Same but... different (Lestappen and Carlando)

Bonus 5: Say yes

Late, but here! This will be the last bonus chapter, which is why it's so long! 'Thanks' at the end, and new project in next chapter (Announcement)

Also, some things depicted in this are far from reality, for either one of two reasons:

1) I don't know how it is irl

2) It wouldn't work with the story

Because this is fiction, I can do what I want with the story so there you go (but yeah it might not be as realistic as some other parts of the story. Also, it's written but maybe not enough, but this is gonna be set in 2025, so well after the end of the story (2021). Happy reading!

Oh and warning: way too much love, might make you cry (it made me)

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POV: Charles

— Come on everyone, we're gonna be late!

I roll my eyes at Max's hurried tone, still not used to his rigid need for punctuality after all these years. Four, to be exact. Four years since we decided to break that limit between us, and decided it was worth it. Worth the love, the peace. Against all odds, we made it, and I couldn't be a happier man today.

Making sure I get Leo's leash, I glance towards the driver who's got my heart. Or, should I say, my four times world champion, and fiancé. The day he won in 2024, I asked him to marry me, because where else if not Vegas to do it?

We've not really signed papers officially, mainly because, to my disappointment, Monaco does not recognize same-sex marriage. And I couldn't imagine getting married anywhere else than in the place that's seen me take my first steps, say my first words. Where all my family and all my friends are.

So we're happy staying like that for now, wearing suits to celebrate another wedding today. And we may not be married yet, but our lives still changed massively this year, all because of one conversation.

*Flashback*

— Charles, can you stop torturing me?

I don't understand as I look up, only to see Max showing me a picture. We're having a well-deserved winter break, and I have no idea what he's talking about. I'm just holding my friend's baby in the picture, she's like my niece, and I don't get what he means by "torture".

— What?

— I want a babyyyyyy, he whines, looking at me with puppy eyes.

Leo seems to agree, jumping next to us on the sofa (where he's definitely not allowed) and whining too. And I'm not even surprised anymore, not after a few weeks of Max constantly talking about this. If I wasn't completely sure he's a man, I'd believe he was ovulating.

— Hm, we have three cats, one dog, plus you and me, do you really think we have time for a child with our lives? And don't get me wrong, the idea of having a kid with you is really something I enjoy, but I don't know if our schedules are compatible with that... Maybe if one of us thinks about retiring, but I don't really see it happening soon, right?

He grumbles and ends up moving on, but I can see how sad this is making him. I hate the situation, but we really can't afford a baby right now, and actually, I don't even know if we could adopt one, it is so difficult. I don't want to say yes to Max and then struggle for years to adopt a child, I know how depressing that would be for him.

I still research about it, secretly, trying to find a way we could become parents while going on as F1 drivers. There's this association which could allow us to adopt a little kid, which I guess would be better than a baby, considering none of us could replace the true bond that a mother has with her baby, at least in the very first months. And all the travelling, it would be impossible. The process is nice, they seem to match the family with a kid after the application gets approved, which can take months or years though...