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Jiyu didn't have much natural talent for sports. However, regardless of that, Ae-jeong's philosophy was that tennis was a social sport for the upper class, so learning it now would be useful someday.
Hunter would stay on the court even after his own lesson was over to watch her. He would giggle at her clumsy backhand form or act frustrated when she missed an easy ball, asking how she could possibly miss that.
If she botched a swing and the ball became a moonball, soaring high and landing inside the netting hanging from the ceiling, he would point and laugh.
Even when she begged him to please go somewhere else, he would use the excuse of practicing his footwork to stay until her lesson ended, constantly interfering and telling her this or that.
Recalling that made him feel even more obnoxious now.
[…I can't. I have to go to Chloe's birthday party.]
Jiyu replied coldly.
[No. Come to my tournament. Just try not coming, Jew Parker!]
Hunter growled in a threatening tone, baring his teeth.
Jiyu let out a sigh of patience. Usually, when he was this stubborn, she would give in just because it was a hassle. But this time, it was truly difficult.
Chloe was Jiyu's one and only best friend. With a father who was a lawyer and a mother who was a law professor—both Korean—she loved reading as much as Jiyu did and was quite proficient in Korean.
The two got along very well; whenever they had a secret they wanted to share, they would whisper in Korean so the other children couldn't understand. The thought of school life without Chloe was simply terrible.
A birthday happened only once a year, but tournaments happened twice a month. Therefore, there was no need to overthink it. Skipping her best friend's birthday party to go to Hunter's tournament? That was absurd.
[I'll go next time. I can't this week.]
Jiyu shook her head with a firm expression.
[Why? Why not?]
She took a deep breath and pressed her lips tight. Talking to Hunter, who seemed to believe the world revolved around him, sometimes felt suffocating.
[I already RSVP'd that I'd attend the party, and I've already bought a gift. Chloe will be really sad if I don't go to her birthday party. We're best friends.]
'You're not the only one with friends, Hunter Hamilton.'
She didn't say that last part out loud.
[Then what about my tournament!]
Hunter's face crumpled as he bolted up from the sofa.
Jiyu couldn't understand such an extreme reaction. He was acting as if she had personally ruined the tournament. She blinked, bewildered.
[…What do you want me to do about your tournament?]
Jiyu turned her head away primly, avoiding his eyes, which were filled with a menacing energy. She felt uneasy and uncomfortable, not knowing why he was acting this way.
After hesitating for a moment, she asked.
[Is there, by any chance, a reason why I absolutely have to go?]
[Dang it, Jew Parker.]
Hunter glared at Jiyu, chewing her name between his teeth.
Despite looking so pale and scrawny that she seemed as though she would crumple like a thin piece of paper if held in one's hand, she had a quite stubborn side.
She couldn't even utter a word in front of other kids, yet she chatted away so freely in front of him.
'Ugh, damn. I really don't want to tell her the truth.'
But he had no choice. Hunter rolled his eyes and stared at a white clump of cobwebs in the corner of the treehouse ceiling. A single, dried-up fly was stuck to it.
Having steeled himself, he reluctantly spat out the truth.
[Yes. There is a reason why you absolutely have to come.]
[So, what is that reason?]
Asking Jiyu Parker of all people for a favor was the greatest humiliation of his life. But he wanted to win. So, he had no choice.
Hunter knew he was a special existence. It was thanks to the people around him who constantly reminded him of how great it was to be born a Hamilton.
Even without trying, he already had too much. Things given easily, without the chance to long for them, quickly became boring.
But tennis was different. Running with his own body, sweating, and seizing the champion's trophy was a thrilling and addictive experience. For the first time in his life, he had something he wanted, and he naturally became desperate for it.
He licked his dry lips.
[There's something I need to check.]
[What?]
[Whether you're actually my winning jinx or not.]
[…What?]
Jiyu looked at him with a shocked expression. Her pale brown eyes, of a slightly different saturation, widened as if they might pop out.
When Hunter remained silent, she asked again.
[What does that mean? Me, a winning jinx?]
He rubbed his face with his hand, making a dissatisfied, simmering sound.
[Thinking about it, I think the reason I didn't win the last tournament was because of you.]
[What?]
[Jew Parker. Is 'what?' the only thing you can say?]
[…What?]
The two glared at each other in silence for a while.
Jiyu let out an audible snort of disbelief. Seeing this, Hunter almost exploded in anger but managed to suppress it. It was annoying and unfair, but he was the one who was desperate. Not Jew Parker.
Hunter kept his mouth shut, his jaw twitching as he took a deep breath. Having never had to hold back before, he hadn't realized that suppressing oneself was such a difficult task.
Once he had calmed down a bit, he spoke again.
[Listen carefully. All great tennis players have jinxes. Rafael Nadal arranges his water bottles in a specific order before a match. Serena Williams wears the same socks she wore when she won throughout a tournament. Roger Federer always arrives at the court at the same time and does the exact same warm-up. There's even a player whose jinx is his father coming to the court, so his father intentionally leaves for a distant place during the match.]
Do you get it now, Jew Parker, you idiot?
He only thought that last sentence in his head.
Jiyu tilted her head with a pouty face. The story about jinxes was quite interesting, but she still couldn't understand.
[So? What does that have to do with me?]
[In the recent tournament, I did exactly what I did in the two tournaments I won previously. Same clothes, same shoes. My skills are even much better now than they were then. I've had quite a few more serve aces. And yet, I was knocked out without even making it to the finals.]
Hunter tilted his head and glared at Jiyu. She instinctively flinched her shoulders.
[The only difference was you. You didn't come to watch my match. Thinking about it, I think you're my jinx.]
[…That's ridiculous. How can you be so stubborn?]
When Jiyu protested, Hunter pushed further.
[That's why I'm saying let's find out if it's true or not! If you come and I still don't win, then you're not my jinx. If you come and I win again, then you are my jinx. If you keep refusing to cooperate like this… I'll tell my mom to invite your mom.]
[That's—that's cheating!]
[Who cares.]
Hunter smirked annoyingly and crossed his arms.
Jiyu fumed, glaring at him. It was Hunter Hamilton's specialty to push forward like a bulldozer after saying something completely devoid of logic. If Lauren asked, Ae-jeong would surely tell her not to go to Chloe's birthday party and go to Hunter's tournament instead.
'How do I get out of this?'
Lost in thought, Jiyu racked her brain. Then, she remembered a book she had read as a child.
'The Kissing Hand!'
It was a picture book mothers read to soothe children with separation anxiety. Ae-jeong had never read it to her, but Jiyu had liked the book so much that she had read it over and over again.
When a baby raccoon felt anxious about going to school and being away from its mother for the first time, the mother raccoon kissed the baby raccoon's palm. She told him that whenever he missed her, he could press his palm to his cheek and feel his mother's love, even if they were apart.
On the back pages of the book, there were several heart stickers that said 'Kiss'. Whenever she felt anxious about going on a forced playdate with Hunter, Jiyu used to leave the house with one of those stickers on her palm.
Suddenly, an idea struck her.
After organizing her thoughts for a moment, Jiyu looked up.
[Hunter?]
[What.]
Hunter, who had grown so tall he almost touched the ceiling of the treehouse, answered in a disinterested voice.
[Um… I read it in a book written by a famous psychologist, but it said that in order to feel someone's presence, that person doesn't necessarily have to be physically present.]
At the cryptic words, Hunter's eyes wavered in confusion. Then, he furrowed his brow deeply.
[What kind of nonsense is that?]
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