It's You ✮ Charles Leclerc

Cɦɑpteɾ 24

♫ Let's fuck up the friendship, come get in my head
Baby, cut the tension, I'm hung by a thread ♫

Natalie Beaufoy POV

I entered Charles' room, and everything was perfectly neat; my room was a damn mess, but I had been here for more days, so I could be excused based on that.

"So, do you usually book two rooms?" I ask curiously and he shakes his head.

"I always book adjacent rooms; he likes his independence, and I like the closeness," he explains casually and sits on the bed where he has been since the television was on a show.

"This would be natural if we weren't sneaking around," I tell him as I sit by his side.

"We don't need to do anything; we can just hang out. It was supposed to be your day off, and you worked; I am honestly tired, too," he says as our eyes lock, and I nod.

"We can relax a bit; maybe later we can do something if there is the energy for that," I say happily, and he even let me choose what I wanted to watch.

Result: Charles and I are now seeing Modern Family together. And Charles made it clear that I couldn't watch it without him, so this will be a long series to watch together. I've watched most of the episodes, but I will always watch it again.

"I should leave; I could fall asleep, and he might be here at any minute in the morning," I say as I sit down after four episodes. That is when I realized Charles was sleeping, but as I tried to get up, I also found out he wasn't completely asleep.

"Not even a goodnight kiss? That's fucking evil, ma belle," his voice is raspy as he pulls me close, slowly opening his eyes. A dark shade of green locking with my eyes.

"What's with the nickname?" I ask curiously. I mean, I know I look good, but I wasn't expecting the endearment. 

"You are fucking gorgeous, and I want a good night kiss, please," he begs, even if he could very well lean closer and kiss me easily; one of his hands is on my waist, and the other on the back of my head in the middle of my hair.

I leaned closer and kissed him, his arm surrounding my waist, pulling me as close to his body as humanly possible. He knows how to kiss someone. We would have done more if it wasn't for the scream from Lucas' room, and the velocity at which I left Charles' lap was astonishing. But I stopped myself by the door since I had no reason to be there.

"Is everything alright?" Charles ran inside and sat on Lucas' bed as he searched for some indicator of why he screamed. I watched carefully so he wouldn't notice my presence.

But no words were spoken. He just hugs his father, and Charles lays there with him, and I smile. I am glad he is a mini Charles. That woman didn't deserve such a good kid to have any trait of hers. He is such an angel, and she is a damn witch if she could break his pure spirit for her own selfish reasons. I'm glad she left; he deserves better. 

I left soon after when I realized both dad and son had fallen asleep, and if Lucas was fine, then it was fine by me. On Thursday, I went to know the city, and on Friday, I found Charles as I entered the garage.

"I'm sorry about that night; I fell asleep," he whispers as he stands by my side, and I laugh.

"Is he okay? Do you know what it was?" I ask, somehow concerned, and he tilts his head.

"He is fine, it didn't happen again. I think he was probably thinking about Sylvie," he says, and I stop for a second.

"Sylvie?" I was confused before I put one and one together. His mother.

"Sylvie is his mom, but he never called her that; I guess he knew she wasn't worth the title," he comments as he looks back. Lucas is distracted by his phone, and I smile.

"Don't overthink it; kids have nightmares. I'm glad he is fine," I say calmly as I continue my job.

"I thought you would be mad," he comments as he crosses his arms and I laugh.

"Why would I be mad?" I didn't even look away from what I was doing, but I could sense his gaze on me.

"I've left some things midway for my kid, and I can assure you most of them if not all, were dumbfounded I could do such a thing," he comments with a laugh, and I laugh, too.

"Yeah, no. I would've kicked your ass if you didn't go. Those women seemed to forget you are not only a man but a single father, which means your kid is the priority. Thank god you got your priorities straight," I look up at him, and he smiles.

"I will see you soon, I hope," he says, and I nod with a smile.

Well. This year will be a real challenge. I have this little kid who I happen to love with my whole heart suddenly; I just want to protect him. And then his father is starting to endanger my mental well-being seriously. I am used to casual, but casual with someone like him is different; he carries himself differently, he doesn't treat me like others did, and I can't treat him like I treat others.

The weeks flew, and between spending at least one of my days off with Lucas, I spent my nights with his dad. I've caught him looking at me in interviews, looking at me before entering the car, while waiting for the practice to start, you name it. 

I've locked eyes with Charles as he claimed a pole position or a new win. And I can't tell myself it's something as casual as we promised it would be. But I can lie to myself and say it's casual because I know for him it is.