Crash and Burn

Chapter Eleven

If there is one thing she hates about race weekends, it's Thursday. Media day means that Charles will be spending all day with Mia, his PR manager, and that Emily won't get much time with him. She usually tries to visit whichever city they are in, do a bit of sightseeing or shopping, but the streets of Baku, Azerbaïdjan, are packed and she feels too jet-lagged to enjoy going out on her own.

Since Pierre couldn't get her a pass for AlphaTauri in such short timing, she's hiding in the Scuderia's hospitality with Isa, Carlos' girlfriend, catching her up on everything that has happened in the last few months. She missed spending time with the sweet Spanish girl, and she knows she can count on her to get her through this weekend. The two Ferrari teammates have been busy all morning, doing an interview for SkySports with Natalie Pinkham and then shooting a video for Ferrari's Youtube account. So, in the meantime, Isabel and her are enjoying lunch in the warm weather, in a little area behind the paddock where several stands have been set up for the teams. It's nice to see people blending with each other, even though it's only for an hour or two. Tomorrow, free practices will start and the competition will be back in full force.

Isabel and her are in deep conversation about their summer plans when Charles and Carlos approach their table, closely followed by Luisa and Lando.

"Look at you! Who knew British guys could get so tanned?" she teases the McLaren driver as he flops down next to her.

"Shut up," he retorts, an amused smile on his face. "How are you feeling?"

"Still got a couple of bruises, but I finally kissed goodbye to those awful crutches!"

"That's great news! You scared us," Luisa sighs.

"I didn't think you'd be here this weekend," says Carlos as he digs into his plate.

"What?"

"Yeah, I mean, Charles said you were quite busy with work lately, and that you weren't really interested in seeing us drive around in circles."

If she'd been drinking, she would have spit it all out. Instead, her jaw goes slack and she freezes. Lando and Luisa share a look, but Charles, who's sitting on the other side of the table, looks real focused in his meal, looking at everything but her.

"Well, I wouldn't trust everything he says," she shrugs. "He's full of shit."

"Huh... right," Carlos hesitates as the tension builds around them. "Anyway, it's good that you're back. He's annoying when you're not around."

Isa winces at her boyfriend's words but it's pretty clear he doesn't know.

"Shouldn't have broken up with her then," Lando growls.

And there it is: Lando Norris, the King of spoilers, the Tom Holland of F1.

"Lando!" Luisa scolds, but it's too late and silence falls around the table.

"Wait... You're not together anymore?" Carlos asks as he looks at her and Charles in turns.

Charles keeps his head down, and Emily exhales sharply. Again, it's on her to explain the truth.

"It's a long story, one I did not want to share," she offers as she glares at the McLaren driver who's red from embarrassment. "But yeah, it's been a few months now."

Carlos's eyes widen, but thankfully, Isa changes the topic quickly, asking Luisa about her recent holidays. The conversation starts up again, albeit awkwardly, and Emily does her best to ignore the way Carlos looks at her with worry and sadness. She's pretty sure Isabel will tell him everything once they're alone, and Emily doesn't feel like explaining to people the ins and outs of her complicated history with Charles Leclerc.