"Hello, I'm the Wind Chaser driver. My car has a blue license plate A2219. I'm at the alley next to the RK Bar. You can come out now."
Rachel heard the noisy background voices through the call and hung up after making sure the other person heard her clearly.
Soon, a messy-looking, clearly drunk woman climbed into the car. She had a curvy figure and wore a shiny red, hip-hugging skirt that barely covered her butt.
Thin straps rested on her shoulders, and the deep V-neck showed off a good amount of cleavage.
"Ugh." After sitting down, she lifted her head and dry-heaved twice. Rachel quickly handed her two tissues.
She was about to say, "Don't drink so much," when she caught sight of the passenger's face in the back seat.
Her hand, halfway raised, froze in mid-air. Her face went pale instantly.
That familiar face… it was her cousin Nora, someone she hadn't seen in five whole years.
Nora also froze when she saw Rachel's beautiful face. The shock seemed to sober her up almost instantly.
The dim streetlight poured through the glass window, casting a faint Tiffany-blue glow across Rachel's delicate features.
Her thick black hair draped softly over her small, pale face. Her long, thin eyebrows and clear, bright eyes stared at Nora in pure surprise.
Earlier that day, Grady had been proudly telling her that even though Rachel dropped out of H University, she was now a white-collar worker in some big company with a great salary and awesome benefits.
He had even scolded her, saying, "You should learn from your cousin. Sure, she didn't finish H University, but at least she graduated from a decent school. You, on the other hand, spend all your time messing around. When are you going to grow up and get a proper job?"
He even went as far as comparing her to Rachel, who, let's not forget, was abandoned by her parents and freeloaded off their family.
Grady always shielded her no matter what.
She was beyond angry.
Who was his real daughter here anyway?
No matter what, he always took Rachel's side. It was like this five years ago, and now, even after Rachel disappeared for all that time, it was still the same.
Rachel left home while pregnant, and Grady still praised her like she was some kind of golden child.
Nora felt choked up with rage just thinking about it. That's why she came to the bar tonight, to blow off steam.
"Is this what your big corporate job looks like?" Nora said suddenly, voice laced with amusement.
Then she burst out laughing, like full-on belly laughing until her stomach hurt.
Because suddenly, it clicked.
She remembered she was the one who booked the Wind Chaser ride...
And Rachel was the driver.
The whole thing was too ridiculous. Her lips curled into a sneer.
She didn't even have to try to lie, it just spilled out naturally. That made it even funnier.
Rachel's cold apricot eyes flashed with deep hurt.
She didn't want to waste a single word on Nora.
She silently tossed a tissue toward her cousin, who was now clutching her stomach and laughing like crazy.
Rachel was scared Nora might complain, and she couldn't just leave her here, so she kept her mouth shut and turned on the ignition.
She was Nora's older sister by blood, and she knew Nora was mocking her.
But Nora was her uncle's only daughter, her uncle who had taken her in, who had given her a home when she had nowhere else to go.
Rachel had always been grateful for that.
So she had turned a blind eye to every insult.
Every grudge. Every slap in the face.
But she never thought Nora would go this far.
How could she do something so cruel?
Thinking about everything she had gone through over the years...
The pain, the loneliness, the shame...
The struggle of raising Cora alone...
Her fingernails dug deep into the flesh of her palms.
Her chest ached like it was being crushed.
Her heart couldn't breathe.
At this moment, Nora, who had finally stopped laughing, also noticed the little girl sitting in the passenger seat.
The girl had an apple-like face, with delicate and curly eyebrows poking out under her slightly curled bangs. She looked super cute.
If she wasn't Rachel's daughter, maybe Nora would've liked her. But she was Rachel's child, that wild woman's child!
"Is this the illegitimate child? Driving a car with a kid in it, wow," she scoffed, her voice dripping with sarcasm and disgust.
"....." Rachel acted like she didn't hear it at all, like Nora's words were just a fart in the wind.
She gripped the steering wheel tighter, a sharp sting piercing her chest.
Seeing Rachel ignore her only made Nora even angrier. She wanted to make her snap.
"Anyway, you're not that innocent either. Why don't you just sell yourself and save yourself all the drama!"
She was just some wild orphan nobody wanted, but somehow still got all that love from Grandpa and even tried to fight for her dad Grady's attention.
Why?
Why did she have to exist in her world?
Nora hated her. Like, truly hated her. Just seeing her made her feel sick.
"This is all because of you," Nora muttered through clenched teeth.
She didn't even want to believe those words came out of her sister's mouth. But after what she had done, it wasn't surprising at all she could say something that cruel.
As the car drove past the glowing streets, Rachel's heart started to ache so bad that her vision blurred with tears.
Cora was asleep in the front seat, and Rachel didn't want to argue, scared of waking her up and making her feel uncomfortable. Cora didn't know anything.
But actually, Cora was already awake.
Her mom was always gentle, like really gentle. She had never seen her mom get mad at anyone, ever.
She had also never heard her mom talk about any friends before.
Who even is this loud, drunk aunt?
Why are they fighting?
Is her dad... married or something?
The woman's words were so nasty, and Cora didn't like her. But deep inside, she still really wanted to know who her dad was... and why he didn't want them.
So she narrowed her eyes and pretended to stay asleep.
"All because of me? That's rich. It's your own fault! You forgot how many times you made stuff up about me?" Rachel snapped back, voice finally cracking.
In high school, Nora had a crush and followed her shady boyfriend into a bar. Rachel had told Grady about it, and he caught them red-handed.
He even slapped Nora that night.
Rachel had explained over and over that she only went to the bar to find Nora,because the guy she was with seemed sketchy. She didn't want Nora to get in trouble.
Grady had heard rumors and rushed to the bar too. But after that, Nora kept insisting that Rachel snitched on her out of jealousy.
"I'll ruin you again if I have to," Nora sneered coldly. "You're not just trash, you're a liar too. You told people you work a white-collar job with amazing benefits? Please. You're literally a taxi driver with a kid. My dad might be nice to you, but he's not your real dad. You're just some throwaway kid. I bet you don't even have a place in his heart anymore."
Rachel bit back her tears, her jaw locked so tight it hurt. She wanted so badly to throw Nora out of the car.
And then, without thinking, that humiliating memory from five years ago exploded in her mind...
And her foot slammed the brake.
Nora, still half-drunk and off balance, nearly hit the window head-first.
"You trying to kill me?!" she screamed, eyes wide with rage.
Rachel took a deep breath. That was reckless. Cora was still sleeping in the front seat.
"Don't tell my uncle about this," she said in a softer tone.
She just didn't want him to worry. He had raised her for ten whole years and given her a home. She had already thought of him as her real dad.
That look of disappointment in his eyes all those years ago... it still haunted her like a burn scar. She never wanted to see that look again.
"Why not?" Nora sneered, looking all smug like she had won.
"Because you framed me. You literally found someone to set me up!"