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Oscar wasn’t one to have “beef” with anybody. He was quiet and didn’t really interfere enough to develop something like that with anybody.
Having moved from Australia at fourteen, that meant a brand new start for him at his new school during his freshman year. It had been good timing considering all freshman were new to the building at-least but it seemed that everyone practically knew each other since they were fetuses.
Oscar had a good amount of friend's but his main focus was schoolwork and getting into a good engineering program after high school. He would get on well with everyone and nobody seemed to particularly have any issue with him…well almost everyone.
For some reason, Lando Norris just seemed to hate him. Lando was a very popular guy, Oscar will give him that, but he seemed to just have it out for Oscar ever since he’d moved there. Oscar often wondered what he’d done to deserve it but whatever the reason was, Oscar was basically the only person that Lando had an animosity towards.
Everyone would say the same thing “Lando’s so sweet” “Lando likes everyone” and Oscar would have to sit through an entire speech about how great Lando was. It’s seriously beyond him to understand why Lando dislikes him so much and goes out of his way to make it known.
It started all the way back in freshman year. Oscar had been paired with Lando in English class since Oscar got there mid year and the teacher wanted him to have Lando as a partner because of how ‘welcoming’ and ‘kind’ Lando was.
Oscar remembered shyly sitting down beside Lando when Lando beamed at him and then started talking. “You know, I play like four sports?” He’d said “you clearly haven’t yet cause you’re so thin but don’t worry mate, I’ll teach you and maybe you can get more friends”.
Oscar had frowned and suppressed a cry, he knew people would give him a hard time but why was this kid that everyone supposedly liked being so mean. Oscar was not the athletic type and that was a pretty big insecurity of his, so when Lando decided that was his point of focus Oscar mentally recoiled.
Since then, Oscar requested his partner be changed and he’d felt Lando’s stare everywhere he went. Oscar did end up adjusting pretty well despite the initial introductions. He had befriended max verstappen, Charles leclerc, Liam Lawson, Isaac hadjar and Pierre gasly.
Oscar had made it through freshman year okay except the looming presence of Lando freaking Norris. The entire year, it was like lando had been following him around and for some reason always ending up in Oscar’s groups. Oscar could’ve sworn he’d walked into biology once and overheard Lando begging the teacher to put him in Oscar’s group.
Oscar avoided talking to him at all costs so he would nod and shake his head to communicate in these situations. Oscar had gone home more often than he’d like to admit and just complain about Lando, how he was out to get him and how he disliked Oscar for no apparent reason .
Oscars mum told him to just leave it and if he was indifferent to it, Lando would stop bothering him. By sophomore year Oscar had deemed it safe to come out to his friends.
Oscar had always known he didn’t like girls like that, he had a lot of friends that were girls and he respected them of course but he never felt that attraction. So when Oscar had told his close friends, he told them that it wasn’t a secret so if anyone asked, they’re free to tell them.
Oscar didn’t want to keep it a secret because then he’d have a harder time explaining stuff away and he’d rather do it himself than let others find out another way.
Oscar had been on his toes all week, Sure it was his decision but the self consciousness was at its peak the past few days. Oscar was just waiting for the moment someone would creep up on him and make fun of him.
It was During PE where Oscar had been walking the track around the football field with Charles, they had been talking about how Charles wanted to rent out an arcade for his birthday and then host a sleepover afterwards. Charles had been insisting on inviting Lando and even though oscar was not particularly excited about that aspect, he would never make anyone adjust for his own comfort.
Oscar was slightly zoned out when he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Carlos sainz. Carlos was never outwardly mean to him, he was actually a pretty good friend of max’s and was acquainted with Charles. Oscar knew he was best friends with Lando so the sight of him made Oscar’s heart drop.
Carlos and Lando both played football on the schools team and both had somehow made varsity as sophomores. If Lando treated Oscar like how he treated everyone else, Carlos was definitely the more intimidating one.
A playful and easy smirk played on Carlos’s face as he rolled his shoulders back and shoved his hands in his PE shorts pockets. Oscar blinked at him, he was timid and felt like a deer in headlights. Oscar had no idea why but that’s how he always felt when it came to Lando or anyone who was associated with him.
A lot of the resentment Oscar now had for Lando stemmed from the fact that Lando was nice to everyone. If Oscar was honest, he probably hadn’t heard a single bad thing about the guy besides the fact that he could never focus on schoolwork, so why did he treat Oscar so differently.
Oscar had harbored a teeny little crush but he knew it was hopeless so he’d used that energy to despise Lando Norris. He had never acted on his “hatred” for Lando but he kept it safe and locked up in his mind.
Oscars focus snapped back to Carlos as the Spaniard opened his mouth to speak “ay Oscar right?” Oscar blinked at him a few times and then nodded “yes?”.
Carlos’s grin widened and then he started to speak again “well you know my friend heard about the rumors and he wanted you to know that he likes you” Oscar wanted to cry. Oscar never thought of himself as hideous but the whole ‘my freind likes you’ joke was just cruel. Oscar blinked a few more times, Carlos’s expression was unwavering.
It hadn’t been a week since he was out and he was already getting teased? Oscar regretted every door he’d opened to anyone. What made it even worse was when his eyes drifted left and saw Lando a couple meters back, watching them from Behind a tree.
Of course it was his idea. Oscar never thought even he would stoop this low. Carlos’s expression began to grow impatient “mate, do you have anything to say?” He pushed. Oscar felt Charles straighten beside him “if he doesn’t wanna say anything, he didn’t have to”. Carlos shrugged and walked back to where land was standing.
At Charles’s birthday party, Oscar had begun to have a lot of fun, Oscar and Charles were competing at every machine and game and Oscar had almost forgotten that album was there. That was until he had stood beside Oscar and started giving his stupid pointers on how to win, then proceeded to “show him how it’s done” and beat Oscar’s score by double the amount. Why did this guy feel the need to try to one up Oscar all the time, even at Charles’s birthday?
Oscar was so frustrated that he had jsut given up and sulked at the benches while sipping on his slushie. It wasn’t like him not be so upset over something so minor but every time Lando Norris had done anything remotely “mean” Oscar would shut himself out .
At the end of the day they’d all gathered at Charles’s house and Oscar was sat on one of the many mattresses that covered Charles’s bedroom floor.
The group had been playing truth or dare, there had been about eight of them in total including, Max, Carlos, liam, Arvid and some that Oscar wasn’t familiar with. During the game, oscar began to ACTULLY enjoy himself when max had asked Lando truth or dare.
Landk had leaned back onto the cushions and stretched “truth” and max smirked and for some reason, he’d locked eyes with Oscar.
“do you like anyone?” And everyone seemed to exchange knowing glances with eachother, oscar felt like he was being left out on an inside joke. “Maybe” Lando had immediately responded with that’s ruled smirk “give as a hint!” Arthur, Charles younger brother had begged. Lando only shrugged and said “they’re very smart” and Oscar begun to think about all the girls Lando always hung around when Lando suddenly locked eyes with him.
Oscar didn’t other shiver that’s went down his spine at that look but he’d decidedly looked away and was uneasy the whole rest of the night.
in the beginning of junior year, Oscar had begun to receive the texts. They would talk to him atleast once a day and whoever it was behind that screen was relentless.
Unknown
heyyyy
Are you from Tennessee cause ur the only ten I seee
srry that was corny af
Hey? Am I being ignored???
hey you might have ACCIDENTALLY left me on delivered baby
okay too much I gochu
And that was just an overview of those dumb messages, Oscar didn’t know who was sending them but he knew they were just doing it to make fun of him. Oscar did not want to be the joke of anyone’s friend group so he just always ignored it.
So when Oscar opened his locker one day and saw a note on the bottom of it, he had cautiously picked it up and sighed when he read it. “Hey, maybe u didn’t get my messages??” Oscar wanted to die, it wasn’t enough to this person that he had ignored the daily messages and now they decided to harass him at his locker.
Oscar was sick of being made fun of, he never had gotten bullied either besides the whole Lando thing but he was generally well liked. Oscar prayed it wasn’t Lando Norris, the persisting little crush still somehow didn’t go away despite everything so Oscar made it his mission to keep that guy out of his mind.
So that was the day that started the influx of notes in his locker. Oscar would just take the note and stir it in his backpack everyday and never look at it again, he didn’t want to get his hopes up and let himself think that there was somewhere out there who really did mean it.
It had been three months of the little one sentence long notes when Oscar found Lando Norris slipping a note into his locker. No way…
Suddenly the small hope and little ounce of joy he’d stared getting everyday seeing the guaranteed note in his locker had vanished. Ofcourse it was him, ofcourse he had to find a way to make Oscar seem miserable.
Oscar had waited to approach the locker and when he did, he took the stupid note and ripped it in two. That’ll show him.
Oscar had glanced up and saw Lando peering over the locker banks with a hurt and confused expression and Oscar hoped that it would be enough for him to finally leave him alone.
It was approaching the end of the year and the final football game before prom and been coming up, Oscar wasn’t planning on going so imagine his suprise when max approached him during passing period and patted him on the back “Oscar, you should come to the football game tonight” Oscar made confused sound and raised an eyebrow “mate, I’m gonna go home and sleep all day, i don’t she’s time for a football game”.
Max frowned and then spoke again “please Oscar, I really want you there…. Uh we can go for ice cream after?” And he knew Oscar would say yes.
So here Oscar was, watching the stupid football game. Max and Charles had bragged him to the very first row and they’d been particularly jittery. Oscar payed it no mind as he half focused on the stupid football game. He watched as Lando racked up points and sighed.
Oscar count wait till this was over, he couldn’t wait to just go and get the ice cream he was promised. Maybe he would get vanilla but he was also craving a chocolate milkshake, so probably that but what topping?
All of a sudden, the entire student section on the bleachers stood up and roared in cheers as Oscar looked around confused and stood up with them. Oscar saw the players dabbing eachother up and celebrating, ah they’d won.
Oscar smiled at the thought, all these people happy over a little football game when most of them couldn’t stand eachother. The unity high school sports brings to people, Oscar ponders. As Oscar sat back down on the bench on the bleachers, His eyes instinctually lando in the number 4 jersey doing a little “victory lap” round the middle of the field.
Oscar watched as Lando ran with 5 other players that Oscar wasn’t really paying attention to and disappeared behind an empty old set of bleachers which sat at the far right end of the student section.
Max and Charles exchanged a look and Oscar raised his brown in question as Charles’s shook his head. Lando was meant to announce prom at the end of the game, Oscar knew that.
He had done it the year before aswell, he was supposed to get on the mic and confirm the last few details and the audience would go crazy.
Lando, sweaty and blushed got up to the mic and began to do his little speech about prom. Oscar had zoned out, thinking about ditching prom last minute when lando paused and began to speak again.
”one more thing!” He’d said and suddenly the stands erupted in cheers again “I would like to do the honours” as the five players which Oscar recognized to be Carlos sainz, Esteban ocon, Liam Lawson, Gabriel borteleto and Ollie bearman ran with poster paper and lined up horizontally behind Lando.
“Oscar! Will you go to prom with me?” Lando yelled as he ran towards Oscar who sat there, pink and shell shocked, front and center in the student section. Charles squeeled and Oscar’s eyes widened, what? Why was Lando Norris asking him to prom. This had to be a prank.
Lando and made it to Oscar and his hands enveloped Oscar’s, “please?” He looked so different, so childlike. Oscar blinked at him and looked behind to see each of the players holding a letter that spelled out “prom” and one of them was the question mark.
“what?” Was the first thing that came out of Oscar’s mouth, because what indeed. Lando hated his guts so why was he doing this, why was he trying to embarrass Oscar infront of everyone?.
“please, I’ve been begging you to go on a date with me for so long I don’t even know, I’ve liked you since I first saw you but you don’t like me!” Lando said, only loud enough so they both could hear “you don’t have to talk to me again but give me one chance! I’ll be the best date ever I swear!”
Oscar cleared away the initial shock as he began to speak “w-what? You Litterlly hate me?” Oscar managed “what? When did I hate you? Who told you that? I’ll beat them up” Lando looked so genuinely confused and Oscar melted.
Oscar was still confused as hell but he gave a small smile and nodded “okay, I’ll go to prom with you” he quietly said. Before he even finished Lando’s smile stretched so big that Oscar thought he’d rip his skin, Lando still had the mic on his hand and he turned around and screamed into it “HE SAID YES! BEST DAY OF MY LIFE”
Before Oscar knew it, the stands erupted into another wave of applause and whistles and Lando quickly leaned in and kissed Oscar on the cheek and again onto their joined hands.
This went down as one of the best days of Oscar’s life, alongside prom night, graduation, their wedding night and every day after.