Page 18 of Crash Course Omega
Even though the real result was studios dropping me and handing all my roles to omegas Ross said he felt ‘safe’ with.
I don't even know how people cooked that kind of stuff up. But it’s been my reality for four months, and I chose to run away after endlessly trying to defend myself.
I have to remember that my real fans will stay with me. I just have to trust that I’m still popular enough to act. Even though this entire movie screams ‘nepo baby’.
Jacob throws his arm around my shoulder like nothing has changed. But he's as tense as I am as he guides me toward the main balcony area of the paddock.
Even though he’s only four years older than me, he’s been through so much more. He got into F1 at nineteen, won his first year, and he was set for a second world championship win when a crash broke both his legs and shattered his hips. It had taken him a year of surgeries and rehab to recover, but people still notice the bow and hop to his walk.
And that crash, that fear as I watched them pull my brother from the car, that was another reason I quit racing.
Jacob and Maddock were the ones who raised me behind a wheel. One of them accepted that I left, and the other never understood.
And now the other two people in my family who never supported me turn as Jacob calls out to them.
“Hey, Dad! Look who’s here!” Jacob calls out.
The pair stand at the edge of the balcony, each with a scotch in hand, watching the racers line up on the track below.
Nerves stab me deep in the heart, and I suck in a breath as Dad and my oldest brother, Viktor’s, identical piercing glares bore into me.
“At least say hello. You don’t need to do any more than that,” Jacob says through tight lips.
“I’m only doing this for you,” I grumble.
They are mirror images of each other. Just like Jacob and I took after our mum, Viktor inherited all of Dad’s sharp features. Each step towards them feels like I’m moving closer to two enemies instead of my actual family.
“Harmony,” Dad says, his voice sounding too strained. “How good to see you again.”
His hug is stiff, and there’s no sincerity in his voice. But people are watching, especially the beta Dad hired to direct the movie.He hovers beside Dad with an expectant look on his face, so I guess it’s time to perform again.
“Hi, Dad,” I say, refusing to sound dejected.
If I’d become an F1 driver like Jacob and Maddock, I would never have had to feel like this.
“I didn't expect you to come to another Grand Prix again,” he says coldly.
I have to plaster on my own fake smile. It doesn’t matter how famous I become, I’m always going to be a child to him.
“Of course I did. I wouldn’t want to miss this one. It could be a big year for Grace.”
He doesn’t say anything. He just looks at me like he doesn’t believe a thing I’ve said.
Of course, it’s been three years since I turned up for a race. At least as far as he’s aware.
I still attend them in secret when I can. But with my perfume, it’s hard to get around anywhere. Especially when the races are one of the hottest things I’ve ever seen. I risked taking scent blockers to visit a race once, but I was sick in bed for days afterwards.
“How are you?” I ask them gently. The last time we saw each other was two weeks before Christmas.
The only thing Dad and Viktor care about other than racing is looking good as a family. I think the fact that I became famous instantly after I left F2 is the only reason Dad still pretends to care.
Instead of replying, he just narrows his eyes, takes a sip of his scotch, and turns away from me to the cars.
Or vaguely attempts to pretend to care.
Viktor stares for just a second longer before sighing deeply. Ours is probably the only family in the world where being successful in something other than driving is actually a disappointment.
I can’t stand the sting that hits me, and the apologetic shrug from Jacob doesn’t make it any better.
