Jolie Nana - [Pierre Gasly]

Treinta

Farah turned to her side, looking at her alarm clock that displayed the time of 3:02 A.M. She sighed deeply, not able to find the sleep ever since she went to bed. She had arrived in New York a week ago, and she was preparing for the Christmas break. Her parents were flying in from Atlanta in two days, and they were going to be in New York till after Christmas. Farah had no idea what she was going to do for New Years, but she guessed not much as the semester was starting barely a week after the holidays. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed, getting up and moving towards the windows. She shoved the curtains aside, the sparkling lights of Manhattan visible, the Empire State Building still lit up, and if she squinted her eyes a little, the One World Observatory was there in the back. This is the view she loved for a lifetime, and it reminded her why she always returned to New York. Farah took her phone from the charger, checking some messages she hadn't looked at yesterday. She tapped on the conversation between her and Pierre. The last messages were from a week ago, a day after she came home.

[Pierre]: I'll miss you. But I hope you're happy, I wish you all the best with your study. Save a spot for me when I come to New York?

[To Pierre]: Of course, Pierre. I'll miss you, too.

She had smiled at his text, but there was a certain vibe from the chat that she assumed it took a lot of courage to text this, to send her this message and be able to be happy for her. Which she understood. Farah didn't want to leave the way she had left, but if Pierre had been home from the racing season, there was no way she would have been able to tell him she bought a non-return plane ticket to JFK. She was glad he at least texted her. Farah shook her head, placing her phone on her desk again. Rebecca had yelled at her what the fuck she was thinking when they called a couple of days ago, and honestly, Farah couldn't even answer properly. There was this certain fear that if she couldn't finish her study this year, that she would never make it. And she wanted to work in fashion so dearly, which she had worked so hard for. The FIT would kick her out without a thought if she slacked. No, there is no time to regret or to think about decisions made. Farah and Pierre parted ways in good spirits, and she didn't want to think anything else about it.

Farah closed the curtains, and she went back to bed. She tossed and turned around for a couple of minutes more, before finally finding sleep. Not that she felt well rested the day after. She woke up with a headache and went straight to the bathroom to get some paracetamol and drink a couple of glasses of water. She put her headphones on for some music, getting a cup of coffee in the kitchen. A snowy sunrise in New York was amongst one of the most beautiful things in life, but she didn't appreciate it as much today. Farah tidied up her apartment, spending time cleaning the kitchen, washing the bedsheets, arranging things differently, doing anything to keep her mind from wandering off. She got dressed, went for a walk to get breakfast. She walked past her favourite buildings, enjoyed the business of the city, and then got back to her apartment building. The timezone kept her from bothering other people with her problems, and she was sure she just needed more time to adapt.

Farah had breakfast in her living room, and checked her schedule for the upcoming semester. Pierre had uploaded a post to Instagram that explained that he was busy with Alpha Tauri for the upcoming year, and she scrolled a bit through the comments to see the supportive fans. From his Instagram story, he seemed to be with family in Switzerland. At least one of them was having a good time. Farah looked down at her phone when it started ringing, showing Rebecca's caller ID. "Hi, babe," Rebecca chirped as soon as Farah answered the phone. "I just wanted to ask how you're doing," her friend said. "I'm quite alright," Farah replied. "Getting my apartment ready for when my parents are coming over with Christmas," she added. "That's cute," Rebecca said. "I was about to propose that I could fly over with Tom, but let's not get your apartment that full of people." Farah chuckled. "You can come over after New Years, although the semester is starting ridiculously early," she said. "I know, right?" Rebecca answered. "Alright, honey. Just call me if you need anything," her friend said. "Thank you," Farah replied with a smile.

After the call with Rebecca, Farah grabbed her shoes and went out again to do some groceries. She decided to go for a walk across Broadway and Fifth Avenue, letting the beauty of Christmas in New York distract her. She took a deep breath, repeating the thought that this is what she wanted, and this is what she's going to live through.

But a girl never forgets her first summer love.

"Is everything okay, Pierre?" Pascale Gasly asked her son who sat across her at the dining table in a nice restaurant in Verbier. "You seem a little off," Jean-Jacques Gasly added, agreeing with his wife. "Farah went back to New York," Pierre decided to no longer keep it from them. "Oh, darling. Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Pascale asked, seeing the sad look that immediately moved across his face. "I didn't want it to ruin our family vacation," he replied. "She left before I came home after Abu Dhabi." He explained. "You have to accept she chose her educational future," Pascale stated. "I know, and I do. I just... miss her, and a part of me hoped she would get something done to stay in Milan," Pierre said, taking a sip of his glass of wine. "There are probably some rules attached to that from her university," his mother said. "I know, I know," Pierre whined, causing his parents to chuckle. "You can always go visit her, right?" his father added. Pierre nodded, but there always comes a time when you leave after visiting, and he didn't want to leave her. Like she left him? No, that's not the right way to think about it.

They had texted about a week ago, and there had been no contact ever since. He saw on her Instagram that she had been out for dinner in Manhattan with her parents, and he guessed she will be spending Christmas with them. "Come on, chin up. You dealt with break-ups before," Pascale tried to cheer him up. "Tomorrow is Christmas, and we'll have another great day in the Swiss mountains," his father told him. "You're right," Pierre said, a small smile showing up on his face. They finished the dinner at the restaurant, and went back to the resort they were staying in. It was good to spend time with his family, and he enjoyed it, but at the same time he hated this mood was bringing the general mood of the holidays down. He's going to spend New Years in Milan, some of his friends, including Charles, had booked a VIP lounge in a good club, and they would be there partying till the morning, and he looked forward to just getting his mind off Farah. He had to get over it, get his focus on the upcoming season.

While the Christmas break was about 3 months, his training started as soon as he travelled back to Milan in mid-January. Pyry was currently in Dubai celebrating the holidays as well. Charles and Charlotte were in Mexico with friends. Pierre knew he had to get over it, get his rest in, get his mind-set ready, and he decided to do so. He wasn't going to lie, he was heartbroken when he discovered Farah left before he came back to Milan, and the letter she had written him was still on the kitchen counter where she had left it, and where he had read it after the weekend in Abu Dhabi. Max Verstappen had invited him to his private party in Monaco to celebrate his championship, but Pierre had gently declined. He wasn't in the party mood at all. He didn't know why it felt so awkward, either. They had parted on good terms, it wasn't a nasty break-up at all, but he still felt like he couldn't just call her, like he couldn't just text her. And she apparently felt the same, else she would have texted or called him.

Pierre swirled the wine around in his glass, knowing that the thoughts he had now would fade away, the feelings he had would be gone if he ignored them long enough. The waitress came by their table and brought the bill, to which Pierre drew his wallet to pay for the dinner with his parents. They left the restaurant soon after, pulling on their winter coats and snow boots again. He admired the cold for once. It had been hot and humid in Abu Dhabi, and while Pierre loved traveling after the sun, the snow was good to be in as well. He liked winter sports, and he was glad his parents were here. One of his stepbrothers and his wife would stop by in the upcoming days as well, and he hoped he would manage to shift his thoughts a little. The walk in the fresh air was welcome, even though it took only five minutes to get back to their resort. Pierre told his parents goodnight as he went to his own room. The heater had been on, it was warm inside, and he felt rosy from the wine he had during dinner.

Pierre stripped from his clothing and brushed his teeth before heading to bed, taking his phone in his hand to check some last notifications. He liked a couple of posts on Instagram, then finding himself searching for Farah's profile. There's nothing new on it, only the location pin in her bio changed to NYC. The amount of followers barely changed, and he assumed she had left her profile on private, which they had talked about when they went public in Qatar. Her profile picture was still a picture of them together in his pit box. Pierre shook his head, setting an alarm for the next day as he placed his phone on the nightstand, turning his back to it to let it rest.