#💙! pierre

[midnightmah07]

Character info:

Finally made a little reference sheet for Pierre!

He's a young fae boy born years earlier than Jeanne, knowing her basically his entire life as Jeanne's family lived closer to them. Despite the clear age gap (considering that Pierre is a fae and Jeanne is just a half fae, meaning she has a normal human lifespan), Pierre was always eager to play with Jeanne and her younger sister, teasing and annoying them (unintentionally) almost daily; he's also considerably immature despite his many years of life, often spoiled by his parents and getting away with his lack of responsibility and social cues. He's very talented at sports, being in RSA's Spelldrive team, but is easily bored and doesn't care about learning other topics as "my family is wealthy anyway, why the heck would I need to learn all that?"

More info might be added/changed in the future, tho he is more a plot device than an actual character that I focus on!

Basic info:

Height: 1,60cm

Age: 100 years old

Nicknames: brat (by Jeanne)

Twisted from: Peter Pan

Race: fae

Dominant hand: right

Club: RSA's Spelldrive team

Favorite food: anything spicy

Best subject: flight

Unique Magic: [need to flesh it out better before sharing]

Relationship dynamics:

Jeanne Hook: Jeanne is to Pierre what Captain Hook is to Peter Pan, a rival. He's always thought Jeanne as someone interesting, and because she has a normal human lifespan Pierre always thought it was fun and intriguing to see how humans or half fae grow, going as far as to visit Jeanne everyday to play with her and invent new games; at first I assume Jeanne kinda liked having him around, but as time went and her parents started shoving the responsibility of taking care of her sibling and having to dedicate her life to assume her parents' place as the heir of their business onto her, Jeanne started feeling annoyed at Pierre. He was always complimented by her parents while she was always put down for not being nearly as talented, that plus the fact that he could act as immature as he wanted and have as much fun as he wanted while she was forced to be an adult at the age of 12 made her jealous and angry. Pierre is also the reason she lost her left hand.

Isabelle Desrosiers: Pierre is infatuated with Isabelle, but his advances are always turned down and are unwanted, Neige often tells him to drop it, especially because Isabelle is already arranged to marry someone else. His crush on her is just because of her beautiful appearance, and because her interests in everything that bores him intrigues him. Isa tolerates him but puts her foot down when needed.

Neige LeBlanche: Neige and him don't get along very well. Neige tries to be nice and kind to him, but he gets a bit annoyed at how be acts around Isa since they're great friends. Pierre thinks he's too good for his own good, wanting him to let loose a little.

Chenya: Pierre and Chenya get along quite well, as they're both chaotic in nature and feed off of teasing and annoying others. I assume Chenya helps Pierre understand his limits as time goes on and helps him with understanding other people better and respecting them.

Dividers.

🏷️: @shinysparklesapphires (if anyone wants to be added to my tag list everytime I post about my art, just let me know!)

[singsweetmelodies]

a little while ago, i got this ask asking me if i could make some sort of introduction to the pierre/charles ship and all its lore. and since they are, without question, my f1 rpf OTP, my answer was oh my god yes of course. it's taken me a little while to compile all that lore - because boy, is there a lot - but it's been one of the happiest research projects of my life, without question. and i think it's finally ready to go!! so, with no further ado...

ABOUT PIARLES: a (not-so-brief) introduction to f1 rpf's french friends to lovers ship

so the first thing you need to know about piarles is that they're childhood best friends. not that uncommon in a sport like f1, to be fair - most of the drivers grew up together, racing against each other in karting. but pierre and charles are a little different in that they aren't just karting acquaintances: the two of them (and their entire families) are genuinely good friends.

in fact, if you ask either pierre or charles about the other (and interviewers often do) one of the first things they'll probably say is "we've known each other for a long time," quickly followed by "we used to go on holiday together when we were kids." and they ALWAYS say this with the fondest expressions 🥰 even if you take shipping completely out of the equation, it's clear that these two have a very long-standing and very close friendship, with many fond memories which both of them seem to treasure very much.

in charles' own words:

"Pierre! We know each other since... a long, long time. We used to go on holidays together when we were children with our parents, and uh... we did quite a bit of mess together when we were children, but (laughs) very good memories. And the relationship never really changed throughout the years, even though we have taken different paths, because he was a bit older, so we weren't always in the same categories. But we would always call each other, text each other, go on holidays together... and yeah, I just have so many memories." (source - watch from timestamp 2:06)

pierre tells a very similar story:

"He's definitely one of my best friends. Charles is a very nice person and an incredible driver. We met when we were 9 years old and created a very strong bond. Our parents are very close, and we went on vacations from when we were 10, so we created lots of memories. We were teammates in karting when we were 12, and today we find ourselves in Formula 1. It's a pretty incredible story. But for me the most important part is to see the person he's become, and he hasn't changed since he was young." (source)

i think it's important to note that these aren't the only times pierre and charles have spoken about each other in glowing terms like this - no, it happens quite frequently. pretty much every time they're asked about each other, tbh. (i'm not going to add quotes from every single time here, though, because we would be here for the rest of the month if i tried. 😅) the point is, piarles are pretty damn close, and think very highly of each other.

but it's not just them that are close: like i mentioned in the first paragraphs of this post, their families are close, too. they really are childhood friends in that "your family is practically my second family" sense, which i think is something really special.

here, for example, is pierre's father jean-jacques talking about charles:

Charles is part of the family. We've known him since he was nine and when he started in karting with Pierre. (...) When the races were in England Charles was sleeping at our place, and when the races were in Italy, Pierre was sleeping at Charles's place. Then Pierre moved to F4. I don't think there have ever been a big rivalry between them even though their careers were similar. Charles is part of the family probably even more since Hervé passed away. Our door will always be open for him and he knows.” (source)

🥹

what's more, charles has also said numerous times that it's hard to maintain true friendships in f1 - but his bond with pierre is one of those rare exceptions:

It’s rare I think, it’s very rare to have a sincere friendship in F1, because there’s a lot of competition. So yes there’s friendship, but it’s not always entirely sincere - but with Pierre it really is, and it has always been. (source)

they're friends. they really are friends, not just friendly coworkers, like many of the other f1 drivers are. pierre and charles genuinely like and appreciate each other's company very much - which, even if you put shipping completely aside, is just such a wonderful thing, and always makes me smile so much.

one of my personal favourite moments was when pierre talked about charles on the beyond the grid podcast in 2023:

"That's why I really like these chats that I can have with Charles, because I know with Charles, discussing about both our lives, we won't judge each other... because we know what it's like and we just speak very openly about various things. And I know it's almost like a happy place or a comfortable place where you really feel you can open up. He'll understand, I'll understand him..." (source - listen from timestamp 32:01)

if that doesn't make your heart melt at least a little bit, then i don't know what to say to you.

... no, actually, i do. if this kind of sentimentality won't do it for you, how about a bit of silliness and humour?

that's right. like any good childhood friends, pierre and charles also have an embarrassing nickname for each other: "calamar," which is french for "squid." (we know that they call each other that courtesy of charles' insta).

what on earth is the origin of this nickname, you may be wondering? well, according to pierre...

"It goes back to a long time ago when we were kids, like... nine, ten years old. We would go on holidays together and spend more time. I don't know. It just came, like one day we decided to call each other calamar, which is not really such a beautiful nickname, but yeah it was just for fun. We were kids and we were laughing. And actually, we have many other nicknames because we were teammates also in karting and we spent a lot, a lot of time together. So, a lot of nicknames came alongside all this time. And this kind of stayed with us." (source)

as pierre said in this quote, "calamar" is not even the only nickname they have - pierre sometimes calls charles "charlito" and also "charlo," while charles calls pierre "mon petit."

and as if that's not enough, they're also that pair of boyfriends friends who always have to bring each other up in conversation. if there's ever an interview question along the lines of "which f1 driver would you...." then you can pretty much bet pierre will answer "charles," and charles will answer "pierre."

for example, here is pierre choosing charles as the one f1 driver he'd take for a drink. and here is charles naming pierre as his best friend in the paddock. oh, and here is pierre saying he'd choose charles as one driver to take with him to a desert island. there's more, but i think you get the idea 😆❤️

so yeah! that's a quick(ish) overview of the background/context of piarles - AKA the french (yes, i know charles is monégasque, but he SPEAKS french) friends/boyfriends on the grid.

(if you'd like to know more details about their friendship, especially about their pre-f1 years, then i recommend this post and its follow-up compiled by the incredible @vegasgrandprix. these posts really are a treasure trove for piarles history & lore!)

but now that i've painted a pretty clear picture of their friendship, let's move on to some more shippy moments, shall we? the "lovers" part of friends to lovers <3333

believe it or not, eveything up till now was just the background information about piarles. it's more than enough to build an OTP on already, i'd say - but wait, there's more!

the thing with pierre and charles is that along with being friends, they are also french (or....french-adjacent. close enough) which means that they have absolutely zero problem with being very openly affectionate with each other.

this has given us some very delicious shipping moments, which i will now try and give an overview of. (my fellow piarlies: if i've left out one of your favourite moments, please forgive me - they have so many moments with each other, and tumblr has a post character limit, so there was just no way for me to include everything, much as i wanted to. but i do think this is a good introduction!)

let's start with perhaps the most iconic piarles moment of them all: monza 2020, aka pierre gasly's first win in f1.

that was a crazy, wonderful day in so many ways - first of all, the race itself was insane. pierre started 10th on the grid, and with a lot of luck + a safety car that really worked out for him, ended up leading the race and defended from carlos sainz with DRS to get his maiden win. this was almost exactly a year after he'd been dropped from red bull, so the win was pretty much the biggest fuck-you to everyone @ RBR and comeback moment for pierre that was possible. it was also a dream come true (every f1 driver dreams about winning a race!) and you only need to look at any interview pierre did afterwards to see how much it meant to him.

what makes it even more insane, though, is that charles was right there to congratulate him and watch his podium. keep in mind that, in the same race, charles crashed out - both ferraris did, in monza of all places. i don't think anyone would've been surprised, or held it against him at all, if charles just kept his head down for the rest of that day.

but no. even though he wasn't medically cleared after the crash yet (!!) charles went to parc fermé anyway to congratulate pierre. remember that thing i said about them being french and very open with affection? well:

here are some pictures of the monza piarles congratulations hug. (am i the only one who thinks it looks like charles wants to kiss pierre in that second pic?! god....) here and here are some more angles of the hug to go insane over, if you like.

you can also watch it in video format here - and yes, charles really did pull pierre out of his hug with romain so that he could congratulate him himself. i know. (also, yes, pierre does pat charles' ass just before they go their separate ways. what can i say? french.)

as if that's not already insane enough, charles also stayed to watch pierre's podium despite not being medically cleared yet after his crash. (we have to thank netflix FOREVER for providing us with that specific behind-the-scenes shot 🙏 drive to survive - you did well that time, you really did.)

and afterwards, charles said:

It was just a dream for one of us to get into F1 one day. In the end we’re both in F1, we’ve both won a GP, both of us in Monza. (...) I was really happy that day, even if my race went wrong, his win made it a good day. (source)

your honour. who says that about another driver's win, especially on a day where you yourself had an awful race? if that's not love in a sport like f1, i don't know what is!

i really could talk about monza 2020 and how much it means for a very long time, but i will rein myself in to just one final comment: isn't it rather beautiful to think that pierre & charles' names will always be next to each other in the monza winners list? charles won there in 2019, and then pierre won there in 2020. talk about soulmatism ❤️💙

now, moving on to another absolutely iconic (and delightfully gay) piarles moment: baku 2021, aka that time pierre and charles had an awesome last-lap battle for the P3 podium spot.

it was very close racing, with them swapping positions several times down the straight - but they kept it clean. in fact, they kept it so clean that someone remarked it's like they know each other by heart. yup. totally a normal thing to say about two men racing.

equally normal was charles' comments after the race:

"The last lap was my favourite part of the race. It was crazy and had a lot of actions. With Pierre it was hot. I'm happy for him for his podium." (source)

and as if that's not enough, he also GRABBED pierre into a hug in parc fermé, and then held him incredibly close while congratulating him.

you can watch this hug in video format here and gif format here, if you want - and i really recommend doing so, because it's insane to see how charles quite literally crashes into pierre's personal space and yanks him into a hug. (here is a close-up of their helmets during said hug - and you can just say it with me. GAY.)

that's still not all, though: charles congratulated pierre twice after the race. once on the outlap (with a thumbs-up and a middle finger as pierre's car drove past his, LMAO) and then on social media as well (with a nickname and a kiss emoji).

he ALSO commented on pierre's instagram post about the race with another kiss emoji:

so, apparently, charles was thinking about kissing pierre quite a lot in baku 2021. 🤭 an iconic day all around!

and as it happens, 2021 brought us another iconic piarles moment - though this one is a whole less happy. i'm talking about styria 2021, aka that time pierre and charles had contact in a race, and pierre had to retire from that grand prix.

here is the official f1 news article about the incident - the long and the short of it is that charles misjudged on lap 1 and crashed into the side of pierre's car, ending pierre's race. naturally, pierre was furious and upset, especially because the alphatauri was actually a good car in 2021, and he'd stood to score really good points that sunday.

now, for most f1 girlies, an incident like this between childhood friends immediately brings up vivid brocedes flashbacks. and, to be honest, it wouldn't have been that much of a surprise if this had indeed soured pierre and charles' friendship - we saw exactly this happen with pierre and esteban, after all.

but no. charles went to see pierre post-race to clear the air between them, and although pierre was furious with him, he didn't let it ruin their friendship. in fact, when he was asked how the incident affected their friendship, pierre had the following to say:

"Yeah... I was really sad to end 15 years of friendship. He is no more my friend (laughs). No, no, it's... honestly, it was really painful, you know, you work so hard the whole weekend for Sunday to score points, and then after literally like 20 seconds, the whole race was over. So, quite a difficult one to swallow, but, you know, we know each other, with Charles, we have a lot of respect for each other. He came to see me after the race - I was still pretty pissed off with him, but, uh, we knew before last Sunday, nothing ever happened between us on the race-track, and we knew one day it would happen. Unfortunately I paid the price more than him, but yeah, it's racing, unfortunately. (...) It's painful, it's racing, it happens sometimes - I just told him to make sure it doesn't happen another time, and... we're fine." (source - watch from 17:01)

i think that styria 2021 is vital piarles lore not because it's a fun shippy moment, but rather because it shows the strength of their connection. an incident like this could easily have destroyed their friendship, but they didn't let it. they mean enough to each other that they let what happens on-track stay on-track and not affect their closeness off-track. and that, i think, is something truly special - they were tested in a way which has destroyed f1 friendships before, and yet they still came out stronger.

iconic indeed.

on a happier note again, now, there is also montreal 2022, which many piarles fans consider one of THE seminal piarles moments. the race itself was not so memorable for our boys this time, but what they did off-track is.

that is to say: pierre and charles went on a dinner date. then, they were spotted driving around the streets of montreal in a white ferrari. and THEN, as if that's not mind-blowing enough already... charles posted, to his public instagram story, a video of pierre wearing his charles-leclerc-16 branded ferrari hat.

these screenshots are peanut quality, i'm sorry, lmao... but all of montreal 2022 feels a bit like a fever dream in the best way, so i think the blurriness just captures the vibes, tbh.

we're not quite done with montreal 2022 yet, though - earlier on the same day, charles also had a very sweet hello with pierre's parents. you can just SEE how much pierre's parents love charles, and isn't that just the most heartwarming thing 😭❤️

now, one final thing about montreal 2022: pierre never posted his infamous photo dump after that race. that might not seem particularly important, but... this is the only race of 2022 for which pierre DIDN'T post a photo dump.

there are a thousand and one theories about why he didn't - maybe he just forgot, maybe he had a busy weekend, maybe he didn't have any photos he wanted to share. or, in a more shippy interpretation... maybe he does have photos, especially photos of charles, but he doesn't want to share them/wants to keep them all to himself. we don't know!

one lucky piarlie got to meet pierre in london in 2022 at an alphatauri event, and actually asked him about the montreal photo dump thing. here is what he said (courtesy of the lovely @they-call-it-traffic 💞)

the descriptions there... you can just picture pierre's expressions & smirks SO perfectly, right? he is insane. they are insane. #investigatemontreal !!

anyways. moving on one year again: 2023 brought us pierre and charles' basketball date:

as well as two tennis dates:

(i call them "dates" because pierre and charles spent a significant time together during them, hanging out & enjoying each other's company and looking at each other with major heart-eyes. obviously, irl, they aren't officially dates - in fact, both pierre and charles had their irl girlfriends along with them when they attended wimbledon. but who cares too much about irl -- this is a rpf post 😉)

i'm not going to spend too long explaining the lore behind these, because i'm already flirting with the tumblr post character limit 🙈 but basically, what happened is that on all 3 these occasions, pierre and charles chose to hang out together at events completely unrelated to f1, simply because they are friends and like each other's company. (that, to me, is always a measure of how much f1 drivers actually like each other - whether or not they choose to spend time with each other when they're not forced into proximity by f1. pierre and charles pass this test with flying colours.)

the basketball date is particularly insane, because that day was actually an event which charles, pierre and esteban attended. but you wouldn't know THAT from charles' post about it. charles fully cropped esteban out of his post - he really said "esteban who? i only spent time with my friend pierre 😌" and he said it with his whole chest.

ALSO, while we're on the subject of the basketball date and social media - pierre and charles co-posted a reel about it on instagram. yes. CO-POSTED. you know, like a couple co-posting about their date.

piarles basketball date, you will always be famous!!

(P.S. - a lot of piarles fans refer to this 2023 basketball date as "basketball date 2.0" - and this is because pierre and charles have actually done this before, in 2021. i really can't talk too much about that date - character limit, my beloathed - but let me just say that pierre draping his arm round the back of charles' chair is something that lives rent free in my mind. rent free.)

another thing that lives in my mind rent-free is charles being interviewed at their first tennis date, and calling pierre his best friend <3333 love is friendship set on fire, etc etc!

... so, okay, when i said i wasn't going to talk too much about the lore behind the tennis & basketball dates, i lied a little bit. but in my defence - they were insane for these, they really were!

anyways. now, let's skip back in time a little - because i would be very remiss if i didn't include pierre and charles' 2016 joint championship celebrations.

in the year 2016, pierre was the GP2 champion and charles the GP3 champion (GP2 and GP3 are the old names for F2 and F3). in a very pretty twist of fate, they both clinched their respective titles at the same circuit, in the final race of their respective series - and then, of course, they celebrated together.

here is an adorable gifset of them celebrating together after the final GP2 race. and here are some more pictures from the official Prema photoshoot for the GP2 & GP3 champions (yes, they did a joint photoshoot together. even Prema ships it, apparently!)

actually, while we're on the subject of celebrating together: pierre and charles almost always congratulate each other for their significant achievements in f1. see: charles making a point to congratulate pierre on his podium in baku, as i discussed earlier in this post, and again in zandvoort 2023. (both times with a kiss emoji, mind you). similarly, check out pierre seeking charles out in parc fermé to congratulate him for his bahrain 2022 season-opener pole, and then congratulating him for his win twice over on social media. (and these are just a few examples out of many!)

this is one of those things that sets them apart from many other f1 rpf pairings: they both seem genuinely happy when the other does well. and like. they are COMPETITORS - but they're good enough friends that they can still celebrate each other's achievements genuinely and happily. that is insane!!

yes, sure, it's good sportsmanship to congratulate other drivers for wins/podiums - but that is usually done with a handshake in person or a copy-paste "congrats to XYZ" in the post-race interview, or something like that. one rarely gets the sense that it comes from a place of genuine, deep happiness for the other driver being congratulated.

pierre and charles are just on a whole different level. they specifically seek each other out in parc fermé, hug each other with so much enthusiasm that it looks suspiciously gay, and also post about each other's achievements very fondly on social media.

again, this is something you might see a driver do for their teammate - for example, charles congratulating "carlos and the team" for a win in singapore - but almost never with a freaking KISS EMOJI. and a pet name. and so much genuine joy.

just... yeah. they care about each other so much, and are each other's biggest supporters ❤️

it's not just in good times that they're there for each other, either: 2019 was a truly difficult year for both pierre and charles (pierre especially) but they were still there for each other when it mattered.

the prime example of this is monza 2019, which was one race after pierre's demotion from red bull, and also one race after anthoine hubert's death. because the fia has no sense of basic kindness or decency, naturally they put pierre into a press conference that very weekend.

the video of that press conference is very hard to watch - every time pierre is asked a question, you can hear how much he is struggling to hold it together. honestly, the sole good thing from this presscon is that at least pierre had charles beside him.

here is a post i made where i discuss this in a bit more detail, but essentially: charles sat as close as possible to pierre for the entirety of that conference - close enough that their shoulders were practically touching - as a non-verbal gesture of support. you can see the difference in space between charles & pierre vs all the other drivers, and there's no way that was accidental. charles might not have been able to voice his support for pierre out loud right then, but it's there in every part of his body language.

another very meaningful moment is also from 2019, when pierre went up to charles pre-race in spa:

"I told Charles before the race, please win this race for Anthoine." (source)

and charles did. 💙

then later in 2019, when pierre got his first podium in brazil, guess who was right there to hug and congratulate him? that's right.

this was another case where charles' own race fell apart - he had a crash with his teammate, in fact - but he still made a point of going to hug pierre after his P2, and going on social media to tell pierre and also the whole world that pierre deserved that podium. that's what i call supporting your best friend.

now, at this point, you might be thinking... well, pierre and charles have it all. whether you're looking for happy moments or deep emotional moments or suspiciously gay moments to fuel your shipping fire, it's all there.

and you'd be right! they do have it all. though i will say this - one of the complaints i've heard whispered around this fandom is that piarles is a fun ship, but they don't have any content videos together like teammates do. so it's harder to ship them, because you don't get to see them actually interact with each other aside from like 5-second video clips...

to that i say: well. they might not have any teammate videos together, but oh boy. as of 2023, they do have something else: the squeezie video.

i could talk about the squeezie video for MONTHS, i really could - but let me try and keep it brief. so, squeezie is this french youtuber who has this "who's the impostor?" video series in which he gets a couple of celebrities to join him on the show, plus some people from a certain profession, and then they have to guess who actually does that profession and who's the impostor.

the day that pierre and charles were guests on the show, the professions were "firefighter," "midwife," "flight attendant" and "school counselor." this resulted in absolute chaos of the best kind - ah, man, i cannot even begin to describe to you what a glorious mess it was. that video had everything from charles & pierre cradling fake babies, to charles & pierre extremely dramatically accusing each other of lying, to pierre making dirty hand gestures while charles blushes profusely, to charles & pierre play-acting being naughty schoolkids (feat. charles saying he fell asleep in class and woke up from a nightmare screaming "box box" 😭)

here are some screenshots of some of my favourite moments:

the way they LOOK at each other... GOD.

anyways! you can watch the video here. my recommendation is to watch it with the original french sound track - there is an english dub available, but it sounds incredibly strange to hear american accents coming out of pierre & charles' mouths, off-sync with what they're actually saying. it's a MUCH better experience to watch in french, so you can hear what they actually said, and enjoy how they interact with each other. (english subtitles are available!) alternatively, you can find some translated highlights here, courtesy of the incredible @sedicii <3333

aside from all the still-can't-believe-they-actually-did-this-on-camera content, one of the things that makes me feel the most insane is that pierre and charles both chose to appear on this video. there was no contractual PR requirement saying they both had to participate in it, like with teammate challenges - no, they did it in their free time, because they wanted to.

i mean, sure, that video was definitely good for PR for both of them, but the point stands that they didn't have to do it, and they certainly didn't have to do it together. they CHOSE to - and what's more, they said at the end of the video that they'd do it again.

that's so central to pierre and charles, i think: they choose each other, time and time again. they freely choose to spend time with each other, because they genuinely like each other and enjoy each other's company. so much so that you will find them together at least once on almost every race weekend.

no, seriously. it's a very unusual race weekend if pierre and charles aren't spotted together at least one time. whether it's being glued to each other's sides on driver's parades, or chatting in the background of some or other interview, or just walking through the paddock together... they will find each other.

there are SO many instances where this happens that i would be here for over a month if i tried to list them all - and i'd still probably miss some. but here are some of my personal highlights!

pierre and charles finding each other pre-race in jeddah

pierre and charles chatting in the media pen in the background of one of alex's interviews

pierre and charles walking together in vegas (feat. fond smiles)

pierre and charles being baby gossip girls in 2018

more baby piarles in 2018

even more baby pierre and charles chatting in 2017

and just to round things off: most recently, pierre and charles walking together in jeddah 2024

and many, many more... including a whole bunch of moments we'll probably never know about.

that's another thing that makes me more than a little insane about these two: pierre has actually said, in so many words, that they'll never share everything about their friendship.

In the end we have the same life, we grew up together. We've done many things together, but you won't hear about all of it. (source)

all these moments that we see, that we go insane over... that's probably not even the half of what they've actually done together. and that makes me feel some type of way. if this is just the small pieces of their lives & interactions that they choose to share with the public, then just imagine what else there could be...

....buuuuut that'll start becoming a fanfic if i let myself carry on with that line of thinking too long. (can i just say one thing about that, though? the piarles fanfic community is absolutely INCREDIBLE. such talented writers, such wonderful people... just, chef's kiss all around!!) but, yeah! i think this post has gone on for more than long enough now, haha.

so, to conclude: pierre and charles really are the epitome of a friends to lovers ship: they get along famously, they genuinely seem to love each other's company and are always laughing together - and they can very often be found giving each other the heart-eyes/looking at each other like they're in love. if it's warmth, joy and friends to lovers feels that you're after, then look no further <3333

thank you so much for reading! and i do hope that after all this, you're at least a little bit in love with piarles, too ❤️

[teamnick]

Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Saturday 9th March 2024. Photo by Peter Fox

[the-little-pierre]

🕊 Hi~

[welightitup]

your wish is my command, so:

piarles prompt: charles noticing how much healthier and happier pierre looks in alpine ❤️💙

Hi Katie ❤️💙

Thank you for sending me this as a prompt on here - and for the corresponding gifs 🥰 They helped me stay focused, truly hehe. I hope this is kinda what you were looking for (I can't remember what we discussed really but I think this was the jist of it :P)

---

Winter break is meant to be the time where they can let go for a little while and just be themselves. They spend time with their friends and family, celebrate the holidays with loved ones, and fit in a bit of extreme training. At least in Charles and Pierre’s cases, even if one heads to the heat and the other to the cold.

But with winter testing only two weeks away, it's time for them to reluctantly get back into their regular training schedule. And that includes their diets, working out, and - as Charles stands in front of his bathroom mirror - grooming.

Not that it's essential in the grand scheme of things, but he likes a routine and it’s easier to follow something that pays off in the long run. Such as shaving off his winter stubble which will irritate the hell out of him once he’s pulled on his balaclava in the desert heat.

He’s taking the razor very carefully down his jawline when a pair of arms slip around his waist, warm and slightly damp from the shower.

“Why are you shaving?” Pierre asks, sounding almost offended.

“I have to. You know I get annoyed, and then you get annoyed that I’m annoyed,” Charles reminds him. It’s a predictable event; the sweat from the heat will irritate his skin, which will lead him to scratch endlessly at his face, leaving him with red marks and an eventual breakout of spots. Throughout it all, he will complain loudly about it to Pierre.

Who’s answer is always to “just shave”, in complete contrast to today.

“But you’re keeping the rest of it?” Pierre checks as he noses gently at Charles’ bare shoulder, droplets of water that had previously been clinging to his hair falling onto his dry skin and working its way down his chest until it meets the towel around his hips.

“For now,” Charles replies, huffing when he tries to tilt his head only to bump into Pierre’s. Knowing telling him to move would only keep him there longer, Charles sighs instead and lowers his arm to gaze at the reflection of the top of Pierre’s head in the mirror. “What about you?”

Pierre rubs his cheek playfully against Charles’ neck, the rough hair of his beard ticklish and eliciting a giggle out of him at the action. There will be a questionable mark there once he’s dressed, but given the nature of their relationship, Charles is sure this is probably the most innocent reason for it.

That is until Pierre starts to press kisses to the column of his neck before nuzzling in. Usually, the sweet gesture would warm Charles, but recently he has learnt that Pierre does it a moment before he carefully bites at his skin, nipping until the bruise forms within the beard - and the newly formed moustache - burn.

“Stop!” Charles tries to chastise, only to come out with a bubble of laughter instead. He feels Pierre laugh against his shoulder as he slowly retreats, keeping his lips pressed against Charles’ skin even as he peers up with his striking blue eyes to catch his own through the mirror.

“Hmm, I think I’ll keep it,” Pierre eventually answers his question. Charles raises his eyebrows without thinking, surprised at his words. “What?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Charles quickly replies, schooling his features to look more neutral with a softer smile. 

It’s not that Charles has anything against the moustache that Pierre now sports, a new addition that Charles only got to see with his own two eyes after they had returned from their independent winter training. But rather the fact that Pierre has chosen to grow one now, the moment he is free of AlphaTauri and Red Bull, when he has failed to do so in the entire time they have known each other.

Which, Charles knows Pierre would deny if ever asked, he can now tell were directly related. It isn’t a secret how much of a toll driving for either team had taken on Pierre, physically and mentally. If it wasn’t the subpar car, then it was the borderline abusive treatment in the top team, and the absolute disregard to his health.

So, regardless of Charles’ personal thoughts about Pierre’s new found ability to grow even more hair, the reason behind it is what reassures him that moving to Alpine will benefit more than just Pierre’s career, and that’s enough reason for it to stay.

Well, that and the way Alpine and its owner and Team Principal seem to absolutely adore Pierre, and have put him at ease, making the transfer as seamless as possible. 

Not to mention the new personal coach who no longer keeps Pierre on the strictest diet Charles had ever seen, or insists on the horrid glucose monitor that had started endless fights between the two of them.

Shaking himself out of his thoughts to focus on the present instead, Charles shrugs instead and laughs when the movement unsettles Pierre from his position. “It’s just different, that’s all.”

“You like it though,” Pierre states confidently. Charles rolls his eyes even though his words do actually ring true.

“I like you,” Charles retorts, avoiding the question and further inflating his boyfriend’s ego. The internet has already done wonders for it as it is without him having to add to it. “The extra facial hair is just a bonus.”

“Uh-huh,” Pierre merely hums, smirking. He steps out from behind Charles and to his side, running a hand over his chin and tapping at his mouth dramatically for a second. “I like it. I’m going to keep it.”

“Okay. As long as you’re happy,” Charles tells him earnestly, because at the end of that day, that is all he ever wants for him.

“I am very happy. And I will be even happier once we go get some lunch,” Pierre tells him. The mere mention of food after the gym session they had had that morning is enough to set Charles’ stomach rumbling almost instantly.

Charles raises his razor once again, intent on finishing up with his shaving before he forgets and heads out with an asymmetrical look that will somehow end up on social media in seconds. 

“You still want to go to the café by Maman’s salon?” It’s a small shop with a limited menu, but they have been going there since they were kids who were rarely allowed to be left alone for more than 15 minutes at a time.

“Yes, always,” Pierre says before pressing a soft kiss to his already-shaven cheek.  “I am starving. Hurry up, okay?”

Grinning, Charles nods. “Okay. Two more minutes.”

---

It's barely hitting midnight but they’re already in bed, intent on adjusting their circadian rhythm to match their on-season schedules, and not stay up until 4am out partying. Or playing Call of Duty. Or having sex. 

They hadn’t had much of a busy day outside of their morning gym session and dinner with his family, which is likely the reason why Charles is still laying awake whilst Pierre has already succumbed to sleep. It is usually the other way around, with Pierre spending the time before bed catching up with his social media or text messages whereas Charles is asleep the minute his head hits the pillow.

At least it gives him the chance to take Pierre in as he sleeps; an opportunity he rarely gets.

Twisting into his side, Charles mirrors Pierre’s position so he can see him better. 

He looks peaceful, is the first thought that comes to Charles’ mind. Brow smooth, eyelids still, and the ghost of a smile curving at his lips. It is a far cry from the uneasy restlessness and nightmares Charles has witnessed over the years. The days of insomnia, the dark eye circles, and the endless number of fitful nights when sleep finally did come. 

Reaching out, Charles skims his fingertips over the side of Pierre’s face, just allowing the grown hairs to prickle at his touch. Pierre’s nose scrunches up adorably at the action, and Charles grins at the instant reaction. 

Trailing his finger down Pierre’s nose instead, he watches as it twitches slightly before smoothing out. He nuzzles gently into his pillow, lips parting in a soft sigh as he does so. 

Charles can’t help but to shift closer, moving his hand down as he minimises the space between them. Brushing over Pierre’s shoulder, Charles once again breathes a sigh of relief when his exploratory touch doesn’t find the foreign, plastic circle that had become a reluctantly familiar protrusion pressing into his palm whenever Charles had reached out for Pierre by the bicep. It had even gotten to the point where he would actively avoid grabbing at his upper arms, unknown as to which would be wearing the glucose monitor, and knowing he could never adjust his response to finding it quick enough for Pierre to not see. 

Subconsciously having started to dig his fingers into Pierre’s arm at the memory, gripping onto him as if to keep this version with him - the relaxed, happier, healthier version - even though there is no current threat to take him away from him, Charles isn’t surprised when Pierre starts to stir. 

“Shh, go back to sleep,” he murmurs, rubbing his hand along the length of his arm and eventually landing on his chest. He can feel rather than see Pierre inhale deeply; a sure sign that he is more on this side of awake than not. 

“Why are you feeling me up?” Pierre asks, slurring slightly with the fog of sleepiness, and yet still managing to insert a hint of humour to his words. 

Scowling though he is sure Pierre cannot make it out through his heavy blinks, Charles scoffs and shoves him in the chest. “I am not! Shut up and go back to sleep.”

“No, no. I’m awake now,” Pierre says, a smirk tugging at his lips when his eyes finally meet Charles’ in the dimness of the bedroom. “What were you doing?”

“Cuddling you,” Charles lies, making a show to grab at Pierre’s wrist to lift his arm and place it over his own waist to cover up. 

“Hmm, okay,” Pierre hums, unconvinced but playful. He leaves his arm where it now lays but allows his hand to wander slowly south until Charles raises an eyebrow at his obvious move.

“Now who’s feeling who up?” Charles asks dryly, huffing when Pierre merely uses the hand that is now resting on his ass to pull him further into him.

Pierre copies his actions and raises his own eyebrow at him. “You want me to stop? It doesn’t feel like you do,” he says pointedly before shifting his hips exaggeratedly to emphasise Charles’ natural bodily reaction to Pierre’s crudely sensuous touch.

Trying to bite back the smile that threatens to break out on his face, Charles settles for a glare that carries no heat whatsoever and only lasts for a couple of seconds before breaking. He’s never been able to resist Pierre’s advances, and especially not whilst he is smirking at him with one perfectly shaped eyebrow arched.

“I love you,” Charles says in between silent giggles, pressing his forehead against Pierre’s, who laughs softly at his confession.

“Wow, I haven’t even done anything yet,” Pierre teases, laughing harder when Charles groans and tries to roll away.

“You’re the worst, Pierre. I’m telling you I love you and you just laugh at me,” Charles grumbles half-heartedly, not even fighting Pierre when he keeps him in place.

“I love you, too,” Pierre replies placatingly, before adding, “And I always laugh at you.”

Sighing, Charles settles back into his pillow and observes Pierre closely. “You laugh a lot more nowadays,” he notes lightly.

Pierre nods, the smirk transforming into a gentle smile instead. “Things are a lot better now.”

“A lot lighter, yes? Freeing?” Charles checks.

“A lot brighter,” Pierre assures him with a gentle squeeze around the waist. 

Charles is under no impression that Pierre doesn't understand how much it means to him to see him do so much better now he has officially left Red Bull clutches. He doesn’t need to say the words for him to know how important of a factor the move to Alpine has been in the overall scheme of things.

“Good. It will be a good year for you, I can tell,” Charles informs Pierre, leaving no room for argument with his adamant tone. It brings out another bout of silent laughter from Pierre.

“You can, can you?” Pierre asks suggestively, shifting to lean up ever-so-slightly onto his elbow and hover over Charles. He slips a leg between Charles’, brushing his toes against the sole of his foot that makes him squirm more from the tickles than the intimate position they’re in. “Can you tell what’s going to happen to me now?”

“You will crawl under the covers and push me onto my back,” Charles states confidently even in his breathless voice.

“Sounds more like a demand than a prediction,” Pierre laughs but follows through nonetheless, using his weight to slowly roll Charles onto his back. “You’re right though. I am.”

Charles grins self-satisfyingly into the dark as Pierre crawls down his body and slowly disappears under the sheets, his own smirk stuck in place. 

“I’m always right,” Charles says smugly before all words are stolen out of his mouth by Pierre’s own skillful one.

[marcoscandellas]

Turbo zoomies - SEA @ DAL - Dec 18, 2023

@thebookofmags

[they-call-it-traffic]

Pierre during the Miami drivers presentation.

[miamierre]

this.....feels like such a pic that boyfriendierre would have on his phone 🥺

[midnightmah07]

Some platonic relationships with my OCs🤲🏻

[singsweetmelodies]

that's his brother-in-law

[teamnick]

@.alpinef1team You know F1’s back when these two are together 💙❤️

[welightitup]

Home Is Where the Heart Is... (15k words)

“George and Charles?!” Pierre exclaims, with no other context or explanation.

“What about them?” Yuki asks rather calmly, given the situation. But then again, it’s not like he’s affected by it in any way or form. That’s been reserved for just Alex and Pierre.

“They’re our George and Charles!” Alex adds to the conversation, and he can see the exact moment it all clicks in Yuki’s brain as his pinched features open right up into pure surprise.

“Nooo!” Yuki draws out, arms dropping in shock. “Really?”

aka the New Girl AU where everyone is everyone's exes. Except for Yuki.

Part 1 of the Who’s That Guy? series, co-created with @singsweetmelodies, who also designed the amazing series poster.

For the wonderful @boxboxbrioche​ <3 Happy birthday!

[pernillecfcw]

Champions league ready💙