I reattached my head gear in the ring, squishing my mouth brace across my teeth. I was pumped up, adrenaline cursed through my bloodstream like a laser beam. I bounced left and right, while my manager stood outside the ring with sharp, determined eyes.
"You got this," he said. "One more knockout and you're in victory, my friend."
I punched my fists through the air, giving out staggered breaths.
"Just think about that contract," he instructed. "You're almost in the international sports league. But don't get cocky. Arrogance will bring you down."
I continued punching the air and then the referee blew his whistle and the crowd screamed in excitement. I turned, wiping the last bits of blood that trickled down my nose. The opponent was good, very good, no one could call it.
My opponent, Jordan, was a giant build of a man. He was a few years older than me and we were placed in the same weight group. His eyes contained dark, green circles--a result from my blows, they were starting to bruise already.
This was the last round, the last chance. I could smell my future laid out in front of me, eagerly waiting for my reach. Jordan squared up to me politely, his blue boxing gloves touched my red ones through the air as we started with a mutual 'good luck.'
We waited for a few moments and then the whistle blew again and the crowd squealed louder than I had ever heard them. We circled each other for a second and then he made the first move, jabbing his blue glove at my face, I ducked under his arm, turning on my axis and I got him right at the side of his jaw. Spit flew from his mouth, tainted with a bit of blood. That got him angry. That got his blood pressure rising.
Good. I needed him angry. Anger is a distraction, not a motivation.
He came for me, quick and heavy--with pants so loud that I had him right where I wanted him. He swung for my face and I bashed my right arm into his dominant left, adding pressure onto it so that his boxing glove moved sideways across the air, just past my head. I pushed my left shoulder back and punched him straight in the nose, hearing the dreadful crunch that made him take steps backward in a daze.
Usually, they would take a few moments out for a hit like that, but not Jordan. Jordan was what the boxing world liked to call 'Nut Skull.'
I underestimated him. His anger was bursting out of his eyes like fireworks, a thousand times worse than before. He ran for me and directed punch after punch, before I had time to cover my face with my gloves he had directed a powerful blow to the side of my head. I felt my ears ring as I fell to the floor, the screams from the crowd became a cluster of annoying, squeaky chimes that made my vision blurry.
Something was wrong, something was very wrong. I pushed myself up using my trembling biceps and I saw my manager yelling at me from the side of the ring, banging his hand against it, but I couldn't hear what he was shouting. I couldn't hear anything but buzzing. I was going to lose if I didn't get my act together, it would be over. To my complete surprise; a pale, frosty face with bright blue eyes and a statue-turning smile lit up my mind. She took over it.
It had been six months since we had broken up, since we last saw or spoke to each other. After three and a half years, her mother finally got she wanted, she finally put a wedge between us. I don't know what made me think of her, I hadn't in a long time, but I blinked to myself as I heard her voice in my head, screaming at me to get up.
Suddenly, the buzzing subsided, and the motivational screams from the crowd could be heard once again. He was behind me, I felt it. His shadow crawled closer and I plunged myself from the floor, I swung my body around and my glove collided with his face with every ounce of strength I contained. Jordan's eyes closed and he fell backward, his back slamming into the ring. The crowd fell silent as the referee leaned over him, and then slammed his hand down beside Jordan's unconscious body.
"One. . . two. . . three!"
The crowd cheered so loud that my body shook from shock. The referee came toward me and lifted my arm into the air, turning me to face every angle of the booming stadium. A smile lit up my face instantly and my manager jumped up and down thumping his fist into the air.
"Your winner," the referee shouted. "Jason Tucker!"
I should have been happy, ecstatic even, but then the buzzing returned.
+ + +
I left the back door of the small stadium with Travis and Matt, who were fired up and jumping with joy as they patted my shoulder.
"That final knock out though!" Travis exclaimed. "Man, that was awesome! I'm so happy for you, Jase."
"I'm through to internationals!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.
"My boy is through to internationals!" Travis screamed louder. "Where we going to celebrate?"
"My parents are meeting me at a bar down the road," I said. "Then we'll hit town."
We turned onto the busy high street and both of them were rubbing my head and jumping on me as we approached the bar. The sun was still out and it hit my bare, shirtless body like a dream.
As we reached the door, Travis suddenly stopped and looked across the street. "Hey, Jase, is that Lily?"
I turned around, trying to see past the traffic. As the final car finally moved out of the way, I caught sight of Lily, whom was wearing a white summery dress and stumbling around with her shoes in her hands. A man with shaggy hair and a tight leather jacket stood against the wall next to a bar, smoking a cigarette and he stopped her from walking, pulling her into him with enough force to make my blood run cold.
"She looks drunk, man," Travis mumbled. "Really drunk."
I sighed. "Looks like it's his problem now."
It was definitely Lily, there was no question about it. I would know if it had been Rosie, it was just an instinct. I turned back around, putting on a brave face as I did. But then Travis's eyes widened.
"Woah," he gasped. "Woah!"
I looked back to see the shaggy-haired stranger yanking Lily by her wrist as she tried to fight him off. Without another thought, I took off across the road with Travis and Matt flanking me. I got to the other side and I ran toward them, he was still yanking her, trying to get her back inside the bar.
"Jason!" Travis shouted from behind me. "Don't do something stupid!"
I ignored Travis. I charged right in the middle of their squabble and I gripped my hands into the jerks jacket, slamming him into the wall.
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't knock you into next week." I snarled at him.
His brown eyes widened with priceless horror. "I was just trying to get her back inside!" he shrieked out. "You better take your hands off me."
"Does that give you the right to touch her?"
"Take. Your. Hands. Off. Me."
"J-Jason," Lily appeared next to me, blinking at my body. "Is that you? It's all f-fuzzy."
"Lily, come back here." Travis called.
I looked into her blue eyes and my breath melted away. "What are you doing with this idiot?" I demanded.
"W-what's it got. . . to do with you? I'm a free w-woman!" she spurred her hands out, spinning in a circle. "I can do whatever I want," she laughed to herself as she spun. "I can fly! I'm flying!"
"Are you deaf?" the jerk cursed at me. "I suggest you remove your hands before I break them."
I pushed him higher up the wall, banging his spine into the brick. He clenched his teeth in pain and then he smacked his fist into my jaw with the force of a puppy. When he realized it had done nothing, what so ever, he managed to elbow me in the collarbone and break free from my hold. He charged himself into me and we grabbed each other as we both tumbled toward the edge of the road.
"Jase, stop!" I heard Travis yell.
We rolled onto each other, and I dodged his punches as I got the upper hand and got him underneath me, I restrained his wrists and he still squirmed, trying to knee me in the stomach.
"Stop fighting!" I felt fingernails dig into my shoulder blades and Lily was tugging me backward.
"Will one of you get her!" I screamed.
Travis ran to her, folding his arms around her shoulders to restrain her, but she flung her head back, headbutting him in the nose. She laughed out and then took steps sideways, becoming dangerously close to the kerb.
"Lily!"
I lifted myself up, releasing the jerk, as Lily walked backward into the middle of the road, not realizing where she was going.
"J-Jason." she laughed back.
And then she realized. She glanced to her left, to where a car was speeding toward her, I threw myself at her, hearing the driver attempt to slam their breaks, but it was too late. I shoved my hands at her chest, knocking her across the street as I took her place.
The first impact wasn't so bad. It was more shock, than anything. My body was crushed against the car, my limbs went frail like parts of a doll. It wasn't so bad, I thought I'd just roll off and land, like a cat. They always landed safely. But then my body jolted upward and my spine hit the windshield, I heard the smash of the glass first, before the pain set in. I couldn't control where I was going, I had to just let it happen. I spun across the bonnet like I was on a spin ball ride, it sent me dizzy and disoriented. The spinning stopped as I felt my shoulder scrape across tarmac, the impact felt as though I was being skinned alive. My head smashed onto the road and thick, dooming blood ran down my face in puddles.
"Jason!"
Lily's scream was the last thing I heard before everything went black.