Chapter Twenty-Five
MILES
PRESENT
Sweat drips down my forehead as Leo squirts water from my bottle into my open mouth. “Dude, I know you said you could fight, but I’m not gonna lie, I didn’t think you’d get this far.”
That pulls an exhausted laugh from me. “Thanks for your vote of confidence.”
“Well fuck, you’ve got it now. The crowd is loving you.”
I’ve barely left the ring since my first fight this morning.
I’ve fought in six matches and won every single one.
The guy in the tight purple booty shorts gave me a good run for my money in the last round, giving me a nice dark bruise on my left eyebrow that I know I’ll sport for at least a couple of weeks.
But in the end, his energy wore out and he started getting sloppy.
Leo is right, the crowd is backing me all the way. Cash is being passed around the room, whether the betting is legal, I’m not sure, but I’ve seen some damn happy faces when I won my last two matches paired with hands full of money.
My sister appears next to Leo. “Jesus Christ, Miles. You’re scaring the shit out of me!”
I frown. “I’m winning. ”
“He’s winning,” Leo echoes, equal confusion marring his features.
“Yeah I got that, that doesn’t mean he’s still not getting the shit beaten out of him!”
“In boxing’s standards, he’s really not getting that much shit beaten out of him, only a little amount of shit.”
I cough a laugh. In all of the interactions I’ve had with Leo, he’s cracked me up every time. Even now, as I feel the split on my brow sting at the quick change of my facial expression.
“He’s a mess, look at him,” Isla gestures to me.
“Ouch, sis.”
She winces. “Sorry, but it’s true. Don’t you think you should bow out soon? A winning streak always has an endpoint. Please leave my future children with an uncle.”
Both Leo and I eye her. Her choice of words is interesting.
She holds her hands up. “Oh my god, I’m not pregnant, I’m just saying!”
“Isla,” Leo puts his hands on her shoulders. “Don’t worry, I’ve got this.”
She just frowns at him and it makes me smile again. I appreciate my sister’s worry, and she’s right, all winning streaks come to an end. But I don’t feel ready to give up the fight, not just yet.
Isla blows out a frustrated sigh before turning to face me. “Be careful.” She points what she thinks is an intimidating finger at me.
“Love you,” I just say with a smile. I watch as she turns away, the ghost of a smile on her lips.
Leo just shakes his head with a smile, and the look we share makes a feeling surge in my chest. One I don’t recognize. One that makes me feel like I’m part of something, like I share something with this group of people.
“Alright then, huddle up,” Leo says like he’s talking to an entire basketball team, not just me.
He gives me another gulp of water, followed by a clap on the shoulder.
“Now, your sister is sitting over there, scared. No doubt, Caio is doing a flimsy job at calming her down. I don’t think he’s a big fan of blood.
” When I look over to where they’re sitting in the crowd, Caio does look slightly squeamish, but beside him, May gives me a wave, looking like she’s completely in her element.
I shouldn’t be surprised. “So you need to show her you know how to fight, okay?”
“I do know how to fight, Leo.”
“ I know that, and you know that, but…” He forgets whatever he was saying as his gaze is fixed on something over my shoulder.
The crowd's faces have the same vacant look, and it forces me to turn around.
When I do, I wish I had bowed out like Isla suggested, because standing on the other side of the ring is Boulder.