Everyone in the gym has stopped what they’re doing and are now crowded around the cage, the gym space isn’t designed to accommodate everyone in this area at the same time. But there’s no way in hell anyone’s moving and missing what’s getting ready to go down. Watching John fight under normal circumstances is a treat. With how he looks right now, this fight is going to be real. A couple of men send up a ‘Hell yeah!’ but for the most part there’s a huge collective gasp. The three girls are the loudest as the hold onto each other even more tightly.
Brian announces the final maneuver again, and Rico is on John before the words are even out of his mouth.
“This, ladies, is a good thing, actually. Your attacker has the element of surprise on his side,” Brian adds in.
Brian moves to the door of the cage. He’s getting ready to exit, if Scott should move in to replace him as referee for the match that’s obviously just started. Brian can referee, and has, but because of his close friendship with John, Scott might move in.
John tries to unhinge Rico with the maneuver that they’d taught to the students. Rico doesn’t budge. John growls his frustration at him, annoyed that Rico’s forcing him to take aggressive moves on him. Rico’s behind him, John’s head slams back against Rico’s face causing him to stumble and release the chokehold he had around his neck. John didn’t have a lot of room to knock him out with his head-butt but it was enough to get him off of him.
“That was a perfect example of flexibility. You know what you were shown, and it wasn’t working, so something else had to be pulled out of your bag of tricks. Always stay calm and keep your mind clear. That’s the secret of a good fighter,” Brian says loudly, with a shit eating grin on his face.
The energy level had skyrocketed just in the few seconds of that last move. There was a resounding, ‘Ooooh,’ that went through the crowd, the girls turning their faces away and scrunching their noses, as they imagined the pain that hit caused.
The fight is officially on. John turns and moves in for an aggressive move. His right hand moves at lightning speed to connect with Rico’s jaw. John is pissed. Rico falls backwards, like a tree, making his head bounce off the mat, and someone shouts, ‘Timber,’ causing a ripple of nervous laughter to move through the crowd.
“Hey,” Scott says firmly.
One of the unspoken rules of the gym is to unquestionably support your brothers here, even if they are a dick.
Rico rolls over, as Brian starts to count, and shakes his head to clear it. He opens his eyes and finds Elsie in the crowd.
“Mamita, come with me tonight after the bout, and I’ll let you take care of me,” Rico says with a wink.
“Not in your wildest fucking dreams, Jose’,” Elsie snaps at him.
Rico’s laugh is sickeningly loud.
“Get the fuck up so I can finish kicking your ass,” John growls at him.
No fucking piece of shit scumbag talks to my woman like that, the words roar in John’s mind.
Rico takes that moment of distraction and rolls, bounces, and kicks John’s legs out from underneath him. John crumbles to the floor with a loud thud. Rico’s on him instantly, straddling his chest, pounding his fists into John’s face.
“OH SHIT!” goes the crowd in a loud chorus.
Brian is hovering over them, watching to see if he has to call the fight.
“JOHN, GET UP!” Elsie screams.
John’s hand comes up and pounds Rico in the same side of the head where he got him the first time. Rico’s pummeling stalls and John seizes the moment to shift. John’s got Rico pinned underneath him, and his fist is fixed just above his face.
“If I hit you again, I’m going to kill you,” John whispers so quietly only Rico and Brian can hear him.
“Well, Tonto, I’m too pretty to die just yet, and there are still too many beautiful women I’ve yet to taste,” he says sarcastically, turning his face to Elsie.
“Do you fucking give,” John grits out angrily, through clenched teeth.
“Today, Tonto, I give you the match. Tomorrow is another story,” Rico answers him, smiling and winking at his opponent.
John hesitates, punching him one time before getting up.
“Fuck it, I don’t give a shit about forfeiting the match, he fucking deserved it. It was so fucking worth it,” he growls and walks out of the cage.
Brian reaches down and offers Rico a hand up.
“You ok, Bro?” Brian asks him as he hoists him up.
“Yeah, man, I’ve had my ass kicked by bigger and badder dudes than him,” Rico jokes. “How do you think I got the sterling personality I have?” he asks, smiling his cocky grin at him.
“Hah, if you say so, man,” Brian laughs at him good-naturedly.
Nothing seems to frazzle Brian’s laidback easygoing nature. He treats everyone the same, regardless if they’re an asshole or a saint. Brian walks Rico to the shower room, both men making small talk and avoiding the elephant in the room.
Elsie, Janie and Elizabeth are riveted to their spots.
“Somebody want to tell me what just happened in there?” Elsie asks, a little in shock.
“I wish I could girlfriend, but it beats the hell out of me,” Janie answers, shaking her head slowly.
“It looks like somebody asked for an ass-kicking, and they got it,” Marco answers, walking up behind Elizabeth and sliding his arms around her waist.
“Yeah, but why?” Elsie asks turning to look at Marco, genuinely confused. “Why would anyone act like the biggest A #1 dickhead?”
“That, my dear Elsie, is the million dollar question,” Marco answers, equally confused.
John walks out of the shower room moments after Rico and Brian walk in. His hair is wet and his clothes are sticking to his still moist body. It looks like he was in such a hurry that he didn’t even dry off.
“Coming with me, Angel?” John asks Elsie gruffly as he walks up to the group.
Residual tense energy is still lingering on him.
“Yeah,” she answers him a little meekly, not really knowing which direction to go with him.
She feels really off-balance unsure if tender John is around or if battle John will be in residence all night. But, if she had to be honest, battle warrior John is the sexiest son of a bitch Elsie has ever seen. That man could grab her by the hair, drag her wherever he wanted to, and fuck her mindless, fierce, and brutal. A smile she can’t control lifts the corner of her mouth and John sees it. Warmth fills him, taming the beast inside of him.
“Come on then, Angel, let’s get out of here. I want to go get some ice cream,” John says, smiling at her as he wraps his arm around her neck and walks her towards the front door.
“You guys coming?” he yells over his shoulder. “We’ll meet you at Kilwins.”
“Yeah, Bro, meet you there,” Brian shouts from across the room.
“See you guys there,” Marco answers for him and Elizabeth. Then turning to Elizabeth, Marco tells her quietly, “We can get some to bring home.”
Scott stops Janie at the front desk.
“I’ve got to stay here, Sexy, but can I get a rain check for some ice cream, or whatever you want?” Scott asks Janie, smiling at her provocatively.
“For you, Big Fella, definitely,” Janie smiles at him, then walks away knowing Scott’s watching her ass as she goes.
Rico exits the shower room and stops to survey the room. Everyone has gone back to their own activities, forgetting, or putting aside, what just happened. He smiles. First order of business achieved, take down the biggest guy, Rico thinks to himself. He’s got the swollen jaw to prove it.
Bambi walks up to him, sashaying her hips seductively.
“Do you need someone to take care of you?” she asks in her sickly sweet singsong voice.
“Baby, you can do whatever you want to me, your wish is my command,” Rico says, snaking his arm around her bare, fake tan, waist.
“Ok then, come with me, let Pet make you feel all better,” she purrs.
“I think you’re magical, Pet, I feel better all ready,” Rico says. He buries his face in her neck, as they walk through the gym and out the front door.
Second order of business under way, get intimate with the locals, Rico smiles wickedly. Sometimes I really love what I do.
CHAPTER 12 “Walking through the fire, please don’t let me go. Take me to the river, I need you to know..I’m burning up. Come and put me out…” Lyrics “Burnin’ Up” by Jessie J feat. 2 Chainz
Elsie’s putting the final touches on a dress, it’s one of her own designs, which she brought in and presented to the director for one of the shoots. The dress is perfect for the female star. When Elsie read the script, and the scene description, she knew that it was exactly what the scene needed. The director agreed with her and asked her to bring in other pieces that she thought would work as well. When Rachelle Lefevre, the lead female, saw the dress, she loved it so much, she told Elsie she wanted one for her own personal wardrobe. She then asked Elsie to bring some of her designs to her place over the weekend so she could pick out some more. This one dress could be what opens the door to achieving her dreams.
The universe always seems to put you in the right place at the right time.
Thankfully, Elsie’s been so busy this week, getting the wardrobe department organized the way she likes, she hasn’t had time to think about much else. She’s been filling any immediate holes, and looking forward to what’s coming up, that she hasn’t had a moment to think about her date with John and Brian tonight. Today is Friday. Tonight is the celebratory evening that John promised her, and any time she stops to think about what tonight might bring, her heart races and her breath catches. She is so excited she can’t think straight.
Knock, knock, knock.
“Yeah, come in,” Elsie says loudly, with some straight pins clutched between her teeth. She brought in her sewing machine to make some final adjustments, and has just finished it.
It’s one of the production assistants, Mabhe, an Irish girl with fiery red hair. She’s cool as hell.
“They’re ready for the dress, you got it Girl?” Mabhe asks her.
The two girls have already formed a friendship, which is unusual in this cutthroat industry.
“Yeah, just finished it,” Elsie turns to her, trying to speak intelligibly while maintaining her grip on the pins.
“Hah, you might want to leave those here, you don’t want to stick Rachelle, that would totally suck,” Mabhe laughs, nodding her head towards Elsie.
“Oh, yeah,” Elsie chuckles and pulls the needles out of her mouth. She feeds them through the piece of cut denim, which she put around the neck of the sewing machine for this particular purpose. Her grandmother taught her that little trick, she was a seamstress in her younger years. And when everyone in design school saw it, all of the other students copied it.
“That dress is sexy as hell. Damn Girl, you’re so talented,” Mabhe says as she holds the door open for Elsie.
Elsie grabs her hoodie, shoves her arms in the sleeves, pulls up the zipper and yanks the hood down over her head. She picks up the dress, very carefully, and walks out the open door.
They walk across the lot, that’s filled with the mingling crew, on their way over to Rachelle’s trailer. The sun’s trying to peek through the clouds, but the temperature has really dropped today. The southern coastal winter is starting to set in. Everyone’s wearing jackets and some even have knit hats on, or toboggans as they’re called on this side of the Mason Dixon line, and a few people have even pulled out gloves.
“Has she come out of makeup yet?” Elsie asks Mabhe.
“Yeah, she’s in her trailer,” Mabhe answers her.
“Thank God, I hate those stuck up bitches in makeup,” Elsie groans rolling her eyes.
“Hahahaha!” Mabhe laughs out loud. “Don’t tell anyone, but me too, I can’t stand going in there.”
“Good, if any of them give you a hard time, I’ll kick their ass for you, so let me know,” Elsie tells her.
“No doubt, Elsie,” Mabhe laughs.
Mabhe is a natural, down to earth girl, with thick, curly, red hair that she keeps pulled back in a ponytail and she wears no makeup on her white freckled face. She’s a little on the larger, frumpy, side but she’s intelligent, authentic and professional. It’s quietly obvious she doesn’t take any shit from anyone.
They arrive at Rachelle’s trailer, and Elsie takes the two metal steps up to the door and knocks. She turns to look at Mabhe and gives her a nervous tight smile.
“Oh, please Girl, she’s been waiting for you all day, she can’t wait to get that dress for herself,” Mabhe laughs at her, giving her a coy wink. “You so rock, show them how it’s done, Elsie.”
“I fucking officially love you, Mabhe,” Elsie smiles gratefully at her new friend.
“Come in,” Rachelle calls in her singsong voice, from the other side of the closed door.
Elsie turns to Mabhe and they give each other the thumbs-up sign before Elsie flings open the door and breezes in on a gust of cold air.
*
“What’s up, Bubba, my man,” John greets a friend of his, one of Wilmington’s high-ranking police officers.
Bubba’s not his real name, the tag on his grey uniform shirt reads Poindexter. His first name is William but everyone calls him Bubba. Lots of good ole boys are called Bubba, and Officer Poindexter is most certainly a good ole boy. He was born and raised right here on a farm on the outskirts of New Hanover County. Bubba’s got a very intimidating look about him, one that’s tough and fierce. There’s a very deep, and very long, scar that runs from the left corner of his mouth down his cheek to where his jaw meets under his ear. Until he smiles. But when he smiles, his eyes sparkle and his grin is infectious, and he is the nicest guy you would ever want to meet.
“John, buddy, what you doin’?” Bubba turns to John with a very wide smile.
“Just coming to see somebody on set,” John laughs, extending his hand to shake his friends outstretched palm.
“And I’m guessin’ that friend is a female by the huge bunch of flowers you’re carryin’,” Bubba smirks at John, nodding to the twenty-four red roses John’s got clenched in his big hand.
“Yep, the new wardrobe supervisor, Elsie James,” John answers him almost bashfully.
“Oh, yeah? You finally gonna bite the bullet like the rest of us and settle down,” Bubba teases him and gives him a good firm swat on his back.
John can feel the heat rising in his face as a blush creeps over him. He shakes his head once saying, “Now, let’s not jump to conclusions, my man.”
“You can’t shit a shitter, John,” Bubba laughs as he pulls on John’s shoulder. “I have never seen, or heard, you talk about a woman for as long as I’ve known you. And here you are, bringing this one flowers...to her job, no less. I’m here to tell ya, you’ve got it bad.”
John shrugs his shoulders laughing, “We shall see, Bubba.”
Over Bubba’s shoulder, John catches a glimpse of someone.
“No fucking way, it can’t be,” he says aloud, to himself.
“What is it?” Bubba asks, looking over his shoulder in the direction of John’s gaze.
“Is that guy over there named Rico?” John asks hating to even ask it.
Saying it out loud would make it real.
“Yeah, Rico Santiago, he started out here a few weeks ago. Strange guy but nice enough,” Bubba looks towards Rico then back to John. Bubba’s eyes narrow slightly, “Why?”
“That son of a bitch joined the gym I go to and he’s been nothing but a royal pain in the ass.”
John decides to leave out the details. He knows information is given more freely if you stop and listen rather than ask questions. He worries that he might have already said too much.
“Really, huh? He seems like a smart ass, but he’s been pleasant enough to everyone, asks some questions and tries to be friendly, in his own way,” John says looking, over at Rico a littl
e more intently.
“Huh, maybe it’s just me then,” John shrugs trying to appear indifferent. What he really wants to do is grab Rico by the neck, slam him against the wall, and tell him to get the fuck out and never come back.
“Maybe, everybody can’t love ya,” Bubba turns his attention back to John giving him a wink and pointing his chin at the flowers.
“Hah, I guess not,” John laughs at his joke. “But what is he doing on set?”
“He’s working security, like us, but the studio brought him in from a private company.”
“Are you shitting me?!” John asks incredulously, his eyes almost popping out of his head.
“Nope, totally serious,” Bubba shakes his head but doesn’t offer any more information.
The tight-lip does is not unnoticed by John. He looks back and forth between Rico and Bubba, hoping his friend will reveal a little more information.
He doesn’t.
“Ok, then, I guess I’ve been away longer than I thought. I might need to hang around the set a little more.”
“It would be good to have you around,” Bubba smiles. His demeanor shifting slightly. The change would be unnoticed by someone with less training at identifying changes in human behavior, but John’s life had depended on those skills for so many years, that he could read the shift like a neon sign.
“Point me in the direction of the wardrobe trailer, would ya, please,” John smiles, acting out his part.
“Let me walk you, I need to get my blood pumping anyway, it’s a little chilly out here today.’
The two men begin to walk through the organized maze of trailers in the huge parking lot, which UE Studios has taken over to use for a set. John fights the urge to turn around when he feels a set of eyes burning into his back, he knows who they belong to.
*
“What are you doing here?” Elsie exclaims, when she opens the door to her trailer and sees John. And the huge bundle of roses sitting next to him He’s reclined, with his feet resting on the tiny desk that holds Elsie’s sewing machine. “And how the hell did you get on set?” she laughs. She’s really happy, but a bit surprised, to see him.
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