This win in Austria was so close I could almost taste it.
For most of the race, Henri and I had traded places.But a perfectly timed pit stop from his team, and a few small mistakes from me, had handed him the lead.Now, with one lap left, he was still there.Right in front of me.
Untouchable.
I pressed the brake a little too late into Turn 3.The rear end shivered in protest, a warning tremor vibrating up through the seat.A message from the car that I was pushing too hard and asking too much.
Henri stayed where he always was.Just out of reach.
Don’t think about him.Just drive.
The track blurred by, then the grandstands became a large blur of color and noise.I was supposed to love this part.But my thoughts were too loud.I clipped the next apex tighter than I intended.
My radio crackled.“Careful, Lily.Keep it clean,” Mark said, a trace of warning now.
“Copy.”
Henri was a three-second lead ahead of me, and there was no way I could pass now.My car wobbled through the next corner, the balance just slightly off.Every movement felt sharper now, more desperate.
“Can you give us more?”
No, was the actual answer.The car just didn’t have the pace underneath.The steering wheel felt slick under my gloves despite the moisture-wicking material, sweat pooling in my palms from effort and frustration in equal measure.
Henri’s car flicked through the final corner, absolutely flawless.A machine in perfect harmony with its driver.Mine followed half a heartbeat later, desperately trying to catch up.The checkered flag waved from the marshal’s post.
Henri crossed the line first.
The silence on the radio said a lot about how we were all feeling, but then Mark’s voice burst through again, surprisingly cheerful.“P2!Great job, Lily!Fantastic drive!”
I didn’t answer right away.The words were stuck, refusing to come out as anything coherent or media-friendly.I exhaled slowly, counting the beats like I would during a qualifying lap, trying to ground myself in something familiar and controlled.When I finally spoke, I hoped to God my voice would sound normal, calm, professional, like this was just another Sunday afternoon.
“Copy.”My voice sounded flat, emotionless, like it belonged to someone else entirely.“Nice job, everyone.Good strategy today.”
I told myself second place was fine.The rational part of my brain, the part that remembered we had more than half the races to go this season, knew that P2 was excellent.The championship was by no means over—not that it was any consolation.
I watched his car slow ahead of me on the cooldown lap, the faint crimson flash of his brake lights visible through the tarmac’s reflection.He raised one hand in acknowledgment as he passed the marshal posts, that polite little wave of sportsmanship the cameras always loved.
I parked on my mark, killed the engine, and stepped out into a tidal wave of noise.
“Lily, over here!”the post-race interviewer called out.“Wow, what an incredible race!Walk us through Turn 1.Any regrets on the strategy?What did you make of Henri’s pace in sector two?”
I said all the right things.That the fans were incredible and the car was coming alive, that our upgrades were working, that Hermes had nailed it today, but we’d be ready to fight next race.The words tasted like artificial sweetener, but I kept that fake smile fixed in place.
Henri did the same, keeping his answers safe.After yesterday, we’d both been scolded to no end by our press teams, and we were under strict instructions to ignore each other.Even the journalists this morning avoided asking us any questions about the other.
We went up for the podium, and Henri held up his trophy—that massive, ornate thing that weighed more than it looked.He didn’t bother to look at me when he lifted the trophy, but I clapped anyway.Because cameras were recording every moment, analyzing every micro-expression for signs of drama.
And because maybe, despite everything, he’d earned it today.
As soon as I stepped off, a familiar voice called out to me.“Well, well, well, if it isn’t my favorite driver!”
“Ollie!”I said, managing a smile.
He swept me into a hug, planting a kiss on my cheek for good measure.“You were incredible!”he said.“Second place looks good on you, though, personally, I think you deserved better.”
“Do you?”I said lightly, stepping back.Because I didn’t.
“Absolutely,” he said, flashing his charming grin at a nearby camera before lowering his voice.“You had him on the ropes.Another lap, and you’d have taken him.”
