strawberry blond ᡣ𐭩 challengers.

two.

༘˚⋆𐙚｡⋆𖦹.˚

[ 2006 ]

despite not being upset about her loss against tashi duncan, phoebe could not say that being surrounded by her opponent's face was something she enjoyed. especially not while she watched her two closest friends and men of her dreams marvel at tashi's accomplishments and astounding beauty. she looked between the two, arms crossed with poorly hidden envy.

"i'm gonna get a drink and talk to a few people. it's embarrassing and a little creepy to watch and listen to you two obsess over her," phoebe set her trophy in a nearby chair, spun on her heel, and headed toward the dance floor, ignoring the protests of the two boys behind her. she only acknowledged patrick's request for another soda with a lazy wave of her hand.

she made light conversation with a few other guests on her way over to the refreshments, even speaking to tashi's father at some point before finally grabbing patrick and herself another beverage. she could barely lift the bottles from the table before hearing the call of her name. she looked in the direction of the voice, a light smile on her face as tashi approached her.

"nice party. it's preparing us for when we see your face literally everywhere in four years," phoebe complimented, her tone light as she looked around at the decorations of her childhood companion. tashi let out a light giggle.

"i'm sure you'll be right there with me. a little birdie told me that you got a lacoste brand deal. congratulations," tashi responded, bumping her hip with phoebe's in a jovial manner.

phoebe admired the duncan girl. tashi was sweet but powerful. she had never been intimidated by tashi's skills, having played enough doubles as her partner to have a good idea of her capabilities on the court. there was a reason why she and tashi were often made out to be rivals. they were both stellar players, almost always playing in the same leagues and facing each other's in the finals. phoebe has beaten tashi before, multiple times in the past years. however, there was only ever a friendly rivalry between the two as they remained amicable after their matches, regardless of the victor.

"i think we'd make a good cover for women's health," phoebe agreed, nodding decisively.

"wanna get some practice in? your mom asked mine for some pictures of the two of us," tashi nodded towards where tashi's mother was fanning the two of them over with a bubbly smile.

"oh, yeah. of course," phoebe agreed, setting the condensing soda bottles down and following tashi over to her mother. she greeted the older woman with a loose hug before stepping back to tashi's side, posing for a few pictures. phoebe's gaze trailed back to the two boys whom she had left alone, only to find them staring at the duo. she locked eyes with art as his eyes finished their trail up her body, tilting her head with a knowing look before giving the camera another one of her dazzling smiles. out of the corner of her eye, she watched as tashi recaptured the attention of the two and decided to ignore the ache in her heart to make her friends happy.

"i have some friends who are dying to meet the amazing tashi duncan. wanna make their dreams come true?" phoebe asked once tashi's mother occupied herself with flicking through the pictures the photographer took.

"you mean the two that have been following around like lost puppies? they've been watching over here since you walked away," tashi subtly motioned over to where art and patrick were pretending that they hadn't been watching once tashi looked in their direction.

"every time we had a doubles match, they had a match of their own, so they just found out we're friends. they've been talking about you all day. i think they have a bit of a crush on you," phoebe admitted, unashamedly exposing her two friends. the raised eyebrow and knowing look tashi gave phoebe told her that tashi read right through her. she tried to play it off, throwing another curious glance at her best friends before giving tashi an indifferent shrug.