Work Text:
Isack's POV
6:45 pm - 21 of July 2024 - Hungary
The F2 paddock was nearly cleared already, their race weekend more than finished, was he guilty of lingering for a bit more than necessary? Yeah, but he wasn't the only one so who cares? Kimi, Ollie and Gabi had lingered behind with him even if his teammate, Pepe Martí, had run off to the airport to catch his flight just after the race so at like 12am, more or less.
The four of them were chilling in the premature hospitality, having watched the F1 race (aka the reason they stayed behind) and were now commenting it while watching the interview of the top 3 that day, Oscar Piastri, who had won his first gp in F1 and deserved it more than anyone else because he drove amazingly and didn't let what had happened to him that weekend affect him, was it a strategy win, well, maybe, but a win is a win! Then P2 Lando Norris and then P3 the magnificent Lewis Hamilton, who drove as if he were one with the car, with precision and experience, like the icon he is. Wow, Gabi's brainrot was affecting him...
He was happy to see Lewis in the podium, it was no secret that he deeply admired the driver, fellow drivers even joked about it, but it's Lewis Hamilton, who can blame him?
Well, maybe he is able to project on him and that has made him like him more, specially during his teenage years, but that's something he keeps to himself, because even if f1 drivers are now coming out and Gabi is a case of its own, Oscar had been outed and the Internet wasn't all nice about the drivers that were now out.
Well, he isn't like them tho, he is part of the community but he's aroace he won't ever experience what Yuki and Pierre have, he doesn't complain, he doesn't really want it for himself even if he agrees that they're adorable.
He had a bit of a hard time accepting it at first because everyone around him was having crushes or talking about sex and he was just... there, it didn't make him uncomfortable, he even enjoyed helping people get together! But that just isn't for him, the drama and gossip was tho.
He had found comfort in Hamilton all those years ago, he was always a motorsport kid so having someone up there who didn't have a partner was a breeze of fresh air for him, he could be there, he could make it too, he didn't need a lover for it. He did love having friends and he wouldn't have made it this far without his family, don't get him wrong, he loves them, but not romantically or whatever.
Was he projecting on Hamilton? 100% and he had come to terms with it, he had even participated in Brocedes conversations and investigations (not seriouly tho, just for the fun of it), but that didn't mean that a small part of him, still there from his teens, craved for Lewis to be like him.
Then he noticed how the room had fell silent, which is weird as Kimi and Ollie have that weird way of flirting and Gabi seemed only invested in the interview, so he decided to get out of his thoughts for a bit and focus on the interview because what could possibly had happened?
Oh, journalists being pieces of shit, what a surprise! Why isn't there a regulation about that? What they're asking is downright homophobic....
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(Credits to Flowersandthings, the next extract is from chapter 14 of their work)
Transcript of The Hungarian Grand Prix Podium Press Conference
21 July 7:00pm
Reporter: Lewis, many critics have pointed out that the gay drivers of F1 are not the world champions. What would you say about that?
Hamilton: What do you mean? You mean that if you are gay you aren’t a good driver? Oscar just won the Grand Prix! George won in Austria!
Reporter: Yes, but they usually do not win. And the likes of Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda and Alex Albon rarely make podiums. Not a single gay driver has won a world championship. Is there a link between their lifestyle choices and their driving abilities? Perhaps they are distracted?
Norris: Being gay ain’t a lifestyle choice mate. Can someone kick this guy fucking out of here?
Hamilton: Wait, before you do, I’d like to answer that. You said not a single gay driver has won a world championship?
Reporter: Correct. Is there a –
Hamilton: You’re right. Not a single gay driver has won one world championship. I’ve won seven.
(Norris and Piastri audibly gasp.) (Every single reporter starts shouting out.)
Reporter: You’re not gay though.
Hamilton: Funny, my husband might have something to say about that.
(The noise from the reporters is almost deafening.)
Reporter: Your husband?
Hamilton: You heard me.
Reporter: Who the hell is your husband?
Hamilton: Oh, I’d give you three guesses, but you only need one
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Isack's POV
7:10 pm
Oh.
Oh.
Holy shit.
That did not just happen.
Did he manifest that? Please tell him he didn't, he was happy in his little fantasy world, his rose tinted glass had just been shattered with a brick, in one go. So he really was alone in this sport...
However before he can dwell on it more than he shoulds, Kimi proceeds to blow his eardrums by screaming at the top of his lungs: "HOLY SHIT, BROCEDES IS CANON, YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME."
And then he procedes to grin in a way that had just made Ollie melt into a puddle and not register what really had just happened.
That had given him time to put a poker face on, he was grateful for Kimi because a second later they were all looking at him as if gauging him reaction, they had gifted him a Lewis fanboy shirt not long ago, and even if normal people or the media didn't catch it, Isack was more than aware there wasn't a single straight person in the room.
And then after hearing the loudest noise ever coming from the F1 paddock and being suprised but simultaneously not amused by it, the media was too much sometimes, really. He said "Well, that's a way to diverge the attention from the Oscar situation. I'm happy for Lewis tho, and Nico, that was so brave, what an icon." And then he could feel the room visibly relax as he turned up the sound of the TV as casually as he could as with the noise outside it was difficult to hear the actual interview and he silently hoped that that reported had been given a ban, because that was uncalled for.
Kimi and Ollie looked at eachother for a moment before going to their previous position of 'friedly' cuddling because they had definitely kissed and needed to get together because they were making it everyone's problem, well, whatever, they probably can sort it out alone not like another certain someones, what had the f2 grid become and why did noone catch it? He guesses it's for the better tho, they're all (except Gabi) very deep inside the closet to the point he's surprised noone had found narnia yet, Paul is his number one contender at finding that Lion at the moment.
And then Gabi just relaxed his shoulders and is jow nodding approvingly at the TV and if he starts talking brainrot again he'll throw his shoe at him, not today Gabi, hes had a bad enough race and it's having conflicted feelings even if he's totally OK with the news, it's just that something that had inspired him for so long and that had made him comfortable with his identity at the beginning was now false, a lie, a extremely well crafted one, kudos to Hamilton for that, even if he now felt slightly lost.
Oh, Gabi had cracked a joke and everyone was laughing, he should at least chuckle a bit, he still had a reputation of not zoning out much to maintain. That doesn't mean that later he won't think about it on the plane, just to get his thoughts in order, it didn't affect him as much as he thought it might, he's totally cool with it and now he probably admired Lewis even more because that was amazing, he's so brave and cool, he wishes he could protect his friends like that, wait... was Nico Rosberg OK with this? He hopes he is because if not that would be tragic, he probably is, if after all that Brocedes drama that seemed out of a fanfic they're actually together and married, they they must have talked about this.
Wait.
Nico Rorsberg could beat him on a Lewis Hamilton trivia.
Hell no.
He has a reputation to maintain, he will win grill the grid out of pure LH info (he won't, ever, he wishes tho).
Would Nico Rosberg figure now even more in a LH trivia? Well, new thing to hyperfixate in, sweet.
A moment later he notices that his friends are now looking at him and then they all burt out laughing...OK?
He looks at them confused and asks about what are they laughing about which only makes Gabi laugh even more and Ollie telling him while chuckling that he has voiced that last though outloud and then after offering to find him a accurate Nico Rosberg biography, which only makes Gabi laugh more (How can Paul like this guy, really?) , and he also turns tomato red, embarrassed, because he didn't plan on thinking outloud he joins everyone else in their laughs before they all proceed to start joking together about it all and how that would affect the world they lived in, because Lewis Hamilton isn't just any driver and Nico Rosberg isn't either.
When they notice that the media had calmed down a bit they start to pack up to head themselves to the airport for their own flights, and as he parts from his friends he finds that he's come to terms with his idol not being as him surprisingly quickly, and he feels proud of himself because that's the definite prove that he's truly comfortable with his identity, not even the one he used as support to get where he is can make that identity tumble.
After finishing packing he meets up again with the rest to head to the airport and someone jokes about how he can now try to send Nico Rosberg adoption papers via email or whatever and have his possibilities of being related to Lewis maximised, he laughs at that, because how could that even be possible? Next year, if he's lucky and gets a seat, he'd be just lucky to have a few acquaintances between the curent drivers, even if they seem to be quite united it's impossible they bond and are actual friends out of the paddock, right?
They get to the airport and get to their flight just in time, why do they keep getting just on time to flights? They do this so many times each year they should have become pros at it at this point, whatever, they're seated in the plane, they're good to go and then just after getting comfortable in his seat he can't do anything but feel proud of himself because Lewis Hamilton being gay and having a husband, a lover, hasn't affected him negatively, in any case positively as he admired him even more now and will become a trivia master about his husband as well, he already knows a lot about Nico but hes going to polish that knowledge to the max. That should be fun.
He may had had a shitty race but nothing is making him bad right now, next race weekend he'll do better, he's making it to F1 next year.
Who knows, maybe if he ever feels brave and comfortable enough to come out he can be inspiration for a kid who feels like he felt, can you imagine? He hopes he can help someone like that.