#off track

Off Track YT

Alessia Valez had always believed her relationship with Lando Norris was different. They didn’t argue. They didn’t fall into the usual traps of jealousy and misunderstandings. For months, they were untouchable, wrapped in a bubble of love and trust.

But that bubble had cracks now, cracks that began and ended with Matt.

Matt wasn’t a threat in her eyes. He was just a colleague, someone she worked with on endless university projects, a friend in her circle who shared group chats, study sessions, and coffee breaks. Alessia never gave him a second thought. But to Lando, Matt was everywhere, in her texts, in her schedule, in the laughter she shared that once belonged to him alone.

He tried to ignore it, at first. Tried to tell himself he was being ridiculous. But every time she canceled a dinner because of “project work,” every time he scrolled past another selfie of her with her friend group and saw Matt at her side, the jealousy grew louder.

It all came to a breaking point one rainy evening.

Alessia slipped into the apartment, hair damp, clutching her folder of notes, exhaustion written all over her face. Still, when she spotted Lando on the couch, she lit up with that tired but soft smile that made his chest ache.

“You’re home,” she whispered, dropping her bag. “I missed you.”

He didn’t smile back. “Did you?” His tone was sharp. “Or did Matt keep you too busy?”

Her smile faltered, confusion clouding her eyes. “Lando…”

“No, really,” he pressed, standing up now, words spilling with all the frustration he’d bottled up. “Do you even see me anymore? Or am I just the guy you come back to when Matt’s busy?”

“That’s not fair!” Alessia shot back, stung. “He’s my colleague. I don’t have a choice about the projects—”

“You always have a choice!” His voice rose, hurt dripping from every word. “But somehow, you always choose him. You laugh with him, you spend hours with him, you text him constantly. What am I supposed to think?”

“That he’s just my friend!” she cried, her voice breaking. “You’re the one I love, Lando. You. Not him.”

But he wasn’t listening. Jealousy had him in its grip, and the words that came next were ones he couldn’t stop.

“Maybe you should just be with him, then!” His voice cracked, venomous. “If he makes you so happy, maybe I’m just wasting my time.”

Alessia froze, her heart shattering. “You don’t mean that…”

“I don’t know what I mean anymore,” he snapped, though the regret already burned in his chest. “But it feels like I’m not enough for you. Like I’m second place in my own relationship.”

Her throat closed, tears blurring her vision. “I can’t believe you’d say that to me.”

“Maybe I’m just saying what’s been obvious for weeks,” he whispered bitterly, instantly hating himself for it.

That was it. The last blow. Alessia grabbed her bag with shaking hands, her tears spilling freely now.

“I can’t do this right now,” she choked out, voice breaking as she turned for the door.

“Alessia—wait—”

But the slam of the door was final.

---

The weeks without her were unbearable.

Lando tried to bury himself in training, in sim sessions, in distractions. But the emptiness clawed at him. Every night he scrolled through old photos of her, every voicemail she’d left him, the sound of her laughter that he feared he’d lost forever.

He left flowers at her door. He sent messages, long, broken apologies at 2 a.m. His voice cracked in every voicemail:

“I messed up, Lessie. I was jealous and I didn’t trust you. I said things I can’t take back. I hate myself for it. Please… I need you. I’m nothing without you.”

He was a ghost of himself, walking through life with no color, no light. Everyone around him noticed, his mechanics, his friends, even his fans. He was miserable, and only she could fix it.

When Alessia finally agreed to meet him, at the little café where they’d had their first date, he almost cried with relief.

She was already there when he arrived, sitting in their usual spot. Her eyes were guarded, her lips pressed in a firm line. She looked beautiful, but distant, like he’d lost a piece of her he might never get back.

“Alessia…” His voice cracked as he sat down. “I’m so sorry. For everything. For letting my jealousy get the better of me, for not trusting you, for saying things that… God, I didn’t mean them. Not one word.” His hands shook as he reached across the table. “I don’t care about Matt. I care about you. You’re the only one. Always.”

Her eyes glistened, but her voice was steady. “You hurt me, Lando. Do you know what it felt like to hear the person I love tell me to be with someone else?”

He swallowed hard, shame washing over him. “I know. And I’ll spend the rest of my life proving how wrong I was. Please, give me one more chance. I swear, I’ll never let my insecurities come between us again. I can’t lose you, Lessie. Not over something so stupid.”

The silence stretched until she finally let out a shaky breath and reached for his hand.

“One chance,” she whispered. “Don’t waste it.”

Lando let out a sob of relief, standing so fast his chair scraped the floor. He pulled her into his arms, holding her like his life depended on it.

“I won’t,” he promised into her hair. “Never again.”

And this time, she believed him.

---

✨ This one-shot is based on my Wattpad book Off Track ✨

📖 Please check it out here: [ Off Track ]

👤 Username on Wattpad: [ maliahellswood ]

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hinch talking about logan