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She made it. After all the years of sacrifice since first her karting career, formula 3, and then finally Toro Rosso, Max Verstappen was finally the first woman to win a formula one championship. Surprisingly she received a hug from her father, then he whispered a small –Well done-. Leaving her paralyzed.
Max tried to avoid his look, and unfortunately ended up sawing at the small television, where was showing how Anthony Hamilton gave a huge hug to Lewis. A similar to the one that she received from him, when Lewis took her to his home for Easter, which feels like an age ago, then Silverstone happened and Nico Rosberg´s words started to have a sense.
In a certain way she feels really stupid, what was expected her from Lewis? Why she thought that it was gonna be different with her than Nico, they were best friends, and teammates, and everyone know how that ended. However, inside her she knows, Lewis, was the only one who understood her ambition, her passion at the motorsports as something more than Jos´s pressure, and treat her like any other rival, ironically, more than that girl with anger issues.
When she got back at redbull hospitality, Christian received her with a big hug, accepted by Max with pleasure, instead of Marko, she really like him. He defend her against the evil questions by the media since max joined to the team, was his golden girl. At some point, he even was the one of realized first how cruel was Jos Verstappen parenthood was, and suggested not allowed him at paddock in 2020. Moreover, for first time, Max started something close to a friendship with others drivers aside Daniel, especially Charles and a little bit Lando, but was the time when Lewis start to reply her Instagram stories. That didn’t work for Max, so when her performance started to go down, she asked to Christian to allowed her dad back again, for Horner and Nelson Piquet worries.
Aside Lewis, they connect really quickly, they met in a party in Monaco where is not so unusual see pilots from other categories and retired, he understood of how amount of pressure was Max all the time, first by Jos, then by Christian, and how they constantly forget Max´s age, and how he compared to being Nelson Piquet son. Nevertheless, Max feels like he wanted something else, even when the stability that him give her the last year was so good and helpful, something that she didn’t have before, getting used to have a chaotic live and constantly controlled by someone else.
But then, he started to wanted something else, that stability came with him expected settle down with her, something that she wasn’t ready yet, so that’s why Max was so scared about the trip to brazil that he booked for both, that in combination with the whole Lewis Hamilton situation.
“Are you okay” - Asked Christian, Max just nodded.
“Is insane” Whispered with a small smile, what made Christian being calmer. After Silverstone him adopted the role of , as Alex called mocking.
Wandering at the Paddock trying to escape from more interviews and the celebrations, Max gets more hugs and greetings from Carlos, Lando and Charles, he stared at her looking really worried, but she insisted about being okay, and invited them to the party hosted by Martin late. Charles a and Victoria were the only ones who she told about Lewis, and seems like Charles have a moment of intelligence and said , trying to explain how their explosives personalities maybe makes finished with a heartbroken. Now wished she had listened him, in another trial to avoid that thoughts from her head, decides to come early to Martin´s party.
The night passed like a blur of images, in some point she started to cry on Daniel’s shoulder, and tell him everything, shit , thought Max trying to wake up, also she’s not even sure how arrive back to the hotel room. Grabbing her phone from the nightstand, seems the notifications bar turn in on, with 10 loses calls from his dad, and 5 more from Nelson, then decides callback his dad, and postponed deal with his partner.
“Shit” Max repeat grabbing a glass of water at the same time as she began to have flashes of the last night, after the third tone her dad reply.
“Where the hell have you been Max?” Growls, making him headache go worse.
“Celebrating,” Whispered.
“You still have responsibilities; you had an interview scheduled one hour ago” Rebuke.
“I´m sorry papa” Reply Max trying to gets him calm down”. That apparently works, and then Jos ordered her to be there in an hour.
Sighing the blond girl try to find a pill for the headache and getting ready as fast as she can for that interview, an hour and half later, she´s feels more like a human again, finally satisfied enough with her appearance and opting this time for a summer dress. Her dad doesn’t seems really happy when she arrive at the place that him send her, but the interviewer seems being compressive.
After a long time of getting stupid questions, seems like the media finally started to treat her like a pilot and start to make questions that are more respectful. The initial anger of his dad seems be gone by the end of the interviews. In the middle of a break, scrolling through Instagram is taken by surprise by Nelson´s post about her, but also by Susie Wolff´s statement about the last race.
She keeps asking herself what she expected from them, but can’t avoid the disappoint, she liked Susie at first, even if she hated Toto, and in a way she seems respect and admire her, they also worked together in a couple of PR campaigns for getting more interest in girls in the motorsport, but still is a unpleasant. She was friend with Lewis even before she joined at f3, remains.
“Why you haven’t talked to Nelson yet” Asks her dad suddenly, is a confusing situation, starting that aside from her career he was never really interesting in her life aside from being a reminder of not getting to close to any driver, they are rivals, not friends.
“I´ll call him later,” Reply Max, her father doesn’t seems convinced about it.
“You don’t need a scandal of that type right now Max” Scold her, so there is the reason of that suddenly interest. Meanwhile she felt his phone vibrate in his pocket , quoting the message coming from Nelson, Max sighed and waved goodbye to his father and Christian, who seemed to vaguely bear each other in the same room, thankfully they told him he would have the rest of the day off.
In her room Nelson was waiting for her while, she checked something on her phone, so she cleared her throat.
“Where have you been?” Asked stared at her, Max started to feel like when she was 15 and was coming back from a night of videogames with other boys from karting.
“With Daniel and the boys” The blonde-haired mused, that doesn’t seems that was enough for calm down the bad humor of the Brazilian.
“No, seriously Max, where have you been? Last night, the last months. You think that I don’t know yet?” continues. “I decide to spend the holidays with my family and all I get is a message from Nico Rosberg talking how he saw my fucking girlfriend being too close to Lewis Hamilton”. “I guess that’s explain where you have been the last moths, Jesus Max, what in earth did you expect it was going to happen with him?” Rambled.
Max try to keep the tears far from her eyes, and the last month guilty feelings started to get back, she really liked him at first, and now she made a chaos between them. “I'm sorry,” She murmured. Although she didn't think it would help the situation much, she cleared her throat and continued, "I'm really sorry Nelson, I think it's better for us to leave this here," she commented drawing the brunette's attention.
Nelson also seemed worried about her, in reality not even Max understood how they had been friends with Nico, but he had recommended that he should keep an eye on Max this year, remembering how exhausting his rivalry with Lewis had been for him, < it will wear out completely,> he assured her. Nelson wasn't an idiot either, yet he felt that he had pushed buttons on Max that weren't ready, and he couldn't help but worry, so he nodded, they must not have taken their friendship any further.
"Jesus Max, what happened to us" He exclaimed, Max tried not to cry, -You can still come to Brazil with me, I don't think you should stay alone in Monaco- He commented, Max tried to deny, but remembered that Daniel would fly to Australia, for which ended up accepting the offer. Almost late at night while the blonde-haired watched some television program that she did not fully understand because it was in Arabic, and tried to avoid Daniel and Charles. Her phone rang; it was her younger sister Victoria. She sighing she answered the call.
“Did you broke up with Nelson?” Replies quickly from the other line, and surprising Max.
“How did you find out?” She answered confused.
“He deleted all Instagram post where you were kissing or too close to each other” She said, shit, Max thought, hoping it was not obvious to his father. Silly, silly start to repeat for itself.
“Hey, I didn't expect him to make it public so soon, even so I'll accompany him to Brazil, after visiting you” Max added to try to avoid Victoria´s disappointment.
“I hope that, Lio haves to meet her aunt,” Replies in a warning tone, leaving a small smile in Max.
“Of course, how are the kids?” Ask to her trying to avoid the main theme, her sister start to talk in a really proud way about all the progress of Luka as now a big brother, making Max forget about all Lewis and Nelson situation.
She was proud of Victoria. They started karting at similar age, but soon she realized that that wasn’t for her completely, but was Victoria´s dream having a great family and seems like she was getting it, they had different dreams. Max starting to take more seriously her karting career was also one of the reasons that makes things different at home. First, Jos anger issues were more obvious, she also started to travel almost every weekend for competing or training, and so in a way she ended up their parents’ marriage, which ended up in Max choosing Jos over Sophie, that make their mother-daughter relationship breakdown.
“I hope you keep your promises Max” Victoria commented saying goodbye to which she answered with a brief yes.
Max try to keep those dark thought down the next few days, her father maybe figure out what happened with nelson but not comment nothing about since he was still her partner for Fia award ceremony. Where Luckily Lewis decided not show up, kept his promises and visited Victoria before flying to Brazil, where he finally met Lio, who looked really like his auntie, assured several, Max try to avoid his look of his mother while she was there, she didn’t need that kind of conversation yet.