by P. A. Jones
And then there were bitter memories, with Eddie. I did enjoy my days with him, but thinking about his betrayal always made my mind go numb. I wish it could’ve been different.
Fuck him. If he was in front of me right now, I would have happily killed the bastard.
I was a different girl when the flight took place. I was going to live near my mom's care center. I could visit her weekly, not monthly, like I used to do when I was in N.Y.
The only thing I was worried about was that I didn't know how to meet Tom in person. I made the decision in haste, but now, sitting on the plane, I realized I should’ve talked with him at least once before jumping on the plane to L.A.
What if he refused to offer me a job?
That meant I could only meet my mother, and then search for a job in L.A. If that didn’t work out, I didn’t know what would for me. God, L.A. job looked a long shot now.
A knot formed in my stomach as the plane landed in L.A. The weather outside was calm and dry, but my insides were all stormy. I called Tom's number, and found out he was shooting a movie in Hollywood for Sony Motion Pictures. I had no other choice but to crash in on him unannounced.
Finding the studio wasn't easy. But when I got there, I saw hundreds of people standing outside, waiting for the stars. As I was one of them, I wasn't allowed inside. I tried to convince the security guard, but he insisted that I would get out of there. The studio was off limits for fans.
When I was about to walk away, I saw Tom coming out of the studio. Many people tried to run towards him, but security stopped them with ease. But then, Tom smiled at his fans, and came closer to offer his signature. When he was near me, I shouted his name.
He looked at me, and his eyes widened.
"Gosh! Is that you, Julie? What are you doing here? Come out of there." He signaled to security, and they let me through.
"Thanks, Tom. And I'm sorry for showing up like this."
"No problem. I owe you my shoulder. Tell me, where should I sign?"He flashed his superstar smile.
"I'm not here for a signature. Actually..." I paused. I was overstepping now. "I came here for the job offer you gave me six months back."
"Job?" he looked puzzled.
"Yes, for your personal trainer."
"Oh, yes." His forehead creased. I guess he didn't like the place I chose to ask him. But I didn't really have a choice.
"I'm sorry. I tried calling the number you gave me, but your secretary didn't let me pass through."
“Yes, because that's her job," he replied, looking irritated.
"I hope that offer still stands,” I said, desperate.
"Why don't you come to my office tonight, at eight o’ clock, sharp? We can discuss that in detail. I'm sorry, but I have to go for a shoot right now." He handed me a card, which had his office address.
"Yes, of course, " I replied. He was a busy star, after all.
"Good. See ya then.” He smiled and walked away with security tailing his steps.
***
"It's really you." Tom hugged me and greeted me with a light kiss on my cheek. "I was surprised when I saw you today."
He smelled like alcohol. And I was irked by the kiss he planted on my cheek. It was a bit weird, but I guess that's how the Hollywood starts worked. After all, why would he think about manners? He must meet a thousand girls who are ready to jump in his bed with just one smile from him.
"I'm so sorry to show up like this.” I looked around. No one else was present in his office. But when I was outside the door, the lobby was crowded with lots of people. It was a business complex. Many rich people owned an office there.
"Never mind. Tell me, what would you have?" His hand touched my ass. Now it was weird. I wasn't used to this kind of greetings, maybe it was how people greet in Hollywood..
"Nothing. I was hoping to talk with you about the job offer you gave me six months back." I moved away slightly, so that his hand wouldn't touch my ass easily.
"Of course we will discuss that. But why don't we enjoy your visit to L.A. first? A proper welcome to the city. You shouldn't be telling your friends that Tom didn't even offer you a drink."
"Technically you already offered me one." I giggled. He was flirtatious.
"And you declined it. But I insist you have at least one. I have a hundred-year-old bottle of scotch. You will be surprised by the taste."
Now he was tempting me. A hundred-year-old bottle. Wow. I wasn't a heavy drinker. But drinking for pleasure was fine sometimes, and a Hollywood star was offering it to me.
"I will have one drink. But only if we talk about the business first. If you don't mind." I couldn’t forget why I was here.
"No problem. But I will have one as we talk business." He poured one glass for himself from the mini bar. He walked to me and sat near, with his one hand holding the glass and the other resting on my upper back, where my dress started. "Now, tell me why you’re here?"
I slightly moved away from him. "Does the offer you gave me six months back still stand?"
"Why not?" He moved closer and put his hand on my thigh, slowly crawling up my dress.
"Tom, what are you doing?"
"Just checking how your skin feels. And I must say, it feels good." He winked and forced his lips on mine.
"What the…” I pushed him back and stood up. I didn't like his moves. "Tom, I'm here for job. I'm not one of the girls who are ready to jump in your bed."
"What's the fuss, babe? Don't you want to sleep with Tom Ross? I'm offering myself to you! What greater gift you can get from me?”
“Excuse me?”
“When I hire you, it’ll be loads of fun. You’re going to fuck me whenever I deem so." He chuckled lowly, and it sounded like a growl from a monster.
"You jerk! To hell with your offer! I'm out of here." I turned to walk out of his office. He was an asshole, and I didn't do business with such stupid people.
"Babe, you can't walk out of here." Tom ran and grabbed my arm from behind, yanking roughly. But he didn't know the mistake he just made. I was trained in martial arts, and pinning down a jerk like him was extremely easy for me. I pulled him forward and twisted his hand behind his back. I knew it would get dislocated. He immediately cried out in agony.
I pushed him against the door and pinned him. "You better remember this next time you try this on a woman. We aren’t your pawns to play with,” I growled.
I tossed him away from the door and walked out. Suddenly the sound of people around me increased, and I felt safe and calm.
"You bastard!" Tom stormed out of the door, chasing after me. I turned back to him, to give him another beating. But I froze as I saw a gun pointed towards me. Tom was aiming a gun at my forehead.
"I will kill you, bitch!” he shouted.
Many people screamed, but Tom didn't care for them. Some monster had gotten a hold of him. He slowly moved towards me, still pointing the gun. "I will kill you, bitch. And you will remember it in your next life when a man tries that out on you."
But then something happened. Someone snatched Tom’s hand, and he dropped the gun, crying in pain. A man appeared out of nowhere and pinned Tom on ground, twisting the dis-located hand. Tom cried out again.
"Detective!” the strange man shouted. One guy wearing an FBI jacket rushed to him. He detained Tom and dragged him away. I stood there, frozen. I couldn't understand what was happening. It had all taken place in the blink of an eye.
"Miss, are you all right?" the stranger asked me.
I nodded. “Yes…yes, I’m fine.”
"I need you to come with me. I need your statement." He held my arm gently and walked me to one of the couch present in the open space.
"Who are you?" I asked.
"I'm special consultant to the FBI. Gavin Phillips." He showed me his identification card.
"Officer, what just happened?” I looked outside, where all the drama had occurred.
"Well, we arrested, Tom for putting a gun on you. We had some information that he would
be dealing some drugs in his office today, so we were watching him to make a bad move. I'm sorry you had to go through this." He pulled out a water bottle out of his bag "Please have this, you will feel better."
I needed that. My heart was still pounding.
"Now tell me, how did you end up here?"
I told him my complete story, including my need for job. They say that you should hide nothing from cops, so I was as honest as could be. I told him about everything, expect about Eddie.
"I think I might have a solution for your job issue, but only if you want to hear it out."
"What is that? Do you know of any health club here?" A hope emerged in my heart.
"Not a health club. But I help a friend run Mixed Martial Art training facility that is in need of a physical therapist. You said you worked in physical therapy, right?"
"Yes, but a fight club? What would I do there?"
"Well, we have fighters who get injured. Yesterday, our only in-house therapist resigned. I guess that makes a place for you." He smiled.
"I think that's a great idea." I desperately needed a job, whatever it entailed.
"I would say relax for a couple of days, to recover from Tom’s attack, then come to my club and meet me. We need to discuss salary as well. I can't pay as much as Tom offered you, but it will be enough for you and your mom's treatment."
"Thanks, Gavin, " He was the angel I needed from heaven. Finally, I had a job in L.A.
Chapter 6
Julie
Gavin asked me to take a couple of days to decide, and today was the second day. When he offered me the job initially, I was excited. But later, I wasn't sure if I should do it because it, after all, was in a fight club.
I checked my options, but I didn't find anything left for me. L.A. wasn't a feather in the book-of-my-life experience. From the moment I got here, I was shown hostility, and then an attempt on my life. Gosh, still I couldn't believe Tom tried that on me. He could have easily asked any girl in L.A. to sleep with him, and she probably would’ve said yes. He chose the wrong person to try that on. When he pulled a gun on me, my heart stopped for a moment. I saw my death in his eyes. Thanks to Gavin, I'm alive, and now he was saving me from remaining jobless in a strange city. Why was I even bothering to think twice about taking the job?
Gavin looked genuine, and on top of that, he was an FBI consultant. I could trust him. But nothing good had happened to me in last few days. My boyfriend abandoned me, and one of the top actors in Hollywood tried to rape me. God, what was happening with me these days?
What could be the worst outcome? He asked me to join his fight club, not personally train him. It’s done then. I will join his club after seeing it with my own eyes. Yes, that would give me enough confidence to join the club. If the pay was good, I could comfortably live in L.A. and see my mother every weekend.
That day, I was on my way to the address Gavin gave me. When I reached there, to my surprise, it was a rich area in L.A.. When I first heard about the martial art club, I thought it would be downtown, some alleyway where only shady people would go. But when I reached the address, everything surprised me. The street had all the rich brands I knew. It even had a couple of corporate offices. Gavin must have shelled out a hell of a lot of money for getting the club on this street.
From outside, it looked like a nightclub, only minus the fancy dressed couples roaming around. I walked inside with curiosity. I had never visited a fight club before. I found it was a strict fighting environment. I saw men with six packs roaming around, punching bags and lifting weights. I suddenly felt like I was entering a UFC arena, only, no audience was present there. It was a fight club.
The club had four rings at four corners, and one enclosed cage ring in the middle, which they must use for commercial matches. At least a dozen people were fighting in the four corner rings, and a couple dozen people were stretching or doing some exercise in the space between rings.
I was glad I would not be alone in the club. I would work alongside at least three dozen men and woman, so I would be safe if something went wrong.
"Good evening, Julie. I was wondering about your decision this morning?" Gavin emerged from my left side with a smile on his face. He was in business dress, which didn't suit the atmosphere of the club.
"I thought of seeing the club before I said yes," I said."And you mentioned about the martial art club, this looks like a fight club."
"Well, I didn't know if you would be genuinely interested in the offer. And telling you about the fight club would have put me in danger if you happened to be meeting another cop. Anyway, I'm glad you are here. So, tell me about your first impression?" As he glanced at the whole arena, pride flashed through his eyes. I could see it was his baby.
"It looks fantastic, but I was wondering if you could give me a tour. I'm especially interested in the therapy area, if you have any such place.”
He looked at his watch. "I wish I could, but I have a business meeting to attend. But don't worry. One of my friends can help you look around." He spotted someone on the other side of the arena and called his name, a man named Mark.
"Hey, champ!" Gavin hit the man’s shoulder hard when he walked to us.
"Dude, do you think I can hit the ring next month?" Mark asked eagerly.
"Why wouldn't you? You’re doing everything right. I bet I can predict the next runner-up in the upcoming tournament." Gavin chuckled.
"I will wipe that smirk from your face when I get the gold." Mark frowned at Gavin.
"We will see. Anyway, I was wondering if you can help the lady here by showing her around the club? She may join us as a trainer in the next couple of days."
"Hi. Mark Peterson." Mark extended his hand.
"Julie McCord." I grabbed his hand. He had a firm grip.
"A good handshake. I like that. Come on. Let me show you around."
For the next fifteen minutes, we talked about the facilities. It was a state of the art club, with a complete gym on the second floor, a physiotherapy room on the third floor, and Gavin's private office on the fourth floor.
"I guess I will work on the third floor, if I take this job," I said.
"I doubt it. The lazy asses here prefer the trainers come in the ring and work on their injuries there. And there are lots of injuries happening daily here."
"How many trainers do you have?"
"I guess five or six. A few more work as personal trainers, though none of them are in-house like you will be."
"Five is a good number for thirty odd people. We only had seven for a daily inflow of seventy people in the health club where I worked in New York."
"What brought you to L.A.? New York is much more happening than this city. I say that with experience." He smiled with pride.
"That city didn't suit my expectations." I sighed. "But why did you leave New York?"
Mark didn't reply for almost a minute. When I looked at his face, he had his eyes fixed in the distance. I guess he had bitter memories associated with New York, too. "Gavin told me about what happened to you. Don't worry, you can trust Gavin completely. He’s a good man, with the cutest baby girl you can find in town."
He smiled. "I will leave you now. Training time. Call me if you need anything."
He abruptly left me there. I guess memories of New York touched some painful string in his heart.
I checked out the physiotherapy room on the third floor first. When I came out of the lift, I was amazed. The third floor had every therapy machine I knew that existed on earth. They even had a small gym customized with keeping physical therapy in mind. When I looked around, I found a couple of girls working on one muscular man. They were working on his shoulder. I could easily see them ignoring the upper shoulder in their treatment.
"I think you should work on the pectoralis major,” I said, walking to them.
One on the girl looked at me with puzzled eyes.
"If you work on pectoralis first, he will achieve relaxation faster." I touched the muscle and pushe
d on the knot I found there. When I did, he moaned in relaxation. We had been taught a complete lesson on this in college. I knew what I was doing.
"Wow. I'm already feeling great. Thanks a ton, new lady." The man I was working on grinned.
With a smile, I moved away, walking to the right side of the floor. On that side, they had three sections, a mud room, a sauna room, and a small swimming pool.
"Isn’t the pool sweet?" One of the girls I’d met earlier walked to me. "You must be the new trainer Gavin spoke about."
"I haven't said yes, technically." But in my mind, I had said yes already. The place had impressed me so much that I couldn't even think of declining the offer.
"You can even watch them sparring in the club, from the other side of the pool." She opened the door, and I saw that the room was wider than the other section. It had a medium swimming pool, covering eighty percent of the room. The other end of the swimming pool had a wall of glass.
"Wow. It's awesome in here."
"Come on. A match is going on in the main ring." I followed her to the other side of the room.
Mark was fighting with another equally-strong man in the main ring. One was charging on the other, and when he jumped in the air to hit first with a flying punch, the first one jumped back to avoid his attack. They were treading blows like shown in UFC. The fight looked intense, and it warmed my blood to spar with someone.
"Is this a friendly fight?" I asked.
"No, it's an internal qualifying match. Soon, the L.A. novice tournament will start, and Mark has eyes set on it. He looks great, doesn’t he?" Her eyes lurked with lust as she stared at Mark.
"He fights like a beast." I observed Mark. One second he was flying in the air, the next, he was performing a round kick on the ground. He was present everywhere in the ring.
"Yes. He’s really good," she replied.
"I'm sorry. I didn't introduce myself earlier. Julie McCord,” I said, turning to her.
"I know. And I'm Rose. Just Rose." She smiled, flashing her beautiful teeth.
"I think I’ll take this job."
"And I would say you made a right decision." Rose flashed her teeth again."Welcome to the Fight Club, Julie."