LOVE OR RIDE | LESTAPPEN

chapter two - small incident, big consequences

Max

We have been sitting for two hours, waiting for other drivers to show up. Christian told me to be on time at eighteen o'clock, and it's already after twenty and there's still no one there. He claimed that being late would affect the reputation of the whole team, but apparently he was joking to get me here. Annoyed, I bang my fist on the table, making Daniel jump up on the chair next to me.

"What did that poor table do to you?"

"Fuck it. I'm going to my room." I'm already about to get up, when suddenly the door of the room opens and Lando, Carlos, Oscar and Pierre walk in. I let the air out loudly through my mouth, feeling Daniel's gaze on me, like - what did I tell you?

"Hey, what are you guys so early? So eager to get to know each other better?" smiling Norris takes the chair next to Daniel, looking in our direction. Sainz sits in the row with him along with Pierre, and Oscar adds a chair to sit next to his teammate.

"Early?" I ask puzzled. I arrived on time, he is the one who is late. No one informed me of this planned lateness. Is this supposed to be a joke? A punishment?

"Well, yes, after all, we were supposed to be on the twenty." Oscar glances in our direction.

I exchange glances with Daniel, hearing Carlos' snort, which breaks the silence. I shift my gaze to him, feeling a growing nervousness. I don't like him because he is a Ferrari driver who is a colleague of Leclerc, who is also a Ferrari driver. Everything is clear.

Just as I'm about to comment on his behavior, I bite my tongue, recalling what I said before coming here. I'm supposed to be an oasis of calm so I don't go to this shit again. 

"They sent you before, didn't they?" Sainz asks.

"Apparently we misunderstood something." I sell out in response before Daniel, who would probably, like the last moron, tell the truth.

I listen to the conversation between the two McLaren drivers, and every now and then I respond when they ask me a question. Daniel, Carlos and Pierre are talking about some other topic, which interests me little. In fact, I'm surprised that Lando and Oscar haven't pounced on me yet, seeing my discouraged face for being there. Or maybe I'm such a good actor and it doesn't show.

Suddenly the other drivers, who must have met in front of the building, enter the room, because they are talking and laughing. When they become aware of our presence, they smile in our direction.

"Hi everyone!" Charles, is the first to speak loudly, glancing in our direction, only ignoring my face with his eyes. The clown of the show has arrived, and I still have no popcorn.

"Hi Charles!" everyone replied almost simultaneously.

I don't know how he does it, but there is no person but me who doesn't like him. He always pretends to be great-pleasing, which probably blinds their eyes and they can't see what he's really like. I'm the only one who can see it, so that's why I don't talk to him.

"Hi." I repeat after them, with a lack of enthusiasm and much quieter, but it doesn't escape anyone's notice. Suddenly the eyes of all nineteen drivers fall on me, however, it has no effect on me. Still bored, I'm sitting sideways on a chair, leaning with my back against the wall.

Leclerc wrinkles his eyebrows, looking at me suspiciously, but to my surprise, he makes no comment, which also causes puzzlement among the other drivers, who now shift their gaze from me to the Ferrari driver.

"Hi." he replies, while feeling the gaze of everyone in the room on him. A gentle awkwardness has set in.

Suddenly Norris spits out the water he had been drinking and starts coughing. He visibly choked on it. Oscar pats him on the back, and Lando finally takes a deep breath, pulling away from his teammate's hand. Daniel scratches the back of his neck, glancing at Pierre, who shrugs his shoulders.