ᴅᴏᴘᴀᴍɪɴᴇ | ᴄʜᴀʀʟᴇꜱ ʟᴇᴄʟᴇʀᴄ.

ꜰᴏᴜʀ | ᴄʜᴀʀʟᴇꜱ.

❞ but then it don't make sense 

when you're tryin' hard

to do the right thing

 but without recompense. ❝ - shut up, the adults are talking; the stokes.

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i hadn't woken up with a headache, to my dismay. cursing, i rolled over to check the time. nine in the morning, the alarm clock read. "fucks sake," i growled, sitting up. i could hear shuffling and a girl's muffled voice outside the room door. the air smelled good, like pancakes or french toast. it was undeniable- it was evangeline.

shuffling to the bathroom to freshen up, i took a look at myself in the mirror. my brown hair was slightly tousled, and there were dark spots under my eyes. i looked like a truck had run me over, backed up, and ran me over once again. i rolled my eyes, sick of myself as i brushed and washed up. 

when i entered the kitchen, i heard eve humming some obscure french song as she sipped her coffee. next to her, a plate of pancakes sat untouched. she looked up at me, grinning slightly. "hey," she said. i grinned back. "hey yourself. can i take these?" i ask, referring to the plate next to her. she nodded, absentmindedly toying with her hair. "sure. any plans today?" she replied as i sat down. i nodded as i shoved a bite of food in my mouth. "meeting," i said in between bites of pancake. evangeline paused at that.

"for what? the season hasn't started yet," she began. i shook my head at her, setting the fork down. "not for ferrari- for our agreement. has alicia contacted you today?" i asked. she shook her head no at me, her eyes flickering down to her phone. i kept my gaze on her, sitting up straighter in an attempt to look more serious. i didn't miss her quiet giggle. 

"she just messaged- it's soon, isn't it? ten thirty," she said. satisfied, i went back to demolishing my pancakes. evangeline just typed on her phone, occasionally huffing in frustration. i wondered what she was up to, but i knew better than to ask.

soon enough, i was done with my food. eve stood, reaching for my plate, but i stopped her. "i got it, just go change and stuff. use my clothes- you look good in them," i said, grabbing the plate and her cup. she hesitated, then started to my room. she shot me a look that said 'thank you' as she went, shutting the door behind her. i just smiled and shook my head at the girl.

she took a while to get ready, so i went to check on her. i knocked at the bedroom door, waited, then opened it up. sure enough, evangeline had somehow managed to base her whole outfit on a red ferrari shirt with my name and number on the back and the logo on the front. she'd found a old pair of her jeans in my closet, and she'd tied the front of the shirt so that it was tighter. her hair was down, and her only ornament was a gold chain and bracelet set that was most likely fernanda's. she looked good, as always.

i smirked while looking her up and down. "keep that one, eve," i said casually. she flushed, and i grinned at the rush it was giving me. toying with her was fun, i realized. this was fun. she rolled her eyes at me, regaining her composure.  "says the one who's clearly checking me out," she retorted, running a hand through her hair. i laughed outright. "i don't check you out, i admire you. there's nothing wrong with admiring beauty," i replied matter-of-factly. she laughed at my words, turning to face me instead of the mirror. "whatever you say, leclerc. mind yourself, though- you're the pretty one," she said, and sauntered out. she brushed against me when she walked out, leaving me standing alone in the room. i snorted to myself. "god, valrose."

we ended up at the meeting early, somehow- between the traffic and the stop for starbucks, i wasn't sure how. evangeline wiggled her eyebrows at me teasingly as i opened the door for her with one hand and held her starbucks in the other. "god, you're trained already," she teased with a laugh. i chuckled at her, shaking my head as i followed her inside the pr building. "when have i not treated you well, valrose?" i retorted, pressing the up button for the elevator. she was quiet up until the elevator dinged and opened up. "when we were six- remember? you hated me up until that one day when i chose you over lorenzo when we played football," she recalls. i raised an eyebrow. "evie, i was seven-" i began in playful defense, but she cut me off with a giggle. "na uh, leclerc. it counts! i remember that day so clearly, we listened to that one coldplay song on repeat!" she exclaims, tugging on my arm. i smile fondly, recalling the very day.

"okay... i chose arthur." nikolai said. evangeline grinned next to her brother, standing proudly. they were both equally good at football, nikolai slightly better due to age, and the fact that he was good at most things. "i choose..." evageline trailed, her eyes darting between myself and lorenzo. i crossed my fingers behind my back, hoping my name would cross her lips. "charlie." she said finally smiling huge at me. i allowed myself to grin back at the girl- maybe she wasn't so bad, after all. "leaves me with you, enzo!" nikolai said happily. "oh eve, you'll regret that one." the older boy said. my stomach dropped slightly as i walked towards the group of kids. eve looked thoughtful. "no, i think i won't," she said descisively. i smiled at the girl shyly. "thanks," i whispered in her ear. she nodded. " i know you won't let me down."

we ended up winning the game by two. of course evangeline had scored the last goal- she was as competitive as me. she whooped, putting an arm around me as we all walked towards the house for lunch. with low by coldplay playing in the backround somewhere, the sun high in the sky- i knew it would be a great day.

the elevator opened up at the sixth floor with a cheeful beep, snapping me out of my thoughts. eve had her eyes carefully trained on me. "you okay?" she asked, tone slightly downcast. i nod quickly at her, trying to compose my thoughts. "yeah, just... remembering," i replied. she nodded, clearly unsatisfied with my answer. i took her hand and squeezed it quickly, leading her to where we needed to go. "i'm okay, i promise."

to nobody's suprise, both our managers were waiting. alicia, looking as stately as ever, wore a white blazer with matching pants, gold hoop earrings in both ears. she smiled warmly at us, her posture relaxed yet firm. julian, on the other hand, wore a black battered leather jacket and silver chain around his neck. his blue jeans were creased. "hey, kiddos," he drawled. i chuckled, shaking my head as i pulled a chair out for evangeline. "what's up, juul?" i teased. alicia frowned slightly- evangeline covered her mouth and giggled.

we both sat down, and alicia pulled out a thin paper packet. "so, obviously, you both know why we're here. to save us all time, i made two electronic copies of this contract. simply put, it states that evangeline and you will act in love from the start of the the formula one season until the little women filming formally ends." the woman stated firmly, sliding us both ipads. evangeline and i looked to each other. this was more formal than we'd realized. "and... in private?" evangeline piped up. "is there a particular way we are to act?" julian sat up straight at this. "no, not formally adressed. just don't get caught fighting near any cameras, and we'll be okay. after the contract ends, you two are under no obligation to contact each other, although if you want to remain a couple, you can either terminate the contract or renew it." julian explained, his palms flat. my throat went dry. picking up on my nerves, eve reached for my hand under the table. 

i took her hand as i scanned the contract. "i'll sign if valrose will," i decide out loud. evangeline looks at me, her eyes betraying her serene expression. they ask me a million questions, all of which i choose to ignore. she takes a deep breath, focusing on the two people in front of us. "i'll sign," she says firmly. i glance at her, hoping my eyes can convey how i feel. she doesn't look back- she doesn't meet my eyes at all as she signs the paper. when she's done, julian slides the page over to me. for a split second, i hesitate. what if it goes wrong? but i have no choice but to sign my name on the paper.

"so, a few things now that you've signed. i'm sure you both read the contract, and saw no rules on pda," alicia began. evangeline and i exchange looks. shit. "you guys have to show some pda, whether it be hand holding or kissing, or... something, i don't know. you can't tell anyone about the contract, or the fact that it's a pr stunt," alicia finishes. my gut twists, and i look at the ground. i'd already told pierre, but they didn't need to know that. evangeline squirms in her seat. julian clears his throat, grabbing my attention back. "one last thing-," he says. we look to him expectantly. "just don't get too caught up in this, okay? treat it like a normal relationship," he finishes. 

we walk out of the room silently, eve's hand still gripping mine. i can't tell what she's thinking, and it's scary. "are we okay?" i ask her, poking her side gently. she's unresponsive for a count of three. "charles, what in the world did we just agree to? i mean, i just," she rants. "i just don't want to loose us to this," she admits quietly, looking away. my heart drops, and i feel my face getting hot. "hey," i say, cupping the side of her face. "you'll never, ever loose me. you know that. and who knows, maybe we'll find us by loosing us, you know?" i say playfully. she laughs weakly. "you're not making sense," she states. i grin at her lopsidedly, wrapping my arms around her waist. "okay," i brush her off. i am making sense, i just don't think she wants to hear me. 

god, i want her to want to hear me.