BURN ✶ M. Verstappen

003 || lessons learned

"Max Emilian!"

The offended shout had multiple heads turning in their direction, only to be met with the sight of two eleven-year-olds having a face-off. The shorter of the two gesturing wildly and face pink from exertion, while the taller stood there with his arms crossed and an amused smile plastered onto his face.

It had been a little over a year since the pair had become friends and they were now much more comfortable around each other than they'd ever been. Cielo had taken to finally shedding her shy demeanor around Max and he had finally let his true competitive nature show with her.

"What?" he teased. "Are you mad that I was faster?"

"You cheated!" she poked him in the chest. Not hard but enough for him to feel it. "I was going to win!"

"Please, schatje," he scoffed playfully. He might've been a smug winner, but Max knew better than to really piss Cielo off. He had seen her get angry at someone exactly once and he was not eager to see that again. "We both know that with my height advantage, you and your short legs would fall behind no matter what. It is fact."

"Oh, it is?" Even though she was acting as if she were angry, Cielo couldn't help but be amused by the fact that Max had taken something as trivial as a footrace down the sidewalk so seriously. She went to open her mouth again and argue further but she was rudely interrupted by someone else.

"Max."

Jos Verstappen, who was already a large man to other adults, was an even larger man to children who were half his size. With his pristine clothes, his impeccably styled blonde graying hair, stern frown, and piercing blue eyes that geared toward icy, Jos Verstappen was an intimidating figure to approach. He was even more intimidating when you were an unassuming child who was just trying to have fun.

Cielo did not like Jos. She'd made that abundantly clear from day one, it just so happened that the feeling was entirely mutual. Jos saw the girl as a distraction for his son, too childish and someone who wouldn't amount to anything within her lifetime. The only reason he let her near his son was because her father was a reporter, and as long as Max was her friend, he would continue to bring Jos and his son good publicity.

"Dad," Max replied, the smile gone from his face and posture now tense.

"What was that?"

"What was what?"

"Don't play dumb, that race. I saw the whole thing, you gave her the half-second headstart from the beginning, and it cost you energy. Pull something like that on the track and you'll be in the wall before you can even make it to P2. Don't do it again."

Cielo stared at Jos in disbelief. Max really couldn't do anything without being subjected to scrutiny, not even something as simple as having a little childish fun in his downtime. It was always work, work, work with Jos Verstappen. Never satisfied with anything, especially not with his son.

Max had been karting since he was four years old and since then he'd always have to work to receive his father's love. A bad placement meant that he'd be due for an hours-long lecture about what he did wrong and what he could improve, a crash meant that he'd be in for it in bigger ways than he realized.

To be caught now, even in fun, giving the opponent an advantage? Oh, Jos would not be pleased.

Just as Cielo opened her mouth to step in and defend Max from Jos, said boy stomped on her foot to keep her quiet.