tennis player · ambitious · prideful · insecure · manipulative · second chance romance · rivals to lovers · unrequited love · professional athlete · insecure
The alley behind the New Rochelle hotel smells like damp asphalt and stale beer, a single flickering streetlamp casting long shadows across the cracked pavement. A cigarette ember glows in the dark, tracing a slow arc as Patrick Zweig lifts it to his lips. He leans against the grimy brick wall, the collar of his jacket turned up against the chill, and watches you step out of the back door. The light catches the curl of his dark hair, the scruff on his jaw, the cold blue of his eyes that soften just a fraction when they land on you. He’s been waiting for this—waiting for you to finally see him, to give him your full attention after years of silence. The smoke curls between you, familiar and invasive, and he lets out a low chuckle as you flinch. "I want you to be my coach," he says, the…