True to their word, after school, we met up in the empty parking lot. When I saw the three mongrels, Grayson and Ben were smacking each other over the head while John was walking ahead of them with his eyes rolling.
"You asshole! Stop hitting me!"
"You started it!"
"No, I didn't! Don't lie, Gray!"
"DITTO!!"
"OH SHUT UP-"
'Christ, they're annoying as fuck.'
"Hey, Grace!" John blurted, interrupting Ben and Grayson's bickering. John gave me a bright smile as I walked towards them. I didn't return the gesture; I just quirked a brow at the two brothers who were still beating each other up. "I'm surprised you showed up." He continued, obviously pleased.
I arched my brow higher. "Why? It's school." I gave him a pointed look. "I literally have to be here." I reminded, sounding a teensy-weensy bit snarky. He simply shrugged, brushing off my tone.
"I thought you would have hightailed it out of here so that you wouldn't have to deal with us." He explained. The sarcasm in his voice made me want to roll my eyes. So I did.
Without letting me say anything in reply, John continued, "My truck's over here." As he spoke, he led us over to a slick, rusty black Chevy pickup.
Quite a beauty.
As I neared it, I noticed what type it was and I whistled. "1900 C/K 1500 Chevy. Nice." I said appreciatively as I gazed at the car.
Not as nice as Zoom, but a beauty all the same. She was in good condition except for multiple scratches and dents.
John raised an eyebrow at my knowing the model of the car. "You know cars?" He asked and I shrugged.
Of course I knew cars. Firstly, hanging out with Ray, a total car junkie, gives you an insight into the car world. Which is mostly why I could tell that the car was nice.
'Not as rare as a 1991 GMC Syclone.' I mused to myself, then shook my head. 'I can't believe I actually remember the name of the damn thing.'
Bloody hell, you will not believe the endless rants I heard about that car.
Ray would not. Shut. Up. About. It. Fuck, it used to be like a kid around Christmas time, hoping to get a Barbie Dreamhouse.
Anyway, John's face was actually quite impressed when he found out I knew about cars. I could see it in his eyes and I teetered between being offended (which is so stupid) and being proud.
I cleared my throat after a bit of silence. "Okay, two questions." I began. "One: where are we going? And two: how are we going to get there in this tiny pickup?" I inquired, faking curiosity. Well, I was curious as to how the four of us would fit in the three-seater truck.
Ben just smiled at my questions.
"A little boxing ring called The Underground. It's around the downtown area, but not completely in it." He clarified.
I nodded unsurely and looked at John. "You know I wasn't kidding when I said that for all I know, you're going to murder me, right?"
He laughed at my remark and grinned playfully.
"Yes, I know. Don't worry." His grin widened to a full-blown smile. "You're perfectly safe with us." He reassured sincerely and I nodded slightly.
"That's very reassuring." I replied snarkily with an eye roll. Without letting him retort, I looked back at the truck and gestured to it. "But how are we going to get there? This truck can only fit three and I'm not in the mood to be in a sandwich with two of you." I said jokingly, though I meant it one-hundred percent.
'We've not bonded enough for me to be doing that, mate.'
John chuckled, obviously amused by my lightening the situation. "Grayson can sit in the bed and you can sit in the passenger's side." He stated while he jerked toward his cousin.
"Hey!" Grayson protested childishly and I laughed at the stubborn look on his face.
"Suck it up, dude." Ben clapped his brother on the back with a smirk. I shook my head at them as Grayson reared up to retort, all the while trying to hide my grin.
"I'll sit in the back." I piped up.
What? I like doing it. Piss off.
Hearing my declaration, John shook his head. "No. My asshole cousin can take the back."
It was then my turn to shake my head.
"I want to." I stated firmly. Before the guys could say anything, I walked to the truck, grabbed the side, climbed the tire, and climbed into the truck bed. I plopped myself down with a grunt and tapped the side of it.
"Now, are we going to stand around like a bunch of idiots waiting for the sky to fall or are we going to go already?" I asked sarcastically.
'Let's go ladies.'
Ben chuckled and got into the passenger's side. John smiled and got into the driver's spot while Grayson smirked and got in after Ben.
"Fuck off Gray."
"You get out of the way, Ben."
"You're on my leg."
"Well, I'm sorry your highness. Let me go- Oh wait. I don't care."
"BOYS!" John scolded.
The entire fucking ride, the boys bickered like three-year-olds. I rolled my eyes when Ben and Grayson got into an argument about who was on whose side.
"That line clearly divides yours from mine and you're on mine."
"Are you deaf? I. Don't. Care. Now move, you dick. I need legroom. Your giraffe legs are taking up all the space."
"I DON'T HAVE-"
"Would you two shut up??" I exasperatedly shouted from the bed of the truck. "Gods, you're worse than that group of four-year-olds who've eaten five snowballs." I muttered to myself and put my hood up further over my face. I heard John chuckle as I stared at the sky which was beginning to become a darker navy/pink. I could see one lone star, or planet I should say since it was Venus.
I started humming Don't Wake Me Up to myself as the chilly air sank into my skin. The cold made me invigorated.
The colors had gone from sky blue to darker navy/pink as the afternoon went on.
' Don't wake me up
Up from this high
I want to sleep for a little while '
"Sorry." Ben said and Grayson grunted. Ben had apparently elbowed him and Grayson wasn't happy about it.
"Dude." I heard him whine and I rolled my eyes as I leaned my head on the back window again.
"I swear to fucking-" John swore and after a long fifteen minute drive, we finally made it to The Underground.
It's a small square ring for amateur fighters looking to make a quick buck. Not as intense as The Temple or The Ring, which is why it's the best option for these three idiots since they could barely beat up a stick.
Or so I thought.
When we parked, I hopped out of the bed and tugged the hood up more to cover my face.
Can't be too careful.
"So this is the Underground." I murmured and glanced at John who nodded.
To be honest, the place looks like a garage. One level, metal shack with no windows and very unassuming which is a good thing.
It looks less suspicious to cops.
I eyed the shack with false awe.
What can I say? I've seen better, but they couldn't know that.
I took a hesitant step toward the building.
"Welcome to The Underground, Grace." Grayson declared as he swept his arms in a comically overdone gesture. I stifled a chuckle at the slight sarcasm in his voice and took a few more steps toward the building.
I pulled my hood even tighter as John opened the door for me. And then,
BAM!
Sweat and feet.
Lovely.
It's a very horrid combination, but a combination I have grown accustomed to. So my urge to gag was manageable. The stench of sweat, feet, and mold filled the small room and I bit back a tiny smile.
'Yup. Home already.'
If I were to describe it, it is about twenty by twenty feet and had one focal ring with what looked like a small section dedicated to practice. Punching bags and gloves lined the walls and there was a wall that had names engraved in it.
'It looks like a knife carved it.' I said to myself with a raised brow. Then, I smiled when I remembered something.
'It reminds me of The Temple.'
In short, the place looks like a sweaty, smelly cave with no air circulation. I mean, they had to choose the worst gym, didn't they?
I took a deep breath of the horrible stench and closed my eyes.
'No air conditioning or air freshener. Awesome.'
I groaned. This was not going to be fun.
At all.