CHAPTER FIFTEEN. HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS
Unlike many other tournaments; the Hamstead gave the competitors some time to prepare for the awards ceremony. They took showers in the player's area and changed into slightly dressier clothes. Sebastien came out to meet Megan, and offered her his services as an escort. She takes his arm and he leads her out to a quiet grassy area, a forgotten space between the courts. He sat on the grass, gently pulling her down to join him. Her head rested in his lap, both of them enjoying the silence and the good feeling of finally winning the Hamstead.
"Sebastien?" said Megan quietly.
"Yea?"
"Do you think…do you think this will work?" she asked.
"Do I think what will work?"
"This…you said back on the court that we were going home," she said, clearly but softly. "Do I have a home to go to?"
"You'll always have a home with me," he answered.
"I know…but a home with my family." He couldn't reply to that- not knowing if there would be a family for Megan. Even after Coach Gunnerson talked to them, they didn't even think about accepting her back. He avoided the question.
"You'll get endorsement deals for sure…and your rankings went up."
"I know- but what if that's not good enough for them?"
"We'll find a way, Megs. But…you know, it might not be," he said tentatively.
"Just in case…" she stopped.
"I'm here," he finished.
"Thank you," she breathed. They were gazing at each other in a way that only lover's can, and unlike the wild kisses they'd given each other on the court, they reached towards each other as if in a daze.
Sebastien's lips touched her own heavenly, soft lips. One of his hands slid behind her neck, cradling her, the other rested in the small of her back. Megan's hands were on his face, on his shoulders, on his arms, wrapped around him. They broke apart, but the space between them begged to be filled and they kissed again, and again. Their eyes were both closed so softly, just fluttering close to open, that they never noticed the committee member standing outside their haven. This intruder slipped away for a little while, and they felt for each other again and again, gentle slow kisses escalating to more passionate ones as they finally filled the need for each other. Their bodies were yearning for this moment, and they sensed each other as they felt everywhere, memorizing each other with their hands and being involved in this whole sensual experience. The heat of the moment faded, and their tired eyes were locked on each other- the most beautiful thing either of them had ever seen, for their love drew rosy glasses across their eyes despite the sullen fury that churned in their hearts, despairing for their families, lost and gone, or lost and still there. Megan lay in Sebastien's arms, caressing his face and hair, smiling as the moment ended, and the intruder came back.
The mysterious person coughed, and they both jumped. "The award ceremony's about to start." The woman uttered these words so quietly so they were fit to the atmosphere in the air. She smiled at their love, and beckoned for them to follow.
The silence of their hideout was a great difference from the crowds that met them at Centre Court. Waiting in the sidelines, they nervously straightened their clothing and took each other's hand. Finally, the call came.
"Megan O'Connor and Sebastien Dubé, Women's and Men's Champions of the Hamstead Tournament!"
They walked out slowly, not anticipating the rush of flashbulbs and screaming that emanated from all around them. As they emerged, cameramen gasped at the picture showing up on their screen, and paused to check if what was showing up was real. The crowd quieted down, and as they walked up the majestic red carpet, (a dream for many, and no longer a dream for them) the number of camera's decreased and everyone rose from their seats. For a moment- just half a moment- the stadium was completely silent. Too quickly after, they were cheering and yelling even louder than before. The thing that had shocked them was the glow that came from Sebastien and Megan, a glow that only shows up after someone has found their love and looked into their eyes. They reached the committee waiting in the centre of the court, all smiling at them. Again, the crowd quieted. Sebastien was first to receive the silver platter with his name engraved on it among the names of champions, the ranks of which he'd just joined. Then Megan was handed her own, and together they raised them high in the air, a salute to all the people who had gone before them and all the people who helped them get up to that red carpet. The circle of fans spun around them just like when Sebastien first beat Squib. Except, this victory was much, much sweeter.
"Mr. Dubé, do you have anything to say?" asked the announcer.
"Just…thank you so much! It took a lot to get here, and it would never have been my name engraved here if sacrifices hadn't been made. Dad, Top Gun, Coach, Megs, and Mom…this is for you!"
"Ms. O'Connor?"
"This is so much more than a trophy, right here. I can't even believe I'm here! All my friends have been there for me the whole time, and I doubt I'd be able to stand here if they hadn't. Thank you, so, so much!"
The announcer turned to face the crowd. "We've got a special surprise for you here. Knowing you'd been away from your friends for a long time, we arranged for you to see them by satellite before you head back to Cascadia Tennis Academy!"
The gigantic screen at the head of the court flashed once, and everyone in the crowd could see inside The Open at Cascadia. Top Gun had assembled on the couches and the first thing they heard was a high-pitched scream from Adena.
"Megs? MEGS! I cannot believe you won the Hamstead!"
Squib was sitting beside Cody on the couch and looked up from their spot. "I took your advice man…" and he and Cody moved apart to reveal their finger's intertwined on the couch.
Sebastien jumped up at the same time Megan did. "OH MY GOSH! FINALLY!" The crowd burst out into nervous laughter.
Cody turned towards the camera. "Congrats guys! You won't believe how excited everyone is! They can't wait for you to get home."
Adena popped up from behind the couch. "Stop hogging the camera Codes!" She flipped her hair and smiled. "You guys were awesome!"
"Yea…Gunns made us watch your games over and over…he kept saying something about focus," said Squib.
"Mr. Furlong…I was telling YOU to focus!" voiced Coach Gunnerson.
Megan stepped up. "Sir, thank you so much!"
"Hey, that's my job O'Connor!" The crowd aww'ed at the cute moment.
The announcer interrupted. "Sorry guys, but time's up. Satellite communication is expensive you know!"
Everyone laughed as The Open faded away on the screen. Sebastien and Megan were both hit with a wave of homesickness, remembering all the fun times with their friends.
"That concludes the award ceremony. Once again, congratulations to Mr. Dubé and Ms. O'Connor!" Still cheering, the crowd thinned as the events wrapped up.
Sebastien and Megan stayed around the court, signing autographs and talking to fans- a lot of them young player's looking for tips on becoming a star. As Sebastien smiled for a picture with a tennis prodigy from France- strikingly like him- he turned and found himself face-to-face with a rather stern looking man in a suit.
"Hello Mr. Dubé. I'm Mr. Carlson from Wilson Sporting Goods." He stuck out a stiff hand, and Sebastien shook it weakly.
"Uhh…pleased to meet you, Mr. Carlson."
"You're quite the player!" he gave a tight-lipped smile.
"Thank you! I've been training for a long time and…" Mr. Carlson cut off Sebastien.
"I'm here to offer you a deal."
"An…an…endorsement deal!" he gasped.
"Well, that IS the kind of thing I deal with- unless you don't want to hear about it," he said, raising his eyebrow.
"Oh! Oh no- I definitely want to hear about. I'm just a little surprised!"
Mr. Carlson smiled genuinely for the first time since Sebastien had met him. "You ARE very young, but you've got that special thing going for you. The media love you, the ladies clearly love you, and I believe you've just become the tennis world's new favourite guy. We need you on our team."
"That's very flattering Mr. Carlson! What…I mean…how….uhh." Sebastien was clearly flustered.
"How much are we offering?"
"Yea."
"At the moment, we're looking at a few hundred thousand. But- if you keep playing the way you do this could easily turn into a million dollar endorsement deal," he patted Sebastien on the back.
"Oh…wow!"
"Here's my number. Call if you have any questions. I'll definitely be contacting you once you return to Cascadia." He started to walk away, but turned back. "By the way, congratulations Mr. Dubé."
At the same time, on the other side of the court, Megan's dream was coming true as well.
"Ms. O'Connor?" a shy voice called.
"Yes?" Megan turned to find a girl, about eight years old waiting to talk to her. The girl was clutching a racket like many of the other kids who's approached Megs.
"My coach wants to tell you something." The woman-standing behind the girl smiled.
"There's a new recreational centre opening up here in Hamstead. We've just decided to incorporate a children's and teen's tennis program- and we want to name it after you. You're the youngest winner of the Hamstead so far, and all these kids are so young- they'd really look up to you."
"Are you serious?" said Megan.
"Completely."
"Thank you…thank you SO much!" Megan was grinning- the first thought in her head was to tell Sebastien.
"So you're okay with it? We're thinking of calling it the Megan O'Connor Tennis Camp for Young Players."
Megan smiled easily. "That's quite a mouthful!"
The coach grinned ruefully. "You should hear this one say it. It sounds like 'men-okee-tennis-ca-for-yor-plate." The little girl blushed and squeezed her racket.
"That's so cute! Thank you again, miss!" The coach hugged Megan and said she'd send as much information about the camp as she could to her.
Just then, Sebastien came bounding across the court, jumping the net and scooping up Megan. "A million dollar endorsement deal!"
"My own tennis camp named after me!"
They kissed again, and Sebastien walked off the court carrying Megan. Their plane left early in the morning the next day, and they wanted to make the best of their last night in the U.K.