"You did such a good job," Edward complimented Pierre when he passed by. "Bravo."
Pierre widely smiled. "Merci, Ed." They gave each other a hand.
"It was amazing to see the battle between you and Hamilton."
"The sweat," Pierre smirked. "I've never felt my heart pound this quick." He replaced the cap on his head. "It's incredible."
"You deserve it so much." Edward looked like a proud father. "We all held in our breath the last lap. Alex, unfortunately, didn't make it; it was a stupid action from Hamilton, but when we saw you at P2... Incredible." His eyes fell on Juliette, who was proudly standing next to Pierre, but he didn't say anything.
"Honestly, when I saw it happening, I was like: is this real? Did he really open the door for P2?" Pierre crossed his arms in front of his chest. "It's more than welcome. But what the fuck," he laughed.
Edward laughed as well. "Thanks, Hamilton! He got a time penalty. But who cares? He won the championship anyway. No sweat." He looked at Juliette and winked.
Juliette only smiled. "We all needed this podium. Max, Pierre and Carlos. Who would have thought?"
More people joined this conversation; the race engineer of Pierre, Pyry, and some other people from Toro Rosso. They all spoke about the race and the fantastic drag race at the end between the world champion and Pierre. Juliette didn't say much; she was slightly speechless because of the sudden podium and the moment what just happened.
"Emmanuel Macron is calling," Jenny suddenly mentioned and handed over a phone at Pierre.
Juliette raised her eyebrows, the president of France was calling Pierre. "I gotta go," she quickly mentioned, now was the time to leave. "They're probably waiting for me."
"Yeah, me too," Edward mentioned.
Pierre nodded. "Sure, no problem," he said and smiled. "I will text you, yeh?" His eyes were locked with Juliette's. A shy smile curled on her lips, and she nodded. Pierre gave her a long kiss and a wink when she looked back at him again.
"À plus," Juliette softly said.
It made Pierre softly smirk when he noticed the shyness on Juliette's face. "À bientôt." He watched her walking away with Edward and grabbed the phone from Jenny hand's. "Bonjour, président Macron..."
"I honestly can't believe this," Juliette admitted when she walked away with her dad. "I mean, Pierre was faster than Lewis. Like... dafuq? I'm not saying this because it's Pierre, but it's a Toro Rosso, a Honda engine."
Edward smirked. "We are all thinking the same. But honestly, one more lap and Lewis would pass Pierre."
"True." Juliette looked at him and stopped walking. "But that wasn't the case." Her eyes sparkled. "Pierre on the podium in a Toro Rosso. I'm afraid to say this, but he already proved you wrong."
"He proved Red Bull wrong, not me. I knew this would happen one day. Pierre is a good driver." He placed his hands on his hips. "But Julie, I don't want to ruin your happiness and all. But Pierre, your dating person, won from Lewis, your driver. And since the terms aren't great between you and Pierre media-wise, people might think you..." Edward raised his eyebrows; he didn't need to finish his sentence.
Juliette sighed. "Yeah, let the speculations begin," she breathed and nodded.
"I'm just saying and keep that in mind. Red Bull won't complain this time because Max won..."
"Bullshit." Juliette looked around her. "But I'm sorry for Alex, this could be his first podium."
Edward looked annoyed at Juliette. "Thank your driver for that." But he quickly showed a cheeky smile. "It is what it is, unfortunately. I'm happy for Pierre, he still feels like a drivers in our team. But Alex could be on the podium..."
"Yeah... Anyway, I really have to go now. I will talk to you later, dad." Juliette stepped away and widely smiled. "Bye!"
"See ya later!"
Juliette walked towards the engineering truck of Mercedes. Adrenaline was pumping through her veins; she was so happy to see Pierre on the podium. Juliette worked in F1 and knew Pierre, but this was one of the greatest podiums of this season as a fan. A satisfied smile grew on her face, she had the chance to witness this. She grabbed her pass out of the pocket of her trousers and opened the door. No one could wipe away the smile on Juliette's face, no one could stop her now.
"Time penalty," James sighed, unsatisfied. "Carlos Sainz is on the podium now," he mentioned to everyone. His eyes fell on Juliette, who just entered the room. "Why are you wet?"
People looked up and raised their eyebrows when they saw Juliette.
Juliette pulled the shirt out of her trousers; it was sticky, and it didn't smell pleasant. "A facial. Champagne is good for the skin. Am I late? Are you waiting on me?"
"No, no, we are waiting for England," someone else mentioned.
Delilah snorted. "A facial..." she repeated. "Sure thing, lady."
"Gotta accept every free facial I get." Juliette grabbed a jacket and quickly changed in the corner of the room. "No, Max was too happy with his win." She sat down behind her computer and smiled.
"So Max is celebrating his win with someone from Mercedes? Right."
Juliette nodded and grabbed her phone. "We can be friends," she cheekily replied.
"And kiss Gasly at the same time? Right, Juliette," Peter sarcastically said and shook his head.
Delilah's head shot up from her computer screen. "What?!" She leaned back on her chair. "You kissed Pierre?" Delilah didn't know what to say. "Where was I when it happened? I didn't see that," she mumbled, disappointed at herself.
A shy smile grew on Juliette's face, and she looked down. Her cheeks heated up, caught. She swallowed hard and bit on the inside of her cheek. What was her team supposed to think of Juliette now? Juliette carefully looked up, only to face everyone looking at her with smiles on their faces. "What?!" A nervous giggle left her lips. "Don't look at me like that. You all look like... gossipers."
"Pal, you and Pierre. This is something we have all been waiting for," someone mentioned and crossed his arms in front of his chest.
"You owe me 20 quid. Told you their reunion would happen before we'd leave Brazil," a colleague mentioned and looked at Delilah.
"Troublemaker," Peter said and teasingly smiled.
Juliette looked at him. "What else do you want me to do? Act like a heartless dickhead or what? I mean... He ended up on the podium and I'm not gonna push my emotions away."
"Look how adorable," Delilah smiled. "Juliette and Pierre... My job as captain on my ship is about to begin."
"There's just one thing I need to ask. I know the answer already, not formally..." James changed to a serious tone. "Did you let Pierre-"
The face of Juliette straightened. "No, of course not. I can't help it that Lewis made a mistake and opens the door for a podium for Toro Rosso and McLaren." Laughter filled the room. "I'm happy for Pierre, a bit sad for Lewis, disappointed for Valtteri, but we have already won what we wanted to win."
"No, okay, thanks."
"The defence mode is adorable," Delilah smirked. The team loved to tease Juliette sometimes; her replies were brilliant. They all saw Juliette as a little sister. "But we gotta discuss it now even more because it is raining charges all over again." She stretched her arms. "And when is England calling in? It is taking them a damn while."
Juliette rolled her eyes, but ignored the comment. People started to chat about when England was calling in and about other silly topics. Juliette's eyes fell on a WhatsApp text from Pierre.
—
Pierre
I'm going out to celebrate the podium. Wanna join?
Well, the team and I
Juliette
If it doesn't harm anyone...
Pierre
Of course not
Juliette
Then I would love to!!!!!
Pierre
We already broke the rules, so who cares about going out together? ;)
Juliette
True, true. I'll text you when I'm finished. I'm probably ready around 20:00-ish
Pierre
Same. We will call later. Have to go now! Xx
Juliette
Xxx
—
"And we are ready to begin!"
Everyone put on their headset, opened the data on their laptops and computers and connected to the call.
☐
For the last time, Juliette looked in the mirror. She sprayed on some perfume and ran her hand through her hair to loosen up the freshly made curls. It was a look. The corners of her mouth curled up, and she grabbed her clutch.
Juliette was wearing a red summer dress - since she forgot to bring outfits to go out and party, and black heels. Her makeup was natural; brown eyeshadow, soft pink lips, a soft touch of concealer where it was needed.
She left her hotel room and went downstairs. She and Pierre were meeting up in the lobby. A nervous feeling quickly flowed through her body; this was the first time she dressed up for an occasion together with Pierre. They went out before, but not like this - that was more of a 'casual night out'.
Pierre had a seat on a sofa in the lobby; he was waiting for Juliette, but also for a few crew members who were running late. He rechecked his phone. "Does anyone know a good place to go out?"
"Some guys from Red Bull recommenced a few clubs," a mechanic replied.
"Of course," someone else chuckled.
"It doesn't matter where we go out, if only there is alcohol to celebrate the podium!"
"That will happen, don't worry about that," Pierre said. He got up from the sofa when he noticed a woman was walking over. A smile curved on his lips. "Hey," he said. "You look beautiful," he softly said and gave her a kiss.
Juliette smiled. "Thanks. You took beautiful too," she whispered; Pierre was wearing a white shirt, jeans and sneakers. It was simple, but it looked good. Behind Pierre, a few guys were making some noises; shouting, whistling. Juliette looked behind Pierre and faced his team. She looked back at Pierre, who snorted.
"Guys," Pierre said and turned around. "This is Juliette. Jules, meet my team."
"Hi," Juliette greeted everyone.
"So, you are Jules. We've heard a lot about you," a guy cheekily smirked. When Pierre accidentally talked about Juliette with his team, he called her Jules. So basically, the team knew her as Jules.
Juliette shyly giggled. "I hope it was all positive."
"Don't worry," someone else replied and winked.
Pierre placed his hand on Juliette's lower back and gave her a kiss on her cheek. "You smell good," he mumbled against her skin and let go of her. "We just have to wait on a few guys."
"Not anymore!" Daniil Kvyat shouted excitedly. "Hey, Juliette. Good to see you." He gave her two kisses on her cheeks.
"Good to see you too," Juliette smiled.
"Let's go!"
The group of people left the hotel and walked to the first club. The group was mainly filled with men, and a few women. Juliette didn't expect any different, this was just like her own crew.
"What had Macron to say?" Juliette curiously asked and grabbed Pierre's hand.
He waved their fingers together. "He congratulated me and asked me about the race. And politely asked me if I wanted to lunch with him and his wife one day."
"Wow, what?" Juliette raised her eyebrows. "Our president?"
"Oui." Pierre looked at her. "Just to talk about the race and whatever he wants to talk about. So, if you want, do you want to go to lunch with me at the president's house?"
She looked perplexed at him; was he joking? "Yeah... Sure, why not? How romantic, a double date with the president."
A laugh rolled over Pierre's lips. "Very romantic." He ran his hand through his hair. "I should have asked it differently. It really sounds like a double date, but it's more work-related."
"I know." She couldn't help but laugh as well. "But that is amazing, Pierre! I mean, it's the president."
"Yeah, I was surprised he called in the first place. Turns out he's a fan for years." They stopped walked when the traffic light was red. "It's cool, but weird. I will let you know when the lunch is, I have no idea when it will happen."
"This is so cool, what the heck. The president who calls after your first podium in F1. That is just... wow." Juliette was enthusiastic. When a president called, you either fucked it badly up or did something really good.
"Did Macron call you too when you won in 2013?" Pierre never heard her talk about that, or he must have forgotten it.
"Hollande did, not Macron. Hollande was our president in 2013," she reminded him and chuckled.
Pierre smirked. "That's what I said." He made a mistake, he knew that. They both laughed.
"But he did, congratulating me. Same with the lunch. I didn't go, when we both had time, I already left."
It was silence from Pierre's side. "I'm honestly so happy to be with you again," he admitted. "I don't know if I could do it for longer... not be with you."
"Me too," Juliette softly replied and let go of Pierre's hand. She wrapped her arm around his waist. "It's fine now. No one will stop us from seeing each other. But let's not think about that tonight. Tonight is all about you."
A soft smile grew on his face; he was excited to go out, but he also wanted to be alone with Juliette. "Did you get in trouble? I saw a video of you cheering during the finish."
"Well... I don't know, I haven't checked my mail nor phone. Toto isn't here, I haven't seen the board yet. I kinda ignore it..." Pierre nodded, just like Juliette. "So no, it doesn't exist for me now. You?"
"I have no idea where you're talking about," he stubbornly replied. They both laughed.
The group entered a club, and the first shots were ordered. It was just the beginning of a fun night out.