Never Get to Heaven • cl16

009. CAREFUL

The cars began to line up on the grid for the start of the sprint. The garage had almost fallen silent. Only the mechanics' murmurings could be heard as they whispered about their team's chances at a podium. Jo's eyes were fixed on the screen before us as she bit the skin around her nail.

Lando's car rolled into P3, with Daniel 3 behind him in P6. I looked around at everyone in the garage. An odd mixture of worry and excitement flashed across their faces. I was starting to get it now.

"Please be careful," Jo whispered in French beside me as she stared at the starting grid.

I put my arm around her and squeezed her shoulder. "Loverboy will be okay, I promise." I hushed her. She side-eyed me, placing her hand over mine, resting on her arm.

I looked up at the screen, finding my eyes focused on the little red car in P2. I struggled to look away from him as the lights flashed red. My stomach dropped. Please be careful.

And it's lights out, and away we go!

I watched in amazement as the cars sped away from the start line. I felt every overtake and high-speed corner in my gut, closing my eyes at some points, unable to watch. Lando was losing positions, falling back to P5 just in front of his teammate. I could see Jo out of the corner of my eye, holding her breath next to me, her hands in a prayer position over her lips. Small, disappointed groans could be heard across the garage.

"Hold on, Lando!"

I continued to focus on the red car as it moved up to first place. I could feel the excitement build in my stomach as he defended his position, pulling away from the car behind him, careful not to show this to the rest of the garage. Why can't I look away?

In the last few corners, the McLaren garage began to come alive. If both drivers held on a little longer, they would win some points. Everyone around us stood cheering for Lando and Daniel. I could only focus on Charles dropping back down to P2 as he was overtaken; I couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed for him, he had been so close. I quickly snapped out of my thoughts as Jo bounced up and down, clapping her hands beside me as Lando flew by the chequered flag.

Jo squealed as she grabbed onto me. "That was amazing!"

I smiled and wrapped her in a hug. "I told you Loverboy would be okay! Happy now?" I joked.

Jo smiled back and nodded excitedly.

She paused, pointing to the screen above us. "Your little friend did well too!"

Verstappen P1, Leclerc P2, Perez P3!

As I heard the commentator's words, a small smile formed on my lips. I could feel Jo's eyes trying to read me as she quietly hummed to herself.

"What?" I questioned.

"Nothing, my little bee!" She flashed me a sly smile. I furrowed my brow at her, confused.

"Come on, let's go and wait for Lando." She said quickly, distracting me.

As Lando arrived, he slipped off his helmet. He looked angry.

"Fuck!" He exclaimed. "I'm sorry, guys. I don't know what happened there. I tried." He apologised to the engineers. They all took turns patting him on the back, telling him to focus on tomorrow's race.

He looked up to find Jo and gave her a faint smile. "I'm sorry I couldn't get a podium for you. That wasn't my best performance. Maybe I can make it up to you tomorrow." She grabbed his hand and whispered. "I don't care about that. You were amazing!" His eyes softened, and he pulled her in for a hug. I stood a few paces behind to give them some space, smiling smugly at their embrace. Third-wheeling again.

Outside the Mclaren garage, the paddock buzzed, preparing for the podium. Cheers could be heard as drivers returned to their garages. I mindlessly wandered onto the pit lane to watch the chaos. Suddenly, I realised I had been swept up in the crowd making their way to the podium presentation. I turned around, nervously looking for Jo or anyone I recognised, but I couldn't see over the swarm of people behind me. Before I knew it, I was standing at the barriers in front of the podium, cheers and applause roaring around me.

I held my breath as the drivers were called out one by one. Charles appeared from behind the boards with a small smile as he waved to the crowd. He had a look of disappointment in his eyes as he looked over to the first place step.

As he was presented with his medal, he locked eyes with me. I felt my face get hot as he gave me a nod and a little wink. I returned the nod, smiling back at him as I clapped my hands. He continued to look back down at the ground. I wanted him to know well he had done and that he should be proud of himself. I felt a tug on my heart as I realised how annoyed he would be for letting go of a win.

Afterwards, I made my way back to the McLaren garage. Jo was waiting for me with a suspicious look on her face.

"Where have you been? I was looking everywhere for you!"

"I—uh, I got swept away, and I watched the podium ceremony. I tried to look for you, but there were so many people." I explained. She narrowed her eyes as if she was going to say something but changed her mind at the last second.

"Lando arranged a driver to take us back to the hotel. He has some interviews and things to do," She explained. I could tell she had something on her mind that she was holding back from me.

I nodded as we made our way out of the paddock. I thought back to Charles on the podium, despite his smile, I could tell just how disappointed he was. I hoped he had someone to remind him what a good job he had done. I hoped he had someone in his corner.

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Authors note:

Fillllllllllerrr

The next chapter is more fun📝📝📝