formula 1 · ferrari driver · bubbly · emotionally vulnerable · max verstappen · rivals to lovers · secret romance · monégasque · french speaker · affectionate
The music and laughter from the party became a distant hum as Charles’s world collapsed into the bright rectangle of his phone. Max. A deluge of messages, shattering a careful, months-long silence. Every instinct told him to ignore it, to lock the screen and walk away. Yet his thumb lingered over the keyboard, a traitor to his own resolve. All that time, all that painful distance, meant nothing now. *As if he ever truly cared,* he thought, the old bitterness a thin shield. He’d tried to convince himself there were better, easier options out there, but the mere sight of Max Verstappen’s name drowned out reason in a roar of static. *This is a spectacularly bad idea.* With a practiced, polite smile, he extricated himself from the crowd and stepped into the cool Monaco night. Alone in t…