Page 85 of Game on, Love
“Did you knowbeforethat?” When Axel hesitated, I came to an abrupt stop to look at him, and the look he wore was enough of an answer. “Un-fucking-believable.”
He opened his mouth to speak, but I ignored him as I walked towards the makeshift base my crew had created since Thursday. I was in work mode this weekend, and the last thing I was going to do was let my feelings come in the way. The Austin Grand Prix was a spectacle in itself, and where Saturdays were always chaotic, a sprint weekend added a whole new layer of intensity and juggling around to stick to the schedule. Especially, knowing there was a chance it could be my last one, I wanted to make the most of my time.
I reached the table, which was littered with camera equipment, laptops and pages of notes, and they looked up at me expectantly.
“Nope, I didn’t know before this morning and nor do I plan to make it easy for him when he steps for his post-sprint interview,” I began, and all of them gave me a thin smile.
“Okay, now that’s out of the way. Josh, you’re with me this morning—I want to film some pit lane content before the sprint; Noor and the rest of you, please focus on the list that I’d shared before the weekend. I know you’ve all made some good progress on it already, but the conditions are different to yesterday, so maybe try some creative shots for the b-roll? We can regroup afterwards and see who’s in the mood to tag along with me for the interviews.”
They all nodded, and I continued. “Remember, it’s not just about capturing what looks good; we’re telling a story, and each frame needs to have a meaning. If you catch yourself wondering if something will work in the bigger picture, capture it anyway,you never know when a clip can be valuable and if anything, we can always bin it later. Better to have it than miss it!”
One final nod, and we all scattered to our places.
The pit lane was its usual vibrant mess of activities as the paddock club guests trailed down for their tour. Engineers darted around the garages as the teams began their pit stop practices. Josh trailed behind me with my camera, as I looked around me for the perfect background, my gaze stopping on the Hillcrest Garage a couple feet from me as I spotted Dev in a conversation, but I didn’t linger. Once I found the spot and looked around to make sure I was out of the way, I gave Josh a nod and waited for his signal. He gave me a thumbs up and I began my introduction and tuned out the noise behind me.
“I THINK WE GOTeverything,” Josh said, as we neared the end of the pit lane. “I want to run back up to take a shot of the practice, though; it’ll be a cool transition for the intro.”
I nodded, my throat dry from speaking non-stop.
When he rushed down, I took my time to walk back through. Pulling out my phone to capture some shots, I realised Oliver had texted me.
Oliver:Rihaan just told me what happened. Was that when you found out?
Me:Yes.
I chewed on my lower lip, unsure if I should even ask.
Me:When did Vedant tell him?
The reply came almost instantly.
Oliver:I’ll ask.
A minute. Two.
Oliver:He told him when they did horror night.
My shoulders dropped, hating that my instinct was right. No matter the small steps we took, I’d never stop feeling like an outsider in their group. A voice in my head tried to reason that he was used to relying on them, sharing things he couldn’t because of how distant I’d been, but the stubborn voice was louder.
He didn’t try either.
Thankfully, Josh had decided to stay back at Ascari, the iconic shade of red contrasting well with the colours of COTA, so I gave him a wave to let him know I was leaving before walking down the narrow lane and back into the paddock, with a tightness in my chest that refused to leave.
AFTER THE SPRINT RACE,the media pen was a hive of activity. One by one, the drivers filtered in, each taking turns as they answered the same dozen variations of ‘How do you feel about the result?’ and ‘Was there anything more you could’ve done today?’ and I tried my best to listen in where possible, and pick apart their responses to build a different kind of question.
I was going through my notes for the last remaining drivers when the familiar colours of navy blue filled my periphery. Glancing up, Vedant took his place in front of me, his suit was slightly rumpled as he ran a hand through his hair. He’d won the race, and I should’ve felt more pride than anything—which I did—I just couldn’t help but still feel the twinge of hurt that laced my throat as he stood in front of me so when he tried to make eye contact before I gave the heads up to my crew, I avoided it.
“Vedant, Congratulations on the win and the new contract,” I began, keeping my tone professional and calm. “How did you feel about the car today? You seem to be in much more control today from the outside compared to yesterday. What was it like from the inside?”
He cleared his throat before tugging on his collar once. “Thank you, and yes, we made some changes to the set-up, and it clearly worked, though if you look at the race overall, there are still some things we need to work on.”
I nodded, “Anything in particular you noticed that was a surprise in those short laps?”
“Just that tyre management will be crucial tomorrow. The fronts tend to go quick, which is why, in the end, there were times when the Ascari’s were catching me because once the tyres are gone, it takes more out your time than you’d expect.”
“Thank you. And again, congratulations on your new contract with Montclair. Were you in discussions with them since before Singapore, or was that an unexpected call for you?”
He met my gaze briefly, but I kept any trace of emotions hidden as he gave me a perfectly poised response. “We’ve been in discussions for a while, but it was about getting everything aligned, and after that win, it felt right, so we decided to move forward.”