Within an hour or so, qualifying's finally over and you groan as you stretch your arms, your back cracking vigorously as you do so. The crowd around you slowly starts to peter out as well, the majority spilling out into the other areas of Albert Park. You and Nichols decide to do the same, and end up milling about a little aimlessly around the fanzone areas, where obnoxiously loud EDM is being blasted through the speakers. You check your phone for any messages from Daniel.
There's nothing.
You're both still feeling tired from the lack of sleep, having slept in a foreign environment the night before, and end up getting lunch from a restaurant that's near your hotel, chomping down on what the menu says is 'Barramundi' before heading back to your rooms to rest for the afternoon.
After a long nap and a refreshing shower, you stand in front of your still unpacked suitcase, a slight pout on your lips as you think hard about what to wear. Something nice, but not too nice that he'll think that you're trying to hard probably?
Your eyes gradually settle on an oversized tee and brown leather shorts. Ah yes, that's the one. The two clothing pieces are thrown carelessly onto your bed as your gaze settles on your phone, a simple touch switching on the lockscreen. The wallpaper featuring a cute golden retriever stares back at you. Its already 4.30pm and still zilch from Daniel. A frown graces your features as a feeling of light disappointment settles in your gut. Did you just get ghosted??
Just as that thought crosses your mind, you phone buzzes with an incoming message.
Daniel
Hey! This is Daniel from Tinder:)
I got caught up with work, sorry!!
How does dinner at Privé sound like?
A sense of relief washes over you and you resist the urge to reply immediately. It'd be good to reply quickly but you can't make it seem like you've been waiting around for his message, you'd seem pretty desperate. A good 15 minutes passes before you pick up your phone and type in your reply.
Y/N
Hi Daniel from Tinder!
Its okay HAHA I understand.
Sounds good! What time's a good time?
Daniel
Is 7pm good?
You know how to get there right HAHA
Y/N
Sure thing!
Hey!! Don't underestimate the power of a good GPS alright?
7pm's a good 2.5 hours away right now, but giving that you'll need time to do your makeup and some navigating around the foreign city, it seems about right to start getting ready now, you muse to yourself. Despite the hypnotic lull of the bed calling to you, you manage to sit yourself down in front of the mirror and some time later, you're slipping on your shoes and heading out of the door.
You decide to check in on your best friend, and 3 reps on the door reveals a half asleep Nichols, with his hair so badly mussed that you're not sure if it'll go back to how it was.
"What?" He grumbles, clearly not in a great mood from having been woken up.
"I'm leaving for my date now, just wanted to check in on you and let you know."
"Ahhh, I'll probably sleep for today already, gotta be well rested for the race day tomorrow. But you have fun okay, and call me if anything happens."
You nod, about to leave when you hear Nichols mutter under his breath," And remember to use condoms if yall boink."
You turn to shot him a glare, only to be met with a quick slam of the door as Nichols ducks back into the safety of his room.
You make your way down and through the lobby, fingers moving to book a taxi via an app on your phone, silently cursing at yourself for your shitty time management. The taxi gets here in no time, and only as it cruises towards the restaurant do you remember to text Daniel.
Y/N
I'm gonna be late omg so sorrry
Daniel
No worries! I'm outside the restaurant rn in case you can't spot me:)
The taxi ride seems to go on for an eternity, and it doesn't help that your habit of constantly checking your phone causes you to panic even more.
At long last, the taxi pulls up near Privé, and you hurriedly thank the driver before exiting the vehicle. As you brisk walk towards the restaurant, your palms can't help but clam up at the nervousness of being on a first date. Luckily, your eyes don't betray you like your hands have done, as they dart around sharply to spot your date camouflaged in the evening crowd.
And there he is, sitting down on a bench and dressed nicely in a white button up and light blue jeans, matching with a pair of sneakers that tie up his whole look well as he fiddles with his phone. You approach him with brisk steps and he seems to sense someone approaching him as he looks up and the both of you lock eyes.
Something just clicks. Instantly.
"Y/N right?" Daniel says, eyes creasing to form tiny slits as he smiles widely at you, pearly whites on full display.
You nod, quickly apologising for being late and he shakes his head, saying that its not a problem at all. A server approaches the both of you and suddenly, you're both being led through the spacious restaurant to a table at the corner, nearer to the trees and under fairy lights.
Daniel makes sure that you're seated and comfortable before he takes a seat, with menus being delivered promptly to your table.
"What's good here?" You ask curiously, squinting a little at the small text on the well worn material of the menu.
"Their fusion food is great, oh and you should totally try their aglio olio, its really good I swear," He promises earnestly and you giggle a little at how hyped he seems to be at good food.
Same honestly and that's cute- Stop it. You give yourself a little pinch.
"Food's on me, so order whatever you want."
"I'll hold you to it," You laugh ,"By the way, I eat like a TON of food so your wallet better be prepared."
Daniel somewhat pouts and gives you a look that somehow resembles puppy eyes. Only when hems focused on his menu then can you fully take in how he looks once he's opposite you. He basically looks identical to his Tinder pictures, so you breathe a silent sigh of relief that you didn't get catfished at all. You note the biceps straining against the white cloth as he leans on the table with his elbows, tracing your eyes to his shoulders and then to his chest, when he's left 2 buttons open, and you can see a hint of chest hair covering his pecs. They seem to be pretty well-defined judging by the line that you can spot and-
"Y/N? What's your order?"
You're broken out of your thoughts by Daniel and the server, both giving you expectant stares as they wait for your reply. Ah shit, you were too busy looking at Daniel that you forgot to think about what you wanted to order.
After 10 seconds of awkward silence, you just end up deciding on the aglio olio that Daniel had recommended earlier together with a margarita, smiling weakly at the server as he promptly strides with both your orders in hand.
You glance up at Daniel, a little unsure of how to get the conversation started and he seems to sense it, so he ends up taking charge of the situation at hand.
"So you're from Singapore eh? I never expected myself to go on a date with a tourist," He chuckles.
"Same!! Never thought I'd be on a Tinder date on my grad trip too."
"And your friends are fine with you doing this?" Daniel enquires curiously, before blurting out hastily soon after, " I don't mean anything by that, just curious."
He runs a hand through the crop of messy curls on his head, looking at you a little uncertainly. You laugh softly at his reaction, kinda taken by how adorable he looks doing that.
"Friend actually, but yes! He needs to visit his uncle for a few days so he's leaving me alone too, plus I accompanied him to watch his race thingy just now, so we're good."
You flash a grin at Daniel and he leans forward, eyes alert and seemingly interested in what you've just said. The waiter delivers your drinks at this moment, a margarita for you and a gin and tonic for him. Both of you smile at the waiter, offering soft thank you's as he notifies you two that the food will be coming in a short while.
"You mean the Australian Grand Prix?"
You nod, humming as you lean forward to take a sip of your drink.
"Yeah, you're a fan too?"
He laughs to himself, his words seeming to have a hidden meaning that breezes past you.
"I guess you could say that."
The food arrives at that moment and light conversation continues, with Daniel asking about how you found the qualifying session at the grand prix to be. You purse your lips, trying your very best to describe the teams you saw in their respective colors because you can't seem to remember their names. Daniel helps by occasionally chipping in with the team name once you're done describing it. He asks you about if any driver stood out to you and you shake your head no. How are you supposed to remember 20 names? That's like a near impossible mission, not thanks to your shit memory.
Daniel agreed with you, laughing softly as you go on excitedly about your newfound interest in F1. You wave your hands animatedly in the process, and Daniel smiles, watching you intently with his head perched on his hands.
He seems distracted by something, gaze not shifting from you when you're done with your mini F1 rant, and you have to call his name twice before he snaps out of his daze.
"Hey, I just realized that you didn't tell me what's your job!"
"Oh yeah uh," Daniel clears his throat, his face turning a faint shade of red that's visible only if you stare hard enough.
"I'm a car mechanic," He grins.
"Ohh so you work in those garages like in the movies? Like where you're covered in the car oil and stuff-"
"Y/N where is your mind going?" He leans forward and uses his fingers to push your forehead lightly and you pout in response. You can't deny that your heart sorta skipped a beat with Daniel doing that.
"Its not like that, I'm with Aston Martin so I work in an office building. My workplace is sorta garage-y but its really clean, sorry to disappoint you." Daniel grins.
The conversation continues and the two of you would've most likely forgotten about the bill if not for a waiter accidentally bumping into your table, bringing you both back to reality. Daniel raises his hand to motion for a waiter to bring the bill, and you're reaching into your wallet, about to offer to go Dutch when Daniel shakes his head, reminding you that dinner's on him. You're about to protest when you catch sight of the bill and gulp, quickly retreating your wallet back into your bag, kinda grateful that you don't have to pay the 3 figure sum.
"Wanna take a walk or something? I know a nice spot like 5 minutes away where you can sit down and chill with good scenery," Daniel offers and you nod in agreement, falling in step next to him as you stroll down the crowded street.
Its only when you're right next to him that you realise how tall he is, your head only reaching his adams apple at best, with you having to look up to be able to maintain some form of eye contact with him. Its pretty strenuous on your neck though, and you're pretty sure that at this rate, you'll be spending tomorrow in a neck cast so you settle for occasional glances at his handsome- No, regular face.
Its a quiet spot, a bench under swaying trees with a good view of the waterfront.Daniel sits down first, patting the spot next to him on the bench with a cheery smile on his face. You take your spot next to him, making sure to set a good 10cm gap between the both of you to establish the friend gap and you fall into easy conversation with him. You find out that he was born in Perth, that he's actually Italian and you badger him to speak some Italian. Daniel's reluctant at first, but after your persistent persuasion accompanied with puppy eyes that you notice he can't seem to resist, he relents and just purses his fingers in that 'fuck' symbol and you laugh, swatting his arm as you announce that he's a fraud.
Daniel protests indignantly and immediately changes the focus of the conversation to you, asking about Singapore and life there. You gamely answer his endless questions and turns out, he's been there on several work trips over the past few years. You muse that he's got a pretty good job, being able to travel to different countries and experience different cultures and Daniel hums in agreement, staring out into the distance.
The conversation continues and unknowingly, the both of your shoulders are now touching slightly as you move on to the more personal part of your life: the relationship aspect. You're not really fazed by this, given that you're a pretty open person and you'll probably never see Daniel again. Your heart aches a little sourly as you note that last fact, and you shrug it off as a slight infatuation with the handsome Australian.
You talk about your exes (ex, actually), and the countless guys you've dated and played with on Tinder. Daniel seems unfazed by this topic too, sharing about his past exes and admitting a little shyly that he's had a few one night stands with Tinder girls in the past.
"So am I-"
"Nah, you're cool. I'm not really looking for that sorta thing at the moment, its getting kinda boring to be honest," He admits, gazing out into the distance.
"Oh, so what are you doing on Tinder then?" The question tumbles out from your mouth without a second thought and you cringe internally, wanting to beat yourself up for asking such a straightforward question.
"For fun I guess," the Australian shrugs nonchalantly, before a cheeky smile creeps up onto his face and he turns his gaze onto you.
"Why? Do you want to hear another answer?" Daniel questions, leaning towards you.
"N-n-no," You stammer, face heating up as you move up the bench and further from Daniel's prying smile. Your heartbeat quickens for that moment as you're somewhat affected by Daniel's actions.
"I see," He hums, turning his face back to the waterfront.
"What about you though?"
"Me? For fun too I guess," You agree with Daniel and he hums in response.
"Glad we're on the same page about that," Daniel says, and you catch his smile at the corner of your eye.
You can't help but wonder if he means anything by that, and you're about to ask when Daniel abruptly moves onto the next topic of conversation. You frown slightly, trying to find a way to sneak that topic back but you never get the chance to, instead moving onto both your interests and whatnot.
Somehow, you two manage to get on the topic on movies, and less than a few minutes later, Daniel's suggesting to go for a late night movie, and you find yourself agreeing with him.
"Great! My car's parked near the restaurant so lets go," He motions for you to get up and you follow suit, trying to keep up with him and he strides quickly across the street to his car.
"Two date ideas in one night eh? What a complete package," You tease.
"I call that the Daniel Ricciardo package, and it only gets 5 star reviews."
Daniel Ricciardo? You scrunch your nose a little. That name's a little familiar.
Daniel clicks on his car key fob and a dark blue car beeps in the distance, distracting you from your train of thoughts. You notice the sleek Aston Martin logo on the hood of the car and can't help but comment on how nice the car is.
"My job pays pretty well, I guess," He says, laughing a little shyly.
There's only one movie showing at the theatre, a horror one at that. Admittedly, you aren't the biggest fan of horror, but you kinda wanna spend more time with the handsome Aussie, so you agree to it. Its a late night movie, so the theatre's mostly empty, save for some people sprinkled here and there. The movie's sprinkled with tense sequences here and there, but that doesn't really get you until the jumpscares start happening. You start curling up into yourself, one hand clutching your pants tightly and the other shielding your eyes. You end up peeping through the slits of your fingers, not wanting to miss any part of the movie even though you're super scared.
Daniel seems to sense this and at some point through the movie, you suddenly feel a hand grasping your hand on your lap in a reassuring manner. Your heart skips a beat and and you peer out from behind your hand at Daniel, who mouthes 'Such a scaredy-cat' at you. If not for the movie playing in front, you'd have jabbed him with your fingers already.
The rest of the movie carries on without much fanfare and when the credits start rolling, Daniel promptly lets go of your hand and starts adjusting his jeans and shirt, preparing to stand up.
"Let's go shall we? I'll send you back to your hotel."
"O-oh, sure," You stutter a little, stumbling after him, still a little flustered from the whole hand holding thing. You chide yourself internally for getting so affected by this simple gesture, when Daniel doesn't even seen affected by it.
The car ride back to the hotel is uneventful, peppered with small talk and jokes but neither of you make mention of the hand-holding. Unexpectedly, he insists on sending you to the front of your room. You're a little surprised by him offering to do so, but nonetheless a little touched by his gesture so you agree to it.
"So... I guess I gotta go now," Daniel says when you both reach the front of your room, smiling goofily at you.
"I guess so!"
He leans in for a hug unexpectedly and before you can soak in the reality of it, he leans back and waves goodbye to you. You can only stand and watch as he turns out of view, before you unlock your hotel room and go in.
It was a great day of course, but you suspect that your heart decided to screw you and like him, because you're lowkey disappointed now at the thought of not seeing him again, which is very probable given that you're from different countries. Of course you don't like-like him, but.... jesus, what's with this like thing? You're not a teenager who's favourite past time is passing love notes anymore.
You decide push those thoughts to the back of your mind and go to shower again. Once you're done drying your wet hair, you plop down on the bed and turn on the television, flipping through the channels mindlessly until you find one that you sorta like. But in the matter of minutes, you find yourself turning to your phone for entertainment again and the first notification at the top of your lockscreen makes your heart jump in happiness.
Daniel
Hey thanks for today! I had fun:)
Maybe we could go out again soon?