Chapter Text
The race was over before it even started.
Oscar sat in the car, his hands shaking. He didn't even make it to the starting position.
He wanted to scream, he wanted to cry, he wanted to do something, it was his home race! But he had to remain professional. He was so busy fighting his own emotions that he barely registered the voice asking him if he was okay.
"I'm fine."
But Oscar knew he was lying straight through his teeth. His eyes burned from holding back tears and his throat felt tight. The urge to slip was growing in his chest, but he couldn't regress here. Be a big boy, Oscar told himself.
-
Oscar couldnt remember when he ended up in his driver's room, but he was there now, laying on the couch on his side, still in his fireproofs. The race was playing on the TV, but he wasnt paying attention to it. He was dropping, probably sitting at four or five years old. He could try to drop younger, but Lando wasnt with him and he didnt feel like grabbing any of his gear. So instead, he just laid on the couch and waited.
-
Lando tried his best to avoid the cameras and reporters after the race was finished, he needed to get to Oscar. He could only imagine how his teammate was dealing with the crash.
He reached the door to Oscar's driver room, softly knocking on the door. "Osc, mate? Its me, Lando. I'm gonna come in, alright?" He didnt wait for a response, slowly pushing the door open. Oscar was curled up on the couch, a knuckle in his mouth.
Oscar weakly lifted his head, the tears returning to the back of his eyes at the sight of his caregiver. Seeing Lando made him drop lower, about two now.
Oscar's choked sob sounded like a gunshot to Lando. He hurried over to the couch, carefully hoisting Oscar into his arms. "Oh, don't cry, please don't cry, darling. Its okay, there's so many more races to race."
Oscar shook his head, "not home race! 'm stupid! messed it up!"
Lando gently shushed him, walking around the room to try to soothe the other driver. "You are not stupid, Osc. It wasn't your fault, the car just had a bit of an oopsie."
Despite the rocking and gentle words, Oscar continued to cry, his face pressed against Lando's shoulder. He was so embarrassed, so angry. He felt like he let everyone down. His team, his fans, his family, everyone.
Lando knew that Oscar was far too distressed to calm down now, so he just let him cry and continued to coo soft words at the regressed boy. "My brave boy, just get it all out, baby. I'm right here, shhh."
Lando walked over to the Oscar's gear bag that was sat on the floor. He picked it up with one hand, his other arm holding Oscar up. He set the bag down on the couch with a soft thump before lowering himself onto the couch, getting Oscar settled in his lap. Digging through the bag, Lando pulled out a clean pair of clothes for Oscar to wear and his favorite stuffed animal, a koala that Oscar named "Aussie".
It had been a gag gift originally, but Oscar ended up hanging onto him. More for 'Little Oscar' rather than 'Big Oscar', he claimed, but Lando knew that he would cuddle the plush at night, or he'd absent mindedly rub his palms over the fur when he was overwhelmed.
Lando made an exaggerated gasp, trying to get the boy to smile. "I think someone's here to cheer you up, Osc." He held the plush up for Oscar to see, "Look who it is, baby! Is that Aussie?"
Oscar lifted his head, his cries slowing to whimpers and sniffles. He nodded, gently taking the stuffed animal and pressing it against his chest, "Aussie."
Lando nodded, smiling. "Yeah, sweet boy. That's your Aussie. Aussie hates when youre sad, baby, and so do I."
Oscar nuzzled his face in the top of Aussie' head, sighing softly. He curled himself closer against his caregiver's chest, needing the warmth and security. Though the moment was short lived as soon as Lando gently laid Oscar down on the couch, earning a whine from the boy.
"Oh, I know, darling. But don't you want to change into your comfy clothes?" Lando said, attempting to comfort his baby. He rubbed Oscar's tummy to try to keep the regressed driver calm before carefully removing the fireproofs. Lando received another whine from Oscar when he had to remove Aussie from his hands. "I know, I'm so mean, I'm so sorry."
The fireproofs came off and Lando quickly got to work on dressing Oscar. First, he slipped a pair of baggy athletic shorts up Oscar’s legs, urging him to lift his hips. Getting Oscar's shirt on was the hard part. Oscar didn't want to lose eyesight with Lando, and the shirt being pulled over his head restricted his view, which made him less than happy. A demanding whine escaped his throat, his hands pushing against the shirt.
Lando sighed, though he wasn't upset, not at Oscar at least. Just with the situation, the crash. "Tell me all about it, darling," he mumbled, managing to get Oscar's head through the head hole, which settled him down now that Lando was back in view. "See, I didn't go anywhere," Lando reassured, getting Oscar's arms through the arm holes. "I don't suppose you're going to let me go change, are you?"
Oscar huffed, his eyebrows furrowing. Lando chuckled softly, picking Oscar back up and settling him in his lap. "Guess you're coming with me to get my clothes." He stood up, Oscar situated on his hip. Oscar huffed again, pointing to his plush. "Aussie."
"Right, sorry, darling," Lando apologized while picking Aussie up and giving him back to Oscar. He snuck out of Oscar's driver room, heading to his own. Thankfully, everyone was in the garage so they didn't bump into anybody. Lando wouldn't know what to do if they did, Oscar would be mortified. Oscar already struggled to regress, fighting the urge until he couldn't take it anymore. He didn't like not being in control, he hated acting helpless.
Lando shut the door behind him, moving to set Oscar down on the couch, though he kept his hands on Oscar's sides for now so he wasn't losing all contact. "I'm going to get changed really quick, and then as soon as I'm done we can head back to the hotel, okay Osc? Aussie will keep you company."
Oscar pulled Aussie closer to his chest, the fabric of the stuffed koala's ear sliding between his fingers. He looked at Lando with big, dewey brown eyes, his eyebrows pinched together. Lando just gave him a small smile, wiping his thumb across Oscar's cheek. "I'll be quick." With that, he stood up and grabbed his own gear bag, fishing out his clean clothes.
He changed as quickly as possible, knowing that Oscar was already in a delicate state. A very needy, very clingy, very fussy state. Not that Lando minded, he just hated the circumstances. He kept an eye on Oscar, who was clutching Aussie to his chest, a knuckle in his mouth.
"Alright, baby, I'm all done," Lando said, kneeling down in front of Oscar. "Are you ready to head back? I'll need you to walk to the car, and you'll have to put Aussie away for a bit."
Oscar's grip on Aussie tightened, he didn't want to put him away. He didn't want to walk. He didn't want to pretend, even if it was just to walk out to the car. His breath started coming out in short, hot puffs around his knuckle, tears building back in his eyes. He was tired, and everything seemed much too big for his little brain.
Lando saw the shift immediately, panic rising in his chest. "No, no, no, no, please don't cry. It's just for a little bit, baby."
But Oscar was beyond reasoning at this point. He wasn't trying to be a brat, Lando knew that, it was all too much for Oscar. A sob ripped from his throat and his teeth dug into his knuckle, tears spilled freely now.
Lando scooped the boy back into his arms, sitting on the floor. Oscar’s limbs instinctively wrapped around Lando's body, sobs wrecking through his body.
"Oh, baby boy," Lando cooed, rocking Oscar in his lap. "You've just had enough, haven't you? I'm so sorry, darling."
A sharp cry was all he got back as a reply, not that he was expecting anything more. Lando started patting the other's bottom, trying to do something that would calm him down. Unfortunately, Oscar was just too overwhelmed to even comprehend that Lando was trying to calm him down. He was dropping again, just a baby now in Lando's arms. Lando held him like he had earlier, letting Oscar cry it out. He thought about taking Oscar out the backway where they wouldn't be spotted so he could carry him. It would work, but Oscar needed to settle.
"Breathe, baby. I've got you, You're going to make yourself sick, sweetness," Lando kept his voice soft, not wanting to startle to boy in his lap. Oscar’s face was already flushed red from the sobbing, a cough getting caught in his throat. Lando was quick to start patting his upper back. "Easy, darling. You don't have to cry, just relax. I'm right here."
-
Lando wasnt sure how long he was sitting there with Oscar in his lap, maybe around 30 minutes. He had adjusted their position a little bit ago so that Oscar was cradled in his arms.
The crying had finally stopped, leaving Oscar an exhausted mess. He stared up at Lando with his doe eyes, his eyelashes still wet. Lando gently wiped the tears away, cooing softly at the boy in his arms. "All calm now, no more crying, baby." He kissed Oscar’s forehead, letting his lips linger there for a moment, thankful to feel Oscar relax in his arms a little. "That's it... Hi sweetheart."
Oscar gurgled something incoherent which made Lando smile. "So tiny," he grinned, patting Oscar's tummy. With great care, Lando stood up, making sure to keep Oscar steady in his arms. He made up his mind and was going to take the backway out to his car, especially with how young Oscar just dropped. With Oscar on his hip, he slung his gear bag over his opposite shoulder and made sure Oscar had a good grip on Aussie.
"We're going to go out the back way," Lando explained, walking out of his driver's room, "that way I can hold you all I want." Oscar didn't respond verbally, not that Lando expected him to. Instead, Oscar just rested his head on Lando's shoulder.
Lando snuck them out the back door of the motorhome, keeping an eye out for any fans or paparazzi. With some struggle, Lando dug his car keys out and unlocked his car, throwing his gear bag in the backseat before rounding his way to the passenger side door. He carefully placed Oscar down, who whined at the loss of contact. Lando rubbed Oscar's elbow, "Shhh, just a short trip back to the hotel."
He buckled Oscar in, kissing the tip of the younger man's nose. Oscar patted Lando's cheek, a small giggle escaping him. Lando smiled, "I'll give you all the hugs and kisses you want when we get to the hotel."
-
Just as Lando promised, the ride to the hotel was short. Lando shut the hotel door behind him, locking it. He threw his gear bag down on the floor before sitting down on the edge of the hotel bed, Oscar settled in his lap. "Just you and me now," he said softly, kissing Oscar's cheek, and then his forehead, and other cheek, and chin, and then his nose again. Oscar giggled, nuzzling himself closer to Lando’s chest, Aussie still clutched in his hand.
Lando chuckled, "There's my happy baby."
He scooted back on the bed, propping up the pillows so he could lean back. He carefully lowered Oscar to lay down on his chest. Oscar sighed, melting against Lando's chest and his face pressed against the side of Lando's neck. He had Aussie tucked underneath his arm, and now Lando was gently rubbing his back. Oscar yawned, his eyes now drooping.
Lando slipped a pacifier into Oscar's mouth, the younger driver accepting it sleepily, the silicon bobbing up and down slowly. Lando grabbed his phone and went to the white noise app he downloaded specifically for Oscar, turning on some beach sounds and adjusting the volume so it wasn't too loud. Just enough to soothe.
"Go to sleep, baby," Lando whispered, Oscar’s eyes already shut.
It didn't take long for Oscar to fall asleep, Lando dozing off shortly after. It was a well deserved nap after the day the two had.