A/N: So made a huge mistake when releasing the chapter this is actually chapter 439 and the next is 438.....
The noise doesn't settle after the first race.
It grows.
Word spreads fast when something unexpected happens, and his presence alone has already shifted the mood of the entire venue. People are still talking about it, still pointing, still trying to get a better look whenever he moves. Phones stay up longer now. Heads turn quicker.
Dayo keeps his head down as he walks back toward the staging area.
Water still clings to his shoulders. His breathing has evened out, but not completely. There's a rhythm he usually finds after a race—a clean reset, like everything falls back into place.
It hasn't happened yet.
Jeffrey is beside him, still riding the high from the last race.
"You know they weren't ready for that," he says, shaking his head, grinning. "They really thought you weren't showing up."
Dayo gives a small shrug, pulling a dry shirt over his head.
