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March 2015 - Toulouse, France

Bienvenue à Toulouse the sign read as I walked off the plane. I found my way to the baggage claim and picked up my bags. The evening air was accompanied by a nice breeze as I walked out to the taxi lane, where I was told someone would be waiting for me. I spotted a chauffeur holding a sign with my name on it and walked over to him. "Bonjour." I greeted him with a grin. He recognized me and returned the smile politely.

"Bonjour Mademoiselle Sommer. Je m'appelle Marc, je peux prendre vos bagages." He offered. I let him take my bags and got into the back of the car. We made a bit of small talk until we arrived at a quaint hotel in the middle of Toulouse. Marc brought my bags up to my room before wishing me a good night and saying that he'd pick me up at 8 am the next morning. I thanked him and he left, leaving me in the room I'd be living in for the next few weeks. I did a little bit of unpacking but I soon got bored and decided to call Pierre.

"Salut, ca va?" He picked up on the second ring.

"English, please." I groaned.

"Chouchou." He started, using his favorite nickname for me. "If you want to survive in France you're going to have to speak French. Either way, how is it so far?"

"Well, I've seen the airport and my hotel, so pretty standard so far." I joked. "My chauffeur was nice."

"You're excited though?"

"Oh of course! I get to drive a Formula Renault car for the first time this week, that's life-changing." My lips curled into a smile as I thought about the future event.

He paused. "Good. By the way, you have to get Anthoine to show you around Toulouse."

"Assuming we get on well." I hesitated.

"Of course you will!" Pierre exclaimed. "I've been talking you up to him as much as I've been talking him up to you."

I rolled my eyes with a chuckle. "Great, now the expectations are too high." We continued to chat for a while before we both had to go to bed.

"Let me know how tomorrow goes, yeah?" He requested.

"Yes, of course," I assured him. "Goodnight, Pierre."

"Bonne nuit, Becca."

——

The next morning I woke up at about 7 to get ready for the day. I took a quick shower and french-braided my hair to keep it back for the day, then put on a simple pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. I finished my casual look off with some simple gold jewelry, a pair of chelsea boots, and my bag. By that point, it was about 7:55 so I went downstairs to wait for Marc. He pulled up promptly around 8, and we drove through the city and a bit of the countryside until we reached the Tech 1 headquarters.

"Merci Marc, à bientôt." I thanked the driver when he dropped me off in front of the building. I looked around the small campus and saw a man walking towards me from the car park. He waved at me, and I raised an eyebrow.

"You must be Becca!" He exclaimed when he got closer, his French accent thick. "I am Anthoine!" The confusion left my face and I smiled as I greeted my new teammate and he pulled me into a hug, a surprise to me.

"Oh, it is so nice to finally meet you! Pierre has told me so much about you." I gushed.

Anthoine beamed, and his smile was so warm it was contagious. "What is the saying...ditto! Have you gotten breakfast yet?" He asked, and I shook my head. "Would you like to chat over some food then, and then I can give you a tour?"

I nodded. "That actually sounds wonderful, yeah! I don't exactly know my schedule for the day, so I guess whoever does can just come to find me."

Anthoine chuckled and we walked to the cafeteria, where we each got some breakfast and sat down to chat. He really was just like Pierre had talked about- cheerful yet calm, and the most positive, warm energy that made me feel so welcomed. As promised he gave me a tour of the small, yet full facility. Eventually, we made it around the back, where a small test track and the garages were.