Lovely to sit between comfort and chaos

Does happiness lie in a diamond ring?

They still haven't talked about Sunday evening. None of them had really.

Daniel had texted a thank you to everyone in the group chat when he got back to his hotel room and that was that.

But now it was Thursday and still nothing. But all of the attention was on Daniel's return and Nyck's departure.

Daniel kinda felt bad, because the way things were handled by Helmut weren't nice. But that happened a lot in their business. He couldn't keep on feeling sorry for the dude. He had a race to prepare for.

That tyre testing had been exhilarating. Finally experience that adrenaline rush again. It was even better than he thought it would be.

He'd worn Max's balaclava without even thinking about it. Ignoring the look Christian gave him when he saw.

And then there was Sebastian. He actually did a double take when he saw who brought him that coffee. He really hadn't expected Seb to be there. But it was so damn good to see his old teammate again. It kind of felt like a full circle moment.

But anyway....

They were Thursday now and next week would be a race week again.

And he really, really needed to talk to Max about that Sunday. Because he knew there was more going on than the Dutchman let him to believe.

There was something hidden beneath the surface. A hidden meaning.

As much as they both had almost perfected the art of 'I don't give a fuck' attitude, the Aussie could see straight through the other's act.

He texted Max if he was back in Monaco, when it was confirmed by the other he texted him to meet up for dinner that evening. He'd make the reservation.

The answer didn't come immediately, but at least it was a positive one.

Daniel called one of his favorite restaurants to book a table, then went for a shower and got himself ready for the evening, texting Max the restaurant he'd chosen

~~*~~

He ended up first at the restaurant, not surprisingly. He was just laughing a little with the waitress who'd come to ask if he wanted something to drink, when he heard someone clear their throat behind him.

"Max!" he shot up from his chair to embrace him, not really surprised by how Max stiffened for a second before he felt arms go around himself in return. "Good to see you."

Max chuckled, "it hasn't been that long." He pulls out from Daniel's hug and takes a seat on the opposite side of the table.

The waitress was now awkwardly standing there until Daniel noticed her again and they both ordered their drinks.

They both took their menu and tried to decide what to pick while Daniel gave some suggestions. When the waitress was back with their drinks they were ready to order their food.

While they waited, Daniel started the conversation he wanted to have for a while now. Now was the moment to do it.

"So, I wanted to talk to you about something."

"I suspected as much," Max sighed, "You've waited long enough."

"Yeah well....with the whole announcement and stuff--- I just didn't think it was the right time...."

"What do you want to know?"

"Whatever you want to tell me, Max. I know you weren't upset just because that guy offended me." He saw Max wince and shift nervously in his seat. "You know you can tell me anything. I won't judge."