STREETS -
act one chapter four.

charles likes bum:

ALICIA:
so guys
fun fact
zak brown offered me a seat

DANIEL:
please don't do this

OSCAR:
excuse me??

ALICIA:
i declined it months ago
don't stress 😋
but this is all your fault oscar
if you'd just renewed your contact
at alpine

OSCAR:
soz

DANIEL:
are you really!?!?!

ALICIA:
sensitive subject i see
do you want a picture of my dog

RED BULL REJECT #2:
who is the man in the
plaid pj's 😜😋

ALICIA:
my father.

RED BULL REJECT #2:
oh...
is he single...

ALICIA:
we aren't having this conversation

RED BULL REJECT #2:
so he must be single

ALICIA:
surprisingly, you aren't.

LEWIS:
please let roscoe and waffle meet🙏🏻

LANDO:
you called your dog waffle??
that's such a bad name

ALICIA:
you're called lando
don't chat
and waffle is the cutest to exist

PR LORD:
FACTS

RED BULL REJECT #2:
why are you so aggressive
jesus

PR LORD:
be nice to me alex
you don't want to get
punished again.

OSCAR:
i am YOUNG.
i don't need to see this.

ALICIA:
neither do i?!?!
and i'm old 😞
take your sex punishments elsewhere
i'm trying to protect oscar from
those nasties

OSCAR:
thank you xx

ALICIA:
brb though
waffle's trying to eat a hose pipe

"WAFFLE!" Alicia scolded the dog, leading him away from the hose pipe as he trotted back into the bungalow. His tail wagging as he did so.

Upon entering the living room, Waffle immediately strutted towards Alicia's father. Mateo supplying the dog with some much needed cuddles and kisses, on both parts.

"My dog and he acts as if I'm not even here!" Alicia muttered, going to turn her fathers TV down that had been on an astronomical volume. "Take him on this lush holiday and he can't even acknowledge me!"

Waffle suddenly barked at his owner making Mateo laugh in his chair as he encouraged the animal.

For the last few days of her summer break, Alicia had spent it in Spain. Beside her father watching home movies and for some odd reason horror films. Which at first, Alicia had disagreed with. Arguing that if one was to have a jump scare it could kill Mateo in an instant.

Mateo Hugo was not who he once was. A man that was once filled with life and would never spend more than five minutes sat down. Mateo was someone that always had to be doing something. Whether it was building his daughter a new kart, or repairing peoples cars. He couldn't bare to be sat around doing nothing.

Oh how life changes.

For the past ten years he had been advised against anything too strenuous. For the past ten years he'd been battling against cancer. At first, he'd just wanted the disease to be gone. He didn't care what he had to do. So he took 3x the recommended amount of treatment and took stronger pills than necessary.

Mateo was a family man. Although the family he had had been small. Consisting of himself, his mother and his daughter. But he'd be dammed if he wasn't here to see his own daughter raise a family.

But the treatments he was taking, were eventually too much. His body was taking the toll, his immune system was weak. It felt like a minor cold could kill him.

And everyday Mateo woke up he instantly felt as though he needed to go back to sleep. The stationary three meals turned to two (on a good day)

Everyday Mateo felt him dream of seeing Alicia as a mother slip away.

And every time Alicia saw her father she felt him slip away from her. How much time Hugo had left was unknown, as long as kept up to date with his pills. His carer MANDY had been making sure of the that for the last five years. Sometimes having to crush them up into his food so he didn't realize he was taking them.

Mandy had built a beautiful relationship with the family. Normally she reminded herself not to get too attached to the person she was caring for but how could she not when it was Mateo Hugo? He could be funny or grumpy, there was rarely an in-between. He knew how to push his daughters buttons, and thankfully she knew how to push his. Their bond was admirable, it was often picture perfect at times.

Mostly because Alicia was afraid to leave her fathers home on a bad note. Not knowing if he'd be there the next morning.

Mandy in her past five years had gotten to know this family like the back of her hand. That meant she knew where Mateo would hide his pills. And she knew how Alicia would react.

"Did you bring the snap cards, lice?" Mateo asked with a teasing smile, observing how Alicia took a deep breath at the highly annoying nickname.

"I would say yes, but you just called me lice." Alicia crossed her arms across her chest, "So, you can play snap by yourself now."

"Don't be such a buzzkill." Mateo jokingly rolled his eyes. "It's only because you lose at snap all the time."

Alicia pointed a finger at her father, "That is not true! You literally cheated once!"

"That was justifiable!"

"I was five and you were cheating at snap!"

Mandy had seen this conversation far too many times, it was humorous at first then it became boring how they went round in circles. Once it had even lasted for hours. All over a game of snap.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," Mandy said, not really sorry. "But can I just borrow Alicia for a few seconds?"

Mateo looked towards his carer, and gave her a stern look. "As long as you aren't trying to rot her brain with your idea of a surprise party."

Mandy laughed as Alicia looked between the pair, "Surprise party? You want to throw him a surprise party?" Alicia almost laughed, "I mean I'm up for it as long as you do it when I'm back from Monza."

"Don't go influencing Mandy!" Mateo warned as the two women walked out leaving him with Waffle, who was nestled against his leg. "We don't want a surprise party, do we waffle? No, you're right we don't."

"Are we playing rock, paper scissors or something?" Alicia asked once they were outside the living room, noticing Mandy's closed fist.

Mandy sighed, "When I show you this, don't go in there guns blazing, okay?" Mandy asked.

Alicia shook her head, confused. "What do you mean?"

Mandy opened her palm up in response. Revealing the pills in her hand. "They were stuffed in a tissue down the side of his chair. That's a weeks worth, Alicia."

She could see that. But that didn't necessarily mean she wanted to. "Mand, those have to got be years old," Alicia paused to laugh, "I mean when was the last time anyone even looked down the side of the chair?"

"Yesterday. And the day before that. And the day before that." Mandy told the driver. She knew at first Alicia wouldn't want to believe it because Alicia was an optimist. (Only when it came to her dad) She often tried to forget about all the doom and gloom that surrounded her dad.

Alicia wanted to believe her father would love forever, of course that was impossible but she just wanted her dad to be by her side forever.

"What does this mean then?" Alicia asked. The driver thinking that her dad must've just forgot to take his pills for a week.

Mandy, yet again, sighed. "Well, the doctor is coming round tomorrow. And I think Mateo wants to sign a DNR, and declare that he wants to go." The word die was not used and never was because Mandy never knew how Alicia would react to it. It meant that Alicia would have to start letting go of her father. And that was something she was, truly, never ready for.

Alicia instantly shook her head, "That can't be right, Mandy. Look at him," Alicia pointed back into the living room, frowning when she saw her dad drifting off in his chair. "Okay, that was a bad example. But, whenever I come round he's always so argumentative and annoying. Surely, that means something Mandy."

Mandy placed a caring hand onto Alicia's shoulder. "That's for you, Alicia. He doesn't want you to see he's in pain. He doesn't want that to be your last image of him. Mateo wants you to remember him as this character that made you happy. He doesn't want you to worry about him."

"But I do. He's my dad!" Alicia protested, "It's not his time." It almost sounded selfish to Alicia. Her dad had been restrained to an illness that had beaten him down for years and she felt selfish for wanting to keep him around for longer. But she wasn't ready. (Can you ever be ready?)

"Alicia, I think we both know that's not true. I think you need to start preparing yourself for the inevitable."

Alicia sighed before walking back into the living room, prepared to go back in screaming and shouting but instantly changed her tone when she saw a video of her karting on the tv, defending against Carlos as he battled her for the lead. Cheering of both their parents could be heard in the background.

"Who won that race?" To Alicia it felt like Mateo was testing her knowledge, but deep down he had forgotten who actually won. That's why he rewatched the home tapes, so he could remember what his daughter had achieved.

"Me, obviously." Alicia clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth as her dad shuffled in his chair, making space for her to squeeze on next to him.

They sat in silence as the tape played, a joyful Alicia on the top step. Spraying the rose water onto Carlos.

What life used to be. Alicia thought as she traced shapes onto Mateo's wrinkled hand. "I know you aren't taking your pills." Alicia whispered, waffle whimpering at the same time as if he knew the conversation that was to be had.

Mateo pressed a kiss against his daughters hair. "It's my decision Alicia. You can't change my mind." He wheezed, breathing suddenly becoming more difficult as Alicia handed him an oxygen mask.

Alicia looked up to the ceiling in attempt to avoid the tears that threatened to spill. "But-"

"I can't live like this anymore, Alicia." Mateo linked their hands together, "And I don't want you to see me like this. I want you to have all these fun stories to tell my grandkids. Not that I was some grumpy man, confined to a chair."

"But I'm not gonna be here, papa." Alicia frowned, her voice cracking slightly as she pulled him closer to her. "What happens if I'm not here? Then what!"

"You've been here, all my life Alicia. And now you're going to be racing? You've finally got what you always wanted, do not even think about throwing it all just because of me." Mateo warned.

"It doesn't matter if I'm not at any races or anything. Because I am always with you." He tapped her heart, "Right there is where I'll always be, Alicia."

AUTHORS NOTE:
mateo reminds me of my grandad. 😜
anyway, i'm far too excited for this book idc

plus do any of you watch chicago fire because i have a kelly and jay fic but i don't know whether to release or not 😜

do you think alicia will have a good or bad race at spa 😼