Will try to make another update either tonight or tomorrow :)
And yes, I still call it Twitter because 'X' doesn't sound right lol
Enjoy!
*****
"Stop pulling your dress down." Syd groaned as we both rode the elevator. I rolled my eyes at her and did it again, mainly just to agitate her further. I had a thin jacket over my shoulders which Syd only let me wear when I promised I'd take it off at the club. She's already making me wear this. There's no way I was freezing myself to death just to look good when I had a perfectly good outfit that was enough to keep me warm.
"You better find me a Category B as compensation for this." I glared at her, watching the numbers dial down.
"You already have one."
"What?" She gave me a dumbfounded look before moving closer and pulling my hair. "Ow? The fuck?"
"Acting all blind and foolish doesn't suit you, Kat. We both know Levi is a perfect Category B."
He kind of is. Setting aside the obvious good looks and talent, Levi proved to be the type of guy Syd always teased me about. She liked guys who were as outgoing as her and would ride along with the adventures she found herself on. As for me, I like having my privacy. I understand that living this life puts that at risk, but it doesn't mean I have to air out my entire dirty laundry to the world. They get what I let them see.
They don't know about the tension at home nor how I never really got over my sister's death. They don't know about the ever present doubts of holding a seat in F1. They don't know about the little things– how I prefer long flights rather than riding private jets because I liked having all that time to myself where I was literally up in the air or how I prefer staying in the city instead of my childhood home that was on the outskirts because the noise calmed me. Privacy is just as expensive as a first-class ticket, if not more.
It's obvious that Levi was one of the most private people I've ever met. If Saint didn't mention his sisters, I wouldn't even know he had that many siblings in the first place. You wouldn't find a trace of his family online either except for the few baby pictures that would be officially released by his team or the organization. He's naturally closed off, which is why it surprised me when he willingly tore his walls down earlier today in front of me. To see someone in their vulnerable state? To see how everything they've been keeping inside them bursts out like a dam? To see someone like Levi who's covered in black and white show an ounce of color to me? It's a privilege that's not given lightly, which is why I didn't push him to talk to me about it.
The elevator doors opened and Syd and I stepped out, heads looking around to look for the guys. They were standing by the front entrance of the hotel, listening to whatever Atlas was saying.
"Sydney!" Atlas cheered when he saw us, causing Levi and Saint to turn our way. I chuckled as Atlas ran towards us and gave Syd a huge hug before kissing her cheek.
"Well, hello there." I mockingly said and Atlas kissed my cheek too. I rolled my eyes at the grin on his face, trying very hard to avoid turning my head to the left where I knew the other two guys were walking towards us. Despite the air conditioning in the hotel lobby, my entire body was flaring up and I didn't need to look up to see a pair of blue eyes focused on me.
"You look like trouble." Saint said to Syd, giving her a hug as well before turning to me. "And you look like you're ready to hit someone." I rolled my eyes and taunted him with my fist.
"Wanna go first?" I smirked and Saint raised his arms up in surrender.
"She's mad at me because I'm forcing her to show those legs. She obviously forgot her mood doesn't affect me at all." I pinched her arm and Syd only swatted my hand away, unaffected by my actions. "Shall we?"
The five of us headed out where a black SUV was waiting for us, the driver standing by the doors. "Evening." He said, showing us all a small smile.
"Thanks for driving us, Benny." Atlas grinned, clapping Benny's shoulder before getting in the passenger side. "Benny's here so that none of you have an excuse for not drinking." He pointed look at us. "Especially you three."
"Kill me now."
"Coglione."
"Arse."
I blurted in reply along with Saint and Levi as the three of us got into the car. Syd let out a loud laugh behind me, obviously finding the situation amusing. "F1 Twitter would die to hear this conversation."
The club was packed by the time we arrived and I was shocked to see a huge amount of people lining up outside. The bouncer let us through, recognizing our faces, and one of the staff led us to a table by the corner of the room, offering us a bit of privacy. Beside our table was filled with what looked like a few celebrities that were in attendance the past weekend, a few of them glancing our way as we sat down.
"Any special requests before I order for you?" Atlas smirked and Levi slapped the back of his neck.
I ordered a cuba libre, which will be the only drink I'll have tonight with the exception of a single shot that I know Atlas will force us all to take. I sat down in between Saint and Syd, cautious of the people around us ever since what happened back in Spain. I already knew that a lot of pictures and videos would be posted online, so I was dead set on being on my best behavior tonight.
I'm not a lightweight, but I'm not overly fond of drinking that much either. As expected, the waiter arrived with our drinks along with five shot glasses and a bottle of 1942 Don Julio which Atlas took the initiative to pour for us. I know for sure that none of us are keen to finish that bottle, so it was possible that Atlas was going to go around offering free shots.
"I would like to give a toast," He began, standing up and placing a hand over his chest to make it more dramatic. I shared a look with Saint and the two of us shook our heads at him. "To our race winner, Santo Forte." Atlas winked at Saint who smiled at the nickname, giving a wink as a reply. He gained the nickname during his first year in Leone where Saint also got his first race win. The Constructor's championship was between Verninne, Atlas' current team, and Leone with the latter leading. Both of the drivers of Verninne were holding second and third place until Saint accomplished his first win and moved up to third place, putting Leone at an advantage. During that season, he was a key factor in the team's championship win, focusing on fighting both drivers and helping Oliver during races. "Of course, we'll never forget The Leviathan, but I'd call him Ice King if it were up to me." A ball of napkin was thrown at his face as Atlas smiled at the glare Levi was throwing at me.
"Your majesty works, too." I added and Atlas snapped his fingers before nodding fervently. I didn't get a napkin in the face but Levi threw a glare my way too, except he shook his head after and looked down, hints of a small smile on his face.
"Last, but definitely not least, we have our Red Queen–"
"Atlas, you can just make up nicknames for everyone."
"He's not making them up." Syd contradicted me, a knowing look on her face. "One of the presenters mentioned the nickname during the race and it stuck." She opened her phone and pulled up the F1 website which held a bunch of articles written by journalists, one of them calling me the Red Queen as they described the last minutes of the race.
"I have a nickname?" I asked, lips parted in shock as I read over the article. "Oh my god."
"It suits you, kid." Saint said, bumping my shoulder with his.
"Forward this to me so that I can send it to my dad." I grinned, passing Syd's phone back to her. He was going to lose his mind about this, remembering how the two of us went over the best F1 nicknames ever given to drivers, my favorite one being The Red Baron.
"Send it now so I can finish my speech." Atlas hurried her, watching Syd as she pressed a few buttons before my phone vibrated. "Now as I was saying," He trailed off before stopping, mouth open, but nothing was coming out. "Merde, I forgot what I was about to say!" We all burst out laughing as he huffed and scratched the side of his face. "We all know you're great yada yada. Now, let's drink!" Atlas raised his shot glass and began lightly bumping it with ours before we all leaned our heads back to take the shot, the tequila leaving a slight burn after that caused me to take a sip of my cocktail.
The night went on with me mainly talking to Syd, catching up with everything she's done since the last time we talked. She mentioned she was going to be working as an F1 presenter after the summer break which meant we'd be seeing each other every race weekend. The IndyCar position was only temporary and had been transferred to a new presenter so right now, she was only traveling to the MotoGP races. Canada was the next race weekend which meant my parents would be attending and I'd be spending the few days before the race in New York.
It seemed like Atlas was pulling back just like the rest of us since he wasn't as drunk as the last time we went out. As I expected, he disappeared for a while with the bottle of Don Julio and came back with only a quarter of it left. When one of us would leave to either get a drink or head to the toilet, the others would move around and the original seating arrangements would be scrambled. I was now sitting beside Atlas instead of Saint and of course, he was talking about random things again.
The topic for tonight was our favorite Taylor Swift album because someone just played an EDM version of Love Story.
"I'm a folklore kind of guy." He said when Syd asked what's his favorite album.
"Really? I thought it'd be evermore."
"I see you're assuming that because of my Instagram." Atlas smiled and I nodded my head. I was surprised to see that his Instagram barely had any racing content, only a few where he'd have milestones or win a race. Most of Atlas' photos are film photos of him traveling or mundane stuff that he encounters. "I love champagne problems but my all-time favorite will be exile." Syd gasped and literally jumped in her seat before raising her hand for a high-five. "Wait, I love my tears ricochet as well. Fuck. Why is it so hard to pick just one? Can I just say all of them?"
We moved on to other artists, the three of us geeking over one another whenever we discovered we shared similar music tastes. The party was still in full swing when it hit two in the morning and Saint asked if it was alright if he went home early. I took the opportunity to say that I wanted to leave as well, causing everyone to agree that it was time to head back to the hotel. Saint was texting on his phone while we waited for Benny to pull up, and I lightly hit my hip with his, a teasing smile on my face.
"Should I be calling you loverboy?"
Instead of denying it, Saint only smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "I've been loverboy for years, kid."
My eyebrows rose up, not expecting that answer at all since Saint never mentioned being in a long-term relationship nor have I heard anything about it. People have always speculated whether or not he was taken, but he's never made a comment on the subject. "Who's the lucky lady?"
"My lips are sealed." He smirked and I turned to Levi for help, shaking his head.
"I know nothing."
"We both know that's not true."
"Katarina." Levi said, tone light but still laced with a warning that we both know I won't immediately recede to.
"Yes?" I smirked, holding his eye.
"Stop being stubborn." He said before turning around and opening the car door when Benny pulled up. Beside me, Saint chuckled and shook his head.
"You two are no fun." I pouted when Levi stepped aside and gestured for me to get inside, Syd following behind me.
Before I could climb in, Levi mumbled under his breath. "You're already getting my secrets. No need to ask for Saint's."
*****
What are your top 3 Taylor Swift songs?
Mine are Say Don't Go, Labyrinth, and the last great american dynasty 🤍
✧Reese✧