PARALYZED - Max Verstappen Fic

Episode 2: The Calm Before the Storm

EPISODE 2: Calm Before the Storm

I stared at myself in the mirror after I finished getting ready for the day. I don't even recognize the girl in the mirror. Sad and broken behind my deep brown eyes. From the outside looking in, people envied my lifestyle. Filled with traveling and self-consumption of any kind. I worked because I wanted to, not because I had to. My parents had been giving me a percentage of their income since I turned 16. Perks of 'divorce guilt' some would say. I just think it's their way of attempting to make themselves feel better for never being around.

"My dad is sending a car for us. He said it will be here in the next few minutes. I think we should head to the lobby soon." Evie's voice pulls me from my self-loathing thoughts. "Right, shall we go then?" She gives a small nod as we gather our passes and head towards the door. Andrea and Michela Stella greet us in the lobby. "Buon giorno belleze" He embraces each of us in a hug, his wife following with quick kisses to each cheek. Our ride to the Bahrain race track is filled with small talk about how the teams are doing. Andrea makes a few jokes to me about getting him inside information from the Mercedes garage. I give him a small chuckle. "I think Toto would actually kill me if that happened." Andrea shakes his head. "You underestimate the love that your father has for you, amore mio." I give a small smile in response and decide to focus on the view outside of my window for the remainder of the ride.

Paparazzi greets us on arrival to the paddock. I do my best to keep my head down, hoping to rush inside and head straight to the Mercedes or McLaren Hospitality suites. Evie notices my discomfort from the crowd and laces our fingers together. I give her hand a quick squeeze before we giggle and rush through the entrance together. We ignore the photographers yelling after each of us on our way in.

Evie and I have basically grown up around race tracks. Our fathers each being long-time investors in motorsport, we spent countless summer breaks around the tracks. Well, really any kind of breaks we had from our day-to-day lives were spent traveling for race weekends. It's how we met. Occasionally bumping into each other at races, turned into noticing each other every time, which eventually turned into a full-force friendship. Evie was the only reason I looked forward to visiting my father during the summer and winter breaks. Most of my breaks were spent with him rather than my mother, who somehow always conveniently landed a role of some sort each time it was time for me to go on holiday. My dad allowed her to stop by and visit during her time off while I was with him, but to be honest I never had a strong desire to stay with either of them. My Oma and Opa were my home, and I think they both knew that.

We headed into the Mercedes hospitality suite making small talk and playing catch up with different sponsors and team members. I grew up with a lot of them. The turnover rate in the motorsport world is shockingly low. Typically, the only thing causing people to leave their team is another team offering more money. I spot Susie and Jack across the room, standing by the windows. Jack has the biggest smile on his face as he looks out at the race track. I make my way over to them, feeling my anxiety finally settling. "Well look who it is," I say, standing behind Jack with my hands on my hips. He whips his little head around and instantly runs into my arms. "SOPHIE! Papa said you were coming but I didn't believe him." I giggle at his excitement as I lift him off the ground in a hug. "Now why would Papa lie to you about someone as amazing as me being here." I set him back down on the ground and gave greetings to Susie, who watched us interact with a warm smile. "Have you been to see your dad yet?" I shake my head and meet Susie's eyes. I know that she knows about my father's conversation with me. Or rather his ultimatum. "Well, how about we all go find him and say hello before practice starts?" Jack jumps up and down with excitement as he grabs my hand and pulls me towards the exit.

I brace myself for the wandering eyes that fall on me as we walk into the Mercedes garage. My dad is seated at a computer, reviewing data from the testing session a few weeks ago. "Papa!" Jack shouts, pulling my dad's attention away from his screen. His excitement pulls the attention of those around him as well, one of them being Lewis Hamilton. A look of surprise overcomes his face as he sees me standing behind my little brother. He follows Toto to come and greet the three of us standing at the entrance of the garage. "No way, little Sophia Grace has found her way back to the race track." I laugh at his sarcastic statement while allowing him to pull me into a hug. "Hi Lewis, it's good to see you too." He pulls back and places both of his hands on my shoulders. "You look so grown up now, it brings tears to my eyes. Truly" I swat at him as I feel my cheeks heat up with a faint blush. "Hopefully she'll be joining us more often." My dad says with a wink. My good mood instantly fading. "Yeah, maybe."