Acid Rain - [Max Verstappen]

0.8 || havana

Max waited for Tuuli to take her bag from her, if he needed to. She briefly stood still to take her sunglasses and her Phone out of it, then she looked back at him. "Do we really need to enter that thing on such a small walkway?". Tuuli asked, looking scepitcally up at the immensely tall and broad ship. "Yes, Tuuli". He chuckled. "Do you want to hold my hand?". He teased, but she pouted. "Actually, yes. Suffer from my fear when I crush your hand". Tuuli bit and he shook his head with a smile. His heart skipped a small beat when he felt her fingers sliding through his, not thinking she'd actually mean it. Max went in front of her when they were next in line to enter the ship. "I'm thriving and shaking at the same time". Tuuli said as they walked up to the entrance and were kindly greeted by some staff guys and girls. They were guided through the hallway and they were at some kind of reception, where they got their room number and keycard.

"We're not in the underwater part, are we?". Tuuli asked as she was studying the map of the ship she just received. "No, we aren't". Max replied when they took the elevator, yes the elevator in a ship, up to the fifth level, where their room was. "We're not far away from the deck". "Thank god". She sighed and he chuckled. They walked over the fifth level to find their room in the middle of the hallway and Max opened the door. "Oh, this is quite luxurious". Tuuli was surprised, since the tickets weren't that expensive. "This ocean liner is going all over the world, I think". Max said, remembering the name of the cruiseship was something he had heard before. "Hmm". She hummed and slid her backpack off her bed. "I'm waiting for the sunset, actually". She said and lifted her camera, wiggling her eyebrows. "Won't take that long". He smiled and looked at the time on his watch.

The ship was leaving in an hour and they'd arrive in Havana in the middle of the night. They could stay on the ship till eight in the morning and they could leave after breakfast to explore Havana. The ship would return to Key West at midnight. "Havana oh na na". Tuuli sang while she unpacked her camera's lenses and he looked over at her with a smile. They went to the deck of the ship to see it leaving Key West and Tuuli grabbed onto the railing, looking all those meters down where the sea was. "It's weird how the water can carry such a ship". She suddenly said, almost jumping out of her skin when the horn of the ship sounded and Max nearly fell over with laughter. "I'm not made for this. Captain, put it in reverse please, sis". Tuuli waved everyone away. "Just relax, you'll get used to it. It's like your first flight". Max said and leaned his elbows on the balustrade.

"You've ever been on a cruise?". Tuuli asked and he nodded. "In the north, like one of those Norway cruises". Max said, watching how she moved her hair out of her face that had blown there by the soft wind. "One of those expensive trips one of my father's girlfriends wanted before dumping him". He shook his head. The look in her eyes softened. "I feel like your mom was the only one who could deal a bit with him". Max nodded. "That's totally right, but eventually they were just too different. My sister and I don't prefer any of the two by the way. I like spending time with my mother and have a relaxing day or go out in my home town and stuff, but I also like spending time with my dad and keep on learning from him". "You know I love your mother". Tuuli smiled, shoving her hair over one shoulder now. "And she loves you just as much. You've become a part of our family, haven't you?". He chuckled. "Proud of it". Tuuli lifted her chin and he smiled, pulling her close.

They had dinner on the ship that evening and Tuuli had to admit she was loving the cruise now, finally accepting that the ship wasn't going to sink. The deck was filled with cosiness, colorful lightbulbs that were swirling between the tables and the sun setting in the distance was the most positive vibe Tuuli had felt. Max looked over at her when she dipped her fries in some mayonnaise, her hair still falling down on her shoulders and the highlighter of her makeup seemed to glow up on her face. A weird feeling bubbled up in his chest and he looked down at his plate to ignore it. Max took a deep breath before sipping on his beer, putting the glass back down on the table when it was empty. "What is your goal next season?". She asked suddenly, her crystal eyes looking at him, sparkling like the brightest stars in the universe. "Win". He simply replied. "Do you have faith in Honda?". He asked in response, although she didn't have anything to do with engineering, she still knew a lot about the bolide.