Racing Back to Love Pt. 01

Looking down at the edge of the concrete slab the garage was built on, I could see carved into the concrete 'MW + MT'. I laughed as I saw this, remembering when we did this. Mel's father had the garage put in about a year after they moved in. Melissa and I were great friends by this stage and she thought it would be a great idea to write our initials in the freshly poured concrete. So we picked up a stick and carved into the concrete.

Mel said "Do you remember when we did this?" with a laugh.

"Yes I do. I also remember you getting in trouble for doing this." I laughed back.

"I was grounded for a week." Mel laughed. She slipped her arms around me and held me close. "Although I do remember my best friend coming around and talking to me through my window as I wasn't allowed out. You were so sweet."

"I must have really liked you......... I still really like you."

Melissa just giggled and kissed me.

When it came time for me to leave, Mel walked me to the front gate. We kissed and cuddled again and said our goodbyes. I went out the gate and began to walk home. Mel was still standing there smiling contentedly.

I turned around and said "Oh Mel, there is something I forgot to tell you."

She came over to me. "What's that Matt?"

I smiled and kissed her again. My face was close to hers. "I forgot to tell you .......... I love you Melissa."

Mel gasped and then her face beamed. "I love you too Matt."

We cuddled and kissed again, holding each other really close.

"I have always loved you Mel. I am just glad we are together finally."

"Me too Matt. I love you so much."

"I love you too."

****************

I had never been happier in my life. I had the love of the most wonderful woman I had ever known and I was back doing what I liked most. My testing for my new team had been very productive and I was fitting into the team really well.

It was early September when we headed to Victoria for my first race. I was pleased with my performance, being in the top 5 fastest co- drivers in practice. In the race I did my 2 stints and managed to overtake a few cars to be in the top 3 when I handed over to the lead driver Sam. Unfortunately Sam got tangled up in someone else's accident and this put us off the road and we lost a heap of places. We ended up finishing 14^th which wasn't the worst result, but it could have been so much better.

Flying home that night I was so happy, but also a little sad as well. I had spoken to Mel many times on the phone, and we had messaged each other constantly while I was away. I was sad because when I got home, there would be no one there to talk with, cuddle with and share my life with. I wasn't going to see Mel till Tuesday afternoon, as I had to go to the team headquarters on Monday, and she was working.

My mind was working overtime, but in the end I knew what I wanted to do.

Tuesday morning I woke up with a mission to complete before I saw Melissa that evening. I left my house at 8 am, made a couple of stops, before driving to Sydney and meeting my sister. She and I had coffee before she helped me with some shopping. I headed home very pleased with my purchases.

That evening Mel and I went for a picnic in a park we used to go a long time ago. As kids we would ride our bikes there and it was near the water. It was a pleasant evening and the sun was beginning to go down for the night. Melissa looked so beautiful in the glow of the setting sun. Sitting there next to her, cuddling up close, I just knew it was the right time.

"Mel, Can I ask you something?"

"What is it Matt?"

I took a deep breath "Mel ummm.......arrrr...... I had a whole speech planned out but I can't remember it ........... Oh Mel I love you so much and I never want to be without you in my life. You are the most wonderful, beautiful person........." I propped up onto one knee and pulled the ring I had bought that day out of my pocket. "Melissa will you marry me?"

Mel was stunned. She had both hands covering her mouth, and a really shocked look on her face. Tears began to flow as she nodded her head. Her hands came away from her mouth. "Yes Matt. Yes. Yes. Yes. I love you Matt."

Melissa was crying now she was so overcome. I took the ring out from the box and held her shaking hand as I slipped it onto her finger. "Oh Matty it is so beautiful. You didn't have to get me such a big ring. Oh it is stunning." She leant across and we kissed and cuddled close. Her face was damp from her tears and she held me so tightly.

Eventually we finished our cuddle and Mel looked a little more composed. She was looking at her ring and then back to me. "When did you get this ring Matt? And how did you get it to fit just right?"

"Well I bought it this morning. It is a bit of a story actually. I went to your house after you had left for work to see your Dad and ask for his blessing."

"Dad knows about this? What did he say?"

"He said two things. Firstly he was very pleased. He said how he had seen me grow up to be a wonderful man, who loved his daughter and her children very much and how he would be very happy to have me as his son in law."

Mel was giggling a little. "What was the second thing he said?"

I laughed and put on Phil's voice "It's about Bloody time." Mel laughed at this as well.

I continued on with the story "I then went inside the house and while I was talking to Chloe and Jessie, Phil took Sonia into the lounge room and told her what I had just asked him. She squealed when she heard the news. Phil then took the girls to school and Sonia gave me a big hug. I then got her to get me one of your rings that you wore so I could take it with me."

"So Mum and Dad both know about this...... It makes sense now. They were both fussing over me before I came out tonight, acting really strange." Mel giggled.

"I then went to Sydney and caught up with Brooke and she helped me pick the ring out."

"So Brooke knows too!!! Who else did you tell about this? Is it going to be on 'Supercars News' tomorrow night???" Mel laughed.

I laughed too. "No Mel. No one else knows. I raced home from Sydney and returned the ring to your Mum and got ready for this evening."

"Matt that is all so lovely, so amazing. I love you so much"

"I love you Mel and I will always love you."

We finished our picnic and headed back to Mel's parent's house a little earlier than we normally would have. When we arrived and went inside, not only were her parents and kids waiting, but my sister Brooke and her husband Simon were also there waiting for us. Everyone was so excited for us.

Mel and I did take a moment to take Chloe and Jessie outside and talk to them ourselves. They were both very excited and Chloe, as the big sister, said that this was great. She also said she loved me too. Then Jessie piped up and said she loved me too. Mel was crying again and we had a big 'family' hug.

After all the celebrations had finished and the girls were in bed, Melissa and I adjourned to my house. This was so we could celebrate our engagement in a more 'personal' way.

**********

The next couple of weeks in the lead up to my next race were hectic. Not only did I have a lot of commitments with the racing team, Melissa and I were organising her moving into my house. My renovations weren't quite complete, and with Mel's help, we organised the 'decorating' of the house. The girls were going to have their own rooms for the first time and they got to choose how they wanted them decorated.

I headed out to Bathurst (about 3 hours west of Sydney) on the Monday before the race, as there was a huge amount of preparation and promotional activities to participate in for the biggest and longest race of the year.

I had never raced there before so it took me a little while to get used to the track. The team were great and Sam as lead driver was really helpful. We performed well in qualifying starting from fifth. Mel, the girls, Brooke and Simon all came out to the races for the Saturday practice and Sunday race, enjoying the VIP hospitality our team has at the races.

Mel and the girls stayed with me in the house the team stayed in. On race day I had to leave at 5am to be at the track. Mel was already up, feeling sick. She said it was nerves, as she hadn't been to see me race in person since I raced go karts as a teenager. She wished me luck and would see me at the track.

The day started well and as co-driver my role would be to drive in the 2 stints in the middle of the race, keep the car in good shape so we could battle hard at the end of the race. After the morning warm up Sam started feeling unwell, and during his first stint our well laid plans went out the window. He completed his run and I got in and raced away.

I was driving well, holding our hard earned 4^th place and looking after the car. My first stint was nearly finished and I expected to pit the car, new tyres and fuel and keep going. But I got a message on the radio that there was going to be a driver change as well. This confused me but I went along with it. After the stop I went to our engineer and he told me that Sam was quite sick and was going to try and complete this next stint and I would be in the car for the end of the race.

I went and had a little to eat and rested up. Mel came down into the garage to see me. She looked a little better than this morning, but did seem very nervous. I told her what was happening with Sam and how I was finishing the race. She gave me a cuddle and kiss, wishing me luck, before heading back to the hospitality suite.

I returned to the car when Sam came back in. He had lost a couple of places, but drove valiantly. He had to be helped away from the car when he got out.

I raced hard and made up a few places. This stint in the car was the longest I had spent in a race car, ending up just over 2 ½ hours. Even though I was fatiguing, I passed a couple of cars and managed to sneak the car into third place at the end. The team were so pleased. We were the highest placed car in the team. Sam and I went up to the podium and celebrated. I could see the team down below us and out of the sea of faces of people looking up at us, I could see Mel with Chloe and Jessie. I waved to them and they waved back looking so happy.

After this there was press conferences, TV and radio interviews. I had won the 'Rookie of the Year' award for being the highest placed driver who had never raced there before and that was a great honour. It would have been about an hour after the race finished when I finally made it back to the garage.

The team were all there and there were handshakes and congratulations. Mel, the girls, Brooke and Simon were all there enjoying the celebration. Chloe and Jessie even went and sat in the racing car. After a short while Mel took me by the arm to a quiet corner of the garage.

"I'm so proud of you Matt. You drove so well. I love you so much."

"I love you so much too."

Mel looked nervous and began biting her bottom lip. I asked "What's troubling you honey? You look worried."

Mel sighed and said "Ummm Matt...... I'm pregnant."................

To Be Continued.......