If only I could love you

Chapter 4

You know when you see giant warehouses in scary movies? Just imagine a small corridor which opens out onto a large, empty, dusty hall, big enough to fit two double-decker buses comfortably. That’s what the boxing club was like. There was a huge boxing ring in the centre, where two people who looked like they had done time in prison were preparing to fight. Surrounding the ring were training areas, complete with half-empty punch bags and shelves full of weights. It took Dan a moment to spot Phil, who disappeared through a door at the back marked “CHANGING AREA”.

Just as Dan was about to take a step forward, a shrill voice rang out, “Excuse me, Sir? Are you lost?” Dan turned to face a girl standing in the doorway to an office which he hadn’t noticed before. She beckoned to him so he followed her into the office. In the light, Dan could see that she wasn’t much older than him. She was pretty, with dreadlocks which she had dyed a fierce red, and cheek piercings, which suited her rounded face. She sat down at a desk and motioned with her right hand for Dan to sit too.

“Are you new here? This club is for members only.” she stated, “Membership is £99 for twelve months. Would you like to sign up?”

“N-no! Sorry, I don’t do boxing. I saw a friend come in, and I decided to follow him and-” She cut Dan off, obviously bored by his story.

“We could offer you a one day free trial, would that interest you?” Well, he was here now, and he had nothing better to do.

“Yeah, ok.” The girl bent down and got a sheet of paper out from a drawer in the desk.  She handed it to him and asked him to fill in his details.

Dan left the office. His eyes took a moment to re-adjust to the dim light of the club. He turned and scanned the room for Phil. But he couldn’t see him. Hesitantly, he began to make his way toward the changing room when he heard something. It sounded like an angry grunt. He turned to his left and saw Phil on the other side of the room, punching a punching bag. He looked furious. He was wearing grey tracksuit bottoms and a black vest which was quite tight and definitely showed off his muscular arms and shoulders. Phil was looking hot. Wait. That thought was unexpected. He had never thought like that about a guy before. He had definitely appreciated when a guy is good looking, but never attracted to him- Dan laughed at himself- what a ridiculous idea! Where had that come from?! Dan was straight, always had been, always will. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind and began to make his way towards the other boy. This Lester kid just seemed like a cool guy, Dan just wanted to get to know him, that was all… Dan was about half way across the room when a hand grabbed his arm and stopped him. He turned and looked up into the face of a man who must have been at least 6”5, with a shaved head and a tattoo of a snake slithering up the side of his neck. Literally, he looked like a criminal from a film or TV series.

“I wouldn’t interrupt him.” He nodded towards Phil, who looked like he was trying to seriously damage the punching bag, “He comes and practises when he’s angry. It’s a very bad idea to try and stop him.” Fuck. Dan no longer wanted to approach Phil, in case he turned and caused Dan some serious injury. Sure, Dan was strong, but the other boy seemed stronger. Dan was still staring up at the man who had now let go of his arm when he heard the punching bag fall to the floor. He turned to look. The chain holding it up had snapped, but Phil was nowhere to be seen.  The man next to Dan sighed loudly.

“That’s the second time that this has happened. If he doesn’t get his act together soon – he’s out.” He walked away, leaving Dan gawking at the punch bag. Then he hastily left the building.

Phil was sitting on the wall outside, smoking a cigarette. He looked up as Dan approached.

“Hey… You’re that Dan Howell kid, right? We talked a while back? You’re the one with the hot girlfriend, right?” Dan was a little too excited that Phil remembered him, and also pleased that he seemed to have calmed down. Phil patted the space on the wall next to him, so Dan went and sat down.

“Yeah, that’s me. Hey, what happened in there? You ok?” Phil looked at Dan, confused for a second.

“Why were you in there? Where you following me? Because that’s a bit weird…”

“No-no-no!” Dan almost yelled. He didn’t want to give the wrong impression. But, come to think about it, why did he follow him in? His body simply acted before his brain did. Before he could think up an excuse, Phil said “You know what? Doesn’t matter.” He took a long drag from his cigarette, held it in for a few seconds, and then breathed out deeply. He did this while looking up at the sky. “I’m starved. Wanna get something to eat?”

(AN: wasn’t sure about this part :/ let me know if you’re enjoying it!)