Chapter Text
A week ago you said to me
"Do you believe I'll never be too far?"
-----December 14th 2021-----
Thank you, the last two days have been crazy
I'd still like to celebrate with you
You in Monaco on Friday for some dinner together?
Also why do you still have that picture?
It took Daniel a few seconds to register that it was Max texting him. He had sent him a photo of a sleeping Max on the plane, mouth open and very unflattering, captioned "I can't believe this boy grew up to become World Champion. Congrats mate!"
But that was on Sunday after he didn't get the chance to get more than a hug after Red Bull all but snatched their champion away from the public. After not getting a reply at the end of Monday, Daniel truly wasn't expecting anything anymore. What reason did Max even have to text him back? He probably got hundreds of congratulatory messages in the last couple of days. One that wasn't answered wouldn't stick out.
So it really did catch Daniel by surprise that Max still replied and even asked for dinner together. They haven't had a normal conversation over text in the last three years, since he left Red Bull. They kept up appearances in public but there just wasn't any reason to talk in private, no words left between them that meant anything.
The last few messages between them were a courtesy of thanks for the cake after they filmed the Secret Santa video. Daniel only answered with a simple Enjoy it, not wanting to keep the conversation going. He wouldn't have known what to say anyway.
And Daniel still didn't know two hours after he received Max's last text.
He still had a few hours left in the day with post season wrap up meetings in Woking but would be leaving for Monaco tomorrow morning before flying home on Sunday.
He had the time on Friday… and Max did win his first World Championship. It would be rude to decline no matter how he felt about it.
I'll land in Monaco tomorrow morning, I'd love to get dinner. What did you have in mind?
Daniel felt weird having such a polite conversation with the man he dated 3 years ago. It didn't feel like it was truly him talking.
-----
Max excused himself from the conversation after he felt his phone vibrating to see Daniel finally answer him. Horner nodded with a smile and continued talking to Marko, not noticing Max's changed demeanour.
He had felt horrible replying to Dan's text so late, he had tried his best to answer every message by the end of Monday. But he couldn't reply to Daniel. A short thank you felt insensitive. "Thanks so much! I really didn't expect it to happen, I'm so happy it did" is maybe something he'd tell the press if they asked how he felt now. Daniel deserved better.
It took Max two days and some very unrestful 5 hours of sleep to finally text Dan on Tuesday morning. He didn't dare look if the Aussie had read it the whole day. Getting an answer saying he's in after only 2 hours felt too good to be true.
(I still have all of the embarrassing pictures of you for situations like these and possible blackmail)
A small laugh escaped Max's lips but nobody was close enough to question what he was laughing about. Daniel could never have a serious conversation, there always had to be at least one joke thrown in. To be fair, Max did ask about the picture, but he did not need to know that Daniel still kept all their sappy couple pictures. And Daniel didn't need to know that Max did the same.
I'm in the mood for some Japanese from the place around the corner
Max had no reason to give Dan the name of the restaurant (as if he could even remember it). It was Daniel who showed him the place after all, he'll know what he means. Or so he hoped. It has been some years since they met up outside of racing.
Lando, Pierre and even Charles invited him to multiple hangouts after Dan and him broke up, he always asked if Daniel would be present and more often than not he was, so he declined. It didn't take long for his friends to stop inviting him after they got the hint that he didn't want to see the Aussie anymore. It hurt him mentally to distance himself from his friends so much. He never lost contact with them, always up for a match of FIFA or whatever Lando intended to stream that day. But Daniel so easily integrated himself into his friend group that they wouldn't let the Aussie leave so easily even if he wanted to.
Pierre driving with him and then Alex coming into Red Bull helped immensely. They helped him stay focused when he didn't want to do anything except distract himself. Struggling so much with the car in the last two seasons and seeing how badly Red Bull handled Pierre and Alex gave him something to let his built up emotions out on. It may not have been the healthiest coping method, but it still felt better than accepting that Daniel chose Renault over him.
Max hadn't noticed that his phone locked itself again before it vibrated with an incoming message.
Sounds great. Take-out at your place?
They had only ever gotten take-out. It wasn't that uncommon to have dinner with your teammate and they barely had anything to fear with the press laws in Monaco but Max had never wanted to risk getting seen in a public place cosying up to each other. Now there was nothing to hide.
I actually booked a table there at 7pm
If that's okay of course
I'm tired of take-out
The last sentence was a lie, he didn't have fast food in the last three weeks and finally could again. But Max didn't like how he phrased his message. He did think about deleting it but Dan stayed online and read it as soon as it was sent, so he had to salvage the situation somehow.
He wanted this to be a nice catch-up with a friend he'd missed for the last three years. Not an awkward dinner where stuff could be misinterpreted. Max didn't have enough fortitude left in him for any disappointments.
-----May 13th 2016-----
"You wanna go on a date with me Maxy?", Daniel asked with a teasing voice. He could barely see the Dutchman where he was basically hiding behind his car, race suit hanging around his waist and helmet under his arm. But he didn't miss how the younger froze for a second before righting himself and looking over the rear wing over to Daniel where he was leaning against the garage door. He should really start getting himself ready, FP2 would start in a few minutes.
"N-No, I was asking if you wanna get dinner tonight. I've had enough chicken with potatoes to last me a lifetime and some local Spanish food sounds like a dream to me right now. And you know… first race as an official Red Bull driver, am I not allowed to celebrate?", Max said but the slight stutter at the beginning wasn't lost on Daniel.
"Don't be shy, I'd love to go on a date with you", Daniel said before taking his leave after hearing his mechanic shout for him.
"It's not a date!", plus a few laughs from engineers were the last things he heard before getting involved in a conversation about the changes on his car.
-----
Max had to resort to Carlos for restaurant recommendations, not needing their first private dinner to end in a place that may have a fancy outside but a mouldy inside.
Carlos asked him what girl he wanted to take out along with the address to an expensive looking restaurant barely 15 minutes from the track. Max was tempted to reply with a your mom joke but decided against it, telling him the truth about treating Dan to dinner. Max was about to pack his phone away when Carlos's message came in.
A date with your new teammate? Scandalous
Max ignored the heat rising up his neck and probably tinting his ears red. He had FP2 to concentrate on, Carlos's message couldn't distract him now. Just that it wasn't only Carlos alluding it to be a date. But he knew Carlos was only teasing and Daniel joked about things like that all the time. There was nothing to be interpreted into their words. No hopes to get up.
+++++
FP2 went shit for everybody but Mercedes again apparently. Max was silently fuming over the car, but it wasn't just him losing control and oversteering yet he still felt mad. Everybody seemed to handle it better than him, blaming it on the track conditions or the tires. Everybody but Max who had only himself to blame. If he wasn't able to control shitty tires on a shitty road then what was he even doing here.
He tried his best not to let his emotions bleed into the debrief after the two sessions. They had a lot to tweak for this weekend to go smoothly and the changes they wanted to make so that the car could keep up with a Mercedes needed to work sooner rather than later. He has been doing great considering it was only his second year in F1 but he also knew he could be better. Max felt the pressure on him and his first official race in the main team needed to be good.
Max felt a hand on his thigh halfway through the meeting and found it to be Daniel's. The older still looked ahead, evidently still listening to the data analysis currently being given. But the Dutchman didn't avert his eyes from Daniel's side profile until the older looked at him and gave a court nod to assure him everything's fine. Max could have sworn the light filtering in through the windows behind Daniel momentarily became stronger as he looked back, giving him a soft glow around him. He could barely muster a hard smile and a nod of his own before he told himself to focus on the analysis being discussed.
The image of Daniel's tan skin and chocolate eyes didn't leave him until an hour after the meeting.
+++++
Dan decided to pop into Max's hotel room half an hour earlier than he needed to for dinner and the Dutchman immediately started panicking internally.
The Australian already sat dressed on Max's hotel couch in shorts and a short sleeved shirt that barely hid any tattoos from showing. His hair was still wet from a shower but the unruly curls were ever present, clinging to Dan's forehead. Daniel was evidently coming alive in the evening heat of the Spanish summer, wildly talking about everything and nothing. Max had no chance to keep up with his chattering as he basked in Daniel's energy.
How was he supposed to survive a nice evening in an even nicer restaurant with the nicest man he had ever met?
Daniel, ever observant, noticed Max's disarray and kept reminding the younger to get ready without ever stopping talking about other things at the same time. It started with race talk and qualifying the next day but quickly changed to the plans he had made with friends for the week in between races when Max kept listening instead of engaging in the conversation. He didn't have the need to talk, hearing Dan's accent ebb and flow and the occasional laugh satisfied him fully.
"Who's gonna drive?" Dan asked when Max finally finished getting ready, in a similar style to Daniel. No, the couple's look was not intentional, Spain was just too hot even at night and it wasn't like Max didn't already wear shorts and a polo everywhere he went.
"You can drive if you want", Max answered. Usually he liked to be the one behind the wheel whenever he could but he felt like he wouldn't be able to keep his focus on the road when he needed to.
"Oh the ever humble gentleman Max Verstappen is letting me drive. It would be an honour to be thy personal driver my Lord", Daniel said with a wide grin and a bow before taking the keys from where Max offered them.
There was never silence between them even in the car. Although that was Max's fault as he gave Daniel free reign over the music and the Aussie went wild singing off-key to every song Dan had on his playlist. Max only felt regret for his ears but his eyes couldn't have been happier. Daniel smiled a lot, he always did, he was an energetic man after all but fuck seeing him belt out the most tragic of love lyrics with the widest smile was definitely not what the Dutchman expected.
"Stop laughing at me! You let me choose!" Daniel basically screamed over the music and Max hadn't even noticed he started to relax and laugh at the show Daniel gave him.
"I'm not laughing at you but you are in fact very entertaining to watch", Max replied, his own smile getting bigger. Daniel started to turn the music down when they entered the city but the wide grin never left his face.
"I'm glad you find me entertaining, can't have you ruining my reputation by calling tonight boring."
"Let me know when someone calls you boring, I've been wanting to punch someone in the face."
"First he lets me drive, then he wants to be my knight in shining armour and defend me. You truly are a good catch Maxy." The Dutchman couldn't stop his face from growing red and he looked away as Daniel sneaked a glance at him when they stopped at a red light.
"No, but you are", Max said quietly, hoping his voice was drowned out by the music still running in the background. It wasn't.
"And he compliments me. You're only increasing your score", Dan kept the teasing obvious in his voice, his gaze however full of fondness as Max dared a look and their eyes met.
He didn't dare say anything for the rest of the ride, too afraid he would let something else slip from his mouth that Daniel couldn't turn into a joke. Dan didn't mind and kept singing, this time at a reasonable volume so maybe not everybody on the sidewalk could hear him. Max wasn't sure if those 20 minutes felt like 5 or 60 as they started to pull into a parking space. The lot around the restaurant was packed with cars, considering it was Friday evening on a nice day and race weekend on top of that he shouldn't have expected differently. Thankfully he got Carlos to book them a somewhat hidden table when the lady on the phone struggled with English. He owed Carlos a lot for this.
The waiter assigned to them seemed to have less struggles as Max told him his name and led them to their table.
"I think he recognized us", Dan said as the waiter left them alone. There was a soft buzz of conversation around them as people ate and talked in Spanish.
"You think?" Max asked. He hadn't really paid attention to the waiter, rather scanning the restaurant for any familiar faces or cameras. He needed to be away from the public eye right now, he didn't want any attention on him other than Daniel's tonight.
"He basically led us here before you even finished saying Max", Daniel caught his gaze while he was looking behind the Aussie for anything suspicious. "Hey, you alright mate?"
"Ah yeah, just don't really want any public attention on me right now. Practice felt shit enough." Max leaned forward and put his arms on the table, trying to make himself smaller and less conspicuous.
"We're good. If there were any fans they'd already be storming our table. And it probably isn't the first time the waiter saw some semi famous race drivers in his restaurant", Daniel assured, a hand reaching over and resting on Max's right wrist a second too long for his mind not to start going haywire.
Max gave a weak nod and leaned back out of Daniel's reach as the waiter returned with menus. They both stuck to water, knowing full well that they needed to get back to the hotel and qualifying with a hangover probably wasn't the smartest idea.
"Thanks for inviting me out though. I think we both needed this. Maybe you a little bit more but I'd never say no to you", Dan's signature teasing smile was back on his face. Max was already familiar with the growing heat in his stomach.
"Yeah I missed the taste of professionally cooked food and the season barely started two months ago", Max tried to joke back but his tone fell flat with nervousness.
Daniel was obviously starting to say something when the waiter came back, waiting to take their order. Max barely glanced at the menu, not knowing what anything of it was anyway and just went with the recommendation of the day. Daniel wouldn't take his eyes off him while he ordered and waited until the waiter was far out of earshot before he said, "Max you need to relax. The weekend will be just fine. You wouldn't be here if they didn't see potential in you. You're not going to fuck up."
If only that was his primary concern right now. Yes, it still clawed at the back of his head but he understood that the season just started and he had done great in the races he replaced Kvyat and he had a great rookie season with Toro Rosso behind him. He can't change shit right now anyway. They still had FP3 tomorrow and qualifying still wasn't the race, everything could turn around in the first lap on Sunday.
No, right now his main concern was Daniel Ricciardo sitting opposite him. Worrying over him with his dark but fond eyes, dimples still peeking out from the assuring smile he had on his face. His main concern was how he could survive the next months, hell maybe even years, in the same team with him while acting like there weren't butterflies multiplying in his stomach every time he was even just given a look from Daniel.
He had known Daniel since he started last year in Toro Rosso next to Carlos. He had looked up to him immediately and Daniel apparently took a liking to the Dutchman too, conversing often on and off track. His achievements in Red Bull and charismatic nature were everything he needed to have Max's eyes on him from day one. But back then his main focus was to show Red Bull he was ready for the main team, ready to race next to Daniel not just behind him.
It happened way faster than he could have hoped for of course. And maybe it was then that his whole predicament started. Suddenly his focus wasn't just become World Champion, it was also impress Daniel and show him you're worth it. The real problem was that the Australian had always been proud of him, had always cared for him. Almost in a way a brother would, plus the usual flirty jokes. And Max had no idea how to change those feelings to romantic.
"No, no I know. I trust the team. I trust my abilities. There's just a lot going on in my head that I need to sort out", it was the closest he could get to the truth without revealing anything.
"Okay, talk to me. What's wrecking my pretty boy's head?"
Shit, he was just supposed to take that and not think about this in the coming months? Maybe he should just confess, throw everything into the open, end their friendship before Max gets his heart broken by seeing Daniel with someone else. Give him time to recover, focus on racing again.
"I like someone and I don't know how to tell him."
Fuck. Shit. Fuck. He didn't mean to say that. He really didn't. Sometimes his own stupidity surprised even him. He could only watch Daniel's eyes grow wide before blurting, "I still like girls", in the best hushed scream he could manage. Well, at least coming out to him was past him now.
Daniel tried leaning into Max space but he withdrew before he could reach him. This was a mistake. How did he think he could have anything when he was this stupid. Daniel looked at him dumbfounded, his hand frozen in the air already halfway to where Max's arm was resting a second ago. He leaned back averting his eyes, willing himself to just leave and take a taxi back to the hotel. He didn't know what held him back.
"It's okay. Me too", Max head shot up immediately, "like boys and girls I mean". A sympathetic and knowing smile showcasing Daniels dimples again. Max's head was suddenly empty.
"I guess you are worried he isn't into men?"
He… he actually didn't think about this. It wasn't that he assumed anything about Daniel's sexuality, he was just too focused on his own feelings and how it could have destroyed their friendship if he let them show.
"I probably should have been", Max really couldn't keep anything to himself today. How did he manage to keep Daniel in the dark for so long?
"Should have?"
"I just found out", that was it. Max watched in pain as Daniel worked through what he said and connected the dots. Eyes growing even wider.
"Max-", he didn't let Daniel finish. He immediately ran for the door. Max already knew, he didn't need to hear it from Daniel personally. He heard cursing from behind him as he exited and hopped into one of the taxis waiting in front of a hotel. His phone started ringing instantly. He turned it off without even reading Daniel's name.
+++++
Max knew it wasn't the smartest going back to their shared hotel but they were in Spain and where else was he supposed to go? The last working brain cell in his head at least had the idea to go to Carlos' room to hide instead of his own. He really should have waited inviting Daniel for dinner until after the race. At least then he had almost two weeks before Monaco and not just a few hours now.
Carlos took too long to open the door for Max's liking. He felt worse with every second standing in the hallway, waiting for his friend to open the door. Scared someone from either Toro Rosso or Red Bull could see him and question what he's doing here. Max was about to turn his phone back on to call Carlos when the Spaniard finally opened the door, a wet towel around his shoulders that was catching the still falling drops from his hair. Thank god he wasn't naked, Max really couldn't handle any more embarrassment today.
Carlos ushered him inside without any word. Max knew he must look exhausted, he spent every ounce of energy in him not to cry in public but he was constantly on the verge.
"Your date didn't go well?"
Max refused to answer as he sat down on the king sized bed. He never confessed anything to Carlos but his appearance didn't really make it believable if he refuted it now. Max laid back but kept his eyes open as silence spread between them.
Max almost jumped off the bed as Carlos' phone suddenly began to ring. He looked over to the Spaniard who checked the name before he took it and left the room. Max wouldn't have minded if he stayed but he was glad Carlos didn't throw him out to talk in private. He needed to find a way to calmly explain this to Carlos, he had already done so much for him, he deserved this at the least.
Max realised 20 minutes went by until the door finally opened again and he still wasn't sure what to say. He had spent the time trying not to think about it.
When the footsteps stopped at the entrance to the bedroom he looked up, apologies already on his lips.
But it was Daniel standing there.
-----
Max looked like shit. His eyes were rimmed with red, skin sunken as if he hadn't slept in days. His hair was a mess from probably holding his head in his hands. If Daniel didn't know better he would have guessed he had a fever.
As he finally looked up to meet Daniel's gaze, the words he was about to say - probably meant for Carlos anyway - died on his lips.
"I called Carlos after the team couldn't reach you either. They are pissed by the way".
Daniel wasn't sure how to interpret Max's expression. Hurt, confusion, betrayal, nervousness and fright somehow all mixed together. He had never seen the usually proud Max Verstappen look so dishevelled.
"Don't worry, I just said you ran after getting nervous because of the race".
The look on his face didn't change but he gave a small nod, showing he listened and understood. Daniel dared a step closer.
"An asshole move of you to leave without paying too. You didn't even wait until after the food", Daniel tried joking but it was obviously the wrong way to go as Max's eyebrows creased in an apologetic way. But he sat up and kept holding Daniel's gaze.
Time to cut to the chase.
"What I wanted to say before you left… I like you too"
"What?"
Daniel laughed, "Is it so unbelievable that I could like you back?", and closed the distance between them, standing between Max's legs. Max let him. When the younger still wouldn't reply he took his face in his hands, circling his thumbs over Max's cheeks. "You okay?"
"I think so", he finally answered with a shy smile.
"Gotta say you may look like shit but I'm flattered it's because of me". That seemed to get Max out of his stupor as he managed to put his hands on Daniel's chest and push him away at the comment.
"Why did it have to be you", there was no venom in his voice and Daniel was happy to learn everything to make Max happy.
Daniel noticed how Max's eyes haven't seemed to stop staring at his lips since he confessed. He closed the distance between them again, this time crouching down to look up at Max sitting on the bed.
"You know it does feel a bit illegal, I mean you turned 18 like what? Half a year ago?" Daniel kept joking - it was what he was best at - as he pushed their foreheads together and wound his hands around Max's neck.
"Shut up old man", was all he said before Max took the initiative and kissed him.
Max won the Spanish Grand Prix two days later, becoming the youngest driver to ever win a Grand Prix in Formula 1 history and Daniel couldn't have been prouder.