<h4>Chapter 12: The Drive</h4>


    Today was the day.


    The day of the drive and pic.


    I pulled up to the gate of M''s apartmentplex, giving the security officials my temporary visitors code.


    M lived in one of those high-end and gated apartmentplexes. Security was tight but fortunately for me, she had sorted me out in advance.


    After being cleared for entry, I drove in and quickly found the underground parking space. I followed M''s instructions and parked at an empty spot near the elevator.


    I texted her and within seconds, received a reply. She wasing down.


    I didn''t have to wait for too long before the elevator dinged and M stepped out. She was wearing a yellow floral dress,plete with straw hat and sunsses.


    I stepped out of the car to wee her and pull the door open for her. She grinned, getting into the passenger''s seat.


    I got into the driver''s seat and before long, we were cruising through the city streets, the sun setting behind the skyline, coating everything it touched in a warm, golden light.


    "Finally! A well deserved break."


    I nced at M who was smiling widely beside me. She was practically bouncing in her seat, like a kid ready for the best amusement park ride of their life.


    "Are you really that excited for the pic?" I asked with augh.


    "Of course! This pic is my weekend getaway." She said, turning to look at me as she pushed her sunsses to the top of her head and pulled off the straw hat. I could see the sparkle of excitement in her eyes. "So, where are we going?"


    I grinned, turning back to keep my eyes on the road. "All in good time, M. Good thingse to those who wait. Trust me, it''s worth the suspense."


    Sheughed, shaking her head. "You''re enjoying this way too much."


    "You''re not wrong." I admitted, giving her a quick wink before speeding up slightly as the road opened ahead of us. "But seriously, patience. I''ve got something special lined up."


    She hummed, nodding her head but I could see from the corner of my eye the way she was holding herself back from asking more questions.


    Instead, she leaned back in her seat, pulling her sunsses back over her eyes. "Alright. I''ll wait."


    We drove infortable silence for a few moments, just enjoying the sound of the engine and the wind through the slightly cracked windows.


    That was until a deep roar cut through the air as a Ferrari passed us on the opposite side of the road, catching both of our attention.


    M''s eyes lit up and she watched the car go by. "Oh, that''s gorgeous. You see that? A Ferrari 812 Superfast, right?"


    "Yep." I said, nodding. "Hard to miss. Beauty of a car."


    She turned to me, her grin widening. "Okay, if you could drive any car in the world, with no price limit or restrictions on it, which car would it be?"


    I raised an eyebrow, considering the question. I was by no means a car nut but that didn''t mean I hadn''t spent time researching cars to attract M''s attention.


    "I mean, you already know I love the Senna, but if we''re talking anything? I''d probably go with a Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut. That thing''s practically a rocket on wheels. Fastest production car ever made, and the design? I''m sure an artist was ced in charge of that."


    M let out a low whistle. "You like living on the edge, don''t you?"


    I chuckled. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. What about you? If you could drive anything?"


    She leaned forward slightly, thinking. "Hmmm... honestly? I''d want something ssic, like a 1967 Shelby GT500. There''s something about those old muscle cars, you know? They''ve got character. Not just speed, but personality."


    I nced at her, surprised. I''d thought she''d pick one of those visually or aesthetically pleasing cars, you know. "A Shelby? I never pegged you for a Shelby girl."


    She shrugged, smiling. "I like the idea of power, but also a bit of nostalgia. Plus, the sound of those engines is just... chef''s kiss." She mimed the kiss.


    We shared augh, the conversation drifting smoothly between yful jabs about cars and our different tastes.


    But as we drove deeper into the quieter outskirts of the city, away from the hustle and noise, the vibe shifted, bing more personal.


    "You know," she said after a beat of silence, "when I was little, I never thought I''d be doing what I''m doing now."


    "Really?" I raised an eyebrow, intrigued. Learning more about the stamp holder would only increase my chances of sess. "What did little M dream of?"


    She leaned back, sighing softly. "I wanted to be a photographer. Not for social media or for likes, but like... a real, hardcore photojournalist, you know."


    "Traveling to remote ces, capturing the raw, untold stories. I used to flip through these National Geographic magazines and think, ''That''s where I want to be.''"


    I nodded, picturing a younger version of her with a camera in hand. "That''s cool. Why didn''t you pursue it?"


    She nced out the window for a moment before responding. "I guess life just took me in a different direction. Social media started to grow, and opportunities kept popping up. Before I knew it, I was neck-deep in a whole other world."


    I could hear a tinge of nostalgia in her voice, like she was wondering what might''ve been. I leaned back in my seat, tapping my fingers on the steering wheel.


    My mind drifted to my previous life. My dreams of bing a self made millionaire and my eventual end as another office drone. And yet, here I was, on my way to making two hundred million dors.


    "Yeah," I nodded, "life has a funny way of changing our paths."


    She turned toward me, smirking yfully at me. "Okay, your turn. What did little Nico want to be?"


    Iughed, shaking my head. I remembered little Nico, before he began dreaming about being rich enough to own his own spacepany. "Promise you won''tugh?"


    n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "No promises."


    I shot her a mock-re. "Alright, fine. I wanted to be an astronaut."


    She burst intoughter, covering her mouth. "An astronaut? Seriously? That''s so cliche."


    "Hey!" I defended,ughing along. "I was obsessed with space as a kid. NASA, rockets, the idea of floating around in zero gravity. I thought it''d be the coolest thing ever to explore the unknown."


    M''sughter died down, but there was still a smile on her. "That''s actually kind of adorable. I can totally picture it now."


    "Well, I''ve since settled for staying grounded," I said with a grin, "but I guess I''m still chasing that feeling of going beyond limits."


    She nodded, her eyes locking with mine for a brief second, a connection that felt real, not forced. "I get that."


    But just before anything coulde out of it, I had to drag my eyes back to the road as I pulled the car into a small dockyard.


    M frowned as she nced around. "Wait, what''s this? Where are we? I thought we were going on a pic?"


    I pulled up to a spot near the dock and cut the engine. With a grin, I stepped out of the car and walked around to open her door.


    "This," I said, gesturing toward the dock where a private boat sat waiting for us, "is our next ride. We''ll be having the pic at Emerald Isle."