Snap Happy (A Daniel Ricciardo story)

39. Many Happy Returns

This is it folks, time to round off Snap Happy as a continuous story before I completely run out of ideas and you all get bored of it. I'd like to take the opportunity to thank all of you who have ever read, commented, or voted for my first story in far too many years- I really REALLY appreciate it and I'm sorry I've left you hanging so long.

 To those of you who have been with the story from the start and waited patiently for each new part, you know who you are, and YOU ROCK. 

 For those of you who joined us later and read the whole lot in a week and left me thirty new notifications to jump up and down about...YOU ROCK TOO!

 For those of you who have started and stopped, come and gone, dipped in and out...YOU SU...(I'm just kidding - YOU ROCK AS WELL!)

 Special mentions to the fab trio of F1 writers who got me started:

 - lacellak

 -bijouthegreat

 - __highflying - please check out her work if you haven't already because she's exceptionally talented and she's better at updating than I am ;) 

 And please stay tuned - new stories coming soon and maybe a special chapter or two at some point. 

 This chapter is dedicated to all of you. E x 

EM

 "Are you SURE this was a good idea?" 

 Dan and I had travelled together many times over the last few months and very rarely been recognised. It helped that he didn't act like a celebrity - no huge entourage or crazy fashion statements (excluding a certain lederhosen moment I had discovered, although he had sworn blind it was for promotional purposes only.) In ordinary civvies a non-F1 fan might give him a second (third?) glance for his looks, but would never guess that he was anything other than a gorgeous guy-next-door.

 Mind you we had never flown in to Australia as a couple before, and in hindsight Melbourne Grand Prix week probably wasn't the best time to try it. My doubts intensified when I saw a very familiar face grinning back at me from a 15ft billboard on the airport wall. 

 "Dan?" I tried again.

 "What's up?" Detecting the concern in my voice he paused mid step, our carry-on bags rolling to a halt beside us. 

 "You are...on the wall!" 

 I looked from 3D Dan back to 2D Dan. Each tooth was about a foot high, you couldn't really miss him.

 "Y'know it's not a bad photo but you're still a little bit better looking in the flesh" I teased, hoping for a reaction. I wasn't disappointed. 

 "A little bit???" As I'd hoped he was adorably indignant. 

 "Seriously though I know we're not exactly The Beckhams but maybe I should go on ahead...or....something?" 

 Already I could imagine the whispers circulating round the terminal. Just one voice at first - it would only take one to light the spark before the news spread out of control like a bushfire. 

 "It is!"

 "It isn't!"

 "It IS! It's Daniel - Daniel Ricciardo!" 

 The thoughts in my head grew louder until I could almost picture the scene - maybe an excited young boy off to his first Grand Prix, oversized Red Bull cap perched lopsidedly above starry eyes.