Against You

Steam Room

Oscar POV

A week has passed since Lando won his first ever race in Monaco.

It was awful. Fans chanting his name, everyone swarming around him like flies while he cried with joy. I had to paint on a fake smile, congratulate him in interviews, pretend everything was okay.

Luckily he hasn't won again since then.

I dance into the hotel after the race in Barcelona, desperate to get away from the Formula One hype for a couple of weeks. I didn't win, I didn't even finish on the podium. I just want to forget about it.

I dart into my room and pull off my shirt, intending to catch some last rays of sunshine on the balcony before going out to dinner somewhere tonight. As I search the bright orange room for my sun cream, my eyes land on a leaflet. It's light blue and turquoise and shows a beautiful pool and spa, complete with hot tubs and steam room. I flip the leaflet over and read that all this is located inside our hotel.

The place is deserted. I swim a few laps of the twenty-five metre pool and kick back in the small hot tub, but before long my muscles start to ache and cramp. I didn't have a massage after the race in my eagerness to get away and now I'm paying the price. I gaze across the rippling pool to a glass door labelled 'steam room', a soft blue light glowing from within. I haul myself out of the tub and pad over to the door.

The heat inside is perfect. The air is thick and smells of mint and the tiles are red hot. I sit on the highest step, on top of a blue mosaic seat with my back against the tiled wall. It burns a bit, but I love the way my muscles relax and soak up all the warmth. This is what I needed after such a long and difficult race. Hopefully the relaxation will help me sleep well on the plane back to England tomorrow.

The door opens, and I see him. Stupid Lando Norris waltzes in with a towel around his waist as if this is a sauna, and plonks himself down at the other end of the room.

"Hello," he says.

I'm too hot to answer, not that I would want to anyway.

Immediately any sense of relaxation is broken. How can I sit here with my back burning and my skin sweating and my eyes closed when he's in here with me? And what's worse, we're the only people here. I look through the transparent glass door to the under-lit pool which glows invitingly. But my muscles need more time.

I think back to the race. Finishing fourth is okay for me, because I finished higher up the field than Lando. Maybe I can drive him out of here with some taunting.

"Basking in the glory of your one point, are you?" I ask, pooling my energy to make my lips move. My voice echoes around the room but I still think for a moment that he hasn't heard me.

"It's the best I could have done."

I snort. "So how are you going to win the championship then?"

"Hard work and teamwork. Not that you'd know anything about that."

A fire flares in my chest which is dangerous given the heat. How can he say that? I work harder than anyone else on this grid.

I push myself to my feet, unable to stand being in his presence anymore. I make for the glass door and open it, gulping in the fresh, light air.

But I left without giving him a comeback. I can't let him have the last laugh, the last word. I look around the edge of the pool for something heavy and find a five-litre water bottle, the type used in coolers and water dispensers. I drag it towards the door to the sauna which only opens outwards.

A bang startles me backwards.

"What are you doing?" Lando screams, bursting out of the room and slamming the glass door back on its hinges. I gasp as it smashes, shards spraying out across the poolside and flying into the water..