"Hey, Lys." Charles's voice echoed down the corridor. "Wait up!" I was currently on my way to meet Max in his garage, however decided to take the route that avoided all cameras. I didn't realise Charles had followed me until he called out.
I let out a sigh, wanting nothing more than to just see Max. However, I put on a smile and turned to the man who had seen me literally two minutes ago in the medical centre. "What is it?" I asked with as much enthusiasm as I could muster (it wasn't a lot - a mixture of bad mood and pain from the crash).
"I just wanted to make sure you were okay." Charles said, coming to a stop about a foot front of me. He was close enough so that I could feel his light breathe against my face.
"I told you earlier - I'm fine." I went to walk away but his hand gently grabbed my arm.
"I know, but you just seem a little... off."
"Well, I did just crash and put myself out of qualifying, hindering my chances of performing well in the race tomorrow and therefore my chances at Force India so excuse me if I'm a little 'off'." I snapped, immediately regretting it. Charles looked surprised by my outburst and his hand dropped back to his side.
He then took a step back, scratching the back of his neck. "Oh."
"I'm sorry." I rubbed my face with a sigh. "It's been a long week and I didn't get much sleep last night."
"Max keep you up?" Charles asked with a raised eyebrow, a small smirk playing at his lips. It took me a few moments to get what he was suggesting, but as soon as the penny dropped I let out a small laugh and playfully hit his arm.
"No!" I couldn't help but chuckle before I returned to my solemn mood. "I just had a bad dream, that's all."
"What was it about?" Well, I crashed my car into a wall, I was a mother of two, and you suddenly replaced Max and we kissed.
"Well, I predicted I'd crash along the straight." I began with a loud sigh. "It's why I was going so slow in the final sector compared to the other drivers because it kept playing on my mind. The only difference was that it was actually a suspension failure rather than being hit."
"That's pretty scary." Charles concluded. "Did anything else happen?"
I shook my head. "Not that I remember, no." For a moment I considered telling him about the rest of it but didn't know how he'd react. The last thing I'd want to do is suggest to Charles that I like him because, although he is great, my heart is fully devoted to Max. I would never do anything to willingly hurt him after everything he has done for me. "Thanks for checking up on me. You're a good friend."
Charles smiled, however it looked forced and over-exaggerated. "Yep, that's me - a good friend."
"I expect you need to start preparing for qualifying, so I'll see you later, yeah?" I tried to sound as hopeful as I could in order not to hurt his feelings. I just really wanted to see Max.
"Yeah." Charles looked down at his feet and sighed. "See you later, chamallow."
I turned around on the spot and continued t walk down the corridor, not glancing back at Charles. My sole focus was finding Max before he has to get back into 'drive mode' again. My safest option of finding him was in his garage so decided to head there. If unsuccessful, I could always have a look in the hospitality centre in case he was with the friends he invited.
A screen was displayed on one of the walls and I managed to glimpse the results of FP3. It was quite a shock to see the time I had put in second overall, especially since I had been performing around sixth for the previous two sessions. The only time to have beaten mine was set by Max, and it was only by a small margin of 27 thousandths. At least I went out with a bang... literally.
I bumped into someone as I went to walk into the garage. "Sorry!" I quickly apologised, feeling a bolt of pain shooting through my body like electricity.
"Ah, Alyssa. It's no problem. I was just going to find your stepmum actually for her opinion on the front wing." Christian smiled. "What're you doing here?"
"I just wanted to congratulate Max for doing so well. I mean, it's not like I have a lot of work to be doing since 'A's out for the rest of the day." I replied.
"A suspension issue, am I right?"
"Yeah." I exhaled in disappointment. "It was altered overnight and seemed to be working well until it failed."
"Is your driver alright? It didn't look as nasty as Baku but it was certainly a high speed crash." Christian looked genuinely concerned about the incident. I guess the racer in him will never go away and no matter who crashes, you're always concerned for them.
I nodded my head. "I think so, maybe just a little shaken. I've just come from the medical centre."
"Ah." Christian said understandingly. "I guess it's one less driver to out-qualify."
"Well, attempt to out-qualify."
Christian smiled down at me and chuckled. "I admit, 'A' really does keep us on our toes. It's a shame he might not have a seat next season." I bit my lip and nodded in agreement. "If he wasn't associated with Mercedes, I definitely would've tried to put him in Red Bull next season. I suppose Max has told you about Daniel?"
"Yeah. It's quite a big shock." I said, folding my arms across my chest. "Max definitely isn't handling great."
"It's been a shock to all of us." Christian sighed. "Hopefully the few weeks off will give him a chance to get over it." Before I could agree, one of the Red Bull team members called Christian's name. He looked at me apologetically. "I'm going to have to run along however it was nice seeing you again."
"Yeah, you too."
"Oh, and here-" Christian pulled a lanyard out of his pocket with a pass on. He then draped it around my neck. "Just so they let you in. I always carry a spare."
"Thank you." I waved goodbye to the Red Bull principle before heading into the garage.
Everywhere was crowded with a mixture of different teammates fulfilling vital tasks. It took me a while to navigate my way through the crowds whilst at the same time not getting in anybody's way. I lost count of how many times I mumbled an apologetic 'sorry' or said 'excuse me' - I don't want to come across as rude.
I spotted Max at the back of his garage, leaning against the wall whilst talking to his engineer. I tried to stay out of view until he had finished the conversation however he had spotted me rather quickly (my pink Force India jacket stands out amongst the blue). Max waved a dismissive hand to Helmut before walking over to me, his strides long so that he could reach me quicker. Immediately, he pulled me into a tight hug, one that would've been suffocating had it been given by anybody else.
"Follow me." His voice was low in my ear. Max took my hand and lead me through one of the back doors. A few doors later and we found ourselves in his changing room. As soon as the door closed behind us, Max attacked my face with kisses. Once he was sure he had kissed every part, he held me out at arms length.
"What're you doing?" I asked, still slightly giddy from the kisses.
"Making sure you're not hurt."
"I'm just aching a little, love. Don't worry." I reassured. I brought my hand up to his cheek and caressed it. His eyes closed under my touch and he moved his head so that my hand was holding it. "I want to congratulate and thank you for that amazing time you did today. I'm so so proud of you."
