Elias- It's the next day and I have a fighting tournament tonight. Usually the fights are anywhere 11pm-3am. Depends on the amount of fights and the type of fights. Liam hosts tournaments where one person goes and whoever wins plays the next person. Tournaments are far and few in between, but they gain a lot of attention, which also means a lot of money. Liam said he doesn't't host them often because of the amount of people who crowd and bet. These are illegal street fights, the more attention the more likely it is for a police raid. Liam has me as the first fighter. I'm fighting against a 18 year old who goes by the name Crusher. How basic. I've fought a few different fighters with the name variations of Crusher. 'The Crusher' 'Crushed' 'Crush' It's just a basic name. It started a few years ago after one kid was basically untouchable and his name was Crusher. He won 97% of his fights. He ended up getting arrested for drugs and nobody has heard anything since.

I start getting dressed to head to the ring. Liam has a punching bag down there that I and the opponent use to warm up. I use it to practice. It's old, and tattered but it's sturdy. It's full of sand but that makes it better. Not as much movement in my opinion but not like I've ever been able to use another one. The tournament starts at 12am today and it's 10:45. With a 15 minute walk to the gym I'll have a good 30-45 minute area to warm up and study my opponent. There's 10 different fights tonight. So 10 different competitors. I like to watch their form, see their fighting style and analyze the best way to take them down easy and quick.

As I'm walking to the ring and my gut starts churning. The whispers become audible and louder. Something is going down tonight and I can feel it. It doesn't feel like a good feeling either. Maybe I won't win all my fights tonight I think to myself. I've had a 9 moth streak and I might loose it tonight.

The entrance to the ring comes to view and I walk to the side of the building and knock in the new pattern for the month. We have a code and it changed every month. That way it's safer and we can't get random raids. If the knock is wrong then it's all for themselves. So far this ring has been up for 7 years. Only one raid scare but they weren't able to get Liam so it came back up a few moments later.

As I walk in I see Liam telling people where to put the lights and a few other people but no competitors yet. I'm already wearing what I'll be fighting in tonight. I wear a long sleeve thermal and a pair of shorts. I don't like people seeing my scars. If they see them they start to ask questions. Some of my scars have faded over time, others are a faint white scar. With my tan skin they're more noticeable. The few I really worry about though is the raised welts. Scars that never healed right. Mostly burns, but some of them are from the belt buckle. Most are from my father, some made by Liam. I can still feel the raised welts against my clothes. The scars are sensitive and one wrong move and I'm having a flashback and it takes me a few hours to get a hold of myself. Even then the pain lingers. If I get stuck in a flashback it's like I can feel the scars. The whispers turn into full voices. All they do is scream and yell. I hate getting flashbacks. After the flashback ends it leaves me in an unresponsive numb state. My mind is numb to the world but inside my head all I hear is screaming and yelling. I haven't had a flashback in a few weeks I believe but I never know when one will start. Not until its to late.

As I walk over the the punching bag I start wrapping my wrists. I look around as I am. The paranoia is back. I feel it creeping up my spine. It feels like people are looking at me. They're whispering but I can't hear what they're saying. I look to the shadows to see if I see the shadow people. Sometimes the whispers turn into shadow people. People with no face, no exact shape. Just a human body wrapped in a shadow.

I try to ignore the whispers in my head, ignore how the lights are buzzing extra loud today. I take off my hoodie and just start punching. The quicker I start punching, the quicker the voices will stop. My head is pounding, my ears are ringing and I need it to stop. I need to get a hold of myself. My head needs to be in the right spot tonight or I'll loose.

As I continue punching I notice the shadow people dissolving, the paranoia starts fading. The whispers going quiet. I continue that until I finally feel in the right space. I stop, not trying to get too tired. If I'm too tired it'll make winning harder. This is going to be a long night... I think to myself. I start unwrapping my hands and putting my stuff up. I see Liam in my peripheral. He's mad, agitated. I put my stuff in his office and head over to him to see the lineup for tonight.

"Liam" I call out to him as I walk over

"Crow, what do you need." He asks me. His tone is annoyed. I don't know what is going on but it doesn't sound good.

"Whats the line up for tonight?" I ask.

"You've got crusher first. He's got a streak of 2 months. His longest streak was 5 months. He's 18 years old, he's big, bulky. So you have to make sure you're fast on your feet." He tells me.

I nod my head at him and go sit in a chair around the ring as I wait for Crusher to arrive. As I sit there I watch Liam. I think he hasn't had his dose tonight. His hands are shaky, eyes red and big, his hair is a mess. If he hasn't got his dose yet he'll need it soon or he'll be hell to deal with tonight.

About 15 minutes go by and I see Crusher. He is not hard to miss at all. He stands about 5'11 and has broad shoulders. He's got a duffle bag over his shoulder and a big shirt that says 'Crusher' Jesus this guy is an idiot. You don't wear shit like that unless you want to get caught by the cops.

I watch as he warms up, he's laughing and talking to his coach. Maybe that's his dad. They look very similar. He looks cocky. I watch as more people start to fill the space, waiting in anticipation for this tournament to start. I look to the clock that's being projected on the wall. It's 11:55. I have five minutes to get to the ring, ready to fight.

I take off my sweatpants and put them in my bag in Liams office. I make my way over to find Liam. It takes me a second but I find him looking around for me. I make my way through the crowd over to the ring where Liam is standing. He starts briefing me on what he wants me to do.

"Okay Crow here's what needs to happen. Crusher likes to hit hard so be prepared. He starts off hard and aggressive but gets slower the longer he fights. Stay on your toes and wait for his initial aggression to pass. Once you notice he's slowing down then you attack. Give them a show, but not to long. We have a long night ahead of us and if you're going to win you need all your energy." Liam tells me

I nod at him and start wrapping my hands. As I step in the ring Liam gives me one last direction

"Oh and Crow, don't knock him dead. He needs to be semi conscious."

I just nod and roll my eyes. I see crusher across from me. He's wearing no shirt, baggy shorts, and I can't tell if he means to not have his hands wrapped or if he forgot.

I shake my head and focus on the floor beneath my feet as I give myself some encouragement. I look up and put my hands up to guard my face. I hear the bell ring and the first fight starts ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Hahaha I thought this was a good place to end the chapter. I know nobodies reading it right now but it's cool. Again I'm in my English class just waiting for the bell to ring so I can go home.

Anyways like always any comments, things you would change? Be honest, but be nice please.

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