Naked Hero - The Journey Away

asked having made his way over to her as stealthily as possible.
    “Good, Lewis! Good!” she replied, smiling towards him as he sat beside her under the shade of a parasol the ground staff had provided. “And how are you?”
    “Oh, I’m fine... Now don’t let me interrupt you. I’ll just sit and watch Chantal for a few minutes if that’s okay. Maybe I can pick up some hints on what it takes to win here.”
    Marie shook her head indulgently. “No, you’re not interrupting. I was just jotting down a few ideas for my book.”
    Lewis looked at the notebook which Marie was holding, seeing a variety of undecipherable scribbles that a spider could have made. “How’s it coming along?”
    “Slowly,” she answered, closing the notebook, as if there was a danger of Lewis stealing her ideas. “But I should start writing soon. I have my vision at last.”
    “Happy ending?” asked Lewis in a sarcastic tone.
    “Is that what you like, Lewis: books with happy endings?”
    “Of course I do! I always hope for a happy ending. I get seriously pissed off when the author decides that life isn’t like that all the time.”
    “I’ll bear it in mind,” said Marie.
    Lewis shook his head, doing so with a smile. “No you won’t. Most of your characters will be miserable at the end. I battled my way through one of your books. Took me an age, and cost me a fortune in therapy to get over it. I’ve a good mind to send you the bill. Happy endings are not in your repertoire, Marie.”
    She laughed. “I’ll write one especially for you, Lewis. With easy words so you can read it faster.”
    Lewis chortled in return. “Don’t you get lippy with me, young lady! I can read books with big words as well. It just takes me a while to plod through them, and I know the endings are going to be depressing, so I usually give up after a few pages.”
    Marie gave him a hug and a peck on his cheek. “Oh, Lewis, you’re such a class act! What would I do without you?”
    Having finished their traditional banter, they sat quietly for a few minutes and watched Chantal as she glided effortlessly around the court.
    “She looks good,” said Lewis. “She could do it again.”
    “We’ll see,” replied Marie. “She’s more relaxed now, having won two Grand Slams. Less pressure: but more expectation.” She glanced towards Lewis with the final words, aware that he knew all about the expectations of a defending champion.
    “Whose expectations?” he asked.
    “Her own of course,” replied Marie, her tone betraying a deep-seated concern that those expectations might prove too much for Chantal who was about to embark on her first Grand Slam title defence. Putting this aside, she turned to Lewis in a half-hearted attempt to tease some snippet of intrigue out of him. Marie was sure there was plenty to be had. There always was with Lewis. It could do no harm to cast a line and see if the fish might bite. “But what about you?” she quizzed. “You look more relaxed as well.”
    “I am actually,” answered Lewis brightly. “I’m glad we’re almost there now. It’s been a long break since playing in Sydney. I want to get onto the court again for real and play an actual match.”
    “I’m relieved to hear that. But wasn’t there an article about you in one of the papers today? I thought that that might have dampened your spirits.”
    Lewis felt slightly uncomfortable at the mention of this. Jim had referred to it as well this morning - and whilst Lewis had elected not to read the article, he could imagine what it was about. “I try not to worry about that sort of stuff. There’s no point.”
    Marie was far from convinced. But Lewis obviously didn’t want to talk further on the matter, so she decided to let it go. They sat in silence once more - Marie returning her outward attention back to Chantal, whilst inwardly debating if she should fish some more. As it happened, Lewis gave the opening without any need for her to throw more bait.
    “Marie.… Can I ask you something?”
    “Of course. What is it Lewis?”
    “No… it doesn’t matter.”
    Marie turned round immediately and saw Lewis staring at his feet. It was obvious from the sudden change in his expression, and the anguish that she had heard in his voice, that it most certainly did matter. Whatever it was, Lewis was looking for guidance, and whilst Marie considered herself an unlikely source, she was here, and she was his friend, and there was a debt that was