Speed Racer Fan Fiction ❯ The Streets of Heaven ❯ Heaven ( Chapter 7 )

"I've got a picture of your house and you're standing by the door. It's black and white and faded, and it's looking pretty worn. See the factory that I worked, silhouetted in the back. Memories are great, but man they're really coming back."

Fire. A fire had burned him, consumed him to the point where he felt like he'd been robbed of his very breath. He struggled to get more air in but something held him back.

"Rest, child. You have another job to do."

'Another job? I don't need another job! I just want this feeling to go away!'

"It will go away, child. But first, you must rest. You are needed still."

Rest. He wanted to rest but the burning sensation wouldn't leave him alone. A cool hand touched his forehead.

"Relax, child, for I am here with you."

Slowly, the fire that burned him subsided and he settled into a deep slumber. Images surrounded him, some in vibrant colour, some in black in white. One image stood out prominently among the rest, an image of a young girl clad in pink capri pants and a pink tank top. She stood next to a house and she smiled.

'I know her.'

"Yes, child. You know her and she knows you. She'll need your strength before too much longer. Rest, child. You're coming home."

"I don't need to be the king of the world, as long as I'mthe hero of this little girl."

'Coming home? What does that mean? Am I dead?'

"Not yet, child. I'm afraid, though, that your time has come." The voice sounded morose.

'What? It can't be! There's so much left to do yet!'

"Not everyone can fulfill all of their desires, child. It is a lesson that we need to learn."

"Heaven isn't too far away . . . Closer to it everyday . . . No matter what your friends might say . . ."

'Where am I going to go?'

"To the next life, child. The Goddess has something special planned for you."

'Goddess?'

"Yes, child. The Goddess. The one who man has forsaken or has called God. There is no heaven. Only that which you deem to be Heaven. Take one more look then we shall go."

He opened his eyes and saw the same girl, laughing and prancing about. A young boy chased her. He laughed as well.

'I wish I could be there.'

"You are there."

* * *

"How I love the way you move and the sparkle in your eyes. There's a color deep inside them, like blue suburban skies. When I come home late at night and you're in bed asleep, I wrap my arms around you so I can feel you breathe."

His heart pounded in sorrow. He had never expected the ones he loved to come down to this. Only his mother and his younger brother had remained strong and how that had happened, he didn't know. He brushed a hand against his living girlfriend's cheek.

"I need to quit this."

"You're right about that."

His family was still torn asunder. An older brother, grieving yet blaming himself for something that couldn't be controlled.

"Speed, I'm so sorry . . ."

"Sorry about what, Rex?"

His father, a strong man with a fiery temper. Remembering when he didn't want to remember, regretting not saying what he felt he should have said more.

"I love you more than what you could ever know."

"I know, Pops. I love you, too."

* * * *

"I don't need to be a superman, as long as you will always be my biggest fan."

They were his fans, his family, and his friends. Yet, they didn't want to do anything for fear that they would betray him.

'But not doing what you love is a greater betrayal than doing that. They know that!'

"You know that's not what I would want for you. You still have a lot to give, Sparky. Give it. That's all I ask."

'Still in the game . . . Yeah . . . I'm still in the game but what do I do? I don't want to feel like I'm betraying my best friend by working for Janine . . . Yet Speed wouldn't want me to hold back . . . I gotta go talk to her . . .'

"Go get them, Sparky. Show them what you're made of."

* * *

"Heaven isn't too far away, closer to it everyday. No matter what your friends might say, we'll find our way."

Despite how hard he worked, his family had still been torn asunder. His parents grieved for two children, when one still had the opportunity to come home.

"I have a message for you."

"Oh? Is it from your parents?"

"Nope. From your brother."

"He said it was time for you to come home. Your family needs you."

'Yes, they need you, Rex. More now than what they ever have before. Please . . . Go back to them.'

He watched as the man with the mask stood in front of the door, the sun fading slowly in the sky. The mask made him unreadable. Still, he held his breath and watched as a hand slowly reached up and knocked hesitantly on the door. Then he removed the mask and waited.

'Thank you, my brother. You don't know how much this means to me.'

"Now the lights are going out, along the boulevard. Memories come rushing back and makes it pretty hard. I've got nowhere left to go and no one really cares. I don't know what to do but I'm never giving up on you."

Speed smiled as he watched his brother be welcomed home with open arms. His mother cried and his father slapped the eldest son on the back. No fingers were pointed, no blame given out.

"Your job is complete, child. It is time to move on."

'I know. I just wish . . .'

"That you could say goodbye and I love you one more time?"

'Yeah . . .'

A slight pain shot through him and he took a moment to take a look at his hands. They were a little more opaque than usual and he had to act quickly.

"Speedy!"

His parents and his brothers stood before him, their eyes shocked. He smiled warmly.

"I don't have much time left . . ."

"Speed. . ." Rachel Racer's eyes teared up.

"I just want you guys to know just how much I love you and how much I miss you."

"We love you, too, Speedy," Spritle chipped in. Rex nodded.

"I know," he smiled. "I have to go now. Take care of yourselves. I'll always be watching over you. Always."

Slowly, he turned around, his spirit feeling lighter than it had since his journey began.

'Now a new one begins.'

"Aye, child. A new one begins."

~El Fin~