lemon and mint | Charles Leclerc

1.

May 2011

It was a hot and sunny day in Italian Sarno. It was no wonder when it was the last weekend of May. Summer holidays were around the corner, and everyone could feel that. Kids were begging their parents for a euro to buy ice cream, and streets were slowly filling with tourists.

Pia was enjoying the view of the track. It wasn't her first time there. Actually, she knew Sarno as much as her hometown at this point. Her dad used to bring her all around Italy to see any kinds of races. For Pia, it was fun. She was wandering around the track and occasionally spoke with some girl or boy her age. Her dad, on the other side, was there because of his job. He was looking for potential talents he could take under his wing and be their manager in the future. He'd love to bring Pia to events outside of Italy, but he was fully aware that his wife, Pia's mother, wouldn't support it.

"Yeah, Max's doing incredibly good. I can't wait to see him in formula one day." Pia overheard a conversation between her dad and some other Dutchman. They were looking like close friends to Pia. She'd even swear that she saw that man a couple of times before, but she couldn't remember where.

"Trust me, it's gonna be soon, Jos. He has tremendous talent. It's in his genes, after all." Her dad was convinced that Max would be successful in motorsport. He actually thought that he would overcome his father.

"True that. What about your genes, Thonie? Do you regret not putting Pia into karting?" Even though Pia loved to watch racing, she wouldn't like to be a driver. She went karting a couple of times and enjoyed that dearly, but she couldn't imagine racing every weekend. It was just fun for her.

"Gianna wouldn't let her anyway, and I think neither would I. She's my little girl." Anthonie glanced at his daughter. He knew he wouldn't let her risk her life in races in future. There was no way he would let that petite, cute girl with freckles and an honest smile race.

"Well, I put Victoria to karting anyway, but she doesn't seem to inherit any talent. I even doubt that child is mine." Jos said spitefully.

Pia judged that she heard more than enough from this conversation and decided to continue wandering through the paddock. Her mind was full of that Dutchman talking to her father. He seemed so wicked. Thanks to her head in the clouds, she bumped into a boy her age.

"I'm sorry." She whispered embarrassedly. Her English was almost flawless, thanks to her dad. Nowadays, he rarely used Dutch. At home, they were speaking in English or Italian, but more English, because her father struggled a bit with vocabulary in Italian. Pia was always begging him to talk to her in Dutch because she wanted to know the language. Also, she still remembered how her grandma complained to Anthonie that she couldn't speak Dutch. You shouldn't have married this Italian bitch. Even her child is the same failure as she is. Pia wanted to prove that old witch wrong not only for herself but also for her mother.

"That's okay. You're Pia, right?" He surprised her both by knowing her name and speaking Dutch. How did he know her?

"Yeah. I'm sorry, but I don't think I happen to know your name." Pia excused herself. That boy was familiar, but she just couldn't put a name on his face.

"You don't know me?" He surprisedly asked.

"No? Should I?" Her hair was moving back and forth thanks to the light breeze. It was making this hot weather a bit more bearable.

"Well, your dad is talking to mine, so I just thought you'd know me." He secretly hoped she noticed him just like he noticed her. He looked at her throughout the whole weekend, trying to get the courage to approach her. And now, when he was finally talking to her, all that he could blurt out was: you don't know me?