|Love 4 Apex| Lando Norris

🏎 15 - Crossroads of Love and Speed

By the time the plane landed in Singapore, the warm, humid night air greeted them as they stepped off. A van was waiting for them just outside the terminal, its headlights cutting through the darkness.

As they climbed into the van, Daniel stretched and grinned. "Alright, I'm starving. How about some sushi?" He glanced over at Lando, who gave him a deadpan look from the seat beside him. Rose sat quietly in front of Daniel, the silence between her and Lando hanging in the air, thick and unspoken. They hadn't exchanged a word since their heated conversation on the plane, and now, the tension seemed to settle between them like a heavy fog, while Daniel, oblivious or choosing to ignore it, continued on with his usual lightheartedness.

"Mate, you know I hate fish," Lando replied, shaking his head. His distaste for anything fish-related wasn't exactly new.

Daniel laughed. "Right, forgot about your weird anti-fish thing. You seriously don't know what you're missing."

Lando waved it off. "Anyway, can't. I've got plans with Magui tonight."

Daniel raised an eyebrow, leaning forward with interest. "Magui? The girl from Zandvoort?" he asked, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"Yeah, that one," Lando replied, nodding.

Daniel's curiosity piqued. "So, is she in Singapore too?"

"Yeah," Lando said casually, shrugging. "She flew in yesterday. She's got some modeling work here, so the timing was perfect. I invited her to watch the Grand Prix."

Daniel leaned back, clearly surprised. "Didn't expect you to bring her back."

Lando hesitated for a moment, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, she's kind of, uh... my girlfriend," he admitted, the word slipping out almost awkwardly, as if he wasn't quite used to saying it yet.

Rose, caught off guard by the revelation, kept quiet, pretending to be more interested in her phone. Girlfriend?

Daniel blinked in surprise before a teasing smirk spread across his face. "Ohh, girlfriend, huh? I was sure you'd be into—" He paused, glancing briefly at Rose, his grin widening mischievously before quickly shifting gears. "—anyways, when did this happen?"

Lando shot him a look but shrugged, trying to keep it casual. "After Zandvoort."

Daniel raised an eyebrow, his curiosity growing. "How'd that happen? I thought you were too busy focusing on racing—and, you know, with everything that happened that day," he added, glancing at Rose, referencing her crash, "to get into anything serious."

Lando glanced away for a moment, rubbing the back of his neck again. "I don't know, mate. We were seeing each other even before the summer break. Then after the race, we went to dinner, and... it just happened. Things clicked, I guess."

Daniel gave him a playful nudge. "Clicked, huh? Must've been some deep conversations, or maybe some other kind of... clicking," he teased with a wink.

Lando rolled his eyes, though a small smile crept onto his face. "Yeah, yeah, very funny. But seriously, it's not like I planned it. We're just seeing how things go."

Daniel leaned back, still grinning. "Sure, mate, just seeing how things go—with your girlfriend. So, she's here for modeling work? Where's she staying?"

Lando hesitated briefly before answering. "With me. At the Hilton."

Daniel blinked, then grinned wider, leaning in as if Lando had just revealed a big secret. "With you? Now it's definitely getting serious."

Lando rolled his eyes. "It's not that deep, Danny. She needed a place, and it just made sense."

Daniel chuckled, clearly unconvinced. "Right, right. So, when do I get to meet her properly? Last time in the paddock was so rushed. I need to see this 'not serious' relationship up close for myself."