Chapter 1

Gracefully she wound her way through the cars, swerving effortlessly in and out along the highway, the sound of her Ninja ZX-14 purring in her ears and the raw power propelling her easily on top of the pavement. The sun had finished setting and she was on her way to the garage now. As she sped over the bridge and past the many lights in the city she watched as they all meshed together and became one. She loved the city at night but most of all she loved how she felt right now, untouchable. Time stood still and she didn't have to think about anything but riding.

When she pulled up to the garage the party had already started and she could see strobe lights flashing wildly against the windows from inside. She shook her head and smiled, just another crazy night at Han's. The roar of her engine caught everyone's attention as she pulled in. She looked above her and saw a group of people dancing happily on the top floor. She pulled her helmet off and shook her hair out around her shoulders. Propping her bike up on its kick stand, she placed her helmet around one of the handle bars. Music was pumping loudly throughout the garage and the smell of cigarette smoke laced the air. She scrunched her nose in disgust and headed upstairs to the party.

Han watched Akira stride in quietly and smiled to himself. She was so strong, so independent. Her hair was full of loose, messy waves and cascaded well beyond her shoulders. He could tell she had just gotten done riding and wondered why she hadn't shown up at the races earlier tonight.

He caught her gaze and she grinned widely as she walked towards him, "Han man this party is crazy," she said, having to yell above the noise, "What's the occasion," she asked nodding to group of people dancing in front of them.

"Come on Akira, as if there ever is one," he said back to her sarcastically. She rolled her eyes at him,

"I'll be right back." She went off in search of something to drink, spotting Sean and Neela on her way there. They waved cheerfully at her from the dance floor. Grabbing a bottle of water, Akira walked back over to where Han was standing and wondered how everyone had done at the races earlier tonight,

"So how did your boy Sean do?" She asked keeping her eyes on the party. Hans turned his head towards her as if to say "isn't it obvious?" and let out a small laugh, "How does he always do?" He watched as Akira's face turned into that famous, bright smile and he knew she understood.

"It figures. I shouldn't even have to ask, that punk is the drift king now."

Hans watched Akira as she observed everyone out on the dance floor. She had broad shoulders but a toned athletic body with dark brown hair and warm golden eyes. He noticed the new freckles that were showing on her face from being out in the sun. Her black crocheted swimsuit had a plunging neckline and was knitted so large that it revealed the tan skin of her abdomen and the white leather riding pants she had on were super low. Her black boots came up to her knees and had three buckles at the top on the side. The belt she wore was black too and plain except for the three silver chains that hung from the side and extended into her back pocket. She looked tough. Akira had always been tough and he never had to worry about her ability to take care of herself. There weren't many people willing to mess with Akira but Han knew it was merely her exterior people were afraid of. She was dangerously beautiful but Han knew the real girl, the one that was on the inside of it all.

Akira felt Han's eyes on her and she turned her head to face him, meeting his blank stare. She punched him on the arm playfully,

"What?" she said confused. Han's face came back to life and he replied coolly, "Nothing." He took a sip of his water and stared hungrily ahead at one of the slutty girls dancing in front of him, begging him to come join her. Akira made a face at the girl and sighed,

"Whatever, I'm out, I think I'm gonna' head to my room and crash," He waved to her, without even looking as if in a trance and allowed the girl to pull him away, "Manwhore," she muttered angrily under her breath.

She didn't know why she felt so protective of Han all of a sudden but she did. The way he looked at that girl and the fact that he was so easy made her stomach churn. For a long time Han had been a ladies man and for a long time Akira had never cared…until now. Her feelings made absolutely no sense and she couldn't seem to breakthrough to the problem. It wasn't possible for her to like Han and it wasn't something she wanted to feel but strangely she did. She wanted to walk over to that girl and tell her to get lost. She wanted to shove that girl out of the way and dance with Han herself, but she was too scared. How did she know if Han thought of her that way or not? They had known each other for so long, but yet she felt as if Han was so unreachable. He was always surrounded by those wannabe bimbos and it made her want to scream. She knew he saw absolutely nothing in any of them. Her anger always got the best of her and this time she was going to let it take control. Akira stopped and turned around suddenly and strode towards him, her face painted with determination and complete confidence.

Han didn't even see her coming until she was already there; Akira was the last person he expected to see. She easily shoved the small girl he was already dancing with into the rest of the crowd and threw her arms around his neck. He glanced at her with a surprised look but continued to dance as if nothing had happened. She threw her head back and let Han guide her hips with his hands as she danced closer to him. The entire crowd was pulsating rhythmically to the music blaring out of the speakers and adrenaline raced through her veins as she gazed at Han's face. He looked at her in awe but didn't stop. She felt his hand reached up to her face gently and he kissed her on the neck. The heat from his warm breath on her skin sent tingles rippling down her back in waves. She crushed their bodies together and kissed him softly on the mouth. As she pulled away she noticed he was looking back at her anxiously with an odd expression on his face. She laughed and turned to walk away but he caught her hand before she could leave,

"What was that?" He tilted his head questioningly at her and leaned forward as if to demand an answer. Akira shrugged her shoulders, "Don't act so surprised." She tore her hand away from his and turned around slowly letting a huge smile spread across her face.