second chances ~ ollie bearman (2)

part 110

"angel,  are you okay?"

"i was ahead... it was, it was my corner." i say, in disbelief at what happened as i spin my car round to try and catch up with the back of the pack.

"my race is ruined." i say, my eyes glossy as i loose the motivation i had at the start of the race. all the confidence i had about winning, gone.

"no come on angel, let's not say that yet, can you still drive the car or is it damaged?"

"it's drivable, i'm sorry jules. we needed these points." i say, trying to blink the tears away from my eyes.

tears were probably an overreaction, i mean i never cried in the car. but after the day ive had, it was just the worst way to start the race.

"we do need those points yes, the points that we can still get. lance is p4, we are still in this race."

"okay." i reply, taking a deep breath as i close the gap to 0.424 seconds to ocon ahead.

"that's it kid, predators and prey." he says, as i overtake my first car, esteban.

0.867 gap to sargeant ahead." jules says a few moments later.

"yessir." i reply, pressing my foot down further, the car speeding up even more.

lap after lap passed, and i was just making my way further up the grid. after ending up at the back at the end of lap one, by lap 15 i was already in p14.

"your doing amazing angel, keep it up." jules says whilst i chase down lawson in the racing bull and it was only a matter of corners until i was in p13.

with each overtake, i felt my confidence coming back bit by bit. my overtakes were becoming stronger, i was getting back into my normal racing self.

"how are the tires?"

"they are good for now, maybe we go-" i start to suggest before getting cut off.

"no, no that's okay."

"you don't want to know?"

"we would like to keep our information private."

"ah okay, what's the gap too er whoever's ahead?"

"tsunoda, 1.354 second gap."

"maybe a tip for after the race, keep me away from norris hm?" i say, as i start to reach the rear end of the car ahead.

"noted." jules replies, as i try to overtake for the first time whilst heading into turn two.

i knew i wouldn't be able to complete the overtake, but as we went round the next few corners i would have a drs advantage on tsunoda. my overtake was performed perfectly, creating a good gap between me and yuki behind. p12.

"good job angel, keep it up and we will get some good points here. aron 2.764 ahead."

"yessir."

"thought you might find this amusing, 10 second time penalty for norris."

"best news of the race so far, where is he?"

"currently p1." jules replies hesitantly.

oh. ten seconds is a big gap, but it's easily done when leading the race. as much as i want to be back at the top, fighting for the win as planned, i knew it wasn't guaranteed. i'm not out of the race, but my teammate has a much better chance at good points than me.

i need to make the right decision.

"prioritise lance's race." i say after a few moments of silence.

i knew it was the right choice. although i was working my way through the pack easily, lance was at a better position. even if it meant pitting him at the right time, making me wait an extra lap, i would be able to come back from it. and it would help the team more.

after all, it was the least i could do. he had been in this position many times when the team prioritised me. i guess it's a sort of thank you for being such an amazing teammate, i couldn't have asked for anyone better for my first year.

"get lance on the podium ill do whatever to help."

"understood... let's try to get you both on there."

more laps passed, and i completed more overtakes. by lap 24, i was already fighting for p9 with daniel riccardo.

the gap between us was close, 0.463 to be precise. we were racing side by side, and i was waiting for a few zone to complete the overtake. we were very close very, but as we head into turn 1 i wasn't about to have a repeat of the first lap, so i pull back slightly.

only slightly. until we were in the drs zone and i manage to complete the overtake, creating a gap between us to stop him trying to take the position back. p9.

"okay angel, rain is going to start next lap. class 2 but will build up to class three pretty quickly." jules says down the radio.

"am i putting early or later?" i ask.

"we are going to pit lance first lap, you second."

"okay, so just keep closing the gap for the next two laps?"

"yes." jules replies.

a few corners later, i begin to feel the rain hitting my helmet, splatting on my visor.

"okay jules, god is having his piss." i say as the track slowly gets slippery.

"thank you for that information." jules replies.

i could see the cars ahead of me piling into the pit lane except two cars, piastri and hamilton. i'm guessing their teammates were prioritised this race.

"woah, it's wet." i say, almost going wide.

"yes we know, just keep it together for one lap."

"no actually i'm just going to throw it in the wall". i joke, finding myself very funny but apparently jules did not.

|| authors note ~ hope you enjoy! ❤️