The Elevator || Lando Norris

2 ~ The Wallet

We were about to touch down in Miami, and I eagerly looked out of the plane window, marveling at the sight of the beautiful city below us. As the plane landed, we patiently went through all the necessary procedures and claimed our baggage. Finally, after an hour, we found ourselves in a taxi, ready to start our adventure. We had rented a car for the week, but it was up to us to pick it up.

Deciding to make our way to the hotel first to check-in, we found ourselves in the city, a mere 15 minutes away from the race venue. We had sorted out the room arrangements beforehand: Hannah and Maddison would share one room, Maya and Valentina would be in another, and I had my own room with a connecting door to Maya and Valentina's.

Going up from the lobby to our respective rooms, I chose not to unpack just yet. Instead, I left the suitcases by the door and kicked off my shoes, collapsing onto the invitingly soft bed. It was noon on a Monday, but the exhaustion from the flight took its toll, and I quickly fell asleep. Sometime later, my phone's ring jolted me awake.

With a groan, I rose from the bed and reached for my phone, which I had carelessly tossed to the side. Glancing at the screen, I noticed it was already 2 PM. Cursing under my breath, I answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Alex, where are you?" Valentina's voice came through from the other end.

"Uh, I fell asleep. What's up?" I replied, still groggy.

"Oh my god, no wonder you didn't respond to our texts or open the door," Valentina exclaimed, a hint of panic in her tone.

"Huh?" I mumbled, confused.

She let out a sigh before explaining, "We're all waiting in the lobby. We're going to the beach. We're just waiting for Hannah to bring the car around."

Panic instantly surged within me, and I quickly sprung out of bed. Putting the phone on speaker, I hastily unzipped my suitcase and grabbed an outfit suitable for the beach. I decided to just wear my swimsuit and some jean shorts, with an extra blouse in my bag. ."How much time do I have?" I asked, as I zipped my suitcase back closed.

"Um, about 5 minutes. We can tell Hannah to wait, so maybe 7 minutes tops," she responded. We all knew Hannah had a tendency to be a bit impatient.

"Okay, bye!" I hung up the call and darted into the bathroom, swiftly changing into the chosen outfit. Slipping on a pair of slippers, I dashed out of the room.

As I made my way through the hotel, just as I was about to exit the lobby, a voice called out to me from behind.

"Excuse me!" I turned around to find a curly-haired boy standing there.

"Sorry? Do I know you?" I asked, confusion on my face. I nervously glanced at my friends, who were waiting outside, unaware that I had momentarily lagged behind them.

"You should, but—" he started, his words tumbling out rapidly.

My attention shifted from my friends to him. "Sorry, what?" I interjected, taken aback by his statement.

He seemed visibly flustered, his words coming out in a rush. "Uh, no, I mean, you...I mean you dropped this." He handed me my wallet.

"Oh my god!" I exclaimed, quickly patting the pockets of my jean shorts, realizing it had slipped out. "Thank you so much!" I gratefully took it from his hands and swiftly put it away in my bag before rushing to join my friends outside.

Just as I arrived, we spotted Hannah pulling up in the rented car. I let out a relieved breath, realizing I had been holding it since I started running.