Same but Different | Carlos Sainz

prolog

2024

It was pretty warm today even though in Belgium summer was mostly not as hot. Maybe it was also due to the many people in the paddock, which seemed pretty full today, probably because it was already Saturday.

Yesterday had been not the best day for Carlos with P5 and P13 in practice, he needed to be better, especially as he still hadn't had a seat for next season. RedBull and Mercedes wanted him, also Aston Martin, but he wasn't sure yet, which option would be the best.

And with such performances his chances of playing them against each other minimized itself. Then, this morning, when he had woken up next to his beautiful girlfriend wanting to cuddle her for a while, he had gotten a call.

What had looked like a small damage after practice turned out to be much more and they needed to change his whole power unit, which meant a penalty of five positions for the race on Sunday.

So even if he would get pole today, it wouldn't count anything and probably Max would claim it behind him. Before he was at the Dutch at the race, Max would surely already be one lap ahead, Carlos thought and sighed angry.

"There's still a chance for you, don't be so frustrated." Rebecca tried to cheer him up, "Today it still counts so give your best."

"Yeah well, it doesn't help, tomorrow I am way behind and won't get a podium and RedBull and Mercedes will take their offers back."

"You can still drive for another team." she returned and wanted to lay her hand on his shoulder, but he brushed her off.

"I don't want another team, I wanna stay at Ferrari but they kicked me and now nothing goes my way, I fucking hate it!" he snapped back and Rebecca understood, that he needed some time so she walked away, as she had seen a friend of hers in front of the McLaren hospitality.

Frustrated Carlos groaned and walked pass the main entrance of the hospitality, seeing a couple of reporters and his media team in there, both he didn't need right now. They always acted like he was their hero and such a good driver, beating Max from time to time, but behind all that they didn't care.

Otherwise they would have kept him and not Charles, or both of them, but not Hamilton, who wanted his either title so desperately that he took every opportunity he got. The Spaniard laughed sarcastically as he squeezed himself between the RedBull and Ferrari hospitality so he could use the back entrance.

But when he stepped around the corner he saw two people leaning against the hospitality right next to the back entrance, shoving their tongues into each others mouth. God, why were so many crazy fans here this weekend, Carlos thought and cleared his throat.

As the both still didn't look up he tried to squeeze pass them, in which process he slightly touched the woman's waist so he could step through. Immediately she opened her mouth and he was already prepared for 'oh my god it's Carlos Sainz', 'can you sign my jacket', or something like this.

"What's wrong with you, don't touch me!" she snapped at him and leaned back so he could see her face for the first time.

She looked cute, her red cheeks and the slightly messy hair, but her expression and the volume of her voice let Carlos quickly forget what he had just thought.

"I know you Ferrari drivers jump from bed to bed and take every women you got, but don't you dare touching me." she added and made a really disgusting look with her face.

"Just don't fuck behind my hospitality." Carlos returned and shrugged his shoulder.

At this moment he didn't care anymore, it seemed like this drama with Ferrari had sucked out all his energy and also anger, he simply didn't care anymore.

"Don't you d" the woman raised her arm and wanted to storm towards him, but her boyfriend held her back, opening his mouth for the first time.

"Sofia don't, stop it." he said with a force in his voice and she immediately let her arm down, before the man looked at me again, "A veces está un poco loca, lo siento." (She's a little crazy sometimes, sorry.)

Surprised Carlos raised his eyebrows as he heard the man speaking Spanish and it sounded so well that he guessed he was a Spaniard too. His look fell back on the woman, who didn't seem to understand and some anger was building up again in his stomach.

Even though he thought he wouldn't care anymore this woman had some talent to bring his frustration back up.

"Next time you fuck please choose the paddock, this here is private." Carlos snapped at he before he opened the back door and stepped into his hospitality.

The last thing he saw as that the woman raised her middle finger, shouting something after him but as his engineer came over instantly he didn't hear it. This little conversation really got him somehow out of his flow.

Normally he wouldn't care about crazy fans or the press but somehow this woman stayed longer in his mind that he had wished for as he needed to focus on qualifying. And Rebecca was right, he had to give everything today.

Now he hated kinda hated himself as he had been so mean towards here before so he quickly texted her to come over before the session would start. Not five minutes later she stepped into his drivers room, kissing Carlos's cheek.

"You surely will do great." she then said and she was right.

With pole position and therefore P6 on Sunday's grid he really tried everything and in the end he couldn't do more than P3 behind Checo and of course Max. Standing there on the podium he looked down to his Ferrari mechanics and they seemed so happy, for the media.

In reality they had wished that Charles would get that podium, as he had came P4, only three seconds behind Carlos, but the Spaniard had overtaken him in the second last lap. He then searched over the crowd and immediately saw Rebecca.

She was smiling bright, happy for him and she was the only person he believed. Then the national anthem started and he looked over at all the RedBull people, they seemed so happy for their drivers, and the surely were.

Would they also look at him that way, even if he would come P3, Carlos asked himself, once more thinking about his future. Then his eyes wandered over the sea of dark blue and he saw Kelly, P and Max's whole family.

And next to them he saw another woman, the one from before, the one that had snapped at him, shoved him the finger. The anger suddenly was back in his stomach and he quickly looked over at the RedBull guys again.

Everybody was looking at Max on the top spot, Carlos noticed, before he looked back her the woman, she was the only one not looking at the Dutch, she was looking directly at him, smirking like she wanted to kill him on the spot.