Love and Rivalry {Female F1 driver}

Second chances.

Waking up the next morning, I felt a bad pain in my head. The sunlight was peeking through the curtains in the hotel room, and I squinted my eyes as I tried opening them. I stretched out my body and turned around, only to get pulled in close by the strong arm, that had been resting around my waist the entire night. 

I looked over at Charles, who had his face buried in the pillow, groaning in discomfort, probably feeling hungover as well. "Good morning, Chéri..." He mumbled, before pulling me even closer while opening his eyes to look at me. "How are you feeling?" I asked, running a hand through his hair, watching a smile spread on his lips. Oh, how I missed that smile...

"On top of the world," He said, leaving a kiss on my shoulder. "You're not hungover?" I asked in disbelief and he chuckled, "Oh, I'm SO hungover, but at least I have you in my arms again," He said and I felt a pit form in my stomach. "Charles..." I said, and his smile immediately disappeared. "No, Carter. No," The worries filled his eyes. "This doesn't change anything..." I said, and he sat up sharply. "Doesn't change anything?! It changes everything, Carter! Last night-... I know you still love me, you can't tell me otherwise." He was getting angry, so I sat up on my knees in front of him.

I was wearing his shirt from the night before and it was reaching down to my thighs, as I grabbed his face in my hands. "I do, I love you, Charles..." I spoke, and his expression softened as his hands made their way to my waist. "Then...?" He asked, and I could see the fear in his eyes. "I still don't know if I can trust you, Charles... That whole video-..." He grabbed my thigh and repositioned me to his lap, interrupting me mid-sentence "You completely misunderstood Mon Amour..." His eyes were speaking the truth, but I was scared to admit it. Or, more like, I was scared of getting hurt again.

"Tell me what happened then..." I said hesitantly, and his eyes lit up. He then started telling me about that day... 

Arthur was having a bad day, and Charles was trying to cheer him up. He was questioning his abilities as a driver, so Charles told him he needed to try harder and be more aggressive. I knew he was right, Arthur was too passive usually. Arthur had asked him if he was going to get mad if he beat me, and Charles said of course not. That he knew, that I was good, and I wouldn't want to win if others had just let me do so. That was the whole context, and why Charles said that Arthur should be more aggressive, even if it meant I wouldn't get in F1, cause then it wouldn't have been on the right terms. He had never implied that he wanted me to crash, he just wanted a fair race, and the best for his brother as well.

When he was done, I felt a whole lot better, but it still made me sad, that someone would send that around, trying to split us up. Charles reassured me, that he would be more careful with his words from then on, but it still made me worried. I had never felt pain like the one I felt when I saw that video, so what could happen if they tried to do something similar? I was a hotheaded person, but also very insecure. I needed constant reassurance, and I didn't want him to have to deal with that.

"Mon Ange... I love you so much, please... Don't push me away anymore, we need each other. I need you. Please? Can we try again?" He begged, making his usual puppy eyes and I knew I couldn't say no. I took a deep breath and then nodded my head, "Okay... But can we please keep it private for now?" I asked, looking down at my hands. "You want us to be a secret?" He asked, and I shook my head immediately, looking back up at him. "Not secret, just private. You know I hate the media attention, so I think it would be easier in the beginning if we just keep it lowkey..." I looked at him nervously, but he didn't seem sceptical at all. He just smiled at me and pulled me in closer, burying his face in my neck.

"Of course, Mon Ange. As long as you'll be mine again." He whispered into me, and I couldn't help but giggle, as his breath was tickling my neck. "All yours, Charlie..." I whispered back and felt him squeeze my waist.