her could hear her say (and subsequently tease her for it), “Gods, I am so in love with you.” But how could she think anything else when she saw that beautiful face light up with so much excitement? Luz cheered her way all the way up the ramp to the pit while the tow crew came out to get her overturned truck off the track.
When Luz got back to the pit, she and Amity made a beeline for each other, meeting up in a delightful, giddy kiss and maybe forgetting where they were for a moment until they were interrupted by a gruff cough. Amity pulled away and saw, much to her annoyance, that they had come together right in front of Warden Wrath, and Rutherford was leaning up against the front tire of his truck with an absolutely foul expression plastered across his face. “Have you two ever considered getting a damn room?” He grumbled.
“Oh, I’m so sorry we have to remind you that not everybody is going to die sad and alone like you,” Amity shot back with a scowl. “Maybe you can go cry about it to your buddy Phillip next time you see him. How’s he doing, by the way? I haven’t seen him ever since he got kicked out for all those rigged races.”
Rath’s face contorted in frustration as he tried to come up with a response. The best he could come up with though was, “Piss off, you fruitcakes,” before storming off.
As soon as he was gone, she looked over to Luz to see her girlfriend staring at her wide-eyed. “Sorry,” She said, “Was that too much? That was too much, wasn’t it?”
“Amity,” Luz started, “Have I ever told you how unbelievably hot you are when you get defensive like that?”
“Seriously?” Amity asked with a giggle. “That’s what does it for you?”
“Can you blame me?” Luz responded. “It’s like you just flipped a switch and became a total bad bitch! And it’s really sweet how far you’ll go to stick up for me,” and even after two years of getting used to Luz’s affection, Amity still felt a blush creep up her cheeks as Luz said that, and of course Luz noticed. “Then as soon as it’s over you get all flustered and adorable every time. It’s like getting the best of both Amitys!”
Amity let out a small giggle at Luz’s enthusiasm and said, “You’re ridiculous, Honey. Now c’mon, let’s get back to Abomination. I’m up as soon as Triclops is done.” She glanced down at the track to see Boscha running her truck as hard and fast as she could. After a run like Luz’s, “go big or go home” was pretty much the only thing anyone left could do. “And it looks like she might be done any second,” she laughed.
“Well you better give it everything you got,” Luz said, clearly trying to hype Amity up. “Cause if I find out that you just let me win this one…”
“Don’t worry Noceda, that trophy is mine,” Amity said in a low growl. She almost got sidetracked though, thinking about how she hoped that soon Luz wouldn’t be the only Noceda driving, but was saved from that line of thought when Luz started to to blush and stutter. Her expression was just so cute and flustered and Luz that Amity couldn’t help but instantly break character and giggle. Of course, seconds later there was a collective sigh from the audience and a sudden lack of the sound of Triclops’s engine screaming, and a quick glance down at the track confirmed that Boscha had in fact pushed Triclops too hard.
“Well, looks like I’m up,” Amity said before leaning in to give Luz one last quick kiss. “I’ll see you after it’s all over.”
As she made her way back to her truck, she heard Luz call out, “Good luck Ams! You’ll need it!” And Amity couldn’t hold back the giddy grin that came across her face. For a brief second, her thoughts flashed back to when she had just realized her feelings for Luz and she had wondered if it was even possible to be in a relationship with someone she competed against. But now that she had her fair share of experience with it, Amity could confidently say that she loved every second of it.
She and Luz were each other’s biggest fans, but also their own greatest rivals. They both lifted each other up and whenever one of them would win, the other would be the first to congratulate them. It was that constant support that made it so that even when Amity lost, she only felt the drive to keep getting better, because the competition between her and Luz wasn’t about proving which of them was better, it was about constantly pushing each other to be the best drivers they could be.
And tonight, Amity was going to show not just Luz, but the world how great she could be. As Triclops was towed off the track, Amity heard Skara announce to the stadium, “We’ve only got one competitor left for you tonight, and we’ve got something special for this…” This was news to Amity. She looked down at the track and saw that as Triclops was being towed off, a small camper trailer was being hauled onto the track. It got set down right at the top of the large ramp in the center of the track at just the perfect place to jump right through it. With a devilish smile, Amity climbed up into Abomination and lined it up at the top of the drop-in ramp.
“...An offering for the Killer Queen and her Wrecking Machine, your five-time world champion, Amity Blight in Abomination!” Right as she said that, the light on the far side of the track went green and pyrotechnics along the side of the ramp fired off, and Amity was flying down the ramp. It was moments like these that she really felt a true appreciation for being back in Abomination. She still kept Ghost around, and when she wasn’t racing in a Monster Truck Madness rally she actually preferred the white pickup, but Abomination was her home. It was family to her, just like her dad and the twins, and there was nowhere she’d rather be in moments like these than behind the wheel of her truck.
Amity shot down the ramp and went straight into the jump, lining herself up perfectly to take out the trailer. She left the ground and for a brief second considered renaming her front tires Miley and Cyrus, because they came in like a wrecking ball and completely obliterated the top half of the camper. The jump wasn’t as high or as far as Amity usually would get at the beginning of a run, but with the debris flying out like someone had just planted an explosive in the camper, Amity could hardly complain. She’d made a different kind of spectacle tonight.
Abomination slammed down onto the ground, leaving Amity once again thankful for all the harnesses and restraints that kept her pinned against her seat. Once all four tires were squarely on the ground, Amity cranked the wheel to the right, making a sharp turn to hit the jump just off to the side of her. She made a quick lap around the track to survey her options, hitting every jump she could line herself up for in the process. Once she had a better vibe of the track, she started planning out a line she could take to hit the remaining obstacles. Everything was going great right up until she hit a jump just a little too cockeyed and came down hard on her side tires.
Amity tried to correct herself, but it was too little too late for Abomination. The truck tipped over, but miraculously, it wasn’t the end for Amity. Abomination’s roof hit the dirt, but it kept rolling right on over onto the sides of its tires. Amity only had a fraction of a second to save herself, but there was no way she was about to lose this early in her run. She turned both her front and her back tires toward the ground and slammed on the gas, and somehow was able to give herself the momentum to roll back up on all fours. But Amity didn’t have any time to celebrate what she’d done; the clock was still ticking and she needed more than one great save to win the freestyle.
And so she kept going, hitting every jump that she could to make absolutely sure that she appeased the judges. And it wasn’t just jumps; at one point, she went up the ramp with the old school bus buried in it, but rather than taking to the air, she got just enough speed to pop a wheelie off the ledge, coming down with all her weight on the back tires as she caved in the roof of the bus. Still, time was running out, and while Amity certainly had a great run so far, that wasn’t enough. She needed something truly incredible, a run that would be just as, if not more memorable than Luz’s massive backflip.
There was only one thing that she could think of to try. She’d never done it before, or even attempted it for that matter. It had never been anything more than a conversation topic between her, Luz, and Eda over a few Apple Bloods after a long day of practice. Truth be told, she wasn’t even sure it was possible, but at this point, she didn’t have many options left. She had to at least try it.
On her way to line up for what would by far be the most impressive stunt of Amity’s career (if she could pull it off), she passed by the backflip ramp, one of the few obstacles she had yet to stunt off of. At this point, a backflip was just about as easy for Amity as anything else, so she figured it would be a good idea to get at least one in before she attempted the real breadwinner. Amity lined herself up for the backflip and bounced off the trench box, only realizing when she was already upside down that she might not have given it enough gas.
Abomination only barely made the jump, coming down hard on the front tires before the back end slammed into the ground. As she pulled away, Amity could feel that something was off with her steering, like that landing had messed up her front axle or one of her tires. Thankfully, once she got lined up for this last stunt, she wouldn’t need to worry about trivial matters like steering. Of all the possible breakdowns to have, this was the least catastrophic one.
Finally, Amity set herself up right in front of a small ramp that led to a large straight-away just before a steep ledge onto a pod. Perfect. She took off the ramp, and as soon as Abomination’s nose hit the ground she slammed on the gas, popping the whole truck into a steep wheelie. Amity flew down the track, only barely able to see where she was going through the plexiglass floorboards, until she hit the ledge onto the pod.
Instantly, Amity’s whole world flipped over as the force of hitting that ledge not only sent her into the air, but flipped Abomination forward in a dizzying frontflip. Never before had Monster Truck Madness seen such a thing, and even Amity was astounded that it seemed to be working. Of course, she still had to land, and somehow, by some unbelievable stretch of luck, Miley and Cyrus proved that they couldn’t stop, and they wouldn’t stop. They landed on the small slope on the other side of the pod with just enough space for the rest of Abomination to land right-side-up.
Sadly, when the back end of Abomination slammed into the ground, it shook the whole truck and proved to be just a little bit too much for poor Miley, and the tire popped clean off. Amity would have been a lot more worried if she wasn’t in the final seconds of her run, but even still, she had to make her ending spectacular. She cranked the wheel to the right, shifting Abomination’s weight onto a tire that wasn’t there. The truck flipped over with all the force she was hoping for: just enough to come to a stop back on three wheels. Of course, between all the rolls she’d been through and just the general force of impact from all the jumps she’d made, the fiberglass body to Abomination flew right off, leaving only a few small panels left on the truck.
Somehow, Abomination was still running, and for every inch she was given, Amity would take a mile. She turned both her front tire and her back ones tight to the left and slowly hit the gas, getting a nice donut going before she really opened it up and started spinning in a dizzying cyclone. Amity lost count of the seconds as she continued to spin, and she had no intent of letting off anytime soon. The only thing that could stop her was the centripetal force of her own truck tipping her over and sending the roof crashing into the dirt.
When she finally came to a stop, Amity’s equilibrium was beyond shot. It took her a good several moments to get her bearings, but when she finally did, she pulled herself out of her seat and climbed her way out the side of Abomination, standing on top of her back tire and throwing her hands to the sky as the crowd let out a collective deafening roar of approval. And from the drop-in ramp, Amity could see Luz full-on sprinting over to her as Skara called out “What a groundbreaking night tonight has been! Let’s all give it up for Amity Blight!”
The people in the crowd had to be on the verge of losing their voices with how much they’d all been cheering between Luz and Amity’s runs, but they soldiered on, drowning out any other sound that might have been heard in the stadium. Amity jumped down to the ground as Luz got close to her and was nearly tackled by her girlfriend in a tight hug. “I can’t believe you did that!” She exclaimed. “I saw you lining it up and I was like ‘no way she’s actually going for it’ but you did and you pulled it off! You’re so amazing Amity!”
“Hey, don’t forget how awesome you are!” Amity responded with a laugh. “The only reason I even tried it was because your run was so good I didn’t have any other choice!” She held onto Luz for a few more seconds until Skara started to announce her score and they both turned to look at the giant screen just above the drop-in ramp.
“Amity’s score to beat is an eight point nine. The score for Abomination is…” As the deafening silence took over and all eyes were glued to the screen, Amity felt Luz’s hand grab her own and squeeze it tight. At last, the number finally appeared, and as soon as it did, Amity jumped up in the air. A nine point one! Luz grabbed her and lifted her up in the air, spinning her around as she threw her hands up and cheered. When Luz finally set her down, Amity looked into her warm, deep brown eyes and saw nothing but the same love and adoration she felt for Luz reflected right back at her.
“Congratulations, Amity! I’m so proud of you! Oooooh, I love you so much!” Luz exclaimed as they started walking back up to the podium.
“Yeah, well, I love you more,” Amity said smugly.
“Oh, you’ve just been waiting to say that back to me, haven’t you?” Luz laughed.
“Maybe I have, maybe I haven’t.”
“Okay Ams, I see how you’re gonna play it. Well, I guess we’ll just have to see who really loves who more later tonight!”
“Why later tonight?” Amity asked. “Got something big planned for us?”
“I guess you’ll just have to wait and see,” Luz replied with a devilish smirk. Amity was suddenly very interested in finding out what Luz meant by that, and she hoped it wouldn’t interfere with her own plans, but she didn’t get the chance to prod any further because they were fast approaching the podium. When she and Luz finally reached it, Gus and Skara were there waiting for them, with Skara holding a trophy just as ridiculously big as the one Luz had won earlier, and Gus holding a microphone looking like he was just itching to talk to Amity.
“Amity Blight, as I live and breathe. This is now your third year in a row taking home at least one trophy in the World Finals. How does it feel to be the first back-to-back-to-back champion since Eda Clawthorne won every freestyle from 2004 to 2006?”
“It’s honestly such an honor, Gus,” Amity was quick to say. “That first win in ‘04 is actually one of my oldest memories. I was there at that World Finals and I remember that incredible jump she made. Honestly, that whole streak stands out well in my memory. Of course back then I was rooting for my dad, not her,” she laughed, “But those were well-deserved wins. I’ve gotten to know Eda very well in the last year and a half, and let me tell you, it doesn’t even feel real to have accomplished something of the same caliber as her.”
“I’m sure it doesn’t,” Gus said with one of those calm, mellow laughs he only had when he was holding a microphone. When he wasn’t in front of a camera, Amity had learned firsthand just how much more energetic and rowdy he could get, and it was always interesting to see the discrepancy between his stage persona and the real Gus. “Now, you had a pretty eventful season last year, and most of it wasn’t with Monster Truck Madness.” Well, that was putting it lightly. “How has being back felt for you?”
“It’s been amazing. We made a couple of adjustments to the structure of our team,” she said, using her carefully rehearsed, more palatable version of the truth, “And it’s been a change for the better. This season has been the greatest one of my career, both in terms of my performance and just my love for the sport and for all the amazing fans who come out to see us race.”
“Well, that’s great to hear!” Gus said cheerfully. “So what does the future look like for you and Abomination?”
“We keep working hard and playing hard,” Amity said confidently. “There’s some absolutely incredible competition here in Monster Truck Madness. Every single one of my titles was a hard-fought win, and I don’t see that changing any time soon. But like I said, we’ve got a great team and we’ve got amazing fans out there, so I’m confident we’ve got a long, bright future ahead of us.” There was one other thing that she saw in her future, something that had been consuming her thoughts for weeks now as she prepared for tonight, but that wasn’t something that the audience needed to know about. No, what she had planned was for Luz and only Luz.
“Well I think we’re all looking forward to a long and exciting career from you Amity,” Gus said, then turned back to the camera pointed at him. “Nashville, give it up for your Monster Truck Madness Freestyle World Champion, Amity Blight!” As he said that, the crowd erupted into applause for Amity and Skara handed her the trophy. She posed with it for the cameras until they shut off, and then when she, Luz, and Raine, who’d placed third, all stepped down from the podium, Gus asked, “So are we all still down to see the town after we’re done?”
“You know it, Gustanamo!” Luz exclaimed. “I think Hunter said he’s got a place in mind downtown. He said they have super good brisket.”
“Oooh, I’m always down for some brisket! You coming too, Skara?” Gus asked.
“I’d be happy to! Bosch and I didn’t really have anything else planned for the night, so we should be good,” Skara replied. It was strange; ever since Amity had come back to Monster Truck Madness, Boscha had been much less… Boscha. This last year had been the easiest to deal with her since before Amity had quit the rugby team. Maybe married life had mellowed her out a little? Amity wondered if it would change her someday. Hopefully, after tonight, she’d get the chance to find out.
“Sounds good to me,” Luz said. “Let’s all meet up after we’re done and we’ll head out.” Everyone agreed to the idea and split off, Amity and Luz heading back to their respective trucks and Gus and Skara leaving to turn all their equipment in. Thankfully, Willow had done a terrific job of training Abomination’s crew to work like a well-oiled machine, and the truck was already almost completely prepped to get loaded in its trailer. It didn’t take too long to finish up and get changed out of her racesuit, and Luz was right behind her.
“Did Viney wanna come along too?” Amity asked when she met back up with her girlfriend.
“She wanted to, but then something happened, and I don’t think she’s gonna be able to make it.”
“Oh no, is she okay?” Amity asked with a twinge of worry.
“Oh, she’s more than okay. That something was your sister asking if she wanted to get a few drinks.”
“Of course it was,” Amity said with a smile. “Well, I hope they have a good night. They seem like they’d be good for each other.”
“Oh yeah, they’d be an adorable couple,” Luz agreed. The two made their way to the front of the stadium, where they’d all agreed to meet up in a group chat, and once everyone was gathered up, they set out, crossing the river to explore the vibrant nightlife of downtown Nashville, or at least the nightlife of the restaurant Hunter was taking them to.
The place felt very Nashville, or at least felt like the reputation the city had. All of the decor was either barbecue or country music themed, and there was a mouthwatering aroma of smoked meat and firewood throughout the whole restaurant. The group was almost too big for one table, but they managed to squeeze in together at the same one. They all ordered a round of drinks, with Amity just getting whatever Luz got, and ordered their food, and when the drinks came, Hunter raised up his glass. “Let’s have a toast for Luz and Amity for completely dominating tonight!” Amity felt a small blush creep across her face and heard Luz let out a slightly nervous giggle, but they both raised their glasses and clanked them against all the others before taking a drink.
Luz had ordered a margarita, something Amity had never tried before. She found that it was surprisingly good; just sour enough to mask the hardness of the tequila, and the salt on the rim gave it a savory twist. “Thanks, guys,” Luz said. “Today has been absolutely amazing; probably one of the best days of my life!” Amity snuck an arm around Luz and leaned into her, only hoping she could make it even better for her later. She had everything ready, but just to be sure, she snuck a hand down into her backpack to double-check. She fished around for the little box - nope ! That wasn’t it, that was for even later - until she found it and slipped it into her pocket. The last thing she needed to do was dig around in her backpack while she was down on one knee.
“Well, enjoy it while you can, because next year I’m taking both titles!” Boscha exclaimed. And while that was still something the old Boscha would have said, there was something about her tone that felt different than it used to. She wasn’t saying it to be mean or to try to act better than everyone else. It was more like a friendly challenge. Amity never thought she’d say this, but Boscha was finally starting to come around to her.
“I’m sure you will, Bo-bo,” Skara said, hugging her close, then she turned to Gus and with a playful expression added, “And when she does, I’m gonna be the one interviewing her. She’s my wife, I’m calling dibs!”
“I won’t try to stop you,” Gus laughed, and the whole table joined in. “Just try not to spend the whole time professing your love for each other.”
“Nah, that’s these two’s thing,” Boscha said with a smirk, pointing back to Amity and Luz.
“Hey, we aren’t that bad!” Amity protested.
“I’m sorry, but yeah you are,” Gus replied. “You literally kissed Luz on the track as soon as she beat you today.”
Amity pouted slightly before saying, “Well, I’m sorry for trying to be a good w- girlfriend.” She went wide-eyed for a moment as she just barely caught herself from slipping up and getting a little too ahead of herself. Thankfully, nobody seemed to notice, and Gus carried on before she could draw any more attention to herself.
“Look, no shade, I’m just saying that you guys are absolutely that couple.” And as much as Amity wanted to argue against that, she had to begrudgingly admit that he was right. Even still, Amity wouldn’t want it any other way. Luz was her everything, how could she not show her love for her at any available opportunity?
The rest of the evening passed by in a blur as Amity enjoyed the good food, good drinks, and wonderful company of the friends that she’d made over the last few years. It was only when they were finally getting the checks that Amity fully realized that she was finally, truly happy with where she was at in life. She had a wonderful girlfriend who she loved with all her heart, genuine friends that she enjoyed the company of, and a career that she had made her own. Her mother had tried to control all of these aspects of her life, but she was so far gone now that Amity didn’t even know what had become of her, and Amity was flourishing on her own.
At the end of the evening, the group split off and went their separate ways. As Amity walked back to her car with Luz, her girlfriend asked, “Hey Ams, I saw a park about a block away when we were coming over here. You wanna take a walk there?” A late night walk in the park did sound like a nice way to let the evening wind down, and it sounded like it might actually be a better spot than the one Amity had planned. Just the two of them in the park, illuminated by just the streetlights? Amity could hardly think of a better place to propose to Luz.
“I’d love that,” She said, taking Luz’s hand in hers. With her other hand, she felt around in her pocket. Good, she still had the ring. As they started walking towards the park, it started to sink into Amity’s mind just what she was planning to do, and suddenly the nerves started taking over. Amity could feel her hands start to sweat as her mind began to overthink everything that could happen, and Luz had to have noticed it, but for some reason, she didn’t say anything about it, not that Amity was complaining.
They reached the park and stepped onto the green grass, Amity leaning against Luz and letting her lead her to the center of the park. This late at night, the park was almost empty, and as they came to a stop to admire the greenery, Amity couldn’t help but think how beautiful it all was. This was the place to propose, she knew it. Now Amity just had to work up the courage to do it. Thankfully, Luz seemed content to admire the scenery for a bit, so she had time to work herself up. She ran through everything she wanted to say one last time in her head before breaking the silence with, “This is so beautiful Luz. I love you.”
“I love you too, Sweet Potato,” Luz replied, and then after a brief pause added, “I uh… never knew it was possible to be just so… in love with someone, but every day we spend together I just keep finding new ways to love you more and more. I used to always feel out of place, like I didn’t belong. Even when I started racing I didn’t know if I deserved to be out there racing against people like you and Eda.” Amity’s heart fluttered at Luz’s words, and her nerves began to ease up. Of course, she had nothing to worry about! This was Luz!
Luz kept going though, and the gears in Amity’s head started to turn as Luz said, “But then we started talking, and the closer we got, the more I started to finally feel like someone understood me and liked me for who I am. I didn’t feel like I was complete until I met you, and I know that I don’t wanna spend a single minute without you being a part of my life.” Then Luz pulled away from her and Amity turned to see her girlfriend down on one knee, a small box the same size as the one in Amity’s pocket in her hand. “Amity Blight, will you marry me?”
“ No way !” Amity nearly shouted, and instantly she realized that she probably should have responded in a way that didn’t begin with the word no. Luz’s expression started to fall, and Amity scrambled to pull her own ring out of her pocket. Luz’s face became a mixture of emotions: understanding, relief, and above all, happiness and so much love. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I just had this big speech planned in my head but I wanted to let you say what was on your mind because it was so sweet and I didn’t think you were about to propose too but yes! Of course, I wanna marry you! Luz, I love you so much!”
At that, Luz jumped up, exclaimed that she loved Amity too, and pulled her into a wonderful, giddy kiss. It didn’t last for very long because neither woman could stop smiling and giggling, and when they pulled apart, Luz said, “Okay wait, I wanna know what your speech was.”
“Well, I was gonna tell you that I think-”
“Oh no, I don’t just wanna know what it is, you got a ring too, you get to propose to me now. So I’m just gonna stand here,” she went back to the position she’d been in about a minute ago, holding on to Amity’s arm, “And I’ll pretend that I don’t know what’s happening.” She flashed Amity a goofy smile and Amity couldn’t help but giggle at the whole thing.
“Gods, Luz, you’re a dork. But I love it so much.” Amity took a breath, making sure she remembered everything she wanted to say before continuing. “And there are so many things I love about you, Luz. You’re kind, you’re caring, you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met. You always try to put a smile on people’s faces, and even when I was at my worst you were there for me. My life is better in literally every way imaginable because I was lucky enough to meet you and because you were kind enough to give me a second chance when you had every good reason not to.
“There are no words that can truly describe just how much I love you, Luz. When things are dark, you’re my guiding light, and when life is good, it’s because I know I have you by my side. You’re everything to me, and I’d love nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you,” She said, pulling out the ring and dropping down to one knee, “So will you make me the happiest woman in the world and marry me?”
Luz stood there wide-eyed, her hands covering her mouth. For a moment she was quiet until eventually she said “Amity, that was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard anyone say. I love you so so so much!” And the second Amity had stood back up Luz was kissing her again, warm and happy and carefree, and Amity was sure her poor heart wouldn’t be able to survive the sheer outpouring of affection. But if this was how she was to die, passing out from feeling so loved, then she would be okay with it, as she could think of no better way to go out.
When Luz pulled away, thankfully before Amity perished, she pulled out her ring box and opened it up. “May I do the honors, my lady?” She asked in the dorkiest voice Amity had ever heard, and Amity couldn’t hold back a laugh as she held out her hand. Luz slipped the ring on her finger, and Amity finally got a chance to get a good look at it. It was absolutely beautiful, with a band of black gold and a beautifully cut amethyst the same color as Abomination adorning it.
“Luz, this is incredible. I love it so much!” She exclaimed. “I uh… I hope you like what I got you.” She pulled out her ring box and Luz held out her hand as Amity pulled out a gold ring with a gemstone the same shade of blue as the one that rested atop the Good Witch Azura’s staff and slid it on Luz’s finger, and as soon as Luz saw it, she completely lit up.
“Oh my god, Amity, you didn’t! This is literally the best thing I could have imagined!”
“There’s one other thing,” Amity added. “Take it off and look at the inside of the band.”
Luz did as she was asked and read the words aloud. “The Good… Witch… Luzura… Amity, this is perfect! I love you so much!” She leaned in and started peppering Amity with kisses, saying “I love you” after each and every one until finally, Amity met Luz’s lips with her own.
It was a brief kiss, but such a wonderful one, and when they separated, Amity replied, “I love you too, Luz. I love you so unbelievably much, I can’t even tell you. But I can show you, and I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life showing you every day.” A cute little blush came across Luz’s face, and that did absolutely everything for Amity.
“Well, maybe we should head back to the hotel then,” Luz said, “And you can start showing me there,” and now it was Amity’s turn to feel the blood rushing to her face as she considered the full implications of what Luz had said.
“I’d love to,” Amity said. “I wanna make sure my fiancée has a good time tonight.”
“Oh, you don’t need to worry about that,” Luz said. “Tonight couldn’t get any better.”