Amélie
I had made a decision.
Finally, I was going to accept my father's last name. I was probably taking it at the last moment, since Arthur mentioned that I had until summer, but I had to think about everything and it wasn't an easy thing to decide.
A few days ago I made Lando understand that I was doing it by giving our dog that last name, and now I had to let Charles know. However, I didn't want to talk to him, due to the fact that I would end up talking about what happened with Lucy, who might be at the photo shoot today.
After doing my daily exercise routine and then going for a run with Monako, already adjusted to this, I texted my half brother while I was making breakfast for Lando and me.
"We need to talk. Tell me if you can make a call."
He answered me a few minutes later, a little bluntly, "If it's not something very important, send it by message."
When I read that I decided to get defensive like he was doing.
"It seems to me that talking about what you did with Lucy in Hungary and my final decision regarding the testament is relevant".
He ignored me, so I assumed that he really didn't care about my infidelity, much less if I wanted to be part of his family or not.
I finished preparing the pancakes and together with Monako we went to wake up Lando. It was around ten in the morning and he was still fast asleep, it didn't even bother him that Monako slept with us and moved every so often.
The puppy had already gotten a little used to our day-to-day life, he also learned that he had to relieve himself until we took him out for a walk or on the pads. Yesterday Lando had brought a synthetic garden so he wouldn't have to put up with it and he could do it there, but now we had to show him what he could do on that grass too.
"Honey, wake up," I whispered as I laid myself down next to him and stroked his tousled curls.
He stirred in bed and made room for me to lay down next to him. Meaning that he wanted to continue to sleep for a while together or that he would wake up with more cuddles.
"You're getting pampered, Mr. Norris," I told him between a small giggle as I rested my head on his chest and he left a kiss in my hair.
Lando provided me with incredible peace and I was falling in love with the Brit by having him by my side every day.
I probably ended up falling asleep for another while because when I woke up Lando was no longer by my side. I went out of our room and saw him sitting in the dining room eating the pancakes that I had prepared a while ago.
"You left me, right?" I asked as I drank coffee from a cup.
He shook his head affirming, he was very focused on devouring the food. These days I had realized that even though he was a Formula One driver, he ate twice as much as a person like me and that he really liked to eat anything, especially junk food.
I put some music on the speaker before I got to the dining room and joined Lando to devour my food, "Harry Styles again?" He spoke with his mouth full with a smile on his lips as he shook his head in disapproval of my musical tastes.
"Shhhh, he's the best," I said taking the plate from him to steal the crêpe.
"I think I've even learned the lyrics from listening to them while we eat or when you take a bath and get ready."
"I'm introducing you to good music."
"The music I listen to is pretty cool too," he defended himself.
"I know, but I prefer Harry's songs a thousand times, they are so perfect."
"Well they are pretty, but not to listen to them all the time."
"Land, music is my life. If I didn't listen to Harry I would be listening to Shawn Mendes or something by Bad Bunny, so you can't help but hear them.
"I've noticed," we both started laughing.
We finished eating and I let Lando clear the plates, since I had already prepared everything. I began to play for a while with Monako. He was so playful and despite the fact that we ran quite a lot for hours, he recovered his energy and went crazy to go around the apartment.
I felt so perfect about our new life that I didn't want it to end.
But of course something had to interrupt it...
"Charles is calling you," Lando warned me, handing me the cell phone he had left in the kitchen.
I answered the call and stuck it to my ear, "Hello?"
"Don't ever mention Lucia in chat again." He sounded quite angry and irritated.
"I see if you care that she knows you're sleeping with her," I said with the same tone of voice.
If he was going to get disrespectful I wouldn't let him walk all over me.
"The truth is that I don't care at all that you know because it's not convenient for you to say it."
"You don't mind if she talks to some gossip magazine?" I asked sarcastically.
"They would think it's fake, since I'm in perfect condition with Charlotte," he said relaxed.
"Speaking of her, does she already know that you are being unfaithful to her?"
"Well, now she thinks about it because of you." His tone had already calmed down a bit and now he sounded more frustrated.
"Why me?" I asked, calming down a bit too.
"She read the message you sent and now Sandra is telling her that something happened in Hungary."
"I'll talk to Sandy and Charlotte now," I tried to reassure him.
A scandal for him right now was not the best.
"Thank you," he sighed in relief.
"You should still clarify that, Charles," I was understanding with him.
"I know, it was just a slip, I swear."
"But they both have a partner," I stressed.
"Exactly, it doesn't matter."
"But it is not fair that you can be with what is prohibited and not let me do it with what is allowed."
"It is different. One more scandal of infidelity recognizing you as a half-sister, which is already known in the media, but as Lando's partner and with another last name, and finally not being at the best moment in my career would make it the end of me."
"You can take away being unfaithful if you stay away from Lucy or end up with Charlotte."
"It still has the same gravity in all possible ways."
"Now you roll Charles. It's not like I'm going to do what you tell me about Lando so you'll know how to figure it out." Norris abruptly stopped playing with Monako when I brought him up in the conversation and saw me raise an eyebrow.
"You mean, we'll figure it out."
"Yes, good. I called you to tell you that I appropriated the last name."
"It's okay. I'll talk to the lawyer so we can have an appointment with him after the holidays."
In the end, it didn't even matter that I told him on these dates because he would also go to enjoy his summer.
"Okay, enjoy your trip" I remembered that Lando told me that they were going to Greece.
"Have a good time with Norris."
After that he hung up and I took my cell phone away from my ear, "Everything alright?" Lando asked intrigued.
"Yesss" I played it down "We have to go get ready because Olivia is coming in an hour" I reminded myself that she was going to come so we could all go to the studio together.
"We should save time by bathing together," he spoke mischievously as the two of us made our way to the bedroom.
"We should?" I followed the game.
"And we wouldn't waste a lot of water either."
He had his arm around my shoulders so as fast as I could, I grabbed him and ran into the bathroom, "I promise later, now we're in a hurry."
"You're going to pay me, Amélie," he shouted through the door that divided us.
"Uh, yes!" I said it sarcastically because the sex I had with Lando was pretty vanilla and I liked it that way. Fuck me like a Formula One driver.
"Okay," he said angrily.
It was not the first day that I had been delaying the moment in which we were together intimately, but most of the time there were excuses and above all it was my job, which made me arrive very tired and I did not want even that much stress that the cases caused me.
The only benefit to this was that the sexual tension was building more and more and we were both beyond desperate for that to happen so when it did happen it was going to be more than magical.
I turned on the horn again, only this time the one I had in the bathroom, and instead of putting on my dearest Harry I put on a little reggaeton to take a shower faster.
Minutes later I came out with the towel wrapped around my body and Lando entered the shower. Livvie was supposed to be here soon, but she was almost never on time, although since it was something important to her business, there might be an exception and we would arrive at the studio early. After the photoshoot I had to accompany Norris to an interview in which I would probably also end up speaking, but that was not certain.
I finished changing and sat down at my dresser to prep my face, since there was going to be a professional makeup artist in the studio. Lando got out and started to change when we heard someone yelling in the hallway.
"Amelie!" Ricciardo is going to come to Miami to model in the bathing suits." She entered the apartment with the spare key that we usually left under the rug for anything. ""I had never talked to him before and I tried writing him on Instagram to model for my brand and he responded super fast," she said excitedly.
"How quickly he discovered your Instagram," Lando interrupted Livvie's screams.
"What? Does he know of my existence?"
"He asked me for your number once, but he didn't have it
I looked at Livvie with a bit of amusement and awe at the same time. Now the three of us were having the opportunity to live with Formula One drivers and it was still very strange and at the same time shocking.
"Well, you'll see your teammate in the studio" she said excitedly as she quickly took us out of the apartment "Can you imagine my brand becoming famous just because he was my model, I'm dying" another message from the Australian fell before she mentioned that.
It is ironic how Lando had also offered to help her grow her business, but she would not want his help to not become recognized by someone else's fame, but now I would like Daniel Ricciardo to participate.
I looked at Lando with a little sadness, since he did want to participate and learn to be a model, but his partner had unintentionally stolen the position. He just shrugged it off, as if he had read my thoughts, and we continued down to the parking lot.
We spent the whole way listening to Livvie screaming with excitement and also asking questions so that we could answer her without sounding desperate. Norris was dying of laughter, not knowing that at first I was like that too and I resorted to my friends to answer him.
We arrived at the studio and I headed into the studio to try on my first swimsuit outfit and also so they could do my makeup while they did my hair. When I got out of these Lando was sitting in front of the camera and I felt a bit uncomfortable having his very intense gaze watching me every time he posed.
He was very clear about the thoughts he was having at that moment.
After changing my outfits five times and sharing the space with Livvie, Daniel Ricciardo appeared at the door of the studio.
My friend ran towards him and jumped into his arms excitedly, "Thank you so much for coming!"
"Thanks to you, baby, for inviting me," he returned her thanks with a huge smile on his mouth.
They directed him to the dressing room and after a few photos of the three of them together, Livvie had an idea, "What if we do some with the two partners?" she finally wanted to include Lando in the photoshoot and not just have him as a spectator.
"It's fine with me," Ricciardo agreed.
"I'll go ask Lando," I told them as I approached the British man's stall, who was already falling asleep doing nothing.
He agreed half strangely and went to put on a bathing suit similar to the one Daniel had on. We spent about another hour in the studio modeling when Olivia was finally satisfied with the result of the photo shoot.
Lando and I had to be on time for the interview so we said goodbye quickly, but I heard the Australian invite my friend to lunch and she agreed without thinking. I felt happy for them and hoped that she will have a good time.
"They would make a good couple," I told Lando, since we were in the new McLaren he had bought to use during his stay.
"I guess" I downplay that.
Norris seemed a little annoyed and walked the whole way in silence to the agreed place for the interview. When we arrived he got out of the car and went with the presenter, he hadn't even unlocked my door so I couldn't get out.
I just watched how he chatted with the girl and was extremely nice to her. Now I was angry too, and not because of how he was treating the interviewer, but also because he had left me locked in the car when I was supposed to speak too.
I started searching the internet for how to unlock the McLaren without the main command and did what it said. The doors opened and I got out of his car taking my bag. I saw how the cameraman and Lando turned to look at me, but I didn't give a damn about that, I walked around the beach and ordered an Uber to go back to the apartment.
Norris didn't even try to talk to me or explain things via text, so when I got home I made sure to bring in the spare key and ask the doorman to keep him out of the tower.
Who did he think he was to leave me locked in a car without giving me an explanation?
If he was angry about something that had happened in the studio he could have said it and not kept it, but he had preferred to apply ice cold for something that I had no idea had bothered him and now I was doing the same.
Monako received me more than happy and we started to play for a while. Then I decided to finish working on the contracts that I needed so I could rest, however, I lost track of time and ended up there almost all afternoon.
It was getting dark and Lando hadn't looked out to see what was going on so I didn't write to him either. I decided that the best thing was to take Monako out for a walk to distract myself and stop thinking about him.
I put his leash on him and when I opened the door Lando was leaning against the door frame. He got up quickly and the puppy began to bark in excitement at seeing his master. I tried to move but the Brit stopped me when he grabbed my shoulders stopping my exit.
"Sorry," he finally spoke. "I know I didn't have to leave you in the car, but I didn't want you to be interviewed even if you agreed to it."
"Maybe if you had told me that a few hours ago it would have been different," I said defensively.
"I know, but I was upset that they included Ricciardo and not me. After they had their trio of photos they wanted me to be there so that the launch would be more controversial. Besides, why did they have to act as if they were Daniel's suitors?"
"Are you jealous?" I asked in amazement.
I had hardly ever seen him jealous and angry because he was living with another boy.
"You are right! "!He demanded, furious "How do you think I feel to see you flirtatious with my teammate? It feels like betrayal, Amélie!"
"But it was only for the photos. I would never do that!" I defended myself.
"It still felt real."
"It is not."
"And have you thought about what the media will say now?" The headlines when the photos come out will be "Lando Norris or Daniel Ricciardo? Looks like the girl can't make up her mind" it reminded me of what I've been dreading since it all started.
"But it's different because nothing is happening between Ricciardo and me."
"They'll think I'm in a love triangle again or that they can't pick me as their first choice!"
"Again?" I asked confused.
"Amelie, for a fan of mine, it seems you know absolutely nothing about me," he commented ironically.
That completely paralyzed me. I stared into his eyes intently, tears threatening to break out, but I didn't let it happen. I didn't want Lando to see me cry over a comment he made.
"I was following your career as a driver, not your personal life. If it has happened to you before, don't worry that it won't happen on my part because I have absolutely nothing with you or your partner."
Without further ado I moved from his side and went with Monako to walk and probably cry. It hurt me that he was comparing me to people from his past and I know it could be fear because I had it too, but it was no way to make me see that I didn't really know him as well as I thought.
I spent about an hour walking our dog. When I was already going back to the tower I dared to take out my cell phone and see that I had several missed calls from Lando, also some messages, but I didn't pay attention to them.
I searched the internet for what I wanted to know and typed in the title "Lando Norris love triangle" and thousands of articles appeared about Pierre's girlfriend, Lando and the Frenchman. I had never heard of this and I was shocked to read everything that the fans and the press had to say about it.
My investigation was interrupted by an incoming call from Max Fewtrell, I didn't want to answer him, but it wasn't fair that I pay my anger with him when I was with his best friend.
"Hello Max," I picked up the call.
"Amélie, you have to come to the hotel" his tone was worried and there was a lot of noise.
"What happened?"
"Lando is completely drunk, he's probably close to tears and he won't stop talking about you."
"You're just saying that so I can speak to him." Norris had surely asked him to do so because he didn't think he was capable of getting drunk over that.
I heard how Max was trying to talk, but his cell phone was taken away by his best friend, "Amélie? His voice was thick and a little weak at the same time."
"Why did you do it, Lando?" I felt a déjà vu with everything I lived with Walter and the things that happened every time we fought.
"Because I really love you and it hurts me a lot that you think we have nothing. For me you are my world."
Was it still thought that drunks tell the truth?
"Things don't work out that way," I demanded, a little disappointed.
"I'm sorry," I turn my nose up and I could see that he was already crying.
All I tried to hold back the tears and ended up squeezing them out hearing that he was sensitive too.
Lando handed Max the cell phone back and I ended up making the decision a bit hastily, without really reflecting on what I wanted, "I'm going there" without further ado, I hung up and got up from the bench where I had stopped to sort out my feelings with Monako.
Did I like Lando?
Definitely yes.
But did I really want him the same way he did?
I thought so, but I wasn't sure.
I loved having him in my life and spending every moment together, however, I was afraid that things would not go my way. More so with all the problems I had being a Leclerc and he a Formula One driver.
Probably, all this time he was not accepting that he felt something much stronger than a friendship with benefits just because of what they will say, but above all because of the fear that history could repeat itself or be worse.
But I couldn't live with cowardice all my life. Lando had shown me all this time that it was worth trying. Our relationship could become complicated by fame, but that did not affect at all how we were as people and what we wanted.
I realized that all this had happened because we have never spoken clearly about our feelings and we just let ourselves go. And it was time to do it. But with Lando so drunk it wasn't convenient to talk about it, he had to find the perfect occasion to talk about it.