Racing is life

28 ~ mama

I get out of the truck which Charles borrowed off his friend, shutting the door behind me with enough force to make it shake slightly. Charles sighs as he gets out of the truck, following me towards the front door.

"Em, it's not your fault, okay? Everyone crashes, not everyone places well in their first race." He tries to reassure me, but it doesn't work.

"It's not my first race though, is it? I've been racing since I was eight. I did so bad, and there's no excuse." I state as Charles unlocks the front door, me barging past him and turning off the alarm before walking into the living room and sitting down on the sofa.

"It's the first time I've seen you race, and you were doing so well." He smiles slightly as he sits down beside me, kicking his shoes off his feet.

"Yeah, I was. I didn't finish in that position though, did I? It doesn't matter how well you race, it matters what position you come. And I came 32nd. That is so shit. You'd be fucking devastated if you came 19th." I say angrily, pulling my shoes off my feet and throwing them onto the floor.

"Maybe I would be, but you're only 13. I'm one of the best racers in the world. It's so different to the category you're in. You can't compare yourself to me." He says, shaking his head slightly and looking at me.

"Well I do, alright? So tough shit." I mutter, looking down at the floor as I kick my shoe back and forth between my feet.

"Cut out the swearing." He states firmly, tapping my foot with his. I move my foot away and glare at him.

"No. You can't tell me what to do." I reply, standing up off the sofa and shoving my feet back into my shoes.

"Where do you think you're going?" He asks, standing up after me.

"Out." I state, shoving my phone into my back pocket and pulling the tongue of my shoe out from underneath the laces.

"Em, please." He sighs, standing between me and the doorway.

"Just let me go. I need some time to myself." I state, looking up at him and sighing slightly. He shakes his head and crosses his arms over his chest.

"No. You need to stay here, where it's safe. You know your dad is somewhere in Monaco, and he's been texting you. He's a fucking psycho." He says, muttering the last sentence.

"So what? It's not like he's going to stab me or anything. I'll be fine." I state, my voice getting slightly louder as I go on.

"I said no." He states firmly, matching my volume with a stern look on his face. "And that's the end of it." He adds.

"Oh my fucking god." I mutter, letting out an angry sigh. "Just let me go out." I almost shout, trying to barge past him.

"Emilie." He states loudly, putting his arm out in front of me, blocking the doorway. I shove past him but he grabs my shoulder, pushing me backwards slightly.

"Charles." I respond, glaring up at him and hitting his arm away. A small disbelieving sigh escapes from his mouth.

"I said no. Now sit back down." He says, his voice slightly calmer as he speaks. I shake my head at him and his phone rings in his pocket. He gets it out and looks at the screen before answering.

"Arthur?" He asks, sighing slightly and rolling his eyes. "What?" He adds, clearly fed up of having to deal with children.

"Charles." Arthur breathes, sounding distraught as he tries to talk. "It's mama." He says, barely managing to get his words out.

"What about mama?" Charles asks, furrowing his eyebrows and fixing his stare on me. "Arthur, answer me." He states loudly, after gaining no response.

"She's in the hospital. I was with her on your yacht, and she collapsed-" Arthur says, not taking a breath as he speaks, all his words merging together.