Far From Home

pt. 4

Charles POV

Carlos tapped me on the shoulder, and whisper yelled over the pounding music that Lando was finally here.

The hotel event space was crammed wall to wall with drivers, employees, and fans alike, all looking to celebrate or forget the race that that recently concluded. Unfortunately for Charles, it was a night to forget, but this was exactly what he needed.

He was already a handful of shots deep when he started toward the door, watching as Lando approached, already with 2 girls in tow.

Typical Lando 
Charles thought to himself before he could get a closer look.

After a couple yards of distance was closed, he realized he not only recognized the bright blonde head of Julie, Lando's media girl to his right, but also the head of long brown hair to his left.

"Alessia?"

Her deep brown eyes had been glancing around rather nervously, but her gaze focused at the sound of her name.

"I haven't seen you out before."

"Well," Julie chimed in. " it's her first time partying with us."

She shot me and carlos a shy smile.

"It's not that I have never partied, of course I have -"

"- Just not for work," Julie interrupted "she insists this is a work event."

Charles chuckled as Lando interrupted.

"It's gonna be a long night if you don't loosen up Alessia, 2 shots on me"  He shouted over the music as he approached, a small tray scattered with shot glasses full of clear liquid.

I grabbed one for myself and offered one to Alessia, who hesitantly grabbed it.

"It'll be good, don't worry." I whispered as I lightly tapped her on the shoulder. She quickly swallowed it down, grimacing as I finished my own glass and set it back down on the tray.

Julie quickly ushered Alessia off to the dance floor, Alessia towing behind with the excitement of a puppy headed to the vet.

Carlos and lando stood and chatted with me around a high-top table, rambling on about how frustrating the race had been, but I couldn't take it anymore. Their droning on and on about the loss was giving me a headache and was the last thing I wanted to think about. I had 2 weeks until the next race, and I refused to spend it mopping around.

I could see Julie a couple yards away, swaying to the music with her arms outstretched to Alessia, who stood off to the side, desperately avoiding eye contact with everybody around her but julie

The flashing lights of the club changed the color of her shirt from red to orange to green and then back to red again. She laughed, her white teeth flashing under the spotted lighting. The shot seemed to have lightened her up a bit.

Lando turned his attention back toward me after seeing my averted gaze. I was already struggling to see him properly but focused my gaze and steadied myself against the table.

"I never notice Alessia before, but pretty isn't she?" He asked, clearly commenting on me watching the 2 across the room.

"Huh, oh yeah, I guess."

I almost pitied here being dragged her to get blasted with the rest of us, but I was too busy pitying myself as I pushed away from the table to order another drink.

That is until I felt a warm mass bump into my chest, and a quiet "umph" come from the petite girl in front of me. A small glass clattered to the floor out off her hand, and I quickly bent down to try and catch it before it spilled on hardwood beneath us.

"Sorry mate, I'm a bit drunk, honestly"
I murmured as I picked the glass up.

I look upward at the woman in front of me.

Deja vu

Her brows creased in concern. Her dark brown eyes rounded with worry and her dark hair fell around her shoulders and into her eyes as she tried to kneel down to my level .

She had 2 moles on her right cheek bone that I had never noticed before and the collar of her shirt fell forward just enough for me to see the smooth tan skin that fell into the dips above her collar bones.

"I'm so so sorry, I can't believe I'm doing this again."  She laughed at herself in disbelief.

"Don't beat yourself up, I'm too tipsy to look where I am going clearly."

I offered to buy her a new drink, which she graciously accepted, and she followed me back toward the bar.

Leaning onto the bar, I took in the woman in front of me. She seemed much more relaxed, no doubt due to a couple more shots in her system, but I could still feel her picking her words carefully every time she spoke. Too afraid to say the wrong thing to truly let loose.

"Are you really worried about what your boss will think?"

"Less my boss...and more our coworkers." She gestured around at the full room, "I have to see them Monday morning, you know?"

"No They have to see YOU on Monday morning, and you see the way they are acting."

I gestured toward the lead ferrari mechanic a few feet away with my head. He was on the dance floor, drink in hand, flailing about in what I assume was meant to be a dance as the liquid in his cup sloshed up and out and onto the dance floor.

She laughed. The first real laugh I had heard from her all night.

"Yeah, yeah, I suppose so."

We continued to chat, but as the bottom of my glass became more and more visible, my senses became less and less reliable.

I don't remember ordering another, but I must have because as I finished my drink, another 2 appeared in front of us.

Alessia must have been close to the state I was or not far behind because as she grabbed the glass and stood, she stumbled slightly over her stiletto boots.

I couldn't seem to keep my focus in one place, but I tried to hold my gaze on Alessia.

She kept giggling. Over what? I didn't know.  Hopefully over somthing I had said but I couldn't be sure.

I steadying myself and asked Alessia if she was okay, but I didn't know if I was okay myself.

As we are attempting to stop laughing and stand straight, realizing how much drunker we had gotten in the past half hour, I see Lando's curly hair approaching us through the crowd.

He is holding that dreaded black tray and a shit eating grin on his face. And as he got closer I saw the little clear glasses decorating its surface.

His grin grew even larger.

"another shot anyone?"

Author note: Thanks so much for reading! Don't be a silent reader, tell me your thoughts as you go !
- S <3