chasing - lando norris

eight.

[cassie klein]

I'm back in the garage, slightly dazed and disorientated.

"Just look straight forward for me," the medic tells me, bringing the light up to my eyes and moving it inwards and outwards, watching me closely. He sighs, dropping his arm and scribbling something on his clipboard.

"It's definitely a concussion," he says, looking back up to meet my eyes. "It doesn't look too severe though; your pupils are still constricting and responding to light, and you seem to remember everything that happened. Make sure someone keeps an eye on you, and if you feel anything, and I mean anything, head straight to the hospital. Understand?"

I nod, smiling sheepishly.

He stands, taking his clipboard and making his way toward the car parked outside the garages.

"Thank you!" I call after them.

I turn around on my chair to straddle the back of it, chin resting on my hands perched on the back rest.

I see Lando in the corner, arms crossed and brows knitted. He hasn't said a word since he literally carried me into the ambulance car.

Georgia, Harry, Liam and Tommy are all standing around the edges of the room, faces drawn with worry and chests breathing heavily.

"I'm fine, guys," I offer, trying to find some stability in my tone. "Really, I am."

Georgia shakes her head, moving toward me.

"Cassie, you crashed. Hard. There's no way that you're completely fine." She says with sympathy.

"No, Reedy," I hold my arm out to stop her, "I don't want pity. I crashed, I know. But I'm fine, albeit a split lip and mild concussion. That's it." I rest my head back in my hands, lowering my gaze. "No pity. No sympathy. Let's just move on."

Georgia's footsteps stop, before I hear something like a scoff and the sound of her heels receding in the distance.

"Cass- " Harry starts, but I shake my head and his voice dies in his mouth.

Silence settles among the five of us as I process what happened. It all happened so fast, the corner, the brakes, the traction, the wall. My mind ticks away, analysing every little detail, every turn of the wheel, everything I did wrong leading up to the incident. God, how could I be so-

"It can't of been her car, Tommy. Someone sabotaged her." Lando's voice derails my train of thought, loud and laced with... worry?

"Lando, stop. Who would do that?" Tommy says, attempting to shut the idea down.

"Someone," He says, "Someone afraid of her," He says again, green eyes searching for someone to understand what he's saying. "Someone threatened by her, someone-"

"Lando," Tommy says, stopping him.

Defeated, he says, "I don't know, okay. But a crash like that couldn't have just happened."

It takes my brain a moment to realise what he's doing.

Defending me. That's a first.

*****

I'm almost positive it's against my medical advice to be here right now.

Oh well.

The music is almost deafening as I enter the nightclub, one arm linked with Georgia and the other Daniel. The lights seem to reflect off my silver sequined dress like a disco ball as my heels click down the stairs.