Drive me Wild, Rival(BL)

Chapter 127: Conflicted Feelings

Alaric

​He looked incredibly exhausted, the dark circles under his eyes contrasting sharply against his pale skin, but the frantic, panicked look he had carried in the bathroom was completely gone. He stopped a few feet away from me, his gaze dropping to the floor for a brief second before he lifted his eyes to meet mine.

​"I was looking for you," Nico said quietly, his voice carrying a soft, weary cadence. "We should be heading back to the villa to grab our things. The cars are already loaded, and we need to start heading toward the airport if we want to catch the flight back to Osaka tonight."

​I stared at him, my gaze tracing the familiar lines of his face. There were a million questions screaming at the back of my throat. Did you mean what you said last night? Why did you lie to your mother? What are we supposed to do now? The urge to grab him by the shoulders and demand an explanation was practically burning through my veins, but the quiet, fragile look in his eyes stopped me completely. He had just survived an absolute nightmare with his family; the last thing he needed was me complicating his world even further.

​I forced the questions back down, swallowing the lump in my throat as I gave him a slow nod. "Yeah. Let’s go. We shouldn’t keep our teams waiting for the weekend race."

​Nico turned around, and I followed him out of the restroom, our footsteps echoing in sync as we made our way back to the main entrance of the venue where the black vehicles were idling.

​The remaining family members were nowhere to be seen—likely hiding away in shame or attending to Geum-ho’s shattered face—but standing right by the double glass doors was Annie. She had wiped the tears from her face, her posture straight and proud as she stood alongside Uncle Anderson, waiting to say her final goodbyes.

​The moment we approached, Annie didn’t hesitate. She stepped right past Nico and walked straight up to me, stretching her arms out to wrap me in a tight, surprisingly fierce hug.

​"Alaric," she whispered directly into my ear, her voice trembling slightly with a deep, maternal emotion that made my chest ache. She pulled back slowly, keeping her hands resting firmly on my shoulders as she looked up into my eyes. "Thank you for protecting my son today. Please... you must promise me that you will love Seo-jun with everything you have. Care for him. Protect him from the darkness of this world, because he has suffered far too much already."

​My heart did a violent flip inside my chest, the weight of her request pressing heavily onto my shoulders.

I glanced over at Nico, who was staring at us with a wide, completely shocked expression, a dark flush instantly spreading up his neck.

​"I... I will, ma’am," I promised quietly, my voice surprisingly steady despite the chaotic storm raging inside my brain.

​Annie smiled, a genuine, warm expression breaking across her face before she turned her attention to her son. She reached out, grabbing Nico’s hands and squeezing them tightly. "And you, Seo-jun... you care for Alaric too. You two must love each other fiercely, do you hear me? Don’t let anyone or anything tear you apart."

​"Mom, please," Nico muttered, his face turning an even deeper shade of red as he looked around the lobby nervously. He stepped closer to her, lowering his head as he whispered frantically, "Just... hide it from the public for now, okay? Absolutely no one knows about us yet on the grid. We can’t let the media get a hold of this before the race."

​Annie let out a soft chuckle, reaching up to gently pat his cheek. "Don’t worry, my sweet boy. I know how the world works. Your secret is entirely safe with me." She stepped back, her eyes shining with a sudden, excited pride. "I am definitely coming to your racing match this weekend, remember? I’ll be right there in the front stands, so you better drive your absolute best. Good luck to both of you."

​"Thank you, Mom," Nico murmured, a genuine, small smile appearing on his face as he stepped forward to give her one last tight hug.

​Anderson stepped up next, giving my shoulder a rough, grounding pat with his large hand. "Take care of each other on the track. ’’

​After the final goodbyes were muttered, Nico and I finally broke away from the venue, stepping out into the crisp afternoon air and climbing into the back of the waiting black Maybach. The heavy door clicked shut, sealing us away from the chaos of the Park family estate, and I immediately pulled out of the driveway, heading straight toward the highway back to Osaka.

​The silence inside the luxury vehicle was deafening at first as Sophia was scrolling on her phone.

​Nico leaned his head back against the leather headrest, his eyes closed as he let out a long, exhausted sigh, his entire frame finally relaxing after hours of constant tension.

I looked at him for a moment but my mind was miles awayt, still stuck on the racing thoughts that had consumed me since the lounge room. Yes, Mom. I am in love with him. The words echoed relentlessly in my head, a constant loop that I couldn’t switch off. I looked down at the small space separating our seats, my fingers twitching against my knee.

​We were heading back to our world now. Back to the roaring engines, the blinding lights of the track, the ferocious rivalry, and the intense pressure of the upcoming grand prix.

Everything was supposed to go back to normal once we climbed into those cockpits, but as I stole another quiet glance at Nico’s sleeping profile in the dimming light of the car, I knew that absolutely nothing would ever be the same again.

How was I supposed to pretend that I didn’t hear him confess that he loves me?

And that I loved him too.