Fifty Shades Of Red | Charles Leclerc

31. Comeback

Hailey's pov

Julia, my personal manager, walks behind me while I take my helmet off, putting my hair out of the messy bun. She hands me my bottle of water and I take a sip, walking towards the garage as I practice my breathing method to calm my body down.

"Practice went great today." Julia says "If you keep this performance up, you'll do great this Sunday."

"Hope so." I murmur.

"Take a few minutes off then join us in the office when you're ready, we've got some work to deal with."

Julia turns to walk away but I stop her.

"Hey...is it okay if I show up a bit later?" I ask and she gives me a confused look "I've got something important to deal with."

"Like what?"

"Personal stuff." I say, not being patient enough to meet up with Charles to talk about earlier.

Julia stands there, thinking for a few minutes.

"Fine, but you know I can't cover you for long." She gives in.

"Thanks, you're the best." I make my way towards the Ferrari garage, hoping to catch Charles there. I walk slowly towards the entrance, not knowing whether to walk in or not.

"Hailey!"

I turn my head towards where the voice is coming from and I see Carlos, standing next to his car.

"Hey Carlos!"

"Looking for Charles?" He asks and I nod "You just missed him but he went that way." He points to a direction.

"Thanks Carlos. Good drive today."

I make my way through the crowd of people, trying to carch a glimpse of a red racing suit. I smile when I spot him. Charles stands a few feet away, looking like he's talking to someone I can't quite see, because of a person blocking my way.

"Excuse me." I say and squeeze myself past the stranger, stopping in my place when I see who he's talking to.

What?

Charles turns his head towards my direction and sees me standing in front of him before flashing me a smile.

"Oh, there she is!" My mother exclaims when she sees me and they both start walking my way.

"Mom? What are you doing here?" I ask, not expecting to see her here and then hugging her.

"I wanted to come and see you but I wasn't sure if that was okay with you since I didn't ask you beforehand." She says and then looks at Charles "But then Charles reached out to me and invited me to show me the paddock."

I turn to look at Charles who's standing with his hands on his hips and with a smile on his face.

"You did?"

"I thought it was about time we met." Charles chuckles shyly.

"He's absolutely remarkable." My mother mouths at me.

"Where are you headed to?" Charles asks me.

"I was just looking for you." I say and my mother walks a few steps ahead before turning around to say "I'll give you some space."

"Is this about earlier?" Charles asks and I nod.

"Yeah, I just wanted to-" I begin to say and Charles cups my face, looking intensely into my eyes.

"Hey, it's alright." He softly says but I shake my head.

"Charles."

"Hailey." Charles takes a deep breath before saying "It's going to take awhile to get used to this...us. But I'm okay with not rushing things."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm willing to wait for you. No matter how long it takes." Charles says and pulls me into a hug, slowly caressing my back "I'm not going anywhere."

I breathe in, inhaling his intoxicating yet comforting scent.

"Actually...about that, your mom's waiting for me so..." He says and I chuckle.

"Yeah yeah go ahead."

"You can join us if you want?" Charles invites me.

"I would love to but I have a meeting to get to." I frown "And I'm already late."

"Alright. I'll see you later?"

I stand on my tiptoes, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before Charles walks to my mom and they start walking on the other direction. Before I leave, I hear my mom say "I need to show you this funny picture of Hailey with this red shirt on."

——————

I join the others at the office, all of them seated around the table. The air is thick and I can't help but notice the tense looks that everyone give each other once I walk in.

"Excuse me." I say and rush towards the empty chair, which happens to be next to Max and quickly sit down to not draw anymore attention to myself.

"Did I miss anything important?" I whisper to Max who swallows down harshly and doesn't look my way.

"Christian will tell you soon." Max's voice shakes a bit.

"Everything okay?" I ask Max and he bites his bottom lip.

"Mhm." He mumbles, seeming like he doesn't want to talk about it any further so I let him be.

For the next hour, I concentrate on what Christian and our strategist are saying, trying my best to ignore the weird feeling in my gut. Both of them keep going over analysis about the cars and this sunday's race and I cough to hide a yawn.

"Alright everyone, we're done for today." Christian excuses us after what seemed like the longest talk of his life. I get up to leave as well but Christian stops me "Not you Hailey."

I retake my seat again, waiting for everyone else to leave the room first. Max from beside me, hesitates to get up at first, looking my way.

"Max." Christian clears his throat and points his head towards the door, making Max leave us well.

"Hailey." Christian sits down on his seat, locking his fingers in front of him "Since you joined us as a reserve driver, I won't lie, I was very impressed of you. You're a very talented young driver and I can tell, you have such a bright future ahead of you and you have been contributing to our company in a very positive way." Christian scratches his forehead nervously "We would love to have you join us permanently as a second driver..." His voice dies down.

But?

Christian reaches at the side of the table, taking a white envelope and handing it to me. I take it and turn it over, confused.

"....if it were under different circumstances."

I read the letter inside, my breath getting stuck into my lungs as my eyes skim over the words.

We inform you that...the second official red bull driver...after his injury...due to his health conditions...improved...Checo Perez making his comeback...the rest of the season.

I drop it on the table, my hands shaking, my mouth dry.

"What does this mean?" I ask even though I already know the answer.

"I'm sorry." Christian says in a pitiful voice. I close my eyes, feeling a sharp pain in my stomach as if someone just brutally punched me.

"But Checo's coming back."

~~~🏎️💨
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