For Real | Lando Norris

𝑺𝒊𝒙𝒕𝒚-𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒆.

Lando

The last race of the season was in full swing and I am driving in my all too familiar no-man's land between the leading group and the Alpine from Esteban behind me. The start of the race was promising with me going past George, but that preposition was quickly gained back as I simply didn't have the pace to keep P6. I still don't have the pace, but the gap between me and the blue Alpine behind me stays a steady 5 seconds.

As I am just coming out of sector two, Will's voice comes through my radio. "Yellow sector two. Box, box." Something has happened behind me, but I don't have the time to question what it is before diving into the pitlane. Luckily there are no blockades in the form of a large Mercedes car this time.

"Ocon is on a hard tier, watch the deg on your mediums." I make mental-note and give a curt "Copy," back over the radio. I am at a good pace as I come over the line and my instincts make me push a little. As a racing driver you are automatically driven towards the challenges and I feel like there is something to gain here. I look out not to push too hard for there are still thirteen laps to go and I need to bring the car home on these tires.

In those thirteen remaining laps I manage to keep my fastest lap and because a technical issue for Lewis move up to a sixth place finish. "That is P6, great job."

I sigh and an overwhelming feeling of sadness comes over me. This was it. Another season is done. "Thanks guys, tough season. Thanks for all the hard work. We just didn't have the car we would have wanted, but everyone did a great job. Thank you all." I take a second for what I want to say next and a lump forms in my throat as I continue. "Danny Ric, it has been a pleasure my friend. Thanks for everything, thanks for the good times, thanks for the laughs, keep up the photography and I will see you next year." I feel like I don't need to say more, as I will speak to him after the race, but for formalities and especially for our fans I can't say nothing.

"Not to spoil those lovely words, but I need to tell you, you also got fastest lap." I am not sure I heard Will right. "I got fastest lap?" I get a very happy Will back to me. "Yeah boy!" I laugh to myself. That is a great cherry on top of the good last race. "Wow, we have the fastest car on track." My sarcasm makes Will laugh as he tries seriously to guide me to parc-fermé.

As I come into the garage I get attacked by two arms and wavy brown hair in my sweaty face. "You hate hugging me after a race." Lia smiles up at me when we let go. She kisses me quickly. "I know, but it's the last one in a while and I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you and everything that you have done this year." The smile on my face says enough as my answer, but then falls a little when Lia gets her serious 'I am your PR manager'-face. "Where off to?" I ask, knowing that the media in Abu Dhabi is always busy. It being the last chance the vultures get to swarm on us.

"Media Pen, ESPN and SkySports last." Her hands wipe my face with the towel that she took from my neck as she lays out my duties. I take her hand to stop her from wiping and make a pouting face at her. "Can't I hide here for a second?" My arms sneak around her middle and I look around. We are in a secluded corner and everyone is running around to wrap up in here. "No one will notice," I say. My lips curl into a seductive smile and I inch closer to my girlfriend. But my efforts are in vain as my lips are met with Ophelia's put up hand instead of her perfect soft lips. "Lan, first your duty. Go change."

I pull down her hand and lay my lips on hers anyway. For a second I felt her pull away, but she shifts and lays her hand on my cheek, stroking it lovingly as we dissolve into the kiss. "I can choose not to change and stay here for those minutes." My bargaining skills get better every weekend and I know how to play on Ophelia's love for planning. As long as I don't go off schedule and just swap duty time with 'us' time, she most of the time consents.

"You are insufferable," she whispers to my lips. Her hot breath against my lips knocks my own out of my lungs and I can't do anything else than reconnect our lips, not able to withstand the pull she has on me. "You are impressionable." She makes a face of fake shock at me and lets me go to put her hands on her hips. "Am not."

I kiss her cheek before starting to walk to the media pen. A light huff comes from her before she follows me in the same direction. "You are, love. Or I am just that good at persuasion." Camera's flash around us as Lia slaps my arm with a smile on her face. We are used to the attention by now and a couple of flashed don't stop us from bantering in public. "Maybe, you are just an arse and you can find yourself someone else to drag you to your media duties. I will go find Jack if you want that."

She already turns away to 'go find Jack', but I grab her wrist and pull her to my side. "I love you? Stay?" It sounds more like a question than an endearment, but she walks willingly with me, so that's a good sign. "I love you too, now go I'll be behind you." We let go and I face the camera's of the media.

Most of them were already following me. Trying to capture me and my girlfriend in ultra HD. Some of the press had tried to ask Ophelia questions or asked me to get her in the pen, but we stayed professional around the assigned media, so I always shot down those requests with passive rudeness.

After making my rounds, answering the same three questions every time we leave the media pen and follow Lia to the ESPN desk. "Welcome Lando, P7 is your end standing in the drivers championship. Congrats." I thank him and laugh at the irony. "Yeah, I hate that number now. Been there too much." They laugh with me and contradict that statement. The interview looks back on my season and I try to stay optimistic and tell them it's the best we could've done. "Of course I would like to fight for podiums, but if it's not in the car it's just not happening. We've done the best we could and go positive into next year."

"I swear, if anyone brings up the 'best-of-the-rest' shit one more time I'm gonna combust spontaneously," I mumble to Lia when we walk away from ESPN to the SkySports square where Carlos is wrapping up his interview. "Well, then I need to go find a mob I think because I can say with almost hundred percent certainty that they," Lia gestures meaningfully to the SkySports interviewers slash ex-drivers, "will bring it up."

I throw my head in my neck with a groan and with a sadistic laugh Lia pushes me to the stage where George is also standing. At least I don't need to face them alone. But not a minute into the interview the words come out. "Well, you're the best of the rest, outside the top teams." I immediately want to debunk that term and as I do I see Lia trying to hold her laughter at my pissed off face. I talk over it by going on about the team and the car, but the sight of my girlfriend almost losing it makes it hard to concentrate on what I am saying.

"You are evil." My finger points at Ophelia as I walk past her away from the little stage. She laughs again, taking my hand. I allow it, as I am not really mad. The whole situation was funny and laughing at my expense is one of her favourite things to do. "Am not! Your face was just priceless."

My eyes roll around in their sockets. Her lips press softly on my cheek after which we start walking to the Hospitality. "So, I have that meeting to conclude the season with the track PR team. You need to go see Will?" Lia looks at her phone, checking her diary. I hum at her and she wants to make her way up the stairs, but I keep her to my side. "I don't want to work anymore. I want to plant my arse on the couch and do nothing." My whining results in a soft laugh from Ophelia and she answers with the same thing she always does when I complain about work. "You wanted to be a Formula One driver, suck it up."

"Can I at least get a kiss before we part?" Her hand slaps my arm, where probably a bruise is forming at this point from getting slapped all the time. "You know, you need to stop doing that before someone thinks I am in an abusive relationship." She shakes her head at my sarcasm. "That's not something to joke about," she counters and she is true.

I squeeze her into my side and plant a kiss on her lips. She smiles at me before letting go. "Only the test days to go and we will go home and do nothing all day." I wink at her and start walking towards the conference rooms. "Deal."

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