Unexpected Vacation [CL16]

Chapter 10

When we came to the paddock, people were running around and completing their preparations. Delilah was watching people with excitement and telling me something about what they were doing. My mind was still on what happened in the morning and what Charles told me -we'll talk later-. What would we talk about later? I was so confused that I started to wonder if it would be good to come to Singapore. Delilah was driving past their garage taking pictures or giving me her phone to take a picture of her. I think the best part of this situation was that Delilah was very happy right now. The fact that she was enjoying it so much made me a little bit happy. As I approached the front of the Ferrari garage, my nervousness increased. "Irene!" Someone had shouted my name. I thought of the same tone again. I turned and smiled at Charles. "Charles!" I said. He came over and hugged me and kissed me on the cheek. I was red again. Delilah was looking at me with a smile. "How about a tour of the Ferrari garage?" he said. I'm sure Delilah was over the moon with happiness right now. "This is great! Thank you very much Charles, it's been a great experience for us" Delilah said excitedly. He accompanied us into the garage. He was talking about what was going on in the garage. All I noticed was how passionately he was attached to it. He truly adored what he was doing. It made me happy to see him like this. He didn't seem to care about the photos, nor did he care what people had to say. He just seemed to focus on his work. "I'll join you for something at the motorhome, after the media stuff is over" he said. We nodded and entered the motorhome. People started to welcome us with a smiling face and offer us something. There is a fact called Italian warmth, this is true. We took our coffees and went to the balcony. "This must be dream. We are at the Ferrari motorhome." she said. "I am glad that you are happy" I said. Delilah was aware that my mind would occasionally go to the events of the morning, but I didn't want to talk much about it. After sitting in the motorhome for a couple of hours, Charles came over to us. "How is your day going?" he said. "Fantastic" I said. It was getting dark now and he had gone again for a track walk in Charles. The tiredness of the whole day made itself felt. We left the motorhome and started to wander around the paddock a little more. She was talking to the drivers she saw and taking pictures. That's when a message came from Charles.

C: Where are you?

I: We are near the Mclaren motorhome.

C: I'm coming.

I put my phone in my bag and wait for Charles. I noticed that he was walking briskly towards us. He greeted a few people and came over to us. "I hope your day was enjoyable." he said. Delilah stared at him in surprise. "You must be crazy, it was perfect" she said. "Would you care for something to eat?" continued Charles. Delilah looked at me and said, "I'm tired, I think I'll go straight to the hotel and sleep. You go for something to eat" she said. I opened my eyes and looked at her as if to say what are you doing. Delilah just smiled and started walking ahead. "How was your day?" I asked Charles. He looked at me happily. "It was fine, thanks. It was routine" he replied. After arriving at the hotel, I went to the room to change. After I put on something comfortable but stylish and freshen up my make-up, I went back to the lobby. Charles was waiting for me. We arrived at the place where we were going to get in the car and eat. It looked like a very sweet and quiet place. "I hope it's not too rude." He said as he got out of the car. I nodded and got out of the car. We were seated at our reserved table. I was starting to feel even more hungry. After placing our orders, I started to look around. "You look very beautiful" said Charles suddenly. I could feel my color turning red. I looked at him shyly. "Thanks, so you are too" I replied. His compliment was both pleasing and embarrassing. "Charles, sorry about the photos" I said again. He was looking at me in surprise. "I hope I didn't cause you problems with your girlfriend" I continued. His face fell, but he continued to stare, smiling. "It's not the photos, Irene, there's nothing wrong with it actually" he said. I was confused, but I waited for him to continue his speech. "We had problems for a while. I actually felt a distance that I didn't know what caused it." Said. I looked at him sadly. I didn't have the slightest idea what was going on, but it made me sad that he was depressed. "I hope you can solve it" I said. I didn't know what to say. He looked at me shaking his head. "I don't think it's something that can be fixed." He said, "Why?" I replied. He looked at me with a sigh. There was a deep emptiness in his eyes."Actually, I wasn't planning to say this here, but the problem is that I'm in love with someone else" he said. I was staring at him with wide eyes. This was not what I expected. Until a few weeks ago, they seemed so happy on social media, and it never occurred to me that Charles might have fallen in love with someone else. On the other hand, it was disappointing to hear that he was in love with someone else. "Have you fallen in love with someone else? Frankly, I didn't expect that, I thought you were happy." I said. It was like he was confused this time. "Irene, do you really think it's all about what you see on social media?" he said. I could sense the anger in his voice. He seemed to think I had misunderstood something. "Charles, I'm sorry. I just said what I thought." I said. Charles nodded his understanding and took my hand. "Irene, there's something I've been wanting to tell you for a while" he said. I got goosebumps again when I felt his hand on my skin. My heart was starting to beat very fast. I was listening to him without saying a word. "The person I fell in love with...you are" he said. I froze in an instant. All this time I had feelings for him and I had not the slightest idea that my feelings were mutual. My eyes filled with tears and I was looking at him. Was I the problem between them? They broke up because of me, that's all I can think of right now. He looked at me as if waiting for an answer, but I didn't know what to say. "Charles.." was all I could say, and tears began to flow down my face. I was experiencing a sudden surge of emotion. All my stress was running down my face in tears. "I, I don't know what to say" I simply said. He was looking at me worriedly. I didn't want to break the spell of the moment, but I was still in a mess. "I understand" he said, and withdrew his hand. At that moment, I reflexively held his hand back. "No, you misunderstood. I'm just so confused right now" I said. He looked at me in surprise and waited for me to finish my sentence. "I'm surprised because I like you too." I said. He had a smile on his face. Now I only had the thought of what would happen to me.