My Book of Fics

Grown Up - Daniel Ricciardo

Growing up with a brother that made friends constantly meant that you would be around them if you liked it or not. Through all of the new friends the one that never changed was Daniel. At some point you kind of just ignored him since he was basically always around. The two best friends never failed to tease you whenever you were around, and you quickly grew tired of it so you went and made some friends of your own, giving you the opportunity to be away from the house whenever Daniel made an appearance.

Eventually the teasing stopped, with your brother and Daniel about to graduate high school and you about to apply to university for the first time. Unknown to you was that things were about to change in the whole dynamic you've known since your brother met Daniel all of those years ago. You clued in after attending your brother's graduation ceremony, the dinner that included yours and the Ricciardo family was when you were informed of the big change. As Daniel explained his plans to move to Europe for racing, you couldn't help but feel the wind getting knocked out of you. The news made you look at your brother who doesn't seem surprised at all, you move your gaze to Daniel's, only seeing excitement in his dark eyes as he talks about his passion. Something tugs at your heart as you watch the guy you grew up with making serious adult decisions at only 18. He locks gazes with you, sending a smile your way, you blush slightly dropping your eyes to your lap, cursing quietly hating that you feel something for him even though the past few years were so devoid of conversation between you two. The rest of that celebratory dinner consisted of you trying your hardest to avoid Daniel's intense stare, while you try to keep your emotions in check for your family's sake, knowing that they would question if you broke down and made a run for it because of some stupid crush on the boy that teased you all your life.

••••

You didn't think that your degree and chosen career would lead you to a race track in the hills of Austria. Yet that's where you are, checking in on some marketing projects that you're managing, hoping that it will lead to a promotion. The dress pants you're wearing while getting led around the track seem to hold in the most heat possible making the journey highly uncomfortable. You're hoping that no one can notice the way the material clings to you and the way that you keep trying to be discreet in pulling the blouse away from your chest to give yourself some relief. All that you're thankful for are the comfortable shoes you decided to pair with the outfit, the sneakers making the walk slightly more bearable. "Okay this is the last section" the man from Formula 1's marketing team says bringing you back to the present. You take a look at the colour scheme and logos decorating the section the of them track and smile, "perfect, I'll let everyone know how successful these are" you say. The man proceeds to walk you back to where you came into the venue.

"Y/F/N Y/L/N!" you spin around at the shout, freezing on the spot at the sight of Daniel, who you never thought you would see again, approaching. "Is that really you?" he asks with a grin on his face. You shrug and notice how much the Aussie you grew up with has filled out, "maybe it is, maybe it isn't" you reply cheekily, he laughs and proceeds to pull you into a hug. The embrace catches you off guard, but you quickly return the gesture with a smile. "By the way, your ass looks amazing in those pants" he whispers into your ear, you gasp and pull away from him while blushing a dark red, he doesn't let you reply before he winks and jogs back to the garages. You feel flustered at Daniel's comment but shake your head and turn to the man that was showing you around the track. "Sorry about that" you explain with a smile and clear your throat, "not surprised, Dan seems to know everyone" you chuckle and shrug. "You know you can stick around if you want, qualifying begins soon" he mentions with a smile, you bite your lip and look down at your watch to see the time, "I guess I can stick around for a bit" you mumble, "great i'll take you to our viewing area" you smile at the man and follow him in the opposite direction taking in the venue a little more closely.