Tennis Imagines :)

Benoit Paire

Author's note:
Sorry everyone, I haven't updated in more than a month because the COVID period has made my life very busy since I have to balance studying online, revising for upcoming exams, as well as my personal life! I'm so sorry for the wait, and here's the next story. Enjoy! :)))

(P.s. I'm taking this as a slightly belated birthday story post for Benoit Paire, whose birthday was on 8th May! Lols.)

Benoit's POV

I sat on a stool by the bar, downing a few shots while I watched some of my friends and many strangers dance the night away on the floor. I would have made use of the money I've spent to enter this club to dance, but dancing without her doesn't feel as fun anymore.

I don't know why it should matter to me that it had to be her, Y/N L/N, whom I so badly wanted to dance with. I've met and flirted with so many other girls before, never taking any of them seriously. So much so that amongst my friends, I've developed quite the reputation of being a heartbreaker. Every time I lead those girls on, only to reveal I'm not truly interested in them when I leave the club.

But...Y/N was different. Our conversations were not just restricted to fashion, music and food. She seemed genuinely interested in my profession as a tennis player, unlike the other girls who feigned interest just to be able to continue talking to me. Since she watched plenty of tennis matches and so recognized many tennis players, I could share with her some tour players' quirky behind-the-scenes stories.

Maybe it was that Y/N and I connected on the same wavelength, and it's so rare to find someone as passionate about tennis other than my fellow tennis players and friends, much less in a club of all places.

And maybe it's also the way when she hears or shares a funny anecdote, she has a cute laugh, and her eyes twinkle with excitement.

We've run into each other quite a number of times since the first meeting at the club, both in the streets and back in the club. We've even exchanged numbers to keep in touch and converse more, but nothing more has really happened from there. For the most part, in Y/N's mind, I'm probably just the tennis player whom she dances with in a club.

"Hey Benoit, what are you doing here all alone and sulking? Aren't you all for dancing when you're at a club?" My good friend, Stan the Man, came over and asked, snapping me out of my train of thoughts.

"Nah everything's ok, I just don't feel like dancing," I dismissively replied.

Stan raised an eyebrow. "Really? Who are you missing huh?"

I rolled my eyes in fake annoyance. Stan knew me too well, but I wasn't going to bother him with my woes. "Not gonna tell you."

"Ok, whatever suits you bro, but if you need me just find me on the dance floor yeah?" I nodded. With that, Stan returned to dancing with his girlfriend.

I didn't know how long I had been sitting there, when I noticed Y/N in the distance, seemingly in distress as a guy was talking to her. The guy reached out to grab Y/N's arms, but she was trying to shake him off. Without thinking, I walked up towards Y/N.

As I drew closer, I heard Y/N say, "You should have thought twice before cheating on me with her the very first time. Now, leave me alone. I don't want to dance with you."

The guy replied, "Come on Y/N, just give me another chance. I swear I've changed!"

"And that's what you say every single time! You've cheated on me three times, and every single time I actually believed you would change for the better! How am I supposed to believe you anymore? Get lost, I don't want to see you."

"Y/N..." The man pleaded.

"Leave Y/N alone. Hasn't your mother taught you manners? When someone says no, it means no," I said sternly.

"Who are you to interfere?" The guy asked with hostility.

"No, who are you even to harass Y/N?"

"I'm her ex. Now, if you would excuse me, I would like to dance with Y/N."

Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around Y/N's waist, pulled her closer to me and replied, "Well then, I'm her current boyfriend, so I think you should be the one leaving Y/N alone."

The guy looked back and forth between me and Y/N in disbelief, before walking away. I then removed my hands from Y/N's waist. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks so much for helping me get out of that sticky situation just now. Some people never change," Y/N sighed.

"It's no problem at all." I smiled at her.

"You know, just now you said you were my boyfriend...like...were you joking? Or did you erm really mean it?"

I ran my fingers nervously through my hair. It must have been the darned alcohol coursing through my veins to give me enough courage to claim that I was Y/N's boyfriend. Was that feeling I was experiencing towards Y/N...love? It's been so long, years even, since I've last had a girlfriend, but we broke up due to my extremely packed schedule as a tennis player.

"I...I..." I just couldn't get the words out of my mouth, and I swore my cheeks were burning.

Y/N shrugged her shoulders. "Don't worry, you probably said it to drive him away and resolve the situation. Well, let's forget about what happened just now, have a good time and dance, shall we?" I nodded, but my heart wasn't as convinced.

We were dancing to the music and casually chatting, but my mind couldn't stop thinking back to the bold claim I had made. Did I subconsciously want to be Y/N's boyfriend? I don't know how or why, but suddenly, I was clear of my answer.

"Y/N."

"Yeah?" We both stopped dancing, and she was staring up at me.

"I...I think I really do want to be more than just friends or dance partners. I think I love you. We connect on the same wavelength..." Y/N fell silent, her expression unreadable.

"...but don't worry if you can't say it back. I just had to get it off my chest. We can still be friends. Fuck, I think I've just made this super awkward, I'll go." I turned on my heels and cursed myself for ruining the moment.

Just as I was about to leave the club, someone grabbed my right arm to stop me from leaving. I had barely turned around when someone kissed me on the lips with so much desire and passion. With my eyes closed, I inhaled the familiar scent deeply. Y/N.

I opened my eyes and I was right. Y/N pulled away, her cheeks blushing a deep shade of red. "I want us to be...more than just friends too."

I let out a sigh of relief and bent down slightly to nuzzle Y/N's nose, before planting a light kiss on her forehead. "Je t'aime, mon amour."

"Je t'aime aussi, Benoit," Y/N grinned.

With that, we leaned in for another kiss again, this time more gently, savouring the moment slowly.

~The end~