Lando had just finished a long morning at the McLaren factory doing data and simulator work when his phone buzzed on his desk. He glanced at the screen and sighed.
"Hello?" He replies, adjusting his cap. "Mr. Norris?" Your warm but professional voice comes through the line.
"This is Miss Roberts, your daughter's teacher at Little Sprouts Preschool."
Lando sit up straight, his heart instantly picking up speed, faster than it did before a qualifying lap. "Is Olivia okay?"
"She's fine." You quickly reassure him. "But there was...an incident and we thought you should know."
Lando grabs his keys off the table, already standing. "What happened?"
You hesitate before speaking. "Olivia had a little altercation with another child. She, um...may have hit a little boy." Lando froze. "She what?"
"She hit a boy." You repeat, sounding apologetic. "Not hard, but hard enough that he started crying. When we asked her why, she said he took her toy car and called racing 'boring.'"
Lando blinks and then laughs in surprise before catching himself. "I mean, this is obviously not funny. Not funny at all. I, um, I'll come and pick her up."
---
When Lando arrives at preschool, Olivia is sitting on a bench with her arms crossed. You are sitting next to her.
When she sees him, her lower lip trembles. "Daddy, they took my car."
Lando nods at you and crouches down while brushing a lock of hair from her face.
"I heard that, darling. But we're not hitting, okay?" Olivia pouts even more. "But he said racing is boring. This isn't boring! It's your job!"
Lando suppresses a grin. "I know, but we have to show people that we love racing with words, not fists. Got it?" She pouts again. "What if they still don't listen?"
"Then we'll prove them wrong." Lando says with a wink. "On the track." Olivia thinks about it for a moment and then nods. "Okay."
"She's definitely you daughter."
Lando turns to you. "Yeah? What gave it away? The love of racing or the refusal to admit she was wrong?" He laughs.