Pickleball Heat

The sun glared down on Lexi with a mischievous grin. “You think you can outlast me?” he chuckled. “I am relentless and fierce.” He elevated his chest, intensifying his rays. “Feel that, Ms. Lexi,” he sneered. How long will you survive now?” Observing his work, he tilted back, smugly waiting to witness the outcome.

           Sweat beads trickled down Lexi's forehead as her moist palms tightened around her Lear Lox Pickleball paddle… “Dink.” The crowds were silent as she and her longtime partner, Micah, fought for the last Dudley Pickleball Tournament championship spot. They needed one more point to win. Micah had served the ball into the net, and now it was Lexi’s turn—she was the second server. Nothing would stop her, not her recent breakup with Micah nor the evil Sun radiating a harsh 105-degree heat, the hottest day recorded this summer.

Focusing on the task, she dropped the neon orange ball and swung. It cleared the net effortlessly. Their opponents, Sandy and Jake, returned the shot, and now they were locked in dinking war, trading quick shots just over the net. Lexi seized the moment by spotting an opening, driving the ball with intense grit between her challengers.

“Victory!” Lexi exclaimed as she kissed Dink and gave Micah a clammy high five. The sweaty teams met at the center court and touched paddles, ending her first battle.

“I can’t believe she won,” the sun raged. “Now I must up my game; just wait until the championship.” He scoffed as he intensified the blistering heat.

The victory meant facing her arch-nemesis, Penelope Parker—a five-eighth-freckled-faced redhead with a temper as fiery as her hair. Lexi lost to her last year in a grueling championship game, and Penelope never missed a chance to remind her of that bitter defeat.

Lexi had an hour and a half to shower, change, cool off, relax, and pray for cloud cover. When Jake came to her table, she was nibbling on a light snack at the Drop Shot Café, preparing her thoughts for the upcoming competition.

“Lexi, Are you ready?” Jake asked as he sat down next to her.

“I am..” she replied. “I just need to focus on the win. But I am a little anxious about this heat,” she admitted. “The sun is brutal,” she rolled her eyes, “I almost fainted in that last game.”

“You got this, Lex.” Jake gently touched her arm, his bright blue eyes connecting with hers, “I look forward to you beating Penelope.”

“Thanks for the confidence in me,” she said nervously, looking down at her plate. “You guys fought hard, too. That was an excellent match.” She blushed.

“Can I walk you to the court?” Jake asked.

“I’d like that,” Lexi replied, smiling as she grabbed her gear.

 Jake dropped her off at court two, approached the bleachers, and sat in the second row behind Lexi’s bench.

She began her mental and physical routine to prepare for the next fight. Between the stretching, she prepared her mind. “I can play pickleball,” she said to herself. “Nothing will stop me, not the sun, not Penelope, not Micah, not Jake.” She continued to encourage herself, “I can do this.” Focused, she grabbed Dink and began her warm-up routine with Micah.

Penelope and Red entered the court and began to warm up.

“Are you guys ready to lose?” Penelope taunted, “How will you guys win? You could not even make your relationship work?”  Penelope teased and sneered. Red Laughing alongside her.    Micah and Lexi stopped warming up and met in their assigned time-out spot.

           Micah looked at Lexi, “Don’t let her get into your head, he encouraged, “This is our game; we got this.” He put his hand up for a fist bump.

“I won’t let her mess with my head,” she said, giving him a fist bump; “thanks for the encouragement.” They continued to warm up. Penelope and Red kept trash-talking, and Micah and Lexi continued to keep their focus. They may not have been on the same page in their relationship, but they were absolutely on the same page for the Pickleball Tournament. Both were competitors, and both sought to win.

As the game began, Lexi knew that both teams were equal in ability. Deep down, she recognized that this championship would come down to the team that desired it most and fought the hardest. They would have a good chance of winning if she could tolerate the heat long enough.

They had been playing for fifteen minutes, and Lexi's sweat… had sweat… her hat no longer held the moisture from her eyes. The score was now eight to nine. Penelope and Red were in the lead; it was Lexi’s turn to serve.

 Lexi’s clothes clung to her like saran wrap; her heart raced, and her face was bright red. She was unsure how it happened, but she aced the serve. It cleared the net and landed on the side corner, past the kitchen, touching the line. To their astonishment, Red missed the return.

 “Ball is in,” the scorekeeper claimed.

Penelope’s temper flared. “Are you sure about that!?”

Not distracted by Penelope’s rudeness, the scorekeeper repeated herself, “Balls in.” Micah and Lexi gently tapped paddles, switching positions as the scorekeeper firmly warned Penelope of her unsportsmanlike behavior.

“nine/nine/two”—the Referee called out. This meant the score was nine to nine, and Lexi was the second server. The crowd was silent.

The sun was beating down on Lexi’s face. Wiping the fluid from her forehead, she could feel the heat radiate through the soles of her sneakers. Not daunted by the explosive temperature, she began her serve with a drop of the neon ball, then…Whack! The ball cleared the net, but this time, Penelope returned it with a drop shot to the corner of the kitchen. Lexi raced to retrieve the shot and returned it with a dink in the opposite corner of the net. Penelope returned the dink with a lob over Lexi.

 “Switch!” Micah called out. Lexi sprinted to Micah’s side of the court. He smashed it right in the center between Red and Penelope, and they both fumbled after it.

 Lexi collapsed on the blistering court…

“You are finished, Ms. Lexi.”  The sun's rays danced in triumph. “The victory goes to Penelope.” The sun noticed some clouds coming in his direction. “Come clouds,” he jeered,” You are too late.”

Lexi could feel her heart racing. The intense heat from the court felt like her back was engulfed in flames, and her face was pale. Her body…deflated. She could not see, but her hearing was intact.

“Lexi, Lexi, are you ok?” She could tell that it was Micah’s voice. She wanted to reply, but her overheated frame could not articulate an answer.

“Micah, call 911 quickly,” Jake shouted,” and someone get some ice, cold water, and a cloth, now!” Jake scooped her limp, one-hundred-and-ten-pound, five-foot body into his muscular arms and gently placed her in a shady spot on a table. After ensuring she was comfortable, he slightly elevated her legs and began putting icepacks on the back of her neck and under her armpits.

Even in her unconscious state, she could hear Penelope’s toxic whispering… “Red, do you think they will forfeit?” she murmured, “I think we may have won.” She snickered, giving Red a victory high five. “I knew Lexi couldn’t take the heat.”

At that moment, Lexi's eyes began to open and slowly came into focus; the paramedics continued to cool her down.

Lexi…” One of the paramedics said. “Lexi, do you know where you are?”

“Yes, at a pickleball tournament.” She responded, still a little weak.

“You suffered from heat exhaustion,” he informed her. “How are you feeling?”

Just then, the Tournament coordinator, Mr. Pickle, approached Micah. “Sorry, Micah, but we must know if you will continue or forfeit the game. It’s already been a little over thirty minutes.”

“Of course, they forfeit,” Penelope interjected, not even waiting for Micah’s response. “Lexi can’t play,” she smugly chuckled.

“Yes… I can.” Lexi stood confidently, holding her faithful companion Dink.

“It can’t be!” the sun, still radiating unpleasurable heat, said. No…it just can’t be.” The clouds continued to close in. “Go away, clouds.” The sun demanded, trying to shine its rays through the grayness, but to no avail; the clouds were more powerful. The Sun desperately pleaded, “Go away, clouds, please… I need to see who wins.”

“Not today, you won’t,” the clouds coldly responded, covering the sun entirely, hiding its flame.

Penelope flew her hands up in shock. “Doesn’t she need a medical clearance or something, Mr. Pickle?” Penelope stammered over her words, placing her hands on her hips and rolling her eyes.

“Well…” He glanced at the paramedic, “Is she good to go?”

“All signs point to yes,” he smiled, adding, “But I’ll stick around, just in case.” “Also, I need to see who wins.” He said with a chuckle.

The teams will have ten minutes to warm up,” Mr. Pickle announced. “Then let’s get this game going.” Clapping his hands, he made his way over to the scorekeeper.

Lexi was astonished at how rejuvenated she felt; it was as if the inside of her body was filled with little ice cubes. Gazing up at the refreshing cloud cover, she smiled, thankful it was guarding her from the sun's ruthless assaults.

 After ten minutes, the scorekeeper called the score to begin the game, “Ten/nine/two,” the keeper announced, “Lexi’s serve; game point.”

“One more point, that’s all we need,” Lexi said to herself, “I got this.” Once again, she dropped the bright, orange-holed ball… Whack! Perfect serve to the opposite side. Red returned the serve with another drop shot, but Lexi got it and dinked it on the right side of the court. Red retrieved it, trying to hit it over with a rollover shot, but it hit the net, falling back on Red and Penelope’s side of the court.

Victory! Lexi and Micah were the new champions of the Dudley Pickleball Tournament.

Once again, the two teams came together in center court to tap paddles, except Penelope, who flung her paddle to the ground and stormed off—disappearing into the locker room.

“Hey, drinks on us,” Micah said to Red with a grin. “Meet us at the Drop Shot Café in an hour.”

“See you there,” Red replied. Before returning to the locker room, he turned to Lexi and said, “I am glad you are okay.”

“Thanks, Red.”

He raised his hand as a sign of a truce. Lexi shook it.

“I am glad you are okay, too,” Micah hugged Lexi, “See you at the Café.” Lexi smiled as she gently squeezed his hand and watched him enter the locker room.

Turning to Jake, Lexi whispered, “You saved my life.” Their eyes gazed at each other as she took his smooth hand. “Thank you.” She leaned in and gently kissed him on the cheek.

“Anytime, Lexi, I am here for you.”

“Will you come to celebrate with us?”

Jake hesitated momentarily. “Well…I am not sure,”

The joy from Lexi’s face immediately faded.

He grinned, “Only if you take a shower?”

Lexi laughed, giving him a playful punch in the arm.

Lexi was grateful as they parted ways to prepare for the festivities, knowing that the day's events could have taken a different turn without her friends' support.

“I will get you, Lexi,” the sun’s evil laugh pierced the sky, “you just wait and see.”