Petrichor ~ Lewis Hamilton

16

May 23, 2021, Monaco

Elaine's POV

The race weekend had not started as anyone in the garage would have liked.

"Was he also being a dick to you last night? He didn't even talk to me when he got out of the car after qualifying" Angela was the first person I met when I got to the circuit today, I thought she was going to be busy with Lewis but apparently he hadn't arrived yet.

"I would know if he had invited me to his house after qualifying, which he did not" She noticed the tone in my voice and looked at me worried. I immediately regretted saying it like that, I wasn't angry about it but it bothered me that he had pushed us all away like that.

"Dont take it into account he-" she tried to justify him but I didnt need to hear it.

"I know, he's stressed. I dont blame him, I understand. I was just hoping he would call me this morning to come to the circuit with him"

Yesterday was the first time I entered the paddock with him. Obviously this was not the first race I attended but in Italy I always entered with a member of the team or on my own, never with him.

So you can imagine my surprise when he proposed it to me, arguing that apart from the fact that our photos had already appeared in the press, he didn't want to waste even a minute that we spent in the same country, something that hasn't happened much this last month.

But it was fine, his job came first and he had to spend a couple of weeks in Silverstone at the factory.

But then he goes and kind of turns everything off when he's in the car, and although most of the time everything goes back to normal when he gets out, when the results don't work it takes a while.

He was starting seventh today, Max starts first, so he was kind of moody.

"Well he is late so maybe he just is freaking out because I wil definitely kill him when he-" She didn't finish her sentence because she was distracted by someone who had just entered the garage.

The Brit looked around the garage until he found us and jogged over to us.

"Im here! Im here! My damn alarm didnt go off and I forgot my pass at home and security kept me waiting fifteen minutes in the entrace. I won here last year and they wouldnt let me in. Can you imagine?" Angela pinched the bridge of her nose before sighing.

"You have a meeting with Bono in five minutes, please don't make me hate her for making you late" She patted his shoulder before leaving us behind.

"Hey" I finally said leaning on the wall behind me.

He looked at me with furrowed eyebrows until realization finally washed over him.

"I'm an idiot, I'm sorry Ela I was supposed to drive you here" He drew a hand over his face and I rested a hand on his shoulder.

"It's alright. I know you're not feeling yourself" He grabbed me by my waist and pulled me closer, resting his head on my shoulder and leaving a kiss on the crook of my neck.

"It's not alright. I feel like I'm in 2016 again." He wispers so that only me could hear him.

"What happened in 2016?" I asked oblivious.

"I lost" He left another kiss, this time behind my ear.

"There's still a long way to go, things are tight but you will regain the advantage" I assured him.

"Not from seventh place" I pulled away from his embrace to look at him seriously.

"Hey look at me. I want that attitude to go away. I don't want you to get into that car thinking you're going to lose everything, you have to go for it."