Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Maybe I should just call the camping off.”

“Just, get your backpack ready-„

Another coughing fit hit his dad, stopping him in the middle of his protest. Kimi sighed and picked up the glass to get him water again. His fever persisted all day, and no matter what they did, it couldn’t be broken. So Kimi had contacted their family doctor again after yesterday’s visit, and she had prescribed antibiotics for his dad, while George lay almost motionless in his bed. The sight had worried the young boy so much, he had insisted that George move to the living room area, citing a change of scenery.

He was to leave the apartment soon, join his friends, Ollie and Isack, for a camping trip with Ollie’s parents. However, yesterday, he woke up to a glassy-eyed, sniffling, and shivering George, which was a great problem. By afternoon, he was way worse, and after Kimi’s insistence, they visited the doctor to learn that it was indeed a lung infection. George needed someone to care for him. Unfortunately, Uncle Alex was not around the city, and his dad strictly rejected anyone else. Kimi was 15, and he could take care of his dad on his own, but his dad would not let him cancel the camping trip, and the boy couldn’t brush off his deteriorating health, so he arranged for someone else to help him today and tomorrow, risking a possible grounding, accusation of betrayal, and so on.

About 20 minutes ago, he even texted his Papa that Dad needed injections to break the fever, and mentioned the names of the drugs. He had dug himself a deep grave already anyway, might as well make use of it.

Kimi handed the glass to his dad, taking his place in the far end of the couch his dad banished him to, and George received the water with shaking hands. He was truly not well.

“I really don’t want to leave you like this, Dad.” Kimi tried again, furrowing his brows.

George put the glass away, fixing his hairband. They had put it on his hair to stop it from sticking to his forehead from feverish sweating. “Sweetheart, I am okay.”

Kimi had had enough of this.

“But you are not!” He raised his voice out of frustration and instantly regretted.

George winced like he got hurt, squeezing his eyes shut. “Oh Lord, not so loud, your voice…”

Well, damn, he was going through puberty, there was nothing he could do about it.

“And you sound like Darth Vader,” Kimi mumbled as George tried to find a comfortable position with his pillow again. He was exhausted yet unable to sleep.

“Kimi,” he croaked again, “whoever you called, please cancel it. I can take care of myself.” He said, eyes still closed, his chest rising with uneven breaths.

Kimi huffed annoyedly. “Well, it is too late, now.” It pained him that his dad didn’t suspect at all. Maybe he should attempt some smoothing. “And the person coming,” what to say, how to say, “they just value you so much,” he gulped, what next, “that uh,” his dad always scolded him for not thinking through before talking. He was right.

“What?” George was staring at him now, face unimpressed.

“They cancelled all the plans for you!” He blurted out of his imagination.

“Oh,” George’s eyebrows shot up, “really?” he sniffled through his blocked sinuses. He looked emotional.

“Yeah,” Kimi mumbled and diverted his eyes elsewhere. There was a possibility of truth in that. Firstly, he called his papa haphazardly on a random Thursday night, and this weekend his team was supposed to race. So usually, he would leave on Friday morning. But when his son asked for help, Max agreed within 1 second. So, really, his papa might have just cancelled his plans for his dad, there was definitely a possibility. He also instructed Max to arrive just as Kimi had to leave, so he wouldn’t have to be subjected to their painful quasi-flirting or probable tantrum by his very ill dad.

It was just that his parents were not normal, they fought every day till they separated. His dad was silently crying the day Papa finally moved out, and when they moved to this apartment, completely abandoning Kimi’s childhood home, they sat on this very couch and stared at old photos on the first night. Now, a year after the official papers, Kimi was an honoured guest of various girlfriends in Papa’s apartment, or a spectator to his dad’s tomato face as he was preparing for another failed date with a suspiciously blonde man, and the worst of their crimes, the usual casual flirting between them whenever they crossed paths because of Kimi. His parents were not normal about each other, and from what he has heard, they have never been.

So who else but Max to care for George? It was logical, the boy thought, encouraging himself.

Just as his dad was fighting for his life against another fit, the entrance bell rang. Kimi bolted.

He stood in front of the door, waiting for the impact as George stared at him, confused.

“I will make you another honey lemon, Dad, it will be good for your headache too,” Kimi said out of nowhere.

“Oh, okay,” George answered, more puzzled.

Then, their front door rang, and the boy took a deep breath, “Here goes nothing.” He opened the door.

“Hey there, mate,” His papa gave him an easy smirk, ruffling his hair, and comfortably letting himself in.

“What? What are you doing here, Max?” George croaked from the open living room area, a voice from the deepest pits of hell. His papa took off his shoes, switching to one of the slippers.

“Decided to check on my lovely ex and son,” Max sat right next to George, while the Brit was still staring at him as if he had grown another head. Kimi gulped. “Enjoying your day?”

“Andrea!” Oh, Andrea, Kimi noted, still plastered to the wall. He was going to be in big trouble. Luckily, another fit of coughing took over his dad.

“Papa, the medicine…” He reminded Max, helpless to do anything else.

“Oh, right, here,” Max took the chemist’s bag into his hands, then moved his left hand to touch George’s feverish forehead. Instantly earning a smack. “Shit, you are really burning, George, it is not the blush.”

George huffed, frustrated, “Of course, I don’t put blush on my face at home, idiot.”

“Okay, whatever. Turn around.” Max was quickly preparing the syringes.

“No way!” His dad protested, and Kimi bit his lower lip.

“Dad, please,” he pleaded.

“It’s not anything I have not seen before.” His papa stated casually, while his dad went tomato red.

“Max! You shameless dog, don’t you have any decorum?” Another hit to Papa’s stomach.

“Dad, please, we can’t break your fever.” The boy tried again with his best puppy eyes impression.

“Kimi is smarter than you.” Max was obviously baiting George, but why now, of all the times?

George huffed again, however, his love for Kimi was stronger than his annoyance at his ex-husband. He still shot a death glare at Kimi, but started to turn around.

“There you go,” Papa cooed and softly hit dad’s thigh, “chop-chop,” he imitated George’s accent.

“Max,” another warning.

“I will make the honey lemon,” Kimi dashed to the kitchen. He had to be quick, he needed to leave, and before that, he needed to make sure that these two wouldn’t murder each other in his absence.

“Max, I swear to God,” he heard from the kitchen as he was boiling the lemon, like George taught him.

“Shh.”

“Ah,” George whined. Kimi scrunched his nose. He hated needles just like his dad and avoided them like the plague.

“Quiet, baby,” Max was chuckling. “Kimi is still at home.” Ugh, his parents.

He added a spoonful of honey to the tea and finalized, taking the steaming cup to the living room. His papa was scrolling on his phone, and Dad was lying down again, eyes closed. His face was so exhausted, Kimi almost felt like crying. He put his hand on George’s shoulder, squeezing.

“Here, Dad.” He offered the cup and received a barely there smile as his dad held his hand. The illness has truly taken a toll on him, considering how little fight he put up against Max, or not scolding Kimi for calling him.

“I will order you a soup,” Max said.

“We ordered pho yesterday, but he couldn’t keep it down.” The teenager replied.

Papa hummed and looked at George thoughtfully. He looked worried, too.

“Then I will order a true British-style plain soup, you know, potato, carrot, and beans masterclass.” He teased his dad, probably trying to cheer him up, he at least earned an eyeroll, which made Kimi truly happy. There was his dad.

“Do whatever you want, I will fall asleep most likely,”  his dad croaked, “Kimi, you need to go, sweetheart.”

“My stuff is right next to the door.” He assured his dad.

“Max, call him a cab.”

“I was going to, George.” Now his papa rolled his eyes. “3 minutes, get ready.”

Kimi rushed to the front door, wearing his sneakers, tuning in to his parents’ peaceful chatter. It’d been so long.

“My hair is disgusting.”

“I can help you shower,” Max replied, and George blushed furiously.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” he mumbled while forcing a smile out of his face. “Your girl wouldn’t like that,” he shot back, suddenly annoyed.

His papa leaned down to his dad, and Kimi may have slowed his hand briefly to not miss the answer. “I don’t have any at the moment.”

“Yeah? You don’t?”

Kimi was ready. “Alright, I am going!” He informed them, drawing them out of their bubble.

“Phone, charger, spare socks, hoodie…” George counted mechanically.

“All with me, Dad!” Kimi confirmed, his dad stared at Papa’s face for him to say something too.

“Uh,” Max tried, obviously out of ideas, “don’t get drunk in the wilderness?” George rolled his eyes.

“No worries! Love you!” He blew a kiss to each of them and saw his dad try to blow one back before dissolving into another fit of coughing.

“A very infectious kiss…” was the last thing he heard from the apartment as Kimi sprinted down the stairs, forgoing the lift.

Chapter Text

Kimi was singing himself a terrible cover of ‘Shell-shocked’ while he was opening the door. He got rid of his shoes and turned to the staircase. The teenager adjusted the strap of his backpack as he jumped on the stairs, his dad suspiciously not around to welcome him.

There was a sound of music christening their hallway. Kimi smiled himself amusedly. His dad was definitely going on a date. It had been so long since the last one, anyway.

He walked on his tiptoes and leaned against the doorframe.

George was way too focused on the collar of his icy blue dress shirt to recognize the presence of his son.

“DAD!”

The Brit jumped to his feet, holding his chest. “Blimey, Kimi! Why are you so early?”

“The coach let us go.” Cocking his head, “Going to a date?”

His dad diverted his eyes. Kimi considered himself old enough, an adult maybe, but for some reason, his dad still got shy whenever he was off to a date. Kimi, in fact, had never shown a distaste or voiced a protest against it. He full-heartedly believed that his dad deserved to be loved and cared for. Even though, idea of another man permanently in their life bugged Kimi from time to time.

“I don’t mind, Dad, really,” he sometimes, only sometimes, felt like a traitor when he had to encourage his dad for his dates. But not encouraging him would also pain Kimi.

George didn’t react, though, his head still hung low, and he bit his lower lip.

A deep sigh.

“Very well, you will meet him when he is here.”

“Oooh, he is picking you up.” The last one had not, and it had slightly annoyed Kimi at the time. He firmly believed his dad deserved the best.

“Andrea!”

“Oh-kaay,” he chuckled as he left George alone, continuing with his out-of-tune murmuring.

It was another 30 minutes before the teenager heard the sound of tyres on the gravel. He got up and headed back to the master bedroom.

Kimi had to cease the banter with his dad after the separation, because it wasn’t just Kimi doing it. He learned the habit from his papa, and growing up, he started joining Max in teasing George. However, when banter turned to sour fights and endless arguments, Kimi had disappeared from the scene and refrained from reminding George too much of Max, perhaps too childish and innocent in his ways, but he tried.

Nowadays, he believed his dad was missing the back and forth, maybe Max as well, so he took matters back into his hands. Anything to make his dad happy.

“My elf ears are hearing a trespasser.”

George rolled his eyes, the gesture making the teenager smile. He was showering in his perfume.

“Yeah, alright, come along, Verstappen.” The surname was another way of his dad reminding him he was on thin ice.

As they walked to the door, the bell rang. Kimi decided to throw one last joke in.

“Dad,” he cleared his throat, “don’t you think a see-through dress shirt is too much on a first date?”

George flipped around in shock, his big, big eyes twice larger in size. “Wot???”

Kimi went into a full laughter fit, unable to stop himself, as George complained. “My own son is making fun of me.”

“Nooouu,” he tried to barge in, but he started to choke in his spit and laughter.

“You are not getting that VR glasses, Andrea.”

Kimi whined in protest, but still snickered, cheeky. “Hmm, maybe I'll ask Papa then.”

George shot him a nasty look, and that was all Kimi needed to be quiet.

But his dad’s date wasn’t so patient. A loud knock was heard in the corridor.

“Tut-tut,” Kimi raised his eyebrows, looking at his frustrated and huffing dad. “No patience, no manners.” He wondered if the poor date knew he was getting on his dad’s nerves already.

“No manners, indeed,” his dad muttered as he stood in front of the door. He exhaled deeply, then looked at Kimi one last time. He usually was not this nervous before a date.

Kimi’s mouth formed an O as he realized who the date was.

“Hey there, mate.” His papa smiled at him, then eyes twinkling, he gave George a once-over. Like a love-sick puppy.

“Wait,” Kimi gulped, “YOUR DATE IS PAPA?”

George flushed scarlet, while Max chuckled and snaked an arm around his dad. Kimi was astonished at the show of affection, for there was a time he had wondered whether these two would be able to be in the same room without fighting.

“Max.”

“What? I think I am not a bad choice.” He winked at Kimi.

And Kimi… Well, he felt happy, he couldn’t lie. He always thought of their happy days, when he didn’t have 2 bedrooms, their old house, the days they would all sit together at the kitchen, banter in the living room, go around the world, support Papa’s team in races, laugh as his dad and Papa argue over the new regulations.

He was 17, yes, but he was still a child of divorce, hopeful for a reconciliation. He could recognize that they were on much better terms lately, that Max had not had any women around in a very long time, and George had ceased testing different shades of blondies. But it had completely gone over his head that there was more to their painful quasi-flirting.

“Sweetheart, we are just trying.” George had cut his thoughts as a worried look had consumed his face. Max had frowned at the declaration, but he didn’t comment.

“No, I mean,” Kimi really needed to learn how to gather his thoughts, “I just didn’t realize, uhm,” how to voice it? “I don’t know, you?”

“Well, baby-” Oh, no, his dad was going to launch a whole lecture on him. He didn’t want a lecture, he wanted them to be happy.

“No, dad, I am so happy,” He smiled at his parents, “I… Have fun! I mean it!”

His papa ruffled his hair with his free hand. “Thanks, buddy.”

“But still, Andrea-”

“Dad,” he had to cut him off a second time, “I understand, but let’s have The Talk if you guys manage to work out in the end.” He snickered, evilly, “Otherwise, I am writing this off as another failed blond guy.”

“A challenge?” Max smiled just as wickedly, “I am all in.” He kissed his dad’s cheek.

George huffed, defeated, “Alright, whatever, Verstappens. Let’s go.” He shook his head as he marched to the car. His papa was trailing behind him.

Kimi stood at the entrance. Oh, he couldn’t stop himself!

“Dad, remember the first date rule!”

He closed the door shut in lightning speed, muffling an angry ‘Andrea!’ behind it.