Picture Us | Zhuo Zhi

ten

t e n n i s w i t h m u

Nam walks behind Xia and their classmate, Mu, as they go to the tennis facility that Mu's father runs. Qi Ying, Peng Xiang, and Qiao Chen were supposed to come, but they aren't the most punctual.

The three walk over to Mu's father. "You can practice here," he says. "Just don't bother the others, okay?"

All three chorus an "okay."

Suddenly, a man rushes over to where the group is in section one. "Coach!" he shouts, "I've been looking for you. I'm here for my class." Right away, Nam can feel the arrogance pouring out of this man.

Mu's father looks uncomfortable, but says, "Fine. Uh... You can go to section three."

The man looks around. "Section three?" he says incredulously. "This section is good. Let's practice here."

The man, who Mu identifies as Mr. Huang, a regular customer, continues to treat Mu's father like his servant. How rude! Nam scolds in her head.

The Lu twins are obviously fed up with Mr. Huang's appalling behavior. "Let's just practice in section three," Mu says with a defeated sigh.

-

Mu collapses on the ground in exhaustion. "What?" Xia says. "You can talk for half a day but only play for a short while."

"Lu Xia, just play with Lu Nam," Mu says.

The three kids can hear Mr. Huang making a scene over warming up for fifteen minutes. How annoying, Nam thinks. Xia walks over to Mr. Huang and goads him into playing a game. Nam grabs her camera from her bag, knowing that a good show is about to happen.

-

Ying and Xiang finally walk over to the tennis court, and they arrive at the sight of an exhausted Mt. Huang, and their three classmates standing over him.

"I didn't even get a single point," Mr. Huang says. "Who are you boy?"

-

Lu Xia sits at a table between Qi Ying, and Peng Xiang, watching the court where Mu is practicing. Nam is off to the side taking pictures, unable to hold in her laughter as Mr. Huang enthusiastically cheers for Mu.

Nam walks over to the table, seeing the elaborate spread of food that Ying has prepared. She wordlessly accepts the food that Xia holds up for her to eat, and then heads to the tennis court. "Mu!" she shouts, "Can I play you now?"

"Really?" Mu asks.

"I mean... I'm not as good as Xia, but I can still play," she responds.

 Nam lightly smiles to herself as she's able to easily return Mu's serve, and hit the ball accurately to the corner of the court. It's been awhile since she's played, but Nam still remembers what it feels like to have such a clear view of the court, as if the right path of the ball is just shown to her. Her practice with Mu continues on, and she smiles brightly as she hits the ball in the exact spot that she envisioned in her head, as if she's using a targeting software. She feels slightly bad that she's doing so much better than Mu, but there's an unexplainable satisfaction that comes from playing well.

When it's Nam's turn to serve, she does her best to contain her excitement. She's always loved serving the best: it's the only move she can do that's 100% her, no outside factors can affect her serve. She doesn't have a powerful serve like Xia's twist serve, but the racket perfectly contacting the tennis ball is enough satisfaction for Nam when she is playing.

Peng Xiang lets out a gasp in amazement at Lu Nam's proficiency in tennis, while Qi Ying seems to only be focusing on Lu Xia, seeing the tiniest resemblance of pride across his features. I'll get better at tennis and impress you, too, Lu Xia, Qi Ying promises to herself.

-

The twins walk home with Qi Ying trailing with them. "Lu Xia!" Ying suddenly says, causing the group to stop.

Seeing the bag containing her twin's new uniform, Nam tells Xia that she'll go on ahead without them, and then scurries off. Qi Ying, Nam thinks, I'm giving you this moment, right? I hope you make the most of it.

-

Nam is in the kitchen with her father, hopefully to prevent another dinner disaster. "Daughter," Xiangqian suddenly says, "are you happy at school?"

"Yes... Why do you ask?"

"I ran into Qiao Chen earlier today. He is an upperclassmen in the tennis team. Do you know him?"

"Not really... Why?"

"He said that he looks after your brother, and I believe he does. But he said he's never interacted with you before... Lu Nam, are you doing well for yourself?"

"I'm alright, dad... Really, I'm doing fine."

"I haven't asked about your friends in a while."

"Dad, you know Wong's?"

"Of course."

"I ran into an upperclassmen there... and I guess I'd like to say that... that we're friends," Nam says, unaware of the slight blush dusting her cheeks.

"I see," Lu Xiangqian says. "And your classmates?"

"Well... Xia's in my classes... But... but I guess some of the others aren't bad either."

"I'm glad, daughter."

"Me too."