Between the Lines

Chapter Five: Shared Spaces, Shared Silences

There were a few things Lando had mastered in his years in Formula 1:

Knowing how to dodge a question without sounding like he was dodging it
Laughing on cue during awkward post-qualy interviews
Pretending he wasn't in love with Oscar Piastri
That last one was becoming less of a skill and more of a daily struggle.

Especially today.

Because today, McLaren's media team decided it would be "cute" and "on-brand" for Lando and Oscar to do a shared mic segment for the team socials. Casual. Fun. "Just improv it," they said. "You two have great chemistry."

Lando wanted to scream.

Instead, he sat on a barstool with Oscar beside him, one mic between them, one bottle of water they were passing back and forth, and about six inches of space separating their legs.

He was going to die here. On camera. In 4K.

—

"Who's messier in the driver's room?" the social media girl asked from behind the camera.

Oscar raised an eyebrow. "Him."

Lando laughed. "Excuse me?"

"You left your socks on the desk. Twice."

"They were clean!"

Oscar smirked. "Sure they were."

It was easy, the way they bantered. Familiar. Addicting.

Too easy.

They moved on to more questions. Childhood fears. First CDs. Who's better at sim racing.

And then:

"What's one thing people don't know about your teammate?"

Oscar hesitated.

Lando turned slightly, curious. "Go on, then."

Oscar looked at him for a moment too long. "He remembers everything. Like, everything. Your coffee order from three months ago. Which hoodie you wore in Jeddah. The name of a guy you raced in karting when you were thirteen."

Lando blinked. "I—how do you know that?"

Oscar shrugged. "You told me. Once."

"Oh." Lando looked down at his hands. "Right."

The camera rolled. The social media manager didn't say a word.

And neither did the grid, for about twenty minutes.

—

Group chat: Oscar's Secret BF???

Alex:
i don't even need the footage i just felt the tension through the walls

Charles:
they made eye contact like they were in a romance movie

George:
someone PLEASE tell me they kissed off-camera

Yuki:
they shared one mic and a single water bottle. what's next. one braincell?

Max:
[posts chart: "Mic Proximity vs. Romantic Implication – Monaco Edition"]

Pierre:
they're holding hands by next race. i'm calling it

Carlos:
i'm putting money on a mid-season reveal

Daniel:
they're so close to cracking

Lando (seen 4:19 PM)
[no reply]

—

Back at the hotel, Oscar was doing a great job pretending he hadn't almost said something reckless on camera.

He texted Logan instead.

Oscar:
they asked me to say something people don't know about lando
i froze
said something emotional by accident

Logan:
i saw
u looked like u were about to confess and then cry

Oscar:
i hate you

Logan:
no u don't

Oscar sighed and closed his eyes.

He kind of wanted to walk into the sea.

—

Meanwhile, Lando was rewatching the clip on his phone in the dark, as if the fifth time would make it make sense.

He couldn't stop thinking about the way Oscar had looked at him. Like he knew him. Like he saw him. Like he wanted to say something more and just... didn't.

Why didn't he?

Was Lando imagining all of this?

Was he hoping for something that wasn't there?

He opened Instagram. Went to Oscar's tagged posts. Then stopped.

He couldn't keep doing this.

He had to say something eventually.

Right?

But what if he was wrong?

What if he said it—and ruined everything?

—

They ended up back in the hotel bed, same as before.

One bed.

Two idiots.

Too much silence.

Oscar was lying on his back, staring at the ceiling.

Lando was curled toward the wall.

At some point, Oscar spoke.

"You remember things about me too, right?"

Lando turned. "Of course I do."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Oscar swallowed. "Like what?"

Lando shifted closer, voice soft. "You hate fizzy water. You bite your lip when you're nervous. You always text someone at night before lights out."

Oscar froze.

He didn't answer.

Didn't have to.

Lando knew.

He just didn't know who.

Or maybe—just maybe—he didn't want to ask.

Yet.