After hitting the ball, the two landed. Hermione bent her knees, cleverly dissipating the force of the fall, and just as she straightened up...
Draco pulled her into his arms.
"We did it!" Hermione was overjoyed.
"Of course, Miss Granger, it seems our cooperation is more than just 'okay'." Draco grinned.
"It's so-so," Hermione said with a hint of excitement.
"Just so-so?" Draco said boastfully. "Didn't I deserve a fantastic performance?"
"It's alright..." Hermione mumbled.
"Um..." Draco lowered his voice, his tone slightly suggestive, "Will there be a reward tonight?"
A reward?! Hermione blushed crimson at the thought of certain embarrassing images, and punched him playfully, whispering, " Draco, what are you thinking about all day?!"
"That's exactly what you think!" Draco continued to hint.
"Shut up!"
The audience went wild as the two flirted without a care in the world.
Amidst cheers and jeers, both teams went off to rest, and Hermione and Draco were immediately surrounded by a crowd and showered with praise.
"That was incredible! That last shot! How did you guys do that?! It was amazing!" Mary exclaimed first.
"Yeah, hitting the ball in mid-air at the same time! That's amazing teamwork. Did you guys practice it secretly?" Susan asked.
"Amazing! That double-hit combo was a stroke of genius!" Barty couldn't help but give the two a thumbs up.
Faced with everyone's praise, Hermione felt a little embarrassed. She waved her hand modestly, "No, it was just good luck and coincidence, and mainly it was Draco..."
I was going to praise Draco,
But seeing his smug expression, Hermione quickly changed her story, "... we didn't think much of it, we just jumped up."
" Hermione and I work together like no other." Draco wasn't going to be modest, and as he spoke, he naturally put his arm around Hermione's shoulder.
"Take it easy!" Hermione threatened silently, raising her fist.
"However, it's mainly because my Hermione is a great leader, and she helped me improve as well." These humble words coming from Draco sounded more like a veiled boast.
Hermione: "..." Forget it, there's no point in arguing with this person.
After watching such a wonderful match, everyone else was itching to play too; doubles is definitely more fun than singles.
So, at everyone's suggestion, another group quickly took to the field: Barty and Mary against Kate and Susan.
Barty and Mary immediately tried to recreate Draco and Hermione's famous scene, attempting to jump in sync and play a mid-air combo. However, their movements were stiff, their rhythm was chaotic, and they frequently collided with their rackets and missed the ball, making the scene quite comical and unbearable to watch.
This caused an even louder burst of laughter from the audience, but the content of the laughter was completely different. Before, it was an admiration for the tacit understanding; now it was a mockery of "imitating someone else's skill."
"Batimari! Are you ballroom dancing?"
Be careful! Don't crash!
"I can't believe it, this is hilarious! Your teamwork... compared to Draco and Hermione's, it's a complete disaster!"
Even their rivals Kate and Susan didn't hold back in mocking them when they saw how flustered they were.
"Talent is something you can't imitate."
" Mary, Barty, are you planning to use a 'laughing your opponents to death' tactic? Hahahaha!" Susan said even more directly.
"Don't be so smug!" Mary blushed with embarrassment at the laughter.
Susan casually remarked, "We have nothing to be proud of; we're just leading by two games."
After saying that, he and Kate exchanged a smile, his arrogance still undiminished.
Mary, exasperated, told Barty, "Fight seriously!"
"Okay." Batty nodded and smiled honestly.
Abandoning unrealistic imitation, Barty and Mary began to cooperate properly. Plus, Barty, being a boy, had an advantage in strength and stamina, and with a few powerful smashes, they quickly overwhelmed the all-female duo of Kate and Susan.
The score was quickly tied.
The score is now tied at 2-2.
Kate and Susan, who were initially struggling, gradually lost their smug smiles and had to plead, " Barty! You're a boy, go easy on us! Don't hit so hard!"
"Exactly, one cannot lack gentlemanly manners!"
"Hmph! Who was laughing at us just now? Now they know to beg for mercy? Too late!" Mary was quite pleased with herself.
Then she turned to Barty and said, " Barty, don't hold back! Today we'll show them what we're made of!"
Barty nodded, his grip tightening completely. Ultimately, thanks to Barty's powerful attacks and Mary's increasingly stable net play, they won this exhibition match.
"That's not fair! You're a boy and a girl! We're two girls, so we're at a disadvantage physically!" Kate said, dissatisfied.
"Exactly! You have to let us win a round next time!"
Honest Barty nodded earnestly, "Okay."
"Are you two idiots? You're thinking of two girls fighting a male-female duo? No matter how many rounds you play, it'll be useless! The difference in skill is obvious!" Mary said speechlessly.
Kate and Susan exchanged glances, then Kate exclaimed with sudden realization, "Oh right, how come we didn't think of that?"
"We were only thinking about giving away points, forgetting that the groups were already unequal. We'll have to regroup next time," Susan laughed.
Seeing their belated realization,
Everyone burst into laughter again.
After a short break, everyone chatted and drank water in small groups, but Becky's gaze remained fixed on Draco.
Her eyes darted around, and a bright, slightly mischievous smile spread across her face as she moved closer to Hermione.
" Hermione ~" Becky smiled and moved closer to Hermione, then affectionately took her arm, her voice sweet enough to melt honey.
"What?" Hermione, who was resting, felt a little uncomfortable with her sudden intimacy and asked her warily.
"Can I ask you for a favor? Can I borrow your Draco for just one game? I want to team up with him for a round, it'll be so much fun!" Becky shook Hermione's arm.
"No, he's tired and needs to rest," Hermione said firmly.
"Just one round, just one round!" Becky started her pleading mode, continuing to gently shake Hermione's arm.
Her voice was soft and sweet.
"I promise, it's purely for playing basketball, absolutely no other thoughts! You saw how frustrating it was to play with Jack just now, let me experience what it feels like to be carried, please!"
As she spoke, she looked at Hermione with those big, pitiful eyes, and even began to praise her:
" Hermione, you're amazing at playing ball! And you have such a great figure! You're beautiful inside and out, you definitely wouldn't be stingy, right?"