i love you • formula one

11

please comment throughout!

first person

~***~

When I finally arrived home at seven o'clock after the perfect first date, I had to take a moment to compose myself. The smile had been plastered on my face for the entire journey home. My mind kept replaying the kisses Nicky and I shared, focusing on the way his lips were so soft, and his hands were gentle on my body. I pressed my back to the front door after I closed it behind me and sighed in contentment. Whilst I was sad my date was over, I was more than excited for our next one. Nicky promised he'd let me know the details when he knows his work schedule, but it's looking like it'll be one evening during the week. It's a shame we live so far apart.

The sound of the door, or the jingle of keys, must've alerted Lando that I was home. The TV in the front room suddenly went quiet. I could hear my breathing, which had yet to return to normal after the best kiss of my life. A part of me wanted to tell Lando every little detail of the date I had with Nicky, but I knew it would be for the wrong reasons. There is a part of me that wants to see how he'll react on the slim chance that he had feelings for me, too; I knew I couldn't.

"I'm home," I called out, hooking my keys onto the hook by the door. I slung my bag from my shoulder to the floor and kicked my converse in the general direction of my shoe rack. They would need to be brought upstairs later to go back in my wardrobe but I wasn't thinking about that now.

My eyes shifted to the archway to the living room when I noticed movement. Lando appeared in the space, his arms folded across his chest and a scowl on his face. My first guess was that he had lost yet another game of Call of Duty; he wasn't very good at it.

"Hey," I greeted cheerfully, moving towards the staircase, "I probably won't be having a big dinner so you'll have to cook for yourself. I'll probably just get myself a snack later, okay?"

When Lando didn't say anything in return, I paused. I furrowed my brow and took another glance at him to see he hadn't moved from his spot and was still looking annoyed. "I thought I told you to untwist your pants by the time I got home," I jokingly asked, "what's got you all grumpy, Mr Grumpy?" I folded my arms across my chest as I approached him, mimicking his body language.

Lando just stared at me, unblinking. His breathing was heavier than normal and his muscles were tense. The definition was evident in his arms and temples. "I ask you to do one simple thing and you don't do it." His voice was cold and low, and his expression didn't change.

I chuckled awkwardly, not fully understanding what was going on. "What do you mean?" I asked. My eyes widened and I gasped softly as a potential reason came to me: "Did you ask me to pick you up something from the shops on my way back?"

"You're unbelievable."

"Well, thanks, I guess," I flicked my hair over my shoulder, "I have so mu-"

"It's not a compliment, Lyra," he sternly said, letting out a huff of annoyance.

"That's not the first time you've told me that," I pointed out with a roll of my eyes. "I'm just joking around, Lan, there's no need to be so rude."

"I'm being rude? I-" he tightly clenched his jaw and shook his head as he tried to regain composure. In the mean time, I was still quite confused as to what I had done to earn such a reaction. It's rare that Lando gets mad at me. Even though we've been in lockdown together, I don't think he's looked this mad. "Do you know how worried I've been, Ly? I told you to let me know when you got there so I knew that you were safe, and to make matters worse, you didn't do that and had the audacity to not reply to my calls or texts."