This is it. The day my life is meant to change. I couldn't tell you whether or not the change is going to be for better or worse. Either way, I am nervous. Not only do I have the expectations set by my family, but I also have pressure from the media. In the two weeks between preseason testing and the first race weekend, the media have been relentless about Crash-gate. To be honest that is not the reason why I am here. I know I won't be able to restore the Piquet legacy unless I move to a team like Ferrari which is not going to happen any time soon. The thing is I am trying my best not to be defined by one person's actions. I realise that there is not much that I can do about it as it is in the past. I will have to accept that I can't control what the media thinks about me. There is only one person on this planet that I want to impress. That person is my Grandpa. I get the feeling that I have already impressed him by making it to Formula 1. I am pulled out of my thoughts by a knock on the door followed by the sound of a familiar voice.

"I've just come to check on my Granddaughter," My Grandpa remarks as he lets himself in.

"Grandpa, you have better things to worry about. I'll be fine," I responded. I understand that he wants to protect me but still. There is not much that he can do. I realise that nothing that I have to say will reassure him.

"Yes, like making sure you are good to go," he counters as he gets to work on helping me with the last bit of preparation. For some reason, it puts my mind at ease. After a quick conversation, I am ready to go. My Grandpa sends me off with a good luck pat on the shoulder. Hopefully, no one notices my bother. The truth is my grandpa worries too much and it annoys me as there is nothing that he can do about it.

"Are you alright?" Guanyu asks.

"Yes. I'm just a little annoyed at something I can't control," I reply. For some reason, I feel glad that Guanyu is checking on me. With a satisfied nod, we part ways. It doesn't take long for me to make the final preparations for my first free practice session as a full-time Formula 1 driver. After five minutes of waiting, I was sent out. As far as I am aware I am the only driver on track for now. It will be my best chance of getting good lap times. It doesn't take long for the track to fill up. Now for the fun part. Thankfully I am able to avoid disaster. After an hour and a half of work, the first two free practice sessions have come to an end and I am not happy about it. I am worried that I will run into my aunty, Kelly. She is the one that disapproved of my career the most. Oh well, there is nothing that I can do about it. Sensing my bother Guanyu pulls me closer. The gesture catches me by surprise.

"Oh sorry," He apologises as if he has done something wrong.

"Don't worry about it," I responded, trying to hold a giggle back. It is at that point that disaster strikes. I caught sight of my aunt. She is with her boyfriend Max Verstappen. Hopefully, she doesn't notice me.

"Luna?" She calls out dashing my hopes of an incident-free weekend. The thing is when I say incident I don't mean crashing. I mean family incidents. To be honest my Grandpa, my uncle Nelson and most of my cousins think that I should be racing.

"Yes Kelly?" I reply, trying my best not to sound like a douchebag. After all she is part of the family.

"I just want to wish you luck for tomorrow," Kelly responds. I know she doesn't really mean it as I know where her loyalties lay. I shoot a death glare in Max's general direction.

"Thank you," I retorted, not really wanting a conversation. Sure my family drama is going to be something I need to address in the future however I do not want to deal with it on a race weekend. Thankfully Kelly turns her attention back to Max.

"Sorry about that. My aunty believes that I shouldn't be racing," I turn my attention to Guanyu.

"But you're here so it shouldn't matter what your family thinks," He responds. He is right. It doesn't matter what people think so long as I am happy with where I am as a driver. Based on my performance, I have every reason to be happy. It is the day after and I am excited. I think I am ready to qualify as high as possible. Since I am awake before my alarm I have decided to get ready early. Today is the day that I need to be at my best as I need to get the car into the highest position possible. After what feels like an eternity I have made it to the track. Even though I am early, the paddock is already brimming with various media personalities and a number of fans. I notice a small group of them talking to my Grandpa.

"Hey Grandpa," I announced my presence.

"Well it was nice talking to you all but I have an important job to do," He excuses himself from the small group. He soon makes it to my side.

"You know you didn't have to be my manager, Grandpa," I retorted.

"Someone has to protect my pequeno Leao (little lion)," He counters. Wow, he hasn't called me his little lion since my last kart race. That must mean he is extremely worried. A sign that he cares too much. Oh well, there is nothing that I can do about it. I need to remind him why I am here.

"Your pequeno Leao isn't very little anymore," I say. At least he cares unlike the rest of my family. I don't know why I am letting it bother me since there is nothing that I can do about it. We soon make it to the hospitality area where I grab an apple to nibble on while I wait for Guanyu to arrive. For some reason, I am a little apprehensive. Sure It will be interesting to see where I end up after qualifying but the thing that I am worried about the most is the backlash if I don't do well. If it does happen I will have to deal with it accordingly. After some idle chatter with my Grandpa, Guanyu approaches. He looks a little bothered.

"Mind if I join you?" Guanyu asks.

"Go for it," My Grandpa responds.

"vou deixar vocês dois sozinhos (I'll leave you two alone)," My Grandpa adds with a wink. I find myself inwardly cringing at my Grandpa's attempt to tease me. It has been an hour since I arrived at the circuit and the time has come for me to set some good times. I take a deep breath as I am sent out. This is it. The time that I need to push as hard as I can. Thankfully the car has been drastically improved between the last free practice and now. After forty-five minutes of pushing the session is about to come to an end and I get the feeling that I have done well.

"Ok, that is P6. You will be starting the race behind Hamilton," My lead engineer informs me. I am a little surprised as I wasn't expecting to qualify in the points.

"What about Guanyu?" I ask. I know I shouldn't but I am curious to see where he is compared to me.

"P10," My lead engineer confirms. It doesn't take long for me to bring the car back to the garage. I still can't believe what my lead engineer told me. Sure the new regs have shaken things up but still this weekend was my debut so I wasn't expecting too much. It doesn't take long for me to make it back to the garage. I soon freed myself from the car. For some reason I am flooded with relief even though the challenge has only just started. It is the day after and the time has come for me to partake in my first ever Formula 1 race. The tension is bubbling through the garage. The biggest culprit in regards to the tension is my grandpa. No matter how much I try to reassure him, he worries.

"Vovô eu vou ficar bem (Grandpa I'll be fine)," I say for what feels like the millionth time.

"vamos ver depois da corrida (we'll see after the race)," He says. That means he has given up. "Of course," I changed to English as we were joined by my lead engineer. After a brief chat we all part ways. Thankfully My lead engineer is on my side when it comes to my ability as a racer. After what feels like an eternity everyone has made it to the grid. The thing is I am not nervous. In fact, I feel like a little kid getting the Christmas present that they've always wanted. Plus if I manage to get into the top five I would prove to myself that the critics are wrong. I hope that I don't lose it. A single red light goes on to signify the start of the formation lap. It is tense however I am trying to not let it bother me. Thankfully the formation lap is relatively quick. Once all of the cars slot into their respective positions the lights turn on one by one. Here goes. I take a deep breath as the lights go out. With that, I launch the car. The launch was perfect. Because of that fact I am able to get past Lewis. Sure I won't have the position for long but I am going to try my best to keep it for as long as I can.

"Ok Luna, that was a good start. Just remember to keep Lewis behind you," My lead engineer compliments me whilst reminding me of the task ahead.

"That is the plan," I respond as I get to work on defending. Unfortunately, I am unable to Keep Lewis behind me. I am soon overtaken by George as well. After forty-five minutes of pushing the time has come for the mandatory pit stop. The team is hoping that I can get ahead of Kevin Magnussen. Time feels like it has slowed down as the mechanics get to work. Luckily for me, the plan has worked as the mechanics are quick enough. It is a tight squeeze but I manage to get past Kevin for seventh. Now I just need to hold my position. It doesn't take long for me to get the tires warm.

"Luna just so you are aware Max and Sergio are having issues. If they retire you'll be fifth behind the two Mercs," My lead engineer informs me via the radio. Well, things have just gotten interesting.

"Copy," I responded. As soon as my acknowledgment falls from my mouth I notice a flashing yellow light. That means the safety car has been deployed. That means I have inherited sixth. After a few laps, the safety car peels away from the train of cars. It doesn't take long for the racing to restart. To my annoyance, George's reaction is faster. Not that it matters too much. I'm still on his tail. After fifteen minutes of putting pressure on George, disaster strikes again. This time it is in the form of a virtual safety car. Well, there goes my chance at my attempts to get past George. Well, fifth place is good for my debut. Thankfully the virtual safety car period is quick to end. With that, I get to work on making sure I can defend myself from Kevin. After what feels like an eternity I spot the chequered flag. The good thing is I was able to keep Kevin behind me. It was close but I managed. I quickly cross the line.

"Congratulations Luna. That's P5. That was a fantastic drive," My lead engineer remarks. With that, I am flooded with joy. Sure it's not P1 but it doesn't matter. I got a good amount of points in my first race.

"Thank you. What about Guanyu?" I ask.

"He's P10," My lead engineer responds. With that, I am flooded with relief. It doesn't take long for me to bring the car to the scrutineering area. I pull myself out of the car. The first person to meet me is my Grandpa. He has a look of pure joy on his face. In fact, the whole team seems happy with the race results. The good thing is the post-race protocol is quick to finish up. I find myself heading to the press area with my Grandpa, however, I notice that Guanyu is sitting down. It is as if he is overwhelmed by something.

'Com licença vovô (Excuse me, Grandpa)," I excuse myself. I am quick to join Guanyu.

"Are you alright?" I tentatively ask as I sit down next to him.

"Yeah. I'm just happy that we both scored points on our debut," Guanyu explains. I can tell that that is an understatement. He is right though. As rookies, we aren't expected to wow the crowd but unlike others, we did do well. I soon realised that proving myself might be easier than I first thought. I sincerely hope that anyway. After all, you never know what's going to happen next.