by Criss Copp
His hands are scarred; not excessively, but he obviously has rage issues, or he works in an industry that cuts his hands to pieces, with some of the deeper cuts healing with scars.
“Cliff says you’re one of the success stories of this gym.” He smiles. I almost feel honoured by that smile, like he doesn’t give it out freely.
“Ah, well... I s’pose!” I say.
“I know who you are; I watch UFC!” he counters, one eyebrow raised.
“Okay... so you know what my job is... I’ll cut to the chase. I’m here in Newcastle for private reasons, but I still need to stay in shape, so I’m looking to at least train a few guys, and if possible have myself a couple of raw training partners.” I explain.
“Why raw? Why not find some professional MMA fighters here in Newcastle? They’re slim on the ground, but they’re around!” he questions.
“Yeah, but I’m not going to be doing any fighting; nothing professional, and on top of that, I can do something for someone who may be interested in learning how to get into the sport; you know, give something back.” I reason on the run, I really do want to find some talent, but I also want to train with an unknown... someone who I can mould to suit me.
He gives me a smirk, “How much are these classes going to be and how often?” he asks.
“I’d do it for free, but the PCYC will have something to say about that, so whatever they charge for the space!” I explain.
“I reckon we’d be able to wrangle it for $5 a session, but only to these three guys! I don’t think you want to really advertise yourself too much, because otherwise you’ll be having a whole lot of wannabes getting in on the act, and you’ll get nothing from it except a babysitting job!” Cliff explains.
I nod, sitting back down and folding my arms over my chest.
“You here to watch us train tonight?” Silas asks.
“Yep!” I reply with a grin.
“Okay, but don’t think I’m putting any extra effort in for you; I’m always a bit full on!” he explains.
I believe him!
***
Jesus Christ that kid can punch! He’s got stamina and drive. His aim is almost always spot on, and his follow through is magic. I’m thinking he was born to be a fighter. When he jabs, he knows the exact amount of commitment to put to the move, when he goes for a KO, he knows to put his whole weight behind it! He bounces around the ring like he’s got ants in his pants, but there’s nothing nervous about it!
“He reminds me of you!” Cliff says, sitting himself down and looking over at Silas and his mate going for it.
“No, I don’t think I was ever that natural!” I say.
“Yes you were... you still are!” he says. “He’s you all over again, but with bigger problems.” He says shaking his head.
“What kind of problems?” I ask.
“The mental kind!” Cliff states. “But he’s worth it, I wouldn’t have him here if he wasn’t. It’s been a rough road, but things have smoothed out; I reckon you should give him a go!” Cliff urges.
“Okay, what about these other two?” I ask. I can see they have fight and skill, but up against Silas, they look lacklustre!
“It’s always hard to see the worth when the shiniest prize is seated beside the others.” Cliff explains.
“I understand that. You think they’ll keep up?” I ask. I’m not starting off classes from beginners’ level, I want to push them to see how far they can go, fast!
“Yes... those two... Seb and Beau; are definitely going to keep up. Silas I can almost guarantee will exceed expectation! He’s a hungry fighter. Fighting and learning how to, it’s like a fuel for him. He’s very, very talented!” Cliff confirms.
I’m nodding and asking Cliff to bring the three of them over to me.
They all walk up to me, shoving and chuckling about moves each one has tried and pulled off tonight; they’re camaraderie is obvious.
When they’re quiet in front of me, I look up at them and tell them what I’m aiming at doing. They’re all interested, and they understand that I may not be here the whole year or be able to train them for long; that this is an opportunity to learn some skill that could see them enter another realm of fighting possibilities.
“So, how old are you all?” I ask. I kind of need them to be adults, or I need parental consent. There’s going to be blood and maybe some hospital visits too.
“18” Seb says.
“19” Beau says.
“17” Silas says.
Damn... the ‘star’ needs some extra paperwork sent home. This might mean his parents won’t want him to participate; except he’s here and he does Muay Thai too, so maybe I can expect they’ll be okay.
“When do you turn 18?” I ask Silas.
“August.” He replies.
Cool, just four months away. If he turns out as good as he seems; he can start fighting without his parents’ permission in a few months. He’ll need that long to prepare; actually, he probably doesn’t!
“Do you guys go to school? Uni? Work?” I ask.
They all say in unison that they work.
“Seb, what do you do?” I ask; I’m bonding a little with them, but I also want to know what sort of jobs they might be turning up to with broken lips and bruised faces. vzyl
“Apprentice plumber.” He says. I nod; that’s cool.
“Beau?” I request.
“Bar tender.” He replies. Hmmm.
“Silas?” I ask, leaving him last.
“Apprentice sheety.” He says.
“Shitty? What’s a shitty?” I’m confused.
“Shee...tee...” he says grinning. “I’m a sheetmetal fabricator!” he explains.
“Ah! You bend and weld metal!” I say nodding. He nods his agreement.
That explains the hands, it also explains the strength.
So, the only issue will be Beau.
“Beau... what will your boss say about you coming in looking all beat up?” I ask.
“Cover the door!” he laughs.
Okay, they’re all good!
Jade.
I’m seated on the couch reading real estate magazines when Silas comes in.
“I need you to sign these.” He says, throwing some papers on the coffee table in front of me.
“What are they?” I ask, leaning forward and picking them up to peruse.
“Permission slips to start doing MMA at PCYC!” he states.
“When is that gonna happen?” I ask.
“Monday, Wednesday and Friday... 8:30 till 10:00pm.” He explains.
I look up over the back of the couch, “So essentially I won’t get to see you anymore?” I reason. “You’ll be either fighting, going to work or hanging with Shae!” I argue.
He begins pealing back the layers of his clothing until he is standing there in only his boxer briefs.
“I love you too!” he says, smiling.
“Did you have your pretty little pills before you went tonight?” I ask, watching him go down the short hall and into the bathroom.
“Yes!” he shouts out as he closes the door.
“Good.” I grumble to myself. Sometimes he isn’t so good at taking his meds. I have them set up for him every morning and night. His purple and white pills for the morning and his purple and blue pills at night. I could’ve just checked his little shot glass that we use for his pills, because the glass allows the cling film to stick when I prepare them for him at night for the morning, or I prepare them in the morning for the night. It’s not responsible to be changing the times of the pills and doubling up, he needs to keep the therapeutic dosage in the right range, indicated by the levels in his blood tests, which occur frequently and currently done every second month. He’s settled lately, and we need to keep this up. I need him to keep this up.
I decide that he’s old enough to do the extra training, if that’s what he wants. In four months, I’ll have no control over what he can and can’t do anyway, so I go to the kitchen and grab a pen, before return
ing to the lounge room to sign the papers.
I’m wondering whether I should start thinking seriously about trying to date again. My last efforts were dismal at best. Even Rachel has been appalled at the depressing quality of specimens available on that dating site, I want to connect with someone on a deeper level than just a quickie in the back of a car! I’ve never wanted to before, but as I’m getting older, it’s beginning to appeal to me.
In addition, I want to get know the person I’m letting have a crack at my vagina; they could have a disease, and condoms do break!
So, maybe I need to reconsider the way I find my dates... let the ice melt around my ivory tower, and stop playing the bitch to guys I meet in general. I’m hopping off the dating website, it doesn’t work for me.
For some reason, Ben comes to mind and I find myself smiling... arsehole! I don’t know why I put up with his taunts and stupidity, for some insane reason I think I like it. Not him, no... not really. But I don’t actually hate him. I think I have developed a tolerant despising of him. At least the whole experience of conversing with him is entertaining.
I wonder if he’ll figure out my change in routine this week and make changes to his own? I’m kind of disappointed that I won’t see him in the morning, and that I won’t be there in the afternoon.
***
“Morning Paul” I say as I walk into the gym and see Paul with a couple of new guys. The place is always packed in the morning, and late afternoons. I prefer to go in the early afternoons, because of the quiet, but this is okay. This is my experience half the time.
“Morning Jade!” He cheerfully replies.
Paul puts in long days... I know he’s married and I wonder sometimes how his wife manages to be away from him for so long each day. She must prefer her own space. He doesn’t come in on the weekends though, so I guess having those two days off is the clincher for him. I don’t come in on the weekends either, I don’t really like the guy Daniel that takes over on those days.
I get through half my set before he comes over and talks to me. I admit that I feel a little lonely, even though there is more than ten times the number of people I have been surrounded by in recent days.
“Afternoon shift?” he asks smiling.
“Yep.” I answer, smiling back.
“Hey Jade, about Ben, I’m sorry he can be such a dick, but he’s a nice guy really!” he explains.
“Don’t apologise, I’m not offended. It’s all good. I can take care of myself.” I say, before adding, “Don’t tell him that though, it’s not like he’s getting anywhere with his dysfunctional flirting!” I maintain, rolling my eyes. He laughs.
“But that arsehole yesterday, Gah!” he starts.
“Really Paul, don’t worry!” I respond. “I like it here!”
“You’re a pretty cool chick you know. I can’t understand why you don’t have a boyfriend.” He says grinning.
“Maybe I’m a lesbian.” I reply.
“Are you?” he asks, all perky.
“No...” I laugh, “I’ve just been too busy for too long. I’ve been on three dates in recent history, and all of them were arseholes.” I explain.
“Would you like me to set you up on a date?” he asks.
“Absolutely not!” I quickly answer. “I’ll work it out soon enough, after my brother turns 18, I’ll feel a bit less responsible, and I can try a bit harder at trying out the dating scene.” I argue.
I really do hope that that is how it will work!
Ben.
It’s been an interesting week! I missed out on seeing Jade for the last two days of the previous week, and Paul was absolutely no help. I know she goes to the gym, but Paul wouldn’t tell me when, and I’m super busy with Mum in the mornings, so much so that I can’t seem to fit in a morning of waiting around at the gym, figuring out her new schedule.
That then bled into the first two days of this week.
I concentrated on my other passion, MMA! I began to get my class structure underway, on the Monday night, and all three guys were determined to launch into action.
Silas is a God damned machine. His knowledge of MMA through watching it has meant that he gets the holds and positions I’m explaining to him extremely quickly.
By the time 10:00pm came around on Monday night, all the boys were determined to keep me back and discuss kicks and movements; better ways to grapple and moves to detach from a hold.
On Wednesday afternoon, I’m at the gym early, hoping to see her, but expecting I won’t. I run on the treadmill we both prefer, and I’m going over my methods for teaching the guys tonight, when I smell her walk past me.
Yep, I smell her because I’m looking at my feet and too trapped in my own thoughts when she comes in to see her. She smells like the hospital! But underlying that is her own scent, kind of a woodland smell, like the scent of oncoming rain; one that I really, really want to smell without the other antiseptic aroma.
Jade.
His head snaps up. I assume he saw my feet walk past, but now I’m already showing him my back and placing my water bottle in the corner treadmill’s holder, while throwing my towel over the rail; so I can’t see his expression.
“Red! It’s so good to see your arse again. I was missing the sight of it!” he praises in greeting.
“Go to hell!” I reply. He chuckles.
I hop up on the treadmill and begin punching in my speed and begin my jog. I risk a glance at him, he’s grinning and staring at me.
“Oh Red, you do miss me when we’re apart!” He begins, “I can see your desire burning in your eyes.” He says, barely suffering from his run and being able to maintain his talking torment.
“If by desire you mean my need to see you fall on your face and break your nose, then you’re right!” I reply impolitely.
“I realise your need to look after me, and therefore your desire to have a reason; but actually I’m not desperate to do that. I’m happy for you to show me your affection in less painful ways!” he throws at me with one of his shit-eating grins.
“I’m still waiting for you to show up on a bed at my work, what happened to getting hit by a truck?” I ask.
“I tried, but I’m just too nice. Nobody wanted to hurt me!” he explains with a pout.
“You are such a pussy! You have like, the dumbest, fucked up, and retarded ways of talking to women... I think I have ever known!” I argue. “How’s that working for you out there in the real world?” I ask snidely.
“I don’t need to talk to them normally, I can get laid fairly easily. It’s you that I have to woo with this ritual of fucked up banter!” he explains, smiling crookedly.
“We’ll I’ve gotta tell ya, you’re fucking losing your touch, because I seriously can’t stomach the idea of your cock getting anywhere near me!” I reply.
“You haven’t even seen my cock; how do you know if you want it near you or not?” he laughs.
That almost has me laughing, seriously, but I can hold back the laugh and compose myself... barely. I channel my inner bitch.
“Send me a picture; I’ll put it with all the other cocks I collect!” I growl.
That nearly has him falling off the treadmill, but he regains his stride.
“Damn, if that’s an invitation, I’ll just cut to the chase and you can follow me into the locker room and take a picture of it yourself with your phone!” he says, looking a little hopeful.
“No way, like I said, not going near your cock!” I reason.
“Why? Because if I show you mine, you’ll be obligated to show me yours?” he chimes.
“Ben, when hell freezes over!” I answer.
Ben’s face lights up, “So there’s a chance? And you do like me!” he says happily.
“Um, no... no chance... and no, I don’t like you!” I point out to him.
“Yes you do!” He argues.
“In your dreams.” I grumble.
“If we were in my dreams Red, you’d be naked... and you wouldn’t be bouncing up and down
over there, you be bouncing up and down on my...” Ben starts saying before Paul comes up and smacks him upside the head before he can finish the sentence.
“The gutter’s out there!” Paul growls, but he’s smiling.
And that is how the next six weeks go. Ben continues to insinuate himself into my sex life... my non-existent sex life, and I kept giving him the evil comebacks. The banter he obviously craves! I admit that I miss it on those days that I do afternoon shifts, and I miss his smiles. He makes me cranky as all hell, but he also makes me feel a bit alive!
I didn’t miss the other guy that tried it out on me; tried to tag along and communicate with me alongside Ben a couple of times, but that didn’t last long, before Ben got rid of him with threats of bodily violence.
Ben.
My classes over the last six weeks have been absolutely amazing. I’m getting on really well with these young fellas, they’re pretty easy to train... picking up things rather rapidly. I like Silas, he’s a hardarse! He’s briefly explained that he lives with his sister and that his parents are dead, but since he’s rather protective of her, he prefers not to talk about her much. He’s recently divulged that he has bipolar and has to take medications for it. I’m not much for understanding all that stuff, but I know that he’s honest with me... and wants me to know that sometimes he can get out of hand, and that I shouldn’t be complacent about him if he’s acting a bit weird. He gave me a mobile number for his sister written on a card one night as he was winding up, for if anything goes down with him. I meant to ask what her name is, and it’s weird that he keeps leaving that information out. I suppose he really likes to keep her out of his bullshit as much as possible, because he’s hinted at her having to fix things for him a lot, and that he doesn’t like fucking things up for her all the time.
And then there’s my time with Jade which is...
Not. Going. Anywhere!
It’s not going any fucking where at all! And yet still I haven’t given up. Why? Why can’t I accept defeat? Because she’s a fucking gorgeous woman and she has single handedly managed to ruin my drive for any other woman I look at... at the present. I hope it’s not a permanent setback, it’s almost like she’s gone and done some voodoo shit on my libido. It’s at full throttle in her presence, and even when I think about her; but with anyone else, it’s permanently set on a mild simmer! Fucking stupid! I’ve gotta have her soon, or my dick will fall off from lack of real use with anything other than my hand! I’ve got to have her and get her out of my God damned system!
