One Sober Kiss
Summary - Agreed rule. What happen's after a night out is forgotten about the next morning. One sober kiss can change the alcohol being blamed.
Not Proof Read!
Word count - 9K+
Pairing - Max Verstappen x Fem driver
"Morning Ladies" You said walking into the kitchen where Lando, Franco and Alex were sat eating breakfast.
"You're in a good mood this morning?" Lando asked, a little nervous by your demeanour.
"I get to see the girls today!" you smiled over to them.
"About time!" Ollie said walking into the kitchen as he over heard the conversation from the living room.
"Now can you stop complaining about needing to see your friends?" Max asked appearing out of what seemed like thin air.
"If it'll make you feel better Max, then no, never" you shot him a sarcastic smile and he rolled his eyes back to you.
Over the years, as drivers you'd all formed a bond. It was to be expected. Since a few of you were all single and sick of living alone and away from your families, you'd all decided to get a house together.
Of course, over time, some people started getting into relationships but the house remained the same, just with a few visitors before race weekends and when drivers girlfriends had time off from work.
The guys had all decided that your room could be the one with the en-suite since you were the only female driver. The guys all agreed that the other 3 remaining bathrooms would be shared by them all. You happily agreed to this, not wanting to share a bathroom with 8 guys.
In total it was you, Lando, Alex, Kimi, Charles, Ollie, Franco, Isack and Max. It was no secret that you were always butting heads about one thing or another both on and off track. The guys swore you would wind one another up on purpose. In Franco's words it was like you two had some "weird foreplay going on" as they all insisted that you were both actually made for one another. What the other's didn't know is that through the years you and Max had slept with one another on multiple nights out. You had a pull on one another that neither of you would ever admit. Instead, you both agreed that whenever it'd happen, you were to not talk about it the following day and continue like nothing every happened.
"They staying here?" Lando asked.
"No, they've booked an Airbnb" you smiled.
"Thank god. It's bad enough dealing with you, let alone having your friends here" Max said as he walked past you, grabbing a bowl out of the cupboard.
"Mind you, I never asked for your opinion" you said throwing him a look.
"Right, I've just woken up. You two seriously haven't started already have you?" Kimi groaned as he walked into the kitchen.
"Blame him" you said defensively, pointing to Max.
"We blame you both. You wind one another up all the time!" Alex said before continuing to each his breakfast.
"I literally didn't do a thing" you said shocked.
"This morning no, but last night you did" Alex continued.
"What?"
"You literally said to him 'That film's exactly like you. Loud and irriating' when all he did was pick something for us to watch" Isack said looking up at you through his eyelashes as he took a spoonful of his breakfast.
"He picked a war film!" you almost shouted in defence causing the others to laugh lightly.
āIt was educational!ā Max batted back as you turned to open the fridge.
āThank you for that Grandpaā you said whilst trying to reach the top shelf to grab your Tupperware.
"Enough. You're driving me insane and we've got qualifying today. Please don't piss me off" Isack groaned as he headed out of the kitchen, with the others slowly following suit. It was the Monaco GP this weekend meaning you didn't need to pack or travel anywhere which you loved.
Max came up behind you and reached for your food, you could feel his warmth on your back before he pulled back, handing it to you.
"Thanks" you said quieter than intended.
"No problem" he said flatly before walking out with the others.
The paddock was already a buzz with photographers and fans all ready and waiting for drivers to arrive. You walked in, deep in conversation with Charles about his and Alexandra's plans for the week following the race.
"Y/N" You heard Anna shout in excitement causing you to turn so fast you almost gave yourself whiplash.
The girls all ran to you pulling you in for a group hug. You'd been friends since school but, since joining F1 and with their busy lives too, you'd seen less and less of each other over the years, although spoke every day over text.
Anna was a petit red head, she knew you better than you knew yourself. She was engaged to Matt who she'd met after she joined his Dad's Veterinary Practice. She was not shy, and if something needed to be said then you could always count on her to be the one to say it.
Grace was a tall blonde who ran her own beauty company. She loved to party and would drag you all out at any opportunity she got when you were growing up. She was recently single and making up for lost time.
Molly was the quieter one of the group. A short blonde. She was level headed and incredibly bright which is why non of you were shocked when she told you she was going to Uni to study Law. She'd met a guy there but hadn't told you all much about him since it was very new.
"I thought we were meeting later?" you smiled to them.
"We wanted to watch your qualifying" Grace smiled.
"Come on, I'll take you to Redbull's hospitality" you smiled as you walked through the paddock with them, catching up on everything you'd missed.
"So, any guys on the scene?" Anna asked as you all sat down at a table.
"No. I think living with 8 of them is enough of a deterrent for any man" you laughed before sipping your water.
"What about any of them that you live with then?" Grace asked. "I mean you basically have a whole choice of men in the palm of your hands. Plus they're all very good looking" she added and you almost spat your drink across the room.
Max was stood just behind the table, looking like he was chatting to one of the mechanics who'd come in for a break, when you saw his jaw tighten. Your eyebrows knotted together wondering what they could possibly be talking about.
"Jesus Grace, it's not like that! They're my friends. Besides, half of them are in relationships now anyway" you laughed.
"Ok, then which ones are single?" Anna asked raising an eyebrow.
"Umm, Lando, Kimi and Max" you said.
"So what about them? Are they as attractive in person as they are on TV at least?" Anna asked again in a mischievous tone.
"Ew, stop! Lando's one of the guys I'm closest to but he's basically my brother and Kimi's 19! I don't see them like that. They're actually really lovely people if you got to know them for them and not their looks" you said shaking your head.
"Ok ok calm down, it was just a joke" Anna said. "But, what about Max?" she asked but before you could answer Max was stood at the side of your table.
"Sorry to interrupt but we have a meeting we need to get to" he said looking at you.
"Oh, yeah, ok. Girls, this is Max by the way" you said introducing him as you stood up. You may not always see eye to eye but you weren't rude and you always introduced people who didn't know each other.
"Hi" Max smiled at them before slowly turning around to walk away.
"HOT" Grace and Anna said in unison to you, not quite as quiet as they thought. Little did you know that Max had heard and a small smile crept up onto his face.
"Shhh! I'll see you later" you said before jogging to catch up to Max.
"Your friends seem nice" he said, continuing to look dead ahead.
"Didn't ask for your approval of them, but thanks I guess" you replied to him.
Qualifying ended. Max P1, Lando P2, You P3. You were happy with where you'd placed and after interviews headed over to the girls Airbnb to see them.
"Is she coming home tonight then?" Kimi asked.
"No, I think she's staying there with them" Lando asked as he looked at the time on his phone.
"She'll come home" Max said.
"I think she's staying there mate. It's nearly 10 now" Alex added also checking his phone for the time.
"She'll come home. She sleeps better in her own bed" he said plainly which silenced the others.
10 minutes later and the door clicked open and you slipped in quietly, before walking into the front room to see the guys sat around rewatching quali highlights on the TV.
"We thought you were staying out?" Lando asked.
"No, I sleep better in my own bed" you smiled. "I'm going up, night guys" you said before walking upstairs.
The guys remained silent but all turned to look at Max.
"What?" he asked.
"What the fuck was that?" Lando asked.
"What was what?"
"How did you know she'd be home?" Alex asked.
"She always does. Every other race she says she didn't get the best sleep, but Monaco she always says she slept great. Doesn't take a genius to know it's because she's in her own bed" He said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
No one said another word, but they all shot one another a knowing look.
"Morning" you said walking into the kitchen to see Alex and Kimi sat at the table.
"Morning, how did you sleep?" Kimi asked curiously now.
"I slept great thanks, you?"
"Great mmhm. Yeah, good thanks" he said whilst raising his eyebrows to Alex as they both laughed quietly to one another.
"Ok , well I have to go. Early team meeting. Tell Max I've left already" you said as you headed out to the front door.
"Wait, wait, I'm coming" he said as he ran down the stairs before following you out of the house.
āHave fun last night?ā He asked you.
āI did thanks. Did you miss me?ā You mocked him.
āEnjoyed the peace and quiet actuallyā he mocked back and you rolled your eyes.
The meeting dragged on longer than you or Max cared for. You were ready to race and both hated the tediousness of the meetings. You knew what you were doing and what was expected of you but had to show up regardless.
"Before we conclude this meeting. Y/N, Max. Clean, fair fighting today. I don't want to see any collisions caused by either of you" Laurent said staring at you both.
You both nodded in agreement before standing up to leave.
"You heard what he said. No collisions" Max whispered to you as you walked out.
"Stay out of my way and we won't have a problem then" you shot him an unamused smirk.
"Oh don't worry darling, I'll be so far in front you won't see me anyway"
āThatās funny because you only call me darling when youāre nervous. Got you worried have I Verstappen?ā
āIām never nervousā
āCouldāve fooled me. What happens if I actually beat you today?ā
āThen Iām booking a hotel room and Iām staying there foreverā
āDonāt threaten me with a good timeā you mocked causing him to scoff loudly.
The car felt quiet compared to the noise surrounding the track. Your eyes locked onto the back of Landoās car ahead.
Lights went out and you were off. The car felt good. Much better than it had during free practice and qualiās. You were making good time but still hadnāt yet been able to catch up to Lando enough to overtake him.
āGuys, Iām loosing power here, whatās happening?ā Lando said over the radio to his team.
āKeep pushing. Weāre looking into a fixā
Over on your pit wall you heard Woody āOk, Y/N, Landoās got issues with his power. Theyāre looking for a fix but nothing yet. Nowās the time to give it all youāve gotā
āOk, heardā
You gave it everything you had and finally overtook Norris, heart thumping through your chest.
āWell done Y/N, 10 laps left. Letās bring it home safely and clean pleaseā
You could see Max in your sight. Your eyes narrowed in on him going in for the chase. You could feel the adrenaline rushing through your veins as you creeped closer and closer with each lap.
āY/N, weāre not racing Max, 2 laps to go, letās just bring it home now pleaseā
You didnāt reply. Not with words anyway. Just a loud huff down the radio in frustration. The gap between you and Max was 0.5 and you knew you could battle it out but at the risk of messing up the race for the entire team you backed off.
You crossed the chequered flag in P2 with Lando following behind. Pulling into Parc Ferme you could feel the anger radiating off of you. You didnāt jump out of the car immediately, instead you waited a few seconds thinking about how close you were to P1.
When you finally jumped out Lando headed over to you to congratulate you. Max was already celebrating with the team but you stayed at your podium, taking off your helmet and taking a sip of your drink, chatting to Lando.
āYou good?ā He asked.
āI could have had him. He was right there and they didnāt let us fight. Itās bullshitā you huffed.
āYouāll get him next time. Itās a tough track to overtake on. They didnāt want to risking your whole raceā he said trying to calm you down.
āBut he was right there Lan. I had the chance and they didnāt let me even tryā
āCome on. Letās just enjoy this podium and then drinks on me tonight?ā He asked nudging you.
āAs long as you keep them coming. Iām going to need themā
āDealā he laughed. āJust try not to kill him. He didnāt make the call, they didā
āHey! Good raceā Max said walking over to you.
āMm thanks. Congratulations to you tooā
āWhatās wrong?ā He asked confused. āIf this is because Iāll be home tonight and not booking a hotel like youād hoped then Iām sorryā he said sarcastically.
āI could have had you I hope you knowā
āThen why didnāt you overtake?ā He asked.
āThey told me not to. Iām assuming you had something to do with that little callā you scoffed in annoyance.
āYouād be wrong. I was shocked when you pulled back. I was waiting for an overtake attemptā
āOhā you said shocked.
āYeah, oh. We may not always see eye to eye but Iām not going to stop you from racing me or try to ruin your race. I thought you knew that at leastā he said almost hurt.
āSorryā you nodded to him.
āItās fine. Still, a double podium for the teams goodā he nodded back.
āIāll get you next time thoughā
āYou can tryā he smiled before you all made your way to the cooldown room.
By the time the celebration and interviews were over you were ready to get home, shower, get ready and go out drinking. Youād told the girls to come round the house once they were ready and youād all make your way to Jimmyz together.
āY/N. Your friends are here!ā Kimi shouted up the stairs to you before directing them to your room.
āThis room is incredible!ā Grace said as they walked in.
āItās like a frat house though with all those guys downstairsā Anna laughed.
āTheyāre actually great to live withā you laughed.
There was a knock at the door before Isack walked in slowly. "We're leaving in 15 if you want to join us downstairs for pre drinks?"
"Absolutely! Lets go!" Grace said immediately standing up to head downstairs.
The guys were all sat around the table already, playing cards, drinks in hand and music playing.
"What are we playing?" Grace asked them.
"Ring of fire. You know it?" Lando asked.
"We do!"
"Ok then, let's play" Lando smiled at you as he pulled his card out next. King. He leant over the table and poured some of his drink into the cup.
Franco pulled his card next. 8. "I pick Ollie" he said raising his can in Ollie's direction with a mischievous smile to which Ollie just shook his head and laughed.
Charles was next up, pulling out a 4. All you girls raised your glasses before taking a drink.
The game continued until the taxi's pulled up outside. You all headed outside and the cool air immediately hit you all. You weren't drunk by any means but you'd certainly gone from stone cold sober to a bit more than just tipsy within the space of 15 minutes from the game alone.
The club was already busy by the time you arrived. Drinks flowing, music blasting and people dancing. Grace pulled you to the dance floor with Anna and Molly whilst the guys found their way to the booth that had been saved for you all. Lily, Carmen and Rebecca all found their way to you after Lando pointed out where you were. You introduced your friends to them before running to the bar to grab shots for you all with Anna.
"Okay, seriously. What's going on between you and Max?"
"What do you mean?" you asked shocked.
"He's been staring at you all night"
"No he hasn't!" you said defensively
"He absolutely has. He's looking at you like you're the only person in the room. You should have seen how he looked at you on the podium"
"I don't know what you're talking about" you said rolling your eyes.
"You got P2 and he seemed happier about the fact that you were on the podium with him than he was about his own win!"
"It was a 1-2 for the team. We were both just happy for the points!"
"Sure. Keep telling yourself that, but when you come to realise it, just know that I told you so"
"Mmhmm, sure Anna" you said shaking your head.
You both made your way to the booth handing out the shots to everyone when a fan sees you all and asks for a group photo. You all happily oblige, not wanting to be rude since she asked politely and you could all see her nerves.
You all huddled together closer so you could all fit in the frame. Max had been stood next to you but pushed you gently forward to be seen in the camera since you were shorter than him. You settled in close to him, your back pressed against his chest and his hand found your waist, resting there to hold you steady in place for the photo. For a brief second you hadn't noticed, but when you felt the eyes of Anna, Grace and Molly burn into the side of your head, the realisation kicked in your heart started hammering through your chest. They were all sat down in the booth watching the scene unfold in front of them, and your face was only getting redder and hotter by the second.
Once the photo was taken you looked down at your empty shot glass.
"I need a drink" you said before hurrying to the bar to catch your breath.
"You good?" you heard from behind you.
"Hey Ollie. I'm ok you?"
"I'm good. You just seemed to hurry off like you'd seen a ghost that's all"
"Oh, no I'm fine. Just needed a drink that's all" you smiled unconvincingly.
"You're a shit liar, you know that right? It's fine though, if you don't want to talk about it"
āGood. Drink?ā You asked whilst handing him another shot.
āSureā he said picking up the glass and downing the drink fast.
You both headed back to the booth and it had picked up. Other drivers arriving with their girlfriends, others inviting multiple girls into the booth too. It was getting more and more cramped by the second. You were scanning around to find the girls when you saw someone you'd never met before getting cosy with Max.
"Drink?" Lando said walking over with yet another tray of more shots.
"Absolutely" you said before grabbing one and shotting it back as fast as you could. "Dance?" you asked him, grabbing his arm before he had a chance to respond.
You both made your way to the dance floor. It was just as busy, leaving little room for you to both. You turned you back and were practically pressed up against Lando.
"You good?" he asked leaning down to your ear.
"Fine" you said back loud enough for him to hear.
"So this would have nothing to do with that girl over there talking to Max would it?" he asked causing you to spin around to face him.
"What?"
"Come off it Y/N. We all know you have a thing for one another"
"We have not!" you said defensively.
"Ok, so that's not been Max I've seen leaving your room after most nights out and you wouldn't care if she came home with him then?" he asked
"What? No it's to been! No, of course not! He can do what he likes!" you said knotting your eyebrows together.
"Ok, and if he didn't like you, then he wouldn't mind us dancing like this would he?" He said raising his eyebrows to you.
"No, he wouldn't"
"Ok, so then why have his eyes been burning a hole into the side of my head since we got on this dance floor, when there's a girl in front of him not so subtly trying to hit on him?" He asked you raising his eyebrows further.
"Maybe he's just not into her" you shrugged off turning your back to him again, done with the conversation.
"Or, maybe he likes you" he said leaning down to your ear again.
"No, he doesn't. Now enough, just dance and don't talk" you huffed.
The girls joined you on the dance floor a short while after and Lando made a quick escape back to the booth. At this point you knew you were way past being drunk. You couldn't remember the last time you'd consumed so much alcohol in one night. The night was becoming more and more of a blur and by the time you headed back into the booth you were struggling to stand straight.
"You feeling ok?" Max asked as he walked over to you.
"Mmhmm" you nodded, eyes glazing over.
"Here, drink some water" he said passing you a glass.
"I'm fine, I don't need it" you said trying to brush him off.
"Drink it" he demanded and you slowly took the glass off him.
"Thank you Max" you smiled up at him before tipping forward drunkenly.
He grabbed you and steadied you before you could fall flat on your face.
"I think it's maybe time to call it a night" he said to you.
"Noooo. It's only another hour until the taxi's are getting us anyway" you complained to him.
"Y/N. You can hardly stand straight"
"Please?"
"Ok. It's your choice, but I'm staying here to stop you injuring yourself by falling over" he smirked.
"Fine" you said leaning your body weight up against his side. "Where's that girl gone you were talking to?" you asked, looking up to him.
"I don't know" he shrugged.
"I thought you were going to bring her home with you" you hiccuped.
"No" he said firmly, furrowing his eyebrows.
"Why not? She looked nice"
"Because, I didn't want to"
"Oh. Ok then" you nodded.
"What about you? I saw you getting close to Lando on the dance floor"
"Absolutely not" you laughed. "Great friend, but that's as far as it goes. Even as a dance partner he talks too much" you mumbled causing Max to laugh.
Anna, Grace and Molly had made their way back to their hotel already. They had offered you to go back and stay with them but you knew that in the morning you wanted to wake up in your own home and not have to move from bed all day. The thought of catching a taxi back home on a hangover filled you with dread just thinking about it.
The sound of your bathroom door closing shut woke you up from your sleep. Your head pounding you sat up with a groan. You don't remember getting home but somehow you're in your own bed. You look up to see Max slowly tiptoeing out of the bathroom in his boxers when he looks up to see you.
"Morning" he said quietly.
"What are you doing in my bathroom?" you asked confused whilst trying not to look him up and down but failing miserably. God he looked good. Why did he have to look this good. He was your team mate. You can't start having a crush on him. It would be too inconvenient. You tried shaking your head to clear the thoughts.
"I used the toilet."
"Why are you using my toilet and not your own?"
"Because it was quicker?"
"Quicker than walking outside your own room?"
"Well yeah, I did sleep in here last night. How much do you remember from last night?" he asked you
"You slept in here? I remember you giving me water. After that is a blur."
"You were very drunk. After we got home you didn't feel well. Kept saying you felt sick. I didn't want to leave you on your own in case you were, so I slept in here with you. Don't worry, we didn't sleep together this time"
"Oh, thank you"
"You're welcome. Breakfast?"
"Sure" you said dragging yourself out of bed. "Let me shower and change first. I'll be down soon"
"Yeah sure, see you down there" he said walking towards your door.
"Max?"
"Hmm?"
"Thank you. Seriously, I appreciate it" you smiled to him.
"Yeah, Anytime" he smiled back before leaving.
You walked into the kitchen with a groan, Ollie, Isack and Franco were all sat around the table, coffee's in hands chatting about how the night had been.
"Here she is" Franco beamed as you walked in.
"Stop yelling" you groaned.
"I practically whispered that!" Franco laughed as you shuffled across to the kettle.
"Shhhhh" you said back to him causing a scoffed laugh from Max as he and Lando walked into the kitchen. Max walked over to you and hands you two painkillers. He's dressed in grey joggers and a plain white top and it's so frustrating that he can look this good even after a night out. "Thanks" you smiled to which he nodded.
"Sooooo" Lando began.
"If you're going to say something that'll annoy me then please don't" you immediately snapped before he could get any more words out.
"When do I ever annoy you?" he asked faking hurt.
"Literally all the time"
"No, that's usually Max" he batted back.
"You're starting to take top spot right now" you groaned raising your hand to your temple before taking another sip of your coffee.
"I wasn't even going to say anything bad. Just that you two seemed to get on well last night, that's all" Lando said widening his eyes and side eyeing the others at the table.
"I looked after her because she was just as drunk as you lot. Apparently I'm the only one who can handle my drink around here" Max interrupted before you could bite Lando's head off.
"Hmmm such a gentleman" Lando teased. "What happened to that girl that you were talking to all night then?"
"I don't know. She went home I guess" Max shrugged.
"What?" Isack practically yelled across the kitchen. "Mate, she was handing herself to you on a plate!" he said shocked.
"I wasn't interested in her like that. I'm not about to lead her on for a meaningless shag!"
The guys didn't say a word after that. Instead opting to sharing knowing looks at one another as Max started asking how you were feeling now as you poured more coffee for yourself and made him one too.
A knock at the door was answered by Kimi who had started making his way downstairs after finally getting up.
"Y/N. It's your friends" he called out, directing them into the kitchen where you stood with the guys.
"Wow" Grace said as she walked into the kitchen first, eyeing up all the guys who were a sea of joggers and chests.
"Annd just like that we're going upstairs" you said immediately guiding them out of the kitchen and up to your room.
"Seriously, how do you focus on anything?" Grace asked as you walked down the hallway. "Grey joggers and abs everywhere! Can I move in?" She asked and you could hear a collective whispered laugh from the guys in the kitchen. Grace was never as quiet as she claimed she was.
"Please, for the love of god stop talking" you said following the girls to your room.
"I'm just saying. Max looked good too" she said winking at you.
"Did he? I hadn't noticed" you said a little too casually.
"Yes she did" Lando shouted up the stairs after you.
"Run. Run far" you shouted back down to him through gritted teeth causing the guys to laugh.
"So, you like her then?" Lando turned to Max once they heard your door shut.
"What?" he asked trying to brush off the comment.
"You were staring at her all night. I thought you were going to kill me for dancing with her at one point!"
"No I wasn't" he said scrunching his eyebrows together in irritation.
"You absolutely were" Franco added.
"Did I hear you coming out of her room this morning too?" Ollie chimed in.
"It wasn't like that!"
"You slept together?" Lando asked, his voice getting higher pitched.
"No! I just looked after her. She said she felt sick so I didn't want to leave her alone"
"So you took care of her, all night?" Lando raised his eyebrows.
"Yes. I slept on top of the quilt though. Nothing happened. She doesn't even remember getting home"
"Hmmmm, sure, nothing happened. Y/N never lets anyone stay in her room!" Ollie said.
"That you lot know of" Lando whispered loud enough for only Max to hear. Max shot him a death glare which silence Lando quicker than the speed of light.
"It wasn't like that!" Max added again, getting more and more irritated.
"So! Even drunk she's never let anyone in her room. The fact that she let you must count for something right?" Franco asked.
"It's not like that!"
"Sure. Let's all just keep pretending you don't clearly like one another" Lando scoffed rolling his eyes.
"Whatever" Max mumbled before heading back up to his room.
"He took care of you all night?" Anna asked.
"Apparently I said I was feeling sick. He didn't wan't to leave me in case I actually was"
"Good looking and caring. I approve of him for you" Molly smirked.
"Oh my god stop" you laughed.
"What? You can't tell us that all this bickering is just that! There's more in it that just making comments for no reason. You obviously like one another, plus you'd look good together" Grace said to you.
"He's my team mate. It could get complicated"
"Complicated can be good" Grace smirked.
"I don't want to ruin our team dynamic" you sighed.
"So you do like him then?" Anna smirked as they caught you out.
"Fuck. What. No"
"Be honest!" Anna said.
"I. Um. I'm going to get a drink. I'll be back" you said rushing out of your room.
You were getting more and more flustered by the second. You opened your door, closing it behind you and collided with Max who was walking across the hallway to his room. "Shit. I'm sorry" you said, looking at the coffee you'd just knocked out of his hand and down your top. "Shit, that's hot" you said pulling the top away from your skin and taking a sharp breath in.
"Shit, are you ok? Come here" he said pulling you into his room and passing you a fresh top from his draw.
"I do own other tops you know" you laughed holding his.
"I just assumed you were escaping your room for a reason and weren't in a rush back in that's all" he smiled to you.
You nodded to him. "Yeah, you'd be right there" you scoffed.
"Are you burnt at all?" He asked concerned.
"No, I'm ok. Thanks for the top" you smiled as you pulled your top off and put his on.
"You're welcome. Why are you escaping anyway?" he asked.
"Oh. Um. Just the girls being, um, it doesn't matter. How come you're not downstairs with the guys anyway?"
"Oh, yeah, they're just annoying me today that's all" he said.
"Welcome to my world" you laughed trying to to blush the more you looked at him.
Ever since Grace and Anna said he was hot you've not been able to look at him in the same way anymore. You'd never noticed his smile, or how pearcing his blue eyes were, or how when you spoke he gave you his full attention, looking at you so intensly that it made you get hotter by the second.
"You good?" he asked as he could see you getting redder by the second.
"Yeah yeah, I'm good" you nodded, not sure if you were trying to convince him or yourself.
āI think you caught your arm tooā he said walking over to you and gently grabbing your arm to further inspect the red mark.
He was close, so close you could feel the heat coming off him. Smell the soap on his skin after his shower.
āYou sure youāre ok?ā He said looking at you. His eyes flickering between your eyes and lips.
āMmhmmā you nodded lightly, looking up to meet his gaze. His eyes, you could get lost in those eyes. Who were you kidding, you were lost in those eyes. Holding his gaze, you could feel the heat creep up your chest, breath hitching as you caught him looking back down to your lips again. He stepped closer, closing the gap between you both that little bit more. The tension between you both was intense.
A silence had settled between you both. Not awkward, but instead thick with an unknown feeling. His thumb brushed over your arm that he was still gently holding. You looked down toward it before looking back at his eyes and then down at his lips. There was a beat where you both lingered, giving the other time to pull away, but neither of you did. His lips met yours. Soft, gentle at first before deepening into a need. Your hands found the seam of his collar, pulling him in closer to you. His hands held your hips, pulling them in closer than you thought possible. Your hands snaked around his neck, playing with his hair as his hands found your ass.
You were both lost in the kiss. Neither of you coming up for air, until a pan being dropped in the kitchen knocked you both back into reality.
āFuckā you said as you let go of Max and stepped back.
āShitā Max said rubbing the back of his neck.
āUm, I have to go. The girls will be wondering where I amā you said as you hurried out of his room. You shut the door behind you and lent backwards on his door frame, replaying what had just happened. An involuntary smile crept up onto your face before you snapped yourself back out of it. You'd never kissed sober before and this caused a nervous knot in your stomach that you weren't sure how to undo.
You walked back into your room where the girls were sat, flicking through photos of the night on their phones.
"We're sorry" Anna said offering an awkward smile as you walked over to them.
"It's fine" you smiled softly.
"Have you changed your top?" Molly asked confused.
"Oh, yeah" you said awkwardly looking down at yourself. "I spilt coffee down myself" you brushed off.
The girls didn't question further. Not because they didn't have more questions, but they didn't want to further upset you.
Three weeks had gone by and you avoided Max like the plague, only seeing him during team meetings or when there was a crowd of you. Never habign the chance to be alone, but now the pit was growing further in your stomach as you walked through the airport with the guys. You knew that you and Max were getting a separate plane with your team and there was no escaping.
"Y/N!" Alex raised his voice
"Hmm?" you asked turning to him.
"I asked if you wanted to join me and Lily for dinner tomorrow? She keeps asking me to invite you"
"Oh, sorry. Yeah that sounds great" you smiled to him.
"You good?" he asked
"Yeah, yeah, sorry. Just in my own head. I'm ok though" you nodded.
"Ok, well I'll message you the plans later after I've caught up with Lily"
"Sounds great" you smiled as you all walked out onto the runway towards your planes. "See you later" you smile before slowly making you way towards the plane.
"You going to talk to me anytime soon?" you heard Max's voice behind you.
"You haven't spoken to me either" you said quietly.
"Because you kept avoiding me. Was the kiss really that bad?" you teased you.
"Shhh" you turned to him widening your eyes causing him to smirk.
"What? No one can hear us" he laughed.
"You don't know that!"
"Look around, everyones too far away to hear over the sound of the planes" he said gesturing around you both.
"Yes, well, you never know" you said raising your eyebrows to him.
"Can we talk about it then please?"
"No, I'm not talking about that in front of Laurent!"
"Fine, then after the flight?" he asked as you walk up the stairs of the plane.
"Maybe" you said as you walked down the aisle taking a seat. He sat opposite you. Of course he did. As if you weren't already feeling awkward enough about the situation, you had to endure the flight to the UK with Max sat across from you staring at you. You looked at him and threw him and annoyed look whilst rolling your eyes which only seemed to make him laugh.
The flight consisted of Laurent talking to you about strategies and what he expected out of the weekend, with Max's eyes burning into your skin the majority of the time. By the time you got to the hotel and checked into your room you were relieved for the moment of peace to yourself. Sinking down on the bed you grabbed your phone, catching yourself up on the girls group chat. Grace was updating you all on her Tinder matches whilst Anna was sending over Bridesmaids dresses.
As you opened your door you saw Max stood there, dressed in jeans and a black t-shirt. He gave a soft smile before walking past you and into your room.
"Was it really nothing to you?" he asked.
"Wow, ok, jumping straight into it" you said shocked.
"You said I have 5 minutes" he said monotone.
"Ok ok, fine, no, it wasn't nothing, but we're team mates Max. That shit can get complicated really quickly" you said with a heavy breath.
"It doesn't have to. Not if we don't let it"
"Max, seriously. Do you hear yourself?"
"I'm serious" he said walking towards you.
"So am I" you said stepping backwards.
"So what? We just act like nothing happened? I don't think I can do that Y/N" he said taking another step toward you.
"We have to Max" you sighed. "It was just 1 kiss. Nothing more. Let's not make this bigger than it needs to be ok?" you said whilst involuntarily stepping closer to him.
"God you drive me mad!" he said frustrated.
"And you drive me mad too, so I guess that's good then. We can go back to our normal dynamic of team mates who like to bicker over stupid stuff" you said throwing your arms in the air.
"And you're happy with that are you?"
"Max. It was 1 kiss" you sighed.
He stepped closer to you, closing the gap that was once there. Heat radiating off you both. You looked up to meet his eyes. Your chest heaving from the tension building between you. Your eyes flicked back down to his lips and memories of the kiss you'd shared were running through your mind.
"It wasn't just 1 kiss but that's fine. You keep pretending like there's not something there then" he leant down to whisper in your ear. Goosebumps ran across your body from the feel of his breath against your skin.
Before you could say another word the moment was broken. Max shifted, walking around you and made his way back out of your room.
"Fuck" you whispered under your breath, dragging your hands down your face after the door clicked shut.
You were sat across from Alex and Lily. They were talking to you about wedding plans and Lily had been catching you up on what she'd been up to.
"Not long now until the big day! Are you nervous?" you asked them.
"Yes but excited more than anything" Lily smiled. "Got your dress?" she asked you.
"I do! I can't wait. You're going to look beautiful!"
"Thank you! Anyway, enough about us. What about you? What's been going on?" Lily asked you.
"Nothing much. I'm going to be bridesmaid for Anna so we're being bombarded with thousands of dresses that she likes for us" you laughed.
"That's exciting!" Lily smiled.
"It is" you smiled back.
"Anyone special in your life?" she gave you a teasing smirk.
"No" you laughed. "Still as single as ever" you rolled your eyes.
"What about Max?"she asked.
"Right, what have you said to her?" you snapped, staring at Alex.
"What? Nothing!" He said looking at you shocked with a mouth half full of food.
"I just think you'd look cute together. You looked it at the after party anyway" Lily said just as shocked as Alex. "Speak of the devil" she smirked as Max walked into the restaurant with Kimi and Lando.
"Oh, hey guys" Lando smiled over as he caught a glimpse of Alex.
"Hey!" You, Lily and Alex smiled back to them all.
"If you want, we can seat you next to each other?" The waitress asked from behind you.
"Yeah, the more the merrier" Lily smiled as the waitress set the table up for them.
The rest of the meal went fast, although you couldn't help but notice that Max hadn't even looked in your direction the whole time, let alone said two words to you. A pang of guilt rushed through you. You know you'd turned him down but you were still team mates and you didn't want it to feel like this all the time. You thought what you'd done was a good thing but maybe you'd bruised his ego instead.
You got up and headed to the toilet, making sure to pay the bill on your way. You walked back out of the stall to find Lily stood outside.
"Everything ok?" she asked you.
"All good. You?"
"Y/N, what's going on. You and Max haven't spoken to each other the whole meal. Has something happened?"
"Nothing's happened. I don't know. Maybe he's not in a talking mood today" you lied to her.
"I'd love to agree but it's only you he's not spoken to" she said raising her eyebrows to you.
"It's all good. Just a team mate tiff that's all" you smiled to her through the mirror as you washed your hands.
"Mmhmm. If you say so" she said trying not to press any further as you both let the toilets.
You made your way back to the table to find Lando and Alex in a heated debate about karting.
"Guys, I'm off now. I promised Anna I'd FaceTime her in half hour. She's freaking out over flower arrangements and Matt's stuck in work so I'm on hand to help. I've taken care of the bill" you smiled before hugging Lily goodbye and heading off.
"Y/N, seriously, I need your full attention now. Pink Lily's or White Orchid's?" Anna said frustrated.
"They're all starting to look the same to me" you huffed.
"They look nothing alike! Focus!"
"I am focusing" you said as you were pacing the hotel reception. The thought of being stuck in your room looking at flowers was enough to drive you nuts, so you thought a change of scenery might help, all whilst still being able to stay out of the way of paps and fans.
"The past few wedding's I've been to thought they've all had either Lily's or Orchids. What if I'm seen as copying?" she moaned.
"I don't think you can copy a flower Anna" you laughed.
"Now's not the time to laugh at me Y/N, I'm serious!" She scolded you.
"Ok ok, are there any other options if you're worried about copying people?"
"Hydrangea's?" the florist spoke up next to her.
"That could work. Can we see?" Anna asked before the woman quickly walked away creating a mini bouquet containing pink hydrangeas, white roses and eucalyptus. "That's perfect! I love it! Y/N, what do you think?"
"I think it's beautiful and if you love it then it's the one!" you smiled.
"Thank you for being here today. I really appreciate it. I know you're busy" she smiled down the camera to you.
"I'm always here, you know that" you smiled before you both said your goodbyes.
As you wandered across to the hotel bar you heard voices coming into the hotel. Unmistakably Lando, Max and Kimi. Kimi clocked you right away and told the guys he was going to go over and see you.
You started chatting to Kimi about the upcoming race and the tiredness you were starting to feel from all the travelling when you felt eyes burning into the side of your head. You turned sightly to see Max and Lando still stood out in the reception area. They'd bumped into Arthur Leclerc and had gotten talking but Max hadn't taken his eyes off of you and Kimi, that was until he saw you look his way, snapping him back into the conversation he was meant to be a part of.
"Great race by you today Y/N. Shame about Max. Do you have any comments on what happened?" the interviewer asked you post race.
"Thank you. It was a tough race but points for the team so I'm happy. Yeah, not too sure what happened with Max's car. All I know at this moment is that he had an issue with the power unit. It was a shame to see because up until that point Max was running a great race, but I know he'll come back stronger" you smiled before walking back to your drivers room.
The garage was buzzing with a post race high whilst also having a lingering feeling of knowledge that work is needing to be carried out to understand what happened with Max's car. You walked through, fireproofs clinging to you, still thick with champagne. You could see Max deep in conversation with one of the engineers.
Your room was calm, offering a peaceful break from the chaos outside. You changed out of your fireproofs into fresh clothing. You stayed in your room, catching up with group chat messages before heading back out. The garage was quieter now. People packing up but most headed out already. You slowly made your way out of the paddock when you saw Max and Kimi stood talking to a group of girls. One of them had her hand resting on Max's arm and a pang of jealousy waved over you. Arvid walked over seeing you leaving the garage and took you out of your own head.
"Y/N! Great race!" he beamed over to you before pulling you in for a side hug.
"Thank you!" you smiled "You had a great race yourself!
"Drinks tonight?" he asked.
"Of course!" you nudged him.
"Great. I'll let the guys know!"
The music from the club was loud. You could feel the base running through your body was you walked through with Lily. You arrived at the VIP section the others had secured and saw Kimi and Max once again stood with the girls from the paddock.
"Shots?" you smiled to Lily.
"Absolutely!" she smiled following you to the bar.
You leaned across the bar and ordered 4 tequila shots.
"You good?" Lily asked you.
"All good" you smiled before slinging back two of the shots the bartender had placed in front of you. "Come on, let's dance" you said dragging her to the dance floor after she'd done her shots.
Hours felt like minutes and you'd spent all of your time between the dance floor and the bar. When Lily finally managed to get you to come over to the VIP section with everyone else Max looked up and smiled at you.
"Looks like you've been having a good time" he smiled.
"Looks like you have been too" you said, eyes looking over to the girl who was sat by his side, her hand on his knee and she chatted to her friend next to her.
He looked down to where her hand rested before looking back up to you, but you'd already moved on to a conversation with Lando. When you eventually looked back at Max, the girl was leant in whispering into his ear.
"I'm done for the night" you said turning to Lando. "I'll see you in the morning or something" you smiled politely.
"Woah, you can't leave on your own. You've had way too much to drink!" he said stopping you in your tracks.
'I'm fine, I promise. Look" you said showing him your phone. 'Uber's right outside already" you smiled.
"Fine, but share your location with me so I know you're back safe" he said watching you turn the tracking on for him. "Thank you! See you tomorrow" he smiled before hugging you goodbye.
The noise of the busy street coming through you open window woke you up. People on their way to their jobs, the world waking up. You grabbed your head a groaned. You can't remember anything after stepping foot out of the taxi and walking into the hotel.
"I need to stop drinking" you groaned out loud to yourself. This caused a soft shift next to you. Your head snapped over to where the movement came from, only to see Max sleeping softly next to you. You looked down at yourself to see that you were in your underwear but nothing else and Max was in his boxers.
You sat there for a few moments trying to gather your thoughts when a bang came at your door making you sit up and Max jump.
"Y/N! You alive in there?" Lando shouted through the door.
"Yes, what do you want?" you shouted back.
"I'm going down for breakfast with the others. Want to join?"
"No, I'm good thanks, you go ahead"
"Ok, see you later" he shouted back before you turned to look at Max.
"What the hell are you doing here?" you asked him.
"Charming"
"I'm serious!"
"You really need to stop drinking so much if this is going to happen every time we wake up together" he groaned rolling over to face where you were sitting.
"Max!"
"You asked me to come over!"
"No I did not!"
"Yes, you absolutely did. I text you asking if you got back safe, you said yes and asked if I was still at the club, I said no just got back to the hotel, you asked if I came back alone or not, I said yes and then you asked me to come over"
"What?" you asked confused.
"Here, see for yourself" he said handing you his phone.
"Seriously? You've saved me under 'Daily Headache'?" you said giving him an unamused look.
"What?" he laughed. "It's not wrong"
"Dick. So, did anything happen?" you asked.
"No, we just talked"
"About?"
"The race, Alex and Lily's wedding, The girls"
"Oh god, what about the girls?"
"Let's just say you didn't take too kindly to them"
"Oh god don't say that, I didn't even know them to not like them!" you groaned hiding your face in your hands. "So nothing else happened? Just sleep?" you asked.
"Sadly" he said sitting up to face you, before you shot him a deadpan look.
"Max!"
"What?" he asked laughing again, "You're confusing me Y/N"
"How?"
"We've been butting heads for as long as we've known each other. Sleep together after nearly every night out but never talk about it again. Then one friend makes a comment about me being in her words 'hot' and suddenly we end up kissing sober, then you try to act like nothing happened whilst also avoiding me, saying it meant nothing, yet anytime another girls around me you don't like it" he said
"Exactly, all we've ever done is butt heads. How would we ever work?"
"Because we actually like each other and I think deep down we've both been trying to hide that for a few years now!"
"Max, be serious"
"I am being serious Y/N" He said turning around to get out of bed. "Look, if you're not going to accept this then that's fine, but stop getting annoyed when you see me around other women because I'm not going to wait for you to finally accept this for what it is" he said picking his trousers up off the floor.
You climbed out of bed, walking around to where he was stood. "I just don't know what to do Max. Do you have any idea what it takes for me to be taken seriously in this sport? If I was seen to be with another drive then people would tear me apart!"
"You've proven yourself 100 times over in this sport Y/N. Who cares what other people think? Is that really a reason to not let yourself be happy?"
"Max" you sighed.
"Ok, fine. Then I'll walk away" he nodded softly to you.
"No, wait!" you said pressing your hand against his torso, stopping him from walking away.
He looked down at you, reaching for a loose strand of your hair and tucking it behind your ear. You both held one another gaze for a brief moment before you both closed the distance between one another. His one hand fisting a handful of your hair at the base of your neck, with the other hand drawing circles against the lace of your underwear on your hip. Your hands slid from his chest to the back of his neck as you pulled him in closer to you. The kiss was slow, intense, fulled by every lingering look and moment of jealousy when someone else was near the other. The kiss quickly deepened and you both slowly walked backwards to the bed, never breaking the kiss and your hands explored one another.
You both led in bed, messy sheets surrounding you. Your hand drawing lazy circles on Max's chest as his drew soft tickles up and down your hip.
"So, what happens now?" Max asked.
"I think we ruined the friendship" you said looking up at him.
"Friendship? You couldn't stand me most days!" he laughed.
"I still can't" you smirked at him causing him to nudge you softly with this shoulder that your were resting on.
"Seriously though, are we doing this? He asked you.
"I guess we are" you smiled up at him before placing a soft kiss on his lips.
"Come on, let's pack. We have a flight home to catch" he said stretching up before placing another kiss on your lips.
The flight home was what you both knew was the calm before the chaos. Soon you'd have to tell friends and the world would find out be it through paparazzi pictures or from photos from Alex and Lily's wedding.
By the time you'd unpacked, all the guys were back home. You and Max made your way downstairs to join everyone.
"I'm going to grab a drink, I'll be right in" you said to Max before walking into the kitchen.
When you walked back in they were all in a heated discussion about what film to put on.
"Y/N, settle this for us please" Franco said.
"Step Brothers or Top Gun?" Isack said giving you the options.
"Step Brothers obviously" you said walking across the room and sitting next to Max who immediately snaked his arm around your waist as you curled into his side, placing a kiss on your temple.
"FUCKING FINALLY" Lando exclaimed causing the others to snap their heads across to where you were sat.
"Hallelujah!" the others all chimed in causing you and Max to smirk.
"Enough, put the damn film on" you laughed waving them all off. You and Max looked at one another, sharing a moment of peace before the world was let into your new world.
















