Not My Sister - Charles Leclerc

Chapter 22

They arrived just in time at the designated hotel ballroom. There were press and many paparazzi at the hotel lobby. Many of the drivers brought their girlfriends and family. The first people Charles and Clarisse greeted at the ballroom were Kimi and his wife Minttu. She looked stunning for a mommy of two and looked as young as ever. They decided to enter and sit on the table together.

There were some whispers around them as Clarisse was a new face to appear there. She was a little uncomfortable but Charles held her hand all the time and smiled reassuringly to her now and then, showing how proud and happy he was to have her by his side. From afar, she could see Mia and Britta waving at her. She waved back but noticed that perhaps they couldn't share the table with her because they're currently seated with the other staff members.

Minttu was very nice to talk with her all the time, and then here comes Sebastian Vettel and his wife Hanna joining their table. "Dear, the McLaren boys are watching you." Minttu giggled while whispering to Clarisse.

"What, where?" She looked around and searched for them. Since everyone is dressed formally, it's a little hard for her to find the usually-papaya-colored-dressed team in the crowd. But her eyes finally met with Lando's, who's currently looking at her, leaning on the side of his chair, tilting his body a bit from the table. His finger was on his lips, drowning deep in his own thoughts, he didn't even realize Clarisse caught his eye. Just what exactly was going on in the young Brit's head? We never know. Carlos was right beside him waving at her with a big smile.

Clarisse grinned and waved back at them from afar. She didn't know if she's overthinking, but she still felt guilty for Lando. Today's race wasn't the best for him as well because obviously, he did not finish and that wasn't even his fault. Carlos didn't get to score a point but by the looks of it, he managed to have fun by the end of the day. However, Lando didn't.

Lando was startled a bit when Carlos slapped his shoulder. "Take your eyes off her," Carlos whispered. Lando immediately blinked and turned away, now facing the table. He tried to hide away the blush in his face. "Mate, this is killing me." The frustration was clear in his voice.

"It's natural. Don't worry about it. Let's just enjoy the dinner." Carlos said in a calming brotherly tone. There was a performance by a small chamber orchestra, playing some classical and non classical pieces. It was very lovely. Some people that had finished their dinner decided to mingle with others, Clarisse watched them leaving the table one by one.

The men including Kimi, Charles and Sebastian left the table to talk with some FIA officials and their team's representative. That left Charles sitting with Hannah and Minttu at the table. "Hey girls!" Mia joined them afterwards. It appeared that she already knew Minttu and Hanna. Mia was wearing a wine red cocktail dress and a deep red lipstick which suited her look completely.

"I'm just gonna leave Charles by himself," she said while looking at Charles in the distance. Clarisse's eyes also wandered towards the direction. Charles and Sebastian were talking to Jean Todt, one of the most important people in the FIA. "Let's just leave the guys to their business," Minttu chuckled.

Charles on the other hand was introduced to two of the official's acquaintances, Clara and Jean. Both are gorgeous with long crazy nails and layers of makeup, but he thought that's appropriate remembering it is a formal occasion afterall. Okay, he admitted, the two were stunning looking girls. Not a surprise for the two who were actually pretty famous on Instagram with a huge number of followers there. He remembered Clara joked about how the media now portrayed her as an "influencer".

Charles and Sebastian could only chuckle in response since they were never really interested in social media. The guys only thought of it as something optional, even Seb didn't have a social media account until today.

After the orchestra finished their last piece, the multimedia team took over and played some slow songs on the speakers. The ambience was really soothing and calming with dimmed lights. Minttu insisted on stepping on the dance floor for a slow dance and Kimi obliged, along with other couples as well. The ice cold Finn always had a soft spot for his wife.

Lando and Carlos were sitting at the bar. The older Spaniard was genuinely concerned with the younger teammate as he had never seen him drink before, but here he was sitting on the stool solemnly with him, sipping on his cognac. Lando's suit was off, it only left him with his shirt and his tie was still nicely tucked inside his dark colored vest. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows.

The young Brit looked sober. Carlos was sure he wasn't drunk at all. He was just... sad?

After the formal event had ended and all the guests were welcome to mingle with one another, the committee decided that there's going to be no more access for the reporters in the ballroom. It wasn't an easy job to make sure that all the press were cleared of the area, for sure. They were even afraid if one or two had the balls to sneak in...

Clarisse checked the clock on her phone. It's been 45 minutes since Charles left her with the honored guests of the FIA, those two fellow influencers. She felt a tight knot in her stomach. It can't be... she's just overthinking and overly paranoid, right? To ease down her nerves, she did the smartest thing ever, which was drinking some more alcohol. Genius.

Minttu and Hanna were with their husbands, mingling with other people here and there. It made Clarisse feel even more out of place. Not that they didn't invite her to join along though. They did, but she politely refused. She wasn't just feeling it at the moment and put on a "I wanna enjoy the music calmly," as a poor excuse.

Feeling bored and obviously unable to leave the place by herself any time soon, Clarisse decided to wander around the place. Carrying her glass of Gin and Tonic confidently. She noticed that far back in the corner of the hall, there was a fancy looking entrance towards a little hallway with smaller individual rooms in it. Maybe it's the private lounge or something.

Curiosity got her and she stepped closer to take a peek. A polite gentleman who guarded the entrance politely stopped her and asked her purpose of entering. "Oh, no," she stumbled a little on her words. "I'm just looking around." The gentleman nodded with a smile and explained to her that the lounges were only available for drivers.

While listening to him, she took another peek at the slightly opened door on the first left. Were her eyes failing her, because she thought she saw Charles and Pierre inside the room... with two gorgeous looking women. Making out.

Holy shit.

She squinted her eyes a bit more while trying not to look suspicious as possible, making sure that what she saw was right and it wasn't because of the alcohol. And then a voice with a thick Australian accent appeared behind her.

"Charles and Pierre are a bunch of cheeky bastards, aren't they?"

Daniel Ricciardo smiled down at her as she turned around, now facing him. The scent of alcohol was also thick in his breath. Perhaps as strong as hers, but she didn't care at this point.

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A/N:

Yo the Azerbaijan GP yesterday was pretty nerve wracking. I feel so bad at Max and Hamilton :") it was just not their day. Have you guys watched it? Also, I hope you enjoy this one~ cheers!