Aimee had woken up alone to a message from Lando to say he'd gone for a run. So, when her phone started buzzing beside her, she assumed it was him saying he'd forgotten his keys- again- and needed to be let back in.
Except it wasn't a message from Lando. The message from an unknown number had a screenshot attached, an article with a paparazzi photo of her and Lando sat in the cafe the other day having lunch.
'Still going to tell me you weren't fucking him behind my back the whole time?'
She re-read the message twice, her stomach twisting itself into anxious knots as she processed it.
There was only one person that message could be from.
She sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the phone in disbelief, as she tried to calm herself down.
She'd almost forgotten Tom existed, so wrapped up in her bubble with Lando. It was much easier to pretend he didn't exist than come to terms with the fact he was still out there somewhere, a free man.
It made her feel sick.
That was how Lando came to find her sprawled on the cool tiles of the bathroom floor, clinging to the toilet like it was a lifeline.
"Aimee?" He'd been calling her name since he'd walked back through the door, holding the croissants and coffee he'd picked up on his way back from his run.
"Aimee?" He was trying to remind himself not to freak out as he approached the bedroom to find the bed empty.
"In here." Aimee called wearily. She'd have tried to get up and convince him she was fine, but she'd thrown herself down on the floor at such an awkward angle she wasn't going to be able to stand up without his help.
"You feeling okay?" Lando asked as he rounded the corner. It was a stupid question, she was as white as the tiles on the floor.
"Please take that coffee a long way away from me." She groaned as she felt her stomach roll.
Lando vanished for a second, reappearing with a glass of water. "Wait, how did you get here?" He asked, looking around and realising her crutches were nowhere to be seen.
"I panicked." Aimee mumbled. "Believe me, I'm paying for it now." Her leg was throbbing.
"What's wrong?" He asked, lowering himself down onto the floor beside her.
She hadn't realised she was crying until he reached out to wipe a tear away. She couldn't find the words to tell him, just burying her face in his chest as he wrapped his arms around her.
She wasn't sure how long had passed before she steadied her breathing. "You really need a shower." She mumbled.
Lando laughed quietly. "Thanks for that. I did just run for two hours."
"Jon's working you hard, hey?"
"Stop trying to change the subject."
"I'm not I..." she searched for an excuse. He knew her far too well by now. "Can you help me up?"
With a quick kiss to the top of her head he was on his feet, helping her manoeuvre herself until she was standing. She'd been expecting him to let her lean on him so she could walk back, but instead he'd scooped her up bridal style.
"Put me down." She laughed, rolling her eyes. "You'll be complaining you've hurt your back and I'll have Jon after me too."
He just ignored her, carrying her through to the sofa and setting her down. "I did pick us up some breakfast on the way back if you're feeling better?"
"I uh... maybe in a bit?" She offered.
Lando frowned, looking at her as she chewed on her lip anxiously. He picked up his own coffee, bringing hers with him and placing it on the table, as he sat down next to her.
"What's wrong?" He asked, reaching for her hand.
Aimee looked down at their interlinked hands, unable to meet his eyes.
"Did you know there was photos of the two of us online?" She asked quietly.
Lando was taken by surprise by the question. It wasn't what he was expecting. "I haven't looked to be honest, but you know what it's like." He shrugged it off. It had just become part of his life, albeit quite an annoying one, so he chose not to think about it too much.
Aimee did know what it was like, it had been her job for years to keep an eye on these things. But somehow, when they'd been sat in that cafe together, she'd forgotten that he was F1 driver Lando Norris and not just her friend Lando.
"Is it something bad?" Lando asked, rummaging as he tried to find his phone. He was trying to think what on earth they could've done that an out of context photo might've been taken of and coming up empty. They hadn't even been out that much. And if it was as bad as that he'd have had someone from McLaren on the phone by now, surely?
"I... no... I guess not." Aimee sighed, she rested her head on Lando's shoulder to hide her face.
Lando had finally located his phone and let out a sigh of relief as he found the photo she was talking about. "Aimee you can't even tell that's you unless you know you." He breathed a sigh of relief.
"I know." She mumbled.
"So what's the matter?" He asked, still confused as to why this was so catastrophic.
Aimee didn't say anything, just reaching to pick up her phone and unlocking it before she handed it to Lando. The message still sat on the screen and it made her stomach roll again at the thought.
Lando took the phone and stared at the message. "I don't understand?" He mumbled, re reading the words again. "Who... shit." It finally clicked.
"We uh... we used to argue about you, Lando." Aimee said slowly, she had held back from telling him this because she knew he'd find a way to make what Tom did his fault in his head. "He thought there was something going on between us when we were working together. Thats what a lot of the arguments were about. And now he's seen that and he thinks it's true and I'm scared he's going to do something stupid."
YOU ARE READING
Stay With Me- Lando Norris
Fanfiction*Completed* After discovering that one of his coworkers is in a desperate situation, Lando makes it his mission to try and help her. Except she doesn't want his help, and does everything she can to push him away.
