Bounty

by Aubrey St. Clair

  "Joel, wait," she hurried to catch up to him and grabbed his arm. She knew how much this fight could mean to him.

  "You don't have any other money? Isn't this worth it? I mean, I get that it's bullshit and they should have put that on the ad, but you're here now, and think about what it could mean if you win this? 300 bucks won't mean much then."

  He spun around, his eyes still filled with fire. "You think I just have money lying around, Amber? Do I look like I'm fucking rolling in it over here? Everything I have I'm saving to get an apartment. To make first and last month's rent. That's a goal too. You think I want to live in a fucking shelter for the rest of my life? Yeah, if I win it I get a grand. What if I lose? There's a good chance of that happening as well. I have to fight four fucking times and win every one of them to win the whole thing. All of those today."

  Amber said nothing. She didn't realize just how hard up he was. That made this opportunity even more important.

  "Anyway, even if I wanted to, all I brought was $100. I left the rest with everything else I own, locked away at the Y. It starts in 20 minutes and there are no late entries. So fuck it, let's just go. Or you can stay if you want. I'm going."

  He wrenched his arm away from her and started to storm away again.

  "Wait," she said again. He kept walking. The club was starting to fill up now, and the noise level was rising but she knew he heard her. She raised her voice this time, though, and called out behind him. "What if I pay for your membership."

  This time Joel stopped. He only stood there though, a few feet away from her, so she walked forward and around him so that she could look him in the eyes. He was looking down at her feet, though.

  "I said what if I pay for your membership."

  "I heard you."

  "And?"

  Now he did look up. His face was contorted, as if in pain. "I could never ask you to do that."

  "That's fine," she said. "You aren't asking. I'm offering. You can pay me back if you win."

  "Amber," he said, shaking his head. "Winning is a long shot. Let's be honest. Especially with this." He reached back and touched his head, but kept himself from wincing visibly. It still hurt, but not quite as much as yesterday.

  "So, if you lose, consider it a gift. Look, I'm not saying I'm rich, if I was I wouldn't live in that shitty apartment. But on a good weekend, I can make 300 in tips alone so it's not the end of the world to me. And it's my money, I can spend it however I want. This is as worthy a cause as any."

  "You just met me," he protested.

  She shrugged. She'd made more impulsive decisions in her life than this one. For a lot less noble a cause.

  "I don't know," he said. "I hate to feel like I'm in someone's debt."

  "You won't be. Anyway, if you lose, maybe I can think of something you can do to repay me anyway." She grinned slyly and then moved closer to him. Her hand touched his stomach and then slid down his body between his legs, giving him a little squeeze. His eyes popped open and she laughed. "Just kidding," she said. "Sort of."

  She let go and walked around him, heading towards the curtained area he had just come from. "Come on," she said. You only have a few minutes left to sign up."

  21

  Joel

  Joel couldn't believe what Amber had just offered him, and he really wanted to turn her down. Owing someone, anyone, something was a feeling he absolutely despised. He'd gotten this far in his life without anyone giving him anything, including his own family, so he wasn't sure how to react to it. And yet, this fight was an opportunity that could change his life. How could he turn it down?

  Numbly, he followed Amber to the back where the sign ups were happening.

  "Look who's back," a large Hispanic looking man said as Joel walked up to the desk. The man stood next to a couple of others that were sitting at the desk in front of clipboards. They were wearing Golden Dragon Dojo t-shirts, but didn't look like they were fighters. The man addressing Joel was wearing a white karate gi, with the Golden Dragon Dojo crest sewn onto the breast. Obviously already a member before today. He had long black hair slicked back and tied into a tight ponytail at the back. His face was worn and creased, with a small scar under one eye. One of his ears was puffy as well, clearly having been punched one too many times.

  "You back to swear at our club a little bit more, ese?" the man asked, walking around the desk. He was actually about Joel's height, but broader in his shoulders. Joel sneered at him as he approached and moved forward until the two of them were almost bumping chests.

  "Maybe if your club wasn't trying to rip off fighters I wouldn't need to," he spat back.

  "So maybe you should get the fuck out," the man replied, pushing forward into Joel. Joel stood his ground and didn't budge, but he clenched his fists, ready to throw down with this guy if he tried that one more time.

  "Hey now, cool your jets Carlos," a voice came from behind both men. The man called Carlos glared one last time at Joel, but then stepped back. Another man was behind him, wearing a similar gi but in black. The same crest was sewn onto his breast. He had dark hair for the most part, but streaks of gray gave a hint at his age.

  "Is there a problem here," he said, walking up to Joel and extending his hand. "I'm Marcus Flores, the owner of this club." Joel actually recognized his name. Flores use to be a big name fighter in MMA, holding more than one title in his day.

  Before Joel had a chance to speak, Amber cut in. "No problem. We were just signing Joel up here for your event."

  "Fabulous," the man said. Joel shook his hand begrudgingly, but his eyes stayed trained on Carlos behind him who was glaring right back. "Glad to have you with us. We look forward to you joining our club, regardless of how you do today. Good luck!" He gave Joel another slap on the shoulder and then nodded as he walked past him. Carlos grunted at Joel one last time and then followed Marcus through the curtain.

  "Do you take credit cards?" he heard Amber say. The person at the desk nodded as Joel turned to the desk to fill out the paperwork. I hope that fucker is fighting today, he thought.

  "You're up next," Amber was saying. "Should you head to the back now?"

  They were sitting in the makeshift bleachers, a set of temporary wooden stands that were set up for people to watch the fights. So far there had been two matches out of the six scheduled for round one of the tournament. There had been only 14 entrants, which meant two fighters went immediately to round two without having to fight. Unfortunately, Joel hadn't been one of them. He had been watching the first two fights closely, but so far hadn't seen anyone too skilled that worried him. But there were still nine other fighters he hadn't seen.

  "Yeah, I guess so," he said, just as he finished putting on the gloves the Dojo had lent him. He was use to bare knuckle fights in alleyways, but he'd worn these MMA style gloves before. Each fighter was supposed to be behind the curtain before their match so that they could be announced and make an entrance. Match two had just ended, which gave him five minutes before they called his name. Each first round match lasted only 10 minutes, and if there wasn't a submission or knockout in that time, the decision was made by the judges. The judges were apparently made up of MMA fighters, with Marcus being one of them.

  He made his way to the back, leaving Amber in her seat. Only fighters were allowed in the back while the tournament was on. There were only a couple other guys waiting, but he knew most of the smart ones would be out watching the fights. Always made sense to know your competition.

  22

  Amber

  Amber watched nervously as Joel entered the ring. His opponent had entered first, and had gotten more cheers from the crowd than he did. Apparently he'd brought more of his own fans. Amber hadn't been the only one clapping for Joel, but she suspected most of the others had just been being polite.

  The man in the ring with Joel was Sam Slaughter, and although she knew that wasn't his real name, she didn't like the connotation. Joel needed a nickname, but she knew him well enough already to know that he w
ould think that nicknames were stupid. But still, it had to add some psychological advantage, otherwise why did everyone else seem to have them.

  The bell rung, signaling the start of the match and she looked quickly at the timer on the wall. Ten minutes. He only had to make it ten minutes with this guy. He can do that. Sam didn't look nearly as big as Brutus had been. He was smaller than Joel, in fact.

  As soon as it had begun, Sam rushed towards Joel trying to catch him by surprise by grabbing hold of his midsection. Joel slammed a fist against his attacker's back, but he couldn't loosen the grip. From what Amber could see, Sam seemed to be trying to squeeze the air from Joel while kicking at his legs.

  With a sudden spin, Joel tripped and landed hard on his back with Sam on top. Both men scrambled around on the ground before Joel was able to fling Sam off and kick him in the chest as he tried to re-mount him. Sam flew backwards, giving Joel enough time to regain his feet.

  Both men began to circle each other again. Sam once again made a sudden rush at Joel, but this time he was ready for it. Joel caught the other man as he ducked to try to take Joel down again, and he was able to wrap one arm around Sam's head. Sam's hands immediately came up to grab onto Joel's arm to try to pull it off, and she could see the smaller man struggling.

  Suddenly, Joel began to slam his knee repeated into his opponent as he held him, causing the man to momentarily move his hands away to try to protect himself. She saw Joel's arm shift under the other man's neck and he began to lean back. Suddenly, Sam was slapping wildly against Joel's leg and the bell rung. The referee immediately ran between the two men and pushed Joel away.

  "What happened," Amber said aloud, unsure why they were separated.

  "That Joel guy just won," said a man to her left, thinking she had been asking him.

  "He did? How?"

  "Looked like a Guillotine choke to me. Sam tapped out."

  Amber had no idea what a Guillotine choke was, but she did remember that tapping out was the equivalent of surrendering. A big smile spread across her face and she looked over at the clock. There was still over 5 minutes left on it. Joel had won very quickly.

  The crowd cheered as the announcer declared Joel the winner via submission, and Amber anxiously awaited his return. When he finally emerged from the back, the next match had already begun but she wasn't paying any attention to it. She swung her arms around him immediately and gave him a squeeze. He brought his hands around her as well and she was ecstatic to feel him squeeze her back, although he pulled away pretty quickly, looking embarrassed at the public display of affection.

  "You did it!" she exclaimed.

  "That was only the first match," he replied. "But yeah." She was happy he allowed himself to smile back at her, even if it was very slightly.

  He settled back down beside her and quickly focused on the match going on.

  "That black guy favors his left too much," he said.

  Amber looked at the fight in front of him, but she had no idea what Joel was talking about.

  "But his opponent hasn't noticed, he keeps opening himself up to it," he continued.

  She did see that one guy kept getting hit by the other guy, the black man that Joel had mentioned. She hadn't noticed before, but now that he had pointed it out, he was using his left hand more often than his right. Not something she generally would pay attention to, but apparently it was an important enough detail for Joel to notice.

  The match ended with him continuing to commentate, noting each strength and weakness to her as he saw them. Most of the time she had no idea what he was talking about, but she wasn't paying a lot of attention anyway. She was mainly worrying about the next round. Before she knew it, the first round of matches were over and there were only eight fighters left.

  "Ladies and gentlemen," the announcer called out. "There will be a fifteen minute intermission before we start the second round of matches."

  23

  Joel

  Joel paced in the back, waiting for his name to be called. His first match had ended quickly, but he knew that the second may not be as easy since his opponent would at least be good enough to have won his own first match. He had been lucky that Sam had been so obvious in looking for a takedown, wanting to turn the fight into a wrestling match. Normally, Joel would have no problem with that, he was very comfortable on the ground, however with Sam so interested in taking it there, Joel suspected that his standing game wasn't very strong. He tested his theory with a couple of knees to the stomach, and was rewarded when Sam flinched enough to open his neck up for a choke.

  Besides, when Sam had knocked him down the first time, Joel's head had hit the mat. It hadn't hit too hard, he had made sure to tuck his chin as much as possible, but it was enough to agitate his injury. If he could avoid doing that again, he'd be happy.

  The dojo wasn't posting the bracket anywhere, so he wasn't sure who he was fighting next, but he had a pretty good idea about how at least six of the eight remaining fighters fought. Two of them had moved directly to round two, so he was hoping that he wouldn't end up with one of those. It may not be a massive advantage to have watched the other guys fight just that single time, but it was something. He'd take what he could get.

  He heard his name being called and he took a deep and calming breath before pushing aside the curtain and making his way to the ring. He was first this time, and he was pretty sure that he was getting more cheers than he had during match one. Clearly his quick finish had won over a few fans. But there was only one of them that mattered. He gave Amber a quick glance as he manoeuvred between the ropes. She smiled widely and he wondered yet again what he'd done to deserve her attention.

  "And his opponent, from Minneapolis, Minnesota... weighing 230 lbs... Jackson Daily!"

  Joel glanced towards the curtain, and the black man from the fight earlier emerged to start making his way to the ring. The southpaw.

  This second match, as well as the next one, were both also ten minutes however they were being separated into two five minute rounds. That made it closer to a real MMA style match. The final fight would add a third round. He could only hope to make it that long.

  Jackson was in the ring, and the referee signaled them to begin.

  The two men started circling each other, each one throwing out exploratory jabs that were easily blocked by his opponent. As with his last match, Jackson was favoring his left more often. In response, Joel stepped slightly to his own left, keeping away from Jackson's power side. As he hoped, Jackson didn't compensate by moving his own stance to his right to even them up again. Now, whenever Jackson threw his left, it was a lot easier for Joel to dodge, as well as opening his opponent up in the center. On Jackson's next attack, Joel ducked to the left and then threw a right, connecting right in between the guard of Jackson and clocking him right in the nose.

  The black man stumbled back in surprise and Joel followed up with a forward kick right to the midsection. Jackson doubled forward but lifted his hands in time to counter Joel's follow up hook.

  Both men stood and squared off again, but Jackson still wasn't paying enough attention to Joel's stance and he was once again able to get inside the other man's guard, delivering yet another blow to his face as he stepped and slid to his left. This time, however, he also used his leg to slam back into Jackson's calf, causing the man to buckle down. He recovered quickly, though, and threw a backhanded punch toward Joel as he passed, hitting him in the back of the head.

  Normally, that punch wouldn't have even fazed him, but Jackson's gloved fist had landed directly on his previous injury and an instant flash of pain seared through his brain, causing Joel to stumble forward into the ropes and allow his opponent to recover and regain his balance. As he pushed off and spun, Joel glanced up at the clock. There was still over a minute left in this round. The back of his head felt like it was on fire, and a small trickle on the back of his neck told him the cut had opened up again.

  Jackson sensed that something was wrong and immediately bounde
d forward, swinging his left again. Joel blocked it in time, but only because he knew it was coming. He threw a jab of his own to counter, but he was slow and it was easily dodged. Jackson threw a knee forward, connecting with Joel's ribs. He sucked in breath as pain shot through him, but he was able to deflect the follow up that Jackson threw by leaning forward and into it, and then grabbing the other man and holding his arms down in a clinch while he regained his breath.

  A few seconds later he pushed off, his head no longer feeling as dizzy. The clock was at 30 seconds left. Neither man was able to land anything significant before the bell rang to signal the end of the match. Joel would have 2 minutes to rest before the start of the next round.

  He went over to his corner and was surprised to see Amber there.

  "What are you doing here?" he asked.

  "The other guy has someone in his corner," she said, with a nod of her head. He looked over and saw someone applying a cloth to the back of Jackson's neck to cool him down.

  "Well, that's probably his trainer. It's not supposed to be a social break."

  Amber ignored him. "How's your head. It's bleeding."

  "He got a lucky hit, square in the center of it. Hurts like a bitch, but I'll be fine."

  "Turn around, let me take a look."

  Joel looked at her dubiously, but turned around nonetheless. He felt her press something up against it and he sucked in a breath as she pushed firmly against it.

  "What are you doing back there?"

  "There were towels here, I'm just applied a bit of pressure to stop the bleeding. Just hold still."

  He knew it was the right thing to do, and once again he felt ashamed that Amber was constantly helping him when he could offer nothing in return. He felt her hand touch his shoulder in order to get leverage as she pushed against the back of his head. Her cool skin felt calming against his sweaty back. He almost felt himself relax, despite the situation. By the time the ref told them to wrap it up, he almost felt as if he were back at her apartment, relaxing.