#and the little we see of carlo.... it works.... he was in fact kind of a bull-headed little brat.

[grandcovenant]

carlo's inherent tragedy as a character means that if he hadn't died young he would've gone through something worse. the horrifying realization that he inherited his father's personality <3

[holllandtrash]

you know 6 to 1 yn said something about carlos’s mustache and lando threatened to grow his hair back out of playful jealousy

word count: 4.1k tags/warnings: some angst, jealousy, mentions of smut kind of part of the 6 to 1 series

carlossainz55

liked by ynleclerc, scuderiaferrari and 391,202 others

carlossainz55 off to Canada 🇨🇦 let's keep pushing

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scuderiaferrari now that's a smoooth operator

spicysainzz its illegal for a man to look this good

ynleclerc god don't tell me you're growing out your facial hair now too

carlossainz55 you love it ynleclerc sure

“Oh so you like Carlos’ facial hair?”

“What the hell are you talking about?” You didn't look up from the cutting board, already deciding that whatever Lando was on about wasn’t as important as making dinner.

“You like his facial hair,” Lando repeated, a statement this time. 

It was impossible to not give him any attention when he shoved his phone in your face. You took a breath, asking yourself what you were getting yourself into as you dropped the knife on the counter and tuned in on his screen, more specifically, at the comment you had left on Carlos’ most recent picture. 

“It’s a harmless comment,” you scoffed, knowing that your friendship with Carlos was nothing for him to worry about, yet he always seemed to be triggered by the most mundane things. 

“But you like his facial hair.”

“Are those the only words you know how to say?” 

You pushed the phone out of your face and turned properly to face him, only then seeing that he wasn’t taking this conversation as a joke the same way you were. His jaw had tightened, the lines in his forehead displayed his very prominent annoyance and you flipped a switch to react accordingly, hand going up to cup his cheek

“Lando,” you said, a slight shake of the head. “You’re being dramatic. I commented on my friend's photo. Who is also your friend. It’s nothing to get worked up over, okay?”

Lando and Carlos were still two peas in a pod. Their bond was unbreakable but since you started dating you could tell he was always slightly on edge whenever you and Carlos were alone together. And of course Lando trusted you, you’re the one person who held his heart he knew you wouldn’t do anything to damage it.

It was Carlos he didn’t trust. 

He didn’t like that Carlos had never once talked to Lando about the kiss you had shared. It was this strange, unspoken thing, but when you tried to explain how weird it would be for Carlos to approach him and say ‘hey, I had feelings for your girlfriend and we kissed but don’t worry about’ it didn’t really click for Lando. 

So he just held his breath and watched from a distance whenever you interacted with the Spanish driver and if he felt your conversations lingered a little too long for his liking, he’d find a way to pull you aside and remind you who exactly you were in the paddock for. 

He had no control over what happened on Instagram, though. And it wasn’t like he was going to tell you to unfollow your brother's teammate, so he just ignored any bitter thoughts that came to mind if he saw your name show up in Carlos’ likes. 

But that comment. 

It was friendly, sure, but it was the fact that it was on the topic of facial hair that really stung. Lando knew how much you hated his facial hair when he tried to grow it out and the only reason he ended up shaving was because you made your dislike for it so abundantly clear. 

So why the fuck did you not hate it on Carlos?

Carlos didn’t have as difficult of a time growing out the stubble like Lando did. And his already prominent moustache was just only going to get thicker and you didn’t hate it. It was clear by your comment, despite it being sarcastic, that you didn’t hate it. 

And Lando hated that.

“You’re really bothered by this,” you said aloud when it sunk in that this wasn’t something Lando would get over after a good night's sleep. 

“I am, yes.”

“And what's bothering you, exactly? The fact that I commented on his picture?” You asked, wanting to get to the root of the problem. “Or are you annoyed that I had a different reaction to his facial hair than I did with yours?”

Lando hesitated before finally muttering a quiet, “Both.”

You rolled your eyes and pushed on his chest, wanting not only a bit of space from his childish ways of thinking but also wanting to finish dinner. You picked up the knife and went back to mincing the pepper, not about to coddle Lando or assure him that he had nothing to worry about because this was a conversation you had had way too many times for your liking and if he didn’t know you loved him by now then that was his problem. 

But Lando wasn’t about to move on as easy as you had, “I’m just saying-” 

“I don’t want to hear it,” You cut him off, voice shaper than the knife in your hand. Each cut against the board echoed in the confined space and Lando could tell you were applying more pressure than needed, relying on your actions to show that you really didn’t want to have this conversation.

And Lando stayed quiet for the rest of the night. Not just about the picture, but in general. When you asked him to set the table, he did so without his usual childish complaints. The conversation between you during dinner was cold and distant but you didn’t want to press further, knowing that he’d get over this in his own way.

You thought things were fine when he crawled into bed shortly after you did because he curled his arm around your waist like normal, pulling you against his chest as his soft breath hit your neck. You whispered ‘goodnight to him, but his lack of response wasn’t something you thought too much about. 

It wasn’t until you woke up did the trouble really begin. 

You walked into the bathroom first thing in the morning, rubbing your eyes and the residue of mascara that didn’t come off after washing your face last night. After turning on the sink and letting the water run, you wiped a disposable cloth over your face and tossed it out immediately after. Naturally, the rest of your morning routine would have followed, had a perfectly good electric razor not have caught your eye at the top of the garbage can.

“Lando!” You basically screamed, knowing he was in the inbetween stages of awake and asleep when you had gotten out of bed. You heard the rustling of sheets and the patter of footsteps as you grabbed the razor out of the bin. 

When you turned around, one hand resting on your hip you saw a very tired Lando standing in the hallway. Usually the sight of him bare chested and wearing nothing but boxers was enough to have you contemplating dragging him back to bed, but not this time.

“What is this?” You asked, so obviously talking about the razor Lando had thrown out the night prior. “A peaceful protest?”

Lando looked at you and then at the little contraption and then back at you, a hint of a playful smile on his face. Of course now he thought this was funny.

“Yeah that’s a good way to put it.” 

“Are you fu-” you sucked in a breath to avoid losing your shit on him five minutes after waking up. “Why?”

“Because I’m growing out my facial hair again.”

“Why?” 

“Oh is that the only word you know how to say?” Lando asked, mimicking your question from last night with more sarcasm than you wanted to deal with at nine in the morning.

You rolled your eyes and shoved the razer into his chest before storming past him, dragging your fingers through the roots of your hair while he was forced to call your name, stopping you from slamming the door to the bedroom.

“What?” Lando asked, voice raised. “Why are you so upset about this?”

Your hands tensed, cupping your own face as you exhaled into your palms before your arms fell back to your side, “I’m upset because you clearly are doing this because of that stupid comment on Carlos’ picture.”

“Maybe I just want to grow my facial hair out again,” he shrugged, leaning against the wall as he crossed his arms over his chest. He hadn’t thrown the razor out again, but that didn’t give you any sort of hope that he would hear you out.

“You don’t,” you scoffed. “You told me yourself it wasn’t permanent the first time. You just wanted to try it out. You tried it and it turns out, not for you.”

“Maybe I’ll like it more the second time.”

You fought the urge to roll your eyes at him, instead choosing to turn on your heels and start to walk into your bedroom, muttering a quiet, “Maybe I’ll hate it more the second time”

“Oh but you love Carlos’ facial hair.”

That stopped you in his tracks. Lando finally admitting that it was, in fact, the comment that was getting to him. Carlos and your interaction was the catalyst to all of this and instead of Lando seeing it as an exchange between friends, he was taking it personally.

You turned back around and walked right up to him, nearly chest to chest when he straightened up from the wall. Lando and you didn’t usually fight, both of you knew how important communication and trust was and it was and after the rocky start you had, you never wanted to go back to a place of uncertainty with him.

But this was fucking annoying.

“That’s what you’re mad about, huh?” You asked, holding his stare. “The fucking comment. And you think that growing your facial hair out is, what, a way to get back at me? Because you know I hate it?”

Lando said nothing, a dead giveaway that you were 100% right and he was simply being immature for the sake of being immature. 

“Okay,” you nodded, throwing Lando off when your tone went from deadly to calm before he could blink. “You want to be mad? Fine. I’ll give you something to be mad about.”

Lando watched as you walked back to the room and he hesitantly followed, trying to make sense of whatever that ominous warning was that just came out of your mouth. He didn’t say anything when you walked out of the closet, fully dressed in a pair of sweats and a t-shirt. An Enchante t-shirt even though he thought you were past wearing Danny’s merch. He didn’t say anything when you grabbed a backpack from under the bed and put your wallet and a few other necessities in there because it wasn’t like you were packing. This flat in London was basically your second home and this spat seemed too minor for you to be packing up your things and leaving.

But you were going somewhere.

“Where the hell are you going?” Lando asked when you finished brushing a comb through your hair. You slung the straps of the backpack over your shoulder and then, this was the kicker, you grabbed your passport that was sitting on top of the dresser.

You barely looked at him as you walked past him, your shoulder brushing against his before you headed straight for the door. 

“Back to Monaco. See you in Canada.”

—————

You were true to your word. Cutting off communication with Lando until you landed in Montreal the Thursday before the grand prix weekend started. 

Lando, in return, did not reach out. But he did make it perfectly obvious that he was growing out the facial hair again, making sure to post about it every chance he got. You swore you had never seen him share so many pictures on his photography account and were you a little upset he went to New York without you? Kind of, but you were stubborn and so was he and you had now found yourselves giving each other the cold shoulder over a goddamn comment on Carlos fucking Sainz’s instagram picture.

“What’s up with you and Lando?” Charles asked, an unmistakable pep in his voice that you raised your eyebrows at. He stood next to you on the balcony overlooking the paddock, arms rested over the railing and mirroring your position, but he cleared his throat and reworded his question. “It’s just, something’s up, no?”

You shouldn’t have been surprised he figured out there was tension. If Lando’s fans could put two and two together when you neglected to comment or even like any of his pictures, your own brother could figure it out too.

“He’s an idiot,” you rolled your eyes.

“Well I could have told you that,” Charles snorted. “What really happened?”

“I commented on Carlos’ picture a few weeks ago and Lando took it as me liking Carlos’ facial hair even though I made it perfectly clear I hated it when he was trying to grow out his hair.”

Charles took a second to repeat your words in his head, “He’s upset because you commented on Carlos’ moustache?”

You nodded, “And now he’s growing his facial hair out again out of spite.”

“This is about so much more than facial hair isn’t it?”

You clasped your hands together. You felt Charles’ eyes practically burning holes into the side of your head but you focused on the people wandering around the paddock. 

“He’s just dramatic and immature,” you muttered, deciding that was an easier answer than to have a whole therapy session with him. “He’ll learn his lesson, though. I have an idea.”

“Why do I have a feeling you are also about to be dramatic and immature?”

You laughed in response, right as you spotted the exact person you needed to help you with this idea. You patted Charles on the arm and told him you’d see him later before you all but sprinted down the stairs of the motorhome to chase after the other Ferrari driver.

“Carlos!” You called out, running after him before he could get too far. He turned around when he heard his name, a smile on his face when he recognized the voice belonging to you. 

You had to admit, the grown out facial hair did suit him. Carlos was always handsome but this made him look more mature, more distinguished. 

“I need you to do me a favour,” you said, a playful smile painted on your lips.

Carlos nodded, “This sounds like deja vu.”

“It has to do with getting back at Lando.”

“Now it really sounds like deja vu,” His eyes widened momentarily as he thought back to what happened in the club when you last asked for his help. He was still traumatised from that DJ set. But Carlos loved you, platonically of course, he would always help you. “What do you need, hermosa?”

A few photographers started to crowd you and usually at this point, any driver would continue walking to get away from the unscheduled media harassment. But this was what you needed.

You raised your hand up to his jaw, thumb tracing over the hair he was growing out as a shimmer of adoration glossed over your eyes. Your lips curled upwards and Carlos, even though he was certainly confused, played along, loving any excuse to mess with Lando.

“Just tell me to kiss you and I will,” Carlos joked quietly, face only inches from yours, and you pushed on his chest in response. He caught you a little off guard when he reached for your hand and pulled you back before you could force some space between you. 

You glanced at his lips as Carlos held your hand between your bodies. You reached up with your other hand to cup his chin lightly, thumb dangerously close to his lips. To anyone walking by, it most likely looked like you were about to kiss him.

But you got all that you needed.

“Thank you,” you whispered, shooting him a wink before you pulled yourself from his grasp and walked back to the Ferrari motorhome, knowing that the media was about to have a field day with those photos. 

You didn’t see Lando at all in the paddock. Whether that was intentional on his behalf or not, you had no idea. You did, however, see your name blowing up on twitter along with all of the comments about how you and Carlos looked too damn friendly to be just friends. 

Lando’s text came about an hour after your name started trending. 

Charles told you that you potentially took it a step too far, having a few choice words himself to say about you and Carlos, all of which you tuned out and told him you knew what you were doing. 

But you weren’t entirely sure who had the upper hand when you got your key from the receptionist and made your way up to Lando’s suite at the end of the night. You purposely took your time getting there, deciding to go out for dinner with a friend first before finding yourself at his hotel.

And now you were holding your breath as the card reader turned green and unlocked. You pushed the door open, not having anticipated seeing Lando sitting on the couch and leaning forward as he scrolled through his laptop that was perched on the coffee table. He heard you walk in, heard you put your bag on the counter, heard you slide your shoes off and clear your throat, but he didn’t look up once.

Lando simply turned the laptop around on the table so the screen was facing you instead. On the screen was a tweet, or maybe it was a photo from Instagram, you were standing too far away to tell the source but you could make out the image of you and Carlos.

More specifically, the image of you holding your hand against Carlos’ cheek and giving him the smile that was usually reserved for Lando. One he hadn’t seen in almost two weeks.

He clicked on the trackpad and the next one appeared. Much more intimate than the last as this was the photo that gave Lando a heart attack. He didn’t expect to open his phone after the media pen interview and see pictures of his girlfriend about to kiss his best friend.

You didn’t regret what you did, that little act. You didn’t actually do anything except plant an idea in Lando’s head.

“What do you want me to say?” You asked, gesturing to the laptop. You took a few, horribly slow, steps forward. You were nervous about how this conversation would go, but you knew how to mask your emotions enough and as Lando stood up, eyeing you over, you didn’t buckle under the weight of his gaze.

He scratched his chin, his overgrown stubble, clicking his tongue against the back of his teeth.

You expected him to snap. To say something about the facial hair, about the photos, about Carlos. You hadn’t seen each other in weeks and you assumed that the first conversation you had would be a fight, because, let’s face it, you were both dramatic and immature.

But you didn’t expect his shoulders to drop and for his stare to go from cold to distant as he opened his mouth and asked a question that broke you the way nothing else in your life ever could.

“Do you love me?”

It caught you by surprise, “Do I-” You took a few steps forward, the wall you had up had now fallen and all you wanted to do was reach for him. “Why are you even asking that? Of course I love you. You know I love you.”

“So then why?” He asked, referring to the photos.

You exhaled a breath before responding, “Because you were making a big deal out of that stupid comment, Lando.”

He stepped forward too, closing the gap between you inch by inch, “I made the appropriate amount of deal over seeing my girlfriend flirt with someone on social media.”

He hadn’t raised his voice, not yet. It seemed that you both wanted to avoid that. You weren’t ones to yell at each other, you argued, yes, but your voices never echoed off the walls. 

And you didn’t want to yell, not when you knew what this was really about.

Your lips parted, but you barely got a thought out, “Lando-”

“He still has feelings for you.” He stated, as if Carlos had told him that himself. “He still likes you and I know- I know you guys are friends, I can’t tell you not to be friends but I don’t like the way he looks at you. I don’t like that you are blissfully unaware that he’s into you, that he’s-”

“No, you know what I don’t like?” You cut him off sharply. “I don’t like that this is clearly something that’s bothering you and instead of talking about it to me from the beginning, you let it simmer and focus on things like comments and facial hair and being childish, Lando.” 

When you stepped forward, Lando thought you were about to lose it on him. Instead, you lifted your hands to cup beneath his jaw, your thumbs gently tracing small circles on his cheek and Lando could finally breathe because this was the first time in days he was feeling your touch and even though things were strange between you, your hands holding his face in font of yours felt right.

“You need to talk to me about these things,” you told him. “If something’s eating at you like this. How was I supposed to know this was so much bigger than a stupid fucking moustache?”

Lando laughed at your question, because it really was insane when he thought about it. He should have told you about his distrust with Carlos instead of letting his frustration boil up.

“Lando, I love you,” you whispered with a soft chuckle. “I love everything about you, everything that matters. Your heart, your soul, the way you treat people, your sense of humour, the way I can trust you with absolutely everything, how you managed to win over my entire family and for fucks sakes, yes, I absolutely hate your facial hair but have you ever stopped and thought about why?” 

Of course he hadn’t. Lando acted first and thought later.

He hesitated before asking, “Why?”

The corners of your mouth turned upwards, your eyes darting down to his lips as you pulled him closer, his hands finding your waist. 

You lips hovered over his, teasing him with a ghost of a kiss, something just within his reach but when he tried to connect your lips you kept pulling back, leaving him hanging.

“Because it itches.”

Lando pulled his head back, still in your grasp but no longer trying to kiss you as confusion flashed over his features instead.

“Itches?”

“Itches,” you repeated with a slow nod. “I don’t like your facial hair-” you ran your thumb over his chin and the stubble he had grown out. “-because when you go down on me, it. Itches.”

Lando opened his mouth, only to close it promptly while your words sunk in. Of course that had never crossed his mind, that the feeling of his facial hair rubbing against the inside of your thighs, near your folds, would cause displeasure. 

“And I’m sorry about the incident with Carlos,” you continued on, knowing you had to address it. “I’m not making excuses but if you are acting childish, I- in return -will also act childish. If I had known it was about more than facial hair, I wouldn’t have caused such a scene but god, Lando, I don’t give a shit about Carlos growing out a beard or a moustache because it’s not his lips on me. It’s not him eating me out.”

Lando cleared his throat, not surprised that you were so blunt with your choice of words. You always were. He was surprised, though, when you stepped away from him and turned around, leaving him a little speechless as you walked towards the bedroom.

Before stepping through the door frame, you glanced over your shoulder and raised your eyebrows at him, “Are you just going to stand there?”

That got him moving. He reached for the hem of his shirt and pulled it off as he followed your footsteps, discarding the top behind him. When his arms slid around your waist, pulling your back into his chest, you melted into his hold.

You craned your neck, giving him more than enough access to press his lips to your skin. Your hands covered his as the quietest moan followed a strained exhale. He trailed his lips upwards, but refrained from going further, lifting his head up after just a few seconds.

You turned and looked at him, spotting that stupid grin on his face. 

He nudged you towards the bed, “Get comfy, my love, I need to take care of something first.”

You didn’t need to question what he had to take care of. He planted a kiss on your cheek and retreated towards the bathroom. Doing what he said, you climbed atop the bed and you as well, had a stupid grin on your face when you overheard the dull sound of an electric razor trailing in from the hallway.

And god was it music to your ears.

[sunny44]

What about us?

Pairing: Lewis Hamilton x ex!Reader

Warnings: mentions of loneliness, sadness, breakup, co-parenting and maybe more

Summary: Where Lewis hasn't been himself lately.

Next Chapter

Lewis and I met when I was working in the media department at Mercedes, I wouldn't say we fell in love at first, but he was definitely the guy I loved most in my life.

But unfortunately not everything we love stays in our lives forever.

We dated for 3 years and then when 2021 came, he was so devastated that the title was taken away from him that our relationship didn’t last.

He was so out of himself that u didn’t recognized him anymore, I seem like the man I love was taken away from me when he lost that day.

So that when we decided to go in separated ways.

But 3 months after i found out that u was pregnant with our daughter and we had to get our path together again. He said to me the day I told him about my pregnancy that I saved him for making the stupidest mistake of his life because he was about to retire from formula 1.

The internet already new that we weren’t together anymore but they just discovered my pregnancy when he posted about it.

We obviously will have a connection for the rest of our lives and I am extremely happy that we manage to be in good terms or co-parenting would have been harder.

I would be lying if I said it was easy because it wasn’t, the fact that we are separated makes Harley's schedule and routine harder than would be if we were together.

Today is Harley’s 3th birthday and I’m was going crazy with everything, she wanted a formula 1 themed party and it was all thanks to her father who got her addicted to the sport.

So here I was running around my apartment to decorate everything while she was with Sebastian and his wife.

Kika is here with Pierre and the other boys helping me with the party.

Lately he was kind of absent, he obviously came to see Harley but when I tried to talk to him, Lewis answered as little as possible and my messages he didn't even answer.

I had been trying to get him to help me with her birthday but now I was worried that he wouldn't come.

I hope he is only busy now in the afternoon because I will kill him if he doesn't show up.

We live in Monaco so some of the drivers came since they are all passionate about Harley.

This includes George, Pierre, Sebastian, Charles, Carlos, Daniel, Max and Lando.

Max and Lewis were not biggest fans of each other, far from it, but Benjamin his son was best friends with Harley so we met occasionally. And above all they treated each other with respect so we had an acceptable relationship for the sake of our children.

And Lewis hated that Harley adored Uncle Max.

The party had been going on for two hours and nothing came of him, I didn't know whether to be worried or angry.

"Mommy, where's Daddy?"

"I don't know my love, he should be here soon." She agrees a little discouraged but runs to where Ben and Max were.

"Anthony do you know where Lewis is?" I asked his father who was talking to my parents.

"I don't know darling, he said he would be a little late but he would come." I sighed in frustration. "I'll try to call him."

"Thank you."

He left to try to call his son and I went off to try to concentrate on distracting Harley with play.

…

He appeared in the middle of the party and I sighed with relief when I saw him coming through the door with Angela with him, Harley ran up to her father and I was happy to see her smile.

"How nice of you to come." I hugged Angela and she smiled.

"You've done well with the decorations." She said and I thanked her. "Can I talk to you? I want to take advantage of the fact that he's distracted by her."

I looked at the two of them and Harley was talking non-stop and he was listening attentively.

"Sure." We went into the kitchen where no one was around. "Is everything all right?"

"I'm not sure, I'm a bit worried about him."

"What happened?"

"I arrived at his apartment today and everything was a mess and he was asleep on the sofa." I was surprised because he rarely slept during the day and his apartment was always spotless. "I tried to talk to him but you know how he is, Lewis doesn't open up easily but he ended up saying that he wasn't happy and that he missed you both a lot."

"But we're always here."

"I think he misses a family." I sighed because I understood his feeling. "You know that he loves you both more than anything in the world and I remember when you were together he was planning to marry you, have children and have you live in a more secluded house so that you wouldn't be swallowed up by the media but from one moment to the next his plan became just a dream."

"I understand."

"And the only thing that's kept him going over the last few years is that little girl and the fact that you're her mother because that's what's kept you in his life. But he hasn't been the same for a while."

"I've noticed that he's been acting strange lately, he doesn't talk to me directly and avoids me whenever he can."

"Because he knows that you know him like the back of your hand and that you would know what was wrong with him." She takes my hand. "I'm not telling you this because I want you to feel guilty or anything, but I wanted to ask you to talk to him and try to help him in any way you can."

"All right, I'll talk to him after the party."

...

I said goodbye to the last few people and the only ones that were still around was Max, Ben and Lewis

"Buddy it's about time we go home." He says trying to talk the boy off the trampoline.

"Not yet Daddy, wait a little longer." He says short of breath from jumping around.

"If you don't mind I can take him to your apartment later."

"All right, thanks." He said goodbye and went home.

They kept jumping on the trampoline while Lewis was inside grabbing the trash.

After 10 minutes Bem said he was tired and i asked Lewis to watch Harley while I take him to his father and when I came back I could hear them in her room.

"I've missed you so much, Daddy." She says, already lying on her bed.

"I missed you too baby bear." She smiles tiredly and closes her eyes. He kisses her forehead and stays there for a few more minutes until he sees that she's asleep.

"Hey." He smiles as soon as he sees me outside her room. "I'm sorry I couldn't help, I got caught up with some work stuff."

He was lying but I knew it was juts for me not to worry about him.

"It's okay, I sorted it out." He smiled and went back into the living room. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"Maybe because I know you better than you think." He sighs. "You don't have to tell me what it is, but I want you to know that I care about you."

"It's just that everything's been a bit too much lately."

"What do you mean?"

"The constant pressure at work, the media, the fact that I'm not there for you two every day. Everything." He turns to me. "I just don't know how much I can take anymore."

"Lewis..."

"I miss you, and I miss us, I miss Harley and this feeling that I'm good at what I do has been haunting me."

"But you are good."

"Apparently not so much because I can't even stand on the podium." I sighed. "I don't expect you to understand but I don't think I want to do this anymore."

"What do you want to do then?" He looks at me. "You know that Harley and I don't care if you're a driver or not, we care about you too much to worry about whether you're still in Formula 1 or not."

"It's just that I've lived this for so long that I just wish I could be with you every day without worrying about having to catch a flight to the other side of the world."

"I understand and I'll support you in whatever you decide.

"Thank you." I sat down on the sofa and nudged him to sit next to me, which he did, resting his head on my shoulder. "You know I love you, don't you?"

"I know, I love you too."

"But I love you in a way that..."

"I know, and I love you the same way." He looks at me. "I understood what you meant from the start."

"And what does that mean for us?"

"I don't know but we don't need to find out today, we have plenty of time." He smiles and we lie down on the sofa.

Bonus scene!

Yourusername instagram post

Liked by @lewishamilton, @susiewolf, @cherlesleclerc and others 293629

@yourusername I still can believe my baby is turning 3 years old today.

I’m so happy that I’m your mama and that I’m able to watch you grow and turn into this beautiful little girl.

I can’t imagine my life without you and I’m grateful for having you in my life.

Thank you @lewishamilton for making me a mama and for giving me the best gift anyone could ever give me.

Happy birthday sweet girl, mama loves you so much 🩵.

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Guys I have so many ideias for another chapters of Lewis being Harleys dad so if you guys want to read the next chapters let me know so I’ll tag you guys.

[valyrfia]

your take on lando is so interesting and by far the most nuanced view of him I’ve seen. I think’s it clear that he needs help managing his emotions bc some of things he says and done are baffling and the latest thing of him liking criticism proves it. he doesn’t have that champion mentality (or just seem to be in a good headspace) and a lot of that can be traced backed to McLaren. He messes up his starts every time and that could be linked with a mental barrier but ig no at McLaren cares enough to look into that???Like that’s your driver and your wdc you’re washing down the drain.

but I can’t be too suprised, bc when ppl talk about lando mh McLaren covers their ears and say Lalala can’t hear you (unless yk it benefits them)

I think I retain an enormous amount of empathy for him because prior to this year he was one of my favourites. I think he started acting strange and immature and there was this initial huge backlash but this weekend has kind of made me see things more clearly, between his actions, his words to media, how McLaren handle him, and his driving. And he really is a victim of his environment.

He IS an incredibly good driver. Before you all boo me: sure he's nowhere near Max who's currently in another league, nor is he really near Charles who would be in this championship instead of Lando if not for Ferrari shitting the bed midseason. Lando is however, on par with George, and currently probably better than Carlos and Oscar. I would happily call him the third best driver on the grid at the moment. He however, does have a problem with starts, that's just a fact. As you said anon, it's more than just experience at this point there is obviously some sort of mental block there–he's clearly going into these starts expecting to lose places. But again, like you said, McLaren obviously don't care enough to look into that. Other things this weekend just made me notice: him snapping at a journalist is not and has never been normal behaviour for him, for example, begging McLaren for that switch in the sprint and immediately catastrophising that they won't do it (pressing the radio button immediately to panic and say "I thought we talked about this") is another example of just, slightly abnormal behaviour. That coupled with his internet lurking (he liked an edit of Max a week back, and is now obviously reading his comments) paints a picture I'm not sure I like. I'm never going to assume anything, but considering he's talked about struggling with mental health in the past, I can't help but be a little uneasy on his behalf.

All of the above becomes especially true if we consider McLaren and the case of Daniel Ricciardo. As much as they love to position themselves as the champions in the sport of mental health, the whole Daniel thing remains a worrying incident they've tried their best to sweep under the rug–he never recovered his mentality in that team and instead of working with him the team were perfectly happy to throw him to one side with little regard to prioritise Lando instead. I can't help but feel with a certain sinking that this is what they plan to do with Lando and Oscar, if Lando doesn't win the championship next year. The problem is, Lando is a lot younger than Daniel was, with a lot more career ahead of him and theoretically, a much higher ceiling to reach–yet McLaren seem perfectly happy to not put any development into Lando to help him reach that ceiling. Just like some drivers need developing in the wet, or the dry, or high downforce, or reaction times, some drivers need developing in their mentality. And it is McLaren's job to recognise this if the driver doesn't recognise it in themselves, and tell them what they need to go work on. This should have been something that was flagged as a development area for Lando way before this season, even as far back as 2021 it was apparent and yet McLaren have done nothing to help him and seem happier to just, leave him out to dry.

McLaren is the true evil here and for all their attempts to appeal to a younger demographic and impassioned defences of their morality and mental health being important–I think they've proven that they would rather take the easy road than the right one, even if the right one could yield more results. Oscar struggles with other things that Lando doesn't struggle with ie. tyre management, quali but I think they will repeat their pattern of rather than developing a driver they want to discard an extremely good one in the fruitless search of a generational talent. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think its impossible that instead of taking responsibility for losing the WDC this year (because make no mistake, this is mostly their fault–from a strategy point of view to how they've managed their drivers to refusing to give Lando the support he needs until its too late) they will just try and shift the blame and indirectly pin the failure of this year on Lando in order to try and match public sentiment. Ultimately, Lando has been failed by his team and his environment more than anything and even though I'm happy this championship has (deservedly) gone to Max, I can't help but feel that Lando was not given a fighting chance by his team.

[bellewintersroe]

Max Verstappen X HornerDaughter!

Part 6- here’s the LINK to part 5. Thank you for all your support! Only a small chapter, but 100% more coming, just you wait… When Red Bull fail to establish their dominance in Singapore, it seems nobody can get off of Max’s back, despite the fact he’s happy for Carlos and the McLaren boys on the podium. All the doubting gets to his head and in the end there’s only one person he turns to for support. Leni secretly freaks when she realises her and Max keep getting closer… Taglist: @ironmaiden1313 @callsignwidow @fangirl125reader @norassimpingzone @roseseraj @eugene-emt-roe @copper-boom @its-elias-world @cassiopeiia24

“But is Max Verstappen really happy for Carlos Sainz, or is that just a cover up?”

“Max- Max how do you feel? Should it have been you up on the podium today?”

“Max how does it feel that the Red Bull dominance has been broken?!”

“We’re sensing some tension lingering around Max Verstappen today in Singapore after he takes 5th place. It was an astonishing race for Carlos, we can’t quite say the same about the man who has been dominating the 2023 season!”

Poor Max. It was no wonder the poor guy just wanted to get out of the media’s eye. He was so happy for his friends on the podium, he was still confident and self-assured, but the media kept portraying him to be some kind of villain that was spiteful for his own close friends. Even Checo, the media harassed to shit, but Max seemed to take the brunt of it.

No matter how happy he was, it wasn’t enough for the press who constantly accused him of being a brat, or pissed off about the race. I was positive there was nothing Max could do to please them, so when he headed back to his hotel in peace, I was disappointed, but not so surprised.

Me on the other hand, after four drinks in I’d twisted my ankle and ended up limping back to my room, the kind receptionist from downstairs offering me an icepack. It was pretty boring sitting alone in my room when everybody else was out, even my whole family was somewhere but I’d drunken too much too quickly and paid for it soon after.

That’s when I thought of Max. He too was in his room, probably asleep after such an exhausting day. In my tipsy mind I lifted my phone up, glancing through our previous texts. I’d not responded to his last message which was just a simple not explanation of why the RB’s didn’t work so well on specific types of circuits. I’d seen him in person and felt too awkward to text when we were in the same proximity.

Snapping a picture of the ice pack over my ankle I sent him a bunch of pissed off emojis, feeling playful.

Leni: don’t drink Prosecco it fucks you over It wasn’t so long later when Max actually responded. I was surprised it was so quick, but god- I wanted him so bad. I felt like having him, especially now, so soon after a break up would be a little sour for everybody around us, never mind that my own dad was his team principle.

Max: wtf Leni how did you manage that, are you ok?

Leni: hahahaha don’t even ask I’m good, are you?

Max: yeah just pissed off with all the media today. I don’t want to see a single person else. I cringed at his words. Yikes. That was my invite gone. Rereading my messaged to make sure they made sense, I sent a simple message of; Leni: I don’t blame you

Max took a while to respond after that. I was actually falling asleep, my eyes feeling heavy until the buzzing of my phone aroused me quicker than I could process.

Max: unless you wanna come chill with for a while “Oh, Max. I don’t know how you deal with them. They make it out like you’re gonna start a war with Carlos just because you didn’t get a podium, once.” I sat on the edge of his bed, continuing to hold the ice pack to my ankle.

“Exactly, and I don’t know why!” He paced from one end of the room to the other. “They like drama.” I pointed out.

“True, but…” Max plopped himself on the hotel bed. “I feel fine for Japan, I’m confident, but when you’ve got millions of people doubting you it gets kinda irritating.” I winced slightly at his words. Max usually didn’t be so open about his feelings with this side of the media, I knew truthfully he never really give two shits what they thought, but when people were constantly at him I was positive he must’ve found it jarring.

“You’ve also got millions supporting you again.” I responded as he smiled gently. “Yeah. I know that.” His voice was gentle, grateful, he sounded humble. It was a side to hum media didn’t like to show, especially in drive to survive.

“I know I will be.” I shrugged, glancing over to see him smiling down to his sweats. It was a miracle to see him something other than jeans. “Thanks, Leni.”

“Or maybe I’ll switch teams completely and start going to the Ferrari garage.” Max threw a pillow at me in response.

“Dick.” I snickered, scooting further up onto the bed to rest against the headboard, besides Max. There was still possibly the largest gap between us that I’d ever witnessed.

“Could you imagine what my dad would say?”

“I don’t think he’d be too happy.” Max smirked. “Neither would I.”

“Really?” I gazed over his expression. He was still smiling, indicating he couldn’t have been too serious. “Yeah, I mean, you’re part of our team. If you’re not there it would be weird.”

Hours passed and soon we’d both retired under the covers, watching the TV in a comfortable silence. The alcohol that once streamed through my body had fallen stagnant and I was feeling more nervous than when I initially arrived into Max’s room. I stole a glance at him, his eyelids were heavy as he watched the movie, something I hadn’t paid attention to in a good hour.

The gap between us had closed slightly, and I felt myself overthinking more and more about how soon it was to be in this position with him. Friends do this, right? As long as there was no physical contact, as bad as I wanted it, it would be fine.

So the minute I felt Max’s hand brush against the bare skin of my elbow I felt myself completely freak, fidgeting my legs and accidentally kicking my bad ankle. “Ow, fuck. I kicked myself.” I pushed myself up, pretending to be completely and utterly blind to how close we were laid previously.

“Are you ok?” Max too, pushed himself up. I pushed the covers off me and glanced at my slightly swollen ankle. “I’m fine, just… hurt.” I winced, lowering it off the side of the bed.

“Oh- you can stay… if you want.” Max muttered, sounding a little nervous. My stomach grew butterflies, my heart felt like it exploded and as badly as I wanted to say yes and jump on him- something was stopping me.

“It’s okay. I better go to bed, thank you though.”

“Want me to walk you back?”

“30 seconds down the hall?” I giggled as he shrugged like it was obvious. I realised how rude that sounded, to turn down his offer. “It’s okay, thank you though, Max. I would stay but Blue is there- and if I don’t come back, you know, it looks a little…”

“I get it. Then they all start asking questions.” Max agreed as I offered him another smile. “Yeah. Exactly.” I turned my head a way, hesitating to actually turn around and leave. Max stood besides me at the door and to avoid any other form of intimate interaction I avoided eye contact at all cost.

By the time I’d got back to my bedroom I’d well and truly wanted to top myself. Well done Leni, well fucking done. That could have been one of the most finest moments of my life, not!

[formulatrash]

What Hot Hatch* Should Every F1 Driver Have? Pt 1

*some of these cars are not technically hot hatches but they are, spiritually, hot hatches to ME and also car genres are meaningless shut up

Unfortunately because I have problems I allowed the group chat to commission me into writing this. I think you will be able to see the point where I really unleashed the thoughts that probably ought to be kept inside. Maybe I will keep Pt 2 to myself.

Max Verstappen - Honda Civic Type R This was tricky because we know the grid's resident cat dad is actually an SUV girly off the track. But he's also a brand loyalist and I'm fairly sure literally has had one of these as his factory car so it checks out that a car notorious for having a better engine than it did chassis would fit the Red Bull post-Newey meltdown. And if you need to go round a bunch of roundabouts there's really almost nothing rivalled to a Civic Type R.

Lewis Hamilton - og Nissan Leaf Yes, Lewis has never had any association to the Renault-Nissan alliance in his life but whatever he's leaving Mercedes. Think he's sort of forgotten about this but he did commit to only driving electric road cars awhile back and I will defend the Nissan Leaf with my LIFE as one of the most fun cars to drive. Nearly said the NISMO Leaf but actually the time I had a go in one of them it was insanely overbearing in a way someone used to having Bono to whine to wouldn't appreciate. The stripped down, basic, original is more than enough to fuck about in a multistory car park and I'm confident Lewis would immediately know what to do with it when next to a BMW at traffic lights.

George Russell - Williams Renault Clio This was actually what started it because I was introducing my beautiful wife to the groupchat and then considering which driver should throw some pocket money at it. Leaving aside the fact that if I was that rich there'd be a lockup in Monte Carlo full of the shittest mid-90s three-doors you've ever seen in your life, this car is perfect for George. It's got a legitimate heritage connection and it's a proper piece, something to look after. There's even matching sweaters for him and Carmen to wear in a sponsored post. And when he gets that look in his eye and starts clenching his jaw too much it's extremely good for doing donuts outside Carrefour.

Sergio Perez - Toyota GR Yaris No, I know he drives for a Honda works team but if they haven't fired him yet they'll probably overlook this. The GR Yaris is a bit of a North American legend because you can legally only get it in Mexico - they're not obtainable in the US. So this is an understated big dick move and maybe what Checo needs is to have a little obnoxious fun, y'know?

Charles Leclerc - Sbarro Super Eight Oh, Charles. Tied up in scarlet. In order to maintain his Maranello-chained brand suffering nothing but Ferrari's finest horsies could do but they're not really in the business of making mean little things to hoon. Unless you consider the driver academy, I guess. Anyway - the Sbarro Super Eight is a Ferrari 308 V8 engine in the body of the kind of vehicle you can get insured on under the age of 25. It has too much (260) horsepower, it's a little silly and deeply selfconscious. And like il predestinato there is only one in the whole world.

Carlos Sainz Jnr - VW Golf This isn't even a statement about what car he should have, this is a car he does have. Mr Sainz and I may disagree about many things but his opinion that the VW Golf is the ultimate road vehicle is absolutely correct. Anyone who's seen the excruciating DTS segment where he tries to take a McLaren to M&S for a disappointing taco mix purchase will understand why Carlos held on to his Golf, a much better vehicle for picking up some bits. In the words of the man himself: "No Golf, no party"

Lando Norris - Lancia Delta Integrale Mk 2 "la Perla" Anyone with my Instagram recommendations will know in quite some alarming detail which Monegasque petrol station Lando uses to fill up his collection of sports cars. Weird fan paparazzi behaviour aside, the man likes buying unique cars and clearly isn't above something quirky given the Fiat Jolly. The Delta Integrale "la Perla" 1) sounds a bit like a sex toy in a way I think he'd find amusing, 2) is rare, with a totally impractical pearlescent white paint job for something ostensibly intended to hoon. It's expensive, semi-unique (allegedly only a few hundred were made) and a little bit silly, with plenty of rally-proven power and drive to muck about with.

Oscar Piastri - Honda City Turbo Oscar seems like the kind of guy who doesn't care too much about appearances. Not in the sense he looks bad - he very clearly does not - but like, lot of rumpled shirts in his wardrobe he's not bothered about ironing, y'know. So it fits that he'd need a hot hatch that does the job more than it's about aesthetic. The things I know about Oscar are that he likes to spend time with his girlfriend and he learned Japanese at school so I'm diagnosing him with JDM import disease and making sure there's a passenger seat. The Honda City Turbo is a teeny weeny little car that only makes its way into being a hot hatch not a kei car because of the totally unnecessary powertrain. And what a fucking powertrain, straight from the Mugen division into the least likely chassis imaginable. Yes, the car is not the most ostentatious looking thing but it's technically interesting and sick as hell so whatever.

Zhou Guanyu - Renault Twingo 133 Silverstone edition Zhou is a man of immense taste and style. He has a great little cat. He is a national icon in his home country and, frankly, any other. He has spent a lot of his life in Sheffield. Aside from this making him basically an idealised form of bloke, I think this means I can entrust him with the Twingo. Not, it's got to be said, overpowered as a car in its base model (my Mk1 Twingo could boast a 0-62 measured in minutes) Renault have never been able to resist souping it up a bit and for some unlikely series of reasons made a sport version to tie into the 2011 British Grand Prix. I don't even want to know why, now, it's better that it stays a mystery. Anyway, this is a Twingo with unnecessary horsepower and live data feeds the Mk1 would probably have a misfire even considering. It's quirky, comes with plenty of backstory and y'know. Whomst amongst us hasn't been screwed around with by Renault a bit in the past?

Valtteri Bottas - the Suzuki Jimny The Jimny is a car of greats. Deceptively small, it works perfectly in a city or if you need to drive up a mountain to get to a gravel course. loads of room at the back for a bike rack. It's practical, a little odd-looking in a charming way and everyone's delighted every time they see one. You can definitely get your ass out in this vehicle. Is it a hot hatch? Probably not but you don't get to define how the Jimny lives its life.

[drivestraight]

hi!!!!

so, obviously im here to talk about eat them alive cause i genuinely haven’t been this insane about a fic since all to play for was published. I decided to read it yesterday night as a lil treat because I love your writing, even though I was very much weary of the landoscar tag (i unfortunately do not get the hype, but ill try anything once 🤷🏼‍♀️). WELL. little did I know that the landoscar tag would be the LEAST of my worries.

im a firm believer that oscar piastri is, in fact, just as batshit crazy as any of them and boy did you do that justice!!! the oscar pov? Sensational, literally everything I wanted AND more: I often feel like in fics people get tricked by his personality and tend to make him very flat, gray and boring, but you wrote him exactly how I wanted to see him. A very calculating person who also feels things deeply, ruthless to the point of almost being cruel, but never robotic or cold.

now, I don’t particularly care for Lando irl. he just doesn’t do it for me but MAN……..the absolute lando torturefest this fic was made me ACHE. the fact that he just couldn’t make himself stop from falling for oscar despite still being INSANELY bitter about the whole abu dhabi situation and his consequent lost championship. the way he just kept IGNORING every kind of hint that the thing with oscar was going to end in tragedy for him!!!!!!! (maxf made me insane. him being right about oscar from the get to and yet still having to watch as the mother of all psychological tortures unfolded cause lando was a goner. OUGH)

Max……oh Max. I love how you can just tell he’s your favourite from the way you write him (this is a compliment, not at all some kind of dig btw). He’s always the catalyst, willing or not, and somehow his presence just trickles down into every other character’s story. Haunting The Narrative personified. Oscar taking his place in rbr just to go apeshit and be compared to mad max. Max playing involuntary mind games on lando with his team radio, triggering the most INSANE lando meltdown ever. I was PRAYING for a maxcar happy ending and you gave it to me!!!!!

Now, a list of moments where I had to put my phone down and stare at the wall for a minute:

- oscar not giving position back in Abu Dhabi. Did I see it coming? Yes. Did it make me gasp in shock either way? Also yes.

- the whole entirety of the landoscar portion of this story. the fact that the tenderness between them was built on NOT acknowledging all the terrible things they were doing to each other in the car. the fact that they just wanted to be sweet and loving and caring but couldn’t fight against the Big Bad Championship Issue and we’re doomed from the start.

- Oscar trying to work up the courage to tell lando he was gonna leave mclaren for redbull and lando being like. Hey, don’t worry, I know. I do too. I WAS GOING INSANE HERE. what if I loved you and you were about to betray me.

- the whole golf scene between zak and oscar. the way my heart dropped when I realised zak wanted to push lando out of the team, their golden boy from the start, cause he just didn’t think he had that dog in him and that he would get chewed up and spit out by oscar in a matter of years. OSCAR ACCEPTING RBR’S OFFER AS THE ULTIMATE ACT OF LOVE TOWARDS LANDO.

- somehow it didnt click in my head right away what Alex going to mclaren meant. AND THEN. carlos, OH RIGHT CARLOS. him defending against lando cause he thought Lando knew, him being stuck in williams despite the whole carlando narrative and the fact that he was, allegedly, such a big part in the development of mclaren. what the hell

- the scene between oscar and lando. You know the one. Oscar being like: you are too emotional that’s why nobody told you I was leaving!!!!!! and lando responding with: no I am not!!!!!!! with tears in his eyes. SENSATIONAL. “It’s not my fault you made up this whole fantasy in your head that we were together, and we were in love.” right. Okay. 👍🏼 im so fine about this actually.

- retired max and seb in rbr’s garage made me bawl for some reason. maybe it’s me being a seb fucker, but the mental image of the two rbr’a golden boys together is terrible in the best way.

- the scene between daniel, max and oscar. HUH. I loved all the hints at the absolute nuclear bomb that was maxiel but without making the story about it, chefs kiss (that’s exactly what maxiel is all about imo! the what if’s and the heartache and the wrong timing of it all. maxiel IS not about fulfilment and happiness baby)

Honourable mention: charles being oblivious to the chaos and having an identity crisis trying to muster up the courage to buy lube. delicious

To wrap this infinite rant up, I just wanted to tell you that you truly do have a special talent in writing and you’re probably the only author whose fics I will always read, despite pairings or plot lines. This fic in particular was VERY well-crafted and I compliment both you and lia for it; your minds work in ways that align very well with my taste, and thank god for that tbh! Hope you have a great day and just know that I’ll be thinking about this fic for a very long time. 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

uno reverse - an infinite response below the cut ❤️

in a way, this might be the closest thing i get to a fic commentary, so thank you for the detailed ask:

the variety of people who came into this For the landoscar tag vs those who were hesitant about the landoscar tag... what a beautiful collection of people...

re: oscar pov, thank you so much! one thing i really love about oscar is like. how much he pushes back IRL about how people view him as unemotional except. literally everyone around him, mark, andrea, and even his mom are like - yeah oscar's so unflappable and calm at all times. whereas to oscar he's time and time again been like. i do get emotional i just don't show it, etc. so i'm happy that you liked this characterization of him :) calculating but feels things deeply, ruthless for a purpose, casually cruel but only in pursuit of some greater goal, but not robotic or cold. yeah !!!!

even though maybe this fic might've tricked some people... don't get me wrong... i'm a massive landolover... no1 landolover on the planet... aka i love putting him through situations... and yeah. he fell hard for oscar. So So Hard. he fell and he fell hard and Max (f) saw it and was like. i can't fucking sit and watch you break your own heart. i can't do it. i can't watch you do it. and lando knew all that and knew better but still, he took the risk and it blew up in his face. for me lando in this fic was the most human because it's like. the only reason why maxcar got each other so well/worked so well is because they were so willing to sacrifice everything else in their lives, and other people, for what they wanted, without any sort of contrition. that sort of singleminded abandon/focus/dedication to one thing, racing etc., is just, like - this isn't to say that the other drivers don't have that same want or dedication, but the really interesting point i was trying to get across was - how much are you really willing to sacrifice. how much are you willing to give up, what other parts of your life are you willing to be flippant about. you can't put all of your care and effort into one thing without forsaking some other parts. for oscar, the parts he was letting go of/giving up was lando, etc.

and yeah it was like. lando saw all the signs in monza, zandvoort, etc. but he just - ignored it. when you have these little hints that don't fit into your worldview, it's easy to ignore how they fit into the puzzle, it's hard to see things you're not looking for even if they're right under your nose. besides, oscar had a contract. besides, to lando, oscar loved him. and even if oscar did love him, which he did, it just wasn't in a way that lando could understand.

and yeah... the max f of it all... he was right about it from the start. he knew how the story would end and he was right in the end, but no matter how much you care and no matter how much you know, you can't really control how other people act. he told lando again and again that oscar would fuck him over in the end. [not in the fic... just in my mind... and also in my notes lmao]. and lando ignoring everything he said re: the fights/fall outs between them, is what led max to be like - yeah, fuck this. i'm not watching you break your own heart. [but then he goes and picks up the pieces post-zandvoort, obviously... the nortrell of it all...]

to finish off the triangulation - max! he really is my favorite <3 it comes out in everything i write ls;jdflksajdf he really was the catalyst for this whole fic like. so much of what happened between landoscar, in a way, was kind of a direct consequence of max, even in the smallest ways. he retired, so oscar left mclaren. he told the media in zandvoort, so we got that terrible fallout. he might not have been the main character in the real story, but he was a catalyst. he haunted the narrative. even retired, in 2026, everyone still thinks about him, everyone still talks about him re: sky sports commentators. but in the end, he was really just - this guy who's retired, with his cats in monaco, playing iracing and minecraft on stream, and fucking oscar in between, etc. something about maxcar who just - are untouchable only because of their perceived lack of care, when truly, they are both people who deeply, deeply care - but only about certain things. only about the things that matter.

re: oscar not giving the place back. One of the very first plot points of the fic. very lovely and special to me. an eye for an eye. but not something malicious, not something done out of revenge. just - this is how it's going to be, so i'll return it in full measure. it wasn't that deep. really, oscar just did it for himself

re: landoscar. yeah... it was the not talking about things. it was the fact that they were able to be happy and in love only during the summer break, when nothing else mattered. but in the end it always comes back to the racing...

re: WHAT IF I LOVED YOU AND YOU WERE ABOUT TO BETRAY ME... EXACTLY... lando was. so sure. that oscar was going to say i love you then.... he was so sure...

re: the golf scene. YEAHHHH. this was a really fun moment for me. it was why it was necessary for lando to not be doing so well before the summer break. yes he already lost a championship (2024), but it needed to be convincing, at least results wise, that zak would want to drop him. it's that sort of ruthless attitude, i feel like, where you hedge your bets and try to pick the right horse given the information you have. the point i was trying to make was that people started to see a future with oscar more than they did with lando. oscar just kept on driving - and he did well for it. but zak scared oscar off.

in the end, the thing was that oscar did care deeply about lando, enough that he'd leave the team. i think it was in part oscar leaving bc he knew that mclaren would never be His team/he wanted to make a team for himself, but it was primarily for lando's sake. in that moment, in summer 2025, he did it for lando. he wouldn't take that away from lando. he already took a championship from him - which he didn't feel sorry about, but he knew that that was what he did. and he was aware that he would probably break lando's heart. he was aware of all of this, but he knew that leaving was the only way out, and he needed an out. even worse than leaving, to oscar, was staying at mclaren and having them push lando out. someone has to leave first. this is a very old story. there is no other version of the story, etc.

re: carlos. yeah RIP carlos. anyway i've been asked about why alex. and really it was just like - oscar left because he knew there couldnt be 2 number one drivers at mclaren, so i needed a convincing no2, who was still pretty solid.

re: qatar. yeah... yeah... i was literally writing like. all of this fic. all of the 50k before it, to get to qatar (maybe an exaggeration because of course there were big moments before it that i was ultra jazzed about writing, re: silverstone, re: zandvoort, re: spa, but qatar was like, the BREAKING POINT, where all the emotions come out, finally, where it's the point of no return for oscar - where everything he'd been keeping inside, all of the reactionary emotions from people's vitriol over the course of 2 seasons, and being pushed over the edge by lando saying that if he won, it wouldn't be his, bringing the whole tabloid narrative of him being mark's revenge into play - where it all comes out, and oscar can't take any of it back).

and the fantasies. yeah. oscar saying that it was all a fantasy when. deep inside. he was also making one up in his head too, is the thing.

re: max and seb <3 red bull golden boys forever.

re: maxiel. yeah man. i feel like. idk. i feel like in the context of max and red bull, daniel will always be a part of it, and i'm glad you thought that despite (or because of) the scarcity of maxiel, the emotional impact was still significant. what ifs, heartache, and wrong timing. you get it.

re: charles. bro was just doing his own thing for all of 2025-2026. the charles side story is so funny to me. Maybe one day i'll write it in length. oscar literally was just like. idgaf abt ur crisis rn.

LASTLY - thank you so much! it's always a really big honor to me to hear that a lot of people read my fics even if it's not their preferred ship, and that they'll trust me to deliver a good story, and i'm really happy that people liked this one so much!

and ofc. Lia helped develop like the majority of this plot with me. this fic is just as much hers as it is mine. our neural link is like this 🤞

TO WRAP UP. im so happy you enjoyed the fic, and thank you so much for the kind ask <3

[mgu-h]

I love when he gets talking and then just keeps talking lmao, like they just have to prompt him and he will deliver a little monologue, e.g.

I didn't hold [Checo] up, I just had to cool my tires a bit more, and that just seemed to allow Oscar to get ahead of Checo, so yeah, no, I did my part today as a team player, and to come away with a first and a fourth was not what we're expecting today, but obviously a great result for the team. It put us on top as a constructor, and first time in 10 years that that's been the case, so a happy day for us as a team, of course for Oscar with a race win is even better, and for me to get fourth, like from 15th I don't think we're expecting it, from even halfway to the race I probably wasn't expecting it, because I had Carlos behind, Checo was behind, Max was just behind, and I hadn't even done my pit stop yet, so I was like, oh god, I'm not in that race for the top, but the pace was amazing, and the car really came alive at the end of the hard stint, and even the whole time on the mediums, and kind of went exactly how we wanted it to go, and even better than that, so yeah, good day.

and

I struggled to get past Alex for a long time, and that's a common thing, I mean Alex just doesn't make mistakes, and the Williams is always quite slippery in the straights, so Alex made my life tough for a lot of laps, and Max was behind me that whole time, and put me under a lot of pressure, but I could make the moves when I needed to, on the rest of the field, whether that was on Max, or the guys further behind, Bearman, and that's always good fun, so yeah, it was a fun race, I say from my side coming through, and always not knowing what to expect, and what we could achieve, so it was always a fun race like this, but yeah, good points. Fastest lap to get ahead of Max was important for me to kind of make me a bit happier after yesterday.

and

[Andrea] was not happy after last night, I was super unlucky. This was one of the most unfair things that I think has happened in a long time. I went off the track, yes, but then there was the yellow flag, and you can't see the flag, so everyone was talking about the white flag and all this nonsense. What they can't see is my dash, which had the big yellow lights on. So a lot of people love talking nonsense and stuff like that, but I had to lift and that took away my chances. So it was a shame, but it kind of made my race exciting today. So we were not happy as a team after last night because we knew we could have had two cars up there, and when you look at where Oscar finished today, we knew we could have had two cars right at the top. And that's what we love to see. So there's more potential. I don't think we're very happy with the weekend because we want perfection, and this weekend was not perfect, but when you look at today and how we executed today, I think everyone should be very happy.

and

It's not for me to decide [about papaya rules]. So I just keep doing my part. You know, I was quick all weekend. I've been very quick. I'm doing a good job, I feel, and I'm executing things well. I feel like I've been a little bit unlucky. and unfortunate, but that's how our racing is sometimes. And yeah, of course, I'm going to be a bit upset about things and not the happiest guy. I'm never normally the happiest guy anyway, but we're slowly catching, but we need more. But I think that can still come. You know, it's still a good amount of races to go. There's still sprint races to go. We're working well as a team, you know, even from like the part of helping Oscar to get the win today, this plays a big part in it all.

he just has things to say lol and i love it. his shorter, cutely passive aggressive answer to laura about the complaints he made to the team about max was great too, that he was "not complaining, just stating facts" lol that max was overtaking under VSC, which he "thought wasn't allowed but maybe i'm wrong" like catty lando is peak lando and it's good to see him 🧡

[the-offside-rule]

Carlos Sainz Jr (Scuderia Ferrari) - Christmas Trouble

Requested: yes

Prompt: Christmas Oneshot with Carlos

Warnings: not really

Carlos stretched in his bed and let out a groan. Christmas Day had arrived, the day his family decided to come over and visit him at his brand new home in Madrid. He turned to his right and lowered his arm, expecting an empty bed only to find his arm resting on the curves of a person lying beside him. His eyes opened. A woman. She squirmed as she felt his arm on her waist. She turned around so she was now facing the Spaniard and opened her eyes, initially smiling, only for that smile to turn to a frown. "Who are you?" the girl asked. "I could ask you the same." Carlos replied. "I asked first." Carlos looked down, seeing her in a red lingerie set. His eyebrow arched as it peaked his interest. She followed his line of vision and quickly covered up. "As I was saying, who are you?"

He snapped out of his dream land and came back to reality. "I'm Carlos and you're in my house so now it's your turn. Who are you?" She sat up. "Y/n. I'm visiting Madrid for Christmas." She rubbed her forehead. "Oh my god. My friend, she must be so worried about me." Carlos sat up and Eyed up the mirror at the bottom of his bed, seeing his reflection, sitting shirtless beside a girl in lingerie. His eyes lingered over to her reflection as she grabbed whatever shirt he must have been wearing the night before and pulled it over her. She noticed the mirror at the bottom fo the bed. "Isn't a mirror at the bottom of the bed some kind of sexual thing?" Carlos didn't expect that question. He rolled out of bed and stood up, pulling on his sweatpants. "No, mirrors on the ceiling are sexual. Mirrors at the bottom of beds are just normal."

There was a bit of a silence "Did we?" Carlos asked. "I don't even know but it looks like it." Carlos groaned and looked out the window. He saw a car pull up outside his house. His face dropped. "Oh shit." He muttered. "Okay, listen. You need to stay in here at all costs until I say." Carlos said, rushing out. Before Y/n could reply or have anything to say, Carlos was already gone. She sat on the bed, listening to indistinct spanish chattering and the occasional laugh here and there but truth be told, she was bored. So bored in fact, she ended up sleeping and thisis where it started to all go very, very wrong.

After a few hours of the Sainz family sat around the living room, sipping on wine and conversing about random things happening in one another's lives, they too grew in some way, bored. The chatter died down and they ran out of things to say and so, during the awkward silence, Carlos' mother excused herself to use the bathroom. Once she was gone, it was pure silence. Just the soft sound of his mothers feet moving around, then going up the stairs. It had been ages since Carlos awoke to his one night stand, leading to him completely forgetting she was even up in his room, so when he heard his mother go upstairs, he thought nothing of it.

"Ay dios mío!" Carlos heard his mother screeching. He furrowed his eyebrows. "Give me a minute. I'm going to check on her." Carlos scurried around, searching for his mother, only for his face to drop once he realised where she was, and with that, he remembered who was in his bed. He sprinted up the stairs, his feet bounding against the wooden platforms on the way up and practically skidding to a halt in his room. "Carlos? Who is this?" his mother asked. "Mama? Why are you in my room?!" Carlos shrieked. "Your bathroom wasn't working so I was going to use your bedroom one." Not long after that, the rest of his family joined them, looking as shocked as the mother. "So, who is this?" she questioned again. Y/n swallowed the lump in her throat. She was about to come clean when Carlos bet her to it. "My girlfriend." Carlos stammered. Everyone looked at him in disbelief. "You have a girlfriend?" his sister asked. Carlos nodded and gripped Y/n a little bit tighter. "We thought we could keep it a secret. We wanted some privacy." Y/n added. His mother looked at him in disbelief. "And her name?"

"Y/n." Carlos said, bringing her forward. Y/n out her hand out to shake his mother's hand, forcing a smile onto her face. "It's so lovely to meet you." She found her hand being taken. "Reyes. His mother." she replied, now smiling. "Carlos has told me so many things about you. All good, dont worry." She looked her up and down and gave a look of approval to Carlos. "Well we shouldn't keep her from changing her clothes so we'll go back to the living room." Carlos nodded and watched as his family left, letting out a sigh of relief. "Here, wear this." Carlos said handing her a jumper. "Girlfriend? Really?" Y/n whispered as she pulled the jumper over her. "What do you want me to say? That you're a one night stand?" Carlos asked. "I don't know but now I'm gonna have to be here a lot for your family to believe we are actually dating for your little lie to actually come across as your girlfriend."

"Just-" he paused and faced her. "look happy." Carlos and Y/n walked out, a smile on their faces, acting like a happy couple. "You two are very much cute." Blanca, who was Carlos' sister said. "Try not to scare her off just yet." Y/n sat down beside Carlos on the sofa, laughing nervously. Carlos curled his arm around her shoulders and held her closely to him. "So, gifts. Who's going to open theirs first?" Y/n relaxed into his chest as she watched the family tear open wrapping paper, opening up their gifts. She felt her phone buzz. She opened it to see a message from her friend.

Y/n? Where are you? Are you alright?

She looked between her phone and the family when typing back a response.

I'm fine. I'll just be held up a bit until later tonight. dw

Y/n didn't take her phone out the rest of the day. It stayed in her pocket. When they were opening their gifts, when they were eating breakfast, when they watched Christmas movies. She didn't look at her phone, not even once. She was too focused on trying to make this façade of being the girlfriend of Carlos to do anything. "I need the bathroom." Y/n whispered about halfway through the Grinch. Carlos nodded and let her go, kissing her hand as she went.

She walked around the hallway, forgetting exactly where the bathroom was. She opened doors and closed them in search of it but couldn't find it. She opened one door in particular and groaned as she didn't see a toilet. As she was about to close the door, she paused and looked back in. She looked around confused at everything in the room.

Carlos Sainz jr, siguiendo los pasos de su padre

Carlos Sainz jr. consigue un podio en Brasil!

Es un segundo cercano con Carlos Sainz jr en Monza!

Her eyes went wide as she looked beside the newspaper clippings and looked at the magnificent trophies and helmets beside them. "He's a fucking racing driver." she whispered in shock. She scurried out of the room and peaked into the living room. "Carlos? Babe?" Carlos turned and smiled at her. She hadn't called him babe before that moment. "Yes amor?" Carlos asked. "Can I talk to you? In the kitchen please?" Carlos stood up. "Of course, excuse me for a moment guys." Carlos followed her into his kitchen. "What's up-"

"You didn't think to tell me you were a racing driver?" Carlos arched a brow. "I thought you knew I was?" Y/n shook her head. "Well I knew you must do something because of this massive house but I didn't think you were a racing driver!" Carlos sighed. "Well I don't know what to say. I drive cars fast for a living." Y/n rubbed her temples. "Right, okay. It's fine. I'll just play along. I still don't know what we will do after this." Carlos smirked. "Well I wouldn't mind a round two." She slapped his chest. "We'll see." They returned to the living room shortly after and resumed their hugging position when Ana smiled at how cute they were. She sneakily took out her phone and recorded them, then tagging Carlos and posting it on her story. Then she stood up. "Family photo!" Ana said, setting up the camera on the mantlepiece. Carlos and Y/n began panicking. Carlos didn't want anyone assuming he had a girlfriend when he didn't and Y/n didn't want to be seen. "Oh, I can just take the photo if you want-"

"No, no, no. You're part of the family now!" Y/n just nodded along. "Yeah, sure okay. That's fine." The camera flashed, a good five times before Ana rushed over to have a look at the collection. "Oh my goodness, these photos are great!" Carlos and Y/n shared a look, a look that showed that both of them knew they were fucked. Ana had opened her instagram, grinning. "Carlos, you're trending." Carlos took her phone and looked at it, his face turning more serious. "Did you just post a video of me and Y/n on your story?" Ana nodded. "Ana! This is exactly what we didn't want! We wanted to be kept secret!"

"I'm sure she can just take it down-"

"No, it's too late now! It's been up for ten minutes, many people could have screenshotted it." Carlos was leaning over, his head in his hands. Y/n rubbed his back. "I'm sorry Carlos, I really am." Carlos shrugged it off. "It's fine. It's fine. Y/n, how about you help me with the Christmas Dinner and they can set the table, eh?" Y/n nodded and away they went again to cook. "Fuck." Y/n whispered. "So what do we do now?" Carlos shrugged. "I seriously don't know. I wish I did." Y/n groaned. "I guess you'll be getting a round 2 sooner than you thought." Carlos laughed at the light hearted joke. "We'll just pretend to date for a few months and then we'll break up." Carlos thought for a minute and nodded. "That's not too bad of an idea." Y/n put her hand out. "So we are agreed?" Carlos took her hand. "We are agreed princesa."

Yes, they agreed on breaking up but come on. Do you really think they did it? Of course not. Especially not when on that day, three years later, Carlos gave her a box, tightly wrapped and sat beside her, in front of the fireplace to ask her to be his wife.

[elisysd]

10. If you fall, I will catch you, I’ll be waiting

Masterlist - Previously - Next

Chapter soundtrack: Time After Time - Cindy Lauper  

You spent the next few days in a happy bliss, far away from your daily worries which seemed to have faded away whenever you would end up in Charles’ arms. He was taking you to work in the mornings and was driving you back home when your shift was over. Sometimes, he was even staying at your place when you were working from home. The demand came from you, to his surprise, but never would he dare to deny it to you. You were living in your own little bubble and when he finally had to leave, it felt weird. You had been so used to having him around. He fitted in your world, as much as you fitted in his. 

“We’ll see each other in Canada, right? It will happen fast, I promise. I wish I could stay longer but duty called… I can’t stay far away from them even if I would love to be there with you.” he said, as your head was buried in his chest, his arms protectively around your shoulders and his lips against the top of your head. 

“I’m going to miss you.” you mumbled.

“Yeah, me too. I became used to you so quickly it’s concerning. But hey, maybe we can sneak away in Montreal. Living dangerously, it’s going to be thrilling. I kinda like that.” he smiled as you looked at him.

“About that… I won’t be able to make it. I can miss one race a year and I chose Canada but it was weeks ago, when I didn’t even like you.” you explained, feeling suddenly very guilty and even more when you noticed him frowning, visibly disappointed. “And maybe it’s good? We’ve been glued to each other lately. Putting a little distance between us.”

“Maybe. I don’t like that. I just want to be with you. But I suppose you’re right. I’ll call you. And text you. I’m going to be very annoying now that I know you won’t be next to me.”

“Are you sure you will have time for that?” you asked.

“For you? Always. 

In fact, he didn’t have as much time as he hoped he would, resulting in barely a few texts and even less calls. You were both way too busy and with the different time zones, synchronizing your schedules was just way too hard. The whole situation made Charles more on edge than usual. He was missing you more than what he expected and what he had ever felt before. But he wasn’t resenting you for it. You were working on the Alpine’s documentary which you were voicing over and it was taking every bit of your time. Still he was brooding and being an easily readable man, everyone in the paddock and in Ferrari knew it was better to leave him alone. Everyone but Pierre, who had made it his mission to find out what was annoying his best friend. 

“ Come on! What is wrong with you? The car is shittier than usual? Carlos is being an ass? The tabloids took pictures of you with someone you shouldn’t see? Or maybe it’s the weather. You know you’re too water sensitive for your own good.”

“Shut up, Gasly. Go bother someone else.”

“Or maybe you’re in love and she rejected you?” This earned him a glare from the monegasque. “Oh shit. You’re in love. Damn… I didn’t see that coming. This is gold. Who is she? Do I know her? Is she a model? An actress? The daughter of a sponsor? I strongly advise you against that option, nothing good ever comes from that kind of situation and…”

“Y/N.” Charles finally snapped, before blushing furiously and watching around him, scared someone might have heard him.

“Y/N? The journalist? The one who is shooting a documentary about my team? That Y/N?” repeated Pierre, not believing it.

“Because you know other Y/N?”

“ I didn’t see that coming… Wasn’t she supposed to hate your guts?”

And Charles proceeded to explain everything to him, without telling him too many details about your life, knowing you wouldn’t appreciate it. But he talked about how much he liked you, what he felt for you and how you were a welcoming rainbow in a cloudy season. You were his escape.  He didn’t know how long he talked about you but it must have been very long if Pierre was checking his watch from time to time.

“You’re down bad. Really bad. Some might say you’re in love.”

“It’s too soon to talk about love. We are just getting to know each other. But… Pierre, she is perfect. She is everything I’ve ever wanted, I swear.”

“Okay, Romeo. Just be careful. You are a big romantic and everything and you’re cute, but hold your horses. Take it slow, see where it goes and don’t be too much.”

“Pierre.. don’t say anything to anyone. We are not public. Not yet, at least. It’s a tough situation with her work, she needs to sort everything out and she needs time.”

“I might love gossiping but I would never gossip over something so big it could ruin careers. I’m not cruel.”

Charles spent the weekend giving his all, trying to make the best out of the car he had and for once he felt like it paid off. It wasn’t anywhere near where he wanted to be, but a good strategy, a bit opportunistic from Ferrari, had earned him a good place at the end of the race. He was happy and a bit hopeful for the future even if a tremendous amount of work still needed to be done. 

When he came back to his hotel room, his first thought was directed to you. He knew you had watched the race and he wanted to share his happiness and pride with you. He laid down on his bed and took his phone, scrolling to find your number. He ignored his family words of congratulations, thinking he would answer later, and called you. You were quick to answer which made him think that you were waiting for his call. 

“I’m so happy for you Charles, I was rooting for you so hard! Thankfully I was home.” he could hear the emotion and pride in your voice and it made him melt. “ You deserve it. You were amazing.”

“Yeah? You think?”

“Of course I do. You made me happy for a little moment.” you said and he could hear something was off in your voice. He didn’t like it and pressed you for an answer. You sighed and the line fell in silence for a few seconds before you started to talk again. “My dad’s birthday is right around the corner. I got a text from my mom asking me if I intended to come. It’s not an invitation, she expects me to be here.”

“ And what are you going to do?”

“ I don't want to go but if I don’t, it will only make everything worse.” you were on the verge of crying.

“I’ll be there for you. When is it?” he said, out of the blue, surprising you and himself.

“It’s after Silverstone but Charles… you… you’re not serious, right? You are not seriously saying you’re coming with me?” you nervously laughed. 

“I’m completely serious. You don’t want to go there, I’m offering you support.”

“And what am I going to say to them?”

“Easy. That I’m your boyfriend.” he shrugged.

When he didn’t hear you reply he was scared for a minute that you hung up. He knew he was overstepping, you still had not talked about labeling your relationship, it was too early. But at the same time, he was serious about you and he wanted to know he wasn’t taking your relationship lightly. And that was exactly what he told you, determined. You needed reassurance and you needed him to show how much he cared and he wanted nothing more than to prove it to you. 

“Thank you for being honest. And for taking things slow with me. I know I’m hard to handle.” you barely whispered. 

“First of all, you’re not hard to handle, whatever that means. And it ‘s nice to take things slow. I’m used to going fast all the time, going slow spices up my daily life.” he laughed, hoping his joke attempt would at least make you smile. 

“Well, then, in that case, I guess I need to tell my mom that I’m bringing a guest.”

Coming back from Montreal, Charles first thought was to head straight to Paris. More than just a want, it was a need to see you that led him to your door by the evening, his suitcases by his side. He knocked on your door but not hearing a word or a sound from the inside made him think that you were not there. It was fine, when it came to you patience was not his worst flaw. He could wait. He sat down on the greenish rug of the corridor and scrolled down on his phone, going through fan reactions, race recaps and articles for a good hour until he heard heels walking in his direction. He looked up and saw your surprised face, two bags full of groceries in your hands. He stood up and took them away from you, letting the bags rest on the floor before taking you in his arms and kissed you like he had never kissed you. You couldn’t help but melt in his embrace. You missed him more than you had initially thought. 

“I thought you would be back in Maranello or in Monaco.” you said when you finally let go of each other. 

“I have to, yes. But I needed to see you and to kiss you first. They don’t need me before three days. I missed you so much.”

You smiled as you kissed him again, letting him feel how much you had missed him too. 

“Let’s not stay here. Come inside. Have you eaten anything? Do you want a drink?”

“I only want you.” he simply said as he put down his coat on your sofa as he instantly gazed at you. The mood shifted and you were suddenly feeling very hot. Slowly he walked to you and trapped you against the counter looking down on your parted lips. “ I want to kiss you and I don’t know if I’m going to be able to stop myself from going further.” he admitted, his voice raspier than usual.

You gulped and threw an arm around his neck, bringing him even closer to you. 

“What if I don’t want to stop you?”

He didn’t need more to kiss you one last time before making you jump into his arms and carry you to your bedroom. 

Austria went on in a blink of an eye. You had not been this excited for a race in a very long time, if not ever. It was the first time you were there as Charles’ girlfriend and you had to admit that sneaking away to spend some time together here and there was making the whole experience thrilling. You would hide every chance you would get for a quick kiss. Flirty jokes were told whenever you would cross paths and you would even dare to brush slightly your fingers with his. His post qualifying interview was a mix of professionalism and subtle flirt attempts that made you blush and you blessed everything that you could think of that your face wasn’t shown on camera or it would have caught you blushing. And when he finally came back to you after the race and after a wonderful P2, it was almost like he wasn’t giving a fuck about being subtle anymore which earned him a glare from your side as he was leaving you with a wink. Walking out of the media pen, you quickly texted him. 

No reward for you mister. 

And you made your way out of the paddock and to your hotel. It had been a hell of a weekend and all you were thinking about was a good bath, with a book and classical music playing in the background. When you were done, feeling fresh and relaxed, you started to pack your bags and clean your stuff as you had a plane to catch early the next day. You replayed the interviews you had done the whole weekend to try to see if there was any way you could improve for the next race and paused them when needed while you were sometimes taking notes. You didn’t hear at first the knock on your door and it only startled you as it got louder. Annoyed, you went to open it and barely had time to recognise your boyfriend as his hands circled your waist and his lips found yours. It was urgent and feverish. Nothing slow or romantic, he wasn’t there to talk. 

“What are you doing here?” you asked but was quickly reduced to silence as he threw you on the bed and soon joined you, his interview realized a few hours earlier still playing. 

When you woke up the next day, he was already up, tenderly looking at you, carefully drawing patterns on your arms from the tip of his fingers, making you shiver. He was far from the devilishly handsome act he had played for you the previous night. He brushed a strand of hair falling down on your face and kissed your forehead as you got closer, resting your head on his bare chest and your hand where his heart was beating loudly. 

“You know what you are to me?” he whispered.

“Your girlfriend?”

“You’re my sweet escape. My little piece of heaven away from the mess which is this season.”

You felt yourself melting at his words. 

Silverstone was not as joyful as Austria, unfortunately. Even if Charles wanted to perform, he knew it would be tough. He was stressing out, pacing around his room, trying to find a sense of peace he knew he could only find if you were around, which was not the case. You were busy, probably the busiest you had ever been since the beginning of the season and didn’t have time for him. He was annoyed. You were so close yet so far away from him. It only made his bad mood worse. Bad mood which was accentuated after he ended up P9 after the race. He was more than just disappointed and not even seeing you waiting for him, a pitying smile on your face, could help making him feel better. 

“Charles, what a disappointing race today after your P2 in Austria. Do you feel like it is a step back?”

Your question almost made him snap but he could see in your eyes how much it pained you to ask. He tried to stay professional and answered the best he could. He was relieved when you were done. For the first time in his life, he didn’t only want to perform well for his team and his family, he wanted to see your eyes shimmer too when he would step in the media pen. He didn’t want to see sadness in them and more than anything, he didn’t want to be the reason why. He met you in an empty area, where the garbage from the food court was displayed and thought to himself how shady your meeting place was. But his worries soon faded away as he saw you running to him and took his face into your palms to kiss him. 

“I’m so, so sorry about the race, Charles. I swear my heart was beating so fast, I was so frustrated. And I wanted nothing more but to be there for you.”

“It’s like this… And you’re here now. That’s all that matters.Let’s go back to the hotel. Mine. I don’t want to let go of you tonight.”

“I’ll meet you there. I have to go to the post race debrief first. And I still have an interview linked up in an hour with an Aston engineer. This weekend is never ending, I swear.”

“It’s okay. Go. I’ll wait for you there.”

You kissed him one last time before leaving. 

He waited for you in the lobby of the hotel, watching people and clients passing by without a care in the world. He was replaying the race in his head, overthinking what he could’ve, would’ve, should’ve done better but was interrupted by your arrival. 

“I got lost on the way. It took longer than what I expected, I’m sorry.” you apologized. 

“I don’t care. I’m just glad you made it. I was starting to think you got cold feet.”

“When it comes to you? Never, Leclerc. You have me now and I’m all in.”

He smiled, took your hand in his and guided you towards the elevator barely able to keep his hands to himself, making you laugh. You both acted careless and when he saw you froze, like a doe caught in the middle of headlights, he didn’t understand why. But when Pierre emerged from a dark corner, a teasing smile on his lips, he got it. He had forgotten to tell you that the Alpine’s driver knew about your relationship. He felt a wave of panic washing over you and making you stutter. 

“Relax, Y/N. I promised Charles I wouldn’t say a word and I intend to keep that promise.”

You turned towards Charles. 

“You told him?”

“I… It wasn’t planned… it just happened. I’m sorry.”

“I’m happy for you. Both. And I’m glad Charlie boy finally made his move on you, it was painful to watch him be so jealous. A bit pathetic too.” Pierre shrugged. 

“What do you mean, finally? you asked Charles as Pierre was leaving, laughing. 

Once in his room, Charles was very determined to make you forget about your encounter with Pierre. But as soon as the door closed behind him, he felt you being everywhere but with him.

“Y/N? Are you alright?”

“I realized something today.” you said, making him curious. “It’s getting harder and harder to interview you. Especially when I can see how a bad race is affecting you and all I want is to drop the mic and take you in my arms and hold you tight. At that moment, when you stepped in the media pen, I wanted to be everything but a journalist. The line between my work ethic and my personal life is getting blurrier by the minute. It’s scary, Charles.”

“I don’t want to be an obstacle to your job… or a chore.” 

“You’re not.” you quickly reassured him and not wanting him to get your confession in the wrong way. “ I just have to find the right balance. But, I suppose it was bound to happen, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m falling for you. Hard and fast, Charles.”

Author's note: She finally admitted it! Still a fluffly chapter... for now. Not sure it will stay that way heheh. Enjoy it while you can.

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[tommydarlings]

☆ M Y P A T R E O N ☆

I will update it everytime as soon as i post and my fics will be listed from oldest ( top ) to newest ( bottom)! ✍ 

Every single one is x female reader but of course everyone is welcome here ⚤

Smut  ➯  everyone is there then aged up to 18 or + ☮

*All of those works mentioned below are exclusive works on my patreon and none of them is a sneak peek, early access or shortened version!

main masterlist <3

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If my 'support me links' shouldn’t be working, please click here! ✧ Why am I doing Patreon?

HELP OTHERS!!!

Enjoy reading and stay safe, ily liz <3 🎬

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key:

☁  = fluff           ☯ = angst          ♡ = smut       ✰ = favorite       ♫  = song 

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C.L & C.S - Don’t tell my dad | ♡ [1.5k]

Summary: your last name 'Wolff' definitely sparked some driver's interest on the grid, especially the one from the two Ferrari driver's Charles and Carlos.

A.B - My brother's best friend | ♡ [1.3k]

Summary: when you saw your brother's best friend at your doorstep after the night he made you squirt, you didn’t expect to be face fucked by him later on in the room right next to your brother's.

S.V - blue tie | ♡ [2.1k]

Summary: Detective Vettel really wants the informations that only you and your dear friend knows of, so he fucks them out of in a quite interesting way.

A.B - Mr.Butler | ♡ [1.4k]

Summary: you actually just wanted to bring your boss the paperwork for today's meeting, instead, you were forced to crawl under the table and help your boss in some other way.

A.B - 5 minute break | ♡ [2.3k]

Summary: after your wild activity with your boss in the meeting room, you just couldn’t keep you hands to yourself, and your boss makes you pay for that in a very obvious way.

C.S - Fuck me please | ♡ [1k]

Summary: you just really want Carlos to fuck you but he won’t do that until he can make sure that you have eaten enough, so he is first shoving the food into your mouth and the his fingers.

A.B - Unloveable little thing | ♡ [1.6k]

Summary: after your nasty breakup with your ex-boyfriend Austin, you expected and also hoped that you would never see him again but oh were you wrong…

T.W - take it all | ♡ [0.8k]

Summary: you really wanted to satisfy Toto and take him all the way, as you struggled a bit, your loving boyfriend kind of helped you.

C.L - Come Home | ☯☁️ [1.3k]

Summary: you just wanted to have your 'lana del ray moment' but you never expected to meet your past lover while doing that.

A.B - Tastes so good | ♡ [0.9k]

Summary: Austin looooooves to eat you out and he gladly shows you that, pretty messily and wildly.

A.B - I care about you | ♡ [0.5k]

Summary: you never though that you would be so dumb and fall for one of austin's manipulative tricks, but here we are.

B.H - Promise? | ♡ [1.3k]

Summary: you really thought that you could hide the fact that you once faked two of your orgasms while you had sex with billy, but you clearly forgot that billy is quiet the smart ass… with anger issues and lots of pride and he makes sure that you never lie to him again.

B.H - Shut up and cry | ♡ [0.7k]

Summary: you just couldn’t be quiet when billy was fucking you, but your brothers best friend didn’t like that one bit.

A.B - baywatch | ♡ [1.8k]

Summary: you were actually just looking for a bikini or swimsuit that you could wear when you are in Spain with Austin and you haven’t expected the night to end with him threatening you to spank your ass so much until it got the same shade as your red swimsuit.

C.L - Under the Table | ♡ [1.3k]

Summary: you really though that your oh so nice boyfriend just wants to catch up with your brothers, but instead he just wanted an excuse for you to wear that short dress and make you cum under the table.

A.B - Good Night | ♡ [1.5k]

Summary: After being forced to date THE Austin butler, who’s really mean to you, by your PR team, you two have to share a hotel room with only one bed in it… what’s supposed to happen there then?

A.B - Good Morning | ♡ [1.6k]

Summary: After your 'interesting' night with the men you're just supposed to fake date, you started to wonder why he didn’t kiss you, and after the two of you went on a little café date, where you had to impress a few fans, you were even more confused.

A.B - red cheeks and a wet face | ♡

Summary: Lots of crying and spanking

C.S - red lipstick | ♡ [0.9k]

Summary: You already predicted that your boyfriend, Carlos, would like your red lipstick… But what you didn’t predict is that he would like it so much that he has to ruin it and make it all smudgy.

A.B - don’t worry sweetheart | ♡☁️ [1.1k]

Summary: After giving birth to your baby boy, Elvis, Austin and you had to quit doing a few things, for an example, sex… but after almost 4 months of no fucking 'till the sun came up, austin had enough.

C.L - good girl | ♡ [1.1k]

Summary: Charles shows you just how much of a good girl you really are for him.

C.S - Red Racing Suit | ♡ [0.6k]

Summary: After behaving like a brat all day towards the Spanish Ferrari driver you secretly hook up with, he shows you after the race just how he treats little, nasty brats like you.

C.L - Ratatouille | ♡ [0.9k]

Summary: Suprisingly, Charles took a big liking in cooking… but what suprised you even more were the thoughts that entered his mind as soon as he saw the wooden cooking spoon.

A.B - I’ll never be yours | ♡ [1.2k]

Summary: Austin and you were no good for each other, the two of you hated each other but you were foolish and desperate for his touch, so you just couldn’t stay away from him.

C.S - Sobbing mess | ♡ [0.7k]

Summary: Carlos hates when you're acting like a brat towards him, but he knows exactly how to make you regret everything.

C.S - The good kind of pain | ♡ [1.2k]

Summary: The Spanish formula one driver doesn’t care that you're his boss’s daughter, but what he definitely does care about is the fact that you have a pain kink.

M.V - Bratty mouth | ♡ [0.8k]

Summary: Mad max showing you again what happens if you talk back and can’t shut your bratty mouth.

C.L - You’re never gonna leave me | ☯

Summary: Charles being utterly obsessed with you and crazy for you, in the sickest way possible.

C.L - Number 16 in purple on my throat | ♡☁️

Summary: When Ferrari's golden boy asked you out on a date, you happily agreed, not knowing that the night would end with you being no virgin anymore and Charles slightly threatening you.

C.L - Fucked my way up to the top | ☯

Summary: Sadly you were not able to push your toxic ex boyfriend, Charles Leclerc, out of your life — and especially not out of your embrace.

C.L - hotel | ♡ ☯ ☁️

Summary: Charles Leclerc hates your brother max verstappen, which doesn’t mean that he hates you too…because he really likes you actually to your surprise.

S.V - Blue Jeans | ☯ ♫

Summary: Sebastian is obsessed with you, he dearly loves you like nobody else ever could and he shows you that in a very sickening way but in the end you realise that you will always love him and that you have nobody else than him. (entirely based off of the song 'Blue Jeans' by Lana del Rey)

C.S - attention seeking | ♡

Summary: Carlos hates it when you’re acting like an attention seeking brat, so he teaches you a little lesson to remember by simply ignoring while you are on your knees for him.

S.V - Throw away the key | ☯️

Summary: him getting jealous over you talking to a guy and threatening you in a very dark and harsh way and manipulating you after you slapped him.

C.L - Get your attitude adjusted | ♡

Summary: You’ve taunted him with a simple joke, now he’s up for the rough and interesting challenge to adjust your attitude a bit.

C.L - red bottom heels | ☁️ ♡

Summary: You didn’t wanted to feed your boyfriend’s ego even more by removing your heels and appearing smaller to him… but he had other plans to make you feel even smaller.

C.S - I’ll make it fit | ☁️ ♡

Summary: You weren’t sure if ending up in bed with your brothers best friend was a good idea (especially after you’ve seen his size), but after he told you that you wouldn’t need to worry, you knew that it was actually the best idea.

M.V - Behind closed doors | ☯️

Summary: All you wanted was to leave your crazy boyfriend, but he was gonna make sure that you’ll never try that again.

S.V - A little bloodbath just for you | ☯️ ☁️

Summary: Sebastian couldn’t stand it when other men even looked at you the wrong way, so he creates a little bloodbath — just for you.

M.V - bloody knees | ☯️ ☁️

Summary: your father was convinced that max would be the best boyfriend for you… you weren’t so sure about that though.

S.V - sweet poison | ☯️ ☁️

Summary: as you felt dizzy and weird, you coincidentally landed in Sebastian’s embrace, just to your luck, right?

D.R - apologise | ☯️

Summary: him forcing you to apologise to him on your knees.

M.V - cry me a river, maxie | ☯️ ☁️

Summary: him accusing you of only being with him for his money and then apologising to you and showing his soft side to you while laying in your arms.

S.V - disloyal angel | ☯️

Summary: after being honest with your psychotic boyfriend and telling him that you’ve been cheating on him with his teammate, he shows you how sick he actually is and how far he went for you.

L.N - bj with sub!lando | ♡

Summary: lots of whiny sub!lando during a good old blowjob.

S.V - crazy for you | ☁️

Summary: sebastian is simply crazy for you and worships the ground you walk on.

S.V - forced handjob with sub!rbr!seb | ♡

Summary: some whiny, teary-eyed and gasping sub!rbr!seb during a beautiful handjob of yours.

S.V - Guilty pleasure | ♡

Summary: Sebastian — who’s extremly possessive — wants to make sure that everybody knows who you belong to.

C.L ; M.V ; T.W ; S.V - manipulating/gaslighting you | ☯️ ☁️

Summary: How the f1 drivers would wickedly manipulate and gaslight poor you.

C.L - Are you mad at me? | ♡

Summary: After an argument with Charles, you decide to try on the new pair of shorts with a special print on them and shamelessly show them your angry boyfriend — instantly making Charles even madder than at the beginning.

C.S - Teacher's toy | ♡ ☁️

Summary: fooling around with your spanish professor was already a bad idea — but teasing him during his lecture was an even worse idea.

[chemistry-in-sports]

release the cowboy hat rankings (should u so desire)

Omg thank you for asking and I DO desire. The problem is not all of the drivers have worn cowboy hats this weekend so I can't do the comprehensive cowboy hat rankings that I yearn to do.

Imagine if Lewis had worn a cowboy hat with that all denim fit...i know that would have been an automatic P1. Alas I imagine it has been in Lewis' contract for years now that he doesn't have to wear stupid hats under any circumstances.

And obviously our greatest cowboy hat wearing driver was taken from us but we won't linger on that.

So anyway, we work with what we have!

P1, as already revealed:

WHY is Carlos is such a hot cowboy. It doesn’t make sense, he’s not adventurous dresser! He loves a button down! He loves sport! But we cannot argue with the facts. The hat color was designed specifically to enhance big brown doe eyes. The long-for-him hair is designed specifically to look sexy and shaggy and curl slightly at ends under the hat. I don't know. Why is he putting his hand on his head in that coquettish manner. Who taught him that!

P2:

Okay, I think this might be from a previous season, but this is very good imo. The sunglasses, the belt in the same color as the hat, the jeans, the plain white shirt -> it looks legit fashionable and not like a costume. The football might be confusing matters a little but it’s just part of the vibe I guess and it’s working!

P3:

Unfortunately it is nearly impossible to find a picture of Max wearing any hat that isn't his Red Bull hat (he's probably wearing it underneath this one) but I came across this, which i know is not this weekend, but I decided to include it because look how cute he looks. Look at his face! P3!

P4:

I am surprised that Charles in a cowboy hat does not really move me. Maybe it’s the Ferrari hoodie. We should get him in some leather chaps and see if that helps. You know, I am sure Ferrari has a homoerotic video of him riding a horse or getting lassoed by Carlos queued up somewhere, perhaps that will change things for me. Whatever, he’s still P4 bc he has a perfect face and when he put on the hat he said he was like “a proper cowboy!” so what can you do

P5:

I actually think the whole look with the race suits and the boots is surprisingly good, and I like how Esteban has his hat pulled down so you can’t see his eyes — I think that’s how you’re supposed to wear a cowboy hat! But they look soooo awkward there together, they look like a couple who is preparing to try some kind of cowboy themed sexual role play in an attempt to save their marriage but neither of them are really that into it

P6:

Speaking of role plays…I think Lando having thoughts about Oscar in that boot/shorts combo but that’s not what we’re doing here.

Lando’s head is simply too big for this look. The hat needs to be pulled down more but he can’t because of his ridiculous giant head. Idk I think that’s the problem. He looks cute! But also very silly. I think the hat he wore last year in the video where he was singing Taylor Swift looked good -- maybe the darker color or maybe it was just a better fit.

Also Lando always looks like he’s slightly mortified to be alive and I think the cowboy hat requires a kind of confidence/commitment to the bit that he doesn’t have here.

P7:

Now here is a man who always commits to the bit, and he does get points for that -- George has never met a silly video that he won't say yes to -- but he’s last in my rankings because…well, look at the picture. That face was made for Tommy Hilfiger roll neck jumpers and long expensive coats not cheap cowboy hats branded with the Good Morning America logo. I'd be interested in seeing him in a darker hat with a little more weight to it - I think it needs to be more fashion than costume for George.

I know other people must have worn cowboy hats this weekend but these are the ones I saw! Please inform if there are great hat wearers that I missed!

[chicgeekgirl89]

Chapter 6 now available on AO3!

He’s going on a date. With Hottie Officer Carlos. Tomorrow. He’s equal parts thrilled and completely freaking out. 

They’ve texted daily, mostly inane and sometimes flirty things. T.K. would be lying if he said he wasn’t horny for the guy. Seeing him in uniform, the way his muscles had filled out the sleeves, his thighs…T.K. has woken up more than a few times from dreams where Carlos’ broad hands are caressing their way down his body.

But as he’s told his therapist several times, that is not the point of this date. Carlos seems like a genuinely good guy. The type of guy T.K.’s always hoped to be with, the type of guy he thought Alex was.

Alex. T.K. sighs and wonders how long the specter of his previous boyfriend is going to hang over him. He’d tried to get the guy out of his head when he’d first arrived in Austin. There had been some sex, one-night stands whose names he doesn’t remember, and when that hadn’t worked he’d turned to getting the shit kicked out of him in bars. His dad picking him from jail is not even in the top ten lowest moments of his life, but he still feels kind of shitty about it.

He’s been trying his hardest since then to turn things around. This date with Carlos…it feels like a second chance. A chance to be the kind of guy who deserves someone like Carlos Reyes. And he’s trying really hard not to self sabotage it like he usually does. 

Right now he’s having kind of a hard time telling the little voice in his head that reminds he’s not good enough to shut up.

“Why do you look like that?”

Judd settles into a chair across from him, leaning back and kicking his feet up. 

T.K.’s hand stills where it’s been combing anxiously through Buttercup’s fur. “Look like what?”

“Look like you just accidentally jumped in the pen with my Uncle Cash’s meanest bull,” Judd says. “Something on your mind?”

T.K. rubs Buttercup’s ear and considers how much to share. His therapist has been pushing him to open up more to the people around him. His team has proven time and again that they’re trustworthy, but it’s still hard to give the darker pieces of himself away.

“I have a date,” he says finally.

“Oh really?” Judd says, an interested look flashing across his face. “With that cop from your phone?”

“Yes,” T.K. says. “We’re getting coffee tomorrow. And I’m…”

“You’re nervous,” Judd says with a nod, like it’s a fact. “Good.”

“Good? How is that good?”

“Means it’s worth something to ya,” Judd tells him. “Means it matters. You want a hook up, you just jump on in without caring. You want something more, you’re gonna feel scared you’ll mess it up.”

That makes far too much sense for T.K.’s nerves. “What if I do mess it up?” he asks. “What if he doesn’t like me? We’ve only met once for like two minutes. What if all this texting and talking works through the phone but we sit there and stare at each other in silence for an hour?”

“T.K.,” Judd shifts and sits forward so he can look him squarely in the eye. “I’ve known you for a year, and not once in all those days have you been able to sit in silence for longer than three and a half seconds. You’ll find something to talk about.”

“Thanks?” T.K. says, unsure whether he should feel grateful or offended.

“You’ll be great,” Judd says. “You’re a catch. He should be grateful he gets to spend time with you.”

The room warms in T.K.’s vision, a rosy hue brightening up the dark thoughts in his mind. “You think so?” he asks tentatively.

“You’re a god damned dual certified firefighter paramedic,” Judd says, his voice strong. “And a member of the 126. That alone makes you a catch.” He points a finger at T.K. “Don’t you forget it.”

T.K. has never in his life thought of himself as a catch. He’s just…a toy to be played with. Something for people to enjoy and then be sent packing when they’re tired of him. Judd’s words do something to him that he can’t quite pinpoint, but it feels like a small part of him heals.

Then the alarm sounds and they’re both on their feet, running to the truck. As T.K. buckles into his seat he realizes that he feels…good. It feels like light is dawning on him for the first time in so long. Like those moments when you can’t really see the sunrise yet, but you can feel that it’s coming soon.

They pull up to the fire within minutes and it looks terrible. Flames shoot from windows and out of the roof, smoke filling the early evening air as people flee from inside into the waiting arms of first responders. 

T.K.’s heart does a weird lurch as he spots APD on the scene even though he knows Carlos is off tonight. They haven’t even been on a single date and he’s already getting butterflies over the guy. It’s ridiculous.

“Stay alert,” his dad is telling them all as they pull up to the scene. “Two in, two out. This place is going to be unstable. Stick with your partner and if anything seems off get out first and ask questions later.”

“Yes Cap,” they all chorus before jumping out and donning their tanks and masks.

Inside things are hot and dark. The fire is quickly sucking out any air left in the building and the smoke is billowing in thick, black clouds that make it nearly impossible to see. He’s paired up with Marjan and they’re both struggling to make it even a few feet down the narrow hallways. 

They manage one rescue, a guy who’s leg is definitely broken, and it’s a relief when they carry him back outside. T.K. pulls off his mask and takes a couple gulps of clean air after they pass the guy off to medical.

“Ready to go again?” Marjan asks. 

T.K. nods, replacing his mask and following her toward the door. But before they can head inside there’s a loud rumble and the earth shakes a little under their feet. “Whoa, what was that?” Marjan asks.

“Mayday mayday! Firefighter down!”

Mateo’s voice comes shouting over their radios and T.K.’s heart plummets into his boots. Marjan turns to him, eyes wide. “Isn’t Mateo with—“

“My dad,” T.K. says. Without a second thought he’s through the door. 

“T.K.! T.K. wait!” Marjan yells after him.

He can hear her behind him, trying to keep up. “Mateo where are you?” he asks.

“Southeast side,” Mateo says. “He’s unconscious, I can’t wake him up!”

“We’re on our way,” T.K. says, taking the first left he comes to. 

“Us too,” Judd says from wherever he and Paul are.

It’s only minutes but it feels like days before T.K. hears the screaming of a PASS alarm. They take a final turn and find Mateo kneeling on the floor next to his dad’s prone form. “What happened?” T.K. asks.

“Beam came down from the ceiling. Took him down hard,” Mateo says. “He hasn’t woken up since.” He looks like he’s just barely restraining himself from full blown panic. 

T.K. can relate.

“Dad,” T.K. shakes his shoulder but gets no response and the fear he’s been keeping at bay comes screaming to the surface. “Dad! Come on! Wake up!”

“Hey!”

Judd and Paul join the group. “We need to get him out of here,” Judd says. “This whole place is gonna come down on top of us any second.”

“He could have a spinal injury,” T.K. protests.

“Better injured than dead,” Paul says. “Come on. Let’s go!”

T.K. reaches under one of his dad’s arms while Judd gets under his other side. The way his dad’s head droops as they move makes T.K. sick to his stomach. He’s so terrified he can hardly breathe, air coming in and out of his lungs in tight bursts. 

It feels like forever before they escape the heat and the dark, but finally there it is, the outside world, still waiting for them. 

They drop his dad onto a gurney and Nancy and Tim swarm in along with Michael, their acting captain for the day, pulling off his turnouts and helmet. His dad lets out a groan of pain that makes T.K.’s knees go weak with a combination of relief and sympathy. 

“What happened?” his dad asks as his eyes blink open, squinting against the fading daylight.

“Beam took you down Cap,” Mateo says. “Hit you right in the head.”

His dad groans again and closes his eyes. “Yep, that’s what it feels like.”

T.K. rides with him in the back of the ambulance and then follows the gurney into the ER. He talks to the doctors, tells them about the medication his dad is on for his cancer treatments, and all of his supplements. He calls his mom in New York then sits with his teammates in the waiting room while his dad is taken for tests and scans.

It’s not the worst trip to the ER he’s ever experienced, but it’s not great either. His anxiety is through the roof. This is the second time in just about a year his dad has said a passing hello to death and it’s doing nothing to help his anxiety. The world has faded out to grey again, black and white, like the scuffed tiles of the hospital floor. His skin is itching with the urge to run away from it all, but the desire to stay is currently winning the fight. Yay therapy. 

He chews anxiously on a fingernail, hunched over with his elbows on his knees. He stripped off his turnout coat a while ago, but his pants are still sitting uncomfortably stiff on his legs. There’s a char mark on his left thigh from a stray cinder on some call he doesn’t remember. He closes his eyes so he doesn’t have to look at it.

When the doctor finally comes out the news is about as okay as it can be for an injured firefighter. His dad has a concussion and a couple broken ribs. They’re a little extra concerned about the ribs because of the lung cancer and the propensity for pneumonia. They’re keeping him overnight for observation and he’s not happy about it. But overall he’s going to be fine.

Paul drives T.K. home where he falls face first into bed without even showering. He’s exhausted from the stress of everything and it’s only when he wakes up in the morning that he remembers his date with Carlos. Fuck. He has to cancel. 

Anxiety curdles in his stomach. Carlos is going to think he’s that guy. The one who claims a family emergency even though they both know he’s really just flaking out on the date. T.K. has been on both sides of that text on more than one occasion, but he doesn’t want to be that guy this time. He’s been trying so hard not to fuck this up, and he can’t stand the thought of it all crashing down because he’s finally choosing to be responsible.

He stares at the ceiling and sighs. There’s no help for it. Even if he gets his dad home in time today, he can’t leave him alone. The guy will be out trying to rescue a kitten from a tree or help a neighbor move a couch less than twenty minutes after T.K. is out the door. 

T.K.

[7:32am] Hey I’m so sorry, I have to cancel today.

Officer Hottie- Carlos

[7:33am] Everything okay?

T.K.

[7:34am] My dad is in the hospital. Hurt on a call last night.

His phone begins buzzing almost immediately, the sight of Carlos’ pecs lighting up his screen. He’d forgotten that he’d set Carlos’ contact photo like that and he barks out a startled laugh. “Hello?” his voice comes out croaky and he swallows hard to try and clear it.

“Are you okay?” Carlos asks immediately. “Is your dad okay?”

“Yeah.” T.K. pushes himself into a sitting position and rubs a hand over his face. “Yeah we’re both okay. He has a concussion and some broken ribs. They kept him overnight so I have to go pick him up in a little bit.”

“God I’m so sorry,” Carlos says, sounding one hundred percent sympathetic without an ounce of suspicion or annoyance. “Is there anything I can do? Anything you need? My mom makes soup that she swears will heal anything.”

T.K. closes his eyes, surprised that he can feel tears welling up. Carlos’ immediate response is to offer to provide comfort for him and his dad. It’s so wildly surprising and different from any guy he’s ever dated that the words have gone straight to his tear ducts. “No, I think we’re okay. Thanks though,” he manages around the thickness in his throat. “I’m um, I’m really sorry about our date.”

“Don’t even think about it,” Carlos says. “We’ll reschedule. Take care of your dad. And yourself.”

“Thanks,” T.K. says. “I’ll text you, okay?”

“Just worry about your family,” Carlos says. “I’ll talk to you soon.”

They hang up and T.K. takes a long minute to replay the conversation in his mind. Carlos hadn’t sounded mad or annoyed. He hadn’t even sounded disappointed. Just genuinely concerned. 

T.K.’s not quite sure what to do with that, so he shelves it to examine later and forces himself into the shower. 

His dad is his usual self when T.K. gets to the hospital. All the nurses are in love with him; the Strand charm effect is strong. He’s definitely in pain though and trying to hide it as T.K. helps him into the car and then onto the sofa at home. 

“Are you going to sit there all afternoon staring at me?” his dad asks an hour later. 

“I’m not staring at you. I’m studying for my EMT recertification exam,” T.K. says, holding up the manual as evidence

“I’m okay son,” Owen says, that soft, dad look on his face; the one that says he’s more concerned about how T.K. is feeling than himself. “I’m glued to this couch. You can go hang out with your friends or take Buttercup for a walk.”

Buttercup lifts his head up at the sound of his name and then drops it glumly back to the floor when it’s clear nobody is actually going to take him outside. 

“I’m staying right here,” T.K. tells him. “I know you think you won’t get off that couch and overdo it, but the second you get too bored you’re going to be trying to throw together a soufflé or check the oil in the car.”

Owen blinks at him. “First of all, you don’t ‘throw together’ a soufflé. It’s a delicate process that requires hours of concentration and impeccable timing. And secondly, I had the oil changed on the car last week.”

“Still not leaving,” T.K. says without looking up from the manual. 

The doorbell rings and Buttercup heaves himself to his feet, tail wagging as he wanders toward the front door. “Are we expecting anybody?” T.K. asks as he gets up. 

“Could be Judd,” his dad says. “He mentioned last night that he and Grace might swing by.”

“Maybe it’s Nurse Judy from the hospital,” T.K. teases. “I saw her eyeing you up this morning.”

“I can’t help it that my shoulders are accentuated by the shape and contour of a hospital gown!” his dad calls after him.

T.K. snorts and shuffles Buttercup out of the way so he can open the door. The person on the other side is not Judd or Grace or Nurse Judy, but rather a redheaded college age kid wearing a black baseball cap. “Hi, I have a delivery for T.J.,” he says, holding out a cardboard coffee carrier.

“Oh.” T.K.’s brow furrows. “I don’t think we ordered anything.”

The kid checks his phone. “You’re T.J. Strand?”

“T.K.”

The kid shrugs. “Close enough. This is for you. Have a good day.”

He practically shoves the carrier into T.K.’s hands and then heads back to his car.

T.K. carries it into the kitchen. “Who was it?” his dad asks, craning his neck to try and see what T.K. is doing.

“Door Dash,” T.K. says. 

There’s a green smoothie and a latte in the carrier along with a folded up piece of paper. He unfolds it and his heart stops inside his chest.

Latte is for you. Smoothie is for your dad. Not quite my mom’s soup but hopefully it helps. -Carlos

Carlos remembered his coffee order. Not only that, he remembered that T.K.’s dad prefers green juices and other organic products. That had been one conversation weeks ago while Carlos was on a lunch break in the middle of his shift. 

One text and Carlos remembered.

Oh.

The room around him brightens, the weight in his soul that belongs to the last twenty-four hours lifting off and dissipating into nothing. 

“T.K.? What’s going on over there?” his dad calls.

T.K. lifts out both drinks, carrying them into the living room and setting them on coasters. “Someone sent us drinks.”

“Someone?” His dad arches and eyebrow and then winces. “Someone like…the hot cop who lives in your phone that you were supposed to go on a date with today?”

T.K. narrows his eyes. “Did Judd rat me out to you? Because that’s really not cool.”

“Judd didn’t rat you out,” Owen says. “Sound carries in the fire station. And also I know you. You’ve been all moony eyed and nervous this week. It’s how you always get before a first date.”

“I do not!”

“Um yeah, you do,” Owen says. “You know, you can still go on your date. I’ll be fine here by myself.”

“Like I said before, I’m not leaving,” T.K. says. “I already cancelled. He was very understanding. As evidenced by the drinks.” He gestures to where he’s placed them on the coffee table.

Something odd and soft passes over his dad’s face. “Good. He should be.” He picks up his drink and takes a sip. “Ooh! Flax seed. Tell the hot cop I said thank you.”

T.K. sips his own as he pulls out his phone.

T.K.

[12:16pm] Thank you for the drinks. You didn’t have to do that.

Officer Hottie- Carlos

[12:18pm] You’re welcome. Not quite the coffee date we were hoping for, but hopefully it will do for today.

T.K.

[12:19pm] You’re really sweet. And again, I’m super sorry about the date.

Officer Hottie- Carlos

[12:20pm] Stop apologizing. Family comes first. How’s your dad?

T.K.

[12:21pm] Already testing the boundaries of his convalescence. And my patience. But he’s fine. Meds are taking care of the pain. 

Officer Hottie- Carlos

[12:22pm] Good. Are you doing okay? That must have been scary to see your dad like that.

T.K. looks over at where his dad has drifted off to sleep, his mouth hanging slightly open. The pain and fear of possibly losing him burns brightly in his chest for a moment and he lets it fill him up before breathing it out again. His dad is okay. They’re both okay this time. 

His phone buzzes again.

Officer Hottie- Carlos

[12:26pm] You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. I didn’t mean to cross a line.

T.K.

[12:27pm] No, it’s okay. It was scary. He was unconscious for a long time. And after the cancer last year, I’m still kind of panicky about him. But he’ll be all right. He’s been through worse. We both have.

Officer Hottie- Carlos

[12:28pm] Feel free to call or text anytime if you need to. 

T.K.

[12:29pm] You might regret that. He’s going to be a pain in the ass for the next couple weeks. You may end up having to come investigate his murder because I’m not sure I can handle it.

Officer Hottie- Carlos

[12:30pm] Haha aren’t firefighters supposed to be tough as nails? You can run into burning buildings but you can’t handle your dad?

T.K.

[12:31pm] We WALK into burning buildings thank you very much. And you haven’t met my dad. He can whine like a toddler being denied ice cream. It’s unreal. We may need to reschedule our date just so I don’t lose my mind.

Officer Hottie- Carlos

[12:32pm] Tuesday?

T.K. thinks for a second. His dad should be well on the road to recovery by then. And he’s not scheduled to work again until Wednesday.

T.K.

[12:32pm] Tuesday could work.

[cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut]

In December 1993, TK Strand was born. Now, almost 30 years later, it’s time for a fandom celebration!

DEADLINE EXTENSION!!

Window of submission is now: 07/11/23 - 01/12/23

Hi guys. I have decided to shift from a hard deadline to a window of submission instead. This, in large part, is so I might not miss my own fandom event! I’m also hoping it’s gonna allow people in similar situations time to finish anything they might have been hoping to post/share for the event. Happy creating to all you!

—

Let’s get creative to celebrate our favourite disaster magnet paramedic!

Any medium of work is acceptable, from fic to fanart, videos to gifsets, as long as there’s a focus on his birthday where possible. If that’s not possible and you just wanna make something out of appreciation for TK as a character, that’s great too! It still counts! Anything at all you’d like to create to mark the occasion of TK Strand’s 30th birthday. (Also any genre is fine. Give us birthday fluff. Give us gritty birthday angst. Give us birthday smut 👀)

Although TK’s birthday is canonically in December, I thought it might be nice to give ourselves three months to the day to work on our pieces, meaning they will be posted on November 7th, which in fact is Ronen Rubinstein’s 30th birthday! I thought this might be a nice little way to mark our appreciation for both Ronen and TK.

On November 7th, please tag all works with #tkstrandturns30 and I will put together a masterlist in due course.

Below the cut are 30 prompts for possible birthday related shenanigans. Please ensure that when November 7th arrives, all work is appropriately tagged so we can help each other stay safe and informed. Happy creating!

Carlos stresses over what to get TK for his birthday, TK bombarding him with constant guesses all the while.

On TK’s birthday, Carlos takes him somewhere they’ve never been before.

Flashback to a previous birthday.

On TK’s birthday, one of their plans goes terribly wrong.

Another pet is added to the mix.

TK is moved/overwhelmed/astounded by the beautiful toasts/speeches his friends and family make at his birthday party.

TK becomes aware that his father’s latest midlife crisis is a direct result of the prospect of having a 30 year old son.

Carlos and TK celebrate alone.

Carlos buys TK an “experience” of some kind for his birthday.

TK and Carlos spend TK’s 30th in New York.

Someone ends up in the emergency room.

TK has his last near death experience of his 20s.

TK and Carlos discuss what they want from the next decade of their lives together.

Carlos hides 30 small surprises in the loft.

TK’s friends plan a surprise party, which either goes remarkably well or astonishing badly.

On or around TK’s 30th birthday, someone from his past makes an unwelcome appearance.

TK’s 4th coma. Will he wake up in time to see his birthday?

TK and Carlos plan a trip, and get stranded on the way there.

Owen is an emotional drunk at TK’s party, causing an unusual amount of chaos.

TK gets a birthday text from an ex.

TK thinks Carlos has forgotten his birthday.

TK receives an unusual gift from one of his friends.

TK leaves his birthday party for a moment of quiet introspection.

Enzo sends TK a birthday gift: something that belonged to Gwyn.

Carlos brings the wrong cake home from the bakery.

Carlos dresses as a clown for the party, not realising Owen is afraid of them.

TK accidentally finds out what Carlos is planning for his birthday, and has to choose whether to tell him, or pretend not to know.

Carlos and TK do something new in the bedroom.

TK gets the PERFECT birthday gift from an unexpected source.

Lou II wears a party hat, but who on earth got it onto his head?

[btr-rewatch]

Big Time Rush Season 1, Episode 14: “Big Time Dance”

Highlights: Lots of weirdness happening as the guys set up the first annual Palm Woods School Dance. Also, the first appearance of our friend Fabio!

It's the end of the year, and finals week is wrapping up at the Palm Woods School. After announcing the upcoming, notoriously boring class party, BTR suggests that they have a dance. A real one, with music and dates and NOT Bitters making awful balloon animals. Mrs. Collins agrees, but there are a few small obstacles to overcome first, such as the fact that they need to find chaperones, come up with a theme and decorations, get food, and find a place to hold the dance by that night. Oh, and there's no money available to spend on it.

The boys will find a way to pull it off, though.

Btw, this classroom is absolutely ridiculous. Those desks are packed together so tightly that I'm almost certain it's against both room occupancy regulations and fire code.

Look at that tiny sliver of space between Kendall's and James's desks. If there was an emergency, none of these kids would be able to promptly and safely evacuate without stumbling over desks and backpacks. They'd probably end up trampling each other. So many violations happening in this room. There's no way this classroom setup is legal.

After school ends, the guys get to work planning the dance. Jo is happy when she spots Kendall approaching, as she naturally assumes that he's going to ask her to be his date. Though, if you recall "Big Time Party," you know that his approach to inviting Jo in that episode involved asking her to be his, "guest, friend, person-thing." Quite frankly, Jo's hopes shouldn't be so high.

Somehow, Kendall manages to do an even worse job this time around and simply tells Jo to get snacks and sodas for the dance. Jo's reaction is understandable.

She's trying so hard to remember why she has a crush on this guy.

After being told by Bitters that they can't have the dance at the Palm Woods, Logan does some quick research and finds them a great deal at a warehouse in L.A.'s "Murder District." (they decide to pass on this deal)

Surprisingly, Gustavo says they can have the dance at Rocque Records under the condition that they perform at it. They agree, then run off to find dates. Well, James, Carlos, and Logan do. Kendall tries to be responsible and wants to find chaperones. Carlos strikes out with each of the Jennifers, then heads to the park to ask any other girls he can find. James decides to help Logan ask out Camille.

He also mentions that Camille's a good choice because she isn't his (James's) type, and can I just say that I kind of disagree with that? In fact, Camille might be the most compatible girl for James in terms of the recurring female characters we see on the show. She's just as high-maintenance, emotional, and passionate as he is, and I think they could have had an interesting relationship.

Or maybe they're too much alike and would have ended up killing each other. Idk.

Logan musters up every ounce of confidence he has within him and manages to do this

Commendable attempt, Logie.

Over in 2J, Mrs. Knight agrees to chaperone the dance, then loses her cool and promptly flees the scene when Katie suggests she should find a date to bring. Kendall asks when the last time was that their mother went on a date, and Katie says when she was three.

Not gonna delve TOO deeply into the Knight family headcanons, but for Mama Knight to have been in the dating world when Katie was that young, it means Mr. Knight had been out of the picture for quite some time already. Probably just after (or even a little before) Katie was born?

Meanwhile, Carlos is at the park, looking at girls through binoculars like a weirdo.

The Jennifers approach and tell him that they want to be his date to the dance. Except they don't want him to go as himself. Instead, they've all prepared alternate personalities that he must embody and rotate through during the night. Very normal behavior.

Gonna skim over some stuff because this episode has so many different storylines going on at once, but basically: Carlos is roped into being three difference people at the dance, James keeps inadvertently inviting random girls to be his date while trying to help Logan, and Logan manages to ask Camille out with the aid of cue cards, but she turns him down because she doesn't want his invitation to be coached.

Additionally, Kendall and Katie are struggling to find their mom a date. After almost setting her up with Bitters and bombarding her with a plethora of attention from a horde of handsome doctors, she tells them she'll only go on a date with the man who is on the cover of one of her romance novels. Of course, she does this assuming it'll be an impossible task for them, but nothing is impossible for Kendall and Katie.

They're adorable and I love them so much

They head down to the lobby to use the computer to track down Fabio (Kendall doesn't have his own laptop??) and I can't get over the way Kendall just shoves the guy already seated at the computer out of the way.

This is some First Episode Kendall behavior, honestly.

They manage to get in touch with Fabio, hold him hostage in the bathroom, and convince him to go out with their mom. Kendall also fumbles another opportunity to ask Jo to the dance, and Logan faces several other failures trying to ask Camille.

We go the dance later that night, where Carlos quickly crumbles under the pressure of being three different guys and ends up with Stephanie. I always really liked her btw, and I wish she would have stayed on the show as Carlos's long-term girlfriend. They were cute together.

Logan finally finds success in asking Camille to be his date.

Kendall finds Jo and asks her to dance, but Jo is still upset at the fact that Kendall never actually invited her to be his date. Kendall replies that he didn't ask because he just assumed they were already together. It's sweet, but I think these two need to work on their communication skills.

The guys perform "Stuck" (great song), James gets chased by the angry mob of girls he accidentally asked out over the course of the day, and we close the episode with everyone having fun on the dance floor.

Cannot believe so many shenanigans unfolded over the course of just a handful of hours. I wonder if time doesn't progress in the same way in the BTR universe as it does in the Real World. I mean, as it is, their world is barely governed by the same rules and basic scientific principles as our own is. Impossible scenarios are just everyday occurances to them, and absolutely absurd happenings don't even make them blink.

Honestly, the world of BTR is a scary one. Gustavo's marketing team shock-tests people for research. Sexist coffee makers try to murder you with foam. Doctor Hollywood is out there actually giving people medical advice. Children are packed in school rooms like sardines, with no hope of escape if a fiery inferno consumes the building.

Well...anyway! Silly episode! See you next time :)

[inchidentally]

https://x.com/safeforlando/status/1750936311563723024?s=20

I don't need to add anything. The best driver duo on the grid without a doubt <3

you're so right to say there's nothing more to say, anon. and yet ! lol

(behind a cut so no one can think I'm literally reporting facts here or that I'm living and dying by my own weird and pointless takes I'm just enjoying over-analyzing for fun)

(I am fully switching off RPF/narrative here)

so temporarily switching off friendships or any kinds of ships and focusing solely on driver partnerships, I love how certain Lando's always been about what Oscar has done for his (Lando's) performance. I think this is where age and generation play some part bc Carlos and Daniel are both firmly in the same age group and separated from Lando to a certain degree bc of that. they both viewed Lando as a little brother type of teammate and their careers were never perceived by themselves as especially tied to McLaren or to Lando. they'd both kind of become the lone wolf type by then which is honestly how most drivers have to be. (even moreso in the Max/RB dominance era)

whereas Lando isn't just toeing the line by saying he's a big team player, he adores working in groups in absolutely every area of his professional life and even having hobbies that put him with a minimum of 3-4 people. he also needs to feel the safety of a support network to be at his best. he's the very opposite of a lone wolf. hell, he literally said 'it took an actual village to raise me'.

he very intentionally developed the shared interests with Carlos and Daniel to create those kinds of bonds and familiarity (that's The Lando Effect). and while it's too much of a leap to say for sure, I think it's likely - at least at the start - that Lando felt like they might each have been his teammate for longer than they were. either way, the shared hobbies and friendly bonding didn't really translate to his time time spent with them in team meetings, speaking to the engineers or in development back at the factory. Lando has said he and Carlos were on completely different planes of experience and ability and Carlos was one foot out the door after what, the first year? and well, we know the lack of synchronicity between Lando and Daniel as drivers that started to set in not long after that first season together.

so when it was announced Lando's next teammate would be a rookie and also younger than him, he didn't really hide that the swapped dynamic worried him - even if he was half-joking. and then Oscar being so quiet and independent a person definitely threw him. he even describes their pre-season interactions as friendly but only really having time to say a few words. Oscar had his own work cut out as a rookie (and as we found out, wanting to prove himself most to the engineers and folks at MTC) and Lando already had a full life running alongside his racing career.

and it sounds all projection-y and armchair psychology to say this but genuinely it's clear to state that unlike the usual PR push that a lot of new teammates partake in, Oscar's been notably disinterested in any of that - not even just overplaying a friendship or a bromance with Lando for the sake of the cameras. that's an especially unusual choice for someone who could really have used the Lando Effect boost to his own image after contractgate with Alpine and the hoards of Ricciardo fans/McLaren fans ready to hate someone they saw as a snake or a pretender (usually both). especially considering Oscar pre-F1 was extremely active on social media and had his own viral moments and a much more colorful, fun personality than what he's allowed F1 fans to see so far - it was a pretty deliberate choice to not carry that over right away to selling the partnership with Lando.

we might be able to glean through the murk of Netflix's highly questionable editing of this upcoming season of DTS how much was really going on behind the scenes between Lando and Oscar around this time. but it really seemed like Oscar was more focused on letting his loyalty to the team and his own driving do all the talking (and Mark Webber often said as much). when you compare a lot of those early Lando and Oscar videos and challenges to his Prema ones, he's so unusually quiet and reserved. so he had absolutely no interest in trying to sell himself as a persona or a character to F1 fans. he was perfectly sweet and polite! and boy, did Lando enjoy having someone with endless patience for him lol.

but it's very marked how, despite whatever was or wasn't developing between them as teammates, Lando has consistently always said the same as he has here about Oscar being so talented and giving Lando that "push" and how "you hate and you like it" bc it made him (Lando) take his own driving to the next level. that healthy competition and 'wow, this guy is bringing it' seemed to strike him immediately. Lando can't lie for shit so if he'd found Oscar to be a crappy teammate in any way there's no way he'd be able to choke out any praise for him even for the sake of the team alsgfljasgfa.

and I liked that here in I think March? he said how he planned to get Oscar into all his own hobbies and bring him out of his shell, but apart from one last minute invite to golf that never really happened. we know they spent a fair amount of down time together but it was always mentioned in passing rather than posting about it online or having anyone film it (that we know of yet). the reason I like it is because Lando went on to say how Oscar has reminded him by example to "keep calm and be yourself". and in this interview he'd said how he considers himself and Oscar to be pretty similar people in terms of their approach to their F1 careers. so instead of them bonding through hobbies and interests or both of them being chatterboxes, I think they bonded (if that's the word?) over not being stereotypical extroverted drivers in terms of their personalities and also that they've so adamantly never wanted to have driver in-fighting make life harder for their teams (and themselves). plenty of guys from F2 and F3 can attest to that for Oscar and of course there's The Lando Effect as far as Lando's concerned.

you could almost say they both needed to be teamed up with the other bc for all that Oscar projects Just a Guy, he also finds himself incredibly awkward when it comes to everything about his job outside of racing the car or talking about the car. Lando's just as much the same but he's learned to charm his way through it. he's still awkward as hell even in Quadrant promo videos and he's been doing those regularly for years now, and with all his friends there! they're both enough off-center that they either need an extroverted teammate to lean on or in their current situation, someone who can sympathize.

which I think considering how much loyalty to the team and a sense of 'home' and consistency are for Lando, it makes all kinds of sense that Oscar was the teammate to show up and really form that partnership that he considers to be 'the strongest' on the grid.

they're the same generation, have the same ethos when it comes to their racing careers and Oscar not only went through a court case to get to McLaren he then extended his contract to 2026 the second McLaren made the offer. Lando's got stability as well as a serious challenge from Oscar. he's more poised than ever for that win(s). and now I just hope he listens to Oscar in other ways like not self-flagellating in front of the cameras so much and focusing on where he has done well.