AJ

Artemis White's POV

I stared at my hand for a few seconds, slowly letting the situation sink in. I could feel the dull sting and light throb from where this rude bastard had just slapped my hand away from him. Beside me, Benji was as stiff as a board. I could smell the sweat dripping down his back.

"An Ice...Bunny..." I muttered under my breath. Outwardly, you'd never know, but inwardly, I was mortified. I felt humiliated. Never in my life have I chased after someone, and I wasn't about to start now. I was utterly shocked by his words. This guy had no idea who I was - It was my first time meeting and seeing him, and yet he judged me to be as lowly as the girls that flock to the ice rink hoping for a chance with one of the players. 

"Arte, is your hand okay?" Benji asked with genuine concern in his voice. "Yeah, I just...I was just wondering when you started hanging around with narcissists," I said, raising my head to meet the frowning face of 'Luca'. "First of all, you narcissistic prick...I'm not an ice bunny. Second of all, using YOUR friends? I've been friends with Benji for much longer than you have"  I paused, stepping forward firmly and looking at him with unwavering determination "Thirdly, you should be the one to fuck off, you rude bastard, when someone offers their hand in an introduction, typically, you ether decline politely or just introduce yourself and shake. Finally..." 

I drew my fist back and sent it flying forward. The guy in front of me stumbled backwards, blinking a few times before staring at me in utter shock. "Don't ever lay your hands on me again. I don't know who you are, nor do I care. Obviously the only thing worth anything about you is your face, because your manners are shit". 

I gave neither male a chance to speak or even move. I told Benji I'd see him tonight and went on my merry way. When I walked down the corridor to my locker, Margot was waiting for me. Her eagle eyes never missed a thing. 

"What the hell happened to your knuckles?" And just at the right time, I could smell 'Luca' close by. The petty bitch inside of me was set alight and I shrugged at Margot "An entitled, narcissistic prick happened. His pretty face must have a magnetic pull with my fist". Margot was obviously baffled, but I smirked when I heard Benji telling his friend to calm down, that he did it to himself. 

Margot brushed her confusion away, sighing and dragging me to my locker. I exchanged my backpack for algebra books and allowed Margot to yet again pull me away. 

The day had gone quickly, and although my friends had wanted me to join them for lunch, I declined, wanting to spend some time on the ice today. So, here I was, dressed in a base layer black sports bra and the matching black shorts that stuck to my body like clingfilm. Today I was in the mood to sweat and get some extreme practice in, and then end with some light figure skating. 

I walked toward the ice rink in my socks, a black skate with white laces in each hand. I sat down on the bench and put my skates down when I heard the door go. I raised my head, watching a few members of the hockey team jostle each other and laugh out loud before they noticed me. A guy with sandy blonde hair smiled at me, waving. "Jones! Practising again?" I waved to their group and nodded, leaning down to tie my skates on my feet. The group came over to me and started to chat as I pulled the laces into tight knots. 

"Hah. Didn't you say you weren't an ice bunny?" I gritted my teeth together at that familiar sneer, slowly raising my head to see none other than Benji's friend looking at me like I was trash. The guy with sandy blonde hair stood in front of me like a shield. "What the hell, Cap? Jones isn't an ice bunny, she's-" I cut him off "It's alright, Josh. I don't need to explain myself to irrelevant people," Josh sighed, shaking his head. 

I stood up and then spotted Mia looking for me over the shoulder of the group that surrounded me. I waved to her, causing all of the males to turn to look in her direction "There you are, Cap! I thought I missed you!" "Oh great, another one. Look, you ice bunnies need to get the fuck out of here. I'm not your Cap and I'm not interested, so fuck off! Wasting the time of actual players just to get some dick..." Luca scowled. 

My fingers twitched. I almost impulsively thwacked him in the face again...What the hell is wrong with this guy? 

Mia frowned at him and gestured around him toward me, "I was addressing her...My Captain. Not you, whoever you are" Yet again, 'Luca' was left speechless. I let him wallow in his confusion, telling Mia she had ten minutes to change and get on the ice. She quickly ran off to follow my command, and I didn't feel the need to waste time talking to this narcissist anymore, so I pushed through him, the blade on my skates clattering against the floor. I pulled the door to the ice rink open and practically threw myself on the ice, my whole body relaxing. 

I did a few lazy whirls before I positioned myself on one end of the ice. I imagined a hockey stick in my hands, rolled my shoulders, cracked my neck and then pinned my eyes on my goal. I envisioned an opposing team across from me, waiting to snatch my puck. 

I was off, gliding across the ice, weaving through imaginary opponents I had created for myself. I tested moves based on problems I encountered, falling into one basic move after the other - Spin away, toe drag, side fake, fake shot to backhand, puck between defenders' legs. 

It wasn't until I'd imagined myself shooting my puck into the goal time and time again that I finally stopped and zoned back in. Mia was stretching on the ice and doing some light figure skating to loosen her muscles. 

That's when I noticed that the male hockey team had never moved from where I left them. Though it was a mere glance before I put my attention back on Mia. "Twizzles!" I shouted to her. It took her a matter of seconds to follow my command, one foot on the ice as she rotated while moving from one side of the ice to the other before she stopped and looked at me with hope in her eyes. 

"Nice. You've been practising. Your balance is much better than last month, Mia. Your speed and body position need work; your rotation count was decent. Show me exactly five camel spins. I want ten-second spins, five-second pause between each." I watched as she diligently listened to my every word.  I watched her like a hawk, catching every falter and flaw. This was what she wanted - For me to perfect her movements on the ice. 

When she was done, I said nothing. Instead, I slowly demonstrated my own camel spin at a slow speed so she could keep up. Afterwards, I put passion into it, camel spin for thirty seconds, skate for ten, camel spin again and repeat five times. 

My teachings were extreme, but they worked. By the end of the year, Mia could go pro on the ice with minimal issues. 

The bell rang to signal the end of lunch. As I stepped off the ice, I realised the group of guys were still there. All but one clapped for us. Mia gave a dramatic bow before laughing and running off to change. I untied my laces there and then. It wasn't long before I felt a figure loom over me "Hey, I wanted to apo-" I kicked one skate off after another, straightening myself out and silencing Luca with a glare "Save it. I don't want your apology, nor do I need it. Just stay out of my way, narcissist" 

Was I harsh? Absolutely. Was it necessary? Probably not, but I'd be damned if I let someone treat me like that without suffering. If Luca wanted to apologise, he could do it next month after I've made his life a little chaotic. 

By the time I'd got around to eating, I was sitting in the VIP box at the venue where I'd be competing. This hobby was more of a personal one. I enjoyed the danger, the thrill. I adopted the hobby when I was younger, and I'd watch my older brother race around the track. Since then, I've made a name for myself. 

"AJ, the race starts in an hour" My manager, Everleigh, beamed at me. Beautiful woman with honeyed skin, pale yellow eyes and golden hair. She always kept it in its natural afro, her golden 4a curls bouncing against her slim shoulders. I met her when I was thirteen. She was a victim of male chauvinism. In a 'boys club' of managers, she scraped by with barely any resources to achieve her dream of being a manager for the best. Unfortunately, as the only female there, she suffered at the hands of her male peers. I came across her when I was scouting potential practice arenas. 

[FLASHBACK]

She was squatting outside the arena, one heel broken, a tear on the left side of her skirt and sobbing. At the time, my brother had already gone inside to speak with them about how his younger sibling, AJ, was scouting a manager. It was just Ace - my 'bodyguard' at the time - and I, looking around the area. 

Ace was hesitant about me approaching her, saying that sometimes people pretended like that so they could kidnap people. But she was genuinely devastated, I could feel it. The emotions I was picking up on from her made my heart tremble. I was sad, angry and afraid for her. 

I asked Ace to go buy me a bottle of water and an apricot danish, much to his dislike, and then I approached her, squatting in front of her with a blank face. I didn't say anything until she spoke first. "Are you going to laugh at me, too?" She asked, so much pain in those pale yellow eyes. They were dull; their spark had long since vanished. I shook my head at her, offering her my hand "No. My name is Arte. Who are you?" I asked her, shocking her out of the sobbing she'd been doing for who knows how long. 

"Uh...Everleigh." Pretty name. It suits her well. "Nice to meet you, Everleigh" I gave her a warm smile, our hands clasped together tightly as I shook them. Ace quickly returned with the bottle of water and a bag that contained a pastry. I stood to my feet and used the fact that our hands were still clasped together to yank Everleigh up too. She looked at me, bewildered, but didn't have a chance to say anything before I was dragging her to a nearby bench, sitting her down and handing her the water and bag. "Something sweet always melts your worries away...Or so my mother says," I mumbled the last part. 

Everleigh looked inside the bag and frowned, taking out the pastry "Apricot danish?" She questioned. "You look like the apricot type", I said with a shrug, causing her to bellow out a laugh. Ace excused himself to take a call while I sat beside Everyleigh in silence as she ate. 

"You know, Arte...Even at your young age, you've probably grasped that this is a man's world, right?" She said. It was as if she was stating a fact, but also questioning it. "Truthfully?" I asked, "No. One side of my family believes in fairness, gender doesn't matter - Only results and happiness. I mean, they do have rules for...Family business, and such. But no male is superior to any female. The other side of my family is...Well, let's just say that females are very important in that side of the family. They don't discriminate, but rather, they believe that females are stronger and more intelligent than males, because the majority of the divine beings are female, I guess? I don't really understand them." Everleigh listened to me, nodding as I finished. 

"I see. The outside world is very different. I wanted to be one of the best managers to one of the best racers. But in this world, that will never happen...When I go home, I'll have to just look for an office job or something" I frowned at her words, shaking my head. "Then be my manager," I said, seeming to catch her off guard.  

I waved Ace over and told him to look up where the closest boutique was, dragging Everleigh there despite her protests. Maybe it was because I was young, she found me harmless. Maybe it was because I helped her, listened, and she followed me even while protesting. It didn't take us long to find the boutique, and I quickly shoved Everleigh inside. A woman in her late 40s came to greet us, and Ace waited outside. 

I looked Everleigh over and frowned "She would look better in warm shades. We don't have time to tailor a suit, I need something for her to wear now. I can always take her to be measured later. I'm thinking high-waisted, slim and tapered leg. Single button closure for the blazer, my eyes caught one with a two-button cuff when I came in. Beige suit, white blouse, beige patent heels. What do you think?" I asked the owner of the boutique, who nodded seriously at what I was saying, "I agree. I think I have just what you're looking for. Pair it with a small, white, saffiano leather satchel. Hang on," The woman said before quickly running off toward the back of the boutique. 

Everleigh was looking at me like I was insane. "If you're going to be my manager, I can't present you to the world looking like that, can I?" I asked her, nodding my head toward her appearance. She cleared her throat, shifting on the spot. It seemed she had forgotten all about her appearance and the fact that only one of her shoes had a heel. She was doing well to walk on her tiptoes this whole time. 

I moved around the shop, my eyes scanning a small section of jewellery they had on display. Immediately, I smiled at a set that was perfect for Everleigh. The neck piece featured two layered necklaces, thin and delicate chains, a domed meteor motif adorned with a snow pavé of clear, round diamonds in different sizes. You could flip the pendants over as well, a different design on the back of a halo of diamonds around a larger motif, and a singular diamond at the centre of a smaller motif. The earrings were the same, drop earrings with a delicate chain that threaded through the ear and in the middle, sat a thin half hoop that hung over the ear to keep the earrings in place before the chain continued until the pendant at the bottom ended it. 

The bangle featured a rigid band alongside the same thin, delicate chain that had the same pendant sitting in the middle. The set was called 'Meteora', appropriate, given the motif. The owner came back and ushered Everleigh into a changing room. I took the jewellery set and placed it on the counter, waiting for the older woman to ring me up. 

She came back with Everleigh in tow, who was wearing her new pantsuit. I smirked with approval, nodding my head. Thank you to my older sister for ingraining an eye for fashion into me. The woman set my total in the till, and I quickly swiped my card before Everleigh could take a peek at the price. "You should free your hair from that hairtie", I said to her, eyeballing her beautiful curls that were held prisoner by a thick, black hairtie. She quickly followed my instructions, freeing her hair and shaking it a little, her curls bouncing and shimmering under the boutique lights. 

I directed Everleigh to the floor-to-ceiling mirror on the wall behind her. By her amazed reaction, it was obvious she didn't appreciate herself enough. The owner followed us over with the set, holding it for me. I took Everleigh's wrist and put the bangle on, and then the thin chain above it. Afterwards, I put the shorter of the two necklaces on her, then the longer and finally threaded the earrings through. She was the picture of elegance and professionalism. "Arte, this is too much. I can't afford all of this," She said with a half smile, sadness swimming in her eyes. She wanted it, but she wasn't willing to splurge on herself. "No worries. It's already paid for." Her eyes widened, her plush lips parting to speak her protest, no doubt about to tell me she could never pay me back. "Be my manager, Everleigh", I said with a grin. 

She contemplated it for a few minutes before agreeing, a tiny bit of a spark in her eyes. After we left the boutique and thanked the owner, we went straight to the arena, people around us eyeballing us with mixed looks, a few of them were mockery toward Everleigh. Whatever had happened, no doubt they witnessed it. "Head up, Everleigh. They'll be green with envy when they know who you're managing," I said confidently. "I don't even know who I'm managing," she said playfully, causing me to snicker. 

"Ace, the first one to start mocking her, shoot them in the kneecap", I said to my loyal guard, who nodded in understanding. I could feel my trusty manager tense beside me, but laugh as if I was joking. She'd soon find out that  I wasn't. 

Ace opened the door to the meeting room for me, and upon seeing me, my brother beamed. I noted the frowns and confused expressions on the faces of the men gathered. "Excuse me, Mr. Jones. I thought you said your sibling was looking to sign a manager?" Before my brother could open his mouth, I boldly took a seat "I was. But I found one, so we can go home now," I stated matter-of-factly, yet I was sitting because I knew they wouldn't let this encounter go. "Wait, Mr. Jones, you said AJ. This is..." The men ignored me and instead spoke to my brother. I squinted, trying to find their audacity. 

"AJ. The person my brother said. AJ stands for Arte Jones" Now I had their attention. Everleigh meekly leaned forward "Uh...AJ as in...The rising star that's been racing since they were six?" She asked me. Helios chuckled, "Five, actually. Her first time in a sports car, she was sitting on my knee." 

"What the hell are you doing back here? Didn't we kick you out?" A man with dark, combed-over hair addressed Everleigh like she was a mere gutter rat. "She's my manager", I said, pulling out my phone and sending a text to my mother about what was for dinner. "Is this all some kind of joke?" The same man asked, an itch in his throat that told me he was irritated. 

My brother frowned at his disrespect and then sighed, "I can assure you, it is not. We came here to find a manager for AJ, but it seems she's found one" I nodded in confirmation, the thought of chicken and rice plaguing me and making my stomach scream in joy. My mother sure did know the way to my heart. 

"Mr. Jones, with all due respect, she's a little girl. And the 'manager' she's picked is...Well, a ladder climbing whore with no real talent" A muscle in my jaw must have shown my irritation, because my brothers lips tightened into an ironclad line, not daring to speak. "Kneecaps, Ace", I said with conviction, Ace whipping out a pistol with lightning speed and pulling the trigger. 

Before we knew it, the men had scattered to the walls frantically, filled with fear. The guy with the dark comb-over barely had time to register before he was on the floor, screaming. He was staring at his knee, hands shaking. "Mind your mouth. How did your mother raise you?" My question was rhetorical. I quickly sent my mother a thumbs-up before slipping my phone back into my pocket. 

I could barely hear myself think over the dramatic man who lay on the floor, gripping his thigh. "Goddess above...Someone shut that guy up. Call an ambulance and get him the hell outta here or something. Throw him in a dumpster if you have to, just shut him up!" I growled out, feeling a migraine coming on. 

"Arte, you're so scary!" My brother said, his tone a mix of playfulness and fear. Ace silently nodded, agreeing with him, but Everleigh? She was looking at me with a sparkle in her eyes that said she'd met someone powerful. I sighed and stood up, fishing in my pocket for a second before pulling out a jet black card with golden adornments. I threw it at my brother, who caught it easily "I want this arena, please sort that out for me" He nodded with a raised eyebrow. Helios was always confused and curious when it came to me, always wanting to know what my next move would be. 

After that, we went home, Everleigh in tow. She had dinner with us, and I drew up a formal contract for her. 

[END OF FLASHBACK]

"Arte, are you listening?" A voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I gave a quick 'hmm?' as I looked into those pale yellow eyes. "Sorry, I was just thinking about apricot danish", I said before reaching down, grabbing the ham sandwich and biting into it. Everleigh gave me a small smile "Yeah, I should treat myself to a few of those" I nodded at her in agreement. 

When I'd finished my sandwich, I stood up and shook my limbs out. Everleigh stood by my side holding a helmet that matched my clothes. I wore a sleek, black Sparco race suit accentuated with white details. The suit was custom-made for me, only one in the world, optimising protection and comfort with just a touch of style. My brother and sister worked hard on the design. Helios worked out the specs for the suit while Khione drew it and picked the colour scheme. It was a flattering design, capturing the shape of my body perfectly while also being number one for safety. One of my favourite birthday gifts. 

I reached up and secured the high collar of the suit around my neck. For a second, I'd almost thought I forgot my gloves, until Everleigh pulled them out of my helmet. I sigh in relief, slowly putting them on. I open and close my fists a few times, making sure my fingers fit perfectly in my gloves. 

"You're late", Everleigh said, gently pushing my helmet in my direction. I smiled, loosely wrapping my hair up before sliding the helmet on. "Makes for a better entrance", I say under the matte black helmet with white markings. Everleigh rolled her eyes and moved to the door, opening it for me. I walked through it and followed the familiar path until I stood next to the track, staring at the car I'd be driving. It wasn't my usual; it was one a sponsor had recently produced for me and asked that I test it and give feedback. 

It sat poised, waiting for me. Sleek matte black and bold white accents to match my theme. Its aerodynamic contours had my fingers twitching slightly, imagining the power and precision of this finely tuned beast. I peeked at the front, a smirk slowly building up on my lips to see 'AJ' and '1' in white along the nose. "AJ, there you are! What do you think about the new wheels? Should I tell you a bit about it?" A man asked. He was one of the engineers on my team. I shook my head, "No need, I already know from a glance. 1.6-litre V6 turbo hybrid power unit, when you factor in electrical boost, the advanced engine delivers a burst of over 1000 horsepower. Carbon fibre chassis that's designed for rigidity and lightness, and the curve-", "Alright, alright! You'll be talking about it all day. Just get in it and go!" Helios shouted from behind me. My cheeks heated slightly in embarrassment, but I quickly climbed into the beautiful marvel and got comfy. 

It seemed like everything was so fast but so slow at the same time. One minute I'm checking out the new car, the next, I'm pushing the throttle. 

I shook my head a few times, trying to focus. I needed every muscle, every thought...To be in line with the demands of the track. As with every race, I allowed my intuition to guide me; the other racers around me were of no consequence. All that mattered was me, this car and the track under my wheels. 

The thrumming excited me, a shiver running up my spine. It had been so long since I was sitting behind the wheel of a racecar. It seemed like my adrenaline and the roar of the engine were in sync as I shifted gears flawlessly, bending the raw power of this beast with the delicate and well-timed dance of breaking, accelerating and steering.