Short Story: The Red Devil

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Short Story: The Red Devil

Christian was feeling at the top of the world. The satisfaction of owning a brand new Ferrari F430 was inexplicable and unparalleled. It gave his a feeling of having arrived at the big stage. He had owned a lowly Chevy for a while now and was getting restless and itching to upgrade to a luxury car. His peers owned an Audi R8 Spyder and a BMW M3 GT which were good cars in their own right but a Ferrari was just in a different league. Lamborghini he felt, was not for him as he despised the yellow color and felt it was more of a ladies’ car.

 He had been slogging day and night to achieve this target which he had set for himself last year. The crimson red Ferrari F430 spider was always on his mind when he was chasing those quarterly targets. The smooth curves, the high-revving engine and the effortless acceleration were what he dreamt of. He never cared about the jeers from his peers about his old Chevy. He knew very soon their Audis and BMWs would stand no match for his Ferrari.

And then came the day when the brand new Ferrari F430 was royally delivered to his home. The paper work was all done well in advance. Christian took the new Ferrari on its first ride after the purchase. He stepped on the gas on the straight stretches and the car just sped effortlessly. It did great on the curves and bends without giving him any discomfort whatsoever. It was as if the Ferrari was made for these tracks. The other cars on the road simply couldn’t match up to the red devil and he was reveling in the stares that he got.

He was enjoying the whole experience when he heard a honk. He looked back with a scorn on his face and thought, “How could anybody honk my Ferrari?!” it was an insult. He pressed on the gas and was driving as fast as he could. He heard the honk again but this time he also heard his mom shout from the kitchen, “Chrissy I think it must be daddy. Open the door, will you?” Chris dropped his 1:18 scale Ferrari F430 model and rushed to the door, climbed on the stool and took a peep through the door scope. “Yes, it is his daddy! “, he shouted with excitement.  He opened the door and immediately gave his dad a bear hug. He said, “Daddy I have been waiting for you from so long. You are the best dad! I just so love my new Ferrari and the driving course that you gifted. Look at Ron and Ian’s cars, aren’t they so boring?! What will you gift me the next time I stand first in my class?”

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- Radhakrishnan Ravi