𝙆𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝙊𝙁 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘾𝙊𝙐𝙍𝙏.

who says i want somebody to be in love with me?

i don't want to fuck you to prove a point.

fuck me because you want to.

are you gonna do it or not?

tastes even better than it looks.

i just told you i missed you.

i really want to kiss you right now, but i'm worried that if i try, you'll think i'm the worst friend in the world.

you know, it hurts me sometimes how little you believe in yourself.

decimate that little bitch.

let's be honest, you gotta feel bad for the kid.

you're not a spring chicken anymore.

dude. he's a pancake. you're gonna flatten him.

how's this feeling?

we're ready for you.

so obviously this isn't the result you wanted today.

you choked.

i don't want you to embarrass yourself.

i'm just a little rusty. it's a confidence thing.

get your fucking confidence back. i can't do it for you.

i'm so sick of you using this as an excuse to have a fucking meltdown.

you said we could watch a movie.

you're evil.

i'm gonna quiz you on it tomorrow.

sir, i don't know who you are.

i don't think we have much more to talk about.

i haven't spoken to you in five years.

i was just taking a little nap.

move, or i'm calling the cops.

you were really something back then, huh?

we always talked about how amazing it would be to win this together.

i'm a crazy person.

any predictions about how that's going to go?

can you do me a favor? can you not, like... demolish me tomorrow?

shut the fuck up.

if it matters to you so much, i can just give it to you.

i need it to look like i really beat you.

don't guilt me with your dying grandmother.

she's the hottest woman i've ever seen.

you were... fucking incredible.

baby, we've got to get going.

i'm not going to that party.

are you that threatened by me?

we can't both just go in there, dicks swinging.

i'd let her fuck me with a racket.

hey, do you smoke?

of course they will remember you.

see, that's your problem. you think you're like an artist or something.

you just want to win because you love it when people tell you how talented you are.

are you on facebook?

i told you tennis was boring.

you just got this crazy look on your face.

are you on a date?

i don't kiss and tell.

why did you want to have dinner with me?

i think you might be the worst friend in the world.

i didn't know you were so concerned about my feelings.

of course you still have a thing for her.

we just had what i'm assuming is the best sex of our lives.

i fucked your brains out?

what do you think you need? a cheerleader? a fuck buddy? a girlfriend?

you're talented, you're charming, and you've got a big dick.

excuse me for inconveniencing you.

don't expect to sleep here tonight.

stop going easy on me.

i'll be whatever you need me to be. i'll fuck off if you want me to.

i need you here, actually.

you're referring to when i declared my love for you.

you're not in love with me anymore?

i've been dreaming about this for five years.

i'm gonna propose something to you, and it's gonna make you angry. it's gonna make you very angry. but you have to hear me out, okay?

i'm finally ready to listen to you.

how dare you fucking ask me that.

do you think it's cute what you're doing? do you think it's funny?

that's the stupidest fucking thing i've ever heard.

i've always wanted you.

you didn't do anything to me. i did it all to myself.

i think i've reached the limit of my willingness to have this conversation with you.

do you understand how embarrassing it is that you're here?

you've never beaten me.

tell me it doesn't matter.

will you just hold me?

i'm not here to fuck you.

max's smile slowly drops into a strong thin line as his eyes pierce right through that thick skull of dave's. he's starting to lose his patience. “ if you want her body, then be a man and take it already. the thing is, blair doesn't much care for 'coffee' every fucking day like you or i. she'd rather drink from a nice flowing river with all its rich loving nutrients. you catch my drift? ”

He stares at Max for what seems like an eternity, as Dave tries to piece together some sensible explanation for what the other man has just said. And he has to admit, he's come up blank. He's suddenly transported almost a decade back in time, when Sophia had expressed her admiration for another man, and Dave had flown into an inexplicable rage at the idea that his wife would look at anyone else. And here's Max, all but offering his wife up to him.

"You're sick," He finally snarls, the best response that he can offer. And it's true, Dave's always known that these royal families have been fucking weirdos. Maybe it's all the inbreeding. "But I suppose that makes sense, that you get off on being cucked." There's an air of viciousness to his tone now, and ever the sportsman, how can he back down from a challenge?

a hearty laugh bellows aloud, throwing his head back and echoing his natural deep and maniacally evil excitement to the ceiling. “ i'd love to watch you try. by all means, take your shot. let's just hope it's not too late now, hm? you're not exactly the same knight in shining tennis shorts that she used to fawn over. ”

At first, Dave isn't exactly sure how to respond. After all, most men would lose their shit at the implicit threat to the sanctity of their marriage, and that was the sort of reaction he was prepared for. Violence is always the answer in Dave's world, despite all the high-society trimmings and the bullshit dressing-up. The thing about Max that gets under his skin is how he manages to say EXACTLY the thing to wind Dave up.

"You're a psycho." He finally snarls, his expression a mixture of disgust and confusion. He's not saying he's some angel, but he can't understand how Blair's gone for this blond motherfucker. (It was a tale as old as time, wasn't it? Dave assumed that she was the safe option, that she'd always be around, until she suddenly wasn't and his marriage was on the rocks.)

He's silent for a moment — never really a good sign, given how chatty Dave usually is — before he considers dropping the bomb. This has devolved into a mud-slinging match, as it always does, but no one's better at this than the youngest of eight siblings, he'll have Max know.

"You see, the PROBLEM with you is that you get off on this, don't you?" And it took him all of thirty fucking seconds to bring up Blair, like a stick to beat Dave with. He's not exactly in the best frame of mind: he, like everyone else in the tennis world, has seen the pictures of his ex-wife Sophia and his biggest rival Tommy Dvorak splashed all over the tabloids. That feels personal. And here Dave is, sitting across the table from this spoiled Belgian brat, snarling like a caged bulldog.

"Exactly the same as it is today," she teases, throwing him a smirk. "Vain. Arrogant. Self-obsessed." She elbows him gently in the side, smile failing slightly. "But also... you were lost in a strange new world. One that was angling to close its fist around your throat and never let go. You were so-- young... so gullible."

❛  i want to know what love is, i want you to show me.  ❜ ❛  don't stop believin', holding on to that feeling.  ❜ ❛  if you fall, i will catch you.  ❜ ❛  and we can build this dream together, standing strong forever, nothing's gonna stop us now.  ❜ ❛  i'll stop the world and melt with you.  ❜ ❛  some will win, some will lose.  ❜ ❛  hold me now, it's hard for me to say i'm sorry. i just want you to stay.  ❜ ❛  i'm sorry, but i'm just thinking of the right words to say.  ❜ ❛  every time you go away, you take a piece of me with you.  ❜ ❛  cause i'm your lady and you are my man.  ❜ ❛  hello, is it me you're looking for?  ❜ ❛  how can i just let you walk away, just let you leave without a trace?  ❜ ❛  don't go for second best.  ❜ ❛  don't forget me when i'm gone.  ❜ ❛  you're the best around, nothing's ever gonna keep you down.  ❜ ❛  oh, can't you see, you belong to me?  ❜ ❛  you're the meaning in my life, you're the inspiration.  ❜ ❛  life is a mystery, everyone must stand alone.  ❜ ❛  is there something i should know?  ❜ ❛  once upon a time, i was falling in love. now i'm only falling apart.  ❜ ❛  i've got the brains, you've got the looks.  ❜ ❛  welcome to your life, there's no turning back.  ❜ ❛  i'll be there for you, these five words i swear to you.  ❜ ❛  i want to break free from your lies.  ❜ ❛  i'll be gone in a day or two.  ❜ ❛  i should've walked away.  ❜ ❛  no matter what your friends might say, we'll find a way.  ❜ ❛  it's such a shame our friendship had to end.  ❜ ❛  this is the time to remember, 'cause it will not last forever.  ❜ ❛  close your eyes, give me your hand, darling.  ❜ ❛  it's close to midnight and something evil's lurking in the dark.  ❜ ❛  it doesn't matter who's wrong or right.  ❜ ❛  who needs a heart when a heart can be broken?  ❜ ❛  you live for the fight when that's all that you've got.  ❜ ❛  don't lose your grip on the dreams of the past, you must fight just to keep them alive.  ❜ ❛  do i stand in your way or am i the best thing you've had?  ❜ ❛  i wanna dance with somebody, i wanna feel the heat with somebody.  ❜ ❛  do you wanna feel how it feels?  ❜ ❛  i don't know where you're going and i don't know why, but listen to your heart.  ❜ ❛  love's the only thing that keeps me here, you're the reason that i'm hanging on.  ❜

"You don't need to worry about me." The concern and affection in Blair's statement goes unnoticed by Dave, all wrapped up in his youthful exuberance, his thrill at talking about his victories. "We're just two blokes hittin' a ball back and forth." When you put it that way, all the pomp and circumstance of his career seems trivial.

"Of course. Aussie summers are the best." He'd be mad to stay in cold, rainy Europe for the winter. "It makes me feel... I dunno, like a real person for a bit." That is, if he ignores the media frenzy, the hangers-on, all the stuff that didn't exist before the Australian Open.