the pursuit

6 - Settling In

The inside of the Mercedes Formula 1 team headquarters was quiet.

The only sounds being the soft steps of us walking and the hushed conversations of the people we passed.

I couldn't make out their words but by the looks of their peeking glances I could tell I was the odd one out.

This was the third time I had been here. The first being when I signed for the team, and the second being the official tour and welcome to the team.

But this was the first time I came here to work, not to play around for the cameras that filmed me the first two times. Now was the official business. How it was really like to be a working part in the machine this team was.

This was the test to see if the car would run, if the driver would suffice.

Toto and some other people I couldn't remember the names of led me and Ishani down the main hallway. To the right, a row of previous F1 cars lined the floor to ceiling windows. Just looking at them created a nervous feeling in my stomach. I was so close to racing in one. Just a couple of more days and I would get to drive one for real.

I would no longer be the girl wishing, dreaming to drive. I would be the one doing it. I would finally be a driver, and at that, a driver for one of the best teams in the world.

We winded our way through the complex building until we reached the a pair of large double doors. I barely remembered any of the headquarters layout from the past 2 visits, but I did remember that we were slightly close to the main garage where they are making next years car.

Before driving that, for now all I had was the simulator which resided through these doors. Someone pushed them open and the state of the art technology was laid before us.

The simulator was nothing like the one I had at home. Even though I had used simulators like this one in the past the Mercedes one was huge. Part of a fake car was raised above the floor with wires and metal configurations holding it up. Before the car body was a wide screen that spread greatly. Almost wrapping itself around the car in a half moon shape so that it would feel like you were actually driving the car. Behind the whole set up was a separate room filled with a couple go rows of long desks and dozens of computers. It was like a command center that helped control what was going on in the driving chamber.

The man next to Toto, I think Andrew Shovlin, who was an engineer for the team whose role was to get as much out of the car as one could, was the one to break the silence, "Nice isn't it."

That wasn't enough to describe it but I just answered him with, "Yeah."

I was really amazed at the top level technology they were able to create. The car body that you practiced in was able to swerve and tilt in certain directions, just like a real car would.

"Well you'll get to test it out tomorrow. It's too late now to get everything running." Toto said and I checked my watch for the time. It was only around noon, but what the team principle says is what go's.

"Lewis is here as well and I was planning for a team dinner around 5." He continued.

I nodded. "Sounds great. Do I need to be doing anything until then?"

He shrugged and said, "Nothing for today. We rented a house you too can stay at for the time being in the countryside. I sent the details to you, Ishani. And there's a car out front you two can use as well. It should be the one with the note on the windshield. Call me if you have trouble finding it." he paused and rubbed his hands together. "Now I have a meeting in a few." He checked his watch and sighed, as if he lost track of time. "I hate to leave you here like this but I really need to go."

He bade us goodbye and eventually Ishani and I found ourselves retracing our steps back towards the front entrance.

The car was easy to spot, it had a pink sticky note with our names on it saying that only we could drive it. The whole situation was quite casual considering the keys left in the car. They did have a gated entrance to the whole facility so I guess everyone here we could trust.

Claiming our normal spots, I buckled into the drivers side, which was now on the right instead of left, while Ishani sat down on the other side. Even with the unfamiliar positioning, I had driven in the UK plenty of times and now their way of driving didn't faze me.

Ishani ended up pulling directions to the rental house on her phone and she told me the way to the property. We were quite far away, almost 20 minutes of driving on rural roads, until we made it to our destination. It was worth the drive though. The house was nice. Almost like a mini castle as we pulled into the drive, parking in front of the main door. In the car was also the house key so that we could get inside.

Our luggage was previously moved into the Mercedes before we started driving and we grabbed it out of the back. Fumbling with the key, I unlocked the large wooden door. It swung open on squeaky hinges. The inside clean and tastefully furnished except for the thinest layer of dust covering the large space.

After closing the door me and Ishani set down our bags and looked around the house. We discovered that there was a decent sized living room that led to an all-white kitchen, with a dining room facing the front windows. A spiral staircase showed the way to the 4 upstairs bedrooms. We both chose our respective rooms. Mine backing up to a small wooded part of the lot and Ishani's looking out on the front drive.

I ended up hauling my bags up the stairs and settling in to the room. I had a feeling that we would be spending a lot of time in this house during the winter. Which didn't necessarily bother me, if it weren't for the cold lonely feeling I felt as I heard the wind whistle against the thin frosty window panes.

The time leading up to April was going to be filled with tedious work and planning. I just wished I could have some more people to spend it with.

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Kind of a stupid chapter ngl

I promise more interesting stuff starts to happen soon, we just have to get through the boring set up portions :)

also sorry if there are grammar issues I really wanna go to bed, I will check tmr and fix them

jeez I can't believe its been a year since the 2021 season ended

-12/12/22-