F1 runner
1227 Words
I feel as if my heart stopped for a millisecond before starting to pump so hard that I fear it might burst out of my chest, but eventually, I manage to calm down. It's not Levi. It's not him, just a guy with dark hair and light eyes.
"Asher, let go of the gentleman. I've told you many times not to talk to strangers," I scold the little dark-haired boy, who as soon as he hears me, obeys and runs towards me.
"But he's not a stranger," Mr. Donatello says, stepping between the two of us. "Victoria, let me introduce you to Mr. Maximiliano Velásquez, your new client. Maximiliano Velásquez, Victoria Sutherland, your agent."
"I'm really sorry about earlier. This little one recognized me from TV and insisted on taking a picture with me next to the sign at the door."
I look to where he points, finding a life-size poster of himself. What surprises me isn't that, but the uniform he's wearing in the poster.
"Do you race in Formula 1?"
"Yes, for the past two years."
Wow, so he is famous.
Mr. Donatello extends his hand in Max's direction, as the folder says his name is, and after they greet each other, Mr. Donatello hands me the keys to the company van and winks at me.
I avoid laughing at his always out-of-place thoughts and continue with my work, but as I'm about to leave Asher at the daycare, I notice a little girl hiding behind the leg of the hallway.
"And who is this little one?"
Maximiliano looks down and smiles, revealing a pair of captivating dimples on his cheeks. As he lowers his head, a strand of his dark hair falls over his forehead.
"This is Tina, my daughter. I was dropping her off here when I ran into your brother."
Asher squints at him. He seems offended to have been mistaken for my brother.
"I'm not her brother, I'm her son."
"That's right, this is Asher, my son," I confirm, laughing at the embarrassed look on Maximiliano's face when he realizes his mistake. "Hello, Tina. I'm Victoria, how are you?"
Tina looks at me from her safe spot without trusting me much, so I crouch down and offer her my hand to take. Being friendly to everyone is part of my job, but when it comes to children, I don't do it just out of obligation. Children, more precisely those Asher's age, fill me with tenderness.
Tina, seeing me from a friendlier perspective, smiles a little and rushes towards me to hug me. When she lets go of me, I realize how much she resembles her father, and therefore Asher.
"I'm Tina and I'm six years old."
"Wow, you're already a big girl."
She nods proudly. "Yes, and my daddy promised to take me to the park this afternoon because he's always very busy."
"I'll keep that promise, but first, we need to go to the hotel."
"No, I want to go now."
"We can't go now, Tina. I promise I'll take you tomorrow morning, okay?"
"No, I want to go now."
I see Maximiliano sigh as he scratches the back of his head. He may seem very cheerful, but the dark bags under his eyes give him away. He's probably dying of sleep.
"Alright, we'll take you to the park now, but... are you sure you're not a little tired?"
"No, I'm not."
"Sure? Because it would be a waste to go to the park tired and not be able to play."
Tina starts to doubt her decision, but she ends up shaking her head.
"I want to go now."
This girl is really stubborn. I wonder if in that aspect she resembles her father or her mother.
"You'll be alone today, but if you wait until tomorrow, Asher will go with us to the park, okay?"
Huh? When did I say that?
Regardless of whether I said it or not, Tina seems delighted with the idea.
"Alright. I'll wait until tomorrow, but only if we also have a picnic, okay, daddy?"
"Of course, sweetheart."
When Tina hears him accept her proposal, she gets so excited that she runs off in any direction, doing somersaults and singing a song from princess cartoons.
"I'm sorry about that," I hear Maximiliano murmur beside me. "Tina is the family's spoiled child, so it's not so easy to make her change her mind or say no. But don't worry about tomorrow, I'll come up with an excuse."
I shake my head, smiling and taking Asher's hand, who looks at Tina as if a screw had come loose in his head.
"Anyway, I wanted to take Asher to the park."
"Really? What a nice coincidence."
"It's not a coincidence," Asher interrupts our conversation. "It's because today is her birthday, and she had to work."
Maximiliano's eyes widen slightly.
"Really? Then I must thank you twice."
"Nonsense. Just consider it part of my job."
Maximiliano smiles, revealing those dimples on his cheeks again. His eyes seem to sparkle.
"Then I'm more than grateful to be part of your job."
"Daddy!" Tina shouts, making us break eye contact. "Let's go, it's getting late and we have to unpack a lot of things."
I twirl the key to the company van in my fingers as I wait for Asher to finish entering the company's daycare and say goodbye to him.
Going to Maximiliano and his daughter's lodging place isn't complicated. Traffic is smooth, and amidst Tina's anecdotes, time flies by. Finally, we both stand in front of his room door.
"I hope you enjoy your stay and that the room meets your expectations. If there's any inconvenience, you can call my boss."
"And if I wanted to call you?"
I turn my head gently, trying to guess what he's thinking, but his gaze is so deep that I'm forced to avert my eyes towards Tina, who jumps on the bed in the room.
"I'm just a guide, any questions..."
"I mean talking to you only. You know, about tomorrow."
I put my fingers in the inner pocket of my jacket and hand him a card. He takes it, causing our fingers to brush lightly.
"Victoria Sutherland. Did I mention that I like your name?"
I smile as I start to walk away.
"See you tomorrow."
"Until then."
From the hotel, I drive back to the office, where I pick up Asher and head home in the company minivan. Asher complains all the way that Tina is very noisy, but when I ask him if he wants to cancel the park outing tomorrow, he denies it, saying he'll be able to hide in her surroundings.
The afternoon passes and the evening arrives. In my apartment, where it's just Asher and me, I lie down on my bed, looking at the ceiling. My little prince is already asleep, now it's me who can't sleep, and the reason isn't Maximiliano.
Soon it will be the anniversary of the last time I heard from Levi, and I still haven't fulfilled the promise of telling him about Asher. In fact, now that I think about it, with each passing day, that thought of telling him is fading along with the feeling for Levi that I thought was love.
Finally, I close my eyes and sigh. There's no point in continuing to think about it.
- Writer
