F1 Imagines

(P) Max Verstappen (12)

angry
/ˈaŋɡri/
adjective
feeling or showing strong annoyance, displeasure, or hostility; full of anger

"You know what, fuck you."

I look over my shoulder at my teammate, Max Verstappen, and smile slightly to myself. Max happens to turn around, catching me staring at him. He sends me a cheeky smile, ultimately causing me to blush. I shake my head as I slip my racing gear on: my earphones, balaclava, my gloves, and finally my iconic dragon inspired helmet. I feel a tap on my shoulder as I look at my racing engineer, who has a small smile on his lips. "Y/N, you're gonna do amazing today." He says as I smile up at him. "Thank you, I'll definitely try my best." I say as my eyes drift from him to Max once again, admiring the Dutchman from afar.

Myself and Max are just friends, much to my disappointment. We are racing partners and that's as far as I think we will ever go. Driving for F1 is a lot more technical and draining than most think. If I'm not training, I'm looking over data or I'm at the RedBull HQ, working on the sim to push me further up the grid. I didn't have time for a boyfriend, and Max didn't have time for a girlfriend. That was proven after he broke it off with his long time girlfriend and his most recent, Kelly.

I walk to my car, ready to get in, until I'm stopped by Max. "I just wanted to say good luck." He says as I smile up at him. I can't read his facial expressing because of his helmet, but I know he's got a big smile under there. "Thanks Max. Good luck as well, go and beat Lewis." I say as he laughs. "I'll try my best." He says as he pulls me into a tight hug. I sigh into the hug, loving his tight hugs.

Max pulls away and walks to his car, getting in at the same time as me. We do our radio check whilst we get strapped in. James, my engineer, goes through everything with me, ensuring I knew what my plan A is. I look outside to see a lovely sunny sky, but I feel my heartbeat quicken as I think of the track temperature. I'm requested to pull out of the garage as we go to line up on the grid. Whilst I'm doing so, I chat to James.

"James, what's the track temperature like?" I question as I feel myself becoming very warm and hot under the blistering sun. "Pretty hot. 45°C." He says as I bite my lip, "So what's the strategy to keep our tires cool enough?" I ask as I shift in my seat, trying to cool myself down. "Not too sure yet. There's a possibility that it won't bother us." He says as I nod, not saying anything further. James takes my silence for an answer as I wait for the race to begin.

We go around in our formation lap as I look around, getting the feel for the racing conditions in France. I make my way to third place on the grid, having a fantastic qualifying yesterday, missing second by just a few hundredths. I look over to see Max just in front of me. I sigh, knowing that I have to stay behind him in order to get a good slipstream. The lights go red before going out as I pull off, using Max to get past Lewis. As I'm going around the corner, Lewis smacks into me causing me to slide. I'm able to stay on the track, but ultimately losing my 2nd place position.

Lewis also seems to hit Max along the way but at least he doesn't budge. "What the fuck! That was so reckless!" I exclaim over the radio. "Copy. We will check with the FIA." James says as I huff, annoyed that I've lost my position all because Lewis was a greedy son of a bitch. The race continues with us pitting relatively earlier than expected. As I'm driving with my hard tires, I see Lewis spin off the track just in front of me. Karma is a bitch I tell you.

"Yellow flag. Decrease speed." James voice rings in my ear as I slow down. The safety car is pulled out as I am able to reach all the way to Max. He is wiggling around quite a bit, trying to keep his tires warm. I follow as I also move from side to side. "Y/N, your brakes are ridiculously hot. Try and brake gently." James says. "Copy." I say as I follow his command. After 4 laps, the safety car pulls in, meaning Max bunches up the pack.

Max pulls off as I follow closely behind. Max gives me the perfect slipstream down the long straight as me go to make a left turn. I brake late, causing me to drive right alongside Max. This was fantastic racing, always good to see two teammates fighting it out. But that all soon falls away. As I'm about to push out in front of Max because of my late breaking, my left rear tire pops, causing me to steer off to the right, straight into Max.

The collision is harsh, telling me that Max would definitely not be going back into the race. We both go sliding into the red and blue stripped zones as I cover my head with my hands. I hear Max trying to pull off, but he wasn't budging. I look over to see that my front wing has popped his tire too. Both RedBulls were now out the race. "Are you okay?" James asks as I sigh, "Yeah but I feel like shit." I say. "Don't be. It wasn't your fault." He says as I shake my head.

Not only did I ruin my race, but I ruined a chance for Max to get 25 points ahead of Lewis. I'm motioned to get out the car by the marshals as I look over at Max, who is already walking off the track. I follow as I reach the garage. Christian comes up to me and gives me a hug. I finally let the tears fall, "I'm so sorry boss.' I say but he just shushes me. "It's okay, hun. It's okay. I know you didn't mean too. It was fantastic racing. The tire failed you. I will chat to the team to see if we can fix these costly tire issues." He says as I nod my head.

"How's Max?" I ask as he sighs, "Not good. Go and chat to him. Maybe it will help." He says as I nod. I pull my helmet and all my gear off, leaving it in the garage before I make my way to Max's racing room. I knock on the door, hearing a soft "Go away." I sigh as I open the door, "What about 'go away' don't you understand?" Max asks in a harsh way as he looks at me. His normal kind expression has disappeared as he looks at me in almost disgust.

"I'm so sorry Max. I feel so shit. I didn't mean to turn and take you out. I was just racing and I-" "You ruined my race, Y/N. You know I'm so much faster than you yet you still try and race me. If you just backed off, we would've both still been on that god damn track!" He shouts as I flinch. "How can you say that? Max, I joined this team because I want to race. Not always let you win and me come second." I say as he scoffs, "Y/N, the only reason you're here is because your daddy bought your way in." He says as feel my heart drop.

I look down at my feet as I shake my head. "You know what, fuck you." I say as I turn around and storm out of his room. I make my way to my own room and get dressed as quickly as possible with tears streaming down my face. I sit down on my couch as Max's words keep playing in my head. My dad didn't buy me into racing, he just helped me with additional sponsors. I work so fucking hard yet I get compared to the likes of a Nikita Mazepin who uses his dads money for success. "Interview Y/N!" My PA shouts outside my door as I sigh. I get up, making my way to do my interviews.

-

I sit in my hotel room, reading what Max said in the interviews. He was definitely kinder in the interview than what he was face to face with me. A knock on the door catches my attention as I stand up. I walk to the door and open it to see Max standing with a bouquet of flowers. He looks down at me as he gives me a small smile. Before he can even say hello, I cut him off, "What do you want, Max?" I ask as he sighs.

"I came to say I'm sorry. I was way out of line. It's just... I'm really stressed at the moment and I was so angry because I was so close to creating a gap between me and Lewis, but I now see how it really wasn't your fault." He says as I smile at the young man. "It's okay, I understand." I say as he hands me the flowers. I accept them as he shuffles from foot to foot. "Can I take you out on a date?" He asks as I raise my eyebrows. "Seriously?" I question as his cheeks turn a deep shade of red.

"Yeah, I really wanna say sorry properly. But if you don't wanna go..." he trails off as I chuckle, "I'd love too, Super Max." I say, sending him a wink. "Oh god, please don't." He says as we both laugh. "Come inside. I have left overs that we can eat whilst watching a movie." I say as he smiles. "That sounds amazing." He says as he follows me inside.

*****

1700 words holy shit. Well, I hope y'all enjoyed. Sorry for being MIA. Exams have been killing me and I just haven't had time. I only have two more exams left so I will have more time to write for y'all. Also, I'm catching up on old requests because I feel so bad for not completing them sooner. Sorry about that y'all. Stay safe lovies xx