Little Maxie

Chapter 13

Driving off, he quickly joined the local traffic, only to get stuck in it moments later, staring at the blocked road due to a car accident, Lewis one lane to the left and four cars ahead of him.

Daniel couldn't help but swear, hitting his steering wheel in frustration before he calmed down and sat back. A little bit longer wouldn't matter, he just hoped that the traffic would resolve itself sooner then later.

Christian had arrived at the paddock bright and early, liking to walk around the Red Bull space when there was no one around before he got to work. To be honest, ever since his conversation with Lewis yesterday about Max, he had been thinking over the problem.

As a base, he hadn't really gotten in contact with a lot of littles before, and seeing in what kind of business he worked in, there hadn't been a lot of littles on the teams and the few that worked there he didn't come in contact with a lot.

Of course, he made sure to follow the guidelines, to create a safe working environment for all, and so far none of the littles had given him any problems. Some of the more aggressive caregivers on the other hand...

He knew that if they hadn't got anyone to care for, they could get pushy and controlling, and Christian always tried to put down the rules in a gentle but firm manner, letting them know that they weren't the boss.

But to be honest, he never really had to deal with either designation a lot.

And then Max had come along. He knew Max had been a little from the beginning, the meeting he had with him and Jos still vividly in his mind when he looked at the official papers.

Max had been a bit shy about it, and Jos had assured him that Max being a little wouldn't affect him or the team. When Christian had asked about a caregiver for Max, the little had glanced at his father with a blush, who had said that he would handle Max, and to not worry about it.

At the time, Max had looked happy at his dad's words, and Christian hadn't thought anything weird about it. Parents often took the role of the caregiver for younger littles, until they found someone of their own.

At first, everything went well, and he never heard a mention of Max being little or any problem concerning it. And then a few rumours reached him, talking about the borderline abuse Max had suffered through when he had been learning to drive, but Max had said that it was just to make him a better driver, even used the anecdotes as jokes, laughing with them.

To his shame, he had ignored the rumours at first, trusting that Max was assertive enough to get himself out of a harmful relationship without any help. But after the talk with Lewis, he realised he had been wrong.

It had been a late night yesterday evening, doing research on littles, searching specifically for Max's his headspace age. He knew some things, of course, and he also knew that Max ranged rather young if he needed a crib to sleep in.

It shocked him how much they had been neglecting Max's his basic needs, to help him focus and grow strong mentally. The small but meaningful changes they could make to his schedule, and even benefit from it themselves.

He had intercepted Bradley that morning, the man already having heard the rumour of Max being a little from the hotel. Christian had nodded at it, glad that the news was coming out. That would make it easier to come out with officially, and if need be, have a good explanation why Jos would be banished from the Red Bull side of the paddock.

"You are a caregiver, right?" Christian asked Bradley, who nodded.

"Yeah. I specialise in the care of all ages," Bradley answered, and Christian nodded pleased.