golden | d.ricciardo

five

V. Driven by Emotion

SAUDI: March 2023

FP3 and Qualifying: The day wasn't like yesterday. It wasn't what the team expected and hoped for. Needless to say that day was not looking good for Daniel.

Clara was preparing herself for the questions that Daniel will be facing. After getting to see the results of Q3, not having the expected outcome that he wanted and having a bit of damage on the car, Daniel was quieter than usual.

The brunette was not used to seeing Daniel like that. It was her first time seeing a pretty bad result, she was up for the challenge. She had dealt with Mad Max even before he was racing for Formula 1, so she could handle an upset Daniel, right?

She was standing to the side as she kept an eye on the two Red Bull drivers. Max was calmer as his position was higher and was expected but she felt the tension coming from Daniel.

"Quite the run there Daniel. How are you?" Evangeline asked carefully seeing the tension on the driver's shoulder.

"Eh. Disappointed, I guess I wasn't really feeling the track and the car. The tyres were a major factor with the heat but there's always tomorrow I guess." Daniel's answers were vague and short. Clearly, he was not in the mood for answers. That was a sign for Clara to cut the interviews short. She knew Christian may bite her ass for it, but seeing the answers that Daniel was giving, it wouldn't do them any good.

After a few more questions, Daniel was finally finished. Walking quickly back to his driver's room, he knew Clara was following him. He kept his mouth shut, he didn't want to explode but then she said something. Oh how he wished she kept quiet for the first time.

"Daniel. You need to attend debriefing-" he quickly cut her off. Turning to her with a frown and furrowed eyebrows.

"I'm really not in the mood, Clara." he said coldly. This caught Clara off guard. Of all the times Daniel said her name, this was the first time that made her feel that he didn't want her around. That stung.

"I won't push if you don't need to. But the fans need to see you're not bothered with the results-"

"Oh God! Of course I'm bothered Clara. How can I not be? Stop saying obvious things." He said. Frustrated and annoyed. He was not happy with himself. He wanted to be alone, not be bothered by his PR Manager.

Clara blinked at his reaction. Her lips parted in shock. She composed herself and cleared her throat, "Well I'm sorry. I'm doing my job."

"I know but for the love of God, leave me alone."

And as if a bucket of cold water was dumped over his head. Daniel realized what he had said. Both shocked at what he said, they stared at each other.

The Dutch brunette hummed and nodded, looking at the ground, she placed her hands behind her, intertwining her fingers together. She pinched her palm, a way to stop her from saying anything that would cause more damage to a 'friendship' that was just starting.

"If you say so Mr. Ricciardo. I will be with Max if you need me. You have my pager."

"Fucking hell."