My usual alarm went off at 7am for my morning run. But I could not get out of bed. For one, it was so comfy and warm that I could spend the whole day just lying in my bed. Also, I was exhausted. Jasmine and I didn't end back in our bedroom until 2am. The party didn't stop until midnight and then Jordan, Jasmine and I went to Jordan's room on the 52nd floor which she shared with Charlie, her cousin, and his girlfriend Rose. Talk about third wheeling. We had a mini rave in her room till 1:00 with Rose while Charlie kept mumbling about how ridiculous girls are. It wasn't until we got engrossed in some horror movie on TV that we finally settled down before Jasmine and I snuck back to our bedroom.
It took my fifteen minutes to get out of bed. It normally took me five. I eventually fell out of bed, literally, which woke me up. I pulled on a Nike crop top and a pair of gym shorts along with my purple Nike joggers. Some girls save for Prada, I save for Nike, I feel like that speaks dedication. I jogged down the 48 flights of stairs, which is a lot easier than it sounds like as it going down stairs, as my warm up. The gym was opened in the other hotel building across from ours and there was about three or four people beginning their routine. I found the tread mill and began to run, pretending I was back home in California running down my street. Music pumped in my ear and my heart beat increased as I sped the speed up. I was in my zone, in my element as I kept on running for about forty-five minutes, before slowing down to a jog. As I stepped off, the gym had slightly filled up a little bit but not as much as a public gym would of course.
Me, being as indecisive as ever couldn't decide between doing my resistance routine or hitting the bags but when I saw a pair of gloves in the corner along with a row of beautiful punching bags I could not resist. Plugging my music in, I strapped on the gloves and begin hitting the bags in my routine. Twenty minutes later when I had paused for a water break I realised someone was calling my name. I turned to see a guy in a hoodie who I did not recognised until I saw some tattoos peeking out from under his clothes. Oh man, I was all sweaty, my hair was most likely a mess as it had fallen out of its braid, not to mention that my face was probably bright red. He approached me, his eyes cautiously darting around the gym.
He stood in front of me without saying anything for a solid minute and during that time my mind managed to go into overdrive. It's like I had completely forgotten how to speak to people.
"Those are my gloves," He finally says, breaking the silence.
Great, I stole the number one player's gloves. Great way to introduce yourself, oh wait you already screwed that one up as well.
"Sorry," I murmured while quickly unstrapping the gloves while trying to face my wrists the other way. Not making that mistake again. I quickly handed the gloves to him and I realised why they had felt like such good quality. A freaking professional uses them, someone who has the money to invest in gloves.
"It's ok," but he takes the gloves anyway, "You're Taylor right?"
I nod, surprised that he actually knows my name.
"You're a good boxer." He says in that deep husky voice of his before walking away.
Alright, hold up. Um, what just happened? Alright. That's cool.
This is like Harry Styles telling a directioner she is a good singer, or Taylor Swift telling a Swiftie she can sing. Can you understand this moment? My heart is in over drive. I can't.
Finally, like ten minutes later, I snapped out of it and hurried back to my bedroom, in no way was I willing to take that much amount of stairs up to my room. Once I entered, Jasmine was awake and watching Wizards of Waverly Place? I took my time showering with nothing planned for today. I dressed myself in a pair of denim shorts, one of my dad's old military shirts unbuttoned over a black crop top and some white Chuck Taylors. My interview with Noah was at 4:05 today. And I was slightly incredibly nervous.
By ten o'clock I finally managed to drag Jasmine out of bed to go out for a late breakfast. We met Jordan in the lobby and made our way down to the nearest local café. The food they had was incredible, and I wanted to eat there forever. I had smashed avocado on sourdough along with tomato, basil and poached eggs and bacon on the side. It was heaven in my mouth.
We explored around the South Coast of Miami along with the bustling city and the people we encountered. We didn't get back to the hotel till 3:30 and then Jasmine and I were shuffled into a limo to take us down to The Hub where the interviews were held. The producers wouldn't let us get changed or fix ourselves due to apparent 'time constraints' so we were going to be interviewed by Noah James looking like a mess.
The Hub was quiet this time in comparison to the last time we were here. The only people around were the girls who were entering or leaving before and after their interviews and the crew. I recognised Charlie, Jordan's cousin, from a birthday Jordan once had. He was now the head cameraman instead of the boy behind the camcorder. Soon I was called upstairs to do my interview after I watched five girls leave the building, some still looking in awe. Nerves pulsed through me as I was ushered into the gym area where mats lined the floor, a training ring stood proudly in the corner and the walls were lined with bags, pads, and gloves along and posters of all the competitors and champions who trained at The Hub. And of course in the centre of all the photos and memorabilia was a photo of Noah James himself.
The Hub was where the professionals trained and competed at. This was where they worked to the limit of their capabilities to fight and make a name for themselves and a legal living. This was one of my dreams. I was too busy taking in my surroundings in awe that I didn't realise in the middle of the room was Noah sitting down, slumped in a chair with another chair across from him.
"Let's speed it up a bit Grace," Marcus called out jestingly and I sped walked to the chair or armchair. I was seated and refused to make eye contact with Noah as two make up assistants rushed over and fixed my make up with a load of foundation and powder so the lights wouldn't wash me out. I didn't realise what lights they were talking about until the big overhead lights were turned on as they disappeared. Before I knew it Marcus called action and Noah was reading the questions in front of him.
To say I was nervous is an understatement. My hands felt clammy and my cheeks were incredibly hot. I knew I looked flustered and incredibly awkward. I'm as smooth as a gum covered desk.
Noah grinned his usual half smirk smile which was captured upon posters plastered around the country. And no wonder why, it can send a heart into over drive. Finally, he began to speak, and his smooth voice was all that I could hear in the room.
"Where did you go grow up?" he questioned. I couldn't meet his eyes but pretended to do so by focusing on the tiny pimple between his two eyes.
"Um, I grew up by the sea in California, but once my dad re-married we moved to Beverly Hills." I tried as hard as I could to keep the bitterness out of my tone.
"Tell me about your family, what are they like?"
Great, really?! Out of all questions he could have asked we had to talk about my fantastic family life.
"Well, we're no Kardashian clan. I don't see my dad much because he's overseas at the moment with work, my step mum she runs the family business and my two step sisters are really fun." You could hear the bull crap oozing from my lips. Yeah, dad was overseas trying to survive each day while fighting for our country. Good old step-mother, Alicia, ran the family business incredibly well, bossing me around while investing the hard profit my father bleeds for on her body. Not to mention the amount of 'fun' my sisters are, hosting house parties and offering loads of entertainment to their guests; their source of entertainment being me.
Noah's eyes flickered with curiosity as sarcasm laced my tone. He got the picture and moved onto the third and final question, "What are three goals you have for your future?"
"I guess, move back to the sea side when I turn 18, pursue my sport goals and in the really far future I reckon it would be really cool to open a gym for teenagers in certain situations to come for free, something like that."
I tried to brush off my goals. I didn't really want all of the USA to hear the plans I have made for my future down to the very dot point. Nor did I want America to think that I pretend to box just to impress Noah James. I could make it as a boxer without being tied to any names.
"Thank you for the time, I shall see you this Sunday."
I shook the hand he offered and the lights went out. I felt relieved, from the lack of heat and lights and attention on me as crew moved around quickly. I shot up from my seat eager to release a tonne load of nervous energy.
I was turning to leave when I heard my favourite voice say, "I didn't know there were sisters on the show."
Looking back at him I saw his confused and curious expression, "No one does, so we should keep it that way."
His lips turned up in the corner, hinting at a smile, "I must say, you are nothing like your step-sisters."
I almost laughed, "I'm going to take that as a compliment." He grinned and was about to say something when his publicist rushed in and whisked him away.