Formula 1: The GOAT

“He is outstanding,” Henry said upon finally finding Rümeysa and Güldane in the grandstands a few minutes after the third heat started. Fatih had already opened a five-second gap in three laps and was not showing any intention of stopping or slowing down.

“He can be carefree in many things, but when it comes to racing, his competitiveness knows no bounds,” Rümeysa said as she kissed Brunhilde on both her cheeks before pointing to one of the grandstand chairs for both her and Seraphina to take a seat and continue watching the heat.

“Have you managed to check in at the hotel?” Güldane asked Henry, who ended up sitting beside her.

“We plan to do that after the race; there is no need to rush since we already have our reservation,” Henry answered, having already gotten used to her due to the frequent visits between their families.

As the four of them continued their small talk, Seraphina was mostly silent, speaking only when spoken to, as she was fully focused on the race, and she found herself becoming more and more of a fan of the sport.

“And he doesn’t leave anything to guessing, making it feel almost boring, as for the third time in a row, it is Fatih Yıldırım whom the checkered flag is waved for, and he wins his third heat of the day! It is a hat-trick for the returnee, and he still looks hungry for more. He doesn’t have to worry about that, as there are two more heats after three hours…”

While the main commentator commentated on the end of the third heat, Fatih returned to the pit lane, and after the official procedures, he immediately left for the grandstands to go and spend time with his family and friends.

“At least leave your helmet behind,” John could be heard shouting at Fatih, who didn’t seem to have heard him at all, as in a few more steps, he had disappeared into a crowd, not to be seen again. “He really is going to catch a cold if he doesn’t get changed,” John said before deciding to go and take some clothes to Fatih for him to change into, lest he once again be rendered unfit for racing due to health reasons.

He went to the pit garage, took dry clothes and a new towel before heading in Fatih’s direction, already knowing where he had gone. He found him talking and laughing with Seraphina before handing him the clothes and sending him to change. After thanking him for his help, Fatih left to change.

….

As he walked back to the grandstand after he was done changing, still holding his racing overalls, he could hear a commotion. He rushed over only to find Seraphina squatting at the edge of the grandstands, shaking in fear as she tried to cover her face to not see the eyes of people who were staring at her.

Immediately upon seeing that, he took the helmet in his hand and rushed to Seraphina, putting it on her. She whimpered in fear momentarily when she felt someone touching her, only to calm down when she realized it was Fatih. A moment later, he inserted his earplugs in her ears before putting on his helmet, instantly reducing the amount of sound she could hear from the surroundings.

Fatih then held the helmet as if it were her face, raising it so that the open visor lined up with his face before he said, “When I put this helmet on, the world goes silent, and I become alone in my own world. That is what you should focus on. At the moment, we are in a world where there is only the two of us, so focus on that and filter out all of the remaining noise while taking a deep breath,” speaking as calmly as possible, uncaring of how the people in their surroundings looked at them.

There was really no need for him to guess what had triggered her relapse. Although she had come a long way to be where she was, she wasn’t yet fully healed. At the moment, she was at a level where, as long as she was not the center of attention, she could be in a public place without any trouble, but the moment she became the center of attention, her extreme shyness would once again be triggered. It seemed that people started paying attention to her because they had seen him walking with her previously. She hadn’t noticed the eyes on her then, as she was fully focused on Fatih and their conversation. But the moment he left to change, it seems she discovered the eyes on her, which acted as the trigger.

Seraphina closed her eyes for a moment, trying to emulate what Fatih suggested as she took long and deep breaths, hearing the world go silent for a moment. When she opened her eyes, her vision was filled with Fatih, who was focused on her, with everything else being obscured by the helmet.

“Good, now you only have to continue focusing like that, and it won’t be a problem. If you can’t do that, then just close your eyes and trust me,” Fatih said, tapping the helmet lightly as if patting her head before he asked, “Do you want to leave here?”

Instead of verbally answering, she just nodded.

“Good, now focus on me and only me. Don’t try to look at anyone or anything else,” Fatih said before closing the visor and holding her hand to help her stand. He started walking with her away from the grandstand under the watch of many people, but Fatih was used to it, so it didn’t bother him. Seraphina had heeded Fatih’s words and focused only on him. Anytime something else was about to enter her vision, she closed her eyes, finding herself maintaining her calm despite knowing that many people were most likely looking at them.

After walking for a few minutes, they were finally in a secluded place, and only then did Fatih raise her visor as he said, “Okay, we are fine.”

When she opened her eyes and found that to be true, she released a sigh of relief as she took a moment to gather herself before she started speaking again.

“I’m sorry, I forgot about your problem not being fully healed when I left you to go and change,” Fatih apologized, because he was the reason they had started walking away from their families to go and talk on their own, only for him to leave her alone.

“It’s fine; it’s not like you did it deliberately…” Seraphina tried to assure Fatih, who was quite sincere in his apology, as she fully accepted it. Not for a moment did it cross her mind to be angry at him.

“So, how did you find it, attending such a large and crowded event?” Fatih asked the moment he realized that the situation had passed and his apology was accepted, so that he could avoid any uncomfortable silence or topics.

With the discussion started, they found themselves talking for quite a while, but during the whole conversation, Seraphina found herself more focused on Fatih’s face, as it had been her whole point of focus since the moment he told her to focus on him. Before she could realize her behavior, a twenty-minute call to Fatih’s next session was announced, abruptly bringing an end to their conversation.

“Let me escort you back,” Fatih said, taking the helmet that she had been holding with both her hands and putting it on her again before he started escorting her back. The moment they arrived, Fatih bid farewell to the two families, who were looking at them weirdly as Seraphina was the one wearing Fatih’s helmet. They wondered what the reason might be before Fatih tried to run to the academy garage, when Seraphina caught him as she said, “Your helmet,” while trying to take it off.

“No, keep it on. You will need it,” Fatih said as he looked around and still found eyes on them before adding, “I have a spare one in the garage,” while tapping her shoulder before rushing back to the track.

When Seraphina turned around, she found herself under the gaze of her parents and Fatih’s parents, who had eyes that hinted that they needed an answer as to what had happened. But instead of answering, she just closed the visor and took a seat, showing that she was not planning to answer any of their questions at the moment.

……..

“And for the sixth and final time for the day, going six for six, it is Fatih Yıldırım who takes home the pre-final win after having already taken five wins during the five heats! What a good start for his return from his injury…”