lemon and mint | Charles Leclerc

~ sei ~

Baku, April 2019

"Let me just say that this place looks amazing," Pia said to Lando once they were seated in a luxury restaurant. The windows offered a magnificent view of Baku. She fell in love with that place ever since she set her foot there.

"I thought you might like it," he gave himself credit for something which actually wasn't his idea. This place was actually Max's idea. Lando came to him and asked him where he would take a girl on a date, and Max said the name of this restaurant.

The Dutchman was surprised when the young Briton came to him to ask about something like that. Max wasn't really the best guy in a courtship. He didn't know how to flirt or ask someone out or things like that.

"Oh, my God. Pia Vettel, I haven't seen you in years," Pia would recognise this Italian voice anywhere. She had spent with him a great amount of her childhood. Marco was the man who organised the majority of Italian karting races. He used to be friends with Pia's father, but those days were forgotten.

"Marco," Pia exclaimed. She was delighted to see him. "It's been a long time. How are you doing?" she was clearly engaged in the conversation. It looked like she almost forgot that she was there with Lando.

"I cannot complain," he smiled at her and then he noticed Lando's unpleased expression. Marco quickly realised he probably had interrupted their date. The long face that Briton had made Marco laugh. He would be annoyed just like him.

"I would love to hear how you are doing, but I don't want to disturb your pleasant dinner. I will catch you in the paddock tomorrow, alright?" The older Italian waited for a nod from Pia. "I'm once again sorry for disturbing you," Marco said while looking at Lando.

"Oh, it's more than alright," Pia said with a smile on her face, but when she turned back at Lando, her smile faded away. She knew she would have to explain it all.

"So, you're not just a fan, right?" he asked. Technically, Pia didn't lie to him. She was accompanying Seb. To be honest, she just wanted to say she was Sebastian's daughter and leave out all the family drama.

"Do you know Anthonie Teunissen?" Lando didn't get why she asked that question, but he just nodded. Of course, he knew who Anthonie Teunissen was. It was a guy they all wanted desperately to impress when they were younger. He was the way how to get yourself into Formula One. "He's my father." There it was. She just said it without any hesitation.

"I might be stupid, but didn't that man call you Pia Vettel?"

"Yeah, Seb has been living with my mum ever since I was a kid. I just wanted his last name since I felt like he was my dad more than Anthonie ever was." Pia said, hoping she wouldn't have to talk about it anymore. She didn't mind talking about her mum, Seb or her two little adorable brothers, but Anthonie was just out of the frame.

"Alright, well. So, have you talked with Daniel about the situation?" Pia was grateful that Lando switched topics even though that wasn't a pleasant topic either.

"Not yet. Dan just sent me a text saying wtf, and then we talked about how stupid the press is, but we didn't talk about any solution," Pia explained to the Briton. Perhaps the solution could be showing up with Lando in public, but she couldn't say that.

"It's not like he should be so sad about it. According to the journalists, he just gained the most beautiful woman that walk through the paddock." Lando flattered Pia. The Italian thought he would be horrible with those things, but to be honest, he was actually doing a pretty good job.

"Stop flattering me. I will start blushing," Pia pointed out when she felt like her cheeks were getting warmer.

"That's the whole point," he winked at her. Pia wanted to flirt back, but her eye caught two newcomers to the restaurant. Charles and Charlotte. They both looked so elegant, glamorous, and happy. It didn't take long, and Charles noticed the Italian as well. He was taken aback when he noticed the Briton sitting in front of her. This long stare made their partners look in the same direction as them. Charlotte hesitantly waved at the couple with a smile on her face. Lando and Pia smiled and waved back. What else there was to do.

"Do you know Charles for a long time?" he asked. He had wondered about it ever since he saw them in Bahrain. They looked close.

"Yeah, he's a childhood friend of mine," Pia confirmed his thought while she was watching how Charles and Charlotte were getting seated at the table not so far away from them.

Pia knew this would be a catastrophe ever since Charles stepped into the restaurant. He seemed to be bothered by the fact that she was there with another man.

Charles looked at Pia daringly while he placed his hand on Charlotte's thigh. The Monegasque just smiled at her partner. She didn't have a single clue what Charles was doing, but Pia was fully aware.

Do you really want to play this game, Leclerc? Well, okay, let's bring it on, Pia thought. She leaned closer to Lando while placing her hand underneath her chin to support it. Pia looked at Lando with dreamy eyes when he talked about his childhood in Brighton. After a while, she couldn't help it, and she looked at Charles once again, only to find out that his hand was still on her thigh, but this time he moved it more up before squeezing Monegasque's thigh.

Pia could feel Charles' burning gaze on her, so she leaned over the table and whispered something into Lando's ear. He seemed to like it, so he whispered her an answer. Pia used this to her own advantage, and when she was leaning back, she let out her euphonic giggles to make it look like Lando said to her something really funny or flattering.

Of course, Charles didn't want to lose this stupid little fight between them, so he just got closer to Charlotte and planted one sweet, innocent kiss on her cheek.

This gesture provoked yet another reaction from the young Italian girl. She reached for Lando's hand while leaving both of their hands on the table. She brushed the back of his hand lightly with her thumb. Lando did the same after a while.

Charles took his opportunity and whispered something into Charlotte's ear. Since the beautiful Monegasque got so red so quickly, Pia assumed he said to her something dirty.

Pia was surprised that their partners hadn't noticed their little fight in showing affection. The Italian had to smile for herself when she saw a bit of cream in the corner of Lando's lips. Pia didn't hesitate and leaned over with a napkin and got rid of that cream. She made sure she looked into Lando's eyes all the time. She would be surprised if Charles didn't feel the tension she created.

That seemed to be more than enough for the Monegasque, so when Pia turned around to see his reaction, he was already kissing Charlotte.

That scene upset Pia. So, without thinking about it she just pressed her lips against Lando's. His lips didn't feel like Charles' ones. They were soft and pump, but something was missing. Pia had to admit that Lando was a good kisser, a better one than she would expect. She couldn't help but wonder if he had ever thought of her as he kissed Charlotte. 

"I'm sorry if I'm rushing it too much," Pia apologised right after they pulled away from that kiss. She just realised how stupid that little fight between her and Charles was. It made them do things that they wouldn't normally do. Would she even kiss Lando without this unmeaningful fight? She probably wouldn't.

"I like a bit of rush," the Briton said before he pressed once again his lips against hers.