Through The Dark

by Jae

  “He’s right over there.” The large man says, pointing to a corner.

  I thank him and expect him to walk away, but he stays put; seemingly interested in what I’m going to do. I begin to walk over to where two guys stand barefoot on a big mat. I instantly recognize Liam’s curly hair, some of it stuck to the nape of his sweaty neck. The sleeves of his loose grey t-shirt are rolled up, showing off his muscular arms. My eyes scan down his long legs that are covered with dark blue athletic shorts. He keeps his back to me while the other guy bounces around on his balls of feet.

  “Again!” Liam’s deep voice shouts.

  The guy takes a swing at the strike pads in Liam’s hands, easily absorbing the impact before instructing the guy the make a left hook. I decide not to interrupt them and instead wander over to a table pushed against a wall near them. I lift myself up on the table and cross my legs Indian style while I remove my bag from across my body and set it next to me. My eyes intently watch the actions Liam and the guy carry out before me. Liam’s arm muscles flex as he continues to absorb the hits to the strike pads from the other guy. Even though Liam’s back continues to face me, the guy he’s working with keeps peering around him, tossing me curious looks with every punch he throws. A giggle escapes my lips when Liam hits him around the back of the head with one of the strike pads.

  “Don’t take your eyes off of your opponent.” Liam tells him firmly.

  They both chuckle as the other guy playfully nudges Liam’s shoulder.

  “Not even if it’s to look at her?” The other guy asks Liam, smirking.

  Liam turns around to see what the guy is talking about, a confused look on his face. When his eyes focus on me, his lips form into my favorite dimpled smile and I give him a small wave.

  “Let’s take a break.” Liam tells the guy he’s working with.

  They remove the gloves and strike pads from their hands before Liam bends down to pick up a bottle of water and then makes his way over to me.

  “Hello, Little Miss Daisy.” Liam greets, stopping in front me.

  “Hi.” I respond, his height towering above me.

  “How did you find me?” He asks with a curious expression on his face.

  “Oh, I put a tracker on your phone… Okay, that was a horrible joke. I was getting my pictures developed around the corner and recognized your car in the parking lot.” A heated blush creeps up my neck and into my cheeks while Liam stares at me. I quickly decide to change the subject, not being able to stand his intense look any longer. “So, what are you doing here?”

  Liam’s lips form into a smile at the confused expression on my face while I take in the large room from this angle. “I’m a boxing trainer.”

  My eyes grow wide in disbelief. I definitely was not expecting him to say that. I didn’t even realize he had a job. I mean, I guess I should’ve figured that since he has to somehow pay for his apartment. But either way, this is definitely the last job I ever would’ve expected him to have.

  Liam chuckles at my reaction while lifting the hem of his t-shirt to his forehead. I can’t help but let my eyes gaze at the nice toned muscles of his stomach. As my fingers begin to itch to reach out and touch him, I suddenly get the feeling this action is more for my benefit than his. My suspicions are confirmed when Liam drops his shirt back in place and has a smirk on his face. I slowly smile as he winks at me before taking a drink from his water bottle, his tongue running over his lips after.

  “Why are you a boxing trainer?” I question.

  Liam’s eyes lock on mine and his smile falters a little as he moves around to sit next to me on the table. When he still doesn’t answer, I poke his side with my finger, making him chuckle and turn towards me

  “It’s so I can manage my anger problems.” He informs me quietly. “Well, it’s supposed to help anyway; especially now since you made me promise not to get in fights anymore.”

  I nod my head in understanding. We continue to talk for a while longer while Liam cools down. I notice some people keep glancing at us; a few of them outright staring. Their slightly confused expressions make me wonder if Liam has ever brought a girl around here or if they’ve just never seen him act this way with a girl period. From how well our relationship has been going, I tend to forget that Liam doesn’t have the best track-record when it comes to girls and has developed a known reputation of being a heartbreaker.

  “You want to try?” Liam asks me with a small grin, his voice bringing me out of my thoughts.

  “Oh, I don’t know.” I mumble, glancing nervously at the boxing ring.

  “You’ll like it, I promise.” He encourages.

  I watch Liam stand up and place his water bottle next to me. He bends down and removes my shoes and no-show socks. His large hands grasp my hips as he lifts me from the table and then sets me down, my bare feet surprised by the cool floor. Liam laces his fingers with mine and leads me over to the large boxing ring. I watch him again as he climbs onto the edge of the ring, offering me his hand and pulling me up next to him. He then holds the ropes surrounding the ring open for me to duck through. I walk around the perimeter, wondering how many boxing matches have been held here and how many Liam has been a part of. My vision is drawn back to Liam who is observing me with a small smile on his face, his body leaning effortlessly against the ropes.

  “Do you fight?” I ask and my eyebrows come together in confusion when Liam shakes his head no.

  “It’s too dangerous for me to fight.” He elaborates while shrugging his shoulders. “So I just train instead.”

  I tilt my head to the side, not really understanding his explanation.

  “Apparently I punch out of my weight class.” He pauses, letting me soak up his words. “So it wouldn’t be safe or fair for my opponent.”

  I nod my head in understanding now, not really sure how else to respond. I’ve always assumed Liam was just an angry person when he took his aggression out on other people. I thought that was how he was able to land punches on someone bigger than him. I never realized it’s something he possesses naturally without having to be provoked or angered.

  I grip the ropes surrounding the ring as I slowly make my way back to Liam. I find myself being drawn to his arms. I reach out and place my hand on his bicep, my fingers only being able to wrap around part of his toned arm. I can almost feel the power and strength Liam holds in just this arm alone. I can’t help but feel extremely intimidated by him as I release my hold. Liam’s frame is built so much bigger than mine, his height always towering over me. If he ever turned on me, I wouldn’t stand a single chance. This eerie thought sends a chill down my spine. As if Liam can read my thoughts, he pulls me closer to him, his head dipping down to my ear. My forehead rests against his shoulder as his warm fingertips slide under the hem of my shirt and press into my skin.

  “You know I would never hurt you.” He whispers.

  I close my eyes, his words somehow giving me a sense of protection and safety. But our moment is ruined by someone clearing their throat. My head snaps up and I see the large man who had brought me in here earlier staring at us. He has a smug grin plastered to his face and Liam, not so politely, tells him to go away. He chuckles a few times before turning away and walking towards the door.

  “Have you ever done something like this before?” Liam asks while he puts the boxing gloves over my hands.

  “No.” I tell him honestly. “But I feel tougher already.”

  This makes him laugh.

  “Well, I think we both know you can slap the shit out of someone twice your size; so I’m sure this won’t be too hard.”

  I playfully scoff at his comment and we both start laughing. I gently hit him in the shoulder and he pretends to wince in pain. I can’t help the small giggle that escapes my lips while he rubs the spot I hit him in and moves to stand directly in front of me.

  “Okay, so this is a simple defense. You’ll bring you’re forearms up like this to deflect a punch.” Liam tells me while he demonstrates by bringing
his arms together to protect himself. “It’s called a block.”

  “Like this?” I ask, bringing my arms together in front of me like he did.

  “Yeah, like that. But try not to bring your arms up so high, otherwise you’ll expose your stomach.” Liam tells me, playfully poking my stomach to prove his point.

  I laugh as he moves around to stand behind me. I’m slightly aware that we’re still being watched by people, but I brush it off and keep all of my focus on Liam. My back lightly touches his chest as he brings his arms around to my front, his large hands gripping my elbows to reposition them lower.

  “There you go, just like that.” He says softly, continuing to teach me how to block for a while longer before deciding I’ve got it perfected.

  When we’re messing around later on, I pretend like I’m going to punch him and he raises his arms in defense and then darts them out at the last second when I decide to jump on him. He easily cups the back of my thighs, but my actions take him too off guard and he stumbles back a couple steps before falling to the ground with me on top of him. I giggle and apologize for not giving him a better warning. He lets out a groan and squeezes his eyes shut when I wiggle my body around to get off of him. Before I can get anywhere though, he reaches out and grabs ahold of my forearms.

  “Stay still.” He chuckles.

  His long fingers fumble to remove the gloves from my hands. Once they’re off, I grip his wrists and pin them to the ring floor below us. His emerald green eyes sparkle up at me and a small smile forms on his face.

  “I surrender.” He jokes.

  “Do I win then?” I question.

  “You win.” He whispers.

  We’re soon broken out of our own little world, a blush creeping into my cheeks when I look around and see everyone in the gym is watching us. I had momentarily forgotten that I am still on top of Liam, my legs on either side of his waist, in the middle of the gym.

  “Get it in, Liam!” A guy yells from somewhere in the gym.

  “Alright, that’s it!” Liam abruptly says, his eyes flashing dark.

  I let out a surprised shriek when Liam rolls me off of him, stands up, then bends down and picks me up by my hips. He then easily lifts me over his shoulder and carries me out of the ring.

  I decide to stay and watch Liam train until his session is over. The gym is nearly empty as equipment is being packed away. I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that Liam has to use more than basketball to take out his aggression and keep his anger in check. I kind of feel bad that they won’t let him box if he wanted to, but it also doesn’t surprise me either. I’ve seen firsthand what someone on the other end of Liam’s fists looks like when he’s done with them and it’s definitely not a pretty sight.

  “I’m just going to shower and change.” Liam says, kissing my forehead. “Wait right here.”

  I nod my head as he turns away and then nearly jump in surprise when he quickly turns back to me. Liam backs me up against the wall behind me, his eyes sparkling again while his large hands hold my hips in place. His hot breath puffs over my skin, his messy curls tickling my skin as his lips move closer to my ear.

  “On second thought, you could not wait and come help me instead.” He whispers seductively.

  Liam’s deep voice sends shivers through my entire body and I struggle to compose myself. The offer is more than tempting, but this is not the place for us to participate in any type of shenanigans. I giggle when I feel his nose brush against my neck before I reluctantly shoo him away.

  “Okay, fine!” He grins. “I won’t be long!”

  I sit down on the ground while I watch Liam actually walk away this time, disappearing through a door not much farther down the hall. I’m not sitting by myself for very long before I see Scott, the guy I talked to before I got my belly button pierced, come walking down the hallway towards me.

  “It’s Daisy, right?” Scott asks, sticking his hand out to me.

  I nod my head and shake his hand. “And you’re Scott; the guy with the possible belly button ring.”

  “That I am.” Scott smiles and sits down next to me.

  “This is going to sound like a dumb question,” I begin. “But what are you doing here?”

  “I train here.” He chuckles.

  I nod my head in understanding. “So is this how you know Liam or is it because he goes to The Ouch Shop?”

  “I met him at The Ouch Shop.” He confirms. “I actually told him about this place a few years ago and he’s been coming here ever since.”

  “Oh, wow, that’s really cool!” I exclaim. “So, are you and Liam good friends then?”

  “Somewhat, I suppose.” Scott chuckles and I nod my head again, understanding exactly what he means. “I feel kind of dumb for not completely connecting the dots between you guys earlier.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “When you were at Ouch and your friend mentioned that you and Liam are close, I didn’t even think twice about it because in the past, whenever someone asked Liam if he was seeing someone, he would normally chuckle and shake his head like it was the stupidest joke he’d ever heard. As I’m sure you know he’s never really been one for serious relationships. To be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him in anything that would even vaguely resemble a relationship. But when someone asked him the same question again a couple of days ago, he reacted differently. He became stern and a little defensive. The only information he revealed was your name and even that he seemed protective over; which I should’ve recognized right off the bat because how many Daisy’s are actually out there?” He explains.

  I nod my head, not really sure how else to respond.

  “Some of us, I’m sure you noticed, were watching while Liam taught you how to block. It was so weird because none of us have ever seen him act like that before. Then again, he’s never brought a girl here before either.”

  “He didn’t bring me here exactly.” I butt in. “I sort of accidently found him and let my curiosity get the best of me.”

  This makes both of us laugh.

  “Whenever we would go to a bar or a party, Liam is always the one to go up to a girl if they weren’t already coming up to him. I don’t know, I suppose the ladies are drawn to his dark demeanor. But there’s something about you that tells me that isn’t what attracted you to him.”

  “Not in the slightest.” I confirm, cringing at the memory of when Liam and I first met.

  “I guess the weirdest part is I’ve never seen him look so happy before.”

  This makes me blush, which makes Scott smile. Our attention is drawn away from our conversation when we hear a thud from something falling to the ground down the hallway. I feel a beaming smile grow on my face when I see Liam come walking towards us after he picks up his bag; the object I’m assuming we heard hit the ground. My eyebrows come together when I notice the stern look on his face.

  “Are you alright, man?” Scott asks, obviously noticing too.

  Liam just gives him a tight nod before telling me we’re leaving. I don’t argue and pull my purse across my body. Looking up, I see Scott has already stood up. When he reaches his hand out to help me up, I instantly take notice of Liam clenching his fists.

  “That’s okay.” I say hesitantly, dismissing his hand as I reach out for Liam’s. I glance over at Scott, feeling bad when a confused and slightly hurt look crosses his eyes. My eyes then drift back over to Liam who has yet tried to help me up. “Liam?”

  As if suddenly being snapped back into reality, Liam grips my hands as he helps me up and then firmly pulls me into his side. I barely have enough time to tell Scott goodbye before being guided out the door of the building. I instantly take notice that night is drawing in rapidly as the street lights begin to flicker on. For a spit second, I imagine that Liam is acting the way he is because tonight it going to be a full moon and he’s going to turn into a werewolf. If only.

  “Liam, what’s wrong?” I ask him while we continue to walk towards his car.
I tug on his hand when he doesn’t answer me, trying my best to get him to stop walking. I let out a surprised gasp when Liam’s gym bags falls to the ground and he grabs onto my hips, lifting me up and setting me on the hood of his Range Rover. My legs dangle off the edge of the large vehicle as he moves to stand between them. My purse is swiftly removed form around my body and dropped on top of Liam’s gym bag. I watch him grab ahold of my wrist and bring it up to his mouth. My breathing becomes sharper when I see his eyes growing dark, the dark I’m afraid of, as he presses kisses to the soft underside of my wrist.

  “Do you like him?” Liam asks me between kisses.

  “What?” I question, completely confused as to what’s going on and who he’s talking about. “Who?”

  The smirk I hate forms on Liam’s lips as he moves his body closer to mine and rests his free hand on the top of my thigh, running it up and down and squeezing every now and then; just like he did the first time we met. The longer I stare at him, the more I begin to see the Liam I first met rising to the surface. I hate this.

  “Scott.” He continues. “Do you like him?”

  My eyebrows pull together in further confusion. Why does he want to know if I like Scott? What does he even have to do with anything? All we were doing was talking, it’s not like anything happened.

  “Yeah, he’s really nice.” I answer, instantly regretting it.

  I watch Liam’s eyes grow even darker and anger completely washes over his face. He grips my thigh even tighter, keeping me in place on the hood of his car. He presses his mouth to my skin even harder, sucking harshly. My eyes grow wide in surprise and discomfort. I whimper while I try to break my arm free, but Liam keeps his grip on my arm firm.

  “Liam, stop it.” I wince. “You’re hurting me.”

  He releases my arm barely a second later and I instantly pull it close to me. My fingers brushing over the red spot and I grimace at the sore skin. I raise my head, looking questioningly at Liam. I don’t understand what I did to deserve this. I notice his jaw clench as he leans in closer to me. I place my hands on his shoulders in an attempt to keep him away from me, but it doesn’t work and I feel his lips brush against my neck.