Work Text:
One moment, their cars are side by side. Oscar keeps pushing, eager to get his car ahead of Lando.
Adrenaline rushes through his body. Lando is an amazing driver whom Oscar looked up to in his younger days. Then he became his teammate, and now they are first and second in the driver’s championship.
It’s exhilarating to see Lando on fire, putting up a fight. Orange on orange. It feels like a dance between the two of them and there is nothing else in the world.
As much as Oscar likes Lando and enjoys having him as teammates, his championship lead is at stake, and every little point counts. Knowing he is just one position shy of the podium and Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes is just right in front of him, competitive spirit takes over.
Oscar pushes more.
Little by little, he is gaining on Lando. But Lando isn’t giving up either, chasing after him. Their cars are so close to each other, Oscar just slightly ahead.
Suddenly, Oscar feels a slight touch against his car’s left rear.
Contact. Fuck, Oscar cusses. Andrea and Zak have both made it clear to both of them. “You can race each other, but keep it clean. No contact.” They have raced and overtook each other before, but this is the first time they have contact.
But the moment Oscar looks in his mirror, Lando’s car already grazes the left wall and crashes with a loud sound. His front wing breaks and flies away, sending debris everywhere. The suspension for his left tyre is bent. The car number four slows down to a halt on the left side of the track.
Even though his car manages to get away from any damage, Oscar’s heart feels like it stops right there.
Soon, the safety car is deployed, and the rest of the cars are lining up. As Oscar slows down and follows the safety car procedure, thoughts are filling his mind.
The first that pops to his mind is, “Damn, is Lando alright?”
Even though this incident extends his championship lead away from Lando, it is not fun. No one wants to crash. Oscar knows it firsthand. The shock. The fear and anxiety when you are in a car at 300km per hour, catapulting beyond your control. The guilt, because you destroyed the car and gave everyone at the factory more work to do. The feeling that you have let down your family, your team, your fans, everybody. Not to mention the pain if there is a concussion or other injuries.
The second thought is, “Did I unintentionally cause this to happen?” Thinking back, Oscar didn’t leave much space for Lando on the left side when defending, out of worry that Lando would overtake him again.
What if Lando gets angry and hates him because of this? What if, after this, they can’t look at each other without disdain? What if this incident caused tension that breaks the team apart? They were in such a good place, everyone worked hard to make sure both cars were at their best, gaining points and podiums. It fills Oscar with regret.
And, what if Lando hates himself for this? Knowing his teammate’s tendencies to blame himself isn’t helping. They need to both be in good headspace and condition to score points and win. So Oscar makes it his mission to find Lando after the race before he spirals down further.
The Montréal race ended behind the safety car. Oscar parks his car at the pit lane and looks around for a certain man in an orange-black race suit with a yellow fluro helmet.
He can’t find him.
Perhaps Lando is still at the medical center. Or maybe he is already at McLaren's hospitality. When the PR team approaches him, Oscar follows their lead and walks to the media pen. He calms himself and decides to find Lando after the media.
Numerous microphones and cameras are in front of him. Oscar hears a question from one of the journalists and is about to answer. Suddenly, he feels a soft touch on his back and hears a familiar voice, very soft, he almost misses it.
“I’m sorry.”
Immediately, Oscar turns to the source of the voice on his left. Lando is there behind the McLaren PR staff, hidden from the camera. He looks small and vulnerable, guilt written all over his face.
Something sinks inside Oscar. He doesn’t like the beaten look on his teammate. Lando looks the prettiest when he smiles brightly, when he shines under the sun at the podium by Oscar's side, drenched with champagne.
“That’s alright… I know.” Oscar tries to give him what he hopes is a reassuring smile. He grabs Lando’s hand for a handshake.
Lando gives him a wry smile. “All my fault.”
Oscar cuts before Lando speaks again, “I mean… I ended up alright.” Yes, it could have been worse with both cars colliding and ending in double DNF, which didn’t happen. At least, Oscar is unscathed and still manages to score some points for the team.
Oscar wishes he could talk to him more, but he has to entertain the media in front of them. It’s not the right time. He nods, indirectly telling Lando that they’ll talk about this later.
After going through questions from the journalists, Oscar knocks on Lando’s driver’s room door and turns the knob. It’s unlocked. He opens the door and carefully walks in.
“Lando, I…”
Lando looks up from the couch. “Hey, Osc.” He stands up and gives Oscar a handshake. “Once again, I’m sorry. I was stupid.”
There it is, Lando’s tendency to blame himself. Oscar’s left hand goes directly to Lando’s shoulder in an attempt to soothe him. “Like I’ve said, it’s fine.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for the contact to happen.”
Oscar looks at him right in the eye. “I know. It’s fine. And I mean it.” He pulls Lando into a hug and adds, “It’s racing. Incidents are bound to happen. We all know that it’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when.”
They stay like that, Oscar continues to caress Lando’s back soothingly. He doesn’t want any tension to build between them. He doesn’t want Lando to hate him. He doesn’t want to lose his teammate, his love.
“I was so stupid. What was I thinking? You were so close to Kimi and I'm sure you could have passed him easily if I wasn't there," Lando continues to ramble. "I could have jeopardised your race. Heck, I could taken you out too. A puncture, or worse.” Lando’s voice starts to crack. “You could have gotten hurt. And that’d be a nightmare."
Oscar’s heart breaks hearing how broken Lando sounds. “Well, I ended up alright, and we still bring home points today. Don’t beat yourself up about it, okay?” Oscar ruffles through Lando’s curls and lands a gentle kiss on the side of Lando’s head. “Don't worry, I’m not angry with you over this. I just hope you're alright.”
He hopes Lando understands.
After what feels like a long while, Lando calms himself down, and Oscar lets his hands down and breaks away from the hug.
Lando swallows. “I’ve talked to Andrea.”
“Oh?” Oscar’s eyebrows quirk up. “What did he say?”
“I apologized. He said he’s disappointed because those points are precious, but he appreciates that I owned up to this mistake.” Lando’s blue-grey eyes are a bit glassy, but there is a soft, relieved smile on his face. “What’s important is that I learn and not make this happen again.”
“Good.” Oscar nods in agreement. He can’t imagine going through this situation again. But, there’s one thing he wants to clarify. “I’m sorry too. I should have given you a tiny bit more space.”
“I know you were defending. It’s fine. Like you said, it’s racing.”
“You are not angry with me?” Oscar asks carefully.
“I don’t expect you to let me off easily, you know?” Lando grins. “And I want to fight for my position fair and square, with my own efforts.”
This makes Oscar’s lips curve into a smile. "It was a good fight, though." He offers a fistbump, which Lando meets with his.
The season is still long, but Oscar believes they’ll be fine.