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shes-homeward-bound · 3 years ago

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Crash and Burn | Chapter 5

Summary: You’re the first female driver to compete in the Formula 1 World Championship in decades and it's your second year of navigating through a male-dominated sport. Your talent and drive to prove yourself made you vicious on the grid. Your seemingly unshakeable confidence was never questioned- until a certain Ferrari driver made you crash and burn.

Pairing: Carlos Sainz Jr. x Reader

Chapters: 5/?

Warnings: swearing

Word Count: 6.5k

Posted on 6/11/2022

masterlist

A/N: Hey guys, I finally have an update for you! I hope you all enjoy and please feel free to comment or send a message. I love reading your reactions and it tells me what works and what doesn't. Enjoy the chapter and remember that this is fiction, not an actual depiction of their character.

Chapter 5:

Wrapped in a cocoon made out of blankets, you blinked warily as a stream of sunlight hit your face. You looked around the beautifully decorated room and remembered that you were in a hotel. Your little sister was studying in Madrid for a semester so you decided to visit her during your couple of weeks off from F1. You arrived at the hotel late at night and you were so exhausted that you forgot to shower and went straight to sleep. With a combination of jet lag and a lack of rest from the race weekend, you slept for hours without stirring awake. You glanced at the clock and saw that it was already noon, groaning when you remembered you were supposed to meet up with your sister Elsie for a late lunch. You rolled out of bed and took a quick shower and put on a pair of jeans, a nice blue sweater, a tan trenchcoat, and a pair of white sneakers. You were dressed cute enough for a nice lunch yet comfortable enough to roam around the city.

At the restaurant, you and Elsie ordered seafood paella and a small bottle of white wine. After a few pics of the food and tagging and posting the restaurant in your Instagram story, it was time to catch up. Elsie always had a million questions about the cars and drivers, she loved that you were in Formula 1. Elsie used to compete in karting with you but it was your dream to pursue a career in motorsport while she wanted to be an engineer that built race cars.

You could tell Elsie was dying to ask you about Carlos. She knew that Carlos was one of the only drivers that acted strangely towards you and since she was your number 1 fan, she undoubtedly noticed the change in your relationship. Elsie fidgeted with her wine glass and you grinned, you knew what question was coming.

“So… what’s up with you and Carlos?” said Elsie.

You laughed. “I ran into him in Mallorca back in March and yeah, I guess we’re friends now.”

“But….” she said as she urged you to continue.

You took a large swig of wine before admitting your little dilemma. “But… the problem is I like him.”

Elsie erupted in a fit of giggles that garnered a few stares from strangers. “I knew it! I knew it! I knew it! You guys are so cute with your little pinky swears. Are you guys like secretly dating or something like that?”

“No!” you said urgently. “He has no idea I like him and I’d like the general public to also not know so keep your voice down!”

With a significantly softer voice, she responded. “Can you relax? No one heard me.” She scoots her chair closer to you and continued. “Well, what are you going to do about it?”

You shrugged. “I don’t think he sees me that way and even if he did, we’d be going into uncharted territory. I’m not sure if there’s a rule about dating a fellow driver but I’m sure the FIA would slap some stupid rule if they caught a whiff of any of the drivers together.”

Elsie shook her head at you. “It’s so typical of you to start getting all negative. It’s almost like you enjoy thinking of the worst possible situations you can get into.”

“You’re sounding a lot like Anna right now but you’re right, I'm working on it. You know how nervous I get when it comes to my image, these people are ruthless.”

“From an outsider's perspective, you’re still a badass female driver so I don’t think your image is in trouble here. What we have to work on is your perception of how Carlos sees you. I’ve watched every race so far and looked at all the interviews and fan content. Y/n… he looks at you with heart eyes. He’s so obvious.”

Now it was your turn to giggle. “He does not look at me with heart eyes.”

“Yes, he does! And the way he holds you when you guys hug makes ME blush. I don’t know how you compose yourself,” said Elsie.

“You’re being ridiculous, if anyone is obvious it’s me because I practically launched myself at him after the race in Jeddah,” you said as you blushed remembering your actions.

The both of you resume your usual banter when you get a phone call on that distracts you. You look and see that it was an unknown number, you were expecting a phone call from Aston Martin headquarters so you excused yourself and answered.

“Hello?”

“Hi y/n, it’s Carlos.”

Your eyes almost bugged out. “Carlos? How do you have my number?”

Your sister leaped toward you and pressed her ear to the other side of the phone. You tried pushing her away but she wouldn’t budge.

“Lando gave me your number a couple of days ago. Ehhh… I just realized that calling you might have been weird. I’m sor-”

“No! No, it’s not weird at all,” you rushed to reassure him. “I’m just wondering why you're calling.”

“Oh my god, I’m embarrassed now. I saw on your Instagram story that you were in Madrid and instead of texting you I just called…?”

The slight rise in his voice made you laugh. “Don’t feel embarrassed, I’m really glad you called. Are you in Madrid right now? If you want, you could meet up with me and my sister at the Prado Museum at 4.”

You hear him make a sound. Was that a sigh of relief? “Yes, I am. I’m visiting my family here in Madrid and I was just shocked at the coincidence of us being in the same city again.”

Carlos agreed to meet up with you and when you hung up, Elsie squealed. You sat back as you tried to process what just happened. You couldn’t believe he called you and you couldn’t believe that you invited him. You were also shocked that Lando gave Carlos your number.

“That was weird. The fact that he called you with no hesitation says something,” said Elsie.

You pursed your lips. You thought about it being a possibility but you quickly shook your head. There was no way. “Maybe Carlos is more of a phone call kind of guy,” you suggested. “I assure you that Carlos does not like me. So when we meet up with him in the museum later, please don’t be weird. Don’t be obvious.”

With a sly grin, she nodded. “Understood, I’ll be the perfect wing-woman.”

*******

Museo Nacional del Prado was beautiful, its grandiose demeanor should have taken your breath away but the sight of Carlos standing by one of the columns was all you could see. He looked like a casually-dressed gentleman dressed in a black jacket with a blue sweater peeking underneath and jeans with Chelsea boots. You liked it when Carlos wasn’t wearing any Ferrari uniform, you were able to see his fashion sense and it made you feel better about liking a fellow driver. Without the Ferrari red and Aston Martin green, you two were friends with no complications.

Carlos finally spots you and with a smile, he walks over to you and Elsie. You give him a quick hug and introduce your sister who was acting way too giddy and chatty. You didn’t think Carlos noticed but you gave her a look that silently begged her to stop. Carlos laughed at the fact that you had just seen each other a few days prior and failed to mention to him that you were visiting your sister in his hometown. You replied that you just had a lot in your mind. I was too busy thinking about you, you thought.

Once your little trio got tickets, Carlos surprised you with his extensive knowledge of the museum's permanent exhibits. You loved learning about history so you kept asking questions and would add some input whenever you knew some facts. Carlos was also such a great sport when it came to taking pictures of you and your sister. Elsie was the type to document everything in her life so she insisted that Carlos should also join you in some of the pictures. You wanted to smack her because every time she made you pose for a picture, she’d manage to find a way to shove you towards Carlos.

It was in a grand room filled with Southeast Asian art when you noticed how close you were both standing to each other. When you walked to the next piece of art, your arms bumped each other and stayed stuck as you both admired a statue. It made your heart pound that neither of you pulled away and now, his signature scent had engulfed your senses. You made a joke about the statue's awkward position and Carlos laughed and looked down at you from where he was standing. He was so close, you were mesmerized by his eyes when you noticed his gaze flicker down to your lips. You searched his face trying to find any indication of what he was thinking. A small smile graced him and you couldn’t help but replicate it.

Shuffling feet and an audible click of a camera made you whip your head around to see your sister frozen in place with her camera in hand.

“Sorry! Don’t mind me, I saw the Diego Velazquez painting from across the room and rushed before people blocked it,” she said pointing to a nearby painting.

Carlos abruptly stepped away from you. With a red face and stammering his way through a sentence, Carlos tried to nonchalantly brush it off and then pretended to be very interested in a nearby statue. You stared at your sister in shock, that moment was so intimate and you couldn’t believe it happened. With a wink, she discreetly showed the picture she took and you gasped. It looked straight out of some museum date Pinterest board. You and Carlos wearing a similar color palette while standing side-by-side gazing at each other. You thought she only took one picture but then she started clicking through her camera roll to reveal multiple photos of you and Carlos walking together. Some pictures made you inwardly groan because it was a candid shot of you beaming at the man next to you. It surprised you that no one had approached either you or Carlos and you were glad. You were being so obvious and everyone in the room could probably tell you had a big fat crush on him. You loved your fans but the last thing you wanted was to get caught in a mob with Carlos.

You looked over to see that Carlos was talking on the phone.

“Oh gosh, he’s on the phone. Probably calling a friend to make up some excuse to leave,” you said. “I hope he doesn’t think I tried to kiss him or anything like that.” Elsie rolled her eyes at your unnecessary panic.

Carlos walked over still red on the face and looking slightly nervous.

“I was just on the phone with my mother and she wanted to invite you for dinner tomorrow. But do not worry, I already said no and told her that you were here to visit your sister,” he said rapidly as he tried to gauge your reaction.

Before you could speak, Elsie piped up. “Oh no, don’t worry about me! I have classes all day tomorrow and I have the rest of the week to spend time with my sister. Tell your mother that she can make it for dinner.”

Carlos laughed at Elsie’s eagerness but looked warily at you for your response. He wished with all his might that you would agree to come to dinner with him and his family. When his mother called and found out that you were with Carlos, he was caught off guard when she made him invite you for a meal. With the recent self-realization of his feelings for you, he thought the dinner was the perfect step towards Carlos gaining your trust.

With a deep breath and pink cheeks, you nodded. “I would love to have dinner with you and your family.”

Carlos wanted to take a victory lap around the room but being the smooth operator he was, he gave you a charming smile and said that he would pick you up at your hotel.

*******

This was probably the 100th time you fussed over your outfit while standing in front of the full-length mirror. You had spent the majority of your day running around the city preparing for this dinner with the Sainzs. You may or may not have stalked his family on social media and from what you learned, they were classy yet humbled and family-oriented. You purchased a bottle of nice French wine and arranged a beautiful bouquet. For your outfit, you had to find the perfect balance of dressy and casual. You wouldn’t dare upstage your hosts but didn’t want to get caught looking too casual. You opted for a dark green silk top and high-waisted black trousers paired with black pumps.

You let out a small shriek once you received a text from Carlos saying that he arrived and was waiting in front of the hotel. You gathered your things and managed to make your way to the elevator without fainting. To say you were nervous was an understatement, you wanted to hurl and crawl under your covers. You tried convincing yourself that this dinner wasn’t a big deal, you’ve met a bunch of the other driver’s families but you couldn’t count that since you were all in F3 or F2 together. It also didn't help that you had a big fat crush on their son.

A small commotion outside the front doors made your stomach churn, that could only mean one thing. All hopes of staying under the radar with Carlos were thrown out the window but what did you expect? Of course, Carlos was going to get noticed in his flashy new Ferrari whilst he drove around in his hometown. What was going to make this a bigger spectacle was an Aston Martin driver hopping into Carlos’ car. You made a mental note to avoid your discovery pages on social media for the next few days. As you stepped outside, you saw Carlos perk up which sent the crowd's heads snapping toward your direction.

You immediately put your frustrations on the back burner and grinned as you made your way toward Carlos. Ignoring the crowd staring at both of you, he leans in for a hug.

“Nice to see you again. You look beautiful by the way,” he whispered in your ear.

You felt your face get red hot. This was the first time he complimented you on your appearance. You manage to stammer out a quiet thank you before the fans started asking you for pictures and autographs.

You handed your things to him to place in the car and started signing some autographs that were closest to you. After a few minutes of chatting with some fans and practicing your Spanish, you and Carlos were able to start driving. Once you were away from the hotel, you and Carlos looked at each other and started laughing.

“Well, I didn’t expect that mini meet and greet,” you said. “I may be great with the media but I’m still getting used to all the public attention when I’m off the track.”

“Yeah, it took me a while but after 7 years in Formula One, you get used to it. The Tifosi are amazing and it’s nice to meet people who support you on race day,” said Carlos.

You hummed in agreement as you sat back trying to calm the nerves you were feeling. The dinner, the fans, and being completely alone with Carlos were stressing you out and Carlos could sense that something was wrong.

“Are you feeling okay?”

“I’m just a little nervous about meeting your parents.” You refrained from telling Carlos that you were a little wary of what the fans would say after photos of you and Carlos would circulate on the internet. If you opened up that conversation, it may get awkward and you wanted to avoid that.

“Don’t feel nervous about my family, they’re already a fan of your driving. I know they’ll love you.” Carlos cringed as he said the last sentence. He made it sound like you were meeting your parents for the first time as his girlfriend. In an attempt to distract you, Carlos rambled on about who was going to be at the dinner. The distraction was successful as you and Carlos started telling each other about your childhood and your families.

By the time you arrived at his house, the little incident at the hotel was long forgotten as you mentally prepared yourself to meet his family. You knew you were being dramatic but you felt like you were meeting the family of a significant other. Once you were both out of the car, Carlos insisted that he should help you carry your things so you handed him your purse and the bottle of wine. The bouquet that you helped arrange was enormous and you wanted to be the one that handed it to his mother. As you approached the house, you couldn’t help but smile at the sight of Carlos holding your purse. The whole thing felt a little domestic and the very idea made your stomach flutter. Shooting you an enthusiastic smile, Carlos opened the door to be instantly greeted by his mother and father.

“Y/n! Hello, it’s so nice to meet you!” said his mother.

Giving her your most charming smile, you handed her the flowers. “Hello Mrs. and Mr. Sainz, thank you so much for inviting me into your lovely home.”

“It is our pleasure, my dear,” said his father. “Please, call me Carlos Sr.”

“And call me Reyes, there is no need to be so formal.”

To your delight, Reyes absolutely loved the bouquet and set off to find a vase. Since you and Carlos arrived a little early, Carlos offered to give you a house tour. Your apartments in England and Monaco were nice but the Sainz’s house was on a different level. The house was modern but still held an air of elegance that whispered old money. He lead you to a living room that acted as a trophy room. Carlos proudly showed off his father’s rallying trophies and joked about his significantly smaller section of the room.

You pointed to his 2021 Hungarian P3 trophy. “I almost snagged that one from you, do you remember?”

Carlos chuckled, “I had to defend hard that race, my strategist was so nervous that he made me nervous. You were pulling maneuver after maneuver, you had me on my toes till the checkered flag.”

You smiled as you relived the memory. “I remember being so frustrated with you, I was trying so hard to get by but I didn’t want to push too far and crash into you. You know, I tried to find you after the race but you were really good at avoiding me back then.”

Carlos looked at you with shock then proceeded to laugh. He knew you were joking but didn’t expect you to call him out at that moment. “Well, I was a fool last year and I missed out on getting to know you. I was such an idiot.”

You shrugged, attempting to act casual after what he told you. “Yeah, it kinda hurt the way you acted but, that was last year. Besides, look at us now,” you playfully bumped your shoulder on Carlos. “I’m literally in your house about to have dinner with your family. I think it’s safe to say that we’re friends.”

With that statement, Carlos felt a spark of hope for your relationship with him. If you admitted you were friends, then maybe you could be as close to him as you were with Pierre.

Dinner with the Sainz’s was nothing to be scared of. You met his sisters and they greeted you with hugs and the same warmth his parents had shown you. At the dining room table, you were seated next to Carlos and Rupert, his trainer who was close to the family. The Sainz’s were so welcoming that it almost felt normal to be dining with them. Every once in a while, Carlos would get close and quietly ask you if you were okay and every time, you would assure him that you were. It was at those moments when his mother and sisters would watch your interactions, curious to see what kind of relationship you and Carlos had.

Since the weather was unseasonably warm, the group moved to the outdoor patio where the Sainz’s served more drinks. Surrounding a gas fire pit was an array of patio furniture. You and Carlos sit comfortably on a loveseat only to have his sister Blanca plop herself next to you. To make more space, you scoot closer to Carlos to the point where half of his chest was pressed against your back. You leaned forward for as long as you could but when Blanca made no attempts to move, you let yourself relax against Carlos.

As you and the Sainz’s exchanged funny stories, Carlos Sr. asked who came up with the pinky swear idea. You were about to speak when Carlos beat you to it.

“Come on, you guys know me. Only y/n is capable of something that childish,” said Carlos.

You turn and playfully poked his side. “Carlos was the one who turned it into a good luck charm. I guess we’re both childish.”

Carlos laughs, “The pinky swear works! We have finished top 10 since the season started!”

As his family and Rupert bantered with each other, it was at that moment when you noticed that sometime during your exchange, Carlos’s arm was draped over your shoulder. Without thinking about it, you responded by nestling closer to Carlos and letting your head rest on him. You didn’t know if it was the wine that gave you the courage but if Carlos didn’t mind, neither did you.

You and Carlos were so focused on trying to guess what the other person was thinking that they missed the absolute joy on Reyes's face. She could sense the two drivers were hesitant but she was convinced there was something between them. Watching them snuggled together confirmed her suspicions, Reyes just hoped her hard-headed son would allow himself to be with someone.

The drive back to your hotel was far from quiet. You wanted to talk to Carlos about that little cuddle you both had but you were too nervous. You opted to get all chatty and gush over his family. Carlos knew that you were a talkative person but with the way you were stumbling on words, he suspected you were nervous about something. He tried to remember if something went wrong during dinner but couldn’t think of anything. Carlos was thrilled that you got along with his family, his parents liked you so much that his dad and mom made a promise that they’d visit you at every race they’d attend. Carlos offered to walk you to your hotel room and you happily accepted. You continued to be extra chatty but once you both entered the elevator, there was a moment of silence. Carlos looked over to see that you were fidgeting with the rings on your fingers.

“Y/n?” said Carlos.

You took a deep breath and faced him. “Umm, can we talk about what happened on the patio?”

Carlos felt the blood drain from his face. Oh god, she was probably uncomfortable but didn’t say anything in front of my family. I fucked up. He stiffly nodded, waiting for you to reprimand him.

You racked your brain trying to find the best way to say it but you couldn’t handle the silence.

“I didn’t mind it," you blurted out. “I don’t know about you but I’ve been feeling some tension recently. I can’t pinpoint when it started but I like spending time with you.”

Like all the things in your life, you went full speed ahead but this time you made the wrong move. When you saw Carlos staring blankly at you, you flung yourself to the far corner of the elevator. “Aaaand I read this situation wrong. Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry Carlos. Forget what I said. Please, just forget everything I said.”

You practically ran out once the doors opened. By the time you got to your hotel room, you felt him grab your hand. You turn to face him with your head down, you couldn’t look him in the eye. “Carlos, it’s okay, you don’t have to say anything.”

Carlos lifts your chin, making you look at him. “You were talking so fast, I was just trying to process what you said. If you didn’t run away I would have told you that I like spending time with you.”

You studied him trying to find any trace of insincerity but all you could see was Carlos giving you the most gentle smile. “Really?”

Carlos nodded. “I meant what I said back at my house, I was an idiot and I wish I had been your friend from the beginning.”

Your heartbeat was erratic, going from feelings of panic to elation left you mentally and physically exhausted. Squeezing Carlos’s hand, you tell him of your plan. “Why don’t we both take it slow and spend time together to see where this goes? I have plans with my sister for the next few days but why don’t we go on a proper date sometime soon?”

“I was supposed to be the one to ask you out first!”

You rolled your eyes. “Well, I beat you to it.”

Carlos hugs you goodbye and before you could chicken out, you go on your toes and press a kiss on his cheek. Feeling shy, you left him no time to react as you quickly opened your door and slipped inside. Before closing the door, you stuck your head out.

“Goodnight, Carlos.”

He smiled at your silliness. “Goodnight.”

*******

The next few days felt like a whirlwind filled with many activities. Before getting called into work at the Aston Martin Headquarters, you were able to spend time with your sister and managed to see Carlos a couple of times. When you weren’t with Elsie, you would be with Carlos training to make sure your bodies were in top shape for the next race weekend. One night, you received the funniest text from Anna asking why Rupert had messaged her asking what kind of training she wanted me to do. She immediately called and made you explain everything that happened.

Sometimes it felt strange to be around him now that you both knew you had feelings for each other but in a way, it gave you both freedom to express yourselves. Telling Carlos and being honest with how you felt made your life a little easier. You were beginning to feel that Carlos was a physical touch and quality time kind of guy which perfectly matched your love language. You relished in the small touches whether it was on your back, arm, or leg. There was a time when you both collapsed in a heap of exhaustion in Carlos’s backyard after Rupert pushed the both of you to your limits. It was like one of those movie scenes, you and Carlos examined the clouds and talked about anything and everything. It felt like a dream, you were working in your dream job and you had someone by your side that could understand your struggles. You were interrupted by Carlos Sr. who came out to offer you water and fruit. You weren’t sure what Carlos told his family but they seemed to like that you were spending time with their son.

You spoke to Carlos about keeping it discreet in public, you knew that it was inevitable that people would photograph you in public but you didn’t want to confirm anything until it was serious. You had discussed that if you two were to confirm any sort of relationship, your teams, Formula 1, and the FIA would have something to say about it. You and Carlos were in uncharted waters, this had never happened before and you both decided it would be best to not confirm anything to anyone just yet.

*******

You loved Australia, the weather and people were something you looked forward to and it would be your first time racing on this track. Qualifying had just ended and the excitement in the air was electric, Daniel was certainly enjoying himself as the crowd cheered for him. It was his best grid position of the year and the Australian fans couldn’t have been more proud.

With the top of your green race suit dangling from your waist, you made your way to the Ferrari garage. The mechanics paid no attention to you as they cleaned the car prepping it for tomorrow. It wasn’t strange for you to be in another team's garage, they were used to you floating around and hanging out with Charles.

You make your way to the team of engineers and find Carlos among them as they reviewed his data on the monitors. Carlos spots you and brings you to a backroom and immediately wraps you in a big hug. Carlos laughed as he tried to let go but you hold on to him tightly, burying your face on the base of his neck. Carlos was starting P9 on the grid and he was furious at himself but he couldn’t even complain when comparing what happened to you. You and Latifi got into a scuffle during your flying lap that caused him to crash and for you to damage your car and get eliminated in Q1. The race stewards penalized Latifi with 3 grid places but it didn’t matter.

“I was fast at every practice and then Latifi had to swoop in and fuck it up,” you mumbled. “I could have made it to Q3 but now I’m P19 and the mechanics have to work overnight to fix my damaged side pod.”

Carlos rubs small circles on your back, “I know, I am so sorry it happened.” He couldn’t say anything else, the best thing he could do was comfort you.

“I’m sorry you got P9,” you mumbled.

You felt Carlos shrug. “It is not ideal but I’ll just have to keep my head down and do my best. You and me both.”

It was race day and you woke up with a mission, P19 was the worst you’ve ever qualified and you were determined to score points today. You had a specific routine for race day to the point where you were almost superstitious about it, but it helped you calm your nerves. You start your day by drinking 3 full glasses of water as you moved around and put workout clothes on. The next thing to do was to get your muscles massaged to prime them for 30 minutes of yoga. After you and Anna finished yoga, you texted Pierre.

Breakfast?

I’m already waiting for you, ma chérie

Pierre had been one of your first friends in Formula 1, he invited you to sit with him and Yuki for breakfast and quickly became friends with the French man. The one time you didn’t have a meal with Pierre, you DNF’d the race. After that, you made Pierre swear to you that the breakfast was sacred and it was now an upheld tradition. Once you get to the hotel restaurant, you see that Yuki and the McLaren drivers were also joining you for breakfast. Once the drivers were situated with their savory breakfasts and special electrolyte drinks, is when Pierre mentioned something you wanted to avoid.

“How was your break? I saw that you went to go visit Elsie in Madrid,” said Pierre.

“It was great! I loved spending time with my sister, I rarely get to see her these days. How was your break?”

Completely ignoring your question, Daniel chimed in. “Oh! Carlos told me he was going to visit his family, did you guys meet up?”

Lando perked up and you held back a laugh. You remembered that it was Lando who gave your number to Carlos and it suddenly made sense to you. Your dear friend Lando had been trying to set you up with Carlos. From sharing a private jet and giving Carlos your number, you realized they were all meant to get you two closer. You didn’t know whether to laugh or get annoyed that it worked. What made this situation great was Lando had no idea that you and Carlos were now somewhat “together”.

“Actually, the Sainzs invited me for dinner and it went well! I met one of the family members and we hit it off, I’ll be seeing him again,” you said.

You shook your head as the boys whopped and hollered. What made you laugh was the disappointed look on Lando’s face. You almost felt bad but you didn’t lie, you just withheld which family member it was.

You heard a few pings from your phone and right on schedule, you received your good luck texts from your family. After talking with your family, you liked to shut off all contact until after the race and if anyone needed you, they’d have to call Anna. You were just about to shut off your phone when you received a text that made you grin.

Good morning beautiful. I hope I caught you on time, I remember you told me about your routine. I just wanted to tell you good luck and I know you will kick ass today. If anyone can pull a miracle, it will be you. See you soon.

You’re so extra. You could have told me this yourself, i’m literally seeing you in a few hours.

I know you get nervous on race mornings so I wanted to make sure you are okay.

You’re the best. I’ll see you at the parade.

You couldn’t help the stupid smile on your face, he was so good to you. You didn’t notice that the boys were watching you until you heard laughing.

“Ooooo look at her blush! She’s talking to him right now!” teased Yuki.

Daniel couldn’t stop giggling. “He’s probably wishing her luck for the race today!”

You quickly turned off your phone and gave them the finger. “Keep it up and none of you will meet him.” You smirked as the statement effectively shut down all conversations about your mystery man for the rest of the meal.

The parade went by smoothly, it was set up differently this year with each driver sitting in separate classic cars. You were only able to give Carlos a small wave as you passed by his car to get to yours. The only time you were able to properly talk to him was during the grid lineup. Now that you and Carlos were together, you were more cautious when you were around him in public. Hooking your pinky with his, you hyped each other up but made sure you kept enough distance from him. Once the race started, you fought hard at the first few corners and were able to gain a few positions. By lap 2, your strategist informed you of a yellow flag, and before you could ask, you see a Ferrari in a gravel trap. Slowed down, you were able to tell that it was Carlos, and your heart sunk for him. Lined up behind the safety car, you noticed that Carlos had yet to get out of his car so you radioed your team if Carlos was okay. After being reassured that he was fine, you let yourself relax and get back into your race mindset. You were glad he was physically okay but knew that he was beating himself up because the championship was within his grasp.

By the time you crossed the checkered flag, you screamed into the radio celebrating your P10 finish. You only got 1 point but getting yourself from P19 to P10 was going to shut up those who doubted you. Aston Martin had yet to talk to you about your contract renewal but you knew this race gave you a fighting chance to stay on the team. You congratulated the others but amongst the chaos, you couldn’t find Carlos, and all you wanted to do was go to him and see how he was doing. Turning on your phone, you see a text from Carlos asking you to meet him in his hotel room after the driver interviews. After making sure you no longer had team obligations or interviews, you headed out to see Carlos. The moment he opened the hotel door, Carlos pulled you into his arms and held you like his life depended on it.

You wrapped your arms around him. “I am so sorry Carlos,” you said softly.

Carlos shook his head in disappointment. “I cannot believe that happened, we had to change the steering wheel before the race and the new one triggered the anti-stall….. and I was so frustrated that I dropped down to P14. I pushed too hard and then I fucked up,” rambled Carlos.

Just like yesterday, the only thing you could do was comfort each other. You pulled back and looked him in the eye, “You are one of the best driver’s on the grid, you’ll be back on the podium in Imola.”

Carlos took that moment and basked in your presence. His race might’ve been ruined but you standing before him and supporting him, took most of the sting away. Smiling down at you, Carlos admired that even in the disheveled state you were in, you still had this beauty that took his breath. Carlos chuckled when he noticed what you were wearing. In your rush to see Carlos, you managed to get into biker shorts but never changed out of your fireproof undershirt. It made him smile that someone as immaculate as you was willing to go out in public dressed like that. Carlos was weary about your relationship but every time you were with him, you lit up his world and he’d forget his worries.

You looked up to see Carlos gazing at you deep in thought. Reaching up, you played with the hair on the nape of his neck. “What are you thinking about?”

“I’m thinking of how lucky I am and that I want to kiss you.” With your heart pounding in your chest, you nodded. Pulling him down, Carlos met you halfway. He kissed you softly as he wrapped his arms tighter around your waist. You pulled him closer and ran your fingers through his hair. Kissing Carlos was like a gentle breeze on a hot day, giving you relief and comfort. In his arms, all your worries about your driving, the media, and your future in F1 washed away.

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