A Girl in F1

1

It was unusual for the weather to be this nice in the UK making her want to stay in this moment with her cup of tea for as long as she possibly could.

Simple nice things like this can't last forever though which she learned quickly as her phone buzzed in her hands. Unsure of the number on her screen she let the phone buzz to voicemail before getting up and moving to her bathroom.

She put her wavy brown hair into a claw clip at the back of her head before running the shower, undressing, and stepping in. The water ran down her face and her body while she scrubbed away her slumber. After a refreshing shower she wrapped a fluffy white towel around her, before changing into a comfortable robe.

She was home alone this week while Oscar was staying closer to McLaren's Technology centre in Surrey, meaning she could take longer showers and enjoy some quiet time, not that she didn't miss his company.

He was the closest thing she had to a brother especially growing up racing together. He always supported her with her career and all the sexism she faced, and she was always his best friend. Oscar would always swat other boys at races away from her when they tried to get too close to her which, admittedly it made it difficult for her to make other friends in the sport, but she didn't really need them when she had Oscar. They had each other and that was all they needed.

Ivy sat on her bedroom floor in front of her full-length mirror, her designated place to get ready. She brushed her hair into a low bun Ensuring that she still had two strands on either side of her middle part out to frame her face. She applied some light makeup, just mascara, concealer, and lip balm before getting dressed into a black pair of leggings and her beloved Lululemon 'BBL' jacket. She needed to run errands in town that morning, including grocery shopping for this week.

She wasn't super pedantic about most things, but grocery shopping turned her into a control freak. She needed to go every Tuesday morning with an itemised list and what meals she would be eating that week. Granted it wasn't the worst thing to be obsessive about especially as a professional athlete, but it helped her keep a sort of routine whenever she could.

Ivy was racing for Sirin racing throughout 2023 in W series and beat the raining champion Jaimie Chadwick last year for the first time by only 26 points. Honestly, if you asked her what the best moment in her life so far was, she would tell you, being told she was world champion was it. She'd dreamed of being a world champion since she was a girl and to do it at just 19 years old made her incredibly proud of herself and helped her prove to herself that everything she was doing was working and helping her get better everyday.

Before leaving for the grocery store; triple checking she had her list with her, she decided to see if that random caller left her a message.

Ivy unlocked her phone and clicked on the notification before playing the message out loud. A man's voice spoke clearly and punctually through the phone, making her spine straighten and her ears listen intently, definitely in 'work mode' now she thought.

"Hi Ivy, It's James Vowles from Williams Formula One racing team," her heart froze. Every part of her stiffened.

"Please, give me a call back when you get this message." the phone beeped.

"HOLY SHIT" she had to sit down so she wouldn't pass out. A surge of electricity ran through her body, she felt like her feet barely touched the ground.

She smiled looking at her phone before trying to calm herself down. Maybe they just want to congratulate her, and it's not the call she's hoping it is but hearing from a Formula One Team Principal in any context is still cool right?

Ivy took three deep breaths to try and calm her all the emotions sand thoughts going through her head but the butterflies in her stomach would still not settle.

Picking up the phone, she dialled the number James' voicemail came from, listening quietly to the phone ringing twice before being picked up.

"Hello, James speaking,"

"Hi James, its Ivy."