Finding Lily

30- Alex

Hitting the punching bag was my happy place. I imagined Ray's face and struck at it even harder. The strength was coming back in my right hand and I reveled in it. Perhaps I was pushing myself too hard too fast, but I liked feeling this way. I liked feeling like nothing could stop me.

"Hey."

I had just finished a combination of hooks and uppercuts when I heard Luke's voice behind me. Sweat was glistening on my face and I grabbed my towel with a gloved hand to wipe it away.

"Hey." I tried to keep the surprise off of my face. It was the day after I randomly showed up at his house and now here he was, at my dad's company. I should've known he was on the hand-picked list of people who got let in.

"I just wanted to apologize for yesterday. I had some family stuff going on and it was just a bad time." Luke's frown was genuine.

"It's ok."

"Also I wanted to say that I'm in."

"What?"

"Let's get Ray."

"Too late. I'm going alone."

Luke's face fell. "You're joking right?"

"No. I'm not." I spat.

He studied my face for a moment, his eyes narrowing. Then he looked at the boxing ring in the center of the room. "I'll fight you for it. I win, I can come. You win, I'll leave you alone."

"Fine." At that moment, nothing sounded more appealing than throwing punches at him. I also had no intention of honoring the 'deal' that we didn't even shake on.

I followed Luke to the ring. I bounced up and down on my feet to prepare as he wrapped his hands. When he had gloves on, he held them up in front of his face and moved closer to me.

"Your arm looks good." He said. There was nothing but a small circular scar on the front and a larger, messier scar on the back.

"I had a good doctor." I told him. "What are you gonna do now that I'm not handicapped?"

"Guess I won't have to hold back anymore."

Luke had the first move with a right cross. I blocked it and tried a jab and right hook combo, both of which were blocked by his arms. I ducked underneath his next punch and quickly struck at his torso. It connected but the power wasn't there.

"That all you got, Alex?"

"Not even close."

We danced around each other for a couple minutes. Frustration was building inside of me at the realization that we were evenly matched. After another blocked hit, Luke tried a flurry of jabs that pushed me back into the ropes. When I bounced back, he was right against me. Our bodies were suddenly pressed together and I froze. I gazed at him over my gloves, getting lost for a moment. Memories of the kiss flooded my brain and I watched him glance down at my lips.

While he was distracted, I swept my leg behind his and brought him to the ground. When he was pinned, I smiled triumphantly. "Looks like we finally know who the better fighter is."

His smirk said otherwise. With one swift move, Luke twisted his body and threw me off. Suddenly, I was the one pinned. His hold was so strong that I had no way out.

My eyes met his. I was angry. Him beating me wasn't so bad when I only had one arm. But now? When I had full strength? It shook me. Luke sensed this and didn't move from his position. He was sitting on my upper legs, his torso hovering over me and his hands keeping mine against the ground. My anger flashed into something else momentarily. Something more powerful. I saw it in his eyes too. The proximity, the contact, it did something.