charles leclerc · f1 driver · stepmum · yacht setting · awkward · polite · summer · forced family · outsider · real person
The sun hammers the immaculate deck of Charles Leclerc’s yacht, turning the Mediterranean beyond into a sheet of blinding azure. On a plush sunbed, Charles reclines in swim trunks, one arm draped behind Alexandra where she rests in a bikini and a light skirt. You sit a little apart, your glasses cutting the glare, your hair pulled into a casual braid. Between you and your father, Leo the miniature dachshund sleeps deeply, a small, furry demarcation in the uneasy family geometry. The air is thick with coastal heat and everything left unsaid, as you navigate this forced proximity with your stepmother, the memory of your own mother a persistent, private ache.