DNF - A Formula 1 Story (Lando Norris)

Chapter 33

"Chrome heart for the broken. Yeah, I never showed no love. Cah I didn't want my love getting stolen." - Sainté

Lando

All throughout my drive so far things have been tense. There's something wrong, but my team won't tell me what it is and it's driving me crazy. The car feels fine though, so I just need to focus and finishing this race so I can get back to Bianca. She has been stressed since we left the police station days ago. Much to my chagrin, Bianca was right and the police couldn't do anything besides make a report about the text messages. Since Sophie never said anything explicitly threatening, they couldn't do anything, which is bullshit if you ask me. I feel like her knowing where Bianca lives is threatening enough, but apparently it's not enough to get a restraining order.

After we left the police station, Bianca was quiet and pensive, which made me nervous. I thought she was going to end things with me; that she finally figured out that I'm not worth all of this drama that I've created and deserved better. And I was preparing myself to let her go, because she does deserve someone better. To my surprise though, she just cuddled up to me and told me she loved me, then begged me to help her forget everything even for just a few minutes. So I helped her forget, because I would do anything she asked of me.

It took some convincing to get her to come with me to Italy, but I finally convinced her. It didn't hurt that McLaren called in the middle of me begging her, with their plan. They thought it was imperative that we remain public with our relationship to show the world that we are solid and that the gossip is just that, gossip. With the support of my team, our families and friends she felt more comfortable going with me. It's been an amazing weekend so far and it's about to get even better if I can just finish this race cleanly.

I'm currently in P2 with 8 laps to go. I can see Oscar in my rear view mirrors and I cringe when I hear Will over the coms telling me that I might have to switch positions if I can't keep my current pace because Oscar is gaining on me. Not that I don't want Oscar to succeed, but I don't want to have to change positions with him so I focus on maintaining my pace and trying different things to gain more time. By the time we reach the last few laps, I'm still going strong in P2 and the risk of swapping positions is gone.

I end up in P2, right behind Max and Oscar finishes strong in P3. It's a great day for McLaren and I celebrate over the radio with Will and Zak, congratulating the team on our successes. There's a hint of sourness though and I'm not sure why, I'm about to ask but decide against it not wanting whatever is wrong broadcasted on the coms for everyone to hear. I'll just have to wait.

Once I park in parc fermé and climb out the car, I find my team and Oscar to celebrate. The vibes are off though and again I'm confused. Something is wrong, I can see it on everyones faces, including the crowd and interviewers as I go through the post race interview. When I get to the cooling room, I want to ask Max and Oscar if they feel the weirdness but I don't get the chance when they start talking about the race.

When I head out to the stage for trophies I search the crowd for Bianca. Maybe once I see her face I'll feel better and whatever is going on will disappear. Unfortunately I can't find her anywhere and my gut churns with worry as I get even more concerned about what the fuck is going on. I know there's something wrong. Putting on a fake smile, I get through the trophy presentation and champagne celebration. Once we head back to the back of the stage I search for my agent so I can get my phone from her. I find her talking to Zak, looking tense.

"I need my phone." I demand when I approach them, surprising them both on my appearance. She hesistates for a moment before handing it over, eyeing Zak as she does. I frown at their awkwardness and unlock my phone. There's an absurd amount of notifications on my phone for some reason but I ignore them for now and opt to call Bianca. She answers on the second ring and I instantly relax, happy that she's okay.