My Formula 1 System

TWO WEEKS LATER

It was a very bright, brilliant morning in the villa, Luca's home. The immaculate white walls glowed like pearls under the sun, a testament to how radiant and surreal the sunlight was, its rays and the natural forces surrounding the villa amplifying the visage.

The particles in the air shimmered if one decided to squint and take a closer look, and the scent of wildflowers was faint but still perceivable if one took a refreshing deep breath. Since the villa was largely open and airy, a strong but gentle breeze swept through the green, resplendent valleys and hills that cradled the estates, carrying the scent of the leaves and whipping all the trees that dotted the uneven landscape in the direction of Luca's property.

Everything outside appeared perfect, like a paradise, a living painting of vibrant life, calm and bliss, perhaps reminiscent of the Garden of Eden itself. Even the swimming pool was serene, chill and still, reflecting the patchwork sky of clouds with tranquil ease. Luca chose this place because it looked like Jerusalem, a wonderland of fields and luxury untouched by the cruel hand of tragedy.

However, the inside told a different story. The brightness within the building was quite dull in comparison to the brilliance transpiring outside, and the white walls, so pristine under the sun, seemed muted within, pale and heavy. The air inside was cooler, just as every morning had always been, as every single room, wall and hallway faced each other in a silence that felt absolute.

There were only two rooms in the massive building with life. One was the large kitchen that galvanized the flavorful smell of cake, while the other was a room well known to all within, but the scent of antiseptic and balms filled every corner of this one instead.

"Ur..gh…"

A slow, soft groan escaped Luca's lips while he grew restless beneath the heavy blankets he was sleeping with. He felt a sting on the left side of his face as he roused himself into a more comfortable position, but he didn't pay much attention to it because he had been feeling that same pain for a while.

After he settled in to get a few more minutes of sleep, the wincing pain subsided, but a throb followed, the one he hated the most even though he had grown accustomed to it. No matter how many pills he took or how many times he closed his eyes to sleep, this particular dull pulse always managed to disturb him.

"Sigh…"

Ten hours of sleep. That should be enough, so Luca stirred again and glanced up at the ceiling, blinking his eyes to chase away the remnants of sleep.

There was a ticking wall clock that he began to trace with his eyes, while some of the curtains were slightly open, giving him just a glimpse of that dreamland beyond the walls.

It was these same openings in the curtains that allowed the candescent sunlight to enter the room and stretch across his bed. Coincidentally, the line of rays caught the wretched part of Luca's face, the burns that traced the left side of his face and crept down his neck almost like an intended mark to join a cult group or something.

Surprisingly, Luca enjoyed the light on that side of his face because it filled his body with natural warmth and not because it highlighted the scars.

The atmosphere in the room shifted when the door clicked open.

"Happy birthday to you… Happy birthday to you…"

Soft, warm, close, yet to Luca it felt so far away, like one of those distant memories that he had no choice but to relive while healing.

At first, he thought he heard Sara's voice, but he later realized it was his mother's. Her voice trembled on the higher notes as she sang, a blend of celebration and heartbreak, quivering even more when Luca glanced in their direction with the not-so-appealing side of his face.

Sophia's voice was sweeter and more enthusiastic than Mrs. Rennick's. Even though she had been a legit pain in the arse for Luca for as long as he could remember, she was by far more skilled in bringing light to him than their mother could.

"Happy birthday, dear Luca… Happy birthday to you.."

They held a cake—Mrs. Rennick held the cake. It looked just like every other cake: small, white frosting with blue swirls around its circumference, crowned with berries and two candles, and poled with the number 20 in bright red.

Surprise corrupted Luca's melancholy the moment he saw it. He couldn't believe time had flown by so quickly. Him? Twenty years old? How?

"It's my birthday today?"

"YES IT IS!"

Sophia fell on the bed and crawled like a zombie spider toward him, while he pushed himself up slowly, unhurried and stiff. As he moved, the scars felt like nylon and leather he was pulling, but he didn't wince, groan, or complain. He only did when Sophia hugged him tight, without a care in the world for his physical condition.

"You look like Harvey Dent!"

Luca chuckled but later let out a fake choking sound as Sophia began to tighten her grip around his neck playfully, a neck that belonged to a Formula 1 driver. She was practically choking a block of wood.

"Don't be silly. But I didn't know today was my birthday. It's kind of you guys to remember."

Sophia paused her pestilent actions.

"Funny of you to think I even remembered—it was Mom who did."

Luca looked up at Mrs. Rennick, who was standing at the nearest corner to the bed, still holding the cake with both hands, and staring at her children as if they were leaving her out of a special kind of bond or something like that.

Truthfully, Mrs. Rennick was actually standing there, her gaze fixed on the permanent burn scars that this deplorable sport had inflicted on her son. It had been two weeks since Luca had gotten them, and only three days since she finally had her son back with her in London, because most of the treatment had been carried out in Barcelona before Luca even flew back.

So, after Mrs. Rennick had suffered through eleven days of anxiety, stress, and sorrow, knowing her son was on a "death bed" in Spain, as she put it, she was now tasked with accepting the grievous reality. Today being the third day, Mrs. Rennick still hadn't accepted it. Luca's scars hurt her greatly even by just looking at them, making her cry at the slightest provocation of her motherly instincts.

"Mother?" Luca called.

Mrs. Rennick smiled and came closer to the bed. "Happy birthday, my son. And yes, I'm the one who recalled your birthday," she said as she placed the cake on the nightstand and sat down on the bed. "Do you know what your sister suggested today of all days?"

Sophia's eyes widened in alert. "NO! Shhhhh!"

"What did she suggest?" Luca asked.

"She suggested going shopping today using your debit card because she figured out the passcode," Mrs. Rennick said weakly, and Sophia groaned up to the ceiling.

Luca laughed heartily and, without any resistance, released Sophia's arm around his neck and sat up a bit straighter.

He ignored Mrs. Rennick's deep, lingering stare and reached for the cake on the nightstand, pulling it onto his lap. The burns on his face reflected the orange glow of the candle flames, making it appear as if the left side of his face was melting like wax.

Sophia, who was on his left, found it interesting, her eyes wide with intrigue, while Mrs. Rennick saw it as something cataclysmic and had to look away within four seconds to hold back tears. Luca, on the other hand, was simply admiring the cake.

"You guys stopped singing? C'mon, continue."

The two women found their voices and resumed the rest of the well-known "Happy Birthday" song. Afterward, Luca blew out the candles, making a wish that the world would have a safer Formula 1 from this day and onwards.

"If you want to go shopping today, you can go," Luca said as he swung his leg off the bed and rose to his feet with a few bones clicking and his body straining. "You can take the debit card. Once you feel like you're spending too much, you stop spending."

Both Mrs. Rennick and Sophia looked up at him with surprise.

"No. She's not going shopping today. Today's your birthday—"

"Mom, you too," Luca interrupted as he moved like a robot across the room. "Cheer up by going out. I'll be fine at home while healing."

Without hesitation, Sophia dashed out of the room in search of Luca's card. Mrs. Rennick wanted to retort again, but Luca interjected as he stared at himself in the room.

"I'm also expecting some visitors."

"You haven't had any visitors since you returned here on Thursday. Who are these ones?" she asked with a hint of concern and annoyance.

Luca glanced at his mother with a tired smile, flashing every single bit of the burnt side of his face. This made Mrs. Rennick turn her gaze away for several seconds before packing up the cake things and leaving the room with that motherly-anger brewing in her chest.

Luca sighed as he took his gaze back to the mirror and began to inspect the burns that had become part of him. The left side of his face was marred by an angry map of scar tissue that had yet to fully heal, running from his cheek to his jawline and curling down to the edge of his neck.

The skin there was rough, discolored, and shiny, catching the light of the sun that filtered through the window and turning it into a sheen of pain and resilience.

He removed his cotton shirt slowly and carefully to make sure he didn't agitate the sensitive areas on his neck and shoulder where the fire had licked at him.

Luca once had an even light brown skin, but now it was designed with rawness and healing, the explosion in Mandalora leaving its mark. But it didn't take his strength and will though.

He still had his athletic frame he had trained so hard for. Fortunately, the main part of his body wasn't harmed by the fire because he still had his racing suit on. Sadly, he had removed his helmet, and that was why he suffered all this.

[Detecting Host...]

[... successfully detected!]

[System detects host's poor physical condition.]

[System has concluded detection]

[Results: a burnt face]

[System detects host will heal 85% faster]

[Remember host, you will heal, but you will scar]

Luca's phone rang, and he turned around to get it, his body moving with a strange weight as if it wasn't even his own body.