dear hazel, | lewis hamilton

5

13th of February, 2022

Dear Hazel,

It's been a while, sorry for that. The new season is coming up soon, so duties are more than ever- as you already know.

Beginning this season on my own has shown me that my love for Formula One was greatly influenced by you and your company.

You always managed to light up my day, even after a bad result. Whether that was by your smile, your laugh or simply being in your presence.

You made me forget the troubles of the world, making everything a hundred times more bearable.

It was always you cheering me up, which was why it was a rare sight seeing you so broken- a complete 360 from the bubbly and carefree girl I knew, especially when your father's time came to an end.

lewis threw out his burnt cookies away after miserably failing to follow a tutorial on how to bake them on youtube.

he tried to do something cute since hazel was coming over, being the first time ever since she entered stanford 3 years ago. that and the fact that their 4 year anniversary was coming up.

obnoxiously loud knocks sounded on the front door, along with continuous presses on the doorbell.

"i'm coming! i'm coming!" lewis rushed towards the door, assuming it was just nico playing games with him.

he deadpanned as he opened the door, his expression instantly changing to one of concern when a tear-stained hazel was stood in front of him.

her body rocked with sobs as she fell into his arms, crying her soul out while the only thing he could do was rub her back reassuringly and hold her tightly.

"what's wrong, baby? what happened?" he whispered, his heart ever so slightly breaking for his girl.

even anthony hamilton approached the couple with suspicious eyes.

"the hospital just called me." she separated from the hug, wiping her tears. "they're sending me their condolences."

there she was again, erupting into a fit of tears. as far as she was concerned, he entered the hospital a few days ago due to low blood pressure.

lewis momentarily looked at his father, concern etched on his face.

hazel didn't fail to notice this, even in her messy state, "do you guys know something i don't?"

anthony took over from his son, stepping up, "your dad was dying of a rare lung disease, hazel. he's been battling it for the past 3 years."

it's as if her day kept getting worse, discovering secrets that were hidden right under her nose while she remained clueless to it.

"you knew?" her voice croaked as she looked at her boyfriend, who glued his eyes to the floor in hopes of avoiding confrontation. the silence being the answer she needed to hear, "you knew and you didn't bother to tell me?!"

"zel..." lewis tried to reach for her hand, seeking to offer comfort in any way he could, but she stepped back, the sense of betrayal too overwhelming and fresh for her to accept any affection from him.

"it's not his fault." his father told her, "your dad, he made him promise not to tell you. he wanted that because he was looking out for you."

"what... i don't understand." hazel was overloaded with emotions whilst anthony repeated what he had just said to her, but she was still in denial. "i have to go and see him."