Round 04
Spain

Warnings: none

Length: 1.9k words

Spain brings warm weather. Figuratively and literally. Every driver has gone around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya at least a thousand times—in the simulators or in winter testing. That means rare mistakes, even smaller margins of error, and added pressure. And most of the teams have brought upgrades to their cars, so everyone’s waiting to see how it all turns out.

Will Mercedes find improvement on a draggy car? Is Aston Martin copying Red Bull with their new floor design? Will Ferrari catch up to Porsche? How will Charles Leclerc defend as the current championship leader? What is Haas doing? Is Lee Sunmi in trouble?

Wait, what—

Sunmi’s eyes narrow on the article’s headline. Written by her biggest fan, Sohn Sangwoo for K-Sports News.

“Oh, there you are.”

Sunmi jumps lightly at the voice behind her. She recognizes the accent, knows the inflections of his voice. It’s Sebastian, but she wasn’t expecting him.

“Your PR manager, Chu, was looking for you.” Sebastian is holding a small cup of coffee. His bright blue eyes peek up at Sunmi as he takes a sip. His nose wrinkles.

“Too bitter?” Sunmi asks with a chuckle.

“No. Too sweet,” Sebastian answers with a frown.

“I might have slipped in a few sugar cubes while you weren’t looking,” a new voice interrupts. Sunmi already knows who it is.

“Morning,” Sebastian greets Baekhyun. “I didn’t know we were sabotaging each other today.”

“Of course. I need someone to take the attention off me.” Baekhyun has his own cup of coffee, and he jokingly raises it in the air as if giving a toast to Sebastian.

Sebastian smiles in response before his attention is whisked away by his PR manager, Britta. When Sebastian heads outside, Sunmi is left to herself in the lobby—with Baekhyun, of course.

The Ferrari driver’s gaze immediately falls onto Sunmi. His lips curl into a small smirk. “So you come around here often?” he asks rather huskily.

“It’s the FIA building,” Sunmi answers in monotone. “We’re going to a press conference. Like we always do.”

Baekhyun sighs. “I know, Sunmi. I’m just joking.”

“Okay, but I’m not taking jokes anymore,” Sunmi claims. Her mind continues to linger on the many news articles and gossip pieces regarding her. “Or anything. From anyone. Except my team or my managers.”

“Jesus.” Baekhyun leans his shoulder against the wall. His cup of coffee is still steaming. “What’s got you worked up?”

“Everything. Everyone’s so stupid.” Sunmi frowns. She still remembers the big headlines from two weeks ago in Malaysia—how every question directed to her only questioned her abilities in driving fast and delivering on results. “Is Lee Sunmi crumbling under pressure?” she recalls an article title. “I hate it here.”

“Well, you should be glad,” Baekhyun says with a smile. “The media only wants to cover the hot topics. And you’re like fire to them.”

“Yeah, maybe.” A little, impish grin forms on Sunmi’s lips. “So aren’t you worried? You know I’ve read articles about you too.”

“Have you now?”

“Byun Baekhyun is underperforming alongside his teammate Charles Leclerc,” Sunmi paraphrases something she read earlier. Baekhyun’s face doesn’t move a single bit, hinting towards indifference. “They’re calling you washed up, Baekhyun.”

At that suggestion, Baekhyun’s expression shifts. He sighs loudly.

“I had one brake by wire failure in Bahrain. Just one DNF,” Baekhyun states, “and this is what I get.”

“Hey, for the record, I don’t think you’re washed up.”

“Thanks.”

“I just think that Charles is inherently a better driver than you.”

Baekhyun chuckles breathily. He shakes his head. “Thanks.”

The door to the FIA building opens. Sebastian walks inside with Lewis Hamilton, and they’re chatting about something. Sunmi straightens up to greet the Mercedes driver who nudges his chin up to acknowledge her.

“Hey,” Lewis says to Sunmi, and she’s too dazzled by him to say anything in return. “Hey man,” he says to Baekhyun with a toothy smile. “I heard you spiked the coffee with sugar.”

The two multi-world champions lead the way towards the hall where the press conferences are held. They walk at a brisk pace, and Sunmi decides not to follow. Those two legends—and their previous shared history—precede Sunmi. She’d rather not intrude, so she stays behind with Sebastian. Although Sebastian is a legend himself, he’s also… Seb.

“You don’t want to talk with your crush?” Sebastian teases Sunmi.

“I don’t have a crush on Byun Baekhyun,” Sunmi rebuffs without a second thought. Fortunately, Baekhyun and Lewis are walking too far ahead for them to hear.

“Who said I was talking about