LOVE OR RIDE | LESTAPPEN

chapter nine - please, Charles...

Max

I open my heavy eyelids, looking around. The sun penetrates through the curtains, which are not fully drawn, and just as I curve my face, wanting to roll over to the other side so that the sun's rays don't glaring at me, I fall off the bed, which, after all, has always been so damn big. I curse under my breath, not quite sure what is just happening in my room. However, before I have time to think, I hear knocking, or rather banging fists on the door. I pick myself up lazily from the floor, moving towards them. I can feel my head hurting so damn badly, and my memory of the party ends with drinking half a bottle of vodka at once right after the cake incident. I open the door, not caring what I look like. Because it's probably either Daniel or Christian.

I don't even want to know what kind of look I get when the Ferrari director is standing in front of me, and right next to him is Carlos, who at the sight of me nearly chokes on the water he's just had. Frederic, on the other hand, looks similar to me. We both look at each other in shock. I close my mouth, which I unconsciously opened, and blink a few times, not seeing what to say. I do the worst thing possible, as I instantly slam the door in front of them, leaning against it with my back.

And suddenly the spell is gone.

I look around my room, which is not my own. There are Ferrari clothes everywhere, and the living room is smaller than mine. I glance at my clothes. I have my shirt, pants and socks unbuttoned, and further a lot of cake stuck on my body, hair and clothes. Fuck, what am I doing in the Ferrari driver's room? And now the question of which driver. If it's Sainz's room then he reacted strangely to me being here, but if it's his and I slammed the door in front of his face into his room then I'm an idiot. BUT if it's Leclerc's room then that makes me want to jump off the bridge all the more. God, why can't I remember anything. Did I do something stupid?

"What are you doing?" I gasp when I hear Leclerc's voice from afar. Why did he...

"I... Well... I thought this was my room. Carlos and Frederic are probably waiting for you. I don't know, I slammed the door in front of their faces." He tangles his words, scratching the back of his neck.

"Today I don't have to help you climb the stairs anymore?" he mocks at the best of my memory gap. I cross my arms over my chest, thinking of a sensible answer, but that answer doesn't come, because he knows more than me.

"Did you kidnap me?" I ask stupidly, to which he bursts out laughing. I look at him in a stupor, not knowing what amuses him so much.

"You said the same thing yesterday." he comments as he calms down and grabs his suitcase, walking toward me. "Get out of my way, Verstappen. When you leave, bring the keys to the reception desk, I don't have any more time for you. After yesterday, I'm sick of your presence, so tell the media that our friendship is over, and we will avoid each other." he says quickly, avoiding me.

I move away puzzled, and he leaves me with these unintelligible words, walking out of the room. What happened yesterday that suddenly turned us from fake friends into.... Nobody? Because if we are to avoid each other, we are not enemies, but strangers.

Because of my headache, I can't focus on anything, so I decide to take my things, which aren't here much, and go back to my room. I grab my phone, which is lying on the coffee table, seeing a message from Daniel.

From: Daniel
I slept at your place, because I don't know why, but I'm waiting for you to come back from I don't know where. Bye!