Friday AM
Having stayed on in Miami to schmooz sponsors and media partners, you were exhausted by the time you touched down in Barcelona on the following Friday morning. There had been meeting after meeting, followed by dinners and drinks with various business partners. Unfortunately, the red eye was the only flight that worked with the timings you needed and you were feeling it by the time you reached your hotel, the W Hotel right on the marina. Thankfully check-in was a breeze, your Spanish language skills coming in handy.
As you made your way into your room for the week, you surmised that it was nice, not as fancy as the one you had left behind in Miami but it had everything you would need. The panoramic window offered a nice sea view and the marble tub looked like a promising option for later. Once you'd freshened up, you had an hour to kill before you were needed at the track so instead of napping you decided to make the most of the nice weather and take a walk in the sun. Considering you had spent the last week in an incredibly sunny location you felt as if you hadn't had time to make the most of it. You'd caught a whisper of a tan during an outdoor photocall but aside from that, there was no Miami glow to be seen.
Strolling through the lobby you clocked a bunch of kids wearing Lewis Hamilton caps, clearly hoping to catch a glimpse of their idol. It was common knowledge that as the team was sponsored by a hotel chain, you all stayed in hotels under their umbrella, leaving it easy to guess where the drivers would be staying. You hoped that Lewis' room was a little plusher than yours but having spent some time with him, you would not be surprised if he was staying in the same basic room as you were. As part of your responsibility within the team was public perception, you knew that Lewis greeting fans in a hotel lobby could be a double-edged sword. On one hand, Lewis would look kind but on the other, it could encourage more to come and then you'd soon have a situation getting out of hand. Torn on what to do you decided to drop a text to the press team.
FYI, there are some kids down in the lobby waiting for Lewis. My call would be for him to pop by and say hello but no PR, and no social media on our end. What do you think?
You paused as you could see Rosie, the Press Officer, typing.
Absolutely agree Y/N. We don't want to encourage this but equally, Lewis loves to meet his fans. I'll send him down shortly.
Relieved that your call was in line with the current strategy you replied punchily.
Great, thanks.
You had a reputation for curt, straight-to-the-point emails and communication, a reputation that you were keen to uphold in your new role. You were not one to suffer fools gladly and you took a stern but fair approach to managing your team. You could already tell that you were inheriting a well-oiled machine and were fascinated by the way that Toto was so hands-on as a shareholder.
Exiting the hotel, you felt grateful for the opportunity, it wasn't every day that someone travelled from Miami to Barcelona, stayed in a nice paid-for hotel and was endlessly wined and dined. Having been through a rough break-up only a few months ago, a change of scenery was exactly what you needed to get over your heartbreak. You had thought you were going to marry your ex-fiancé but when you found out he had been sending racy DMs to other girls you knew in your heart of hearts that it wasn't to be. Even thinking about it made you well up with tears and you took a moment to take a deep breath and compose yourself before stepping out onto the boardwalk.
Wandering in the sun, you soon lost track of time and found yourself dashing back to the hotel to grab your laptop and jump in the car to the track. It was a little less grand than the one in Miami and you found yourself missing Carlos and his slick, professional demeanour.
It was a much longer drive to this track than it had been in Miami, with the track being out of town. Rolling up the road you clocked fields upon fields of tents, clearly the keen fans coming to watch practice. You had been warned by Pamela and Holly that sometimes the team camped, albeit in motorhomes, but less glamorous than a hotel nonetheless. You'd never stayed in one of these before so were quite fascinated but pleased that it would not be for another five more races. You could at least get to know the team before spending time in such close quarters.
Friday PM
You'd spent the morning briefing your team on everything they needed to cover over the coming weekend, apologetic that you were briefing so close to the wire. As promised to Toto you had pencilled a slot for his next segment on Drive to Survive and unfortunately, tomorrow morning was the only day that was going to work for both parties in the next week. Having tasked your team last week with some competitor intel you'd discovered that the Netflix crew had spent the last few weeks with various other team principals so you felt obliged to offer up Toto for at least the morning. You only hoped that he had forgotten his request for you to be on camera alongside him. You were sure he was joking but you still could not quite figure him out.
It was close to four o'clock in the afternoon by the time you sat down for some lunch, having attended both driver's media activities and avidly watched Free Practice One. You had an hour-long gap to try and do some work and eat before they were ready to go for a second round. Still not knowing everyone you settled yourself in the corner of the hospitality area, hiding behind your laptop.
"Is this seat taken?" a voice appeared out of nowhere, snapping you out of your email trance. You looked up to see a young woman, smiling expectantly, holding a tray full of food.
"No not at all, let me move my things." you scrambled to move your tote bag from the chair opposite you, having spread yourself out and made yourself quite at home. You felt a little guilty as you saw that the room had filled up around you, lots of people having had the same free time slot.
"Thank you so much," the woman sat down, "I'm Bella, I'm one of the Electronics Engineers, you're Y/N right?"
"Lovely to meet you, Bella, that is indeed me. Toto made it hard for me to hide last week!" you smiled at her. "Being an Electronics Engineer sounds incredibly complex, HR took me through all of the roles within the team and I was blown away."
You chatted over lunch about Bella's role and the technical struggles the team had faced. Although you had worked in a race team before, Formula One's cutting-edge technology meant that there were many more facets and intricacies you were yet to understand. You learnt that it was a rare profession for a woman to be in, something that seemed to be a running theme within the team.
Soon enough Free Practice Two was around the corner and you bid Bella farewell as she made her way back to the garage. You decided to base yourself on the first floor in the meeting area for this session as you needed to keep an eye on the big screen showing the race whilst working.
The session was relatively uneventful, with the cars running as expected which gave you time to make all the calls you needed to make, going over tomorrow's plan with the Netflix producers. Now all that was left was Toto's sign-off. As he had an engineer's briefing and media commitments it meant you had to wait around until seven o'clock for your meeting with him. You really hoped he would sign it off with no fuss.
You returned to your office as you could then easily gauge when Toto was back in his and sure enough at 18:55 you heard his voice.
"Can you please have my dinner brought up, I have a few meetings now and I haven't eaten all day," he said, clearly addressing Lara.
You couldn't quite hear the following conversation as his office door had closed but could pick out the words "Schnitzel", "Sky" and then "Y/N."
Knowing that that was your cue you struggled to look surprised as Lara poked her head around your door and said "Y/N, Toto is ready for you."
"Great, thank you, Lara, I will be two seconds," you said, gathering your laptop and notebook.
"I'm a very busy man Y/N, two seconds is a lot of time in this business." called out a voice from next door.
Making the short walk next door you found Toto to be smiling, clearly pleased at his own quip.
"We could always just knock this wall down," you said, gesturing at the flimsy partition between your two offices, "It would shave off those precious seconds."
Toto laughed, "Maybe. Although you don't want to see me at my worst."
"I'm sure it's nothing I couldn't handle," you smiled, taking a seat opposite him.
"I hope so. So you want to talk about Netflix?" he said, getting straight to the point.
"Yes, so as discussed they want to film a personal segment with you, having had high engagement last season. I've done my due diligence and found out that they have already filmed extensively with Christian Horner, and Zak Brown and are even going to spend next weekend at Mattia Binotto's house. In my opinion, it would be silly to turn this down as it looks great for us. I appreciate that tomorrow morning is a little painful but I think we can make it work." you pitched.
Toto sat back in his chair, studying you intensely, "Well this is part and parcel of the role, I'm happy to do it. Have they sent a schedule and plan of action? What do you want me to do?"
Unnerved by how easily he was agreeing to this, you replied, "Yes, so they'd like you from 8:00-9:00, ideally in the gym or doing something active. They have secured permits to shoot in the hotel gym or outside on the hotel grounds. Unfortunately not along the boardwalk which is what I was pushing for as it would seem the natural location for outdoor activity." You paused, adding, "They liked the scenes with the weights last season and would ideally like to continue along those lines. They'd like to discuss your thoughts on the first part of the season and the claw back to glory."
"I still think it is strange, no? I understand filming the drivers' workout routine but not mine. I bet they didn't do this with the others." he looked at you expectantly.
Trying to be tactful you replied "Well they want to give the viewers what they want. And apparently, that's you working out."
Toto raised an eyebrow, "People are crazy."
Not sure how to respond, you joked, "Well if you think your fans are crazy, just know women are holding up signs asking Guenther to marry them."
"But he's a rockstar, no?" he smirked.
"Very funny," you smiled back, "Back to the point, are you happy to go to the gym and discuss tomorrow morning?"
Toto leant towards you, "You leave me no choice. I'll give the people what they want. All ten kilos."
"Great. But we might need to up it to fifteen." You deadpanned.
"Deal," he smiled.
You had just begun to go over the finer details of the day when Lara came bustling in with a tray of food.
"I'm so sorry to interrupt but I know Toto hasn't eaten yet. Can I get you anything Y/N?" she asked, setting the tray down on the desk in front of her boss.
"That's fine thanks, Lara, I've already eaten and we're almost wrapped," you replied.
"Sure, I will leave you two to it then," she said, exiting the room.
"Sorry for this, do you mind if I eat? I'm starving." Toto asked.
Surprised he was asking your permission you raised your eyebrows, "Of course not, I don't want to take too much more of your time. Are you all clear on the plan for tomorrow? I will of course be there to supervise them."
"Crystal." he smiled, adding, "When you say supervise, are you going to spot me?"
"I don't think Netflix is so interested in little old me." you quipped.
"Don't sell yourself short, they love to find women within the teams and you know we have the highest proportion in the paddock," he said as he tucked into his dinner.
"Maybe next time." you answered tactfully, "I know, I've met a few of them now, it's nice we have this balance, I've noticed some of the other teams are boys' clubs."
"Indeed, we try to keep everything equal here." Toto paused, adding, "Thank you for organising this shoot, I appreciate it is quite soon to be engaging with Netflix but we've been doing it for a few seasons now so hopefully it is not too painful."
Sensing that was the signal for you to make a move, you shifted your weight in your chair. "Not at all, I'm excited to be working on this so quickly. I am sorry it's not at the most sociable hour though." You paused, "And on that note, I will need to go and confirm that you are happy with the direction so I will leave you alone to your dinner."
"Thank you Y/N, I really appreciate it. See you bright and early tomorrow." Toto nodded as you stood up and made your way out.
"Likewise, thank you, Toto. See you tomorrow." You bid him farewell, making your way back to your office next door to iron out the details with Netflix.
Saturday AM
You woke up early, jetlagged once again. Glancing at your alarm clock you groaned as you saw the 05:35 glowing in the dark. Deciding to make the most of your time you got ready for the day and decided to go for an early breakfast downstairs in the hotel and a quick walk down the boardwalk to stretch your legs.
It wasn't long before it was seven o'clock, your call time for filming the segment. As you made your way into the gym you scanned the area for potential Netflix crew. Spotting a small group in the corner you deduced it had to be them.
"Hi guys, I'm guessing you are here for the shoot? I'm Y/N, Director of Communications at Mercedes" you approached them.
"Hi Y/N, I'm Pete, we spoke on the phone yesterday. Lovely to meet you. We're just unpacking before the big man gets here."
"Likewise. Great, I will leave you to unpack and I'll settle down in the corner there and do some emails." you laughed internally at his nickname for Toto, it was spot on.
"No problem, and you're happy to start the discussion, off camera of course?" Pete took you a little by surprise.
"Me? I wasn't aware of that but I can do," you replied, a little taken aback by this last-minute detail.
"Apologies, we always work that way as it feels more natural. I can go over the script if you'd like?" Pete looked a little bashful that he'd sprung this on you.
"That would be great, and in future, I'd like to be informed beforehand," you said, making your way towards the table.
You and Pete had barely made a start going through the questions when Toto came strolling in, in full gym kit, raring to go. "Good morning everyone, how are you all?"
"Very well thank you, how are you this morning Toto?" you replied.
"Alive." he smirked, "And eager to get going."
"Glad to hear you're so enthusiastic," you smiled, "I'm just going over my lines with Pete so we should be ready to get going in the next five minutes."
"Your lines?" Toto raised an eyebrow, "Does that mean you're going to be my spotter after all?"
This elicited a laugh from the crew, making you blush. Composing yourself you retorted, "Pete would like me to feed you questions off-camera. So no, unfortunately, no spotting today."
"You spot for Toto?" Pete chimed in.
"Yes, Y/N is great, we are becoming best gym buddies." Toto said, a cheeky grin on his face, adding, "Maybe she can star with me next time?"
Pete's eyes widened, "Y/N, do you think you'd be able to do that today? The scene will be so much stronger with someone for Toto to bounce off of. Would you be able to pop on a gym kit while we test lighting? We have fifteen minutes leeway."
"That's a great idea, Pete," said Toto, still grinning.
Shooting daggers at Toto for bringing this up, you were left with no choice, "Sure, let me go and grab my gym stuff, I'll be back in five."
"Amazing, thank you Y/N!" Pete exclaimed, "If we'd known this was an option we would have suggested this yesterday."
"No worries, see you shortly," you said, swiftly exiting the gym, aware that you were about to make your TV debut.
What followed was a dash back to your hotel room and a scramble to find a more appropriate gym kit than your pink set. Settling on the team Tommy Hilfiger ringer tee and black leggings you looked yourself up and down in the mirror while putting your hair in a high pony, thankful you'd already done your make-up for the day.
You ran back down to the gym to find Toto sitting on the weights bench surrounded by the crew.
"You took your time," he said, clocking your outfit. "Ten out of ten on the shirt choice."
"I saw a marketing opportunity," you laughed making your way behind the weights bench.
"Of course. I should have done the same," said Toto.
"It's okay, we kind of match," you gestured at his white tee, black shorts and matching Puma sneakers.
"Indeed." he nodded approvingly.
"So, shall we get started?" Pete clapped his hands together, signalling you to stop chatting.
"It's now or never," Toto muttered under his breath, sneaking a sideglance at you.
"It will be fine, it's nothing new," you said reassuringly.
"True, but that doesn't mean it gets any easier," he said sighing as leant back on the weights bench. You could see the change in his face as he turned on the charm for the camera crew.
Filming went smoothly, Toto happily lifted weights while you grilled him on his thoughts on the season so far and how he planned to get the team back on top form. There was discussion of the cost cap regulations and how the team would be revisiting fundamental design decisions.
"Right, now that's a wrap. Thank you Y/N, and thank you, Toto, that was brilliant. I'm glad we changed the setup, it worked much better." Pete signalled the end of the shoot.
Glancing at the clock you saw you'd actually wrapped a little early, it was only 8:40. "Thank you, Pete, we'll be in touch for sign-off. Lovely to meet you all."
"Thank you, everyone, that was very quick and painless." Toto came out of nowhere, standing behind you and placing his hand on your shoulder, "Y/N, as we have wrapped early do you have ten minutes to discuss something?"
A little taken aback by the shoulder touching you turned around towards him, "Sure. Do you want to walk and talk?"
"Sounds good. Thank you again, see you soon." Toto turned to be by your side and fell in step with you as you exited the gym. "Do you want to walk down the boardwalk, and get some sun?"
"Works for me." you smiled, "So, what would you like to discuss?" The sun was already beating down as you made your way out of the hotel, it was going to be a gorgeous day. You turned left, walking towards the marina as you knew it was a short loop.
"Well, first of all, thank you for doing that. I appreciate it. The Netflix producers often do that and rope people in at the last minute when they cannot say no." he looked a little guilty.
"It's fine honestly, I think it would have been extremely awkward for you to have filmed that alone. Apologies I didn't flag it with them earlier, I will bring it up with them that it is not acceptable to make last-minute decisions like that going forward." You hoped your response was the correct one, slightly annoyed with the way in which Netflix had handled the situation.
Seemingly pleased with your answer, Toto paused to think, "You can try but I think that is a pie-in-the-sky dream I am afraid. It is the way they operate. I don't love it but I can't complain as the show has brought in a lot of new fans."
"Well I will try." you turned towards Toto, "They want Lewis next and I don't want them to take advantage."
"Thank you." Toto replied, his face slipping into a grin, serious talk over, "So, that was your television debut?"
"Indeed. Not what I envisioned it would be but interesting nonetheless." you grinned back, adding cheekily, "I'm glad you lifted more than ten kilos this time. Red Bull would have had a field day."
Toto laughed, "You're never going to let me live that down."
Having wandered in a short loop you had made it back to your hotel in perfect timing. "Nope. Obviously, if you ever need another spotter I'm always happy to help. I need to keep up the gym routine."
His eyes sweeping over your lithe body, Toto replied "As if. But if you are around I would like that. You know we have great gym facilities at Brackley too."
"Good to know, then I will definitely make the most of those. I still haven't been to Brackley but should be there on Monday so I will check it out," you said, crossing the lobby, trying to ignore the fact that he had clearly complimented your figure after having seen you half naked this time last week.
"Oh yes, you'll have to get the full tour. I will ask Lara to show you around as it's quite a maze." Toto offered.
"I'd love that, thank you Toto." you reached the lift back to your rooms. Leaning forward to push the button you added, "I can't wait to see it."
"Glad to hear it, and the good news is, your office is right next door to mine so we can work very efficiently." the lift doors opened, revealing a packed lift.
You both squeezed in, conscious that you were once again a little too close for comfort with your formidable boss. Not exactly inconspicuous, you clocked a few of the people in the lift doing a double take of Toto.
Smirking, you turned to him, "Great, you'll be fed up with me in no time."
"Never. What floor do you need?" Toto reached his arm around you to press his floor button.
"Six please," you said, ducking out of the way.
Sensing eyes on him, Toto lowered his voice, "Thank you again Y/N. You didn't have to do what you did this morning."
"Honestly it was no problem at all, it was quite fun for a Saturday morning." the lift dinged, signalling you had reached your floor, "I'll see you at the track?"
"Glad you thought so," Toto muttered, "Yes, I will see you later."
Saturday PM
You had spent the rest of the morning and afternoon overseeing media engagements and meeting a few of the Spain-based sponsors. Grateful again for your Spanish language skills it had all gone without a hiccup and you were starting to feel more confident in your new role.
Unfortunately, things were not going so smoothly for the team on track. George had spun rather spectacularly and crashed out of qualifying, putting himself in P17. Lewis hadn't fared much better, barely making it into Q3, and ending up at P9.
You waited with bated breath for the team to return to the paddock for the debrief. Word was going around that Toto was livid at the results and had almost smashed a pair of headphones when George crashed.
Your phone had been buzzing for the last ten minutes. First, you'd had a cryptic message from Rosie, the Press Officer.
Y/N, it's really bad down here.
You replied.
What's happened, Rosie?
You received no response but your phone buzzed again, this time it was Tom, your Partnerships Manager.
Y/N emergency in the garage. Toto is not happy. Trying to do damage control. He almost smashed his headphones and it doesn't look great for the sponsors. Media is having a field day.
Shaking your head you replied.
Do you need me to come down?
Again no response. You waited a few minutes and tried the Communications Team group chat.
Do you need me to come down to the garage?
Rosie was typing...
No, Toto is coming to his office now. He's bringing George and some of the engineers. Maybe you can calm him down?
Surprised by the situation, you replied.
Ok. I will try and diffuse the situation.
Not looking forward to what was due to arrive any minute now, you made the executive decision to move into your office. At least you were close by and could try and calm everyone down ahead of the impending Team Debrief. It wasn't long before you heard tense footsteps stomping up the stairs. Distinctly multiple people, without the usual chatter, heading towards Toto's office.
To your surprise, voices were hushed as they settled next door. You had banked on being able to overhear any shouting through the paper-thin walls but the atmosphere seemed calm and collected. You could hear snippets of George profusely apologising and Toto's deep voice interjecting every so often but they faded in and out. Hearing footsteps and a door closing, you breathed a sigh of relief. You were in the clear. Just as you were about to text Rosie to reassure her everything was okay, there was a knock at your door.
"Y/N, Toto would like to speak with you." It was Lara.
"Sure." You gathered your notebook and laptop and made your way out and into his door. George was still sitting in the chair facing Toto's desk but the engineers had gone.
"Good evening Y/N," said Toto, calmly but with an air of tension.
"Hello Toto, hello George, how are you both? You sat down in the chair next to George, feeling very much like two naughty pupils being brought in to see the headmaster.
"Well, we've been better," Toto said, his nostrils flaring slightly.
"Okay," George said quietly.
"What can I do for you?" you asked.
"Well, firstly George has something to say to you," said Toto, in a very stern tone.
"Yes." George looked down at his feet before looking you in the eye, "I wanted to say sorry for my actions on track. I made a silly mistake which may have cost us the championship. I promise you it won't happen again, I let everybody down."
"Oh gosh, I appreciate that George. It's important to remember that this is a sport of ups and downs and everybody has their good and bad days. Mistakes make us human and I think as long as you own it in interviews people respect that." You felt mildly uncomfortable that Toto was more or less forcing George to apologise to you and felt bad for the guy. He was only young and the pressure was immense. "It might be worth you repeating that at the Team Debrief in a minute, the team will want to hear it."
"That is exactly what I suggested," said Toto, "I also would like to apologise, sometimes my temper gets the better of me and I get too involved. I'm sorry it makes me look a fool and doesn't make your job any easier."
Smiling slightly you replied, "Honestly Toto, getting angry like that shows your passion and that you care. I honestly don't think it reflects badly from a press point of view. It would be far more damaging if you sat there passively."
"I'm glad you see it that way. The board not so much." Toto returned your small smile. "George, if you'd like to go down and grab a coffee before the briefing I'd like to talk to Y/N."
"Thank you Toto and thank you Y/N. I promise it won't happen again." George said, awkwardly trying to tuck his chair under the desk and making a mess of it, clearly nervous.
"Thank you, George." Toto dismissed the young driver.
Once George had closed the door behind him, you continued "You didn't need to ask him to do that, I appreciate it but these things happen and it's part and parcel of the sport." you said.
"I know, but I don't want him to get too cocky and he should realise the impact of one small mistake. I have one thousand people working for me and one small mistake can cause a domino effect. He has to understand that. I don't blame him but it's important to own mistakes and find a solution to any issues before they take root." Toto looked into your eyes, his brown eyes clearly fired up by what had happened.
"That's true. But you didn't need to apologise, your headphone-smashing antics have become legendary and on my end are not the worst thing in the world. I might need to send a few Paddock Passes to Bose as a token but honestly, I think most people find it endearing."
Toto's eyes flashed at your last statement, "People find it endearing? Do you?"
Slightly surprised by this line of questioning you decided to reply truthfully, "Yes, yes I do."
"Interesting." Toto gave you a wry smile. "Shall we head down to the Debrief? I think George will have finished his apology tour by now."
As you both got up, you turned to face Toto, "Thank you, Toto."
His brow furrowed, "What for?"
"Including me in this, it makes my life much easier to have this ongoing dialogue." You reached out to gently pat him on the arm, "I'll do my best to smooth everything over."
Toto moved his hand to briefly rest on yours, "Thank you Y/N. I think we're going to get along extremely well."
Slightly blushing at the contact, you replied, "I hope so."
"I know so," he said, dropping his hand and making his way towards the door. "Let's do this."
Sunday AM
Last night's team briefing had been a lengthy affair with lots to dissect following Qualifying. Fortunately, George, Lewis and the Lead Engineers had led most of the discussion so you did not need to contribute a huge amount, largely just reminding the team to stick together in media appearances and to not show any frustration outwardly. You tried not to look towards Toto as you said that but it did elicit a laugh from the team and plenty of glances his way. He took it all in good humour and by the end of the evening, the mood was lifted considerably.
The team were optimistic for race day and you could feel the energy in the paddock. As you made your way up to your office you bumped into several of your team members who clearly shared this sentiment. Even more uplifting was a very happy-looking Toto making an espresso in the hospitality area.
"Good morning Y/N!" he said cheerily, "Can I get you a coffee?"
Bewildered by the fact that the CEO and Team Principal was offering to make you coffee, you politely declined his offer, "That's a lovely offer but I've already had my espresso this morning and one more will have me bouncing off the walls."
Toto laughed, "Maybe that's what we need to do?"
"I thought you wanted to get rid of porpoising?" you retorted.
"Very funny. How are you today? Did you sleep well?" He was clearly still feeling guilty about his behaviour from yesterday, making a conscious effort to chat.
"I'm very well thank you, I slept like a baby. My bed is like a cloud." It wasn't a lie, although your room was not as plush as the one you had vacated in Miami, the bed was another story. "I struggled to get up this morning."
"Ah yes, I have heard everyone has had the same problem, myself included. That's why I need this." He raised the large cup of coffee he had poured himself, notably larger than his usual espresso. "I'm glad you are doing well."
"Thank you. And how are you this morning?" you added.
"You know no one ever asks me that." Toto looked lost in thought, almost as if he wasn't aware he was speaking out loud. "I am very well thank you."
"Really?" your eyes widened, "Well more fool them. Glad to hear you're doing better today, I had better run as I have a call in three minutes."
"Thank you Y/N, see you later." Toto's eyes crinkled at you as he smiled.
Sunday PM
The morning had flown by with you fielding call after call from various media outlets, all asking for a line on George's crash and Toto's subsequent outburst yesterday. It had been an uneventful Saturday for all of the other teams so unfortunately, this was the story of the day. You only hoped that once the race got underway it would all blow over.
Three o'clock soon rolled around and you once again found yourself sitting in the first-floor communal area, one eye on the big screen showing the race and one eye on your laptop. Most of your direct team were down in the garage or the paddock so it was just you and Rosie, the Press Officer, watching intently as George steadily climbed places.
It wasn't long before he was up to P10, into the points, putting in a truly spectacular drive. Lewis had also found his way towards the front of the pack and was running at P4, three seconds behind Sainz with seventeen laps to go.
"Do you think he'll make the podium?" Rosie asked, turning away from her laptop for a moment.
"I hope so." you could barely respond as you watched George execute yet another flawless overtake, taking himself to P9. "Although George is looking like he might get near too."
"That would be mega," said Rosie, her eyes lighting up. It was no secret around the garage that the young blonde held a candle for George and vice versa, their playful banter raising more than a few eyebrows. "Is it true that Toto made him apologise to you last night?"
"Who told you that?" you turned around, surprised.
"George." she admitted, "He was really upset you know."
"I'm not surprised, it was bad." You added, "Although I'm not sure if it's wise for him to be spreading details of private meetings."
"Oh he's only told me, don't worry." said Rosie, pausing before adding guiltily, "I suppose the time is right to tell you, we've been seeing each other for the last few months."
This admission came as no surprise at all to you, "I can't say I'm shocked, one of the first things Tom told me was that you and George were thick as thieves. I'm sure I don't need to remind you but please be discreet about this, I wouldn't want you being treated any differently or for it to cause any issues."
Rosie looked down into her lap, clearly unsure of what to make of your words, "Of course Y/N, we talked about it for a long time before anything happened. We would never want to jeopardise our work."
"I don't doubt it," you replied, smiling, thinking about how they both were very meticulous and considerate in their approach to work so it only made sense for them to approach their relationship the same way, "Just be careful Rosie."
"Don't worry I will be," the young woman looked up at you, "I really like him Y/N, I think he might be the one."
"Well I certainly hope so," you said, hoping she would spare you any further details.
Fortunately, your wish came true as the exchange was cut short. Lewis had started to close in on Sainz, he was almost into the DRS zone and the two of you slipped into silence as you watched him edge closer and closer to a podium finish. It wasn't long before he was 0.342 seconds out and took the opportunity to pass the Ferrari on the long straight. You could hear the cheers from downstairs as Lewis was well on his way back to the front of the grid. With six laps remaining, it was unlikely he would catch Leclerc who was running at P2, but P3 was another excellent result for the team.
Not one to be overshadowed by his teammate, George picked his way through the pack in the last remaining laps and made his way to a respectable P8. Although not as strong as your outing in Miami, it would be another double points finish for the team, a relief after so much disappointment. Monaco was up next and you couldn't wait to see how the two drivers fared on the historic track.
Before that, however, you needed to get through another round of the post-race media circus and your first trip to Brackley, the team's UK headquarters. As you were travelling so frequently, you'd made the executive decision to rent an Airbnb for the dates when you were in the UK. You were excited to visit the factory and see where the magic happened, as the saying went, and couldn't wait to get to work in an office that didn't have wheels.
Snapping you out of your wandering mind, your phone started buzzing. You picked it up and looked at the caller ID. Lara (Toto's EA) before answering.
"Y/N, will you please come down to the garage?" To your surprise, it wasn't Lara but was in fact, Toto. He must just have borrowed her phone.
"Oh hello Toto, not a problem at all, I will be five minutes." you held the phone to your ear with your shoulder as you quickly gathered your things and bid a silent wave of goodbye to Rosie.
"Good, see you soon." Toto rang off before you had a chance to reply. This man was efficient if nothing else, incredibly Austrian.
You made your way into the garage, finding it surprisingly empty considering the race had ended only a quarter of an hour ago.
"Ah Y/N, thank you for coming down." Toto was perched near a screen, chatting away to another one of the race engineers, Peter, or Bono, as he was affectionately known.
"Hi Toto, Hi Bono. How are you both? Congratulations on another solid performance." you smiled as you approached the two men, looking eerily alike in their tight, white Mercedes shirts with rolled-up sleeves and black spectacles.
"Very well thank you, very well indeed, it wasn't bad, was it?" answered Bono, looking over the moon with today's results, "How are you doing? Not run away from this one yet?" he laughed, gesturing at Toto.
"Not yet," you teased, "Although I came close this morning."
"So I heard," said Bono, chuckling to himself, "Netflix was probably creaming themselves over the fact you agreed. They always want to show the girls from the team."
"Creaming themselves?" Toto asked an eyebrow raised, "What does this expression mean?"
Exchanging a look with Bono, the engineer saved you, "I'll explain later when there's not a lady present, please excuse my turn of phrase."
"It's okay, I've heard worse." you offered a small smile as a blush crept across Toto's face, the realisation of what it might mean setting in, "So what can I do for you?"
"There have been some developments from one of our key sponsors, UBS, and they'd like to take us to dinner next week in Monaco." Toto said, "I'm sorry to spring this on you but their CEO is a friend of a friend so they approached me directly. Would you be able to come with me? They must meet you."
Surprised by his direct approach, you replied, "That's no problem at all, let me know the time and the place and I'll put it in the diary."
"Great, thank you Y/N, it may be a case of convincing them we will be back on top next year, are you up to it?" Toto looked at you, his eyes steely once again.
"Of course, it's what you brought me in for, no?" you replied boldly, not wanting to show him any hint of weakness.
"Very true." Toto smiled at you, turning his attention back to Bono, "Shall we head back for the team debrief? I need to keep this one short as I have a hard out tonight."
"Sure," Bono spun around on his chair, springing to his feet, "Let's do this thing."