𝗦𝗛𝗨𝗧 𝗨𝗣 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗗𝗥𝗜𝗩𝗘, charles leclerc

𝙏𝙒𝙀𝙇𝙑𝙀, national anthem

[ DECEMBER 13TH, 2020 ]

          NOURA DID NOT WIN her first championship at the end of the 2020 season. Lewis won his seventh, which, when Noura really thought about it, was almost better. She had years ahead of her in the sport, how could she be mad at Lewis for making his mark on history?

The battle Noura had been in for the 2020 season had been with Max and Valterri, the three battling for that second place standing from the moment the first race began in Austria. Porsche had delivered exactly what they had promised Noura, a championship winning car. Sure, Noura hadn't won the championship in it, but she had come pretty damn close. She would just have to come back bigger and stronger the next year.

Charles hadn't been as lucky as her, Ferrari not able to give him the speed he wanted. But he had still managed P8 in the championship (with his tractor of a car), which Noura considered to be an almost greater feat than her own narrowly won P3. She had been a few points off of P2, Valterri just beating her out for the silver title. But she wasn't mad. Her and Fernando's combined points had brought Porsche to the top of the constructor's leaderboard, which was pretty fucking good for the team's first season. Plus, she was only 20. She would have her chance.

Noura and Fernando had been as good as teammates as everyone had expected them to be. They managed to be competitive with each other when needed, but also willing to play the team game with no complaints. Plus, they had really bonded over a shared love of Taylor Swift (something Noura hadn't expected from the man in his late thirties).

The final race of the season had been much less emotional than the one from the year before, thankfully. There were no crashes between Charles and Noura and no tear-filled conversations. Noura had managed to let go a little, just enjoying what was left of the 2020 season.

Plus, a podium with two of her favorite people was a good way to round off the season. Her P2, sandwiched between Max in P1 and Fernando in P3, made her happier than any P1 could have. She loved seeing her friends in P1 almost more than she loved being in it. And Fernando's absolute joy at sharing a podium with her was infectious. They always had a blast on the podium together.

There were no crowds at the 2020 races, and that was the same for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. They hadn't even really done podium ceremonies all season, but, through a combined effort, Noura and Max had managed to beg the FIA for a podium ceremony to round off the season, with the promise that they would wear their Covid masks and not get too close to each other. The FIA also decided that they would not broadcast the podium ceremony, likely due to a fear of backlash, leaving it as a more private thing between the drivers and teams.

Noura stood on the second step of the podium, gazing over the small crowd watching them. It was composed of all the drivers and some a majority of the team members, all eager to have a good send off for the end of the season.

As the Dutch anthem began to play over the speakers, Fernando leaned back on his step slight, shooting a wink at Noura over Max's shoulder. Noura grinned, shooting her teammate a wink back.

About 30 seconds into Max's anthem, the music cut out, a loud static noise shooting through the speakers. Noura's smile widened, she couldn't believe her and Fernando's plan had actually worked.

On media day, instead of going to their interviews, Noura and Fernando had tracked down the man who controlled the music at all the ceremonies at the Abu Dhabi racetrack, including the podium ceremony. They had cornered the poor man, offering him everything from free Monaco Grand Prix tickets to 1000 Euros in cash to cut off whatever national anthem belonged to the driver who won the race and replace it with the only national anthem that mattered. Lana Del Rey's National Anthem.