Away We Go • 2 • Formula One

Chapter 62

thank you for all the love recently! please keep up the engagement 💞

almost at 150k which is insane! thank you.

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The light that streamed through the window of my driver's room was a brilliant white, making the fabric of my undersuit that the rays hit almost impossible to look at. Every muscle in my body felt strangely relaxed. Birds were chirping outside and I could faintly smell the remnants of coffee in Lizzie's mug. I was alone in my room to prepare for the first practice session of the weekend. There was a lot riding on this weekend, from it being my home Grand Prix to having high expectations placed on me from my win in Hungary.

I leaned forward in my chair, my hair falling over my shoulder with the movement. If I focused hard enough, I could hear the Formula One cars already out on track for the session. Despite this, I didn't feel rushed. I had all the time in the world to get out on track. My shoelaces were the last thing I needed to do before heading to the garage.

The thin fabric slipped between my fingers multiple times before I was finally able to tie my shoes. They were special fire-proof ones on the slim chance that I get involved in an accident with fire. It hasn't happened in a long time because of how far safety has come, even more so over the last couple of years. The chances of a fatal accident occurring were lower than ever so I tried to push any worry to the back of my mind.

I was still holding the laces in my hand when the door to my driver room swung open. At first, I didn't look up. Something felt off. Everything had suddenly turned quiet, drawing my attention to my racing pulse and shaky breathing. No birds, no cars, nothing other than myself. The once warm sun had turned to ice. Goosebumps had risen across the tops of my arms and a sweat was forming on my furrowed brow. My muscles all tensed at once as I slowly lifted my head, finally acknowledging a fragile looking Toto Wolff.

"Toto?" I asked, voice hoarse.

"I'm afraid I've got some bad news," he said, eyes dropping to the floor. I opened my mouth to ask him to elaborate but he put a hand out to silence me. "He wanted you to know how much he loved you, and that he's sorry for leaving you."

I felt sick to my stomach. Even though Toto hadn't revealed what he was talking about, I had a horrible tightness in my chest to make me think the worst. "Who's leaving me? Wh-what's going on?"

I watched as Toto carefully swallowed. His eyes were starting to glisten with a sheen of tears, the corners of the whites appearing bloodshot. "There was an accident, Alyssa. I'm so sorry. He was pronounced dead in the car. There was no way to save him, his injuries were just too intense."

"No."

Toto reached a hand out. His fingers were incredibly light on my shoulder to the point where I wouldn't know they were there if I hadn't seen him reach. "You were Max's final breath."