【Ｆ１ ＩＭＡＧＩＮＥＳ】

[Ｌａｎｄｏ Ｎｏｒｒｉｓ]

I clutched my clipboard to my chest as I looked at Lando, he had some sort of childish wonder about him, the most adorable smile, and a fantastic laugh, and he was always bouncing around.
Sometimes his bouncing around could become a little annoying, but it wasn't like I hated Lando.
He was nice, sometimes he started joking around a little with me, and sometimes he didn't have the best sense of opportunity and made jokes during serious times, which usually didn't sit very well with the older team members. 
Today had been one of those days. Lando had joked around to lift the tension of the fast-approaching start of the new season, and the team hadn't taken it very well, all giving Lando dirty looks and harsh words. I had noticed that after that, Lando had closed in on himself, only humming short responses when he was directly spoken to.
I knew there was a short break coming up, and I knew that after the break I was presenting the strategy I had helped develop along with my co-workers, so I figured that we had time to just goof around for a little.
I figured he could use a little pick-me-up. 
As the youngest two of the whole team, Lando and I tended to stick together, which generated a lot of gossip around the team, and a lot of match-makings as well. It did get annoying, but it wasn't like they were wrong. At least I felt those things. I had feelings for Lando, but for the sake of professionalism, I pushed them down. 
As the team director called for a little break, I quickly followed Lando as he sighed and looked down.
"Lando, wait up!" I called as I sort of raced toward him and Lando turned back, giving me a small smile.
"Oh, hey Y/N." he said as he waited for me. "Everything okay?"
"I could ask you the same." I said softly as I looked up at him. "We have like 15 to 20 minutes until I have to present the new strategy. Do you want to go and like do something fun or just watch an episode of something on my computer?"
Lando smiled brightly at me, before nodding. "For sure, thanks."
Lando followed me to my computer and as I was searching for my charger because the computer was low on battery he suggested.
"Maybe we could go to my dressing room? I mean, at least there we won't be teased every half second." 
I nodded as I bent down to grab the charger from underneath the table.
"Oh yeah, that does sound great!" 
I finally grabbed the charger and as I was getting out from under the table, I hit my head, but not on the table, instead, I looked up and I stood up carefully, and saw Lando removing his hand from the corner of the table.
"Thanks Lando." I said with a smile and he nodded.
"Anytime," he said as he took the charger from my hands, "shall we?"
I followed him to his room, turning a blind eye to the giggles and whispers from the whole team. Jeez, and yet Lando and I were called children? These were grown-ass people, most of them married and with kids, and yet they acted like fifth graders when they found out their friends had a crush!
As Lando closed the door I grabbed the charger from him, before setting everything up so we could watch an episode of some show, my bet was that we'd spend the entire time figuring out what to watch.

"So, what are we watching?" I asked as I turned to Lando, only to find him staring at me, lost in his own world. "Lando?"
He shook his head, standing up and caging me between his chair and his body.
"I need to talk to you." He whispered and I nodded softly.
"Anything." I said as I gulped at our proximity. Lando and I were usually pretty close, but this felt different. 
"I think I'm falling in love with you." He said and I gasped. "I can't stop thinking about you, I go home and wish you were there, I'm doing my job and I can only focus on you, I hear your voice through the radio when I'm driving and I only want to make you proud, I look at you and the only thing I want to do is-"
Lando cut himself off, watching my reaction to his words. I stared into his eyes, before my eyes dropped slowly to his lips. "What?" I whispered and Lando lifted my chin with his hand, making me look into his eyes before he kissed me.
The kiss was heated, apparently, there was more pent-up tension between us than I thought.
When Lando and I separated, he smiled at me. 
"This." He said as he caressed my cheeks. "This and so much more."
"How come... Why did you never tell me?" 
"I didn't want to lose you. If the feeling wasn't mutual you were bound to distance yourself from me." Lando sighed. "I didn't think I had a shot or that the feeling was mutual. But then... Then you started to go out of your way to cheer me up every time something bad happened. When I crashed, everyone was looking at the car and you were with me all while they were checking if I was okay. You didn't leave my side, you drove me home and even stayed the night on my couch just in case I needed anything. You always make time for me, my mum loves you and if I don't answer my phone it's you she calls and you two stay on the phone for hours. I figured you are the one for me, and if there is anyone worth taking a shot and risking it like this, then it has to be you." Lando looked into my eyes. "Please, say something."
"I love you, Lando." I blurted out as I watched a blooming smile appear on his lips. "Since the first time you walked in here looking like a little kid who hadn't napped, I knew you were special right there. I just didn't know how special you'd come to be, at least to me."
Lando smiled, still caging me, and before he could say anything, there was a knock on the door. 
"You better have clothes on!" a voice I recognized as Piastri's shouted from the other side of the door, before swinging it open, giving the two of us a smirk when he saw us still holding onto each other. "We're about to go over the new strategies, I think your dear Y/N is kind of needed for that, and so are you."
"We'll be right there." Lando said, not taking his eyes off me, "Just a second."
"For sure, mate." Piastri said as he chuckled "Just make sure you lock the door."
As the door closed I smiled at Lando.
"Does this mean we're dating?" I asked and Lando put on his best-offended face.
"God no! I want to take you out on dates, take you to museums and make you all giggly and blushy, and then I want to ask you to be my girlfriend properly." Lando said before he pecked my lips, "You deserve that and much more."
"Lando, I'm usually covered either in motor oil or sweat. I just want to be your girlfriend. You could just hand me an old tire and ask me to be your girlfriend and I'd say yes."
Lando laughed. "Hey, you're my girlfriend, but this is not the official thing yet. I want to do it properly."
I laughed, "Whatever you say, Lando."
Lando kissed me again. "C'mon, you need to go and explain the new strategy and look sexy as hell while you do it." 

(...)

Three whole months had gone by, and now Lando and I had two weeks of work-free vacation, which had come as a blessing, I was exhausted.
So, Lando and I booked a holiday in Italy and for our first day (well, second, but Lando and I had slept the whole day yesterday because of jetlag) we were going to visit the Colosseum in Rome, which I had always wanted to see, so I was over the moon.
"C'mon!" I said as I turned to Lando, who was slowly walking behind me and he laughed, "I'm way too excited and you're being slow!" 
In a matter of seconds, Lando ran to me and picked me up, spinning me around. "You're a pain sometimes, did you know that?"
I laughed, "My mom tells me that a lot, so yeah, I know."
"I love you regardless." 
"I love you too." Lando set me down and I grabbed his hand, "C'mon, let's go!" 
Lando laughed as he ran after me. "Alright alright."

When we finally got to the Colosseum I was in absolute awe. Everything was marvelous, and the history within these walls! I was beyond excited!
"Hey babe, c'mon, let me take a picture of you, you look amazing!" Lando asked and I nodded, making a silly pose for him, which made him laugh as he put down my bag (he always insisted on carrying my bags, and I usually didn't oppose much to it) to take a picture. 
The two of us being the only ones on this visit only made it better. I had no idea how Lando had done this, but he had done it, and I was eternally grateful to him for that.
I looked at Lando, to find him with an open ring box in his hand, smiling fondly at me. 
"Remember I wanted to do something proper to ask you to be my girlfriend?" He smiled as I threw my arms around him.
"Lando! You didn't have to! I love you so much!"
"I'll take that as a yes then." He laughed as he put the ring on my finger, a perfect fit. 
"How did you know my ring size?"
He shrugged. "I sneaked one of your rings to the jeweler and asked for rings in that size, easy." 
I laughed, "You absolute nutjob! Why would you do something like this?! I was already your girlfriend! You didn't need to spend this much on me!"
"I wanted to." He said as he pressed a kiss to my lips, "You deserve it. And I want to spoil you as much as I can."
"I love you." 
"I love you too."