#goodbye to all the f1 edits i had saved

[mirrorball-leclerc]

i just lost tiktok, so what do you mean i won't be able to see the videos of lewis driving a ferrari for the first time on monday??

[coffeecities]

um, i have a snippet of day 6 of @lestappenweek? 🫣 i thought about posting this independently but then i saw this would fit right in lestappen week 😶 so here you go, i guess

EDIT: was tagged by @xiaoluclair so i’m tagging her back (and now am looking through my other wips and looking for snippets to post) + also tagging @f1-giuki​ and @fueledbyremembering to post snippets from their wips to tide us over spa this weekend 👀

“That last ace serve was incredible,” Charles said as he began talking with his hands again, “but the backhand in the second set—the one before matchpoint?—was my favourite. It was very much like Federer, non?”

And really, Max had no choice but to be smitten. And once again wonder why he never bothered keeping up with Formula 1.

“Being compared to Federer is too much high praise,” Max replied, a little shy to being compared to a legend. The media could paint him arrogant all they want (and he really was arrogant sometimes, to be quite honest), but being compared to legends—especially those that recently retired—still was too much for him to handle.

“But it’s true, yes? It was like watching Roger Federer fighting with Rafa Nadal,” Charles said as he continued to praise him, “ah, but your opponent is not too much like Nadal. Perhaps we will find out in Paris.”

“Will I see you in Paris then?”

Charles gave him a small, amused smile, and Max had to wonder if it really was time to get himself updated with Formula 1. He could hear Christian in the background conversing with Charles’s companion, and wondered if he could pull his coach and save him from embarrassment.

“I would like to,” Charles began, but Max could feel a little apprehension (disappointment?) at the tone, “unfortunately, I—we—have races on some of the dates. Perhaps if you made it to the finals?”

“I always make it to the finals,” Max joked, peacocking a little as he found himself enjoying the conversation he’s having with Charles.

“Ah, but that is true,” Charles conceded with a quiet laugh, “then perhaps I’ll get myself a ticket to the finals?”

Before Max could answer, the staff interrupted them and told them they needed a photo together for their social media. Max was quick to put his arm around Charles’s waist, blaming the redness of his face from the energy he exerted while playing. Christian was already making their goodbyes and Max was a little panicked at having their conversation cut short.

“Can I have your number?,” Max asked, surprising both himself and Charles at his bold question, “I can get you an all-access pass in Paris for the finals, of course. Just so you’re not inconvenienced.”

[honeybadgercomeback]

Secrets | dr3

Summary: It’s just after FP2 at Monaco 2022, and all you want to do is check on your boyfriend. But work comes first, and that night you tell him just what he means to you.

AN: So this is the first F1 anything I’ve ever done? And I’m ridiculously nervous publishing it, but ANYWAY. Here goes.

Warnings: basically pure fluff.

—

None of this was supposed to happen. None of it. You weren’t supposed to be dating a F1 driver, especially one who didn’t even drive for your team. But now you were stuck listening to Max’s radio, trying to hear anything at all from him while the tvs around the garage were playing Sky. You couldn’t look distracted, you had to be on your A game while FP2 was going on.

“Is he ok?” You heard Max ask as he drove past Daniel’s orange car, the way he’d spun into the barriers even making your head spin.

“He’s out and fine. Keep pushing.”.

But finally the practice was over and you’d filled your camera roll with behind the scenes photos of everyone hard at work, preparing for an evening of editing and scheduling uploads. Whoever said social media and PR was easy was a liar.

“Hey, did you see?” Max came up to you, but you just nodded to stop him from speaking. Nobody apart from him knew that you and Daniel were in a relationship, that you’d started seeing each other in the winter break. It had been an accident that he’d found out, really, catching sight of the two of you at the airport in Nice saying goodbye. But since then he’d checked in on you, made sure you knew you could ask him about things and he’d help where he could.

“I saw. Later, yeah?”

“Sure.” You kept busy, finishing up as others were beginning to leave the garage and fill the streets of Monte Carlo looking for food and fun. But instead you threw on a non Red Bull branded hoodie and mixed with the crowds, determined to get to one location in particular.

There were no texts from Daniel as you walked, checking and double checking your phone every few moments. It was the rule you had on race weekends, no texts while either of you could be working. Which generally meant from Friday to Sunday you only spoke late at night or very early in the morning. But at last you’d made it to his apartment building, slipping in with the key you’d been given and waving at security. They’d grown to know you as you’d visited nearly every weekend there wasn’t a race, racking up the frequent flier miles but you wouldn’t change it for the world. Finally you were outside the door, your key slipping into the lock and twisting for you.

“Dan?” You called, the entryway mostly in darkness. You dropped your keys on the table, entering the kitchen to find him sitting there with a sandwich in front of him.

“Hey, you,” you said, his head jerking up with a small smile.

“Hey. Sorry, I didn’t think about you coming over.”

“It’s fine. I can go back to my hotel…”

“No, no.” He stood and pulled you into a hug, arms wrapped tightly around you as he pushed a kiss to your head. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

“Me too.” 

It was a relaxed evening or as relaxed as you could be. Daniel cooked for the two of you while you prepped for FP3 and qualifying, getting the beginnings of a social media strategy together. Most things stayed the same for each race weekend, but you wanted to have everything possible ready to go. Live race stuff was awkward enough, having readymade graphics saved you time.

“Dinner’s served.” Dan handed you a bowl of shrimp pasta, pulling you into his side to eat as he settled. It was easy to push your laptop away as you curled in, relishing his warmth around you.

“You are amazing.”

“Nah, you.”

It was the compliment you always gave each other, stemming from the first time you’d met. He and Max were talking about something, you’d interrupted with a “Sorry, Max, I need you”, and Max had nodded and left. Dan had called the compliment after you as you led the younger man through the sea of people, and it had stuck.

It was when you’d both eaten and were just sitting in silence that you looked up at him, pushing a kiss against his stubbly jaw.

“I was worried about you.” You had never admitted that before, never said just how much you tended to worry about him when he was working. He was a good driver, he tried to be safe, but he was going at high speed and you would always worry.

“I’m gonna be fine. Just fine. They weren’t worried about me, just the car. I got asked how the car was before they asked how I was.” His voice was bitter and you just wanted to wipe it away, to let him know how much you loved him.

“The first thing Max did when he found out was ask if you were ok. I know others did too. Just because they didn’t care about you doesn’t mean the rest of us don’t. You know that?” It was quiet, just the noise of your breathing filling the room as you stared at him.

“I just…there’s already questions about if I want next year. It’s such bullshit. I do! But I keep getting asked and I can’t get it to go how I want it and I hate it and I hate that I can’t…” He trailed off angrily, the self doubt pouring from his veins. Instead you sat up fully, straddling his lap and holding his head to look into those chocolate brown eyes properly.

“You are a good driver. You’re going to make this work. I’ve got so much faith in you, Daniel Ricciardo. So, so much faith.” You took a deep breath, making sure you were as clear as you could be. “I love you, and I believe in you.”

The grin that he had could have lit the world as he stared back to you, hands on your hips as he leaned in for a kiss. 

“I love you too.”

Leaving his apartment that night was the last thing you wanted, but if you didn’t show up at the hotel you’d be in trouble. Instead it was a short walk through raucous streets, the glitz and glamour of the Uber wealthy clearly on display. It was a race weekend and you just wanted to get ready for the next few days.

It was a weekend of mixed emotions. Seeing Danny gain a place from when he started was exhilarating, but he wasn’t happy still outside the points. Checo and Max were both on the podium, champagne flying everywhere as you took photos and grinned, a can of Red Bull in your hand as you gave and received hugs to everyone. These were the moments you lived for, being on top of everything and seeing how well the team worked together. You’d never in your wildest dreams imagined that you would end up working in Formula One, but now you were there you didn’t want anything different.

Your phone buzzed as you were taking photos, two texts from your boyfriend. You opened them with a smile, your expression even wider at them.

You look gorgeous

The second was a photo of you grinning, your hair half soaked with some form of liquid as you raised your face to the sky, patchy sun beginning to illuminate what had just a couple of hours ago been a rain soaked mess. He’d obviously taken them from the McLaren garage, somehow getting away with taking the photo and not getting caught. 

Speak for yourself.

I do, and you do. See you tonight?

Realistically you should have been at the hotel, packing and getting ready for the bus to bring you to Nice for your flight home the following day. But it was a gap in the schedule the following week, and really all you wanted was to curl up in Danny’s arms for a while.

I mean, how can I say no?

You finished setting up a posting schedule for the rest of the day, making sure Instagram and TikTok were well taken care of. But once that was done Horner told everyone to go and enjoy their evenings. A couple of people asked you to get a drink or hang out, but you waved away excuses, instead determined to go to the one person you needed to see.