Louise walked back to her trailer as quickly as possible, as tears began to pour out of her eyes. Was she good enough? Whatever Hudson had expected her to be, she didn't live up to, and Hudson suddenly wasn't surprised. After all, her opinion didn't matter and nor did she. At least that's how it felt. Louise prayed for a day that women like her could come in and race and be just as important as all the guys. She hoped that someday, she could raise her own strong, young daughters and that they could be future leaders and have important jobs just like all the men had. She hoped that one day, people wouldn't stare at her as she walked through the racing pits, and she hoped that one day, her opinion did matter. Louise did want to make her mark and make herself important, but she found it hard to do. She had always put on a brave, tough, fierce outer shell when it came to her racing life. She had to if she wanted to survive and make it through the races. She wanted to put herself out there and inspire other young girls. But she could only do so much before somebody found out and told her to be quiet. It hurt Louise. She knew that Hudson and her friends truly loved her, but she had always felt alone. As she walked back to her trailer, she continued to cry. Hudson's words stung at her heart. She just wanted him to care. She wanted all of them to care.

Louise stayed in her trailer for the rest of the day. She didn't eat, nor answer the knocks on her door from racing friends or her manager.

Hudson, on the other hand, paced back and forth in his trailer, running over the words in his head until they seemed to drive him crazy. Did I really say that her opinion didn't matter? Was I really that disrespectful? What's wrong with me? Shame on you, Hudson, he said to himself. He couldn't take it. He knew he was wrong, and the longer he waited to apologize, the more it stung at his heart.

"That's it," he mumbled, as he unlatched the handle on his trailer door and stepped into the dirt below. The young man stormed off to Louise's trailer, a cloud of dust kicking up behind his racing boots.

The knock came on Lou's door a few minutes later. The knock was easily recognizable as Hudson's…It was different than the manager's knock, Smokey's knock, or Junior's knock. Louise blinked her eyes lazily and sat up slowly. "What do you want," she asked blatantly. "I know it's you, Hudson."

"Don't make me sit out here like a dog and beg to come in. And don't make me sit here and beg for an apology either. Please Lou, just let me in and—"

"—and you'll explain, yadda yadda," she interrupted Hudson to finish his sentence. "I'm sure you will. And I don't want to hear it. You've said enough today.s"

"Well, then what's actually going to make you listen? What'll help resolve this? Come on Lou. Now it's impossible for me to even try and make amends. I was wrong, I get it, Lou. Now let me in and just give me a chance to apologize. I'll be quick about it. I promise."

There was silence for about a minute, but Hudson didn't turn away. Instead, he waited quietly. Slowly, the door to the trailer opened. After opening the door for Hudson, Lou leaned against the corner of her trailer, arms crossed defensively. Hudson stepped in, closed the door behind him, then quietly rested on the couch, following a quiet sigh under his breath. Lou looked at him with only her eyes, not moving another muscle. The two waited quietly together.

Hudson tapped a finger against his cheek. "So… You know, uh…"

"Are you going to apologize? You said you would be quick about it," Louise demanded, a little harshly.

"Right, right," Hudson nodded and sat up straight. "I know, I really need to apologize. What I said was way out of line."

Louise stayed silent, tapping her foot as she looked at the ground below her.

"…go on."

Hudson took a deep breath and adjusted his posture again. "What I said was discriminating and stupid. You know that. I know that. I shouldn't have said anything. I could have gone and tried to get you into that race but I didn't. I just laughed." Hudson turned his head and looked his friend in the eyes.

"I'm sorry, Louise."

Hudson quietly awaited Louise's response, but she stood slowly and turned to face in front of her friend, Hudson.

"Don't you ever say anything like that again, Paul," she firmly used his first name, which was seldom used in public or around friends. She rubbed at her eyes, which were stained red from the tears she had cried. Hudson tilted his head and smiled softly.

"You're gonna forgive me, yah?"

Louise continued to rub at her eyes, hoping the stop the few tears that wanted to keep leaking out.

"Not now," she replied.

"Come on, Lou…" Hudson sighed.

"Fine," Louise replied quietly. "I'll think about it."

Hudson gave her a warm and caring smile. She sure was a stubborn young woman. "Sit down, Louise," he spoke softly.

Louise hesitated, but gently lowered herself onto the couch next to her friend. Hudson brought his friend her delicate handkerchief and gently dabbed it around her eyes and tear-stained cheeks. Hudson was polite and cautious, making sure he didn't touch Louise in a way that would make her feel violated or upset. He had already been such a jerk to her, and he didn't want to make her feel worse.

"No more crying, my darlin'." He folded the handkerchief back up and handed it to her. "You're going to have lots of races in the future, and you're gonna win them all," he smirked and tapped her nose. "I promise that will never happen again…But I'm going to need you to do a favor…"

Louise raised an eyebrow and sniffled quietly. "Hm….?"

Hudson smirked. "You gotta turn that frown upside down…"

The corner of Louise's mouth pulled into a very faint smile. It wasn't much, but it was enough to reassure Hudson that things would take a turn for the better.

"Thank you for apologizing," Louise said softly. "It's nice to know that you cared about coming back to do that…"

"Oh, of course," Hudson replied. "The second after I said it, I knew it was wrong. I couldn't sleep with that feeling," he sighed, "I just had to get it out."

Louise squinted at him, giving him the slightest smirk. "You're a good man. You better stick around and give all these other guys a darn good lesson about respect."

"Yeah yeah," he chuckled deeply. "I'm just here for them to make money. They don't care."

"Now, I'm serious Hud!" Louise exclaimed. "You're more important than that. We need you around here… You better never leave, cause' frankly, I don't know how we'd make it here without you."

"Don't worry," Hudson smiled. "I'm here to stay."