Fighting For Life

by Kylie Alyssa Forte

  I could just feel the adrenaline buzzing at my fists. I was on the offense after that. I didn’t want another serious punch like that. I knew that if he were to catch my face with that punch, it would do some damage.

  I began spitting punch after punch, and kick after kick to keep him away. Some he was able to block, but I was much quicker than him. I was getting tired, but I also knew that he couldn’t take much more of my continuous hits. It just took one or two in the face, and he’d be laid out by me. He definitely didn’t want that; he had a reputation to uphold.

  Finally, he screamed out in frustration at my continuous attacks. He had no idea how to defend against someone so small and fast. Then again, not many did, especially at the Underground. They were all used to big men, not tiny girls.

  “Okay, Mercy! You win!” Shawn finally tapped.

  I had to smile in victory at his defeat; it was a big moment for my career. Although, it would have been way better if I hadn’t had a slight coughing fit after that. My lungs felt like they couldn’t get enough air in them.

  “Fine, you’re good. Is that what you wanted me to say?” he said, angrily coming toward me slightly.

  I could hear and feel the anger and frustration coming off of him in waves.

  Aiden quickly stepped up onto the mats, ready to pounce if the boy even tried to attack outside of the match.

  Shawn immediately simmered down. He took a deep breath and shook his head. “You beat me. Obviously you’re good. However, you really need to focus on your opponent’s weak spots that you figure out in the first few minutes of a fight. You could have had me down in a lot better fashion if you focused on my weak areas. You have great potential.”

  I nodded thoughtfully and smiled at him. “Thank you for the tip, I appreciate it.”

  He nodded slightly and held out his hand for me to shake. “Good fight.”

  I took his hand and shook it. “Good fight.”

  Aiden finally pulled me away before Shawn could start showing me some new moves. He promised me that I could learn them the next week.

  Instead, he forced me to get dressed and then led me to his car. I was annoyed that I had to stop, but my ribs were thankful.

  I then looked at Aiden who still seemed tense.

  “You know, you could stay and train Aiden. I’m completely okay with walking home. I know that your training schedule really has taken a toll since you started training me. You need to take care of yourself too.” I felt like it just needed to be said.

  “Aubry, no . . . I want to be with you. Don’t listen to what the idiotic Shawn has to say. He doesn’t know anything about my schedule, and I train when you’re training. Why do you think I’m always hitting the bag with you? I’m practicing on my fighting positions. Besides, I’d rather spend time with you than train anyways. I mean, if that’s okay with you?”

  I just stared at him. He wanted to be sure that I was okay with spending time with him? No one ever cared about what I wanted before. I couldn’t help but get choked up by the unexpected response.

  Of course, that freaked Aiden out, and made him think he did something wrong. However, in that moment, I knew that he was simply perfect for me; flaws and all. I also knew that I was not perfect for him. It was bittersweet.

  “Aiden,” I finally started to prevent a heart attack. “O-Of course I want to spend time with you.” He still looked skeptical. So, I finally decided to show him. “In fact, I want to show you something. Can you head west on main street and go over the tracks?” I knew exactly where I was taking him.

  ***

  Aiden

  I hated that she thought that she was the reason for my tension or anxiety. She seemed to be one of the only things that helped me relax. I didn’t need to beat the shit out of people and things when she was around. I didn’t feel so worked up and angry all of the time with her there with me.

  “Aubry, no . . . I want to be with you. Don’t listen to what the idiotic Shawn has to say. He doesn’t know anything about my schedule, and I train when you’re training. Why do you think I’m always hitting the bag with you? I’m practicing on my fighting positions. Besides, I’d rather spend time with you than train anyways . . . I mean, if that’s okay with you?” I told her, feeling embarrassed about my attachment to her. It was taking over my whole life, and I had no control over it.

  As soon as those words left my mouth, Aubry’s eyes filled with emotions. She just looked at me and said nothing. I quickly tried to backtrack on my words and stutter out an apology. However, she just shook her head and silenced me with a look.

  “Aiden, o-of course I want to spend time with you.” I felt like she was just trying to placate me. “In fact, I want to show you something. Can you head west on main street and go over the tracks?”

  I was confused but did as she said. The car ride was silent except the occasional direction that she gave me.

  Eventually, she told me to park on the side of a really rundown and sketchy street. I took in my surroundings and looked at her questioningly. She steeled herself for a moment and then looked at the house that was across the street. Tears seemed to form at once.

  “That’s where I grew up,” she said as she cleared her throat.

  I stared at her wide-eyed and then turned back to the house. It was rundown, old, and falling apart in various places. It obviously had a rough time, just like her.

  I stayed quiet as we both took in her old house. I grasped her hand tightly, letting her know that she wasn’t alone. She’d never have to go back there ever again.

  It was a long time before she spoke again. “You see that window right there?” she asked, pointing to the window on the side of the house by the broken fence.

  I nodded.

  “That was my room. It was the smallest room in the whole house minus the bathroom, but it was mine. That’s also the window I escaped from when my dad went crazy threatening to shoot me if I didn’t leave.”

  I scooted across the bench seat to her and put my arm around her shoulders. “I’m sorry that happened to you,” I whispered to her.

  She stayed silent for a little bit longer. “You see the broken fence right next to the window?”

  I nodded again.

  “My dad ran into it four years ago with a car when he was driving drunk. Two feet over, and it would have been my room.”

  I sighed and leaned further into her, holding her closer to me.

  “And then the gara—” She stopped abruptly and stared out the window with a horrified expression.

  I followed her gaze thoughtfully. There was a man who had just walked out of the house. He looked like a severe crackhead and was paying no attention to anything or anyone around him.

  “ Drive,” Aubry said breathlessly. “Aiden,” she sobbed. “Drive! Go! Please, drive. Hurry.”

  I didn’t ask any questions and just drove.

  She was hyperventilating and looked like she saw a ghost.

  I just kept driving and didn’t stop until we were back over the train tracks and in a nice part of town once again. I quickly pulled into a parking lot and parked the car. I looked at her cautiously as she just cried.

  I wasn’t sure what to do, so I just brought her in for a hug and let her cry on me. I slowly rubbed circles in her shoulders and rocked her very softly. It was a while before her cries finally died down. Still, I didn’t let her go.

  After a while, I finally had to ask. “Who was that?”

  “Please don’t, Aiden,” it was all she said.

  “Can you just tell me . . . that wasn’t your dad, was it?”

  “No, that man was not my father.”

  That just left me with more questions, but I reframed from asking. I knew that Aubry was too fragile in that moment. Instead, I just held her and soothed her.

  It seemed like it was a long time before she finally pulled away from me. “Sorry . . . I—”

  “You have nothing to be sorry about, Aub,” I cut her off and moved her hair from her face. “T
hank you for taking me there. I know it didn’t go smoothly, but I appreciate you letting me in, nonetheless.”

  “Thank you for going with me. I think that I needed a little bit of closure. Thank you for comforting me and for . . . well, everything.”

  “Aubry, I’d do anything for you,” I told her with conviction, hoping that she’d truly believe me.

  “You have no idea how nice that is to hear . . .”

  “How about we go home? Cece will be excited that we’re home early and will rope you into playing with her,” I said, trying to lighten the mood.

  She nodded silently with a small smile. I could still see the haunted look behind her eyes though.

  ***

  The day and night went by quickly and Aubry woke up the next day, ready to get up and go. I had convinced her to stay at home until at least lunch. After that, though, there was no point in even trying to keep her home.

  She was ready to train and ready to go to the fight. She was nervous, but also extremely ready. She was ready to be taken seriously as a fighter. She was ready to be an Elite.

  When we got to the gym, Aubry was in a hurry. She was iced and ready to go quickly. We ran through warmups, and she was instantly over with Shawn, while the others were picking up tips and tricks from them.

  Shawn was quite taken with her, much to my displeasure. He thought that it was funny. She was tiny, but she was so good and quick too. She shouldn’t have been as good as she was, but she proved him wrong. It was really remarkable how much of a natural fighter she was.

  She spent most of the day with the other Elite fighters. I was there as well, but I thought that it would be good for her to get pointers from others as well. She was picking it all up just as fast as they were teaching it.

  It was about time to go when I finally pulled her away from the training. She needed to take her meds, get changed and then we’d go and get a bite to eat.

  Then it would be time for her fight.

  All throughout, she was a bundle of nerves. However, she seemed to have a bit more spark in her that day. I felt almost bad for whoever was fighting her that day. She had just learned some nasty new moves from the guys, and she was determined to win. When Aubry was determined, there was no stopping her from anything.

  When we got to the Underground, she drank two drinks before she was called up to the mats. Everyone pointed and laughed at her as she walked up there with one of the big elite guys. Everyone, including her opponent underestimated her. No one knew what she was capable of.

  She showed them though. It took barely seven moves for her to win. Seven moves. She was a beast!

  Wth a few hits, one sweep and arm lock, and one final throat punch, her opponent tapped out right after that. He was bewildered, hurt, and embarrassed. He didn’t understand what went wrong and was trying to figure out what the hell had happened.

  Aubry happened.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Later

  Aubry

  The freezing cold soaked into my dew-lined coat. I was shivering violently. With every movement, it felt like a thousand pins and needles were pricking my skin deeply. I could feel my insides trying to give out. My everything was trying to give out.

  I wanted to get up and walk away. I needed to get out of the stinging cold. However, the harder I tried to get my body to move, the further the bench pulled me into its hard stone. I couldn’t get away.

  I was going numb all over. My limbs felt so heavy that only a crane could lift them. This was it. I was dying, and maybe that wouldn’t be such a horrible thing.

  I could hear voices, but I couldn’t tell who or what they were saying. For a moment I wondered if it was God. Was it the Creator also telling my that I wasn’t good enough for heaven either? Or was it simply the demons ready to drag me to hell?

  Either way, I didn’t really care, I just wanted to lay there. Not that I had a choice, my limbs were paralyzed and frozen. I just wanted to think about my favorite guy and let him lull me the rest of the way to death. I could almost see his beautiful blue eyes dancing around my mind. I just wanted him.

  “Aubry, wake up. It’s just another bad dream.” I heard as my eyelids fluttered open officially. With my eyes opened, the visions of Aiden in my dream became a reality.

  I was shaking, and I could feel the hot liquid pouring from my eyes.

  As I stared up at Aiden, I could feel the coldness from my dream melt away. It was a dream.

  “That wasn’t a normal dream, was it?” Aiden asked, looking at me.

  He had gotten quite used to waking me up from my dreams in the middle of the night in the three weeks that I had stayed in his house with him and his family. Those had been the best three weeks of my life.

  He was sitting on the edge of the couch bed that I had been sleeping on and eyeing me warily. He felt so far away from me. He usually hugged me and told me that it was going to be okay after one of my dreams. He never just sat there like that.

  I shook my head wordlessly while I stared at him with wide eyes. A moment of silence passed, and I cleared my throat. “How did you know . . . about it not being the same nightmare?”

  “You usually scream and fight with the other dream. This dream was mostly just whimpering and shivering.” He paused and looked at me with a pained expression. “Aubry, am I the cause of your nightmares?”

  I looked at him as if he had lost his damn mind. Why would he even ask that? “No, why would you ever think that?” I asked, almost offended.

  His voice was quiet and weak. “Because you were whispering my name. You always do, and your voice is always so sad and full of anguish.”

  My face softened at his words. “Aiden, I . . .” I began, but he cut me off before I could say anything else.

  “I-I just don’t want to hurt you. You’ve had too many bad things happen to you already, things that you didn’t deserve. I just . . . want you to know that I don’t want to be like the other people that have been in your life.”

  “Aiden,” I started, but I paused for a moment to grab his hands. I pulled him closer and made him look me in the eyes. “Aiden, you’re not the source of my bad dreams, I promise. Ever since I met you, you’ve only ever been the savior in my nightmares. The reason why I called out your name is because you’re always the one that wakes me up from my nightmares.”

  “You’re always the one to save me in and out of them.” I grasped his hands even tighter. “You always blame yourself for things that are out of your control. You think that you’re this horrible person that should be blamed and not trusted.” I grabbed his chin to make sure that he couldn’t look away. “I know bad people, and you . . . you’re not one of them. You’re not a bad guy; you’re always the savior.”

  He sighed in relief and pulled me into his body while finally wrapping his arms around me. “You’re amazing Aubry,” he said as he chuckled.

  I rolled my eyes at him.

  He sobered up quickly and pulled my face close to his. “No seriously . . . You’re the most amazing person that I know, Aubry. I mean, even after everything that you’ve been through, and I know we have barely scratched the surface with what I know, you still just try to comfort people. It’s an amazing trait. I mean look at us, you were the one with a bad dream, now here you are, comforting me.”

  “Sorry for waking you,” I mumbled slowly.

  “You didn’t, I woke up on my own. I had a nightmare too.”

  “Really? You have them too?” I asked dumbly.

  “I do . . . but I always know that you’re out here for me when I wake up, so it makes them much easier to handle,” he replied honestly.

  I smiled at him and then buried my face into his shirtless chest. I was caught off guard by his shirtlessness, but I certainly wasn’t complaining. I touched his amazing chest with my soft fingers. I let them act on their own accord, not thinking of my own actions for once.

  I silently traced the scar that ran across his chest, and before I knew what I was doing, I kissed it l
ightly.

  His breathing hitched suddenly, and he let out a strangled moan from the back of his throat. It was the most pleasurable sound that I had ever heard. He tightened his grip around my hips and pulled me closer to him. I looked up at him through my eyelashes, he groaned again.

  “God, what are you doing to me Aubry?” Aiden asked, letting out a small breath.

  “The same thing that you’re doing to me,” I answered boldly while looking him in the eyes.

  I wasn’t sure what had come over me or why I had so much confidence suddenly, but I also didn’t care. I just wanted him. It was beginning to make me crazy.

  Aiden moved his hands up from my hips and buried his fingers in my hair. My heart began beating faster and my breaths got shorter. He held me like that for several minutes, looking me in the eyes as if seeming to search for something.

  Our breaths were intertwining, and I was waiting for his lips to land on mine. It was the first time that I had ever actually wanted a kiss from someone. His face was getting closer and closer to mine, and I felt so contented with my choice to kiss him.

  “Can I k—” Aiden began, but was cut off by a door closing loudly in the hallway. Aiden sighed deeply and sat up on the bed. My cheeks were burning, I’m sure they’re beet-red. Someone could have just walked in on us.

  “Morning kids,” Dana said, looking at us.

  “Mom,” Aiden greeted simply.

  “I’m going to pick up Pawpaw from the airport. I’ll see y’all later,” Dana said, kissing her son on the cheek and waving at me.

  “Okay, we’ll be out pretty late tonight. Okay mom?” Aiden asked, walking her towards the door.

  “Okay honey, just don’t get into trouble. You know that I trust y’all. Don’t do anything to break that trust,” Dana said, walking out of the house.