NOTIFICATION CENTRE —

(7m ago) IMESSAGE — KIMI 💙
seb is keeping minttu and i updated
but let me know how you are

(23m ago) IMESSAGE — EM
[attachment: 7 images]
photos of fluffy cows to make you
feel better! ily

(25m ago) IMESSAGE — TORI
ill come see you as soon as you've
gotten some rest. i love u!

(1h ago) IMESSAGE — MICK 💕
stop scaring me belle

seb won't admit it but you had him
terrified. we'll come see you soon 💗

(1h ago) IMESSAGE — SEB 💛
i love you 💛 ill come see you when you're settled in. don't be stupid, let charles help you

(2h ago) IMESSAGE — GEORGE
im really sorry belle

let me know when i can come see you. get some rest 💙

x

FOR THE PAST FEW hours, carlos, charles, arthur and max had sorted out 'shifts' to watch over isabel in case anything got worse. carlos and arthur had already fallen asleep though after their second shifts were over, so numbers were dwindling.

"i'm fine," she told charles for the hundredth time. "go back to your room and sleep."

"no," he said. "i'm not leaving because last time i left—" his sentence got caught in his throat but isabel knew what he was talking about. when he had left the room in 2015.

"this isn't like that," she promised. "my ribs are just fucked and that is it," which was mostly the truth. her head and neck had been killing her since the crash. "go call maman and lorenzo and sleep."

charles hummed. "yeah, okay. when max gets here."

the door clicked open ten minutes later, and that was when charles stood up. "get some rest," he kissed the top of his sister's head. "i'll be back in the morning."

"i love you," isabel gave him a small smile. he said it back before clapping max on the shoulder and leaving the room.

max sat down on the edge of her bed. "hey," he sat his hand on her shin, "how are you feeling?"

"like death would be better," isabel shot him a small smile. in the dim lights, he could still see how unfocused her eyes looked.

"always so dramatic," max chuckled. "do you need anything?"

a hug, but instead she said, "water, please."

and when max got up, that was the first time in hours that she had been utterly alone. the blanket of the warmth of another person had been lifted from her and stolen, dunking her in the icy depths of her thoughts.

things kept in glass tend to break. that is why messages in glass bottles often don't see land; they crash against rocks in strong storm surges and cease to exist. glass always finds a way of breaking, leaving the contents confined within it to spill out and scatter.

she thought of them. all of them. jules had slipped away from her . . . her father had slipped away from her . . . anthoine had slipped away from her. two of them because of the stupid sport that she had dedicated her life to, the same sport she had almost quit before she reached even f1. was it worth it? was any of it?

that crash had no doubt been the worst she had ever been in, worse than sochi. and as much as isabel didn't believe in things being more than they were, the necklace around her neck still hung there, untangled and untouched. the four-leaf clover charm didn't look a day old when in reality, the necklace was almost ten years old. she'd never taken it off. and that was why she believed she had been fine in both sochi two years ago and zandvoort this afternoon. it was a stupid belief, but how could you not believe it after two events like that?

max had barely been gone a minute, but it felt like eternity. and that hurt. it started all at once, the fidgeting, the deeper breathing that ripped through her chest, that uncomfortable burning sensation in her eyes—

and, for the first time in five years, a tear fell. a raindrop had finally graced the earth after the endless drought that consumed all.

and then another.

and another.

and they kept falling until they dripped down her skin and dampened her clothes. the mere fact that she was crying only made more tears fall until she was hyperventilating and everything hurt worse. that was when max walked back in.

he set the glass down on the nightstand and carefully got into the empty side of the bed. "belle, hey," his voice was so gentle that it hurt more. "come on, shh," he whispered.

"it— it hurts," she gasped harshly, "make . . . make it— it stop." max had the feeling that she was talking about more than she was letting on.

"okay, okay," max took advantage of the fact that she had scooted forward and carefully sat himself behind her, his legs on either side of her. "lay back for me, belle."

she shook her head before letting another pained sound slip out. her brain was still foggy and scrambled, "where did you—" she coughed, "where did you go?"

"nowhere," max reached forward to tap her thigh. "i'm here. lay back for me."

with shuddered breaths, isabel let max guide her until her back was against his chest. he wrapped his arms loosely around her waist. "see? still here," he kept his voice low and quiet. "calm your breathing."

it helped that she could feel his heartbeat against her back. five minutes later, she managed to dial back the hyperventilating, but the tears still wouldn't stop.

why the fuck am i crying? isabel thought, furiously trying to wipe away her tears. i'm not even sad.

"lando still raced after getting his front wing changed," max broke the silence, trying to change the subject. he was p7."

isabel's eyes widened. a p7 for lando was incredible. "can you tell me about it? all of it?"

"of course," max nodded. "so, after the restart . . ."

at one point through his retelling, he noticed that isabel had stopped humming responses at him. "isabel?" he asked, and when he got no response, he reached for his phone.

IMESSAGE —

CHARLES + MAX

MAX

isabel's asleep but i
can't move so i'm happy
to stay overnight if you
want

otherwise i can try get her
up when you get here

CHARLES

id rather her get sleep, don't
want to risk waking her up

ill come takeover in the
morning because i need work
out what to do for travelling

no worries mate

thank you max, it means a lot

x

"YEAH, CAREFUL," MAX SAID as he helped isabel lean forward the next morning. "charles said he's bringing your medication over."

"yay," she muttered, grimacing as she leant forward so that max could get out from behind her. "i need to find luca," she said.

"you're not racing this weekend," max stopped her from continuing. "and i doubt luca will let you."

"but—"

"you can hardly fucking move," max rolled his eyes. "it's—"

the door opened and charles walked in, a box in hand. "you're not racing, shut up," he told her in italian before walking over to the bed. "yeah, i heard your complaining from outside."

"you shut up," she shot back in the same language, taking the box from him and reading the directions for the medication on the back. "can't fucking read it," she huffed.

"add that to the list of reasons you're not racing this weekend," max said. "she's all yours now," he said to charles, "she's hard work."

charles chuckled, "you got involved with her, get used to it."

"i can't see, that doesn't mean i can't hear," isabel huffed.

charles shrugged. "i'll get your things, i'm taking you back to monaco."

isabel frowned. "but i want to go to monza."

"luca wants you in monaco so that he can help track your healing," he said, voice fading when he walked further off to the side to grab her suitcase. "argue with him about it."

isabel grabbed her phone from the bedside table. "i will."

"i'll see you soon," max shot isabel a small smile before getting up. "call me when you're in monaco."

"yeah, okay," isabel nodded and gave him a small wave before going back to typing on her phone.

x

"WHAT THE FUCK?"

LUCA sighed. "i expected this," he muttered. he was in her lounge room in monaco, a laptop shut and tucked under his arm. "belle, you didn't pass any of the checks. you can't race."

"but it's only tuesday," isabel frowned.

"look," luca said, "i get it, it sucks. but you will be able to race next weekend if you take it easy. treat this as an extended summer break or something, just— just chill."

"fine," isabel gave in, "whatever."

x

TWITTER —

FORMULA 1 | F1

UPDATE: isabel leclerc is unable to race this weekend in monza due to her crash last weekend. emilia gold will be filling in for her until further notice.

wish wish emilia the best of luck for her first race weekend f1!

x

ISABEL WAS STUBBORN. IT was a trait she had picked up long ago in order to stop her brothers from taking things from her. she'd always say yes when she was really young, but come early teenage years, she stopped saying yes and started being persistent with the opposite.

that was why she was currently in the private area of milan linate airport on saturday morning.

her excuse if she got caught by charles beforehand would be that she was worrying about emilia since it would be her first actual race in a formula one car. which was partially true anyway, she had been in contact with emilia about it over the past few days, checking in with her and answering any questions. plus, emilia was in safe hands with harry as her engineer.

"grazie," isabel smiled at the man by the gate who handed her a set of car keys to a matte black mercedes-benz amg gt. she'd worked out yesterday that it still hurt to drive but was manageable to deal with because it wasn't as bad as it was a few days ago. isabel leclerc was a stubborn bitch, max had always been right about that.

when she was in the car and on the way to the track, isabel glanced at her phone on the passenger seat. "hey siri," she noticed her phone light up, "call max."

"calling max," siri replied before the phone starting to dial.

it took two rings. "isabel, it's not a good time," max said. she could hear cluttered chatter in the background, no doubt being in the back of his garage.

"okay, cool," she shrugged off. "private carpark in thirty minutes."

"why? what is it?" he asked. "belle, quali is in forty minutes."

"it's a bomb," isabel said bluntly. "just be there." and she reached over to hang up before he could say anything else.

WHEN ISABEL PULLED INTO the carpark thirty-ish minutes later, max was there with his race suit half done up, scrolling through his phone. she parked by the side of the footpath in front of him, and it was almost comedic to watch him look confused because of the tinted windows on the car.

opening the door, isabel grimaced when she stepped out, but instead replaced it with a smile as she saw max. "ciao, good afternoon," she said.

max rolled his eyes. "stubborn bitch," he scoffed, but she could see the smile in his eyes.

"uh huh, you keep telling me," isabel nodded. "you didn't think i'd really stay in monaco, did you?"

"not really," he admitted, "but i thought you would have shown up days ago."

"eh," she shrugged, shutting the door. "luca's been watching me constantly. turns out, he's still easy to outsmart."

"you're insane."

"you keep telling me that, too."

"come here," max laughed, opening his arms to her. she walked into his arms, and he made sure he was absolutely gentle when he hugged her. this was different, too. he hadn't properly hugged her before, but now she wished that he had. there was something so comforting about his hugs: soft, gentle, comfortable. it was almost a little too perfect.

"good luck," isabel's voice was muffled by his fireproofs. "don't crash."

"i'm not you."

isabel's mouth dropped open as she pulled back to look up at him. "stop! you're going to make me laugh," she frowned, whacking his chest. "it hurts to laugh." sure, the crash wasn't funny, but his joke definitely had been.

"aw," max grinned. "okay, i gotta go," he let go of her. "do i get a good luck kiss?" his eyes shined with tease.

isabel spun her keys around her finger as she stepped back from him. "get pole and i'll think about it."

"gonna make me work for it?"

"what kind of girl do you think i am?" she winked at him. "text me your hotel. i'll see you after qualifying."

"mhm," max hummed with a nod. "wear something nice, i'll take you out somewhere."

"only if you get pole," isabel reminded him.

"yeah, yeah," max shook his head with a smile. "i gotta work for it."

"you learn quick," isabel got back in the car, and, for good measure, she loudly revved the engine.

"show-off," he said.

"says you," she rolled her eyes. "good luck!"

x

ONCE SHE MANAGED TO get inside his hotel room, isabel watched the qualifying sessions as she picked out something to wear. it was hard to pick something that didn't show off too much of her stomach, but in the end she settled on a black dress.

"ouch, fuck," she groaned. she held her breath to help cope with the pain as she got undressed and then changed into the dress. "jesus christ."

she'd spoken to george before she left the netherlands. he'd been extremely apologetic and she was happy to forgive him immediately because crashes came with the terms and conditions of the sport, and it wasn't like it was on purpose. however, she had made a mental note to schedule a meeting with stefano domenicali because this was the second time in a few races that george had caused an accident of this scale. george's starts were dangerous.

sitting on the floor in front of the tv, isabel straightened her hair as she watched q3. she half zoned out until she noticed that the timer for q3 had ended and two cars were still battling for pole. max and charles.

charles took pole but lost it a few seconds later when max was only just faster than him. "damn," isabel whistled as she finished doing her hair.

emilia had been eliminated in q1, but she would be starting p16 tomorrow, which was incredible for her first f1 qualifying. isabel sent her a quick text and said she'd call her before the race tomorrow.

"WHY ARE YOU ON the floor?" max asked when he got back to his hotel room late in the afternoon.

isabel paused subway surfers and looked up at him. "i can't get up."

"alright," max stopped in front of her, trying to think of the least painful way to get her up. "don't move," he bent down, lifting her up by supporting under her back and thighs so that he didn't hurt her ribs too much. from there, he sat her on the edge of the bed. "can you stand from there?"

"yeah, thanks," isabel said. she quickly kissed him before he turned away from her. "that's for pole."

max's smile was bright, "let me go shower and we'll head out."

IT WAS A QUIET restaurant down an italian side street.

since they had sat down, both of them had recounted their week so far. max told her about how free practice had gone, and isabel told him about how bored she had been in monaco.

"people keep asking about the photo, you know?" max then chuckled, "and my dad wasn't too happy with it."

"i don't care about your dad," isabel picked up her wine glass. "or the photo."

"but," max said, "can we talk about it? or . . ."

"okay," isabel sipped from the glass before setting it back down.

"i—

"i like you," isabel surprised herself by saying. "a lot. but i don't know if this will work out properly. we have so many issues."

her sudden confession had caught him off guard. she was a lot more closed off than he was to each other, and so this was big. "i like you," he said slowly. "but how do we know if we don't try? it's been working so far, right? it's been a while since austria."

"true," isabel nodded. "so . . . we . . . hm."

max cleared his throat and reached across the table, his hand resting over hers. "i was thinking while you were in monaco this week . . . i don't want to see you with anyone else. and i don't want this with anyone else." isabel's breath caught in her throat as she listened to him talk. "i want you to be mine. properly. if you'll have me around that long."

this time, she inhaled sharply, eyes wide. it hurt her chest, but she pushed the feeling down. "yes," she answered, "that sounds good," she nodded, flipping her hand up and lacing her fingers with his. "but this changes nothing on track, yes?"

"i'm not going easy on you out there," max squeezed her hand. "on-track, you're my rival, but off-track, you're my . . . girlfriend," he tested out the word, it sounding so foreign.

isabel couldn't help it, she let her smile slip and it took over her whole face, lighting up the room. "this is going to be so strange," she tried to hold back her laugh.

"mhm," max agreed. "say it, though, just to make it real."

"say what?" she said.

"that you're mine."

isabel ignored the pain that flared in her ribs when she laughed. "i am yours, max," she rolled her eyes. "happy?"

"very," he couldn't stop smiling. "are you?"

"extremely," she agreed. "oh my god, and we just denied all the rumours, too."

"i dont care about what the media or anyone else thinks about it," he said, "i don't owe my personal life to them. and neither do you."

he had a point that she couldn't argue with because he was right. "so we don't have to hide in the paddock anymore if i want to say hi?"

that was exciting, "yeah," max nodded, "whenever we decide to tell everyone, that is. but i think we should first start with arthur and charles because they're both here."

"oh," isabel pulled a face. "yeah . . . that might be an issue because no one was supposed to know i was here."

"we'll work it out tomorrow," max waved off.

"oh, and arthur might kill you," isabel said nonchalantly. "charles is okay with it, but arthur . . . yeah, he's arthur."

"why do you only have brothers," max groaned. "this makes my life so difficult when we tell them."

isabel giggled, "if it makes you feel better, they all ganged up on my ex and he managed to survive."

"i think i've been more of a problem than whoever your ex was," max said. "i'm screwed."

x

INSTAGRAM — ISABEL.LECLERC

isabel.leclerc: i love monaco!!!! monaco!!!! monte carlo!!!!

comments . . .

user1: miss you this weekend!!

user2: guys i think she likes monaco idk though

charles_leclerc: stay in monaco
↳ isabel.leclerc: aye aye captain

user3: SO PRETTY

user4: hope you're okay after the accident !!

charles_leclerc: wair why am i there and why am i confused

oscarpiastri: 👍
↳ isabel.leclerc: oh hi oscar pastry
↳ oscarpiastri: hi isabel lechair
↳ isabel.leclerc: OSCAR THAT WAS A TYPO IM SORRY
↳ oscarpiastri: what a coincidence, so was mine
↳ user5: something tells me that wasn't a typo oscarpiastri

mickschumacher: you look pretty! i miss you!
↳ isabel.leclerc: mick you are the prettiest i miss you
↳ sebastianvettel: what about me
↳ isabel.leclerc: what about you
↳ mickschumacher: yeah what about you

user6: an isabel-less race just means no drama i am upset

user7: get well soon !! and emilia is doing fantastic, can't wait to see her progress!

user8: wait is this a date
↳ user9: maybe that means they were right about the photo being fake?? bc max is in monza and isabel is in monaco
↳ user10: belle give us the details what is going on who is this
↳ user11: you sound like detectives stop 😭

x

it took them 44 chapters but belle and max are ✨dating✨ wow this is incredible

their character development is the best thing i've ever written istg

anywayyyyy,, thoughts,, feelings,, anything else? your comments are always entertaining so like 😭