Racing Hearts - Lando Norris

Chapter 1 - Monaco

"Please promise me we aren't just going to sit in some bar and have drinks all day." Camila pleaded with her friends while they all waited for the train to arrive.

"Relax! Jeez, what's with you and this place? We have told you repeatedly that we will visit the racing thingy before anything else. Have a little faith in us, will you?" Her friend Isabel replied.

She let out a sigh, contemplating the past few weeks spent with her cherished but markedly diverse and challenging group of friends. The decision to embark on a European adventure for their summer break had been unanimous. Juggling part-time jobs alongside their university studies, they pooled their earnings to make this trip a well-deserved treat, marking the culmination of three challenging years of academic pursuits.

For Camila, the dream of visiting Monaco and setting foot on the iconic Formula 1 track had been a lifelong aspiration nurtured through countless television moments shared with her parents. The grandeur of the races held in Monte Carlo had always fascinated her, even though attending a live race weekend seemed financially out of reach. Camila's friends, not sharing her passion for Formula 1, found it challenging to connect with her dream of visiting Monte Carlo. From their perspective, the prospect of exploring the renowned city seemed excessively pricey and left to their own devices, they would have readily skipped it.

"So will we be able to see any of these drivers?" The third friend, Marta, asked. 

"Who knows? Some of them have residency in Monaco, but I don't think they'll be mingling around people like us." 

"Let's see who these drivers are..." Marta replied while quickly doing a Google search on her phone. 

"Who do you support again?" Isabel asked trying to show some interest in the topic. 

"Max Verstappen of course!" Camila replied. 

"Oh this one is dreamy!" Marta exclaimed turning her phone to show a photo on her screen. 

"That's Lando Norris... and he is one of the drivers that live over there."

The train arrived just on time and they all hopped on. It was only a 30 minute journey from Nice to Monte Carlo. They had managed to secure a highly costly 2 bedroom apartment over Airbnb where they would spend the following 3 nights. 

"I want to do some gambling while we are there. I've heard the Casino is unreal." Isabel chipped in. 

"I'm not sure we will have any money for that considering the crazy rate they're charging us for this apartment." Marta added to the conversation and then gasped "Do you think it's owned by one of those Formula 1 people?" 

Camila expressed her frustration by rolling her eyes. Despite being supportive of her friends' decisions (and some had been terrible) and travel plans across various countries, she didn't sense the same support for her preferences. Although her friends were constantly making snide comments about the expenses, this trip was not a spontaneous decision, as they had been informed about it in advance.

"Of course, because a millionaire will need that little extra income from 3 broke postgraduates... and also Monaco is filled with celebrities from all over the world who decided to make the country their official residence, tax haven I have been told..." Camila explained trying to keep the sarcasm at bay. She was aware she wasn't the favourite friend at that moment. 

They got off the train and Camila looked around in disbelief. She was actually in Monaco, something she could cross off her to-see list. They all reached for their phones to try and get to their rented apartment. 

"Why does it keep telling me to take the stairs?" Marta moaned at her phone while neither of them could see any stairs in sight. 

"Let's just do this the old-fashioned way!" Camila approached a stranger on the street who was casually sporting an orange Hermes bag with a little dog poking its head out of it. The woman pointed the girls in the right direction and off they went.