Deaf Lando Norris oneshots/ drabbles

2: broken hearing aids

Set in a fictional race early in the 2023 season

Lando's POV:

I took my normal hearing aids off when I raced because I had the other ones that allowed me to listen to the radio. Jon would take them from me just before I got in the car, and put them in their case. He'd keep an eye on them and give them back to me afterwards.

After free practice, he would just hand them back to me in the garage. Same if I didn't make it to q3 in qualifying. But if I did, he would come through with the mechanics and hand them to me. Same thing on race days if I wasn't on podium. If I was on the podium, they would be placed, in their case, with the rest of my stuff on the block things. Normally under my cap to help them stay cool and protected. And I'd wear them for the post race interview and cool down room before putting them back into their case just before I stepped out onto the podium.

Champagne sprays are pretty dangerous for electronic equipment, so I stand in near silence on the podium. And before putting them back in afterwards, I always made sure to dry my hair pretty thoroughly and get as much champagne out of my ears as possible. Pretty much everyone does their best to avoid my head now because it's just not worth it. They spray my body more instead.

Sometimes it's a bit strange. The fancy people who shake our hands and give us the trophies don't always realise (or get told) that I'm deaf. I try to read their lips but it's not easy and I'm normally too tired. And whilst I can't really hear the national anthems being played, I can certainly feel them. The speakers vibrate the floor we stand on so much that I'm getting pretty good at feeling my way through the Dutch national anthem.

I still rely on physical clues from everyone else to understand when I should start spraying the champagne or get up onto to podium for the picture at the end.

But we had it all worked out. Or I thought we had.

Because, one race weekend, Jon isn't there. Well he was. He was there but ill. He pushed himself through the Thursday, Friday and Saturday of the Grand Prix but come Sunday was so ill he couldn't even leave the hotel. I had replacements, so it wasn't an issue. But the replacement who McLaren gave me for that specific weekend was a guy, way too cocky for his own good, who hadn't worked with me a bunch. And it showed. God it showed.

It was like he hasn't listened to a word of the disability and inclusivity training McLaren now put all their staff through. Because as he helped me through my warm up he kept turning around, not facing me and staying things that just weren't important. I kept asking him to let me read his lips. It gets loud and the hearing aids are not as magic as everyone thinks they are. I kept asking him to slow down. I kept asking him to just fuck off if he wasn't going to be nice about it. He laughed when I asked him to repeat stuff. It was just so shit for no good reason.

As per usual, we walked over to the grid together, ready to get on the float for the driver's parade. I turned to him, taking my hearing aids out and offering them out in his direction. Normally Jon brought the case with us and just held them for me until I got back. I panicked a lot about losing them or getting them damaged. Jon made me feel safe with having to be so vulnerable. But this new guy hadn't brought the case; worse than that he refused to just even stick them in his pocket for me.

Fed up, frustrated and beginning to lose patience, I put them back in my ears and climbed over the pit wall to the track. Carlos came over to me, putting a hand out for me to shake. I shook it and sighed.

"What's up?"

In broken speech as the crowds drowned my own voice out, I explained about Jon's illness and the issues with the new guy. Carlos suggested putting them in the pocket of my shorts which I then did. Adjusting my McLaren cap again afterwards. I was just frustrated. McLaren had put so many procedures in place to try and make the weekends accessible for me but then somehow not put any appropriate back ups in place.