Turbulence [𝗠.𝗩.]

France, Summer Shutdown, Day Five

@SchumacherMick is the king of Monopoly. - @JamesWebb

⸻

FRANCE
SUMMER SHUTDOWN
AUGUST

I want to scream.

Cassy;
Girl. You don't NEED to 'talk it
out'.
You two ARE dating.

Cassandra's idea of advice is not working.

Jessy (Me);
Cass. We're fucking competitors.
We kinda need to have a chat about
how we're gonna work now things
have changed off the track.
Shit, I broke the "Keep it away from
work" rule first! We gotta talk but I
don't know how to start this.

Cassy;
Or, and this is a WILD idea that
might be too much for you to
understand: you just fucking roll
with it and stop overthinking.

I heave out a sigh, because it's better than losing my mind at this. Cassandra's probably right. I'll probably change my mind and realise I'm looking too much into this. Or I'll be proven right. Because things are going to be complicated. Right now, it's easy to let ourselves run away with this. But we will be going back to the circuits sooner rather than later. We will be competing again.

It would be stupid if we didn't come up with a plan or some sort of agreement before that.

"All yours!" Max chirps happily as he exits the bathroom. My brain once again freezes up at the sight of him. In the span of a few days, privacy has become optional. I try not to watch him as he wanders to his suitcase with only a dark blue towel around his waist. I have to make myself turn my head away briefly because if I don't... I might do something we could end up regretting... only because the walls are indeed thin, and Max has already had texts off Daniel about hearing something last night.

I jump off the bed and head into the bathroom, with the full intent of having a cold shower, but the mirror catches my eyes. I stop, turning to face it, and holy fuck. I'm going to need to cover up today. My neck is bruising up with hickeys that look angry and aren't at all small. Something flushes over my body as I press a cautious finger to the largest of them - one that's fairly high up.

Shit.

I like them. I like the idea of being marked by him.

Fucking hell. I'm a goner.

I spend a while in the shower, which isn't cold at all because holy hell the cold water felt like ice. When I eventually leave, wrapped up in a large bath sheet, Max is already dressed and lounging on the bed with his phone. He doesn't even pretend to not be watching me go to my suitcase to find my clothes. I watch him from the corner of my eyes whilst searching for a long-sleeved shirt with a high neck; the moment his eyes lock onto my neck I can see a smug, satisfied look on his face.

"Which slope are we going to today?" I ask, as if I haven't just watched him enjoy the sight of my lightly bruised skin.

"Uhhh..."

It's my turn to be smug. He's completely broken, trying to find his thoughts. I find the shirt I'm after, along with a few other bits, and dive back into the bathroom, leaving him to try and pull himself together.

Everyone ends up waiting on Mick to be ready before we can hit the slopes again. For someone that's usually up before me, he slept in pretty badly this morning. This time, Max and I have the German for company, as he wants to spend time with everyone in turn and since Max is still struggling with balance, it's a perfect time for Mick to show off his teaching skills. I follow them on my snowboard at a slow pace, swaying side to side as Mick shows Max how it's no different to some of the other recreational activities they partake in.

For his part, Max is learning faster. He's able to take sharper turns, and he can halt his board without falling a lot better now.

As we set off again from the top of the slope, Daniel joins us, with Logan in tow. There's an evil look in Daniel's eyes, and Logan appears to be grinning like a madman as he pulls up his neck warmer. My mind leaps to a conclusion... and I'm proven right once Daniel opens his mouth.

"Get any sleep last night?"

"Fuck you." Is all I can say as my face heats up against the freezing air. Logan laughs at me, and I try to fix him with a glare, but it only makes it worse.

"Might wanna put more foundation on your neck next time." Logan quips as he flies off, down the snowy mountainside with a loud, nasally cackle.

I hang my head in shame as Daniel slaps my back, practically brimming with glee. I thought the fine layer of foundation would make up for the shirt's collar not reaching up high enough. Apparently it didn't. Great.

"Aw, come on Jess. It's all a bit of fun!"

"For you." I bite back, trying to shove him— fuck.

I'm in the snow, on my back. Daniel's laughing so hard he falls over too. To our left, Mick and Max have stopped, staring at us as if we've grown extra heads. I grab a fistful of snow and fling it at Daniel's face; he brings up a hand to try and catch it, but the loose snow breaks on impact, showering him with flakes.

"You're an arsehole, Ricciardo!" I'm shouting, but for fuck's sake, he's got me. I'm laughing with him. I don't even know why, only that this has all become hilarious and I can't breathe for laughing.

"Aw, poor Jessy~"

"Bite me!"

"That's Max's job!"

I hurl more snow at him as he drops his head onto the ground, trying to breathe whilst losing himself to his fit of giggles mixed with an evil cackle. I can't keep it together anymore; he's got me, and for some reason, everything feels lighter this time around. I'm still laughing with him, and... I don't care that he's teasing me. This isn't like before, where I felt so guarded and cornered. Now it's just fucking hilarious for no reason at all.