Once again, being home only meant two things for summer. A sweet race weekend of supporting max through it all, or running around her old house looking for medicine that will ease her moms pain, and after hiding in the bathroom crying silently so that her mom won't wake up to cries of despair.
When summer was 6 her mom told her once that when life brought a challenge it was her who picked if she won or not. This wasn't clear to her at the time but it made sense when her mom got diagnosed with severe arthritis, which would make her lay in bed for days till she found strength and endurance to get up and be able to move.
"honey would you bring me water?" my moms voice was heard, even if her tone was low and full of pain behind it
"yes mom, anything else? more meds?"
"I'll be fine summer, I'm a tough fighter" she laughed, or at least she tried doing so
"that's why I learned from you" I chuckle as I start walking out
The weight of responsibility pressed heavily on Summer's young shoulders as she navigated the cabinets of the kitchen in search of a clean glass for the water
While doing so summer couldn't forget the weekend ahead of this one, her mind had been racing on the thoughts of max and her interacting in the way they did. Why was she so flustered when he was around.
Once again, those thoughts got blocked by her own reminders that he would never see her that way, her big career and at home responsibilities would push them apart. As well as the fact that their long term friendship would be put in a risk of losing which she wasn't ready to endure.
"Here is your water mommy"
"Would you like me to put on max's race? It's starting and we could watch together like we used to" her soft tone could be sure used for a kids lullaby
"Oh yes I would sure love that" her mom would never decline to support max, even from a far distance she would always have a pride on who she once saw as a little child who would bring hand picked flowers to her toddler
The pair watched the race, summer ever stopping to check her mom's temperature and ask her if she was experiencing pain in any other form except the one she felt from her swelled hands and feet.
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After Max experienced a disappointing (DNF) during the race, summers first instinct was to text him to make sure he was okay, since she did agree to go see him and ended up canceling due to her moms health throughout the week. To say she was nervous would stay short for what she was feeling, she hadn't checked her phone since the day prior, and that was only around 15 minutes, and she was also anxious to hear how max would be holding up.
After a disappointing race for him, His determination to help Summer and her mom grew stronger. He knew that his presence and support meant the world to both of them. And that summer especially could use a lot of company and emotional support from someone who would be able to handle how she acted when distressed. Throughout his life, Max's racing career had taught him resilience, and he was ready to apply that same spirit to their lives off the track.
Some time had past and max was back into jeans and a red bull shirt, he decided it was the right moment to send summer a text message to let her know about his soon to be there presence.
His body felt numb, and his mind raced faster than any of the drives he had done during his career. Texting summer was always a strange feeling, like knowing precisely where you wanna go, just not how to arrive there. Like picking out an ice cream flavor at your favorite parlor, you know them all too well but they all sound like a possibility of a different moment.
He finally got strength and sent a small "on the way home, your home." followed by a "don't ask". After he grabbed his bags and left to the car that awaited him outside the paddock and drove away from his fears.
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"max is on the way"
mrs miller got up at the sound of summer's voice announcing the soon arrival of the verstappen child, who she saw get raised alongside her home in a small neighborhood in the heart of Hasslet. the home where she saw her little girl grow into a smart, hardworking woman; but also the home where she saw max and her girl grow up side by side, hanging on to each other whenever the fear was growing in their minds, and where she had seen them staring into their eyes in a way she had once seen a man who left her when a sickness arrived.
"mommy did you hear what I said?"
"oh I did hun, his presence just brought back a little memory to my old brain" she chuckled
"well I got to clean up in case he plans to remain here for a long time" summer complained as she left the room
To her surprise, a tall head blonde man now stood in her kitchen. Waiting with his arms crossed in front of his chest while looking down at his feet, as she continued walking towards him, his gaze shifted up to look at her eyes; those hazel eyes that consumed every inch of his body into a shiver.
"maxie"
"summy"
both voices sounded alike, stunned, confused and nostalgic. as if time had gone to a quick stop while they both got near to each other enough for a warm hug to spread across their bodies. as she looked up to his face tears had spread across his now rosy cheeks.
"you're okay, you're okay I'm here and your home and you can cry all you need and I'll stand next to you and hold you if you need it" her voice sounded like a soft baby giggle as she comforted him in an attempt to prevent an attack like the ones they both had shared in previous occasions
"I don't know what happened summer, my dad is so mad I had to turn off my phone and location. I'm afraid he will haunt me forever for this race and I can't even drive properly to relieve my anxiety and-"
"STOP" his rant was interrupted quickly as she knew it would just make the situation worse
"I'm sorry I know it doesn't help but I don't know what else to do with this situation, I wanna lay in bed and cry like a little kid" tears streamed down his face once again, breaking her heart in pieces. now deciding to make sure he would recover as he pleased
and so she did, she brought him to her room, which he knew every version of. and cuddled his side as they watched movies for hours on end, summer getting up every few scenes to watch her mom as she sat reading on her bed; her eyes growing tired each time she checked. by the end of the fifth movie both max and her mom had fallen asleep, leaving summer by herself with her mind at peace, as two of the people she loved the most in the world now rested instead of suffering pain.
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hello everyone
thanks for stopping by to read! I'm writing this episode at midnight on a Tuesday so that's effort. I'm sorry that all updates are super slow at the moment but finding time to write is hard for me
Once let me know if you have suggestions on how to make it more enjoyable or any other moments you would like to see in this book!
