The table that was arranged for Luca wasn't a Family Table for a few reasons. The first reason was that every Family Table was already occupied because the visitorial attendance at this season's gala was quite overflowing. The second reason was that Luca's presence was more doubted than anticipated, so special arrangents for an important driver like him were overlooked.
In this case, what was left now were Compound Tables, and the organizers believed this wasn't ideal hospitality. However, in the mont of contemplation and problem-solving, soone offered Luca to share his Family Table with him.
This soone was Mr. Lemaître, and his table was mostly empty since he had a really small family. Perla was there, and the other seats were occupied by two younger boys and an older woman who appeared to be around Mr. Lemaître's age range. Luca presud she must be his sister, since Mallow once told him that Mr. Lemaître's wife was late. Therefore, those boys must be his nephews, and Perla's cousins.
Luca was told a brief family history a couple of minutes after he agreed to join them at the table. All his guesses and assumptions were right; the family was indeed structured in that manner.
Furthermore, it seed Perla was all done with her master's degree—fully graduated, certifications in hand, and no academic commitnts left—and was currently on the dating market, actively looking out for suitors. This was exactly why Mr. Lemaître kept bringing up subtle nudges that leaned toward shipping Luca and Perla. Perla herself didn't shy away from the imputations and actually pillared it personally, even going as far as to complain to Luca that he hadn't given her his personal number back then in Dubai.
Luca wasn't sure if he had told them this, but if he hadn't, he just did. Right there, he told both Mr. Lemaître and Perla that he was already dating soone, and that it was a very aningful relationship that could lead to a lifelong union.
His words, clear, firm and spoken without a waver, seed to disappoint Perla and Mr. Lemaître even more. They had the sa expression that Mrs. Hawthorne wore when he told her about Isabella too.
Mr. Lemaître silently wondered who the heck this unknown girl was, while Perla imdiately envied her without even getting to see her. If Isabella was never involved, Perla and Luca would be a great possibility, no doubt.
Per contra, Luca preferred dating soone younger. From visible looks alone, Perla appeared to be three years older than Luca, and he didn't fancy that. She had a graceful composure, poised elegance, and the kind of mature deanor that could only co from having experienced a great deal in life already.
The only positive perspective to it, however, was that Perla must already be overwheld with wealth and attention, probably since her teenage years. She had the refined beauty of soone who had always been admired but now wanted sothing deeper. What she was looking for now, Luca presud, was a relationship grounded in substance, stability, and personal connection rather than showmanship or appearances.
Luca unlocked his phone and showed them a photo of Isabella to clear their doubt and assure them that he really did have taste.
Apart from family and relationship status, Luca's burns were brought up, and they heavily remarked on his quick recovery, even calling it a miracle, especially considering the state he was in when chaos reigned in Mandalora.
In fact, the WHOLE world was shocked by how Luca had managed to recover from the explosion so quickly and so effectively. Dumbfounded was honestly a better word to describe the pale, baffled expressions of everyone in the Galleria—and those watching worldwide—when he walked in and stood right before the cluster of cara lenses.
No one had expected to see him again so soon, let alone standing upright, composed, and literally unscarred where it mattered most. Ansel's death in the fire had, sohow, draped a kind of halo effect over the severity of Luca's own burns, amplifying how brutal people thought it must have been for him too.
Luca's burns were, in truth, absolutely deathly. But since Ansel had perished and he didn't, many believed Luca had barely survived and that his condition must be terminal or at least long-term. Yet if that were true, then what was he doing here now with his shoulders squared and head held high, with only about 5% visible evidence that anything fire-related had ever happened to him?!
His jawline was more defined now, his posture upright, body mass visibly broader, and his chest noticeably wider. Jimmy Damgaard would definitely think twice before picking a fight with this rebuilt knight. And while the night carried on, social dia was already ablaze, with many claiming that couldn't possibly be Luca. It had to be a fake, a hired stand-in or so perfect lookalike replacent.
It was an absurd thought. But the way other drivers, team principals, and nearly every F1 entity inside that large, glittering hall kept staring at him, it was as if they were silently accusing him of being a doppelgänger or sothing just as bizarre.
While standing next to his seat in the front row before the grand stage, Luigi had caught the sudden shift in the atmosphere of the vast hall when another group entered. When he turned to see what could possibly prompt this sudden frequency of whispers and glances, he couldn't believe his eyes at the sight of Luca.
Glancing left and right, Luigi wanted to be sure—was everyone seeing what he was seeing? And yes, they were. Every single person was staring at Luca as he greeted and conversed with familiar faces as if it hadn't been over two whole months since Formula 1 had last conceived any image of him.
Luigi's eyes narrowed. He noticed the new appearance most of all; the buzz cut, and that new otherworldly physique that wasn't just a recovery but a transformation. He tightened his jaw when he realized this was exactly how Luca mostly appeared in those recurring nightmares of his. Was this so sort of coback? When Luigi had believed he'd completely rebuked all potential competitors and buried their chances?
He forced himself to stop thinking too deeply, for tonight, at least. The ongoing festivities were ant for him, not for Luca, who had apparently just strode in with perfect timing to steal the show.
This night, for example, was supposed to be part of his final flourish. Luigi was expecting at least two major awards to add to his already glowing résumé and to conclude what had been an almost perfect season.
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