Written in Books [ENG] | Lando Norris

12

Lando

"What happened with your nose?", "A few days ago you looked just fine. What happened?", "You've got an injury, will that affect your performance?"

All of those shitty questions and not even one about the car or our recent consistency. At least they weren't asking about my mistakes and strategy from the last race. That would be horrible.

– Mate, for real, what happened with your nose? – Jon, my personal trainer, asked with amusement while massaging my back.

I was already in my racing suit, which was halfway unzipped. I was lying on my belly on the massage table with my hands underneath my chest.

– I was drunk and fell on the glass – I mumbled with annoyance.

Of course, I didn't say that version in front of the cameras. People thought that I just fell off the bike while cycling around Monaco.

If you would buy that, you must be dumb.

But almost everyone bought that. Almost. Zak and my PR manager knew I was lying, but they didn't say anything. I knew they were pissed, and I had to do a great job out on the track to apologize for all the shit that pictures of me made on the internet.

– Okay, but how did that happen? – he chuckled as he moved his hands to my lower back, which was hurting almost all the damn time.

I sighed and closed my eyes. I could tell that man every little detail of my life, and I knew he wouldn't say a word to anyone about it. He was with me since I started karting.

– Max came to Monaco, and we had an argument. I couldn't be in the same place he was because I was so pissed, so I went to Jimmy'z. I got drunk and didn't want to go home to Max, so my... this... girl... – I frowned. I didn't know who she was to me. A friend? Definitely not. But definitely not someone random either. We just... knew each other? What the fuck? – ...some girl I know took me to her house, and there I fell on the glass she left on the table in her living room – I shrugged a little, and he moved his hands to my legs.

– Some girl you know, huh? – I heard a note of amusement and ambiguity in his voice, so I rolled my eyes.

– Yup. She's the best friend of Max's new girl. We've met a few times, but we didn't even talk much – I mumbled. That was the truth. The only time I had a great time with her was when we were at the hotel bar in St. Tropez before Prim's sister's wedding. She was a different person since then.

– Oh, so how was the morning at her place? Did she make breakfast? – he asked seriously interested, and I chuckled. He was probably shocked that I didn't sleep with her.

The morning was so awkward. And no, she didn't make breakfast.

– When I woke up on the floor, she was still asleep on the couch. I was confused at first, but when I turned on my phone, I saw millions of missed calls from Max, so I only went to the bathroom to freshen up and left. I was already late for my flight – I told him briefly.

I skipped the moment when I saw a tiny Playboy bunny tattoo on her right buttock. And how did I see that? Her dress rolled up when she was asleep, and I swear, I wasn't looking at it for long. I just saw the tattoo and immediately went to the bathroom. I wasn't a creep. When I got back, she was already awake and making coffee in the kitchen. Her cheeks were a little red as she looked at me. She probably suspected that I saw her tattoo, but I acted like I didn't.

I would take advantage of that someday.

– And how's Prim? – Jon asked another question I didn't want to answer as I sat up and pulled my suit up. He looked at me with his brow arched, and his glasses were making him look a lot wiser than he really was.

– Good – I mumbled, got up from the table, and pulled my hands through the sleeves of my suit.

Honestly, I didn't even know. She just texted me "Is your nose okay?" I answered "Yup", and that's how our conversation ended. She didn't call. Didn't text anymore.

Maybe Max was right about her.

– Okay, mate. It's time to take another win away from Verstappen – Jon winked at me with a smirk and picked up my gloves and balaclava from the shelf. I took my bottle with a drink, and we both went to the garage.

Maybe I was on pole, but we agreed at the team meeting a few hours before the race that if Oscar took the lead on the first lap, he would be the priority. I mean, I didn't agree to that, but Andrea and Zak did. We all just needed to do as they wanted us to do.

I had to do well.

I had to win again and prove that I wasn't just an annoying piece of shit.

***

Oscar won.

I was devastated, angry, exhausted, and definitely mad at the team.

They pitted Oscar first while he was leading the race for a long time.

They did it as if they wanted me to win, and I would fucking win if I didn't have to give him my place back. He was so much slower than me at the end of the race, and I really hoped that they wouldn't ask me to swap places with him. But they fucking did.

– Mate, I don't even... – Jon started as soon as I came back to the garage from the podium.

I was so fucking pissed.

– Not now, Jon – I hissed and walked by him to my driver's room.

What the fuck was going on with this team?

I didn't even know that my hands had clenched into fists and my breathing had become shallow. I was so pissed. So sick and tired. I slammed the door behind me when I got to my room.

– What the fuck? – I sighed and wiped my face with my hands from the sweat.

– Lando! – I heard Zak's mad voice coming from the little corridor.

Don't you even try to get in here.

– I want to be alone for one fucking moment! – I yelled, not a nice thing to do when your boss is calling. – Please? – I added with a loud sigh.

– You have two minutes – he said sharply and left.

Again, all I could hear was silence. And it was making me even angrier than all of those questions at the media pen.

I was shit. I shouldn't even be there. I didn't deserve to be where I was.

I looked at my fists and closed my eyes for a second, hoping it could help me calm down a bit, but it didn't. And then I punched the wall with my right hand. And again. And again. Only until my hand started to hurt and I couldn't see through my tears.

– Pull yourself together – I mumbled to myself and wiped the tears.

I looked at my hand, and it was bleeding a little but not too much. A few little cuts were made.

– Lando, are you okay? – Jon softly asked through the door. He was the only one who was truly nice to me these days. Most of the team were just pretending.

– Yeah, all good – I mumbled and opened the door. Jon was looking at me with concern as I stood there in front of him. I couldn't pretend to smile anymore. My face said it all.

I was a broken man nowadays. And he saw that.

– Come here, kid – he sighed and pulled me into a tight hug. – You're gonna be okay. We'll figure something out. The summer break is near; you'll get your well-deserved rest – he was keeping me in his arms as if I was a child.

He was right. Only one race left before the summer break.

Everything is gonna be alright.

***

I love writing chapters from Lando's perspective!

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