Love Game - Season 2011 (18 page)

“Don’t underestimate her. She is a clay expert.”

“Sure, she’s achieved a lot on clay, but her game was completely off in the last couple of weeks. At the moment she’s as good at tennis as grandma Yekaterina was at bowling.”

Gaga frowned. She didn’t like her sister’s arrogance, especially as there was nothing in Luella’s performance of late to justify her snootiness.

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that if I were you. Have you watched Amanda at all? She played a really good match.”

Lulu snorted and waved it off.

“She was just lucky with her draw. She had a cakewalk to the quarterfinal. But you’ll see what happens when she finally gets to face real players like you and me.” Luella continued studying the draw. “So, after Amanda it will be Sasha. She had a surprisingly good run here, but we all know she hates the dirt. Did you see her fall on her butt during her match against Ivana? She can’t even walk on clay.” Luella snickered.

Of course, Gabriella had watched the incident. Sasha had gone for a ball but slipped on the red surface and had fallen on her backside. For a few seconds she had laid there on the clay before getting up again and wiping the red dirt off her skirt. Seeing her on the ground had given Gaga a mighty fright. More than any opponent, a tennis player feared injury and you wouldn’t wish it on your fiercest rival. Luella’s disrespectful comment made her angry. Especially as it was directed towards Sasha again. It wasn’t fair at all.

“I’ll be happy to play against Sasha, if we get there,” Gabriella said. “But she has improved tremendously in the last weeks. It will not be easy.”

“Well, if you don’t feel fit to beat her, I will do it,” Luella snapped.

Gaga raised an eyebrow. The Czech had been in top form since the beginning of the tournament and as much as clay wasn’t her favorite surface, it was obvious that she would be tough to beat. How could her sister be so self-confident?

“You know, Jaro is here. So I’m sure Sasha wants to make the most of it if only to show off in front of her boyfriend.”

Lulu burst out laughing. Apparently, something had escaped Gabriella because she didn’t understand her sister’s sudden reaction.

“Yeah, allow me to have some doubts about it, Gaga. Don’t be so naïve. I’m pretty sure Sasha is as close to Jaro as I am to Enrique Martinez, if you know what I mean?”

Yes, Gabriella knew what Lulu meant. Ever since her twin had mentioned the mysterious encounter with Sasha in the locker room Gaga had been intrigued by the idea that Sasha liked girls. Lulu had claimed that Sasha had hit on her. That she did it every time. Should she ask Lulu for details? It hadn’t seemed like a good idea last time they spoke about it, as they had been fighting. Even now it didn’t look like a good time to inquire about the incident, as Luella was getting furious only thinking about it.

“Haven’t you noticed that she’s hanging around us?” Lulu almost spit the words out. “She’s checking me out on every occasion. Total dyke.”

Her sister’s snide remark felt like a sting but Gabriella had to admit that Luella was right. It always looked like Sasha was sneaking around. Wherever the twins seemed to go, the Czech was not far. She herself had witnessed Sasha several times following them. And given Luella’s appeal on boys it could well be possible that also a girl had a crush on her.

***

Frankie’s was definitely the place to be. Within a quarter hour the club had filled up and seemed about to burst. Tom was having a hard time making his way back through the tightly packed crowd, when he spotted a free table at the end of the counter. Not bothering to squeeze through all the way to Ted and Felicia who were waiting with three glasses of Champagne, he yelled and waved to them and gestured them to come to the free table. Ted waved back at him with a smile, nodded and grabbed the glasses. Just as Ted made a step away from the bar, he bumped into a tall Italian girl, who had made it to the bar. Within seconds she was drenched in Champagne.

“
Dannazione, ma fare un po ‘di attenzione!
”

Tom heard the voice and recognized the girl. It was no other than Antonia Sapore. The Italian player wasn’t alone. Of course, Martina Rodriguez was there, too. And behind the couple, Tom saw Japanese player Natsumi Takashima with Amanda Auster. Holy crap, Tom thought. Amanda. It only took him a few seconds to realize the delicacy of the situation.

Waiting at the table Tom overlooked the scene. Amanda seemed paralyzed. She was staring at a surprised Felicia who gave her ex-girlfriend a big grin. Then Amanda made a quick step to the bar turning away from Felicia, while Antonia, Martina and Natsumi followed her just as startled. For all it was clear that Amanda didn’t want a word with her late girlfriend. All but one. With her hands on her hips Felicia approached Amanda, a broad smile on her lips. Tom held his breath.

“How are you doing, honey? I haven’t heard from you for a while. How is life treating you? I heard that you won a doubles title lately. Ted told me about it. I still follow your matches, you know.”

Looking at Ted, who seemed just as embarrassed, Tom shook his head. This was terrible and there seemed to be no stopping Felicia.

“Perhaps we could have a drink one of these days,” the singer continued. “You know, to catch up on everything. I’m sure you have plenty to tell me!”

The whole group watched the scene in awkward silence while waiting for Amanda to reply. For a few seconds, the Australian remained still then blinked, turned on her heels and rushed out of the club in a hurry.

***

The sun was shining brightly over the Roman sky and the Campo Centrale was packed for the semifinal between Amanda Auster and Luella Galloway.

Amanda had won her quarterfinal match against the Italian favorite Antonia Sapore a day earlier. Even though the Australian had been shaky and nervous in the beginning it was the Italian who crumbled in the end of a tough three-set match. Luella Galloway on the other hand had had a easy run so far. Being drawn against lower-ranked players throughout the tournament her semifinal appearance was no surprise. She had won all her previous matches in straight sets.

Natsumi Takashima took her seat in the upper stands of the arena next to Antonia and Martina, who went incognito with big stylish hats and Italian sunglasses. Regardless of Amanda’s and Antonia’s quarterfinal clash the day before, the Italian-Argentine couple had spent some time with Amanda and Natsumi over the course of the week, showing the two players the city and eventually taking them out to Frankie’s.

“How is Amanda?” Antonia turned around to Amanda.

“Better, I hope.” Natsumi sighed, looking down onto the court and to the players’ entrance, where Amanda and Luella would step through any second. She and Amanda had been friends for almost a decade now, but the Australian refused to talk about the incident when Natsumi had met her this morning. “It was a shock to see Felicia at the club.”

The others nodded. It was never easy to embark on a relationship with someone outside the tour. They all knew that. But not even couples who both played on the tour had an easy draw. Amanda and she had once started as a doubles team which soon turned into a short-lived relationship. The pressure to keep it all under cover had been too much for the young couple. Fortunately, after the relationship ended they had been able to gradually built a great friendship which had been refined by recreational intermezzi once in a while. But the last time she had slept with Amanda had been ages ago. Not that she wanted to anymore.

“Oh, Felicia Del Castro,” Martina said, disrupting Natsumi’s thoughts. “She clearly has some Latino genes.”

Felicia might have been Australian like Amanda, but her name indicated that her parents had immigrated to the continent down under.

“The brazenness clearly hints to bitch genes,” Natsumi corrected the Argentine. They chuckled for a moment but then joined in the crowd’s applause as the players finally took the court. From what Natsumi could see, Amanda looked calm. Down on the court the Australian was wearing dark shades as usual and her body language suggest nothing more than a player ready to hit the first shot.

Amanda had been quite cheerful the whole week, and when Natsumi had inquired about her good mood, she had even let the Japanese in on the funny fact that she was woken by Elise’s text messages almost every morning. Natsumi had teased her friend about Amanda apparently having had a little admirer and that she should have taken advantage of it in Stuttgart when she had the chance to make Elise drunk and seduce her. Amanda had brushed the thought away but her big grin had told Natsumi that she actually cherished the idea. Elise was a cutie, that was for sure. Natsumi wouldn’t have kicked the German out of bed for eating crackers. The Japanese had hoped that a new object of desire would help Amanda to overcome her lovesickness but since yesterday morning the grumpiness was back and meeting Felicia at the club in the evening surely didn’t help. Given Amanda’s reaction in the club, the Japanese player concluded that she wasn’t over Felicia at all. Natsumi only hoped that Amanda was able to forget her misfortune for the length of the match.

“Time,” the chair umpire announced. The match was about to begin.

***

Sasha had been watching the match between Luella and Amanda. From high in the stands she had followed every point. For once Luella had played for herself, Sasha was sure of it, and she had won. Or rather, Amanda had lost. For the whole match she seemed to be on a mission to break her own record in shanking balls. She even hit one of the linesmen in the second set. Sasha snorted while skittering through the mass of spectators but still keeping an eye on the players’ box where Gabriella Galloway had been sitting for the match. Sasha would face one of the Galloway in the final tomorrow. Which one, she didn’t know yet. That’s why she had to be quick now. Swiftly, she followed Gabriella when the Galloway twin left the stands and headed to the locker room to meet her sister. Hiding behind a corner outside of the locker room Sasha waited for the defeated Amanda Auster to leave the room, then silently opened the door and entered.

She had by now become a master in the art of tip-toe walking. From restaurants to hotels and stores, Sasha had been following them and even though this occupation was becoming seriously exhausting the Czech player couldn’t stop. Every day had its very own surprise concerning the American girls and since they were twins, the surprise came in two. Following them and wearing her spy outfit filled her life with an excitement Sasha had grown addicted to. And she wasn’t a bad spy at all. She had already found out a lot about the twins but now she had the chance to be absolutely certain who she will play tomorrow.

In the locker room one voice came from the very far right and soon enough, the other girl’s laughter echoed through the rows of lockers from the same direction. With the grace of a gazelle, Sasha got a few steps closer. To her surprise they didn’t talk about the just won match but instead threw themselves one more time in a debate over their good-looking fitness trainer.

“But I tell you he is not useless. He is just a little bit slow,” one of the Galloways said. Was that Gabriella? Sasha wasn’t sure. Their voices were so hard to tell apart. The Czech rolled her eyes but restrained a sigh. She couldn’t afford to attract their attention now, as she had nothing to do in the locker room, since her afternoon practice was long over. All of a sudden, one of the twin’s voices got louder and Sasha saw the player’s shadow on the floor coming closer. One of the Galloways was approaching.

Her mouth wide open, Sasha swayed her arms in panic, ready to rush one way or another, and looked around for a place to hide. Without thinking twice, she noticed an open locker and thankfully large enough for her to fit in. She slid in and closed the door behind her only a few seconds before hearing one of the twins walking past the locker, with only the thin wooden door separating them. Something brushed her back in the darkness of the locker, and stifling a scream Sasha swallowed hard and realized that it was just a shirt. She sniffed into the dark of the locker. The shirt was used and sweaty. Oh, the things a spy had to bear! But thankfully she hadn’t accidentally chosen one of the trash lockers where inconsiderate players abandoned their candy wraps, used strings and duct tape or she would have probably made them rustle which would have certainly caught the twins’ attention.

All of a sudden, the ring tone of her cell phone invaded the way too quiet room. Damn! Why hadn’t she put it on silent mode?

“I think someone forgot her cell phone,” Sasha heard one of the twins say. “We should turn it in.”

Trying desperately to reach the inside pocket of her jacket in time, she heard one of the twins approach the locker she was sitting in. Sasha froze and held her breath. With a quick movement the locker door was opened and she came face-to-face with one of the Galloways. Was this Gabriella or was it Luella?

“Hurry up and change the ringtone, for god’s sake. This is horrible!”

Sasha was sure it was Lulu’s commanding voice piercing in the background. So this must be Gaga in front of her. They remained still for what seemed like an eternity, staring at each other silently. Then, and against all expectations, Gabriella smiled at her, in surprise at first, then in amusement and after another silent moment, kindly. She slowly shook her head while looking at the crouched Czech girl, who had finally turned off the tone of her cell phone.

“It’s not ringing anymore,” Gaga finally said over her shoulder addressing her sister. “I wasn’t quick enough and now I can’t find it.”

And without saying another word, Gabriella gently closed the door of the locker again. As if nothing had happened.