Apex | Charles Leclerc

Bonus Chapter #3

"Nova!" Jasmine cheered, interrupting her conversation with Toto. "Oh my gosh. Ice cream!" Not even waiting for me to say a word, she reached for one of the cups I was holding and went back to take a seat.

"Anything you want to say to mama, cicegim?" I asked her, amusingly raising an eyebrow. I briefly tapped Mia's shoulder and placed the ice cream in front of her before kissing her head.

"This is yummy." She smiled, putting the spoon in her mouth as I sat beside her. On her other side, Toto and Charles both snickered.

"Anything else?"

"Yes!" She cheered and I smiled. "I loooooove ice cream." Jasmine knew what she was doing and the glint in her eyes told me that she knew exactly what she was supposed to say.

"She's definitely your daughter." Toto laughed, clapping my on the back. "She has an answer to everything. Right, little girl?"

"That's because I'm smart like mama and Mia." Jasmine absentmindedly said, eyes trained on her ice cream.

It was my turn to smirk now as Charles stared at his daughter with his mouth open. "Did she just call me s-t-u-p-i-d?" He spelled out, underestimating his daughter's spelling skills.

"Papa said a bad word!" She pointed at him and he rolled his eyes at her.

"Yes, he did. Papa isn't as smart as you, mama, and Mia." I teased, fixing Jasmine's hair and feeling Charles' glares on the side of my head. "That's because he never reads books."

"And he plays video games." Jasmine scrunched her nose up and Charles gasped, poking her side.

"You play video games with me."

"Yes, but I'm already smart. That doesn't count."

Charles pouted, hugging Esma closer to him. She looked up at him and tilted her head. "Papa okay?"

"Papa needs some love, E." He said, giving her a kiss on both cheeks and making her giggle.

Charles had to get ready with Andrea so the girls and I moved to the Mercedes garage. I let Jasmine roam around after the first time she let go of my hand and asked nonstop questions to every mechanic and engineer in the room. Today's victim was Toto who had Jack sitting beside him, eyes on the screen. It was obvious that the teenager was bound to make his own name in the industry, having both of his parents as icons.

"Ms. Stoddart." I kissed Susie's cheek when we stopped beside her, Mia smiling up at her.

"Mrs. Leclerc." She smirked back before hugging Mia and brushing her hand against Esma's cheek.

"How are the girls in the F1 Academy?" Ever since the competition was finally given the coverage it deserved, the audience reach widened and the support of the other drivers only broke the stigma even more. As of today, three of the twenty drivers on the grid came from the F1 Academy while two more were scouted from the teams' own junior academies.

"Very good, actually. We're looking to add another race weekend for next year." Susie explained, clearly proud of how far they've come. "Would you mind if I steal Mia for a bit? Marta and Lola are here tonight to see Bia race and they wanted to see Mia as well."

"As long as my daughter doesn't come back looking like a papaya, I'm alright with that." Susie laughed and nodded her head, grabbing Mia's hand as they crossed the paddock. "It's just you and me for now, cicis." I smiled softly, nuzzling my nose with hers.

"Nova." She breathed out before grabbing both of my cheeks with her tiny hands and kissing my nose. "Love you." She was still getting used to her L's so the sound was even more adorable as she looked up at me with her bright green eyes.

"I love you too, Esma." I replied, feeling my heart burst every time I told her that. The decision to name her after Esma wasn't hard to make when Charles and I realized I was pregnant. We didn't get the chance with Mia and when Jasmine was born, I still wasn't completely healed with living life without my sister. We talked about it again when we were picking out names and the mention of Esma no longer hurt me.

The girls came back when Charles arrived in the garage, clapping everyone in the back before moving towards us. The night before, we had dinner with people coming from his three different teams— Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, and Mercedes. Ferrari went through an entire reorganization during the time Mick signed for them since he refused to associate himself with a team that tolerated questionable choices.

"I don't want to make this speech sad because Toto might cry." Charles began, earning an eyeroll from his team principal. Jasmine was standing in front of Charles, holding on to one of his hands while Mia stood on his right. I was on his left, Esma placed against my hip, as I put my hand on the space between his shoulders for support. "I am beyond thankful for the past eleven years with the team. You all know that Formula One has been my life ever since I was a child, and to be surrounded by such amazing people is a privilege I'm grateful to have experienced. Thank you for welcoming me into the team, as well as my family."

"Thank you for answering my questions!" Jasmine interrupted and everyone laughed. Surprisingly, she turned to Mia who smiled at everyone as well.

"Thank you for taking care of papa." She said, voice calmer than her little sister. Everyone aww'd, knowing what she went through before. The first time Mia went to a race, she was a wreck and Charles was almost late to the first free practice session because he didn't want to leave her.

"Anything you want to add, Nova?" Charles smirked, placing a hand on the small of my back and catching me completely off guard.

I glared at him before clearing my throat and turning to everyone else. "They've already said most of the thanks we wanted to tell you, but most importantly, I wanted to say thank you for not turning your back on Charles ten years ago. We were caught in a situation that might've been impossible to come back from or would've taken longer if we didn't have your help. This team has become another family for the five of us and we will forever be watching in the sidelines to support you."

Charles' last race was definitely one for the books. All eyes were on him during every turn, every flash of his helmet on the screen, and every time his voice was heard through the radio. The stands were mostly a mixture of black and red, thousands of Leclerc fans flying to Abu Dhabi to see the last time their favorite driver would be in Formula One. He became the generational talent people thought he'd be and proved to them that there's more to the sport than what they currently have.

As he neared the last corner, I could feel the anticipation in my bones. The crowds were already standing, ready to witness history be made during his last Formula One stint. He'd already passed Max the lap before and the numbers showed that it was impossible for him to regain first place from Charles.

He passed the finish line and everyone made their way to the podium as he made his victory lap. Jasmine was sitting on Andrea's shoulders while Mia was on Toto's as we all watched Charles come back to do some donuts for the very last time. Mick was already waiting for him there along with Carlos who eventually went back to drive for Red Bull, the three of them filling the grid with smoke as the audience cheered.

When Charles finally made it out of his car, the first thing I saw was the raw emotion in his eyes. This sport changed the trajectory of his life and will continue to do so with the name he's made for himself.

"I'm so proud of you." I whispered to him, holding his cheek and giving him a small kiss.

I was not only proud of him for another title under his belt, but for the choice to stop. He knew that being a Formula One driver wasn't a position you get to hold forever. Making the decision was probably one of the most difficult things he's done, but he knows that his time has ended. It was now time for the new generation to thrive and he was ready to take a step back and guide them through it.

Charles' eyes brightened against the lights around us as he pressed his forehead against mine. "Thank you, Nova."

*****

✧Reese✧