Boxing Partners

Give 'Em Hell, Kid

"Come on Levi, take the bottle. Please" Clementine sighed, exhausted, rubbing the large dark bags under her eyes as she yawned. "Come on Lev, take the bottle, I really don't want to have to wake your Mommy, she's always grumpy when she just wakes up"

The brunette stroked the dark tufts of hair on her baby's head, taking the bottle and dabbing a small splotch of milk on her wrist. "Cold, damn it" standing up still with Levi in her arms she popped the bottle in the microwave, setting it for twenty seconds and shutting the door. The girl hummed to the boy, swaying side to side as she did so keeping an eye on the timer.

Just as the microwave neared it's time she was sure to open the door just before one second, to stop the small beeps from waking her snoozing wife. Clementine took the bottle, shaking it gently, once again dabbing a drop of milk on her wrist. "Perfect" the girl spoke softly. She walked back towards the sofa, the boy in her arm, sitting down to try again, placing the bottle of milk on the babe's lips.

Levi took the bottle, gently gulping down the milk. The brunette laid back on the sofa, her eyelids feeling heavy, wanting to sleep so badly, after all, it'd be her turn that night to care for when Levi woke up.

Clementine felt the bottle get lighter, peering back down to her child, the empty bottle in her hand placing down on the glass table in front of the pair. Bringing the boy up to her chest just where the boy's head was on her shoulder. One of his tiny hands gripping the brunette's bicep, gently tapping his clothed back to try, humming the same tune as she was moments before.

After a while the boy let out a small burp, her hand movements turned to a gentle rubbing motion on her back. "that's my boy. Better out than in" she chuckled; the boy followed laughing at his Mom.

"did you just laugh? Was that your first laugh Lev?"

The boy laughed again, Clementine smiled, cheering again, "that was your first laugh!"

"Hmph, what's all the commotion?" a timid gentle voice from behind, "he laughed Vi! Our little boy laughed!"

"Aww, my little boy. How are you this morning?"

"Tired, really tired, he took ages to get down after he woke up, been up since five with him."

"Go, go, I got this, go shower, get some sleep, you need it Orange."

~~~~~

"Is that all in order then? When's the earliest I can get the land?" Clementine spoke, looking at the man in front of her, adjusting the papers on her side of the desk.

"Well, you've put the deposit down, got the papers, got a background check on you and everything checks out. There's just one more question. Why are you buying this land?"

"Well, Mr Greene, it's for my wife. We've been together for years, only got married ten months ago would you believe it, we met in a boarding school and we both did boxing, it became our thing. Whenever we spared or whenever we had to choose a partner she was mine and I was hers. From my background check, I'm sure you can tell we've been through a lot. We've just had our first son, she carried him after some issues with me, I want to give her something back. Our own club, somewhere we can mentor kids, teens and hold classes for adults, a boxing club with a gym. I was going to hire construction workers to build it, decorators to furnish it and put all the kit in."

"An anniversary gift, that's really sweet. Now Mrs Aldon-Everett-"

"Please Clementine"

"Alright then, Clementine, this is going to take a while, you understand that?"

"That's okay, I don't expect the building to be done by our anniversary, I wanted to show her the deed give her something to look forward to"

"that's lovely, my son Shaun did something similar a few years ago, built me a farm for my sixtieth"