Formula one sickfics/oneshots

Made possible by: a loving friend and a caring little kid

People: Max, Charles, Penelope

Ages: Max (25), Charles (25), Penelope (3)

Warning: Discriptions of nausea and vomiting. If this triggers you, proceed with caution

- POV Max -

"Maxie, wake up", Penelope exclaimed excitedly, shaking me awake. I groaned, rubbing a hand over my face. I had a pounding headache and I could feel a stomachache starting to form. "Come on Maxie!", she yelled, climbing on the bed and jumping up and down, upsetting my stomach further. "P, please stop jumping, I'll be out of bed soon", I tried to reason with her. "But, need to come now", she said with a pout. I reluctantly climbed out and followed her to the kitchen, still dressed in pyjama shorts and an oversized shirt.

As soon as I entered the kitchen area, the smell of food filled my nostrils and I nearly threw up right then and there. I sprinted to the bathroom and knelt down in front of the toilet. It felt like an eternity before I was finally finished and as I rinsed my mouth under the sink, I almost scared myself with how pale I looked. "Maxie, you're taking so long", Penelope complained from the other side of the door. I unlocked the door and scooped her up in my arms, trying not to let on how bad I was feeling. She was too young to even know what to do when someone was feeling ill, such as letting them enjoy some peace and quiet.

"What were you doing? You were in there for a while", Kelly said, turning towards me. I contemplated telling her, but she cut off my thoughts. "Why are you not dressed yet? You do remember you promised to meet up with Charles in the cafe, do you?". Oh shit, I totally didn't remember that. I quickly threw on a pair of skinny jeans and a black and white blouse, stepping into a pair of Nike's before storming out of the apartment building, realizing I was supposed to be there in 3 minutes.

Luckily, the cafe was only 10 minutes away. 'I might make it', I told myself, picking up my pace even more, the running making me feel nauseous once again. No matter how hard I tried to get there in time, eventually, whatever illness I had caught, got the best of me, as I doubled over and started gagging, a warm feeling rising in my chest. I was trembling, hunched over a grass patch. As the sick started pouring out, the crowd around me seemed to become bigger with each second. Dozens of hands tried to touch me and the flashes of light became brighter and brighter, as I felt helpless, knowing that I, in the state I was in right now, couldn't do anything to stop them.

As soon as the gagging subsided, I tried to get away from the crowd, but someone was stopping me. It wasn't one of the photographers or fans though. It was me. I had become my own worst enemy. The voices in my head screamed, telling me how pictures of the scene that had just unfolded would soon flood the internet and probably the magazines as well and how hard all these people were judging me right now. Once again, warmth rose in my chest, but this time, it wasn't vomit, it was panic. Pure panick. I started shaking even more intensely, my knees threatening to buckle from under me.

The continuous whispers around me did nothing to cease my panicked state. Suddenly, the whispers turned into yelling, until 2 people broke the group apart. 2 security guards had shown up, finally sending the paparazzi away. Only, this wasn't my security, so I had no clue as to where they had come from. I expected the panic to dissolve together with the crowd, but sadly, it did not. If anything, it got even worse. It felt as if my lungs had completely forgotten how to do literally the only task they had; breathing.

- POV Charles -

I pressed the call button for the third time but once again, no one answered. Max and I were supposed to get lunch in the city centre, but he was already 10 minutes late. "I'm going home. He properly pissed me off now", I told the guards that went with me to the cafe. Normally, I would go there without security, but my address leaked a couple weeks ago and now I'm being followed around by fans and paparazzi constantly, so my management adviced me to take security with me while going out in Monte Carlo.

Disappointed by Max's absence, I walked to my apartment. Suddenly, I spotted a group of photographers crowding the streets, but they didn't seem to be looking for me. Instead, they were looking at someone else, whispering all sorts of things that I could only imagine weren't too positive. The 2 guards went to send the group away, as they were blocking the road and I couldn't pass by without being noticed by them. Despite being intrigued by who the paparazzi's attention was on, I decided to ignore it for now, keeping a safe distance between me and the photographers hungry for creating yet another headline.

Suddenly, Jamie, one of the security guards approached me, a serious look etched on his face while the other, Paulo, was shielding what seemed to be another person from all the mayhem. "Charles, you may want to come with me. It's Max. He isn't doing well". His words alarmed me and I hurriedly made my way over to the figure sitting on the sidewalk, his head in his hands, his disheveled, brown hair telling me it was, indeed, Max.

"Woah woah woah. You're okay Max. Take a breath", I instructed, now noticing the puddle of sick next to him. "Charles, I'm so sorry I couldn't make it. Just go to the cafe. I'll be there within 10 minutes", he apologized. I was dumbfounded. "No, you're not going anywhere mate. You should go home and rest". I placed a careful hand on his shoulder and smiled a little a him. "But first, you need to calm down". "Fuck, this is so embarrassing", he said, looking at the vomit. "It was just an accident. It could've happened to anyone. Don't worry about it".

About 10 minutes later, Max was calm enough to stand up again, so I helped him up and walked him to his apartment, not wanting him to walk all the way home on his own. "Thanks so much Charles and again, I'm sorry for ruining the lunch". "Max, stop that. It's not a problem. We can just do it on another day", I shrugged, patting him on the back lightly, to show him some compassion.

- POV Max -

One of the guards walked over to me, protecting me from the crowd. "What happened?", the unfamiliar man asked. "I, uh I-", I couldn't get the words out, no matter how much I tried. I heard the sound of someone else coming over to me and they started talking to me, their distinct accent immediately recognizable as Charles's. "Woah woah woah. You're okay Max. Take a breath", he comforted me, but no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't get the air to reach my lungs. I noticed Charles looking at the puddle of vomit next to me and my cheeks instantly became crimson red.

Ferrari red

I told him to just go to the cafe without me and I'd follow later, but he refused to leave my side. It took me embarrassingly long to calm down and the fact that one of my competitors (and friends) had to support me to my house didn't make it any better. I apologized one last time, but once again, Charles dismissed my apology, telling me it didn't matter. I stepped inside my apartment, dragging my feet towards the couch.

"Hey, you're early", Kelly noticed. "Could you keep an eye on her for a while? I'm going out with some friends of mine", she asked me, pointing at Penelope. I nodded, not knowing what else to do than comply. The front door fell closed and Penelope directed her attention to me. "Can you play with me, Maxie?", she asked. "We can watch a movie", I suggested. She plopped down on the couch excitedly, picking out The Lion King as her movie of choice. Only a quarter of the way through the movie, I felt another wave of nausea come up and I headed towards the bathroom once again.

5 minutes later, there was a knock. "Maxie, you're taking so long. You are okay?". I smiled at how pure and caring Penelope was. "I'm fine P. Just a bit sick", I told her, not seeing a point in lying to her anymore. I slowly walked back to the couch, where a fuzzy blanket was thrown over my legs and one of Penelope's teddy's was handed to me. "Thanks P, you're the best. You can have this, though. I know you like it a lot", I told her, giving the green, pluche dragon back to her. Not too long after, I felt myself drifting off to sleep, covered in a blanket and my step-daughter cuddling on my lap, her face buried in the crook of my neck. That afternoon, despite how bad I was feeling, I fell asleep with a smile plastered on my face.

I guess children DO sometimes know what to do when someone's ill.