Anti-Stall

Speed.

I was woken up by consistent knocks on my door, this was definitely Erica and why was she waking me up at 7 in the morning when she knows damn well I hate waking up early when I don't have a reason to? I dragged myself to the door , rubbing my eyes.

"Hey Natalie!" A very chirpy Alex greeted me.

 why was he at my door while I looked like hot garbage!? I slammed my door shut to look a little more presentable. I ran my fingers through my hair and tried to look a little more awake before opening the door again.

 
"Good morning Alex, what are you doing up so early at my door?" I asked. 

"Why aren't you dressed yet?" He asked. 

"Dressed for what?" I questioned him. 

"Running! Arthur told me that you suggested the three of us go for a run in the morning so we can get some training done while catching up." He explained. 

"Give me 5 minutes! I'll meet you in the lobby." I said before shutting the door again.

I picked up my phone to call Arthur the minute Alex left. "Is your brain scrambled? Do you do molly!?" I yelled through the phone. 

"Lovely morning to you too ma pouce. And why are you shouting?" He yawned as he spoke.

 "What lies have you fed Alex and sent him at my door at seven am?" 

"Ma pouce, you were literally drooling at his sight, frothing like a rabid dog so I just worked my magic as the true matchmaker I am." He said.

Genius. I'd never admit it to him though. I asked him what exactly his idea was, he said that he knew that I'd have to get to work by afternoon for the evening race so he needed to come up with a plan for me to able to spend time with Alex that was convenient for the two of us.

 
"Where are you? Aren't you supposed to be coming too?" 

 "I'm on my room, under a fluffy blanket and I don't plan to come out of there till 10. Yeah I'm bailing on him so both of you can talk to each other." He said sounded pleased with what he's done. 

"All bow down to the great and mighty think tank!" I teased him. 

"Also Nat, please put down your phone and get dressed now!" He reminded me.

I quickly washed my face, threw my hair in a ponytail, put on joggers and dashed out the door. There he stood, staring intensely at his phone screen. He looked so cute when he was focused, he's so bright!

"Good morning Alex!" I squeaked as I approached him.

 He looked up from the screen at me and smiled. That smile, it lit up the room. His eyes had a shine, a sparkle I've never seen before. How long have I been creepily staring at him? Snap out of it! But that's just the effect he had on me.

"Hello there! Any idea on where Arthur is so we can at least start by seven thirty?"

"Oh he said he's not coming, he's sleepy and the sheets are calling him- that's what he said to me."  I said. 

"So should the two us go for a run?" 

"I'd like that!" I said with a smile on my face.

                                ****************

"Can we walk now? Running isn't really an area of my talent and keeping up with you is difficult." I complained before nearly collapsing. 

"Oh no Nat! Don't push yourself too hard! Let's just take a walk." He said as grabbed my arms to prevent me from falling.

 
We walked in awkward silence for a few minutes, I decided to speak up. 

"So what do you like doing apart from racing?" 

"Race in a simulator!" He smiled, I couldn't help but laugh. Hearing me laugh, he burst laughing too. 

"You have such a cute laugh! It's infectious !" He said mid laughs. 

Eeeeekkkk! He thinks my laugh is cute! I couldn't help but blush.

"What do you like doing for fun Miss Periwinkle?" He mimicked a plummy accent. 

"I like watching crappy rom coms hoping that it was life, reading and eating." I said proudly.

 "Good food is a common interest I see, how about hang out part 2 at the best restaurant I've eaten at after the race?" He asked.

 "Yes! Now we're talking!" I said as I hopped around like a child.

We continued walking through the garden, him admiring it's beauty while I admired his. We talked about all the places we've eaten at, ranked the meals we've had and talked about more food. Our walk came to an end as we reached the hotel.

"This was fun! See ya real soon!" I winked at him before getting into the elevator. 

He pretended to catch it, typical Alex behaviour. He was so adorably goofy, when I was around him my cheeks hurt from how much he made me laugh. He was so precious.

I took a shower and called up Erica to see if she was awake. We met at the lobby and went for breakfast, I told her that I had a lot to tell her. She looked like a child who had just been told Christmas was arriving early.

"What is it they say? Ah yes spill the tea sis!" She beamed. 

"Well where do I begin? Have I told you that Arthur and I are on good terms now?" 

"No bitch! Why do you keep all this from me!?" She interrogated me. 

I filled her in about things after the hang out, about Alex and everything that happened this morning.

 
"I thought we were friends Nat! You're supposed to tell me about all this so I can be prepared to help you out so Um, honey badger situations aren't repeated." She mumbled as she took a bite into her omelette. 

"It's all happening so fast! I don't understand how I'm supposed to keep up!" I said throwing my hands in the air.

"This is Formula one Nat, everything is way too fast! The cars, pit stops, our jobs, the politics and even the rate your relationship with people grows at." She continued, "Don't worry too much, you'll forget to live in the moment. Plus you have me! You're not alone!" 

We finished breakfast and headed out into the city for one last time to shop. I was going to miss this place, the sights Erica took me to but at least I had the memories to cling on to.