Page 58 of Breakpoint
Having her parents there in her player’s box made it even more special. Few people could say they’ve made the final of a Grand Slam. Both of her parents had, so they knew the struggle to climb this mountain, and it was nice to experience it with them.
Dani cried in her mother’s arms in the locker room after the match. Her dad clapped her back and reminded her the job wasn’t finished. She needed to win one more to be the champion.
Having her mom here throughout the tournament to give her tips and advice was something Dani always dreamed about. Brittany had so much insight about the game, but more important than that, hearing the ‘good job’ from her mother made her heart swell.
Brittany had also stepped in for Chris temporarily and fielded all the calls and requests for her as she advanced in the tournament. She thought she’d gotten a lot of media attention before as the daughter of Brittany and Georgios Kappas, or even after winning Olympic gold. But it was nothing like an American playing well and advancing at the US Open in New York City. The flashbulbs were constant whenever she walked around the tennis facility, and the amount of press in the media room to talk to her had quadrupled.
And that was before the interview with Jess. When she watched it back, she looked calm, but what the camera didn’t show was her hands trembling as she said the word “queer.”
Coming out in such a public way to Jess was the right thing to do for her. She was proud of her sexuality, and she wasn’t going to let some person hold it over her head and out her at a moment’s notice. Yes, there was still the fact that Jaz was in the captured video, along with questions about the actual status of their relationship, but she would cross that bridge when they got there. The thing that mattered the most to her was thatshe wasn’t going to let anyone take away her agency or steal her joy during this tournament.
Since that interview, the media requests seem to have doubled overnight, and it was no longer just sports media.Everyonewanted to talk to her. How could she even focus on tennis with so many things swirling around her? Thankfully, her mother kept most of them at bay. Brittany Kappas had no problem telling folks no and to fuck off. This allowed Dani to remain focused on the main thing. And that was winning tennis matches. It was all so overwhelming, and she needed the reprieve. She didn’t understand how the top players dealt with this all the time. But she stayed locked in.
That was exactly what she told Sascha when they practiced together. Since Dani was no longer practicing with Jaz, she needed to find someone else to hit consistently with it. Other players had already hired most of the good local practice players. Sascha readily agreed, since this saved both of them money. Practice players during major tournaments got expensive.
The sharp crack of the ball echoed through the court, and Sascha barely missed getting her racket on it. “Fuck! You’ve really upped your game, Dani. I don’t remember you hitting the ball that hard when we played together before. I need a break.”
Sascha was already walking off the court and over to the benches.
“You sure? I still want to work on some backhands.” Dani took a few practice swings, already thinking about the backhand placements she wanted to work on.
Sascha plopped down on the bench and took a long drink of her electrolyte water. “Really? I’m exhausted, and you look like you’vebarely broken a sweat. Are you a machine now?” Her blonde hair was stuck to her forehead, and she dripped with sweat.
Dani knew training with Jaz had made a difference, but it was nice to hear it from someone she consistently played with and knew previously. She was kicking Sascha’s ass in a way she never had before.
“This was good. Not you beating the shit out of me out there. Us spending time together. I missed hanging out with you, Dani.” Dani could see the sincerity in Sascha’s face. Friendships on tour were hard.
“Me too, Sascha.” Dani smiled. She missed the easy and uncomplicated friendship she shared with Sascha. The one without attraction and feelings.
“Listen, let’s call this session.” Sascha started to remove the tape from around her wrist. “We’re in New York, Dani! The city that never sleeps. We should go out tonight. Blow off some steam. There’s that new club in the West Village everyone’s talking about.”
Crazy enough, the offer did not even tempt Dani. What a far cry from six months ago, when she would have jumped at the chance to party in New York with Sascha.
She was already shaking her head, a focused intensity settling over her features. “I can’t, Sascha. I’m playing well, and I need to stay focused and locked in.”
“Really, Dani? It’s New York. And—”
“And the US Open, Sascha. I really want to do well here.” Sascha was disappointed, but Dani was glad she had turned her down.Because look where she was now. About to play in the finals of the US Open!
She walked to the small kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. The cold liquid slid down her throat, a welcome relief. She knew that the next day, the media, the pressure, the anticipation would be back, but tonight, she would let the elation fill her up.
She plopped down on the couch, her shoulder and forearms aching. She would love a massage from Scott right now because the physio at the tennis center just wasn’t as good. But thinking about Scott also made her think of Jaz. The woman who held her heart was only two floors above her, but it felt like two ships passing in the night. It was like their teams did everything possible to keep them apart and focused on the task at hand. Winning the US Open.
She debated whether to watch Jaz’s semi-final match. Being the more well-known player, Jaz’s semi-final was being played at night in primetime under the lights on Arthur Ashe. It was the biggest tennis court in the world, with over thirty thousand fans.
She had tried her best to tune out what was happening on Jaz’s side of the draw. But Dani couldn’t escape the questions during media sessions about Jaz’s play and the two Americans who had been doubles partners earlier in the year, both playing well and advancing. The media had already put them against each other and hyping up a possible finals match against each other. No one commented that they hadn’t been seen together much after spending most of the year together.
There was a very good possibility that she would have to play her girlfriend, well, ex-girlfriend, in her first final. Talk about a mind fuck.
So if Jaz won today, she was going to have to watch her match anyway, to strategize for the final. So she might as well rip off the band-aid now.
Decision made, she grabbed the remote and flipped the channel onto Jaz’s semi-final match.
Jaz had won the first set, but her serve was already broken in the second set, and she was trailing 5-2. She was playing the number one woman in the world, Katarina Hajek, who had crushed Dani in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. Katarina was fast and known for changing the pace of play with her tricky slice backhand.
The first thing she noticed was that Jaz was limping. She was definitely favoring her left side. The announcers were even noticing it, because Jaz was just misfiring out there. She lost the next game without even winning a point, and now they were tied a set a piece.
One set to determine who would go to the final. Dani never realized how stressful it would be to watch someone you care about compete like this on the highest level.
