8. Face to Face

                                    

                                          
Joel pulled into the parking bay outside Aston Martin's Gaydon headquarters. It was launch day for the AMR21. He hopped out, as did Sophie, Ollie and Lottie.  
This was Lottie's first day at Aston Martin. She knew she was going to come face to face with Sebastian for the first time in seven and a half years. She had spent the last couple of weeks watching YouTube videos of his Ferrari years.  Only out of curiosity of course. He had lost his boyish looks but was just as handsome as ever. Especially with his designer stubble, she thought to herself. He had started to lose some of his hair at the front, but in Lottie's  opinion it only added to his attractiveness.  The two things that hadn't changed were his eyes and his smile. 
She didn't know if he knew she was working for Aston Martin. She didn't even know if he would recognise her, it had been that long. Her hair had grown and reached halfway down her back. She wasn't as slim  as she was back then but was by no means fat. In fact she had more confidence in her appearance than she ever had. She felt sick as she walked through the doors.  This was it. Time to face the past.
                                        ***
Seb waved goodbye to the fans he had been on Zoom call with. He was feeling happy. Lawrence Stroll entered the room and greeted him.
"Finally, the day has arrived," he boomed. "Seems ages since you agreed to join us. "
"It does. The last races with Ferrari dragged." 
"It's going to get better Seb. We're not expecting miracles straight away. You take all the time you need.  We trust you. We are building this team, together."
"Thank you for giving me this chance Lawrence. I won't let you down.  Where's Lance? I wanted to speak to him about the shakedown at Silverstone tomorrow." 
"Um, last time I saw him he was trying to chat up Charlotte in the studio."  Hearing the name Charlotte threw Seb back into the past. An irritating, annoying, beautiful girl. The baiting, the arguing. The kissing. What could of happened if fate hadn't intervened?
"Who's Charlotte?" he heard his trainer, Antti ask from behind him.
"Oh Charlotte, or Lottie as we call her, is  a new starter too. You guys should form a club," Lawrence laughed, amused by himself. "She's the new team photographer."  Seb felt a sense of deja vu. Surely not? After all this time? But a photographer called Lottie? What were the chances?  
"Where's the studio?"he asked. Lawrence pointed him in the right direction. He marched off, Antti having to jog to keep up with him.
"Boss, wait up, Where's the fire?"
"Antti, I have to know if it's her."
"What are you on about? See if who's who?" Seb stopped in his tracks. 
"The photographer. See if she's the Lottie I knew a long time ago."
"She was special to you?" he asked, sensing that this was the case.
"She could have been. We never got the chance to find out. I haven't seen her for nearly 8 years Antti.  Hell, it's probably not even her."  He started walking again and soon reached the makeshift studio.  He glanced around the room. He saw Sophie talking to Otmar. He saw so many people that he didn't know yet.  But no Lottie. He had been wrong. She wasn't here. Maybe it was destiny that he would never see her again. 
                                           ***
Lottie saw him enter the room, his trainer following behind him. Green was definitely his colour. She saw him looking around as if trying to find someone. She knew then that he knew. She didn't know how she knew, he could have been looking for anyone, but she knew. She leant back against the wall, watching him. He stood still in the centre of the room. He had changed in a lot of ways, but in other ways nothing had changed at all. She slipped out of the studio. The reunion could wait. She wasn't ready for it.  
She snuck back into the small room where she'd left most of her equipment. She knew she couldn't hide forever but she needed to buy some time to compose herself.   
Twenty minutes later she felt a bit calmer so decided to bite the bullet and go back in. She grabbed one of her bags and headed back down the corridor. As she walked through the door she collided with a hard body, losing her balance and falling to a heap on the floor. 
"Shit," she shouted. She looked up into a very familiar pair of blue eyes.  Not again!
                                       ***
Seb was heading out to change into his race suit when he collided with someone heading in the opposite direction. He heard a familiar voice cursing. He couldn't believe it. She WAS here. And once again she hadn't looked where she was bloody going! 
He looked down into her furious eyes. Damn, she looked more beautiful than he remembered. Age had been kind to her. Then, because he couldn't resist it he said, "There she goes. Falling for me again. Lottie  honey, you don't have to throw yourself at my feet. "
He saw the look of fury appear on her face.  "Oh for pity's sake," she cursed. 
"Somethings never change do they?"
"They certainly don't you smug ..."
"Now,now. Watch your language." Lottie took a deep breath. Time may have passed but he hadn't changed. He still wound the hell up out of her. What had she been thinking before? Thank God she hadn't ended up with him. That would have been a huge mistake. She got up and stormed away to the other side of the studio. Seb followed her.
"How have you been?"
"Peachy Sebastian, just peachy. How's your wife?"
"Actually, I'm divorced now."  Lottie stopped, feeling bad for putting her foot in it.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know."
"We haven't exactly advertised it. Look Lottie, I need to explain..."
" I don't want to hear it Sebastian. The past is the past. I'm here to do my job. That's all I'm interested in." She started walking again, heading over to Otmar and Sophie.
Seb stood there. He really didn't know how to feel.  Seeing her again was doing crazy things to him. It was as if she had never been away. She was still sharp tongued. She was still awkward and annoying. And he realised that, after all these years, he still wanted her.
                                         ***
Lottie packed her gear into the boot of Joel's car once she had finished her job for the day. Seb hadn't tried to talk to her again but she had caught him looking at her several times. If he thought he could worm his way back into her life, he had another think coming. She wasn't interested. She heard footsteps behind her.
"Hey, Joel, is it OK if we stop off at the shop on the way back? I need to get some milk and bread. Keep forgetting to shop for myself now. Was so used to Dad and Lindsay doing it. The things you have to remember when you live alone."  
She whirled around expecting to see her friend but stood there was the last person on earth she wanted to see. 
"Oh, it's you."
"Is that all you have to say to me after all these years?" 
"What do you expect me to say? So good to see you Sebastian? I missed you Sebastian?"
"Did you miss me? I missed you. Please Lottie, can we talk?"
"Sure you missed me Sebastian. Missed me as you were getting engaged? Getting married? You lied to me Sebastian. And you cheated on her. You kissed me! You let me believe that you were ending it with her.  So, no. We can't talk .I don't want to talk to you, unless it's work related.  You are just a colleague to me.  Nothing more."
"If you'd just let me explain."
"There's no point Sebastian. We're not going down that road again. So just leave me alone."  He looked at her for a moment, shook his head and walked off.