Lifeline (Sebastian Vettel)

Chapter 29: Before

Author's note: This chapter runs alongside @__highflying's Lifeline chapter seven. Link in comments.

Tully and Seb walked side by side through the departure lounge along with the rest of the crew. There weren't enough seats in first class for the entire management team to travel back together, so most of upper management had been put on a later flight.

Drivers, public relations, trainers and assistants made up the first class occupants, while mechanics, engineers and technicians travelled back in economy class.

There were so many of them all together that they dominated a good portion of the waiting area seats. Some of the crew even took the opportunity to catch up on sleep, using each other as pillows and head-rests.

Tully didn't blame them, she felt just as exhausted. The Australian time zone just didn't work for her.

Daniel was sat on the other side of Seb and the two drivers talked animatedly about the weekend that had just passed. Tully listened quietly at first, though quickly found herself zoning out and closing her eyes. It had been a less than exciting result for both drivers, with Seb retiring on lap 5 and Daniel being disqualified from a second place podium finish.

"Can't handle the jet lag, Tully?"

She snapped her eyes open again and narrowed them at Paul, Daniel's trainer, sitting opposite her with a smug look on his face.

"Or have you and your driver been staying up late... getting a little extra workout in?"

"What will it take for you to stop talking?" Tully asked tiredly, resting her head on Seb's shoulder.

"Probably divine intervention." Paul shrugged.

Tully sighed, "Maybe the time has come for me to find religion then."

"Maybe the time has come for you to call your brother." Seb leaned in and murmured in her ear, "He probably knows by now anyway."

"Yeah..." Tully mumbled, leaning in her seat to pull her phone out of her pocket. Once extracted, she dialled Heikki and stood up, wandering away from the keen ears of the Red Bull personnel.

"Tully, what's up?"

Heikki sounded bright and cheerful. Good start.

She found a window with a sill large enough to sit on and hoisted herself up, gazing out across the boarding lounge. She could see Seb get up and begin to stroll in her direction.

"Not much, you?" she lied.

"Casey moved in with me." Heikki replied. She could hear his smile.

"Oh good!" Tully grinned, if he could have a girl move in with him then surely she could get involved with a very-recently separated, four time world champion Formula 1 driver who happened to be her client and used to be his client too... well shit.

Seb had reached Tully now and squeezed himself in between her knees. She reached up and brushed his hair off his face idly as he watched her.

"So what do I owe the pleasure of this call to?" Heikki asked suspiciously, "You never call me. How's Seb?"

"He's good, really good." she replied vaguely as the German rested his palms on top of her thighs, his thumbs stroking a slow pattern across the denim of her jeans.

"Shame about the car this weekend, was he alright?"

"Uhh, yeah, he cheered up after awhile." Tully replied, shooting Seb a coy smile and thinking back to how much fun cheering him up had been, "So, look, you're going to see some stuff in the media about me." she began, biting her lip mischievously as Seb leaned in and ran his lips across her jaw line.