A new Rival?

Although Jayden was pleased with acquiring his racing license he did not show much joy. This was because he knew that if everything went according to plan getting his license would not be an issue. He was already focusing on the next step in their plan. Participating in real races!

He helped Kevin load the kart in the van and went to change out of his racing gear. After finishing he walked back to the van where Kevin was already waiting for him. Next to Kevin stood Sandra seemingly waiting for him to arrive. She had also passed the exam but her results were mediocre at best. She had posted the 13th fastest time and this was with her bringing in her own kart!

"Will you be racing in the national season this year?" She asked bluntly. Already annoyed by her way of asking he just nodded. "Great! You were a lot faster than all of us today but I'm going to beat you for sure when we really race. I'll make sure my father can arrange for me to get an engineer as well so I'm sure to be as fast as you!" She said all this with a large smile appearing on her face. Waving at him and Kevin she left leaving them both flabbergasted. "Looks like you got yourself a rival! Kevin said with a big grin on his face. He jumped into the driver seat of the van and Jayden jumped in on the other side. It was time to go back to Den Haag.

On the way back to the team Jayden and Kevin continued discussing the way the kart behaved and how to could improve the setup even more. This because although Jayden felt the kart was feeling incredible right now Kevin told him there was no such thing as a perfect setup. There would always be areas in which it could be improved. "The same can be said for a qualifying lap," he said. "Even if you feel its perfect there is always a place you can improve even if its a thousandth of a second!" Jayden was enlightened by this. Remembering his lap from before he had thought it was great but looking back he could see there were certain parts he might have been able to go faster.

The ride proceeded smoothly and before they knew it they had arrived. They had gotten to know each other better during the day and there was now mutual respect that could be seen between them. Entering the building it was very quiet. Looking around Jayden noticed that the GT4 car and the mechanics working on it were gone which explained the lack of noise today. They went to the back of the garage and entered James office. Seeing them enter he motioned for them to sit down.

"How did it go today?" he asked after they sat down.

"Very good Kevin answered!" Smiling at Jayden. "He did all that I requested of him and managed to end the day comfortably faster than the rest. We even managed to get a baseline setup down for him so we will be able to go further from there!"

"And you Jayden? How did you experience today?" James asked him.

"The kart was great today! And after Kevin listened to the issues I was having with it he made changes to the setup that improved the handling greatly. I really enjoyed driving it on track today and after listening to Kevin there is still more we can improve! I can't wait to drive it again!" Was his honest response.

James was surprised with Kevin and Jaydens response. "It seems they get along pretty well," he thought.

"Good to hear!" he said. "As I have already told you will have you compete in as many races as possible. We still have 4 weeks left before the start of the season and we are in luck. There are a total of 6 amateur races that are held in this period. I'll leave it to Kevin to decide which races you will participate in. The only thing I want is for you to gain experience don't expect to win any races!"

Jayden and Kevin nodded in response. Jayden wasn't expecting to win any races since he had no real experience completing in real races. There was a big difference driving around with other people who were aware of each other and were not racing for results and people racing for every inch on track. Participating in these events would be a great help to him.

At that moment James phone started ringing. Excusing himself for a moment James left the office to complete his phone call. After just a few minutes he returned. With a frown on his face.

"Jayden your uncle won't be able to pick you up. He just called me to say that your brother would pick you up in his stead so you don't have to worry. He will be here any minute now so get your stuff ready. Kevin will contact you when he has planned out the races you will compete in. Make sure you prepare yourself for those properly ok!"

Jayden surprised by this got up to get his backpack ready. He thought back to this morning and thought it might have something to do with the cold his uncle was afraid of getting. He was just finished when Damian walked into the garage. Jayden happily ran over to his brother. "Weren't you working today Damian?" He asked. "I just finished when mom called me. Uncle Anthony had called her claiming he was busy with something." Damian replied.

Damian went over to James and Kevin and introduced himself. Stating how happy he was that they were supporting his brother and that he hoped they would look after him for the following period. After doing this the brothers left leaving James and Kevin alone in the office.

"That uncle of his is no good! There's something shady about him!" James said.

"I don't know anything about that"Kevin answered. "What I can tell you is that we need to keep this kid in our team! He's incredible! He has a great feel for grip, he's fast and he can feel small changes in the kart when driving. Add to that he is smooth and consistent when driving close to the limit and his personality is very likable. He is feisty on the track and very calm and easy going off it. He is the type that could help our team win championships again!" He finished his excitement clearly showing.

"Then we have to make sure we keep him attached to us for as long as possible. Help him grow as much as you can and if we can build on his talent I'll contact his sponsors to see if we can make something happen. All this depends on his results though. It's good and all being talented but if you can't show it's useless!" He said.

Although James said that he was secretly hopeful. If what Kevin had said was true they might finally have a chance at a championship again after long years of just waiting. It would all depend on Jayden's skill and learning ability though.