#bc i never like when my drivers teammate wins lol

[danykvyat]

say what you will about the result today but it's nice to feel actual emotions about formula one again. this whole season has just been dispassionate detachment, like watching out of habit and going through the motions but today ? total feralness. shaking and frothing at the mouth. when leclerc does win again i fear i will pass out.

[pshbites]

enhypen as pro athletes

genre ⇢ reactions, imagines, wtv u wanna call it

wc ⇢ 200 ish per member ? idk

warning(s) ⇢ profanity, loll smth else?

taglist ⇢ @wensurr @nshmurarki @blvengene @sirens-dreams @mimismenu

a/n : erm i should be studying for my chem exam but that can wait 🙈

if you liked this please be sure to reblog and like this! feedback is always apreciated <3 and join my perma taglist here

HEESEUNG… basketball player

- major troy bolton vibes

- he’s got tunes AND hoops

- god forbid you’re at a park and he sees a court

- “this one’s for you baby!!” *misses*

- all jokes aside he has that nba player aura to him

- DEFFF a d1 college athlete who then went pro

- always blowing a kiss to you in the crowd

- TROOOOYYYYYYYYYY

- he would try teaching you how to play but then get frustrated because he’s so passionate

- he’s just good at basketball and he can sing that’s what he brings the table that’s all he got!!!!

JAY… f1 driver

- lol did i give my bias my fav sport… MAYBEEE

- lewis hamilton and max verstappens love child

- oh and he’s a red bull driver

- fashion ICON. always pulling up in the paddock best dressed

- serves cunt on the streets

- he would be a menace whenever you two go go karting.. leaving you in the dust i fear

- you’ll never catch him below p5

- those sassy radios

- you’ll always catch him being snarky on the grid and off the grid

- akshully, he would tweet like lewis in 2014

- “he’s sitting in the middle of the road doing nothing”

- always blowing a kiss to you when he’s on the podium

- the alchemy by ts “where’s the trophy and he just comes running over to me”

- oh he’s looking for you the second he’s out of that car

- he would single handedly bring back red bull dominance

- picturing jay in a red bull uniform.. it’s heavenly.

- sigh i need someone to write f1driver!jay

JAKE… soccer player

- this was a given

- HE PLAYS FOR REAL MADRID NO QUESTIONS ASKED.

- him & that team would get along tooooooo well

- constantly posting q&a on instagram

- this un media trained king

- always mentions you no matter what

- “how are you feeling for the next match?” “great.. so my gf-“

- first thing he’s doing after winning is pulling out his phone and filming

- “LIVE REACTION TO THE WINNING GOAL” and it’s a 25 sec clip of him and güler running around the field.

- his insta story is such a struggle to get thru bc it’s either clips of him and the team on the private jet or a ton of random ass q&as

- “what’s your plan for the next season?” “idrk but today i had waffles for breakfast ����”

- his interviews are always the most entertaining bc he just says anything

SUNGHOON… hockey player

- this is because i can’t just do a freebie and give him ice skater 😞

- BUT HE DID PLAY FOR THE HOCKEY TEAM WHEN HE WAS LITTLE!!

- he’s not like the other hockey men tho, not overly aggressive

- he’s actually calm when he isn’t annoyed about losing

- one thing about him, he will drag it through the mud if he gets in the penalty box

- kicking ice and everything 😭

- lowk i see him as the teammate who isn’t very public with his personal life

- only time people see him smiling with 50 teeth is when he’s with u

- thinks of his job as more of a hobby

- “so what interested you in ice hockey!” “i was bored…”

- deffo plays for the national team

- just the most nonchalant person there

SUNOO… tennis player

- now hear me out

- blonde sunoo = art donaldson

- LIKE WOAHHHH!!!

- once again on the national team FOR SURE

- does not play when it comes to tennis (idk anything abt tennis 🤣)

- WILL huff and puff if it’s out

- SO sassy

- like side eye when they’re sipping water and changing rackets

- cannot play duos for the life of him

- but he’s GOOD

- nicest person ever out of the field tho

- interviewers love him because he knows how to appeal to fans

- cannot be mysterious for the life of him

- his insta posts are either him or pics of you AND him

- he actually hard launched you on his insta

JUNGWON… swimmer

- i mean,,, have u seen that body???

- the way he dances helps out a lot because he’s very flexible

- oh he’s for sure on the national AND olympic team

- i know a body of water hate to see him coming

- you two could be at the beach and suddenly he’s doing all this fancy shit

- likes to brag about how long he can hold his breath underwater

- like a child “look look! 30 seconds” like yes baby you go!!!

- his personality switches when he has a swim meet though

- literally rbf EVERYWHEREEEE

- the second he’s out of the water tho he’s back to normal

- unfortunately he isn’t a pr nightmare

- too media trained for his own good

RIKI… baseball player

- he’s gonna be eating that dodger dawg 25/8

- idk anything abt baseball so bear with me

- bro is locked in for every single game

- and you alr know he’s in the mlb (america RAHHHH)

- i think he’d play for the yankees

- riki belongs in nyc we know this

- a pr NIGHTMARE.

- his managers hate to see him coming bc he’s just doing anything

- “what do you think you could’ve improved in the last game?” “nothing i’m amazing shut up”

- he doesn’t take anyone’s bs

- not even his own teammates r safe from him

- his social media is full of goofy ass posts or posts that you collaborated with him on insta but it’s only aesthetic bc it’s from your page

- lowk i think he would occasionally posts those pics like he does on weverse like just insane amt of aura in one pic

- probably has a streaming account in this universe too

- “can we hurry this session up i have to stream at 7 😑”

- part time mlb player, full time twitch streamer actually

[inchidentally]

https://www.tumblr.com/inchidentally/737943108488232960?source=share

He looks at him like thinking "I don't know if I want him to be more successful than me or not." and I think he really doesn't know what to feel about him. Sometimes he seems like he cares too much about not having a p1 and sometimes he seems like he doesn't care at all. I think he can't hide his pain sometimes :(

🕯️ Work harder with him boy and keep your head empty and you'll get your win together please 🕯️

ohhh that cuts right to the quick babe

bc that's at the root of what another anon had said about Lando wanting to be for Oscar what he always needed from a more experienced teammate.

absolute mondo amounts of text below lol

with Carlos there was just never a question of Lando trying to puff up and challenge him and he's said that his rookie season was the hardest on him psychologically. he said that he spent it questioning if he really did have what it took and that constantly seeing Carlos confidently talking to the engineers and asking for things and settling into the car so well was very hard. we have to remember that rookie seasons in F1 aren't like other sports - these guys spend that first season wondering if each race is going to be their last (the whole Nyck de Vries situation). and because Lando compensated for what was going on behind the scenes by latching onto carlando - a big, fun and loud bromance - it was an even bigger thud when Carlos left. but !! Lando decided that if McLaren wouldn't let him sink then he would damn well swim. then of course with Daniel there was the shift in dynamic where Lando truly started to become the McLaren brand and it's great hope. but he was also having to deal with at least a little emotional whiplash of Daniel seeming like he'd be another carlando bromance, and also Daniel's not at all concealed disappointment (I'll leave it at that bc I'm not much of a fan lol).

so that "caring too much and not caring at all" back and forth that you said is absolutely something that plays a role in the stuff Lando is so candid about struggling with. he was so ready to finally be Normal About His Teammate when Oscar arrived all neat and tidy and with no baggage or agenda. and I think a part of Lando has tried to view Oscar as a typical rookie who will either be a bit of a nervous wreck, or be merely passing through McLaren for a couple of seasons - or re-negotiate and be shunted off sooner - or all three.

but then Oscar was the exact opposite of a nervous wreck and he's actually been a source of calm for Lando (as Lando himself said, "much more than my last teammate"). Oscar also worked exceptionally hard to show respect and appreciation to the team on every level. and then he signs on for yet another year before the season is even over!

that just leaves the anxiety of that P1 spot hanging in the air. and again, remembering how different F1 is to other sports and even other racing, these guys are ALL going for that spot with equal ferocity. there's no 'Lando wants it more' - that spot is literally why these drivers got to where they are. I know everyone brings up Kimi but lmaoooo that was his persona - he was there to win. you don't win shit in F1 if you're not wanting it on a cellular level.

so on most conscious levels, Lando is firmly in the "I want to win and I want to beat every other guy including Oscar/especially my teammate" because he couldn't possibly contend if he didn't think that. BUTTT. Lando is a much more complex guy than most F1 drivers and he's got an extremely open heart. so I do think we see him caught up in worrying about how strong Oscar's rookie season was and that sprint win - but this time there's an added feeling of rooting for Oscar the way that Oscar has always rooted for him. unlike Carlos and Daniel, Oscar doesn't have that alpha chest-beating thing that can also translate as sullenness and bitterness when they don't come first - and especially when it's their teammate who performs better than they do. and while it doesn't come from chest-beating, Lando absolutely sinks into sullenness even if it isn't as bitter as haters want to think.

so the fact that Lando now has a teammate who celebrates Lando's successes as much as Lando does for others (see Singapore and having to put up with his P2 spot being attributed solely to Carlos pfff) - to the point of Oscar chasing Lando down in parc ferme or standing totally unseen among the team during the podium celebrations) - is the cause for a lot of that intensity and almost a little bit of phantom pain? that we see sometimes when Lando watches Oscar talk. Lando broadcasts every feeling on his face and he just doesn't yet know what to do !! with Oscar.

it's also why I have my vestal virgins au which yes is in itself very weird, but the part about McLaren having another phenom young drivers without a lick of toxic masculinity as their motivation is honestly as new to fans and F1 overall as it is for Lando. we feel a bit off-kilter bc Lando being the adoring baby to Carlos and the adorable baby to Daniel was so easy bc - as I've also admitted - we all have sometimes reduced Lando to his cuter and funnier side rather than his serious contender side. but Oscar doesn't do that! Oscar finds Lando cute and funny when Lando is being cute and funny, but he also lets Lando determine the tone and if Lando is feeling more serious or frustrated or upset then Oscar quietly follows him there. and in turn, Lando brings up Oscar's hard work and success and says things like "how are you feeling Oscar? Oscar's been under the weather so it's even more impressive how he's done".

and idk I just think of the sprint win when they're posing with their plaques and you can see Lando struggling. but then! Oscar is so quietly happy and proud but he doesn't gloat or showboat at all! he even points out that while a win is always nice it's not the same as a race win. and we knew enough about Oscar's respect and deference that that was at least partly intended for Lando. and then Oscar said the same thing again and again in interviews! and then Lando started bringing it up himself and the hurt wasn't even there anymore - he could even ruefully joke about Oscar being the only one with a win!

so I feel like the conflict we see in Lando's eyes sometimes when he looks at Oscar is his tender heart seeing qualities in Oscar that he hasn't seen before in other F1 drivers, let alone teammates - mixed with his own specific pain at not having a win yet and how intangible it sometimes still feels.

in totally my own stupid probably weird perception - and this is probably a huge leap - the little tinge of bittersweetness to Lando and Oscar is that Oscar could truly end up meaning so much to Lando and it's a little overwhelming??

especially because Oscar is so opaque and quiet and withdrawn normally with everyone, even when it's talking about his parents or even Lily - yet he makes these serious and concerted efforts to show how much he respects and considers Lando in how he behaves and what he says. there's nothing remotely casual or lazy, even when/especially when he refuses to give journalists anything personal about his working relationship with Lando.

and Lando could probably safely assume that Carlos would behave just like Daniel - or how any other F1 driver would - if Lando was absolutely outstripping him. not just because of the difference in age (which is negligible now) but because that's honestly Lando's own first response to watching your teammate succeed while you struggle. but that little window where Oscar was keeping pace with - and occasionally exceeding - Lando's performance and even then, Oscar's ego never showed up in the form of crowing or forgetting about Lando beside him was like this agonizing sweetness on top of him never once being bitter about Lando's success.

and unlike Carlos and Daniel, Oscar knew so much and invested serious time into finding out about Lando (so very much alfgjlasfjl) so he's never been caught out by Lando's moods or needs. Carlos to this day seems kind of baffled and a little frightened by how intensely Lando latches onto him as a security blanket. and Daniel's big, loud smile faltering because Lando looked a little pained at being treated like just another DannyRic bromance. even the difference of Oscar's fond little "you're not very adventurous with food, are you?" versus Carlos' coaxing "Lando you need to mature" and getting him to touch the fish in the box. Oscar won't even jokingly try to get Lando to be someone he isn't because all of those things make up who Lando is to Oscar in the same way they do for us as fans.

I wrote an equally long post about guys like Carlos and Daniel realizing they're holding Lando's heart in their hands and feeling freaked the fuck out like 'aaaahhhh take it back take it back!'. but I realized I had no idea how Oscar would react because I don't know if Oscar's relationship to Lando would ever have him in a position to take it for granted that he holds Lando's heart in his hands. if he didn't want it then he would be terse and dismissive as well as more performatively bromancey with Lando. so it's clearly that Oscar wouldn't presume that he's in the position to have it.

so when Lando looks at Oscar he sees:

someone who he openly says makes him better as a driver

someone who is absolutely capable of getting the win before he does

someone who is considerate and kind and doesn't let bitterness fester

is the perfect complement to Lando's will-o-wisp personality

doesn't thrive off of ego and never drags anything off the track with him

who is intimidating precisely because of his calm centeredness

is so similar to Lando in a lot of ways, and so different to him in even better ways

is low-maintenance and non-demanding as a teammate

but does the fact that he doesn't "need" anything from Lando as a teammate feel nice or does it feel hurtful

is so difficult to read and even harder to get to know on a deeper level

distinctly decided against trying to make their relationship camera-friendly even though we know he absolutely does do that with some drivers (Prema, Alpine)

truly, genuinely likes who Lando is in every way

for some reason doesn't see the need to try and clarify or define that any further

god yeah it's got to be the most baffling feeling when it seems like your new teammate could slot right in with your closest friend group but he's also your biggest competitor besides Max V but he's also helping and supporting you on and off the track and sometimes it feels like he's turning his world around you as his sun but then he has this grown-up life outside of you so where does it all fit and what do you even think about it??

[leclerced]

no okay so imagine it’s driver reader, she’s in f2 but is also the hottest girl to ever exist. like im picturing madison beer/megan fox type hot. the other drivers have met her on occasion and all follow her and always talk ab how hot she is and how she’s their dream girl and they all act super tough thinking they’ll be able to score a date w her but it ofc never works for them lol. oscars so smug hearing them all talk ab how hot she is knowing she’s his and only his. and he’s the only one that makes her beg and cry for him to fuck her.

anyways yk how oscars always talking ab his gf irl, bringing her up in interviews and stuff. imagine it’s the same in this au- he’s always like “my girlfriend did this for me” or “my girlfriend took that pic” etc in interviews or challenges or whatever.

one day they’re at some event w all the f1 and f2 drivers and maybe some journalists are there and she’s all over oscar. and this bitchy journalist starts attacking her like “he has a girlfriend wtf is wrong with u” and basically calling her a slut and scoffing at her saying hot girls always think they’re entitled to everything when really everyone knows it’s coming from a place of jealousy instead of girl code and she just cocks her head like “who do you think his gf is?” And he just so dramatically goes “hey baby” and leans in to open mouth tongue kiss her in front of everyone and all of their jaws just drop when it clicks bc how the HELL did oscar manage to pull her?

n she’s like it’s always the quiet ones ;) and winks and struts away n he smirks and just follows her

i’m obsessed djdjdj

i love this sm i have sm things to add??

her being kinda like a playboy?? she’s never publicly dated someone but flirts with everyone just to see them blush and stutter. anytime she’s asked about her relationship status, she tells them that she’s committed to racing and doesn’t have time for a relationship. i like to think she’d get reallly popular because she’s so pretty like as soon as she starts winning races and working her way up the ranks, everyone wants a piece of her. rumors about her dating her teammates and other drivers or random celebs who liked her posts pop up all the time and she’s always quick to shut them down.

love the idea of her being a bit of an influencer like her instagram game is on point, perfect matching theme that goes back years. and then suddenly theres a guy on her page and she’s in her soft launch era but she’s a menace so it’s like pictures of the hickeys on his chest while she straddles him. for like a year straight she’s posting raunchy photos of them with their faces cropped out while still being like "yea i don’t have a boyfriend!" but oscar is constantly talking about his girlfriend and how much he loves her. complete opposites.

so then when they're spotted with her hanging off him for days in a row at some weekend long event or a race weekend maybe, people are talking about it online wondering why he's letting her hang off him like that when he's got a girlfriend. people mad at her for trying to ruin his relationship. so many memes about his "girlfriend" seeing it on the tv and crying herself to sleep.

and then, cameras catch her kissing him and immediately it gets so much worse. twitter is trending with their names, everyone is wondering why the hot shot f2 driver is macking on the rookie mclaren driver on international tv when minutes before he was talking about how much he loves his girlfriend in an interview. someone has the balls to confront them but gets so embarrassed when he's like "not that it's any of your business, but this is my girlfriend." and they'd apologize but she's kinda nice for once and tells them they have nothing to apologize for bc literally no one knew! they'd probably do an interview to answer questions ab their secret relationship and she makes sm dirty jokes about him and how everyone is like. shocked by the things she says about him? and he just sits there smiling and blushing.

this is toxic and kinda ab cheating but i like to imagine her crushing on oscar and him having a girlfriend so she gets asked in an interview if she has any crushes or smth and she says him. the interviewer is like “aw well too bad he’s got a girlfriend!” and she just says “okay and? he can call me when they breakup, he has my number.” and it starts sm drama with everyone talking about how hot girls think they can do whatever they want and ruin relationships and blah blah blah. and then his relationship ends bc he doesn't see how it's a problem to just have her number saved in his phone. they'd have talked years before when they raced in the same leagues before he got bumped up faster, so she's just a stranger to him. but girlfriend ends up breaking things off because it becomes a running joke that the woman leading the f2 championship is just waiting for oscar piastri while every one else pines after her. even lando and logan are making jokes ab how ofc its him that she has a crush on, the one guy who has been in a relationship since school.

[ralphiesaces]

i’ve been thinking about engineer!seb au all week oh my god

so some additional thoughts

- maybe in this au, jenson’s first engineer is hanna prater? sebs best friend since forever, and jenson’s right-hand-woman since 2009

- (or maybe anyone else, but i feel like this dynamic fits best)

- she was there for him the entire time through his mental health issues throughout 2009, and her watching and dealing with it first hand brings them pretty close together

- he brings her anything and everything she needs

- when seb finally turns up in the same garage as her, they’re glued by the hip and jenson tries to bribe her w more snacks and stuff to get his work-bestie back and it’s not working

- hanna sees right through him, but seb thinks that it’s normal for them, and that it’s really sweet

- once jenson gets over being bitter (after mark slaps some sense into him) he brings both of them anything they need when he’s free

- he hovers, bc he likes hearing them talk tech, but he doesn’t really understand all of it

- but they never make him feel dumb

- one day hanna is sick, and the team is just doing some tests

- so seb is sitting in his normal chair, and jenson is wiped from some PR work he had to do, so jenson is quiet, just watching seb flutter around, doing his work

- but seb gets stuck on trying to fix a problem, kimi doesn’t have enough grip, or is losing too much time on corners, or something

- and jenson quietly makes a suggestion

- seb’s eyebrows furrow and jenson repeats himself, but his lack or normal confidence is gone bc he’s out of his comfort zone here. he’s not know for being smart

- but he’s right.

- and bc he pointed out the problem, seb could figure out the solution, indirectly helping his teammate who he’s fighting for in the championship this year

- it’s out of character for him fs

- he likes kimi, sure, but after 2009, he wasn’t ever planning to go out of his way to help him win

- so the next race kimi is faster

- jenson is torn up about it, extremely frustrated, but it’s nothing but his own fault really

- and then the race after that, his car is equal to kimi’s again?

- hanna doesn’t say a think, but she looks jenson in the eyes, shoots her gaze over to seb for a second and it makes sense

- seb probably gave hanna some advice/a key bit of info that she hadn’t noticed to help jenson’s performance

- they’re not even dating yet, but they have a serious conversation about their relationship

- they can’t let any conflict of interest like that happen again

- but they helped each other and neither of them were going to forget that anytime soon

- jenson finds it easier to talk to seb now, and still hangs out w seb and hanna (sometimes seb alone)

- and he’s comforted by seb’s presence. he actually finds himself being recharged when he hangs out w seb

- he’s not drained when he’s with him

- some press start to think he’s stealing kimi’s engineer or tactics, but jenson barely focuses when he’s there lol, zoning out

- so instead, sometimes seb comes to jenson’s drivers room or motorhome lol

- they just work together, you know?

- they’re basically dating without actually dating lol

anyways i just had some thoughts

[venusacrossthestars]

a choice I don't want to make

Summary- Lando warns you to stay away from his teammate. He also warns Carlos to stay away from you, his best friend. So why couldn't either of you listen?

Pairing- Carlos Sainz x fem!reader

WC-10,234

warnings- making out, age gap (never directly mentioned), angst, Lando's kinda an ass, COVID mentions (timeline 2019-2021), swearing, probably something else I forgot bc she is a hefty fic

lol lets try this again... if you saw this before... no you didn't

F1 masterlist

Silverstone 2019

You had no idea where you were going. Everything was pure chaos, too many people, too many cameras, too many reporters, there was too much happening. You had one goal- get to McLaren hospitality and hopefully someone there would be able to help you. Taking a peek down at your phone you hope for a text from your best friend. The same best friend you were trying to visit. 

You understood that Lando was busy, it was race weekend after all, but he was the one who begged you to come to Silverstone in the first place. The same one who promised that you wouldn’t be left wandering around. The same ‘best friend’ who promised he would come and get you if you were lost or uncertain. 

You and Lando had childhood friends which quickly grew into you becoming best friends in your adolescent years. Your parents were neighbors, a friendship was bound to happen but no one ever expected the two of you would stay that way. You and Lando were each other's biggest supporters. You were there supporting every karting race, every crash, every win, all of it. So of course you would be here, at Silverstone, supporting your best friend during his first ever Formula 1 season. 

Speaking of your best friend you hear your phone ding, and you pray it’s a notification from Lando because you were starting to freak out. Too busy trying, and failing, to unlock your phone you fail to notice the man crossing your path. 

A shoulder into yours causes you to drop your phone. A groan escapes you. “I’m sorry,” you look up at the man you bumped into. “I should’ve watched where I was going.” 

“It's alright. I should’ve also been paying attention.” The man apologizes, his voice thick with an accent. He reaches down and picks up your phone from off the ground and hands it back to you. “Texting someone important?” 

You quickly glance at the screen, thankful there are no cracks. “Yeah, my best friend,” you begin, now seeing that the notification was from your mother asking you to send her pictures, “he told me to text him if I get lost or overwhelmed. He hasn’t responded.” 

“Have you ever been to a race before?” 

“A few. My friend, the one I am supposed to be meeting, is a driver.” 

This piques the man's interest, “Oh? Who does he drive for? Maybe I know him.” 

You take a good look at the mysterious man you bumped into and you can’t help but feel as if you know him from somewhere. Sure you were Lando’s best friend, and sure you attended one or two of his F2 races, but you didn’t live and breathe the motorsport as he did. 

To be honest you didn’t want to tell the man that you were looking for Lando. Some people got strange when you told them who your best friend was, especially those who were fans of the sport. “Well, may I ask who you are? Because no offense, but the people I normally tell tend to freak out when I tell them.” 

“Carlos,” the man says with a slight chuckle, seemingly amused at your cluelessness. “Carlos Sainz.” 

Carlos Sainz, why does that name sound so familiar? It takes a moment and once the realization finally hits, you are slapping your palm against your head. This earns you an amused chuckle from the man in front of you. How did you not recognize your own best friend's teammate? It’s not like Lando doesn’t talk about him all the time. And you tell him so. “How did I not recognize you, Lando talks about you all the time.” 

“Lando talks about me?” Carlos looks surprised, and touched, at your admission. 

“Only every time he calls. I should thank you,” you begin, “he was nervous at the beginning of the year, worried he would feel out of place driving with the big leagues and all. He does nothing but sing your praises.” 

Carlos laughs, “Let me take you to him.” 

“Thank you, I appreciate it.” 

The two of you make your way through the crowd of reporters, photographers, and fans to the safety of McLaren garage, which was the most likely place to find Lando. Carlos’s words, not yours. 

You hear your name being called faintly from across the garage and you do a quick 180 to be met with Lando’s boyish grin. He quickly makes his way over, “You made it!” He exclaims, clearly excited. 

Lando’s arms are open, awaiting his hug. Instead, you whack him with your purse. “Yeah, no thanks to you asshole. I texted you and tried to call you! I was lost, without Carlos’s help I would probably still be wandering around.” You don’t let up your assault, still frustrated with the boy. 

Lando’s hands come up trying to block your swings, “Geez woman, stop, stop,” he finally grabs your purse, “I’m sorry I should’ve made sure I had my phone on me.” 

“You’ll be forgiven if you get me a smoothie.” 

“Consider it done.” 

Satisfied with his answer you pull your purse back from his grip and pull him into a hug, “I’m so proud of you!” You pull away hands now on his shoulders, “My best friend is officially an F1 driver!” 

“I have been for a couple of months now,” Lando points out. 

“But this is my first time seeing you in your get-up in person!” 

The two of you begin to catch up, failing to notice the awkwardly standing Spaniard next to you. Carlos clears his throat, making his presence re-known. 

“Oh, so it seems you’ve met Carlos. Carlos, this is my best friend,” Lando introduces the two of you, officially this time. 

“I kind of ran into him trying to check my phone to see if you texted. He was kind enough to help me find you.” 

“Thank mate,” Lando puts an arm around your shoulders, shaking you slightly, “I don’t want anything bad to happen to my best-est friend in the whole world. ” 

You groan at Lando’s embarrassing behavior,  “Lando I will punch you.” Carlos gives the two of you a strange look. 

“Come on, let us get you that smoothie.” Your face lights up at your promised treat.

Lando grabs your hand and begins to pull you away. You call out to the man behind you, “Bye Carlos! It was lovely to meet you!” You turn back to Lando, failing to see how out of place Carlos now looks. “Lando slow down, you are going to rip my arm out of the socket.” 

“So what’da ya think?”

You continue sipping your smoothie happily, “Very good, all is forgiven.” 

“No, not your smoothie, all of this.” Lando gestures all around you.

“Oh, why it is very nice Mr. Big League.” 

“Thank you, thank you.” He bows. 

“Has it been fun, like obviously I know this is your dream but is it fun off the track too?” 

“Yeah, it has been. Like I told you over the phone it has been a little nerve-wracking, a lot more eyes are on me now. I have the other rookies, George and Alex, but I still feel the pressure.” You nod along to his concerns. “Carlos has been great too, really welcoming. I look up to him, he is my first F1 teammate and I couldn’t ask for a better one.” 

“I’m glad. He seems like a nice guy. Handsome too,” you wiggle your eyebrows at Lando. 

Lando groans your name in annoyance and you can’t help but laugh. “What? I’m telling the truth, I’m happy to have some eye candy to look at during the race.” 

“I’m not enough?” 

“No offense my friend, you aren’t my type.” You joke. 

A serious look passes over Lando’s face, “Can I ask something of you?” 

“Of course, what’s the matter Lan?” 

“I know you’re just joking but, and I know this is going to make me sound like an ass, please don’t say those types of things about Carlos.” 

“You’re right, that does make you sound like an ass. You’re not my dad Lando.” 

“I know, I know. It’s just, he’s my teammate. If something happened between the two of you and he broke your heart, I couldn’t be civil. I just- It’s just that it’s my rookie season and Carlos has been the best. I really don’t want to end up having to hate the dude.” 

“Lando,” you say softly, “I just met him today. Nothing is going to happen, I simply said he was cute. And besides, I could never ask you to hate any of my exes.” 

“I know you don’t but I always do anyways. But please, just promise me.” 

Lando holds out his pinky and you reach out and interlock yours, “I promise that I won’t do anything with your teammate Lando, I pinky swear it.” 

Oh, how that pinky promise would come back to bite you in the ass. 

After Silverstone, Lando had all but got on his hands and knees to beg you to come to more races, promising that he wouldn’t leave you to fend for yourself. At first, you were hesitant, sure everyone was nice at Silverstone but you still felt like an outsider. On the other hand, it was hard to ignore Lando’s pleas and puppy dog eyes. So you agreed, you went to Germany, Hungary, Belgium, and finally Italy. 

Your first day in Italy was filled with sightseeing, trying different cuisines, and taking loads of pictures to send to your mother to prove that you were, in fact- 1. Alive and 2. Having fun. To your surprise, Lando made a decent tour guide.

All your fun did have to come to an end, Lando was needed for free practice and you were once again left feeling out of place in the McLaren garage. With nothing else to pass the time you take out your phone and begin to scroll aimlessly through social media. 

“Are we boring you?” 

You look up and are greeted by Carlos whose race suit is around his waist and helmet in his hands. 

“Aren’t you supposed to be out there, y’know practicing?” 

“I’m on my way, I just saw you sitting here alone and thought I’d check in on you.” 

“I’m okay,” you reply with a tight-lipped smile, “I don’t really know anyone here outside of Lando, and while everyone is nice they are also busy.” 

Carlos nods, seemingly understanding, “You could always go talk to the other WAGs.” 

“WAGs?” you ask, unfamiliar with the word.

“The other driver's wives and girlfriends, you don’t have to stay here.” 

“I’m not Lando’s girlfriend.” You clarify, a look of disgust crossing your face at the idea of dating your best friend.

“I know, I’m only saying you might get along with them, might make you less lonely.” 

“What about your WAG?” 

“I don’t have one,” Carlos says, nonchalantly. 

“Oh,” is all you can manage to get out. The two of you stare at each other and you are quick to look anywhere but his eyes. Your distraction- his helmet he is holding in his hands, “You're supposed to be out on the track and I am too busy asking you about what a WAG was.”

“It’s alright,” Carlos waves off your concern, “If you ever need anything and you don’t want to bother Lando, don’t hesitate to ask me.” 

You nod your head, “Will do.” 

Carlos begins to walk off, now running even later than before. 

“Carlos,” you call out and the man in question turns around, “Be safe, and good luck!” 

Carlos shoots you a thumbs up, message received. 

Practice sessions and qualifying fly by and before you can register it’s race day at Monza. The sun is shining, the temperature is warm but not uncomfortably so, there’s a slight breeze; the day is overall perfect. You have high hopes for the McLaren team today. You wish Lando, and secretly Carlos, good luck. 

It’s the 27th lap when Carlos is forced to retire, and the entire atmosphere of the garage has shifted. You can feel the disappointment and frustration of everyone, especially Carlos. You watch as he angrily exits the car and storms off to wherever. For a moment you battle back and forth with yourself, should you follow?  

Foregoing any rationalization you decide to follow. It doesn’t take you long to find Carlos, the string of what you assume are Spanish curses leading you right to the man. 

“Carlos?” you try to gain his attention, hoping that his anger won’t be redirected onto you. “Are you okay?”

Your voice stops Carlos’s tantrum and he turns towards you. He runs his hands through his hair and down his face. The look of defeat is prominent. 

“Honestly, no. I’m pissed off.” He backs up against the wall and slowly slides down to a seated position. Arms on his knees, head between them. You have never seen a man look so defeated. 

You knew how to comfort Lando after a bad race, you’ve done it numerous times. However, you felt completely lost in what to do in this situation. This was someone you didn’t know very well, someone you didn’t know at all. Did he like to be left alone, did he like to rant, did he just need support? You sink down to sit next to him. You were about to find out what type he was. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” You ask, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. 

“These things happen, pit stops go wrong. I just can’t help but be frustrated.” 

“That’s understandable, you’re human. It’s okay to be upset.” You rub soothing circles into his shoulder. You can’t help but feel there is a line you are crossing somewhere. 

Carlos raises his head and rests it against the wall, eyes closed. You can’t help but stare at his neck, his Adam's apple glistening with a slight shine of sweat from the heat of being in the car. You know you shouldn’t be staring and you know you definitely shouldn’t be thinking about licking a broad stripe from his collarbone up his neck. Lando would have your head if he could read your mind; you’ll take your blessing that these thoughts would only be yours. 

As if Carlos could hear your less-than-holy thoughts, his head turned in your direction, eyes now on you. “How are you friends with Lando, he’s so…. Childish.” 

“I’ve known him for almost 15 years. And trust me you spend enough time with us in the same room and I am just as bad, if not worse, than him. I can just mask it better than he can.” 

Carlos nods, “Lando said something about this being your last race?” 

“Yeah, unfortunately, some of us have normal people lives to get back to.” 

“Sorry, I couldn’t make this last race more entertaining for you.” 

You scrunch your nose, “Don’t apologize, this whole experience has been amazing. DNF or not.”  

The two of you spend the rest of the time talking, he asks you about your life, your friends outside of Lando, and your hobbies. You in return ask him about his family, his career, and if he has any hobbies for when he isn’t behind the wheel. The two of you are content in your little bubble until Carlos is told he is needed for an interview. 

Carlos rises from his sitting position and once fully standing he offers his hand. You graciously accept and Carlos has no problem lifting you off the ground. Offset by the suddenness you tumble right into him, his hands land at your waist, steadying you. There are a few things you notice in that short time. 1- Carlos is strong, you can obviously see it with the way he’s built and that is no surprise, an extreme workout regime would do that to anyone. 2- Your hand fits perfectly in his. It was as if they were puzzle pieces. 3- His hands are soft. You were expecting more calluses but instead, they are the perfect mixture of roughness and softness.

You clear your throat, causing Carlos to let go. “Um, thank you.” 

“My pleasure, Hermosa.” 

The rest of the 2019 season came and went. You weren’t able to go to any more races, much to your disappointment. You watched when you could and congratulated both McLaren drivers when you could. Yes, both. Lando had given you Carlos’s number, “in case of emergencies, only” he had told you sternly. 

It had started out innocently enough, a congratulations text here and there, a comment on a bogus penalty, only things F1-related. Then it became more. Carlos would send you a funny picture he took of Lando, a comment about how childish your mutual friend was. You would send a funny meme you saw of the driver. But that was it, and if it was so innocent why couldn’t you tell Lando? 

Before you knew it the F1 season came to an end and Lando was home for winter break. It was nice having him back home, even if it was for a little bit before he went on all his adventures with his other friends. 

The two of you were having your weekly movie night. It was Lando’s turn to pick the movie this week and you were on popcorn duty. Watching the seconds on the microwave tick down you waited till the clock hit 00:20. That was the perfect time when the majority of the kernels were popped and the popcorn wasn’t burnt.

Too focused on your duty, Lando had to tell you that your phone had dinged and like a fool, you told him to check who it was. 

He called out your name in a curious tone. “What?” you questioned as you walked into the living room with a fresh batch of perfectly unburnt popcorn.

“Why is Carlos texting you?”

Shit. Your face fell and you quickly launched into an explanation, “it's not what it looks like.” 

Lando raises an eyebrow and you cringe at how defensive you sounded. “No seriously, it isn’t. I know you gave me his number for emergencies but I texted him congrats after a good race and then he started sending me weird pictures he would take of you, asking what was wrong with you. Then we started sending each other memes. I promise you Lando that is it.” 

Lando doesn’t look amused by your explanation, “I gave you his number in case something happened.” 

“I know, I know.” 

“The two of you are just being friendly?” 

“Yes,” you hurriedly say, “Nothing else, it's mostly him asking how I put up with you. I’m giving him pointers.” 

Lando sighs, “I guess it’s fine. I mean it is nice having my best friend and teammate be friends. Even if it is you two talking smack about me.” 

You roll your eyes, “It’s not talking smack, it’s called giving advice to the other unfortunate soul who has to spend so much time with you. Besides I don’t want to break up the infamous ‘Carlando’ I’d have some very angry fangirls after me.” 

Lando sticks his tongue out and you respond by throwing a fist full of popcorn at him. 

Lando and you spent a few more days of winter break together, savoring the normalcy of the holidays and each other's presence before you are both dragged into different directions. 

2020 starts the same as every year. New Year’s resolutions are made and then quickly abandoned. Valentine's Day is still spent painfully alone, your only comfort is the box of chocolates Lando has sent you just like he does every year without fail. However, the world is thrown into chaos with the emergence of COVID-19. Everyone, including yourself are thrown for a loop. With the world trying to adapt to the chaos, you are forced to work from home, lockdowns are in place, public events are canceled, things are postponed, and the whole world is on pause. 

Lando and you FaceTime and text. He expresses his disappointment with the season being limited and not being able to be on the track for a full season. You remind him that it’s for the best and he agrees, he’s just upset. 

Lando isn’t the only driver you keep in contact with. You and Carlos have been talking more and more, the both of you feeling the effects of isolation. You are thankful to have the company in trying times like these. 

You and your routine are interrupted by the familiar sound of Lando’s ringtone. You answer with a chipper ‘Hello!’ 

“He’s leaving.” 

“What?” you ask in confusion, not knowing who ‘he’ was. 

“Carlos. He got an offer from Ferrari, next season he’ll be driving for them.” 

“Oh Lan. I’m sorry.” 

“I mean I’m happy for him, truly. I just didn’t expect it to hurt this much.” 

“I can imagine. He was your first teammate. You guys have a bromance. It’s okay to be upset.” 

“Why didn’t he tell me? Why didn’t he say anything.” 

“I don’t know, maybe it happened all too fast. I don’t know how your contracts work but maybe it was a spur-of-the-moment thing.” 

“You’re probably right.” 

“I typically am.” 

“What would I do without you?” 

“Probably die.” 

“Did Carlos mention anything to you?” 

“To me?” you question.

“Yeah, when I spoke to him last he said the two of you had been texting and I was wondering if he maybe said anything?” 

Carlos told Lando the two of you had been texting? It wasn’t anything major, so why did you have this flutter in your stomach? “No, he never mentioned it. I’m sure he would’ve mentioned it to you before he ever said anything to me.”

“Yeah, yeah. You’re right, again.” 

“Are you going to be okay?”

“Yeah, I mean drivers move teams all the time, we’re always getting new teammates. It just took me by surprise, that’s all.” 

You and Lando talk for a little longer before he tells you goodbye, promising to call you later. As soon as he hangs up you are opening up your message thread with Carlos, wishing him the best with the move. 

‘so I take it you heard’ he replies instantly. 

‘Lando called and told me. he was a tad bit upset.’ You tell him, only feeling a bit sorry for how you throw your friend under the bus. 

‘I was going to give him a ring’ 

‘you should’ 

‘you told him we were texting?’ you ask not even seconds after you sent the last message. 

‘he asked how I was spending my quarantine, I am no liar’ 

‘I only ask because he asked me if you mentioned anything in passing’ 

‘it was truly an in-the-moment thing. it happened so fast’  

‘I understand, just give him a ring when you can’ 

‘anything for you, Hermosa’ 

You’re lucky there is no one else in your apartment to see the way you grin at the screen. Every time your phone dings you can’t help the giddy feeling that bubbles within you, hoping that the notification is from Carlos. 

You couldn’t tell Lando, but you felt yourself harboring a tiny crush on the driver who is known as the “Smooth Operator.” It was, in your eyes, nothing major. He had an amazing sense of humor, he was kind and welcoming, it also didn’t help that he was insanely handsome. How were you not supposed to develop a crush? 

Silverstone 2020

Lando was insistent that you should come back to Silverstone, saying that this time you knew where you would be going and that due to restrictions there wouldn’t be as many people wandering around. And after careful deliberation you had decided to appease the boy, agreeing to come to yet another race. 

You are making your way towards McLaren hospitality when you hear someone call out your name. The voice doesn’t belong to your best friend and you don’t know anyone else that well for them to be calling after you. You shake it off, assuming that someone else shares your name. That is until you feel a hand land on your shoulder. Panic swells through you, and you quickly turn around, batting their hand away. 

“Easy there, Hermosa. It’s just me.” 

You place your hand on your chest, taking a deep breath in. You take a good look at the man, you can see his warm brown eyes, the rest of his face covered by his mask which dons his signature 55. “You scared me, Carlos.” 

“That wasn’t my intention.” 

“Then what was?” 

“Lando told me that you were attending, I came to find you and make sure you weren’t lost, again.” 

“That’s very kind of you.” 

“I am a gentleman.” It sounds like he is trying to convince himself more than you. 

“Well then, lead the way.” The two of you walk side by side, too busy in your own little world to notice the cameras on you. 

The rest of the day goes off without a hitch, the boys go off doing their duties. You are once again left to aimlessly scroll through your socials, Instagram had nothing new to offer so you decide to brave Twitter. Scrolling through random tweets, you are surprised to see yourself on one of the F1 update pages that constantly comes up as ‘something you may like’. The picture is clearly of you and Carlos. One of them detailing the moment Carlos startled you, and the other is of the two of you walking shoulder to shoulder into McLaren hospitality. The caption reads- Carlos Sainz and a mystery woman spotted together. 

Mystery woman? You guess that is what you look like, especially with your mask. You weren’t fully unknown. People knew of you as Lando’s best friend, the two of you had countless pictures together. That didn’t mean everybody knew you and by how friendly you and Carlos look in these pictures it was reasonable to draw such a conclusion. 

You knew if Lando saw these pictures he would instantly recognize the woman as you, and you had to bring it to his attention before anyone else could. You refused to look at the comments on the post, knowing that they would only be full of speculations. 

You spent the rest of your time anxiously waiting for Lando. You suppose he wouldn’t be too freaked out, considering that he had told Carlos to come get you. 

“Lando,” you shout, seeing the familiar head of curls. 

“Enjoy practice?” he asked. 

“Huh, yeah. Fun.” you absentmindedly say, “Listen if you go on Twitter and see those pictures of Carlos and me, it’s nothing. He was just coming to find me like you asked.” 

Lando looks confused, and you mentally kick yourself. Maybe he would’ve never seen them or better yet, never said anything.

“What pictures? I never sent Carlos to find you? What are you talking about?” 

Well, shit. “When I got here I was walking to hospitality and I heard my name being called, I didn’t think anything of it because it wasn’t you and I don’t know anyone else. Turns out it was Carlos and he told me that you mentioned to him I was coming here and that you sent him to make sure I didn’t get lost again. I thought you sent him to find me because you were busy.” 

“No,” Lando drags out. “I mentioned in passing that you should be coming soon, I never asked him to go get you.” 

You are left speechless, did you understand Carlos wrong? Did he just seek you out because he wanted to? Did he want to see you without Lando around? Maybe you could ask him the next time you see him. Maybe- 

You are brought out of your trance by Lando snapping his fingers. You frown, “Don’t snap your fingers at me, I’m not a dog.” 

Lando shakes off your annoyance, “I was trying to ask you- what pictures?” 

“Oh, right. Some F1 update page on Twitter got pictures of us and they are calling me,” you bring up your hands and make air quotes, “his mystery woman.” 

“Are you kidding me?” 

“Lando it’s not that big of a deal! I wanted you to hear it from me instead of seeing it randomly online.” 

“Not that big of a deal?” 

“It’s really not!” 

“What happens when people figure out it’s you?” 

“He was just making sure I didn’t get lost again!” 

Lando rolls his eyes, “I’m going to go talk to Carlos.” 

“Oh my God!” you exclaim, “You are making this a bigger deal than it needs to be.” 

Lando takes a deep breath, and you can see the gears turning in his head. “You’re right. I’m making this a bigger deal than it needs to be.” 

“Yeah, you are.” 

“I still want to talk to him.” 

“Lando,” you say warningly. 

Ladno throws his hands up in defeat, and you believe that is the end of it. 

Lando ends up in P5, and you are too busy celebrating his success to notice the tense looks between teammates. 

As usual, Lando berates himself, telling the press that if he did x, y, and z differently maybe he would be up on the podium, celebrating a bigger win. And as usual, you call him out on his nonsense- telling him there are more races in the future, more chances for a better finish, and that tonight he should celebrate, he should be living in the moment. 

So that’s what he does. Lando invites the McLaren garage out to dinner as a celebration. While not everyone is happy with today’s results, many accept the invitation. The aspect of free food and drinks is too good of an opportunity to pass up.

You are in a conversation with a few of the mechanics, trying to get to know everyone a little better. The conversation is quickly interrupted by cheers and you turn around to see what the commotion is about. You see that Carlos had decided to come out after all. He is being greeted left and right by the members of the garage. You wait patiently for him to make his way to your table. 

“So you made it out after all?” you ask, voice slightly raised to speak over the music and other conversation. 

“I did, I wouldn’t be a good teammate if I couldn’t celebrate Lando’s success, no?” 

“He’s excited, I mean it isn’t a podium finish but it’s an improvement.” 

Carlos nods in agreement. “Is that seat taken?” He points at the empty seat on your left. 

“No, I don’t think so?” You can’t recall anyone sitting there before Carlos came in. 

“You don’t mind if I sit here then?” 

“Be my guest.” 

Carlos sits down and sheds his jacket against the back of the chair. “Where’s Lando?” He asks, leaning back in his chair to get comfortable. 

“I have no idea, probably chatting with someone.” 

“Leaving you alone again?” 

“I’m making friends, and besides I’m not alone anymore.” 

Carlos hums at the fact. He picks up a drink menu, quickly glancing over it. “Do you want something to drink?”

You point at your glass of lemonade, “No thank you, I got mine right here.” 

“I mean a drink, drink. A cocktail.” 

“No, I’ll probably end up driving Lando back to the hotel.” 

“Ok then,” he shuts the drink menu and puts it back towards the middle of the table. 

“You’re not getting anything to drink?” You ask him, surprised by how quickly his tune changed. 

“If you aren’t going to get anything, then I won’t either.” 

You nod, surprised at the ‘it’s as simple as that’ attitude he holds. 

You turn your attention to the dinner menu in front of you, you settle on the pasta section, more than likely to order something off of there. 

“What are you thinking about getting?” Carlos asks. 

“Probably some pasta dish that I’ll end up regretting later tonight.” 

“Do you cook a lot?” Carlos asks. 

“Not as much as I would like to. Why? Are you some sort of chef in your spare time?” 

“I like to cook, yes. I have a good recipe for pancakes.” 

“I love pancakes, you’ll have to share it with me sometime.” 

“Or I could make them for you.” 

You are luckily saved from trying to come up with a response due to the waitress coming around asking if anyone was ready to order. The rest of the night is spent like that, you and Carlos talking. Him making comments that cause your heart to hammer in your chest. The two of you are interrupted occasionally by other members of the team. Lando even finds his way over, and you can tell he is too far buzzed to care that you and Carlos are seated so close together. 

By the end of the night, your cheeks are hurting from how much smiling you’ve been doing the entire night. You aren’t ashamed to admit that you are reveling in the attention Carlos is giving you. 

“Will you be coming to any more races this season?” 

“Unfortunately no. As much as I want to, my work schedule won’t allow it. Silverstone is closest to me and the others would be too much traveling just to be back to work on Monday.” 

“A shame, I enjoy spending time with you.” 

You laugh. “You can’t say things like that Carlos.” 

“Why not?” 

“Because it makes me like you more.” 

“That’s a bad thing?” 

“Kinda,” you shyly admit. 

“Do tell.” 

“Well, the more I like you the more I want to do the opposite of what Lando asked me.” 

“What did Lando ask you?” 

“I think you know.” 

“Well if he said what I think. Then I also want to do the opposite of what he told me to do.” 

You had a feeling, even after you had asked Lando to leave it alone, that the Brit had a few choice words for the Spaniard. You had no proof, only a gut feeling. But here Carlos was telling you that your best friend had in fact talked to him. You couldn’t help but be curious as to what his exact words were. 

“And what did he tell you?” 

“He asked, no he demanded, that I stay away from you. That you are his best friend and I shouldn’t do as much as look in your direction. He told me, quite sternly, no hugging or touching of any sort.” 

You snort. “So we both have our warnings then.” 

You take a good look at Carlos, you have been admiring the man all night but looking at him now feels more intimate. The sleeves of the white dress shirt he is wearing are rolled up to his forearms. One arm is propped up on the table in front of you and the other rests comfortably on the back of your chair, his fingers lightly brushing against your shoulder. It looks as if he was taken directly out of a fairy tale, the soft lighting of the restaurant enhancing his features. 

You open your mouth ready to tell Carlos what he wants to hear, but you quickly close it at the sound of Lando’s now shrill voice calling out your name. You give Carlos a small smile, maybe this interruption was for the best. 

“There you are!” Lando exclaims as if you have been hiding from him. 

“I haven’t moved Lan.” 

“Oh, well to be honest everything is moving right now.” 

You know that Lando has had more than enough and that, much to your disappointment, you need to get up and get him back to his hotel room. 

You rise out of your seat and make your way over to Lando, who grabs onto you like a lifeline. You turn to Carlos “Tonight was fun, thank you.” 

“Anything for you hermosa.” Lando makes a face of disgust at the name but he doesn’t comment on it any further. “Do you need any help getting him back?”

“No, this isn’t my first rodeo. We’ll be okay.” 

“Goodnight then.” 

“Goodnight Carlos.”

You begin to walk Lando to the car but the sound of Carlos calling your name has you turning around, “I’ll call you!” 

You give him a thumbs up. That night after Lando is tucked in bed safely in his hotel room you can’t help but pace the length of your own room. So much has happened tonight and it was all too much for you to digest. Lando had sought out Carlos to tell him to stay away from you. While you knew Lando had good intentions you couldn’t help but be a little peeved. Telling people to stay away from you. Who did he think he was?

Carlos’s words play on repeat in your head ‘Then I also want to do the opposite of what he told me to do.’ How are you supposed to sleep after hearing that? Eventually, your exhaustion outweighs your overthinking capabilities and you fall asleep thinking of Carlos’s promise to call you. 

And call he does. He calls you after the Spanish GP. He calls you after the Belgian GP. You are the one to call him after the Italian GP, congratulating him on getting P2. Then he is back to calling you after every race, regardless of ranking. The call always begins the same, “How is my beautiful girl doing today?” It never fails to make you swoon. 

You could live in this bliss forever. It’s nice to have this type of attention on you. You have never felt this way about a boy before. However there is this feeling of guilt, you haven’t told Lando about any of it. It eats away at you, not being able to tell your best friend about any of this. The more you think about it the sicker you get. 

You figure that you’ll wait till winter break to tell Lando about how you truly feel about Carlos seeing that their time as teammates will have come to an end. Then you’ll be able to tell Carlos how you truly feel without any of the guilt. 

Well, ideas are typically easier than the execution. The 2020 season comes to an end and you and Lando fall back into your yearly routine. You are once again back in your flat for a movie night. It is your turn to pick the movie, and Lando is staring at the clock of the microwave waiting for it to hit 00:20. 

“Lando,” you call out, “can we talk?” 

He walks from the kitchen and places the bowl of popcorn on the coffee table before taking a seat on the couch resting his chin on his fist, “Sure bestie, what do you want to talk about?”

His easygoing tone didn’t put you at ease. You didn’t expect to feel so nervous. You were just telling your best friend that you had feelings for his now ex-teammate. So why were your hands so clammy? 

“So you know how at Silverstone in 2019 when I told you I found Carlos cute and you asked me to not do anything?” Lando says your name in a warning tone. You continue on, “Well I might have accidentally developed feelings for him.” 

Lando’s face holds no expression and you don’t know whether or not that is a good sign. “We’ve been talking almost every night and Lan, I’ve never met anyone like him.” 

 “For how long?” 

“Early this year at Silverstone.” 

This is what sets him off, “Since Silverstone?! That’s nearly 5 months! And you’ve kept this from me the entire time.” 

“Because this is how I knew you’d react!” You defend yourself.

“I asked you not to and then you go behind my back, of course I’m pissed!” 

“All we’ve done is talk! I haven’t even told him how I feel yet! Besides you asked me not to do anything with your teammate, last time I checked he’s not your teammate anymore!” 

“That doesn’t matter!” Lando shouts, “He will still be my first teammate. He will still be someone I look up to. I thought you would understand that!” 

“That’s why I am telling you now! I didn’t want to admit my feelings and have something happen behind your back.” 

“You already went behind my back!” 

“I think you’re being overdramatic,” you tell Lando, fed up with how he is acting. 

“And I think that you aren’t taking me seriously.” You roll your eyes at his comment and he isn’t taking you seriously, so his point is? “Y’know what I have to go,” Lando stands and gathers his things. 

You don’t know what to say. You don’t want him to stay if the two of you are just going to continue to argue. But you don’t want him to leave angry. Before you can ask him if you can try and talk about it he is slamming the front door. 

You sigh, leaning back into your couch, staring at the ceiling as you think about how none of this went according to plan. You reach for the remote and turn off the TV, no longer in the mood to watch a movie. You pop a few pieces of popcorn in your mouth and you can’t ignore the burnt taste they leave in your mouth. 

It’s been two weeks since you’ve heard from Lando. That’s the longest the two of you have gone without talking to each other. Granted you also could reach out to him but you were still mad at the way he reacted. You knew he had a reason to act the way he did, but who did he think he was dictating who you could and couldn’t have feelings for. He wasn’t your keeper. 

In those two weeks you have also been ignoring Carlos’s calls. You take it by the few messages of his you read that Lando had called him. The two of you seemed to be in deep shit with the Brit. You didn’t know what to do. You didn’t want to lose your best friend over a boy. Especially without knowing how that boy felt about you. You had a feeling, but you weren’t 100% certain. 

The familiar sound of Lando’s ringtone is what snaps you out of your thoughts. You stare at your phone fighting with yourself on whether or not you should answer it. You answer it before you can chicken out, “Hello?” 

“I’m sorry,” is the first thing out of Lando’s mouth. 

“What?” 

“I’m sorry. I was an ass that night at your flat.” 

“You were.” 

“But I am not sorry for saying you don’t see my side.” 

“Oh.” 

“I don’t know how I can say this to explain it properly on how I feel about it.” 

“You don’t have to, I think I get it. You’re my best friend and I don’t want to lose you over the maybe of a relationship.” 

“Really?” Lando sounds surprised. 

“Yeah, it’s all I’ve been thinking about for the past two weeks. I’ve missed talking to you.” 

“I’ve missed talking to you too. So are we all good?” 

“We’re all good.” 

While it was a relief that you and Lando were talking again, there was this hole in your heart. You didn’t know what to tell Carlos, you still had feelings for him. Feelings that weren’t going to fade anytime soon. 

So, you didn’t tell him. You called Carlos and told him all about the past couple of weeks. And of course he listened to all your concerns. Life would be so much easier if he hung up on you. It would be so much easier if he said this was a waste of his time. Instead, he made it so much harder by telling you he would wait for Lando to come around. 

You were truly screwed. 

Monaco 2021

Monaco was a sight to behold in general, but it really became a sight when you spotted Carlos decked out in Ferrari gear. You appreciated the sight because you and Carlos’s little secret would all come crashing down in a matter of minutes.

This was the first time you had seen Carlos in person since that night the two of you spent talking to each other at the restaurant celebrating Lando’s P5 at Silverstone. So how was it possible that Carlos had become more attractive? 

Lando had kept you close the entire time as if he didn’t trust you not to wander away towards Ferrari and ultimately Carlos. But even Lando can’t keep an eye on you forever. 

So there you were, feeling like an outsider standing in the Ferrari garage decked out in your McLaren gear that Lando had all but forced you to wear. However, you would brave the feeling if it meant congratulating Carlos on his P2 finish. 

It wasn’t easy sneaking someone who looked like a walking papaya into the Ferrari garage, but as the saying goes, if there is a will then there is a way. And Carlos most definitely had the will.

“You look good in red,” you tell him. 

“And I think you’d look better in red.” Flicking the rim of your McLaren cap to emphasize his point. 

“You think?” 

That little comment is all it takes for Carlos to pull you around a corner away from prying eyes. “I know,” he says, taking off your hat and dropping it to the floor. 

It doesn’t seem possible but somehow Carlos moves closer to you, caging you between his body and the wall. One of his hands is on the wall to support him as he leans further into you, the other is at your waist rubbing circles. All this attention makes your brain short-circuit. 

“Tell me you don’t feel the same and I’ll stop,” he mutters, mouth awfully close to your neck. 

“You know that would make me a liar,” you whisper. You sound pathetic, but you’ve been wanting this for a long time and by the lust in Carlos’s eyes, you can tell he’s been wanting this for just as long. 

If someone were to ask you who closed the distance between the two of you first, you would have to say it was a tie. You imagined this situation before but your imagination was no match for the real experience. Carlos’s lips are softer than they look if that was even possible. 

The kiss was soft, warm, all you imagined, and more. It was short and sweet, something respectable. But you were greedy, you had been waiting for this moment for a long time so while short and sweet was nice, it wasn’t something you were going to settle for. Grabbing Carlos by the collar of his fireproofs, you bring his lips back to yours and Carlos seems to have received the message and reciprocates the hunger. Both his hands have moved from their previous home and now cradle your check and the back of your head. 

The two of you need to breathe eventually, a shame. You nip at Carlos’s bottom lip before the two of you separate, each desperately trying to get air back in your lungs. Carlos rests his forehead against yours before he attacks your face with kisses. Cheeks, chin, nose, forehead, anywhere he can reach he is kissing. You giggle at the bombardment. It's only when he stops you are able to get a good look at his appearance. His pupils are blown, his lips are red and swollen, his hair is more messed up than before from your pulling. 

The two of you share this bubble of calmness. Each of you occasionally goes back for another kiss. You could stay here forever with him not having a care in the world. 

“Are you two fucking kidding me?!” 

The shock of Lando’s voice causes you to recoil out of Carlos’s arms and right back into the wall. Carlos’s grip doesn’t falter; if anything, it tightens. There was no way that the two of you could talk your way out of this. You are like a kid getting caught sticking their hand in the cookie jar before dinner. You were the kid and Carlos would be the cookie jar in this situation. 

“Are either of you going to look at me and explain yourself?” 

“Lando,” Carlos begins finally letting go of you.

“I don’t want to hear it from you, I want to hear it from her,” Lando points at you and Carlos is quick to move in front of you, blocking you from Lando’s harsh glare. 

You place a hand on Carlos’s shoulder and move out from behind him, “Lando, I’m sorry.”

“Sorry for what? Going against my wishes? Lying to me? Being a bad friend?” 

“Don’t you think you are being unfair?” Carlos interrupts him. 

“I’ll get to you later,” Lando points at Carlos, “I came here because I was looking for you so we could go celebrate.” That’s right, you and Lando were supposed to go out and celebrate his podium finish, and here you were, making out with his ex-teammate. Maybe you were a bad friend after all. “And when I couldn’t find you, someone told me they saw Carlos leading a girl wearing orange into the Ferrari garage. And I thought to myself ‘that couldn’t be her, right?’ Wrong! I find you locking lips with my ex-teammate!” Lando rants, face turning redder and redder. 

Blood rushes to your head in shame and embarrassment. You had no words to try and diffuse the situation, afraid that whatever words came out of your mouth next would only set Lando off further. 

Lando steps around Carlos and grabs your wrist, “Come on, I am taking you back to the hotel. You are packing your things and getting on the next plane back home.” 

You plant your feet, “I’m not going anywhere with you, you are not my keeper.” You try and hold your ground,  “I have told you this before. So who do you think you are telling me what to do? You are not my father. You are not my mother.” 

Lando drops your hand, “I am your best friend!” he shouts. “I am the reason you are here, you are my responsibility.” 

His words, while true, stun you. Without Lando you would never have been able to travel to all these luxurious places. You would have never been able to experience these different cultures. You would have never been able to enjoy the different cuisines. You would have never met all these wonderful people. You would have never met Carlos. So why couldn’t you do the one thing he asked of you? Why couldn’t you stay away from Carlos? 

You hang your head in shame and move closer to Lando. Carlos is now the one to grab your wrist, his grip softer than Lando’s.

“I don’t think you should go with him,” his eyes pleading. 

“I’ll be ok.” 

“Are you sure?” You nod at his question, if he doesn’t believe you he doesn’t show it. “I’ll call you.” 

You shake your head in a silent plea not to and Carlos visibly sinks in on himself, nodding in understanding. 

The entire journey back to the hotel is filled with silence. You can’t stand it. You feel like crying, not because of what has happened, but of what is to come. You know deep down that your friendship with Lando will never be the same. 

“Why?” Lando is the first to break the silence with the one-word question. 

“I told you how I felt over winter break but you didn’t listen.” 

“And you didn’t listen to me! Neither of you did. So after I voice my concerns, after I share my feelings, the both of you still decide to go behind my back.” 

“I wasn’t planning on making out with him!” You know it’s a lousy defense, but it is the truth. 

“That doesn’t mean you tried to stop it. That doesn’t mean the both of you weren’t happy while shoving your tongues down each other’s throats. You betrayed me.” 

His explanation makes you want to laugh but you find the restraint not to. “You are being unreasonable.” 

“I don’t think I am.” 

“Lando I love you, y’know that right?” You turn in your seat to look at him head-on, in the passing street lights you can see the way his jaw clenches. “We have been friends a long time, and in all those years I have been nothing but supportive. I have listened to your advice and I have heard your concerns. But this, Lando, is something I can not listen to you on.” 

“So you’ll throw 15 years of friendship away?” 

“I never said anything about throwing away a friendship.” 

“Well if you choose him you might as well be.” 

“Are you kidding me? Are you making me choose?” 

Lando pulls the car into the hotel’s valet, puts the car in park, and turns to fully stare at you. 

“What if I am?” 

“You are such a prick,” you get out of the car and slam the door behind you. Lando follows, hot on your tail. 

“So what’s your answer?”

“I’m not giving you one.”

You have never been more thankful for the hoards of fangirls that wait outside the hotel; while they most definitely caught the tail end of the argument, they provided you the opportunity to slip into the lobby and into a waiting elevator without Lando. 

Back in your room is when you allow the tears to escape. You’re unsure if they are caused by anger, frustration, regret, or sadness. The most likely answer being all of the above. How did you let this all go wrong? You wish there was a way to turn back the clock and prevent this all from happening but there wasn’t. You made your bed now you had to lie in it. Falling backward on your bed you stare at the ceiling, unsure of what to do now. 

Lando was selfish by asking you to choose. You were acting selfish by thinking you would be able to have it all. If you picked Lando you would surely be hurting Carlos and vice versa. You didn’t want to do that to either of them. You knew that you had caused damage to the duo’s friendship and that was the last thing you wanted to do. 

Sighing out, you thought of the next steps. You knew that you would have to talk to both drivers and you knew that your choice was bound to hurt both of them. Your phone dings and you hope for once that it is not Lando. Luckily it’s not him however it is the other driver you were hoping to avoid for the rest of the night

‘are u ok?’ the message reads. 

Another message comes quickly after, ‘come to the roof. I want to make sure that you made it back in one piece with my own eyes.’ 

You shoot back an ‘omw’ and you begin your walk to the roof. Dread pools in your stomach. You have had enough arguments to last you a lifetime and you only prayed that Carlos would be understanding.

“Carlos?” you call out once on the roof as you look around trying to spot the man. Carlos calls out your name softly and that is all it takes for you to break. “We can’t do this. I can’t do this.”

“Can’t do what?” 

You gesture at the two of you, “This, a relationship.” 

“Is this because of Lando?” He asks quietly, and you know deep down he already knows the answer. 

“I think you know it is.” 

“Why does it matter what he thinks?” 

“It matters because he’s my best friend!” You shout. “I can’t lose a 15-year friendship for the chance at a relationship.” But you already did judging by Lando’s reaction in the car earlier.  There is no point in trying to stop the tears, it would only make all of this more painful. You let out a pitiful “I’m sorry,” in between your hiccups. 

With blurry vision you see Carlos raise his hand, trying to wipe your tears. You have to turn your head away from his touch, knowing that it would only make this harder. He lets out weak, “mi amor” at your aversion. 

“How can you be friends with someone who makes you choose?” Carlos asks. You had asked yourself the same question the entire ride back with Lando. How can you be friends with someone who called you a bad friend, someone who says you betrayed him? 

“You don’t think I’m mad at him? I know he is not my keeper. He is, however, my best friend. He told me and you,” you point at the Spaniard, “that he didn’t want us messing around and we disregarded his feelings. He’s hurt and he has every right to be. We lied to him!” 

“That’s when we were teammates!” Carlos runs his hands through his hair, “I respected his wishes then because I understood. I tried to put myself in his shoes and I saw how it could end badly. But why not now? I’m with Ferrari, so why not?” 

“Lando worships you! You might not see it, but he holds you on this pedestal. He’s afraid that if something happens the two of you won’t be friends. And I can’t do that to him. I won’t do that to him.” You let out a breath. After tonight you were unsure where their relationship stood and you hoped that removing yourself from the equation would do some good. “Carlos please believe me when I say this wasn’t a choice I wanted to make.” 

“But you’ve made your choice, no?” The manner in which Carlos asks is cold, and while it's not surprising it doesn’t mean it hurts any less. 

“I’m sorry Carlos,” you repeat the saying, hoping that Carlos knows that you are truly sorry. 

“So you’ve said.” 

Silence falls between the two of you, neither of you wanting to say anything, neither of you wanting to move. You take a good look at Carlos, trying to commit to memory how he looks in person. You will yourself to remember the feeling of his lips on yours, the softness of his hair against your fingers, the way his hands felt on your skin. You try to commit it all to memory because deep down you know that after tonight you won’t be seeing Carlos Sainz again. 

You wipe the tears away with the back of your hand, wishing you hadn’t turned away from Carlos earlier when he tried to do it for you. Knowing that you won’t get anything else from the Ferrari driver, you turn away to the exit and begin your descent back to your room. 

The next moring you wake up, hoping that the night before was all just a dream. Unfortunately, that wasn’t how the world works. Wallowing in regret you do the only thing that you believe will set things right. Even though you had talked to Carlos the night before you still draft up a quick message, reiterating what you had told him last night. You hold on to the same hope from the night before, the hope that he truly how sorry you were. 

Lando’s message was more complicated. For the first time in over 15-years of friendship you didn’t know what to say. Did you say you were sorry? Did you tell him how angry you were with him? Did you tell him that even after what he said to you last night, he was still your bestfriend? 

You settled for a little bit of all

‘Lando. I am truly sorry for what Carlos and I did behind your back. We should’ve been honest with you from the start. However, I am not sorry for my feelings and I am not sorry for acting on them. I told you how I felt before ever doing anything with Carlos and you brushed them aside due to your own fear. I know I am not in the right here, but neither are you. I am angry with you for what you said to me last night. Calling me a bad friend was harsh when I have been nothing but supportive of you. Yet, somehow I will never not be able to call you my bestfriend. I know you probably don’t want to see me or hear from me and that is fine. But please, do not stop being friends with Carlos because of what we did. You want someone to blame for all of it. Blame me. I am ok with that. I know how much his friendship means to you. Again, I know you won’t forgive me but I am sorry. I’m so sorry Lando.’ 

You pack your bags with a foggy head. You load them in the shuttle in a sluggish manner. You wait in the terminal with tear stained cheeks. You board the plane with one thought only-You wished that you never met that toothy grinned 5-year old. You wished you never agreed to go outside and play that day. You wished you denied Lando’s invitation to the 2019 Silverstone Grand Prix. You wished that you never ran into Carlos Sainz. And most of all you wished you never made that damn pinky promise.

taglist- crossed out names mean I couldn't tag you

A/N- this originally was supposed to be like 3k words and end happier, so I really don't know what happened. BUT! I had so much fun writing this and I am really proud of it. So please- don't forget to like, reblog, or comment. They all make my day! A special thank you to @arieslost who beta-read this and fixed my numerous grammatically errors, I love you! And here's to a wonderful, hopefully not max-filled 2024 F1 season

find part 2 HERE.

@arieslost @4limq @rubyliquor @thatoneidiot16 @way-to-eat-all-the-chips-kip @motkanykodas @thefuckwasmyname @valskeeper @homosexualjohnwayne @c0wgirlswag @thestqwberries @isab3lita @yourmom73739910177466281991 @youdontknowmeshh @sbrn0905 @brekkerini @arrow92olicity @melissa2056 @graciewrote @dylan-obrienn24 @customsbyjcg-blog @annaeli2 @kitypawz @pinkmonsterjam @iodinexo @clowngirlsstuff @c-losur3 @beaschampagneproblems @lou-larcher5 @breakfastatangies @cassandra-nerezza-black @leonies-things @lulu-1998 @wholelottalove05 @rainrainbaby @belgianwaffles55 @val-writes @slaygirlbossworld @anathedivine @museofthenight @mrsgeorgerussell63 @luckyladycreator2 @formula1mount @2pagenumb

[mo0nchhild]

🏎️💨 THE FORMULA 1 TAG GAME! 🏎️💨:

thanks for tagging me @bohnsky :D

1. Who or what got you into F1? first of all, one of my friends has been watching it since summer break of the 2022 season and i was always like "omg i don't get it why would anyone watch f1" (yeah🤡) but more so, in april when i should have been studying for my a-levels and i was procrastinating, i was looking for something to distract myself with. so i went on youtube and got recommended some youtube videos by the official f1 channel like "11 times ___ happened", stuff like that. i started watching those, then i watched some funny driver moments compilations and once i was done with my first few exams, the miami gp came up and i decided to watch it bc why not. ever since i'm deep in the hole lol

2. Who was the very first F1 driver you supported? Do you support them now? Have your opinions on them differed or stayed the same since then? the first one who stood out to me was charles leclerc bc i thought he was funny in the yt videos and i'd also seen some really cool racing moments of him so i was like "slay i like him" and that hasn't really changed, just that ,over time, more and more drivers have been 'added to my collection' lmao if anything, i admire him even more now bc he never gives up and stays with ferrari and his sheer optimism is something i look up to a lot

3. Who’s your current favourite F1 driver? it's still charles lkdghslkghs but alex and oscar are really close to being number 1 too

4. Is there a driver pairing or pairings you support? What made you attracted to that pairing in the first place? this is such a basic tumblr answer, but lestappen are just that pairing kslghsklghsg like the narrative are you kidding me? but to make sure, disclaimer: obviously i don't ship real people, this is all in the realm of friendship and stuff yk

5. Do your parents, siblings or relatives have a favourite team and/or favourite driver(s)? nope they don't watch f1 unfortunately, my mum hates it even💀

6. Do you have any favourite races? Are there any that stand out to you the most? the last season is such a blur, i can't remember singular races that much laksghkslghks maybe singapore bc that was the only non rb win and a ferrari win at that? but i don't think there's THE favourite race for me yet. i have to watch more

7. Do you have a favourite circuit? Can be from the past or from the current calendar. bc i haven't watched a full season yet i can't say honestly, and again the last season is such a blur, i can't remember singular circuits that stood out to me. only time will tell

8. Have you ever been to an F1 race in real life? Feel free to tell us your experience going to one if you like. (un)fortunately not, i also don't think it would be the best environment for me bc there's way too many people, all these loud noises, drunk people, it would basically be sensory hell pahaha

9. Have you ever met an F1 driver in real life? noo i haven't and i feel like i don't need to

10. Do you have a favourite F1 car? If so, what is it? nooo i don't think so, again, i'm pretty new to f1 so i need to look into that

11. Do you have a favourite one win wonder? same answer as above, i can only think of recent people with one win only, but who knows, maybe they're gonna win again?

12. Do you have any favourite quotes from the F1 world? This can either be inspirational or hilarious. omg i love all the funny quotes there are so many😭 the whole "do you have pubes yet?" exchange between danny ric and lando is so hilarious to me it never fails to make me laugh

the classic "nothing just an inchident" by charles

"Nooo Michael, NO NO Michael! That was so not right!"

every single "Pierreeeee Gaslyyyy"

"I am stupid. I am stupid" poor charles this is so relatable

"once again, most unsupportive driver on the grid" nico "suck my balls mate" kevin this one makes me laugh, especially bc now they're teammates who seemingly get along pahahaha i could go on forever honestly i'm sure i haven't even added half of my favourites bc i don't remember them right now😭😭

[fullwets]

this is not meant to shit on piastri at all because his junior career is the best a driver can do, but ngl, this "piastri future champion / sargeant future latifi" rhetoric makes no sense to me. basically every time they have competed in equal or similar cars/teams, they have been EXTREMELY close to each other in terms of performance, and both also rate each other as competitors very highly - i don't know how people can rate them so drastically different.

in 2018, logan actually finished 4th versus oscar's 8th in the formula renault eurocup. this resulted in logan moving to f3 in 2019, while oscar repeated the competition in eurocup (albeit winning his second attempt).

when oscar advanced to f3, he and logan competed against each other as PREMA teammates. logan was actually favored to beat oscar going into the final race, and due to no fault of his own (got squeezed between two other cars in a first lap incident), he was unable to even challenge for the title he was so close to earning. oscar only beat him by 4 points. he was also able to exploit one of oscar's weaknesses: qualifying, with logan earning 3 poles that year, oscar none.

logan competed with a literal BACKMARKER team in f3 after that, and still went on to win a race and earn 4 podiums, his impressive performance giving him the opportunity to advance to f2.

people can hate him for his family's politics or "he's a yank" but putting him on par with latifi is a huge stretch. i'm not expecting miracles from him either because i mean, he's in a williams, but i don't think the occasional points hauls like alex has fought for his life for (quite literally) are completely out of the question either.

sorry for this long rant and history of/analysis on junior careers but this annoys me. there's plenty of drivers who i don't like for various reasons, but i can still give them credit when credit is due.

anon.... anon ur Mind. I just got home from work and am not going to do this justice at all but I honestly hope ur right abt Logan. I don't think I have *as* high of hopes simply bc a) regardless of records etc, Oscar was truly on another level in 2021 and even tho I didn't watch as much of the 2022 f2 season Logan was never anywhere near there even tho he did very well for a rookie, b) I have LESS than zero faith in Williams despite how fond I am of them. I honestly believe that Alex performs miracles every week in that car and I don't expect any driver to measure up to what he can extract from that thing. and c) I do not think Logan is ready for f1 lol. I think he rly could have benefitted from another year in f2 but u know. when there's seats there's seats 😔

ANYWAY all this to say I hope all two rookies on the grid this year score points mwah. for the narratives! & "purely for my own amusement" is the greatest way to enjoy any sport I will stand by this :')

[blorbocedes]

I have been perusing the brocedes tag on ao3 (not an easy confession to make) and I've noticed that a lot of the fics make Nico out to be... desperate... trying to get Lewis to look at him etc etc. And Idk if it's just me but, and this is nothing against Lewis, I get the feeling like Nico was the one who dealt w/ the friendship breakdown better? I'm not saying Lewis is doing badly (he's got 7 WDC!) but. Nico is able to talk about him, yknow? Meanwhile as you said Lewis makes a point not to mention Nico's name (unless that has been played up by fandom as well, which is possible. I haven't watched Every Lewis Interview That Mentions Nico).

hahha you are forgiven for your crimes of perusing the brocedes ao3 tag.

you are correct in your observation that people do write nico like that, and if you're on my blog long enough you'll see me ranting about his mischaracterization in fanon. I'm going to ramble a bit; bear with me

there's actually a very simple reason for this: Lewis has a bigger fanbase. F1 has exploded much bigger than 2016. There's entire swaths of fans who have never seen Nico race live (me included), whose idea of brocedes comes from present day lewis who does not speak of nico, and nico rosberg f1 commentator who anytime he mentions lewis goes semi-viral cause he's clearly obsessed with him (it's a circle).

i actually got into f1 pretty recently so my first take on brocedes was that this Nico dude did a lot of shady shit and broke their friendship to win in 2016 and then retired. (Lewis' part and share of war crimes in that breakup is minimised as narratives are written by winners and Lewis is definitely the winner in the long run) so obviously the fics written now will reflect that, with Nico profusely begging for forgiveness/apologising and Lewis as someone hurt and in the position to forgive/accept reconciliation. (🙄)

if you're not 500 hours deep into Nico lore (and why should you be) you will accept fanon as your perception of him, which is how you'll write him, and the cycle continues... now obvious disclaimer: people can write and enjoy whatever they want, it's all made up anyway. I'm simply explaining why one particular narrative is more persistent. I'm not even going to say my perception is correct, bc I'm not immune to bias either but I have certain things I find more interesting than other things. the real reason brocedes is so compelling is bc everyone's had one explosive friendship breakup that's left them reeling and they're the perfect representation of it

my self appointed job is to comb through every Lewis interview that mentions nico haha because it's so notable the rare times he does! He has improved slightly on that regard, here's him mentioning how Nico's place was the first place he'd ever stayed in monaco, and here's him talking about Nico to Martin Brundle while looking back at some of his races.

so he Can say the nico word lol but he generally avoids it. there's also the parallel that Nico was willing to be friends after 2016 while Lewis was the one who was flipping through pages that contained his picture not wanting to look at it. but he has improved since, prob the wound was still fresh and I enjoy Lewis being sensitive and petty.

It's just Lewis wouldn't say his name for things like the DTS netflix ep where he talks about how sometimes the guy you're teammates with is your best friend, and how it creates a lot of friction. LIKE WE KNOW WHO YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT MAN.

or how he had to deliberately decline sky sports interviews with Nico cause back when Nico was on paddock (🕊😔) he interviewed all the drivers except for Lewis and you KNOW sky sports would be all over that shit.

and yet, they Could stand to talk when there's no cameras filming. so... yeah. i hate those bitches and I know too much about them. whoever won the breakup, we all lost 😔

anyways happy brocedes anon, or sorry for your loss idk!

[lilyrizzy]

I've been re-reading in that iron ground and I was wondering if you could tell us more about Michael and Max's relationship. How did Michael react at first when Danny told him? When did he even tell him? Because Michael only started working with Daniel in 2018, so they would have been together already, no? How does Daniel feel about Michael not liking Max? Also, does Blake have a better relationship with Max? Sorry I just have a lot of questions 😅

it makes me so happy to hear that people read my stuff multiple times, and such an angst heavy fic, anon i am so flattered<3

under cut incase it gets long

so i think daniel definitley told michael pretty early on in his and max's realtionship,or maybe even before as like a 'oh shit, i think i have the hots for my teammate, help mate,' kinda thing. So michael has known for a long, long time.

and i think in the begining, he rolled his eyes, like, 'typical Danny, wants what he can't have, this is never going to last,' so he bullied daniel relentlessly for fancying an 18 year old but other than that was like, whatever, he can do what he wants.

but then max stuck around.

and michael was mostly just irritated by him when he had to hang around him, because he saw max as this annoying kid tagging along to holidays, hiking trips and clubbing nights, but as you pointed out, he didnt have to be around max all that often until michael joined redbull. which was also the year that daniel had like, the worst time. and as a protective and loyal friend, i think michael blamed max (rightly or wrongly) as the source of that unhappiness, bc max was the new number one that redbull were pushing his bestie out for.

and then when daniel told micheal he was leaving redbull.... well i honestly think thats what sparked michaels out and out hatred for max. because daniel would have been honest with michael at least i think, and said that part of the reason he was leaving was for himself, but also maybe to preserve his and max's relationship because, 'i'm not losing my boyfriend as well as my spot as number one driver.' like daniel was realistic and could see that max was favoured, but also knew that if he stayed to be number two, he would start to resent him for that. at least at a different team, he could be number one still, even in a worse car (honestly, rip renault daniel, my beloved).

so michael ran with this idea of like: max as this kid who manage to SEDUCE my best friend and convinced him with his magic ass to leave the team!!!!!

and then michael was just a huge cunt to max after this, maybe made little digs evertime they were around each other. honestly, i love the bitchy michael narrative, so i can imagine something where they're in a room together alone for the first time after max's title (michael has come for training and daniel is in the bathroom, idk) and michael is like, 'congrats on the title, but you know that would have been daniel if you hadn't come along.' and max would be like, '?? it can still be daniel now, next year,' bc he has unwavering faith in his mans driving abilities, but michael thinks this is him being purposley dense or mocking bc like no mclaren is winning lol and says like, 'god you really are a fucking cunt, you know that?' which daniel hears on the way back from the bathroom and is like, 'woah, mikey, talk to my boyfriend like that again and i'll have to put you out on ur arse, you know that right?'

max i think mostly just has absolutely no time for haters, so matches michaels energy to a tee lol. like maybe at first, when hes younger, he tries hard to get michael to like him, but once its clear thats not working he's like, 'you want a bitch, i'll show you a bitch :)' and then proceeds to just glare at him lol

they make each others (and daniel's) lives difficult to say the least

[inchidentally]

Why do I feel like Oscar is intentionally keeping Lando at a distance because he assumes it would never work out? And Lando kind of wishes Oscar would show an interest but he isn't so Lando pulls back too? Maybe I'm totally crazy but feels like they're doing a double fake out. If not then why not just be friendly the way they are with other guys?

@twinkodium helped talk me through this ask so a huge thank you to her <3

gonna put below a cut and include some other asks that aren't necessarily of interest to everyone and are kind of in the same vein (note the tag)

okay so "why not just be friendly like they are with other guys" is a pretty good thing to focus on bc when you actually break it down, Lando and Oscar define themselves as being pretty shy and they conceal a fair amount their lives and closest friends from the public. and truth is that it seems to take both of them at least a year of knowing someone before they open up - and even longer before they're as friendly as we see them with guys like Logan, Zhou, Carlos or Daniel. Lando lists the guys he's known since as far back as karting as his closest friends. so after just one season together, what we already have in terms of friendliness between Lando and Oscar is pretty damn good!

but honestly we can't say that either of them are really holding back at all when we've got Andrea and Zak constantly emphasizing how in sync they are and then of course how big they both show up for each other's wins/poles etc. whatever we don't get in terms of fun fandom content, we've got them showing each other mutual respect and support and sharing the same priorities. that's... really good imo.

it's what cracks me up abt everyone who went all 'planetf1 angry white dad in oakleys selfie in a truck comment section' over that recent Oscar quote. Lando's literally had everyone saying the same thing to him, directly and on social media ?? did they also decide that Martin Brundle, Natalie Pinkham, Lawrence Barretto and Jenson Button all despise Lando and want to take swipes at him by saying that his public flagellation feels of no use and worse, that it's probably a hindrance to his mindset? did Lando suddenly became loathed by all these people who SEEM to openly like or love him bc they said that ??

or did they expect Oscar to respond to that question with "oh no yeah it's cool that my teammate who I actually like shits all over himself and gives his haters ammo y'know to each their own whatever man" bc that WOULD actually be incredibly cold and hurtful asgajsgfljasf

I know fandom can go way off track and start expecting these men to talk like fan fic but the truth is that they view each other as professionals and fellow drivers first and friends (if they are) second. I won't repeat myself bc I've posted about it enough but none of the grid are a significant part of Lando or Oscar's life outside F1. Lando and Martin did a stopover in Perth (and apparently Martin even had work there?) for one day to ride dirt bikes at Daniel's ranch and Lando went to Carlos' sisters' gigantic state wedding lol. doesn't compare at all compared to Lando's time spent with Max F, the quadrant folks, his family, his Monaco friends and definitely not Martin Garrix. it also doesn't mean that they're not still friends with those guys on the grid - it's just not the same.

so the fact that Lando and Oscar aren't out here dishing out bromancey stuff where fans can see and hear definitely doesn't say that those bromances mean the drivers are actually any closer. Oscar relied on extroverts like Robert and Arthur to give him something to play off and Lando relied on Carlos and Daniel for the same. so when they're left without a gobby extrovert they do that cute thing of giggling and handing back and forth to each other. to me personally it's always kind of sweet ?? that Lando and Oscar do the thing of looking at each other for support to get through the cringey and awkward to camera stuff. sometimes when Lando is really feeling himself Oscar can just kick back and watch him. and as we saw w that helmet design video, even when Oscar isn't filming w Lando he hangs around offers support.

wow apparently I cannot stay on track today anon but idk I just personally think that it's the opposite of a mutual fakeout and they've bonded pretty well over both being shy, both being equally focused on their careers and also needing to switch off sometimes. finding out they spent the night after Lando's crash in Vegas together sharing "commiserations" is like, one in a long list of us hearing that they chose to hang out alone together and not publicize it.

all of us are on the outside of their friendship and as much as that suuuuucks for not getting as much content as we want, it's also really sweet and kind more likely to be genuine and lasting since they consider a lot of that relationship as private <3

askgfka no prob!! tbh a lot of the stress and anxiety in other Lando ships is down to ppl getting way too comfy w the idea that real life partners either aren't "real" or that they're the only thing standing in the way of their ship becoming real.

and bc for some reason landoscar makes me want to write all of these essays I feel like it's kind of my responsibility to be like yeah, there's even more than just assuming ppl's sexualities and their real life partners stand between two ppl we like to imagine together actually getting together. rpf is heavy on the f and mostly what we're all actually enjoying are friendships. and as someone who is lucky to have them, I personally wouldn't be one of those ppl who said romantic partners and friendships are on some sliding scale of importance. they're just different!

ever since landoscar became a thing, Lily's been in Oscar's life and Lando's been pursued by every man who sees him and burning through baddies on Raya on a literal global scale. it's important to come back from rpf to that fact so we don't end up attraction those legions of people calling real life girlfriends "PR beards" or that Lando's dating app horniness is some front for him meeting up with Carlos or Daniel or whoever lol.

oh I am so not the person to answer abt this since I can't relate to wanting couples to get married or thinking that it's all that significant! I'm a huge romantic and I theoretically enjoy the idea of weddings/marriage but all the ppl I know who've gotten married out of college are already regretting or cheating it so it's put a real damper on it for me.

but that's as much as I want to speculate abt them bc I don't want to put anything out in the universe for ppl I'll never even know !!

[vettelcore]

so what do you think about Mark Webber, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel? :D

thank you for asking anon!! those are some good choices lol 

MARK WEBBER: all I can remember from him was from the years that he was teammates with Seb at redbull so you can imagine how much I liked him back then lol

but nah, I think he’s the typical solid midfield driver that can win a few races from now and then (*ehem* val *ehem), a good driver but definitely not championship material imo 

definitely not a good number two driver, but I think that was just for Seb since he had no problem helping Fernando out on Brazil 2012 ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

nowadays i think he’s a nice guy, he realised that his rivalry with seb was stupid because the bad ones were always Christian and Helmut, not his teammate, although those were really fun days ngl i would have loved a netflix series to be a thing during those seasons lol

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LEWIS HAMILTON: hands down the best driver in F1 currently (im sorry seb but its the truth lol) he barely makes any mistakes, he’s fast, consistent and idk if anyone here has watched kuroko no basket??? but theres this thing in that anime where the REALLY good players got in the “zone” and they were practically unbeatable??? like out of this fucking world shit. Anyways when Lewis gets in his “zone” I bet he even gets the sparkly eyes with lasers coming out of them like they do in the anime lmfao 

I think the guy gets WAYYY too much shit because of his more personal side, like idk to me he just seems like an easy going person who just wants to be nice, hence the “you guys are the best crowd ever!” meme from a few seasons back lol

lewis has had so much shit thrown at him being the 1st and only black driver in f1, I remember when he was teammates with Fernando, during a GP in Catalonia, some “””fans””” dressed up in blackface, he was constantly called the n word equivalent in spanish by fernando’s fans, and afaik this racism wasnt only from non uk countries, like even in his home country he was still getting racist attacks bc he “wants to be from the hood” and shit like that, only because he likes to do other things outside of f1, it’s honestly insane

like idk i’ve always had a soft spot for lewis, i have never been his fan, but I can appreciate him as both a driver and a person

also my appreciation for him went up when he went vegan, and from a social issues pov, he’s probably one of the most decent guys in the paddock, even though he says a lot of dumb shit sometimes lol

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SEBASTIAN VETTEL: if I say he’s underrated, will anyone kill me?? but let me explain

he won his 1st race and pole on a rainy weekend in monza in a TORO ROSSO, people love to downplay this because “well to be honeeeeest the STR was a really good car in 2008 so it wasn’t that much of an achievement

he became a world champion on his 3rd full season in f1, becoming the youngest WDC in history, on a season where 5 different drivers could have won the title and it went down to the last race, people still love to downplay this bc “well to be honeeeeest only him and fernando could realistically win the championship and the ferrari was a horrible car”

he went on to destroy every other driver in 2011, obviously only thanks to newey

he beat fernando fair and square in 2012, again, obviously only thanks to newey and because the ferrari that season also was a really bad car

once again he went on to destroy every other driver in 2013, “thanks to the car”

4 championships in total, on a row, and beating drivers like Fernando Alonso who many consider even a better driver than Schumi

but no, he never deserved any of them because he won only because of the car, of fucking course

when he moved to ferrari, SO many people think he did it because he was “afraid of Ricciardo” and was only running away, and they all ignore the fact that

1. it was always seb’s dream to emulate what Schumi, his idol, did in Ferrari, his all time favourite team

2. he had a precontract since early in the season and he had been talking to ferrari for Y E A R S  before anything was made official

and now since he moved to Ferrari, he gets shit because “LoL vEtTeL bAd He SpInS”, I could go on a whole different rant over this lol 

Overall, I have NEVER seen a fucking four time world champion get as much shit as he does, be doubted as much as him, and be so fucking underrated as him, it’s fucking insane

like... I was gonna say “you’re only as good as you’re last race”, but I dont think that even applies to Seb because when he has a good race, so many people still say shit like “well duuuh, his team threw his teammate under the bus to let him win”

you dont fucking win 4 world championships if you’re not a fucking good driver, for fucks sake, how is that so difficult to understand??

on his personality, him and romain are the two sweetest and most caring drivers in the paddock lmfao 

hes the king of dad jokes and no one else can beat him at that you can’t change my mind

i also see so many comments on reddit saying that “they used to hate him back in redbull because he was so stuck up and a crybaby, but since he moved to ferrari he’s become such a funny guy” like??? no??? what the fuck???? he’s always been a really good and funny guy? did these people watch any of his interviews or press conferences back in 2010-2014? what??? how the hell do you think he’s the only driver to have had befriended kimi lmfao like just say that your bias against him made you not see how fucking funny he is, it’s fine

at the end of the day, no matter what seb does he is doomed

if he wins, it’s because of the car

if he loses, it’s because he’s a shit driver

if he moves teams, he’s just running away from his teammates

if he breathes, he’s wasting people’s oxygen 

if he doesn’t breath, he’s a dumb idiot because he’s gonna die

also he cares so much about his team and the sport, is super down to earth and will jump to any journalist’s throat if they ask something inappropriate to other drivers or to himself

I just fucking love sebastian so much why am i like this dhldsjhdkjghdfg 

oh my god this post is so long sdhflsdhfsjk 

[inchidentally]

(not gonna post the link you sent bc I don't wanna tread on other people's stuff since we're all out here in the tumblr wild to talk about these rich men and their problematic silly sport in any way we want to. I'll reply with my thoughts but remember that they're my own and I am NOT telling someone else how to feel)

okay so fully removing the ship lenses and assuming they're not wishing any hostility towards Oscar or any future teammate of Lando's at McLaren: holy SHIT no. fuckballs NOOOO.

ok from a purely practical/realism standpoint Carlos will not be taking any steps backward. based purely on Ferrari's overall performance and the fact that Charles is a damn good match as a teammate (hi Singapore) Carlos is exactly where he should be for WDC contention. McLaren are out there competing hard with them and with the Mercs but to see them outpacing those cars would be solely down to the youth and combined competitiveness of Lando and Oscar they've invested in - so still no dice for Carlos in the foreseeable. I'm not F1 smart enough to know how likely it would be that he'd go to RBR but even there I'm not sure how he and Max would work together again with Max's dominance and ummmm Carlos' least favorite thing being following team orders to concede to his teammate. followed by what would become Carlos' first least favorite thing which would be to drive Max's car since development only works one way at RBR. and that's all assuming that Lando stays with McLaren and that Oscar chooses to leave. the first being reasonably likely and the second is too soon to tell. then there's the fact that by that point Lando would not be considered McLaren youth anymore and they'd be highly unlikely to bring on someone even older to partner him. ((add to that the fact that Carlos will never be an Alonso and will definitely get married early in his thirties and move on to different types of racing or maybe even a different field in racing)) Lando will be a Lewis and stick with F1 competitively chasing wins and WDCs (especially if he can outlast Max's boredom threshold) and he won't be interested in nostalgia hires unless they can help him with that goal.

but moving on to the more parasocial fandom side of it…

honestly the biggest surprise to me is seeing people think that they were equals ??? during their season together?? Lando was a tiny baby who has talked about how being partnered with Carlos fed his anxieties and insecurities! he saw this seasoned driver learning the car faster than him, knowing the circuits better than him and speaking to the team with more confidence than him. lbr when his "trophy" was Carlos' champagne while Carlos celebrated his podium, Lando did NOT look completely happy being forced into that celebration (and I seem to recall later on him even ruefully saying "it wasn't my celebration but anyway"). Carlos literally saw Lando as a baby brother and treated him as such but he also had no clue what to do with Lando's darker moods besides try to cheer him up (and sometimes fail).

I am someone who likes to keep the streams of real life and rpf totally crystal clear and separate and I also like to keep the reality of who these drivers are free of anything I imagine about them for fantasy. when Carlos isn't winning or at least happy with his result, he isn't remotely a team player (and with a team like Ferrari it's hard to blame him sometimes lol). I guess for some people? it's easy to think that Carlos would become a totally different driver when on a team with Lando from ~the power of love~… but that would also have to hand-wave when he actually was Lando's teammate. (it would also hand-wave that Carlos and Charles are also good friends and much more flirty and lovey dovey but Carlos still fights against Charles like a beast when he's in the car)

this man is in it to win it. if you called him soft for a teammate or said that the foremost reason he gave Lando DRS in Singapore was for Lando's benefit he would laugh in your face. at no point in the incredibly stressful final laps was Carlos going "aw shucks I hope my lil buddy can be up there with me let me rig this to make it happen" bc by that point in a race they are thinking in nothing but driving binary and /how do I cement my win against all the bastards behind me/. Carlos does NOT revolve even a small part of his racing career around Lando or any other driver. he doesn't even regard much of his team's input (again, probably for the best with Ferrari). even when he gets direct help from Charles following Ferrari strategy (see Singapore) I still can't really recall that he was overly effusive in acknowledging that fact. he's modeled himself much more on the F1 generations of more like two generations back. and why shouldn't he? so I do not get how people can still think that drivers - especially Carlos' type - are remotely friendly with anyone when they're on the circuit. sure they might get even more pissed off at a driver they aren't keen on but literally /everyone/ is their enemy and their own result is their one goal. that's literally their job.

and as Lando says himself, no one in F1 including him wants to beat anyone more than their own teammate. again. how do people think that Lando would take this entire career he's worked so incredibly hard for and make it about a guy he golfs with (in groups, folks) and occasionally goes to dinner with (which he also does with Daniel) and talks to during the drivers parade (he also consistently seeks out Max, George and Yuki) but has a thriving professional and social life that has nothing to do with Carlos? yuk|erre, maxie| and ga|ex are out there doing far more shippy type things than car|ando all the damn time but when have they ever let that affect their desire to win or beat each other??

nothing about little unseasoned raw lamb cutlet Lando with hairy alpha Carlos at McLaren at all resembles what their dynamic would be as teammates. and the fact that Lando is really liking this new feeling of being the superior favored driver bodes horribly for how he'd react to Carlos swinging his huge sexy cojones back into McLaren expecting to be the number one again by age and experience. folks should enjoy getting to see them during the drivers parade and out golfing as non teammates bc the adorable content of 2019 would curdle into something grotesque if they now had to do goofy challenges while slowly learning to hate the sight of each other during briefings as they sought to supplant the other in the standings.

in no way on this or any other earthly planes can I be convinced that having them compete on the same team again would be anything other than a trainwreck and result in them not even speaking for the next 10-15 years.