leclucklerc

[leclucklerc]

Against the World SO17 - 04. Comfort

Pairings: Shohei Ohtani x reader

Summary: Y/n is starring in a music video, but a trouble seems to be brewing?

Word Count: 5k

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“Takahashi Ren gave you his number!?”

Y/n grimaced at that, mind remembering the unpleasant memory that happened a few days ago. Of the strong smell of cologne, of being backed in front of a mirror with a man that she didn’t like, of the self-satisfying smirk that appeared on Takahashi-san’s face despite her obvious grimace at his advances.

For the past few days, she had almost forgotten that it had happened. Deciding that burying that occurrence deep inside his memory was the best-case scenario.

Even when an unknown number texted her, asking why she didn’t call him when she arrived back in Iwate, y/n had decided to forget about it. All about it.

(The revolting scent of his perfume and the self-satisfying smirk plastered across his face as he looked won on her angered her.)

She only brought it up when Ami asked her a few days later. The two of them are sitting in a café, and there is a large parfait between them. It’s the summer break, a short getaway from school.

Now, seeing Ami’s sparkling eyes and excited tone, she kind of regretted her decision on telling her.

“He did,” she confirmed. “Do you want it? I’ll give it to you-“

“No!” denied Ami, making an x gesture with her arms. “He gave it to you! I’m not gonna call him! So, did you call him!?”

She blanched at that. “No way,” replied the girl, grimacing with a spoon between her lips. Even the sweetness of the parfait couldn’t contain the feeling of disgust that appeared inside her mouth.

Ami groaned. “But why?” she screeched out. “It’s Takahashi Ren! All the girls in school will be so jealous!”

“He’s old, Ami.”

“Please, he’s only 20.”

He’s 21 by the end of this year, she thought. Though she didn’t voice it. “No one in their 20s should date someone with a 1 starting their age,” replied y/n, leaning back on her chair. “And he’s not my type, okay? 

The other girl raised an eyebrow at that, almost disbelieving. After all, subjectively, Takahashi-san is an attractive man, especially to teenage girls like them. “And what’s your type?” she said. “Tanned, tall guys with hair cropped short, plays baseball, a pitcher with the name of Ohtani-“

Immediately, y/n surged forward, literally shutting the other girl off with her hand. She’s sure that her face is flaming red, as she can already feel the massive embarrassment that’s practically dripping down her being.

Ami – for her part – just wiggled her eyebrow, clearly teasing her.

“You-“ She hissed out. “You- I- I don’t have a crush on him!”

Rolling her eyes, Ami merely shrugged. “Yeah, sure,” she said. “Not that you buried down your raging, age-old trauma just to see one of his games.”

“I was being a good friend!”

“Friend my ass.”

“Best friend, then!”

“Seriously,” said Ami, grabbing y/n’s hand out of her face. “Are you seriously that oblivious? There’s no way that what’s going on between you and Ohtani-kun is just friendship.”

“I-“ Y/n was about to say something to refute that statement, but she stopped.

Because, really, is it just friendship between the two of them?

Romantic love is not something that he had experienced before. Sure, she was bathed in familial love from her mom. She knows what an adoring – borderline fanatic – love feels like from the meager fans that she had accumulated during her days as an idol.

But romantic love? The love between two people that had been deemed as the highest form of her love?

She had never experienced it before. Crushes and other similar things had not been on her mind for a long time. Middle school, a time when other people her age started to develop such feelings, was spent in Tokyo. Grinding and clawing in her desperate wish to become an idol amid the ruthless Japanese entertainment industry.

By the time she’s in high school – a bit jaded from her experience as an idol and a bit desperate to bring her name out there, to make more and more people adore her – love seems to be something that is not a priority for her. After all, there are so many things to chase. So many things that she hasn’t achieved that she wants to someday have.

So … this newfound feeling that she has with Shohei is unfamiliar to her. Something that she had never felt before. Something that she doesn’t know the name of.

Is it a mere schoolgirl crush, or is it love? Who knows? Not even y/n is sure about the fact.

The only thing that she knows is that she really likes it. She really liked the warmth that spread across her chest every time she saw Shohei smile. She likes to hear about his ramble and talk about baseball. She likes to watch him practice, doing the things that he really loves. 

She likes everything about him.

“I bet if Ohtani-kun is not busy training for Koshien, you will be hanging out with him instead of me,” said Ami with a pout.

“No, I will still be hanging out with you,” she denied.

“Mhm, I sure do believe that.”

Y/n didn’t even bother to refute any further because she too knows that if Shohei is available, she will probably choose to hang out with him. 

“So, when is the team is going to go to Hyogo?” asked Ami.

“Tomorrow,” replied y/n, as if she’s the manager of the team who knows their schedule almost immediately. The other girl shot her a look – a teasing one. “What?” asked y/n, almost defensive. “Me and Shohei texts okay!?”

“And call, right?” asked Ami.

“That’s what friends do; I call you all the time.”

“But we didn’t call each other until one of us fell asleep.”

Y/n flushed at that. The late-night calls are a new development. It was something that they initially did because Shohei had been busy with practice during the day and she was too busy running around Tokyo to text each other during the daytime. 

It was an accident at first, her falling asleep during a call with Shohei. There’s just something about it. The way they talked about everything and yet nothing throughout the night. How Shohei’s voice went lower as he grew progressively more and more sleepy.

She had thought that it was a one-time thing. That it’s something that won’t be repeated besides that night. But now? Now they do it every night.

“I bet you think he has a nice voice, good enough to fall asleep to,” teased Ami again.

“Ami,” hissed out y/n, face practically flaming. “I- ugh.”

Ami let out a joyful laughter at that, looking absolutely delighted at her suffering. “But seriously,” said the other girl, leaning forward. A spoon hanging from the large grin that she has on her face. “Are you going to confess soon?”

The way the other girl said it, as if there’s no hesitation that she thinks y/n bears any kind of romantic feeling for Shohei struck her.

Y/n flushed immediately, as the thought registered inside her mind, almost as immediately as the ringing no that appeared inside her head.

“No,” she answered, a firm refusal ringing between the two of them. “He has a lot on his plate already.”

Because both Shohei and her have a lot on their plate already. This friendship that has developed between the two of them is a refreshing respite from her and his usual busy day. She didn’t want to destroy it. Break it to the point that it’s unrecognizable. Something that can’t be fixed.

Their relationship is way too precious – not only to her but to the both of them - and she doesn’t want to risk it just for a measly high school crush.

Crush is a fleeting thing but friendship is eternal, isn’t that what people are saying?

“You sure?” asked Ami, doubt evident on her tone. “I know you value your friendship greatly but isn’t this the chance to upgrade it to the next level?” she asked with a tilt of her head. “And who knows? He’ll probably feel the same way as you do.”

“Probably,” hissed out y/n. “I’m not- I’m not going to risk it just for a probability.”

“Life is an adventure you know.”

“I’m not going to confess,” said y/n again, although she hesitated for a bit. “Not soon, at least.”

Ami let out a small chuckle at that. “If you’re not going to confess to Ohtani, how about Takahashi Ren?” asked the girl, teasing. “Like an internship or sorts? before you confess to Ohtani-kun”

“That sounds plain wrong,” answered y/n. He may not like Takahashi-san and thinks he’s an asshole, but playing with someone feeling like that sounds like a horrible thing to do.

To be fair, she’s not even sure that Takahashi-san has any feelings for her. He probably tried to flirt with her just because she’s pretty or maybe she just looks easy or something. 

Still, Ami let out a hum at that, gaze still staring at her.

“I… don’t want to put pressure on you or anything,” said her friend. “But just think about it, yeah? Your relationship and Ohtani-kun.”

Y/n too, stared at her.

“I just want you to be happy, really,” said Ami with a small grin. “And I think you look happiest with him.”

Y/n could almost imagine it right now. Bright summer days under the scorching sun. In front of him, is Shohei who wore his signature bright grin. The air around them are warm as she stared at the boy in front of her, laughing, fully enjoying and basking on her presence.

The air around them are warm and yet, she thinks there’s nothing warmer than her heart as she too, continue to stare at her best friend.

Ami thinks that she’s at her happiest when she’s around him.

She too, privately, thinks that she’s at her happiest when she’s with him.

Now that Ami had put that kind of thought inside her head, that’s the only thing that she could think about.

Her mother had called her out during dinner repeatedly, scolding her about how she’s zoning out in the middle of their conversation. Her manager even realized it too, when he realized that she’s not all there when he briefed her about her upcoming schedule.

But really, you can’t blame her!

Now that she let those intrusive thoughts enter her mind, all she could think about is Shohei’s smile, the way it spread across his face and how bright it is, especially when’s he’s playing under the sun. Or the way it looks soft and-

Y/n flushed at that.

This unfamiliar feeling that keeps gnawing into her heart. This unfamiliar and yet heart fluttering feeling that she doesn’t want to stop.

Is it love? She’s not sure about that. After all, she’s still in high school. Her life had just started with so many endless possibilities beyond her. To say that this feeling is love seems to underestimate the magnitude of feeling that someone will feel when they’re falling in love.

She’s not sure if her feeling is love, but she’s sure that she likes Shohei. She likes being around him. She wants to hear more of his laugh. She wants to hear him ramble about baseball.

She wants to experience everything about him beyond friendship.

And isn’t that just an exciting thought? A thought that had made her flush up to her shoulder as she kept imagining things that best friends should never do.

Shohei lost in the first round of Summer Koshien.

To think that something that he had anticipated practically his whole life would end in such a manner is a tragic thing; she has to admit.

Y/n didn’t go to Hyogo to watch the tournament this year. Between the high cost of the train ticket – she already used most of her expenses for her almost weekly Tokyo trips – and her tightening schedules in Tokyo, she really can’t find the resources and the time for her to do the trip.

They always have a daily call though, during the duration of Shohei’s Koshien trip. It’s not a long call, usually only lasting around 15 minutes, but it was sufficient to update each other about their life. The night before the first match, she had teased him, asking him to call her immediately when they won the game.

Turns out, they didn’t win the game. But Shohei still calls her.

“We lost,” was what he said as a greeting, not even giving her a chance to greet him first. “The coach put me in after the other team scored four runs in the previous inning. It’s not enough.”

Y/n was stunned to silence.

Thankfully, it was break time, so no one really paid her any attention to her as she sat there in front of her salad in the corner of the dressing room. Her manager, who was sitting next to her, raised an eyebrow at her sudden silence. However, the man seems to notice that the topic of her conversation will be heavier than usual, making the man leave the room almost immediately.

“Sho,” she called out, hands starting to fidget as the anxious feeling climbed higher and higher, nearly up to her throat. “I- Are- are you okay?”

A wet laugh can be heard across the phone. It sounds fake. It sounds fabricated.

She hates it.

Shohei deserves to laugh. He deserves to enjoy Koshien with all his might. He deserves to enjoy the very tournament that he has dreamed of playing in ever since he was a child. He deserves happiness during this summer. Not this kind of laugh. Not this kind of bitter reality.

“No, I’m not,” he replied, voice straining. Y/n wants to be there. She wants to talk to him and cheer him up. To make him stop making that kind of voice that shows the world his vulnerability. “We spent months preparing for this, and we lost in the first round. That’s- that’s ridiculous.”

“No, it’s not!” stressed out y/n. Because it’s not. She won’t let him think all the hard work that he had put in for the damn tournament as a waste of time. She won’t ever let him doubt himself. “It’s not ridiculous, nor it is stupid. Koshien is your – and the team’s – dream!”

Koshien, koshien, koshien. That’s all he had ever talked about. From the moment they first met until a few days ago when they last met. It’s always about that tournament. Always about playing baseball in that coveted field. Always about winning the tournament and making his mark within the high school baseball community.

It had never been a waste of time.

Everything that he had put for Koshien, will never be a waste of time.

“I know,” he replied. “It’s just- “There was a hitch of a breath before a heavy sigh could be heard.

She wished that she could be there. That she can take his hand and convince him that everything will be okay. That this loss is just a small roadblock on his road to greatness.

A small sound of sob – barely audible – could be heard and in instant, she regretted her decision to not go to Hyogo.

“I-“ she started, something stupid already at the tip of her tongue. Something insane. “Do you want me to go there?” she asked, glancing at the clock in the room. “The shooting will end in an hour, and if I take the Shinkansen then-“

It wouldn’t be ideal, but it’s possible. She’s already mentally doing calculations inside her head about the cost of a Shinkansen ticket and the money on her bank account. She probably won’t have any money to buy lunch, but bento box is always an option. But she will have a trip to Tokyo again next week-

“No,” cut Shohei, sounding firm, stopping her train of thought. “It’s a long way; you’ll get tired if you go hastily like this,” continued the teen. “And i… The team will be going back to Iwate tomorrow morning.”

Y/n continues to be silent, letting the other teen to gather his bearings. It must’ve been painful. It’s a huge loss, after all. With this loss, Hanamaki Higashi’s summer is over. The long-awaited summer where they trained their hearts out, is over.

“Sho,” she said again, gently. “Do you want me to end the call? To give you privacy?”

There’s silence for a couple of second. Long enough for y/n to contemplate ending the call to give Shohei more privacy. Though, it was also Shohei who broke the silence.

“… I want to talk to you,” he said, finally. “I like hearing your voice.”

She ignored the loud thumping of her heart at that. Now is not the time to feel all warm and flustered. “Okay,” replied the girl. “Do you want to talk about it?”

There’s a sound of deep breath. “It’s just- It’s just so frustrating,” he finally said. “I- I didn’t allow any runs for three innings- I did my job, my role- but the offense was just-“ A frustrated breath escaped the other teen. She can already imagine him raking his own hair with his fingers in frustration. 

“You must imagine how frustrated I am just sitting there on the dugout in the ninth inning- just watching the offense completely fall apart just because I’m a pitcher! It’s just- it’s just so frustrating that I can’t do anything about it!” said the boy, more and more frustration seeping into his tone.

“And when it was my time to bat-“ he stopped for a bit. “I was so fucking useless. Can’t even land a hit. Strikeout in threepitches.”

Y/n lets him. She lets him rant and rant about the game earlier. She lets him pour his heart out about what just happened. About what he should do. What the team should’ve done and should’ve improved.

The rant lasted around 10 minutes before he stopped, catching his breath.

“I’m sorry,” he said finally. “I- I know this is your break time, and you’re just listening to my rant about something that you don’t even like-“

“No,” she interrupted. “Don’t be sorry. I want to do this. I want to help,” continue y/n. “If my presence here on the phone can help you manage your emotions, then I will be happy to do it.”

There’s silence at the end of the line.

“… When are you going back to Iwate?” asked Shohei, breaking the ongoing silence this time too.

Y/n glanced at the clock hanging on the wall in front of her. “Tomorrow night,” She replied.

“Then can we meet the day after that?” he asked. 

“Of course,” she answers in a heartbeat, no hesitation at all. She will probably be so fucking exhausted but oh well. There’s an opportunity cost for everything after all. If hers are being so exhausted in order to see Shohei’s smile, then she will happily do it. “I will always be there if you ever need me, you know that right?”

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a few moments, before a small – albeit weak – laugh appeared. She likes hearing it. This is how it should’ve gone, Shohei laughing and brimming with happiness. Shohei, being the sun that he is.

“Yeah,” answered Shohei finally. “You’re my biggest supporter.”

The smile that appeared on y/n’s face was a genuine one.

Their first hug happens on Shohei’s first day back.

They didn’t have their usual morning jog. Instead, Shohei asked her to meet him at the park near their school.

Y/n said yes to that in an instant.

(She doesn’t like to think how easy it is for her to answer that request. As if she had been anticipating the meeting after so many days of not seeing each other.

And it was not many days of seeing each other. It’s only a few days, said a voice inside her head that she had been trying to ignore for some time.)

The sun was setting, casting the sky an orange glow, when she arrived at the park. Her hand is full of plastic bags, hanging heavily on her arm. She can see Shohei almost immediately the moment she arrives, as the teen is the only one in the park, swinging by the swing alone.

She can see a baseball bat being thrown haphazardly near him, full of bats.

‘Did he do some practice earlier?’ thought the girl, staring at the bats. It’s a bit weird, considering that Shohei had always focused more on his pitching skill, as he is the hailed next ace pitcher of the team.

Shohei didn’t notice her arrival as his focus was solely on the ground. Taking a step closer, she stopped right in front of the teen, managing to catch his attention at the same time.

“Hey, stranger,” she said with a grin the moment Shohei looked up.

Idly, she thought that he looked a bit tanner. As if he’s freshly out of the sun. Considering how hot the summer was that year and the amount of practice that he had put up for Koshien, she should’ve expected it.

“Hey,” replied Shohei, too, a ghost of a smile already on his lips. Y/n doesn’t like it. The small smile that he’s wearing is so different from his usual ones. So different from the bright grins and warm eyes that he always wears.

Taking a seat beside him, she dumped her plastic bag on his lap.

Shohei blinked, staring at it. 

“Chocolate bread,” she said, answering her silent question as she pushed the swing lightly. “I thought… it will cheer you up a bit.”

Finally, the ghost of a smile – a fake one, a fraudulent one – that had appeared on Shohei’s face was replaced with a genuine one. His sunny smile that seems to always seem to make her days a bit brighter than before.

“Thank you,” he said, clutching the bag full of chocolate bread tightly. “It must’ve been expensive.”

“No, it’s not,” replied the girl. “I got coupons.”

The bread is in fact, very expensive. Y/n had to use all of her pocket money for the week to buy a bag full of them. It’s from a famous bakery around him after all. A delicacy that she can only buy once a week.

But seeing that she managed to make Shohei smile?

She thinks that it’s worth it.

They sat there in silence for a bit. It’s a heavy one, something that she was a bit afraid to break. Though, in the end, she’s the one who opens her mouth first. “So,” started the girl. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Shohei let out a small hum at that. “I don’t know,” he said after a while. “I talked a lot about the loss. To my teammates. To the coach. To my family,” continued the boy. “But talking about it – saying it out loud – it didn’t make everything better.”

“It didn’t?” asked y/n. “How?”

“It makes me angrier.”

Y/n hummed at that.

His anger seems justified. It may be a bit of an unfair comparison, but y/n thinks that out of everyone on the team, Shohei had been the one that anticipated Koshien the most. After all, he had said that he wanted to start his journey there. To make his mark in the baseball scene starting from the highly coveted tournament.

To see his team lose in the first round must’ve been very frustrating to him.

“It almost feels… as if my hard work didn’t matter,” he said. “I sacrificed a lot, I mean, I basically traded my time as a normal first-year high school student in order to achieve that Koshien dream, but-“

He stopped, staring at the sky.

“We lost. Horrifyingly.”

In a way, she thinks that she can almost relate to him in that regard.

After all, a few years ago, when she freshly arrived in Tokyo with big shining eyes and a too-big dream, she too, thought that she had sacrificed everything for a failed dream. Both her and Shohei had so many things riding on in their dream. They didn’t come from an affluent family. 

But at the same time too, y/n knows that it was not the right thing to say. Shohei is too hurt, too frustrated. 

“I don’t like the fact that you think your hard work didn’t matter,” said y/n instead, idly swinging on the swing. 

Almost immediately, she can hear the indignation that appeared from Shohei’s throat. Though, she didn’t let him continue.

“It’s-“

“I know how hard you work, Sho,” said the girl, cutting the baseball player. “I’ve been to almost all of your practice, I’ve seen you practicing, saw how much you love baseball. I really don’t think that all of your hard work went to waste.”

“But we still lost.”

“The world doesn’t revolve around winning and losing,” said y/n. Because if it was, she’s probably already buried 6ft under a ditch somewhere in Tokyo with how much she keeps losing and losing. “It revolves around growth. How you continue to evolve and become someone better than yesterday.”

Because isn’t it like that?

If the world revolves around winning and losing, then y/n would’ve become the biggest loser on earth with how many losses she has so far in life. Her failed showcase. Her failed albums. Her failed shows. She would’ve become the dumbest idol on earth if the world works like that.

But to her, it’s not like that. The thing that matters in this world is not winning and losing. It’s growth. It’s the continuous improvement that one has in their life. It’s the only thing that keeps her moving. The only thing that made her still chasing her hopeless dream to become a singer – to become the brightest star out there – despite the many failures that she has had in the past. 

It’s all because she thinks that everything is a process. That everything happens for a reason. That this one loss, one failure will make her a step closer to reaching her dream.

“Take this as a learning opportunity,” said y/n standing up. Shohei seems startled at the sudden move. “Your life doesn’t end with Koshien. Many baseball players becomes pro without winning Koshien, right?” she asked, turning around to stand directly in front of him.

“Well yes,” replied Shohei, head tilted a bit to stare at her. “But it’s my dream. I want to become the greatest baseball player to ever live. Winning Koshien, is a part of it.”

“And what I’m saying that it’s okay to dream winning Koshien!” she exclaimed. “But just like what you said, your dream is to become the greatest baseball player to ever live, Sho,” said the girl, extending her arm. Almost instinctively, Shohei grabbed her wrist, still staring at her. “It goes beyond Koshien, it goes beyond high school. Winning Koshien is amazing, more than amazing, in fact, but don’t let it contain you, Sho. Don’t let Koshien define you as a baseball player, you are more amazing than that.”

Shohei still stares at her, eyes wide.

“I know you can become the best player out there,” said y/n, grinning. “I think it’s already written in destiny, to etch the name Ohtani Shohei as the greatest baseball player ever. One whose name will enter the MLB hall of fame.”

It’s a slip of tongue thing, to let herself mention MLB. 

A word that had become something of a taboo inside her head. Something, that she doesn’t want to remember.

“…MLB?”

“Well yes, I think you can go beyond Japan.” 

Memories of her dad appeared. Of him in a baseball game and the broadcaster saying that he will probably end up in Cooperstown one day. It’s a bitter feeling to remember, especially her remembering the starry-eyed look on her mother’s face and the horrible feeling in her gut as she watched the game with a bitter feeling.

(Of her dad, laughing with another woman and another child. Of her dad, that had never acknowledged her existence ever since birth.

Of her dad – of that man, that had abandoned her mother alonw.)

She tried to forget the memory. To suppress everything unwanted. After all, this is about Shohei. Not her. Never her.

“Consider this as a lesson, Sho. Another practice. The first step to your greatness,” she said, grinning wide. “You learnt a lot during this ordeal, right? Things that you won’t realize if you didn’t lose the tournament.”

Something flickered inside Shohei’s eyes. Something that she can’t place.

Y/n looked down, staring at Shohei’s face that is being bathed by the light from sunset. It casts an orange glow on him, something that she found fitting.

Shohei had always been handsome, but at this moment, she thinks he’s even more beautiful than before. 

Slowly, she watched as a small smile appeared on his face. 

The stillness between the two of them was heavy, almost like a tangible force, demanding space to rest, somehow putting a pause on all other thoughts. She can’t help but stared at Shohei’s face. The small smile on his lips. The deep gaze that he had set into her.

At that moment, she didn’t know that she had did something that Shohei would remember forever. That this moment, will be one of the moments that’s deeply carved into their life forever.

She had shown him a side another side of life. A life with so many other choices than what he had known before. When he first know y/n, he didn’t expect that the female would besome something so significant in his life. That the pretty girl from his class would only be that, the pretty girl from his class.

To his surprise, she had offered him much more than that. Much more than a simple support system who genuinely, truly cared.

The one who always cheered for him.

The one, who’s always there.

“How do you always know the right thing to say?” said the baseball player, a small smile on his face. “You… you always makes everything better.”

Y/n shook her head in order to prevent herself from drifting off. The tone in which she was addressed was gentle. Almost tender.

She doesn’t want to hope.

“No, I don’t,” she said softly while smiling faintly. “I try to say the things I needed to hear during difficult moments.”

A soft breeze flowed through the space, warm and gentle like an old embrace.

And maybe that was what finally broke the distance—what let Shohei move without thinking.

Because the next thing Y/n knew, he was pulling her into him. No hesitation. No dramatics. Just two people clinging to each other in the fading light of day, wrapped in the kind of silence that said more than words ever could.

“Thank you,” he whispered out, hands tightening his hold around her. “You always make everything feel better.”

Y/n swears that if anyone could see her face now, they would’ve thought that she has a fever.

Being like this, being held by Shohei, it’s comforting. As if, it’s the most comfortable place on earth.

This is nice, she thought as she closed her eyes, leaning her body more towards Shohei’s taller one. Yeah, this is nice.

She doesn’t want to let go.

“I’m going to start more batting practice.”

Y/n stared at him, the popsicle she was holding melting under the sun.

“And I’m going to change my dream,” said Shohei. “I don’t only want to play baseball professionally. I want to become the best baseball player. I want to play in the MLB.”

Ah, she thought. MLB.

It’s a bit ironic, that her father left her mother in order to chase his dream as an MLB player.

To think, that this boy that she’s so fond of, have the same ambition as that scum?

Y/n gives Shohei a smile.

Her first fake smile to him.

taglist!

@mindless-rock @lovewithmary @seijaelee @kikookii @itisanelephantobviously

[leclucklerc]

Sometimes I saw a random pic of Shohei and suddenly I got another burst of motivation to continue his fic

[leclucklerc]

Additional taglist!

@mynameisangeloflife @fennecspage @yuriankasavchuk @hascrt-ay @kihc-zya @leilanixx @cha-hot @hockeyboysarehot @stopeatread @lovewithmary @inloveallthetime @taliakoster @mafiulaputaama @glitterquadricorn @mangotaitai @chiliwhore @luciaexcorvus @sam-is-lost @ironmaiden1313 @nichmeddar @poppyalice2001 @viennakarma @honey132 @gods-menace @luisie @ananyasr1bughead @miawastakens @eternallovers65

Hard Carry CL16 - 04. Life of a Party

Pairing: Charles Leclerc x driver!reader

Summary: More fateful encounters happen and y/n attended a party where she accidentally met Ferrari's next golden boy

Word Count: 5.2K

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Drive to Survive season 1, episode 3

It’s all about Porsche

“2018, is an interesting year for Formula One,” started Will Buxton in the dark interview room. “After all, this year is the year where Lewis Hamilton can tie the race towards driver championship.”

A montage appeared after that, of Sebastian Vettel winning the championship from the year 2010 to 2012. Then, a montage of y/n winning the 2013, 2014, and 2017 championships was also played. The last montage to be played is of Lewis Hamilton’s 2008 and 2015 win.

“This year, there are many world champions racing in the grid,” continued the man as clips of all previous champions, such as Fernando and Kimi, played across the screen. “It’s a whole lot of talent, a whole lot of ego.”

Clips of crashes or swear words being yelled out across the driver’s radio could be seen.

“But amid such talented drivers, the three standouts that people think will win this year’s championship.”

A clip of Sebastian Vettel being interviewed appeared. The man is wearing the Ferrari team kit, completely bathed in red. 

“Sebastian,” asked the interviewer. “Do you think you will win this year’s driver championship?”

“Yes,” answered Sebastian Vettel.

Another clip of Lewis Hamilton being interviewed appeared. Same as Sebastian, he’s wearing a white Mercedes team kit.

“Lewis,” started the interviewer. “Do you think you will win this year’s driver championship?”

“Yes,” answered Lewis Hamilton.

And finally, a clip of y/n l/n being interviewed appeared. The woman is wearing Porsche’s team kit, bathed in black.

“Y/n,” said the interviewer. “Do you think you will win this year’s driver championship?”

Y/n stared at the camera. “Yes,” she answered, fully confident.

The screen turned towards Will Buxton in the darkroom once again. The man is staring straight at the camera, too, sounding fully convinced. “This year, the battle between the three world champions will be intense.”

Y/n is leading the driver’s championship, and yet Porsche is not leading the constructor championship.

How absurd, she sneered internally.

This circumstance almost makes sense, considering the crash that y/n and Henry did back in the Spanish GP, Mercedes managed to overthrow Porsche’s reign as the number one in the constructor championship. A sour feeling made its way into her mouth. It’s unfair to put a big expectation on a rookie driver who is still in the process of adjusting their way into Formula 1. It’s a bit unfair to have a too big expectation for a driver who is still doing their first season in Formula 1.

And yet, the female can’t help the annoyed huff that she lets out. At the start of the season, y/n had vowed to make Formula 1 a place where rookies can thrive. A place where drivers can continue to develop themselves without any oppressing external force. However, she really couldn’t help the annoyance that blossomed inside of her chest.

This year, Porsche has an amazing car. A really amazing one. It’s fast – faster than any other car on the grid.

So, it should be easy for Henry to at least stand in third place.

But no, the little shit is currently barely at the sixth place of the driver’s championship.

Truthfully, during the start of the season, the woman really doesn’t have any bad blood with the younger. While it’s true that she was a bit wary, considering how bad her past teammates were, she just saw him as a starry-eyed rookie driver. A young driver plucked straight out of F2.

He’s green. He’s naïve. It’s clear that his racing experience dwarfed by y/n’s. She was prepared to guide him throughout the season, hoping that she’d give Herman one less headache by finally managing to have a teammate who would last more than one season.

But no, the little shit just had to act like a little shit.

Fucker, she thought, as she closed her phone and continued her walk towards the meeting room.

Inside, Herman is already there, talking with someone through the phone. Henry and his manager, too, could also be seen talking about the papers in front of them. Not caring, y/n immediately announced her presence by opening the door to the meeting room loudly.

Glancing up, Herman murmured a goodbye before giving her a nod. “You’re here,” said the man. “Good.”

She laughed at that, “Am I late?”

“No,” replied the German, glancing at the clock. “We’re just early.”

Y/n knows that she’s 5 minutes late, but whatever.

“So,” said the team principal, turning towards where the two drivers were sitting. “We have Monaco next on the calendar,” said the man.

“Home sweet home,” whistled y/n. “You are thinking of moving to Monaco too?” she asked, turning her head towards where Henty sat.

Henry clearly didn’t expect that she would address him, the younger man flinched a bit in surprise. “Sorry? Ah- yeah, Monaco. The country,” He stuttered.

“Half the grid lives there,” said the woman. “You know, no taxes and shit.”

The man nodded at that. “Oh… yeah, I was thinking about it,” said the man. “I’m- well, we, me and manager – are going to look into some apartments a day before practice.”

Y/n nodded at that. “You know the good neighborhood already? I mean, it’s not a big country, but there are some places where the real estate prices are actually worth the money.”

Henry gave her a small nod at that. “I researched it already,” he answered. “And my manager came from Monaco, so I’ll put my faith in him.”

“Good for you, you got a hefty signing bonus, eh?” asked the woman playfully.

“Well-“

“As I was saying,” cut Herman, gaining both of their attention once again. What an attention whore. “Monaco is next on the calendar. I just want to remind the both of you that we didn’t have significant upgrades on both of your cars, considering the tight time frame.”

They both nodded.

“That’s why I expect the both of you to be already familiar with your cars during practice, especially you, Henry,” said the team principal, turning his head towards where the younger sat. “In Monaco, qualifying is important. Because of the narrow roads, almost no overtakes usually happen during the race, so I want you to gain a top-three finish in the qualifying.”

Henry balked a bit at that. “Top three? I-“

“No excuses,” said Herman, tapping his iPad. “We’re behind Mercedes right now. If we want to be number one in the constructor, we must gain as many points as we can immediately.”

The kid looks constipated. People like to point out that y/n is a bad teammate, that she’s the driver killer. The bitch who waved goodbye to all of her past teammates on top of her carefully built tower.

What they forgot to point out is, well, Herman, too, is a bastard.

Which makes sense, considering he is the team principal of Porsche, the team that always races for championships. The man needs to be a bit of a bastard sometimes. If it means that he has to put massive pressure on a rookie in order to win the constructor, Herman will absolutely do it.

What a unit they both have. The bitch and the bastard of Porsche.

“… yes,” said the kid, finally. His throat bobbed nervously. “I’ll- I’ll try my best-“

“No,” said Herman again. “I don’t want you to try, I want you to show your best,” said the man. 

The already chilly meeting room turns even more cold at that demand. She could see Henry’s eyes waver at that, going back from where Herman stood to where y/n sat. The woman merely gave him a shrug, not helping him the slightest. 

Said kid frowned at that, though he let out a nod.

“And as for you, Y/n,” said the team principal, addressing her. “I expect you to get pole.”

She grinned at that. “I’ll get pole then,” said the woman. “Just for you, babe.”

Herman rolled his eyes at that. “Please,” groaned the man. “And you’re leading the driver championship, good. The gap between you and Hamilton is big; please keep up with that. Also, please keep in mind that Hamilton, too, will vying to be number one, possibly to tie the number of world championships that the three of you have.”

Y/n nodded at that. Both y/n and Sebastian are tied at three world champions, while Lewis is trailing at two. There’s no doubt that the Mercedes driver desperately wants to tie that championship number. 

“Sebastian is pretty insistent, too,” muttered the female. “Ferrari is really fast this year.”

The older man nodded at that. “And I don’t think I can say this enough,” said the man. “But I don’t want what happened at the Spanish GP to happen again,” he said. “At all.”

“Yeah, yeah,” drawled out y/n. “You got that, Henry?”

“Y- yeah.”

“Good,” nodded the man. “Now I want to talk about some upgrades that had been installed on your cars-“

Y/n blanches at that.

Monaco is home.

While it’s true that she was born and raised in France, the moment she got her first real check from Formula One, y/n immediately bought an apartment in Monaco. She didn’t really have any reason to move to Monaco back then, there was just some kind of itch under her skin when she saw the sum of money that she got when she signed that Porsche contract.

Maybe it’s her desire for freedom, to finally leave her childhood home. Maybe it’s just her impulsiveness, not really caring where she lives somewhere in the world. All in all, it had been a correct decision back then, considering that, well, a lot of the drivers lived in Monaco. It’s also a tax haven, which helps considering the hefty sum she got from Porsche.

All in all, her decision to move to Monaco years ago is something that she will never regret. It’s a beautiful country with beautiful weather. She loves going to the sea, just sunbathing under the sun before walking around the shopping district, ready to spend an unfathomable amount of money on bags.

That’s why every time the Monaco GP comes around, she can’t contain her excitement.

After all, she’s finally home. She can sleep on her bed, work in her private gym, doesn’t have to see prissy drivers 24/7-

Y/n stopped on her jogging track.

“Charles?” she called out.

The male, also equally startled as her, stopped on his jog. “Y/n?” he said, almost choking on the water bottle that he was holding.

A smile appeared on her face. Charles is a nice guy, after all. He was a bit skittish, but he had been a sweet guy during their previous encounters. “Oh, you’re in Monaco already?” she asked, giving him a fist bump. “Didn’t expect anyone to arrive here this soon.”

“I live here,” he blurted out, eyes widening a bit before he added, “I mean, I’m Monegasque.”

She blinked. “For real?” she said. “I thought you were French.” The last part was spoken in French.

“I mean, I do speak French,” replied Charles, also in French. Y/n thinks that this is the first time that both are speaking in their mother tongue. “But I was born and raised here.”

“Oh my,” said the female as both fell into a light jog. She could see the sea beside them as they continued their path through the uphill. “It’s not every day that you’ll see someone that’s actually Monegasque.” 

Charles laughed at that. “There’s no way you’ve never met a Monegasque before. You lived here for a few years, no?” At this, he blinked before a flush overtook his face. “Wait- I’m not a stalker or anything, I just know that you’ve been living in Monaco because of some news articles- “

“Eh,” chuckled y/n, amusement evident on her face. “You’ve been following my career, huh?”

He didn’t answer that, though he did speed up, clearly way too embarrassed to answer that question. Y/n let out a laugh as she also tried to increase her pace. It flattered her, really. Most of the newer drivers don’t really wear their emotions on their sleeve like Charles is, so it’s a bit hard to tease them.

“Oh, are you a fan?” she said. “I remember Herman did say that you asked to meet me during the pre-season testing- “

“Okay!” Yelled Charles, face red. “I am a fan! Stop embarrassing me- “

Y/n laughed at that, putting her arm around Charles’ shoulder in a friendly gesture. The man is taller than her, so it’s a bit of a struggle, but she still manages to do it. “Aw, that’s sweet,” the woman crooned. “Want an autograph?”

She didn’t think that Charles’s face could be any redder, but the man spluttered before he, once again, tried to jog past her. It soon became a little game of tag, where Charles tried to speed off, and y/n caught up to him with an easy grin on her face.

What was supposed to be a light jogging session became a full-blown one as both she and Charles wanted to be the first ones who backed off. During their mini-game of tag, she could feel some fellow joggers raising their eyebrows and staring at them. Confused why two adults would chase each other on a hill in Monaco.

The game ended when y/n finally caught up to the male, slinging an arm around his shoulder once again to make sure that the man didn’t run off again.

“Fuck,” she wheezed out as her hair stuck towards her forehead. Y/n feels sticky. The woman certainly didn’t expect the light jog that she intended to become a full-blown marathon in the hills of Monaco. “I win.”

Charles, also panting, doubled forward as he regained his breathing with his hands on his knees. The motion almost made y/n stumbled, though she managed to regain her footing at the last minute.

“Yeah,” he said between his labored breathing. “I think we should stop.”

At this, they caught each other’s eyes as silence fell between them. However, it soon was replaced with the sound of loud laughter from both.

She can’t believe this. It’s been years since she did a game of tag – something that she didn’t even do during her childhood years, considering how busy she was with karting and everything – and she just played it with someone that she barely knows.

It was a bit odd how Charles could bring out her lighthearted side.

They decided to sit near the edge of the hill overlooking Monte Carlo. Charles did offer her his bottle of water, something that she was grateful for, considering that she forgot to bring her own.

“So, it’s been a few months,” she started, handing the bottle back to Charles. “How is F1 so far?”

“Great,” replied the man before also chugging down the water. Y/n took note of the indirect kiss, though she didn’t make a fuss about it. She’s not in middle school anymore, after all. “It’s all I’ve been dreaming of.”

Y/n hummed. “So far, you had a pretty great season, I’m glad,” she answered. “Still in Sauber next year?”

Charles tilted his head at that. “Well, that’s the plan, yeah,” he answered. “But it’s still early in the season. Who knows what will happen.”

“Ah, you’re expecting other teams to reach out?” she asked. When she said that Charles had a great season, she was not lying. After all, from her observation, Charles managed to maximize the hell out of Sauber’s car – even outperforming his much more experienced teammates.

She knows that the bigger teams have started to set their eyes on Charles’ potential. Porsche included.

Y/n had seen the way Herman watched Charles’ performance. She knows that the man is considering all kinds of possibilities for the better of the team. She knows that a talented rookie driver – still naïve, doesn’t have a strong personality, talented as hell – is practically equal to gold in Herman’s eyes.

Charles Leclerc is one hell of a driver.

An image of Charles in Porsche’s driver’s suit appeared on her head. Hm, she thought. That’s not a bad look.

“I’m not expecting,” answered Charles. “I know they will.”

A bark of laughter appeared in her throat. “You’re really confident, huh?” she said, grinning. 

“I think a Formula One driver has to be confident,” replied the man. “I’ve tried to show the teams my best. I can only hope that it’s good enough for them.”

“I see,” she said. “And you think it’s good enough?”

“Well, it’s only the start of the season,” shrugged the man. “But so far, it has been growing great.”

She laughed at that. “That’s nice,” said the woman, leaning back on her hand. Her gaze dropped towards the view of Monte Carlo in front of them. “I hope we can share podiums soon.”

There is silence between them after that as y/n continues to watch the sight before her, and Charles falls silent. Before long, she could hear a soft sound of laughter from the rookie driver.

It’s a nice sound, she idly thought.

“Yeah,” said Charles. “I, too, hope that day will come soon enough.”

Podium with Charles Leclerc. That doesn’t sound bad at all. 

Y/n had always thought that love was not something for her.

Maybe it’s the way she grew up and watched all the women who came and went from her father’s bed. Maybe it’s the fact that she never knew her mom, which makes her not know how love or marriage works. Or maybe it’s more of her fear of long-term commitment.

The media or maybe Formula One fans would call her a hypocrite if they heard that, considering her pretty extensive dating history throughout her career. 

Still, the thought of having to spend the rest of her life shackled with only one person is a bit terrifying. She can’t imagine loving someone so much that she decided to make him a constant presence in her life. To have someone to share her personal space with.

While it’s true that she has her own flings and short-lived relationships, love had not been something that she put much effort into. Finding someone to share her bed with had always been way too easy. Finding someone who wants to have a long-term relationship with?

Yeah.

No.

With her busy schedule and the fact that she was flying to a different country every week, love had never been her priority. Why should she be focusing on something like love when she can be productive? Why should she be focusing on something like love when there’s a race to win and other shit tons of things to do?

That’s why she found herself a bit shocked that she accepted Max’s invitation to a party in Monaco.

Well, it’s not like Max invited her per se. More like begs her. 

“You’re so friendless,” said the woman, crossing her arms together.

The man merely glared at her.

Contrary to popular belief, she and Max are actually pretty good friends. After all, both of them have plenty of things to connect with. They’re Formula One drivers; they were thrust into the sport at a really young age, and they practically carry their teams on their backs, yada yada.

(Daniel would probably kill her if he heard her saying that, but whatever.)

It’s a friendship that she was a bit surprised with but welcomed, nonetheless.

“If I could, I wouldn’t even be here,” growled the man. “But it’s for one of our sponsors.”

Y/n blinked.

“Our?”

“They’re planning to sponsor Porsche next season,” answered Max. “Maybe you would know if you actually checked all of the emails that Herman sent you.”

The female waved him off, “I have a personal assistant that does that kind of thing,” she replied. “But ah, now that I think about it, Dad did say something about a new sponsor.”

“It’s an investment company; they’re trying to gain “Whatever Max was about to say was cut off as the man suddenly stopped his sentence, staring at one point of the room pointedly.

Raising an eyebrow, y/n asked, “What did you say- “She, too, stopped, staring at the same spot as Max.

Charles Leclerc stares at both. Eyes wide in surprise.

“Ah,” said them both.

“Ah…,” said Charles, though she could only see his mouth move.

Max immediately turned his head towards her, eyes widening in horror as he grasped her arm. “Y/n, don’t you dare- “

“Char!” she greeted with a wave of her hand. “Fancy meeting you here!”

The said man flinched, clearly, he didn’t expect y/n’s loud greeting. Taking a hesitant step, the younger man approached the both of them cautiously. She could see that he was a bit nervous as his eyes darted everywhere in the room.

“Y/n! and… Max,” he said after a slight pause. “I didn’t expect to see you guys here together.” There’s something strained about his tone; maybe it’s because of his past rivalry with Max? she remembers reading something like that about them.

“Max dragged me here,” she replied. “What about you?”

“The company holding this party is looking to invest in Sauber next year, one of the drivers was asked to participate,” he explained.

Damn, Red Bull, Porsche, and Sauber? Are they going to invest in the entire grid? But then again, the company probably heard their deal with Netflix and concluded that there will be a whole lot of exposure regarding F1 next year.

“You’re not drinking?” asked the woman, staring pointedly at Charles’ empty hand.

“Ah, tomorrow is the media day so…,”

“You shouldn’t be drinking either,” said Max, snatching the glass of alcohol that she managed to grab earlier. “You’ll be completely wasted by tomorrow morning.”

Huffing, she glared at the Red Bull driver, “I was not going to drink that, you know?” she said. “It’s all about the appearances, as if I’m enjoying this party.”

Max rolled his eyes as if he didn’t believe her.

In front of them, Charles silently stared at their interaction. “… Are you guys like… together, together?”

Both y/n and Max turned their heads so fast towards where Charles stood, eyes wide and complete shock painted across their face.

“What!?” she screeched out. “No- we’re not together!”

“Yes,” hissed out Max. “We’re not together, Leclerc.”

Charles blinked; tension seemed to seep out of his shoulder. “Oh, I thought because you attended this party together- “

“The company is also looking to sponsor both Red Bull and Porsche,” replied Max, cutting Charles as if he didn’t want to listen to his explanation. Which, honestly, is valid because y/n had never been more horrified before, too. “I just thought that it would be logical for us to attend together.”

“Yes,” replied y/n with a nod. “And Max here is friendless so-“

“I’m not!”

Just the thought of dating someone on the grid terrifies her. After all, ever since her debut, that’s the one accusation that keeps appearing under her name.

Truthfully, it’s something that should’ve been expected, considering she’s the first female F1 driver in years. She’s the first F1 female world champion. Considering all of her achievements in the sport, she thought that the baseless accusations of her sleeping with the entire grid should’ve been gone by no.

But no.

Despite everything. Despite her already proving her worth to the entire world, that specific accusation keeps haunting her.

Whore.

Slut.

She will sleep with the entire grid.

Horrible fuckers, she thought. She hopes they all will choke and die. 

“I see,” said Charles with a nod before a smile bloomed on his face. “I’ll hang out with you guys then; I don’t know anyone here.”

Max rolled his eyes at that. “Y/n here knows everyone,” replied the driver. “So, if you want to make connections, you should stick by her.”

“And Max here doesn’t know anyone,” added y/n.

“Shut the fuck up.”

Y/n laughed at that, slightly leaning towards the table beside her. “Come on, Char, I’ll introduce you to everyone,” she said. Despite her reluctance to go to the party, Max was actually right. She knows a lot of the people here.

There’s a lot of people from the entertainment circle as well as sports. Mainly F1, but she can see some other athletes from different sports. 

“Go ahead,” said Max. “I’ll wait here.”

“Boo, boring.”

Going around the room with Charles was quite easy. Unlike Max and his tendency to stay quiet, Charles was a really sociable guy. He’s very friendly, always finding topics to talk about, as well as knowing the appropriate cues to laugh or not. He looks as if he had been media-trained for years.

Knowing Sauber and their budget, the guy probably never did any media training. So, all of this is his natural charisma.

He’ll be good for PR. FIA probably will do something with him later on.

So far, everyone that she had introduced to Charles had been positively charmed by him. Some even asked for his phone number or social media. He had looked unsure initially, though y/n gave him a small nudge and loudly claimed that Charles would love to give them his Instagram.

Giving strangers your personal phone number sounds icky, but Instagram should be okay, right? He should built connections for the future in this party after all.

They’ve been talking with the other guest for a couple of hours when she can feel her phone buzzing.

Glancing at it, she sees that it’s a text from Max.

‘Got called for an emergency meeting for tomorrow. I’m going home first.’

Fuck, she thought. This asshole.

“What’s wrong?” asked Charles as they separated from the small group with a laugh and a small wave.

She showed him the message. “Max already went home.”

“Ah,” said Charles, glancing at his watch. “It is already pretty late. Do you want to go home, too?”

“Sure,” answered y/n. Tomorrow is the media day, after all. She needs a good night’s sleep. “I’ll call my PA first to pick me up.”

Charles tilted his head. “PA?” he asked as she began dialing the numbers.

A minute passed, and her PA didn’t answer her phone. Glancing at the time, she internally cursed. She’s probably asleep by now, considering she will have to wake up early to prepare for the media day.

“Is she not answering?” asked Charles as they walked near the entrance.

“She’s probably asleep,” answered y/n with a frown.

“Do you have a car?”

“I went here with Max’s car,” she muttered in irritation. It’s a bad call on her part. She should’ve used her car instead of Max’s, knowing the other driver’s personality.  “But it’s okay, Monaco is a small country. I’ll just take the cab or walk-“

“I have a car,” cut Charles, though he immediately looks embarrassed. “I mean- I went here with my own car. I can drive you home.”

Y/n stared at him with a raised eyebrow.

“It’s not a ploy so that I’ll know your address, I swear I’m not creepy!” he begins rambling. At this point, he’s looking downright panicked. “It’s just that- it’s already late at night, and it’s dangerous for a woman to be alone during the night! And- uh- calling your PA probably takes time, and tomorrow is media day, so it’s better for you to go home early-“

“Charles,” she said before the man could continue her ramble.

He immediately shuts up.

With a tilt of her head, she asked, “Is it really okay for you to drive me home?” glancing at the party that was still happening in full swing, she turned her attention back to the driver again. “If you still want to stay, it’s okay. I’ll figure everything out by myself.”

“Of course!” replied Charles hurriedly. “It’s- it’s not like I know anyone there without you, and well, tomorrow is the media day, I guess it’s time for me to go home, too.”

She pondered the answer for a bit. Really, if Charles still wants to stay, she’s okay with it. It’s easy to call a cab or just ask someone from the party for a ride to her apartment.

But the look that Charles is wearing – the determination – is pretty endearing to look at. It’s cute, she thinks. He still has all of that empty chivalry that men his age usually have. The determination to always protect and accompany a woman to safety.

Not that she’s complaining.

Finally, she let a grin appear on her face. “Well, take me home then, Romeo.”

If it’s possible, Charles’ face had gone redder. However, the Sauber driver lets out a nod and begins escorting her to where he parks his car.

It’s a bit odd to see someone in Monaco not using the valet, but considering he has lived here since he was born, he probably knows every spot this country has to offer. They walked together for a small distance, making a small chatter here and there. Charles still looks a bit nervous, it’s funny.

“Sorry, it’s a bit small,” he said, stopping by a white FIAT 500 that was parked on the side of the road. “I didn’t think that I would bring anyone.”

“It’s cute,” replied y/n with a smile as she entered the car.

The car is a bit cramped, something she should’ve expected, considering how small the car is from the outside. This is actually the first time for her to ride on a car this small – besides a kart, if that actually counts.

“Any preference for music?” he muttered as he fiddled with the stereo.

“Nah, let’s just talk,” she replied, grabbing his arm to stop him. “So, why did you go to the party alone?”

“Ah,” replied the man as he began driving. “I was supposed to go with my older brother. He’s also my manager, but he got sick.”

“You have a brother?” asked y/n. Outside, she could see the night view of Monaco blurring past them. “How many siblings do you have?”

“Two,” he replied. “I’m a middle child.”

She laughed. “Middle child? Have you ever experienced the middle child syndrome?”

Charles raised an eyebrow at that. “Middle child syndrome? What’s that?”

“You know, feeling as if you’re forgotten, left out, stuff like that,” she said with a hum. “I’m an only child, so I never experienced something like that.”

Furrowing his eyebrow, Charles seems to be thinking about his answer. “No, I never felt anything like that,” he finally replied. “Instead, I think my family put me as their priority sometimes.”

Another bark of laughter escaped her. “How can I forget? You’re the prodigious F1 driver, after all.”

Charles’ face reddened at that. “No, I’m not,” he said, sounding embarrassed. “But I think my parents never did anything like that. They love me and my brothers equally.”

They continued their small chatter throughout the drive, and before long, they arrived at y/n’s apartment.

Stopping at the lobby, she turned towards Charles. “Thanks for the ride,” she said, smiling. “It was nice of you.”

“It was my pleasure, actually,” he replied with a small grin.

Stepping out of the car, she stared at the smiling Charles in the driver’s seat. Hm, she thought. It would be a bit of a shame to let him go home now.

However, they do have the media day tomorrow. It’s best for them to immediately go rest because they will obviously have a long day ahead of them. But still-

Well.

“Want to come up?” asked y/n, leaning towards the small window of Charles’ car.

Charles spluttered.

taglist!

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Additional taglist!

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Hard Carry CL16 - 05. Her House

Pairing: Charles Leclerc x driver!reader

Summary: Charles went to y/n's house for the first time

Word Count: 4.3K

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This is bad, thought Charles frantically. This is baddd.

The journey from his car to y/n’s front door goes in a flash as Charles is in the middle of panicking. He didn’t expect this. He didn’t expect y/n to stop on her track as she was exiting his car and offered him to go up to her house.

Charles didn’t expect that he would stand here, in y/n’s house, rooted on his spot.

He could feel his eyes move frantically around the room, taking everything in. Though, with the way his heart thundered inside his chest as if there was a mini earthquake happening in there, he doesn’t think he can concentrate on his surroundings anyway.

“Follow me,” said y/n, beckoning him to come closer.

This is insane.

What’s happening here? He thought hysterically as he followed the older woman.

Charles was just attending a party that his pr manager asked him to. It’s a party hosted by one of the would-be sponsors for F1’s next season. Considering the financial situation of Sauber, the guy basically forced Charles to attend in order to make the sponsor happy and, in turn, willing to sponsor Sauber for the upcoming years.

Lorenzo was supposed to come, but he got sick and canceled on him. No problem, Charles had always been a sociable person. Despite this being his first year in F1, he had spent years in the racing world in general. He knows how sponsors work and what was expected of him during the party.

He had come prepared. He had read about the sponsors and the overview of them. Hell, he even checked the party attendance and searched some of them in case he needed to make small talk about something that he was unfamiliar with.

What he didn’t expect was to see both Max and y/n.

Charles knows that both Red Bull and Porsche will be at the party. However, he didn’t expect that the teams would send their drivers personally, too. After all, both are the prized drivers of their teams. He thought that attending a sponsor party would be something beneath them.

His and Max’s relationship is a bit… weird.

They’ve been racing against each other since they were kids. Often headbutting against each other – figuratively and literally. If someone asked Charles who is his biggest rival in the sport, he could confidently say that it was Max. Someone that he always chased after during the lower categories. Someone who is somehow always ahead of him in almost everything.

Outside of Max, his relationship with y/n is… it’s comfortable. He had always idolized the older driver. Someone that he aimed to be able to match someday. A person that had seemed to be so out of reach just a mere months ago. A woman that he had watched longingly through magazines or interviews.

Someone that he had watched as she stood on top of a podium as he stood there, looking up to her. 

He had thought that after reaching F1, after finally sharing the same track as her, the gap between the two of them would feel smaller. That he has a chance to reach her someday. But somehow, ever since he met her during testing, it only made him realize how large the gap between the two of them is. 

Y/n had always been really nice to him. She had welcomed him ever since their first meeting with an open arm, even willing to talk to him after a bad weekend for her. Hell, they even jog together earlier in the week!

But there’s still a gap between the two of them. The gap is so wide that Charles will probably have to spend years to close it.

That’s why he didn’t expect the woman to acknowledge him. He doesn’t have any expectations of any interaction with the woman outside of a small nod of acknowledgment or a small wave from across the room. But y/n had smiled so wide and blinding that it had lit up the room. She had waved her arms, yelling at him-

“Charles?”

Charles blinked, head snapping towards the other driver who was standing in front of him.

“You’re spacing out,” said the woman with a grin. “I was asking you if you want anything to drink?”

“Ah!?” he yelped, straightening his posture on the cream-colored sofa that he was sitting on. “Uh- Water is fine! Really fine.”

God, why did he stutter!? Y/n was being nice to offer him to come up to her apartment to thank him! It’s not like something will happen-

Or maybe?

Nope. Nopenopenope. Forget that thought, Charles. Erase that thought immediately. It’s not good for his heart.

Oblivious to his internal panic, y/n let out a hum before she disappeared to where she thinks is the kitchen.

Now that the object of his panic had disappeared, he let his eyes finally take a look at his surroundings. It’s a penthouse at one of the apartment buildings in Monaco. Peeking through the window from his position, he could see the view of Monaco during the night from here.

It’s the track, he thought, averting his gaze from the window to the rest of the room, Watching the race from this place must’ve been amazing.

There are rows of helmets and trophies surrounding the television in front of him. He could see the helmets that y/n wore years back, as well as the countless of accolades that she had managed to gather throughout her career. His eyes linger on the three Driver’s Championship Trophies before finally averting his eyes from them with a great struggle.

It’s clear that this is an expensive apartment of the most luxurious ones in Monaco. 

But, he thought, after he finished looking around the room. It’s so bare.

While it’s completely furnished, Charles noticed a lack of any personal touches in the apartment. Besides the helmet and the trophy cabinet, the rest of the apartment looks like something out of a showroom.

Modern furniture that looked new and barely used. The color scheme of cream and white without any stain on any of the furniture. Spotless.

There are no photos or personal belongings. There’s no sign of this place being lived by someone. 

It’s cold.

The image of his childhood home appeared on his head. Of the rows and rows of family pictures scattered across the house. Of the small personal knick-knacks – his mother’s collection of fridge magnets, Arthur’s shoes being all over the place, Lorenzo’s tower of books being stuffed in one corner, or Charles’ collections of small figurines being placed on top of the counter. Everything that made his house a home. Everything that shows the personality of everyone who lives in the place.

“Did you wait long?” asked y/n, appearing again with two glasses of water in her hand. 

“No,” he answers immediately, swiveling his head towards the woman who takes a seat beside him. “Um- this is a nice house.”

Now that they’re in better lighting compared to the party earlier, he notices that she’s still wearing the dress that she wore for the party. It’s a red dress that hugged her delicate curves. Clearly, it was made to make her into an even more beautiful woman, something that he thought was not possible considering how beautiful she already was. 

Y/n raised an eyebrow at that before she let out a hum. “Thanks,” she said. “I didn’t decorate it, but it seems the interior designer did a good work.”

He flushed a bit at that. She sounds a bit detached. 

“So, are you nervous for tomorrow?” asked the woman, changing their topic. She reached towards her glass, gulping the water in one gulp. “Monaco had always been an exciting race for the reporters, so expect a lot of unexpected questions.”

“Yeah, my PR manager briefed me about things that I should pay attention to,” he replied, hands fidgeting with each other. “Do you have any tips?”

Her eyes crinkled in amusement. “Just don’t say anything stupid, I guess?” she laughed. “Other drivers – especially the experienced ones – like to say stupid shit. Don’t follow their example.”

Charles laughed at that. “Thanks, I wasn’t planning to, but I’ll take note nonetheless,” he said. 

“Please,” she said, grinning. “Considering how it is now, it would be funny if you went viral for all the wrong reasons during your first season here. And stressing your PR manager to the point they went bald, it’s a third-year driver exclusive package only.”

“Oh?” he said, amusement clear on his face. “Is that why your PR manager went bald?” He remembers the solemn man who accompanies y/n during interviews or who stands at the back of the room during a press conference.

He looks like a serious man. Someone who seems to always be looking or writing something on hie iPad. Now that he thinks about it, her PR manager seems to resemble the Porsche team principal a bit. Compared to his own PR manager, the manager has a lot more stress and a more rigid smile.

“I’m saying that because of experience, you know,” said y/n, grin only widening as she plopped back on the sofa, shoulder relaxing. “He went bald because of all the antics that I did during my first year here. I swear, he already tried to leave the team several times since then.”

Charles knows what she means by all the antics that she did during her first year here.

First year y/n had been different from the current y/n. She always speaks so brazenly and basically always challenges the media and everyone every chance she gets. She openly gloats in front of older drivers and criticizes them harshly. She underestimated reporters and always gave them the middle finger. Not caring for her reputation.

It was a far cry from her current media darling image.

But well, the media was harsh during those years. They mercilessly and brutally demeaned her. Always looking at her with pity and questionable gaze. Gazes that didn’t believe in her worth as a driver. The label that they had put into her – the female driver who managed to get into F1 through connections – had almost harmed her reputation countless times during her first year in the sport.

To think that she’s a three-time driver champion now.

“You must’ve watched a lot of the Monaco GP, huh?” asked y/n, head propped on her hand. 

“Yeah,” he said. “One of my friends has an apartment right by the track; we usually watched it there.”

She let out a low whistle before her gaze turned towards one of the large windows that the apartment provides. “You can see the race too from here, apparently,” said the other driver. “It was one of the realtor’s main selling points. They say you can basically watch the Monaco GP for basically free of charge from here. Well, it’s not like I’ve ever been here during the races.”

Charles blinked. “What about your friends and family?” he asked.

“I don’t think I have enough trust in most of my friends to just hand them the key to this place,” she said wryly. “And the ones that I trust enough would’ve probably watched it from the garage.”

At this, she went quiet for a bit. Charles let her.

“And family? My dad owns the team. He’ll watch it from the garage too. Or the VIP Lounge.”

Oh yeah, he almost forgot the fact.

It seems this is a topic that she doesn’t want to divulge further. Charles won’t press if she doesn’t want to talk about it anymore. Hastily, he tried to change the topic. “So, do you have any favorite race? I mean- races that you like to watch when you’re not driving.”

“Oh?” she said, intrigued. The female driver seems to be thinking about the answer for some time before she finally decides. “I don’t really watch other categories, though. Maybe Moto GP? I don’t know how to drive a motorcycle, so I thought it would be interesting to watch.”

“You can’t drive a motorcycle?” he laughed. It’s a bit of an absurd thinking that there’s a vehicle that y/n l/n can’t ride. The woman is an absolute monster in an F1 car after all. With the way she drives during races, Charles believes that there’s no vehicle in the world that she can’t drive. “That’s a bit unexpected.”

“I specialize in driving cars if you haven’t noticed,” she stopped a bit at this. “I know how to drive a bike, though!” she frowned. “I just don’t understand how Moto GP drivers are able to drive their motorcycle that close to the ground during the turns. Isn’t that dangerous?”

“They would say the same thing every time they watch us drive a car 350 km per hour with barely any protections,” he said drily.

Y/n let out an amused laugh at that. “What can you say? It is an extreme sport. F1 that is. It’s actually pretty safe now,” she said. “There’s a lot of debate regarding the halo, but I thought it’s a good addition if it means it will make us safer.”

Jules, he thought, almost idly. Of the smiling man who often frequented his house ever since he was young. Of the man who always readily gave him any kind of advice that he needed.

Of the man who had basically saved his racing career.

If the Halo had come into existence years before, the man probably would still be here. Laughing and talking with Charles on the grid.

He perished any thought of what if.

“What about you?” asked y/n. “What’s your favorite race that you’ve ever watched?”

The answer is easier than what he had expected. It’s a bit terrifying to be honest, how one race can have so much impact for him even after so many years had passed. After all, it had become one of the most integral memories that he has.

Charles can remember it almost vividly. In 2012, he’s still in the middle of transitioning into the international karting series. Still, a budding race driver that hasn’t had the chance to try a single-seater car.

During that year, just like any other year during that time of the year, he had arrived at one of his friend’s apartments that’s overlooking the racing track. He had been excited to watch Ferrari and their two drivers. To see if they can regain their glory once again just like during their golden years.

He remembers standing there with his friends, laughter echoing through the air and the sound of the F1 car wheezing beneath them echoing through the country.

Of him watching the Monaco GP on his friend’s apartment balcony. Of the thrum of his blood and heart as he watched the race happen underneath it. Imagining the far-off possibility of him being able to do the race in the future. Of his want and greed to achieve his dream as an F1 driver.

Of him, for the very first time, not watching the red car on track.

Of how his gaze keeps going back to the midnight black car. A car with the color of the night sky in the middle of Monaco’s road.

Of the woman who had climbed out of the car with a race suit as dark as her car. The bright white helmet is a stark contrast to the overall theme of her team. Then, the woman opened her helmet, hair tumbling down out of the helmet, and something even brighter than the helmet appeared on the woman’s lips.

He watched as the woman let out a loud laugh, basically running towards her team – also all clad in black, shrouded in darkness – as they celebrated her podium together.

The same smile that’s etched across the woman’s face during the podium. Of him staring at her, awe clear on his face.

“Your first Monaco GP,” he answered, staring at the woman that had been standing on the 2012 Monaco GP podium and now, sitting right next to him.

Funny how life works.

Y/n blinked. “Oh?” she asked, head tilting. It’s clear that she didn’t expect that answer from him. “Any special reason for that?”

Monaco GP, in y/n’s dazzling first season as an F1 driver, doesn’t have any notable feat or any personal record. She didn’t win the race, and it was not her first podium. It was not the race where she scored her first points, nor it is her first race in F1.

It’s just that-

“It was the race where I became a fan of you,” Charles answered with a grin. Still remembered the thunder inside his chest and the intense want that appeared in him as he watched the race. “You were amazing in that race.”

It was the race that erased any kind of prejudice that he had for her. The race that had proved him wrong. The race that had shown him how bright y/n l/n is.

How she is an amazing race driver.

How she was one of the greatest that he had ever seen.

It was the race, that shows how much y/n l/n loves racing. The race that shows how much she loves being a Formula 1 driver despite the many many critics that were aimed towards her. How the woman, couldn’t care less about anything as long as she’s able to reach for the stars.

To Charles, that’s one of the amazing qualities that y/n possessed. One of the things that he admires so much of her. 

Y/n chuckled. “That’s sweet, you know?” she said, reaching her hand towards his hair to ruffle it. 

Charles won’t lie and say that the gesture didn’t fluster him. The warmth of y/n’s hand is a comforting weight on top of his head. How almost immediately, his mind cleared up as he stared at the woman in front of him. Of her bright eyes and how the light cast a beautiful shadow across her face.

Beautiful, he thought. He knows that y/n is beautiful, but this is insane.

Charles is going insane.

Going to y/n’s apartment this late at night is an insane decision for him. Sitting here on her sofa, with a glass of water in front of him and y/n herself sitting next to him, is an insane decision that he made. Having a casual conversation like this with her while she’s looking so beautiful and in that dress is insane for him.

This is insane, but Charles likes it. Charles loves it. He loves it too much that he craves for more.

(Greedy, he thinks.)

There were thousands of things that he wanted to say, and yet it stuck in his throat as if he didn’t know how to talk. As if the words are too big and too complicated for him to process. He gulped, not believing himself to not say anything stupid. “What about other racing categories that you want to try out?” asked Charles instead, trying to stop the ringing in his ear and the blood rushing towards his face. 

Y/n retracted her hand. He missed the warmth almost immediately, barely stopping himself from chasing it.

“I think the 24-hour Le Mans would be interesting,” she said, toying with a lock of her hair. “it’s a fascinating concept.”

Charles has to agree on that. “Le Mans sounds awesome; I also want to try it somewhere in the future.”

“Should we partner up then?” she said, leaning forward, smiling. “Me, you, and probably… Max?”

His previous good mood immediately soured at the mention of his rival. “Why Max?” he complained, immediately remembering the Dutch throughout their karting days and other less-than-pleasant memories.

“I want to see the both of you bicker with each other.”

Charles spluttered, face reddening. He didn’t think that his rivalry with Max was that obvious to the point that y/n would take notice.

The woman seems to take some kind of amusement in his internal struggle. “What? You didn’t think it was obvious?” she asked as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

Maybe it was. He didn’t know. He can’t seem to think whenever he’s around y/n.

“Well-“

Y/n actually let out a large laugh at, head thrown back as if he just said the most amusing thing in the world. “You’re really cute, you know?”

Cute.

Cutecutecute.

She called him cute. What in the ever-loving fuck is happening? He doesn’t know. He can’t comprehend this. He wants to understand. Desperately so. Before he’s saying something so stupid that he’ll regret it for the rest of his life-

“You’re beautiful,” blurted out Charles.

It took him a couple of seconds to realize what he just said, and his previous attempt of trying to stop the blood from rushing to his face immediately failed as he could feel how red and hot his face was. He can only sit there, eyes wide and mouth gaping open. Not quite believing the words that he had just said.

Y/n, too, is still sitting in front of him and staring at him. 

He doesn’t know how much time passed between them. Maybe it’s mere seconds. Or maybe it’s hours. All he could think about was his own panicked heart and how beautiful y/n was in front of him.

All of a sudden, a smile appeared on her face. Her hand, which was previously toying with her hair, reached forward, cradling his face almost delicately. Charles gaped, the mind can’t process the sudden warmth and softness that he could feel from y/n’s hand on his face.

What-

What is happening!?

At that, y/n suddenly leaned forward, their shoulders touching as she stopped so close to his face that he swears that she could hear the sound of his heart. It’s hot. The air is hot. Her breath was hot as she sat there, staring at Charles as if she could see his very soul.

“You know you’re sweet, right?” she said, almost a whisper. 

He can’t breathe.

Almost instinctively, he closed his eyes, feeling her breath caress his lips, and at that moment, he could almost taste the softness of her lips-

A finger bopped his nose.

Immediately, he opens his eyes. Bright green eyes stared at y/n own bright ones, and he could see the teasing smile on the woman’s face.

“Ah,” she breathed out, still so close and her hand still cradling his face. He can still feel their breath intertwining together, and his mind still can’t process what is happening. “Are you expecting something else, mon chéri?”

Fuck, he thought, still staring at the woman in front of him with wide eyes. Fuck fuck fuck.

Charles can’t hear anything from how loud the ringing is on his ear as well as the blood rushing on top. He wants to look somewhere else, somewhere else that’s safer for his racing heart. But oddly, he can’t look away.

He can only stare at this woman in front of him. The woman who is still staring at him with that bright eyes of her and that amused smile.

“I-!” said Charles, abruptly standing up, creating some distance between the two of them. “I need to-!”

What does he need to do?

(Y/n sitting there so close to him. Breathe hot on his lips and their shoulder touching each other. He can feel the warmth that he craved so badly before on his face. Cradling it almost delicately.

Y/n is sitting there, eyes bright as she stares at Charles. Looking at his soul.

He would’ve borne the entirety of his soul to her if she asked to.)

He needs to go.

“I need to go!” he announced, trying not to look at y/n. Trying to forget her bright eyes and the way she cradled his face.

He needs-

He needs to-

Charles needs a cold shower.

“I’ll see you tomorrow-“ he stared at the clock. It’s the next day already. They have media day today. Charles will need to focus. “I mean, see you later!” continued the man as he marched towards the front door, not even daring to look back.

He thinks that if he ever looked back, if he ever caught a glimpse of y/n there still in that beautiful dress that she was wearing for the party earlier, he would never go home. He would stay and only able enough nerve to stare at her dumbly. It’s almost a vain attempt as suddenly, he could hear y/n’s laugh ringing across the apartment.

It’s a beautiful sound, just like her. Everything about her is beautiful. From her self to her soul.

Stopping at the front door, he reached towards the doorknob before his resolve crumbled, and he looked back for one last time.

Y/n is still sitting there, leaning back on the sofa. One of her dress’ thin straps had fallen from one shoulder as she stared at him with an amused smile clear on her face. Her hair cascaded down her back, and her bright eyes were clearly staring at him, something he can’t quite comprehend already in her eyes.

“Goodbye, Char,” she said, giving him a wave. Something so similar that she had done to him earlier tonight during the party. “See you later.”

The path between y/n’s apartment and his car is a blur. He didn’t remember how he arrived at his car. However, the moment he entered the vehicle, he let out a groan as he leaned forward, clutching the steering wheel as if his life depended on it.

“Fuck,” he muttered, voice muffled. “This is bad.”

He thinks not even a cold shower will help.

Y/n sat there, staring at the door that had been slammed close by the younger driver.

Sighing, she leaned back on the sofa. “This is bad,” muttered the woman, cradling her hot face with her hand.

A flash of Charles’ face appeared on her mind. Of his flushed face and reddened ear. Of his wide eyes and hands that just won’t stop fiddling with each other ever since he arrived at her apartment.

Of a stray thought that appeared on her mind throughout her conversation with Charles.

Cute.

“This is bad,” she repeated, sounding resigned. “It’s so fun to tease him like that.”

Will it be a sin to do it some more?

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[leclucklerc]

Hard Carry CL16 - 05. Her House

Pairing: Charles Leclerc x driver!reader

Summary: Charles went to y/n's house for the first time

Word Count: 4.3K

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This is bad, thought Charles frantically. This is baddd.

The journey from his car to y/n’s front door goes in a flash as Charles is in the middle of panicking. He didn’t expect this. He didn’t expect y/n to stop on her track as she was exiting his car and offered him to go up to her house.

Charles didn’t expect that he would stand here, in y/n’s house, rooted on his spot.

He could feel his eyes move frantically around the room, taking everything in. Though, with the way his heart thundered inside his chest as if there was a mini earthquake happening in there, he doesn’t think he can concentrate on his surroundings anyway.

“Follow me,” said y/n, beckoning him to come closer.

This is insane.

What’s happening here? He thought hysterically as he followed the older woman.

Charles was just attending a party that his pr manager asked him to. It’s a party hosted by one of the would-be sponsors for F1’s next season. Considering the financial situation of Sauber, the guy basically forced Charles to attend in order to make the sponsor happy and, in turn, willing to sponsor Sauber for the upcoming years.

Lorenzo was supposed to come, but he got sick and canceled on him. No problem, Charles had always been a sociable person. Despite this being his first year in F1, he had spent years in the racing world in general. He knows how sponsors work and what was expected of him during the party.

He had come prepared. He had read about the sponsors and the overview of them. Hell, he even checked the party attendance and searched some of them in case he needed to make small talk about something that he was unfamiliar with.

What he didn’t expect was to see both Max and y/n.

Charles knows that both Red Bull and Porsche will be at the party. However, he didn’t expect that the teams would send their drivers personally, too. After all, both are the prized drivers of their teams. He thought that attending a sponsor party would be something beneath them.

His and Max’s relationship is a bit… weird.

They’ve been racing against each other since they were kids. Often headbutting against each other – figuratively and literally. If someone asked Charles who is his biggest rival in the sport, he could confidently say that it was Max. Someone that he always chased after during the lower categories. Someone who is somehow always ahead of him in almost everything.

Outside of Max, his relationship with y/n is… it’s comfortable. He had always idolized the older driver. Someone that he aimed to be able to match someday. A person that had seemed to be so out of reach just a mere months ago. A woman that he had watched longingly through magazines or interviews.

Someone that he had watched as she stood on top of a podium as he stood there, looking up to her. 

He had thought that after reaching F1, after finally sharing the same track as her, the gap between the two of them would feel smaller. That he has a chance to reach her someday. But somehow, ever since he met her during testing, it only made him realize how large the gap between the two of them is. 

Y/n had always been really nice to him. She had welcomed him ever since their first meeting with an open arm, even willing to talk to him after a bad weekend for her. Hell, they even jog together earlier in the week!

But there’s still a gap between the two of them. The gap is so wide that Charles will probably have to spend years to close it.

That’s why he didn’t expect the woman to acknowledge him. He doesn’t have any expectations of any interaction with the woman outside of a small nod of acknowledgment or a small wave from across the room. But y/n had smiled so wide and blinding that it had lit up the room. She had waved her arms, yelling at him-

“Charles?”

Charles blinked, head snapping towards the other driver who was standing in front of him.

“You’re spacing out,” said the woman with a grin. “I was asking you if you want anything to drink?”

“Ah!?” he yelped, straightening his posture on the cream-colored sofa that he was sitting on. “Uh- Water is fine! Really fine.”

God, why did he stutter!? Y/n was being nice to offer him to come up to her apartment to thank him! It’s not like something will happen-

Or maybe?

Nope. Nopenopenope. Forget that thought, Charles. Erase that thought immediately. It’s not good for his heart.

Oblivious to his internal panic, y/n let out a hum before she disappeared to where she thinks is the kitchen.

Now that the object of his panic had disappeared, he let his eyes finally take a look at his surroundings. It’s a penthouse at one of the apartment buildings in Monaco. Peeking through the window from his position, he could see the view of Monaco during the night from here.

It’s the track, he thought, averting his gaze from the window to the rest of the room, Watching the race from this place must’ve been amazing.

There are rows of helmets and trophies surrounding the television in front of him. He could see the helmets that y/n wore years back, as well as the countless of accolades that she had managed to gather throughout her career. His eyes linger on the three Driver’s Championship Trophies before finally averting his eyes from them with a great struggle.

It’s clear that this is an expensive apartment of the most luxurious ones in Monaco. 

But, he thought, after he finished looking around the room. It’s so bare.

While it’s completely furnished, Charles noticed a lack of any personal touches in the apartment. Besides the helmet and the trophy cabinet, the rest of the apartment looks like something out of a showroom.

Modern furniture that looked new and barely used. The color scheme of cream and white without any stain on any of the furniture. Spotless.

There are no photos or personal belongings. There’s no sign of this place being lived by someone. 

It’s cold.

The image of his childhood home appeared on his head. Of the rows and rows of family pictures scattered across the house. Of the small personal knick-knacks – his mother’s collection of fridge magnets, Arthur’s shoes being all over the place, Lorenzo’s tower of books being stuffed in one corner, or Charles’ collections of small figurines being placed on top of the counter. Everything that made his house a home. Everything that shows the personality of everyone who lives in the place.

“Did you wait long?” asked y/n, appearing again with two glasses of water in her hand. 

“No,” he answers immediately, swiveling his head towards the woman who takes a seat beside him. “Um- this is a nice house.”

Now that they’re in better lighting compared to the party earlier, he notices that she’s still wearing the dress that she wore for the party. It’s a red dress that hugged her delicate curves. Clearly, it was made to make her into an even more beautiful woman, something that he thought was not possible considering how beautiful she already was. 

Y/n raised an eyebrow at that before she let out a hum. “Thanks,” she said. “I didn’t decorate it, but it seems the interior designer did a good work.”

He flushed a bit at that. She sounds a bit detached. 

“So, are you nervous for tomorrow?” asked the woman, changing their topic. She reached towards her glass, gulping the water in one gulp. “Monaco had always been an exciting race for the reporters, so expect a lot of unexpected questions.”

“Yeah, my PR manager briefed me about things that I should pay attention to,” he replied, hands fidgeting with each other. “Do you have any tips?”

Her eyes crinkled in amusement. “Just don’t say anything stupid, I guess?” she laughed. “Other drivers – especially the experienced ones – like to say stupid shit. Don’t follow their example.”

Charles laughed at that. “Thanks, I wasn’t planning to, but I’ll take note nonetheless,” he said. 

“Please,” she said, grinning. “Considering how it is now, it would be funny if you went viral for all the wrong reasons during your first season here. And stressing your PR manager to the point they went bald, it’s a third-year driver exclusive package only.”

“Oh?” he said, amusement clear on his face. “Is that why your PR manager went bald?” He remembers the solemn man who accompanies y/n during interviews or who stands at the back of the room during a press conference.

He looks like a serious man. Someone who seems to always be looking or writing something on hie iPad. Now that he thinks about it, her PR manager seems to resemble the Porsche team principal a bit. Compared to his own PR manager, the manager has a lot more stress and a more rigid smile.

“I’m saying that because of experience, you know,” said y/n, grin only widening as she plopped back on the sofa, shoulder relaxing. “He went bald because of all the antics that I did during my first year here. I swear, he already tried to leave the team several times since then.”

Charles knows what she means by all the antics that she did during her first year here.

First year y/n had been different from the current y/n. She always speaks so brazenly and basically always challenges the media and everyone every chance she gets. She openly gloats in front of older drivers and criticizes them harshly. She underestimated reporters and always gave them the middle finger. Not caring for her reputation.

It was a far cry from her current media darling image.

But well, the media was harsh during those years. They mercilessly and brutally demeaned her. Always looking at her with pity and questionable gaze. Gazes that didn’t believe in her worth as a driver. The label that they had put into her – the female driver who managed to get into F1 through connections – had almost harmed her reputation countless times during her first year in the sport.

To think that she’s a three-time driver champion now.

“You must’ve watched a lot of the Monaco GP, huh?” asked y/n, head propped on her hand. 

“Yeah,” he said. “One of my friends has an apartment right by the track; we usually watched it there.”

She let out a low whistle before her gaze turned towards one of the large windows that the apartment provides. “You can see the race too from here, apparently,” said the other driver. “It was one of the realtor’s main selling points. They say you can basically watch the Monaco GP for basically free of charge from here. Well, it’s not like I’ve ever been here during the races.”

Charles blinked. “What about your friends and family?” he asked.

“I don’t think I have enough trust in most of my friends to just hand them the key to this place,” she said wryly. “And the ones that I trust enough would’ve probably watched it from the garage.”

At this, she went quiet for a bit. Charles let her.

“And family? My dad owns the team. He’ll watch it from the garage too. Or the VIP Lounge.”

Oh yeah, he almost forgot the fact.

It seems this is a topic that she doesn’t want to divulge further. Charles won’t press if she doesn’t want to talk about it anymore. Hastily, he tried to change the topic. “So, do you have any favorite race? I mean- races that you like to watch when you’re not driving.”

“Oh?” she said, intrigued. The female driver seems to be thinking about the answer for some time before she finally decides. “I don’t really watch other categories, though. Maybe Moto GP? I don’t know how to drive a motorcycle, so I thought it would be interesting to watch.”

“You can’t drive a motorcycle?” he laughed. It’s a bit of an absurd thinking that there’s a vehicle that y/n l/n can’t ride. The woman is an absolute monster in an F1 car after all. With the way she drives during races, Charles believes that there’s no vehicle in the world that she can’t drive. “That’s a bit unexpected.”

“I specialize in driving cars if you haven’t noticed,” she stopped a bit at this. “I know how to drive a bike, though!” she frowned. “I just don’t understand how Moto GP drivers are able to drive their motorcycle that close to the ground during the turns. Isn’t that dangerous?”

“They would say the same thing every time they watch us drive a car 350 km per hour with barely any protections,” he said drily.

Y/n let out an amused laugh at that. “What can you say? It is an extreme sport. F1 that is. It’s actually pretty safe now,” she said. “There’s a lot of debate regarding the halo, but I thought it’s a good addition if it means it will make us safer.”

Jules, he thought, almost idly. Of the smiling man who often frequented his house ever since he was young. Of the man who always readily gave him any kind of advice that he needed.

Of the man who had basically saved his racing career.

If the Halo had come into existence years before, the man probably would still be here. Laughing and talking with Charles on the grid.

He perished any thought of what if.

“What about you?” asked y/n. “What’s your favorite race that you’ve ever watched?”

The answer is easier than what he had expected. It’s a bit terrifying to be honest, how one race can have so much impact for him even after so many years had passed. After all, it had become one of the most integral memories that he has.

Charles can remember it almost vividly. In 2012, he’s still in the middle of transitioning into the international karting series. Still, a budding race driver that hasn’t had the chance to try a single-seater car.

During that year, just like any other year during that time of the year, he had arrived at one of his friend’s apartments that’s overlooking the racing track. He had been excited to watch Ferrari and their two drivers. To see if they can regain their glory once again just like during their golden years.

He remembers standing there with his friends, laughter echoing through the air and the sound of the F1 car wheezing beneath them echoing through the country.

Of him watching the Monaco GP on his friend’s apartment balcony. Of the thrum of his blood and heart as he watched the race happen underneath it. Imagining the far-off possibility of him being able to do the race in the future. Of his want and greed to achieve his dream as an F1 driver.

Of him, for the very first time, not watching the red car on track.

Of how his gaze keeps going back to the midnight black car. A car with the color of the night sky in the middle of Monaco’s road.

Of the woman who had climbed out of the car with a race suit as dark as her car. The bright white helmet is a stark contrast to the overall theme of her team. Then, the woman opened her helmet, hair tumbling down out of the helmet, and something even brighter than the helmet appeared on the woman’s lips.

He watched as the woman let out a loud laugh, basically running towards her team – also all clad in black, shrouded in darkness – as they celebrated her podium together.

The same smile that’s etched across the woman’s face during the podium. Of him staring at her, awe clear on his face.

“Your first Monaco GP,” he answered, staring at the woman that had been standing on the 2012 Monaco GP podium and now, sitting right next to him.

Funny how life works.

Y/n blinked. “Oh?” she asked, head tilting. It’s clear that she didn’t expect that answer from him. “Any special reason for that?”

Monaco GP, in y/n’s dazzling first season as an F1 driver, doesn’t have any notable feat or any personal record. She didn’t win the race, and it was not her first podium. It was not the race where she scored her first points, nor it is her first race in F1.

It’s just that-

“It was the race where I became a fan of you,” Charles answered with a grin. Still remembered the thunder inside his chest and the intense want that appeared in him as he watched the race. “You were amazing in that race.”

It was the race that erased any kind of prejudice that he had for her. The race that had proved him wrong. The race that had shown him how bright y/n l/n is.

How she is an amazing race driver.

How she was one of the greatest that he had ever seen.

It was the race, that shows how much y/n l/n loves racing. The race that shows how much she loves being a Formula 1 driver despite the many many critics that were aimed towards her. How the woman, couldn’t care less about anything as long as she’s able to reach for the stars.

To Charles, that’s one of the amazing qualities that y/n possessed. One of the things that he admires so much of her. 

Y/n chuckled. “That’s sweet, you know?” she said, reaching her hand towards his hair to ruffle it. 

Charles won’t lie and say that the gesture didn’t fluster him. The warmth of y/n’s hand is a comforting weight on top of his head. How almost immediately, his mind cleared up as he stared at the woman in front of him. Of her bright eyes and how the light cast a beautiful shadow across her face.

Beautiful, he thought. He knows that y/n is beautiful, but this is insane.

Charles is going insane.

Going to y/n’s apartment this late at night is an insane decision for him. Sitting here on her sofa, with a glass of water in front of him and y/n herself sitting next to him, is an insane decision that he made. Having a casual conversation like this with her while she’s looking so beautiful and in that dress is insane for him.

This is insane, but Charles likes it. Charles loves it. He loves it too much that he craves for more.

(Greedy, he thinks.)

There were thousands of things that he wanted to say, and yet it stuck in his throat as if he didn’t know how to talk. As if the words are too big and too complicated for him to process. He gulped, not believing himself to not say anything stupid. “What about other racing categories that you want to try out?” asked Charles instead, trying to stop the ringing in his ear and the blood rushing towards his face. 

Y/n retracted her hand. He missed the warmth almost immediately, barely stopping himself from chasing it.

“I think the 24-hour Le Mans would be interesting,” she said, toying with a lock of her hair. “it’s a fascinating concept.”

Charles has to agree on that. “Le Mans sounds awesome; I also want to try it somewhere in the future.”

“Should we partner up then?” she said, leaning forward, smiling. “Me, you, and probably… Max?”

His previous good mood immediately soured at the mention of his rival. “Why Max?” he complained, immediately remembering the Dutch throughout their karting days and other less-than-pleasant memories.

“I want to see the both of you bicker with each other.”

Charles spluttered, face reddening. He didn’t think that his rivalry with Max was that obvious to the point that y/n would take notice.

The woman seems to take some kind of amusement in his internal struggle. “What? You didn’t think it was obvious?” she asked as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

Maybe it was. He didn’t know. He can’t seem to think whenever he’s around y/n.

“Well-“

Y/n actually let out a large laugh at, head thrown back as if he just said the most amusing thing in the world. “You’re really cute, you know?”

Cute.

Cutecutecute.

She called him cute. What in the ever-loving fuck is happening? He doesn’t know. He can’t comprehend this. He wants to understand. Desperately so. Before he’s saying something so stupid that he’ll regret it for the rest of his life-

“You’re beautiful,” blurted out Charles.

It took him a couple of seconds to realize what he just said, and his previous attempt of trying to stop the blood from rushing to his face immediately failed as he could feel how red and hot his face was. He can only sit there, eyes wide and mouth gaping open. Not quite believing the words that he had just said.

Y/n, too, is still sitting in front of him and staring at him. 

He doesn’t know how much time passed between them. Maybe it’s mere seconds. Or maybe it’s hours. All he could think about was his own panicked heart and how beautiful y/n was in front of him.

All of a sudden, a smile appeared on her face. Her hand, which was previously toying with her hair, reached forward, cradling his face almost delicately. Charles gaped, the mind can’t process the sudden warmth and softness that he could feel from y/n’s hand on his face.

What-

What is happening!?

At that, y/n suddenly leaned forward, their shoulders touching as she stopped so close to his face that he swears that she could hear the sound of his heart. It’s hot. The air is hot. Her breath was hot as she sat there, staring at Charles as if she could see his very soul.

“You know you’re sweet, right?” she said, almost a whisper. 

He can’t breathe.

Almost instinctively, he closed his eyes, feeling her breath caress his lips, and at that moment, he could almost taste the softness of her lips-

A finger bopped his nose.

Immediately, he opens his eyes. Bright green eyes stared at y/n own bright ones, and he could see the teasing smile on the woman’s face.

“Ah,” she breathed out, still so close and her hand still cradling his face. He can still feel their breath intertwining together, and his mind still can’t process what is happening. “Are you expecting something else, mon chéri?”

Fuck, he thought, still staring at the woman in front of him with wide eyes. Fuck fuck fuck.

Charles can’t hear anything from how loud the ringing is on his ear as well as the blood rushing on top. He wants to look somewhere else, somewhere else that’s safer for his racing heart. But oddly, he can’t look away.

He can only stare at this woman in front of him. The woman who is still staring at him with that bright eyes of her and that amused smile.

“I-!” said Charles, abruptly standing up, creating some distance between the two of them. “I need to-!”

What does he need to do?

(Y/n sitting there so close to him. Breathe hot on his lips and their shoulder touching each other. He can feel the warmth that he craved so badly before on his face. Cradling it almost delicately.

Y/n is sitting there, eyes bright as she stares at Charles. Looking at his soul.

He would’ve borne the entirety of his soul to her if she asked to.)

He needs to go.

“I need to go!” he announced, trying not to look at y/n. Trying to forget her bright eyes and the way she cradled his face.

He needs-

He needs to-

Charles needs a cold shower.

“I’ll see you tomorrow-“ he stared at the clock. It’s the next day already. They have media day today. Charles will need to focus. “I mean, see you later!” continued the man as he marched towards the front door, not even daring to look back.

He thinks that if he ever looked back, if he ever caught a glimpse of y/n there still in that beautiful dress that she was wearing for the party earlier, he would never go home. He would stay and only able enough nerve to stare at her dumbly. It’s almost a vain attempt as suddenly, he could hear y/n’s laugh ringing across the apartment.

It’s a beautiful sound, just like her. Everything about her is beautiful. From her self to her soul.

Stopping at the front door, he reached towards the doorknob before his resolve crumbled, and he looked back for one last time.

Y/n is still sitting there, leaning back on the sofa. One of her dress’ thin straps had fallen from one shoulder as she stared at him with an amused smile clear on her face. Her hair cascaded down her back, and her bright eyes were clearly staring at him, something he can’t quite comprehend already in her eyes.

“Goodbye, Char,” she said, giving him a wave. Something so similar that she had done to him earlier tonight during the party. “See you later.”

The path between y/n’s apartment and his car is a blur. He didn’t remember how he arrived at his car. However, the moment he entered the vehicle, he let out a groan as he leaned forward, clutching the steering wheel as if his life depended on it.

“Fuck,” he muttered, voice muffled. “This is bad.”

He thinks not even a cold shower will help.

Y/n sat there, staring at the door that had been slammed close by the younger driver.

Sighing, she leaned back on the sofa. “This is bad,” muttered the woman, cradling her hot face with her hand.

A flash of Charles’ face appeared on her mind. Of his flushed face and reddened ear. Of his wide eyes and hands that just won’t stop fiddling with each other ever since he arrived at her apartment.

Of a stray thought that appeared on her mind throughout her conversation with Charles.

Cute.

“This is bad,” she repeated, sounding resigned. “It’s so fun to tease him like that.”

Will it be a sin to do it some more?

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[leclucklerc]

Hard Carry CL16 - 04. Life of a Party

Pairing: Charles Leclerc x driver!reader

Summary: More fateful encounters happen and y/n attended a party where she accidentally met Ferrari's next golden boy

Word Count: 5.2K

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Drive to Survive season 1, episode 3

It’s all about Porsche

“2018, is an interesting year for Formula One,” started Will Buxton in the dark interview room. “After all, this year is the year where Lewis Hamilton can tie the race towards driver championship.”

A montage appeared after that, of Sebastian Vettel winning the championship from the year 2010 to 2012. Then, a montage of y/n winning the 2013, 2014, and 2017 championships was also played. The last montage to be played is of Lewis Hamilton’s 2008 and 2015 win.

“This year, there are many world champions racing in the grid,” continued the man as clips of all previous champions, such as Fernando and Kimi, played across the screen. “It’s a whole lot of talent, a whole lot of ego.”

Clips of crashes or swear words being yelled out across the driver’s radio could be seen.

“But amid such talented drivers, the three standouts that people think will win this year’s championship.”

A clip of Sebastian Vettel being interviewed appeared. The man is wearing the Ferrari team kit, completely bathed in red. 

“Sebastian,” asked the interviewer. “Do you think you will win this year’s driver championship?”

“Yes,” answered Sebastian Vettel.

Another clip of Lewis Hamilton being interviewed appeared. Same as Sebastian, he’s wearing a white Mercedes team kit.

“Lewis,” started the interviewer. “Do you think you will win this year’s driver championship?”

“Yes,” answered Lewis Hamilton.

And finally, a clip of y/n l/n being interviewed appeared. The woman is wearing Porsche’s team kit, bathed in black.

“Y/n,” said the interviewer. “Do you think you will win this year’s driver championship?”

Y/n stared at the camera. “Yes,” she answered, fully confident.

The screen turned towards Will Buxton in the darkroom once again. The man is staring straight at the camera, too, sounding fully convinced. “This year, the battle between the three world champions will be intense.”

Y/n is leading the driver’s championship, and yet Porsche is not leading the constructor championship.

How absurd, she sneered internally.

This circumstance almost makes sense, considering the crash that y/n and Henry did back in the Spanish GP, Mercedes managed to overthrow Porsche’s reign as the number one in the constructor championship. A sour feeling made its way into her mouth. It’s unfair to put a big expectation on a rookie driver who is still in the process of adjusting their way into Formula 1. It’s a bit unfair to have a too big expectation for a driver who is still doing their first season in Formula 1.

And yet, the female can’t help the annoyed huff that she lets out. At the start of the season, y/n had vowed to make Formula 1 a place where rookies can thrive. A place where drivers can continue to develop themselves without any oppressing external force. However, she really couldn’t help the annoyance that blossomed inside of her chest.

This year, Porsche has an amazing car. A really amazing one. It’s fast – faster than any other car on the grid.

So, it should be easy for Henry to at least stand in third place.

But no, the little shit is currently barely at the sixth place of the driver’s championship.

Truthfully, during the start of the season, the woman really doesn’t have any bad blood with the younger. While it’s true that she was a bit wary, considering how bad her past teammates were, she just saw him as a starry-eyed rookie driver. A young driver plucked straight out of F2.

He’s green. He’s naïve. It’s clear that his racing experience dwarfed by y/n’s. She was prepared to guide him throughout the season, hoping that she’d give Herman one less headache by finally managing to have a teammate who would last more than one season.

But no, the little shit just had to act like a little shit.

Fucker, she thought, as she closed her phone and continued her walk towards the meeting room.

Inside, Herman is already there, talking with someone through the phone. Henry and his manager, too, could also be seen talking about the papers in front of them. Not caring, y/n immediately announced her presence by opening the door to the meeting room loudly.

Glancing up, Herman murmured a goodbye before giving her a nod. “You’re here,” said the man. “Good.”

She laughed at that, “Am I late?”

“No,” replied the German, glancing at the clock. “We’re just early.”

Y/n knows that she’s 5 minutes late, but whatever.

“So,” said the team principal, turning towards where the two drivers were sitting. “We have Monaco next on the calendar,” said the man.

“Home sweet home,” whistled y/n. “You are thinking of moving to Monaco too?” she asked, turning her head towards where Henty sat.

Henry clearly didn’t expect that she would address him, the younger man flinched a bit in surprise. “Sorry? Ah- yeah, Monaco. The country,” He stuttered.

“Half the grid lives there,” said the woman. “You know, no taxes and shit.”

The man nodded at that. “Oh… yeah, I was thinking about it,” said the man. “I’m- well, we, me and manager – are going to look into some apartments a day before practice.”

Y/n nodded at that. “You know the good neighborhood already? I mean, it’s not a big country, but there are some places where the real estate prices are actually worth the money.”

Henry gave her a small nod at that. “I researched it already,” he answered. “And my manager came from Monaco, so I’ll put my faith in him.”

“Good for you, you got a hefty signing bonus, eh?” asked the woman playfully.

“Well-“

“As I was saying,” cut Herman, gaining both of their attention once again. What an attention whore. “Monaco is next on the calendar. I just want to remind the both of you that we didn’t have significant upgrades on both of your cars, considering the tight time frame.”

They both nodded.

“That’s why I expect the both of you to be already familiar with your cars during practice, especially you, Henry,” said the team principal, turning his head towards where the younger sat. “In Monaco, qualifying is important. Because of the narrow roads, almost no overtakes usually happen during the race, so I want you to gain a top-three finish in the qualifying.”

Henry balked a bit at that. “Top three? I-“

“No excuses,” said Herman, tapping his iPad. “We’re behind Mercedes right now. If we want to be number one in the constructor, we must gain as many points as we can immediately.”

The kid looks constipated. People like to point out that y/n is a bad teammate, that she’s the driver killer. The bitch who waved goodbye to all of her past teammates on top of her carefully built tower.

What they forgot to point out is, well, Herman, too, is a bastard.

Which makes sense, considering he is the team principal of Porsche, the team that always races for championships. The man needs to be a bit of a bastard sometimes. If it means that he has to put massive pressure on a rookie in order to win the constructor, Herman will absolutely do it.

What a unit they both have. The bitch and the bastard of Porsche.

“… yes,” said the kid, finally. His throat bobbed nervously. “I’ll- I’ll try my best-“

“No,” said Herman again. “I don’t want you to try, I want you to show your best,” said the man. 

The already chilly meeting room turns even more cold at that demand. She could see Henry’s eyes waver at that, going back from where Herman stood to where y/n sat. The woman merely gave him a shrug, not helping him the slightest. 

Said kid frowned at that, though he let out a nod.

“And as for you, Y/n,” said the team principal, addressing her. “I expect you to get pole.”

She grinned at that. “I’ll get pole then,” said the woman. “Just for you, babe.”

Herman rolled his eyes at that. “Please,” groaned the man. “And you’re leading the driver championship, good. The gap between you and Hamilton is big; please keep up with that. Also, please keep in mind that Hamilton, too, will vying to be number one, possibly to tie the number of world championships that the three of you have.”

Y/n nodded at that. Both y/n and Sebastian are tied at three world champions, while Lewis is trailing at two. There’s no doubt that the Mercedes driver desperately wants to tie that championship number. 

“Sebastian is pretty insistent, too,” muttered the female. “Ferrari is really fast this year.”

The older man nodded at that. “And I don’t think I can say this enough,” said the man. “But I don’t want what happened at the Spanish GP to happen again,” he said. “At all.”

“Yeah, yeah,” drawled out y/n. “You got that, Henry?”

“Y- yeah.”

“Good,” nodded the man. “Now I want to talk about some upgrades that had been installed on your cars-“

Y/n blanches at that.

Monaco is home.

While it’s true that she was born and raised in France, the moment she got her first real check from Formula One, y/n immediately bought an apartment in Monaco. She didn’t really have any reason to move to Monaco back then, there was just some kind of itch under her skin when she saw the sum of money that she got when she signed that Porsche contract.

Maybe it’s her desire for freedom, to finally leave her childhood home. Maybe it’s just her impulsiveness, not really caring where she lives somewhere in the world. All in all, it had been a correct decision back then, considering that, well, a lot of the drivers lived in Monaco. It’s also a tax haven, which helps considering the hefty sum she got from Porsche.

All in all, her decision to move to Monaco years ago is something that she will never regret. It’s a beautiful country with beautiful weather. She loves going to the sea, just sunbathing under the sun before walking around the shopping district, ready to spend an unfathomable amount of money on bags.

That’s why every time the Monaco GP comes around, she can’t contain her excitement.

After all, she’s finally home. She can sleep on her bed, work in her private gym, doesn’t have to see prissy drivers 24/7-

Y/n stopped on her jogging track.

“Charles?” she called out.

The male, also equally startled as her, stopped on his jog. “Y/n?” he said, almost choking on the water bottle that he was holding.

A smile appeared on her face. Charles is a nice guy, after all. He was a bit skittish, but he had been a sweet guy during their previous encounters. “Oh, you’re in Monaco already?” she asked, giving him a fist bump. “Didn’t expect anyone to arrive here this soon.”

“I live here,” he blurted out, eyes widening a bit before he added, “I mean, I’m Monegasque.”

She blinked. “For real?” she said. “I thought you were French.” The last part was spoken in French.

“I mean, I do speak French,” replied Charles, also in French. Y/n thinks that this is the first time that both are speaking in their mother tongue. “But I was born and raised here.”

“Oh my,” said the female as both fell into a light jog. She could see the sea beside them as they continued their path through the uphill. “It’s not every day that you’ll see someone that’s actually Monegasque.” 

Charles laughed at that. “There’s no way you’ve never met a Monegasque before. You lived here for a few years, no?” At this, he blinked before a flush overtook his face. “Wait- I’m not a stalker or anything, I just know that you’ve been living in Monaco because of some news articles- “

“Eh,” chuckled y/n, amusement evident on her face. “You’ve been following my career, huh?”

He didn’t answer that, though he did speed up, clearly way too embarrassed to answer that question. Y/n let out a laugh as she also tried to increase her pace. It flattered her, really. Most of the newer drivers don’t really wear their emotions on their sleeve like Charles is, so it’s a bit hard to tease them.

“Oh, are you a fan?” she said. “I remember Herman did say that you asked to meet me during the pre-season testing- “

“Okay!” Yelled Charles, face red. “I am a fan! Stop embarrassing me- “

Y/n laughed at that, putting her arm around Charles’ shoulder in a friendly gesture. The man is taller than her, so it’s a bit of a struggle, but she still manages to do it. “Aw, that’s sweet,” the woman crooned. “Want an autograph?”

She didn’t think that Charles’s face could be any redder, but the man spluttered before he, once again, tried to jog past her. It soon became a little game of tag, where Charles tried to speed off, and y/n caught up to him with an easy grin on her face.

What was supposed to be a light jogging session became a full-blown one as both she and Charles wanted to be the first ones who backed off. During their mini-game of tag, she could feel some fellow joggers raising their eyebrows and staring at them. Confused why two adults would chase each other on a hill in Monaco.

The game ended when y/n finally caught up to the male, slinging an arm around his shoulder once again to make sure that the man didn’t run off again.

“Fuck,” she wheezed out as her hair stuck towards her forehead. Y/n feels sticky. The woman certainly didn’t expect the light jog that she intended to become a full-blown marathon in the hills of Monaco. “I win.”

Charles, also panting, doubled forward as he regained his breathing with his hands on his knees. The motion almost made y/n stumbled, though she managed to regain her footing at the last minute.

“Yeah,” he said between his labored breathing. “I think we should stop.”

At this, they caught each other’s eyes as silence fell between them. However, it soon was replaced with the sound of loud laughter from both.

She can’t believe this. It’s been years since she did a game of tag – something that she didn’t even do during her childhood years, considering how busy she was with karting and everything – and she just played it with someone that she barely knows.

It was a bit odd how Charles could bring out her lighthearted side.

They decided to sit near the edge of the hill overlooking Monte Carlo. Charles did offer her his bottle of water, something that she was grateful for, considering that she forgot to bring her own.

“So, it’s been a few months,” she started, handing the bottle back to Charles. “How is F1 so far?”

“Great,” replied the man before also chugging down the water. Y/n took note of the indirect kiss, though she didn’t make a fuss about it. She’s not in middle school anymore, after all. “It’s all I’ve been dreaming of.”

Y/n hummed. “So far, you had a pretty great season, I’m glad,” she answered. “Still in Sauber next year?”

Charles tilted his head at that. “Well, that’s the plan, yeah,” he answered. “But it’s still early in the season. Who knows what will happen.”

“Ah, you’re expecting other teams to reach out?” she asked. When she said that Charles had a great season, she was not lying. After all, from her observation, Charles managed to maximize the hell out of Sauber’s car – even outperforming his much more experienced teammates.

She knows that the bigger teams have started to set their eyes on Charles’ potential. Porsche included.

Y/n had seen the way Herman watched Charles’ performance. She knows that the man is considering all kinds of possibilities for the better of the team. She knows that a talented rookie driver – still naïve, doesn’t have a strong personality, talented as hell – is practically equal to gold in Herman’s eyes.

Charles Leclerc is one hell of a driver.

An image of Charles in Porsche’s driver’s suit appeared on her head. Hm, she thought. That’s not a bad look.

“I’m not expecting,” answered Charles. “I know they will.”

A bark of laughter appeared in her throat. “You’re really confident, huh?” she said, grinning. 

“I think a Formula One driver has to be confident,” replied the man. “I’ve tried to show the teams my best. I can only hope that it’s good enough for them.”

“I see,” she said. “And you think it’s good enough?”

“Well, it’s only the start of the season,” shrugged the man. “But so far, it has been growing great.”

She laughed at that. “That’s nice,” said the woman, leaning back on her hand. Her gaze dropped towards the view of Monte Carlo in front of them. “I hope we can share podiums soon.”

There is silence between them after that as y/n continues to watch the sight before her, and Charles falls silent. Before long, she could hear a soft sound of laughter from the rookie driver.

It’s a nice sound, she idly thought.

“Yeah,” said Charles. “I, too, hope that day will come soon enough.”

Podium with Charles Leclerc. That doesn’t sound bad at all. 

Y/n had always thought that love was not something for her.

Maybe it’s the way she grew up and watched all the women who came and went from her father’s bed. Maybe it’s the fact that she never knew her mom, which makes her not know how love or marriage works. Or maybe it’s more of her fear of long-term commitment.

The media or maybe Formula One fans would call her a hypocrite if they heard that, considering her pretty extensive dating history throughout her career. 

Still, the thought of having to spend the rest of her life shackled with only one person is a bit terrifying. She can’t imagine loving someone so much that she decided to make him a constant presence in her life. To have someone to share her personal space with.

While it’s true that she has her own flings and short-lived relationships, love had not been something that she put much effort into. Finding someone to share her bed with had always been way too easy. Finding someone who wants to have a long-term relationship with?

Yeah.

No.

With her busy schedule and the fact that she was flying to a different country every week, love had never been her priority. Why should she be focusing on something like love when she can be productive? Why should she be focusing on something like love when there’s a race to win and other shit tons of things to do?

That’s why she found herself a bit shocked that she accepted Max’s invitation to a party in Monaco.

Well, it’s not like Max invited her per se. More like begs her. 

“You’re so friendless,” said the woman, crossing her arms together.

The man merely glared at her.

Contrary to popular belief, she and Max are actually pretty good friends. After all, both of them have plenty of things to connect with. They’re Formula One drivers; they were thrust into the sport at a really young age, and they practically carry their teams on their backs, yada yada.

(Daniel would probably kill her if he heard her saying that, but whatever.)

It’s a friendship that she was a bit surprised with but welcomed, nonetheless.

“If I could, I wouldn’t even be here,” growled the man. “But it’s for one of our sponsors.”

Y/n blinked.

“Our?”

“They’re planning to sponsor Porsche next season,” answered Max. “Maybe you would know if you actually checked all of the emails that Herman sent you.”

The female waved him off, “I have a personal assistant that does that kind of thing,” she replied. “But ah, now that I think about it, Dad did say something about a new sponsor.”

“It’s an investment company; they’re trying to gain “Whatever Max was about to say was cut off as the man suddenly stopped his sentence, staring at one point of the room pointedly.

Raising an eyebrow, y/n asked, “What did you say- “She, too, stopped, staring at the same spot as Max.

Charles Leclerc stares at both. Eyes wide in surprise.

“Ah,” said them both.

“Ah…,” said Charles, though she could only see his mouth move.

Max immediately turned his head towards her, eyes widening in horror as he grasped her arm. “Y/n, don’t you dare- “

“Char!” she greeted with a wave of her hand. “Fancy meeting you here!”

The said man flinched, clearly, he didn’t expect y/n’s loud greeting. Taking a hesitant step, the younger man approached the both of them cautiously. She could see that he was a bit nervous as his eyes darted everywhere in the room.

“Y/n! and… Max,” he said after a slight pause. “I didn’t expect to see you guys here together.” There’s something strained about his tone; maybe it’s because of his past rivalry with Max? she remembers reading something like that about them.

“Max dragged me here,” she replied. “What about you?”

“The company holding this party is looking to invest in Sauber next year, one of the drivers was asked to participate,” he explained.

Damn, Red Bull, Porsche, and Sauber? Are they going to invest in the entire grid? But then again, the company probably heard their deal with Netflix and concluded that there will be a whole lot of exposure regarding F1 next year.

“You’re not drinking?” asked the woman, staring pointedly at Charles’ empty hand.

“Ah, tomorrow is the media day so…,”

“You shouldn’t be drinking either,” said Max, snatching the glass of alcohol that she managed to grab earlier. “You’ll be completely wasted by tomorrow morning.”

Huffing, she glared at the Red Bull driver, “I was not going to drink that, you know?” she said. “It’s all about the appearances, as if I’m enjoying this party.”

Max rolled his eyes as if he didn’t believe her.

In front of them, Charles silently stared at their interaction. “… Are you guys like… together, together?”

Both y/n and Max turned their heads so fast towards where Charles stood, eyes wide and complete shock painted across their face.

“What!?” she screeched out. “No- we’re not together!”

“Yes,” hissed out Max. “We’re not together, Leclerc.”

Charles blinked; tension seemed to seep out of his shoulder. “Oh, I thought because you attended this party together- “

“The company is also looking to sponsor both Red Bull and Porsche,” replied Max, cutting Charles as if he didn’t want to listen to his explanation. Which, honestly, is valid because y/n had never been more horrified before, too. “I just thought that it would be logical for us to attend together.”

“Yes,” replied y/n with a nod. “And Max here is friendless so-“

“I’m not!”

Just the thought of dating someone on the grid terrifies her. After all, ever since her debut, that’s the one accusation that keeps appearing under her name.

Truthfully, it’s something that should’ve been expected, considering she’s the first female F1 driver in years. She’s the first F1 female world champion. Considering all of her achievements in the sport, she thought that the baseless accusations of her sleeping with the entire grid should’ve been gone by no.

But no.

Despite everything. Despite her already proving her worth to the entire world, that specific accusation keeps haunting her.

Whore.

Slut.

She will sleep with the entire grid.

Horrible fuckers, she thought. She hopes they all will choke and die. 

“I see,” said Charles with a nod before a smile bloomed on his face. “I’ll hang out with you guys then; I don’t know anyone here.”

Max rolled his eyes at that. “Y/n here knows everyone,” replied the driver. “So, if you want to make connections, you should stick by her.”

“And Max here doesn’t know anyone,” added y/n.

“Shut the fuck up.”

Y/n laughed at that, slightly leaning towards the table beside her. “Come on, Char, I’ll introduce you to everyone,” she said. Despite her reluctance to go to the party, Max was actually right. She knows a lot of the people here.

There’s a lot of people from the entertainment circle as well as sports. Mainly F1, but she can see some other athletes from different sports. 

“Go ahead,” said Max. “I’ll wait here.”

“Boo, boring.”

Going around the room with Charles was quite easy. Unlike Max and his tendency to stay quiet, Charles was a really sociable guy. He’s very friendly, always finding topics to talk about, as well as knowing the appropriate cues to laugh or not. He looks as if he had been media-trained for years.

Knowing Sauber and their budget, the guy probably never did any media training. So, all of this is his natural charisma.

He’ll be good for PR. FIA probably will do something with him later on.

So far, everyone that she had introduced to Charles had been positively charmed by him. Some even asked for his phone number or social media. He had looked unsure initially, though y/n gave him a small nudge and loudly claimed that Charles would love to give them his Instagram.

Giving strangers your personal phone number sounds icky, but Instagram should be okay, right? He should built connections for the future in this party after all.

They’ve been talking with the other guest for a couple of hours when she can feel her phone buzzing.

Glancing at it, she sees that it’s a text from Max.

‘Got called for an emergency meeting for tomorrow. I’m going home first.’

Fuck, she thought. This asshole.

“What’s wrong?” asked Charles as they separated from the small group with a laugh and a small wave.

She showed him the message. “Max already went home.”

“Ah,” said Charles, glancing at his watch. “It is already pretty late. Do you want to go home, too?”

“Sure,” answered y/n. Tomorrow is the media day, after all. She needs a good night’s sleep. “I’ll call my PA first to pick me up.”

Charles tilted his head. “PA?” he asked as she began dialing the numbers.

A minute passed, and her PA didn’t answer her phone. Glancing at the time, she internally cursed. She’s probably asleep by now, considering she will have to wake up early to prepare for the media day.

“Is she not answering?” asked Charles as they walked near the entrance.

“She’s probably asleep,” answered y/n with a frown.

“Do you have a car?”

“I went here with Max’s car,” she muttered in irritation. It’s a bad call on her part. She should’ve used her car instead of Max’s, knowing the other driver’s personality.  “But it’s okay, Monaco is a small country. I’ll just take the cab or walk-“

“I have a car,” cut Charles, though he immediately looks embarrassed. “I mean- I went here with my own car. I can drive you home.”

Y/n stared at him with a raised eyebrow.

“It’s not a ploy so that I’ll know your address, I swear I’m not creepy!” he begins rambling. At this point, he’s looking downright panicked. “It’s just that- it’s already late at night, and it’s dangerous for a woman to be alone during the night! And- uh- calling your PA probably takes time, and tomorrow is media day, so it’s better for you to go home early-“

“Charles,” she said before the man could continue her ramble.

He immediately shuts up.

With a tilt of her head, she asked, “Is it really okay for you to drive me home?” glancing at the party that was still happening in full swing, she turned her attention back to the driver again. “If you still want to stay, it’s okay. I’ll figure everything out by myself.”

“Of course!” replied Charles hurriedly. “It’s- it’s not like I know anyone there without you, and well, tomorrow is the media day, I guess it’s time for me to go home, too.”

She pondered the answer for a bit. Really, if Charles still wants to stay, she’s okay with it. It’s easy to call a cab or just ask someone from the party for a ride to her apartment.

But the look that Charles is wearing – the determination – is pretty endearing to look at. It’s cute, she thinks. He still has all of that empty chivalry that men his age usually have. The determination to always protect and accompany a woman to safety.

Not that she’s complaining.

Finally, she let a grin appear on her face. “Well, take me home then, Romeo.”

If it’s possible, Charles’ face had gone redder. However, the Sauber driver lets out a nod and begins escorting her to where he parks his car.

It’s a bit odd to see someone in Monaco not using the valet, but considering he has lived here since he was born, he probably knows every spot this country has to offer. They walked together for a small distance, making a small chatter here and there. Charles still looks a bit nervous, it’s funny.

“Sorry, it’s a bit small,” he said, stopping by a white FIAT 500 that was parked on the side of the road. “I didn’t think that I would bring anyone.”

“It’s cute,” replied y/n with a smile as she entered the car.

The car is a bit cramped, something she should’ve expected, considering how small the car is from the outside. This is actually the first time for her to ride on a car this small – besides a kart, if that actually counts.

“Any preference for music?” he muttered as he fiddled with the stereo.

“Nah, let’s just talk,” she replied, grabbing his arm to stop him. “So, why did you go to the party alone?”

“Ah,” replied the man as he began driving. “I was supposed to go with my older brother. He’s also my manager, but he got sick.”

“You have a brother?” asked y/n. Outside, she could see the night view of Monaco blurring past them. “How many siblings do you have?”

“Two,” he replied. “I’m a middle child.”

She laughed. “Middle child? Have you ever experienced the middle child syndrome?”

Charles raised an eyebrow at that. “Middle child syndrome? What’s that?”

“You know, feeling as if you’re forgotten, left out, stuff like that,” she said with a hum. “I’m an only child, so I never experienced something like that.”

Furrowing his eyebrow, Charles seems to be thinking about his answer. “No, I never felt anything like that,” he finally replied. “Instead, I think my family put me as their priority sometimes.”

Another bark of laughter escaped her. “How can I forget? You’re the prodigious F1 driver, after all.”

Charles’ face reddened at that. “No, I’m not,” he said, sounding embarrassed. “But I think my parents never did anything like that. They love me and my brothers equally.”

They continued their small chatter throughout the drive, and before long, they arrived at y/n’s apartment.

Stopping at the lobby, she turned towards Charles. “Thanks for the ride,” she said, smiling. “It was nice of you.”

“It was my pleasure, actually,” he replied with a small grin.

Stepping out of the car, she stared at the smiling Charles in the driver’s seat. Hm, she thought. It would be a bit of a shame to let him go home now.

However, they do have the media day tomorrow. It’s best for them to immediately go rest because they will obviously have a long day ahead of them. But still-

Well.

“Want to come up?” asked y/n, leaning towards the small window of Charles’ car.

Charles spluttered.

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[leclucklerc]

MAX GOING TO BE A DADDDD?????

[leclucklerc]

Against the World SO17 - 03. Music Video

Pairings: Shohei Ohtani x reader

Summary: Y/n is starring in a music video, but a trouble seems to be brewing?

Word Count: 4.4 k

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That morning, Shohei is already waiting in front of her house with a plastic bag on his arm. The content is so full that it’s practically spilling out of it.

Y/n can’t help the laugh that bubbles out of her as she walks out, keeping her gaze towards the other teen, who is giving her a sheepish grin. It’s a nice sight to see so early in the morning. Of her best friend already standing there, grinning and ready for their daily routine. He’s wearing a shirt with the baseball team logo plastered across his chest and running shorts.

“Have you been waiting long?” she asked, amusement evident in her tone as she stepped out of the gates of her house.

Shohei shook his head, already reaching for her bag as he thrust the plastic bag towards her. “I just got here, and this is for you.”

“Thank you,” she said, taking the plastic bag. As expected, it’s full of chocolate bread. “Not that I’m ungrateful or anything, but this is for?”

“For attending my game,” he answered, already ushering her forward so that they could start their morning jog. “I really like it.”

And well, isn’t that flattering?

All her life, she had not been someone whose presence was wanted by many.

She knows that her mom loves her. That the older woman will absolutely do everything for her sake. But at the same time, she also knows that her presence is ultimately the catalyst of the train of misfortune that befalls her mom’s life. She was the reason why her father left. She was the reason why her mom had to drop out of high school. She was the reason why her mom could barely make it in the job market.

Sometimes, during her frail moments, she likes to think about what her mom would be like if she never fell pregnant with her and how the woman would absolutely thrive in everything that she does. How the tired smile that she always wears in front of y/n will be replaced with a dazzling one, a smile that shows the world her happiness.

It’s a life that is so far away from reality. A faraway life that is full of what-ifs and made-up scenarios.

Her presence is the start of her mom’s downfall. Her presence is so hated by her father to the point the man never even showed up in her life for a full second.

Even as an idol, her presence is not wanted by many. Her fanbase is small and not enthusiastic at all. There were too many broadcasting executives who scoffed at her, chiding her for being a small-time idol with a too-big grin. Even when she danced and sang her out, people stared at her as if she was not there.

To know that there’s someone who’s looking forward to her presence is flattering.

“Maybe,” she said, without even thinking much. Maybe without thinking at all. Lately, if it’s about things related to Shohei, her mind has become a bit muddled. Making her say things that came from her heart, not her brain. “Maybe I can go to more of your baseball games.”

“Really?” asked Shohei, eyes bright – even brighter than the rising sun on the horizon beyond them. Immediately, she could hear the increase in his tone. He’s pleased with the idea. Happy even. “I will really like it if I can see you on the stands.”

Happy, she thought.

He sounds really happy about it. 

A horrible feeling settled in her guts, but she still let out a smile. “Yeah,” answered y/n. “If I have the time, I’ll try to attend more of your baseball games.”

Shohei stopped at that, eyes wide. “Promise?” he asked, giving her his pinkie finger.

She stared at it for a few seconds. Thousands of things raced through her mind. Of the baseball game that she attended a few days ago. Of her father playing in the World Series. Of her happiness watching Shohei standing on the mound. Of her sadness and agony at realizing the reality between her and her father.

It’s a loaded promise. Y/n knows. She shouldn’t do it.

And yet, here she is, intertwining her pinkie together with Shohei’s.

“Promise,” she declared. “I’ll attend your games as many times as you want.”

To her, it sounds almost like an empty promise. Something that she’s dreading to fulfill in the future. But at the same time, the sheer happiness that appeared on her best friend’s face almost crushed all of those feelings together.

Y/n knows that Shohei is someone who wears his heart on his sleeves. It’s easy to see what he’s feeling right now, and he had never been someone who suppressed all of those feelings. But to see him like this, eyes crinkling and a large smile spreading across his tanned face, almost made the horrible in her gut vanish.

It’s a silly feeling. Something that she will maybe laugh at in the future.

Oh, she thought. I think I like him more than I thought.

What a realization.

Her manager told her that she was being cast in the boyband music video when y/n was changing for her gym class.

“Seriously?’ she asked in a hushed whisper, adrenaline thrumming down her skin. “Seriously!?”

“Yes,” answered her manager, a bit breathless. She can hear the sound of a keyboard ticking, no doubt already drafting some kind of news coverage or press release from her agency. “I just got the news a few minutes ago, I called you immediately.”

“This is a great news,” she said. “No, this is an amazing news! You said that they have a pretty large fanbase, right? Imagine the exposure-“

“And you will definitely get your name out there,” said her manager. Y/n couldn’t see his face, but she was sure that he was smiling so large right now. “This- this is a good stepping stone, y/n. After your appearance in the music video, I’ll see what commercials or advertisements reached out. “

Y/n gasped at that. “Commercials?” she said, tone excited. “Do you think that it will reach to that point?”

“Yes,” answered the man easily. “I have no doubt that commercials and other similar opportunities will come knocking on our door. Y/n, this is a good opportunity!”

“I know!” she said. “Just- just tell me what to do, yeah? Text me my train tickets to Tokyo and stuff so I can do enough preparation.

“Of course,” said her manager. “I’ll contact you with further details.”

Ending the phone call, y/n really can’t control the face-splitting grin that’s threatening to come out. After all, this is an amazing news. It was her very first serious gig after her hiatus announcement. Appearing in a music video is a huge deal for an unknown idol like her – especially the music video of an already-established boyband.

She knows that there will be some repercussions, considering that the majority of a boyband fanbase hates to see their idols interacting with girls. But still, it will make them talk about y/n. It will make them know her name.

Exposure is exposure, after all, even if it’s a bad one.

Suppressing the giddy feeling, she stepped outside of the bathroom, immediately heading towards the auditorium where the rest of her class was. Ami is the first one to notice her arrival, as the other girl is giving her an enthusiastic wave.

“You were gone for a pretty long time,” she comments as she immediately looped their arm together.

Y/n let out a hum, “My manager just called me.”

“Oh?” said Ami with a raised of her brow. “Is it good news? You look pretty cheery.”

“It’s an amazing news,” she replied with a grin. Y/n mentioned the name of the boyband. “Do you know them?”

With a nod, Ami replied. “Obviously,” she said. “Some of the girls in our class are obsessed with them. I tried to get to know them, but their music doesn’t fit my taste. Their members are good-looking, though.”

Pride surged into her. “I got cast,” she said, voice a bit low so that the only one who could hear her was Ami. “For their next music video.”

Ami let out a huge gasp, so loud that some people near them threw them a couple of glances. 

“Really!?” whisper-scream Ami. It’s clear that the girl is excited but, at the same time, trying to lower her voice. “Y/n seriously!?”

“Seriously,” she said, giving her a small thumbs up. “That’s why I was gone for so long. My manager just called me to give me the news.”

“Y/n-chan, that’s amazing!”

The sound of Ami’s outburst managed to gain the attention of the people around them. The two girls can only give them a sheepish smile, silently apologizing, before continuing the conversation in a more hushed tone.

“So?” asked the other girl. “Are you going to Tokyo this weekend?”

“Yeah,” she replied, glancing at her phone. Her manager just texted her that he had booked her a train ticket for Friday evening. “I will have to attend the briefing Friday night before going straight to shooting during the weekend.”

Ami went quiet at that. “So… you’re not attending Ohtani-kun’s match this week?”

Ah, she thought. 

Y/n almost forgot about the upcoming baseball match this weekend. The school had been buzzing about it for the past few weeks. After all, the baseball team is the pride and joy of Hanamaki Higashi. All of the team’s achievements are being broadcast to the rest of the student body.

“I don’t think I can do it,” answered y/n. “The match is on… Saturday?”

“Saturday,” confirmed Ami. “If you’re not going, some upperclassmen from the cooking club are going to watch, so I’ll probably tag around them.”

Honestly, she feels guilty. After all, it was only last week that she promised Shohei that she was going to attend his matches. 

But it’s not like y/n able to reject this opportunity. After all, this is huge. The biggest one in her career. She doesn’t want to miss this, and even if she wants to, her manager probably will punch her face or something.

Ami, noticing her complex feeling, nudged her shoulder. “You know, you should tell him,” said the girl. “This is the finals of the summer tournament, after all, an important match for the baseball team. I think he will be looking forward to your presence.”

Yes, she thought. She should tell Shohei.

At this, she finally cast her gaze towards the gym. The boys are playing handball with each other. It’s easy to spot Shohei, considering his height and his loud laugh.

It was at that moment, too, that their gaze met.

Shohei immediately waved at her, a bright grin already on his face. Also, smiling at him, she waved back.

It’s better to tell him soon, she thought silently.

The opportunity to tell Shohei that she will not be attending his game comes sooner than expected.

“You’re coming to the game this weekend, right?” asked the boy during lunch the next day.

Y/n stopped eating, and her salad was still mid-chew. Just like usual, they are having their lunch on the school rooftop. She could hear the faint sound of other students playing soccer on the field just beyond them.

It was the relaxing atmosphere that enveloped the both of them that made her let her guard down. That’s why she was a bit startled at the sudden question that Shohei posed to her.

Shohei also seems to notice the slightest twitch of her expression at the mention of the upcoming game this weekend. “It’s the finals of the summer tournament,” he continued as if he didn’t notice the awkward look on her face. “If we win this, the team will be going to Koshien.”

Koshien, she thought. The land of his dreams.

She knows. She knows because the game is probably Shohei’s biggest one yet.

The absolute dream for all high school baseball players, the ultimate dream for every teenager playing baseball, and the initial road to success for every budding baseball star.

Stars are made during Koshien. Legends are made during Koshien.

Her best friend had been babbling about Koshien ever since they became close months ago. She knows that Shohei had always wanted to reach that stage – to achieve his childhood dream of winning the tournament. Y/n knows how important the upcoming matchup is for Shohei.

It’s a bit laughable that she will break their promise so soon after making it.

“Hey,” started y/n, eyes flickering towards her salad. She doesn’t dare to look at him. “Um… I don’t think I can make it.”

There’s silence between the two of them.

Finally, snapping her gaze back towards the boy in front of her, she can see his expression. There’s a frown etching across his face, something that she wants to desperately tug up, replacing it with his sunny smile. His eyebrows are furrowed as he stares at her as if he’s thinking about something.

“Why?” he asked, head tilted. “Are you going to Tokyo?”

“Yes,” she replied. “I have… I have a job there this weekend.”

“A job?”

“I got cast in a music video,” said y/n, a bit rushed, as if she was desperate to explain to him that she had a good reason to miss one of his games. It sounds pathetic – she’s so sure of it. But she’s desperate. “I just got the news yesterday, so I didn’t have the time to tell you yet,” she added for good measure.

Shohei’s eyes widened at that as silence descended upon them for a couple of seconds. “In a music video?” he finally asked, voice a bit breathless and something akin to wonder hinted in his tone. “Like, official music video?”

“Yeah, a boyband,” she said, then she told him the boyband’s name. “Maybe you know them?”

“I know them!” said Shohei all of a sudden, excitement evident in his tone. He even stood up abruptly – almost spilling his lunch during the process - as if he was really surprised. With the way his eyes had widened and the flush spreading across his cheek, it seemed the boy was happy at the news. “And you’re going to star in their music video?”

With a nod, y/n gave him her confirmation. “I am,” she said. “The shooting starts this Friday.”

“I see why you can’t come to the game then,” answered Shohei, finally sitting back in his seat. “That’s so cool; you’re seriously like a celebrity right now!”

She blinked at that, still staring at the teen in front of her.

Shohei continues to talk. “They’re pretty popular, right? I think I heard some of their songs in the locker room! Hey, can I tell my teammates? They won’t believe it!”

It was… odd. He does seem genuinely excited for her, as if y/n didn’t just break their promise.

“Well, I hope the shoot went amazingly!”

Y/n blinked at that once again, still staring at the boy in front of her.

“You’re not mad?”

Shohei cocked an eyebrow at that. “Why should I?” he answered. “I mean, I will never be mad when you’re chasing your dream. The tournament is my way to chase my dream, but if starring in the music video is your way to chase your dream, it will be very ironic for me if I get mad, right?”

And huh, he’s speaking the truth.

For the longest time, y/n had always thought that a relationship was a mutual symbiotic thing. You have to give back when you’re given something.

For the longest time, her relationships had always been like this. In order to have devout fans, she has to maintain the picture-perfect idol image. To maintain her friends – the few that she has – she has to treat them well – too well – in order to repay their time.

The only relationship that she has ever had that is not mutual is her relationship with her mom.

Her mom always gives, gives, and gives. Y/n always tries to desperately give back but seems to always fail.

This relationship between her and Shohei is where there is an easy acceptance between the two of them. Y/n didn’t have to try to please Shohei. She didn’t have to try to become anything else besides herself. She didn’t have to prioritize him or their relationship.

He lets her be her.

He lets her to be y/n l/n. The girl is also chasing her dream, just like him. Just a girl who’s trying to break through the entertainment industry with everything that she has.

Thump

Thump

Thumpthumpthump-

A laugh broke out.

Shohei is staring at her with wide eyes, just staring at the girl as she lets out a loud laugh, something that’s echoing throughout the rooftop. This is maybe the most genuine laugh that she has ever let out in years. 

This is maybe the most carefree that she had ever felt in years.

“Shohei,” she finally said, mouth grinning so hard it’s hurting a bit. Y/n reached out, holding their hands together and intertwining them together. She could feel the rough texture of his skin and the callouses. A clear evident that he had been practicing hard to reach for his dream. 

It’s clear that the boy is a bit surprised at the gesture – y/n had never been someone big on physical contact, after all. “Thank you for your support. I really mean it.”

“Uh- yeah? Sure?” he replied, stammering a bit.

“I’m sorry I can’t come to your game, but you know I will always be thinking about you, right? Wishing you good luck for the game?”

“…” Shohei is staring at her before a squeak escapes his lips. “Of course!” he exclaimed, with the tip of his ears reddening a bit. “I mean- I know you will always support me and stuff!”

It’s cute, she thinks. It’s very cute seeing him this flustered when, usually, it’s her who is being flustered by him.

“Do you want anything from Tokyo?” asked y/n. “As compensation for me not attending your game.”

A thoughtful look passed by on his face.

“… I really can’t think of anything, but-“ he stopped a bit before a shy smile appeared on his lips. “Can I call you when we win the game?”

When.

Not if.

Thump

Thump

Thumpthumpthump-

Confident guy, she thought, as a chuckle escaped her lips. Her heart is still erratically beating inside of her, almost making her a bit dizzy with all the blood rushing into her head.

“Of course,” she replied, eyes tender. “I will be waiting for it.”

The music video shooting went amazingly.

Y/n didn’t know what she had expected. Considering that this is a pretty big production for a popular boyband, she thought that the atmosphere would be more tense. More pressure in the air.

In reality, though, the past few days had been really lax. The director had greeted her with a large smile on his face. Even during the shooting, and there were some mistakes or NGs, the director merely laughed it off before continuing the shot. It’s a bit peculiar, but y/n is really grateful – considering how nervous she is during the shooting process.

She has been given a really simple script, and there’s no outrageous demand from the production team. Even the costume that was given to her – a simple uniform look with a dark blazer – is not something that she hates to wear.

Both her manager and the director had praised her performance, and she had taken it like a sponge with water. Overall, her mood had been pretty great during the past few days.

Despite all that, there’s only one thing that’s bothering her throughout the shoot.

“Y/n-chan,” greeted the smiling face of Takahashi Ren, one of the members of the boyband.

She can feel her face twitched at that. Y/n didn’t give him any permission to use her first name. Hell, she’s sure that they shouldn’t drop the formality between them, considering they’re just coworkers.

But this man is persistent.

Ever since she first arrived at the site Friday night, he had been bothering her nonstop.

It started during the script reading. She had introduced herself formally to every member of the crew, and Takahashi-san had piped up, asking if she was half foreign. The nonstop questions started from that. From then on, he keeps asking her things that she’s a bit uncomfortable with, such as if she is single or if she has ever drunk alcohol before.

Besides that, he also requested the director to add some additional scenes with her. It’s highly uncomfortable as he always lingers every time they touch during the scenes. With the director’s lax attitude – or maybe he just doesn’t care all that much – he didn’t even give Takahashi-san a reprimand.

Y/n had tried to be polite – she really does – but still, this man was persistent.

“Takahashi-san,” she replied politely.

The older man let out a laugh at that. “I told you that you can call me Ren, you know!” he said. “Say, where are you going after this?”

At this, y/n throws a discreet glance at her manager. Her manager is also staring at Takahashi-san with some kind of intensity in his eyes. 

“I’m going back home to Iwate,” she replied. “I have school tomorrow.”

“Ah yes, school,” said the man. “I forgot that you’re still in high school,” at this, he’s rummaging his pocket for something. “You wanna go out with me after this? We’re going to this bar in Roppongi. My treat.”

This time, her manager interjected. “I’m sorry, Takahashi-san, but we already booked the train ticket. If we miss it, l/n-chan will be late for school tomorrow.”

“You’re a bit funny,” said Takahashi-san. “An idol who cares for school? Hah!” he chuckled. “You know what y/n-chan, here, take my number.”

Y/n stared at the outstretched hand in front of her. It’s holding a piece of paper with a phone number scribbled on top of it.

“It’s my personal number,” added the older man with a wink, she internally blanched. “Call me?”

Fuck.

She really wants to reject it. She really wants to say that she’s not interested. That he’s not my type.

But at the same time, y/n knows that she’s the one with the disadvantage here.

An unpopular idol that’s desperately trying to get more gigs versus an established popular boyband member? She knows that if she rejects him now, it will practically be the end of her career. Her manager, too, seemed to share the same thought as she realized a small twitch on the man’s eyebrow. Clearly agitated.

Despite all, y/n put her best smile, practically beaming towards Takahashi-san. “Thank you, Takahashi-san!” she said, receiving the number. “It will be nice to have a senior to help me from time to time!”

Takahashi-san let out a laugh at that. “Of course, of course,” he replied, slinging an arm around her shoulder.” It’s a shame that we can’t hang out today, but give me a call next time you’re in Tokyo, hm?” continued the older. “Ah, no, give me a call when you arrive back at your house?”

What are we? A couple? She internally scoffed.

“Of course, Takahashi-san!” said y/n cheerily. “Ah, I think my train will leave in…?”

“In an hour,” replied her manager. “We need to go now if we want to catch it.”

She, in fact, knows that her train will be leaving in three hours, but she immediately put a disappointed expression on her face. “Ah, that’s a shame, it would be nice to talk more with Takahashi-san!” she lamented before giving the older man a bow. “Then I’ll take my leave, Senpai!”

“Of course, take care on your way home, y/n-chan!”

Waving back, she let the smile plastered across her face as she walked out. The smile was still there until she entered her car, where she immediately let out a huge sigh.

“Ah,” she sighed. “This is exhausting.”

“You’re not actually going to call him, aren’t you?” asked her manager as he started the car.

Scoffing, she rolled her eyes. “What am I? An idiot? Of course, I won’t!” the girl huffed out. “He’s practically oozing Playboy vibes! And he’s so much older than me!”

“You are right on that,” said her manager as they began driving towards the train station. “Takahashi Ren is a known womanizer in the industry. You’re also right that he’s way too old than you. He’s 20, 21 by the end of the year.”

“Ugh,” groaned out y/n, disgusted. “What is his problem, seriously?”

“A lot apparently.”

Just imagining the sleazy smile and the winks that he kept giving her throughout the shoot made her shudder. She knows she’s pretty. She won’t be an idol if she’s not objectively pretty. But seriously! She expected the man to have more tact! To practically flirting with a minor is disgusting by itself! Not to mention offering them for a drink? While underage?

He’s not her type anyway. Way too pretty boy. Way too lanky. Way too pale. 

Though, that train of thought made her stop.

What’s her type anyway? She never dated anyone before, so she guess her type is-

Tall, with tanned skin. Broad shoulder and a sweet smile. Hair cropped short, often hidden under a cap. Someone that looks just like-

No.

No, let’s stop that train of thought, she thought, closing her eyes. It had veered into a dangerous territory after all. It had reached a part of her heart that she doesn’t want to probe this late at night, lest she won’t get any sleep for school tomorrow.

“L/n-chan,” called out her manager, breaking her thought.

“Hm?”

There’s a bit of a silence between the two of them before the man opened his mouth. “You know that the company will try our best to support you, yeah?” he started. “We may not have a big influence, but it’s still our duty to protect our artist, so if there’s anything – or anyone – that made you uncomfortable or forces you to do something that you don’t like, please tell us okay?”

Y/n blinked, staring at her manager side profile.

Currently, she’s the only artist in their company. Their only active artist. So it makes sense if the company wants to protect their only money maker. It’s normal, for them to protect an artist that’s their only source of income. It shouldn’t be anything special.

But still, knowing that there’s someone that’s supporting her like this- it’s nice.

It’s nice that she’s not alone in this. 

“Of course,” she replied with a grin. “I’ll be counting on you guys in the future, okay?”

Letting out a smile, her manager nodded. “Of course l/n-chan, the pleasure is ours.”

taglist!

@mindless-rock @lovewithmary @seijaelee @kikookii

[leclucklerc]

Hi!!! I was wondering, are you still writing the hard carry series?

I’m still writing it!! I’m having a huge writer block with the series currently but I’ve written the new chapter about halfway?

The series is my biggest one so I have some kind of pressure while writing it aha but let’s just see! I kinda miss writing that story y/n Charles interaction 😔

[leclucklerc]

Navigation ⋆·˚ ༘ *

.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.・

.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.・

✧.* Masterlist

[leclucklerc]

kinda miss writing for hard carry (not me saying this when i have an unfinished 4k words of hard carry that i cant continue bcs of writer block lmaoo)

[leclucklerc]

Your work... I am in love. 😆💗

— 🤟🏻🌟

Thank you!!

[leclucklerc]

Against the World SO17 - 02. Summer Tournament

Pairings: Shohei Ohtani x reader

Summary: It's the summer tournament. Y/n is trying to tackle her own fears in order to support her best friend

Word Count: 6.1 k

Previous Masterlist Next

The summer heat slowly began to creep in as time passed. It’s nearing summer already; spring has long been forgotten. Their uniforms had been replaced with shorter versions, as everyone was already preparing for the summer season.

For the past few weeks, the sun had been hotter than ever. It persistently shone up in the sky, giving them its warm embrace without fail.

Summer means a lot of things. It means the golden week will be coming very soon – as well as its tons and tons of homework. It means going to the pool and the beaches. It means summer festival and fireworks. It means what a time to be alive, especially for teenagers like them. Teenagers who are still searching for more adventure in their life.

But so some, summer, means some other things.

Y/n knows, that to Shohei, Summer means Koshien.

“Are you nervous for this weekend?”

Sipping on a bottle of orange juice, Shohei shook his head. Typical, thought y/n with a raised eyebrow. The other teen had always been hardly fazed by anything.

The two of them are sitting on the rooftop, watching the soccer match that’s happening down the field. It was lunchtime, and the two of them decided to eat their lunch while basking in the summer heat. Truthfully, y/n hates getting under the sun without any good reason, but Shohei’s good at pleading.

And the heaps of sunscreen that she had plastered across her face and arm definitely helped.

“Well, aren’t you a confident person?” she mumbled as a response.

Shohei had always been a confident person, after all. He is so sure of himself and his skill that he becomes hardly unfazed by anything.

“I’m more excited than nervous,” answered the boy, a grin already forming on his face. No doubt, he’s already imagining the upcoming match this weekend. “I mean, I’ve been waiting for it for so long.”

He must’ve been waiting for the opportunity for so long. She knows that he has practiced day and night, every day, after all.

“I’m excited to go to Koshien,” he continued. “I can’t wait already.”

Y/n raised an eyebrow at that. “You’re sure that the team will be going to Koshien?”

Shohei let out a laugh at that as if she had just said something funny. Sue her for having a bit of doubt. Even if you don’t follow baseball, as long as you live in Japan, you will know that Koshien is the pinnacle of high school baseball. It’s the highest stage that you can achieve before going pro. It’s the stage where major baseball stars have been scouted in the past.

“I am,” he replied. “I’ve never been surer in anything.”

It must be nice to be that confident.

Letting out a nod, she gave his shoulder a soft nudge. “Koshien or no, I think you will do great during the tournament.”

“I know I will be great.”

At this, she hits his back softly. “And here I am trying to be a good friend,” grumbled the girl. “I’m not going to wish you any more good luck in the future.”

A bark of laughter escaped Shohei at that as he tipped his head back. He sounds so amused that it irks her a bit. “I’m just joking,” he said, tears already forming in his eyes due to the sudden laughter. “I know I will be great, but your good luck wish will make my performance greater,” he stopped at this. “I think.”

“You think!?”

He merely let out an even louder laugh.

Biting on her chocolate bread, y/n kept listening to the other teen ramble about the upcoming match. Chocolate bread had not been her first choice for lunch, but the moment Shohei had seen her salad with a meager portion, he had insisted that she eats the bread that he had brought for snacking.

“-And you’re really coming right to the match?”

It took her a moment to respond. Y/n remembers the smile that Shohei shot her a few days ago when he had asked her to come. How the sun draped across his features as he uttered words that she didn’t think she would ever hear again in her lifetime.

She is coming to a baseball game. 

What a joke.

Past her probably would’ve laughed at her face.

After so many years of hating baseball, now she decided that she’s going to finally watch a match? And it’s not even a professional match. It’s a high school baseball match played by students. The level of skill should be different from that of pro players.

It doesn’t make sense. Everything doesn’t make sense.

“Yeah,” she said. “I’ll be coming,” she finally answered, throat bobbled uncomfortably for a bit. There’s an uncomfortable feeling that’s looming inside her gut. Something persistent. Something dreadful.

And yet, why is she agreeing on this?

“That’s nice,” he replied with a large smile, it made her almost forget the unpleasant feeling that she was having right now. Almost. It’s something that his smile managed to consistently do. Always made her feel better. “My parents will also be coming to that match, considering it’s my debut and all.”

“Debut?” she laughed, desperately squashing her nervousness and dread. “I thought I’m the idol between the two of us?”

“Baseball debut,” he replied with a huff. 

“But yeah, I will be coming,” continued y/n. “I do have some auditions to attend during this weekend, though, so I’ll probably go to Tokyo straight after the games. How long do you think the game will take?”

“Straight to Tokyo?” echoed Shohei. “Are you not tired? And it’s usually 2 to 3 hours by train.”

“I am tired,” grumbled out y/n as she leaned back on her chair. “But what can I do? Most of the auditions happen in Tokyo.”

Shohei hummed at that, finally finishing his orange juice. Crumbling the box with his hand, he tossed it to the trash bin near them. He did it with almost perfect accuracy. Athletes. 

“Do you have the time to chat after the game?” he said after a while. “Just for a bit?”

Her mind went to her booked train ticket. It really depends on how long the game will last. If it’s a long game, well, she won’t have the time to do it. But if it’s a short one, she will be able to squeeze in a chat with Shohei for a while.

“Depends,” she answered. “Are you going to strike out the batters quickly?”

The boy hummed at that.

“With the right motivation, I probably can.”

When he was five, Shohei decided that he was going to be a baseball player.

Despite his young age, it was not a decision that he made on a whim. He made the decision when he realized how fun baseball is that the sport had become an integral part of his young age. That there will always be a proud gleam in his father’s eyes whenever he sees Shohei playing baseball.

Ever since then, he had always followed the expected path of a budding baseball talent.

He joins the little league team that his father coached. He follows his father’s guidance, concentrating on how to become the best player out there. He joined all the expected tournaments and won and broke records – as expected of him.

Entering Hanamaki Higashi for high school, too, had always been something expected of him. After all, it’s the best baseball school in Iwate. It’s the school that produced Yusei Kikuchi. It’s the high school that managed to go to Koshien before. 

For someone who lives and breathes baseball, entering Hanamaki Higashi is expected.

Expected, expected, expected. It’s the path that had been laid out in front of him. Just like the piece of paper that the coach had asked him to fill during his first day in the team. A piece of paper full of his dreams and expectations of the future. A carefully made plan that he had planned with his father for years. 

But still-

Friendship with y/n is something unexpected to him.

The first time he had seen her was during the first day when the class quieted down as she entered the room, and everyone stared at her with something akin to reverence.

Y/n looks as if she’s an angel that was dropped down from the sky.

Glittering hair under the sunlight and a healthy flush across her face. She walks with so much grace that it automatically makes people’s eyes to follow her. Every time she smiles, someone seems to hold their breath, just watching the girl brighten up the room with a simple quirk on her lips.

He knows that the girl is beautiful. He thinks that everyone in the school knows that. The excited chatters of his team as they talked about the prettiest girl in school. The hushed whispers about her already debuting as an idol back in Tokyo, as well as her half-foreign blood, make her the school idol in no time.

Frankly, back then, he couldn’t see him being friends with y/n.

After all, they lived in a different world. Her, under the glitz and glamor of the entertainment industry, and him, under the scorching sun and dirt as he played baseball. If he had looked at it objectively, the friendship between people with such different interests is almost hard to do.

When they got put to sit together, he really couldn’t find any topic to talk about with the girl. He doesn’t recognize anything that she talks about with her friends, and y/n looks disinterested in baseball. For some time, their conversations are only limited to school subjects and their homework.

But then, as he watched an NPB match, he accidentally saw a familiar figure.

Glittering hair under the stadium lights and a healthy flush across her face. A smile so bright that it made the stadium watch this unknown girl who was doing the first pitch.

Y/n-san, he had thought, eyes widening as he watched the girl moving on the screen.

Thoughts about the match almost went forgotten as he watched the first pitch ceremony. The stadium itself was not full, which is understandable, considering it’s not time for the game to start yet. But still, as someone who lives and breathes baseball, to see someone that he knows throwing the first pitch of an NPB team had been an interesting experience.

After that, he fell into a rabbit hole. He recalled the conversation from the locker room, how she was an idol from Tokyo. Shohei immediately looked it up, mostly because of the curiosity that was gnawing inside of his mind. One video turns into another, and before he knew it, he had watched more than a dozen videos of the small-time idol called y/n l/n.

Their meeting in the mall that led to their daily jog together, their growing conversations in class, and the way they spent almost every second of their time together.

Months ago, if you asked Shohei if he thinks he will befriend the girl who’s sitting at the desk next to him, he would’ve said no.

But alas, here he is, waving at the girl who had come to watch the baseball club practice.

Now, a few months after their initial first meeting, he’s confident to say that y/n is his best friend. His closest confidante. The one that he told everything about.

Noticing his small wave almost immediately, y/n waved back, a cheeky grin on her face as she sat there with a friend of hers – Nishikawa-san. The both of them are sitting in a seat just outside of the tall fence that separates the baseball field and the school grounds. Around them, are other students and teachers that sometimes also watch the baseball team’s practice.

Nishikawa-san said something to Y/n’s ear, making her laugh, and for a second, Shohei had a hard time averting his gaze. He thinks anyone in the world will have a hard time looking away when they see that laugh.

“Dude,” whispered one of the baseball club members, yanking him by the shoulder. “Did l/n-san just wave at you!?”

Shohei blinked. “We’re friends,” he said simply, finally turning his gaze towards his teammate. 

“With the prettiest girl in school!” answered the other a bit aggressively. “I’m so jealous!”

He knows that y/n is popular. She’s always in the conversation when they’re talking about the prettiest girls in school. He also had seen a couple of letters being shoved into her shoe locker, but most of them remained unopened as y/n decided to ignore them often. However, knowing her popularity and seeing it firsthand is a bit different.

“We sit together,” he replied, slinging an arm around his teammate’s shoulder. “Let’s go, the coach is calling for us.”

As they jog towards the rest of the team, his mind still wanders towards the girl. It’s a bit hard not to think about her, as she always commands the majority of the attention inside of a room. Even now, he could see several glances directed towards her or plain staring from the people around them. 

But Shohei needs to focus. Summer is approaching, and they have a goal to achieve this year.

Koshien, he thought. The field of dreams for every high school baseball player. The tournament that will change the life of every high school baseball player.

So many stars are born through Koshien. So many scouts came for Koshien, searching for the next big thing through their keen eyes. Shohei himself is determined to become a professional baseball player. He has no career option besides professional baseball players. His future is basically that or a bust. That or nothing.

This weekend, Shohei will start for his school for the first time. It’s the summer tournament, the very tournament that will decide their Koshien ambition. It will be a lie to say that he’s not nervous. After all, he’s so nervous that he can’t sleep at night. There are more than a thousand things that could go wrong. More than a million things that could go wrong because of him, ending their Koshien journey this year.

Maybe that’s why he had asked y/n to come and attend the game. He thinks, that if he sees the girl on the stand, it can relieve some of his nervousness. 

To see her cheering for him will be an energizer that he needs for his first start in his high school career. This is a pivotal moment for his future. Whether the coach thinks that he has the potential or not for the big stage will be decided this weekend.

He thinks that the girl is not interested in baseball, but that’s okay. Shohei thinks that he can change her mind after the game. 

After all, baseball is the best.

What is she doing here? Thought y/n as she stands in front of the stadium.

Y/n could feel the dread that was slowly climbing into her throat. It’s a bit suffocating. A bit alarming.

It’s been years since she watched a baseball game. An amazing feat considering how baseball-obsessed Japan as a country is. She had avoided the sport for so long and had been so successful in doing it, too.

So why is she here?

Will she abandon all of her efforts just for a boy?

But it’s not just a boy, a voice whispered inside his mind. It’s her best friend. The boy with a bright smile and such a big love for baseball. Shohei always looks so bright and happy every time he talks about baseball. She knows that the sport is everything to him. That his asking her to be here and watch his first baseball game is an important request for him.

That her presence her matters. That he will be looking at her through the crowd.

The dread is still there, though. It’s still clawing at her throat insistently. It still reminds her why she hates the sport. Why, for her future sake, she should avoid it altogether.

She shouldn’t be here.

She hates baseball! Why is she even here-

“Hey,” said Ami, hitting her shoulder lightly. “What are you staring at? The game is starting soon!”

Ami decided to tag along. Y/n thinks she did this because she realized how pale she had become when she accepted Shohei’s request. The girl had always had a keen eye, after all, which is one reason why they got along so well.

“I- “started y/n. “I don’t think I can do this-“

“What are you talking about!” exclaimed Ami as she practically dragged the other girl into their seat. “We’re already here!”

“No-“ she started, stopping the both of them on their track. “I don’t- Seriously, I don’t think I can- I- I-“

“Hey,” Ami’s voice stopped her sentence. There’s a grounding hand on her shoulder, effectively clearing her mind for a bit. Beneath her lashes, y/n could see the concerned look that the other girl was wearing now. “Y/n-chan, are you okay?”

Are you okay?

Is she okay?

Is she okay standing here in the middle of a baseball stadium?

No- no. No, she’s not okay.

“No,” she rasped out. “I- I don’t think I’m okay.”

Ami shifted her gaze towards the clock near them. There’s still plenty of time before the game starts. Deciding in an instant, Ami immediately grabbed y/n’s hand before guiding her elsewhere. A more secluded spot where not many people will be around.

Sitting on one of the benches, she touched y/n’s cheek gently, forcing her to stare at her eyes.

“Hey,” she said. “What happened?”

“I-“ started y/n, but she stopped. She could tell her. She could tell the girl in front of her the reason why she hated baseball so much, why she didn’t want to be here. Why her being in this stadium just to watch a high school baseball game is a mistake?

But by doing so, it means that she will have to bear all of her heart to see.

Y/n likes to think that she’s a simple person.

She’s someone closed off. Someone cheery and happy in front and broody and solemn behind everyone’s back. It’s part of her idol mask. A demand that she should always keep this extroverted mask for all to see.

For Ami to understand why she hates being here, she will have to tell her everything. Everything about the mistake of her birth.

She hates it.

She hates being vulnerable.

Ami still sat there, right in front of her, watching her silently. Forever seems to pass between the two of them as y/n’s throat bobbles uncomfortably. She’s at a loss for what she should do.

“Hey,” started the other girl. “If you don’t want to tell me, it’s okay. I won’t prod anymore.”

Y/n is still silent at that, peering at Ami through her lashes.

Ami let out a sigh, the grounding hand on her shoulder was still there. Rubbing small circles. 

“I’” started y/n. “My father left me and my mom before I was born.”

“… Ah,” said Ami after a long silence.

“He was a baseball player.”

“… Ah.”

Silence descends between the two of them again.

“My mom also left me when I was 10,” said Ami finally. “She was an asshole.”

“… at least you have a father?”

The other girl let out a small snort at that. “I could say the same thing about your mom.”

Another silence descends between the two of them.

Distantly, she could see the people that were passing in front of them. All of them are enraptured in their own world. Barely paying any attention to a girl with puffy eyes and uneven breathing.

It feels oddly calming. That despite everything, a lot of people won’t notice her vulnerability.

The silence was broken by Ami’s question. “Do you still want to watch the match?”

Her first instinct is to say no.

But Shohei’s bright grin and the promise that they had made on the school rooftop echoed inside her mind.

It played inside of her head over and over again. Repeating itself as if y/n would ever forget. As if she will ever forget the way Shohei’s face brightened at the healthy tan that decorated his skin – a sign of his dedication to the craft of baseball.

She closed her eyes, trying to tame her mind.

This is different, she thought. This match is different.

It’s not her father who is playing down the field. It’s Shohei. Her best friend. The boy that’s sitting next to her.

Down there, it’s not her American father who left her mom when she was heavily pregnant with her mom. It’s not her father who never bothered to call back despite all of the desperate voice notes that her mom had sent. It’s not her father who had never taken any responsibility towards her, resulting in her mom having three different jobs just to make sure that they’ll stay afloat.

It’s not her father who parades around his American dream family to everyone on national television.

Down there, the one who will be playing is Ohtani Shohei.

The boy who had dragged her for an early jog every morning. The boy with a sweet tooth and an even sweeter smile. The boy who had told her that she will become a star with such an utter conviction that she started to believe in herself despite all of her previous failures and setbacks. 

It’s Shohei who will be playing.

Not her father.

The color that will be flying today is the familiar grey and purple of Hanamaki Higashi. Not the familiar and yet distant white and blue.

Letting out a deep breath, y/n lets out a nod. “Yeah,” she replied after a long while. “Let’s go inside.”

Ami stared at her, unblinking. 

“You know,” she started. “If we go home right now, I won’t complain,” said the other girl. “Are you really sure that you’re okay with it?”

You have a heavy trauma with baseball; after all, it was left unsaid. Y/n appreciates it. Currently, she’s not in the mood to tackle it head-on. 

“Yeah,” answered y/n. “I just needed some time to think.”

With a nod, Ami stood up, arm reaching for her. They walked inside the stadium like that, with their arm linked together.

“If it’s ever too much,” murmured Ami, “Just let me know, okay?”

Y/n gave her a grateful nod as she squeezed the girl’s hand.

As they enter, for the first time in years, y/n gets her first glimpse of a baseball match.

She could see the green grass stretching across the field as well as rows and rows of spectators. The air around them was buzzing, as she could hear horns and yells of celebrations being thrown left and right by the people around them. The announcers could be heard through the air, hyping the crowd for today’s match.

Y/n had expected a big crowd. After all, this is the quarterfinals of the summer tournament.

But still, she could feel the shiver running down her spine as she took up the atmosphere around them.

Even when she threw the first pitch for the Tigers all those months ago, the atmosphere back then can’t be compared to what she’s seeing right now. The height of everyone’s excitement could be seen across everyone’s faces, a far cry from the half-empty stadium that she saw during her first pitch ceremony.

Ami immediately dragged her toward their designated seat.

She watched at the rows and rows of purple and purple near them. The cheering squad of their baseball team is highly spirited, already hollering and cheering for the team despite the first pitch not being thrown yet. There are rows of baseball team members, as well as cheerleaders, already prepared to cheer for the team with all their might.

Merchandises with purple and grey themes could be seen, such as small flags or trumpets. Even the cheerleaders are wearing forms with that color format.

Looking down at her purple top, y/n felt a bit unprepared as she didn’t bring anything to cheer for the team. Ami, too, stared at the cheering squad with amazement clear on her face.

“They really come prepared,” said the girl as the both of them took their seat. They’re sitting really closely with the cheering squad.

Nodding, she lets out a sheepish laugh. “And we brought nothing.”

Their conversation caught one of the cheering squad member’s attention, and he widened his eyes at the sight of them.

“Oh!,” he said, gaining both of their attention. “You guys are students at our school, right?”

Sharing a glance with Ami, y/n gave him a bright smile, trying to look a tad more friendly despite the red rimming his eyes. “Yeah,” she replied. “We’re cheering for the team.”

“We’re friends with Ohtani-san,” added Ami, as if to add some kind of credibility to their claim.

“Ohtani-kun?” said the member. “Do you guys want some flags or something to cheer the team? We brought extras.”

Nodding gratefully, both y/n and Ami received the flag from the other boy.

“I didn’t expect Ohtani-kun to have friends coming over,” said the boy as they were making a conversation. “He seems really devoted to baseball.”

“He is really devoted to baseball,” replied y/n as she waved the small Hanamaki Higashi flag playfully. “You’re close with him?”

“Ah, no, not really,” answered the other boy. “Ohtani-kun is just famous in the club. He’s the only first year that managed to get into the main team, you know?”

Ami let out a whistle at that. “That’s amazing,” she said. “So, the rest of the cheering squad here are first and second years?” 

“Yeah, but we do have some third years, not a lot.”

The game started soon after that. Y/n could feel Ami’s gaze on her as she watched Shohei take up the mound at the top of the first inning. She had seen Shohei in his baseball uniform as she had watched some of the baseball team practice, but still, seeing him like this-

It was as if the one who was standing on the mound was a different person than the bright boy who was sitting next to her during class.

There’s some kind of aura on him as well as a cold look on his face – something that she rarely sees these days. Shohei is a cheery and goofy person. Someone with smiles and laughs can brighten up the room.

The one who is standing down there is Ohtani Shohei, the baseball player.

“He looks good, isn’t he?” asked Ami, a teasing tilt in her tone.

Y/n decided to ignore the teasing. “Yeah,” she said. “He is.”

To say that Shohei did amazing during his first start would be an understatement.

After all, he was dominant. He pitched for seven innings, not letting any run go past him. The batters barely got hits and those who did barely got any good ones. Shohei contributed so much to the team’s defense this game that some people started to whisper his name in awe.

Ohtani this, Ohtani that.

Through it all, y/n watched.

Oh, thought the girl, amidst the loud cheers and celebration around her as the last out was recorded. He is going to be a baseball star, isn’t he?

She watched Shohei impressing everyone in the stadium. She sees how he pitched, how he basically owns all the batters that he faced.

She watched Hanamaki Higashi winning the game, as well as the bright smile on Shohei’s face. It’s the face that she’s familiar with. It's not the cold front that he puts during pitching.

Y/n sees it all, and with that, the first baseball game that she has watched in years ends.

They’re standing just behind the stadium, the hustle and bustle of the crowd around them.

“Do you like the game?” he asked, mouth grinning.

Y/n stared at him. Stared at this tall teen in front of her who was smiling at her like the sun. She stared at this teen who managed to drag her into a baseball game. At the teen who forced her to watch a baseball game despite all of her reservations towards the game.

She was afraid.

Afraid that she will only see her father during the game. Afraid that she would remember the tears that fell onto her mom’s face as she watched the celebration when her dad clinched the World Series. The celebration is where her dad proudly says that his oldest child – a son younger than her – is playing baseball on his little league team.

She watched the older woman grip the necklace around her neck. The only gift that her father had ever given her. She watched and watched. Heart growing cold and gaze going dead as she, too, gazed at the man who had contributed to her birth in this world celebrate the best moment of his life with his little family. A family that does not consist of y/n and her mother.

Today, too, she watched. She watched the baseball game in front of her. She watched Shohei take up the mound with the familiar purple and white uniform of Hanamaki Higashi. She watched as the teen managed to go through seven scoreless innings before being replaced by the closer. She watched and watched, the sun beating down on her face, and yet, it was not the only warmth that she felt during the game.

It was almost a miracle that she didn’t even remember her father throughout the game. It was a miracle that she didn’t even think about him for a second.

All she remembers thinking throughout the game is Shohei and Shohei. How her best friend is taking the mound, how her best friend is finally playing his first big game in his high school baseball career.

It’s Shohei and Shohei inside her head. Only him.

She likes it.

“I like it,” she managed to say, throat bobbing, “I like to see you win.”

I like to see more left unsaid. I like to see you, left unsaid.

Shohei let out a laugh at that, cheeks blooming in happiness. “I like it when I win, too,” he replied. She thinks that it’s a trick of the light, but she swears that the world has become clearer for a bit.

“Of course you do,” she laughed, nudging his arm gently. “You have a competitive streak a mile wide.”

“Like you don’t,” he teased back. “You’re going to Tokyo after this, yeah? For that magazine photoshoot?”

Y/n lets out a hum, eyes drifting towards one of the digital clocks that littered the stadium. “Yeah, my train is leaving in an hour,” she said. “I have to go to the station right after this.”

“And you’re going back tomorrow?” asked Shohei, head tilted a bit. It’s a habit that she finds cute. 

“I’ll arrive back here tomorrow night,” she shrugged. “I still have a music video audition tomorrow morning.”

Shohei seems to be thinking about something, brows furrowing together. “Do you want me to pick you up?” he asked. “It’s dangerous for a girl to go home alone.”

Laughing a bit, she shook her head. “I’ll have my manager bring me home, don’t worry about my safety. He’s a big guy.”

“But still-“

“You don’t have to worry, you know, you’re in the middle of the tournament, right?” said y/n, reminding the other teen about the looming tournament. She may not follow baseball so intently, but she knows how important the summer tournament is. After all, it’s the key that will bring them to Koshien. The dream stage for the team. “Focus on that, don’t want my best friend to fail in becoming a baseball superstar.”

Letting out a sigh, he seems resigned before letting out a small smile. “And I don’t want my best friend to fail in becoming a star too.”

“A star? Just a star?” she teased.

“Yeah,” he said, smile blinding. “A star.”

A star, she thinks. 

Y/n likes the sound of that.

The magazine photoshoot went well.

Her manager told her that the brand and the magazine really liked her and wanted to use her again for their next collection. The photographer and the makeup artist praised her endlessly. Saying that she has the type of face that will catch a lot of attention.

Y/n thinks that it’s their own way, saying that her half-foreign look is distracting.

Stepping out of her dingy agency, she could feel her phone buzzing. Glancing at it, she sees Shohei’s contact appearing on her home screen.

“Boyfriend?” asked her manager, walking next to her.

“No,” she replied, though the girl couldn’t contain the smile that was threatening to break out of her face. “A friend.”

Typing down a response, she glanced back towards her manager, who was staring at her with a raised eyebrow.

“Doesn’t seem like a friend to me,” replied the man as they climbed into the car together, ready to head out to her music video audition.

“You’re right, it’s not a friend, it’s my best friend,” she huffed out. “Anyway, you said that this was for a music video?” 

“It is, for a boyband, you may have heard of them,” answered the man as he gave her the name. She had heard it before, they were pretty famous in her year, after all.

Reading through the script, y/n tried to understand the concept of the music video. It’s a typical boyband music video, a reverse harem trope. The girl will basically be stuck in a love maze between all the members in a high school setting. The members of the boyband will be older than normal high school students, but the fans seem to like them wearing a uniform. That’s why they’re searching for a model that will fit the school setting down to the t.

“I think you will get the role,” said her manager after a moment of silence.

Raising an eyebrow, she asked, “Why? My idol debut is a flop, you know.”

Sighing, the man continues to drive. “You, for one, in my opinion, are one of the most talented artists that I’ve ever seen in my life,” started the man.

She lets out a laugh at that. “Of course, you’re saying that,” she said, a bit teasing. “You’re my manager. You have to say something like that to encourage me despite everything.”

There was a hesitant silence between the two of them after that. “I think your failure came mostly from our part,” he said after a while. He sounds a bit reluctant. “If you were in any other company – bigger ones or more established ones – I think you would already be thriving.”

“I like our company,” she defends, sinking back in her chair.

Y/n knows that her company is far too small for her to make it big in the industry. She knows that, realistically, she should’ve aimed for bigger names in the industry.

And it’s not like she doesn’t have the chance to do so. She has been offered – many times – to audition or even to join other bigger companies. Scouts had been coming to her to take her back to their own companies multiple times. If she wants to, y/n won’t even glance at her current company, considering all the other offers that she received back then.

But still, she thought, a bit sullen.

Her current company is the only company that doesn’t require her to do gravure shoots.

She knows that it’s a bit ridiculous for her to reject gravure shoots because it’s basically a rite of passage for young girls in the Japanese entertainment company. She knows that so many big celebrities out there have to do gravure shoots during their earlier years to make it in the industry. Countless female celebrities did it to put their name out there.

But y/n can’t do it. She will never do it.

She remembers the text messages or envelopes that her mother received. Countless letters and messages from her father’s lawful wife.

Whore.

Bitch.

Slut.

It’s always those words. Those accusing words that accused her mother of being someone that’s selling her body to everyone.

She’s afraid that the moment she does gravure shoot, it will only prove that the accusation is being directed at her mother. That a whore like her mother will raise a whore of a daughter like her.

That if she does it, that bitch’s word will become the actual truth.

Even in death, y/n will never let that happen. She will never give her mother another thing to grieve upon, and she will never give that woman any kind of satisfaction.

She will thrive in this industry in one way or another. She will survive here.

She will become a star.

“We’re here,” announced her manager.

With that, they arrived at the audition place.

the dojahs won the World Series!

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Against the World SO17 - 01. Friends

Pairings: Shohei Ohtani x reader

Summary: High school and dreams. Problems that every 15 years old faced

Word count: 5.2K

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Y/n will be the first to admit that performing at malls is one of the most embarrassing things she has ever done. She knows that a mall performance is not an unusual thing for an idol, especially a budding idol who’s hoping to make it big like her. She knows it’s good publicity – especially for a failed idol like her. She knows that it’s easy to arrange and dirt cheap compared to other kinds of publicity, that’s why her agency decided to arrange one for her despite her so-called hiatus and all.

She knows that performing at malls has more pros than cons.

But still, it’s so embarrassing when it’s clear that everyone has no idea who she is.

She can see the disinterest in all of the audience’s eyes, clearly not recognizing her. She can see the half-hearted banner that the mall had set up for her, clearly not knowing who she is. She can see the cheap costumes and the small flyers that her company had made, showing their small budget for all eyes to see. 

Especially after the MC made a huge deal about it. Boasting how their small-scale mall in a small town like Iwate can afford a famous idol from Tokyo. How an idol from Tokyo is a born and bred Iwate girl that’s chasing her dream to become the greatest idol in Japan.

It’s so embarrassing she almost chickened out on performing.

But a job is a job, and her manager said that it is good publicity for her. She may fail to capture the hearts of the people in Tokyo, but she should try to capture the hearts of the Iwate citizens. Try to make herself a sensation in her hometown before she goes to Tokyo once again with that momentum.

Though, it’s embarrassing!

As she danced and sang, she could see the questioning eyes that people gave her. And it’s not like a lot of people stopped to watch her! Most of them only gave her a barely there glance before they went on their merry ways to do their shopping. 

Sure, some people are recording her, but most of them are old people who don’t know who she is. They only record here to show their kids or grandkids and ask them if she is a celebrity!

So embarrassing!

But yeah, a job is a job. The disinterest of the audience and the embarrassment won’t prevent her from giving it her all during the performance. After all, this is her first performance in months. The first performance that she managed to do after her company announced her hiatus. There are no fans here, and no one to recognize her, but like hell, she will give them a half-assed performance.

 That’s why she sings to the best of her capabilities. Trying desperately to capture all of their attention with the flicker of her wrist, the small of her steps, and the heart-fluttering winks that she managed to craft. She’s trying her best to give them the performance of a lifetime despite the setting and obvious small-budget performance.

Y/n wants people to remember her. She wants to become the best artist out there. Someone whose name will go down in history. A singer that can conquer the world. If her story starts in this small mall in a small town, then who cares?

She will become the biggest star out there.

With a twirl of her skirt and the fluttering of her lashes, she finished her performance with a dazzling smile and a small round of applause near her. Y/n is out of breath, but the smile that’s plastered across her face is genuine, clearly showing her emotion after the short performance.

It’s no Tokyo Dome or arenas. It’s no devoted fans or loving audience. But today, this small audience, which mainly consisted of stall owners and the elderly, will be one of the things that she will remember vividly in the future.

“Thank you!” she said through the mic as she bowed before exiting the stage promptly. 

Her manager was there, clapping quietly as he gave her a small smile. “Good job out there,” said the man, he looks tired. “I know this is a small performance, but I just want you to know that the company is really proud of you.”

Y/n is the only artist in the company, but still, she laughed at that. “Thank you for arranging this, too, I really appreciate it.”

Because this is just a small impromptu performance, there’s no security at all around the stage. That’s why when her manager disappeared – taking a phone call – Y/n was able to walk out and explore the mall by herself. It was then – as she walked out of the small backstage area, still wearing her idol outfit – that a voice called out to her.

“L/n-san.”

She stopped at that. After all, it’s a familiar voice, a voice that she often heard in school. Turning around, her eyes landed on Ohtani-san, who was standing behind her with a sheepish smile on his face.

Y/n blinked. She had never seen Ohtani-san wearing anything besides their uniform or his baseball jersey. The teen that’s standing in front of her, though, is wearing a simple shirt and cargo pants. 

“Ohtani-san?” she asked, walking a bit closer. “What are you doing here? Don’t you live in the dormitory?” All of the baseball players live in the dormitory; she knows that. Y/n had heard that they do a full-day practice during the weekend.

That’s why seeing Ohtani-san here in casual clothes is a bit surprising.

“We have an off weekend this week, so I went home. I was uh…” he trailed off, eyes flickering towards his left as a smiling woman appeared from behind him. “I was accompanying my mum shopping.”

Abruptly, Y/n stands a bit straighter. This is the first time she’s meeting a friend – can she call Ohtani-san a friend? They sit together, after all – parents, after all. She can see a few similarities that he shares with the older woman, though maybe Ohtani-san looks more like his dad?

“Oh my!” said the woman, a bright smile on her face. She’s holding a bright pink reusable bag, and she also recognized that Ohtani-san is holding another reusable bag – also bright pink - with filler content. “I didn’t know that Shohei has such a beautiful friend!”

Y/n immediately flushed as Ohtani-san yelped, “Mom!”

“It’s nice to meet you, ma’am,” said y/n, gaining her bearing as she gave the older woman a bow. “I’m L/n Y/n. Me and Ohtani-san are, um… we sit at the same table.”

“I see!” answered the woman. “I saw your performance earlier, and I must say it was fantastic!”

This time, a large smile blooms across her face. “Thank you. It was rather abrupt, but I’m glad you like it!”

“Of course!” At this, the woman tilted her head a bit. “Now that I’m seeing you more clearly… I think I’ve seen you before?”

Well, that was a bit embarrassing. Y/n knows that she’s not some kind of big celebrity that appears on TV, so the chance for the woman to have seen her before is slim to none. She also didn’t have any advertisement deal yet, so that was also out of the question.

“You must be mistaken-“

“I know!” said the woman all of a sudden. “You’re the girl that Shohei was watching obsessively-!”

“MOM!” Yelled Ohtani-san, a bright flush appearing on his face.

Y/n can also feel the redness creeping across her cheeks. She knows that Ohtani-san had said that he had watched her performance before, alongside that time when she did the first pitch for one of the NPM teams. But did he watch it so often to the point that his mom knows? His mom that didn’t even live with him?

Despite all that, his mom merely let out a laugh at that. “What are you so embarrassed about? You even showed your sister!”

Ohtani-san looked a bit panicked at this as his eyes danced around from his mom to Y/n. “I mean- I was- My sister likes idols, L/n-san! I was showing her you- uh – Because you’re an amazing idol! Not because I’m a creep or anything-!”

“Why are you so embarrassed about it?” laughed the woman, though there was a glint of something in her eyes.

Oh, realized y/n. She’s teasing Ohtani-san.

The woman is teasing her child. However, it seems Ohtani-san didn’t catch that notion at all. He just sounds panicked as he starts to make a grand gesture as he lets his mouth ran off. The other teen only looked more and more flustered as he began rambling about how he’s not a creep and he’s only watching her because she’s amazing-

Cute, she thought, watching him. Incredibly cute.

Objectively, she knows that Ohtani-san is not ugly. He’s cute, handsome even. However, the teen had always looked so serious at all times.

This new side, though?

Cute.

Y/n really couldn’t help it as she let out a laugh at that, amusement rolling off of her as Ohtani-san stared at her as if she had betrayed him. His mother, though, also let out a laugh, clearly gaining a lot of satisfaction from teasing his child.

Ohtani-san merely looked a bit resigned as he let the two share a laugh.

“Well, that was fun,” said his mother after a while. “Shohei, do you want to talk with your friend for a bit? I still need to do some shopping for dinner.”

The teen glanced at her. “I don’t want to bother; I know that L/n can have something to do after this-“

“No,” cut off y/n with a smile. “Do you want to hang out for a bit, Ohtani-san?”

She received a wide-eyed look at that, though the other teen gave her a nod at her offer. Good. It would be embarrassing if he rejected her offer.

His mom merely looked at the two of them with a fond look in her eyes. “Well, I better get going then?”

“See you, Mom.”

“It’s nice meeting you, Ohtani-san!” said Y/n, giving the woman a small bow.

The older woman gave them a small wave as she walked away.

“Your mom is nice,” said y/n, watching the woman walk away.

Ohtani-san scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, she is.” He muttered. “But seriously, l/n-san, I’m not a creep-“

“I know,” said the girl, eyes crinkling as, once again, amusement crept into her. “Your mom was just teasing you, Ohtani-san,” she continued, “She seems very fond of you.”

The two of them began walking side to side. They probably look a bit silly at this point, as y/n is still in her idol costume – a white and pink dress with lots of bows and frills – but Ohtani-san didn’t seem to mind. Honestly, her costume matched the bright pink shopping bag that he was holding a bit.

What a pair they make.

Ohtani-san let out a sigh, “I’m the youngest in my family,” he answered. “My mom likes to tease me because my older siblings won’t follow along anymore.”

“Oh? You don’t give the youngest sibling energy, though?”

“What’s even the youngest sibling’s energy like?”

She chuckled at that. “I don’t know, I suppose,” she said, grinning. “I’m an only child.”

The teen squints his eyes, “You don’t give the only child energy.”

Y/n hits his arm playfully, “Now you’re just using my words against me,” she said before stopping. “Wait- you’re a pitcher, right? I shouldn’t hit your hand. Precious athlete hand and stuff.”

Dramatically, Ohtani-san began rubbing his arms as if y/n had just broken it. “Ouch, l/n san,” said the other teen. “You probably broke my arm or something.”

She rolled her eyes. “Now you’re just being dramatic,” she huffed out. “Anyway, let’s go there, my manager said that it’s a good café to hang out!”

They both entered the café. It’s a small café, and there’s not a lot of people there. Perfect for hangout, she thought, as she immediately went to order with Ohtani-san following closely behind her. The cashier gave her a weird look, clearly staring at her clothes, before giving her a polite smile.

“What do you want?” asked the girl as she looked over the menu.

“Matcha Frappuccino with chocolate ice cream,” said Ohtani-san. “And caramel sauce.”

Y/n stared at him, a bit disgusted at the sweet concoction that he just uttered. “Americano for me,” she said.

As the both of them took their seat and the drinks came, she could only stare at the horrifying drink in front of her. It just looks so… sweet. How much sugar and calories are in there?

“Aren’t you an athlete?” she asked, sipping on her Americano. It’s bitter, but whatever. “Don’t you have to watch out what you’re eating?”

Ohtani-san merely shrugged. “I’ll just burn it off during practice,” he said. “And sugar is good for your body. It gives you energy.”

“Yeah, but not that much sugar,” she said pointedly as she stared at the drink. Consuming that much sugar in one drink can’t be healthy. “Ever heard of diabetes?”

“I’m an athlete,” he replied, as if it answered her question. As if being an athlete can stop the looming threat of diabetes. 

“You’re a sweet tooth then?” asked y/n instead. 

The teen tilted his head at that, before he gave a nod. “You’re a sweet tooth too, right, l/n-san?” he asked. “I saw you eating a lot of cakes in class.”

She flushed at that. Y/n is a sweet tooth; she knows that. She loves eating desserts and just indulging herself with that sugary goodness. But at the same time, she doesn’t have a high metabolism. Drinking a glass of water can affect her weight. That’s why she’s trying to control what she’s eating lately, in fear that her weight will increase dramatically.

“I am,” said y/n. “But I’m trying to lose weight, so I’m decreasing my sugar consumption. I’m counting my calories right now.”

Ohtani-san furrowed his eyebrow at that. “What for?” he asked. “You’re already really thin.”

Playboy, she thought.

She knows she’s thin enough, but what can she do? Japanese beauty standard practically demands her to be thin. Thinner. She needs to look petite and small. She needs to look cute and pretty. Extra fat and weight will not help her case.

To be an idol in Japan, she needs to lose more weight. She needs to be thinner.

“I need to be thinner, you know,” said the girl, sighing as she slumped back in her chair. “My manager wants me to lose 3kg more.”

“… That can’t be healthy.”

“Well no, but I will look pretty,” she replied.

“You’re already pretty, though.”

As if to betray her, her cheeks grow red as she throws him a glare. “You know, you’re really good with words, Ohtani-san,” she said. 

“Huh?” said the boy, as if he was confused. “I was just saying facts?”

Ugh, and it sounds so genuine, too, she thought. Definitely a playboy. 

“And you eat so little too, l/n-san,” he said before he motioned something with his finger, something small. “You only eat this amount of rice every day.”

Y/n pouted. “Now you’re just making some things up, Ohtani-san!” she said. “I eat like normal people. I’ll probably die of starvation if I only eat that amount of rice every day.”

“I mean, you’re so thin!”

“Flatterer,” she said, embarrassed. “Anyway, Ohtani-san, you should give me some tips, considering you eat all of that sugar on a daily basis.”

He hummed. “Exercise?” answered the boy. “I train a lot, so it’s all gone by the end of the day. Do you exercise l/n san?”

The thing is, y/n hates exercising. To be precise, she hates things that can hurt her body. Exercising, in fact, in her opinion, hurts. “… I prefer eating less than exercising,” she answered after a moment of silence. “I don’t like sweating.”

Ohtani-san, the star athlete, gasped. As if, y/n just said something out of this world. “That’s not good!” he exclaimed, so loudly to the point that the cashier even gave her a glance full of questions. “L/n-san, you eat so little and don’t exercise? It’s not good for your body!”

“I feel just fine!”

“That’s exactly what a sick person would say!”

“No, it’s not!” exclaimed y/n. “Also I don’t think I can keep up an exercise routine! I hate to do things alone.”

Ohtani-san continued to stare at her before he slumped down. “Well,” he said. “I’ll help you out then.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll help you out.”

“Seriously?” said y/n, staring at the boy as if he were crazy. “You live in the dormitory.”

The other teen shook his head. “No, seriously, I just think of something brilliant,” he said. “Let’s start with something easy, like jogging to school!”

“Ohtani-san, you live in the dormitory.”

“I know,” he said. “School starts at 8.30, morning practice is at 7, I’ll pick you up at 6 to jog to school. With that, I’ll have enough time to prepare for morning practice and you to school!”

Her brain halted. “6!?” she exclaimed. “That’s too early!”

“Early bird gets the worm, l/n-san,” replied Ohtani-san.

“I, for one, is not a bird.”

“I know, you’re too pretty to be one.”

She glared at him at that, cheeks flushing. He merely threw her a cheeky grin as if he hadn’t just thrown the most absurd exercise plan for her. 

“… You won’t change your mind, won’t you?”

“No,” said the teen, grinning. “I’ll pick you up at your house at 6.”

Y/n stared at him. “There’s nothing to change your mind?”

He continues to grin. “No.”

At 6 AM, she found Ohtani-san already standing in front of her house.

“L/n-san!” he said. “Good morning!”

Maybe giving him her address and her permission to start this exercise is a mistake. Maybe this whole thing is a mistake. 

“You know the sun is barely up,” she said, exiting her apartment, her bag slung over her shoulder. It’s heavier than normal as she needs to bring her uniform and other things to freshen up in school. Currently, she’s wearing an oversized shirt and exercise shorts. “And you’re already so cheery.”

He throws her a grin. “I’m a morning person,” said the boy. “Are you excited to start jogging?”

“No,” she said. “But I am excited to lose weight.”

“Hmm, dubious motivation, but whatever,” he said before he outstretched his arm toward her.

She stared at it, confused.

“Your bag,” clarified Ohtani-san. “I can hold your bag during the jog.”

Y/n quirked her eyebrow. She’s not complaining, though, considering she knows how weak she is, and jogging with a heavier bag than usual will not help at all. However, she still lets her amusement slip past her lips. “Oh, aren’t you a gentleman, Ohtani-san.”

He shrugged. “I am stronger than you,” pointed out the boy.

“Fine then, here,” she said, giving the boy her bag. He slung it over his shoulder as if its weight was nothing.

The jog is surprisingly pleasant. She’s not as sticky as expected, maybe it’s the morning air? Ohtani-san is also really nice, as he intentionally decreases his pace so that she won’t be left out. They also talk a lot during the jog. They talk more than what they usually do during class.

Ohtani-san talked a lot about the baseball club and their preparation for the upcoming summer tournament. 

“You’re a pitcher, right?” asked y/n. “Are you the ace?”

He shook his head. “I’m just a first-year,” he answered. “There’s a third-year ace in the team.”

She also talked a lot about her time in Tokyo and how she tried to become an idol there.

“It just… I don’t think it’s working?” she said. “Too many prettier idols out there.”

“But I genuinely believe you can make it, l/n-san!”

It’s fun, and y/n is a bit surprised when she realizes that she won’t mind doing this again.

Their conversation is light and full of banter. Ohtani-san is not as serious as she had expected and is actually a pretty playful person. Their jog is full of jokes and lighthearted banter. 

When the school is in sight, y/n actually feels a bit disappointed.

“See you in class then?” asked Ohtani-san as she glanced at the clock on her phone. 06.43, plenty of time before class.

“Yeah,” she said, smiling. “See you in class.”

There’s a lull of silence between the two of them as Ohtani-san opens his mouth before closing it again, as if he wants to say something but decided against it. Y/n raised an eyebrow at that, but didn’t probe further. As she was about to leave, Ohtani-san finally spoke up.

“This… Exercise, do you want to do it again tomorrow?”

Y/n stared at him.

She knows that exercising is something that’s not high on things that she likes. She knows that there are other ways to lose weight. She knows, that for all her life, she hates exercising.

But really, just the thought of stopping this is… disappointing.

“Sure,” she replied, instead. “Let’s make it a routine, Ohtani-san.”

The smile that he let lets out made her heart hammer uncontrollably.

“Seriously, I thought I was going to die.”

“Now you’re just being dramatic, l/n-san, it was just a small jog.”

“Good morning, l/n-chan!”

“Ohtani-kun, did you do the math homework?”

“… There’s a math homework?”

“Don’t you think the cloud looks like cotton candy?”

“You’re doing that intentionally to make me hungry, right, Ohtani-kun?”

“It’s because I know you skipped breakfast again!”

“You should call me Shohei”

“Huh?”

“… I like to think we’re best friends?”

She laughed at that.

“You should call me y/n then!”

Y/n soon found out that Ohtani-kun – Shohei, simply Shohei – is not a quiet and serious person at all.

He may look like the brooding sort, someone who always thrived in silence. It seems that kind of persona was only reserved for someone that he doesn’t know. Once you managed to get past that and became what Shohei likes to call friends, he became way more talkative.

And a bit of a prankster.

“Hey!” she yelled out, hand reaching out towards the magazine that the taller teen was holding. “Give it back!”

Shohei let out a bright laugh at that, fully taking advantage of his superior height to hold the magazine out of her reach.

“Why are you so invested in this?” asked the male, grinning. “I was talking to a statue.”

Y/n pouted at that. “It’s not my fault that the magazine is more interesting than you,” she complained, long nails clawing at his clothed shoulder in an attempt to lower his hand. “Give it back!”

“Nah,” he answered, still grinning. “I want to read it.”

“You don’t like fashion!”

“I guess I’ll like it starting from today?”

The girl let out a frustrated huff at that, eyes narrowing. “Don’t break it,” she hissed out, craning her neck closer to see which page he opened. “And tell me if there’s an announcement for an audition!”

“Like modeling?” he asked, brows furrowed.

“Yes,” she replied. “I can’t get in contact with my agent I need to book a gig soon.”

Shohei tilted his head at that. “I think anyone who can work with you will be lucky.”

“Say that to the countless auditions that I’ve applied this past month,” she said with a sigh. “Ugh, I know being a celebrity is hard, but it’s so frustrating!”

The other teen hummed at that as he continued browsing the magazine. Y/n’s not sure if he’s actually reading any of it or if he’s just staring at the pictures, but he does look pretty serious about doing it.

“So?” she asked, leaning closer. “Do you find anything interesting?”

“No,” he replied.

Y/n slumped down. “I knew it,” she groaned out, burrowing her face towards her folded hands on top of the desk. “Nothing seems to be working with my career.”

Putting down the magazine, Shohei ruffled the top of her head. “Don’t say something like that; every star has their own unknown phase, you know?”

“Says the future baseball star.”

He actually laughed at that, “Says the future star.”

“Star?” she asked, looking up. “Just star?”

“Just star,” he shrugged easily.

“Not singing star or idol star?”

“Well,” he said, smiling down at her. “I think you’ll shine in whatever career path you choose. Like a star. The brightest one out there.”

She will never admit the flush that’s rushing towards her cheeks. She should’ve gotten used to this. After all, Shohei gave compliments like candy – without reservation. He always finds things to compliment about her. From small things to bigger things – like his utter conviction that she will thrive in the future. 

She should’ve gotten used to this because Shohei is her best friend.

But seriously, she really can’t stop the loud beating of her heart and her red cheeks.

“Cheesy,” answers y/n instead, hiding her face back in her arms. 

“I’m not,” he replied. She can’t see his face, but she knows there’s an annoying grin on his face right now.

Smug prick, thought y/n. Though, she really can't be mad about it.

Considering how much she likes it.

Their interactions started from easy conversations at their desk and their morning jog to spending each of their free time together.

Which is, admittedly, not a lot. Y/n is still desperately chasing her dreams – running around the town attending casting calls – and Shohei, too, is busy with his baseball practice. There is not a lot of time to spare between the two of them, but when they do, they will spend it together.

During the short period of lunch breaks, during their morning jog, when Shohei had just finished his morning practice, to the small moments in between classes that they always spent laughing at each other, making jokes that no one else but the both of them understood. 

It was during those small moments that their bond began to develop. 

She learned so many things about baseball. It's mostly against her will because it seems Shohei simply can’t fathom a world without baseball. Y/n was never fond of baseball to start with, a fact that stemmed from her apparent daddy issue and fatherless life. But still, every time she saw that wide smile on Shohei’s face, or how his eyes would sparkle as he rambled on and on about baseball-

Y/n really can’t gather the courage to stop it. She doesn’t have the heart to do it.

After all, seeing someone so passionate about something is nice. It’s rare to see someone who loves something so much to the point they’re ready to dedicate their entire life to it. To see Shohei rambling about baseball with so much fondness and love is something that she loves to see.

It’s not like y/n didn’t bother Shohei with her rambling after all. From the latest fashion trend to the pop culture moments, y/n seems to ramble about it nonstop.

“Seriously,” said Ami Nishikawa, a friend of y/n. “I don’t understand how the two of you got along so well.”

Both Shohei and y/n blinked.

“How so?” asked y/n, closing her flip phone to stare at the girl in front of her. “I think you’re just jealous ‘cause I found a new best friend.”

Shohei laughed at that, nudging her shoulder in the process. Ami merely stared at her, brows furrowing. “Well, starting from the fact that you two got nothing in common?” said the girl, waving her finger in front of them. “Like we all know, Shohei is a baseball freak-“

“Hey!” protested Shohei.

“And you have nothing in your head besides celebrities and the latest trend,” said Ami, stopping a bit, “Well, I’m also like that, but still, it’s kind of weird to see the both of you get along so well.”

“Opposites attract?” said Shohei with a tilt of his head. 

“I call bullshit,” said Ami. “And it’s not like the both of you have much spare time! You trained for baseball, like, three times in one day!”

“It’s only twice-“

“Still!” interrupted Ami, and Shohei shut his mouth. “I don’t get it!”

Both Shohei and y/n exchanged a glance at that.

She, too, doesn’t really understand how they can get along so well. It’s not like Shohei is a big fan of pop culture, and y/n hates baseball. It just doesn’t make sense that the both of them got along as well as they do.

But they still got along exceptionally well. They talked a lot, they texted a lot, and they even often called each other.

Considering how well they’re getting along, y/n should’ve known that sooner or later, the time would’ve come.

“I’m starting this weekend,” said Shohei as the both of them ate their lunch. “It’s the quarterfinals of the Summer tournament.”

Y/n stopped at that. She knew that the summer tournament had been happening for some time, but she never really caught up to it. 

“Do you want to come?” asked Shohei instead, with a smile. “I’ll be happy if you come to cheer me on.”

And well-

Y/n never watched a baseball game after that fateful moment all those years ago when she realized the reason why her dad never came home. She never watched any games – live or broadcasted – after that fateful moment when she realized that she was a child out of wedlock. That her father is an irresponsible bastard.

Baseball is a complicated thing in her life.

She knows that her mother still watched a lot of MLB games, despite her father’s retirement a couple of years ago. Her mother still bought a lot of MLB merchandise – despite its high price – to support her father. She knows that her mother still loves her father as well as baseball with all of her heart.

Y/n though?

At some point, she detested baseball. She truly hates it to the point that she doesn’t want to think about it. After all, baseball reminded her of her father. It reminded her of the bastard that left her mistress pregnant and alone. It reminded her of the asshole that won’t even support her mistress financially while she’s juggling multiple jobs just to raise their illegitimate child.

It reminded her that she was an unwanted child of her father.

That she was born into this life without the love of a father. That her father left Japan fully knowing that his mistress had gotten pregnant, and still choosing to leave her alone. That she was born into this life just to become a burden to her mother.

That her previously beautiful mother had become older and wearier as the years passed. That her beautiful mother had sacrificed everything just for her to grow up.

Baseball, is a complicated thing for her.

From the bottom of her heart, she wants to say no. She wants to say that she hates baseball. That she disliked the sport so much. She wants to say that she will wish him luck, but she will never attend a baseball match. 

She wants to reject that offer.

But well… She can’t.

Because sitting in front of her is her best friend, sitting in front of her is the boy that she had spent so much time with. Because it’s Shohei Ohtani that’s sitting in front of her with a shy smile and awkward glance.

She wants to say no.

Y/n is a weak girl.

“Sure,” she said instead. “I’ll come.”

It was at that moment she found herself engulfed in a warm hug.

Maybe… maybe this is the moment that she can fix her relationship with baseball.

this is my way to cope the fact that shohei got hurt during the world series like bffr @/baseball gods

Taglist!

@mindless-rock @lovewithmary

[leclucklerc]

I’ll probably continue the Shohei fic during the off season,, ngl I’ll always feel bad for mamiko BUT I ALREADY MAKE A WHOLE ASS TIMELINE IN MY HEAD ABOUT THAT FIC

[leclucklerc]

CHARLES WINSSS IN MONZAAA MY GODD