sainz sister

chapter 17

the next morning.

It's around 5:30am and I'm currently at the gym. I've decided to not let things with lando affect me. Carlos warned me, and I should have listened. I don't want to be upset about it, so I'm moving on. Fuck him. I just don't know how to explain to Carlos what happened, I don't want to hear him tell me that he was right all along, so I just won't bring it up for now. At least he has the race to focus on for now.

After my workout I return back to the apartment and get showered and dressed for the day. We made plans to go out on a boat for the day to swim and just have fun, and watch the Grand Prix. I put on a cute outfit, and pack a small bag to take. I walk out of my room and into the kitchen where P stands.

"How are you feeling?" P pouts as she walks over and hugs me.
"I'm doing fine. I'm just going to move past it. I don't care anymore" I say to her.
"If that's what you want. I'm here for you though, if you want to walk about it" she smiles.
"Thanks P, you're the best" I hug her back.

I also don't want to make things too awkward, considering they're Landos friends. And I don't want to make them feel uncomfortable if I'm crying about him.

We all grab our things and head out the door. The drive is about half an hour, and we plan to stop for breakfast before then. Max is fairly quiet, which is weird, but I assume he's tired after we stayed up last night.

Chili ❣️

Buenos días tina, how's it going?

buenos días! good, we're on our way to the pier right now, we're going to spend the day on a boat :)

That sounds like fun, I'm glad you're out doing things

me too, max and p are amazing !

Haha, it sounds like it. Listen, I have to tell you something, but I don't want you to freak out

what? what's wrong?

Nothing, it's just that I won't be racing this weekend

what? Why?

It's a long story I'll tell you soon

you can't just leave me hanging like this !

Just enjoy your day, I promise we'll talk this afternoon

ugh.

por favor

fine
be safe Tina, tqm
te quiero chili 🫶🏼

I sigh and set my phone down. Why does he have to be so secretive now I'm just worried.

"Everything okay?" Max asks as we park the car.
"Yes, sorry" I smile to reassure them.

We get out of the car and walk over to the cafe. We take a seat and place our orders. It's a small, quiet cafe and the food looks amazing. It might just be that I'm hungry.

____

After breakfast we head back on the road and towards the pier. The sun is just beginning to rise, and it looks beautiful over the water. We park the car and walk on the boardwalk towards the boat. We pass many along the edge, they're all different sizes. I had never been on a boat, so I'm a bit nervous but excited at the same time.

"Here we are" max says as he stops and points at the boat. He helps us both on and then hops on after. I follow behind them as they walk along the outside and towards the front of the boat.

"This is so cool" I say as I look out towards the water.
"It is. Good thing that we all invested in this boat and are finally using it" p smiles as she stands next to me.

We wait for a few more of their friends to arrive, some of them I've already met at their house before so it's nice to see them again. After a few more minutes we drive off farther into the ocean, to find a good place to swim. The boat is spacious, has seats all along and in the inside. There's a small bar with drinks, and sofas. It's a great hang out place, considering the space.

valentinna02
im lowk scared of the ocean 😭
201,739 likes

We find a place and I walk to the small changing room to change into my bikini. I walk out and meet up with P so we can swim. We jump into the water together, and it is freezing. We both scream, and laugh. It's so early that it feels colder. Eventually we get used to it and just continue to swim around.

____

A few hours later, we're up on the boat hanging out around the bar. They have the tv on which is showing the Grand Prix. Since Carlos won't be racing, I ignore it so I don't have to look at lando. I chug my drink and ask for another one.

Lando POV
"She's doing okay. We're distracting her" max tells me through the phone.

I was sitting in the garage, scrolling through Instagram and I came across Tina's photo she posted. She looked beautiful. I wanted to comment that I missed her, that she looked amazing. It was bard not too, but I knew I shouldn't.

"Hello?! Lando!" Maxs voice says through the speaker.
"Sorry, sorry. But okay. That's good I'm glad she's okay" I reply.
"She'll be okay. But you can fix things you know, if you really like her"
"Mhm. just make sure she's happy and okay. Please"
"You're stupid"
"Have fun and tell P I said hello. See you tomorrow"
"see you tomorrow"

I throw my phone against the floor, luckily my case keeps it from breaking into pieces. This is for the best, lando. I tell myself.

I hear footsteps approach, and I turn around and see Carlos. I stand up and roll my eyes, ready to walk away.
"Lando, stop" he says. I sigh and pause. I look at him, and I actually feel bad about his knee. His face looks with concern.
"I just wanted to apologize about yesterday. It was stupid to fight about Valentina. I should have been more mature. And im sorry"
In shock , I don't know how to respond.
"Oh, um. Yeah. I'm sorry too" I reply.
"I hope we can move past this. For the teams sake. I'm sorry for ruining your chances to race today"
"Me too. And im sorry for breaking your knee" I say, he laughs.
"Everything's okay" he puts his hand out and we do our handshake.
He takes a seat, and I sit back down where I was .
"Speaking of, I wanted to tell you that im okay with you and Tina. I know you kept her safe from Fernando, and I can tell you care about her. With him out on the run, and trying to hurt her, it'll be good for her to be with you. This way she won't be alone, and it won't just be me trying to protect her"
"Carlos, I-"
"I know, I know. I won't pressure you. If you're just friends I'm okay with that too. But please just help me keep her safe. And don't tell her all of this, I don't want her to think I'm treating her like a baby"

I sigh. His face looks genuinely worried. And I don't want him to be mad with me, so I just nod. I can't tell him that Valentina probably wants nothing to do with me anymore. Not yet.

"You promise?"
"I promise. Nothing will happen to her" I smile and reassure him.
"Thanks man. I guess you're not as bad as I thought" he jokes. I roll my eyes and lightly smack him.

I'm going to have to do my best to keep her safe without her knowing. I know she'll want to avoid me, but j do care about her. and i still want to protect her, no matter what. Fernando won't hurt her as long as I'm around.