I can't .

~23~

POV y/n:

How could I have been so stupid? Two weeks of silence, not a single word from him—and now I know why.

There he is. Carlos. With Isa by his side, walking casually toward Charles in the Ferrari pit. She's all over him, touching his arm, laughing at whatever he's saying like they never skipped a beat. Like I never existed.

"What are you staring at?" a voice says beside me. I glance over—Bottas.

I nod toward Carlos and Isa. Bottas follows my gaze, then lets out a disapproving hum. "I thought you and Carlos had something?"

"Yeah," I say bitterly. "I thought so too. He said he didn't want anything to do with Isa anymore... and now look at them."

Bottas doesn't respond right away, just watches quietly. Isa reaches for Carlos again, her hand lingering a little too long on his back. He doesn't stop her.

"I left Mercedes for him," I mutter. "I walked away from everything."

"Not just for him," Bottas reminds me gently. "You weren't happy there. You and your dad were at each other's throats. You needed out."

I sigh. "Yeah, I know. I just hate that he might've been right again."

Then Carlos looks up—and sees me. His expression shifts. Guilt? Panic? I'm not sure. What I do know is that I want to raise my middle finger at him. I don't—I just shake my head slowly, letting the disappointment speak for itself.

Then I turn and walk away.

Maybe this is for the best.

I focus hard on training for the rest of the weekend. Bottas is killing it—strong lap times in practice and into Q3 again for qualifying. He even gives Carlos a hard time on track during the race. It's satisfying to watch.

When he gets out of the car after the race, I run to meet him. He lifts me off the ground, spinning me around in celebration.

"You're incredible, Y/N!" he laughs. "Your dad must be proud of you!"

Then a familiar voice cuts through the moment.

"I am proud of her."

Bottas gently sets me down as I turn to face my father. I blink, unsure of how to react. It's been weeks since we've spoken.

"Hey, Y/N. Can we talk?" he asks.

I nod, wordless, and follow him as he leads me toward his office. As we pass the Ferrari garage, I glance inside—just for a second.

Carlos is there. So is Isa. She's close, hand on his cheek. She's leaning in to kiss him.

I clench my jaw and look away.

He made his choice.

Now I need to make mine.

POV Isa: 

I press my lips against his just as I see Toto and Y/N walk by. She glances inside—and for a split second, our eyes meet.

Carlos immediately shoves me away, hard.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" he snaps, rage in every word. "I'm done with this. I'm done with you. Get out of here before I do something I'll regret."

I smirk, unbothered. Perfect. She saw us—just like I wanted. If I can't have him, no one can.

Carlos clenches his fist and slams it into the wall—right next to my face. The crack of his knuckles against the concrete makes me flinch, but I don't let it show.