malicious | max verstappen

thiry six.

ELYSE's POV

I felt like I was a teenager caught with her first boyfriend by her parents. Red-handed.

Carlos rubbed his eyes as if he was double-checking if what he was seeing was real, "Am I too drunk or this real?"

I looked at Max then back at Carlos, "Nope. This is 100% real."

He stayed silent for a while until Isa nudged him, "What are you thinking about?" She asked him.

"I'm trying to figure that out." Carlos scratched the back of his head, "I'm sorry— why— no, how did this even happen in the first place?"

He didn't seem upset but rather confused, "That's a long story."

Carlos looked at his watch, "I have time."

I sighed, looking at Max and Isa who took the hint to leave. We started having a walk around the streets of Australia while I told him the story from the top— leaving out a few details: like how it all started as a game for him, knowing he would probably go all crazy on Max.

"—you know me, Carlos, I would never willingly get close to someone for anything romance related. I didn't even realize I had feelings til I was already neck deep. I've never felt anything like how I feel with him, like all those hopeless romantic books I've been reading all those years to fill the void were actually coming true. Whenever I'm with him I feel so carefree and safe— something I haven't felt with someone from a romantic point of view, ever. Like, my heart physically feels heavier, filled with love whenever I'm around him." I concluded my rant.

"I have so many questions." He seemed at a loss of words.

"Go ahead."

"Well, first off, why did you never tell me?" He asked.

"I was scared, I guess. I know how you, and Lewis, tend to get a bit too overprotective over me when it comes to these types of things. And I don't know, I wanted to be with him without feeling pressure. I wasn't necessarily hiding it from you, but rather delaying when to tell you."

"And Isa knew?"

"Yeah." I kinda felt bad about that. I preferred to rely on her since it was more of a girls talk, "I swear it's nothing personal."

His hand kept going through his hair, ultimately messing it up which indicated he was anxious, and quite uneasy.

"What's wrong, Carlito?" I placed a hand over his shoulder.

"Do you... love him?" He suddenly questioned.

"I—" My words were caught in my throat. I really didn't want to answer that question.

"I'm just worried about you, cariño. I don't want you to get hurt again." He expressed his concerns.

"He won't hurt me, Carlos."

"How can you be so sure?" He inquired, "You don't know what wicked things some drivers do. And Max is one of them."

I furrowed my eyebrows, "What are you talking about?"

"Ellie, Max is a cheater at heart." Carlos told me, "Do you know how many times he slept with his ex while being with Kelly?"

Oh.

"Yeah, okay– I don't care about that. It was way before we started what we have."

"If you wouldn't mind filling me in, tell me, what do you guys have?" He caught me. My eyes wandered anywhere that wasn't near Carlos. "That's what I thought."

"We don't have to have labels. At least not yet." I repeated Max's words to Carlos even though I didn't believe in them one bit. "Plus everything is too hectic, especially with the championship and—"