Equilateral [Lando Norris x Alex Albon x George Russell]

Part 7

George hesitated for another moment before he carefully knocked on the door and waited for a few seconds. No response.

He knocked again, a little louder this time. Still nothing.

"Lando?" His voice was barely a whisper, too afraid to scare the younger Brit even more.

"Lan, can you please open the door so we can talk?" he got out, not able to properly hide the worry in his voice. He heard a few sobs from the other side of the door but no answer.

"Lando, please! I'm sorry if I did something you didn't want. I'll never do it again, I promise. I'm so sorry!" Alex next to him sounded close to tears as well now, so he grabbed his hand to squeeze it lightly.

"Please say something, Lan." George tried again after a few minutes without any sounds from inside the bathroom.

"I...I can't-" They heard Lando's voice cracking and then a loud thump on the other side of the door.

"Fuck, what was that? Lando? Lando, are you okay?" George's voice was anything but calm now.

He pressed his ear against the wood of the door to try and hear what was happening inside when Alex rushed back to his side and pushed him away a little. George hadn't even realized that his boyfriend had left their spot in front of the door for a few seconds.

The Thai suddenly didn't look as scared and confused anymore as he did before. He was deeply concentrated now, determination glinting in his eyes.

After fumbling with the lock and the door handle for a few moments, a relieved sigh escaped Alex' mouth, as he heard the familiar clicking sound of the door opening.

What he heard next, however, made him freeze in his movements.
Heartbreaking whimpers and rapid, shallow breathing from inside the bathroom.

When the door was finally open, George rushed past Alex, who was still kneeling next to the doorframe, feeling paralyzed and burst into the room.

There he was. Lando was lying on the floor, crouched in a fetal position, his whole body shaking.
He was breathing heavily and way too fast while staring into the distance.

"Hey, Lando. Can you hear me?"

The Brit slowly sat down beside his friend and carefully pulled him into a sitting position.

"It's okay,  this is just a panic attack. You're going to be okay. Everything's going to be fine." He positioned Lando's back against his chest and put his arms around him, holding him in place.

"Can you feel my breathing? Just mimic it, okay? Just breathe with me, baby. It's okay, you're okay."

Alex watched in awe, as Lando's frantic panting slowly seemed to calm down again and he slightly relaxed in George's arms.

He didn't dare to step closer though, too afraid to scare or trigger Lando again, so he just stood there at the door, watching them.

"I...I-" Lando tried to get out, but his voice failed him.

"Shh, it's okay. You don't have to say anything. It's not your fault." George shushed him, while slowly rocking from side to side, the younger still in his arms. He had helped his friend through enough panic attacks to know exactly what he needed now.

"We shouldn't have jumped you like that, we should have known that would be a bit overwhelming. Sorry!"

Lando sniffed, glanced up at Alex and then turned around to look at George before he quickly wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his hoodie.

As if that was his cue, Alex suddenly woke from his paralysis and made a few shy steps towards them, sitting down on the floor too, leaving a small space between the three of them.

When George gave him a reassuring smile, he reached out his hand to gently lay it on top of Lando's smaller one resting in his lap.

"Is this okay?", he whispered. The McLaren driver looked down and hesitated for a second but then nodded before he gathered all his courage and turned his hand around to intertwine their fingers.

"I've never ... done anything like that before." Lando was still staring at their hands. "I guess that's why I freaked out. I... I didn't want to disappoint you. I'm sorry, I ruined everything." A red sheen crept onto his cheeks at those words.

"Don't say that! You could never disappoint us and you don't have to be sorry for anything. We can go as slowly as you want, we don't have to rush any of this. Even if you don't want to go any further than cuddling for the next ten years, that's okay. We both just want you to be comfortable and happy." George carefully pulled Lando a little closer to his chest again and rested his chin on his shoulder.

These words finally made the youngest of them glance up from his hands again. He looked baffled. "So this-", he gestured between the three of them, "-is not just a one-time thing for you? Not just sex?"

"George! I thought he knows about our feelings. You told me you confessed that we were in love and pining after him for ages." Alex scolded his boyfriend in disbelief.

"I did!" George let go of Lando now and made him turn around, so he could face him as well.

"Lan, I meant it when I said that we love you. This was never just a one-time thing. We don't just want a threesome with you and then move on. We love you and we want you to be part of our relationship."

"Really?" A hopeful smile crept onto Lando's lips now.
"Yes, really." Alex confirmed, squeezing his hand a little.

"I want that too.", the smallest of them almost whispered, his smile spreading into a broad grin now.

George and Alex looked at each other and then back at Lando, mirroring his happy expression.

The three of them sat on the bathroom floor for a while, holding hands, cuddling and smiling at each other, before Lando's tone suddenly got serious again.
"But Alex, I still have one question."

The smile on the taller boy's face faded as he nodded for Lando to continue.

"Why the hell do you know how to pick a lock?", the younger smirked, finally back to his carefree and happy self.

Alex and George felt incredibly relieved at that, their smiles growing wide again.

"I have four siblings, what do you think?"