Until Then. // denis shapovalov - sascha zverev

2.8 - our little secret

Willow's POV

I pick at my nails as I'm overwhelming filled with stress. "Who do you think is doing better?" I whisper to Dominic, nudging him with my knee. "Denis is really mad."

Dom nods in agreement. "He's in his head," he adds. "But Sascha is playing inconsistently. I think he'll attack the ball as much as he can."

We watch Denis bounce the tennis ball a few times and I glance up at the scoreboard blinking '30-15.'

"Come on," I whisper to myself, clenching my fists, but at the same time, who was I saying 'come on' for? Denis? Or Alex?

Denis bounces the ball a few times before tossing it up to serve. I watch the ball closely, watching it land in and Alex jog to return it.

"They're still playing safe," Dom whispers to me, not seeing any winning shots as they rally. "Sascha's waiting for Denis to make a mistake."

I sit silently, observing every return made. I never wanted the rally to end.

"He's moving," Dom whispers, watching Alex start to change where he's hitting his shot. He hits a short ball that Denis sprints forward to return, and Alex lobs the ball in response. Denis sprints back and manages to hit the ball over the net but Alex takes this change to hit the ball directly in the corner. Denis sprints and gets his racket on the ball, but it falls short and lands into the net.

"Come on!" Denis yells, clearly upset. "What the hell am I doing?!"

I sigh in disappointment for Denis. I felt so horrible for him, especially seeing him try so hard.

"One point and Sascha wins," Dominic whispers.

I can't bring myself to look at how Alex is celebrating as my heart hurts for Denis. I try to catch his eye and give him a supportive smile, but he keeps his eye on his next serving ball. For some reason, I cross my fingers, praying, but I'm not sure for who.

Dom and I watch timidly as Denis' serve zooms over the net. Alex successfully returns it, but he hits the shot softer than usual, and the boys enter a rally.

"They're both playing safe," Dom whispers to me, as we watch every shot lightly down the middle of the court.

"He's gotta finish it," I whisper back, not sure who I'm referring to. I watch the rally timidly.

"Holy shit!" Dom suddenly yells and stands up into applause.

-

Alex's POV

"Hell yeah!" I scream. "Let's go!" I egg on the crowd to cheer as I fall on my back, laying on the cool court, staring up at the ceiling and hearing the crowd's cheer turn into a low hum as I smile in disbelief, tracing the lines on the ceiling with my eyes. I peak over to Willow who's standing up next to Dom, beaming with excitement, clapping.

"Insane," I whisper to myself, smiling, as I stand back up and jog towards the next to Denis, who's already waiting there.

"Good job, man," he nods to me.

I reach out to shake his hand and pull him into a side hug, "You did well today," I nod to him. "That was a great match, thank you."

We both shake the umpire's hand and then walk back to our separate benches and I sit there, smiling. I shove my racket into my bag and pack up my shoes, getting ready for my interview. Taking a deep breath to recompose myself, I get up and jog over to the camera.

-

Willow's POV

I jump up out of my seat, screaming at the top of my lungs, my cheers getting lost in the crowd.