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29. Surf & Sand

Olivia was lying on the beach taking in the sun, wearing a blue bikini she had bought at a little local market. They had totally improvised an entire trip to Bali. Lewis had rented a huge house on the beach and there was plenty of room for everyone. Olivia even had her own room overlooking the ocean. It was their second day there and while the boys were out surfing Liv stayed at the beach, read a little, and took in the sun while listening to the rhythmic waves of the blue ocean. Lewis was coming out of the water and Liv couldn't help but stare for a second from behind her sunglasses in a discreet manner. He came over and sat next to her.

"Don't you wanna come surf with us?" He asked.
"I don't actually know how to surf" replied Liv honestly.
"Do you want to learn? I can teach you if you want" he offered amicably.
She shot him a smile "yeah sure, let's do it"

Lewis spent the entire day teaching Liv how to surf, beginning with the very basics, where she would be on the sand and learn how to stand and get up. As the day went on she started to get the hang of it and it was time to try it on the water. She made many mistakes but she would laugh at all of them, both of them got in a very silly mood, which was then contagious for Charles and Lando. After a long day of trying to surf, Liv and Lewis went back to the shore and laid in the sand.

"You'll get the hang of it. Nobody is good during their first time out in the water" he said brushing it off.

"How long did it take you to do it?" Asked Liv curiously.

Lewis looked at her with a smile that just got broader and he ended up laughing.

"You did it right away didn't you?" She said as a smile appeared on her face too.

"I mean.... Yeah basically" he shrugged.

"It does not surprise me at all" said Liv shaking her head.

Lewis laughed, after a brief paused he said "Hey there was something I wanted to ask you".

"Shoot" said Liv while turning to look at him.

"Why does half the internet think you are Charles' girlfriend and the other half thinks you are mine?" He said with an incredulous smile and a little laugh.

"Oh god" exclaimed Liv rolling her eyes and hiding her face in her hands. "I'm so sorry about that Lewis" she said removing her hands from her face.

Lewis laughed "don't apologize, I know the internet always gets crazy ideas. I'm just curious where that came from".

"Well, you know Ashley? Max's girlfriend?" Asked Liv.

"Yes, I mean I have seen her around sometimes" he said.

"Well she saw us talking at the sushi restaurant and then again at breakfast. Apparently she thought there was something between us. Then she basically questioned me about it on the hotel elevator and I just wanted her to leave me alone so I didn't correct her" said Liv while making a face. "I may even have told her she was right..." she admitted.

"You told her she was right?!" He asked impressed.

"I'm so sorry, this is so embarrassing" said Liv shaking her head and hugging her knees.

"Liv, it's okay I don't mind; but I'm really curious, why would you say that? What was the reason?" Asked Lewis.

Olivia looked at Lewis. The Lewis she had just met but had flown to a completely different and unknown country with, the lewis who was rapidly earning her trust with his uncomplicated and understanding nature. She had lied about being in a relationship with him and even though she thought it had been really obvious she wasn't serious when she had said it, now the entire internet was in a fierce debate about whether she was with Charles or with Lewis. The fact that she was in Bali with both of them didn't help their situation either.

"I met Max before coming here, at a club in Monaco and we sort of hooked up. I didn't know who he was or anything! Then I came to F1 and found out everything, but we had really clicked there was a real connection there, you know?" She sighed "The point is, he is now back together with Ashley and I feel like shit. So when Ashley asked if you and I were dating and Max was there I guess in some level I wanted to make hin jealous... I was just so angry at him". Olivia admitted, she was surprised she would just tell everything to Lewis like that, with no inhibitions. And she knew that even though her story was a little crazy he wouldn't judge her.

He sat there quiet for a moment "Wow, you and Max huh? That's hard to imagine I gotta be honest. You two are so different" he said.

"You think so?" She was impressed by that comment because she had always thought they were really similar to each other.

"Totally, like water and oil. You are water by the way, he's the oil". He said with a little smile.

Olivia went back to the topic at hand "Lewis I know I shouldn't have said that to Ashley, in my defense I didn't know she would repeat it in international TV. But I will tell her I was kidding next time I see her" apologized Olivia again.

Lewis chuckled "Liv I don't mind at all, if you ever need me to make somebody jealous let me know. Especially if it's to mess with Max."

Olivia laughed. Lewis was taking things even better than expected, she was glad for his accepting nature.

The rest of the week they spent at the beach, they rode Vespas, swam in the ocean, sailed, and by the end of the week Liv had improved her surfing skills drastically. Her skin was tanned, her hair was wilder and she lived in her natural loose curls, her cheeks were flushed from the sun, and there was a certain glow about her. Her spirits were much higher once again. Now she would just have to stay as far away from Max as she could so he wouldn't ruin her great mood once she arrived to Imola. She was trying to forget about him, but he still existed inside her head, which made everything so difficult.