Eyes Don't Lie | Charles Leclerc

Part 28 | Angel Eyes

Done in Aria POV
March 5, 2023

It was one of those nice and quiet mornings where everything felt still. I stood by the stove, flipping pancakes in my apartment. It was good to be back in Monaco for a bit, I was always homesick when traveling. 

The sun was already shining brightly through the windows, making my kitchen seem like it was covered in golden hues. I sat down on the couch, my plate of pancakes in hand, but I wasn't really hungry. I started to absentmindedly scrolled through Instagram, liking pictures of sunsets, food, and travel, anything to distract myself from the thoughts of Charles. 

I weirdly kept wondering how he was doing in Bahrain. Was he nervous? Was he thinking about me too? The more I scrolled, the more restless I felt. I tapped on a photo of Charles that Ferrari had posted from media day, his face plastered with that perfect, media trained smile. But something about his eyes felt off, like he was carrying the weight of the world. 

I sighed and pushed my plate aside, leaning back into the couch. I wanted to text him, to check in and see how he was feeling, but every time I picked up my phone, doubt crept in. Was I being too forward? Too clingy? What if he was focused on the race weekend and didn't want to be distracted? But I couldn't help it. I missed him. 

My finger hovered over messages, debating whether I should send a quick 'How are you?' or wait for him to reach out first again. I had already sent him a message last night, which would have been his morning with the time difference. I wanted to make sure he was confident with his media day, knowing it was the start of a new season. My heart ached, thinking back to how everything felt so perfect on that boat, but now...it was all so uncertain. 

I scrolled a bit more and before I was about to close out of the app, my eyes caught something shocking on my fyp. A photo from some F1 gossip page. The caption read, "Max and his new girl in the Bahrain paddock!" My thumb hesitated before I tapped on it, my curiosity getting the better of me. 

As the image loaded, my heart dropped. It was Max Verstappen, standing confidently in the middle of the paddock, his hand intertwined with a girl's. But not just any girl. Emma. Charles' ex. My breath caught in my throat as I stared at the image. She was smiling, looking every bit as sharp as she always did, standing next to Max like they had the world at their feet. And Max, his typical smirk plastered across his face, as if he knew exactly what kind of reaction this would get.

 A mix of shock and dread hit me all at once. I recognized the girl immediately, from the photoshoot she came to when me and Mia were filming, knowing who she was after the fact . She always seemed to be at the center of drama. But this? This was another level. I could feel my pulse quicken as my mind raced, imagining how Charles must be feeling. 

Seeing Emma with Max, the guy he's been battling on the track for years, his fiercest rival... holding hands...right before the first race of the season. It had to be brutal. I scrolled through the comments, which only made it worse. 

"Poor Charles!"
"Didn't see this coming! She's sneaky."
"Max and Emma, F1 power couple?" 

I swallowed hard, trying to process the overwhelming panic rising in my chest. This wasn't just any ex. This was the girl who'd left Charles a wreck for months, the one who ruined his trust in giving himself to someone else. The girl who, I knew, still lingered somewhere in the back of his mind, even if he didn't say it. And now, she was parading around with the one person who knew how to get under his skin better than anyone else.

Charles. God, how was he handling this? I knew him well enough at this point to know he'd hide whatever he was feeling behind that fake smile of his, but inside...he must've been crushed. The thought of him seeing this, dealing with this, while already under the pressure of race weekend, made my chest tighten. I knew I had to reach out to him. There was no way he'd admit how much it hurt, but I wanted him to know I was here. That I cared. 

My fingers hovered over the message I had typed out for Charles, my thumb brushing against the send button. I wanted to check in on him, to let him know I was here, but a sharp thought cut through my hesitation. I remembered how bad his panic attacks could get when he was overwhelmed, how he shut down when the world felt too heavy. This was exactly the kind of thing that could trigger one. And the last thing I wanted was to push him too far.

I bit my lip, staring at my phone, unsure of what to do. I didn't have a direct line to Carlos, his teammate, and even though I'd considered sending him a quick message, an Instagram DM was probably not going to get through, especially during a race weekend. It felt like trying to throw a message in a bottle out into the ocean, hoping someone might catch it, but knowing the odds were slim. 

My mind raced, my heart pounding in my chest as I realized I couldn't just sit here, scrolling through Instagram, while Charles might be dealing with this alone. I needed to do something. Anything. Without thinking too much about it, I made a rash decision. I dialed a number, my personal assistant's direct line. As soon as the phone rang, my stomach flipped with nerves, but before I had a chance to second guess myself, she picked up. 

"Hello, Aria? Everything okay? What can I do for you?" 

I swallowed, gripping the phone tighter. "I need a one way ticket to Bahrain, leaving today, please."

The words rushed out of me, more urgent than I'd expected. There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line, probably processing my sudden request. 

"Bahrain?" she repeated, as if to make sure she heard me correctly. 

"Yes," I confirmed. "Today. As soon as possible, flying out of Nice...business class." 

"Got it. I'll make the arrangements and text you the details shortly." 

"Thank you," I whispered, relief flooding me. As I hung up the phone, I exhaled deeply, my mind spinning with what I'd just done. I wasn't sure what I'd say to Charles when I got there, or even if he'd want me there at all. But all I knew was that I couldn't stay here, on the sidelines, while he went through something this heavy. 

How would I even get into the paddock? I had no clue about F1 or where to even purchase tickets. I guess I had 14 hours on a flight to figure that part out...All I knew was that I was determined. 

Charles needed someone in his corner, and I hoped more than anything that it could be me. I'd be his guardian angel if no one else would be. 

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝

Author's Note: Guys I'm obsessed with my own female OC. How will Charles react to seeing Aria in his world? Is it too soon? Are they ready to face the fast and furious world of F1?