i love you • formula one

20

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first person

~***~

To say I was annoyed at my mum's initial reaction to Nicky with an understatement. I had made it very clear how important it was to me that he was made to feel welcome, and the Norris family did a better job at that than her. I was grateful that Cisca was so warm with him because it slightly cancelled out my mother's cold behaviour. It was a shame my dad wasn't here to talk to my mum; he was always able to get her on my side. Whilst I tried to think like my mum and come up with possible reasons for her to not like Nicky, I found myself disheartened because I couldn't find anything wrong with him. Nicky was kind, selfless, empathetic, and he gave really good hugs. He made me feel safe and secure, and there was only one other person who made me feel that way.

My sister was able to joke about everything with Nicky. Luckily, he didn't seem too discouraged by it after getting on with everyone else. It seemed that he especially got on well with my sister. Seeing them interact with laughter and jokes (some of which were aimed at me) made my heart swell with happiness. Nicky was incredibly sweet to everyone so it was impossible to not like him... well, almost impossible. I just hoped that my mum would eventually come around. I never expected to fall for someone other than Lando, but I have.

After the barbecue ended a little after eight in the evening, Lando decided to head back to his house so he could spend some time with his parents before the drive back home. I was more than happy for Nicky to spend the night with me, alone in my room. There were so many things I could show him. It felt intimate having him staying with me in a space that I grew up on.

Nicky decided to have a shower once everyone had left. He was adamant that he could smell the smell of smoke on his skin after spending so long next to the barbecue with Adam and Oliver. I couldn't smell it, but I didn't argue. He probably just wanted to get away from my mum, which I wouldn't blame him for. I thought it was cute how he made sure there was nothing else to help with before occupying my bedroom's en-suite.

Just as I sat down on the sofa beside my sister, my mother's voice called from the kitchen. "Lyra, can I talk to you for a minute?"

My sister snickered as I let out a grown. Rather reluctantly, I pulled myself up from the chair. I was feeling fatigued after such a big meal and couldn't be bothered to deal with whatever my mother wanted to talk about.

"Yeah?" I replied once I entered the kitchen, grabbing my mother's attention. She looked up from her mug of coffee and set it down on the counter.

"Is there anything you wish to tell me?" She asked. "Anything at all?"

I furrowed my brow in confusion. This feels like I'm walking into a trap. My mind quickly ran over any potential reasons for which I would need to tell my mum, but I couldn't think of anything. I felt like I was a child again, getting in trouble for accidentally breaking something. I don't think I've broken anything... "I'm going to say no, but I have a feeling that's the wrong answer."

"Your feeling would be correct."

Fuck. "Well, what did I do this time?"

"You cheated on Nicky," she said with such disgust. I was taken back in surprise, not really sure what, why, or how she knew. "I thought I raised you better than that."