Roman Profile • Daniel Ricciardo

Waiting In The Wings

Sunday, January 17th, 2021

In the time that it takes for the rest of the group to make it out of the restaurant and find their way down the street to where you, the three fans and he waited, congregating in front of the unmistakable red and white racing stripe of Charles's Ferrari, Daniel had come to three conclusions.

First and foremost, he was reasonably well convinced that what was taking everyone so long to get the bill paid had less to do with the price of dinner or method of payment, and had everything to whatever Max had or had not started with the hostess, the complications of which Daniel highly doubted weren't directly impacted by his friend's knowledge that once he made it outside, the journey from where he was to whenever it was he wanted to be was entirely impeded by whatever it was that the two of you had waiting for him up your collective sleeve.

Secondly, Daniel had abandoned his attempt to try and keep track of how many photos were being taken and of whom nearly as quickly as he'd given up on getting a word in edgewise. He'd long since resigned himself to the fact that between you and the three sisters, all of whom had grown out of their shyness and into their voices in the matter of minutes, it was best if he just did as he was told and kept his contributions to the conversation to a minimum.

And in third place, last but not least, was that if he had his way, he would never go back to how it had been before because regardless of how naturally extroverted he was or how easily everyone assumed it came to him, now that he'd had a taste of how much simpler things could be when he wasn't going at them alone. Daniel was already considering putting a clause in the fine print of every contract he signed from here on out, ensuring that if he wanted you to be his middle man, to be his buffer between himself and everyone else, then it was the legally binding obligation of the other party to make sure it happened.

The very idea of it, of calling up the ridiculously expensive lawyer he kept on retainer, something he had learned he should do somewhere after the second or third installment of his Red Bull contract, to ask her to include a request like that wherever she could find a place for it in the latest rendition of his negotiations with McLaren, was more than enough to make Daniel actually chuckle quietly to himself. Briefly, he permitted himself to enjoy the idea, while also resolutely refusing to let himself actually cling to the hope for any longer than it took for the fleeting temptation to become real enough that he could imagine a future in which it existed.

As quickly as the thought had occurred to Daniel, he let it go, forcing himself to tear himself free of his head and turn his attention back to where it had been before, the struggle of the endeavor made all the easier by the sudden arrival of Charles, Max, Pierre and your friend. Their presence was already affecting the dynamic that had been established when he'd gotten lost in his head so that what he was coming back to and what he had left behind were such entirely different things that it was impossibly easy for him to hang back.

He was all too content to watch from the wings while everyone else took center stage, a happy bystander to the chaos as you were apparently leading the efforts to introduce Max to the eldest of the trio of fans with varying degrees of success, while the remainder of the group talked amongst themselves.

It was only once Pierre and your friend made their excuses and said their goodbyes, that Charles appeared at his side, striking up a conversation that he had no choice but to take part in, wasn't distracting enough that Daniel failed to take note of the look you leveled at your friend, making it abundantly clear to her through the exchanged glance alone that you hadn't bought her explanation for why the two were leaving alone for a single second, and that you'd be expecting the real reason at a later date.

Only once the pair finally departed, heading back the way they came, in the direction of the restaurant, and he could no longer see their figures walking so closely that their shoulders and coat sleeves took turns bumping against one another, did Daniel at least turn attention fully on the discussion at hand. Because he had no idea what Charles was talking about, he simply waited until the next break in the conversation before striking.