Rêveries

Chapter 13.

The second session ends at 4PM. Charles comes back to the garage and he gets out of the car. I take the headphones off and go to tell him he did good. He was 14th fastest, but he seemed disappointed about his result. Pierre ended with a tenth and Max with a third fastest lap. He's always been one to compare himself to others and to put all the pressure on him instead of also putting some of the responsibility on the car or the mechanics who built the car.

He didn't want to go talk to the media right away, so I followed him into his hospitality room. I laid down on the bed in there while he unzipped his race suit, letting it fall down from his hips while he keeps his undershirt on. It's sweaty and is hugging all of the muscles on his chest, arms and stomach. I force myself to look away as he grabs his water bottle and sits down by my legs, laying back over them to lean on the wall. He drinks and then sighs, closing his eyes. You can tell that he's frustrated with himself.

"Arrêt," Stop, I say, sitting up to lean on my elbows. He opens his eyes and looks over to me. "Tu as fait tout ce que tu pouvais aujourd'hui, c'est tout ce que tu peux faire," You did all you could today, that's all you can do.

"Eh bien, juste parce que j'ai fait tout ce que je pouvais, ça ne veut pas dire que c'est assez," Just because I did all I could doesn't mean it's enough.

"Mais vous en avez assez fait!" But you've done enough! I say, sitting up completely while he looks away from me, "Tu l'as fait ici pour une raison," You made it here for a reason.

Charles sits up, puts a hand on my head and ruffles my hair before standing up and going over to his wardrobe filled with different race shoes. He takes his shoes off and prepares to go take a shower, completely ignoring the conversation we were just having. He almost pisses me off, how he won't listen to what I'm saying and then he just treats me like I'm some kid who doesn't know what I'm talking about. I just stand up from the bed, heading for the door. I'll just go find Evie before Charles pisses me off even more.

"Je vais prendre une douche. Allons-nous dîner après?" I'm going to have a shower. Are we going to have dinner after? He asks and I stop in the door. He is folding his baklava and fixes something in his race suit, looking at me while waiting for my answer.

"Bien sûr," Sure, I nod and prepare to close the door behind me when I hear his voice again, making me stop.

"Arthur va dîner avec l'équipe de Prema," Arthur is going to dinner with the Prema team, he says and I look at him in silence again, not knowing what to say so I just nod to show I've heard the information, but he's looking at me as if he's waiting for me to say something else, so I frantically search my brain.

"Je vais demander à Pierre, Evie et Max s'ils veulent se joindre, peut-être Daniel?" I'll ask Pierre, Evie and Max if they want to join, maybe Daniel? I suggest, hoping that's what he waited to hear. He nods, grabs his towel and heads towards me, still standing in the door. My stomach twists as he gets closer, but I can't move. He puts a hand on my shoulder as he walks past and I feel his fingers slide down my arm as he pulls it away from my shoulder.

"Super, je te retrouverai quand j'aurai fini," Great, I'll find you when I'm done, he says as he walks away, not even looking back at me. I just look at his back while I hate myself for even following him into his hospitality. I should've left him to self-loath in his loneliness. It would've been better than this.

Now I need to force Evie to go with us and I don't care who else, even though the most efficient would be for Pierre to come with us.

Evie is easily persuaded and when I go to Pierre he is just as easily persuaded. Max said he didn't want to deal with me and Evie embarrassing them in front of a whole restaurant, but I doubt he's going to actually let Evie go by herself. He's not controlling, just a little worried, about everything, for no reason really.

I try to persuade some others to go. Daniel is busy, Lewis has plans, Seb is tired. They're all old men by now, what the hell? When Charles is out of the shower and dressed, he's stuck in some interviews for a little while. I don't want to seem desperate but I pretty much am. I don't want to third-wheel with Charles, or have people think we're on a double date. By the time he comes up to me, I still have no one other than Evie, Pierre and I, so I just have to live with it.

We get all our things and I wait for Max to change his mind and come with us, but for once he doesn't. The one time I really want him to come, he doesn't. The more people, the better. The less I'll have to talk to Charles and the less I have to worry about what the hell is going on that's making me this awkward.

Charles drives us and I thought I'd get into the backseat with Evie so that Pierre could sit in front with Charles, but he gets into the back before I even get into the car. One part of me is happy he's choosing to sit in the back with Evie, but another part of me is cursing him for making me get into the front. But I remember when I got into the car that I hadn't told Charles about my plan yet and he should probably know.

"Ho bisogno del tuo aiuto," I need your help, I tell him in Italian because neither Pierre or Evie knows it. Charles looks over at me with furrowed brows.

"Va bene, con cosa?" Okay, with what? he asks. He has one hand on the wheel and the other he runs through his hair a few times.

"Li metterò insieme," I'll get them together, I say, nodding towards Evie and Pierre. Charles turns to me with a surprised look.

"Perché?" Why?

"Non fare domande, accetta solo di aiutarmi," Don't ask why, just agree to help me, beg him, leaning across the middle to get towards him, "Per favore?" Please? I smile widely and bat my eyelashes a bit as he looks at me with suspicion.

"Al fratello di Evie non piacerà," Evie's brother won't like it, he states, shaking his head and I grunt while sitting back up. Now he's exposed our topic of conversation to the two in the back.

"Did I hear my name?" Evie asks, peeking her head in between the two front seats. I just use the back of my hand to push her back, shaking my head.

"Ok allora? sarebbero carini insieme," Okay, so? They'd be cute together, I argue with him and he clicks his tongue a few times, looking over at me with a doubting look while turning up on the highway to take us back to Marseille.

"Non mi piacerebbe se tu fossi quello che ha iniziato a frequentare uno degli altri piloti... sarebbe scomodom," I wouldn't like it if you were the one who started dating one of the other drivers... it would be uncomfortable, he says with a shrug and a shake of his head, "Non voglio far arrabbiare Max." I don't want to upset Max.

"Quello che non sai non soffri," What you don't know, you don't suffer.

"Lo saprà," He'll know.

"Puoi tenere occupato Max mentre faccio le mie cose? Tutto quello che chiedo," Can you keep Max busy while I do my thing? all I ask. I plead to him while I hear Pierre and Evie talk to each other in the back, which is good news because they're actually talking without my help. Charles looks at them through the mirror and then looks at me with a sigh and a quick nod.

"Va bene, ma non andare troppo lontano..." Fine, but don't go too far, he says and I smile widely at him. I sit back comfortably in the chair, proud of having convinced him. Evie peeks her head in between the chairs again and looks at me and then Charles.

"What were you talking about?" She asks, making Charles glance over at me in annoyance.

"Nothing," I smile and shrug.

"I heard my name," She argues, furrowing her brows.

"You heard wrong," I say, keeping my smile. She rolls her eyes at me and then sits back with her arms crossed. Pierre says something to her that I can't hear, but I'm just happy that they have something to talk about just the two of them. They need to learn how to keep a conversation going by themselves if this is going to work.