𝙖𝙡𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙚: 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙪𝙡𝙖 1

𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩

The morning traffic awoke Ana from her sleep. She felt around for her phone and checked the time immediately.

7:15 AM

She brushed back her hair and let her eyes adjust to the rays of sun that seeped through her hotel window. She stumbled out of her bed and made her way to the bathroom, turning on the shower and letting the water warm up. The water washed the sleep away and she felt her body awaken slowly. After leaving the shower and getting ready she began to feel human again.

The peacefulness calmed her, she soaked it in completely, knowing that soon her day would be filled with the hectic nature of a formula 1 race. The cameras and the fans and the driving and the speed. She liked to live life slower than what most expected from her, she took everything one step at a time, like leaving the hotel.

The leather interior of the car cooled her skin, she scrolled on her phone, attempting to grasp a general idea of what people were expecting today.

—

◉ Anthony @anthony776 • 1h
I'd be surprised if she makes it passed the finish line..

—

Cruel words didn't hurt, to Ana they were laughable. She turned her phone off, the blackness engulfing the Twitter hate comments. The noise of distant cars passing as she turned her car on and began to make her journey to the track.

She was taken aback by a sudden tension that began from the top of her head to her feet. She felt a sharp pain in her chest and then came the shortness of breath. She had unconsciously entered the car park and realised that she'd given herself a slight panic attack. She pulled into one of the empty spots, she hesitated before turning the car off, part of her hoped to make an emergency getaway and drive to a different country, anywhere that was far from the track.

She rested her face in her hands, trying to take in as much oxygen as her lungs would let her. The sun shone weakly in her car, causing her to relax slightly every time she felt a slight sensation of warmth from it. She picked up her phone, the static repetition of her call going through before a voice replied. Charles' voice sounded like honey through the phone, Ana's muscles relaxed, her lips opened but she felt like no words could come out.

"I can't leave my car Charles" her thick Russian accent became extremely prominent whenever she was emotional.

"It's ok, tell me where you parked" Charles, who was with Carlos in the Ferrari motor home, took his key card and made his way outside.

Behind the trees and in a staff car park sat her Honda Accord. She'd avoided any other entry where she knew fans would be expecting her. She felt her throat closing up and her ears began to burn. She was humiliated, she'd put on an extremely brave persona, and she felt that if she showed a slight hint of emotion that she'd be ridiculed by the public. She'd hid her feelings so that people couldn't use it against her and have another reason to hate her, apart from being a woman.

But walking to the car, in his Ferrari kit was Charles. Ana took her keys from the ignition and opened her door, leaving the car and taking her bags from the trunk. Charles wrapped his arms around her before she could say anything. He placed a hand on the back of her head and asked how she was feeling. She explained to him her rising anxiety and he empathised with her, telling her he felt the exact same before his first race.

The two made their way through the paddock, saying hello to different people as they made their way along. They walked passed the Williams area, George pulled Ana into a hug when he saw her.