The calm before the storm - Max Verstappen x Charles Leclerc

28

WARNING: TW This chapter might be triggering to some.

We sat in the car and Lando sat in the back seat and fell asleep immediately. For the first few minutes, it was dead quiet in the car. Charles decided to drive further to clear his mind. "why did he kiss you for" was the sentence that broke the silence. "going to kill him" Charles continued to say. I noticed that he was driving faster and faster. "Can you slow down Charles" I asked, feeling the panic begin to set in. He did not respond and started driving outside the lines. "Can you please stop the car Charles" I yelled at him. Once again he didn't answer but started driving faster. I felt the images in my head come up when my mother died. I felt like I was going to die the same way she did. I thought about when we got the call where they told us that she had died instantly. I had an anxiety attack from those thoughts.

Lando woke up and saw what happened. "Charles slow down you're scaring her" Lando yelled at Charles. "take care of yourself Lando" Charles yelled back. He was too angry and drunk to think clearly. Charles drove over to the other lane and then a car came. I thought we were going to crash but at the last second he managed to pull over. He pulled over to the side and I ran out and walked away. "Where are you going Francesca" Charles shouted at me and tried to catch up. "Are you completely stupid in the head, how can you do that to her" Lando yelled at Charles.

CHARLES POV:

"what do you mean" I asked and saw how Francesca ran away. "Her mother died in a car accident the same way you were going to kill us" Lando yelled. I froze and felt myself sober up in a second. I began to feel ashamed of what I had done. "I didn't know about that" I said with shame in my body. Lando couldn't even look at me and tried to run after her. I followed until Lando turned around. "let her be Charles" Lando said and I did as he said and stood all by myself on the road while I watched Lando run in the direction she had run.

FRANCESCA POV: 

I ran as long as my legs could carry me so I have no idea how long I ran. I stopped at a bench to catch my breath and tried to call people. I called Lando but he didn't answer. Daniel, Pierre and George didn't answer either which made me panic even more. I didn't know where to go because I refuse to sleep with Charles now. I saw that my cell phone would die at any moment so I chose to text the last person I could think of.

Francesca Russo:Hi, can you please come and get me. Am somewhere on the street and I don't know where the hotel is and my mobile will die soon.

I laid down on the bench and exhaled, feeling how I would fall asleep here if I stayed. I decided I needed to go somewhere to charge my cell phone. I went to a bar nearby and started ordering a lot of drinks. I tried to drown my sorrow in the alcohol which reminded me of how I was when my mother died. I was crazy about how much I drank and really couldn't care less at the time.

An older guy came up and tried to flirt with me. "Do you want to come home with me" asked the man who had arrived. "No thanks" I replied drunkenly. He kept nagging me and I tried to walk away but he followed me. "let me go" I told him. The man did not listen to me and continued to hold me. I heard a voice behind me. "let her go idiot" said the guy behind me. It was Max who had found me. The guy who was holding me let me go and walked away when he saw Max.

"thank you for coming" I mumbled before I felt my head start to spin. He helped me out and tried to get me sober which was completely hopeless. He sat me on a bench and called a taxi home. "do you want to sleep at my room or" he asked after he had booked a taxi. "I want to go home to London" I answered while my head was spinning. I leaned my head against his shoulder and closed my eyes then I felt an arm around me. I had missed his smell and his hugs.

The taxi arrived and we jumped into the back seat. I tried to check the time but my phone was dead. "What time is it?" I asked Max. "it's 2 AM" he replied and gave me a gentle smile. As much as I hated him right now, I was very grateful that he had come and helped me. I noticed the driver speeding which made me think what happened with Charles and mom's death.

"Can you please stop the car" I asked with clear panic in my voice. he did as I said and stopped on the edge of the road. The second he stopped the car I ran out and Max paid the driver and ran after me. When he caught me I broke down in his arms. "It's okay Francesca" he said and held me tightly. When I had calmed down we started walking back to the hotel. We were lucky that no one saw us go into his room because I knew there had been chaos.

"You can take the bed and I can sleep on the couch," he said once we got inside the door. I looked up and smiled at him then went into the bathroom to shower. I didnt want to live anymore due to everything. I saw his razor and razor blade and there I decided to do something stupid, it was probably my full brain that decided now. I turned on the shower and sat on the floor with my clothes on and pulled up my sleeves. I took one of the razor blades and started cutting my arm.

"Are you okay in there, you've been in there a long time now" Max asked through the door. I didn't know how long I had been in there but I was sure he had heard me cry. When I didn't answer him, he carefully opened the door. His eyes filled with panic when he saw what I was doing. "Francesca put it away" he shouted when he saw what I was doing. I couldn't answer but looked up with tears streaming down my cheeks. He turned off the shower and hugged me.

He fetched the first aid box and tried to fix my arm, which was now completely bloody. I drifted in and out of consciousness as he tried to fix my arm. "stay awake for me please Francesca" Max said in an attempt to keep me awake. I lost consciousness causing him to panic.

MAX POV:

When she passed out I knew it was very serious. I knew she had been drinking a lot and it was now her body giving up. I put her on my lap and pressed my fingers down her throat in an attempt to make her vomit. When she didn't throw up, I tried to shake her so she would come back to consciousness. When that didn't work, I pressed my fingers down her throat again and this time she vomited. She regained consciousness for a while which was positive. I refused to let her die in my arms.

She continued to throw up. I usually had a hard time with throwing up but I couldn't care less right now. when she seemed to be ready, I ran and got her a change. She had already started undressing when I got back so I quickly turned around so she could change in peace. I heard a loud thud which made me turn around. She had fallen and passed out. I carried her to the bed and got a bucket in case she started puking in it. I laid down next to her but refused to fall asleep in case something happened to her.

I put her cell phone on charge and made sure she never lay on her back. I didn't sleep all night but kept an eye on her. Several times I checked her pulse to make sure she was still alive. I breathed out every time I felt her heartbeat. A few times during the night she threw up so I put her hair up in a bun so she wouldn't get it in her hair. When it seemed like everything was getting better with her condition, I was able to relax for the first time all night.