Spotlight

02

"Max turn more to the right"
"Emmy will you please take at least a step closer to max?" The thirty something-year old woman dressed in black slacks and a white t-shirt asked in an almost pleading voice, pinching the bridge of her nose and letting out an exasperated sigh at our stubborn and hostile behavior.

I bit the inside of my cheek and huffed before taking the smallest step closer to Max whom stood on my left side with his right arm hovering behind my back, trying to create an illusion of him side hugging me with a smile plastered on his face. I'm rather sure we looked like siblings being forced to take first day of school pictures more than f1 drivers posing for campaign pictures. The forced close proximity between Max and I made the hairs on my neck stand stiffer than my legs, and with how uncomfortable I felt that is saying something. We had been standing for hours and my entire body had started to ache.

We were at RedBull photography center currently being photographed in front of a big green screen with tons of ungodly expensive light and sound equipment. Equipment that I had been tripping over and cursing out for the entirety of the day. Along with the crazy expensive equipment came tons of different chords and cables for my clumsy ass to trip over.

My mood of the day was mainly made up of annoyance and frustration. I was running on low sleep and ever lower amounts of food. RedBull wanted to be able to hit the start running at the beginning of the upcoming season so I had been training in the sim for four hours a day, physically three hours and theoretically about two to four additional hours. The hectic schedule left barley enough time to get enough sleep, not sparing time for meals. Hence why I had been running on protein shakes and green apples for the past week.

The frustration in the room was so tangible I could almost taste it as it radiated from any and every direction. Max and I hated each other but the RB pr team wanted us to pretend to be best mates, I'd rather pluck out my own eyeballs. Seeing as Max's broken relationships with his former teammate had prompted Perez's decision of retiring, the team wanted to make sure that the media would not get as much as a wiff of mine and Max's iffy relationship.

As we stood under the bright lights, trying our best to look as non-suffering as possible Max and I were supposed to be looking all teamed up and friend-like but with the start we had gotten I would have rather been photographed with my middle school math teacher and let me tell you she was a real bitch. Fucking Susan.

***

I was walking into the big modern photography studio in my normal clothes, baggy light washed jeans that were slightly worn and a t-shirt from my own merch-line, because why not? free advertisement for the line and free clothes for me. My eyes were scanning the entrance room for any signs as to where I was supposed to go when somebody walked right into me making me stumble back and frown.

"Watch out"
He muttered with a slight accent, grabbing me by the shoulders to stabilize me, taking a look at me before slightly pushing me back eyes glaring at me full of disgust. As if the realization of  whom he had grabbed had burned him.

"Yeah no worries it's totally fine that you walked straight into me" I ranted before looking up at him, my eyes going wide as we locked eyes. I had come face to face with Max motherfucking Verstappen.

"Are you even allowed to actually be in here? I'm not interested in signing any photos today" He asked in a condescending tone before shaking his head and walking off, talking to me in a manner that insinuated that I was some eager fan that he had no relation to rather than his new teammate.

"Fucking asshole" I muttered before dusting my shirt off and continuing my search for any sign of direction.

We both were very well aware who each other were; we had raced against each other during a few occasions as kids. With that said we never really got along- and it seemed that he had not let anything go since junior karting. He and his disgusting piece of shit father had always been haters of mine.

***
"If your hand gets any lower I will literally throat punch you you anchovy reeking ass"
I grabbed his hand that had been too low for my liking and hitched it up to above my mid back. I gave him a side glare before plastering a cheesy grin on my face and turning it towards the camera, flipping my head in a petty way that would make my hair smack his face.

"She just threatened to physically harm me!" Max exclaimed loudly in a whiny voice, his accent making him sound like a twelve year old boy. When he got no response to his yell for help he simply repeated himsef, only this time he was basically yelling- exaggerating every syllable of every word, making me wince as his voice echoed through my ears.
"Hello I said she just threatened to lay hands on me "

"Max I don't care- just look at the camera and smile for fucks sake" Christian grumbled clearly annoyed with our progress- or rather lack off. He sat by a table e few feet away with his head in his hands mumbling curses and occasional prayers. Max and I had been bickering back and fourth the entire time and he had had to break up several verbal altercations that would have otherwise ended up with me punching Max.

We had been stuck in the same place for three hours, still not having a decent picture. At least one of us was clearly unhappy in every single shot and at this point almost everyone was frustrated and fed up. Either Max looked grumpy or bored or I looked disgusted or annoyed.

"Can you not just take a picture of me and photo shop him into it?" I groaned taking a big step away from Max and frustratedly throwing my arms out. Feeling every bit of the grumpy teenager Max had set to make me out to seem like.

Christian's head shot up as he looked at the photographers and directors with a hopeful expression.
"Well that could work but we most likely won't be able to have them look like their standing very close without it looking.. well photoshopped" the head director said. I greatly doubted that anyone would mind just as long as we got any decent picture out of that tiring and repetitive day.

"You know what I'll take it, Max go sit over there and we will take your photo later. " Horner stated, dragging a hand over his face before pointing from Verstappen to the corner of the room where a small stool was placed.

I could not help but snort at the fact that Max Verstappen- Champion of the world literally just got put in the corner by his boss. Earning a glare from said driver I quickly made a half-assed attempt at covering it up by placing a hand I front of my mouth and coughing. Not that I cared much to fake it.

***