Heureux - Charles Leclerc

2

🎵 Pursuit Of Happiness (Nightmare) - Kid Cudi

Wednesday morning my alarm goes off but I'm already awake, sitting at my kitchen island with the first of many coffees I plan to have today. I take my time getting ready, just putting on some light makeup and giving my hair a loose curl. I picked out my outfit last night, black dress pants with a pair of matching shiny black heels. I struggled to choose between two tops but I ultimately went with fitted steel grey, quarter-length blouse. To complete my outfit I put on my white watch, a pair of silver hoops, and my black purse, just big enough to fit a folder with my CV in it. Wishful thinking but better to be over-prepared than under-prepared.

My uncle Cliff picked me up just before 5:45 am and boarded the 6:15 train to London, and quickly found our seats. "I know we briefly went over this, and you sent me an email, but  for my own peace of mind, what does our day look like?" I asked my uncle, twisting the ring on my thumb. A bad habit I have whenever I begin to feel anxious or stressed or nervous. "The whole event is prepared and led by McLaren, they'll have a variety of topics like Marketing and Communication, Engineering Standards, and their different levels of Management. Rose Jensen is the Head of Communications at McLaren, she's leading a talk about her responsibilities with the team." He paused

"She's the one I want to talk to, I think if I can chat with her, even for 5 minutes - no 3 minutes, she can hopefully allow me to get some insight into what I can do to break into F1. Or tell me to get lost, one of the two for sure. What are you going to do while I'm in there?" I questioned sipping my coffee, second of the day but who's counting, and looking out the window, watching the country fly by in a blur.

"I'm going to catch up with some of the guys from my days in the garage, maybe grab some breakfast and then I'll meet you after the talk is over. Then I thought we'd pop into a shop or two and grab some stuff for next weekend."

"What's happening next weekend? I thought you had to work" I questioned him, he was supposed to be working a race next weekend.

"Oh, right well your favorite uncle" he went on"my only uncle" I interrupted and he rolled his eyes "regardless, we got you this as a little congratulations on finish school, we both know it was hard without your mum but she would be so proud of you." I looked up at him, tears pooling in my eyes. I've always known that they have seen how hard I've worked, but to hear Cliff say it makes me feel seen and almost validates the times I've been at my lowest and times when I had to struggle to get through.

He pulled a paddock pass out of his jacket and slid it across the top of the table between us "Barcelona here we come!" I stared at it in shock, I love going to races, throughout school I tried to go as often as possible but I only made it to one or two Sundays a year. "I...I don't even know what to say... I, um, Cliff thank you." I looked at him and back down at the pass. "I cannot put say how much I appreciate it." I smiled, the lingering tear finally falling. He held my hand in his and grinned, eventually picking up his book. I started at that pass the rest of the way to London, making sure to slide it in with my CV to protect it.

We got off at Kings Cross and made a beeline to the nearest coffee shop inside the station. Walking outside, the morning air was refreshing, not too cold but just enough to be able to enjoy a hot coffee. Traffic whirled around us, car horns blaring and a distinct smell of cigarettes giving me a bizarre feeling of excitement. Excitement for what today would bring me and how I am finally making concrete steps toward being in F1, being in the center of it all, and really living the life I imagine for myself.

Snapping out of my thoughts, we caught a car to the business sector of London. Walking into the towering building gave me a reality check into just how small I am, where I am starting in this world, and what can go wrong today. Nope, not going there right now, instead, I think about all the things that can go right today and push everything else to the back of my mind.  I walked with my uncle through the revolving door into the building,  I was immediately blinded by a sea of orange that flooded the lobby of the building. Looking into the crowd, you could make some guesses as to who works in what sector of the race team, the orange work shirts vs the three-piece suit and ties vs the heels and jackets. Walking past, with an entourage of people, was Zach Brown, the Team Principle, and the two drivers for McLaren; Daniel Riccardo and Lando Norris. Following them, I guessed was Rose Jensen, she was the Head of Communications and Marketing at McLaren. Kat Bradford, and Mia Scott, PR Managers for the drivers, walked not far behind. Or as I like to refer to them, the badass women in charge of the driver's interactions with media. But Rose was the one I wanted to talk to, she was leading the seminar today, and I was well aware that she had the most power when it comes to PR with the team 

My uncle directed us over to the table on the left side of the lobby," Mr. Windon and my niece, here for Ms.Bradford's seminar at 11:00 am." My uncle told the guys standing behind the table  "Alrighty, here is the agenda and information packet you requested for the Marketing and Communications sector. Enjoy." We thanked him and made our way over to one of the doors leading to a large conference space. I told my uncle I would meet him out front in an hour or so and walked through the door. The room was a lot smaller than I had pictured but I guessed it would mean a more intimate seminar. I placed myself in an aisle chair near the middle of the room and pulled out a smaller pocket notebook so I could subtly take notes. I took a spot in the middle of the seats and waited for Rose Jensen to begin.