The Deception ~ LN4

10

Mercedes looked up from where she'd been examining the intricate steering wheel display on Lando's car, curiosity piqued. After qualifying – a solid P4 for Lando – she'd stopped by the garage to avoid what James had started calling "The Great British Aviation Inquisition" back in hospitality.

A tall figure appeared in the garage doorway, followed by another. "So this is the Miss Mercedes that you have been non stop talking about, Lando," the first one said with a knowing smirk.

"Hi, I'm Max," he added, extending his hand to Mercedes.

She shook it with a surprised smile. "Lando didn't tell me you were coming to watch Silverstone," she said, shooting her boyfriend a look.

"It wasn't relevant," Lando protested, just as Carlos's voice carried across the garage, thick with amusement. "You didn't tell her about Barcelona either? Lando, mi amigo, how are you still this bad at relationships?"

"Not relevant?" Max chimed in, leaning against the garage wall with his characteristic smirk. "Mate, you spent three days practicing landing patterns on the sim because you were too nervous to tell her you liked her."

Mercedes turned to Lando, eyebrows raised. "Landing patterns?"

"I was just... interested in aviation," Lando mumbled, his cheeks reddening.

"He crashed seventeen times," Carlos supplied helpfully. "The sim technicians thought he was having a breakdown."

"Sixteen," Lando corrected automatically, then winced. "I mean..."

"Oh, this I have to hear," Mercedes grinned, perching on a tool chest. She'd heard about Carlos and Max, of course – Lando's past team mate and his best friend from his early F1 days – but this was her first time meeting them in person. The paddock schedule and their different teams meant their paths hadn't crossed until now.

"No, you really don't," Lando tried, but Carlos was already settling in for storytelling mode.

"So there we were, testing in Barcelona," the Ferrari driver began, his eyes twinkling. "And this one" – he gestured at Lando – "keeps disappearing between sessions. Very mysterious, very unlike him."

"Because usually he's glued to his sim rig playing Halo," Max added.

"Exactly! So naturally, we investigate. And what do we find? Him in the back room with a flight simulator, muttering about approach vectors and wind corrections."

"In my defense," Lando cut in, "I wanted to understand what you did for a living."

"By crash-landing a virtual 747 repeatedly?" Mercedes tried to keep her face straight, but the mental image was too perfect.

"It was an A320," Lando muttered. "And I did manage one decent landing."

"After I showed him how to adjust the sensitivity settings," Max said. "Though I still don't know why you didn't just ask her about it directly."

"Because he was too busy pretending he wasn't staring at her every time she walked towards him," Carlos grinned. "Very smooth, by the way."

Mercedes blinked. "Wait, that was before we started dating? When was this?"

"Remember that charity event at Silverstone?" Lando asked, resigned to the story coming out. "The one with the air display?"

"When you mysteriously knew all about wake turbulence?" Mercedes thought back. "I wondered about that."

"He had flashcards," Max stage-whispered.

"I hate both of you," Lando declared, but there was no heat in it.