GORGEOUS | oscar piastri

2.

REAL LIFE

"i can't believe i'm actually gonna be with you guys this year!" oakley yelled down the facetime line to her two best friends

well her bestfriends at least. bella and lando's relationship was... rocky to say the least. they tolerated each other. sometimes.

"i'm excited to actually have decent company" bella sneered pointedly at lando. "for once."

"aww come on arabella, you know you love me" lando smirked back. 

"ok" oakley forced a laugh trying to break the tension before they started a screaming match. "look we are getting very off topic at the moment. i actually called because i am currently the centre of attention. i am now mclaren's brand new photographer." she dramatically flipped her long brown hair over her shoulder.

"yeah, yeah, just make sure you get my good side next year, oak. otherwise you may find yourself out of a job extremely quick." lando jokingly threatened.

she met bella last year at the austin grand prix and the three of them have been friends ever since. she missed them like crazy when she was back home and begged danny to bring her to every gp he could, but now she would be with them all year.

well lando all year. bella came to most of the grand prix's travelling with her dad, the one and only zac brown. otherwise she was back home in the UK working as a model for various different fashion brands.

"look oak i would love to stay and chat but I'm in the middle of a shot." bella apologised. "i'm so proud of you babe"

"yes god forbid arabella actually take time out of her day to talk to us oak" lando joked. "we're way below her pay grade. zac has to pay her each time she acknowledges our existence"

"go get piastri to run you over with his car norris" bella spat

"feeling is mutual" lando smirked back

"love ya bells" oakley interrupted

"love ya oakie" bella shot back and left the call leaving oak and lando by themselves.

"so how's mclaren been? let me guess. boring since dan left?" oakley's new favourite game since her brother was kicked from the team was to bring it up at any moment she could. especially to her friends who both felt bad they couldn't do anything about it.

"i miss your brother more than i thought i would" lando admits.

"he's the best isn't he." oakley boasts jokingly. "i think I'm still in shock. i can't believe i'll be with you guys in a week"

"what time do you fly out?" he asks as he sets his phone down on the table.

"fly out from Perth at 10pm, stop at Qatar and then arrive in Heathrow at 1. i still haven't even packed" oakley chuckled slowly before settling into a nice silence.

sometimes they two would just call each other and just sit in silence. if you could have platonic soulmates, oakley was convinced lando was hers. from the time they met each other in lando's rookie year it's like they'd known each other in another lifetime.

"Hey can i ask a serious question?" oakley whispered so soft she wasn't even sure lando heard.

"anything" lando reply was just as soft, if not even softer.

"is he any good?" oak whispered down the phone line.

"i wouldn't be surprised if he was beating me by next year" lando softly chuckled trying to make light of the conversation.

"i don't know if its better that he's good or if i wish he was bad" oakley admits "does that make me a bad person?"

"never." lando spits sharply "oak you are one of the only good people in this sport. you're not here for fame or the money, sex or glory. you are here because you care about your brother and you love watching him do what he loves. and now you've fallen in love with the very same thing."

"i would love to say something to that same effect but i'm not so great with the words. so ditto lan."

the two mclaren workers sit in silence and soak up each others presence for a while like they have so many times before.

"you know i'm so glad i met you in spa oakie. i actually don't know where i'd be without you. you've been my rock." lando whispers, breaking their silence streak.

"me too lan. if it weren't for you i probably would still be with..."

"hey" lando snaps oak out of her train of thought. "this year is not about him ok. forget about him. if anyone even mentions him you know dan and i won't hesitate to break their jaw. although i don't think we'd have the chance to before arabella bites their head off."

"thanks lando. i appreciate it."

"look oak i gotta go ok. it's late over here and i've got to go into the MTC tomorrow" lando picks up his phone from the night stand.

"oh i'm so sorry i didn't even realise the time. i'll let you get some sleep." oak murmured as she clicked the 'end call' button.