“We’ll tell you whatever you want,” Raven says.
***
One hour after Raven privately told Athena what she needed to hear. She goes back to Mannie’s hospital room to see him. Mannie seems very forgiving toward Raven while she feels guilt-ridden about everything that has happened.
“You okay, Raven?” Mannie asks her while lifting her chin up.
“No. I’m sorry you got hurt, Mannie. I shouldn’t have gotten you into this mess,” she sobs as she apologizes.
”You apologized enough as it is, and I forgive you. Just one question though. How did you get mixed up with Psikes in the first place?”
“Well. It is time I tell someone. Back on my home planet of Andreas, my high-class parents expected nothing but perfection from me. Whenever I come home with something below a perfect grade, even an A minus, they would punish me severely. I grew tired of that high-class life of perfection, so I ran away from my home and came to Earth. I try to see about getting acting jobs in Broadway, but nobody wanted me for their performances because I wasn’t legal. I had to earn a living by working as a cocktail waitress in a bar. That’s where Psikes met me a year ago. He took a serious interest in me the moment he laid eyes on me. He pulled some strings and got me the right papers to make me a legal permanently. However, Psikes expect something in return for his favors. For me, it is seducing men for anything Psikes wants, like access to accounts, partnerships from crime lords, and possible new slave labor. He even had me serve as a drug mule to Waspite addicts like Kaynon. I tried to stand up to him and break up with him, but he threatened to have me sent back home to my parents unless I continue to do as he says. Pathetic, huh?”
“No. It’s not, Raven.”
Raven lowers her head down and onto Mannie’s chest as he wraps his arms around her and embraces her.
“Raven, it won’t be safe at your apartment. As soon as the doctor says I can go, I want you to come live with us,” Mannie says.
“What? Mannie, you already got hurt by Psikes for flirting with me,” Raven gently refuses.
“I mean you can stay with Jody until we can have Psikes arrested on something.”
“I don’t want to endanger her either.”
“Psikes knows where you live!” Mannie says as he grabs her hand before she leaves, “I’m not gonna let go unless you agree to come live with us.”
“Listen to him, Raven,” Jody says as she comes in, “You’ll be killed the moment you go home, and my dad is already putting in security bots. Athena told him everything.”
“Everything?”
“And he understands how hard it is for you to stand up to someone like Psikes.”
“Well you two have convinced me. I’ll go get what I need from my apartment and meet you back at the gym.”
***
Hours later, Mannie is putting two of Raven’s suitcases in Jody’s apartment.
“It may not be ritzy, but it’s a good place to sleep,” Jody tells Raven, “And you’ll be safe here.”
“Thanks, Jody,” Raven replies, “I’m sorry about all the trouble I caused.”
“Hey. Psikes gave the order and you had to follow. I understand.”
“Yeah. I heard you and Don are going out after his training.”
“Yeah. He wants to take me to Central Park.”
“Hmmm. Sounds like a romantic stroll to me,” Raven teases.
“I’m just going with him as a friend. I don’t want him to end up like Mannie.”
“Jody, you gotta stop worrying about Kaynon. You broke up with him, so he has no claim over your love life. Besides, I’ve watched Don fight, and I think he has what it takes to beat him. Look, you may not look like it to some, but you’re stronger than you know. It took a lot more courage foryou break up with Kaynon because of his abusive nature. Not many woman could ever do what you did.”
“I had to for Mannie’s sake.”
“I know, and that definitely shows how brave you are inside. When is your date?”
“He’s supposed to take me tomorrow. Right now, he’s downstairs working out.”
***
In the rec gym, Don is wearing boxing gloves while duking it with a punching bag. He repeatedly hits it, thinking about what happened to Mannie and how Kaynon could have killed him with the way he fought. John is coming in with lunch for both of them.
“Time for a break, Don,” John says.
Don stops his workout and takes the gloves off. He then grabs one of the sandwiches John ordered.
“Thanks, John,” he says as he begins eating.
“I heard you’re taking Jody over to Central Park tomorrow after your training,” John says, “It means a lot to me.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. After she broke up with Kaynon, Jody focused more on her studies and helping me run the business. She’s just too afraid to socialize with anyone except Mannie.”
“But she hung out with Raven.”
“Because she wanted to help Mannie out. I also believe she does want a friend, but is too afraid of what Kaynon might do if he ever got violently jealous.”
“Even after all these years, Kaynon still has some hold over Jody. Our trip to Central Park will hopefully help change that.”
***
Raven is just unpacking her stuff and putting half of it into Jody’s closet. She then hears a knock at the door. She goes over to open it and sees Mannie outside.
“Mannie, what are you doing here?” Raven asks.
“I just wanted to ask you,” Mannie replies shyly, “With Don and Jody going on their tomorrow night, would you like to come to my apartment to watch a movie together? It could be a romantic movie if you want.”
“I was hoping for another date with you.”
“Great!”
“I’ll be over as soon as Jody and Don leave for their night out, and I’ll wear that read cocktail dress you like in my picture.”
What Raven said made Mannie very excited at the thought of Raven dressing up for him.
***
At Psikes’s private gym, Kaynon is in the ring fighting a robotic simulation of Don. He keeps boxing and hitting the robot until he literally tears it to pieces. The head rolls toward Psikes’s feet as he comes in to check on his progress.
“Has the latest test batch of Waspite worked to your liking, my champion?” Psikes asks proudly.
“It…does,” Kaynon says while catching his breath, “Just… a little tired.”
“Excellent. You will be able to destroy your greatest rival in the Final Match.”
“And I’ll finally win Jody back.”
“About that. One of my informants at the Madison Square Garden overheard her talking to Don Kobra. They are going to Central Park for a romantic stroll tomorrow night.”
“WHAT?!!” Kaynon angrily screams.
“It looks like Don does have designs on your girl.”
“Forget the fights! I’ll take care of him out of the ring!”
Kaynon jumps out of the ring and angrily walks out, but not before crushing the Don robot’s head.
***
The next night, Jody is in her room, putting on her new pink maxi dress to get ready for her date. She is just putting her glasses and perfume on when Raven knocks on the door to her bedroom.
“Are you all set?” Raven calls out to Jody.
“I’m ready,” Jody replies as she come out looking radiant in her dress.
“You look wonderful!”
“Thanks, Raven. I hope Don will think so.”
“Oh he will when he sees you in that dress, sweetie.”
“You have fun with your date with Mannie. After what happened, he could use a good time.”
“Oh I’ll make sure of that.”
Raven goes into the room to put on the dress she promised to wear for Mannie. While she is getting dressed, there is a knock at the door. Jody peeks through the peeping hole to see who is there and sees Don outside waiting for her with roses. She goes out to g
reet him, and when Don sees her, he is in awe about how beautiful she looks.
“Whoa! You look wonderful, Jody,” he says in astonishment.
“Thanks, Don,” Jody replies, “and those are lovely roses.”
“They are for you.”
Don gives Jody the roses, and she goes back to put them in a vase full of water.
“Ready for our walk through Central Park?” Jody asks.
“Ready.”
“Bye, Raven!” she shouts as she leaves with Don.
***
Night falls pretty fast in Central Park. Fireflies light the entire park along with the streetlights, creating a romantic atmosphere for Don and Jody. The two admire the scene as they walk along the pathway.
“It looks so beautiful at night,” Jody softly says.
“You are…I mean...it is,” Don says shyly.
Little do they know is Kaynon is furiously spying them from behind some hedges growling. He slowly follows them.
***
Meanwhile, back at Don and Mannie’s apartment, Mannie is getting ready for his second date with Raven. He set up a special dinner salad since Elfenheims are vegans. He also put in the romantic movie disc into the DVD player to the vidscreen. Mannie is just putting a rose into a small vase in the middle of the table and lighting candles when he hears the door buzzer. Mannie opens the door and sees Raven in a red, strapless evening/cocktail dress and skin-tight black gloves. Mannie is in awe over how radiant and beautiful she is. Raven is his gothic angel.
“Hi, Mannie,” Raven says softly as he caresses his face.
“H-hi, Raven,” he stutters as he looks at her with a dreamy look.
Raven giggles, “Can I come in?”
“Of course! Of course!”
Raven goes in and sees the nice salad dinner, amazed by how Mannie set it up just for her.
“This is wonderful, Mannie,” Raven says graciously.
“And after our dinner, we can watch a romantic movie together if you want,” Mannie tells her.
“That kind of romantic atmosphere is all I ask from a man.”
They sit down together to enjoy their dinner.
***
Back in Central Park, Don is taking Jody to a familiar spot where Jody will remember everything.
“Where are we going, Don?” Jody wonders.
“You’ll see, Jody. We’re almost there,” Don replies.
They finally made it to the spot, and Jody gasps when she recognizes it. It’s the same spot her mom once took her and where she her body was found, causing Jody to tremble as Don wraps his arms around her.
“It’s okay, Jody,” he assures her, “You’re safe with me.”
“Why did you bring me here?! This is where my mom died!” she cries.
“I wanted to help you because from what I saw in the picture, it’s also where you mom use to take you.”
“Yeah, it is,” she says while hanging her head, “She always use to take me here and play hide and seek with me in the woods. I never let anyone know because something bad always happens when others are around me. First, it was Kaynon, and then it was my mom. Why did you bring me here?”
“I wanted to help you overcome one fear and prove a point.”
“What point?”
“Jody, you don’t have to isolate yourself because of what happened to people who are close to you. You’re always gonna have bad times, but they are only a test of how strong and brave you really are inside. You’ve shown a lot when you chose to break up with Kaynon rather than stay with the abuse. You have your mom’s spirit in you.”
Jody slowly looks into Don’s eyes as he caresses her face. Then, she quickly hugs him, angering Kaynon who is hiding behind a big tree and looking at Don with dagger eyes.
“Let’s go someplace where we can do some stargazing,” Don suggested.
“Sounds very romantic,” Jody replied, “How do you think Mannie and Raven are doing on their second date?”
“Probably having the time of their lives.”
***
Back at Don and Mannie’s apartment, Mannie and Raven already had dinner. Mannie is setting everything up for the movie as he gets popcorn out of the microwave. Raven is on the couch waiting for Mannie when he sits himself down with the bowl of popcorn and turns the movie on with the remote to the vidscreen.
“So Mannie, what’s this movie about?” Raven curiously inquires.
“A young alien boxer falls for a human gangster’s daughter despite the objections of her family. I heard it’s a box office hit,” Mannie tells her.
“Almost sounds like Jody’s own love story, except for the disapproving family,” Raven commented.
“Yeah. I hope she and Don are having a good time in Central Park.”
“Speaking of good times,” Raven said seductively as she puts both her hands and Mannie’s shoulders, “How ‘bout after the movie, you and I have a little make-out scene of our own.”
“I-it’s okay, Raven,” he nervously replies, “I-I-I don’t want to make you do anything you don’t want.”
Raven giggles a little, “You’ve earned this after the way you’ve been treating me.”
Mannie looks at her with dreamy eyes as they both smile at each other. If Raven wants him to kiss her after the movie, he’ll do it.
“After the movie then.”
He turns the movie on and shares the popcorn with Raven as he wraps his arm around her waist. Raven just wraps both her arms around him.
***
Back in Central Park, Don and Jody found a clearing where they can lie down and look at the stars together. They are laughing together as they connect the stars like dots to form pictures.
“This one I’m connecting looks like a lion,” Jody chuckles.
“Must be Leo,” Don replies.
“Say, Don, what made you want to participate in the Intergalactic Fights?”
“Truth is I wanted to explore the galaxy more. My tribe are a tribe of warrior snakes, but we only fight for our own and no one else. I was tired of a life where you only fight to prove loyalty to your kind. I wanted to go out into the universe and even travel to Earth where there are a variety of aliens, including other alien warriors, to meet. When that scout ship came along with Mannie, I saw it as my chance to finally do more with my life despite my tribe’s disapproval and especially my father’s.”
“What did he say when you told him you were leaving?”
“He expressed his disgust right away. He doesn’t want me to associate with beings who are inferior to the tribe, especially Earth humans. It didn’t matter what he thought though. I already came-of-age, so I can make my own decisions.”
“How do you like life outside of home?”
“Amazing! I got meet other fighters besides Mannie; I finally came to the planet I always wanted to see; and best of all, I found something else worth fighting for, or should I say someone worth fighting for,” he says as he brushes the hair in Jody’s eyes back and looks into her eyes.
Kaynon is watching the couple with jealousy and rage from a nearby tree.
“What are you gonna do with the prize money you win along with the belt?” Jody asks.
“I’m thinking of paying “John’s Galactic Gym” for its service in helping my training,” Don says as they both get up.
“Really? You want to give it to my father and me?”
“Jody, you and your dad are worth more than any amount of money. You two became family to me.”
“When I win that money, it will go straight to my wedding to Jody,” Kaynon mumbles to himself, “I better beat them back to her home.”
He jumps out of the tree and heads towards a shortcut to the gym.
Don and Jody get up after they are finished.
“Ready to head home?” Jody said.
“I’m ready,” Don says, I have a lot of training tomorrow anyway.”
They both walk home, not knowing that Kaynon is heading there as well.
Chapter 18
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After an hour, Jody and Don finally made it back to their home. Don is escorting Jody to her apartment when she turns to him.
“I really had a great time with you Don,” she says softly, “I was always afraid to go back to Central Park because of what happened to my mom, but you helped me find the courage not only to go back, but to make my own choices despite Kaynon and his rage.”
“Pleasure was all mine, M’lady,” Don responds while kissing Jody’s hand, making her giggle bashfully.
“Good night,” Jody says.
She kisses Don on the left side of his face and walks into her apartment to get ready for bed. Don feels very dreamy and flighty about that kiss and walks downstairs to his apartment.
***
Don gets out his key and unlocks the door to his apartment. As he goes in, he sees Mannie and Raven kissing each other passionately on the couch while static is being shown on the vidscreen. The couple are kissing, necking, and embracing each other so hard, they fail to notice Don coming in. Don taps Mannie on his shoulder, stopping him from kissing Raven anymore and shocking them both with his presence.
“Sorry. Did I interrupt you two?” Don chuckles.
“Don, what time is it?” Mannie says while catching his breathe.
“It’s 10:30 PM.”
“Wow! The movie ended one hour ago,” Raven says, “I better get to bed. You’ll need my help at preparing for Kaynon.”
“Well you know more about him than I do, Raven,” Don sighs.
“So I take it all is forgiven.”
“If Mannie and Jody trust you, that’s good enough for me.”
“Good night then, especially to you, Mannie,” she says as she kisses him goodnight on the lips.
Raven leaves to go back to Jody’s apartment, leaving Mannie in a romantic, happy daze.
“I take it your date went well,” Don said while looking at Mannie.
“It was wonderful, buddy,” Mannie responded while shaking his head, “Speaking of dates, how did yours go with Jody?”
“It went better than I hoped. I don’t think Jody is going to let her fear of Kaynon interfere with any more relationships.”
Don sits down and hangs his head.
“Is something wrong, Don?” Mannie asks with concern.
Intergalactic Fight Club: Don the Champion Page 9
