Everything Changed- Carlos Sainz

3. How do I say goodbye?

It had caught Carlos by surprise when Georgie actually replied to him. He'd been so swept up in his arrival home, breaking the news about his Ferrari seat to his parents had gone about as well as he expected, that he'd almost forgotten he'd sent that message in the airport.

He was sitting on his parents sofa, watching as his Dad paced up and down outside the window, hands waving around all over the place talking to someone about what options there might be for seats next year. Carlos wasn't even sure who he was talking to at this point. It was just one of about a million phone calls his dad had started making as soon as he broke the news.

Georgina
Sorry, thinks have been a bit mad here.
How's Madrid?

Carlos
Much warmer than Scotland!
How are you doing?

Georgina
We're hanging in there.
Was telling Mum about this idiot I met on the beach who thought he was going golfing in January

Carlos
Nice things only I hope?

"You look pretty happy for someone who doesn't have a job next year." His dad raised an eyebrow as he walked back inside.

"To be fair I've had a week to adjust to the news." Carlos pointed out. "Who was that?"

His dad waved a hand dismissively, as if to say nothing to worry about, which only made Carlos worry more.

"Scotland in January, what were you thinking?" His dad shook his head.

Carlos just shrugged. "I had a good time. There are worse places to spend the week."

"Is there something you're not telling us?" His dad asked. "I thought as far as you were concerned the whole world was ending?"

"It is." Carlos said quietly, because in a way it felt like it was, at least as far as Ferrari went.

****

Carlos had heard from Georgie sporadically here and there in the few weeks that passed, mainly in response when he'd texted her rather than the other way around. It also tended to be at weird hours of the night, he assumed because she couldn't sleep. He didn't mind, he wasn't getting much in the way of sleep either as he weighed up the various options his dad had come up with.

So when she'd called him out of the blue one day, while he was in Maranello, it had taken him by surprise.

"One second, Charles." He quickly excused himself ducking out of the office to make the call. "Hola!"

"Hi, Carlos." Her voice was soft and quiet on the end of the phone. "Is now a bad time? Sorry I didn't think."

"No, no." He shook his head. "Is everything okay?"

"What are you up to?" She asked, and he realised that she was looking for a distraction.

"I'm in Maranello at the factory with my teammate." He explained. "Just doing some stuff for the car launch."

"I should let you go." She said quickly. "Sorry, I didn't think. I should've realised you'd be busy."

"No, it's fine. Really." He answered. "You're saving me from listening to Charles tell me about his attempts to ski."