speed / max verstappen

twenty

"Zarah, wonderful to see you again, though I wish it were under better circumstances."

I give Will a smile, lightly shrugging."Yeah, thank you, this is uh, definitely wasn't on my 2023 bingo card."

The joke makes him and the small crowd we've amassed laugh and I soak it all in, more than happy to play along if it means I can avoid talking about my concussion.

As the laughter dies down, Will looks at me with concern in his eyes. "Seriously though, how are you feeling?"

I shrug, ignoring the dull ache pulsing in the back of my head, refusing to acknowledge it. "Honestly, I feel fine. The tricky thing is, with injuries like this, you've got to just take it one day at a time. I'm still training, though much lighter than usual, and we've had to adjust the sim's light settings so I can last longer stints."

He nods, his hand adjusting the hold he's got on his microphone before continuing. "You're still putting in hours with the simulator?" He asks, slightly shocked.

"Life doesn't go on pause for something as simple as a concussion," I reply, glancing out at the group of people watching the interview.

The paddock's nice and sunny today, though you never know when it may turn. I briefly shade my eyes from the brightness of it all before Mo comes up behind me, handing off a pair of shades for me to slip on.

I take on the shades and turn to thank Mo, slipping them on before turning back to face Will.

As I turn back to Will, I notice he's got his eye on someone off to the side as well, briefly whispering with them before I clear my throat. "Right, speaking of life going on, there have been rumours circulating about your personal life. Care to comment on that?"

I feel a pit form in my stomach as I realise what he's asking. That didn't take long, I think to myself, swallowing the bitterness I feel toward Toto and Christian before answering.

"I think they're only rumours if they're false, no?"

He lights up, taking the open door with a smile, "So it's true then? You and Max have started a relationship?"

I shake my head, laughing at the way his expression falters, "Max and I have been together for a while, actually. Though, I guess to everyone else, it seems rather new."

Will looks surprised for a moment, probably shocked I didn't just immediately shoot the shit or shut him down, before quickly regaining his composure. "Well, congratulations to you two. That must make things interesting on the track. Any running bets at home?"

A smile tugs at the corners of my lips as I shake my head. "No bets. We do our best to keep everything separate, though, so it doesn't really affect our racing too much."

Will nods, his eyes scanning the crowd before returning to me. "Speaking of competition, I'd love to ask you a few questions about this year's car."

I take a deep breath, knowing this is a question I can handle. Talking about my feelings? No. Talking about cars? Fuck yes. "I'm really loving the W14. I'd have to say my favourite change is the new gulley bodywork."

"Anything you dislike?"

"The seat positioning. It's further up the nose than the last car and I had some difficulty adjusting to it."

Will nods, jotting down a few notes on his pad as he listens to my answer. "Interesting. And how do you think this will affect your performance on the track? You've been doing well so far."

I shrug, trying not to think back to my crash. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't your fault. "It was a minor adjustment, something I worked on in training and got the hang of pretty quickly. Honestly, I hardly notice it anymore."

Will nods, clearly satisfied with my answer. "Well, we'll be sure to keep an eye out for how you feel about it when you return."

I nod, feeling a surge of determination course through me. "I'll be back on that track before you know it. And when I am, I'll be better than ever."

As the interview comes to a close, I can't help but feel grateful for the distraction it's provided.

When I've handed off the microphone and stepped off our low platform, I turn to Mo. "Do me a favour and grab my painkillers from my room, yeah?"

Mo nods, concern etched on his face. "You sure you're okay to keep going?"

I give him a reassuring smile. "I'm fine. Just a little headache, that's all."

As he heads off to retrieve my medication, I take a deep breath and close my eyes, willing the pain to subside. It's times like these that I'm grateful for my high pain tolerance, though I know it's not always a good thing.

I shake my head, trying to clear my thoughts, but they keep drifting back to Max.

Annoyed as I was when he'd refused to let go, I haven't been able to shake the firm grip he had on me. A small smile tugs at the corner of my lips as I head toward the garage, more than ready to settle in and watch Mick go out in free practice.

I take a deep breath, trying to push the thoughts of Max to the back of my mind when an arm comes around my shoulder. When I open my eyes, Mo is right there, my painkillers cleverly concealed in a sealed coffee cup.

"Thanks," I say, taking the cup to throw back my pills with a grimace. I sort of wish he'd thought to bring a bottle of water as well, but I imagine chasing my 'coffee' with water would raise some eyebrows.

As we enter the garage, I take a deep breath, letting the familiar scent of the car's exhaust and rubber fill my nostrils. The sound of engines revving up and down the pit lane makes my heart race, my body automatically going into race mode at the sound.

This is what I live for. This is why I do this.

Mick is already there, suited up and ready to go. I give him a nod of recognition before settling into my new spot seated beside Toto, taking in the familiar surroundings from the other side of things. I haven't been in this position since 2020, back when I was in my first year as a reserve driver after leaving Racing Point.

But even then, I'd known I wouldn't stay a reserve driver forever. I had the fire needed to advance, the passion and drive to be on that track, to race and win and feel the absolute rush that came from doing so. And now...I'm back in the same place, watching the team's reserve driver take my seat.

As the session starts, I watch Mick take to the track, his car roaring to life as his tires squeal out the garage. Toto leans over to me, hand flipping back his microphone after confirming something with Mick.

"He asked to watch your onboards again," he states, looking excited.

I grin, smug in my satisfaction at the news, "What can I say, I'm quite the case book."

"And so humble too." Toto chuckles, shaking his head at me before turning his attention back to the garage, likely checking in with Mick's progress.

I take a deep breath, trying to focus on the task at hand. Watching Mick and analysing his performance is top priority right now, especially since he's decided to use me as the driver to base his approach off of.