"Il est peut-être temps d'obtenir votre propre licence," Maybe it's time to get your own license, Charles shrugged when I talked about booking a taxi to pick Evie and I up at the airport in Canada on Friday.
"Comment cela m'aiderait-il au Canada, ce n'est pas comme si je pouvais apporter une voiture dans mon sac," How would this help me in Canada it's not like I can bring a car in my bag, I argued, giving him a tired look. "Je n'ai pas besoin de conduire, mes seuls amis conduisent pour le travail," I don't need to drive, my only friends drive for a living.
"Pas Evie," Not Evie, he said, acting like he was really proud of poking a hole in my argument. I rolled my eyes and took the dirty laundry with me towards the laundry room. He rolled out of bed and immediately followed me. "Si tu obtenu votre licence, tu n'as pas à marcher jusqu'au studio tous les jours," If you get your license, you don't have to walk to the studio every day, he argued while leaning his shoulder onto the doorframe.
"C'est à cinq minutes à pied, pourquoi devrais-je conduire de toute façon?" It's a five minute walk, why should I drive anyway? I asked, loading the washer with clothes.
"Tu pourrai rendre visite à ta grand-mère à Nice," You could visit your grandmother in Nice, he tried and I furrowed my brows. She barely remembers who I am. If I went to the home to visit her then she would think she was being robbed.
"À quand remonte la dernière fois que j'ai rendu visite à ma grand-mère?" When was the last time I visited my grandmother? I asked, earning a sigh of defeat from Charles.
"Tu peux louer des voitures et conduire toi-même lorsque tu voyages," You can rent cars and drive yourself when traveling, he tried one final time. I stood up straight and began starting the washer, but Charles stepped closer, because he knows I have a harder time saying no to him when he gets closer to me.
"Je voyage la plupart du temps avec toi, et il est hors de question que tu me laisses conduire une de ces voitures Ferrari," I mostly travel with you, and there's no way you're letting me drive one of those Ferrari cars, I tell him as I press the start button and turn to him.
Charles seemed to think about it, then he tilted his head to each side as if he partially agreed. I chuckled and walked past him back towards the bedroom. He grunted and followed me back to the bedroom. He wraps his arms around me from behind and he falls over so he lands on top of me on the bed.
"Je pourrais tu aider à t'entraîner sur l'une des pistes!" I could help you practice on one of the tracks! He says as I try to get back out from under him. He finally rolls off and I glare at him for nearly suffocating me.
I scoffed as a response and just pushed him off the bed, hearing him land with a grunt and a thud. It was great payback, and it made him shut up.
At the end of May, Evie and I had attended our first big competition for points. The contestants with the least points from each category are not coming back to compete for more points. Luckily, I wasn't one of those people. For my solo, I didn't score a podium, but I wasn't last. Evie and I got third place for our duo, which was good, but it wasn't where we wanted to be. So we practiced harder with the help of Lawrence, and I practiced my solo with Anna.
However, we flew to Canada for the race. Mainly because Evie's birthday was on Saturday, the day of qualifying, and all of our friends are there. It's not like she's going to celebrate alone. Evie's mother was also going to Canada to be with her daughter on her birthday so that she could see both of her kids. So we went to Canada on Friday morning, arriving there in the afternoon, just missing the first two practice sessions, but arriving just in time for the guys to be back from the paddock.
Evie and I had gotten our first sponsor, a company making costumes for dancers and we sat the whole plane ride designing our next costumes that would be from the company. They made gorgeous costumes for all kinds of categories and we had agreed to let them make all of our costumes for the bigger competitions.
The day of Evie's birthday, we gathered outside of her and Pierre's hotel room with our gifts and flowers. Max had found a cake at a local grocery shop and had written on it with chocolate buttons. We knocked on the door and Pierre let us in to sing for her. She woke up, looking at the cake and she tried to wake up. We lit the two candles of a two and a zero and let her blow them out.
"Congratulations on beating teen pregnancy!" I sang, grabbing her head to kiss the side of her face. She laughed and Max slapped the back of my head, but Sophie laughed as she began cheering even more about her daughter managing to use protection.
We didn't have that much time to celebrate her that morning, because we all had to get ready and get to the paddock. It's getting harder to figure out birthday gifts that aren't experiences, so for something to wrap I just gave her a bunch of jewelry and some nice clothes I thought would fit her, and the experience part she'd have to wait for.
At the paddock she got congratulations all over. By Toto, Will Buxton, Kym Illman, Rosanna and like anyone who knows who she is and was informed of it being her birthday. It was a nice day and she didn't seem to mind spending it at the paddock. We had a nice time and didn't worry too much about the results because that can ruin a mood pretty quickly.
In the evening we went to have dinner, and then we went to the most Canadian thing ever. The Montreal Canadiens were playing Toronto Maple Leafs and apparently that's a big thing. I had never been to a hockey game before, but my dad was horribly jealous of me, since he's become a huge hockey fan since moving to Sweden. However, I had never been to a hockey game before so I was extremely shocked by how violent it got at times.
Evie and I still had a wonderful time. There were some attractive guys on the ice pushing a puck around, they fought, they were sent into a penalty box for some different reasons I can't explain to you, and sometimes the game was stopped and they said words over the speakers. People were rowdy around us, and it really got Pierre, Charles and Max going too. They would cheer or shout, which Evie and I saw as a cue to clap a little, but we didn't even know which team they cheered for. I think I wanted the blue team to win, because I've seen their logo a lot before so I guess they're a big favorite.
We didn't get to celebrate properly until Sunday after the race, considering they couldn't do too much with a race the next day. But we went to dinner before taking her out to celebrate with some of the drivers on the grid, and her mother. She had argued she also wanted to come with us, no matter what we were doing, so we took her with us and she was a lot of fun. She drank and she danced, talking to anyone around and also making sure to embarrass her daughter for the fun of it.
Now, the experience Charles and I gave her as a birthday gift was a vacation for her, Pierre, Charles and I during the summer break, right before her trial against her old best friend starts. She'll be busy and stressed a lot during that so it will be nice for her to relax before that. She gets to choose the location, but Charles and I will pay for it and organize the whole thing. Going away together like we did in Venice would be nice, because I know that this time I wouldn't have to worry about Charles and I being seen together.
Back home, Evie and I really focused on dancing. We did our duo practice for longer hours and more days. I had to double it with some solo practices, which meant I was away for full days. Lawrence also got us our own PR manager, which made it seem like we were building more of a team. But he wanted to lift the load of answering emails and calls regarding sponsors and such, so it simply wasn't our job anymore, but the PR manager, Emma, asked us about everything before saying yes or no.
We got a few more sponsors and we signed some contracts saying we would be doing commercials or ads for the brand. She also made some social media posts for us to attract more sponsors. Charles asked Joris to take some photos for us while we were practicing and then Emma would update on our Instagrams. We were asked on more podcasts that we had to decline, because we didn't have time to do them. Not when we're not getting podiums.
Charles came home for a few days after he had been in Maranello and before he had to go to France. Arthur was going with him, so I hadn't planned on going this year, because I wanted the time to practice the solo more. Evie had to go, considering it's Pierre's homerace, so I knew I'd have the weekend to myself and that Charles wouldn't be there by himself. But when I told him this, he didn't like the idea one bit.
"Mais c'est là qu'est le plaisir!" But that's where the fun is! he argued and I furrowed my brows, because what the fuck? "On a joué aux rounders et au foot, et on a dansé dans la rue là-bas! Tu es devenue ma petite amie là-bas!" We played rounders and football, and we danced in the street there! You became my girlfriend there!
"Notre anniversaire est deux jours après ta course et tu seras à la maison d'ici là," Our anniversary is two days after your run and you'll be home by then, I argued and he ran his hand over his face. He put his hands on his hips and looked down at the ground for a bit.
"Je veux que ce soit comme l'année dernière," I want it to be like last year, he sighed.
"Ce ne sera pas comme l'année dernière, tu seras occupé," It won't be like last year, you'll be busy, I shook my head. For a second he just looked at me, probably knowing I'm right, but he still didn't like it. He really wanted me there and for that, I was considering it, but if he knows he won't have that much time for me and I'll have to entertain myself when I could have been here to practice. I really want to make it far this year. I want to really dance on the highest levels and show that I can.
"Dès que je peux quitter le paddock, tu m'as," As soon as I can leave the paddock, you have me, he said and let his arms fall to his side. His face showed a look of defeat even as he kept arguing for me to come with him.
"Mais tu ne devrais pas te précipiter hors de là, tu dois être concentré, et je ne veux pas gêner quoi que ce soit," But you shouldn't rush out of there, you have to be focused, and I don't want to get in the way of anything, I said as I approached him. I took his wrists and held onto them as I met his eyes.
"Je ne serai pas si en retard! On peut dîner, on peut prendre un bain ensemble, on peut regarder des films de Tom Cruise au lit!" I won't be so late! We can have dinner, we can take a bath together, we can watch Tom Cruise movies in bed! He pulled his wrists out of my hands and put them right by my jaw to tilt my head up and keep me looking at him.
"Je ne voulais même pas regarder ce film de Tom Cruise," I didn't even want to watch that Tom Cruise movie, I chuckled and he smiled because even though I still hadn't agreed, I still hadn't said no to his suggestion.
"Mais vous avez aimé, et nous avons passé un merveilleux week-end, n'est-ce pas?" But you liked it, and we had a wonderful weekend, didn't we? he said softly, smiling as he spoke and leaned in closer with every word. I nodded slowly before he kissed me softly.
My hands went to hold onto his arms and he kept kissing me. I tried to speak, but he kept kissing me anytime I tried to make a noise. I laughed as I pushed him off so that I could finally speak. He kept a hopeful gaze at me as he waited for my answer. I sighed and let my shoulders fall as I looked at the boy in front of me that I really couldn't say no to.
"Très bien!" Alright! I agreed, throwing my hands in the air while rolling my eyes. He smiled and wrapped his arms tightly around me from the side. "Mais je choisirai le film," But I will choose the movie.
So I made sure to get the training during the week and then my bag was packed again. Charles went there a few days earlier, so Evie and I took the train down on Friday at noon after we had finished a morning practice. We arrived at around five, where Joris picked us up since everyone else was still busy. We had all pretty much gotten used to Joris always being around by now. He took pictures of anything anytime and he had become a really good friend of Charles.
He took us back to the same hotel, the same hotel as the last time, right next to the track. Joris told me that Charles wasn't back yet, and I wasn't surprised. It was only about half six when we got there and I knew before I came that Charles would be busy, even though he said he wouldn't. So Joris gave me the keycard to the room and I went in there to wait for Charles to get back.
I prepared for the evening, putting the facemasks in the bathroom, putting pajamas on, looking for Charles' pajamas so it was ready when he got back. When there was nothing left to do I got on the bed and I turned the TV on, looking through the channels, trying to see if anything interesting was on. I settled on some criminal drama and just let it play while using my phone.
It took about two hours before Charles rushed through the door. He came in looking all sorry when he saw me on the bed. He sighed and climbed on the bed to kiss me. He left one on my cheek and I didn't stop him from kissing my lips.
"Je suis tellement désolé... nous avons eu beaucoup de problèmes avec la voiture aujourd'hui pendant les essais," I'm so sorry...we had a lot of problems with the car today during testing, he said as he was shaking his head. I shook my head too, putting a smile on my face.
"C'est bon je comprends," It's okay I understand, I replied and he sighed again, still looking guilty. He got up and got out of bed to get out of his work clothes. "Il n'est pas encore si tard," It's not that late yet, I said as I watched him take his shirt off so that he could put on the t-shirt I got out for him.
"J'ai dit qu'on aurait toute la soirée..." I said we'd have all evening... he said as he changed pants too. He looked up at me and still seemed upset with himself for being late. Sure, I was a bit disappointed too because this was what I was worried would happen, but I wasn't mad at him or anything.
"Nous avons encore quelques heures," We still have a few hours, I said with a little shrug as he sat down on the bed again. He looked at me and silently nodded before leaning over to kiss my cheek again. I smiled and got out of bed, "Maintenant allons chercher cette nourriture, je meurs de faim," Now let's get that food, I'm starving.
We didn't care that we were in sweats. We just went down to the car and drove to the closest food place to get food to take back to the hotel. When we got back to our room, we got back onto the bed and we looked for a movie to watch. He had told me that it was my time to choose so I looked through some movies and chose A Time to Kill which is a courtroom drama I really like.
I started the movie and we started eating. When we had finished the food I put my head on his chest and he had his arm around me as we continued watching the movies. He slowly rubbed my back up and down for a while, but then his breathing got heavier and he stopped moving. He didn't comment on anything or give any reaction, so I looked up at him and saw that he had fallen asleep.
It's not like I can get mad at him. He's been up all day and he had a long, apparently rough day at the paddock. I know it's tiring and I know it's time consuming. But I can't say I'm not at least a little disappointed, as I thought we'd have more time to do the facemasks and at least take a quick bath before bed. It was disappointing, but not surprising, and I couldn't really get upset about it.
I got my phone out and scrolled through it as I finished watching the movie. Evie texted me, asking me if Charles and I would come with her and Pierre on a night walk. I told her that Charles had fallen asleep and I didn't want to wake him since he'd be tired for qualifying, so she said she'd bring Max, which didn't really make it that much better, but at least I wouldn't be third-wheeling.
We went on a walk around the area. Pierre picked on me, Max picked on Pierre for picking at me and I picked on them both while Evie sighed and rolled her eyes at the two men in her life acting like children. The crickets were louder than we were and the moon was shining down on us. Evie linked her arm with mine and we went ahead of the two boys for the rest of the walk.
Together we reminisced about the water fight we had last year and we talked about the game of football we played. Anthoine was with us then and it made a pit appear in my stomach as I remembered that he's no longer here. We didn't even know back then that it would be one of our last memories with him. It's such a crazy thing. I've seen some deaths by now, and I still can't seem to fathom that people are here one day and the next they're not.
We didn't get back too late, since we had to be up early the next morning. I snuck back into the room to not wake Charles off, but when I went into the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth, I heard movement and then Charles mumbling. I walked over to the doorway and looked over to the bed, he kept his head up and looked around the room.
"Tu étais dehors?" You were out? he asked.
"Ouais, j'ai fait un tour avec Evie, Max et Pierre," Yeah, I went on a walk with Evie, Max and Pierre, I replied. He sat up a bit and kept watching me.
"Tu ne m'as pas réveillé," You didn't wake me up, he stated and I shook my head.
"Non, je pensais que tu aurais besoin de dormir," No, I thought you'd need the sleep, I shrugged and he sighed a little, rubbing his eyes with his fingers.
"Je suis désolé, je voulais passer du temps ensemble," I'm sorry, I wanted to spend time together, he mumbled as he got out of the bed. My shoulders fell as I watched him walk around the bed and over to me by the door to the bathroom. He stopped in front of me because I was blocking the way.
"C'est bon, je sais que tu es fatigué," It's okay, I know you're tired, I replied as I stepped into the bathroom and walked back over to the sink where I had put my cleanser out and ready. He slowly followed me into the room.
His eyes landed on the two packets of face masks I had put on the counter. He reached for them and carefully picked them up to look at them before slamming them back on the counter, looking up at the ceiling with a heavy sigh. I turned to him and slid the face masks away as his head turned down to look at me. I was just about to open my mouth to speak when he got before me.
"Ce n'est pas bon, je t'ai amené ici pour passer du temps avec toi et je continue à le gaspiller," It's not okay, I took you here to spend time with you and I keep wasting it, he whined.
"D'accord, ce n'est pas bien," Okay, it's not okay, I sighed. If that's what he wants to hear then sure. It absolutely sucks that I can't practice like I originally planned to do, but I do understand, and I knew even before I went that he would be busy, even though he said he wouldn't be. "Mais Charles, je savais que ce serait comme ça et je suis quand même venu," But Charles I knew it would be like this and I came anyway.
"Demain nous pouvons aller dîner, juste toi et moi," Tomorrow we can go to dinner, just you and me, he said as he pulled me closer by my waist. I sighed and rubbed my brow, because I know that he can't promise something like that. "Je promets," I promise.
"Tu ne peux pas promettre ça," You can't promise that, I shook my head and he immediately started nodding.
"Oui je peux," Yes I can, he insisted.
"Non, ne le promets pas, car ce sera encore plus décevant si tu ne peux pas tenir cette promesse," No, don't promise it, because it will be even more disappointing if you can't keep that promise, I told him and he sighed heavily.
"Allez, fais-moi confiance," Come on, trust me, he said and I sighed and just reached for my toothbrush. I was too tired to discuss it, so I just nodded silently to confirm our dinner plans.
We got ready together, Charles being extra touchy and giggly as if he wanted to make up for the evening we missed. When we went to bed together, he held me as tight as a child holds his teddy bear at night.
Qualifying day, another paddock day. At least it wasn't as hot as it had been the previous year. I wore a dirty blue pair of trousers with a higher waist, wider legs and thin lines to create a checkered pattern. I matched it with a white tank top with a lower neckline, and then white sneakers. It made me look tanner than I was, because I hadn't had as much time in the sun as I had by this time the previous year. I paired it with a pair of sunglasses before we went to the paddock.
Isa was there, and as soon as she saw me, she grabbed my arm and she pulled me with her between the hospitalities. She looked around and then spoke to me in a low, quiet voice.
"You cannot tell anyone what I am about to tell you," She said, keeping a serious eye on me. I nodded, desperate to know what she wanted to tell me. We both leaned in closer to each other and she smiled as she continued, "Carlos might sign with Ferrari next season to replace Sebastian, they're negotiating."
"Oh my god!" I whisper yelled, "That's great! The box wouldn't feel so lonely!"
"Imagine all the boring events we'd have to go to, but at least together," she said with a shrug and a smirk. I smiled and looked over her shoulder as Charles looked between the hospitalities. Isa had pulled me right from him without saying anything, so he looked confused.
"What are you doing?" He asked us both as he saw us hiding. Isa and I linked arms and we walked out from the space, not answering Charles as we walked past him and continued through the paddock, heading towards one of the cafés where we had been sitting last year. "Please, no more water fights!" Charles shouted after us and we just laughed out loud, even though we had no plans on actually starting another water fight.
Isa and I met up with Evie and Elena, who were both there being important for their boyfriends' home race. They already had their headsets, so we went to grab a pair for ourselves, and we all sat down together for the first practice session, but for qualifying, Elena and Evie had to be in the boxes for their boyfriends so Isa and I stayed at the balcony as they left.
She told me about her job, she asked me about dancing and it made me so happy when she seemed genuinely interested. She was impressed by the videos I showed her of my solo and also of Evie and I. She had questions, she had compliments and when she shook her head and looked out on the track as she said:
"I wish I could do that."
I believed her, and it really felt good. Isa always feels so genuine, kind and generous. I guess that's why she has always been so liked by everyone on the paddock. It feels like you have a friend in her no matter what.
Charles grabbed pole position and I went over to congratulate him as he got out of the car. He did his interview, took photos, got a small tyre and signed it. Nothing had been wrong with the car and it seemed like he knew what he was doing in the car. I started to think that maybe we'd make it to that dinner he booked us in for earlier that morning. We had a reservation at seven, it was five when Isa and I got tired of watching post-race interviews and decided to go back to the hotel.
"I'll be there soon, you can start getting ready," Charles said when I told him I was leaving.
So I got ready. I showered, did my makeup and I got dressed in a floral, a little longer dress. When I was done, it was 6:30 and I was losing hope again, because Charles wasn't back yet and the drive to the hotel was about fifteen minutes. He'd have to change and all of that. But I sat on the bed and I waited for him to call me or at least text me to tell me if he was going to be late or if he was on his way.
But I heard nothing for over an hour, until there was a knock on the door. I walked over to it and tiredly opened it. Lando was standing there with Carlos not far behind him. Isa was next to him and she smiled widely.
"Look at you all dressed up," she said as she looked me up and down.
"You're going somewhere?" Carlos asked while Lando tried to look around me into the room. I looked at the time one last time and shrugged before shaking my head. We definitely didn't have the table anymore and it was getting late.
"Not anymore," I replied.
"Where's Charles?" Lando asked.
"He's still at the paddock."
"Well... we're going there to play golf," Lando said and I noticed the golf bags that were next to Carlos and Isa. "You know... like we played football last year, but we're playing golf, you wanna come? Charles will meet us there apparently."
I thought about it for a bit. I didn't really feel like going out with this big group of people. But what else would I do? Wait around by myself for Charles to come back? It's not like we'll have time to do anything by the time he gets back to the hotel room anyway. We might as well join them there, or at least I can while he works. Just because he can't have fun, it shouldn't mean that I can't.
So I nodded and went back into the room to grab my phone and the keycard, then I went with the three of them to get the rest. We got Max, Evie, Pierre, Alex, Esteban, Elena and some other people that had joined us the previous two years. Not everyone had golf clubs there, of course, but Lando and Carlos had enough for all of us, even though they made sure to tell us that if anything happened to them then we'd have to pay with our lives.
All of us got down to the paddock and we waited for everyone to gather there. I was talking to Daniel, who was complaining about still not being invited to the new apartment, when Charles walked into the lobby. He saw the large group of people and quickly found me amongst the others, so he rushed over.
"Nous allons jouer au golf sur la piste," We are going to play golf at the track, I told him as he reached us. He looked at Daniel, who quickly realized he didn't want to be with us for this conversation even though he doesn't understand it.
"Je sais que je suis en retard mais... on peut encore aller dîner," I know I'm late but... we can still go to dinner, he kept his voice down and he placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. I smiled up at him to show him that I really wasn't angry. I wasn't angry, I was disappointed, but I don't need anyone around us to know anything about this.
"Mais rappelez-vous à quel point nous nous sommes amusés l'année dernière, nous ne pouvons pas le manquer," But remember how much fun we had last year, we can't miss it, I replied with a chuckle. Charles sighed and looked around at the others waiting to get to the track. I guess that he left when they reached the curfew and it's now a lot quieter there.
"Avez-vous déjà dîné?" Have you already had dinner? he asked and I shook my head.
"Non, nous pouvons manger à notre retour," No, we can eat when we come back.
Charles sighed again before he looked down at the floor, "J'ai besoin de changer... Je peux te rencontrer là-bas," I need to change, I can meet you at the track, he said and I nodded, letting my smile get wider. He kissed me quickly before he moved over to the elevators.
The rest of us went over to the big fence, and once again they wanted to climb it. We could even see some teams still working in the garages, but they wanted to climb the fence. So we did and we started walking, following Lando and Carlos who were the two in charge of finding the best place to play golf. We would have to go and pick up the golf balls at the end of the night, so we didn't want to lose them or have to go on a quest to find them.
When they did stop, they handed clubs out for us. Carlos is a lot taller than most of us girls, so we went to borrow from Lando, who is just a little shorter. Carlos and Lando hit the first few and then we spread out to hit some more. Not everyone was hitting balls, not everyone was interested in golf. So a few people just stood around talking or pretending to hit the balls. I tried to hit a few, but even though I've had some classes, I'm not that good at it, which Isa saw pretty quickly and she gave me some tips and taught me some.
It took about thirty minutes before I realized that Charles still hadn't gotten there even though he was just going to change. I looked at my phone and he hadn't sent anything. I wasn't sure if he had changed his mind and didn't want to come or if something had come up, but I was interrupted by Lewis asking me to show me my swing. I put the phone away and I showed him and he pretended it was good even though it really wasn't.
Lewis and I paused and watched Lando and Carlos take it way too seriously, Evie looking at them in disgust because she probably knew she couldn't beat them, Max pretending to use the gold club as a weapon, Daniel laughing loudly at Max and Alex who held his phone camera aimed at Lando and Carlos. I guess Alex had called Lily to show the professional if they're any good or not.
"There's Charles, he took his sweet time," Lewis pointed further away, and there he was. Now dressed in usual clothes and with a backpack thrown over his shoulder. I nodded silently and watched as he got closer to us. I handed my club to Lewis and I walked towards Charles to meet him.
"Qu'est-ce qui t'a pris autant de temps?" What took you so long? I asked as he came up to me. I kissed him quickly before we walked over to the others, where Charles put his backpack on the ground. He opened it up and started to unpack it.
"Nous devons manger quelque chose," We have to eat something, he said as he pulled out a large blanket along with some fruits, already made sandwiches, millions of juice boxes and then some cheap cheese board with crackers. He had bought for everyone to snack and he put it all on a blanket.
"Charles," Lewis said as he approached, "let's see if you can swing better than your girlfriend," he said as he handed him the golf club that I had just used. Charles chuckled before looking at me, letting his competitiveness come to light, and he grabbed the club even though he could find a better one in Carlos' bag.
I watched as Charles went and grabbed a golf ball. He put it on the ground and he got into position. He prepared himself and then he hit the ball in a much better manner than I had. Lewis turned to me and laughed as Charles looked proud of himself for being better than me. He walked back and when he was close enough I snatched the golf club from him.
"I'll just have to get better," I said before lifting my nose into the air, "Isa, I need you to help me beat Charles!" I called over to Isa who was over by Carlos.
She helped me with my form, my swing and gave me more tips on how to do it. I stood there practicing with her for quite some time. Even Evie wanted to beat Charles when she heard there was a competition, and she started practicing too. We stood side by side and practiced while Isa told us what to do better. It felt just like being in a dance studio.
Evie was even more determined than me. She kept hitting and hitting and swinging and swinging, while I took some breaks to talk to Isa or other people around. But I was still practicing, and I was just getting ready to swing another time as Charles showed up beside me. I looked up at him and he turned to look at Evie, clearing his throat to get her attention.
"What?" She asked, and Charles gave her a look to tell her to give us some space, but she just glared for a moment before she scoffed. "Just pretend I'm not here, or speak in French, or Italian, or... you know... some of your other languages," she said.
"Evie... please?" Charles asked. She sighed and then walked away while muttering something about being on a roll.
I stood up straight and looked up at Charles who looked back at me. He put his hands in his pockets while I rested mine on top of each other on the golf club. He sighed and looked scared to meet my eyes. I could tell he was ashamed, and I could guess it was about being late, and I just felt so tired of the conversation, because I understood and had already forgiven him without him needing to apologize.
"Je t'avais promis que je ne serais pas en retard..." I promised you I wouldn't be late... he started, and I stayed quiet to let him say what he wanted to, but I nodded. "Je suis vraiment désolé d'être en retard... Je n'aurais pas dû t'amener ici, je savais que je serais occupé," I'm really sorry for being late... I shouldn't have brought you here, I knew I would be busy. He stopped again and he looked at everyone around us. "C'était un week-end si spécial l'année dernière, je voulais juste que ce soit pareil," It was such a special weekend last year, I just wanted it to be the same.
He looked at me and waited for me to reply, and I took my time as I wanted to choose the words wisely, because I needed to make sure he understood that I was seriously not upset with him.
"Charles, écoutez-moi," listen to me, I said as I maintained the eye contact, "Je ne suis pas en colère contre toi," I'm not mad at you.
"Je sais, mais-" I know, but-
"Tu fais ça depuis que j'ai appris à parler," you have been doing this since I learned how to speak, I cut him off before he could start about the same thing again. "Je sais que c'est ton rêve, ça l'a toujours été... alors ça fait un peu mal de savoir que tu penses que je serais en colère contre toi pour le vivre," I know it's your dream, it always has been... so it kinda hurts to know that you think I'd be mad at you for living it.
Charles looked down at the ground, kicking some tiny rocks around with his shoes. I carefully put the golf club down on the ground and I stepped forward so that I could grab onto his upper arms. I let them run up and down his skin a couple times before I looked up at him again.
"Je suis déçu de ne pas avoir autant de temps avec toi, mais je comprends et je ne suis pas en colère contre toi," I'm disappointed that I don't have so much time with you, but I understand and I'm not mad at you, I continued, softening my voice. "J'aimerais juste que ça ne m'empêche pas de faire ce que j'aime," I just wish it didn't stop me from doing what I love.
He pulled his arms out of my grip and he used them to wrap his arms around me, so I wrapped my arms around his torso while his arms went over my shoulders. He sighed and I felt it in my hair.
"Je sais... c'était égoïste et je sais que," I know... it was selfish and I know that, he whispered into my ear. He still felt upset, so I lifted my head and I chuckled lightly as he looked down to meet my eyes.
"Eh bien... c'est plutôt agréable d'être autant désiré..." Well... it's kind of nice to be wanted that much... I shrugged as I let a smile crawl up my face. He let his eyes flicker between mine before he let a smile go up his face as well.
"Pouvons-nous aller manger maintenant? Ce n'est pas chic, mais c'est quelque chose," Can we go eat now? It's not fancy, but it's something, he said and looked over to the blanket where Max and Pierre had started snacking on the cheese and the grapes while talking to Daniel.
"Ils ont l'air d'aimer ça donc ça ne peut pas être si mal," They seem to like it so it can't be that bad, I shrugged as we made our way over to the blanket.
Charles handed me one of his hoodies, because it was getting kind of chilly. We sat down and we had the sandwiches together, and soon enough more people joined us so that we could share the snacks that Charles had brought with him. Except for Evie... who was still trying to better her golf skills so that she could beat Charles.
After a while, Evie yelled at Charles, telling him to look over at the swing. Everyone paid attention and they clapped and cheered when Evie hit the ball. But Charles wouldn't have it. He was quick on his feet to prove that he was still better than her, so Lewis became the judge and they kept taking turns to hit the golf ball and see who was the better one.
Of course they couldn't decide on a winner, so we had to step between them when it got late and we had to get all the golf balls we'd hit onto the track. All of us went and we looked. I was tired of walking so Charles carried me on his back and made sure to get some lunges in. Evie walked alongside us and they kept arguing about that damn swing.
But you know... I kind of liked that. It felt just like normal, and I kind of liked normal. I don't think I ever wanted anything to change...
//
Kind of another filler chapter, I'm sorry, it just happens bc I'm trying to show time just passing a little yk.