It's never as it seems [Lando Norris]

Chapter 8

A sigh leaves Emilia's lips when she sees that Lando asked her an hour ago if she was able to facetime. The last few weeks have been hectic for both of them with work, and they haven't been able to spend some proper time together since that party weekend. Now that she thinks of it, they've probably been on two dates in the last six weeks, and they've seen each other four times in total. They kept in contact by texting, calling, or facetiming but it wasn't the same and it made her a little anxious. What if the feelings she has, disappear because of the inability to spend time together? It has happened to her before, and she was sure that it happened to Lando before as well. She really wanted to make this work because she hadn't felt like this in a long time, but what if it's already over before it properly started?

The ringtone of her phone breaks the silence, and she smiles when Lando's face pops up on her screen. "Hey!" she says excitedly, blushing when he replies with "hey baby." She moves towards her lounge chair, plopping down while listening to Lando's rambling about the past weekend. "I'm so proud of you! I managed to watch Q3 of quali and I watched the whole race. You did amazing" she tells him, smiling back when he smiles brightly at her. "Thanks love. By the way, did Max mention anything about our holiday to you?" Lando asks, humming when she tells him that he hasn't said anything about that to her. "Figured he wouldn't. I wanted to ask you if you want to come with us? We're going away for a week and a half with the boys and they're bringing their girls... so I wanted to bring you" he blushes with a shy smile, his face brightening up when Emilia nods excitedly. "I would love to! When and where are we going?"

A few days and a lot of stress later they're on the plane, on their way to the holiday destination. Emilia is in the middle of Max and Lando, giggling at a video that the latter is showing her. "Do the others know about the two of you?" Max asks suddenly, leaning towards Lando and Emilia who shake their heads. "Why not?" he asks, furrowing his brows when Emilia shrugs while Lando scratches his neck. "I just uhm, haven't found a moment" Lando answers eventually, blushing when Max makes a "dude, really" face at him. Emilia fiddles with her fingers, not really sure what to feel about Lando's answer to Max. Maybe he isn't as serious about her as she thought he was? Her destructive thoughts get interrupted when she suddenly feels a warm hand pulling her fingers apart softly. She watches how Lando intertwines their fingers slowly, smiling softly at her when she looks at him with an unreadable expression. "I can see you worrying, you don't have to" he whispers, pressing a soft kiss on her cheek before asking if she wants to watch a movie.

"This place is insane!" Max exclaims while he walks through the rented vacation home. "I know!" Emilia replies, clapping her hands excitedly when she sees the view from their open space living area. She smiles at Tom who steps next to her, pointing towards a big green spot on the horizon. "Did you know that's one of my favourite golf courses?" she asks, humming when he looks at her. "It's so cool, you have an insane view over the beach and ocean. We should go there someday this week!" she tells him, grinning when he nods excitedly. "Maybe tomorrow. I think we need to do boring stuff like grocery shopping and unpacking today" he replies, rolling his eyes while he says it. Emilia chuckles, patting his back before walking towards the kitchen where the others are. "Who wants to go bulk grocery shopping? I don't, so don't pick me" Oliver, Lando's brother, says with a laugh. "I don't mind going" Emilia answers, a blush covering her cheeks when Lando immediately says that he will join her. Oliver looks at him with a confused expression, about to ask why he suddenly wants to grocery shop when Max says that he and Tom will join too.

Emilia takes the right spot of the backseat, smiling when Lando sits down on the other side of the car. Max takes the driver's seat, telling Tom to connect his phone for some music while he looks at the navigation system of the rental car. "Alright, grocery shop, here we come" he says when he figured it out, starting the engine while Tom asks for song suggestions to put in the wait list of his Spotify. Lando shifts in his seat, leaning towards Emilia a little more before putting his hand with its palm up on the seat that separates the two of them. She smiles at him, putting her hand in his before he intertwines them. Max and Tom are chatting loudly at the front, laughing at each other's stupid jokes while Lando and Emilia talk softly. "What are you most excited about this vacation?" Emilia asks, leaning her head against the headrest, looking at Lando's side profile while he looks outside, thinking about his answer. "Being with you, spending time with my friends, relaxing" he sums up, looking at her with a smile when she hums. "You?" he asks, chuckling when she answers the exact same answer with a cheeky smile.