paddock princess [ln4]

monaco

Charlie's body was thrown forwards in a jolt, instantly pulling her out of the much-needed nap she had been fighting for throughout the entire ride The sudden bustling of voices and movement made her look outside the small airplane window. Which confirmed her worst fears as golden light streamed gently lit up her face and tarmac traveled along the underside of the plane.

Forcing her body to sit up straighter in the seat, Charlie quickly tried to flatten her hair with her hands, bringing up her phone's camera with a loud yawn, desperately attempting to make herself look a bit more presentable.

8:46 PM

Wednesday, May 26th

Taking her phone out of airplane mode, she forced herself to momentarily ignore the large amount of messages received from the girls' and instead focused on the one from Sebastian, instructing her to the location of her driver that he had arranged for her.

The past two days have been a blur of long phone calls with lawyers to finalize documents she didn't even know her father had partaken in and meetings with realtors in attempt to get rid of her childhood home as soon as possible.

Sebastian had already left Paris a day prior to finish preparing for the funeral but had kept his promise of assuring that Charlie's travel plans were his alone to worry about. Stassie and Emerson were very insistent about traveling to Monaco with the girl, but she practically locked them in the apartment and bolted as fast as possible to assure that they stay put in Paris.

The last thing she needs is for them to get wrapped up in this shit.

Quickly grabbing her small carry-on, Charlie hastily made her way throughout the crowded airport, anxious to get to the driver as soon and inconspicuous as possible. Keeping her head down, the dark sunglasses paired with a baseball cap covering her long, brunette hair did a good job at keeping her identity hidden.

Monaco is a small country, and with it being a grand prix weekend, the chances of recognition are very high.

After the initial shock from the news had worn off, following a rough night of Sebastian holding her and watching cheesy rom-coms while eating ice cream, Charlie realized she was feeling better about the whole situation then she had originally thought.

It may be heartless to not feel sad after your father's death, but that's not the emotion that overtook the girl.

Guilt and shame? Sure. Anger and disappointment? Most definitely. But sadness?

How could she be sad at the death of someone who had already died in her heart years ago?

A large, black Yukon pulled her from her thoughts as Charlie immediately recognized the driver Sebastian had sent. She had made it very known to her godfather that if she was going to even make it to Monaco, she needed to have the most safe and private, foul-proof trip.

A mom SUV was definitely the form of transportation that screamed "safe and secure".

While Charlie certainly didn't plan to stay in Monaco long–only long enough to go to the funeral, make a slight appearance at the race track, and settle the last affairs that she has to handle in person, she did not need the extra migraine of dealing with crazy fans and reporters on top of the chaos that was already occurring.

Driving through the busy streets of Monte Carlo, Charlie forced her gaze away from the roads that were once her home. It physically hurt to think that she had grown up riding her bike up and down these paths. She once had a life, a family in this country.

The silence in the vehicle hovered awkwardly, the girl fighting with herself over if she should start a conversation with the driver or leave the silence as be.