Ashley POV
"Come on, Ash, you really shouldn't read those," Theo said to me as I ramped through my comments section. I stayed silent, not saying anything.
I was still scrolling through my comments. Oliver entered the room. "Hey, we are ready for the meeting," he said. I slowly put my phone back in my pocket, getting up to go with him.
"What's with the face?" he asked. "Nothing," I said. "Liar. She read through all the comments on her post," Theo said. I gave him a sharp look.
"Ahha..And what did it say?" Oliver asked. "You really should be a race engineer for a guy who deserves to be here more than me," I said slowly.
"Well, you know that I don't," he said, smiling at me. "Oh, don't even think about that. You are stuck with me for a lifetime." I said as we made out of my room. We made our way through the paddock to the conference room.
"Comments? What is up with you?" He asked me in a worried tone.
"It's just...I always feel I don't live up to the expectations," I said. "Ash, you cannot satisfy every F1 fan around the world," he said when Lewis and his race engineer Bono came right in front of us. A smile formed on Lewis's face looking at me.
"There is my favorite racing driver," he said. "Just so you know, Your mine too," I said as he gave me a warm hug. I fist-bumped Bono.
"Me, are you sure? Isn't it one of your boys?" He asked, laughing. "Oh!" I huffed. "The boys are nowhere near you," I said just as Alex passed right by us.
"I heard that," he said as he bumped his fist at Lewis and walked past us. "I think you are in trouble," Bono said to me.
"Oh, they can never stay mad at her," Oliver said as we all shared a laugh.
"So, how are you? After your first race?" Lewis asked. "Yeah, I'm good. Just surviving. But thankful and honored to be here," I said. "You know something? She sounds and behaves more like you, Lewis. On your initial days. It looks like there is another you," Bono said when I gave him an appreciative look.
"Baby steps," Ollie said, putting a hand on my back. "I was thinking we should go out for dinner sometime. With the boys," Lewis said.
"Sure, Sure. But I am not sure Jeddah is the place," I said. "No...Not here. How about back home? Silverstone?" He asked.
"Done," I said when I heard Alex calling me.
"We are late," Ollie said. "I'll see you on the track," I said to Lewis as he hugged me again and we made our way past him.
"Why does everybody just fall in love with you in an instant?" Ollie joked. "Pfft. You think that?" I said.
"How about we race to the meeting?" he asked. I started running ahead of him just as he said that.
"Hey, that's cheating," he shouted.
"Catch me!" I shouted back.
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We were doing the practice sessions. "Ok, Ash, you are tenths slower than Alex. Slow at turns 8 and 12," I heard my race engineer.
"I don't know Ollie. It's like a tractor. Somethings not right," I said.
"Copy that. Let's do another one. See if we find more data," he said.
"Roger that. Tell me if you've got anything from Alex that I can copy. To improve," I said as I drove my out lap. As I neared the start line, I got ready for my lap.
"Alright, Ash. Throw everything," Ollie said, and I began my lap. I drove past the line at full throttle. I can still feel some stiffness in my steering wheel. I drove past the turns of the Jeddah circuit.
"Ollie, I think the hydraulics..." The car spun and hit the barriers. I could feel the force hitting me, making me lose focus for a second. I could feel it was a big crash as the wall I hit tore into pieces. I mean, I did go in full throttle.
"...are gone" I finished the sentence in a pained tone as a wave of shock went down my body.
"You alright, Ash?" Ollie sounded concerned on the radio. "Yeah, Yeah. I'm ok. Ollie, it's the hydraulics. I lost the power steering. Oh, it's gonna be a hell of work back in the garage. Sorry guys. Sorry...I couldn't-"
"Hey, Ash. It's fine, alright. You are okay. That is more important," Ollie said.
"Sorry guys. I was on full throttle. I couldn't keep it away from the wall-" I kept on going because I know how hard it is to repair a car before tomorrow.
"Ash, it's Elliot here. It's ok. It's ok, dear. We'll do our best. Now come on, jump outside. Let's make sure you are okay, okay? Come on, Ash. Let's get you checked," I heard Elliot. He was my head mechanic.
I knew he came in because he knew that I was just going to sit there and apologize for the whole day. I slowly removed my seatbelt and stood up. A marshal helped me jump out of the car.
"Are you okay, mam?" He said it with a hand on my back, rubbing it. "Yeah, Yeah. Guess it's not the same for the car," I said out of breadth. He gave me a small smile and went on to help the other marshals with the car.
I looked at the car, and it felt like a needle in my heart to see its state. Other cars passed by on the track, and I noticed an Alpine cross. It was Pierre.
He put up a thumbs up which I returned, telling him I was ok. He then drove by. "She is okay." I heard Pierre's radio broadcast. A safety car came and stood beside me.
"Come on, Ms. King. Let's take you to your garage," the driver said, and I removed my helmet and balaclava. Then I got inside the safety car.
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The driver of the safety car was so kind to drop me right in front of my garage. I got out and made my way inside. I placed my helmet and gloves on the table and made my way inside the garage.
Once I was inside, my crew surrounded me. "Oh my god. Guys. I am so sorry. It's gonna be a hell of a job," I said as Theo put a hand on my neck and back of my head, checking for injuries.
"Do you feel pain anywhere?" He asked. "The hydraulics just went Kaboom. I kind of felt it in the steering wheel but before I could-"
"Ashley, your trainer asked you a question," James said to me in a very strict tone. "Nope. No Pain. Just feeling sore," I answered, not wanting to face an angry team principal.
"Good. Let's get you out of that suit, and then we'll discuss, okay?" he asked again in a strict tone.
"Yeah," I said, nodding. All made their way out, leaving only Oliver and Theo. Oliver came and wrapped his arms around me.
"I'm fine, Ollie," I said. "I know. Just shut up," he said, and I gave out a laugh. "How is Alex doing?" I asked, remembering my fellow driver just as he made his way in with his helmet.
"Hey, you alright?" he asked, hugging me as Ollie let go of me. "Yeah, Yeah. I'm good," I said. He slowly rubbed my back.
