are we still talking about tennis?
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Listing Series
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dear patrick (long life battle with yourself) by gho (hellwurld)
Fandoms: Challengers (Movie 2024)
23 May 2024
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Summary
He won the match, and he won the girl, no matter what Patrick's serve says.
Because, sure, Patrick might've fucked Art’s wife, but she comes home. She keeps coming home, over and over again, and she kisses him hard after he wins, all messy and giggly and smiley like they're outside that Applebee's all over again. Tashi needs him, somehow, in some way, and even if Art doesn't fully get it, he gets her.
It's Tashi and Art Donaldson, and Patrick’s a nobody, with nothing but a hard-on for his own serve and a lack of financial or emotional security.
(Art winning the match and everything that comes after, which includes a dog, a wife that laughs like she's a teenager again, and the development of a true hater attitude.)
Series
- Part 1 of are we still talking about tennis?
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Summary
“Patrick,” Tashi spits out, and Art flinches like she burned him, “I’m talking about fucking Patrick.”
“Well, I hope you’re not talking about fucking Patrick, that’s very inappropriate,” Art jokes, because he can’t help himself. Tashi doesn’t laugh, doesn’t even really smile, but she relaxes, her body releasing all her tension all at once. Art relaxes too, pulling them both back down to be face to face lying down. “What did Patrick do?” Art asks, before frowning and continuing, “Other than, like, everything.”
Tashi sighs. She kicks her feet a bit. She’s acting like Lily, Art thinks affectionately, because he never gets to see Tashi like this anymore, whiny and childish and so distinctly herself, without all the show and competition and manipulation and power plays of tennis and business.
“You always had each other,” Tashi whispers, barely audible, “You were partners, you had each other's backs.”
And Art, for one of the first times in a while, has zero clue where she's going with this.
(Art is talking about tennis, and Tashi is talking about everything else. It feels like an ending, but it's a good one, promise.)
Series
- Part 2 of are we still talking about tennis?
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Summary
Dealing with Art is a lot like training a reactive chihauhau. Their teeth aren’t enough to do damage to anyone but themselves, but they sure are a nuisance sometimes. Patrick helps Art be better, because it’s the least he can do. It’s like molding recycled clay, because it used to be something but then it kept breaking itself and now someone else needs to fix it. Patrick tries to push Art to say less dumb shit, to do less dumb things, because Art needs him. Art needs Patrick, and Patrick is kind enough to stick around. It’s like having an old car that needs fixing, or a pet that needs training. It’s a project.
That’s why Patrick lets Art watch him flirt with girls, why he lets Art third-wheel, because he needs to show Art how good he is, so Art can follow his lead.
(Patrick, Art, and What Not to Do When That Dog You Finally Trained Starts Biting Again)
Series
- Part 3 of are we still talking about tennis?