𝐇𝐄𝐘 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋 ᵃˣᵉˡ ᵏᵒᵛᵃᶜᵉᵛⁱᶜ

04

-🥋-

chapter four

AXEL

Our next event is in a couple of hours, so I change out of my gi, aiming to walk back to the hotel and lie down.

The adrenaline rush of karate wore out about ten minutes ago, leaving me in the locker rooms feeling the low. I know when I get on the mats again, it will fire up again. I left my headphones in the hotel, meaning I have to listen to the sound of people talking and yelling the whole way out of the building. The warm Spanish air fans down on my as I step out of the arena, the sun boiling down on my arms left open from the white tank top I'm wearing.

I slide my phone away in my bag as I make my way towards the traffic lights, stopping as I notice her.

Maddie Stone stands at the lights waiting for the red man to turn green. The girl who's so angelic in person, turned ruthless on the mat. It's almost as if a different person is fighting. She stands at the lights, her braids let down, wavy hair flowing around her face. It's dark brown with blonde streaks. Denim shorts cling to her waist and a pink tank top covers her torso. Her bag is stuffed to the brim, a snapped in half water bottle almost falling out.

Since the first night when she accidentally bumped into me, I haven't been able to get her out of my head. I thought she was pretty when she was standing in front of me in a tracksuit, but there's something about her that keeps her stuck in my thoughts.

When she's on the mats, she's the only person I can focus on watching. She was always trapped in my head, and I didn't know if I wanted her to leave. Her big brown eyes tortured my nights and always found mine during the way. I caught glances of her during the day as much as I could, and half the time she turns to catch my eye.

I saw her today on the mats after her round. She looked torn apart. Her nails digging into her head as she almost yanked her hair out of her skull. I wanted to go over there and see if she was okay, but she stormed into the locker rooms before I could. Her eyes now look red and puffy, yet her eyes still consume me.

When she accidentally saw Sensei Wolf hitting me, I was embarrassed she had seen, but I trusted her not to say anything. Those big doe eyes were full of shock as she watched it happen. As soon as I saw her standing here, I was worried she thought less of me, but she doesn't seem to. 

I've seen pretty girls before, but this is different. She stands there not even knowing the hold she has on me. Whenever she talks to one of the boys from her team, I imagine myself there instead. I've talked to her twice, but I would listen as much as she wanted me to.

I don't know what it is about her that has me thinking these things about her so quickly, but I think these things about her.

Tightening my hold on my bag, I move towards her, slowly stepping beside her as she waits for the lights. "Hi, Maddie."

She snaps her head up to face me, almost as if the karate high hasn't fully borrowed down. Her eyes are on high alert, the skin around them definitely as if she was crying. The tension in her body relaxes as she notices it's just me. I have to look down at her, being naturally tall. Even if she was 5'8, I'd still need to look down at her.