"Hi Shawn," she said, smiling broadly. She'd always have a soft spot for Shawn Rock after what he'd done for Joel.
"My wife Sarah mentioned you'd just arrived," he said. "Does Joel know you're here yet?"
His wife? Amber let out a little relieved breath. "No, I don't even know which one he is?"
Shawn laughed and turned to scan the fighters behind him. It took him a moment, but then he pointed. "Over there. He's fighting with Blake. He's definitely come a long way in the last couple of months."
"Do you think he's... I mean, the fight this weekend..."
Shawn nodded, still looking out at the men on the floor. "I think he's ready to fight Carlos. Certainly a lot more so than he would have been during that first tournament. And even then it would have been a pretty interesting match to watch.
"You know, when he first approached me with the idea of setting up a match between Rock House and Golden Dragon, I was hesitant. I knew what his initial motivations were. But then he explained how we could turn it into a big event, a rivalry between the two training camps that would drive business to both... well, I'm glad I listened to him." Shawn gestured at all the people standing around.
"Last time we had an open house, we didn't have half these numbers. I think anticipation about this weekend has been very good for the club. I think Joel has a good head for promotion. Anyway, if you'll excuse me." Shawn gave her a quick smile as he returned the way he'd come.
Amber nodded back and then turned to watch Joel spar with the bigger man he was up against. She wasn't so keen on the idea of him matching up with Carlos either when she had first heard the idea. The difference was, she hadn't come around to it much more since then. Carlos seemed like a mean son of a bitch, and every time Joel had to fight anyone she felt sick with tension and worry. The one saving grace was that this time it wasn't a tournament. Joel would only fight once, as would everyone else who fought that night. Less fights meant less chance of injury. At least I hope that's what it means.
She saw his opponent, Blake, hit Joel with a right hook and then pounce, taking her boyfriend to the ground. The two rolled around a bit, but then Joel somehow ended up on top with the other man's arm between his legs as he twisted. Blake tapped firmly on Joel's back and then Joel let go. The two men parted and stood up, loosening their helmets.
As their heads became visible she saw them talking to each other. Blake didn't have a very happy look on his face, but she did see him give what looked like a begrudging nod to Joel as he turned and walked away. Joel turned as well, and she waved to get his attention. He waved back and started to make his way toward her.
Despite the fear she felt any time he stepped up to another opponent, Amber couldn't deny the other feeling she had. There was definitely something thrilling in seeing her man take down someone else, especially when his opponent was bigger and stronger looking. She almost felt ashamed, but she had to admit that it turned her on just a little bit. If he did end up pounding the hell out of that asshole Carlos, he might have another wrestling match to look forward to that night.
Joel looked at her funny as he approached, so she did her best to stifle the silly grin she felt starting to grow across her face.
Chapter 52
Joel
Joel knew that Marcus Flores was just playing a mind game when he agreed to this bout only under the condition that they do it at his club again. In a way it made sense, though. Joel and Carlos would get a rematch to the finale that never was at Golden Dragon Dojos, where the original had taken place. There was already a built in audience for that, and it would have been silly to disregard that fact.
But he also knew that Carlos was Marcus' man, and letting him fight on his own turf while pulling Joel back into the place where he'd ended up so injured was also a way to try to fuck with his head. Carlos was the prize fighter of the Tiger Strike team which, Joel hadn't realized at the time, was also run by Marcus. Effectively Tiger Strike and Golden Dragons were the same entity, the latter just existing separately to be able to also reap the financial benefits of also training non MMA-hopefuls.
He sat in the bleachers with Amber, waiting for the place to fill up and everyone else to arrive. The setup was the same as before with the ring in the middle and the black curtain separating off the fighters from the crowd. The only difference this time was that in the back there was a second black curtain separating Tiger Strike from Rock House. It was a good idea, as there was a lot of bad blood between the two groups, even aside from Joel and Carlos. In fact, many of the fights on the card tonight had been long simmering grudge matches between members of the opposing camps.
"Nervous?" Amber asked him. Her hand was resting on his thigh and she gave it a little squeeze as she spoke.
He shrugged. "Not really." It wasn't nerves as much as anticipation. He just wanted his fists to connect with Carlos' face a few times.
They sat in silence, watching the crowd filter in and get seated until Marcus and Shawn made their way into the center of the ring and began to talk. The two of them announced the line up, and gave plugs to their training camps at the same time, anxious to wring as much publicity out of the event as possible. Joel had no problem with that, he knew that was the primary reason the whole thing was happening in the first place. That was how he'd sold Shawn on the idea, after all.
The judges were then announced. Both Shawn and Marcus both discussed the three officials, with each man being able to veto a suggestion if they thought there was a potential for bias. They ended up agreeing on David Page, a DJ from a local sports radio station; Amin Zofu, a newspaper sports columnist; and Fiona Gelles, a former ring girl from many televised MMA events. Fiona was a gorgeous blond that Joel thought looked familiar when he saw her. He'd obviously paid more attention to the ring girls when he'd watched pay per view fights than he'd ever admit to Amber, who he noticed was giving him a sidelong glance as Fiona was being announced.
"Well, I better get back there," he said, giving Amber a quick kiss on the lips.
"Good luck," she said, reaching out and grabbing his hand. She seemed reluctant to let it go as he pulled away to head to the curtains. He couldn't blame her, after what had happened last time. He'd ended that night in a pretty bad state, but he had no intention of ending things similarly tonight. If anyone left on a stretcher, it would be Carlos.
Joel had never felt more prepared for a fight. He'd been training harder this past month than ever before, working on adding power as well as technique to his game.
He pushed past the curtains and joined his fellow Rock House team behind the curtain. Blake looked up as he entered and gave him a little nod, walking toward him. "You ready for tonight, Slater?"
Joel nodded at the tattooed team lead.
"Yeah, I think you might be after all. Watch out though. I've seen Carlos fight a few times. Don't get cocky. He's a tough son of a bitch." He nodded again and walked off to talk with Kingston. Coming from Blake, that was just about the highest praise he could expect. The man had softened considerably toward Joel since they'd first met.
"Did I hear that right, did Blockhead actually say you might be ready to fight Carlos?" Joel turned to see Chris smiling at him as the man raised his fist and bumped it to Joel's. "I think you might have injured him permanently the last time you put him in a headlock."
Joel lifted a lip in a half smile. "Blake's okay," he said.
"Man, I gotta go and see if pigs are flying, I'll be right back," Chris said, laughing as he clapped Joel on the back and walked away to mingle with the other fighters.
The announcer began to talk, and then he heard him start to call out the names of the first two fighters. Rorie McMahon was up, and he soon disappeared through the curtain. Let the games begin.
Chapter 53
Amber
She didn't know what was worse, waiting for Joel's match to come or actually hearing his name and knowing it was about to begin. She'd watched each fight with a growing tension, as Joel's turn grew closer. Now that
it was only a few minutes away, the anticipation had formed a knot in her stomach that she knew wouldn't be gone until the night was done and Joel was safely in her arms at home, in bed. He had a way of working on all of the little knots in her body that actually created an increase in tension at first, but always left her much more relaxed by the end.
She was smiling to herself as she thought about some of those releases when a commotion at the end of the bleachers distracted her. The crowd to her right were standing up as someone was pushing their way past.
She stood to let the person by as well, but when she came into view Amber gasped and fell back down into her seat. What the hell was Linda Slater doing here?
When Joel's mother saw her, she gave her a thin smile and then squeezed herself in next to Amber. Her long, dirty blond hair was pulled back and tied into a loose pony tail, leaving her blue eyes free to look apologetically at her son's girlfriend.
"What are you doing here?" Amber whispered, as soon as Linda was seated. There was no one listening or who would even care within earshot, but she felt like she had to keep her voice down or somehow Joel would come rushing out from the back swinging his arms wildly or something. She had to get rid of his mother before he saw her.
"Well, you weren't letting me talk to Joel and I told you, I need to. It's been long enough. I won't wait any longer."
The apologetic look had faded now, replaced by defiance as she was forced to justify herself.
"How did you even know where I was?"
"I'm not stupid," Linda said. "Although Joel might have expressed differently to you, god knows he has every right to believing it. You've mentioned enough things about him over the last month that I was able to put the pieces together. You said he had a big fight this weekend, and this was the only one I could find around town anyway." She shrugged.
"You have to leave, Linda. I'm serious, if Joel sees you-"
"I'm not leaving now that I know my boy is here," she cut her off. "I haven't seen him in years, and after the way he left I didn't think I'd ever see him again. You don't know what this last month has been like, knowing he was out there and finding out what he really thinks about me. I mean, I knew what he must think, but it's different once you hear it's true."
"Linda, if Joel-"
"There ain't nothing you can say that will change my mind, Amber," she argued. "I'm sorry if you think Joel will be mad at you for finding me, but what's done is done. Anyway, there's no way he'll ever be as mad at you as he is at me. And I just can't live with that anymore. I want to talk to him. I want a chance to explain."
"And you'll get that chance, I promise. Just not now. This fight is important and if he sees you, it will distract him for sure. It could throw him off his game. He's fighting someone very big and strong and even without a distraction I'm worried about his safety."
"And you think telling me that he might be in danger is going to make me want to leave?" she asked. "Anyway, I've seen my Joel in a lot of fights and trust me, he's learned to handle himself."
"Mrs. Slater, with all due respect, this fight is a lot different than with... than the fights you've seen Joel in."
"All the same," she said, turning her head to look out at the empty ring. "If Joel is going to be fighting tonight, I'm going to be here for him when it's done, win or lose. That's not something I've always been able to do for him, but I can do it this time."
Amber sighed, closing her eyes and terrified at what Joel was going to do when he saw his mother. This isn't going to end well for any of us.
Chapter 54
Joel
"You ready for this?" Shawn Rock was standing in front of Joel, his eyes gleaming.
"I am," he replied. "I have been for a long time."
"Cool, cool. Listen, I just heard something interesting. Apparently there are a couple of scouts out there in the audience tonight. Carlos has a TV deal with Titan and they sent some execs out to watch his fight."
"So what does that mean?"
Shawn got a sly little smile. "Well, look, I'm just saying that if Carlos was to get his ass handed to him out there, I wonder how eager they would be to put him on television." He laughed. "Then again, you never know. Every fight has to have a loser. But it would still take some of the smug look off of that fucker's face, anyway."
The announcer called Joel's name and Shawn patted him on the back. "Anyway, go out there and do your best. We both know you're good enough for this fight. Time to show Carlos."
Joel nodded and parted the curtains as he strode through, ready and as confident as he thought possible. He felt strong and ready to put on a good show, anxious to finally be getting into the ring against his nemesis. He quickly scanned the crowd for Amber, hoping to give her a confident smile that would reassure her that everything was going to be okay.
He spotted her, but instead of looking at him she was talking to a woman sitting next to her. He couldn't see the woman's face as she was turned toward Amber, but something seemed vaguely familiar about her. Then Amber caught his eye and she turned to him, giving him a little wave but with a weird expression.
As he was about to wave back, the other woman turned to face him as well and he almost tripped over his own feet. He stumbled, but then regained his balance by grabbing onto the ring just as he got to it.
What the fuck is my mother doing here?
The blood sped through his veins causing his face and body to get hot as his heart rate sped up. He was clenching his fists and staring into the crowd, barely aware that the referee was calling his name. He shook his head, snapping himself back to attention and hoisted himself up and under the rope.
He was barely aware of Carlos being introduced next, his eyes never leaving the two women sitting side by side, watching him not 20 feet away. What the fuck is she doing here, and how did she know to find Amber? As he gazed at his girlfriend with a raised eyebrow, she mouthed an apology and he could feel his blood boiling even more. Sorry? That means she had a hand in this somehow.
The announcer was giving the crowd the details of the match, though they hadn't changed for any of the fights that night. Three rounds of five minutes each with one minute of rest in between. He was taken by the arm and he walked duly along to the center of the ring, only then realizing that Carlos was there and ready to fight. They touched gloves and the bell sounded, snapping him to attention.
Carlos wore his full Golden Dragon gi, and Joel was fighting shirtless and in loose pants, as usual. The big man's hair was slicked back in his standard pony tail and he was glaring at Joel with eyes the color of midnight. Before he'd even had time to raise his hands after touching gloves, Carlos' fist shot forward, catching Joel on the chin. He had side stepped just a little too late to avoid the blow, but it was enough that the attack hadn't hit him full force, although it did snap his head to the side quickly and daze him. His hands went up in defense instinctively, blocking the follow up blows that Carlos tried to deliver.
The men circled each other, Joel struggling to remain focused on the fight instead of what was going on in the crowd. Why would Amber invite his mother to this fight? What the hell was she thinking?
He threw a few quick jabs at Carlos but he easily blocked them, returning a punch and then a spinning round house kick that Joel ducked. Normally he would have seized the opening Carlos had provided with the kick and attacked before he dropped his leg, but his mind was too unfocused and he thought of it a split second too late.
The men again resumed their defensive postures. So far, there had been very little action, and the crowd was starting to yell. Joel saw the big match clock counting down with only a couple of minutes left in the round. As soon as it was over, he would get to the bottom of why the hell his mother was here and get Amber away from the bitch, even though he knew that Amber had to be the reason she was here in the first place. How else would she have tracked me down?
Carlos threw another roundhouse kick and it caught Joel in the ribs before he'd had a chance to block it, agai
n letting his thoughts slow his reaction. However, as his arm was already on its way down for the block, he ended up grabbing the other man by the calf even as he winced in pain from the kick.
With his leg trapped, Carlos threw a punch toward Joel's head but he was ready, blocking it with his free hand. He took a step forward, pushing Carlos and causing him to hop backward on his one grounded leg and bend forward for balance. As he did so, Joel lifted his knee and grabbed Carlos by the head with his hand at the same time, driving his leg up and crashing it into Carlos' nose.
He felt the heat of fresh blood explode against his pants as Carlos let out a roar, pushing back with a burst of adrenaline and freeing himself from Joel. But the damage was done, and his nose was a steady stream of blood that left crimson raindrops and streaks across the top of his white uniform.
Joel went to advance again, but Carlos held him off until the bell rang, signalling the end of the first round.
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