𝐁 𝐑 𝐄 𝐀 𝐓 𝐇 𝐄 [lando norris x oc]

𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐲-𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫

"Yeah, pretty good day!" Lando smiled and wiped his face with a towel. "One of the faster cars on track, so that should work out for the rest of the weekend, especially with the new upgrades."

The interviewer smiled. "P3 in the second practice is definitely the better result for McLaren today, what do you think about Oscar landing P11?"

Lando inhaled and scratched his head. "You know, its rough conditions and Mercedes were racing the laps of their lives, so definitely a struggle for all of us but Oscar's been putting in some great work and I'm sure will have some great qualifying results tomorrow."

"Thank you, Lando!" 

He nodded and grabbed his water bottle before heading off into the paddock room to clean up. That was his last PR for the day, which means he now had the rest of the afternoon and evening to himself. 

"Mate!" 

Max shuffled next to him and fell into step as they slid through security checkpoints. "Insane day, yeah? Look at the big man!"

Lando rolled his eyes. "Don't inflate the ego. Good days, though."

Max clapped him on the back as they entered the paddock room. "So...I'm going out with Lilly tonight."

Lando raised his eyebrows. 

"Just me and her. Might have to borrow one of your shirts."

"Come on, man. You can't keep taking my clothes." Lando protested as he began untying his race shoes and tossing them to the side. "I'm assuming that meant last night went well for you?"

Max grinned. "Fuck yeah. It was great, man. She's adorable."

"Don't get all soft, now." Lando snorted. "Have you heard anything from...?" His voice faltered.

He shook his head. 

"Figures." Lando stood and pulled his compression shirt off. "I have to talk to her tonight. She never responded to my text."

Max began sifting through the documents in Lando's paddock room. "You should. Lilly said she spoke to Gabi but didn't give me tons of details. Just that she's a bit hurt. Lilly did say Gabi felt a little guilty, though."

"Why would she feel guilty?" Lando frowned but shook his head. "I need to talk to her."

Max stepped toward the door but stopped. "Some advice: tell her the truth about how you feel. She'll understand."

"What makes you say that?" Lando questioned Max's statement.

"Just a feeling." Max scratched his head. "Now hurry up, I need to get back to your hotel room for the key."

"Fine, fine. I'll be out in twenty."

Max shut the door behind him, leaving Lando alone with his thoughts, and his phone. 

A buzz sent it right into his hands. 

gabs

gabi
can i see you this afternoon?

Relieved would be an understatement.

gabs

lando
yes

lando
ill be back at hotel at 4

gabi
ill meet you at the lounge

Lando felt so relieved that he could pass out. Talking didn't mean everything was fixed, but it did give him a chance to fix it. But first he had to admit the truth: he had no idea what their relationship was. After bringing her to the Netherlands, Lando felt so much pressure to make it feel worth it for her but instead only shifted his confusion onto her. 

Having a public relationship was hard, and it wasn't something Lando was keen on attempting again. But if Gabi wanted that, could he say no? Were his feelings for her strong enough to ignore his image?

a/n: shorter chapter bc this is mostly just filler which i absolutely hate writing but like...it had to be written, yk? ty u guys for 20k thats j absolutely ridiculously insane i never thought this book would even get like 10 reads to thank youuuu