Since winning the last three races, Sebastian had earned his lead in the championship, as did Red Bull Racing for the constructor's title. They knew going into Abu Dhabi that they would be taking grid penalties and to get back on top they'd have to be on top form.
Going into this weekend Darcey knew it would a difficult one but she also knew it was important for the team to keep focused right now.
The team had spent so much time together at this point it was hard not to notice the change in Darcey's behaviour. They were getting the car ready for the race on Sunday, running the checks and looking at the data from the weekend so far.
"And so it begins" Brad expressed as they looked out into the pitlane as the media circus began.
"Can't believe we are here already, this race always seems like the end of the season to me" Scotty explained, unintentionally triggering Darcey as she looked back on the last race she watched with her father.
Darcey had kept to herself for most of the weekend and had noticeably been on her phone more often than before. They left her to it so far as they figured maybe she was feeling homesick.
In that moment they figured it must be more than that, but no matter how many times they asked Darcey, she wouldn't talk and nobody could get through to her. Not even Sebastian.
"Hey" Sebastian whispered not wanting to scare her off as he approached her in the motorhome, he had been waiting for her to be alone as he knew he had more chance of her opening up this way.
"Hey" Darcey smiled, Seb was able to breath easy again after seeing her smile.
"How are you feeling?" Sebastian asked concern evident on his face.
"I wish everyone would stop asking me that"
"It's because we care" Sebastian expressed, although it probably came out a lot harsher than he intended it to "The guys are worried about you. I'm worried about you" Sebastian spoke softly as he took a step closer, gently lifting her chin at an attempt to get her to look at him
"I'm fine. OK"
"Don't give me that! Talk to me - please" Sebastian's little outburst was interrupted by the entrance of Christian and Helmut, he turned back to talk to Darcey but she had already slipped away.
Red Bull elected to start Vettel in the pit lane after changing his gear ratios along with his suspension as well as the creation of a low-drag aerodynamic setup. During the race Sebastian was able to show off his overtaking skills, powering through the grid. This, however, did come at a cost as he made contact and had to come in for an unexpected pit stop.
After a difficult 42 laps on the soft tyre, Vettel made the decision to pit and this is when the pit crew set a new fastest pit stop. A reason to celebrate tonight as Sebastian was able to make a leap from pit lane to podium finish at P3.
The team raced over to the podium to watch Sebastian accept his trophy for third place, but as Seb stood up there, he couldn't help but notice that someone was missing. Darcey had stayed back when everyone rushed off at the end of the race. This was the one race she didn't want to be over as that meant it had been another year. Another year since her father passed away.
They returned to the garage ready to pack up and get out as soon as they could in order to let the celebrations begin.
But instead of celebrating with the team, Darcey returned to her room that night. She was about to get ready for bed and call it a night when she heard a knock at the door.
"Seb, what are you doing here?" Darcey stumbled over her words.
"You were there when I needed cheering up, now it's my turn to cheer you up" Sebastian explained as he revealed a box of chocolates and packet of crisps in his hands.
Darcey stood there in silence, "So you gonna let me in or?" Sebastian broke the silence laughing slightly at her awkwardness.
Darcey moved to the side allowing him to slide past, smiling to herself as she watched Sebastian investigate the room. It was one of the things she noticed about Seb, he always had to know what was where and figure it all out.
They settled down on a bed each, suddenly aware that he was in a hotel room with Darcey alone - Sebastian attempted to ease the tension.
"I didn't know what you preferred, sweet or savoury. I prefer savoury but then again sometimes I just crave sugar like mad" Sebastian rambled on
"Both are fine, thank you but you really didn't have to do this" Darcey sighed "You should be out there celebrating with everyone else, not stuck in here with me"
"But I want to be here with you" Sebastian reassured her, looking straight into her eyes "I know you may not want to talk about it, but you shouldn't be alone right now"
"How did you know?"
"I don't, not fully. Just know that whenever you need to talk, I promise I will be there. No matter the time okay?" His words were so intense that they broke down whatever wall Darcey was trying to keep up, and allowed herself to breath for the first time all day.
"It's silly"
"No it's not"
"It's just that the hardest part about missing him is the fact that no matter how much I miss him, I still won't be able to see him and speak to him again" Darcey exhaled a part of her feeling a sense of relief by talking about it.
"And being here makes you miss him?" Sebastian asked slowly, trying to understand
"Kind of, I think about him every time I change an engine or change the oil. It's like all my memories of cars, racing and formula one are wrapped up in him. I can't recall an event without thinking about him in some shape or form."
Sebastian moved over onto her bed at this point, bring her closer to him as to tell her it's okay and that she wasn't alone.
"Some memories are stronger than overs, some I can brush off but today just hurts. I knew it was bad, it was the Abu Dhabi race and we watched it in the hospital. It was the last one we watched together" Sebastian pulled her into his arms, allowing her to cry into his chest.
"I can't wait to be in a place where the memories I have of him don't make me sad anymore. I find myself avoiding certain things because I haven't had to experience them alone yet. I thought that I was ready, I want to be able to think back to those times, to smile and cherish them, but I'm just not there yet."
"There's no rush, there's no time limit to any of this. Just don't bottle it up inside okay? if you ever feel it getting too much. Talk to me, I'll be here for you. Always" He held her tightly and planted a kiss on the top of her head.
"Thank you for staying with me" Darcey mumbled as she lay against Sebastian chest, not wanting to move.
"What are friends for" Sebastian muttered, a mixture of guilt and clarity overcame him as he realised what he had known all along. He had fallen for her.
Wanting to break the tension within the room and stop himself from doing something he may later regret, Sebastian suggested watching a film together. It was the perfect way to spend time together, keep an eye on her and to keep his distance from the other side of the bed.
About an hour later, the pair finally decided on Mamma Mia 2 and if seeing Sebastian sing along to Dancing Queen couldn't cheer Darcey up - nothing could.
Kendall had recently messaged Darcey to let her know she would be staying over at Nico's hotel tonight, holding back on expressing her opinion on the whole matter she said goodnight and continued watching the movie with Seb. At least she could relax not worrying about what Kendall would say if she came back to see Sebastian there.
It was getting late when the two of them curled up on the bed together, dozing in and out of sleep. Sebastian couldn't help but stare as Darcey's eyes fluttered open as she tried to stay away until the end of the movie.
"Stop yawning, you're making me tired." Sebastian moaned as he threw a pillow in her direction.
"It's one o'clock in the morning, if you're not tired there's something wrong with you." Darcey groaned as she threw it right back at him.
"Call it my super power"
"You're such a dork" Darcey murmured as she finally gave in and closed her eyes, then feeling content in his surroundings Sebastian turned off the TV and dozed off into a peaceful sleep.
The next morning Darcey woke up to the sound of someone snoring and that was when the events of last night came rushing back to her. She lay there smiling over at the peaceful german and laughed to herself quietly. If someone had told her a year ago that she'd been here waking up beside Sebastian Vettel, she would've told them they were crazy and that she didn't support Red Bull anyway.
Her thoughts were interrupted by an unfamiliar ringtone, she looked over at the other side of the bed. It was Seb's phone and it can't be good no matter who it was, suddenly feeling uneasy about the fact he had stayed the night.
"Seb" Darcey attempted to wake him, nudging him gently - god he was hard to wake up.
"Huh, what time is it?" Seb questioned in his sleepy voice which made her want to melt right there.
"8am and someone's trying to get ahold of you" Darcey explained as she gestured over to his phone, Seb sitting up right now but still laying beside her.
"It's Britta and judging by the messages I'm in trouble" He stood up looking through his phone, biting his lip as he read the messages from his press officer.
Britta Roeske
Seb, where are you? You have a flight in an hours time. Just grab your things and meet me downstairs.
"I'm so sorry - I can talk to her if you want, I don't want you getting into trouble because of me"
"No it's fine, nothing I can't handle. I'm just glad you're okay" Sebastian looked into Darcey eyes to ensure she understood every word.
That morning he was flying out with some other drivers in order to make it back to Switzerland for the week, Britta arrived at his hotel room to take him to the airport and found no sign of him. Judging by the text messages he had received that morning, Britta had her suspicions on where he had been last night.
Sebastian was incredibly thankful that the whole team had stayed in the same hotel for this race, making his quick dash to his room to collect his things a lot easier. As he walked down the stairs, suitcase in hand he spotted his press officer pacing back and forth. One of these days he was going to give that woman a heart attack.
"I can explain" was the first thing to come out of Sebastian mouth. Britta was ready to go all out on Sebastian about how irresponsible he was acting, but his face said it all.
"Let's just get you on that plane" Britta smiled at Sebastian before jumping into the car to take them to the airport.
Sebastian Vettel
On way to the airport now, don't worry everything is fine. See you soon x
Darcey Collins
Glad you made it, thank god but again thank you! I'm lucky to have a friend like you x
Sebastian sat back and sighed, which caught Britta's attention as she tried to keep her thoughts to herself. She hated seeing him like this, so torn and unsure.
"You like her, don't you?" Britta whispered, Sebastian didn't even attempt to argue her point.
"I wish I didn't have these feelings but I do" Sebastian looked down at his lap, avoiding eye contact with Britta, this being the first time he had spoken about it out loud. It all felt very real now.
"I understand, some things you just can't control. What you can control is what you do now, have you thought about that?" Britta questioned softly.
"It's way too early for this" He sighed as he closed his eyes "all I know is that I can't stop thinking about her and I feel so bad about it every single time I speak to Sophia, but something's changed and I don't know what to do.
"I know, but you need to decide. Before this goes any further and people end up getting hurt" After those words left Britta's mouth the car fell silent. Sebastian sat back and allowed his thoughts to run away with him, looking back on the last 24 hours and how much had changed since he met his new mechanic.
That night when Sebastian arrived home in Switzerland, he wasn't surprised to find that Sophia was nowhere to be seen. He never had much room to complain, she was committed to her work just as he was with his.
It was something he had gotten used to and it worked for him, but the last couple of months had made him realise something. Their relationship had been over for a while but neither of them could admit it.