𝐖𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃 ★ charles leclerc

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙮 𝙨𝙞𝙭, charles/maisie

❝ this happens once every few lifetimes. ❞
⇄ ◃◃ ⅠⅠ ▹▹ ↻

Charles

She kissed me.

Apologized for it, promising she won't ever do it again.

And then, ran away from me.

And yet, here I am. Still re-imagining the moment just as we drive the formation lap.

"Putain, concentre toi. (Damn it, focus.)" I mumble to myself.

This is the first race of the season. My first race with Ferrari. Everything I've ever worked for is at sake right now. I'm not going to screw it up. I'm not letting myself screw it up.

I can fantasy about Maisie — my rival at this very moment — later.

P5 isn't where I wanted to start, but anything can happen in a race. The lights are minutes away from going out, and I take a deep breath, letting the energy of the moment settle.

I glance over to see Sebastian up in P3, with the two Mercedes cars locking out the front row. Maisie looks calm, but I can tell she's ready. This is her moment, and I feel extremely excited for her.

After I managed to calm her down after the incident after qualifying yesterday, she went back out there like nothing had happened.

She talked to the press with full confidence, and genuinely happy over her result, no longer dwelling over the man who judged her.

But there's no time to think of that, I need to focus on the race for the next two hours.

The lights come on, five red dots glowing in front of me, and my grip tightens on the wheel. Time slows as I focus on the lights, the tension building with every second.

"It's lights out and away we go."

I launch off the line, feeling the tires right onto the tarmac. The car surges forward, and I manage to get a good start, maintaining my position into Turn 1.

Ahead, Maisie has rocketed off the line, instantly taking the lead from Lewis. I can't believe the gap she's already pulling, but, again, I don't have time to think about that.

The car feels better than it did in qualifying, more balanced, more predictable. I manage to stay close to Max in front, but I can feel that my tires are struggling to maintain grip as the laps go on.

Sebastian is just ahead of me, but we're both struggling to keep pace with the front runners. Maisie is long gone, setting exceptional times lap after lap.

As the race continues, things don't go quite as planned. I lose some time battling with Verstappen, who's relentless in his defense, but eventually, I find a rhythm and start to make progress. I gain positions when others pit, but when it's my turn, I lose out a little, dropping back behind Max and Seb.

I stay patient, keeping my head down, knowing there's still plenty of race left. The car feels stable, though I'm still losing time in the final sector, which frustrates me.

Sebastian's having his own battles ahead, but we're both aware that today isn't Ferrari's day. The pace isn't there to challenge Mercedes. Still, I keep pushing, trying to get closer to my teammate.

With about 10 laps to go, Xavi comes over the radio. "Okay, Charles. You're faster than Seb, but hold position."

I know what that means. I'm quicker, but I can't pass him. It's frustrating, but I understand. The team has their reasons.