Gasoline - [Charles Leclerc]

0.1

"Oh, he's a snack". Jomana said after she pulled the straw of her milkshake from between her lips. She had gladly been sipping on the sweet banana drink while scrolling through Charles Leclerc's Instagram page. Edrice chuckled and pushed her sunglasses over her nose when they were seated outside in London for some lunch. It was surprisingly good weather, the sun shining and they could actually sit outside without freezing to death or drowning in the rain. "He's cute". Edrice eventually replied and Jomana rolled her eyes at her friend and colleague. "He's hot and handsome and you know it. Bet that's why you invited him to join or episode". Jomana grinned and the other Egyptian scoffed. "You know I let people vote on our Instagram with a poll". She replied and Jomana waved her away. "Was he nice to you?". She asked curiously and she swung her legs over each other.

"I guess so. He knew about us, a bit of a fanboy he was right there". Edrice smiled at the thought. "How cute!". Jomana cooed. "He was pretty impressed by the Audi as well". Edrice continued, earning a scoff from her friend. "You took the A7?". Jomana had been in Cairo when Edrice flew to Maranello, so she had no idea what they had spoken about. "Obviously". Edrice gave her a smug grin and Jomana shook her head. "What? We all know F1 drivers like two things, girls and cars. I have to impress him somehow". She shrugged. "You're the worst". She laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not going to throw myself on him or something". Jomana sighed in response and she earned a laugh from Edrice. She was about to throw her empty cup in the bin when her phone rang.

"Hi, it's Edrice". She spoke while pushing her phone to her ear. "Ciao! It's Stefina, we met last week. You wrote in your email that you'd like to be able to meet up with Charles to speak through everything and the recording of your episode. Is it possible to have lunch tomorrow in Monte Carlo?". Edrice recognized the voice of the PR agent she had spoken in Maranello. "I think that's possible. I'm currently in London, I'll get a flight to Nice as soon as I can". Edrice replied. "I assume I can be there by tonight or tomorrow morning". Jomana wiggled her eyebrows at her meanwhile and she turned away to not laugh while being on the phone. "Grande, if you're in Monte Carlo by tonight, please let me know if you need a hotel. I'll make an appointment at Charles' restaurant of preference. He knows Monaco after all!". Stefina laughed. "Okay, fine. Thanks for your call". Edrice ended the call and placed her phone on the table.

"Was that Charles?". Jomana asked and she shook her head. "His PR agent. I'll get on a flight to Nice as soon as possible. We're apparently having lunch tomorrow". Edrice shrugged. "Oh". Jomana grinned. "To go over the things". She added with a roll of her dark brown eyes. "Want to come along?". Edrice asked and Jomana heavily shook her head in response. "I'll start packing for the trip". She said. Edrice smiled, she was looking forward to this weeks episode with Charles as their guest.

Edrice had gotten a flight the same evening to Nice, all arranged by Ferrari. She was glad Charles' PR and Ferrari wanted to work together with them so well. At the moment, she was seated in the Monegasque sun while she was waiting for Charles. He was running a bit late, but she didn't mind. She was surely going to tease him about that though. She had ordered an iced caramel coffee in advance, her legs swung over each other when she scrolled through some messages on her phone. It didn't take long before the Ferrari rumbled through the street, the window slightly rolled down and the F1 driver was seated behind the steering wheel, a pair of sunglasses covering his sky blue eyes. Charles smiled at her while he walked down the pavement to meet her and she stood up when his hand reached out to her. "Hi, good to see you again". She said when his hand brushed over her lower back and he pressed a light kiss to her cheek, French charms for sure. "Likewise, Edrice". He sat down on the opposite of her. "I assume you have some news". He said and followed her example by lowering the sunglasses.

"You made me wait and now you're demanding answers straight away?". Edrice asked and his cheeks heated up. "Oh, I didn't mean...". "I'm kidding". She chuckled. "I wasn't that late, right?". Charles asked, leaning his elbows on the table. Edrice looked at him for a moment, not ashamed of roaming her eyes over his handsome face, his hair that was gently styled with some wax, his biceps that bulged up in the grey shirt he wore. "No, you weren't". Edrice eventually said, their eyes meeting once again and he could see the playful sparkles in her dark eyes. "Okay, so". Her tone changed and she shuffled a bit further to the edge of her chair. "We have chosen a challenge that was send in by one of the viewers". Edrice rumbled in her bag that was placed next to her feet. "Editors have typed it out and corrected it here and there to make it possible for us". She continued.

"It's really fun". Charles smiled at the beaming smile she send him. "All I can say is that you have to travel to Lecce, Italy". "Lecce". Charles stated, his eyebrows raising slightly. Edrice nodded. "I have the location info here. I can wait for you at the airport or pick you up. I let Stefina make a reservation in the same hotel we're staying in as well". She handed him the information paper. "Don't worry, it's five stars". She said when he looked back at her and he let out a chuckle. "We need you to sign some things because of privacy reasons, but we can talk about that later". Edrice sat back in her chair and took her cup of iced coffee back in her hand. Charles was about to speak up again when he was interrupted by the waitress who returned to their tables. They both ordered something to eat, since it was a lunch meeting. "You do like to hold the reins, don't you?". Charles grinned when he sat back as well. "I'm a business woman from a country where they struggle to accept women in my position, of course I do".

"I see". Charles replied. "You can't tell me anything more about the things we'll be doing in Italy? Or the cars?". He asked and she shook her head with a smile. "I'm keeping you in the dark, handsome". Edrice smiled. "Let me give you my number". She added, looking up at the waitress when she returned with their dishes. Charles had chosen a chicken salad and she was about to start on the panini with mozzarella. "Sure". He grinned and handed her his phone. "So you can let me know if I need to pick you up from the airport or not". Edrice said before typing her number in his phone. "There's another girl, right?". He asked when he got his phone back. "Jomana, yes. She's in London at the moment to get ready for the trip to Italy. Would you prefer it if she picked you up?". Edrice asked, her eyebrow cocking upwards again and he laughed as he knew she was messing with him again. "I feel like I should say no". "You're totally right". Edrice grinned when she cut a part of her panini to eat it.

"Beautiful car your brought". She suddenly changed the subject. "Thanks, Ferrari offered me the 488 to drive in". He nodded and looked over his shoulder at the black Ferrari that was parked close to the restaurant. "Want to have a look under the bonnet?". He asked. "To see that there's a 3.9 liter V8 engine with 661 horsepowers under it? I know". Charles' eyebrows rose again in surprise, amazed by the knowledge. "Where does your interest for cars come from?". Charles asked, genuinely interested. "My father has raced Dakar many years. He's retired now. You can say cars are in since I was born". Edrice replied. "I see, it's cool to talk about those things with a girl". He said. "It is, right?". She smiled. They finished their lunch and it was time for Edrice to go. She had an appointment with the Audi dealer before returning to the airport. "Can I give you a ride?". Charles asked when they stood next to his car. "No, thank you. Got my own ride".

The lights of a matte blue Audi R8 flickered when she unlocked the car. "I'll see you again soon". Edrice leaned forward to kiss his cheek and he was sure her lipstick stained a bit. "Yeah". Charles blurted out, looking at her while holding the door of his Ferrari in his hand, lifting his hand with a wave when she smiled over her shoulder.

A/N: I picture Fouz Al Fahad as Edrice 📸💄 So, first chapter in. Hope you like it so far! 💘