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Starring: Four emotionally unstable rookies, too much gelato, and one very beloved Carlos Sainz.
It started with a single tear.
No one knows if it belonged to Ollie, Kimi, Isack, or Gabe, but it fell—tragically—after their 397th Charlos Instagram edit in a single night after Carlos’s leaving Ferrari …. Carlos leaving Charles
“He looked at Charles like he hung the stars!” Isack wailed into his triple-chocolate sundae.
“Did you see Charles’s face in Monaco ‘21? That’s not just teammate energy—that’s soulmates,” Gabe added, his voice cracking under the weight of emotion and too much cookie dough ice cream.
By the time they hit edit #432—one where the audio whispered “I was made for loving you” while Charles longingly watched Carlos walk down the paddock—they were in shambles.
But they were also ready.
The rookies stood, gelato-stained and mascara-smudged (Isack insisted on committing to the aesthetic), and said in unison:
“We’re getting Charlos back together.”
….
Phase 1: Emotional Reconnaissance.
Step one: hang out with Carlos. Easy. He loved them. Called them his “babies” and brought them home-baked cookies in Tupperware. Papa Sainz energy, full throttle.
So they loitered around him at the track the next day. Casual. Innocent.
“Carlos, have you…spoken to Charles lately?” Ollie asked, twirling a Red Bull can like a nervous ex-girlfriend.
Carlos blinked, paused, and then gave a soft, slightly pink-cheeked, “Sí…he texted me a meme.”
They almost cried. Communication. A sign! A spark!
But then Kimi, ever the sharp-eyed observer, elbowed Isack hard and hissed, “Look. Max is looking at Carlos. Like—like—he’s seeing his whole future.”
And indeed, Max Verstappen, Deadpan King, was eyeing Carlos from across the hospitality tent like a man looking at the only thing that tethered him to life.
And then Oscar walked by, smiled politely at Carlos, and Carlos blushed.
And then Lando arrived with a “CARLITO!” and an arm thrown around Carlos’s waist—and Carlos leaned into it like it was the most natural thing in the world.
The rookies were frozen.
Phase 1: inconclusive. Or rather, conclusively more complicated than they thought.
….
Phase 2: Ship Watch.
What began as Charlos healing spiraled into full-blown espionage. Their hotel room became the operations center, a conspiracy wall of screenshots, Instagram comments, on-board radios, and coded glances.
They divided tasks:
- Kimi was in charge of Versainz edits.
- Isack handled Carlando content.
- Gabe trawled the depths of the Carcar tag.
- Ollie? Still team Charlos, but... open to polyamory now.
“We can’t choose for him,” Gabe said wisely one night.
“But we can give him the environment to choose…all of them.”
…..
Phase 3: Fanfic Therapy.
There was only one solution left. They wrote fanfic.
Collaborative, 50k slow-burn fluff/angst/smut fic titled:
"The Sainz Effect: Love in Four Corners"
Featuring:
- Jealous Charles punching a wall
- Max pretending he’s not soft for Carlos (failing)
- Oscar stuttering through his feelings
- Lando nearly proposing by accident
- Carlos being adored and loved and finally realizing he can have it all
They published it anonymously under the pseudonym TheRookieSquad55.
Within hours, it trended on AO3.
Charles liked a suspiciously emotional tweet about it. Max posted a photo of Carlos with the caption: “Mine?” ofcourse under a very fake account with the username ‘DutchLion’ but the only flaw was that the account was followed by Max’s real account. Pretty dumb. Pretty bold.
Lando posted a meme about “sharing is caring.” Oscar sent a playlist titled “If I could tell you.”
The rookies shared a knowing glance.
Mission status:
In progress… but love is inevitable.
…………
The rookies read the fanfic they wrote for the 5th time because they just can’t get over it.
Scene 1: Charles Punches a Wall (a.k.a. The Monaco Incident)
“You were mine first.”
The words tasted bitter on Charles’s tongue, like champagne turned to vinegar.
He watched as Carlos laughed—soft, golden, that little crinkle at the edge of his eyes—at something Lando whispered in his ear.
Lando. Lando who knew how Charles felt. Who had the audacity to touch Carlos’s shoulder like he belonged there.
The sound of knuckles hitting concrete echoed around the garage wall.
Charles didn’t even feel it. Not the pain. Only the heat in his chest, and the way Carlos turned around at the sound—worried, soft, Carlos—and looked at him with something fragile in his eyes.
Don’t make me choose, that look said.
But Charles already had.
……………
Scene 2: Max Cracks
Carlos always made him feel like a man unraveling slowly—thread by thread, too stubborn to admit he’d already come undone.
So when Max found him sitting alone in the motorhome—head in his hands, hair mussed from his helmet—it should’ve been easy to walk away. To pretend he didn’t care.
But Carlos looked up. Just once. One single, vulnerable look.
And Max sat beside him.
Not touching. Just breathing. Like he was afraid he’d break something sacred if he moved too fast.
“I know what it looks like,” Carlos whispered.
“I don’t care,” Max said. “I just want you to look at me the way you look at him.”
And when Carlos finally did?
Max forgot how to breathe.
………..
Scene 3: Oscar’s Confession (ft. Panic and Adorable Meltdown)
Oscar Piastri did not do feelings.
He drove fast, thought faster, and panicked in silence like any good Aussie boy with emotional repression and a secret crush the size of Spa.
So when Carlos brushed a bit of confetti off his shoulder post-podium and said, “You looked beautiful out there, mate,”
Oscar short-circuited.
He choked on his drink.
Then said, “You too. I mean, no—that you looked beautiful—wait—actually, you kind of always look beautiful—I MEAN FAST—NO—”
Carlos just blinked, then smiled gently and said, “Gracias, cariño.”
Oscar blacked out for five seconds and then wrote a 5,000-word love letter in his Notes app. That he will never send. Probably. Maybe. …Eventually.
………….
Scene 4: Lando Accidentally Proposes (??)
Lando had a plan. It was called: Be Normal Around Carlos.
It was going great until Carlos showed up to a team dinner in a navy button-up that did things to Lando’s brain chemistry.
Somewhere between dessert and Carlos licking chocolate mousse off a spoon, Lando blurted out:
“I’d marry you.”
The table went silent. George dropped his fork. Zhou gasped. Charles blinked very hard.
Carlos looked stunned. Then—he smiled. Not teasing. Not amused. Just soft.
“Let me know when you’re serious,” he said.
Lando didn't sleep for three days.
……….
Carlos Finds the Fanfic
Carlos Sainz was just trying to look up tyre stats when his search history accidentally autocompleted to:
“the sainz effect love in four corners ao3”
Curious, he clicked.
What he found was…a 60k word slow burn polyamorous epic starring himself, and four very emotionally constipated men who loved him.
He read the entire thing in one night.
He laughed. He cried. He questioned if the scene where Max cries into his hoodie after Carlos gets a cramp was too accurate.
Then he scrolled to the author notes.
“For Carlos, who deserves to be loved by everyone and get fed grapes while lying on a throne. Signed, RookieSquad55.”
Carlos smiled.
The next day, he showed up to the rookies’ room with cookies and quietly said:
“If I had to choose between the four… I wouldn’t. So maybe you're right.”
…………
The rookies had a simple morning plan:
- Wake up.
- Cry a little over Carlos’s Monaco 2022 onboard.
- Check AO3 stats on “The Sainz Effect: Love in Four Corners.”
- Maybe write another chapter where Carlos gets pampered in a silk robe.
But when they opened their fanfic dashboard—
1,243 NEW COMMENTS.
Total Bookmarks: 897.
Kudos from: “madmax33_😡❤️”, “landoNO1sainzfan4eva”, “silentPiastri”, and more.
They froze.
Gabe: “No way. No actual way.”
Kimi: “They found it. They found the fic.”
Isack: screaming into a pillow
Ollie: “We’re so dead. We wrote smut! “
…..
Comment Highlights (and Rookie Reactions)
-
User: madmax33_ 😡❤️
“Honestly the Max scenes are the most accurate. Especially the part where he tries to act cool but secretly wants to hold Carlos’s hand forever. Not that I would know.”
Kimi: “Okay that’s just Max. That’s literally Max trying not to admit he cried at chapter 9.”
Isack: “Why is there an angry emoji and a heart? That’s a summary of his entire personality.”
….
User: landoNO1sainzfan4eva
“i would NEVER accidentally propose. also carlos would look hot in a wedding tux just saying.”
(left under Chapter 7: The Accidental Proposal)
Ollie: “I think he just doubled down on the proposal.”
Gabe: “Carlos is totally reading this. I bet he’s blushing.”
Isack: “I bet Lando knows he’s blushing. And is smug about it.”
….
User: silentPiastri
“The Oscar confession was a little dramatic… but realistic. Also, his playlist would be better than the one in the fic. No offense.”
Gabe: “Oscar made a playlist. We invented canon.”
Kimi: “Wait, he just admitted he’d confess. Oscar’s in love and in denial.”
….
User: monegasqueCaveman
“Charles is NOT dramatic. He is FRENCH. I mean MONEGASQUE. This is defamation. but also yes he punched a wall. he would do it again.”
Isack: “That’s Charles. That’s absolutely Charles.”
Ollie: “He capitalized MONEGASQUE like it’s a personality trait.”
Gabe: “Also? He would do it again.”
….
User: sainzsimp08 (username changed 4 times in 2 days)
“beautiful. emotional. i cried. carlos deserves to be adored by everyone. 11/10. also can you write a scene where he gets a forehead kiss from each of them? hypothetically.”
Everyone: “Carlos.”
Kimi: “This is his fourth username. Yesterday it was ‘sunshineinspanish’ and before that it was ‘softandsainz’.”
Isack: “He’s requesting forehead kisses . For himself. I love him so much.”
…
User: totosdaddy99
“i do not understand what is happening here. but i approve.”
Ollie: “...Toto?”
Gabe: “OH MY GOD.”
….
User: sebiswatchingyou
“Ah, young love. Brings a tear to the eye. And some therapy bills.”
Everyone: “Sebastian Vettel reads our fanfic. We can die now.”
_
The Rookies’ Group Chat (Immediately After)
Isack: “Operation Polycule is no longer fanon. It’s manifesting.”
Ollie: “Do we write a sequel? Or a scene where they all move in together?”
Gabe: “We write Carlos getting a forehead kiss. Immediately.”
Kimi: “Also a smut chapter. Max deserves to be feral.”
Everyone: “Agreed.
………..
It starts with Max.
He’s the first to find Carlos’s comment—hidden under the username sainzsimp08—and he stares at the screen like he’s trying to decode a love confession written in Morse code.
"Can you write a scene where he gets a forehead kiss from each of them? Hypothetically."
There’s nothing hypothetical about it.
…..
Max (in the Red Bull garage):
“He wants forehead kisses.”
Lando (from behind a helmet rack):
“Excuse me???”
Oscar (who has been very quiet since Chapter 13):
“That’s—wait—he asked them for kisses? Like us-them? Like the fic versions of us?”
Charles (ripping off his gloves):
“I knew that was him. Mon dieu. If he wants forehead kisses, he gets forehead kisses. Not fanfiction ones. Mine.”
-
Scene: The Great Motorhome March of 2025
Carlos was just trying to take a nap. He had no idea a revolution was headed his way.
The door to his Ferrari motorhome swings open dramatically.
Carlos (sitting up, groggy): “Max?”
Max: “Get up.”
Carlos: “Why—”
Max (crossing the room): “You asked for forehead kisses. So you’re getting forehead kisses.”
He gently cups Carlos’s face and leans in. The softest touch of lips to Carlos’s forehead. Quick. Firm. Dangerous.
Carlos (blinking): “What the—”
Charles (bursting in, rage powered by love): “You wrote that comment?! You absolute, soft idiot! You deserve to be kissed. So I will do it every day for the rest of your life.”
Forehead kiss. Then a cheek kiss. Then one on the tip of his nose.
Carlos forgets how to breathe.
…
Oscar (appearing awkwardly in the doorway):
“Uh. Hi. Sorry. I didn’t plan a speech. But... I really like you. More than just platonic, ‘I wrote a fanfic about you’ kind of like. And I don’t know how to say it, so...”
He walks up, looks at Carlos with reverent hesitation, and presses a feather-light kiss to his forehead.
Carlos (eyes wide, voice shaky):
“Oscar…”
Oscar (blushing furiously):
“I made you a playlist too. Just. FYI.”
…..
Lando (last to enter, voice unusually quiet):
“Did you really think you could drop a forehead kiss request and not expect me to do something insane about it?”
He walks straight up to Carlos, curls a hand around his neck, and presses his forehead against Carlos’s for a second before kissing it firmly.
“I’m in love with you. And I don’t mind sharing. But I’m not stepping back. Not anymore.”
……
Scene: Carlos Sainz.exe Has Crashed
Four beautiful men. Four forehead kisses. Four confessions.
Carlos stares at them. Red to the tips of his ears. Teary-eyed. Stunned silent.
“I… I didn’t think anyone would actually… I mean, I thought it was just a silly fic. I didn’t think you all—"
Charles: “We all did. We just thought you didn’t.”
Max: “Turns out we’re all idiots.”
Oscar: “But compatible ones.”
Lando: “So. Polycule?”
Carlos (choking a laugh through a tear):
“Only if I still get more forehead kisses.”
…..
All four (in harmony):
“Deal.”
…
Tagline: Carlos Sainz now lives in a polycule. We did that.
Location: Rookie Squad Headquarters (aka Ollie’s hotel room)
Time: 3:42 p.m.
Status: Screaming.
The boys were innocently checking AO3 stats when the chaos began.
Ollie (yelling):
“GUYS. HE GOT THE KISSES. HE GOT THE F***ING KISSES.”
Isack (in a blanket burrito):
“What? What do you mean—”
Kimi (already on Twitter):
“Live footage. Max kissed his forehead. Charles double tapped. Oscar almost fainted and Lando looked like he proposed through a forehead press. It’s happening.”
Gabe (drops his soda can):
“I am a god.”
-
The Rookie Group Chat
Ollie:
🥹 guys
we did this
THEY’RE REAL
Isack:
do we get credited in their wedding vows or
Gabe:
I want them to kiss in front of us just so we can sob dramatically
Kimi:
should we write a sequel where they all adopt a dog and name it after a tire compound
__
Rookie AO3 Author Notes Update
Chapter 15: Forehead Kisses IRL
Author’s Note: GUYS. GUYS. THIS IS NOT A DRILL. The fic is now a DOCUMENTARY. Max kissed Carlos’s forehead. Charles confessed. Oscar BLUSHED. Lando threatened our hearts. WE. DID. THAT.
Please leave kudos in the form of real-life validation or pictures of Carlos smiling.
P.S. Thank you for 50K hits. And thank you to sainzsimp08, wherever you are. You beautiful, soft man.
Rookie Victory Dance (as seen on Ollie’s Insta Story)
- Kimi holding up a sign that says: “LOVE WINS. SO DOES OUR SHIP.”
- Isack fake-sobbing with a tub of gelato.
- Gabe wearing a handmade “#TeamPolycule” shirt.
- Ollie dramatically reenacting the forehead kisses using a pillow labeled “Carlos.”
- Background music: “Can’t Help Falling in Love” but it’s a sped-up nightcore remix.
Final Line:
Gabe (looking into the distance, emotional):
“We watched 400 edits. Ate 3 tubs of ice cream. Wrote a fanfic that broke the internet. And now… Papa Sainz is loved like he deserves. By four chaotic men who’d kiss him on the forehead even at Parc Fermé.”
Ollie:
“This is better than winning a world title.”
Isack:
“We’re not just rookies. We’re cupid-certified content creators.”