A Ride Home

Chapter eight of Bottled Up, A Ride Home, began publication in mid May of 2021, and finished in mid September that same year.

While previous chapters up until this point focused on a multitude of characters and conflict, A Ride Home is entirely a slice of life dedicated to the possible developing romantic relationship between two characters. Emphasis is put on the characters rather than conflict or action, allowing the reader to get to know them better, revealing more about their lives previously unknown.

Primary Characters

 * Logan Halloumi
 * Tanrine Emlett

Supporting Characters

 * Salomon Halloumi (First Appearance)

Other Characters

 * Whinter Castello
 * Marian Camembert
 * Vadelma Lappi
 * Clementine Lanark (Mentioned)

Races

 * Glass
 * Crystal

Locations:

 * Spectrum City
 * Ambrosia and Co. Bottling Agency
 * Logan's Home

Synopsis
After a day of training with Wild Berry Cheer, Logan heads home to rest before a mission against Sweet Citrus Wonder the following morning. However, he misses the bus after hanging back to speak with Whinter about his plans to go clothes shopping with Clementine. Tanrine interrupts Logan's bemoaning, pulling up beside him on her scooter, catching him by surprise.

Tanrine happened to be driving by when she noticed Logan chasing after the bus, and pulled over to offer him a ride. Reluctant at first, he accepts her kind offer, and hops on the back of her scooter. As it turns out, however, Tanrine isn't the best driver, and rides around recklessly, even heading the opposite direction of Logan's home.

After a bit of smooth sailing, Tanrine's scooter breaks down ten minutes from their destination. She laments over her bike, which she had been meaning to fix, but couldn't afford. Logan, who likes to tinker with vehicles as a hobby, offers to take a look for her, before walking the rest of the way to his house. They talk a bit on their way, and make it home to meet Logan's father, Salomon, who Tanrine discovers was once a powerful crystal.

Logan looks over Tanrine's scooter and discovers the problem is nothing more than nectar smudges, which over boosts the engine. Tanrine thanks him for his help, and offers him some muffins and hug as a show of appreciation. Before scampering off, she asks Logan to teach her how to tinker with vehicles, and they make plans to meet up the following Saturday.

Trivia

 * A Ride Home is the spiritual successor to A Brush Fixed With Love, a similar chapter in one of TamarinFrog's previous series', Cafe Cardamari Tales, in which Logan repairs Tanrine's inkbrush.
 * A Ride Home is the first of what the author and fandom collectively refer to as "ship chapters".
 * "Ship chapters" are stories dedicated to developing the canon romantic relationships within the series, usually detailing how they met, or one of the first time they've interacted outside of the main plot.
 * Despite their name, they're meant for more than just fan-service, often being used for backstory and character development.
 * These chapters are typically slice of life in nature and take place between plot points instead of during them.
 * A Ride Home features an Akira reference, where Tanrine performs the iconic sliding bike stop famous in the anime.