INVISIBLE STRING ☆ DANIEL RICCIARDO

twenty-nine

PERTH, AUSTRALIA; AUGUST 19th 2022

song of the chapter
call you tomorrow - montell fish
if i still mean something to you, i'm still here

Isla Nadine was never an anxious person. Growing up, she was always a very social child and she was very outgoing. That was before she got into modeling and the self consciousness all began, the wariness and the worry of speaking to others in the industry in fear of saying or doing the wrong things that would lead to her losing it all.

Absolutely none of it compared to the terror she felt in this moment. She had spent her entire fifteen hour flight thinking up ways she could change her mind and go back home. When she came up blank, she decided to at least try to form the proper words she would say to Daniel once she saw him.

That didn't work either. Everything she had thought up had ended up sounding too much like word vomit. The ten hour mark was when she finally realised all of that was practically useless because she didn't know if he would even want to see her.

She hadn't really thought of any of these options when she had called Michael the previous day as she booked her flight. To say he was surprised would be an understatement, the way Daniel had spoken about what happened between them that night made it seem like there was zero chances the pair would ever speak again.

Yet there she was, halfway to a panic attack as she begged the trainer to tell her where they were because she desperately needed to speak to Daniel. And who was Michael to stand in the way of love?

And so he stood, right outside the sliding doors of Perth International Airport, waiting for the woman to walk through them. It doesn't take her long to do so either, a backpack slung over her shoulder and a small duffel in her hand— she didn't think she would need much for her stay, especially if he turned her away.

Michael gives her a heavy smile, pulling her into a hug— he wouldn't say it to her, but he could practically smell the anxiety seeping off her. He takes her bags and places them in the backseat before they're on their way.

"Where are you staying?" he questions as he pulls out of the parking lot.

"I booked a hotel around here somewhere." Isla replies, clearing her throat before speaking again. "I'd rather see him first though, if possible. I don't think I'll be able to say what I need to otherwise."

"He's home, I was supposed to meet him in a couple hours for dinner."

"Oh. I can obviously wait till tomorrow if—"

"Isla, no. What I meant was that he's got a free evening, I have dinner with Dan almost everyday of the year anyway."

The girl lets out a relieved sigh. She knew for a fact that if Michael had dropped her off at her hotel, she would remain holed up in her room for the entirety of her booking and she'd never bring herself to speak to Daniel. It was literally now or never for her.

Which is why she needed to know, "On a scale of one to ten, how much does he hate me?"

Michael lets out a heavy breath as he glances over at her sadly. "He doesn't hate you, Isla. He's just very hurt, guess he expected better than whatever reaction you gave him."