AN ENDLESS SMILE// DANIEL RICCIARDO

FIVE

The pair had spoken with each other for a while, before he had stood up to get her a glass of water and returned to see her fast asleep.

He watched her fondly as the woman slept, curled in to a small ball as if she was a cat, trying to make herself small even in the state of sleep that she was in.

Her breathing was slow and even and for once she actually looked peaceful.

Daniel carefully sat on the armchair that was beside the sofa that she was on, and placed a blanket over his own body so that she would not be alone, and that if she woke up from a nightmare that he was there to help her.

He carefully took a hold of the woman's hand as it had been resting on the arm of the sofa, and began to rub small circles on her hand since he knew that Jules used to do the same to her.

As his eyes fluttered closed as sleep began to overcome him, and he found himself smiling in his sleep as he dreamt of the good old days with the Rankin woman and their best friend.

And as he woke up, he found that the model had unknowingly interwined their fingers whilst they were both asleep.

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"How are you feeling?"

Daniel Ricciardo spoke to the Australian model that was Josephine Rankin as she stepped out of his bathroom, since she had showered and changed in to some loose clothing belonging to the Formula One driver.

"Better, I think." Josephine gave the man a small smile, since it was all that she could muster up.

"I've made some lasagne, if you would like some." Daniel gave the woman a caring smile, seeing her face filling with thought as she debated on what she would do.

"Um, maybe just the smallest of it because I don't want to try loads and make myself ill. But do you mind if I get a glass of water, please?"

The Rankin woman questioned timidly as the man immediately widened his eyes, before rushing to make her a glass of water so that she didn't need to do it herself.

"Here."

Their hands touched slightly as he handed her the glass filled with the clear liquid, with a feeling of electricity shooting through the pair of them.

"Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?" Daniel asked the brunette, seeing her starting to chew on the bottom of her lip.

"Uh, Charles sent me a message the other day. He wants to meet me." Josephine admitted sheepishly, as she brought one of her hands up so that she could bite at the skin around her nails.

"Leclerc?" Daniel furrowed his eyebrows together as the woman slowly nodded her head up and down a couple of times.

"Yeah, he said that he wants to meet his godmother." Josephine gulped thickly as the words left his lips, since he was very aware that she had not seen the boy since he was sixteen, the year before they had lost Jules.

"Are you okay with doing that? Do you want me to be with you?" Daniel placed both of his hands on to the woman's arms as he rubbed up and down to comfort her.

"Yes please." Her voice cracked as she spoke, since she did not want to be alone when the Leclerc boy inevitably confronted her.

"Forget the lasagne, come on, let's go and meet him." Daniel gave the woman a reassuring smile as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her against his chest, whilst grabbing his car keys.

"God, I hope he doesn't hate me."

A short drive later, they found the Monégasque Formula One driver waiting for them at a café, as he was wringing his hands together in nerves.