HIT ON ME ! by KissLeclerc
November 18, 2023 # "Flowers."
"THALIA." Calvin said sternly, grabbing the attention of his best friend as she was refusing to listen to him. "I don't wanna hear it." She shook her head.
"No, no, no! You are gonna hear it." He leaned forward.
"Cal, it was just an in the moment thing, I don't like him!" She groaned.
For the past 30 minutes, Calvin was trying to pry any sliver of emotion from Thalia regarding the two, very impactful videos that were uploaded today.
Impactful as in, breaking the Formula One community.
"Really?" He laughed through a scoff as she nodded eagerly, being already over this entire conversation. "Yes! I'm so sure about my own emotions, Cal!" She smiled as he shook his head again.
"What? Do you want me to be a complete bitch in front of the cameras, and give them absolutely nothing to work with regarding content for the weekend?" Thalia scolded. "What more do you expect from me? It's literally apart of my job." She paused.
"Always so defensive." He sighed, resting his chin in the palm of his hand as his elbow was propped up on a counter within the hospitality suite they were sat in.
After a hectic past couple of days, race day had finally approached. Thalia already getting fed up with Lando after day one was not a surprise, but to Calvin, it was an opportunity to make fun of her more.
And of course, the consistent teasing, whether it be from Calvin, or Lily, or even any of the drivers themselves, she got extremely annoyed by it all.
So the videos that had been posted today, were definitely not helping her case at all.
"I'm so done with this conversation."
"I love my McLaren boys!" Calvin mocked her, his voice going up two octaves.
"Oh my god." Thalia groaned as he laughed.
"Say all you want, Thals." He picked up the alcoholic beverage sat in front of him, taking a quick sip. "But, you care about both of them." He paused. "Not just Oscar, but Lando included."
"Of course, Oscar." Thalia replied. "He and I are actually friends." She paused. "Lando to me, is nothing but a business partner... co-worker, if you will." She finished her statement, a loud and breathy sigh escaping Calvin's mouth.
"The hot lap says otherwise." He chuckled. "Like why were you so handsy? You didn't have to do all that."
"How about you try being in a car going over 200 miles per hour?" Thalia furrowed her eyebrows. "And he took a sharp turn? Of course I'm grabbing the nearest thing for balance."
"Denial." Was all he responded with.
"You piss me so off so bad." She groaned, closing her eyes and massaging her temples in annoyance.
"Good." He whispered with a chuckle, taking another sip from his drink. "Maybe admit you at least care for the guy and I'll get off your back." His voice with a devious tone.
"I couldn't care less about him, Cal." She stated, his eyes rolling to the back of his head once again as arguing with her always felt like a verbal fight with a toddler.
Always so stubborn.
"It's a shame you hate him." Calvin sighed. "You guys as a couple would change lives." He shrugged. "Too bad the feelings aren't mutual and it's all your fault the fans will never get their dre—"
"Okay what the hell are you doing?" She held up a hand, pausing him mid-gaslight. "Stop that."
"Hey guys!" Lily greeted, her timing being perfect for Thalia, as she was extremely close to finding the nearest sharp object to throw at Calvin.
"Hey, Lils." Thalia smiled, giving her a small side hug, spotting an unfamiliar face beside her.
"I've been dying to introduce you two!" Lily exclaimed. "Thalia this is Sol, Sol this is Thalia." She introduced them, Thalia being taken aback by her clear skin and aesthetically clean appearance.
"Wait like.. Solana Valerio?" She smiled in realization, giving her a handshake. "Wait stop— You know me?" The girl said through a sweet smile, her subtle Monegasque accent throwing Thalia off guard.
"Yeah! You're that tennis player." Thalia pointed as Sol blushed in response. "STOPPP!"
"Ugh, match made in heaven." Lily held a hand to her heart. "I knew it."
"Hi, I'm Calvin!" He shoved Thalia out of the way, giving her an embrace. "Manager to Thalia Tran, and unfortunately her best friend too." He sighed as Sol laughed.
"It's so nice to meet the both of you!" She gave them a respectable nod. "And it's nice to meet you." Thalia winked.
"So, are you like friends with the drivers?" Calvin asked, getting straight into a conversation as Thalia grabbed a drink from a serving tray.
"Yeah, something like that!" She smiled sweetly. "I'm really close to Charles." She explained.
"Oh wait, you're his girlfriend!" Thalia said. "Right?"
"Ohh! No No." She shook her head. "We've been good friends since we were kids. We're not dating." She laughed as Thalia covered her mouth. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I'll stop talking." She got embarrassed.
"Charles' girlfriend is the only WAG I have not met..." Calvin scratched his head. "Where she at..."
"Madeline?" Sol questioned as he nodded. "I believe she's on a ski trip back in her home country at the moment." She shrugged. "Something like that."
"Do we like her..." He asked as Thalia nudged his side, Lily and Sol laughing at his forwardness.
"She's sweet! We've always been good friends!" Sol laughed. "But recently I haven't been too sure if she still likes me... but I'm very fond of her."
"Okay, so we hate her." Calvin chuckled as Thalia facepalmed, Lily's mouth wide open in shock while Sol covered her face in embarrassment.
As the evening progressed, the four chatted away for what felt like hours, but in reality, not much time had passed. But, the hour had finally come forward and it was lights out; the grand prix had started.
Hanging around and sharing a few drinks in the hospitality suite where most of the wives and girlfriends of the drivers were mingling, Thalia sat between Lily and Sol as they gossiped with Calvin who was sat across from them.
They didn't pay much attention, but the four of them hit it off. Thalia and Sol instantly clicking, as if they've known each other for year.
"Oh, no!" One of the WAGs gasped, bringing the four out of their deep conversation that Calvin sparked about Jennifer Lopez.
"Huh?" Thalia turned her gaze to the TV, immediately noticing that a McLaren had collided off the track, crashing into a barrier.
"Oh, shit?" Calvin said in shock, standing up to pay more attention. "Who is that?" He asked before the screen displayed Lando's name and number.
"Lando, noo!" Lily frowned, feeling for the close friend of her boyfriend.
Everyone now paying full attention to the race and screens, the sighs of relief released the brief tension after the display of his radio showed him saying: he was okay.
Thalia sat quietly, her eyes glued to the TV, a knot of emotions tightening in her chest. Guilt and worry tugged at her, mingling with a hint of irritation at herself for caring. But she told herself she shouldn't be mad for feeling this way, it's a normal human instinct to empathize for someone... even if you greatly dislike them.
Feeling relieved that he was fine, she continued to watch as Lily and Sol began to mindlessly talk.
But, when they replayed Lando's collision, she couldn't help but feel even worse. She couldn't and didn't want to express these emotions out loud.
It's not that she was in denial, she was completely acknowledging she cared.
Thalia cared for Lando.
She just didn't want Calvin to know, or else he'd rub it in her face.
"Wow, that's pretty bad." Lily put her attention back to the TV. "I hope he's alright." She sighed, grabbing the curiousitu of Thalia.
"He seems to be okay, isn't that him walking?" She pointed at the broadcast of Lando getting out of his car with no problem.
"It could just be from adrenaline." Sol explained to Thalia, "They have to evaluate him properly.. So I hope all is well for him."
"Why?" Calvin chimed, looking directly at Thalia. "Do you care?" He quirked a brow as she huffed in annoyance.
"Are you brain dead?" She shot back. "He just got hurt, I'm not completely evil?" She furrowed her eyebrows.
"If you actually hated him, you wouldn't care." He smirked, knowing he was getting to her head. "Not so sweet, sweetheart? But you're actually pretty sweet."
"I'm actually so done with you." She argued as Lily and Sol watched, the both of them biting down laughs.
As the race continued on, Thalia's mind went in and out for a majority of the evening. Her heart still ached for Lando's crash and the fact McLaren had to cope with one of their drivers not finishing tonight.
For the rest of the evening, she steered clear of anymore alcohol, but still involved herself in conversations to not bring too much attention to herself for being out of it. And despite Calvin's continuous teasing and witty remarks about Lando, she simply chose to let it slide, feeling too drained to argue back, absorbing it all in silence, too overwhelmed to muster a response.
As the grand prix reached its conclusion, Sol cheered enthusiastically as Charles secured a swift P2 advancement, while Thalia matched her excitement. The predictable Redbull podium didn't surprise her, so she still applauded, cheering on the drivers for another wonderful performance, also feeling a sense of satisfaction for Oscar's achievement in making it in the Top 10.
The evening came to its final end and Sol exchanged warm goodbyes with the group, expressing her plans to find Charles in order to surprise him, as he was unaware of her presence at the race, while Lily happily joined along so she could find Alex in the Williams garage.
"You ready?" Calvin asked as Thalia looked through her purse in search of her phone. "Yeah." She smiled, the device now gripped in her hands.
"Do you just wanna go now or do you wanna find Oscar?" He questioned. "Maybe go and see Lando too, to check how he's doing." He winked as she shook her head with a grin.
"Yup. Definitely tired of you." She said with a petty tone before brushing past him.
Without verbally answering his question, Thalia headed in the direction towards the garages, choosing to seek out Oscar ... and maybe Lando... to bid them a farewell since the weekend had also came to its end.
Scooting past numerous groups of people with Calvin trailing behind, Thalia had caught up to the McLaren garage, easily spotting the Aussie who was drinking from his water bottle.
"Oscar!" Thalia exclaimed, catching his attention and bringing him to an immediate smile. "Well done!" She walked up to him, surprisingly giving him a hug.
"Thals, how much did you drink this time." He sighed, pushing her off, an offended expression painted across her face.
"Believe it or not, she's sober." Calvin said awkwardly, just as surprised as Oscar.
"I just felt like showing you some love." She said said with a disappointed shrug before Oscar opened his arms once again to give her a better embrace that she gladly took.
"For someone who is repulsed by hugging, you're really good at it." He laughed as she let go with a smile.
"Where's Lando?" Calvin soon asked, glancing around the pit lane and garage.
"Oh, you don't know?" The Aussie quirked a brow.
"What?" Thalia asked, her cheeks slightly heating up again, indicating a sense of worry.
"Medics took him to the hospital in the middle of the race." Oscar explained. "His crash was a little worse than expected." His voice filled with a disappointed tone.
"Oh, wow." Was all Thalia breathed out. "Will he be okay?" She asked.
"What? Do you care?" Oscar smirked as she rolled her eyes. "Oh my god, can I not be worried that someone's hurt?" Thalia was almost offended.
"Just joking!" The Aussie laughed. "Well. Not about the Lando bit, but just teasing." He cleared his throat.
"What hospital?" She asked.
"Girl, we are not visiting him." Calvin paused her. "Who said anything about visiting?" She began to argue.
"Well asking about the hospital he's in kind of implies—"
"Oscar! Love you! But shut it." She brought a hand to his face and closed her fingers together, mimicking a shut up motion. "Just tell me what hospital he's in."
"Probably the nearest one to here." The Aussie shrugged as she nodded in response. "Okay, thank you. Come on, Cal." Thalia looked at her best friend before turning back to the McLaren driver.
"Well, I'm glad I caught you in time." Thalia smiled . "I enjoyed this weekend and I hope to see you soon." She said happily before giving him a shoulder pat, bidding him a proper farewell as she was probably not going to see him for a while now. "It's been fun working with you guys!"
"Wait, are you actually going to visit Lando?" He quirked a brow, going back to the other topic at hand.
"No.." Thalia shook her head. "I just have a bouquet of flowers to send." She smiled.
VERA'S VOICE!
Guys. hi. i love them.
introducing my babygirl Solana Valerio up in here. she's the main character in my charles book and lowkey i might start writing that soon... SO GO LOOK AT IT GUYS.
i liked this chapter lowkey kinda sorta like eeeeeekk thalia cares !!!!!!!! SHOCKER!!!!!! i also lowk don't like how i ended it but her visiting him when he wasn't even admitted is kinda silly.. ANYWHO!
THANK U FOR 40K READS. IM LIKE. WHAT THE FART. THANK YOU THANK YOUUUUUU
and lastly. shoutout belly and new shoutout to ameer...
LOVE VERA BEAR