The F1 Queen: A Women In A Man's World.

Part 23: Getting Ready

*"....just remember Nikki, deep breaths, blocking everything out.......ahhhhhh that's it brave girl, in through the nose, out through the mouth, your doing great.....your the only one that matters here, just focus on yourself, your doing brilliantly.....that's it brave girl.......calm your nerves, let your train of thought diminish into nothingness and your stress melt away-"*

"Hey! Dolly daydream! Snap out if it! We've got a race to win!" Barked Feddy, snapping me out of my alternate reality. I wasn't ready to leave it yet, so my head started spinning as a way of punishing me for leaving too early. I steadied myself on the side of the pitwall and managed to gain some control of my defying body. I then waltzed over to my car, checking everything was okay. "Okay well, we are all set for today's big race Nikki, it's just a matter of have you got that had of yours cleared! We don't want you having an episode of complete distraction! Thats the last thing this team needs!" Whispered Fred, making sure to lower his tone I front of the other mechanics. "Thanks Freddy, it's so nice that you are concerned about me but I'll be fine, I promise you" "Hmmm well if you're sure, we can always pull out the reserve driver if you ain't feeling up to it" I shuffled uncomfortably, knowing how much that would piss Ross off with a mere mention of a 'Reserve Driver', especially after last seasons cock-up with the alterations. He certainly wasn't a happy bunny! "No I think I'll stick this one out, Freddy, but thank you" I knew he wanted to argue his point, but he knew it was a losing battle. "I'm booking you in to see the therapist even so missy, I want that head of yours sorted!" And before I could so much as utter another word, he flounced off in the other direction, in search of Ross. I didn't know why he was taking such a huge interest in my personal well being, he never had done in the past. Maybe it was because he knew Nico well enough to know what sort of emotional damage he was capable of inflicting? Or was it because he knew something other than that was bothering me? Whatever the reason, I couldn't shake it off my conscience.

"And here we come to Nikki....lets see if we can grab a few seconds with her while she's not completely surrounded....Hi Nikki! So tell us about today's race, you looked unbeatably strong in Q1, 2 and stormed your way into a somewhat predictable pole position, can you carry that through into the first race on the Formula One calendar?" Martin Brundle had obviously chosen me as his next victim. I wasn't happy about having a microphone shoved in my face, but I tried staying positive none the less. "Erm well obviously this season we've definitely got the car, and that showed in the free practices as well as the qualifiers. We're definitely aiming for a victory for this race, as well as setting the bench mark for the other drivers" "And obviously your new team mate has been working hard, err Nico Rosberg, have you been keeping him hot on his toes?" My stomach was about to lurch forward at the mere mention of Nico's name, but this wasn't the time to let my emotions show, especially as I was being broadcast, live on television. "Err yeah certainly we have both been bouncing off each other and more or less kept each other motivated on the run up to this race, so yeah, I have kept him busy" "And do you expect a double podium for Mercedes after that magnificent run yesterday?" "We shall see!" I grinned, clearly expressing that this was exactly what I was expecting for today's race. "Okay cheers Nikki!...now moving forward to see if we can find....." As Martin's voice faded away I slipped back into an alternate reality that consumed my entire body and made my brain completely oblivious to the outside limits of reality, only to be 'awoken' again by a familiar voice...

"Hey Nikki! Are you okay?" I felt someone shaking my shoulders as I was dragged back to sense. It was Davide! "Oh....umm...Hey! How embarrassing! I'm so sorry, I was miles away there" I could feel my face turning an ugly boiled red colour with every word that plunged out of my mouth. Davide on the other hand, seemed not to have noticed my hideous complexion. "It's fine, you looked like you was going to fall over though, that's why I came over" I smiled at his sweetness. "Thats really nice of you Davide, but I thought you was sitting in Mercedes?" It was his turn to burn up. "I guess I just wanted to have a wonder round the teams and see you" he was trying hard not to make eye contact with me, obviously convinced it would make things worse. "Aww well it's always nice to have the company, but I am afraid you'll have to go for now, the race is about to start soon and I am pretty sure the marshals won't let you ride on board with me in a one seated race car!" I tried making a joke out of it which seemed to cheer him up a little, but I could see he thought his efforts where wasted. "We'll talk later I promise" I reassured him, while trying to make him go back to Mercedes on the same token. "Thanks Nikki....how about coffee afterwards? You can bring Paul with you if you want" "Sounds good to me, now get outta here! The other drivers might suspect something!"

As Davide left, I clapped my hands together and thought about the mountain of a task ahead. Well....BRING ON THE AUSSIES!!!