Rebel The Odds

Chapter 12 Sparring, Gym And Boss Dave

Chapter 12

It was a Sunday morning.

For Leah, Sunday morning meant waking up early and getting ready for her afternoon tutor classes at the tuition center nearby.

But for Ethan, Sunday mornings meant sparring.

Sweat was evident all over his body, sticking the thin black material he calls a shirt against his torso, exposing the generous well-defined muscles he achieved throughout his years of fighting.

Black ink embedded his slightly tan skin from the right of his full shoulder down to his forearm. A few more connecting to his chest. Metal clang echoed the room as he ruthlessly practiced his punches with the hanging red punching bag.

After a couple of punches followed by one last blow causing the punching bag to almost flew to the other side, he stopped to take a breather, as he grabbed the small towel on a stool nearby to wipe the sweat behind his neck, he felt a presence behind him.

"You could kill someone with that punch if you did that inside the rink" A man wearing a dark green shirt with black track pants said as he handed Ethan a cold water bottle, his salt-and-pepper hair might indicate his growing age but his stature said otherwise.

"I don't repeat my mistakes" Ethan said before grabbing the bottle and chugging it down his throat greedily. When the last drop fell on his tongue, his clothed-wrapped hands squeezed the bottle before throwing it to the recycling bin inside the gym.

"Yesterday was a close call" Boss Dave-what he would prefer others to call him as, stated whilst his hands stick inside the side pocket of his pants. 

"Something stressing you, son?"

Ethan tightens the wrap around his knuckles, "None of your concern gramps" he shot back with obvious playful intent.

A punch that would easily cause a bruise to appear was what he could have gotten if he hadn't dodged it skillfully and with agile. Ethan gave a cocky smirk towards his trainer and boss, the owner of the gym that he was working part time in.

"You're getting slow, old man"

Boss Dave scowled at him, before hitting the back of his head with his hand. Ethan glared at him as his hands rubbed the painful spot caused by the former marine soldier.

"Guess not so old now, huh?" Boss Dave said triumphantly, flexing his biceps by crossing his hands with another. For a man in his mid-fifties, he was by no means small or weak.

Ethan rolled his eyes and turned his back away from his boss to continue practicing with the punching bag when something was thrown to him. Caught in his arms, Ethan gazed at the red punching gloves in confusion as he looked up to the old man.

Boss Dave nudge his head at him, "Put them on," and with that, the former marine walked on the square-shaped fighting rink with his hands covered by his own blue punching gloves.

Ethan wore the gloves, he then slipped between the red stretching fence and entered the ring, standing In-front of his trainer in a fighting position, ready to spar.

Boss Dave mimic his stance and his grey eyes eyed the young blue eyed boy, "Let's see just how young you are"

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Leah walked down the staircase from her tuition center building and glanced at the time in her wrist clock. She sighed upon seeing it half an hour pass two in the afternoon. Today the teacher dismissed her earlier than usual because of an emergency. Her mother's driver was going to pick her up at four.

She pulled the zip of her jacket up and begin walking in search of food, her stomach had been growling nonstop, she really regretted not grabbing something for her breakfast.

Leah soon found herself inside a fast-food in one of the buildings she used to pass through to get home. She stood in line to wait for her turn while her ears plugged with her song.

As she waited patiently, the person In front of her took a big step forward as the previous people before them had done ordering and walked away, Leah was about to walk forward to cover the distance when a person cut her and stood In front of her.

Her eyes widened, and she pulled one of her earphones from her ear as she stared at the back of the stranger standing In front of her. Slowly, she tapped the back of his shoulder,

The person turned around upon feeling her tap, a boy probably around her age gazed at her with a smirk, his hands in his blue jeans and a striped shirt over his body, his hair curly brown.

"Pardon me, but I was standing in line" she said blankly.

"Oh, is that so?" The boy pulled the end of his sentence in a playful manner, bending slightly as his face got closer to her, she took a step back, her eyebrows furrowing.

"Sorry about that, I didn't see you so I thought there was no one standing in line" he said with a pout, his boyish face staring at her smugly. She didn't reply to that and simply pulled back.

She thought after he said his piece he would move to the back, but instead, the obnoxious boy remained standing In front of her, as she was about to say something, two other boys joined him and one stood closer beside her then she'd like.

"Wow, you're a cutie" he said, his shoulder slightly touching hers and she quickly created distance between them, frowning.

"Come on guys, can't you see she's obviously not comfortable?" the other friend who just joined perked up with an upset face, he stood beside his friend facing her.

The other two boys simply snickered at him and he took a step forward towards Leah.

Leah didn't say anything to neither of them and simply took a step back, giving up the burdensome quarrel but as she wanted to leave the line and probably join another, the boy beside her suddenly wrapped his hand around her shoulder, stopping her.

"Are we making you uncomfortable, girly?" he asked,

She pries his hand away from her shoulder and glared at him.

Leah's posture was tense, on her right line was a stroller with a crying baby that belonged to a mother that was trying to shush the loud baby, and she couldn't step back because of what the boy did to her earlier, she was literally cornered.

What a horrible day.

"You're making me uncomfortable" She said to them.

They exchange looks with one another, a smile on their faces like they were exchanging funny jokes among themselves. Then the one who stood In front of her spoke up, "Then we can go away... Only if you give me your phone number"

Her glare hardened, and he laughed a little before hiding his smile from the back of his hand and faced her with a serious look.

"Look, I promise we won't bother you again if you just give me your phone-

"Get the fuck away from her"

Three of the boy's head turned to the person behind her at the same time, before the one beside her staggered in his steps to regain balance from a single push. Leah turned and couldn't help but feel relieve at the moment when she saw the familiar man.

"Ethan"