KICKBOX! Volume 1

Released

"Nobody's pickin' you up... Can't fault them. I wouldn't wanna pick up a fuckin' murderer of a son too."

"I would."

"Tsk. Fuckin' punk."

I would imagine stepping out of juvie to be a glorious moment. The sun's bright, signifying a new life ahead of me. The birds are chirping away, serenading a choir for my release. My parents embrace me warmly as soon as I step out of the hell hole, saying shit like, 'We've missed you!".

Yeah right. It's raining crazy out here. I'm in God knows where, but most importantly, I'm craving good food. 2 years ago, my gang got into a huge fight against a bunch of guys from a neighbouring school, and as fate would have it, I ended up in juvie. Now, don't get it twisted, I didn't kill anybody. Whatever that bastard of a prison guard said to me earlier was a misunderstanding, and I'm about to clear it. I was 16 back then, and I also happened to be part of the flying column for my squad. In other words, I was a versatile, well rounded fighter in-charge of both taking out the enemy and covering for the rear guard. You would think that such a position would make me be ranked pretty highly in terms of the gang's hierarchy. Hell nah. It just means that I'm disposable, since I specialise in neither offence nor defence. I was all over the place like some drugged bull. Not only was I seen as a disposable weapon in the unit, being the youngest meant that I was the lowest ranked even in the flying column. As fate would have it, the higher-ups messed up and ended up killing one of the guys with a metal bat. Guess who was forced to take the blame? Yup. It's none other than yours truly, the 'Crazy Bull of Deer Valley'.

Deer Valley is a pretty small town compared to... Alright, I get it. You don't want the backstory and all that stuff. Let's focus on the present. November 2023, it's 9 in the morning, and I need a place to crash at. I was thinking of hitting up Jay or that Nigerian bastard Abaeze, but from what I heard, the whole gang got disbanded. The feds got wind of the members and everyone got arrested and was scattered away in the different detention centres across the country. Upon coming to the conclusion that I may end up being a homeless schmuck at 18, I cringed. That would be pathetic. Plus, I know for a fact that I ain't getting pussy as a hobo.

"Fuck... I can be homeless for all I care. But hoe-less? I must've lost my mind."

And so, I wandered down the streets, slowly inching further and further away from that damned detention centre. I ain't got a phone on me, so all I had was my eyes to ascertain the exact location of where I was. I definitely wasn't in Deer Valley. This wasn't the countryside I was so fond of. There's no point going back there either. Nothing remains of the town that could be of use to me. I could ask a local or two. Let's make it a baddie.

"Hi... Urm, this might be weird and shi but, you mind telling me where we at? Like the name of this town or something?"

"We're in Glaswint Bay... You seem really tired, you alright?"

Somehow, I managed to sneak up behind a cute Asian brunette. She was just slightly shorter than me, with transparent, circle glasses. Her wolf cut was driving me insane. However, it was apparent that she was suspicious of me. Black hoodie with a couple of small holes in it, creased up joggers, and some off brand clogs. I picked up most of the stuff from the nearby chute. It feels like I might end up turning into a hobo for real. What made it worse was the fact that I had no umbrella with me. I was drenched as fuck. I looked like a nutjob and smelled like unwashed cotton. By the way, Glaswint Bay was at least a four hour drive from Deer Valley. This is ridiculous.

"Don't worry bout me, it's all good. Thanks anyways... Oh by the way, do you know any abandoned apartments nearby?"

Great. Now I sound like a crackhead looking for illegal residence. The whole getup made it more convincing.

"Urm... I'm not sure, but I need to go."

"No, please... Please, this is quite urgent."

The two years in juvie really took away my game. If this shit went on for any longer, I'm gonna get arrested again. For fuck sake. With the Asian beauty tipping away in the rain, trying to get away from my dumbass, I ended up getting a bunch of disgusted stares from the public. If this had happened in Deer Valley 2 years ago, I would've slaughtered... Never mind. I'm still living in the past. In the middle of the shopping district, I stood still and lowered my gaze to the concrete floor. The more I look into their eyes, the more I feel like exploding into their faces and bludgeoning them into a bloody mess. The stares then evolved into audible whispers. Negative ones. I could fuckin' hear these snowflakes talk shit about me.

"You're a real creep aren't ya? I saw everything... Get outta here."

Yeah. That seals it. The motherfucker in front of me is about to get clocked in the jaw. They can put me in jail for all I care. At least, not until I'm finished with this guy. I slowly looked up, and peeped at him gradually, till I got a full look on his face. A dry-fit, blue shirt sleeved t-shirt on, a gym bag slung across his shoulder, and some shorts on. The tied-up man bun he had infuriated me even more for some reason. Maybe it's because I had no hair at all. Easy work. He's probably some gym rat. You can lift as many weights as you want, but if you can't fight, there's no point to it. You're just a walking heavy bag with all that mass. Surprisingly, he's physique was more athletic than he was jacked. I'll test his reflexes and warm up a little. It's been 2 years, I might be rusty. Let's provoke him a little. Nothing works better than a hard shove to the ground, followed by a spit on his face.

"You lil' bitch! Pfft!"

The whole 'provoke him so he loses his shit and fights you' worked. In fact, it worked so well that I wasn't really sure if I wanted to fight him anymore. Looks like I'll have to finish him off quickly.