"Okay." Draco was more than happy to oblige. After saying goodbye to a few players, Draco led Hermione to a relatively open area next to the field, one that wouldn't obstruct others' passage or the game.
He then took a racket and a tennis ball, handed them to Hermione, and then walked behind Hermione, very close, almost touching her back. "Shall we start with the grip?"
"Mmm!" Hermione's heart raced, and she struck a pose...
"Like this." Draco smiled and reached out, encircling her from both shoulders, his palms completely covering her hand holding the racket handle, his fingers adjusting her position one by one.
From the base of the thumb to the fingertips, meticulous and slow.
"It should be like this... your index finger and thumb form a V shape, with the web of your hand aligned with the edge of the handle... Yes, that's it..."
Hermione's cheeks and ears turned red at a visible speed. She had only wanted to "use" Draco a little, to get him to "guide" her, so that she could warm up naturally, and incidentally... satisfy her little desire to get closer to him.
But she didn't expect that this guy, true to his nature, would be so intimate and seductive even when instructing her on a move!
The people in the rest area next door, although their eyes were mainly on the game in progress, couldn't help but glance at the good-looking couple warming up.
Seeing Draco hug Hermione from behind and teach her how to hold the paddle, coupled with the almost bubbly atmosphere between them, the two exchanged a motherly smile.
The men glanced at it, then turned back to watch the game; young people, a bit of excitement is to be expected...
"Don't be too stiff in your wrists, relax a bit..." Draco was still giving earnest instructions, his other hand even gently supporting Hermione's waist to help her adjust her posture, "Feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent... lower your center of gravity..."
But Hermione's mind wasn't on that at all. Wherever he touched her, it felt like she was being electrocuted. A surge of heat spread from where his palm covered the area. In that situation, it was as if all her tennis skills had vanished, and she could only passively adjust her posture.
"Okay, now, try swinging the racket gently to feel the grip and posture..." Draco stepped back slightly, but his hand was still resting on her waist as he watched intently.
Hermione nodded, blushing, and tried to swing the racket as instructed. Her movements were a bit clumsy, but at least she managed to swing it.
"Good," Draco encouraged, then moved closer again, this time to help her adjust the angle of her backswing, "Higher arm, racket head pointing backward... Yes..."
Throughout the warm-up process, Draco was extremely patient and professional, striving to provide thorough guidance on every detail.
Of course, a fair amount of oil was wiped off, but it was mostly normal physical contact and nothing out of line.
But whether it's proper or not is up to Hermione to decide. This guy's fingers are really mischievous. When he speaks, he gets extremely close, and his deep voice combined with his warm breath is practically a deliberate provocation!
After much effort and with the other person's close guidance, she managed to review the grip, stance, and a few basic swing movements. Her cheeks were flushed red, and fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead—half from heat, half from embarrassment.
Knowing Hermione's situation, Draco picked up a towel and wiped the sweat from her forehead while she was studying.
While wiping, he leaned closer to Hermione's ear and said, " Miss Granger, have you finished reviewing? If not... I don't mind continuing with more 'in-depth' guidance, such as... the serve toss, that requires closer distance..."
Meeting his mocking gaze, Hermione finally realized she had let a wolf into her house. She snatched the towel from his hand, hastily wiped herself a couple of times, and then, forcing herself to remain calm, said, "Almost done! You can start!"
"Alright!" Draco laughed.
About twenty-five minutes later, everyone had had their turn, except for Draco and Hermione.
" Draco, Hermione, it's your turn! Who wants to go first?" Jack called out to the two of them from above, his racket propped up on the table.
"Let my wife go first," Draco smiled slightly, naturally placing his hand on Hermione's shoulder. " Jack, why don't you spar with her? I'll watch and learn."
"No problem! It's an honor to play ball with such a beautiful lady!" Jack laughed heartily, gesturing for Hermione to join him, and said, " Hermione, don't be shy, just play casually and have fun!"
The onlookers also egged Hermione on to give it a try.
Encouraged by Draco and the others, Hermione, racket in hand, walked to the side of the court and said to Jack, "Nice to meet you."
Draco, meanwhile, sat down leisurely, picked up a bottle of water, unscrewed it, took a sip, and then began to watch the game.
"Ladies first, you serve. We're all amateurs, just playing for fun!" With the idea of practicing with Hermione, a novice, Jack's stance was relatively relaxed.
"Okay." Hermione replied, picked up the ball, stood at the baseline, and quickly went through the steps of the serve in her mind.
Things like throwing the ball straight and high...
Eyes on the ball, push off the ground and rotate the body, swing the racket to hit the ball slightly before the highest point of the swing, and press down the wrist to add spin to the ball, etc.
Theoretically, she gets a perfect score.
After going through it once, Hermione held her breath and tossed the ball up. The ball went a little to the left and wasn't high enough. She panicked and quickly adjusted her footwork, hastily swinging her racket.
With a "thud," the ball flew limply across the court, lacking both speed and spin. It was clearly an underhand serve, seemingly sent to be hit.
However, Jack was kind enough not to hit the ball directly, but instead used a forehand push to return the ball to Hermione's forehand position. The ball was slow, had a high trajectory, and landed in the mid-court, making it very easy to receive.
An opportunity! Hermione immediately realized, and then she quickly moved her feet, ran behind the ball's landing point, and prepared to hit a beautiful forehand cross-court shot.
The ideal is very rich.
The reality is that her footwork was a bit erratic, and she stumbled a little when she reached her position. In order to regain her balance, her backswing motion Transfiguration, and her hitting point was too late. When she swung her racket, the rotation of her waist and hips was out of sync with the swing of her arm, and when she hit the ball, it looked more like she was swinging her arm out.
The ball did hit the net, but it had neither speed nor angle, and flew straight towards the middle of Jack's position.
"Good shot!" Jack called out politely, took two easy steps, and delivered another gentle backhand block, returning the ball to Hermione's backhand side. He still didn't use any power, and even deliberately returned the ball to an area where Hermione could easily receive it.
Backhand! Hermione quickly ran to the left. Backhand was something she wasn't good at. All she could think about was gripping the racket with both hands, drawing back the racket early, and using her body's strength... But by the time she got there, she was already in a bit of a rush, and ended up pushing the ball away again.
The moment the ball was hit, Hermione knew it was over!