Faking it || Lando Norris LN

55

Summer Break.

Olivia Reyes' success had skyrocketed.

The Chanel perfume campaign had launched her into a previously untapped new league of luxury brands she'd never been with before. As her racing skills gained recognition and her popularity soared, high-end brands suddenly found themselves in a battle to collaborate with her on exclusive product lines.

With her fan following increasing exponentially, Olivia had also launched her own personalized merchandise line. The line featured everything from sweatshirts, t-shirts, caps, and accessories, all sporting her signature colors and logo. She'd been particularly excited about it, carefully crafting and creating a vast collection that went from items that could be worn at a Grand Prix to stylish pieces of clothing that could be incorporated into someone's everyday wardrobe.

Her merchandise had been an instant hit worldwide, selling out mere hours after the first drop. Her most successful item was a vintage racing jacket replica in black and red, sporting her logo and her sponsors' and quickly becoming a fashion favorite for the summer.

Olivia had also secured the most lucrative sponsorship deals she'd seen in her entire career. She had to hire a manager to help Gianna handle negotiations, contracts, meetings, appointments, photo shoots and keep an eye out for statistics. Chiara Ricci looked more like a celebrity than the person who manages one. Even though she had a shy demeanor and was only a couple years older than Olivia, her precise eye, clever mind, and bold approach when it came to her job made her a force of nature. Gianna seemed to be one second away from adopting her most days.

Along with Charles, Olivia's face was plastered on Ferrari billboards all over the world. They've starred in four Ferrari commercials so far this summer, each getting more and more elaborate to the point where social media was flooded with rumors of directors casting them for actual films.

Olivia's skyrocketing success also meant she was being invited to high-profile events. Her latest appearance at Maison Valentino's event along with Lewis Hamilton had sparked speculations of her joining the luxurious brand as an ambassador. Gianna and Chiara were still sorting out the contract details away from the public, but Olivia was sure to join them later in the year.

She had also made appearances on talk shows, magazine covers, and fashion runways, where she was applauded for her style, adored for her charming personality, and admired for her career path and success as a woman in one of the most cutthroat and male-dominated sports in the world. Girl Power had a new face, and it was Olivia Reyes.

Olivia hadn't just become the world's new It girl; she had also become an active speaker of feminism and social causes around the world and, alongside Lewis' Hamilton Commission, was constantly planning the development of a study and paths of action to improve the representation of women and Latin American people in motorsport.

Olivia is doing great —or so she says. She wants to believe she is, but she's back to running in the mornings.

Lando's words echo inside her brain sometimes.

You run to get hurt.

Olivia had come to realize it was true. She ran to get away from everything, to feel her muscles burning more than the anxiety that rushed through her veins, to feel her body breaking the air's resistance and picture it making all her worries get lost in the wind behind her. But she also ran because sometimes, she just couldn't take it.

The stakes were always high in Formula 1, and sometimes she wished for a bad race to not be her fault; she wished an injury could save her from a race she was doomed to fail at.

The realization had been painful. Olivia had worked all her life for this. Her family had sacrificed so much that it seemed borderline insane. She'd given blood, sweat, and tears for the opportunity to drive a Formula 1 car, and now that she could, she was hoping to get a weekend where she didn't. She felt ungrateful and gross until she learned to forgive herself for the places her mind went to keep itself from crumbling under pressure.