#Clarkson Cup
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randomoranges · 2 months ago
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HEEHEEEEE HAAHAAAAAAAAA HOOOOO WOOOOOO
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gangst3rswife · 1 year ago
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(📸: via @bynavsg on IG)
Perhaps a hot take, but personally I find it lowkey annoying how much people were hyping up Jordan Clarkson and hyping up the fact that he's playing for Gilas Pilipinas. I mean, I GET IT. I do. An NBA player representating the Philippines. That's GREAT. but I think he was hyped up way too much that it took a toll on the team. To the point that they're relying way too much on him. To the point that when he fouled out (earlier today in Gilas' game against the Dominican Republic) it made SUCH an impact. I mean, of course it makes sense. But yeah. They still had enough talent to get them a win. And I truly believe they could've won.
And I think another thing that, for lack of better words, pulled the team down was Clarkson's reaction to fouling out. The look on his face. He looked so defeated. So disappointed. Like he was so frustrated. And I mean, he must've been, sure. It'd be completely understandable. But its not really something he can afford to show. He can't afford to look as if he has no faith in his teammates. It'll definitely effect they're playing, especially with how much the Philippines seemed to have put him on a pedestal. Plus, he may have been on the bench, but he still could've brought so much to the team. He could've lifted their spirits. Reminded them who they are. What they can do. And who they're playing for.
But ah well. In the end, they still did great. Twas a close game!! And they still have my full heart and support. Plus, this is just the first game. I know they can still bounce back. So long as they don't lost faith in themselves and their teammates.
🇵🇭🏀🙏🇵🇭🏀🙏
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coffeecities · 1 year ago
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JORDAN CLARKSON THE MAN THAT YOU ARE
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gme-news · 1 year ago
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Jordan Clarkson on being Winless in FIBA World Cup #nba #fiba
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cbholganza · 1 year ago
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Are You Ready For the FIBA World Cup 2023?
The FIBA World Cup 2023 will kick-off tomorrow, August 25, in separate venues in Manila, Djakarta and Okinawa, and fans are starting to feel the energy and the excitement as the basketball world turns its spotlight on our host nations. For the first time, we have 3 co-hosts, namely: the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia. Thirty-two countries, survivors all in their respective regional qualifiers,…
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balisongvlog · 1 year ago
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Gilas Pilipinas Triumphs vs Ivory Coast Ahead of 2023 FIBA World Cup
In a resounding display of teamwork and skill, Jordan Clarkson, June Mar Fajardo, and AJ Edu guided the Gilas Pilipinas national basketball team to an impressive 85-62 victory against Ivory Coast during a tune-up game held on Friday at the PhilSports Arena. This match served as a pivotal step in their preparations for the upcoming 2023 FIBA World Cup. Clarkson delivered a standout performance,…
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conandaily2022 · 1 year ago
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Complete list of Philippines' 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup players
tournament: FIBA Basketball World Cup edition: 19th dates: August 25, 2023 – September 10, 2023 host countries: Philippines, Japan, Indonesia teams: 32 PHILIPPINES’ PLAYERS head coach: Chot Reyes assistant coaches: Tim Cone, Jong Uichico NAMEAGEHEIGHTA.J. Edu236’10”Bobby Ray Parks Jr. 316’2″Calvin Oftana276’5″Chris Newsom336’2″CJ Perez296’2″Dwight Ramos246’4″Jaime Malonzo276’7″Japeth…
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nbafastbreaks · 1 year ago
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High Hopes as Jordan Clarkson Joins National Team for the World Cup
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mnfrostofficial · 7 months ago
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The Minnesota Whitecaps (2004-2023) are the only team to have ever won both the Clarkson Cup and the Isobel Cup. The team was folded in 2023 after two decades of operation, as part of the formation of the PWHL.
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northsoulss · 1 year ago
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breakaway - leah williamson
(a/n: im so sad about jen leaving arsenal, but shes in bay fc now so i hope we get news about her soon :”). also i LOVED leah’s cover of breakaway by kelly clarkson and it inspired me to to write this lol. also i’ve just been sad and stressed sooo. part 2?)
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it was a gloomy day in your apartment, your clothes strewn all over the floor, dishes pilling up in the kitchen. you laid in bed, unable to move, absolutely heart broken. leah and you had parted ways not too long ago, the memory of her telling you she couldn’t do this anymore fresh in your mind.
you remember seeing leah hunched over at the dining table, phone in hand, not even acknowledging your presence. you could feel her pulling away from you, spending almost all her days outside and away from you. you really wanted to ask her what was wrong now that you’ve caught her at home. you’re sick of her silence and you want an answer.
“leah, what’s wrong?” your voice small, afraid to provoke her.
“nothing’s wrong, __. i’m fine.” she says in a deadpan voice, a slight bite to it.
“no leah! we aren’t fine! you don’t even call me baby, and you won’t even look at me anymore.” you lose it, your voice booming.
“yeah, i’ve had alot on my plate lately okay?!” she snaps back, and you finally see her face. her hair unkempt, eyes full of tears, her signature frown on her face. oh how you wanted to reach out to smooth her brows, your hand coming up to cup her face, but her hand pushes you away.
“well that doesn’t mean you get to just keep me out of it! i’m your girlfriend for goodness sakes. i want to be there for you.” your voice breaks, and you feel that familiar fear creeping back into your body.
she’s going to break up with you.
“look, __. i just can’t anymore.” leah says exasperated, hand pulling back her hair. you search her eyes, trying to find any ounce of love left, but all you saw was coldness.
there it is. that dreaded feeling.
“that’s it? you’re just going to give up?” you had more anger in your voice than you expected, the tone making leah flinch.
“i just can’t. you keep pestering me and i’m sick of it. i’m sorry.” and like that, she left your apartment, leaving you standing in your hallway, the extra set of keys to your house clutched in your fist. you sunk to the floor the moment she slams the door shut, your knees hitting the ground with a loud thud. a part of you felt empty, a vacant spot left in your heart. you spoke a language only she understood, and now that she was gone, no one will be able to understand you.
it stung, knowing that you didn’t know the reason why she left, but you couldn’t take it anymore. you couldn’t just sit in your apartment all day, not moving while the world keeps spinning. you sit up, and immediately get hit with a memory of leah. you see your guitar collecting dust in the corner of your room. you haven’t played since ever since leah left, for it was too painful to have to relive every waking memory of her each time.
one of your favourite memories of leah was singing with her. you were classically trained in guitar, always pestering her to be your singer while you played. eventually when she relented, you would always beeline to your guitar, whipping it out from its case and taking it to where she sat.
one of your favourite songs to play was “break away” by kelly clarkson, it being the first song leah sang with you. you remembered the first time she did, her voice sounded like warm honey to your ears. your ears flushed and face warm as she sang, her eyes trained on you, watching your agile fingers strum the strings. from then onwards, you always asked her to sing while you played, wanting to only hear her angelic voice.
that memory was like a punch to the gut, knowing you can no longer hear her voice other than on the arsenal women’s Instagram which you still followed. you shook away the thoughts, a long sigh escaping your lips as you massaged your temples. you look around your house, and immediately start to clean up, slowly putting things away.
after a few hours of cleaning up, you collapse on your couch, completely exhausted. you open your tiktok, planning to doom scroll till midnight when a video of jen beattie and leah pops up. you forgot you were still following jen, becoming good friends with the older woman the moment leah brought you onto the pitch two years ago.
you instantly sat up straighter, eyes fixated on leah who sat next to jen, hoodie over her head with a smile. jen held her guitar, and the moment her fingers started to strum, your heart wanted to jump out of your chest. leah’s voice, oh how you missed it. she’s singing it again.
“shes singing our song.” you mumbled to yourself as you watched, a small smile growing on your face. you read through the comments, some of them mentioning you. you were a public figure as well after all, known for playing finger style covers of different songs. when leah and you started going out, you started posting videos of you two singing and playing, the very first video being that song.
“is it true? did they really break up?” “i miss your videos with __ leah!!” comments like this made your heart ache. you went MIA the moment you two split, not posting videos for over two months now. you really missed her, so much. after watching the video, you decide, fuck it. leah doesn’t get to ruin your love for guitar, and you sure as hell are not going to step playing just because she’s not here.
deciding to finally play again, you felt a sense of relief wash over you as you strummed, a sigh escaping your lips. propping up your phone, you record yourself, you play the introduction to breakaway, singing softly. you weren’t used to singing, only ever playing with an accompaniment. certain parts of the song hit harder than the rest, you felt tears welling up in your eyes.
trying hard to reach out
but when I tried to speak out
felt like no one could hear me
wanted to belong here
but something felt so wrong here
so I pray
i could breakaway
when you finished, you look up to the camera and stared wordlessly. this was the first time you truly saw yourself post breakup, and goodness. you looked terrible. hair in a disheveled bun, eye bags big enough to fit your dog in, bloodshot eyes. you’ve definitely had better days, and this is just the start.
“i’m sorry i’ve been gone for so long. i’m currently going through one of the toughest periods of my life, so have this song for old times sake.” you say with a smile, and stop recording, posting it without any second thought. you fall back onto your bed, ignoring the ringing of your phone. things are going to become better, you thought, yet another heavy sigh escaping you.
leah’s cover: https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSFLBWYhs/
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jessicaloons · 10 months ago
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Chapter 40:
And some things you just can’t speak about…
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Masterlist - Previous - Next
TW: Miscarriage
Charles POV:
I felt my phone vibrate for the third time, while trying to focus on the questions, wondering what was going on. As soon as Tom Clarkson ended the press conference I stormed outside, taking my phone out. Multiple missed calls from JK. I called him back immediately, a sickening feeling in my stomach.
"What’s going on, JK?" I asked when he picked up.
"Lizzie ran away." JK answered and I was confused.
"What do you mean, Lizzie ran away? Where are you?" I asked, panic starting to overcome me.
"I don’t know what happened. She ran off in the middle of her interview. She’s gone. All of her stuff is still here. But she’s gone. And she’s not picking up her phone either!"
"I’m coming to you…"
"I’m already here…" JK stood in front of me all of a sudden.
"But… she wouldn’t just leave?"
"Julie said that she said 'Fuck this shit. I’m done.' and then left. She’s not at her garage or hospitality. All her stuff was still there, but she’s gone."
"Why did she run away? She wouldn’t just say fuck it and leave for no reason?"
"She was in the middle of an interview and then she left…"
"I bet my ass it was a Spanish outlet." I said and JK nodded "I should’ve said something. Set the record straight. Fuck."
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"She didn’t just punch Sainz for no reason, who does that anyways? He said that I should learn how to tame my bitch." I grit out and he looked at me with big eyes and a look of pure disgust on his face.
"Asshole."
"I know… but now I need to find her!"
"Try your hotel. I think that’s the best option then." he suggested.
"Yeah… but what if…" I began.
"Don’t think like that. Go. Look for her. Call me when you’re there. If Lizzie is there, good. If not, we’ll go and find her!" JK patted my back and handed me Lizzie’s bag.
"I go and grab my stuff now, then I go to our hotel. Thanks JK, really!" I sprinted back to the Ferrari hospitality, Mia already awaiting me "Whatever it is, it has to wait, there’s an emergency."
"What happened?" Mia asked alarmed.
"Lizzie ran away… she’s gone. No one knows where she is… I need to find her." I already walked up the stairs, just grabbing my things and ready to leave when Silvia’s voice called out for Mia.
"Mia? Is Charles back from the press conference? He and Carlos need to film a video."
"Charles just left…" Mia began but got interrupted immediately.
"He left? He can’t just leave? Call him! He has to come back!" I rolled my eyes at her shrill voice.
"You don’t want him to come back, Silvia. He threw up. Twice. I’m just glad that he was thinking fast enough to hide behind a container. Just imagine if someone would’ve filmed that!" Mia lied.
"True. That would be something we don’t need right now, one of our drivers vomiting in the paddock." Silvia sighed "Alright, then I go and look for Carlos. You check in on Charles."
"I will." Mia said and walked up the stairs "Alright. Go out through the back door, no one will see you there! And text me when you’ve found Lizzie. Or if you need help finding her!"
"Thank you Mia!" I hugged her and then left through the back door like she said. I made it out of the paddock and back to the hotel without being seen by anyone. I almost sprinted out of the elevator, through the door of our hotel room.
There she sat. On the sofa. Knees hugged tight to her chest. Eyes closed. Quietly humming. Relieve flooding me, although the way she sat there, looking so small, almost made my heart break. I carefully approached her, gently touched her knee and she flinched a little, looking up.
"Hey." she whispered as I sat down next to her.
"Hey." I replied cupping her tear stained cheek "What happened?"
"It’s ridiculous. I overreacted." she mumbled but I shook my head.
"I don’t think so… it was the Spanish media. They are coming after you because you dared to touch their hero Sainz senior." I said and she chuckled bitterly.
"Yeah. But you know, without proof what he said? No one will believe me. And they won’t believe your words, because of course you would lie for me…"
"I’ll find a solution. I promise you…"
"No! You can’t do anything Charles! I don’t want you to lose your seat because of this!" she almost cried and I pulled her into my lap, leaning back.
"I won’t, trust me! I already have an idea and if it works they all see what a disgusting man he is…" I whispered and she nodded slowly.
"I want this season to be over." Lizzie sighed after a while and I kissed the crown of her head.
"Yeah… me too. It’s one to forget, to be honest. But we have to put on a brave face and show everyone who doubts us that we’re better than them, okay? Better than all of them!" I smiled encouraging at her and she nodded slowly.
"Yeah… and we’re starting out with you on pole and me right behind!"
"Hell yes."
"Charles? A word?" Mattia said right as I wanted to grab my helmet.
"What’s up?" I asked, taking a sip out of my bottle.
"I need you to stick to our plan today. You can’t get your feelings for Lizzie get the better of you. You have to defend Carlos. He made it on pole! Keep Lizzie out of his range…" he said and I rolled my eyes "I’m serious Charles!"
"Whose idea was it to start on the softs? To be able to fully attack? Right. Mine. Who said that getting in front of Lizzie at the start is the most important thing to do to help Carlos? Right. Me. I know what I have to do. No need to remind me…" I said grabbing my helmet, wanting to leave.
"I just wanted to make sure that we’re still on the same page."
"Yeah. We are. Can I go now? Thanks." I brushed past him.
"What was that about?" Andrea asked when he took my helmet from me.
"He wanted to remind me to stick to MY plan…" I sighed and Andrea rolled his eyes.
"Your plan to help Carlos win… because he can’t do it alone…" he said under his breath and I chuckled a little.
"Andrea." I chided.
"I didn’t say anything…" he grinned, following me out to my car "But if I did… it would be the truth."
"Lizzie rubs off on you." I chuckled.
"Maybe. But it’s just for the best I think." he shrugged his shoulders and I nodded.
"Yeah, it really is. Let’s go now, let’s help Carlos win this race." I sighed while Andrea rolled his eyes.
"Yay. Sounds fun… not."
"It’s scary how similar you and Lizzie are getting."
"As long as you won’t kiss me, it’s good."
"We'll see about that."
The race was long. Exhausting. After half the distance my fingers began to hurt, but I powered through. After fighting with Charles for multiple laps I finally was able to leave him behind, knowing that he sacrificed his race for Sainz. Now I had to fully focus on him in front. I wouldn’t let him take home this win. He would stay winless after today. I pushed as hard as I could and managed to finally overtake him and create a little gap between us. But he was quick to recover and the next few laps were a tight battle, with me staying in front but not with much.
"Do I have anything left?"
"Negative."
"Fuck. My tires are gone as well."
"Just keep pushing. 5 more laps to go."
I tried. I gave my all. My car was going around the corners with barely an inch between the walls at some parts of the track. My tires were more than gone. And when Pete finally said that it was the final lap I felt relieve flood me. One last lap. But Sainz came closer and closer with each turn. Right as I drove into turn 16 I saw him, closer as ever and I pushed hard. Through turn 17. Straight down into turn 18 and I was still slightly ahead when all of a sudden I lost all control, felt the strong pulling of the g forces in my bones, spun around and crashed right into the wall before the final corner. The impact raged like a tidal wave through my body. My mind buzzing. I was out of the race.
"Are you okay? Lizzie?"
I couldn’t answer. Hands trembling. Arms felt heavy. Neck and shoulders tense. A dull pain in the pit of my stomach, a weird pulling.
"Lizzie?"
I saw marshals approaching. A searing pain shot through my hand. When I tried to unbuckle myself. Of course. My already injured hand had to bitch now even more.
"Lizzie? Are you okay?"
"Did that really happen? Did he really…?"
Radio silence. I knew what that meant. Sainz did in fact drive straight into me. Sent me off track. Won the race.
"You have to wait for the medical car." one of the marshals said but I shook my head and climbed over the wall.
"No, I don’t." I replied, out of breath. The heat. The exhaustion. The impact still in my bones. The pain in my fingers. The abdominal pain, getting worse with every step. It all was too much and I felt myself swaying. I grabbed onto the wall to steady myself and took a deep breath. Then I almost jogged towards the pit lane. Saw how the cars passed me after their out lap, returning to the pit lane as well. I had to be there before Charles got out of his car. I knew that he saw what happened. It was still on replay on all the screens. He would be seething. He would be going straight for Sainz, cameras or not. Another Marshall saw me struggling and held me upright.
"You should go to the medical centre." he suggested but I shook my head.
"I can’t. I have to go to the pits." I breathed heavily and continued "I’m fine. Really!" he let go of me reluctantly and I felt his look on me for a while. I saw how Charles parked his car and knew I had to be faster. I clenched my teeth and kept going. Right as I felt like I would faint I dropped my helmet and someone was catching me from falling.
Charles POV:
The car wasn’t even properly parked, the engine not even switched off when I unbuckled my seatbelt and threw the headrest away. Climbed out. Threw the steering wheel back in. My helmet followed. Then I looked around. Saw how Carlos jumped into the open arms of our mechanics. Saw them cheering. Celebrating. Singing. My blood began to boil. Pure rage surging through my veins. I wanted to break his bones. Every. Single. One. I stalked towards the scene when someone stopped me.
"Wrong way." Pierre held me back.
"Get out of my way."
"Charles, not here. Not for everyone to see."
"Look at him! Look at them! Look how they celebrate!" I screamed and some heads were turning our way.
"I know but…"
"You know nothing! It’s my girlfriend he sent straight into a wall! On purpose! He probably didn’t even ask if she’s okay!" more and more people where looking at us. Some guys from my team as well, all looking conflicted. Pierre still held me back "Let go of me."
"No." he pushed me away from my destination "I won’t let you do…"
"I DON’T GIVE A FUCK WHAT YOU…" I began to scream when I heard a weak voice calling out for me.
"Charles…" Lizzie.
I turned around. My heart dropped. She clung to Alex, who held her upright. She was pale and sweaty. Body shaking. Her helmet on the ground, visor cracked. I ran up to her. Pulled her into me.
"Are you okay, cara mia?" I whispered and she nodded slowly.
"I’m okay. A little exhausted… I honestly didn’t think that the way would be that far. My cardio sucks." she chuckled breathlessly but I pulled away, cupping her cheeks.
"Why didn’t you wait for the medical car? Why aren’t you on the way to the medical centre?" I looked at her.
"Take a good guess…"
"Cara mia…" I began but she shook her head.
"No! You say nothing! You stay calm!" her voice was firm although I could see how hard it was for her to just stand "Please Charles, don’t do anything stupid!" she almost pleaded.
"Okay, I won’t. I promise! But can I please take you to the medical centre?" now I was the one pleading.
"I think you should first go and congratulate your team and team ma-…" she began but I scoffed.
"Congratulate them? For what? He sent you straight into a wall! He needs to be penalised…" I seethed and took her helmet that Alex handed me "Thanks mate, for helping Lizzie…"
"No worries, just get her to see a doc, she almost fainted twice on her way here." Alex said and gently patted Lizzie’s arm.
"Thanks Albono!" Lizzie smiled at him, but I could clearly see her exhaustion.
"Come on, pretty girl, let’s get you to the medical centre." I whispered following Pierre, who took my helmet out of my car, to our weighing.
I waited outside the hospital room, mind reeling. When the doctor at the track said they had to take Lizzie to the hospital I expected the worst. My heart was racing. The minutes I had to wait felt like hours when finally a nurse opened the door and let me in. Lizzie was pale but she didn’t look like she was seriously injured, but the look on the doctor’s face as he told me to wait until she would wake up made me feel uneasy. I looked around, there was a big plastic bag with her racing suit and fireproof on the chair in the corner and when I looked closer I saw something red staining the bag. I didn’t need to look again. I swallowed hard. Blood. But where did it come from? Was there something I didn’t see? Was this the reason the doctor rushed her to the hospital? Breathing got harder and I tried to calm myself down, right when Lizzie opened her eyes, frantically searching the room until they found mine and she visible relaxed.
"Hey cara mia. How are you feeling?" I asked, voice trembling a little, drawing circles on the back of her hand with my thumb. She sat up a little and smiled lightly.
"I’m okay, Charles!" she said and smoothed down my ruffled hair a little, the result of my anxiety over the past hour "What happened? We were at weighing and then all is kinda blurry?"
"You fainted-…" I began when the door opened and a doctor came in.
"Hi Lizzie, how are we feeling?" he asked and Lizzie shrugged a little.
"I’m okay. A little tired. Nothing bad going on." she answered and yawned quietly.
"Were you feeling unwell before today?" the doctor asked and Lizzie shook her head.
"You felt sick for weeks, Lizzie!" I said sternly and Lizzie just sighed.
"It was a stomach bug. That’s it." she said and the doctor shook his head slightly.
"For weeks? And sometimes it was more, sometimes less?" Charles looked at the doctor.
"I see… Lizzie there is something that we need to talk about…" he began and looked at me for a moment.
"Whatever it is, you can say it in front of him, it’s fine." she said and he nodded.
"I’m sorry to inform you, but due to the high forces in the car when crashing into the wall, you had a miscarriage…" the doctor said and I could hear Lizzie inhaling sharply "We’d say you weren’t that far along maybe 8th to 9th week if we’re correct?"
I looked at Lizzie, shocked expression on her face. She was pregnant? We were having a baby?
"Miscarriage? I was… I was pregnant?" she whispered, her voice hoarse.
"You didn’t know?” the doctor asked and she shook her head slightly, then closed her eyes and pulled her hand out of my grasp and put it in her lap, fiddling with her cuticles as always when she was nervous or anxiety ridden "I’m sorry to be the bearer of this sad news. We’d like to have you over for the night to make sure you’re all good and then you can leave tomorrow."
With that he left and Lizzie sobbed quietly, tears streaming down her face, she pulled her knees up to her chest, hissing in pain but hugged them close, her head turned away from me.
"Mon amour? Lizzie? Hey! Look at me!" I whispered and sat next to her in the bed and tried to make her look at me.
"I’m sorry Charles! I’m so sorry! I didn’t know! I would never get in the car if I knew that I was pregnant! I would never… I’m so sorry!" she cried and I pulled her in my lap, hugging her tight "I lost our baby, Charles! I’m so sorry!"
"Stop apologising! It’s not your fault! You don’t have to be sorry for anything! Do you hear me?" I said but she was shaking and whispering how sorry she was over and over.
"Please don’t hate me for losing our baby!" she whispered after a while and my heart broke.
"Enough! You hear me, cara mia? It’s enough! Stop apologising for something that wasn’t your fault! Stop feeling guilty for something you didn’t know! Stop blaming yourself! It wasn’t your fault. And please stop thinking that I could ever hate you! I love you, Lizzie! You hear me? I. LOVE. YOU!" I said and held her close, kissed her temple, forehead, cheeks again and again "It’s okay! We’re going to be ok? Alright? Stop apologising, Lizzie! Please!"
She nodded slightly but I could hear her soft sobs for quite some time, before she finally fell asleep and just then I allowed myself to feel the same devastation. We were having a baby. I would’ve become a dad. And my beautiful Lizzie would’ve become a mum. But not anymore. And she blamed herself for it. Thought I could hate her. Her out of all people. I kissed her on the crown of her head.
"I love you, Lizzie and there’s nothing you could ever do to change that. One day you and I will have a baby and it’s going to be one of the most beautiful days of our life’s!" I whispered and after some time I fell asleep myself.
I woke up when I heard someone talk loudly in Italian in the hallway and sat up, careful not to wake up Lizzie. I got out of the bed and stretched a little before I opened the door.
"…he can’t just disappear like that!" Mattia said to Andrea who scoffed.
"What did you expect? That he would celebrate while his girlfriend fainted multiple times and has to stay at the medical centre? After crashing out? Because someone sent her straight into the wall?" he replied and Mattia rolled his eyes.
"It was a racing incident. She didn’t leave enough spa-…" Mattia began.
"Bullshit. Lizzie had the corner and he didn’t leave her enough space! And instead of backing down he drove straight into her!" I said loudly and they both turned around.
"Charles, that is not what was happening!" Mattia said "They were close the whole last lap and at this corner she should’ve left him more space."
"Why? That he can overtake her? Who does that? Who? She was in front. She had the corner. So he did the only thing he could do, he touched her, made her crash out. In the last corner." I had to suppress my anger.
"Yes, they made contact. And Carlos got a penalty. For causing a collision. The FIA dealed with it. It’s all good now…"
"It’s all good now? IT’S ALL GOOD NOW? Lizzie! She had a mi-… no. Nothing is all good now!" I almost screamed, Andrea putting his hand on my shoulder.
"Look, I’m sorry Lizzie has to be here. But as Carlos teammate I expected you to congratulate him. I expected you to celebrate with the team. It was important. It was his first win after all! He ended the domination of Red Bull. But you left without a word. You weren’t at any interview. You’ll be fined and we won’t pay for it. That is on you. But you’re going to be at the race debrief. I won’t tolerate your absence." Mattia turned around and left, without giving me the chance to say a word.
"How is she?" Andrea asked me and I felt my throat closing in. I shook my head, trying to get a word out but couldn’t. The weight of the news still heavy in my stomach.
"She’s umm- she’s okay. Under the circumstances… I mean… yeah- she… she’ll be okay." I stammered and Andrea nodded, sensing how bad I felt.
"What happened? Come on. You can tell me. It’s okay." Andrea lead me to a seating area and sat down, I did the same and leaned back, closing my eyes.
"Andrea… Lizzie- she was… we would’ve become- she lost our baby…" I whispered the last part and Andreas eyes widened in horror "She didn’t knew that she was pregnant. But the high g-forces when she crashed into that wall? It was too much. The baby… it couldn’t survive it… Lizzie had a miscarriage."
"I’m going to kill him. He stood there, celebrated like he was a king. Celebrated like he won this race through his own brilliance when it was you who defended him for such a long time to create a big, fat gap. Ferrari wanted you to sacrifice your entire race to help him win. And you did and he… he only won by pushing Lizzie off… and then he didn’t even mention you once. He didn’t acknowledge your involvement. He didn’t thank you. Nothing! Mattia didn’t as well! They didn’t mention Lizzie at all! Not saying that they were hoping she’d be fine! Nothing!" Andrea was furious and I hid my face in my hands, arms on my knees.
"I’m not leaving her alone. I don’t care about the race debrief or what Mattia will do. I don’t care about it all anymore." I whispered.
"You’re going to that race debrief and you show them all that no matter what they throw your way, you overcome it all!" Lizzie’s weak voice behind me made me flinch and I turned around.
There she stood, pale, swollen eyes, tired, in her hospital gown. Looking nothing but determined.
"Lizzie! You should stay in bed!" I got up but she took a step back, holding up her hand to stop me "Cara mia…"
"No. You go. Both of you. Carlos won today. We can’t change that. He got a penalty but still won. It’s like this. But you don’t give him, his family, Mattia or anyone else the satisfaction that you can’t handle it or something. No. You go to that debrief. You put on a smile. You congratulate him. You be the bigger person. You show your honour. And from then on you show them who you are. You do the talking on track. You destroy him. In every single race to come. You finish ahead of him at the end of the season." Lizzie sounded determined and I looked at her. She was the strongest person I’ve ever known. I nodded slowly and took a cautious step towards her and she took one towards me as well. Two more steps and I engulfed her in a tight embrace.
"I love you, cara mia. So so much!" I whispered in her ear, kissing her cheek.
"I love you too, Il predestinato! Go and show them who’s the best driver!" she replied and I looked her in the eyes for a moment before I leaned in for a kiss. Her warm lips brushed against mine and for a moment I forgot everything around us "Go now. I’m fine. JK and Julie will stop by later with some fresh clothes. I won’t be alone."
"Are you sure?" I asked her and she nodded "Okay. I’ll be back as soon as I can!" I kissed her once again. I stepped aside and Andrea hugged Lizzie.
"Mia ragazza… I’m so sorry." he whispered and Lizzie nodded a little "I make sure that Charles won’t do anything stupid… don’t worry!"
"Thank you, Andrea." Lizzie breathed out.
"You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met." Andrea said when he pulled away, kissing her cheek "Let’s go." he looked at me and I nodded, watching Lizzie returning back to her room, climbing into the bed.
"Let’s make this quick."
I walked inside. The trophy sitting int the middle of the table. Mattia and Carlos talking with his father and cousin, Riccardo, his race engineer right next to them. A whole bunch of our team still with a big smile on their face, talking animatedly about the race. I sat wordlessly down, at the end of the table, not making a sound and waited for the debrief to start. Alessandro, Callo and Mario came up to me, patting my shoulder and I looked up.
"Hey, how’s Lizzie?" Alessandro asked and I forced myself to smile a little.
"She’s okay. Not great, sure, but she’ll be fine." I replied and they both nodded, smiling.
"That’s good. Really good." Mario said, right as Andrea walked in and sat down next to me, handing me a bottle of water.
"Charles? Hey… how’s Lizzie? I heard she’s in the hospital?" Fabrizio asked, sitting down next to me.
"Yeah, they had to make some more tests, it wasn’t just a little bump after all. But she’s okay." I said again, feeling the bile rise up my throat.
"Yeah? That’s good. I’m glad to hear that." he gently patted my arm and I nodded.
"Yeah, it is." I pressed out, gulping down some water, while Andrea nudged my thigh a little, smiling at me.
"Alright everyone. There’s not much to debrief tonight. We had a fantastic weekend with the best possible result. Tyre degradation was working in our favour this weekend, but it’s still one of our main problems. Also the reliability of some components. But we know now that Red Bull is beatable. It was a tough battle, but in the end we can all celebrate Carlos’ first win now!" Mattia said and I looked first at him, then at Carlos. Big smile on his face. His father and cousin smiling at him looking all proud, his mechanics cheering, beer bottles getting passed along. Everyone started to chat. And I sat there. Looking at Mattia. Laughing and joking with Sainz senior. I felt anger rising up. This was the important debrief I had to attend. The debrief that made me leave Lizzie behind. Alone. No.
"That’s it?" I asked loudly and the room fell silent "That’s the race debrief? That’s all you have to say?"
"What else is there to say?" Mattia looked at me as I got up.
"This is why I left my girlfriend alone in the hospital after someone sent her straight into a wall?" my voice was trembling with anger but he didn’t say anything.
"Charles…" Andrea began but I shook my head, walking towards the door where Mattia stood with Carlos, his father and cousin.
"Congratulations Carlos. Congratulations Matti, it looks like you finally got your long awaited Santander win." I said, then I walked out, Andrea following me.
"Hey my pretty girl, how are you?" Charles asked when he walked inside and I shrugged my shoulders a little.
"I don’t know. It’s weird… I didn’t know that I was pregnant… I just-…" I stopped. Looking at my hands. Not sure what to say and what to feel.
"Lizzie? Hey… it’s okay. Whatever you feel is okay. You can talk to me. Or not. Whatever you need now… just don’t push me away entirely, okay?" Charles took my hand in his and kissed my knuckles, smiling at me "We’re in this together. You and me. Okay?"
"When we talked about us having kids… I didn’t thought about the when… one day sure… but now? I don’t think I would’ve been ready… it would’ve meant giving up my career? Everything I fought so hard for? It’s selfish to think like that… I know… but- but I think I’m relieved that I lost it? I’m a horrible person for thinking that way, I know! But it’s just… I don’t know… I’m sorry." I whispered, not able to look at him, knowing that he would be shocked and hurt by my words.
"Can you please look at me?" he asked me gently and I looked up "It’s not selfish to want this chance, this opportunity not to end. I know how hard it was for you to make it into Formula 1. I know the blood, sweat and tears you invested. And it doesn’t make you a horrible person… because last night? I saw how sorry you were. And how much it hurt you… you don’t have to feel sorry, okay?"
"It’s just so weird. Because although I’m relieved… I’m also sad? This little bean? That was us. You and I. And it was in me. It was a part of me, unknowingly, but still. And now it’s gone. And I’m not sure if I’m even allowed to feel sad? Because I didn’t want it in the first place?" Charles wiped away my tears and leaned his forehead against mine.
"You can feel every way you want to… you can be sad. Mad. Frustrated. Confused. Relieved. It’s okay. It’s a lot to process. But at the end of the day, it’s only important that you know that it’s all going to be okay. I’m with you. Always. And the next time a little bean is growing in your belly? Maybe then is the time for us to be happy. To be excited. But we have time. As much time as you need." he whispered and I nodded slowly.
"How do you do that?"
"Do what?"
"Always find the right words? Always know what to say? Always know what to do? How are you so perfect?" I smiled and he chuckled.
"It’s easy. I do it for you. And you’re perfect. You deserve only the best. That means that I have to be the best. So I’m trying my best…"
"You’re succeeding."
Charles POV:
I left Lizzie’s room when her doctor and a nurse came to do some final tests. I took the elevator downstairs. The silence in the confined room was deafening. Lizzie’s words still echoing in my mind. She felt relieved. Relieved that she lost our baby. Our baby. I took a deep breath. The bell signalling the doors opening. I looked up when a nurse wheeled in a young woman, baby in her arms. I swallowed hard, stepping aside. I watched the young mother gently stroking the cheek of her newborn. Kissing the baby’s forehead. A void inside of me opening. A cold numbness overcoming me. I didn’t know how to feel. Sad? Mad? Relieved? Confused? Frustrated? Overwhelmed? From everything a little? I flinched when the baby started to cry. I watched how the young mother cradled her little bundle of joy closer to her chest, softly cooing, trying to calm down her most prized possession. I stepped out of the elevator as soon as the doors opened and just started walking, no idea where I would go.
I found a quiet seating area and sat down. My mind reeling. I had no right to be mad at Lizzie. It was her body. Her choice. She would have to end her career. Not me. She would be the one carrying the baby for the next nine months. Not me. I understood her. Of course I did. But still. The thought of this tiny little bean. This tiny little something. A mix of us. Something we created through our love. To hear that she felt relieved that it was gone hurt for some reason. Like hell. After a while I checked the time, realising that I was sitting there for almost 20 minutes and got up, went back to Lizzie’s room. Putting on a brave smile. A reassuring one. I had to be strong now. And supportive. What happened didn’t happen to me, but to Lizzie. And I had to be strong now. For her.
"The cramping usually stops within a day, maybe two. You can take painkillers. It’s normal that there might be some light bleeding or spotting for the next 4 to 6 weeks. You should see your ob-gyn in around two weeks and they may do an ultrasound exam or other tests to make sure all the tissue has passed. Also no heavy lifting. And no sexual intercourse for the next one, better two weeks…" the nurse said and Lizzie nodded.
"Oh don’t worry, we don’t want another accident happen so soon." she joked half heartedly and I groaned. Accident.
"Can you maybe not make these kind of jokes just now…" I let out, harsher than intended, and she looked up from her bag, eyes wide.
"I’m sorry." she whispered, looking back down, her shoulders visible tensing.
"No… I’m sorry." I gently took her hand in mine but she pulled away.
"I’m ready, we can go… thank you for everything." Lizzie grabbed her bag and smiled at the nurse. I wanted to take her bag but she already started walking out the room.
"Fuck…" I muttered under my breath "Thank you!" I nodded at the nurse, following Lizzie, who was almost at the elevator "Lizzie wait…" I called after her "Hey! Cara mia, give me your bag."
"I’m fine..." she whispered, turning away.
"Lizzie, please. Give me your bag." I repeated, but she shook her head, still not looking at me.
"I’ll be in the car on the weekend. I can carry my bag." she said right as the elevator doors opened.
"I know that you can, but you don’t have to. So please, cara mia." I almost pleaded but Lizzie was stubborn and carried her bag all the way to the car and from the car back to our hotel room as well.
"I already packed your suitcase last night, I just left some clothes for the flight out… I hope what I picked was okay?" I said to her and she only nodded, grabbing the clothes and then disappeared in the bathroom. I heard the shower going and could’ve sworn that I heard Lizzie sob "Cara mia? Are you okay?" I knocked on the door.
"Yeah. I’ll hurry, don’t worry." her voice confirmed my suspicion, she was crying.
"Lizzie, can I come in?" I said gently.
"I’m okay, Charles. Just give me a minute."
I sighed and sat down on the bed, thinking about what I did.
"You can go now if you want…" Lizzie said and I flinched, she stood in front of me, fully dressed, her hair wrapped in a towel.
"Can we talk about what happened?" I tried it again but Lizzie walked away.
"There is nothing to talk and if you want to take a shower you need to hurry up, the car is here in 20 minutes." she sat down at the table and began to blow dry her hair and I sighed, knowing that I wouldn’t get her to talk. At least not now. Defeated I grabbed my stuff and want to the bathroom, not without looking at Lizzie once more. Her shoulders slumped, eyes trained down to the floor. Great fucking job, Charles.
I called Julie, silently begging that she would answer the call immediately.
"Lizzie, hey! How are you?" Julie sounded worried.
"I’m fine. Really." I said although I didn’t felt like it.
"Okay… if I can do anything, just let me know, okay?"
"Actually, there is something you can do…" I said, taking a deep breath.
"Yeah, sure, everything."
"Can you book a room for me in Japan?" I asked.
"It’s already booked… Mia sent me the details…" she sounded confused.
"No… umm- a room… for me. Just me."
Silence.
"Okay… whatever you want…" Julie said after a while.
"Thank you… see you in Suzuka…" I hung up and finished my hair, pulling it up into a messy bun right when Charles came out of the bathroom, packing away his things "Ready? Joris texted me that the driver is here."
"Umm yeah. Sure. Let’s go…" Charles replied and grabbed his bag, as well as mine. I cocked an eyebrow but he shook his head "Just let me carry it, okay?"
"Okay…" I mumbled and we left the room, meeting up with Joris. I didn’t listen to anything they were saying and just wanted to get into the plane, put my head down and sleep. Or at least try to. I was never really a fan of sleeping on the plane but maybe after last night sleep would find me easily.
"Cara mia?" I heard Charles whisper and opened my eyes "We landed."
"Already?" I yawned and he nodded.
"You were gone the moment you sat down." Charles smiled and I stretched a little.
"Okay…" I got up and grabbed my bag, following Charles out of the plane and all the way through to the arrival hall, where already a bunch of fans were waiting for us, mostly Charles, but still. I smiled for as many selfies as possible, signed stuff and thanked the fans for coming although I was more than exhausted. Light cramps made me flinch a little and I felt how I had to force my smile more and more with every new selfie.
"Guys, leave Lizzie a little space to breathe. The crash is still in her bones!" Charles stepped next to me and some fans immediately took some steps back, but not all of them and with Charles now next to me, even more people swarmed us and he pulled me to his side. With Joris on my other side and some securities coming to our help, we made it outside and into our car.
"I think we really should consider hiring bodyguards for yo- for us." Charles said hastily when I glared at him.
"I was fine before you and your whole mob of fangirls came along." I said bluntly and he looked at me for a moment, as if he wanted to say something, but then he shook his head and turned to Joris.
"You have a dinner later. You have to attend. Sorry…" he said and Charles groaned.
"How much time do I have?"
"Let’s say, check in, change, go? And we still might be a little late."
"Great. Just great." Charles looked at me and I shrugged my shoulders "I don’t want to leave you alone…"
"I’m fine. In fact, I’m meeting up with Julie anyways, she wants to show me some stuff for Netflix." I lied and he nodded "I’ll go straight to her room when we arrive."
"Okay… but Lizzie? Don’t overwork yourself… the doctor said to take it a little slow. Please."
"Don’t worry, I will." I replied when our car stopped and another mass of fans was waiting "Round 2 I guess."
"How did Charles react?" Julie asked when I dropped my bag on the sofa.
"Umm… he doesn’t know." I replied and she made big eyes "It’s better like this."
"Yeah maybe, but you still should tell him that! And not just let him walk into an empty hotel room…"
"I’m going to send him a text. We need a little space. He’s hurt and mad… and it’s not because I had a miscarriage… it’s because I said that I’m relieved." I almost whispered.
"But you explained him why, right? I can’t imagine Charles being mad if he knows the reasons? It’s Charles after all?" she cocked an eyebrow as I sat down on the sofa.
"Yeah but his reaction? I- I think he’s more hurt than he wants to admit. He needs time to think about it. To process it. And he can’t do that when I’m next to him all the time." I grabbed my phone and opened a text for Charles "He will understand."
"I hope you’re right…"
I groaned, turning to switch on the nightstand lamp.
"What the actual fuck…" I muttered, the hammering at my door got even more frantic "What…" I checked the time 1:17 am. I scrambled out of the bed and walked to the door, looking through the peephole. Charles. My heart hammering in my chest.
"Open the door please, cara mia!" his voice hoarse.
"Charles? What are you doing here? At this time?" I whispered when I opened the door to let him in and he pulled me into a tight embrace.
"I hate it like this. When we’re separated! I don’t sleep well when you’re not next to me… I’m sorry that I woke you up but I just couldn’t stand being away from you for just one more minute…" Charles mumbled, his hot breath tickling my ear.
He looked tired, exhausted, something I noticed this morning as well.
"I just thought that after Singapore… you were clearly mad at me when I made that stupid joke…" I began and he cupped my cheeks.
"I know and I’m sorry. It was more that I had to wrap my head around this all for a moment and you were already joking about it… and I know that it’s just a coping mechanism… but in that moment? I thought about this little bean, our little bean, and it made me sad and hurt that you were happy that it’s gone, although I completely understood why you were relieved! And I fully support you! It’s just… I don’t know? I just needed a moment to get it all sorted out. I shouldn’t have snapped at you! I know that! And I’m so, so sorry that I did! But please understand me as well. And please don’t send me away. I don’t want to sleep without you ever again. It was horrible. I felt horrible. I need you by my side… especially here…" Charles almost whispered the last words and I realised how stupid and selfish I was.
"I’m so sorry Charles! I- I honestly didn’t even think about where we are… I just wanted to give you space and-…" I began but he silenced me with a kiss.
"I don’t ever want space from you, okay? Never. We talk. We find a solution. No one leaves." he leaned his forehead against mine "And can we please go to bed now? I’m so freaking tired…"
"Okay…" I whispered pulling him with me back into bed.
"I love you, Lizzie." Charles said after a while, holding me close to his body, his hand gently tracing my spine up and down.
"I love you too…" I tilted my head up and kissed his cheek "And I’m sorry for leaving you alone here-…"
"You don’t have to apologise, cara mia. I’m just happy to have you next to me again… it’s weird, but when you’re not next to me…"
"You can’t sleep well? It’s the same for me… I’m tossing and turning, but I don’t really sleep…" I whispered and he nodded.
"Yeah… I mean when I’m in Maranello alone, I can sleep because we talk before I go to bed? But this? When we don’t talk? I hate it…" he kissed the crown of my head "But you have to believe me, Lizzie, I wasn’t mad at you, never, okay? I just… I don’t know. The doctor said that there was a baby. Our baby. And suddenly all I ever dreamed of having was just right there in front of me… and in my mind, hearing you say that you were relieved was like saying you don’t want this. Us. I know it’s not the truth! But sometimes my mind plays these kinda tricks on me and I need a moment to sort it all out in my head. But there was not one second where I was mad at you. If I was mad, then at the situation. But nothing else, okay?"
I nodded. Wiping away a stray tear.
"We’re going to be fine. It’s all going to be okay, cara mia. You and me against the world." another kiss on my head "And now we really should sleep. We have quali today. And I don’t know about you, but I really want to wipe away that grin of some certain people’s faces…"
"Yeah… me too."
"Ryan Andrew’s, CBS. Lizzie after your crash in Singapore you seemed to be a little off the whole weekend in Japan, was the crash worse than it looked like? Was it potentially not a good idea to race?"
"Of course I still felt the crash in my bones. It was a high speed corner where I crashed out. But I was and am alright. The result in Japan had nothing to do with the crash." I lied, feeling Charles eyes on me.
"Kelly Johnson, BBC Sports. Charles, in Japan the Ferrari’s looked quite strong, after Singapore another good race for your team. Do you think you can repeat that performance this weekend?" the blonde reporter in the first row asked him.
"Yeah we did quite good, we seem to understand the car better now, so I’m hoping to see some better results in the next races."
"Michael Breitner. Auto, Motor, Sport. Question for Charles. Many people expected your contract renewal to be announced in Monza… that was now two races ago. Are the contract negotiations still going on?"
"To be honest I can’t tell you much about that. Because there is not much to say at the moment. I’m focusing on this season. Then the next season. My contractual situation is not really on my mind." Charles answered with a smile and I knew how hard it must’ve been for him to sit there and look like he was believing his own words, when inside it was killing him to not know what was going on.
"Is it possible that we might see you in a different team after next year?"
"I don’t know. In Formula 1 everything is possible as we know. Everyone knows how much I love my team and that I want to win the championship with them. But at the end of the day I just want to drive and if not at Ferrari then at any other team that believes in me. But for now I can’t talk about things this far in the future when I don’t know about them myself…"
A murmur went through the room, the heads of Max, Lewis and Nico snapping to look at Charles. To say that no one expected this answer was the understatement of the year.
"To make this clear, you do think of the possibility of leaving Ferrari for another team?"
"No. I’m not thinking of leaving Ferrari. I’m saying that if Ferrari doesn’t renew my contract, then I will look for another option." the smile he forced out looked almost painful and when the press conference was over and we left, I pulled Charles with me.
"They’re persistent, no?" he chuckled bitterly and I hugged him, massaged his scalp.
"Don’t listen to their questions. They just want to get a reaction out of you." I whispered "You will get your seat. Preferably at Ferrari, I know, but at the end of the day, seat is seat, okay?"
"Yeah… you’re right."
"Now come on. Let’s finish up and then cool down in our huge bathtub…" I kissed his cheek and pulled away, before he pulled me back in and kissed me tenderly.
"Better?" I laughed when he let go of me.
"Better."
I stopped the car and switched everything off, leaning my head back. Worst race ever. I opened up the visor, hoping for some cold and fresh air to stream in just to be greeted with the searing hot air of Qatar. I was never this happy that a race weekend was over. After taking a few shallow breaths, I tried to get out of the car. The struggle was real. My knees were wobbly. I clipped out the steering wheel and put it on the hood of my car, trying to pull myself up but failed miserably.
"Come here, cara mia." I heard Charles faint voice and looked up. He gently grabbed me by the waist, pulling me out of the cockpit, then sat me down on the halo, clipping my steering wheel back in place.
"Thank you, Charlie." I whispered, fighting with the straps of my helmet.
"Let me…" he said, unbuckling the clasp, pulling my helmet off "Hey pretty girl." he pulled my balaclava off next, wiping my sweaty hair out of my face.
"Hot. So freaking hot." I pressed out, pushing off of the halo, trying to cautiously slip off and take a first step, just to be caught by Charles "Fuck." I breathed out.
"You’re done…" he said, picking me up, holding me tight. He carried me bridal style into the cold hospitality, sitting me down on the floor "You’re totally overheated, Lizzie."
"My water was gone after the first couple of minutes already." I whispered, leaning my head against the cold wall.
"Here." Andrea appeared next to us, handing me a water bottle.
"I can’t. Need to go to weighing first." my voice barely above a whisper.
"It’s okay…" I heard an F1 official say and Charles unscrewed the cap of the bottle, holding it to my mouth, the moment the cold water streamed down my throat I let out a quiet moan.
"Stop making these noises for everyone to hear… only I’m allowed to hear that…" he chuckled underneath his breath and I managed a little smirk.
"Sorry…" I whispered "Is everyone okay? I’m not the only one who’s this done, or am I?"
"You’re definitely not." Pierre sank down next to leaning his head against the cold wall "Almost everyone is done for."
"Can we please never race here again." I sighed a little.
"Yeah… I would vote against it as well." Pierre whispered, his head on my shoulder.
"Me too." George plopped down on the floor in front of us, shuffling down his race suit "That’s just too much heat."
"Well… as director of the GPDA, take matters into your hands." I chuckled and he laughed.
"Later. For now I just need a moment to cool down."
"Same, same."
The room felt warm and welcoming, the yellow walls washing a sense of calm over me, only the smell of the disinfection spray didn’t fit in. When the door opened Charles squeezed my hand and smiled at me.
"Miss Doetterer. I only have good news for you. The tissue passed completely. Your blood values look good, same for everything else. Light bleeding or spotting in the next 2-3 weeks are normal, nothing to worry about." Dr. Bernard said.
"So it’s all good?" I asked and he nodded.
"Yes. It’s all good." he repeated and I took a deep breath in.
"Thanks, Dr. Bernard." Charles shook his hand and I did the same.
"I think that’s it for today. There’s only one thing left to say for me. Good luck in Mexico." Dr. Bernard smiled and we nodded, leaving his office.
"I’d say let’s grab something to eat and then head home, the car will pick us up pretty damn early." Charles opened the door for me and I slipped in "What do you want to eat?"
"I would love a pizza…" I mumbled and he chuckled.
"Pizza it is. I’m not telling JK if you’re not telling Andrea."
"That sounds like a deal!" I leaned back and watched the busy streets of Monaco, all the young families with their babies in the most beautiful and stylish strollers "I never noticed how many babies there are in Monaco." I almost whispered and Charles took my hand in his.
"One day, cara mia. Don’t worry… the time for our little family starting to grow will come." he kissed the back of my hand and I turned a little, looking at him "There’s still enough time. Maybe enough for the both of us to win a title."
"You will win a title sooner than later… me on the other hand? Not so sure, but I sure as hell keep trying."
"No no, our baby will have world champion parents." Charles sounded determined and I laughed.
"Our baby will have one definite world champion parent and one maybe world champion parent… let’s be realistic."
"I am!"
"Okay… whatever you say."
"But until then it’s quite a long way."
"The only way I’m caring about right now is the one to Antonio’s!" I pouted a little when my stomach grumbled.
"Got you. Less talking. More driving."
"Exactly." I laughed again.
"I’m just wondering… you get already really grumpy when you’re hungry just now… but when a tiny human is growing inside you?" Charles raised his eyebrows.
"Good that you’re a fast driver then…"
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Chapter 40 - some of you have guessed it 😔 I really hope I could describe the feelings and it all as natural and real as possible… the chapter feels a little rushed towards the end, but I didn’t want to put too much in it… especially now that the triple header is right around the corner and A LOT is about to happen 👀
Please leave a comment/ like/ reblog/ message and tell me how you liked it! I'm dying to hear your thoughts!
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Last but not least, English is not my first language and although I tried my best: please excuse any mistakes I made!
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@silkenthusiasts @eugene-emt-roe @sunny44 @itsjustkhaos @glitterquadricorn @aundercover @kakorrhaphiphobia @alittlebitofbooksandmagic @ru-kru @shimmermotorsport @janeholt3 @kahhorri @18754389 @chiliwhore @hellowgoodbye @queensassybitchsworld @harrysdimple05 @skynel09
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cookies-and-music · 1 year ago
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Ghost. I suggest listening to Creep by Rediohead (or Kelly Clarkson's cover)
PAIRING: TVA!LokixOC
RATING: ALL
SUMMARY: Loki meets sombody at the TVA he once knew. Unfortunately she doesn't seem to remember him.
Part 2 here
When he saw her one day, wandering through the shelves of the TVA library, he thought she was a ghost. Loki would have sworn it was her but not exactly her. There was something different; her hair, for example, was brown, not red, and she was much more smiling than he remembered. Loki initially had doubts about whether it was her, but then he spent days observing her—watching how she furrowed her brows when concentrating on reading a file, how she leaned against the railing to gaze at the city suspended in time, how she always chose apple pie in the cafeteria. Every day was a stab to his heart until he decided to approach her.
"Miss Princhett," Loki approached the cafeteria table carrying a cup of tea for himself and a cup of coffee. "May I join you?" he offered her the cup.
Lydia Princhett. Shield agent. She had red hair and a stern face. Died in 2012.
"Of course, even though I don't think we've ever been introduced," she grabbed the cup, giving him a slight smile. Loki tightened his lips.
Lydia Princhett. Consultant at the TVA. She had brown hair and a relaxed expression.
"I'm Loki, from Asgard."
"I know," she brought the cup to her lips, and for a moment, Loki was filled with hope. "Everyone knows about the new consultant with Mobius," she laughed almost mockingly. "I'm a consultant too. I was supposed to be disposed of, but in my timeline I was a bounty hunter, and they thought I could be useful," she shrugged.
Loki knew. That's why he’d kept her. No one knew better than her how to find someone and, conversely, how to hide them.
"And are you? Useful?"
"I sincerely hope so, otherwise, I don't think they'll wait long before getting rid of me," she chuckled lightly.
Loki remembered the first time he heard her laugh. He had tried to make a toast and burnt himself. Her laughter sounded like a bell, and the burn was absolutely worth it.
But none of that had ever happened for her.
That Lydia had never fought against him, lost, and spat at his feet, telling him how he would never be feared and respected like Odin.
She had never tended to his wounds after a fight, even under coercion.
She had never looked at him with pity when she realized that, in turn, Loki was under someone else's influence.
She had never agreed to hear his story and had never told hers.
"What was your Nexus event?" Loki didn't think before speaking; it just came out.
"Don't you think that's too personal a question?" Lydia raised an eyebrow but decided to answer anyway. "I decided not to go to work one day; I had absurd cramps," she leaned closer, whispering and eliciting a light laugh from both of them. "I didn't think the world would change much just by not going to work for one day."
Loki tilted his head. "When was it?"
Lydia shrugged. "I don't know exactly how long ago, time is a mess here, but it was in 2012."
Loki nodded, lips pressed into a line.
That Lydia had never known him, and she had never been a causality during the New York attack.
There was a moment of silence in which she observed him, and Loki felt tiny under her gaze. It seemed like she was analyzing his soul, exposing every secret.
"Do you know me, Loki of Asgard?" Lydia tilted her head, offering a smile.
He looked at her for a second. "No."
"But did you know me?"
Loki didn't answer, lowering his gaze.
Lydia finished her coffee, placing the cup on the table and sighed before standing up. "Well, thanks for the coffee; it was delightful," she gave him a forced smile and began walking towards the exit. Loki opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
Lydia stopped after a few steps.
"For what it's worth," she turned to him, "I'd like to get to know you, Loki of Asgard."
Loki gave her a slight smile, the saddest he had ever made, and with a nod, he bid farewell to her ghost before finishing his tea and returning to work.
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hp-yuletide-bliss · 3 months ago
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Fest Dailies Prompts
Once bitten and twice shy | ‘Last Christmas’ by Wham
In the frosty air | ‘Jingle Bell Rock’ by Bobby Helms
When we finally kiss goodnight | ‘Let it snow’ by Frank Sinatra
There’s just one thing I need | ‘All I want for Christmas is you’ by Mariah Carey
Partridge in a pear tree | ‘12 days of Christmas’
The road is so long | ‘Happy Xmas (The war is over) by John Lennon
Have a cup of cheer | ‘Holly Jolly Christmas’ by Michael Bublé
I’m gonna find that girl | ‘Snow is falling’ by Shakin Stevens
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire | ‘The Christmas Song’ by King Cole Trio
Dreaming of white Christmas | ‘White Christmas’ by Bing Crosby
Don’t make me fall in love again | ‘Santa Tell Me’ by Ariana Grande
Stars are shining on us | ‘You Make It Feel Like Christmas’ by Gwen Stefani
Tales of glories of Christmases | “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year’ by Andy Williams
You’re my kind of present | ‘My kind of present’ by Meghan Trainor
Blue memories start calling | ‘Blue Christmas’ by Elvis Presley
We’re happy tonight | ‘Winter Wonderland’ by Darlene Love
You’re coming home | ‘One More Sleep’ by Leona Lewis
Singin' how I always loved you | ‘Christmas Lights’ by Amy Shark
With a broomstick in his hand | ‘Frosty the Snowman’ by Perry Como
Holding me tight | ‘Underneath the tree’ by Kelly Clarkson
Where the love light gleams | ‘I’ll be home for Christmas’ by Camila Cabello
I've grown a little leaner, grown a little colder | ‘We need a little Christmas’ by Pentatonix
Let your heart be light | “Have yourself a merry little Christmas’ by Frank Sinatra
Green ribbon in my hair | ‘Cheer’ by Bishop Briggs
It’s Christmas time | ‘Shake up Christmas’ by Train 
✨✨✨✨✨✨
You'll find the fest rules here and the Ao3 Collection here.
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takemealivelh · 10 months ago
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heart is gonna flatline || l.h.
tour puts luke and lucy's feelings to the test. addiction to sex, alcohol and weed for when things get hard. SMUT.
this was so fun to write ! loved to participate in the @5sos-fic-fest this year. hope you enjoy this. here's the ao3 link.
7.1 k
FEEDBACK IS ENCOURAGED AND APPRECIATED
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Prompt Au where the characters are both famous musicians with their own projects who have a well-documented public friendship. When they announce a tour together fans go crazy, as do the shippers. As the tour progresses, maybe the shippers are on to something…
Pop-rockers 5SOS and Latina indie-rocker Lucía Huerta announce tour together Last year, there were rumors about the frontman of the Australian band -Luke Hemmings, 27- and relatively new sensation Lucía "Lucy" Huerta, 28. They'd been caught leaving West Hollywood bars together, late at night, on numerous occasions. They put the speculation to a stop when in June 2023 Lucy uploaded an Instagram story of her and the blond having a drink. She tagged Hemmings and wrote "that's the homie", to which Luke replied in his own stories "that's me :)". They've been seen hanging out repeatedly since then, but it doesn't seem any more platonic than work friends. And speaking of work friends, 5 Seconds of Summer and Huerta just announced a 2024 tour that definitely excited fans, not just because of the vibrant shows they expect to see later in the year, but also because they want to see how the relationship of the two stars will develop during the four-month North American dates. Here at Music Getaway, we'll definitely keep a close eye on them.
-
"i'm not ready to tell them yet," lucy says to his boyfriend as she leaves the coffee cup on the kitchen counter next to them. they've been dating for eight months. it's been hard to hide their relationship from the press, and luke isn't too keen on the idea. he actually hates it. but he loves lucy. he loves that she's a talented musician, her laugh, her jokes and her business smarts. and he just can't enjoy this in peace, not with being so secretive.
"you've been saying that for months now. when are you gonna be okay with this? with us?" luke doesn't get it. why hide when they go out on dates and he can finally press a hand on her ass in public to stop the thirst traps people seem to tag her on. hoping to get a chance with her? fuck no. the blond wants her all to himself, he can't deny that.
lucy twists her lips, stalling. the smell of freshly brewed breakfast coffee dancing around them. "you don't understand." she finally says, reaching a hand to touch his arm for a few seconds. the thought of being out in the open with luke would change everything. "people will treat me differently. they might not respect me anymore."
"what are you talking about?"
"luke, come on. i got my own interview with kelly clarkson and then i played the iheartradio festival." they'd been incredible opportunities. "all of my hard work goes away the minute they know we're together. they'll say oh she was fucking the rockstar and he got her those big breaks. i don't want that. i don't want people to minimize my efforts."
luke sighs and shakes his head. "is that what's more important?" lucy shrugs. "okay," he finally says.
"okay?"
"yeah. it's fine. i get it. i won't bring it up again."
lucy throws her arms around his neck. "thank you," she whispers before kissing his lips softly. "i love you."
-
luke sits with ashton outside the rehearsal room. they've been playing for nearly two hours and they need a breather, especially because luke's mind is spinning. "i don't know, man. it sucks." they hear chattering on the other side of the door, a few guitar riffs and then laughter.
"of course it sucks, mate," ashton tells his friend. "she doesn't want to be in your shadow. it really fucking sucks and you better not fuck this up for her. you know how hard she's been working." he had grown fond of lucy. she was as much of a fan of drums as he was. he taught her a few fills and she invited him to do yoga and get high, ending up talking about how the unconscious force of creativity is beyond any of us. ashton doesn't want to see her heartbroken because of her boyfriend's, his best friend's inability to trust someone who really loves him.
-
luke's insecure, there's no question about that. after his marriage fell apart, he fell into a depression. and when he got better, he found this woman in the venue of the iheartradio festival, she was wearing cool sunglasses and stevie nicks-looking clothes. hippie goth he would've dared to say. they were watching the soundcheck of another band and started talking after she took out a cigarette from her backpack and asked him for a lighter.
"sorry, no. i don't smoke."
"that's okay," she smiled. 
that was all she said before looking for -and eventually finding- a lighter in the outside pocket of her small backpack.
the man looked up at the sky, the sun shining bright and the warm air of the field. he squinted one eye and turned to her. "they sound pretty good," he said of the band that was talking onstage, between songs. she nodded her head. "do you know them?"
"not personally, no," she replied and blew smoke out in a thin line. "but i've been a fan of them for a while now. they're one of my favorite indie bands."
that got them talking, eventually introducing themselves and catching up later after each other’s set. there was chemistry and flirting. luke's band immediately caught up to what was happening, when he said he was gonna congratulate lucy and be right back. but he didn't and it took them a full while to find him, thirty minutes before they went up and played.
-
"you got a lighter?"
calum nods and lights the cigarette for her. the smoking area of the building being a small parking lot.
"thanks," she breathes out. "you out here on your own?"
the bassist nods. "it's a good place to think."
lucy smiles and rolls her eyes. “cheesy,” she says with a grin.
"where's loverboy?" he asks, a cheeky smile on his face. calum was the first one to see them kissing. it was an afterparty at his band photographer's place. he'd gone to the kitchen when everyone started leaving, eight in the morning. when he went back to the living room with a cup of coffee, he saw lucy snuggled up to luke, smiling at him. luke smiled back and leaned in to kiss her. "aren't you guys glued to the hip anymore?"
lucy chuckles, "i don't know. there's... a lot happening."
"i'm listening."
"uh... okay. so... we decided to not tell everyone yet that we're dating. Not even with the tour. and i think he's mad at me."
"why do you say that?"
"he's been more... distant. and i don't know if that's what i wanted but it feels like... payback. like, you banned us and now i'm gonna make sure you feel it type of thing."
"i'm sure it's not that."
a bitter chuckle leaves her lips. "helpful as usual, cal."
-
cincinatti, first stop of the you don't go to parties tour. lucy had laughed when they first told her the name of the tour, but she eventually grew to like it and even embrace it. it's 6 pm and her soundcheck just ended. security lets fans in for a q&a with 5sos. she walks over to her boyfriend and smiles at him, wanting to kiss him good luck, or maybe just because she loves him. but luke stops her before she can even tilt her head up to reach his lips.
"we can't now. remember?"
it leaves her heart sore. she stands still as luke enters the stage and is greeted with the cheering of the fans. the rest of the guys are already seated on the small stairs of the set. she watches him ignore her and the questions about her. michael replies to one of them by saying she's our friend and we care for her and we're pretty inspired by her work as well, so it seemed like a good idea to, like, join forces and do this tour together.
lucy hopes luke will acknowledge her at some point, but he doesn't. when they start playing talk fast for the few lucky seventy fans in the audience, she twists her lips and leaves, heading backstage.
-
he doesn't see her until she's onstage again, playing her set of amazing songs for the 16,000 people attending the show. they dance and scream the lyrics back to her. she plays her guitar and sings with her raspy grunge-style voice over the indie-pop-rock arrangements her backing band provides. his heart beats faster as she approaches the microphone and starts talking.
"and thank you to my friends in 5sos who have been kind enough to invite me to co-headline this tour. the you don't go to parties tour seemed a little odd to me at first because this is definitely a party, isn't it?" she smiles as the crowd cheers. "so thank you guys," lucy turns to the left of the stage and sees luke standing next to her guitar tech. "i really fucking love you."
-
because of technical issues, the band can't perform the whole setlist. sometimes it happens. ashton is always pissed. "they're missing the whole experience!"
"yeah, well. nothing we can do. venue told us we could do the whole hour and a half but because of the issue with the speakers, they can't last that long. you have to cut two songs."
the tour manager tries to hold this thing together as ashton and michael complain. calum offers suggestions.
"i guess we could lose um... we could lose babylon, right? just this once and... flatline maybe?" the bassist looks over at luke.
flatline is the one song they had never played live before and it’d be a surprise for the audience. especially because lucy would come onstage to sing it with them. play the rhythmic guitar while luke walks around, hyping up the crowd. they'd rehearsed it several times and she was excited about it. they both were. allegedly.
"sure," luke replies as he drinks a glass of tequila, setting it down on a table and making sure his guitar is properly tuned. "let's cut them."
michael and ashton look at each other and then at luke. the frontman shrugs and his friends tell the tour manager that they will cut babylon and flatline.
-
all of the musicians have separate rooms in the hotels. even luke and lucy. she'd insisted it'd be easier. luke hated it. and he didn't expect her to show up at his room, unannounced, with a frown on her forehead and breathing hard.
"you cut our song," she steps inside the white room with the white walls, white bed and white comforter. looking at luke, the woman crosses her arms.
"we had to," he simply states. as if he wasn't the one greenlighting the whole thing.
"you could've told me, though. i was looking stupid next to the stage, waiting for you to introduce me. and it never happened."
"is that all that matters to you? how you look in front of other people? we had to cut two songs, lucy. the surprise's gonna be even bigger in the next show. fans will appreciate that."
lucy twists her lips and walks straight past him towards the door. "you're an asshole," she says before closing it behind her.
-
the beginning of the flight to boston is awkward. the whole twelve -the bands and the crew- can sense the tension inside the plane. it stems from luke and lucy, obviously. when did everything get so uneasy?
twenty minutes into the duration of the flight, though, luke slides into the seat next to his girlfriend. she doesn't look at him.
"i should've told you."
"yeah, you should've."
her heart beats faster as he places a hand on her cheek, guiding her eyes towards his own. he looks inside the brown hues and decides he can't keep hurting her. but she hurt him first. he wants to grow up and let it go. it's proving to be harder than he thought. maturity hasn't caught up to him easily yet. "i'm sorry." she closes her eyes and luke leans in to kiss her. "i'm sorry," he repeats.
a hand on his wrist, lucy is sad. looking into his eyes makes her sad. "it's okay," she finally says.
-
"and now we've got a pretty special surprise for you," michael grins into the microphone as the whole venue screams. "it's time to invite lucy huerta back on stage!" he shouts with a smile.
luke thinks lucy looks so fucking edible in those tight pants and that see-through top. her smile is big as she waves to the audience and settles on the center of the stage, where luke usually is. he gets another microphone from one of the roadies before ashton counts to four with his hi-hat.
should've seen me like a year ago, year ago/i was someone you don't even know, even know/dark times kept me all alone, all alone/you were shining like a heart of gold, heart of gold
he steals glances at her as she smiles into the crowd that’s going wild, her acoustic guitar hanging from her shoulders. 
luke was depressed after the divorce, staying home and drinking himself to sleep. then he got his shit together (half of it at least), went to the studio and worked through his issues by writing songs. when he met lucy, luke thought she was the most wonderful person on the planet. she had the kindest heart and was an overall joy to have around. he sings the pre-chorus and is taken aback by her strong voice as she takes over the song with her playing and her singing.
ooh, i'm falling for the first time/heart is gonna flatline/now i can't even look at you/you're like staring at the sunshine, burning into my mind/now i can't even look at you
and she doesn't. she doesn't look at him as she sings, unlike rehearsals when they couldn't stop singing to each other. it breaks his heart, considering it's their song. he wrote this for her.
"thank you!" lucy shouts and then leaves the stage waving everybody goodbye.
-
after the show, luke showed up to her hotel room. the bands were out clubbing and when he heard lucy wasn’t gonna join them, he immediately took an uber back to where they were staying. 
“let me in, please,” he says after knocking on her door three times. when she finally appears, she’s wearing a towel around her body and another one around her hair. she looks tired. “can i come in?”
without saying a word, lucy steps aside and luke walks into her room. she closes the door behind her and approaches him. 
“talk to me,” he basically begs. reading her mind is like an unsolvable sudoku, the man can’t get his head around it. “I love you.”
“i love you, too,” she whispers, looking down at his messy converse sneakers. 
luke quickly grabs her face and kisses her. it’s passionate and arousing and she can feel herself melting under his touch. she knows they should actually talk about it, instead of making out and falling on the bed, her towels discarded somewhere on the floor. she can’t help it. they’re both sex addicts. lucy rips his thin black shirt open and kisses down his chest, leaving his skin wet with the droplets that run down her hair. his breathing grows heavier and his pants grow tighter in the crotch area. he closes his eyes as she trails the kisses back up to his face. “take it off,” she pleads and sits next to him. luke quickly reincorporates himself to toss his shirt, his slacks and his underwear out of the way. he’s big and pulsating and lucy swallows hard, he turns her on so much. 
when the last item of clothing hits the floor, one of his shoes, the man licks his upper lip and straddles her body, hovering over her. “you really want me, huh?” his smirk is cocky, as if he’s forgotten everything about these past few days. it’s like nothing ever happened and they’re still in their love bubble. she so desperately wants to go back to it, so she nods and wraps her arms around his neck, bringing him to her lips as she parts her legs. luke hooks an elbow on her knee and spreads her wider, watching her folds throb for him. so slick and ready. he kisses her once more before carefully dropping her leg onto the bed. “condom,” he says. “i need to fuck you now.”
lucy reaches out to the bag she keeps on the nightstand. eyeliner, pills and condoms. she hands him one and it doesn’t take long before his cock is ready. luke smirks and kisses her, lining himself against her entrance with one hand, he takes a deep breath and penetrates her.
her gasp shouldn’t come as a surprise, given that it’s the same sound every time, not at all used to having him being so big and thick yet, even after all these months. she closes her eyes and bites her lower lip as luke runs a hand through his damp curls, letting her adjust to his size. he groans as he feels her walls engulfing him. “i want you so much,” he offers a low moan and starts picking up the pace of his thrusts. bringing one of her legs over his shoulder, the man reaches a deeper spot that makes her moan out. 
“fuck,” she pants as the bed bounces underneath their bodies. luke’s strength and determination to fuck her stupid works. her eyes roll to the back and she digs her short nails into his naked back. “more,” she begs and is immediately met with a hand around her throat. “more,” her plead is inaudible as she feels like she can’t breathe from the pleasure.
luke’s pupils are dilated in a way she’s never seen before. he tightens her grip around her throat and around her leg. gulping down at the sight of his girl falling apart under him, he tries to restrain louder moans but how can he? how can he fuck her quietly when she looks and feels so fucking good? “say you’re mine,” he orders. “say you’re mine.”
-
the morning sun shines through the window and rests its light on lucy’s face. She scrunches her nose and opens her eyes. she’s lying on luke’s chest, they’re both naked. he doesn’t seem to notice her shifting. the woman looks up at him, wondering when things got so complicated. she loves him. she truly loves him. he’s the first man she’s ever loved, in a real way, not a platonic crush way. the fact that he makes her laugh and his skills when making music and also in bed are extraordinary. he’s a sensitive soul and it’s such a wonder when he lowers down the walls he builds up around people. letting them in but not all the way. not in the way he does with her. or did. “why can’t you trust me with your thoughts anymore?” lucy wonders in a soft whisper before pressing a kiss to his sternum and getting up. she goes to the bathroom and takes a shower. when she opens the door that leads to the bedroom, luke is up and scrolling through his phone. “hi,” she smiles softly. her boyfriend’s hair is a mess and there’s still sleep inside his eyes. 
“hey,” the man smiles back, putting his phone away. “flight’s at 6. you wanna do something today?”
lucy leans against the frame of the bathroom door. she crosses her arms in front of her chest and thinks for a moment while twisting her lips. “what do you have in mind?”
-
they both go down in the elevator, not touching, and it’s killing them. when they reach the hotel’s diner, they find calum and ashton sitting at one of the tables, drinking orange juice and eating bagels.
“you guys had fun last night,” calum smirks as the couple sits down with a plate of waffles and two cups of coffee.
lucy blushes and luke has to stop every inch of his urgent body to wrap an arm around her shoulders. “shut up,” they both say in unison. there’s a soft smile on their faces.
after michael drops by to have a quick breakfast and then leaves to facetime his wife and his baby daughter, the rest of them decide that it would be cool to go out and explore the city. so they do that. they go to a park and sit around, smoking and drinking warm water because of the summer heat upon them. a couple of fans stumble across them and ask for pictures. they stay for around ten minutes before leaving off to continue their day, the musicians keep on enjoying the sun and the fresh air. if you ignore calum and lucy’s cigarettes, that is.
they go to lunch at a nearby restaurant and order pasta salads. lucy looks over at luke across the table, he’s laughing at one of ashton’s jokes and she sighs almost imperceptibly, looking down at her empty plate. there’s a single ravioli and two tomato slices on it. she looks up when she feels a foot against her ankle and sees luke smiling softly at her.
they can’t help but fuck in the restaurant’s bathroom. locked into a single stall, she drops to her knees and sucks him off. luke pins her against the door and buries his head on her neck to muffle the sounds when he slides into her. she’s got a leg wrapped around his waist and she swallows hard to hush the sounds she wants to make.
when they reach back the table, they find that ashton and calum have deserted them, leaving them with the bill. “assholes,” she says and luke laughs.
-
Seen out: Luke Hemmings and Lucía Huerta have an off day in Boston
The pair walked out of the Intercontinental Hotel with Ashton Irwin (5SOS’ drummer) and Calum Hood (5SOS’ bassist). They were seen by fans at Fenway Park and they took pictures with them. Luke looks tired in the photos, but he seems happy. He wears roughed-up sneakers and a white tank top. Lucy wears short denim shorts and a black top with flowy sleeves. The fans that tagged them in the Instagram posts spoke about how nice they were and how exciting it was to meet them. Hemmings and Huerta were both seen leaving Tenderoni’s Fenway restaurant and getting into an Uber. According to inside sources, the pair haven’t been able to keep their hands off each other during this tour so far. We hope it stays that way.
-
“fuck,” lucy’s frustration about the latest hollywood gossip blog post seems to go unnoticed on the plane. but luke can tell, and he wraps an arm around her the minute they both sit down. “they know. they seem to know,” she hands him her phone so he can read the writing piece. she hates it. she hates it so much. “inside sources can suck my dick.” this statement makes luke giggle. “what’s so funny?” she asks, annoyed.
“nothing.”
-
the next cities go by in a time whirlwind. lucy’s been distant since the article and it breaks luke’s heart. she refused to hold his hand and kiss him outside hotel rooms. even concerts’ backstages.
a few months after they met, they attended a house party in santa monica. the sparks between them were something everybody noticed, but they didn’t seem to think much of it. they’re rockstars, they’re the same age, of course they’re gonna flirt. luke fucked her in the spare bedroom, door locked. she gasped when she felt his cock for the first time, knowing he’d just made her addicted to it. he’d ruined every other man for her.
“we should head back downstairs.”
“i wanna stay here with you.”
“luke.” his name was rough against her lips as she hooked her bra back on.
“alright, i’m up.”
looking back, that should’ve been a red flag for him, but he chose to ignore it. because she made him feel good and he didn’t want her to leave him for somebody else. he didn’t want to be left again. he’d loved his ex-wife, and it was hard to get over her after she cheated on him. lucy had never been in a relationship, just random hookups, a friend with benefits and two weeks of winter love. she feared intimacy and luke could tell after the second time they had sex. spend the night, he’d said. lucy shook her head and told him she needed to get up early in the morning for an interview, which was a lie.
-
by the time the first month rolls around, they’re barely talking. It’s all sex and pretending onstage. pretending to have fun, pretending that they’re not hurt. their hearts break in silence. well, sort of.
“i told you not to fuck it up.”
“she won’t let me in. she won’t talk to me about it.”
“fix it.”
-
someone just like you, no one else/lights will guide you so, run like hell
the screaming fans can’t get enough of the energy onstage. michael jumping around, calum throwing his head back to expose his neck to the crowd, ashton beasting out on the drums. luke crouches in front of the crowd with a wide smile and lucy plays guitar while she sings her heart out. the lights radiate orange and red colors on the stage, the bass resonates in their bodies and there’s so much adrenaline going on that she has a moment of weakness. she looks over at luke, who has walked over to michael’s side of the stage as he sings the second verse. he wears a silver shirt that makes his shoulders look so spectacularly broad. she looks at him a little too long and when the camera pans over to her, showing her true feelings on the giant screen, fans seem to lose it even more. luke walks back to her and sings directly into her eyes, as if he can feel his way back to his girl. finally. a sad smile appears on her face for a split second before she starts dancing while playing the post-chorus instrumental outro. her long wavy hair hides her face and no one notices a single tear rolling down her cheek. when the song ends, she pretends to be emotional about the crowd, about how much they seem to love the show. which she is very grateful for. but on the other side of the coin, she just fucked up everything for herself. her career. and it’s clear when luke approaches her with a reassuring smile and one fan screams KISS! KISS! and then the whole venue is yelling the same word over and over again. michael and calum look at each other, ashton wipes off the sweat from his forehead and when the chanting doesn’t seem to stop, he grabs his mic. 
“alright, alright. calm your asses down,” the drummer laughs and the crowd follows suit. a distraction. he starts talking about how they recorded the song and thanking lucy for putting on a fantastic show with them for the beautiful souls in the audience.
lucy twists her lips, trying not to break down in front of thousands of people. so, she just waves and quickly exits the stage. luke takes a deep breath. he wants to run after her, make sure she’s okay. but she would never forgive him for giving the fans more reasons to speculate about their relationship. 
-
lucy cries backstage, alone. she takes off her makeup and sees dark circles underneath her eyes. why the fuck is she such a mess? why can’t she be in love like a normal person?
-
the show ends and the first person to knock on her dressing room is, obviously, luke. “are you okay?” he opens the door and sees his girlfriend lying on the sofa, sleeping. her makeup’s off and he can better appreciate the freckles on her nose that she gets in the summer. he stays with her, sitting on the chair in front of the mirror. the man looks at her as she wrinkles her nose in her sleep. he loves her so much. but what if this it? what if this is the end for them? 
michael opens the door, “what’s going on? is she okay?”
“she’s okay,” luke smiles weakly. “she’s sleeping.” 
lucy holds a pillow to her chest. she’s covered by luke’s jacket. michael decides he should probably leave them alone. “good luck, man,” he says as he pats luke’s shoulder, then he leaves the door closed after stepping back out.
luke could really use a joint right now. all these thoughts and feelings. wondering what she may be dreaming. or what she does with her days when they’re not together. he hates being so possessive, it makes him feel like a child. but how can you blame him?
“good luck with what?” lucy’s yawn startles him. she rubs one eye open.
michael meant well, but he also wanted to protect luke from heartbreak. lucy’s given him that for months now. all the guys -at least in the bands- knew lucy has a bit of… issues. she believes in things to be too black or white, good or bad, yes or no. no space for grey areas in her life. and that’s frustrating to deal with, but luke had fallen in love because she was so intense and so hardheaded when it came to defending her values. He admired that about her. “I honestly have no idea,” he lies behind a chuckle, playing it off as usual band nonsense. “do you wanna go back to the hotel and sleep?”
she’s too tired to get into an argument about taking separate cars, so she just nods. “Yeah.”
-
when they get to the hotel room, luke tucks her in and pours her a glass of water that he leaves on her nightstand. he looks for ibuprofen in her small bag with pills and condoms and sets two next to the water. 
“i’m sorry for being such a bitch to you,” lucy says with her eyes closed, lying on her side. 
she looks so out of it. as if she’d just drank an entire bottle of vodka and then smoked weed. he feels bad. he never meant for her to feel like this when they got into a relationship. but touring always makes things hard. especially if you’re playing shows every night with the person you love. the man sighs and sits next to her. “don’t worry about me. get some sleep,” he whispers and kisses her temple.
before he can stand up, lucy grabs his arm. “can you stay with me? please.”
a soft smile sets on his lips. “of course.”
-
after landing in the next city, lucy calls her mom.
-
there are three knocks on his hotel room door. “luke?” her voice is soft. as if she’s embarrassed. she doesn’t want her mother’s words to haunt her. the man opens the door without his shirt. just sweatpants. he was probably gonna go to bed. she might as well ruin his night too. 
“hey.” there’s a small pause. “what’s up?” he steps aside so she can come in. the tv’s on in the background and there’s a tray with an empty plate and a glass of tequila, just resting on his nightstand. 
lucy nods her head and walks inside. “i wanna talk.”
“okay…”
“about us.”
-
Love Is All Around: It’s Insta-Official
Two months ago, the You Don’t Go To Parties Tour hit the stage. And last night, Lucía Huerta and Luke Hemmings provided some much-needed proof of their romance. “Ten months with you feel like a second. Magic. I love you.”
-
lucy sighs as she reads the article.
“are you okay?” luke asks her.
“yeah,” she replies. “just… scared, i guess.”
“it’s gonna be okay, love,” he kisses the top of her head and sits next to her on the sofa. “everything’s gonna be alright.” the dressing room is big and no one else is around. it’s noon.
tons of notifications have been hitting their phones for the past fourteen hours. some are mean comments, others are encouraging words from fans. either way, it makes lucy anxious. “do you wanna get high?” she asks her boyfriend. maybe weed isn’t the solution to every problem ever, but it helps. 
the man smiles. “sure,” he says.
they go to the private parking lot of the venue. luke rolls a joint while lucy smokes a cigarette. she flicks the ashes onto the concrete, fidgeting her fingers around the cancer stick. luke isn’t the biggest fan of her smoking. and she's been smoking more as the days go by. but he understands she’s going through a lot, so he says nothing. he gets a text from calum, wondering where he and his girlfriend are. we’re gonna have lunch, join us? but the blond dismisses the message and lights the joint. he takes two hits before handing it to lucy. she brings it immediately to her lips, the slightly spicy smoke going down her throat smoothly. 
it’s so easy to talk to each other. sometimes. but their words have been stunted lately. they don’t know what the other’s thinking. and yes, last night they had a good conversation. but now what? does everything go back to normal now? how? they both feel anxious around each other, and that’s never ever happened before. they both hate it.
“what do you…”
“do you ever…”
they open their mouths simultaneously, quickly chuckling at the awkwardness of their interaction. lucy nods her head, letting him know that he can finish his thought.
luke smiles. “i was gonna ask you if you ever feel like… like things are going so good between us and suddenly we get so quiet and you worry? is that… is that something you feel?”
lucy smiles back. “yeah,” she says. “i don’t really know how to explain it. i mean, i love you. you know i really fucking love you, luke. but sometimes i worry we get too inside our heads. because i think we’re really similar like that. and i… i wanna be someone you can count on…”
“i want that too,” he replies. she hands him back the joint and he smokes some more.
“and sometimes i worry i’m not that someone you deserve,” she finally confesses.
it makes him sad to hear her say that, because there’s no better person for him than her. no one has made him feel this way before. the ups and downs seem to be heightened and it’s a beautiful way to live, he doesn’t want anyone else. there’s only room in his heart for this woman. this is the hardest he’s ever fallen in love, and he can’t imagine his life without her. a bit dramatic, but hey, that’s just who he is. “i don’t deserve anyone, lucy. i just want to be with you,” he says and takes her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers. “all the time. every single fucking day.”
the woman looks down at their hands. matching red nail polish and silver-colored rings. this is scary. it’s scary to love and need someone so much that you feel like you’d die if they ever left you. please, don’t leave me. ever. lucy sighs and squeezes his hand in hers. “right back at ya,” she smiles softly and looks up to find his baby blues staring at her with so much love in them that she can’t help the weakness she feels in her knees.
the silence is barely uncomfortable anymore. unlike the ones they’ve been experiencing for countless weeks now. it’s all out in the open. their love for each other burning brighter than ever. neither want this moment to end. and since there’s only one way to stop time, they lean into each other and kiss. it’s soft at first, like a goodnight kiss. and it escalates quickly to an i-never-wanna-be-without-you one. she grabs fistfuls of his shirt, bringing him closer to her body. luke places both hands on her face as his tongue traces her bottom lip. their eyes are red and their hunger is raw.
-
they can’t get to his hotel room fast enough. fuck having lunch with friends, they need to satiate this urge so they can go on for the rest of the day. “i want you so bad,” she whines against his throat, leaving wet and sloppy kisses along his jawline. he’s already big and leaking with precum, grinding his hips against hers. unhooking her bra, luke immediately buries his head between her breasts and she whines again. those beautiful sounds he can’t get enough of.
“ride me, babe. i wanna see these titties bounce,” he whispers against her skin. hands gripping her hips. bulge so hard he feels like he’s gonna explode. they’re naked and he already has a condom wrapping his shaft. lucy bites her lower lip and lines him against her slit. he’s throbbing in her hand and that drives her insane. the moan he drags out as she strokes him is paradise. The filthiest love they’ve ever experienced. Both always wanting to fuck each other. It’s her waist, it’s his broad shoulders. The way they move on stage, wanting to look sexy for the other. 
lucy sinks into his cock and lets out a whine, “fuuck.” his thick size feels so good. luke grabs her ass and spreads her cheeks open so he can penetrate her better. 
“you like that?”
“yes.” her mouth hangs open and her eyes roll to the back of her head. luke has always thought of her as his pretty little pornstar. even before they started dating, the way she danced with him at the club. her back pressed to his body as his hands rested on her hips and stomach. both sweaty and a bit embarrassed when they went back to the booth with their friends. 
the woman, as per requested, starts bouncing on his cock. titties moving up and down. “fuck, girl.”
-
“is it better to feel this or feel nothing at all?”
ever since the news got out about their relationship, lucy’s been a mess. interviewers can be assholes. they suddenly stopped asking about her music, her achievements. all they wanted to know about was her clothes and her boyfriend. like everything she worked for just disappeared in the blink of an eye.
she lays on her side on the hotel bed after playing a festival in latin america. luke spoons her, holding her close to his body. he doesn’t know what to say. he’s surprised by the outcome. hadn’t expected people to diminish her work, to ignore she just played the 6 pm slot, which is a hard spot to get. you need a lot of people to stay for the whole set. and she’d killed it. 
“i don’t understand what happened,” luke sighs against her neck and squeezes her tighter. “i’m really sorry.”
lucy closes her eyes, feeling a bit less anxious with him. “it’s okay. the industry’s fucked up.”
“yeah,” he chuckles weakly. “it is.”
-
“so it’s true? you and luke are engaged?”
the questions about her relationship don’t seem to cease. even a year later. they go together to events and people seem to be more excited about them together than their work. it’s annoying, but what are you gonna do? “yeah, we are,” lucy smiles. “we’re also dropping a new song together next month.”
“ooh, tell us about it.”
lucy has become good at deflecting. luke taught her that. 
-
“how was the interview?” luke asks after he greets his fianceé with a kiss and hands her a cup of coffee from her favorite shop.
“it was alright,” lucy shrugs. it’s definitely been a learning experience, dodging questions about her personal life. but luke has been so supportive and sweet throughout the whole thing. she’s grateful to marry her man in six months. “how was the recording session?” she asks as she sips the hot beverage.
the blond had written things throughout the tour. enough things to make an ep. “it was good,” he smiles softly.
-
the song luke and lucy release is a hit. a 90s-inspired track with her raspy vocals and his whiny ones make for an interesting texture that captures hearts everywhere. they play it on several shows, the crowds go insane every time.
a month later, lucy releases her second album. it's a hit. she's invited to play festivals and there are rumors of a grammy nomination.
"here's to my girl," luke smiles as he raises a glass of wine in front of her and their friends. "she showed the world she's a powerhouse, an amazing songwriter and performer. she's the best thing that's ever happened to me and i'm so proud of you." his gaze sets on lucy, who's blushing like crazy and smiling like an idiot. "i really fucking love you."
"right back at ya," the woman grins and stands up from the table to kiss her man. everyone cheers.
the night goes by fast. the celebration turns into a party in luke and lucy's new place in west hollywood. but the couple soon disappears into their shared bedroom. fucking until the sun comes up and their friends leave.
luke pants as his orgasm washes over him. "fuck," he breathes out, collapsing next to her on their bed.
"yeah," lucy chuckles. her body is sweaty and she wraps an arm around his torso as she snuggles up to him. looking up at his face, the man's glistening. he's the most beautiful man. he's got the biggest heart and he's never been jealous or threatened by her successes. she appreciates that. "wanna eat me out?" lucy smirks, her leg now over his, her wet pussy making contact with his thigh and she grinds into him.
"give me a second," luke lets out a soft laugh. "you really wore me out. my pretty slutty angel." he strokes her hair, hand soon trailing down to her ass. a small slap to it that makes her bite down on her lip. "okay, come on. legs spread, i'm diving in," he grins.
she does what she's told. opening her legs so luke can attach his lips to her swollen clit and start licking her folds. so sloppy. so fucking nasty. lucy groans as her breath hitches. "you're so good."
he smirks against her entrance before exploring her walls with his tongue. so fucking skilled.
-
grammy nominations announcement. luke and lucy's song gets one for song of the year. her album gets one for album of the year. they're ecstatic. it's all happening.
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gme-news · 1 year ago
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Jordan Clarkson INAMIN na NAHIRAPAN sa Winless Gilas | KULELAT sa FIBA WORLD CUP
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cbholganza · 1 year ago
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Who Will Compose the Philippine Team to the FIBA World Cup 2023?
With the FIBA World Cup 2023 just days away from kicking off, speculations have heightened as Coach Chot Reyes and his staff struggle to complete the Philippine Team line-up. At present, there remain 16 of the country’s best cagers battling it out for the honor to represent the Philippines. It’s a difficult job identifying who stays and who goes, with everyone giving their all and showing that…
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