》* 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • 。* 。° 。* 。 • ˚《

》* 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • 。* 。° 。* 。 • ˚《

Lewis had been out shopping all day with his father and stepmother, mostly stuff for the apartment but he did have lunch with them and discussed Kallie's condition and told them about his desire to marry her. They surprisingly responded very well to the news and heavily supported it. Sure they had some concerns but if they were both happy, it was worth taking the chance. He separated from his parents as they had a plane to catch to Russia for the Russian Grand Prix. Lewis and Kallie planned to get on a plane the next day.

"Honey, I'm home!" Lewis says dramatically, chuckling to himself, "always wanted to say that." He set down the many bags in his arms and left them near the door. He walked down the two steps, looking around and not seeing his girlfriend anywhere. "Where is this woman? Kallie!" He walked around the large apartment he shared with her, he had put his name on the lease as she already had lots of residences under her name.

He walked back downstairs after checking the bedroom. He called her phone and after a few seconds, he could hear it ringing from the gym. "I'm so stupid. She probably has headphones on." He says to himself, walking down the hall to the small but convenient gym. Kaylen and Lewis set it up for her as she wanted to work on getting back into shape. And her personal trainer sent her a list of things to do, along with ways to gain weight. The doctors also said it would help with her healing process.

He walked into the gym, seeing Kallie doing pull ups on the bar with two weights attached to her waist. One thing about Kallie, when she worked out, she did the absolute most to get those results. Her workouts were very straining but completely worth it in the end. "Crazy girl." He mumbles, tapping her waist to her attention. Kallie glanced down at him and slowly dropping back onto her feet, almost falling but Lewis steadied her.

"I could've sworn Darren said not to overdo it," Lewis voiced, removing the weights on her waist.

"When have I ever listened to that? If I don't overdo it, I'm never gonna get results." Kallie huffed, tossing her headphones onto the bench. Lewis cupped her jaw gently, "love, I know you want to get back in a car as soon as possible, but this takes time, you gotta slow down and take it one day at a time. Don't overwork yourself. Give it time. You will get back to where you were in due time. Slow down." Kallie sighs softly, nodding her head and he pressed a small peck to her lips.

"How was shopping?" Kallie asked as he led her out of the gym for the day. "It was good, got stopped by a few fans but it was nice. We went to lunch, had a nice conversation, talked about your condition, answered all their questions about it. Also chatted about our relationship, told them some stuff they didn't know yet." Lewis shrugs, grabbing the bags and taking them into the living room with her following.

"Really? Like what?" Kallie asked, setting a towel down before she sat on their brand new couch that his stepmother had picked out.

"Just about us uh, living together to align our schedules." Lewis mumbled, he didn't wanna accidentally blurt out the fact that they were discussing marriage. There was a knock on the door and Lewis quickly got up to get it, aware someone was dropping off a package. Kallie watched as he carried in a large box, "whoa, what's that?" She chuckles, Lewis setting it down on the floor carefully. "It's from my mum and yours. It's a moving in gift."

"What? I didn't even know my mum was friends with yours." Kallie says, kneeling down by the tall thin box as Lewis was opening it. "Kez had them exchange numbers. They've been like best friends lately. Mum won't stop talking about how cool yours is." Lewis snickers, both of them pulling the box off of the tall frame. "I gotta talk to my mum again. It's been too long." She voiced, handing him the scissors so he could cut off the protective zip ties around the corners.

"They helped design it, and Kez painted it from what mum told me." Lewis explained, helping Kallie remove the saran wrap. "Oh, my god, it's gorgeous." Kallie exclaimed in shock, Lewis also looking down at the large painting with shock. It was a painting of Lewis's first podium win and Kallie's first, both of them standing next to each other holding their trophies with their current selves looking up at their old selves. "Fucking hell. They really outdid themselves."

"It's so beautiful." Kallie held a hand over her mouth in utter shock, the bright gold framing around it only making the painting better. "Why are my eye wrinkles so defined?" Lewis squinted his eyes, leave it to Kez to find some way to mock him. Kallie snickers in amusement, wrapping her arms around him, "I love our mums, plus Kezie." Lewis chuckles softly, pulling her into his arms.

After a hour long call with their mother's, they went out for dinner that did get interrupted by a ton of fans showing up outside the restaurant. But they had fun with it, and gladly took many pictures. Currently they were at the beach, just walking along the sand with their hands intertwined. "I could get used to this. It's beautiful here." Kallie smiled, resting her head on his shoulder. Her words stuck with him, "get used to this" but he didn't want to overthink it.

"Lew, what do you think about marriage?" She found herself asking, which very much took him by surprise as that's what he planned to ask her. She knew she hadn't talked about it much after Sean, but the idea was still stuck in her mind. All the what ifs? What if she had gotten married? Would it have been amazing? Would it have been horrible? She didn't know, but she wanted to, just not with Sean. She wanted to explore that feeling with Lewis. She always did. The idea just made her nervous cause she felt that maybe it was too soon for him.

"Are you asking what I think about marriage in general? Or marriage with you?" He questioned, his arm wrapping around her waist to pull her closer to him, unbothered with the paparazzi hiding about. She shrugged softly, "both, I guess."

"Well, I think the concept of marriage is quite beautiful if it's with the right person. And marrying you would be another dream come true. I can't lie and say I've never thought about it, cause it's always been in the back of my mind. It is right now." He admitted, looking down at her, the moonlights shining against her brown skin, only making her look like more a goddess with each passing second. God did he love how the light glistened on her skin.

Her smiled brightened at his answer, he always had his way with words even if they were small. "My parents got married immediately when dad came to South Africa. Everyone thought it would be doomed from the start, that they were making a huge mistake. But it was a risk they were willing to take, cause they were so in love with each other. Over the years, their love never once diminished, and I always admired that. I wanted that for myself, and for years I thought I would never get that."

Lewis squint his eyes for a split second, "what changed, darling?"

She smiled, her eyes twinkling with love and admiration, "I fell in love with you." Lewis grinned, pulling her into a kiss, pulling her body flush against his. She pulled away breathlessly, cupping his face, "do you wanna just get married right now and not tell a single soul?" He looked down at her with wide eyes, it wasn't just with shock, but with love and affection. "I literally did not think I could love you more, yet you continue to prove me wrong."

"Is that a yes? Cause I really hope I didn't buy this ring for no reason." Kallie chuckles, pulling out a ring from her pocket. "You continue to amaze me." Lewis grinned, pulling out the ring he picked up that day just for her. "I knew you were up to something!" Kallie hits his arm playfully, letting out a yelp as he lifted her up and spun them around with a laugh, both of them falling into the sand. He turned to face her, brushing her hair from her face, "let's do it, Kallie. Let's get married."

"What are we still doing here? Let's go get married." Kallie grabbed his arm and yanked him up from the sand.

"Wait- where do we get married?" Lewis asked.

"You really think I didn't figure that out already?" She deadpanned.

"Smart girl."

》* 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • 。* 。° 。* 。 • ˚《

@kalliopekumalo

●○○○○

○●○○○

○○●○○

○○○●○

○○○○●

liked by caitlinclark22, arianagrande, and 7,783,877 others

kalliopekumalo my favorite photographer (3rd slide) 😇💕

view all comments

lewishamilton My favorite person 😍
⇘ kalliopekumalo my loverboy 😘
⇘ keziyah got this boy down bad 🤨
⇘ landonorris Did you finally figure out how to take autocaps off?? @keziyah
⇘ keziyah yes, i threatened kaylie 🥰
⇘ landonorris SHOW ME PLEASE
⇘ username3 kezies mission to remove autocaps has me dead 💀

username13 I'm not crying you are stfu they're my endgame
⇘ username87 the video of them on the beach is my roman empire 😭😭
⇘ username3 hate paparazzi but they did us a good deed with that video 🤭
⇘ username77 even his fangirls love her and that's saying a lot
⇘ username66 if you're a Lewis fan, you have to be a Kallie fan idc

keziyah WHATS 4+4??
⇘ kalliopekumalo OMG I KNOW THIS ATEEE 😝😝
⇘ kaylenkumalo what have i done

username84 is it just me or is she gaining weight???
⇘ username13 stop commenting on her body omfg it's not that hard
⇘ user33 pls stop commenting on her body xx
⇘ username1 she's literally said many times that's she always struggled with her body stfu

carlossainz55 You look incredible Kallie! 🥰
⇘ kalliopekumalo thank you my smooth operator 🥰🤝🏾
⇘ username3 their friendship means so much to me 😭

landonorris MOTHER 😍
⇘ kalliopekumalo lol wrong sister xx
⇘ lewishamilton I don't think that's what he meant love 😭
⇘ kalliopekumalo oh? what's it mean?
⇘ kaylenkumalo it's a compliment!
⇘ kalliopekumalo oh well then thank you lando ☺️
⇘ username13 stop i love her she's so unintentionally funny 💀

maxverstappen1 ❤️❤️
liked by creator

kaylenkumalo not lewis turning into kez and taking selfies on ppls phones 💀
⇘ lewishamilton It's actually so fun I get why she does it 😂
⇘ keziyah except i don't crack lenses xx
⇘ lewishamilton I finally compliment you and this is what I get?? FUCK YOU
⇘ keziyah what u gonna do? push me off the track 😱
⇘ kalliopekumalo i fear she ate u up wit that one my luv 😣
⇘ landonorris kal for the love of god pls stop talking like you're gen z 😭
⇘ kalliopekumalo sorry? 😔
⇘ carlossainz55 You made her sad! Apologize right now! 🤬
⇘ landonorris i'm sorry kallie!! i didn't mean to hurt your feelings
⇘ keziyah PUSH HIM OFF THE TRACK LEWIS!! FORZA FERRARI- oh wait wrong team HALA MADRID! 👊
⇘ lewishamilton You're not funny.

username13 LMAO KEZIE BEING A MADRID FAN IS SO FITTING 💀
⇘ username87 in my head she's a barca fan 🥰
⇘ user33 both of u r wrong she's a liverpool fan 💪
⇘ judebellingham promise you she's not 💀
⇘ username7 WTF IS JUDE DOING HERE MATE??
⇘ username77 his celeb crush is kezie i'm not surprised 😭
⇘ landonorris she's mine back off @judebellingham 🤨
⇘ username44 kez was supporting jude at dortmund i fear u have some competition lando 🧍‍♀️

username3 KALLIE PROTECTION SQUAD 👇
⇘ username87 HERE
⇘ username54 HERE
⇘ username77 HERE
⇘ carlossainz55 HERE

keziyah swear down those r my glasses
⇘ lewishamilton I don't know what you're talking about 🤨
⇘ kaylenkumalo lewis bffr i told u those were hers not kallies 💀
⇘ lewishamilton YOU HAVE THE BIGGEST MOUTH EVER ISTG SHUSH
⇘ kalliopekumalo when he's angry 🤤
⇘ georgerussell revoking your privileges to speak xx
⇘ keziyah ofc u would u colonizer 💀
liked by duolingo and 67.4k others
⇘ landonorris WHAT
⇘ username13 NAH SHE CAME FOR HIS NECK WITH THAT ONE 😭😭
⇘ username77 GAGGED HIM
⇘ user33 HE WAS SILENCED

duolingo call me xx
⇘ landonorris EXCUSE ME???
⇘ duolingo i wasn't talking to you
⇘ keziyah hey bestie 😝😝
⇘ duolingo bestieee hru 😍😝
⇘ username54 not kez bein besties with the duolingo account 💀

arianagrande so pretty 💞
liked by creator
⇘ kalliopekumalo ily ☺️

view more comments

》* 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • 。* 。° 。* 。 • ˚《

"Do you think our families will kill us when they find out?" Kallie questions, looking down at her ring with a soft smile. Lewis laughs lightly, nodding in reply, "definitely." He reached for her hand and took it into his, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. "The only person I'm gonna tell is Jamie, cause he'll be around the most." Kallie said, "and I'll tell Angela, she'll keep it a secret," Lewis adds.

"I'm still trying to process. We're actually married." Kallie exhaled with a bright smile, she didn't even have one ounce of regret. Lewis chuckles softly, rubbing her waist gently. They were laying together on the couch in the plane on their was to Russia. "Kezie's gonna kill us." He comments and she nodded in agreement. "Full on murder us," she added.

"Getting married to you has got to be one of the best decisions of my life," he says, brushing her curls back as she had taken out the braids in the middle of the night cause she wasn't feeling them anymore. "You mean that?" She asks in a nervous tone, no matter what he always could make her all nervous and shy and he found it really cute. "Of course I do." He smiled, pulling her down to connect their lips, his arms tightening around her waist, needing her body pressed against his.

A few hours later, the newly married couple arrived in Russia, and just focused on getting situated first before Lewis had to leave for debriefs with the team. Sang had also showed up to Kallie's surprise and he took her out for lunch so they could just talk and discuss the progress on the car so far. He and Kez had been in meetings with the FIA, discussing the team and such. It was going to be announced after the race that Maserati racing was going to be joining Formula 1 in 2023.

Kez had only talked to him when it came down to the work but anytime he tried to ask if she wanted to grab lunch or just talk, she shut him down. Not that he could blame her. He just wished he had a chance to redeem himself with her. He was on good terms with Kallie, she didn't forgive him or bother to talk about her personal life much so they were still working on trust. As for Kaylen, he hadn't had a chance to actually talk to him, which he hoped he could at the race, but that was a longshot.

Now it was race day, she was walking the paddock, her hand holding onto Lewis's as he spoke with Toto who was walking with them. Sang was near her, just looking around the paddock, exchanging nods with some familiar faces. Christian Horner approached them, causing to stop in their movements. "You need something?" Toto questioned.

"Not something, more like someone. Kallie, you mind joining me in my office for a conversation?" Christian requested, Lewis's hand subconsciously tightening around hers. Christian had been messaging, emailing and reaching out to her all week since the last race. "What's this about?" Sang questions. Christian just shrugs, "that's for us to know. Kallie? Promise it won't take long."

Lewis exchanged a look with Kallie, and she sighs, "sure, why not?" She let go of his hand as Christian nods, smirking at Sang and Toto who didn't look very pleased. "Good then. Follow me." Kallie nods, and Lewis pressed a kiss to her cheek before she followed after Christian. "What's that all about?" Toto asked, squinting his eyes at the back of Christian. "Not sure, he's been reaching out to her all week." Lewis shrugs as they continue their walk, the Netflix crew filming them.

"He wants her back, that's what it's about." Sang states, he would've been chill about it but he knew Kallie went way back with Christian. He had taken a chance on Kallie when no other team did. She had more loyalty to Christian than she did to Sang. Not to mention, she didn't have a contract with Maserati yet so any of the top teams could've snatched her up if they wished. Toto was already discussing ways to get her, as was Ferrari and McLaren. But those teams didn't believe in her when she first came up to F1. Red Bull did.

"Everyone wants her," Toto points out.

"Can't exactly blame them. She's a threat to me on that track." Lewis chuckles, he found it quite amusing how every team was thinking of ways to get her and the season wasn't even over. It wasn't even confirmed that she was interested in coming back. "And before you start Toto, I'm not coercing her to join us. She'll make that decision on her own if she wishes." Lewis adds, pointing an accusing finger to Toto. "There goes the plan A," Toto joked.

Kallie entered the Red Bull motorhome, smiling and waving at the familiar faces. Max was sat at his desk, just staring at Kallie's presence in shock. Checo just offered her a nod, he wasn't too happy cause if Kallie came back, it was his seat that she'd be taking, and he only just got it. Christian shut the door after her without the presence of the camera crew so all they had was the mic that Christian wore if they wanted to get the recording of the conversation.

"Take a seat." Kallie nods, sitting at the chair and crossing a leg over the other. Christian sat down, clasping his hands together in front of him. "So, Kallie, it's come to my attention that you're showing interest in rejoining Formula 1. Is this true?" He asked. Kallie smiled softly, "it is certainly a possibility, yes. I have started training again and am certain that I will be ready for the 2023 season. So, definitely not right away, but definitely in the future," she confirms.

"Yes, yes, of course, that sounds brilliant. In fact, we might have an available seat for the 2023 season." Christian says, and Kallie obviously knew where this way going the minute she followed him to his office. "Right, I'm aware. A lot of the teams will. It's good to know." Kallie shrugs. "Yes well, I do hope we're the only team you're truly focused on. You and Red Bull have a lot of unfinished business. You left middle of the season, put us in a tough spot, but we got through it and I know your reasoning must've been good." He says, getting a small nod from her.

"But, look at it, Kallie, you came up with nothing, no sponsors, just you, and I saw something in you that no one else did, certainly not Mercedes, or McLaren. I gave you a car, we gave you sponsors, and then I brought you up to Formula 1. Nobody wanted a woman in a Formula 1 car, but I didn't care, cause your talent was worth every penny, and it still is. Now you have teams ready to give up their drivers to save a seat for you." Christian stated.

Kallie smiled to herself, she quite enjoyed having her ego boosted. She always did, it made her cocky, but in a humble way. "I do, including you." Kallie points out, making him chuckle and nod. "That's true. You will always have a seat at Red Bull, Kallie. You know, it's been brought to the teams attention that Maserati will be joining us in 2023, the year you conveniently plan to make your return. And this team was created by your sister after she suddenly bought Maserati. I must ask, are you planning to drive for your sister's team?"

Kallie chuckles softly, she knew that would come up. "Let's say, I was considering it. Why do you care? What have you got to offer me? See, because I have driven for Red Bull for majority of my career, and it was brought to my attention that Max was being paid more than me, yet I was the one doing all the heavy lifting, do you recall?" Christian's face dropped, rubbing his jaw uncomfortably. "I do, I do recall. And I apologize for that."

"Look, I really didn't want to bring up old stuff, cause it's in the past, I've moved on, but you insist on bringing up everything Red Bull has given me. Yes, I am eternally grateful for Red Bull and you. You gave me opportunities. But that's all they were, opportunities. What mattered is that I used them to their full potential. You gave me a car, you gave me sponsors, but I did the work. Even if we had a bad car, I stayed up thinking of ways to improve it, and I dragged it across that finish line against a world champion in Lewis Hamilton by milliseconds. You're implying that I owe Red Bull something, but I don't owe you anything. I put Red Bull back in the championship picture after Sebastian left. Not Max, not Daniel, it was me. I did that. And I left doing that."

Kallie cleared her throat, standing up and brushing herself off. "I appreciate you, and what you've done for me, but I'm not that same girl who you guys saw as a backup for Max. I'm making decisions for myself now, and when I return, it's not going to be in a Red Bull as Max's sidekick. Have a good race, Christian." Kallie offered a smile before pulling open the door and walking out, ignoring the Netflix camera crew, she was fine with them filming, it never bothered her. She walked down the hall, exchanging a smile with Max and Checo.

Jamie was waiting for her outside the Red Bull motorhome, most likely sent by Lewis. "Everything okay?" Kallie nodded, setting a hand on his shoulder. "All good." They went to the Mercedes garage, Sang was there as a guest cause Toto allowed it, most likely trying to get Sang to work for Mercedes but he didn't know Sang already had a contract with Maserati. And he wouldn't know until after the race.

Kallie headed to the drivers room where she found Lewis talking to Angela. When she came in, Angela looked over at her in shock, her eyes flickering down to the ring on her fourth finger. "Oh, my God, you weren't lying. That's amazing." Angela grinned, pulling Kallie into a hug rather than Lewis, making Kallie smirk at him. Angela had always loved Kallie, they got along very well, even when Lewis and Kallie were fucking each other up on the track.

"I'm so happy for you." Angela pulled away and hugged Lewis next, but not as long as she hugged Kallie for. "How did the family take it?" She asked as Lewis slid an arm around Kallie's waist. "Uhh, about that- they don't know. Nobody does." He explained. "It's just something we want to ourselves. We'll tell when eventually, but we really just want to enjoy it without outside opinions," Kallie adds. Angela hums, nodding in understanding, "well, I support you guys. I think this was an amazing decision."

"What's an amazing decision?" Kaylen questions, walking into the driver's room with his trainer Hailey as he wanted to make sure they prayed before going out there. He was starting 7th on the grid and Lewis was 4th on the grid. "We were just telling Angela about living together in Italy," Lewis quickly covered it up, Angela nodding for extra effect. "Oh, okay. I gotta go out right now so I figured we could pray real quick." Kallie nods, everyone grabbing hands and praying.

"I will leave you to it. I'll be watching in the garage." Kallie pressed a kiss to her husband's cheek before leaving, joining Sang and Jamie, the latter offering her some headphones to cancel out the noise.

They all did the formation lap and got in their respective grid places. The race started, it was a very good and interesting start. By lap 6, Kaylen was down in P14 trying to fight off Max the best he could but it was no use as Max managed to get past her brother. Kallie scoffed under her breath, she could only imagine the smirk on Christian's face. Lando was surprisingly leading the race, having passed up Carlos Sainz to take P1. Lap 23 Lando was still leading, Lewis right behind him in P2, with Checo in P3. Kaylen had managed to push back up to P10 and Max in P5 behind Alonso in P4.

Lap 27, Lewis had a pit stop, knocking him down a few places, same as Max who had a slower pit stop. Lap 30, Lewis had overtaken Carlos for P2, and Kallie was confident that he could win this race. If he did, it would be his 100th victory in Formula 1 and that was a huge achievement in the sport. Lap 47, Lando was leading with Lewis behind him battling for first. It did start to rain, not heavily but also not super lightly, so Lando was having some troubles on the track, not being as experienced in the rain as Lewis.

Lap 49, Lewis decides to pit, whilst Lando declined the offer to box, which Kallie knew wasn't gonna end well for him. "Bad call. He should've pit." Sang comments, Kallie nodding in agreement. Lewis was able to make up his time, getting back into P2 on lap 51 with just four seconds between himself and Lando. Unfortunately, the bad call Lando made in the previous laps came back to him as he slides off the track, losing his place in P1, barely managing to avoid the barriers.

Kallie grinned excitedly as Lewis crossed the checkered flag. "Lewis Hamilton, it's 100 race victories! He wins the Russian Grand Prix, and he remakes the championship lead!" Sang hums in interest, he couldn't help but wonder if Lewis would ever consider leaving Mercedes. Max would end with P2, Carlos P3, Daniel P4, and Kaylen right behind him in P5. It wasn't a very good race for him, as least that's what he'd say, but Kallie thought he did pretty well. At least Kaylen was currently 3rd in the championship picture, and that was astonishing for his rookie year.

Kallie walked over to the barrier, Lewis running over her, wrapping his arms around her, "my greatest prize ever." She smiled cheerily at him and he pulled her into a kiss, his team cheering extra loud at that. When he pulled away, he hugged and shook hands with his team. Then he shook hands with Max and Carlos, the other two celebrating with their teams and even hugging Kallie. When it was time to the podium, Kallie just watched with the proudest smile on her face as he was handing his trophy.

Jamie led her back to the garage where she went to Kaylen, her brother talking to Sang about his performance, surprisingly Kaylen was actually asking for tips on how to improve the way he drove. She decided not to interrupt this and simply left to the driver's room to relax as she knew Lewis had to do media and such. It was the post race interviews so she just laid back and watched it. They were currently showing Lewis's interview with a reporter.

They talked about the race first, congratulating him and such before switching topics. "Lewis, it has just come to everyone's attention that Maserati will be joining Formula 1 for the 2023 season, with Sang Yeong-Su as team principal. What is your opinion on a new team joining the track?" The man asked. Lewis didn't look surprised, obviously. "Uh, well, I think it's great to have a new team join us, although I may be a bit biased because Kallie's sister is the reason for this."

"Yes, that's something else everyone has been curious about. Your girlfriend, Kallie, has been seen hanging around with Sang Yeong-Su, which sparks a lot of interest around the paddock. Do you think you can give us an inside of what's going on? Will Kalliope be joining Formula 1 again and driving for Maserati rather than Red Bull?" He questioned.

Lewis smiled, he knew these things would be asked now that he and Kallie confirmed their relationship. But he was prepared for this. "Uh no, I cannot give any inside on that, or confirm anything. If Kallie makes the tough decision to come back, you will only be hearing it from her and whatever team she chooses to sign with, it's not my place to announce stuff for her." Lewis answered, making Kallie smile to herself.

"Of course. Hypothetically, if Kallie were to return, how would you feel about that given her last run almost knocked you out of a championship win?" Kallie giggles at the question, she loved when people pointed out the fact that she was kicking his ass in the championship picture before she left. "Uh, well, if she comes back it's certainly gonna be a little nerve-wracking, cause I'll admit, she had me on my toes that year, I kinda got lucky she left when she did. But, either way I will completely support her decision if she hops back in the car."

He had moved onto the next reporter, Kallie admiring his face with a smile, she still couldn't believe this man was quite literally her husband. "Lewis, congratulations on your 100th victory in Formula 1!" The reporter says in a cheerful tone and Kallie recognized the voice, this specific reporter was always very sweet to Kallie. "Thank you, that means a lot," Lewis smiled. "What was it like getting to share that moment with Kallie? You called her your greatest prize, that was quite beautiful." She says.

As if his smile couldn't grow bigger, he smiled at the mention of his wife. "Yeah that was just amazing, it keeps replaying in my head, although I do wish she was on podium with me so I could rub it in her face. I miss doin' that." Lewis jokes, causing Kallie to scoff, playfully rolling her eyes. "But yeah, it was amazing, she's amazing, she's the greatest prize I could ever have and I'm glad I get to spend the rest of my life with her." He finished.

"Well you should put a ring on it pretty soon if you want that," the woman jokes, causing Lewis to giggle.

"I love our little secret." Kallie glanced up to see Lewis leaning against the doorframe with a smirk. "It's so mysterious." Kallie smirked and Lewis chuckles, locking the door before climbing between her legs, connecting their lips in a rushed kiss. "How'd you wanna celebrate?" Kallie asked, pulling away and sitting up. Lewis's hands trailed up her thighs, her dress scrunched up over them. "I can think of so many ways," he mumbles in a seductive tone.

Kallie chuckles, playfully smacking his hands away, "not that! Did you want to get dinner or something?"

"Yeah, we're gonna go out to dinner to celebrate with the team." Lewis answered, standing up to change out of his suit that hung at his waist. "Sounds good. I also have something very important to tell you." Kallie says, getting a suspicious look from him as he changed out of his suit. He finished changing and leaned against the table with his arms crossed. "What'd you want to tell me?"

Kallie inhaled sharply and stood up, "so, I went to the gym this morning as I always have. And after I was done, I weighted myself. I'm gaining weight." Lewis's eyes widened, "seriously?" She nods in confirmation, and he cheered, throwing his arms around her and lifting her up with shouts of excitement. "I also got a call from Allison and Marilyn, and they got my results and scans back, over the week in Italy, my condition began to improve. I'm healing. It's working."

"Oh, thank God. I love you so much." Lewis grinned, connecting their lips for a sweet kiss. "You're the best wife I could ever ask for," he breathed out, tears falling from his face. He wasn't going to lose her. She was going to be okay. She was going to fight this. He wasn't gonna be alone. He wasn't gonna be a widow. Because she was going to beat this. "Don't cry, you're gonna make me cry." Kallie sniffles, hers arms thrown over the best of his neck.

"I'm just so happy. I'm not gonna lose you." He mumbled into her neck, presses small pecks against her soft skin.

"You're never gonna lose me. I promise you, mhle." She pulled back and used her thumbs to brush his tears away. His arms still tight around her waist, not wanting to let her go at all. "Can I tell my dad and stepmum? They're gonna wonder why I'm crying." He asked, obviously wanting to make sure she was okay with this. Kallie nods, "of course, yes. I actually wanted to tell Susie, so maybe you can tell Toto as well."

"Sounds perfect. I'll meet back with you, okay?" She nodded, pressing a kiss to his cheek, "I'll wait for you. Bring Toto and Susie back if you can." He nods, kissing her one last time and leaving the room. Instead of telling his parents separately, he got them, plus Toto and Susie to join them in the room. Making sure no cameras or microphones made it into the room for this discussion.

Kallie stood up at their presence and Lewis looked to her. "I figured we should just tell them all at once."

"Tell us what?" Anthony questioned, growing more concerned as the moments passed. "You might want to sit down for this," Lewis advised. Toto and Susie both took a seat on the two tall chairs against the wall as Anthony and his wife sat down on the sofa. "So, uh, you two already know of Kallie's condition," Lewis voiced, his parents nodding, whilst Toto and Susie feigned confusion.

"What condition?" Toto asked.

"Uh, basically, you both know Kallie left in 2019 mid-season, but you don't know the real reason behind it as many don't." Lewis says, the two nodding at that, they hadn't known as everyone else. He looked to his wife with concern, "did you want me to say it?" She nodded, granting him permission as it was still hard for her to talk about. "Kallie was diagnosed with cancer a bit after Jae passed. She could've continued racing but the grief was too much, along with the side effects, so she chose to leave. And early this year it had gotten increasingly worse, to the point that she was told she wouldn't make it to the end of next year."

Lewis wiped his face, it was still hard to think he could've lost her. Kallie put an arm around him, resting her head on his shoulder. Toto and Susie were extremely shocked by this news, both unable to come up with words. "Until a few weeks ago, we went down a new route to recovery, making the decision to take her off all medication as it wasn't responding well to her. She's still feeling the effects of the cancer, but recently she's been working on her body more to improve her strength and she had been unable to gain any weight throughout the year, until now. She got a call with her results, and she's getting better."

"Oh, my goodness. Are you serious?" His stepmother stood up with tears in her eyes, immediately pulling the two into a hug. Anthony joined in on this, all of them very happy with this. He couldn't imagine how much pain his son would've been in if he had lost Kallie. "I'm so happy for you guys. This is amazing news." After exchanging some words with his parents, they had opted to leave, giving Toto and Susie time with the two.

"I did not at all expect that, it explains so much. I'm so sorry you had to go through that." Susie spoke first, standing up and pulling Kallie into a hug, she was always fond of the girl, having been the only woman on the grid after decades, and then surrounded by nothing but men. She admired Kallie so much. "I'm so glad you're getting better. I'm so glad." She expressed.

Lewis noticed Toto's silence, his team principal in a bit of a shock. "You okay, Toto?" He questioned. Toto exhaled, shaking his head, "I'm just so shocked. It doesn't make sense." Susie looked at him with a raised brow, "what doesn't make sense?" Toto gestured to Kallie, "the timing, everything. You lose your father and suddenly you find out you might be dying too, it's just horrible. So painful. I don't understand how something so horrible could happen to an amazing woman like you. It's shocking."

Kallie wiped her tears, nodding in agreement, she had to admit, for a few months she had questioned her faith, whether she truly believed in God anymore. But she got through it, she found herself again, she found her faith again. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that. But, I'm very glad that you're getting better. You're recovery is all that matters. You keep pushing. You keep fighting until this cancer is out of your body. You got that?"

Kallie chuckles softly, nodding with tears pooled in hers eyes. Toto stood up, pulling her into a gentle hug. "I won't stop pushing," she mumbles, his hand gently rubbing her upper back in a comforting manner.

"Who else knows? I don't wanna slip up and say it to the wrong person." Toto questioned, pulling away from the woman and sharing a small hug with Lewis, whispering some words of encouragement to him. He was glad Lewis was staying so strong for Kallie. She needed that in her life. "Just my parents, you guys, Angela, Jamie, and that's about it on the paddock. No one else knows."

"I don't wanna say anything until I come back and announce why I left," Kallie admits.

Susie looks at her with a grin, "so you are coming back?"

Kallie nods in confirmation, "yes, 2023, I plan to."

Toto squint his eyes, although a bit pleased she didn't sign with Red Bull cause lord knows they didn't deserve her. "You are joining Maserati, yes?" Lewis chuckles at his suspicion as Susie nudges her husband. Kallie snickers, nodding, "that is the plan, yes. But just so you hear it from me, no, I will not be going back to Red Bull." Toto sighs in relief, getting chuckles from them. "Good. Good. They didn't deserve you. You're too good for them."

"She's too good for everyone," Lewis chuckles, pressing a kiss to her head.

"Way too good for you," Toto jokes.

》* 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • 。* 。° 。* 。 • ˚《

a/n: y'all rlly thought I'd kill her off?? im not that evil 🙄 what's evil is lews fucking car rn 😒

anyways, MY BABIES GOT MARRIED 😍 i always wanted to do a secret marriage plot and just thought it fit their dynamic so perfectly bc they're so in love with each other to the point they can hardly stand being away from each other at long hours

after the 21 season in this book is over (abu dhabi 😣) i will do a 2022 recap for one chapter and then I'll skip to 2023 where kallie will make her long awaited return to formula one 🤭

》* 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • 。* 。° 。* 。 • ˚《