Chapter Text
Kimi Antonelli blinked awake blearily, feeling a bit as though he was surfacing from below water, except with the overwhelming sensation that more time than he could comprehend had passed.
It was disorienting, and he couldn’t help but groan a bit as he unconsciously snuggled in closer to the body next to him.
In response, the hand at his waist tightened briefly, and then –
“Are you awake, mano?” Gabriel Bortoleto asked gently, voice pitched so low and quiet that had Kimi not be quite literally half on top of the older Omega, he might have missed it.
“Che è successo?” Kimi grumbled, mind still not entirely online.
Thankfully, Gabi seemed to understand what he meant well enough, because Kimi wasn’t sure his brain was quite ready to produce English quite yet.
“After the race, you had your presentation heat,” Gabi explained gently.
Kimi furrowed his brow, trying to remember. He recalled being in the media pen, talking to the rude reporter, worrying about what Max might think of him, stressing about whether the Alpha would believe what Helmut Marko was saying about him, and then –
“Ollie?”
On Kimi’s other side, somebody snorted.
“Liam and Jack have him, do not worry,” came the distinctive voice of Franco Colapinto, followed by a fluffy head of brown hair appearing in Kimi’s peripheral vision as the Argentinian Omega leaned over.
“Your heat triggered his presentation rut,” Gabi explained dryly, with an unimpressed look at Franco. “It has been… chaotic.”
For a moment, they sat in silence as Kimi processed that information. His heat had triggered Ollie’s rut, and it seemed that they – along with the other rookies – had spent both together, in what – as far as Kimi could tell from where he was still cuddled between Gabi and Franco – was the nest in Ollie’s Driver’s Room.
Ollie, who had stood up for him in the Media Pen.
Ollie, who had presumably gotten him back here safely.
Ollie, who he –
“Did we, um…” Kimi trailed off awkwardly, cheeks heating up as he struggled to push the words out. “Did anything… happen?”
“No, mano,” Gabi reassured gently with a light chuckle. “We did not know what – if anything – either of you had consented to, so whenever things got a bit too… heated, we separated you two.”
“For cuddles,” Franco clarified. “Ollie with Liam and Jack, you with Gabi and I. Sometimes Isack, too, but sometimes he cuddled with the Alphas.”
“And that was… all?”
“Yes,” Gabi responded. “It is… this is common, yes? Many people spend their first heat or rut with family, so it is not… sexual.”
“It was a bit harder, for you and Ollie, I think,” Franco admitted. “Because you were in the same nest.”
“But we managed,” Gabi was quick to reassure. “And next time, we can plan first, so we know what you want. Who you want.”
As if there was any question about that.
Of course, he wanted –
“Ollie,” Kimi whined, and then suddenly, Ollie was there, long limbs flailing just a little bit as he bodily clambered over Jack, Isack, and Gabi before practically dropping himself on top of the Italian Omega, a steady rumble already vibrating in him chest.
“Kimi,” Ollie rumbled, nuzzling in close, much to Kimi’s delight. “Missed you.”
In response, Kimi nuzzled into the crook of Ollie’s neck, a rumbling purr of his own rising to meet Ollie’s deeper Alpha rumble as his hands wandered, desperate to hold, to reassure, touch, to –
“I thought they were done,” someone said with exasperation.
“They don’t smell like heat or rut anymore,” another voice pointed out.
“Oh, good, that means that they are just like this,” someone muttered.
Ollie rolled his hips down to meet Kimi’s, and the Omega keened with pleasure, unable to help the way his own his pressed upwards in response, seeking contact.
“That’s enough of that,” Liam grumbled firmly.
He didn’t try to physically intervene – in fact, he was still on the far end of the nest – but Ollie still growled anyways, hips still pressed firmly against Kimi’s own as he nipped and nuzzled at the Omega’s exposed neck, seemingly very pleased with the way Kimi was reacting to his ministrations.
Except –
“Ollie,” Liam growled, the warning now evident in his tone.
For a moment, Kimi considered telling the others to leave, but unfortunately, his brain was slowly but surely coming back online, which meant that he had more questions - and a feeling that he and Ollie had missed out on more than just their respectively ill-timed presentations.
“A dopo, orsetto,” Kimi murmured gently.
With a beleaguered sigh, Ollie pressed one last, lingering kiss to Kimi’s neck before pulling back. Thankfully, he didn’t go far – or, more accurately, he brought Kimi with him as he sat up, the duo working fluidly to settling into a more upright, sitting position that was more-or-less just Kimi sitting in Ollie’s lap.
“Gross,” Isack commented affectionately.
“Are you sure that you two can handle… that?” Liam asked pointedly, gesturing at… well, their entire beings, really.
Which was rude, but also probably fair, given what had just happened.
“We will manage,” Ollie gritted out with a glower.
A moment of silence, wherein it seemed as though no one knew exactly what to say, or even where to start, and then –
“Why are we here, and not with the Grid Pack?” Kimi asked. “Max said that when he presented during a race weekend, he spent his rut with the Grid Pack… Did we… Did we do something wrong, or…?”
He had expected that, if he presented during a race weekend, they would spend it with the Grid Pack. He assumed that’s why Max had told him about his own presentation, despite the fact that the Alpha generally disliked sharing about himself. So that Kimi knew that the Grid Pack would take care of him, if he needed that.
Except they hadn’t, and he didn’t understand why.
Behind him, Ollie rumbled soothingly as he wrapped his arms around Kimi’s waist and hooked his chin over his shoulder.
“I think that might be my fault, amore,” Ollie admitted sheepishly. “It’s a bit hazy, but I was definitely feeling a bit protective of you, and seeing Max, after what Helmut Marko said…”
“Apparently you basically threw him out of the room,” Liam finished gamely. “Him and Carlos both looked like kicked puppies when I got here.”
“I just…” Ollie trailed off, hiding his face in Kimi’s neck, so that whatever he muttered next was indecipherable.
In response, Kimi shifted slightly so that he could cuddle Ollie a bit more easily, his murmured response for the newly presented Alpha’s ears alone.
“I do not mind that you are protective, orsetto,” Kimi reminded him softly.
“But you are disappointed that you didn’t spend your presentation heat with the Grid Pack,” Ollie murmured back, the guilt evident in his tone.
And, maybe Kimi was, a little bit, but… in the context of the weekend, he isn’t sure if he would have wanted to spend his heat with the Pack.
Not after the things he had heard swirling around him after the race, and in the media pen.
Not sure what happened to Antonelli, Max, looks like he just pulled over and let Norris through.
It was obvious. He more or less waved Lando by.
“I did, but I also think… I do not think I would have been happy, to have so many people around, after what happened,” Kimi admitted, voice pitched so that everybody could hear him. “Our Rookie Pack was more than enough, yes?”
At that, most of their so-called “Rookie Pack” visibly perked up, clearly happy to know that their efforts had been appreciated, so Kimi pressed onwards.
“I would not mind, spending more heats – or even ruts – with our Rookie Pack, if anyone needed it,” Kimi explained. “It was – well, I feel nice, now, and safe. And I am happy that you are all with me, yes?
“I’ll always spend your heats with you, if that’s what you want,” Ollie promised, voice almost reverent, and Kimi didn’t really think he could be blamed for diving back in for another kiss, nor the way his body shifted to press against Ollie’s, nor –
“Please, I am begging you to stop,” Isack grumbled. “I will vomit.”
Kimi could feel Ollie’s mischievous smile against his neck as he flipped the Frenchman off, but he did relent, if only for Isack’s sanity.
There would be more time – private time – for kissing later.
“But… we should probably tell at least Max and Carlos that we are not upset with them,” Kimi reasoned. “Since Liam says they looked like kicked puppies.”
“They were very sad,” Liam agreed.
“I still haven’t forgiven Red Bull for their role in this,” Ollie rumbled with a pointed glower at both Liam and Isack, as if the entire ordeal was somehow their fault.
“It might help to know that George sent me a message – said that GP went ‘round the Mercedes motorhome to apologize, but obviously you weren’t there,” Liam interjected. “Helmut apologized – as much as he ever apologizes – too. Told the media that he was sorry that you had been inundated with criticism and insults.”
That… was nice, Kimi supposed.
GP, especially, considering his comments had been made in the heat of the moment, but what if –
“Max does not believe that you let Lando by on purpose, either,” Gabi added gently. “He never would believe such a thing.”
“I was just… I lost the rear of the car while chasing Carlos, and then all of the sudden Lando was just there, and I could not stop him,” Kimi bemoaned. “I was just pushing hard to stay in DRS and had a snap of oversteer, I would never –”
“We know, Kimi,” Jack interjected. “No one with half a brain believed a single word that came out of Marko’s mouth.”
“I… still… I think I would like to talk to them myself,” Kimi explained. “To make sure we are all okay.”
“I should probably apologize to Carlos and Max too,” Ollie admitted reluctantly. “For all the growling and snapping. Esteban too.”
“Well, whenever you two are ready, the Grid Pack has extended an open invitation to join them for nesting,” Liam explained in the ensuing silence, rubbing his neck somewhat sheepishly as he spoke. “I think… they were definitely a bit caught off guard, about the Rookie Pack.”
“Will they…” Franco trailed off nervously. “They won’t kick us out of the Grid Pack, will they? For having our own Pack?”
“They would not dare,” Gabi snapped immediately.
“Only one way to find out for sure, though,” Liam reasoned.