Montero - Toto Wolff [un-edited]

17: ER

Ryan laid sprawled across the back seats of Toto Wolff's Mercedes-Amg company vehicle with her hair plastered to her forehead with sweat.

"If she's having a bad reaction, why aren't I?" You asked, holding the damp cloth to her neck, "We smoked the same stuff,"

Beneath your touch, Ryan stirred in agony, her groans of pain filling the plush interior of the luxury vehicle whilst Toto drove through the city. He had both hands on the wheel and refused to get distracted from trying to drive there as quickly as he could.

"I called Daniel," Toto played with the words on his tongue before turning the wheel into the general direction of the Paddock. What he said hung in the air like a stale scent - unwelcome and callous - and Ryan hadn't even registered it.

She turned so that she could hold your gaze, "I think I'm pregnant," her words slammed into you, seeping into that dark part of your mind that you hated wandering into, and you made her get up off your lap.

"I need some air," You gulped in the fresh stream of city air from the now opened windows, and felt your hair whipping you in the face, "I need a cigarette,"

His eyes reflected yours in the rear view mirror, warning you with his eyes whilst Ryan passed you along her pack of Marlboro's. It was something you had never intended to keep up, yet here you were, lighting up a stick of dried leaves in the hopes of filling the void.

The car stopped just outside the emergency entrance, and you were the first to jump out, taking the pack of cigarettes with you and finding a spot to slouch down in whilst Toto helped Ryan into the ER.

You couldn't believe her carelessness. Sure, she was having sex, as were you, but the key difference was that you weren't driving at upwards of two hundred miles per hour with nineteen other blithering idiots who did the same. It was complete nonsense that she'd put herself in this position - she never spoke about wanting children either.

And now she was carrying a child, apparently. Getting high whilst pregnant too.

God.

You hadn't even realised you were crying until a familiar Australian sat beside you, taking the cigarette from your fingers and snuffing it out in the mud.

"Toto called." He started, plucking some of the grass that had grown through the paving.

You sniffed, looking away from him so as to not let him see you upset, "I heard." You cut off the opportunity of conversation - Daniel letting out a sigh from beside you.

His hands were shaking, "Just talk to me," he begged, and stuffed his hands between his thighs.

"I don't know what to say!" You raised your voice, "quite possibly the only person I consider a close friend, told me she might be pregnant - congratulations, by the way - and I am so unbelievably angry."

Daniel stood to his feet, "What do you mean 'she might be pregnant' and why are you angry?" he asked you, tearing his hands through his hair before squatting down.

"Well, she looked at me, high out of her mind - Also I'm high right now so I don't know if this is making any sense - but she told me she was pregnant." You rambled, standing up yourself and offering Daniel a cigarette before lighting one for yourself.

He placed his between his lips and lit it, "Why are you angry?" he asked again, this time weighing your shoulder down with his large hands.

"Because I am, okay?" the words burned your throat, "I hope, for the sake of Ryan and whatever burden she carries, that she gets rid of it."

Daniel laughed, "Fuck," he breathed out all the smoke that had accumulated in his lungs, "You can't say that,"

"I can say whatever I want to, Daniel, I don't think you understand how serious this is," You cursed and found Toto stepping out into the night, his head snapping from side to side whilst he tried to find you.

When his eyes locked onto the pair of yours, he started dashing toward you, fists clenched at his side as he passed you and grabbed Daniel, pinning him into the wall.

"You're going to listen when I tell you this Ricciardo," He warned, "Ryan needs to have a very serious talk with you, and you are going to be serious for her. If you aren't, they're never going to find your body." he ignored your appearance and carried on gripping the Aussie, "Do I make myself clear?"

Rather than watching the little show the pair were putting on, you turned your back, hiding your own upset at how close to the bone this whole thing cut, and let your upset flow freely.

You wrapped your arms around yourself and took in a deep shaky breath, face wet from emotion as a hand planted itself on your back, "Come here," he spoke in barely a whisper whilst Daniel sulked into the sanitary hospital.

Toto's arms wrapped around you comfortably, as though you were made to measure right around his grip, his shirt was soft against your cheek.

You felt his heart beating strong against your cheek and steady in its rhythm, "Let's go get something to eat," he mused and somehow moulded you around him so that he could lead you effortlessly toward the hospital cafeteria.

-

When you had sat down, Toto insisted he paid for the food, as it fit the criteria for a 'proper' date - in his words, not yours - and he was now bringing two drinks over to you, yours had whipped cream on top with a flake wedged deep inside.

He slid your drink across to you, eyes trailing his own movements until he dared to look up and meet your eyes. Mascara stains lined the breast of his shirt like intricate butterflies woven into the fabric, "How are you feeling?" his words were barely spoken as his actions heavily implied it.

"Tired," you truthfully told him, "I wanted this date to go well, not have as many..."

Where you struggled to find the words, Toto was already offering them back across to you, "interruptions," he took a sip from his drink, "I know, I promise we'll have a better date in France,"

"France?" You laughed, "I'll have to wait that long?"

Opposite you, he laughed, fingertips brushing yours as he nursed the hot drink in his grip. Steam rose from the liquid like a ghost of the hospital, and dissipated into the sterile room.

His gaze returned to yours, "I could find an excuse to take you to a meeting in Cranfield," he mused.

"It's a deal," You smiled and allowed yourself to extend your grasp around his hands.

Daniel plopped into the seat next to you, Toto springing away from you and you examining your fingers awkwardly to mask the fact you had been holding hands.

The Aussie pinched the bridge of his nose, "She's not pregnant," he announced rather solemnly, "Bad news is she's sick,"

"With what?" You asked. Hundreds of sicknesses ran through your mind like an encyclopaedia as you tried to diagnose your friend with the most suitable illness.

Daniel just slumped back into his chair, "Some stomach bug, probably something she ate," he told the pair of you whilst you sipped your drinks awkwardly.

You sighed, half with relief and half with exhaustion, "I just want to go back to my hotel and sleep until my flight in the morning," you groaned, wrapping your arms around yourself as your skin cooled in the hospital.

"I'll drive you back," Toto declared and finished his drink quickly.

You looked at Daniel to see if he'd be joining you, but instead he was already gone, like a figment of your imagination as he disappeared into the depths of the hospital seeking out his lover.