The Globe's Gladiators

The Beast is Back

Edward got back to the gym, and the smile on his face hadn't wavered. Nick could feel the difference between how he was just half an hour ago and how he was now. Edward went back to the heavy bag and started letting punches fly. Not long after he started the entire gym went quiet as everyone watched mesmerized by the display. There was no wasted movement or any lack of speed or power by Edward. Every hit was flowing perfectly into the next and the sound of the impact, and the rattling of the chains seemed to draw more people in by the second.

"Hey everyone. I'm back." Edward said as he smiled at the small crowd around him. It was the first time in a while that he'd addressed them. Most of the members had actually known Daniel Lynch, and remembered Edward from when he'd go to the gym with his dad. The gym felt like Edward's second family and they were ecstatic that he was back to normal.

"What kind of miracle worker did you find?" Nick asked Mick as he walked in while Edward had been hitting the bag.

"A couple of small creatures known as Connor and Eric. Figured if anyone could get through to him it'd be his brothers." Mick said as Nick nodded.

"So did you figure out what the exact issue was?" Nick asked. He had a general idea on the issue, and had a few guesses on what the exact issue was.

"Just like we thought he hadn't even started grieving his dad let alone his mom. He'd been staying strong for his brothers and everyone around him that he never let himself actually grieve either of them. Now that he's taken the first step he'll hopefully be fine." Mick said as Nick simply nodded before smiling.

"Good maybe now he can finally progress." Nick said as Mick was confused.

"What do you mean?" Mick asked as Nick smirked.

"Ever since Daniel died I've noticed something with Edward's improvement. Physically he's improved as you'd expect with him getting older and closer to his prime, but on a technical level he's not progressed at all. On purely a technical level he's moving, attacking, and defending the exact same way he did when Daniel was alive." Nick said as Mick now understood what he meant.

"So you think he was unconsciously holding himself back because to him changing how his dad taught him to box would've made Daniel's death fully sink in?" Mick asked as Nick nodded. Mick was in shock at what he'd heard. Edward was a beast as he was, but to think he'd been keeping himself caged on purpose. Mick shivered at what Edward could become now that he was off his leash.

"Hey Mick you think I'm good to stay in the tournament?" Edward asked as Mick was brought out of his thoughts.

"Definitely kid. Feeling better?" Mick asked Edward who smiled sadly.

"Yeah. I kept running from reality anyway that I could, and honestly facing that reality hurt me more than I could've ever thought. But I finally feel like I can push past it. I feel like an entirely new person." Edward said as the door to the gym opened.

"I hope you're not entirely different." Raychel said as she walked over to her boyfriend. Like the others she could see the difference in him immediately.

"You should know I'll never completely." Edward said as he pulled her into a hug. She quickly hugged him back smiling.

"I'm glad you're back." She said as they pulled apart.

"C'mon let's go eat." She said as she walked towards the stairs leading to their apartment.

"You heard the lady I've gotta go." Edward said as he followed after Raychel. Once he got upstairs he turned their TV on and sat down on the couch. He saw a Taco Bell bag on the table and chuckled.

"You seemed like you needed cheering up so I got us some Taco Bell." Raychel said as she sat down next to him.

"You got Taco Bell to cheer me up? Why did you decide on Taco Bell?" Edward asked as he smiled. It wasn't like he didn't like Taco Bell but it wasn't his absolute favorite fast food place.