Against You

Oscar

Oscar POV

It was raining that afternoon.

I threw the curtain of my portable tent garage closed behind me and ran to the furthest corner. I slumped down, under a table covered in wheel gun parts, and buried my face in my hands. I would not cry. I absolutely could not cry.

Footsteps followed me into the room, barely audible over the rain on the plastic roof. They were light, just like my own, and uncertain.

"Oscar?" a voice called out.

I clamped my hands over my mouth and noise to avoid making a sound, but the footsteps just grew closer. They stopped behind the table, then the figure crouched down.

"Oscar?" Lando Norris stared back at me. "Are you okay?"

I shook my head, the lump in my throat threatening tears into my eyes. He knelt beside me, right on the floor of my garage, and put his arm around my shoulders.

"It's okay," he whispered, pulling me into his shoulder. "It's not your fault."

"It is!" I choked, releasing my hands. "I crashed, I didn't use the right settings on the car and I locked up."

"Everyone makes mistakes," Lando whispered. "You're not the first and you won't be the last."

"I could have won the race!"

"And you will win, one day. But today was a learning day."

I gulped deep breaths, desperately trying to keep the sobs inside. I swiped tears from my eyes. What kind of driver was I, crying on the floor in front of my friend? I looked him in the eyes and stood up out of his embrace.

"Sorry," I said hastily. "I don't know what's wrong with me."

"There's nothing wrong with you," he stood up after me. "It's a normal reaction."

"Have you ever cried after a race?"

Lando smiled slightly and toed the floor. "Loads, actually."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I'm an emotional person. I cry when I'm sad, happy, excited, nervous, scared..."

"You're such a wimp," I chuckled. Lando looked at me, shocked, but then his face softened into a shy smile.

"And you're a brilliant driver. Just have patience, everything will come."

I took a final deep breath to steady myself and clapped my hands together a couple of times to warm them up. I nodded.

"Thanks, Lando."

"No problem, mate."

I smiled slightly and we stood in the cold garage for a moment longer. Then Lando suggested we go for lunch.

"What about your parents?" I asked.

"They're out doing something... I don't know. They always like to network after my races. It's so boring."

"Where could we go?"

"I know a place right by the track. We could be back whenever, do you have a phone?"

I nodded and we gathered our things before leaving the paddock together. Lando grabbed a huge umbrella from his garage, big enough to fit five kids underneath, and our trainers splashed on the wet ground. It was the first time I'd gone anywhere in England without an adult. Of course Lando was older and more local, but my heart still pounded as we walked along a country road until a red stone pub loomed in a copse of trees.

"How are you feeling?" he asked as we reached the door. "Any better?"

"You've definitely distracted me," I chuckled as Lando struggled to close the umbrella. "But are you sure your parents won't be angry?"

Lando shrugged. "I won the race, so I should get a free pass."

My face fell.

"I mean... I'll protect you," he amended. "Were your teammates really angry after the crash?"

"Kind of..." I mumbled.

A waitress showed us to a table by the window and Lando ordered himself some milk. I took a look at the menu before getting a cola. My heart rate was beginning to settle as I looked around the cosy pub with photos crowding every wall.

"Your team shouldn't be angry at you. They need to understand that you're just a kid. You're still learning."

"Hey, you're a kid too!"

"Not as small as you."

"Well you definitely don't look fifteen years old."

Lando pouted, making him look even younger. I spluttered on my drink which only made him angrier.

"I don't know why I brought you here..."

"To cheer me up," I smiled. "And it's working."

Our food arrived next and I ate it gratefully. It was only when I was already halfway done that I realised I didn't have any money with me.

"Uh... Lando?"

"Yeah?" he replied through a mouthful of beans.

"Do you have money to pay for this?"

He rolled his eyes but nodded. "Consider it my treat."

"Thank you."

Lando chewed for a while and swallowed his mouthful, then leaned back in his chair and folded his arms, staring at me.

"What?"

"Just thinking," he said.

"About?"

"You."

I blushed and shied away, "don't be weird."

"Alright. I'm just thinking about what happened today. I'm sorry. I never want to see you so upset again."

"I'll try not to crash anymore."

"It's not about that. I mean I don't want you to be so down on yourself."

"I did make a huge mistake though..."

"No, you didn't. You don't have to listen to what anyone else tells you. A long as you know that you're being the best driver you can be, and you understand how much potential you have, you're the only one who matters when you get out on that track. Only you can stop you."

I nodded, taking it all in. My engineers could give me tips, my parents could cheer me on over video calls and my trainers could coach me, but nothing compared to getting advice from a real driver who was in exactly my situation. As we ate our meals, I opened up to Lando about other pressures, how hard it was being so far away from home, and we talked about our different driving styles.

By the time we got back to the paddock I was feeling a lot better. I'd completely forgotten about my team being angry at me until I stepped through the entrance to my garage.

"Oscar!" someone shouted, running over to me. "Where have you been?"

"I just went for lunch with Lando," I replied sheepishly, shuffling from foot to foot.

"Good, we were starting to get worried."

"I'm sorry."

The engineer stepped towards me, shaking his head in earnest. "No, it's me who should be sorry. I shouldn't have reacted like that to what happened in the race. Are you okay? Did you get hurt?"

I shook my head.

"Good. I know you've just had lunch, but let's go to dinner tonight so I can say sorry properly. Until then, we have a lot to discuss with the others in my office..."

I followed him to the office, looking over my shoulder as I went. From just inside his garage, Lando lifted a hand and waved at me, smiling. I smiled and waved back. That was the first time in England that I didn't feel lonely. I had found a true friend.

Or so I thought.