Love and Rivalry {Female F1 driver}

A bet.

The next two races went smoothly, and I had gotten three P1s in a row now. I kept approving, and the media seemed to recognise me more and more. People all over the world were talking about my talent and the reporters had even started asking me relevant questions. 

The Red Bull team were constantly watching over me, always had a representative at my races, and I was invited to more and more of theirs in the future as well. Unfortunately, I had to practice for the most part, so I hadn't been able to be there since Monaco. However, this week I had more time on my hands, as it was my home race in Silverstone.

I had been ordered to take a break for a few days after the race in Spielberg, so as soon as I arrived back in London, I made sure to spend the first day with my family and friends. A lot of the other F2 drivers had arrived already on Monday as well, so Isack, Arthur and I had decided to meet up for some coffee and then go go-karting together during the week. 

Apparently, Arthur had spoken about our plans with Charles, so when I arrived, not only Isack and Arthur were there, but so were Charles, Lando, Oscar, Carlos, George and Max. I was the last one to arrive, so they all waved me over happily and we said our hello's. Max congratulated me on my last two races, and told me to 'keep up the good work', and that he's 'looking forward to working with me'. 

None of the others really understood what he meant, as no one else knew about our last conversation after the Monaco race. They seemed to just shake it off, as we were all getting ready to drive. "Alright kids, when we go go-karting, we never do so without a price for the winner and a penalty for the loser!" Carlos spoke up, making Isack, Arthur and me look at each other with suspicious looks. 

"Today, let's say the loser pays for the winner's lunch!" Lando suggested, making all the F1 drivers nod in agreement. I knew that this wasn't a race I could ever win, so all I had to do was just not lose, and I'd be more than happy. We all agreed and got ready to race.

We all had a lot of fun, blowing off some steam and clashing together, as it was way less dangerous to do so here than in the actual races. I ended up getting p7, and Isack, who was P9 had to buy lunch for Charles, who had won the race. When we had gotten out of the gear, we all went to eat at a café not too far from the track. All the boys were so kind and fun to talk to, we all had a blast, getting to know each other and talking about their times in F2, F3 and so on. 

I was sat in between Max and Charles, with Lando in front while eating, "So, YN, what's your dream team in Formula 1?" Lando asked, gaining most of the other's attention as well, as they were probably hoping to hear the team that they were driving for themselves. "Forget it, Lando, there's no way she would be a McLaren fan!" George teased, and a few others laughed.

"As if she would be a Mercedes fan either!" Charles joined in, gaining even more laughter. "All three of you can forget it. She is all about Red Bull." Isack said, trying to stop the teasing across the table. Charles looked at me with that same playfully hurt expression he had back in Monaco. "Really?" I laughed slightly and shrugged my shoulders, looking around, noticing Max looking around proudly. "What can I say? Red Bull always seemed like the best fit out of all in F1."

"It will be," Max replied, earning playful scoffs and sighs from the whole table. "I think orange would suit you, personally," Lando said, winking at me, to which Oscar gave a thumbs up and a nod.

"No, red is obviously better," Charles said and pointed to the shirt I was wearing, which coincidentally was red. By this point he had his arm resting on the back of my chair casually, as he looked at me with a sweet smile, his dimpled showing. I felt my stomach do a flip, and quickly changed the subject as I was starting to feel nervous about all the eyes on me, especially Charles's who was kind of close.

"Well, at least Arthur wants to join Ferrari. And Isack loves McLaren." I said, hoping to divert the attention to my peers instead. It did work for the most part, but I still could feel two pairs of eyes on me from time to time. One pair from across the table, the other from right beside me. 

After that, the conversations were calm and we all just got to know each other a bit more. Suddenly, I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket, so I fetch it out and look at the caller ID. It was my dad, so I excused myself and went out on the patio right outside from where we were eating and picked up the phone. 

"Hey, Dad." 

"Hi honey, what are you up to?" His voice sounded uneasy, but I could tell he was trying to hide it by talking slowly - as he always did. 

"I'm out eating lunch with some of the drivers. What's up?" I asked, my eyes wandering inside as I was talking. The phone was silent for a bit, but I didn't even notice as my eyes were locked with Charles' who was looking right back at me.

"Your mother is here, at home... She wants to see you." For a moment I felt as if time stopped, and my face must have changed, as I noticed Charles look at me with slight worry in his eyes. I broke our eye contact and turned around to look out at the area surrounding the café instead.

"I don't want to." Was the only thing I could muster out, earning a small sigh from my father. 

"I know you don't, but I think you should at least come and say hello. She isn't staying for long, and we both know you can't get distracted by this right before a race..." I felt myself get slightly heated up by his argument, and couldn't stop myself from spitting out, "Well I wouldn't have to get distracted at all if you hadn't told me about it, or even better if she hadn't showed up."

Silence. I knew that he was only trying to help me and that it wasn't his fault. I let out a deep sigh, looking down as I gave in. "Alright... I'll be there soon." He told me thank you and we hung up the phone. Before heading back inside I took a deep breath and put on my best pretend face, as I joined the boys.

"Sorry guys, I have to take off," I said, trying to do a playful pout, but obviously not well, as I could tell they all looked at me with worry. And Isack with pity. "What's up?" He asked as my eyes landed on him. "My mother is in town." I simply said and his face filled with even more worry. "Don't worry about it, I just have to go. I'll talk to you later, and hopefully see you all again soon!" I tried with a smile once more as I collected my jacket and bag. 

"Cart, do you need me to drive you?" Isack offered whilst standing up from his seat. "No, it's all good, really. Thank you though." I patted his shoulder and he nodded reluctantly. "Call me if you need anything." He spoke quietly and I nodded and waved to the boys before I left the café to go back home...

Charles's POV

When YN had left so suddenly after talking on the phone, I couldn't help but feel a little worried about her. She seemed like she was always so happy, and suddenly seeing how she pretended to be so, left a pit in my stomach. As soon as she had left, it was all quiet in the café, but everyone was looking at Isack. 

"Is she alright?" Oscar spoke up, and Isack looked around at all of us. He was clearly contemplating whether or not he should tell us. "Well, no." He started, letting out a sigh. "She doesn't really have the best relationship with her mother. From what I understand, she left when YN was very little, so it's only ever been her and her dad. YN told me the last time she saw her mom was when she was in F4, ready to go to F3." I looked down until I heard my brother speak up. 

"I thought YN never joined F3?" I furrowed my eyebrows and looked at Isack. "She didn't. I heard that because of her mother, she lost all focus for the last race and had a major crash. Her injuries made the team take back their offer, and she never got a contract. She stayed in F4 for another year, until she then moved directly up in F2 this year." 

Wow. This sounded like a really big issue. But what about now? How would her mother's return affect her driving now? My mind filled with questions, as I stared into blank space. I was only pulled back to reality when everyone started to get up from their seats to get ready to leave. My mind didn't leave her though. Was she gonna be okay?