VIPER || Oscar Piastri

Chapter 76

[POV: Narrator]

The apartment was dim. The kitchen's overhead light was off, leaving only the warm glow of a lamp in the hallway, casting long shadows into every room.

Andi stood at the counter, chopping an apple, stacking a few slices on a plate before setting a glass of water beside it. She wasn't making much of a fuss—just something simple.

Oscar shuffled in behind her. She didn't turn, just kept slicing, but she caught the fact that there was only one pair of footsteps now.

"What happened to Lando?" she asked, not looking up.

"Went home."

Oscar stood behind her, motionless, hands in his pockets. The kitchen felt warmer than it should've. Or maybe it was just him. His skin prickled like he'd walked straight into the sun, and he looked at Andi from where he stood—at the slope of her shoulders, at the length of her hair, and how loose strands curled differently when it was tied up.

He knew Lando had been getting under her skin since they'd arrived in Monaco. She'd had a hangover, sure. But Lando was the opposite of a hangover cure. If anything, he'd only made it worse. She hadn't smiled properly in days, and Oscar could see that it was wearing her down.

He'd barely had five minutes with her the whole time.

He'd barely even seen her — not without Lando interrupting.

But... now Lando was gone.

Andi didn't press. "Thank god." She set the knife down with a dull clink and finally glanced over her shoulder. His shirt clung to his back like it was soaked in heat, and his eyes looked heavier than the bags under them. "Can't believe he let you drink so much," she added, voice steady, eyes sharp as she shook her head.

He said nothing.

Until his arms looped around her waist. A slow, tired weight leant in, setting itself down on her back so completely that it felt like he didn't have the strength to hold himself up anymore.

His head pressed onto her shoulder, and his hair flopped over messily, strands slipping in and out of place.

Andi hadn't expected the contact, sudden and heavy as it was. A flicker of worry pricked at her chest. "Hey," she said, nearly a whisper.

He hummed something that wasn't really a word.

"You okay?"

No answer. Just a quiet tightening of his arms around her waist. They slipped lower, and she turned slightly, twisting in his hold. He let her, and she looked up to see that his eyes were a little glossy. His cheeks were still reddened. Forehead flushed.

"Great, you're burning up," she muttered, pressing the back of her hand to his face. His skin was hot. She rolled her eyes, more-so at Lando than anything else, since he was the one to start this whole bro-time ordeal.

Oscar shook his head weakly, eyes fluttering closed for a second, and she sighed, turning back around. When she did, he resumed his hold; head resting once more on her shoulder.

"You need to go change. You're allowed to wear shorts this time. I'll do this, go."

He didn't 'go'.

In fact, he only pressed further against her shoulder.

"I'm fine here," he murmured, slurring the words a little.

Andi stifled a laugh. "Oscar—"

"No," he refused, barely audible.

He moved clumsily, brushing his mouth over her neck now, like he wasn't thinking. He gave her neck quick kiss that almost didn't register. Then another, tracing down to her shoulder.