After the Hate Has Gone (Sebastian Vettel)

16. Trapped!

It was raining hard when Lottie arrived at the track in Canada on the Sunday morning.  Nothing different there. It had been raining ever since the plane had touched down. Not as torrential as it had in Spain, but raining nonetheless.

Sebastian had made the sensible decision and stayed away from her.  She really wasn't in the mood for his bullshit.  She didn't know why she was in such a bad mood to be honest.  Maybe she was coming down with something. 

It was looking good for the race today.  After a wet qualifying session Sebastian had managed to put Honey Ryder third on the grid and Lance was besides him in fourth.    Their first podium since becoming Aston Martin was within reach.  She really hoped that one of them, if not both could do it.  She knew how hard everyone had been working.  They deserved this.  But things didn't always work out the way they should. 

She passed Sebastian as she headed into hospitality to get a hot drink. They locked eyes as they passed.

"Good luck," she called over her shoulder.

"Thank you," he answered.  After her drink she went back outside to the paddock.  The rain had eased off slightly. She went and got her gear.  It was time to start.

***

There were three laps to go in the Canadian Grand Prix.  Hamilton was leading by a country mile. Verstappen was a clear second.  Sebastian had inherited third after Bottas's retirement. 

However, he had a fight on his hands. Ricciardo was right up his backside.  He was in danger of losing that coveted podium spot. There was no way he was giving in without a fight. He wouldn't give Ricciardo the satisfaction.  Seb pushed a little more, much to his race engineer's frustration.

"Seb, look after those tyres! Finishing fourth is better than not finishing at all!"  Seb didn't answer.  He had nothing to say to that. Ricciardo gave it everything he had but in the end the chequered flag came just in time for Seb. He'd done it! Third place.

"Woooooohhoooo!" he shouted down the radio. That would show them all. The ones that said he was finished.  It may not be a win, but it was the first step on the way to a win. He was far from done for.  This was the beginning of the return.

"Nice one mate, see you in Park Ferme."  When he got out of the car Hamilton came straight over to him, slapping him on the back.

"Mate, well done. I knew you still had it. That'll shut them up."

"Well done Lewis, great drive man," he replied, lifting his visor up. Then he ran to the barriers to his team, launching into them.  He saw her there with her camera.  He looked at her. She gave him a thumbs up.  He nodded his head at her before he was whisked away to be weighed.  The team carried on celebrating.  It was a celebration that would carry on later.  They all arranged to meet in the hotel bar to celebrate.  Today everything had come good.

***

Lottie looked at herself in the mirror. "You scrub up well girl," she told herself.  She was wearing a red wine coloured minidress with black patent flat shoes.  She wasn't risking her heels until her ankle was 100%.  She had decided to leave her hair down and had curled it slightly.  She adjusted her bra, unsure of the amount of cleavage she was showing.  She grabbed her bag and headed out. 

She pressed the call button for the elevator.  The doors slid open and she groaned inwardly as she saw the only other occupant.  She walked in and stood as far away from him as she could.  Damn he looked so good.  He was wearing tight blue jeans, a plain white t-shirt and was carrying a black leather jacket.