Different Lanes

8

"How are you feeling?" Charlie sat down on the bed next to Lewis. She'd managed to get away from the paddock pretty quickly after the press conference, avoiding the circus that had begun to engulf her. However the notifications on her phone told her a different story, which is why she'd switched it to silent on the way to the hotel for her own sanity.

Lewis smiled at her, his head partly covered with a damp towel and although sunken from his illness, his eyes sparkling. "All things considered, I'm pretty good King".

Charlie hesitated to ask, the last time she had seen Lewis today, he was in a great condition. "What exactly happened to you?"

"Food poisoning. Well to be more precise I ate egg"

Charlie was confused, "Egg? Where?"

"At hospitality"

"But you never eat at hospitality" she could feel her voice rising. "You always bring your own lunches. I don't think I've ever seen you......" her voice trailed off as Lewis placed his hand on her arm. He didn't. He wouldn't have. "Did you......."

"You deserve a chance to show the world how good you are. If its not Mercades next year, surely another team" He squeezed her arm. "Though I can't think of a better successor"

Charlie needed a minute to process. Lewis had just admitted that he had made himself sick so she could drive. He'd willingly put his body on the line for her to have a shot at her dream. She could feel the tears welling up, looking away she quickly wiped them on her sleeve.

"When I heard that Mick had been in the accident, I knew it was now or never. With Kimi in Spain they'd have no choice but to give you a shot-"

Charlie threw her arms around him, pulling him into a hug. "Lewis", she sobbed, "thankyou. But don't you ever pull a stint like this again. My heart can't take it. I genuinely though something serious had happened".

"Careful King", Lewis hummed into her neck, "you're getting soft. You're going to need to bring back your killer instinct to survive tomorrow".

Charlie pulled back, looking into his eyes. "Only for you, you old man". She giggled, "but seriously, thankyou for this"

"You know I've always got your back", he leaned back in the bed. "But if you're grateful, stay and watch a movie with me", he patted on the bed.

Charlie smiled, before settling on the bed next to him, "Only cause I'm grateful"

"Me too King"

* * * * * *

In another hotel Lando sat cross legged on his bed, his eyes glued to his phone as he scrawled through all the news articles from the weekend so far, with majority of them focusing on the new rookie, Charlie King.

"Following a shock exit from racing after winning her first F3 season, Charlie King, aka Tako, has taken to the F1 track proving she can run with the boys"

"Former F3 champion and current Mercades Engineer, Charlie King, takes the fight to Norris and Verstappen"

"Mercades dark secret, former F3 champion Charlie King, gets her chance in the light clutching a top 3 in qualifying"

"A fluke? The newest woman in F1 actually gets a good result in qualifying"

Lando ran his hands through his curly hair before letting out a deep sigh. Why hadn't he picked up on it, that Charlie was Tako. He'd idolised her when he first entered F3, especially her ability to overtake by squeezing herself through the tightest of gaps. A trait that had coined her nickname "Tako" by Ukyo Sasahara, a rookie Japanese racer in F3, which roughly translated into octopus in English.