Chapter 4

The parking lot to the La Quinta Resort & Club, the venue hosting the Mercedes Challenge, was packed full with spectators and news crews alike. As Bette drove up and down the aisles in search of a parking spot, she had no need to look around and take in the sights because Donna, Tina, and Alice rambled incessantly about them.

“Oh my God,” Donna grabbed onto Alice’s arm. “Isn’t that John McEnroe?”

“I miss his colorful temper tantrums to be honest,” Tina said. “I would watch his match just to see him snap at someone and start swearing at them.”

The two hour and twenty minute drive had consisted of mostly Alice and Donna debating the power of positive thinking and lesbian deathbed syndrome. Although never a moment of silence, Bette was thankful for at least the change in topics.

“I’m more interested in Chris Evert,” Alice wiggled her eyebrows and displayed a smirk.

“Must you always make everything sexual?” Tina asked as she got out of the car.

“It wasn’t Wheel Of Fortune this time, you can’t take away all my fun.”

“These signs,” Jackie struggled to get out of the car without damaging the signs they brought along. “If she doesn’t damn well win because of these signs I’ll beat her with her own racket.”

“That’s not very supportive,” Donna warned.

“You should have made the drive with them sitting on your lap. I can assure you getting smacked in the face with them wasn’t fun. I’m fixin’ to light them on fire!”

“Fiddlesticks!” Donna shot back. “These are just the inspiration Dana needs to win this match.”

The group began to walk toward the stadium with their special passes allowing them access into Dana’s friends and family box.

Dana rotated her neck as she paced the length of the locker room waiting to be called for her match for the day. She stopped as she watched several television screens broadcasting the current matches taking place.

“There is no try, there is only do and don’t do,” Dana muttered as she recited positive statements from the book. “No try, do or don’t do.”

“Who are you talking to?” Alice asked from behind.

“Jesus! Must you scare me like that?”

“I’m actually helping you, adrenaline and all. What were you saying earlier?”

“Oh,” Dana felt her cheeks redden. “A new mantra.”

“The old one not working for ya?” Alice grabbed a bottle of water, opened it, and began to drink from it as she sat down on the bench.

“How did you get in here anyway?”

“Funny thing,” Alice snorted. “These little passes get us anywhere we want to go.”

“My friends and family pass?”

“No,” Alice smiled. “That’s worth a seat and a close look at your face when you see the signs. I’m talking about this press pass.”

“Press?” Dana arched an eyebrow to mock Alice.

“I am a member of the press as you know,” Alice finished her water and shot the bottle into a trashcan like one would a basketball into a net. “LA Magazine, I know you’ve heard of it.”

“What does LA Magazine have to do with tennis?”

“Nothing, but the pass gets me into special things,” Alice smirked. “So are you ready to serve up the serves that can’t be hit because they are too fast? I can never remember what those are called.”

“Aces.”

“Well knowing what they’re called is the first step,” Alice smiled. “Now you need to get some of those.”

“There is no try, only do or don’t do,” Dana muttered once more before shaking her head yes.

“You do know that what you’re repeating is a quote from Yoda, don’t you?”

“What?” Dana sounded shocked. “It is not.”

“Check the references of the book,” Alice snorted. “I wouldn’t forget a quote like that from one of my favorite movies. Besides, I have it hanging near my desk on a coaster from a sports bar.”

“Great,” Dana slumped on the bench next to Alice. “I’m quoting a snot green freakin’ puppet for inspiration. I’m as good as dead.”

“Well you’re not playing Darth Vader,” Alice laughed as she put her arm around her friend. “Although some of these women certainly could pass for him. They’re mammoth!”

Dana laughed as Alice talked close to a whisper.

“Nobody else has signs like you do, I can promise you that!”

“Ms Fairbanks,” a young girl interrupted the laughter. “It’s time Ms. Fairbanks.”

“Go get Vader, rid the world of the dark side of the force,” Alice said proudly.

Dana shook her head as she followed the young woman out to the entrance of the stadium waiting to be announced.

“Donna Wan Kenobe,” Alice mimicked the movie. “You’re our only hope.”

Donna nudged Tina and discreetly pointed in the direction of a few of the more famous tennis players that were commentating in a booth near Dana’s friends and family box.

“There’s Bud Collins,” Donna smiled. “Such a colorful dresser don’t you think?”

“I think his tie is a monstrosity,” Tina said watching Dana come out of the locker room. “There she is!”

Bette, Tina, Donna, and Jackie began to cheer as Dana was announced and Alice made her way back to her seat.

“I gave her the pep talk Mom,” Alice squeezed Donna’s hand. “She’s quoting Yoda.”

“Then she did read my book?”

“You knew there was a quote in there from Yoda?”

“I always say it’s the person, not the package,” Donna explained. “He may look strange but he really was wise beyond his years.”

“He was like 400 Mom,” Tina spat out. “And not a person, but an animated puppet.”

“Don’t ruin Star Wars for us,” Alice shot back.

“I’d stop while I was ahead,” Bette warned Tina. “Next she’ll be threatening you with the Vulcan neck thing.”

“That would be from Star Trek Bette,” Alice corrected her as Dana began her warm-up. “It’s like a mortal sin to mix those two up.”

The crowd cheered as the chair umpire took his seat and the players were announced and engaged in the symbolic handshake at the net. Dana went to her seat to take a last sip of water and looked up at her friends and family box.

Hanging from the box on display were 4 signs, each as unique as the individual that made them. Jackie’s was simple, a good luck wish for Dana, in colored markers with no glitter to dress the sign up. Jackie hadn’t bothered to use stencils, but rather wrote her letters freehand using bold strokes to make sure that Dana could see them from afar.

Bette and Tina’s sign was the complete opposite. They had used stencils and decorated it with symbols of the game of tennis. Bette drew those freehand using charcoal pencils to give the pictures depth. Dana smiled at the gesture from her friends knowing it was rare that Bette display her artistic skills.

The third sign was surely from Donna as it was blanketed in glitter with the words ‘good luck darlin’ Dana’ displayed proudly. It appeared that not an inch of the poster board could be seen through the mounds of glitter.

The fourth and final sign caused Dana to bite her lower lip to stop from laughing. Alice pointed to the sign below her and waved to Dana, proud to be the creator of the sign that was grabbing her attention. Dana paused long enough to read it entirely, the words displayed causing her to chuckle, relaxing her for her match. She had to give it to Alice that her sign was as humorous as she usually was. Her sign also was decorated with glitter and simply said ‘If you lose at least you’ve sunned your buns’ mocking the shirts that were lovingly given to their closest friends.

“Can we do the wave?” Donna asked as she whistled through her teeth loudly.

“Not likely,” Tina warned as she glanced in Donna’s direction.

“What was that?” Bette asked shocked at the volume of Donna’s whistle.

“It’s my mom whistling.”

“Did she use that to call cattle?” Bette shook her head, wincing when Donna did it once more. “You can hear it for miles.”

“She did use it to call us for dinner, but I wouldn’t liken us to cows Bette.”

Dana began the match by serving, pleased that she was able to hold her service game to begin the competition.

“Now Jackie,” Donna reached into her bag and pulled out a soft-cover book with tennis rackets displayed on the cover. “I’ve managed to read this cover to cover so if you have any questions you let me know Baby.”

“I have to ask,” Alice shook her head. “Do you have a book for every occasion that life throws at you?”

“No, my favorite books are Harlequin romance novels,” Donna clapped as Dana’s opponent held her service game as well. “You should really clap to be polite. We’ll never know when the camera is on us.”

“Harlequin?” Bette’s eyebrow shot up as she noticed Tina blush.

“You should be thanking God that she had those,” Tina shot back. “I snuck so many of those to my room to read the sex parts.”

“You had to read about sex from romance novels?”

“For your information Alice,” Tina nudged her friend. “There is some good stuff in those books.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Alice looked away to avoid Tina gazing in her eyes.

“Right,” Tina chuckled. “Look me in the eye and tell me you’ve never skimmed one of those books for a sex scene.”

“Usually there’s one around page 100,” Jackie blurted out before she could stop herself. “So I’ve heard.”

“Sure,” Alice smiled. “If they don’t have one by page 100 it isn’t worth it.”

“The plots are what matters Girls,” Donna broke in as she clapped for Dana taking the next two games of the set. “She’s really doing it! I can sense that she believes she’s going to win!”

“How good could the plot be of ‘Unmasking The Dark Stranger’ given it’s only a few hundred pages?” Tina asked.

“Or with that title,” Bette added under her breath.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Bette quickly covered up for her comment. “Frankly it’s a bit frightening that, even with all the scripts you read, you remember the name of a grocery store romance novel.”

“It’s not just the grocery store, I get mine from the book of the month club. It’s exciting that 4 of them come even though it’s named book of the month implying it’s a single book.”

“I do remember one,” Tina leaned in to whisper close to Bette’s ear. As she uttered her seductive words Donna elbowed her in the ribs causing her to fall into Bette.

“Don’t make me have to hogtie those hormones Button,” Donna arched her eyebrow. “I’m still recovering from the outburst you had when we first arrived.”

Bette smiled as Tina slumped down in her chair, focusing on the match in front of her. Dana had taken the first set 6-4 but lost the first 2 games of the second.

“She really needs to win this set,” Alice said. “If nothing else spare herself the agony of having to play a third. She’s already sweating like a farmhand in July.”

“Who are you?” Bette’s head whipped around to stare at Alice.

“Sorry, Natalie taught me that back in the day.”

The crowd cheered as Dana won her first game of the second set and began to change sides of the court. Donna whipped her sign off the wall and held it high, facing the crowd behind her.

“Help me rowdy this crowd up for Dana.”

“Back in the day?” Tina repeated what Alice had said. “You hardly have a past with her other than you slept with her.”

“I’m not sure Billy Jean King’s gaydar is working up in that booth, can you say it louder please?”

Dana pulled ahead by a game now, consistently appearing to be talking to herself as she prepared for every shot.

“What is she mouthing to herself?” Jackie asked.

“Her Yoda mantra, but as you can see, it’s working and she’s pulling ahead.”

Dana was now one game away from match point, desperately trying to focus on the match and drown out the crowd that began chanting her name given Donna’s prompting.

“Quiet please,” the chair umpire barked into the microphone. “Quiet please.”

Dana began to serve, the first one easily gotten and smashed back at her.

“That didn’t go well,” Alice muttered cheering louder for Dana.

“She needs to put a little umph in her serve,” Jackie commented cheering her friend on. She grabbed Tina’s hand and squeezed as Tina crossed the fingers on her other hand. “We should even cross our toes if we can.”

“Send positive thoughts,” Donna said quickly. “You can do it Darlin’.”

“Come on Dana,” Bette muttered desperately wanting her friend to win.

Dana served once more, smashing this one over the net, causing her opponent to miss the ball completely.

“It’s an ace!”

“You really do know about tennis don’t you Alice?” Bette asked with a smile.

“I had a quick lesson from today’s star before I sat back down.”

Dana finally served once more, the rally a longer one, but in the end Dana prevailing by approaching the net and placing the ball on an angle where it was impossible to get.

“She won!” Alice said jumping up and down.

Donna rose to her feet and began to hug Alice, then Jackie, and then both Bette and Tina who were hugging and cheering their friend on. The next few minutes were a whirlwind of activity, from the crowd cheering, to Dana being met on center court by Billie Jean King.

“Dana Fairbanks,” Billie Jean said into the microphone. “Congratulations on making it to the finals of the Mercedes Challenge. That was an amazing match.”

“Thank you so much,” Dana stared at Billie Jean King with admiration.

“She has googlie eyes,” Alice said snickering.

“I have to ask, what gave you the inspiration to be able to dig deep and come back from being down 2-0?”

“Just the fans and the cheering inspired me to dig deep and find the strength I needed to pull ahead.”

“I have noticed, nobody else has such colorful signs as those that are in your friends and family box.”

Donna proudly pointed at the signs and waved to Dana as she waved back.

“I know. I really am lucky I didn’t throw myself out the window to avoid being here.”

“What?” Billie Jean asked confused at Dana’s statement.

Dana, thankfully, had already walked toward her friends and family box to thank then for all of their support. She was happy to be embraced in a bear hug from Donna, as Jackie patted her back and congratulated her. Dana smiled toward the back of the box where Bette and Tina were still standing and clapping hard for her. Unable to reach them, Dana blew them a kiss and winked in their direction. She approached Alice and opened her arms for a hug from her best friend as Alice leaned backward to avoid the embrace.

“You’re as sweaty as a prize hog headin’ to the sausage factory,” Alice smiled.

“Get over here and hug me!”

Dana and Alice embraced as the crowd cheered for Dana Fairbanks and her journey to the first finals of a major tournament in her career.