🏎 Themes : Romance, slow burn, sports, iceskating, racing
🏎 Song : Nice To Meet You by Myles Smith
🏎 Collection / Series : Hearts on the Fast Lane (tome 1)
🏎 Story : On the Love Track
🏎 AN : English is not my first language, so if they are mistakes or even some parts you don't understand, just tell me I will correct them.
Likes and comments are appreciated <3
📆 20th july 2024
📍Budapest, Hungary
The day got off to a bad start for the two Canadians. They were late for the start of the third and final free practice session. After returning the night before, they had bumped into Lucas, who invited them to join him for the hotel's evening event. The evening had ended a little late, but then continued as the small group went out to explore the streets of Budapest by night. The whole group had returned early in the morning, but Luciana and Priscilla weren't really worried because the trials weren't until early afternoon, so they could sleep a little longer. However, they hadn't heard their alarm clock ring.
So there they were, rushing around their room, hurriedly getting dressed and doing their hair. The trials had already been underway for about twenty minutes when Priscilla unplugged her phone from its charger and noticed the unread messages and missed calls from Lily and Oscar. This made them hurry even more, while the older one sent apologetic messages to Lily, telling her that they would be there as soon as possible.
They took a taxi and, upon arriving at their destination, were lucky enough to be able to go inside. They headed towards the McLaren garages, where Lily met up with them. Priscilla and Luciana apologised again before going their separate ways. The woman timidly entered Lando's garage and slipped into the area reserved for paddock access.
Glancing around the garage, she noticed that the orange single-seater was there. Her eyes then began to search for the driver, who was talking to one of the engineers. She found herself watching him for a few minutes before he disappeared into the cockpit of his vehicle.
At the end of free practice, the young woman came out after seeing the results, which looked promising for the team. She would have liked to congratulate them, but the skater would do that later; they had to stay focused because qualifying was in a few hours.
When she joined Luciana and Lily, the latter quickly summarised how the practice sessions had gone, and then they went to the McLaren motorhome to wait for qualifying to begin. The girls explained their delay to the photographer, who didn't hesitate to tease them a little about their tired eyes.
When she arrived at garage number 4, he was sitting apart from the crowd in an orange polo shirt, on his phone with earphones in his ears. She hesitated to join him, remaining motionless at first, but the curly-haired man seemed to sense her gaze on him as he looked up from his screen and fixed his eyes on her. The skater waved to him in greeting, and while she expected him to simply wave back, the driver stood up and approached her.
He smiled at her, removing his earphones.
‘ Hi ' he said. ‘ Thought you weren't coming. ’
‘ Hi. Um… Lucy and I went to bed a little late, so we didn't hear our alarm… ’
The young woman played with the ring on her index finger, embarrassed. The Briton smiled mockingly but made no comment. They didn't speak for a few seconds, Lando simply observing the young woman while she avoided his gaze.
‘ I saw that you and Oscar had the best times. Well done. ’
‘ Thanks, but it's not over yet. The qualifiers will decide our fate for the race. ’
‘ I see. ’ said the young woman.
But without her really understanding why, Lando began to chuckle.
‘ I'm not sure you really understand. Racing isn't really your thing, is it ? ’
' Let's just say there's too much information for me. In skating, you just need to know which move will earn you the most points, and then you calculate. I'm not a brainiac like you or Oscar. I already have trouble understanding how my own car works, let alone a Formula 1 car… '
This made the Brit laugh.
‘ Still, I don't think it's that difficult to understand. I would have thought Oscar would have taught you a lot already. ’
‘ Let's just say that when we see each other, it's rare, and we try not to talk too much about sport. ’
Lando nodded in understanding. As they talked, the brown-haired man with light eyes noticed that the young woman seemed uncomfortable. She kept running her hands over her arms. The smaller woman was wearing only a tank top that revealed several small tattoos scattered across her arms, unlike the day before when she had kept her shirt on despite the heat.
‘ Do you need anything ? ’ he asked, to make sure the young woman was telling the truth.
The latter understood, and the driver had noticed her discomfort, so she quickly explained that she wasn't used to having her arms bare, that she had forgotten to bring something to cover up with when she left the hotel earlier. She then insisted that it was nothing, when the curly-haired man didn't respond. Lando glanced at the time on his phone before inviting the young woman to follow him. They left the garage and headed for the driver's room. It was a small room, with a few items scattered here and there. He rummaged through a bag before returning to the young woman.
‘ It's okay, really. You don't have to. ’ she said when the dark-haired man handed her an orange and black polo shirt with the McLaren logo embroidered on it.
‘ You'll be more comfortable in this. ’
The young woman was about to open her mouth again, but Lando beat her to it, adding that he didn't mind and that he had lots of other similar polo shirts. Priscilla finally accepted, thanking him and promising to return it later. The curly-haired man simply nodded, even though he had told her she could keep it.
They then returned to the garage but couldn't talk any longer as the driver had to do his qualifying. The skater wished him good luck before the young man went to put on his helmet and gloves. She watched the driver get ready before taking one of the folding chairs and focusing on the screen in front of her.
Qualifying ended quickly, and the results were in : the two McLaren drivers would be on the front row of the starting grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Once again, she left the garage without the driver, whose day was not yet over. She was quite happy to see the team in their flamboyant colours at the top of the grid. The atmosphere in the garage promised a good race, she hoped. Priscilla found Lily and Luciana, who were as happy as she was, perhaps even more excited than Priscilla.
‘ What's that T-shirt ? ’ asked Luciana.
The Canadian searched for words, not that she didn't want to say that the garment belonged to Lando, the fact that it was too big was already a possible clue that it didn't belong to her. But she knew Luciana all too well, and she was going to start imagining things.
‘ Someone gave it to me because of my tattoos ! ’
‘ Your tattoos ? ’ replied Lucy, raising an eyebrow, unconvinced.
‘ Yes. Anyway, I'm really thirsty. Shall we go for a drink ? ’
Fortunately for Priscilla, Luciana didn't pry any further, deciding instead to buy her friends some drinks. They headed outside the paddocks, where there were stands selling food and drink to those attending the day's events. Priscilla settled for a peach iced tea, while Luciana opted for lemonade and Lily chose sparkling water. Once they had been served, they found a shady spot to sit down.
As they had done the day before, the girls met up with their two teammates after their strategy meeting, but then decided to return to their hotel, as the two drivers needed to rest and focus on the race.
Lily had come and they had decided to make the most of their last evening in the Hungarian capital by going out for dinner. The week had flown by and Priscilla and Luciana were pretty happy with their holiday. They had been able to do whatever they wanted, meet some amazing people and make lots of memories. The week couldn't have gone better; they hadn't encountered any problems that could have potentially ruined everything. They had wanted a real holiday, far from their sometimes boring daily lives, and they had got what they wanted. The three young women had taken a few photos together to make sure they had some moments together immortalised on their phones. Luciana had also thanked Priscilla for this special gift.
Even though they still had a full day ahead of them, they were already feeling nostalgic about the trip. After dinner, Lily returned to her hotel, and Priscilla and Luciana did the same, deciding it was best to go to bed early.
It was when she was getting undressed to take a shower that Priscilla remembered the top she was wearing. She had promised the pilot she would return his T-shirt, but she couldn't bring herself to give it back to him dirty. It was far too late to go looking for a laundrette in Budapest, and tomorrow wasn't an option either. She decided not to worry about the garment, folded it up and placed it on top of her pile of clothes before slipping into the shower. She took advantage of the fact that Luciana had already showered to stay in a little longer and relax her muscles, which were sore from all the walking she had done during the week. When she came out ten minutes later, Luciana was already asleep. Priscilla slipped under the covers before picking up her phone to scroll through it for a while. She saw that some of her friends had commented on her Instagram story. She had posted a few pictures of the city and photos of herself and Luciana, or with Lily.
The fake redhead replied to each of these little messages before putting her phone down, making sure it was plugged in, then finding a comfortable position and drifting off to sleep, which she found easily for once.
The day of the race had finally arrived. Everyone was on edge, both the teams and the fans. Each driver reviewed their strategy one last time as they settled into their cars. The stands were packed, the hubbub of the crowd mingling with the roar of the engines. The cars cautiously left the garages and headed for the track, where they did their formation lap to take their places on the starting grid.
Once the twenty cars were ready and in position, they had to wait another minute or two before the people on the track moved aside. The lights came on, one after the other. They went out. The single-seaters sped off, looking for the best position before starting to take the first corners. The world became strangely silent, the commentators' voices the only thing breaking the silence and the only thing Priscilla could hear apart from the deafening noise of the four wheels. She hadn't noticed that she had stopped breathing as soon as the first lap began, and it was only after several seconds that she remembered the importance of breathing.
Even though she had trouble following what the presenters were saying, her eyes rarely left the screen. The only time she looked away from the television was to watch the men preparing to welcome the McLaren driver into the pit. She had caught a brief glimpse of him. His white helmet stood out against the papaya-coloured car.
The race had flown by, Lando and Oscar had battled from start to finish, and the young woman only had time to glimpse the final standings before cries of joy echoed through the garage. The McLaren drivers had just achieved a one-two finish, both of them on the podium. But that wasn't all: Oscar had just secured his first victory in the premier class, only two years after his debut.
Without thinking twice, she got up to join Lily and Luciana, who were as energetic as the McLaren team members. The two garages emptied to welcome the drivers. The three girls stayed back to avoid being jostled, but they shouted and applauded the two drivers, who were beaming. The girls had to wait a while before they could go and congratulate Oscar and Lando themselves. Priscilla had taken out her phone to film the podium, but also the loving reunion between Lily and number 81.
With her screen in front of her face to make sure she was framing the shot correctly, her gaze fell on the person in the background, and she slid her thumb and index finger across the screen to zoom in a little closer on that person.
‘ You know you're not being very discreet, do you ? ’ said a voice close to her ear.
She jumped a little and quickly lowered her phone, glaring at her best friend who had appeared beside her with a proud smile on her lips.
‘ I don't know what you're talking about. ’
The young woman with braids started to walk away but quickly turned back, much to Priscilla's dismay. Before she could speak, Priscilla put her hand over her mouth to silence her.
‘ Dare to say something stupid like that again and I'm going home without you. ’
She saw her roll her eyes, and the smaller of the two had to wait a few more seconds with her hand over her friend's lips before releasing her to make sure she wouldn't say anything else exasperating, at least for the next hour. They both knew that Luciana couldn't help teasing Priscilla, whose reactions were too amusing to ignore.
‘ By the way, girls, ’ Oscar began, getting the two women's attention. ‘ With our victory and double podium finish, we're organising a little party in the hotel restaurant. Would you like to join us ? Since it's your last night here, you might as well enjoy it, right ? ’
Priscilla accepted after a moment's thought. Her social battery was really starting to run low, so she didn't want to overexert herself during the evening, but as Oscar said, it was their last night in Hungary. The last time Priscilla would see her half-brother for a while, the last time she would be able to have so much fun before getting back to serious training and competitions, the last time she would go out with Luciana for a while, as the brunette was also going back to school in a month. And even though she knew it was nothing, it might also be the last time she would see Lando.
‘ Can we bring a couple more people ? ’ asked Luciana.
Priscilla looked at her, puzzled.
‘ You want to invite Maëlle and the boys ? ’
‘ Yeah, we'll probably never see them again and they were really nice. ' she said, shrugging her shoulders.
Priscilla then looked at Oscar, waiting to hear if the French trio could join them.
‘ I have to ask if it's okay with the team, I can't promise anything. ’
The two girls nodded, understanding completely since Maëlle, Alexis and Lucas were complete strangers to the McLaren staff. Luciana had refrained from saying that they were Formula 1 fans, which might work in their favour. After all, she hadn't lied about their identity, just omitted that little detail.
It was around 8 p.m. when the two young Canadians and their new friends met in front of the grand hotel. According to what Oscar had told her in a message, there would probably be other pilots and some very important people there. They had all put on their best clothes. When they arrived at the restaurant, they gave their names before being allowed to enter the room, which was already quite full.
‘ Oscar told me they were coming, so it's best to wait for them here. ’
They moved away from the entrance to make way for other arrivals and resumed their conversation while waiting for the small group that was the star attraction of the evening.
‘ It's incredible. If someone had told me one day that I'd be at a private party for a Formula 1 Grand Prix, I would never have believed them. ’ explained Lucas, trying to contain his excitement at the situation. ‘ Thanks again, girls. ’
‘ It's Luciana you should thank, she's the one who came up with the idea. I still wonder how Oscar could trust you, with all the misery you put him through every time he comes to Montreal. ’ Priscilla laughed.
‘ He doesn't want to admit it, but he loves me. ’ Lucy joked.
‘ Tell him that to his face and see what happens. ’
The group burst out laughing before Alexis asked the famous question :
‘ How did you meet Oscar and Lando ? Especially since you live in two different countries. ’
‘ Well… it's a long story. ' replied Priscilla. ' I've known Oscar for a few years. As for Lando, we met him during free practice this week.
‘ You must get lots of invitations to the paddock. ’
‘ Not really. Well, let's just say I'm not really into motor racing, so naturally Oscar doesn't invite me, but if I asked him, I don't think he'd refuse. I'd rather he let his friends and family who are interested in racing and want to come along enjoy it. ’
' That's a surprising choice, but understandable. '
' Oscar has invited me several times, but since I usually decline, he eventually stopped asking and waited for me to suggest coming to see him. '
' I see. In any case, it must be cool for him to win with someone who doesn't usually come to see him there. '
' Definitely. If we could have seen the future and known he was going to win, I would have told his whole family to come. ' She laughed. ' I'm really happy for him. Like the other drivers, he didn't come this far for nothing, and he deserves that first place. '
As she engaged in a rather deep conversation with Alexis, Maëlle listened to them without sharing her thoughts. Lucas had disappeared near the bar to get his sweetheart a drink. While Priscilla was looking at her phone to see who was texting her, Luciana started tapping her on the shoulder repeatedly. She looked up, wondering what warranted such a gesture. Priscilla had to stand on tiptoe to see her friend and understand the reason for this sudden agitation. A blond pilot with blue eyes was approaching. Priscilla couldn't help but tease her younger friend.
‘ Go see him. ’ she said, nudging her.
‘ Are you crazy ?! I'll make a fool of myself ! Besides, his girlfriend is there. I'm not going to disturb them. ’
‘ Ah ! When it's me, it's clever. But when it's you, suddenly I look like a madwoman. ’
‘ It's not the same. For you, it's the love of your life. For me, it's just an ideal. ’
Thinking back, Priscilla didn't expect to see any other drivers, let alone the Frenchman. From what little she knew about his relationships with the drivers, Pierre Gasly wasn't the one he was closest to. But maybe they saw each other more outside of races than during them, who knows ?
' Pinch me, I'm dreaming. ' Luciana said again.
‘ Who is it this time ? ’
The petite woman followed the Canadian woman's gaze again, but this time she saw the two McLaren drivers and the photographer arriving, dressed to impress. Well, ‘put a lot of effort’ was probably an exaggeration. But they did look classy. The two men were wearing plain shirts, white for the Australian and black for the Brit. His dark outfit brought out the curly-haired man's golden complexion even more. Lily was wearing an evening dress that suited her perfectly, like everything else she wore, to be honest.
‘ You're so lucky, Pri, I'm telling you. ’ said Luciana.
She got no response from her friend, which drew her attention to her. Her gaze fixed on the arrivals made her smile. Luciana knew that tonight she would have to put on her matchmaker's uniform.
‘ Careful, you're drooling. ’ she whispered to her older friend.
The woman with braided hair shrugged her shoulders and waved her arm to get the trio's attention as they passed the two security guards. They approached them, greeting the two best friends, who introduced the French couple – Lucas had returned in the meantime. Lily quickly found herself bonding with Maëlle, who wasn't afraid to compliment her and ask her what brand her dress was. Oscar kept a protective eye on his girlfriend while following the conversation that had started between Luciana and Lando. Lucas and Alexis had joined the second group, as the conversation seemed more to their liking. Priscilla juggled between the two sides, sometimes listening to Lily and Maëlle talk about photography, sometimes listening to the boys engage in more scientific discussions. She caught Oscar's eye for a moment as he stood opposite her, and they smiled at each other, understanding each other without even speaking. They had such similar personalities that they often found themselves in the same situations. A glance was enough for them to guess what was going on with the other.
They decided to slip away together, Priscilla going to get something to drink, thinking of getting something for her friend.
‘ Would you like something to drink ? ’ she asked the brown-haired boy. ‘It's on me. ’
‘ Hmm… if it's on you, then I won't say no. ’
‘ Hey, between you and me, I'm not the richest, so no difference,. ’ she joked.
‘ I'll just have a soda. ’ he laughed.
‘ No alcohol, even on the night of your victory. ’
‘ I'm saving the alcohol for when I'm champion. ’
‘ And when will that be ? ’
‘ Probably not this year, anyway. Maybe next year. ’
‘ Then I'll invite you on that day. ’
They smiled at each other.
‘Does Lily want anything ? ’
Oscar turned his head towards his half-sister, watching her silently. Priscilla looked up from the drinks menu and fixed her brown eyes on the Australian.
‘ Did it go well with him ? ’
‘ Oh, yeah, he's nice. But we didn't really talk, you know. ’
‘ I told you, Lando's nice. A bit loud sometimes, but nice. ’
They remained silent, before Priscilla repeated her question. The iceskater finally ordered a soda for Oscar, a Tequila Sunrise for Luciana, a beer for Lando and an iced tea for herself. She paid the bill and they stayed at the bar, waiting for their drinks.
‘ Congratulations again on your victory. I don't know much about Formula 1, but I'm proud of you. ’
‘ Thanks, Pri. I still can't believe I made my first podium, but I feel like it's a good sign. The rest of the season is going to be incredible. And maybe I can aim for more podiums this year or next year. ’
' You've only been in Formula 1 for two years, and you already have one victory and several podium finishes to your name. You'll have plenty of other opportunities to win Grand Prix races. I know you're under constant pressure, but that doesn't mean you have to rush things. Keep being patient, and things will eventually come to you. '
' Thanks. I feel like I'm listening to my father. ' laughed Oscar.
‘ That's true, it means I'm starting to become wise, and that's not a good sign. ’
They laughed together, and in the end, they stayed for a while longer, chatting even after they had received their drinks. It was when Lily, Luciana and Lando approached that they realised they had forgotten their friends. According to the blonde, Maëlle, Lucas and Alexis had decided to join the dance floor. Priscilla gave her drink to her friend and handed the beer to the curly-haired man, telling him she didn't really know what to get him. The curly-haired man thanked her, saying it was perfect. The redhead asked Lily if she wanted something to drink and offered her her drink too.
The evening passed and the two drivers had disappeared, after being caught on the fly by Alex Albon who was passing by. The three young women had enjoyed the dance floor for a while and then Luciana had disappeared. Lily and Priscilla kept each other company as they often did. When they started to feel suffocated by the crowd, they went back to sit on stools.
They discussed everything and anything, their families, their personal and professional lives. They talked about the next hair colour the girl planned to adopt, as she was known for changing her hair colour and style quite often, sometimes light, sometimes dark, sometimes short, sometimes long. Brown being her natural colour, she wanted to try to resist her impulses and stop dyeing her hair in such extravagant colours for the time being, as this could damage her hair even more than it already was, which was partly why she had cut it all off. What's more, she had to try not to dye her hair too much as the skating season was approaching. The rules had never explicitly stated that it was forbidden to compete with coloured hair, but it was a precaution she had to take. She wanted anything but to have her team disqualified because of an inappropriate hair colour or style.
Lily asked her what time it was, and the champion took out her phone to answer the little blonde girl. It was almost two in the morning, but the party was far from over. In fact, for most of the guests, it was just beginning. As the first notes of a song that Priscilla knew all too well began to ring out in the room, her friend got up to slip away to the loo. Priscilla stayed at the bar to keep a close eye on her drink and her friend's. She had moved her friend's drink closer to hers to make sure she could always see it.
Someone took the young engineer's place a few minutes after she had left. Priscilla was about to warn the person who had just sat down that the seat was already taken, but she stopped short when she caught someone's eye, which had a powerful effect on her for no apparent reason.
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