by Torres, Ana
Victor was looking at me with a curious face, wondering what I was thinking, and then he asked me, “Okay what going on in that head of yours? You have something you want to talk about?”
“Just thinking about the fight, hoping and praying you won’t get hurt,” I replied. “If it is something you really want to do, I can’t stop you. I’ll be there by your side always.” Victor wrapped his arms around me and told me, “It’s going to be okay. If I thought it was going to be dangerous, I wouldn’t do it. Those kids depend on me. This is the quickest way for me right now. It is the only way I know how to save the studio. If you know of another way, please let me know.”
It was done. I knew there is no way I was going to talk him out of it, and seeing the passion he had for the kids, how could I do that to him? I would be scared and be on the edge till the fight was over, but I had to be there to support him.
We had a simple dinner with a group of people who were also fighting. You could tell from the way they acted. They were pretty hostile in manners. They really were not too sociable with us. So we kept to ourselves. Peter and Dan were loving the attention they were getting from the women there. We knew they were there to see who would win. They smelled money, woman like them are gold diggers. They gave people a bad angle on how woman are. I kept Victor close to me. I sure didn’t want that type of woman eyeballing my man. I kept him close all night through the dinner; we were given details of the oncoming fight at a private building owned by one of the promoters. Since it was an underground fight, they changed locations every year so they won’t have problems with the law.
All the fighters who were signed up had to sign waivers of confidential disclosure for labiality. If they were found giving out information about the fight, they would be in deeper trouble than the law. That scared me, for Victor, Peter and Dan. They were risking everything for the gym. I just wish the fight bought would be over and done with already. It’s like biting nails waiting to be told when the fight was going to be on. All they were told was where, but no time. Guess it protected the investors. There was a lot of money on these illegal fights where just about anything goes.
After the dinner, which I couldn’t eat much knowing what I was hearing, it was uncomfortable for me to hear. Last year’s champion was there, and pretty much threatened everyone there who was fighting, they were not going to win. He would remain champion again. He was pretty scary. He was huge and lean and had muscles on top of muscles. I guess it was his way of trying to discourage the fighters not to come in to the ring. But for such a high prize, everyone was ready to fight. Everyone had a reason to get that money. But I didn’t listen. My mind was on Victor’s studio. I wished there was a way for him to still save the studio. He had tried the banks. He was already overextended on loans for the place and the bank would not give him anymore. Since he already had a note on the place that it was showing no sort of profit, bookkeeping records showed it to be more of a neighborhood free gym than a karate studio. But I know it wasn’t. They all lived, breathed and loved what they did. I spent the night with Victor. He was restless, anxious about the fight, for good reason. He could lose it all. And he could get seriously hurt. I didn’t go to work. I had slowly been withdrawing my savings to stay afloat. I gave notice to my landlord, since I was going to be living with Victor. My job, well it wasn’t the greatest job. But the owner understood when I asked for some time off. He thought I was expecting. I laughed at that thought, but then it would be something to be a mother with a child. I quickly put that thought away. I am in no way ready for a child. Then we been having sex without protection, so I might get pregnant. That night in Victor’s arms I slept like a baby.
The next day we went to the park for a jog. I needed to keep my girlish figure, so I went along with the guys, jogging. We had already done four laps around the park. It felt as if we were jogging in New York Central Park, but we were just in a regular park, going a few times round and round. It felt like it went on forever to me. As soon as I sat down, drinking my water, I saw Peter on his cell phone. He ran over to us and said, “It’s tonight at 8:00 pm.” I was shocked in a way, but not really surprised. I was dreading that call. Victor got up from the grass and said, “Come, let’s get to the house. I need to freshen up.” Victor told Peter and Dan where to meet up, so they could leave together for the fight. But not without me they don’t.
In Victor’s studio, he put a sign up saying it was closed for two days. So it was quiet. You could not hear nothing at all. Here I am thinking Victor getting ready to take a shower. Nope he was downstairs hitting the bag, kicking it, punching it. He was practicing some moves. I had never seen that before. He was like a man on fire. I watched him and told him to save his energy.
“I am just loosening up my body,” he explained. “If I go into the fight stiff, I’ll suffer more damage to my body.” I had to take his word for it. I have never fought or even seen him do any type of karate, just a few lessons here and there. But I knew I was going to be so nervous.
As we all got ready to go, Dan, and Peter were waiting for us. We left as a group. I didn’t want to drive. I told them I was too nervous. I didn’t want to get into an accident going there. As we turned the corner in the van we were in, the warehouse came into plain view. So many cars were parked there already. We could women in fine dresses, and men in expensive suits. I thought we were in the wrong place. But nope, it was the right place alright. Victor was quiet the whole way there. I didn’t want to bother him while he is in deep thought, maybe thinking over karate or boxing moves in his head. The champion was there, all talk shouting to the men he would or might face that were going down, flat on the canvas. That man gave me chills. Like the first night I was rescued by Victor. He was my savior that night, and had been ever since. Tonight was when he really needed me. I had to be strong for him. I told myself he could handle himself. I had to, or I would go nuts and tell him, “Let’s go home”. As the guys got to the dressing room, they all had their gear with them. I went to sit down in the viewing area. Victor kissed me and told me not to worry. With a smile, I told him, “Okay, just be careful. I love you”.
About half an hour went by. The place was full of men and women. A man was going around collecting bets with the viewers. If someone was to rob a place here, that night would be the best time. But looking around, there were men with guns to the side of them. I guess they were thinking the same thing.
As I was gathering my thoughts, the fight began. I was too busy looking around. I didn’t notice the fight was on. As I watched the fighters, I noticed some seemed good, some not so good. They didn’t last long, only minutes in the ring. That scared me. Then I saw Peter fight. He was good. He knocked out his opponent fast. He excelled to the next round. The same thing happened with Dan. It was looking good for them. Then I saw Victor was up. His opponent was huge; I was scared for him, but I knew he could do it. As he was fighting, I was praying. I saw him getting hit hard by his opponent’s feet to his face, and how he swiped at his legs. He fell back, and quickly got up. Then as he caught fire, he knocked his opponent out cold. I screamed “YEAH” so loudly there were giggles from people. Then I saw him point at me with his hands and fists. That lessened the worry for me. As the night progressed, Peter was out and Dan was barely hanging on. Victor so far had exceeded himself, knocking out all the guys he got paired with. He was winning the crowd over. They cheered when they heard his name. I was so proud, but worried about who he was going to be fighting next.
Peter came over and sat next to me. And I took one look at him; his face was so swollen, and bruised up. “It’s just part of the program,” he said with a smile. It sort of looked like a tooth was missing. Oh that got my heart beating fast. Peter sensed my worry and told me, “Victor is good; he is the best of the three of us. It’s good that we don’t get paired to fight each other; that would have defeated the point of being here.” I agreed with him. Two hours had passed and they were down to four fighters. I was watching Victor defeat opponent aft
er opponent. The crowd was cheering him on. I am sure they were putting bets on him.
Then it was the last fight of the night. He was paired with the champion. His name was the “Executioner”. His name alone gave me the chills. The crowd went crazy, I mean really wild. They loved that man. That had me scared. Then I saw Victor, looking so tired and worn out. He had some bruises and swelling but he kept going. The crowd saw the fight card concerning who was fighting whom. “The Last fight of the night” it was announced. The crowd was 50/50. A lot were cheering for Victor and a lot were cheering the “Executioner’s” name, really loudly. It was so loud, it was practically in stereo. It was like someone had punched me in the gut. I had no more nails to bite. I was on the edge of my seat I was so worried. The man they called Executioner was bathing in the attention he was getting, raising his arms up to the crowd, which was jumping for joy. He hyped them up to vote for him. Then the fight began. Victor got a few hits in that sort of took the champ by surprise. He smirked and spit out blood, his eyes practically on fire. He rushed toward Victor full speed. He was prepared and walked sideways fast and he missed him. Victor was fast. He was like a man I had never seen before. He saved his energy for this fight. He released his skills. Then when he threw a side kick, his leg was caught by him. And he flung Victor over to the side like a rag doll. I screamed and told Peter I couldn’t watch. He was getting a beating bad. His opponent was fighting dirty; there were no rules in this fight. I slowly found out, kicks to the groin were illegal in a regular fight, but not here. It was no holds barred, anything goes, to keep the crowd roaring louder, having them betting more and more and pumping them up with cheers for the leading fighter. I was so worried; he would get badly hurt. I could see it.
Then, by a miracle, I was surprised to see that Victor had survived the first round. I wanted it to be over. They both got a three minute break. I wanted to go there and tell him we would find another way. But I was glued to my seat. I knew he would hate me for that. His mind was set it is set. With talking to Peter and Dan, they both told me what I didn’t want to hear. When Victor was committed to doing something, he wouldn’t stop for anything. That was what I was afraid of. I had to do something. I just couldn’t stand to see him getting hurt, but what could I do? Nothing but feel helpless watching him get beaten. Then out of nowhere, the crowd got loud; I mean really loud, yelling, “Victor! Victor! Victor!” He had the “Executioner” pinned to the corner. His feet were hitting him with such speed, it look liked he was on fire. He was on fire and then I saw him throw an upper cut and a jab to his face and down he went. He was down on the floor. Out cold. At that moment, I was screaming “YES!” The count was at 7 then 8, 9 ,10 .”YOU’RE OUT!!!” Victor collapsed on the mat and kissed the canvas. He was victorious. I saw him looking for me in the front seats. I ran up to him. I climb up to the ring and he grabbed me so tightly. I had tears of joy in my eyes. Peter and Dan came up to us and he hugged them to. He was saying, “WE DID IT.” It was just so intense that moment. I was proud of him. It was time to celebrate. As the announcer gave the official notice that Victor had won, the Executioner was barely getting up from his defeat. He was disoriented. Victor went over to him and helped him up, making sure he was fine. Then we saw him shake hands with Victor. He was handed a checked for $500,000.00. He did it, saved the studio.
Chapter 8 –Self Defense Classes
~~§§~~
When we left the warehouse, we were confronted by so many people who wanted to know who the new champion was all about. Was he was going to return next year, to defend his title? He answered he wasn’t sure what he would be doing next year. They were opening doors to him that he just couldn’t believe. The Executioner was officially retired. Not because he didn’t win, because he was old news and he was no longer a winning name. Victor was new. They wanted him to fight in other different underground fights. He refused for the time being. He received a touch of celebrity status for that night. When they were asking him questions, he was also given money from some of the audience that was there to see him fight. They found out he was fighting to save his studio for the kids who went there. He had received checks from different corporations; one check was far more than the fight itself. He received $1.5 million dollars. He went to get it back and said he may not be back next year. And he told him his company wanted him to endorse their company name in the gym. Victor quickly corrected him. It is a karate studio. They were curt and said, “Whatever, just put our company logo up. Give us the address and we’ll send our company logo sign. We would be honored if you would do that for us. This check is not the actual check. It is a draft. This is my business card and if you decide to call my office and we’ll go over some paper work and the details of the arrangement. They then parted ways, leaving Victor staring at the check or draft whatever it was. It had a lot of zeros. He looked at me and I just smiled at him. Peter and Dan were telling him, “Do it, heck we can expand to open other studios. Imagine what we can do with that money for the kids.” Peter was quiet and then spoke, “Victor, man, before you do anything, get a lawyer.”
“You’re right,” said Victor. “I have no idea about this stuff. Then Victor saw me walking away and ran after me. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?” he asked.
I told him that is was nothing. I didn’t want to stand in the way. “You earned that money and it is wonderful you are getting offers. You should look into a lawyer; I will go with you, if you want me to.”
“Of course I want you in this; we’re a team, aren’t we? He tells me. I frowned at that statement. He didn’t realized what he had just said to me. A team, oh hell no I was thinking. “Team?” I asked. Victor looked tired. He didn’t get it. so I told him I was going home. Then I remembered I didn’t have my own place anymore. We were living together. In my mind, I was wondering what was going to happen now he was getting recognized by some powerful companies. Where was US? What happened to you and me? It may spell team, but we weren’t a team. We were lovers. Had he gotten hit too much in the matches? The crowd around him was dying down. He had about twenty or more business cards. Peter and Dan had more when they told them they were with Victor.
Victor came to me and said, “Sophia, okay what’s wrong now?” I was quiet. He asked me, “Sophia, you knew about this; we talked about it.”
I, in turn, did not to want to start an argument. I said nothing just that I was tired. I told him he had to be tired as well. And I joked with him and told him “Sorry sweetheart, you stink.” Peter and Dan laughed and I went and told them, “Hey, you two sure don’t smell like flowers either.” Then they were quiet. I laughed and giggled. Boy I needed that. So we all left headed back to the studio. When we get there, we say goodbye to Peter and Dan. I headed upstairs to just relax a bit. Ten minutes went by and then Victor showed up and said, “Do you mind if I shower first, unless you want to join me.” Then I take one look at him and told him, “I’d better go with you (I smile). You may have some dirt in hidden areas or miss a spot. So I got up and went to gather my clothes. He stopped me, saying that can wait, with a smile. We showered together. I washed him as he washed me. He put soft kisses on my body, from toe to head, not head to toe. He was kind and loving. I cringed at the bruises on his body from the fight. I felt like I had to make them better. He squinted when I touch them, but he said it was okay. “They will be gone in a few days. We made love in the shower, and on the bed still soaking wet. He was gentle with me, when I should have been gentle with him. He wasn’t having it that way at all. He found all my body triggers that made me squirm with delight of what he was going to do next. He kissed me and his hands were wondering all over my body, softly making it come alive. He knew I was getting wet between my legs and he felt my mound swelling with desire. He put his fingers on my clitoris and one finger inside and said, “This is wet but not from the shower.” I laughed, and giggled. He held me close. I could feel his shaft was so hard and ready for action. He was teasing me and it was torture. “Why do you do this to me Victor? You k
now what you are doing? He laughed and told me, “I love seeing you squirm underneath me. It is fun watching your eyes shine and sparkle. You are not the same woman I rescued in that parking lot long ago.”
“Yes, you have changed me; you changed me to love you, to adore you, and mostly if you don’t do something, I am going to go crazy.” He laughs and says ‘O yeah, what are you going to do to me?”
“If I don’t?” I replied.
“Well, I’ll torture you back. And you don’t want that I can assure you on that score.” Right when I said that, I got on top of him and stared to do just that. I kissed him very erotically and was already getting a rise out of him. And then I grabbed it and put it in my hand and stroked it up and down a few times.
“You keep doing that and you will have it inside you.”
“No-no, we are doing this my way,” I insisted. So I grabbed his arms and raised them above his head and kissed all the bruise marks that were showing. He was on the edge. I put my finger on his mouth to stop him from saying a word. His body reacted to my caresses. I teased him like he was doing to me. Then out of nowhere, he flipped me around and used his knee to open my legs. I smiled and said, “Do your worst, or your best.” He slowly teased me with the tip of his penis, so that was very swollen and ready for him to enter me. He then could take it no more and slowly entered my canal and opened my legs wider. I grabbed his ass and pushed him forward more, and he at that moment plunged inside me, deeply. His sex was so incredible I didn’t want to move. I wanted him to stay inside me. He did after a few pumps, going deep inside me. He could not wait either. We both climax at the same time. He collapsed on top of me. His weight didn’t bother me at all. “That was too fast,” I complained. “I’m going to want a few more rounds. All that energy you had at the fight, you’d better show me some of it or you’ll be in big trouble.” I smiled as I was saying this.
