Punch!

Chapter 20: Will the Winner Please Stand?

Chapter 20

Will the Winner Please Stand? 

Ivy was overwhelmed. And wearing high heels. Really high heels. "What did I say about sensible footwear?" Suzette nudged her.

"I don't follow such foolish rules." Ivy was trying to use a joking tone, but her eyes were elsewhere, scanning around Catty Blue's Fight club. She was frozen, too afraid to move and only doing so when she was bumped into by a beer chugging by stander. 

"No one is going to taze you." Suzette said. "So you can take that look of terror off your face."

"S-sorry." Ivy stuttered, blinking a few times to get her focus back. "Hey, look." Ivy raised her hand and pointed to a bright blue banner strung near the ceiling. "Tonight's a big night, I guess."

Suzette read the large block letters to herself. Semi-Finals Celebration! 

So that was why Reed hadn't wanted her there. Before she could contemplate further, Suzette heard her name being called. 

"You look fabulous!" It was Harmony, all dolled up in a skin tight black dress. Her hair was flawlessly curled and Suzette immediately sensed Ivy's gravitation toward the gorgeous stranger. 

"Hey Harmony." Suzette smiled, motioning Ivy over. "This is my best friend Ivy Terrance."

"Sounds like the name of a mansion!" Harmony exclaimed. "I'm Harmony Lowe." She enveloped Ivy in an unexpected embrace. "I'm totally digging those shoes!"

Ivy relaxed. "Thanks! They were a total splurge but I needed a little gift to myself to keep me going through finals."

"Ugh I know exactly where your coming from." Harmony sympathized. Suzette was simply glad the two of them got along. 

"Ahem!" A noticeable quiet rushed throughout the crowd as Catty Blue climbed onto the mat and cleared his throat into the microphone.

"That's Catty Blue." Harmony explained to Ivy. "He's the owner of this joint, and my boyfriend." Suzette could tell Ivy desperately wanted to make a disgusted face, but she somehow refrained. Suzette was relieved.

"Tonight's the semi finals, folks." Catty continued. "There's some good news and some bad news. Which first?"

"Bad news!" A few drunk men yelled from the mob.

Catty took a gulp of the beer bottle in his hand. "Alright, bad news is we only have one contestent eligible for the finals at Catty Blue's Fight Club, so they'll only be one fight tonight." He waited for a few annoying boos to die out. "But the good new's is we've got the best of the best representing us tonight! Ladies and gents, if this boy wins, he'll be heading off to duke it out with his opponents in the finals, which will be hosted right here in two weeks!" The crowd cheered. "Give it up for the one and only Reed Fields!" 

Reed came out right on cue, galloping to the beat of the audience's encouraging claps. He jumped onto the mat and ran over to Catty. 

"Reed, my boy, how're you feeling about your chances?" Catty asked.

Reed leaned over to the microphone, casting a charming grin. "I wasn't so sure before Catty," Reed's eyes scanned the crowd. He paused a moment and then he found what he was looking for: Suzette. "But suddenly I'm feeling pretty good."

"Alright!" Catty hollered, he then went on to introduce Reed's opponent, Pauly, whom he had just fought the last time. But Suzette's thoughts were elsewhere.

Harmony and Ivy were both staring at her. "What was that, Suzie?" Ivy asked.

"I don't know." Suzette answered quietly. She felt a rush of blood in her cheeks. Was she blushing?

Harmony looked satisfied. "The fight hasn't even started and things are heating up!" 

But seconds after Harmony spoke, the fight did begin. Suzette didn't wince much. There was the occasional face punch here and there, but nothing too enthralling yet. In fact, in went on for a good fifteen minutes and there wasn't a clear winner. But then Reed pulled an arm over Pauly's head. Pauly fought back, his muscles going rigid. The two were twisted around each other and pushing one another into various corners of the mat, stressing the old elastic. Suzette spied Catty watching very closely from the sidelines as Reed began to pull Pauly down. But then Pauly got the influence on Reed in what seemed like a mila second, getting Reed's skin dangerously close to the mat. But then it was Reed who was in the lead, and then Pauly, and then Reed, and then...Suzette couldn't tell. All she knew for sure was that the two competitors were both on the mat, lying next to each other and not moving. 

Catty jumped up onto the mat and starting talking to them. Pauly sprung up, rage on his face and Reed supported himself with his elbows, still laying on the mat's face. Catty put a hand up near Pauly, and it looked like he was trying to get him to calm down. Catty got off the mat and went over to some men on the other side. They talked in a hushed circle. 

"Harmony, what the hell is going on?" Suzette was so confused. She wondered how out of it Ivy felt. 

"This doesn't happen too often," Harmony's eyes were glued to Catty. "But when it does, it doesn't end pretty."

"Well why are they in a little circle over there?" Ivy asked, feeling disconnected.

"Catty has to consult his unofficial referees." Harmony said. 

Suzette was growing impacient. "Can you just tell us what happened? We're in the dark, here."

"Yeah, sorry, okay." Harmony collected herself. "Sometimes in the fights it's difficult to tell who had the lead. Meaning that no one can tell for sure who won. But since Catty and the refs are so close to the mat, they are able to see many things that the crowd can't from a distance. They have to decide who they think won. It's not a perfect science though, and sometimes they're wrong." Harmony paused. "That's when things can get messy."

After a few more minutes of stillness, Catty jumped back onto the mat. "After a deliberation with my council," He made it sound so un necessarily official. "We have declared the semi-finals winner." The whole crowd seemed to lean in close, as if it would actually help them hear better. "Reed Fields!" Reed stood up with a huge grin on his face and politely bowed to the crowd. "Reed will be going to the finals," Catty continued his gloating. "And Pauly will not."

The crowd was going wild and Suzette felt like she was the only one who noticed Pauly gruffly brush  past Reed and whisper something into his ear. Anger flashed across Reed's face as he turned to follow Pauly out some back door. Catty jumped back on the microphone to announce a round of free drinks and the easily pleased crowd turned and made way toward the bar. 

Suzette tapped Ivy and Harmony on their shoulders. "I'm going to go to the bathroom." She lied. "You two stay together so I can find you, okay?" Ivy and Harmony nodded and said they were going to get some chips from the vending machine.

Suzette held onto her cover and walked toward the front of the building, where the bathrooms were. But instead of veering to the left, she quickly pushed out the front door and down the skinny alley way. She was set on finding the fighters.